Big Smo previously released two albums through Yayoda Records, and self-released three other studio albums.[1][2][3] He then signed to Warner Bros.'s Elektra Nashville label, and released two extended plays, Grass Roots EP in 2012 and 2013's Backwoods Whiskey.[2][4]Kuntry Livin' marks Big Smo's the major-label debut, and was produced by Jon Conner and Orig.[3][5]
According to Matt Bjorke of Roughstock, Big Smo is one of the foremost artists in a style known as rural rap or hick-hop, "which blends rural, Country themes and melodies with some rap elements (production and vocal delivery)".[6] The music on Kuntry Livin' has been described as spinning "rap rhymes about working-class values over hard-rock riffs".[7]
Kuntry Livin' met with a moderate reception from music critics. At USA Today, Brian Mansfield rated the album two-and-a-half stars out of four, remarking how Big Smo's "cadences sound too similar, but the best connect like a hammer".[7] David Jeffries of AllMusic rated the album three-and-a-half stars out of five, proclaiming that while "the corporate cornpone formula will pay off splendidly", the release "can't be written off so easily."[5] At Newsday, Verne Gay graded the album a C+, cautioning in his bottom line that "This (almost) music-free opener makes you wonder what the fuss is about."[8] Matt Bjorke of Roughstock rated the album three-and-a-half stars out of five, highlighting how "Those that open their ears may just find themselves tapping their toes or nodding their head along to the rhythmic Rural Rap".[6]
For the Billboard charting week of June 21, 2014, Kuntry Livin' charted as the No. 31 most sold album according to the Billboard 200. It charted as the No. 9 in the Top Country Albums market with 9,000 copies sold,[9] and it sold enough to chart at No. 3 on the Rap Albums chart. As of July 2015, the album has sold 151,400 copies in the US.[10]
[5]