Mobb Deep

Mobb Deep were an American hip-hop duo from Queensbridge, New York City, consisting of rapper and producer Havoc (Kejuan Muchita) and rapper Prodigy (Albert Johnson). They are among the most respected acts in East Coast hardcore rap, their music defined by bleak, claustrophobic production and brutally honest lyrics about street life, violence, and mortality. Their debut Juvenile Hell (1993) arrived when both members were teenagers and received a modest reception. The Infamous (1995), their second album and commercial breakthrough, is considered one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever made — a dense, cold record built on Havoc's minimalist, sample-based production and Prodigy's unflinching street narratives. Shook Ones Pt. II, one of hip-hop's defining tracks, appeared here. Hell on Earth (1996) followed in the same vein, if anything bleaker in tone, consolidating their reputation as the premier voices of New York's most hardened hip-hop. Murda Muzik (1999) went platinum and contained the single Quiet Storm. Subsequent records through the 2000s — Infamy (2001), Free Agents (2003), Blood Money (2006) — found the duo maintaining their audience while never quite matching the impact of their mid-90s peak. Prodigy died in June 2017 from complications related to sickle cell anaemia while incarcerated. He was 42. Havoc has continued performing and recording. Mobb Deep's influence on East Coast rap production and lyricism has been enormous and enduring.