Prodigy of Mobb Deep dead at 42

Fani Willis fan

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FreshAIG said:
http://www.cnn.com/2017/06/20/entertainment/prodigy-mobb-deep-dead/index.html

(CNN)Rapper Prodigy, one half of the influential hip hop duo Mobb Deep has died, according to a co-author on one of his books, Kathy Iandoli.

He was 42.
A cause of death has not been released, but the rapper had been hospitalized for complications caused by sickle cell anemia prior to his death, Iandoli told CNN.

Prodigy had been in Las Vegas for a Mobb Deep performance.
Born Albert Johnson, the rapper's family had a storied history.
His great-great-great-grandfather, William Jefferson White, founded Georgia's Morehouse College in the basement of his Baptist church.
His grandfather, Albert "Budd" Johnson, was a saxophonist and clarinetist for Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Count Basie and Benny Goodman.
Johnson met fellow Queens, New York native Kejuan Muchita when they were both freshman at Manhattan's High School of Art and Design.
The pair bonded over their shared love of hip hop and formed Mobb Deep. Johnson took the moniker Prodigy, while Muchita chose the performance name Havoc.
They scored a record deal as teens and released the album "Juvenile Hell" in 1993.
The project didn't generate much buzz, but the duo found more success with their sophomore album "The Infamous."
With its gritty rhymes and contributions by the artists Nas and Raekwon, the album helped launch Mobb Deep to the top of the hardcore, hip hop ladder.
Their 1996 follow-up, "Hell on Earth," included the single "Drop a Gem on 'Em," which was a response to a Tupac diss track, "Hit 'Em Up."
Prodigy detailed his beef with Tupac in a 2012 interview with Hip Hop DX.
"When we made 'The Infamous,' we had a song called 'Survival of the Fittest,'" the rapper explained. " On that song, in the beginning, my man that came home from jail...in the beginning of the song, he says, 'Thug life, we still living.'"
"Tupac was the one who was most known for saying that," Prodigy said. "So I think that pissed Tupac off a little bit."
Mobb Deep was entangled in the East Coast/West Coast rapper rivalry of the '90s.
After West Coast rappers Snoop Dogg and Tha Dogg Pound released the single "New York, New York," Mobb Deep, along with Capone-N-Noreaga and Tragedy Khadafi, countered with the track "L.A L.A."
Mobb Deep released several successful albums, including "Murda Muzik" (1999), "Infamy" (2001), "Amerikaz Nightmare" (2004) and "Blood Money" (2006).
Two of their biggest hits were "Quiet Storm" and "Shook Ones."
Being a part of Mobb Deep didn't keep Johnson from solo projects like his album "H.N.I.C."
He also appeared on collaborative projects such as 2007's "Return of the Mac" and 2013's "Albert Einstein."
Johnson had some legal troubles. In 2007, he was sentenced to three years in prison for illegal possession of a firearm.
He detailed that incident and more in his memoir "My Infamous Life: The Autobiography of Mobb Deep's Prodigy."
"There were too many other adventures to squeeze in: his family's rich historical and musical legacy; his lifelong battle with sickle cell anemia; UFO sightings; episodes with Lindsay Lohan, Mary J. Blige, and Lil' Kim; and his contributions to the golden era of hip-hop," Johnson's memoir co-author, Laura Checkoway, wrote in a 2011 piece for the Village Voice.
In 2016, the rapper published "Commissary Kitchen: My Infamous Prison Cookbook" with Iandoli, which contained recipes and stories about the food he experienced while in prison.
Johnson was mourned on social media Tuesday by many fellow artists, including rapper Nas, who was the first to post about Johnson's death.
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This is how you properly report on death of a music icon. Dont know why people paying TMZ no mind
 
TheDarceKnight

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-RigorMortician- said:
Gotta say I became an even bigger fan because of the coli.

I got put onto the Mobb pretty late at about 2003 I was 13 real gangstaz with lil Jon was actually the first mobb deep song I heard:francis: it was a banger though

When I properly got into hip hop it was kinda late.
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fukk that shyt breh. You got into Mobb! You can't help when you were born. You heard one of their weaker joints but cared enough to dig deeper. respect on that!

You may have got in late but you got in!

Insert P salute smiley here!
 
DaveyDave

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diggy said:
Such a sad day for hip hop fans. P was one of our faves and his music is timeless. Been playing a lot of Mobb again recently, it's always in the rotation at some point and after today it'll be on repeat heavy. This one really hurt the heart. #RIP
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I only just put Infamous back in the phone and been listening to it the last few days. I'll put all that Mobb shyt on when I get home and have a binge
 
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vernestbrown said:
Im still in shock. I grew up on the mans music and he was always one of my favorites. Cant imagine what his kids, Hav and Alchemist going through right now. R.I.P. to one of the best to ever do it.
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Got damn man this is fukked up. Dude is one of the best ever and just dropped some shyt.

fukk man it is a damn shame so many of these great rea hip hop kats are passing away.

Also sickle cell disease aint no joke. Folks with the disease have a high probability of having a shorter life span than most folks.
 
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DonRe said:
I'm mad man. Man was legend. Made legendary music. Was on his hustle with the healthy lifestyle lane.

May god be with his soul and family/loved ones.

But damn if it doesn't take death and tradegy for radio to play great legends music. It can't be like this.

This culture history is lost when those who added to this culture don't get recognition. It has to be constant. An everyday reminder of those who made this culture great.
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Great points. Hip hop was fathered by jazz, what radio stations are playing Miles Coltrane and Armstrong. The same will be said about hip hop in the not too distant future.
 
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