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In to Mobb Deep
The two teamed together first as far back as the 1980s, when they both went to high school together in New York City. Their first name-revealing their artistic side-was the Poetical Profits, and Prodigy at the time did most of the rapping, while Havoc played the part of the producer.
Right about this time, when the two were just the ripe young age of 17, the first Mobb Deep album came out, titled "Juvenile Hell." It did not do well, despite the fact that a few of the Mobb Deep singles off of it, such as "Me and My Crew" and "Hit It From the Back" got some props.
A Triple Double
The double-teaming rap team hit a bit of a snag, though. Did they go to the army? Did he get hooked on drugs? Not that at all. While still 17, Havoc got his girl pregnant, and she didn't have one baby. She had triplets. That left Havoc with a lot to do , so Mobb Deep was forced in hiatus for a while. Where'd that leave Prodigy?
Don't worry. It wasn't that long. About two years later, in 1995, the tandem came back with a vengeance. The produced was is perhaps one of the most classic East Coast rap albums in the history of the genre. You heard that right.
The Mobb Deep record was "The Infamous." The biggest track off the album was the Mobb Deep song "Shook One Pt. II." The beauty of the song and the album were Prodigy's stark words and descriptions of living on the streets. While the consummate producer Havoc looped in heavy, drilling beats.
Mobbed With Fans
Prodigy and Havoc followed their huge album up with the third Mobb Deep record, titled "Hell on Earth." They had developed such a name and a following that this record came out number six with Billboard. Again, the duo stuck to their guns with an unnerving look at street life-the same kind of East Coast realism that other successful acts were putting out, like Biggie, Nas, and Wu-Tang.
How high could they go? Even higher. The 1999 Mobb Deep record "Murda Muzik" eventually went platinum after coming out number three with Billboard. The top Mobb Deep single at the time was "Quiet Storm."
With success can come problems, though, as anybody who follows hip hop knows. What did that mean for Mobb Deep? Well, for starters, Prodigy went solo for a time, with his first album "HNIC."
Selling Out and Controversy
Is that all that happened to that band, a minor breakup? To roll it up bluntly, no. One of the biggest problems for Mobb Deep in the late 1990s was that Prodigy and the West Coast scene (including Snoop and Tupac) started having issues. Then Jay-Z started going at it with Prodigy, in subtle ways in songs and in not so subtle ways. Remember the photo that Jay-Z released of Prodigy dressed like Michael Jackson? Not pretty.
What also hurt Mobb Deep was their change of style, starting when they reunited for the "Infamy" album in 2001. Listen to Mobb Deep here, and you get the feeling that they were starting to shoot for those suburban kids. This was followed by "Free Agents" in 2003 and "Amerikaz Nightmare" in 2004, both of which did not bring in the big bucks.
But hope lingers. They joined G-Unit Records and 50 Cent. They came out with another Mobb Deep record on this label, "Blood Money." There is a feud between 50 Cent and Havoc, and Prodigy's looking at 3.5 years in jail for a gun charge. But at least we have the old Mobb Deep lyrics to listen back on.
