Prodigy (rapper)

Prodigy

Albert Johnson (born November 2 1974), better known as Prodigy, is an American rapper and one-half of the hip-hop duo Mobb Deep with Havoc.

Biography

Early life

Born in Hempstead, New York, on Long Island, Prodigy is generally considered to be the more lyrically skilled member of the duo Mobb Deep. He was born to parents of Ethiopian and Jamaican descent. Prodigy spent years making a name for himself alongside partner Havoc on albums such as The Infamous 1995, and Hell on Earth in 1996, before releasing his first solo album, H.N.I.C., on Loud Records in late 2000. In this album, Prodigy teamed up with a roster of outside producers such as the Alchemist and Rockwilder, trying to prove his own without Havoc's production to carry him. Even though Havoc did appear on two tracks, Prodigy undoubtedly proved himself to be a visionary solo artist, even going as far as to produce a couple songs himself. Though the album didn't elevate him to the superstar status of Jay-Z or DMX, he did win the hearts of both critics and fans alike as he had with his work in Mobb Deep, dropping harsh reality-based rhymes about the darker side of urban life with an unbalanced and sedate flow.

Mobb Deep members Prodigy and Havoc originally met while both attending the prestigious Art and Design High School in Manhattan as teenagers, thanks to their mutual residence in Queens and passion for hip-hop. The duo released their debut album in 1993, Juvenile Hell, on the Fourth & Broadway label. Though the album was not very successful from either a financial or critical standpoint, it did feature production by hip-hop legend Large Professor, and it did serve as a fitting platform for the duo to launch their careers; not only did the duo produce most of its own beats, but it also crafted its own style: a street-smart and poetic approach that centred on the ghetto lifestyle surrounding them. Their brutally honest reality rhyming and complimentary melancholy beats landed them a deal with the up-and-coming Loud/RCA/BMG label in 1995, resulting in their first major-label release, The Infamous.

Prodigy has two children, T'Shaka, 11, and Tasia, 8. He has been diagnosed with Sickle Cell Anemia.

Debut album

Propelled to awareness partially by fellow Queens rapper Nas, who took a similar approach lyrically on his championed Illmatic album from 1994, as well as with the aid of a successful single, "Shook Ones Pt. 2," Mobb Deep suddenly found themselves developing a quickly growing cult following. A year later, in 1996, Prodigy and Havoc released Hell on Earth; debuting at number six on SoundScan, the album found them fully realizing their approach, dropping both evocative beats and cinematic rhymes that communicated the dark side of New York's urban landscape. Thanks to a grim video for "Hell on Earth (Front Lines)" and theatrical Scarface-like photos inside the CD booklet picturing the duo with guns and a mound of cocaine, Mobb Deep had created an elaborate image for themselves that took hardcore gangsta rap to a new level for East Coast hip hop. Its next release, Murda Muzik, was heavily bootlegged while still in its demo stage, leaking rough versions of the nearly 30 songs the duo had recorded onto the streets and over the internet.

Months after the bootlegs leaked and after several pushed-back street dates, Murda Muzik was formally released, debuting at number three on the Billboard charts and quickly going platinum on the strength of "Quiet Storm," a song that epitomized the Mobb Deep style. The album was welcomed by critics, who again lauded the group's lucid cinematics, driven primarily by Havoc's production. In late 2000, Prodigy finally released his long-rumoured solo album, H.N.I.C., which saw the more lyrically gifted member of the group collaborating with outside producers such as the Alchemist and Rockwilder on tracks that didn't depart far from the trademark sullen Mobb Deep style. Their follow-up, Infamy, was the duo’s last album for Loud, distributed by Columbia Records at that stage was a disappointment lyrically and musically. Loud was absorbed by its new distributor shortly afterwards.

Mobb Deep then signed with Jive, under a unique deal that gave the duo its own imprint, Infamous Records, and released Amerika'z Nightmare, a very uneven effort, which featured production by The Alchemist and Lil' Jon. However, despite a successful single that featured a Thomas Dolby sample. The duo was not happy with Jive, and were let go at its request. The duo took a hiatus afterwards and came back in 2006, signing to 50 Cent’s Interscope/Universal-distributed G-Unit imprint. Their well-hyped album Blood Money was a failure from the money side when compared to fellow label mates like 50 Cent, Young Buck and Lloyd Banks. Some accused the duo of selling out, with their beats and rhymes not up-to-par with previous efforts on Loud.

Prodigy has also been sampled on several occasions on tracks by MCs and groups such as: Big Pun (Beware), Immortal Technique (Dance With The Devil), Xzibit (Eyes May Shine), Rakim (The Saga Begins), Fat Joe (The Crack Attack), Jedi Mind Tricks (Heavy Metal Kings), Jay-Z (D'Evils), Common (The 6th Sense), Kool G. Rap (Enter The Dragon), The Beatnuts (Becks 'n Branson), C-Rayz Walz (New York Shitty) and others.

Recent events

He is currently working on his second solo album H.N.I.C. Part 2, which is previewed on his official mixtape The Return of the Mac on the independent label Koch Records. The mixtape single and mixtape video is called "Mac 10 Handle," and it shows Prodigy once again reverting to his trademark braids that he had prior to the release of Mobb Deep's 2004 Amerika'z Nightmare album from the short fade he had from 2004 to 2006. H.N.I.C. 2 is scheduled to be released through Voxonic Inc., of which Prodigy is an equity holder.

In April of 2007, Infamous Films announced that Prodigy will star and Executive Produce his next indie-film H.N.I.C. In addition to Prodigy, the film will star Hassan Johnson (HBO's The Wire), J.D. Williams (HBO's The Wire), Davetta Sherwood (The Young and The Restless), Rick Gonzalez (Coach Carter), among others. The film is described as a genre-bending story, though the exact story and the details are being kept under wraps. Production is scheduled for Spring 2007.

On October 9, 2007, Prodigy plead guilty to unlawful gun possession charges. Since this was his third gun conviction, he was facing a fifteen-year sentence, however, he has struck a plea bargain giving him a commuted sentence of 3 1/2 years. Prodigy maintains the search of his car was an illegal search prompted by a traffic violation, and unwillingness to cooperate with the police in a buy and bust operation targeting rapper 50 Cent.

Discography

Albums

Album information
H.N.I.C. Released: November 14 2000 U.S. Sales: 700,000+ Certification: RIAA Certified Gold U.S. Chart position: R&B/Hip-Hop chart position: Singles: "Keep It Thoro", "Rock Dat", "Y.B.E."
Return of the Mac Released: March 27 2007 U.S. Sales: 45,990 Certification: Billboard chart position: #32 Singles: "Mac 10 Handle", "Stuck On You"
H.N.I.C. 2 Released: March 2008 [1] U.S. Sales: Certification: Billboard chart position: Singles: ABC

Singles

• "Mac 10 Handle" (2006)
• "New York Shit" (2006)
• "Stuck To You" (2007)
• "7th Heaven" (2007)

External links

• Template:MySpace
• Template:MySpace (2nd page)
• Mobb on YouTube
• "Prodigy: Mac Attack" - interview with SoundSlam
• Interview with Format Magazine
• H.N.I.C. Movie info at NationofMillions.com