Mobb Deep

Mobb Deep is a hip-hop duo from Queensbridge, New York, active from 1993 to 2017. The group consists of Havoc, Prodigy and QB Finest, and is associated with boom bap, East Coast hip hop, gangsta rap, hardcore hip hop and hip hop. It is known as a QB hip hop duo made up of Prodigy and Havoc.

Formation and early work

Havoc and Prodigy meet while attending the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan. In 1990 they form a duo under the name Poetical Prophets and begin recording demo material. They promote their music independently, then attract the attention of Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest, who introduces them to industry figures including Chris Lighty. Prodigy also records an uncredited appearance on Hi-Five’s “Too Young”. In 1991 Poetical Prophets appear in The Source magazine’s “Unsigned Hype” column, raising their profile. The duo later changes its name to Mobb Deep and signs with 4th & B’way Records in 1992.

Albums and key songs

Mobb Deep releases its debut album, Juvenile Hell, in 1993. The album includes production from DJ Premier, Large Professor and Kerwin Young, and is preceded by the single “Peer Pressure”. The group’s second album, The Infamous, appears in 1995 and becomes its wider breakthrough. Havoc handles most of the production, with contributions from Q-Tip, and the album includes “Shook Ones, Part II”. Its subject matter draws on life in the Queensbridge Houses, where Havoc grows up, and it later appears on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

The duo follows with Hell on Earth in 1996, which debuts at number six on the Billboard album chart. The album features Nas and members of Wu-Tang Clan, including Method Man, Ghostface Killah and Raekwon. During the East Coast–West Coast hip-hop rivalry, Mobb Deep responds to Tha Dogg Pound’s “New York, New York” with “L.A. L.A.” alongside Capone-N-Noreaga and Tragedy Khadafi. Tupac Shakur later references the group in diss tracks including “Hit ’Em Up” and “Against All Odds”, and Mobb Deep responds with “Drop a Gem on ’Em” from Hell on Earth.

In 1999 the duo releases Murda Muzik after delays caused by bootlegged leaks. The album debuts at number three on the Billboard 200 and is certified platinum. It includes “Quiet Storm”, a track linked with the popularisation of the slang term “dunn”. The group later releases Infamy in 2001, including “Burn” featuring Vita, which some commentators read as a response to Jay-Z’s “Takeover”.

Later career

In 2003 Mobb Deep leaves Loud Records and releases the mixtape Free Agents: The Murda Mixtape. Later that year it signs with Jive Records and issues Amerikaz Nightmare in 2004. In 2005 the group signs with G-Unit Records. Its seventh studio album, Blood Money, follows in 2006 and includes appearances by 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo, Young Buck, Mary J. Blige and Nate Dogg. That same year Mobb Deep becomes the first American hip-hop duo to perform in India, as part of the VH1 event Hip Hop Hustle.

The duo leaves G-Unit in 2009. In 2011 it releases the single “Dog Shit” featuring Nas. In 2012 Mobb Deep announces an indefinite hiatus after a public dispute between the members, but reunites in 2013 and undertakes a 20th anniversary tour. In 2014 it releases The Infamous Mobb Deep, a double album combining new material with previously unreleased recordings from the The Infamous sessions.

Legacy and related work

Mobb Deep is widely associated with dark production and lyrics focused on urban life, and is noted for its influence within East Coast hip-hop. The duo sells over three million records. It also appears as playable characters in the video game Def Jam: Fight for NY. In 2019 Havoc undertakes a Murda Muzik 20th Anniversary Tour with Big Noyd and L.E.S. Prodigy dies in 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada, after choking while hospitalised for complications related to sickle cell anaemia.