Prodigy Biography

Prodigy Biography

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.

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.[1]

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.