photos by Toby Tenenbaum, words by BBG

Last night's posted set times:
7:00PM-8:00-DJ JEFF CHAIRMAN MAO
8:00-8:30-BLACK THOUGHT & MONEY MAKING JAM BOYS
8:30-9:00-DJ STRETCH ARMSTRONG
9:00-10:00-GHOSTFACE & RAEKWON
10:00-10:15-DJ STRETCH ARMSTRONG
10:15-11:30-MOBB DEEP

The welcome home Mobb Deep show for Prodigy last night at Best Buy Theater (5/12), their first in three years, featured appearances from some of the biggest names of the 90's. Method Man appeared during fellow Wu-Tang Clan members Ghostface & Raekwon's set, and again during a DJ set from one of the crew's biggest supporters in their early years, DJ Stretch Armstrong. Ghost & Rae closed with Ol' Dirty Bastard classic and crowd favorite "Shimmy Shimmy Ya".

Unlike in the days before the release of their classic LP The Infamous, Queensbridge duo Mobb Deep did not freestyle rhymes over Stretch beats, but Black Thought did open the show dropping freestyle verses before The Money Making Jam Boys joined him on stage.

And the 41st side crew had a surprise of their own during their headlining set, bringing out Lil Kim for a rendition of the awesome "Quiet Storm". Video of that, Mobb Deep performing "Burn" and "Right Back At You", and more pictures from the whole show, below...

Continue reading "Mobb Deep returned @ Best Buy Theater w/ Black Thought, Ghostface, Raekwon, Stretch Armstrong & more (pics & video)"

Havoc & Prodigy of Mobb Deep

"Three years away from the rap game is a potentially career killing lifetime for most rappers. For Prodigy, one half of the legendary New York mainstays Mobb Deep, the time off from rap has not been entirely fruitless as he's been officialy released from Mid-State Correctional Facility after serving a three-year prison stint.

In October 2006, Albert "Prodigy" Johnson was driving his SUV in New York City with longtime producer and friend Alan "The Alchemist" Maman and after making an illegal U-turn, his vehicle was searched by police. After finding a small pistol in a compartment, the pair were arrested and subsequently released on bond with pending charges." -[MTV News]

NYC hip hop greats Mobb Deep will celebrate Prodigy's return with a show at Best Buy Theater on May 12th featuring appearances from Ghostface Killah (wow), Raekwon (more wow), Black Thought & The Money Making Jam Boys, and DJ Stretch Armstrong among others. Tickets go on AmEx presale at noon today (3/23) and regular sale on Friday.

The NYC show comes less than a month after the release of Prodigy's autobiography entitled "My Infamous Life: The Autobiography of Mobb Deep's Prodigy."...

"I've been in the music industry since I was sixteen years old, touring the world, selling millions of albums--groupies, drugs, alcohol, sex, radio, TV, magazines, videos, money, jewelry, cars, fashion, rap verses, beats, and studios at my disposal for seventeen years straight. Nonstop. I came to prison when I turned 33. The truth is, I never took the time to mature mentally until now, to step outside of my little fast-paced world and see what needed to be adjusted. It's like I was suspended in time. Like I was sixteen years old for seventeen years. I never grew up. My hardheaded ass took the long hard road to get to this point, but at least I've finally made it. I'm a man now." - Prodigy

You can also catch Prodigy in a bookstore near you in April. He'll be speaking at PowerHouse Arena in Brooklyn on April 20th.

In related news, Raekwon, who recently celebrated the release of his new LP at MHOW, will join The Lox, EPMD, Brand Nubian, and Nice & Smooth for a show at Best Buy Theater on April 13th as part of a "Salute to Hip Hop". Tickets are still available.

Mobb Deep recently dropped a new song produced by Alchemist, "Love Y'all More". Stream that, check out an interview with Alchemist, and some other videos below...

Continue reading "Prodigy out of jail & wrote a book, Mobb Deep released a new song, scheduled a show w/ Ghostface, Raekwon & more"

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........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. [Wikipedia]

* Prodigy's going away party is @ BB King's
* Super Tuesday crowned no nominees
* The Spice Girls are playing Nassau Coliseum
* The Dillinger Escape Plan is playing Conan
* Heath Ledger's death caused by accidental overdose
* Cat Power & Dirty Delta Blues are playing Terminal 5
* listen to Cat Power on WNYC

Videos from Cat Power's recent appearance on Jools Holland below. What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Wednesday? (Prodigy)"