One-half of the classic Hip-Hop duo Mobb Deep, Prodigy, lost his fight with sickle cell anemia last week and passed away on June 20 at the age of 42. The New York native was honored Sunday night (June 26) by his partner in rhyme, Havoc, and Lil Kim during their presentation of the Best Male Hip-Hop Artist at the BET Awards.
“This week, hip-hop suffered a painful loss, with the sudden passing of our brother, Prodigy,” Lil’ Kim began. “His pen painted vivid pictures of street life. He made what was ugly sound beautiful.”
“For over 20 years, he and I went through it all, and seen it all. I’m going to miss my dude,” Havoc added. “This loss is painful. But the lyrical legacy he left us will impact the culture forever. Rest in peace, Prodigy. My brother.”
“We love you so much,” Lil Kim said. “We will never stop repping you. Forever, you live with us.”
Upon receiving his award, the veteran rapper also received a surprise mention from Kendrick Lamar.
“Hip-hop. Prodigy,” the Compton rapper said. “I said Prodigy…Prodigy inspired my first mixtape at 16 years old. YHICH. Believe that. Off that album, I was inspired to study my skill and work on my connection with my neighborhood and how can I inspire them the same way that he inspired the streets. You know’um tombot. So with that being said, with hip-hop, may he rest forever in paradise.”
Prodigy, real name Albert Johnson, was found unresponsive and was pronounced dead. In a statement sent to XXL, the rapper’s publicist revealed that Prodigy was hospitalized earlier this week after a show in Las Vegas.
“It is with extreme sadness and disbelief that we confirm the death of our dear friend Albert Johnson, better known to millions of fans as Prodigy of legendary NY rap duo Mobb Deep. Prodigy was hospitalized a few days ago in Vegas after a Mobb Deep performance for complications caused by a sickle cell anemia crisis. As most of his fans know, Prodigy battled the disease since birth. The exact causes of death have yet to be determined. We would like to thank everyone for respecting the family’s privacy at this time.”
Prodigy formed Mobb Deep with Havoc in the early ’90s, releasing their debut album, Juvenile Hell, in 1993. Their 1995 sophomore album, The Infamous, is labeled as one of the most classic and influential albums in Hip-Hop birthing the hit records “Survival of the Fittest”, “Temperature’s Rising”, and “Shook Ones.”
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