The H.N.I.C. Pt. 2 Gathering At Smash Studios, NYC
Events By TSSCrew on April 19, 2008 at 3:13 pmWords By Khalid Strickland
Pics By Eric Russ
On Thursday, I attended the listening party for Prodigy’s latest album, H.N.I.C. Pt. 2, at Smash Studios in NYC and it was a pretty cool event. After indulging in the catered soul food and Hennessey that was on hand, I went into one of Smash’s many sound-proofed rooms to preview P’s latest jump-off, along with the other journalists in attendance. Close friends and affiliates of Mobb Deep such as Big Noyd, Un Pacino and Superb (Supreme Clientele’s alleged ghostwriter, no pun intended) also soaked in the album; heads around the room nodded to the concrete-hard beats emanating from the studio’s massive speakers. With top-notch production by The Alchemist and P’s longtime co-defendant Havoc anchoring H.N.I.C. Pt. 2, heads had no choice but to nod.
The album is a welcome return to Prodigy’s dark, edgy and gleefully grimy roots. There’s no gloss to be found here. Voxonic, the company which will be releasing H.N.I.C. Pt. 2 on its Vox Music imprint, has developed software that can translate the album into various languages, using Prodigy’s own voice. Prodigy will be the first Hip-Hop artist to usher in this new technology and challenge the traditional marketing methods. Now the entire world can hear that NYC gutter shit in their native tongue.
Eventually, Havoc and Alchemist showed up at Smash Studios to face the press and speak on behalf of their locked-up comrade. Before the PR people got things under control, the media session was more like a free-for-all. I had to throw some ‘bows to get through the mosh-pit of unruly journalists, photographers and star-struck groupies (both female & male), but I got to chop it up with Hav and Al. I asked a media-weary (and most likely blunted) Havoc what P’s current incarceration means for Mobb Deep in general.
“On a different level, fuck rap… as a person and my brother that I knew for half of my life, it’s a missing piece of the puzzle obviously,” Havoc replied. “Nobody don’t want to see their peoples in jail. I’m just hoping for the best and a quick return.”
“We’re like brothers, and I think a lot of groups, they don’t have that same feeling towards each other,” Havoc explained, touching on how Mobb Deep has hung tough all these years. “So they might have a fallout that they can’t repair. Me and him could never have the kind of fallout that we can’t never repair. Of course, we’ve had our fallouts, like brothers. Brothers fight, but so what? It ain’t gonna fuck with the music.”
With so many rappers getting arrested for gun-related crimes, a lot of critics are quick to rush to judgment. They may not understand the circumstances that make some artists feel that they have to pack a piece. Hav wasn’t concerned about their opinions, however.
“Everybody got their own reasons why they might walk around with what they walk around with. And it ain’t for people to judge, na’mean? If you want to judge, that’s your business. It ain’t my problem. I don’t care either way so it don’t bother me.”
Alchemist, like Havoc, seems to bring out the best in Prodigy with his rugged production. Al and P have gelled on numerous projects, including the hot Return of the Mac mixtape, so I asked him what made working with Prodigy different from collaborating with other artists.
“P just stays on the couch, we’re basically in the same crib for weeks at a time sometimes,” expounded Alchemist. “So it ain’t even like work really. We just do what we do. In the outcome, we get paid to do what we do. But really, working with P… it’s nothing. (We’re) both Scorpios, so we’re both stubborn. He knows how he wants to lay his rhymes, so I can give him a little direction but he really is focused. It’s a blessing to work with Mobb Deep, Hav and P in general.”
In contrast to most of the glittery, straight-off-the-assembly line beats that glaze the airwaves, Alchemist’s production is dusty, grimy and organic. But Al, far from a staunch elitist, has appreciation for all styles of Hip-Hop music.
“I like how things are going, man,” Alchemist said of Hip-Hop music. “It dips and dives. It’s such a big genre that you couldn’t really even generalize where it’s really going. That shit has like, thirty-seven heads going in so many different directions. But what reaches the masses, what I’ve been hearing, is dope. I do different and that’s the one thing I think they would respect as well.”
H.N.I.C. Pt. 2 hit stores on 4.22.08.
Catch Prodigy droppin’ bi-weekly blog entries @ Vibe.com while serving his prison sentence.
Prodigy HNIC Pt. 2 EPK
Click here to see additional pics from The H.N.I.C. Pt. 2 Gathering @ Smash Studios, NYC.
Previously Posted — TSS Presents Smoking Sessions With Prodigy | Prodigy Feat. Havoc & Un Pacino – I Want Out | Prodigy – “The Life” Video
Posted in Events, GENERAL, SMOKE BREAK — Tags: Album Listening, Big Noyd, Havoc, HNIC Pt. 2, Mobb Deep, Prodigy, Un Pacino
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42 Comments
foist up to bat…….
lets go.
the pictures are all pixelated
This album is dope!!! I was blessed enough to get a retail copy on Friday at HMV; one of the dudes working in the stockroom was cool enough to slip me a copy ahead of the April 22nd release date (NICE!!!). There’s even a bonus video on the disc for the “Dirty New Yorker” track!!!
@ Flea
Why don’t you upload that Buckshot an 9th Wonder?
uhhhh did i miss something? flea, u got that Buck and 9th joint? up it if u do…
Drank a yak, smoke a sack, kick back like a fat mack
http://www.spinemagazine.com/music/april/prodigy/cutemshort.mp3 @flea.
Verig Oodfee Ling. Pea Ceyall !
http://www.megaupload.com/fr/?d=2ZU7G3HQ
Craig David – Trust Me (2007).rar 40 mo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU1TESLOXYs
sorrey, anda new vid.
FYI, if you’re talking about the first image i designed that picture to be pixelated. if you notice… their faces and the text are clear. if you’re talking about the thumbnails.. well, it’s not that the site is designed to NOT work on Internet Explorer, it’s just that IE decides to do gay shit sometimes. thank you, have a good day.
I knew what you was trying to do P. fuck these nuetrons.
jk
@ Dunny & Sherm: It’s on the way my dudes.
@ P – nah, the first picture is fine…i like how you flipped it…the ones at the bottom are all pixelated…it’s all good, i (ahem) use IE (hangs head in shame)…i need firefox
@ flea – good shit mayne…u da bess
what’s Lord Superb up to? ALWAYS wanted to hear a solo from him…. my favorite Killa Bee hands down
stoudamire and duncan are putting on a clinic!!!
no lie, when i was typing that shit about IE, my IE shit the bed and now it’s all fucked up…i think my computer told microsoft i was talkin shit and it sabotaged me yo
LMAO
lol @ sherm.
the streets is talkin
yo Sherm, get Firefox and just be done w/it. In 2 days you’ll never wanna deal w/ goofy azz IE ever again…
and…… hi P
*cheesey smile*
hiiiii! :D
i get some sort of different hompage with no bg and no pics…layout change pending???
@ Sherm & Dunny: Here ya go ya’ll
BuckShot & 9th Wonder: The Formula
http://www.zshare.net/download/10815698daf962b6/
Enjoy!!!
good looks my nigga!!!!1
thx nga
@ Dunny: No problem, this is my first ever upload. I encoded the tracks at 192kbps because apparently 320kbps is too “big ” to upload. Tell me how it sounds though aiiight??? Peace!!!
txh a tol
Fle@@
that’s da formula !!!! damnshit! fffffv
to strong. 9th,Shot,.. kWeLi ..mor’
here we go ya2l
peace iall
good look flea – been waitin for this joint…i’ll prolly cop a hard copy just to support the bcc fam…u gotta show love for a crew that’s stayed true all these years
Anybody know any good O’seas hiphop mags that want a super-tight Buckshot interview. Talkin bout Gods and earfs and all that, yo. Lemme know. australia, England..whatever..Yo, if you can translate, even Japan or France.
gracias.
catered soul food and Hennessey
========
Dude. Not okay.
In many ways tho, its the essence of Negros.
Prodigy’s new album is hot!!! Got it yesterday….
MAD PROPS TO PRODIGY ON THIS HNIC 2 JOINT… THE ALBUM AND NEW SINGLE IS HOT!
Man! that new prodigy ablum is hot!. Go cop one, you dont know what your missing!
If you guys took the time out to control your own life and stop making comments on another man since when was it good to keep another man name in your mouth p is in jail and you niggas still talking bout saigone his album is never coming out and since when is it real to snuff some one and run no matter how many niggas he claim was coming he should of hit some more people i wasnt there and i seen the footage he was running like a track star not a rap star why hit some one and then run that’s not gangsta this is Jahard from Farrock free P
This is Jahard aka Humma on that superb shit i grew up with perb and iam his manager yeah he wrote for ghost it was business. Ghost can say what he want but if perb was’nt on that album or never wrote anything for him that album would not been as hot perb has a level of energy he brings to the table. Rap stands for reality about people and you niggas be tellin lies perb just rap about the shit he been threw not all tha lies you rappers think will make you hot well it’s not be original and that’s what my niggas are doing Farrock America Shout outs un pacino , Lord Superb, Boogz , H Brando, common corner boys Semi , Perry, Ace,
If i lert you out get it in then……
Jahard yes Iam The President of Farrock America
MY BOY P GOT A HNIC 2 VIDEO COLLECTION HITTIN DA STREETS NEXT WEEK! PRODIGY FANS GO GET IT!
man forget what you have heard, the new single, ‘I want out’ go cop that as well as the cop HNIC video collection coming soon!
The Real Jahard From Brookyln queens aka Hummer aka from Taadow Clothing Company, LEAK wEAR, hIT ME UP @ FAROCKAMERICA@GMAIL.COM Business and fans