With a bit more than a week left until he begins a three and a half year prison bid, Prodigy of Mobb Deep gave a farewell performance this past week at New York City’s B.B. Kings. A crowd of approximately two hundred people, mostly thugs with a female sprinkled here and there; made it clear Queens was in the house. HOT 97’s Paul Rosendberg manned the wheels; as he spun selections from the classic 90’s era to set the proper mood. The legendary Mister Cee hosted on the microphone, gearing everyone up for the show.
The evening officially began with an opening performance from G-Unit’s third string artist Mazaradi Fox. Along with his Dum Out crew, yes D-U-M O-U-T, his unbearable performance was filled with numerous 50 Cent name drops and the constant “G-G-G-G-Unit” chant. The Dum Outs were the farthest thing from crowd pleasing. At one point, an on looker felt the need to show their appreciation for the act by tossing a cup on stage and hitting Mazaradi dead in the chest. The incident caused a brief altercation between the performers on stage and some members of the audience. As with any Hip-Hop show, everyone egged on the tension by pushing and yelling. Security quickly swooped down and separated both parties involved. What could have been a spicy bar brawl was promptly difused.
Despite the brief incident, the actual show that everyone came out to see finally commenced. Backed by DJ On Point, Prodigy hit the stage along with his longtime cohort Havoc and of course their signature twenty five man deep entourage. The infamous duo delivered a superb one and half hour set filled with some new and vintage joints from their vast collection of classics. Among some of the songs performed were “Survival of the Fittest,” and “It’s Mine” minus Nas’ guest appearance of course. One of the Mobb’s comrades who did come through to show P some love was Big Noyd. He joined the Mobb during their performance of “The Learning (Burn)” and tore it down with his unforgettable verse “Give Up the Goods (Just Step)”.
Cormega and Twin Gambino of Infamous Mobb also made an appearance to further fume up the audience during their performance of “Three Stacks” from P’s upcoming H.N.I.C 2. Mega outlived the beat when he continued to go acapella after the music stopped; making the crowd go wild and demand more. The Mobb went on to give the crowd what they asked for as they performed their indelible street anthem “Shook Ones Pt. II” and both versions of “Quiet Storm.” The entire crowd rapped along bar for bar as the venue felt like it was starting to shake with the energy rocking everyone from the stage to the back.
At the end of the night, everyone appeared to be content. The QB crew were visibly upset to see their boy go but remained positive giving him bear hugs and pounds. Prodigy did it right though. He gave his fans a hell of show to hold them down until he gets back. Hopefully, the night was what he was looking for, and it prepared him for his time away. Stay up P.