Havoc (musician)

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Havoc
Havoc of Mobb Deep (2014).jpg
Havoc performing in 2014
Background information
Birth nameKejuan Waliek Muchita
Born (1974-05-21) May 21, 1974 (age 50)
Brooklyn, New York City, U.S.
Origin Queens, New York City, U.S.
Genres East Coast hip hop
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • songwriter
  • record producer
Years active1991–present
Labels
Formerly of
Website havocofmobbdeep.com

Kejuan Waliek Muchita (born May 21, 1974), better known by his stage name Havoc, is an American rapper and record producer. He was one half of the hip hop duo Mobb Deep with Prodigy.

Contents

Biography

Havoc was born in Brooklyn and raised in the Queensbridge Houses. At a later age, Havoc found out his paternal grandfather was jazz musician Bill Dixon. In his teenage years, he shot a Def Jam employee in the belly by accident. [1] He graduated from the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan, New York in 1992, where he met Prodigy. He is one half of the iconic hip hop duo Mobb Deep, and in addition to producing nearly the entire Mobb Deep catalogue, has also produced songs for MCs such as The Notorious B.I.G., Eminem, Nas, Raekwon, 50 Cent, 112, Method Man, Mariah Carey, Puff Daddy, Kanye West, LL Cool J, Rohff, Big Noyd, Lil' Kim, Capone-N-Noreaga, Foxy Brown, Onyx, and his partner Prodigy on his solo work. In 2005, Mobb Deep recorded for fellow Queens rapper 50 Cent's record label G-Unit Records and left the label in 2009, in a mutually agreed-to release. [2]

Havoc is renowned as one of the most iconic figures in New York hip hop. Popular music magazine Complex ranked Havoc among the top hip hop producers of 1995 after The Infamous. [3] Beattips.com ranked him as the 24th most influential beatmaker of all time [4] citing his dual abilities of rapping and producing. Following The Infamous , he tweaked his skills and transitioned to a more atmospheric production style that incorporated samples from classical music, most notably visible on the 1996 album Hell on Earth . As a rapper, he is known for his hardcore lyricism and consistent flow. He also contributed background vocals and a verse on Black Moon's debut album Enta da Stage in 1993.

In July 2009, Havoc was featured alongside in J Dilla's music video for "24K Rap" off of the Jay Stay Paid album, the video was directed by Derek Pike. In 2010, Havoc produced a beat for Eminem that resulted in a song called "Untitled" which is a hidden track on Eminem's album Recovery and contributed to the iTunes bonus track to Raekwon's album Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang & Bad Meets Evil's Hell: The Sequel EP. He revealed that he plans to record a new Mobb Deep album with Nas. [5] His third studio album 13 was released on May 7, 2013.

Havoc worked with Kavinsky on his 2013 album OutRun. He wrote the lyrics and sang the vocals for "Suburbia", the sixth track on the album. [6] In 2016, Havoc helped produce "Real Friends" and "Famous", two tracks on Kanye West's album The Life of Pablo . [7]

His original productions have been featured in numerous commercially successful films, well known television series and popular video games, and he is a character in Def Jam: Fight For NY. [8] Havoc produced the New York Yankees official 2020 anthem, "Squad Up", that features verses from both Havoc and Method Man.

Feuds

Prodigy

In July 2012, Havoc wrote a series of derogatory comments about Prodigy on Twitter, after Prodigy denied engaging in homosexual relationships in prison. [9] At first, Havoc claimed that his Twitter account was hacked. [10] However, he later confirmed that he wrote the tweets and expressed his frustrations with Prodigy in an interview with AllHipHop. [11] He stated that Mobb Deep was on an "indefinite hiatus" until the duo worked out their differences. Havoc later released a diss track aimed at Prodigy, which was titled "Separated (Real from the Fake)". [12] Prodigy did not respond to Havoc's song and even stated publicly that Mobb Deep would eventually reconcile. [13] In March 2013, the duo announced that they had reconciled and were going on tour. [14]

Discography

Studio albums

Collaboration albums

Mixtapes

Instrumental albums

Extended plays

Singles

Guest Shots

Video game appearances

Havoc is a playable character in the video game Def Jam: Fight for NY .

Related Research Articles

<i>The Infamous Mobb Deep</i> 2014 studio album by Mobb Deep

The Infamous Mobb Deep is the eighth and final studio album by American hip hop duo Mobb Deep, which is composed of Havoc and Prodigy. The album was released on April 1, 2014, by Prodigy's Infamous Records and Sony's RED Distribution. The Infamous Mobb Deep is a double album that consists of one disc of new original music and another of unreleased tracks from the recording sessions from their second studio album The Infamous (1995). The album had been in development since 2011, but was delayed by a feud that occurred between Havoc and Prodigy during 2012. However, they shortly reconciled.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Alchemist (musician)</span> American record producer and DJ (born 1977)

Alan Daniel Maman, known professionally as The Alchemist, is an American record producer and DJ. Critically acclaimed for his sample-heavy production style, he is regarded as one of the most influential producers in modern hip hop and underground rap. His frequent collaborators include Eminem, Action Bronson, Freddie Gibbs, Roc Marciano, ScHoolboy Q, Conway the Machine, Westside Gunn, Boldy James, and Earl Sweatshirt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prodigy (rapper)</span> American rapper (1974–2017)

Albert Johnson, better known by his stage name Prodigy, was an american rapper and record producer. He was best known for being in the rap duo Mobb Deep along with Havoc, yet Johnson still had a solo career.

<i>The Infamous</i> 1995 studio album by Mobb Deep

The Infamous is the second studio album by the American hip hop duo Mobb Deep. It was released on April 25, 1995, by BMG, RCA Records and Loud Records. The album features guest appearances by Nas, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, and Q-Tip. It was largely produced by group member Havoc, with Q-Tip also contributing production while serving as the mixing engineer. Most of the leftover songs from the album became bonus tracks for Mobb Deep's The Infamous Mobb Deep album (2014).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tragedy Khadafi</span> American rapper and record producer (born 1971)

Percy Lee Chapman, known by his stage name Tragedy Khadafi, is an American rapper and record producer. Chapman hails from the Queensbridge Housing Projects in Queens, New York City, and helped spawn other hip hop artists such as Mobb Deep, Capone-N-Noreaga, Nas. He is documented to be the first to use the phrase "illmatic" in 1988 on a record called "The Rebel", from the Marley Marl album In Control, Volume 1, which was an inspiration and influence on fellow New York rapper Nas.

<i>Amerikaz Nightmare</i> 2004 studio album by Mobb Deep

Amerikaz Nightmare is the sixth studio album by American hip hop duo Mobb Deep. It was released on August 10, 2004, via Infamous/Jive Records. The recording sessions took place at Battery Studios, Chung King Studios, Dunn Deal Studios and The Lab, in New York City, and at Ocean Way Studios in California, The Hit Factory Criteria in Miami, Powerhouse Studios in Yonkers, Record Plant in Hollywood, and DSL Studios in Louisville. The album was produced by member Havoc, as well as the Alchemist, Kanye West, Lil' Jon, and Red Spyda. It features guest appearances from Big Noyd, Jadakiss, Lil' Jon, Littles, Nate Dogg and Twista.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mobb Deep</span> American hip hop duo

Mobb Deep was an American hip hop duo from Queens, New York formed in 1991. Consisting of rappers/songwriters/record producers Prodigy and Havoc, they are considered to be among the principal progenitors of hardcore East Coast hip hop. Mobb Deep became one of the most successful rap duos of all time, having sold over three million records. Their best-known albums are The Infamous (1995), Hell on Earth (1996) and Murda Muzik (1999), and their most successful singles were "Shook Ones " and "Survival of the Fittest." They were known for their dark and hardcore delivery.

<i>Murda Muzik</i> 1999 studio album by Mobb Deep

Murda Muzik is the fourth studio album by American hip hop duo Mobb Deep, which was released on August 17, 1999, through Columbia Records and Loud Records. It features one of the group's best-known tracks, "Quiet Storm." It is also the duo's most commercially successful album to date, for shipping over 1 million copies in the United States and was certified Platinum by the RIAA on October 26, 1999, debuting at #3 on the Billboard 200 charts. Murda Muzik also garnered positive reviews from The Source and Allmusic, among others. A censored version of the album, titled Mobb Muzik, was released simultaneously.

<i>The Realness</i> 2001 studio album by Cormega

The Realness is the debut studio album by American rapper Cormega. It features guest appearances from Mobb Deep and Tragedy Khadafi, as well as production from Havoc of Mobb Deep, J-Love, and The Alchemist, among others. It was released via Legal Hustle Records and LandSpeed Records.

<i>Episodes of a Hustla</i> 1996 studio album by Big Noyd

Episodes of a Hustla is the debut studio album by American rapper Big Noyd, released in 1996 by Tommy Boy Records. He recorded the album after making his name as a rapper on Mobb Deep's The Infamous and Hell on Earth albums. Most of the album was produced by Mobb Deep's Havoc and features guest appearances by Prodigy. Big Noyd's lyrics use violent, disturbing imagery to boast his rapping skills. Episodes of a Hustla charted at number 59 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.

<i>Only the Strong</i> (Big Noyd album) 2003 studio album by Big Noyd

Only The Strong is the second solo studio album by American rapper Big Noyd. It was released on September 23, 2003, via Landspeed Records. The album was produced by the Alchemist, Havoc, Emile, DJ Sebb, Steve Sola, and Noyd Inc. It features guest appearances from Mobb Deep, Chinky, Infamous Mobb, PMD, and Shamika Rodriguez.

Infamous Mobb, also known as IM3, is a hip hop group from Queensbridge, Queens, New York, composed of members Ty Nitty, Twin Gambino aka Big Twin and G.O.D. Part III aka Godfather Part III. They are an integral part of the Queensbridge Hip Hop scene, which includes rappers like Nas, Tragedy Khadafi, Mobb Deep, Cormega, Capone-N-Noreaga, whose legacy originated mid 80's in Marley Marl's studio and with him and his protegés on Cold Chillin' Records, known as the Juice Crew.

<i>H.N.I.C. Pt. 2</i> 2008 studio album by Prodigy

H.N.I.C. Pt. 2 is the third solo studio album by American rapper Prodigy of Mobb Deep. The album was released on April 22, 2008. It is a sequel to H.N.I.C., released in 2000. The album features production by The Alchemist, Sid Roams, Havoc and Apex. The album features guest appearances from artists that frequently work with Prodigy, including Havoc, Un Pacino, Nyce, Big Noyd, Twin Gambino and Cormega.

The discography of Prodigy, an American rapper and one half of the hip hop duo Mobb Deep, consists of 6 studio albums, 3 collaborative albums, 1 EP, 5 mixtapes and 17 singles.

Marc Shemer, better known by his stage name Scram Jones, is a producer, DJ and rapper from New Rochelle, New York. He has produced music for Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Styles P, Tragedy Khadafi, Jadakiss, Saigon, Dipset and Troy Ave. He has been featured in The Source magazine's "Unsigned Hype" column. Scram Jones is jewish.

<i>Albert Einstein</i> (album) 2013 studio album by Prodigy and The Alchemist

Albert Einstein is the second and last collaborative studio album by American hip hop recording artist Prodigy of Mobb Deep and American record producer The Alchemist. The album was released on June 11, 2013, by Infamous Records. The album features guest appearances from Roc Marciano, Domo Genesis, Havoc, Raekwon and Action Bronson.

<i>13</i> (Havoc album) 2013 studio album by Havoc

13 is the third solo studio album by American rapper Havoc. The album was released on May 7, 2013 by Nature Sounds. The singles "Tell Me to My Face", "Gone" and "Life We Chose" have been released. The album features guest appearances from Styles P, Raekwon, Lloyd Banks, Masspike Miles, Royce da 5'9" and Twista.

<i>HipHopDX</i> Online music magazine

HipHopDX is an online magazine of hip hop music criticism and news. The website's president and publisher is Sharath Cherian and the Head of Content is Jerry L. Barrow. HipHopDX is the flagship publication of Cheri Media Group.

The following is a discography of production credited to Mobb Deep member and producer Havoc.

<i>Free Agents: The Murda Mixtape</i> 2003 mixtape by Mobb Deep

Free Agents: The Murda Mixtape is a double mixtape album by American hardcore/East Coast hip hop duo Mobb Deep. It was released on April 22, 2003 through Landspeed Records with distribution via Koch Entertainment.

References

  1. Kweli, Talib (August 3, 2023). "Mobb Deep's Havoc Goes Deep On Prodigy, "Shook Ones Pt. II," His Production, & More". People's Party with Talib Kweli, on UPROXX Video. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  2. Langhorne, Cyrus (November 10, 2009). "50 Cent Released Mobb Deep From G-Unit Records, Says Game Is Still Signed To His Label". Sohh.Com. Archived from the original on May 29, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  3. (Multiple), (Multiple) (December 17, 2018). "Best Hip Hop Producer Alive Every Year Since 1979". Complex. Archived from the original on December 18, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  4. "BeatTips Top 30 Beatmakers of All Time: Havoc (of Mobb Deep)". BeatTips. September 7, 2014. Archived from the original on December 18, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
  5. Vasquez, Andres (May 25, 2011). "Mobb Deep & Nas To Collaborate On Full-Length LP, Says Havoc | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales". HipHop DX. Archived from the original on January 12, 2015. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  6. OutRun (CD liner notes). Kavinsky. Record Makers. 2013. REC86.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. "Havoc Breaks Down His Production Work on Kanye West's 'The Life of Pablo' Album – Exclusive". XXL . February 19, 2016. Archived from the original on February 20, 2016. Retrieved February 19, 2016.
  8. "Havoc - Filmography | IMDbPro".
  9. "Mobb Deep's Havoc Confirms He Sent 'Gay' Prodigy Tweets" Archived July 19, 2019, at the Wayback Machine . MTV News.
  10. HipHopDX (April 9, 2012). "Havoc Denies Beef With Prodigy In Statement, Prodigy Tweets Claiming "We Set Traps"" Archived April 4, 2015, at the Wayback Machine . HipHopDX.
  11. "AllHipHop » Exclusive Video: Havoc Speaks Out About Prodigy Rumors And Says Mobb Deep Is On "Hiatus…Indefinitely"" Archived May 22, 2013, at the Wayback Machine . AllHipHop.
  12. Horowitz, Steven J. (July 27, 2012). "Havoc Says Mobb Deep Is On An "Indefinite Hiatus," Confirms He Blasted Prodigy On Twitter". HipHop DX. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2012.
  13. HipHopDX (January 10, 2013). "Prodigy Says He's Sure There Will Be Another Mobb Deep Album" Archived October 24, 2013, at the Wayback Machine . HipHopDX.
  14. Mobb Deep Explains Fallout & Reunion Archived July 18, 2019, at the Wayback Machine . xxlmag.com. March 23, 2013
  15. "Dark Lo and Havoc – Extreme Measures". Itunes.apple.com. September 24, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2021.
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