Havoc has opened up about which of Mobb Deep‘ albums is his favorite and the reasoning behind his specific choice.
In a recent interview on SiriusXM’s Shade 45, the Queensbridge native revealed that 1995’s The Infamous was his favorite project to create alongside the late Prodigy — who passed away from an accidental choking in 2016.
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“The Infamous because it catapulted us,” Havoc said. “A lot of the supporters be like, ‘Yo, Infamous is dope but Hell on Earth is crazy.’ But, for me, the reason why I say The Infamous [over Hell on Earth is] because without The Infamous album bringing us back from an album that didn’t really do good [Juvenile Hell], we probably wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you.”
He added: “That set the stage for me and Prodigy.”
Check out the clip below:
“Shook Ones, Pt. II,” which is the lead single from their 1995 classic offering remains one of the most iconic records in Hip Hop history. Back in July, Havoc had to debunk the long-standing myth surrounding the stove “sample” on the track.
In an interview with the SiriusXM radio show WkndWork, Havoc sat alongside Tony Yayo and fellow producer Buckwild to reflect on Hip Hop’s 50th anniversary.
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During the conversation, Havoc opened up about the making of “Shook Ones Part II” and clarified that the stove sound heard on the track did not come from a real burner — despite long-standing rumors pointing to the contrary.
“You know when a myth take a life of its own?” he questioned. “You just be like, fuck it, you don’t wanna hurt nobody’s feelings so you just agree with the myth. I be like, ‘Alright, fuck it. Yeah, it’s from the stove.’
“The myth sounds better than the real story. I just be like, ‘Fuck it, it came from the stove.’”
Havoc previously spoke about this aspect of Mobb Deep’s memorable 1995 song during an interview with REVOLT in 2020, revealing the hi-hat he used sounded eerily similar to a stove top.
“The truth of the matter is that the hi-hat that I used on the actual track of ‘Shook Ones’ sounds similar to a project stove,” he said at the time. “So, people made a correlation thinking I used the stove for the actual track because in the video, it’s the first thing that comes on along with the record. And they hear the hear the stove.”
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He added: “So, people said, ‘Oh shit, he used that for it!’ Nah, it’s two different sounds, but they sound the same. It’s just a coincidence, but I let people sometimes think what they wanna think and let the track take on its own mystique (laughs).”
Another noteworthy part of Mobb Deep’s The Infamous cut is the Herbie Hancock “Jessica” piano sample used in the background, which was slowed down and altered to create the haunting soundscape.
