Albert Johnson, better known by his stage name Prodigy, was an American rapper and one half of the hip hop duo Mobb Deep with Havoc. Prodigy and Havoc met while both attending Graphic Arts High School in Manhattan as teenagers, and released their debut album, Juvenile Hell, in 1993 when they were still teenagers. Although the album wasn't very successful from either a critical or financial standpoint, it served as a fitting platform for the duo to launch their careers. They crafted a rap style that consisted of a street-smart poetic approach centering on the ghetto lifestyle that surrounded them. Their brutally honest reality rapping and complimentary melancholy beats landed them a deal on Loud Records, resulting in their major-label release, The Infamous. Propelled to awareness partially by fellow Queens rapper Nas, who used a similar lyrical style on his 1994 album Illmatic, as well as the release of their single "Shook Ones Pt. II", Mobb Deep developed a cult following. The duo released their third album, Hell on Earth, in 1996, which debuted at number six on SoundScan. The album found them mastering their musical method of using evocative beats and cinematic rhymes that communicated the dark side of New York's urban landscape. The duo was among those responsible for the revival of the East Coast hip hop scene, as well as bringing hardcore hip hop to a level that was unseen in New York.