In terms of guest spots, The Infamous does not disappoint. The delivery complements the lyrics perfectly, nothing else matters anyway. Both have a rhythmic, steady delivery that flows easily from line to line. Neither Prodigy nor Havoc has an overly complex flow, but this is not a negative. So much for the atmosphere and theme, let’s move to more concrete matters. They do not seem to glory in murder so much as, they resign themselves to the harsh reality of the surroundings they portray. Prodigy and Havoc flow with a tone that takes both pleasure and pain in an environment that values nothing. Every description of murder and incarceration feels genuine. You feel like you are watching each scene build it feels real. Mobb Deep takes the stylistic trend of East Coast rap to another level. Nas employed explicit descriptions of street life, as seen through his eyes, on Illmatic. If this sounds like every other gangster rap album, it is because Mobb Deep does not do anything new thematically. Explicit, first-person narratives fuel The Infamous, reveling in armed robbery, sex, and murder. No, for the most part Prodigy and Havoc set about weaving the kinds of narratives that provide fuel for every critic who attacks rap as glorying in the amoral. Nor will you find lyrics with a political, black-nationalist stance, like Public Enemy. It should be obvious that you will not find the verses from the abstract, as you would with Tribe Called Quest. to its stylistic apex, infusing the East Coast sound with an intensely nihilistic (of the kind espoused by Russian anarchists in the nineteenth century) and apocalyptic sentiment.Īt this point, you can probably guess the nature of the subject matter on The Infamous. Prodigy and Havoc brought the style of East Coast rap pioneered by Nas, the Wu-Tang Clan, and the Notorious B.I.G. Enter the year 1995 and the release of The Infamous. With the release of Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993), Illmatic (1994), and Ready to Die (1994) East Coast rap gained increased national recognition and, perhaps more importantly, commercial viability. While in the West the primacy of Death Row Records continued seemingly unabated, the scene in the East began to take form. The Queensbridge community website seems to reflect this current mix of progress and fear, with the tagline: “Send us info about Queensbridge Area: Arts, Armed Robberies, Stabbings, Gun Fights, NYCHA complaints, Events, Etc.” The site also includes a recap of 2013 shootings with a graphic image of bloodsplatter and a link to an Onion video on “How to survive being shot point blank in the chest.” Nevertheless, our tour highlighted Queensbridge’s efforts to put the “public” back in “public housing” through its dedication and access to shared spaces that bring life from inside the buildings into the green and vibrant outdoors.The genesis of hardcore rap on the East Coast occurred during the early nineties. The keystone of community life is the Jacob Riis Community Center that houses a multitude of activities, including senior events and projects during the day afternoon programs for youth including computer classes, tutoring, and sports programs for immigrant residents including ESL classes health and wellness workshops and screenings a community garden and a local CSA and community meals.īut it will likely take a lot more than beautification projects and community centers to make Queensbridge safer. Queensbridge Park at the West end of the projects has views of the East River and Queensboro Bridge in addition to green space and athletic grounds. Our MAS tour guide referred to Queensbridge as a “public neighborhood,” both due to its population size and to the wide range of community activities taking place in its public spaces. While the designers sacrificed interior space to reduce cost, they invested in exterior amenities. On the other hand, Queensbridge is distinct in several ways: its buildings are uniquely shaped as two Y’s connecting at the base, in an effort to give residents more access to sunlight than traditional cross-shaped buildings. Today, the elevators still skip the 6th floor. Queensbridge opened in 1939 and its buildings sacrificed interior space, minimalized design to an unremarkable grayish brown color, and operated elevators that only stopped on the 1st, 3rd and 5th floors all in an effort to reduce cost. In Queensbridge, the building appearance and structures are similar to other federal public housing projects.
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