Prodigy Honored With Street Named In Queensbridge
One half of the legendary rap group Mobb Deep is getting a street named in his honor in the Queensbridge neighborhood he repped proudly throughout his musical career.
According to Complex, the intersection of 12th Street and 41st Road will now get the co-name of “Prodigy Way.” This comes as final approvals were made, the outlet learned, from the offices of Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, whose district includes Queensbridge. “Prodigy Way” will become official sometime in 2022.
The street naming comes in part thanks to the efforts of the “Shook Ones” emcee’s family, his Mobb Deep co-founder Kejuan Waliek Muchita otherwise known as rapper Havoc, the group’s affiliate Big Twin, and his non-profit Fathers Alive in the Hood, which honors the life, influence, and musical legacy of the rapper.
Their request was said to have been happily approved by city officials despite many critics pushing back on the idea of the rapper being praised so openly considering his problematic past with the neighborhood. Many felt he lived a dishonest lifestyle.
In 2017, Jeff Henriquez and Eli Lazare painted a mural of the “Survival of the Fittest” rapper, on 13th Street and 40th Avenue, right across the street from the neighborhood the rapper helped popularize. It was later defaced with white paint. When a second attempt was made to restore the artwork, it was again vandalized with red paint.
Prodigy, whose real name is Albert Johnson, grew up in the New York neighborhood with Havoc. The rap duo attended the High School of Arts & Design in Manhattan, where they initially started collaborating musically. He became synonymous with the housing project thanks to his lyrics.
The rapper died on June 20, 2017. He had been hospitalized in Las Vegas, following a performance, for complications caused by his sickle cell anemia. Sickle cell is an inherited red blood cell disorder in which there aren't enough healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body, according to the Mayo Clinic. The rapper had been battling the sickness since birth. According to the coroner’s report, the star died after accidentally choking. He was 42-year-old.
