![]() The bleak street narratives are even more violent and extreme, and the production is even grittier and creepier". In a retrospective piece, AllMusic critic Steve Huey felt that the album "refines the Mobb Deep formula, amplifying much of what made The Infamous a success. Entertainment Weekly 's Matt Diehl described it as a "haunting portrait of New York-style thug life" and a "thumping mix where gunshots clash with eerie strings". Sacha Jenkins of Spin believed that the album "pursues retribution like Charles Bronson in the Death Wish flicks", also noting that "very occasionally, you'll hear a longing for sanctuary inside Mobb Deep's insanity". ![]() Los Angeles Times writer Cheo Hodari Coker called it "just as alluring, pessimistic and downright scary" as The Infamous, adding that "with Scorsese-like finesse, Mobb Deep serves up its underworld with such verve that even the most brutal characters glow with respectful purpose". He concluded that Mobb Deep were "the most intense, most authentic, most powerful practitioners" of East Coast hardcore hip hop during the 1990s. Selwyn Seyfu Hinds of The Source praised Prodigy for "painting an endless series of chilling, near-surreal cinemascapes", also stating that Havoc "comes through with a surprisingly high octane performance". ![]() Hell on Earth was met with widespread acclaim from music critics. Reception Professional ratings Review scores Like Mobb Deep's two previous albums, the lyrics explore themes of crime and violence, with more of a focus on retribution and payback. Since most of the album was recorded during the height of the East Coast-West Coast rivalry, many fans considered the darker songs to be subtle disses toward 2Pac and other West Coast emcees, but Prodigy sends shout-outs to a list of West Coast artists such as Snoop Dogg, Tha Dogg Pound, and Xzibit in the liner notes.īuilding on the sound of The Infamous, Havoc experimented with an eerie, atmospheric style of production, sampling pianos, string sections, and film scores. The album garnered widespread acclaim from critics, and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on April 9, 1997. The album, one of the earliest enhanced CDs, also contains an additional track ("In the Long Run") that at the time, had to be unlocked with the use of a computer. III" and " Hell on Earth (Front Lines)," as well as " Drop a Gem on 'Em," a response to 2Pac's diss track " Hit 'Em Up." A promotional single, "Still Shinin'", was released earlier that year and later added to the album. The album includes the acclaimed singles " G.O.D. A sequel to Mobb Deep's previous album, the critically acclaimed The Infamous (1995), Hell on Earth is entirely produced by group member Havoc and features guest appearances from rappers Nas, Raekwon, Method Man, and frequent collaborator Big Noyd. Lupe Fiasco once said it was his favourite album and 2Pac himself was inspired by “I Gave You Power” to create “Me and My Girlfriend.Hell on Earth is the third studio album by the American hip hop duo Mobb Deep, released on November 19, 1996, through Loud and RCA Records. The record debuted on top of the Billboard 200 and has since moved over 2 million copies in the US only. It Was Written has gone on to become one of Nas’ most successful and widely regarded albums. We figured his shit would be bigger than our shit and it’d be good promotion for us because it’s Nas. He was like, ‘I want to buy that shit.’ After thinking about it for a while, we sold it to him. Nas called us when he was working on his album like, ‘Yo, I want to buy that song from y’all that we did.’ I was real reluctant at first because that shit was crazy hot and that was our Nas feature for our album. ![]() Prodigy: We recorded that for Hell On Earth. Since he couldn’t get the Juice Crew head honcho, Marley Marl, on his second project, Nas went and copped the next best thing – Havoc’s grimey production. With his commercially friendly singles like “If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)” and “Street Dreams” climbing the music charts, Nas was looking for that gully, Queensbridge sound to balance out the album. In an interview with Complex, Mobb Deep’s Prodigy recounted how the duo originally recorded “Live Nigga Rap” for their third album, Hell on Earth, but Nas bought it off them for It Was Written. Hip-hop heads, did you know that Nas’ classic joint “Live Nigga Rap” off It Was Written was originally created for Mobb Deep’s Hell on Earth?
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