Albert 'Prodigy' Johnson of iconic '90s New York rap duo Mobb Deep has died, aged 42.
The rapper had been hospitalised over the weekend following a performance in Las Vegas due to "complications caused by a sickle cell anaemia crisis," read a statement issued by his management.
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"As most of his fans know, Prodigy battled the disease since birth. The exact causes of death have yet to be determined," the statement said.
Rap stars including Nas, Nicki Minaj and Lil Wayne were among those who shared tributes on Twitter.
![Rapper Prodigy (left) of Mobb Deep in 2004.](http://web.archive.org./web/20170624034411im_/https://www.fairfaxstatic.com.au/content/dam/images/g/w/v/8/6/f/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gwv7za.png/1498037674438.jpg)
"Don't want to believe he's gone. Omg," wrote Minaj.
"Rap game lost a legend, the world lost a G," wrote Wayne.
The rapper, born Albert Johnson and raised in the hip-hop mecca of New York's Queensbridge housing projects, formed the duo Mobb Deep with fellow emcee Havoc in 1992.
The duo found mainstream success with their sophomore album The Infamous, featuring the bleak anthem Shook Ones Pt II, which took a noir-ish look at street violence and criminal drama through its bare-bones production and gritty street reportage.
The album, released in April 1995, made the year-end Billboard 200, and has since been recognised as a classic of '90s East Coast hip-hop, and featured on The Source's '100 Best Rap Albums of All Time' list.
After a lengthy hiatus, during which Prodigy spent three years in jail for illegal possession of a firearm, the duo reunited for 2014's mildly-received The Infamous Mobb Deep.
Renowned as one of rap's hardest lyricists, Prodigy had also found himself at the centre of the infamous East-West rivalry that led to the deaths of Tupac Shakur and The Notorious BIG, after Shakur singled him out on his diss track Hit 'Em Up, mocking his struggles with sickle cell anaemia.
The rapper had long spoken out on the effect the disease - a blood disorder that causes chronic pain in sufferers - had on his life, especially in the extravagantly indulgent music world.
"I had to learn the hard way that I couldn't live a certain way," he said in 2012.
"There were years I was slipping. I was drinking and doing all the wrong s---."
He said his spell in prison forced him to focus on his health.
"When you're in jail, that's the worst place you could ever be to have sickle cell... If they don't see blood, they are not taking you to the hospital," he said.
"So I had to get myself together to make sure I wasn't going to get sick in there.
"I started working out. I was eating right, drinking mad water and just doing what I had to do to stay healthy."
The rapper, who even published a cookbook titled Commissary Kitchen based on his prison diet, released his final solo album Hegelian Dialectic earlier this year.
Damn. RiP to the great one Prodigy. Rap game lost a legend the world lost a G.to and for his fam. Love. MOBB
— Lil Wayne WEEZY F (@LilTunechi) June 20, 2017
Thank You Prodigy. Rest in Peace, my friend. Running this from the top. pic.twitter.com/q2DSmPikCQ
— Mac (@MacMiller) June 20, 2017
AINT NO SUCH THING AS HALFWAY CROOKZ; PRODIGY REST IN HEAVEN KING, I KNOW U AND PAC LAUGHING RIGHT NOWpic.twitter.com/40ikcFTzrC
— Metro Boomin (@MetroBoomin) June 20, 2017
one of the most iconic opening lines in the history of rap #RIPProdigyhttps://t.co/iUz8HYjDih pic.twitter.com/XkDOTlWtDZ
— Genius (@Genius) June 20, 2017