As one of the less heralded architects of '90s hardcore rap, Queens native producer-MC Havoc (born Kejuan Muchita) never received the same level of credit accorded to Wu-Tang Clan's RZA, but his productions on his albums with Prodigy as Mobb Deep -- especially 1995's classic The Infamous -- were among some of the starkest, grimiest, and deceptively musical beats of the era. Havoc didn't keep his work strictly to Mobb Deep releases; he granted tracks to Nas' It Was Written and Nastradamus, Capone-N-Noreaga's The War Report, the Notorious B.I.G.'s Life After Death, and Method Man's Tical 2000: Judgement Day. While Mobb Deep remained on ongoing concern throughout the 2000s, Havoc also issued his first proper solo recordings, including The Kush (2007) and Havoc (2008). On both albums, Havoc pulled double duty, producing and MC'ing on every track. ~ Andy Kellman