review: my infamous life by albert "prodigy" johnson

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Mobb Deep’s Prodigy (with Laura Checkoway) shares his story of coming up in the music industry and what led to his time in prison in My Infamous Life. The timeline jumps around a bit (for example, he writes of dropping out of high school, then references going to school a few pages later) which leads to a disjointed feel, but Prodigy’s incredible story still comes across.

Prodigy starts with his early life and gives background on his parents and grandparents. They, too, were involved in music and entertainment; his grandmother even had her own dance studio. So it only makes sense that he would also find that music is his passion. Despite his grandparents’ wealth, Prodigy didn’t grow up with much; furthermore, his father was a drug addict and that created family strife. I found this and later sections where he discussed his personal life with the woman he had two children with and eventually married to be the most interesting. This is where you see the man rather than the celebrity. Too often Prodigy recounts his successes with far-fetched brags about being the first, the best, etc. to accomplish something.
4/5
Review copy provided by the publisher, Touchstone.