The Infamous is the second studio album by the American hip hop duo Mobb Deep. It was released on April 25, 1995, by Loud Records. The album features guest appearances from Nas, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, and Q-Tip. Embedded with hyper-visual lyricism, dark soundscapes, gritty narratives, and hard beats, it marked Mobb Deep’s transition from a relatively unknown rap duo to an influential and commercially successful one. Most of the left-over songs from the album became bonus tracks for Mobb Deep’s The Infamous Mobb Deep album (2014).
The Infamous achieved notable commercial success, debuting at number 15 on the US Billboard 200 and number 3 on the Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums charts. On June 26, 1995, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album produced four singles; “Shook Ones Pt. II”, “Survival of the Fittest”, “Temperature’s Rising”, “Give Up the Goods (Just Step)”, which all achieved varying degrees of chart success, with “Shook Ones Pt. II” being the most successful.
