The music industry is mourning the loss of one talented rapper.
E! News can confirm Prodigy, who made up one half of Mobb Deep, passed away Tuesday in Las Vegas. He was 42.
"It is with extreme sadness and disbelief that we confirm the death of our dear friend Albert Johnson, better known to millions of fans as Prodigy of legendary NY rap duo Mobb Deep," his rep said in a statement. "Prodigy was hospitalized a few days ago in Vegas after a Mobb Deep performance for complications caused by a sickle cell anemia crisis."
The statement continued, "As most of his fans know, Prodigy battled the disease since birth. The exact causes of death have yet to be determined. We would like to thank everyone for respecting the family's privacy at this time."
Just this past weekend, the rapper was in town to perform at the "Art of Rap" tour with artists including Ice-T and Ghostface Killah.
"Oh my God.....! I just got the news that Prodigy passed away," Ice-T shared on Twitter. "I'm speechless.. I was just with him. Devastated."
News of Prodigy's passing first hit social media when Nas shared a picture of his close friend with a tribute. "QB RIP King P," he wrote to his followers. "Prodigy 4 Ever."
Fans of Mobb Deep know that the group released their debut album Juvenile Hell in 1993. They went on to release three more full-lengths before the end of the decade.
The most recent Mobb Deep album called The Infamous Mobb Deep was issued in 2014. Last year, Prodigy released a collection of his collaborations through a BitTorrent bundle.
Mobb Deep's highest-charting single turned out to be "Hey Luv (Anything)," which reached No. 58 on the Hot 100 in 2002.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family during this difficult time.