The Prodigy is an English electronic dance music band from Braintree, Essex… Read Full Bio ↴The Prodigy is an English electronic dance music band from Braintree, Essex, formed in 1990 by keyboardist and songwriter Liam Howlett. The line-up of the band has included MC and vocalist Maxim, dancer and vocalist Keith Flint (until his death in March 2019), dancer and live keyboardist Leeroy Thornhill (who left to pursue a solo career in 1999), and dancer and vocalist Sharky (1990-1991). Along with the Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim, The Prodigy are credited as pioneers of the breakbeat-influenced genre big beat, which achieved mainstream popularity in the 1990s. Howlett's rock inspired drum rhythms infused with electronic rave music beats/breaks were combined with Maxim's omnipresent mystique, Thornhill's shuffle dancing style and Flint's modern punk appearance.

The Prodigy first emerged in the underground rave scene in the early 1990s and achieved popularity and worldwide recognition with UK number one singles such as "Firestarter" and "Breathe", both singles coming from their UK and US chart topping album The Fat of the Land (1997). A third single from the album, “Smack My Bitch Up”, was also successful. They earned titles like "the premiere dance act for the alternative masses" and "the Godfathers of Rave", and remain one of the most successful electronic acts of all time. They have sold an estimated 25 million records worldwide, and won numerous music awards during their career, including two Brit Awards for Best British Dance Act, three MTV Video Music Awards, two Kerrang! Awards, five MTV Europe Music Awards, and received two Grammy Award nominations.

The Prodigy were founded in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by keyboardist and songwriter Liam Howlett. He had taken piano lessons in his youth and gained the ability to play difficult passages in just a few run-throughs. After he decided to pursue a music career, Howlett met dancer and vocalist Keith Flint in mid-1989 at a rave at which Howlett was DJing. After Flint requested Howlett make a mix tape for him, Howlett obliged, returning a cassette several days later with a collection of his own songs on the other side. Howlett had scratched the word "Prodigy" onto the cassette, the same name as the Moog Prodigy analogue synthesiser, and Howlett's moniker. The tape was well-received by Flint and keyboardist Leeroy Thornhill who developed new dance sequences to the music and suggested to Howlett they begin a group together. They were soon joined by MC and vocalist Maxim, then known as Maxim Reality, and female dancer and vocalist Sharky, a friend of Flint's. Together they became the first line-up of the Prodigy.

On 4 March 2019, Keith Flint was found dead at his home in Essex, just weeks after playing six live dates in Australia and New Zealand. On 5 March, the band announced on Twitter that "all forthcoming concerts in 2019 would be canceled, effective immediately".

Following Flint's death, fans began using the Twitter hashtag "Firestarter4Number1" on various social media platforms to get "Firestarter" to top the British singles charts again. This was done out of respect for Keith Flint and to raise awareness of suicide among men.

On 20 August 2019, one day before his 48th birthday, Liam Howlett posted on the band's official Instagram page, saying he is "back in the studio making noise [...] brand new Prodigy tunes are gonna roll", referring to his intention to keep on releasing music under the Prodigy moniker.

Along with the Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim, the Prodigy have been credited as pioneers of the big beat genre, which achieved mainstream popularity in the 1990s. The Prodigy, however, is not considered entirely representative of the genre as their production "often reflected the more intelligent edge of trip-hop, and rarely broke into the mindless arena of true big beat" according to AllMusic. The Prodigy are also considered alternative dance, techno, electronica, breakbeat hardcore, and rave.

Liam Howlett cited early electro as a big influence, mentioning tunes like "Clear" by American music group Cybotron and "Al Naafiysh" by Hashim. Liam Howlett also cited The Bomb Squad, Public Enemy, and Rage Against the Machine as influences.

3 Stacks
The Prodigy Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

For my G-pack niggas
Right, right
Shooting at cops nigga what
For my G-pack niggas
Fuck the police
N.Y.P.D. New York Pricks and Dicks
They can't stop our floss
Straight up (for you crack headed bitches)

For my A.M. niggas (for you crack headed bitches)
My Ante Meridian niggas what up dunn?
Liquor store closed
Hit the bootlegger, let's hit the bootlegger
Straight up, yo

Yo dunn, we got guns in the grass, it's three at night
I'm about to take the last swallow of the Eases Jesus
Who got fifty on the next tree, we gotta stop at the store
We need D batteries for the theme music
Snatch the biscuits from out the lawn
Fuck a cab, lets take cracked-out Yolanda's Saab
We gave that bitch two wibbles
And skated off with her vehicle for that pillow
All outside the borough, dunn what happened to Queens
Like Supton? and 1-2-1, Farmers and 116th
The got us on the B-Q-E, just to get a taste of that greenery
We took our smoke out to Coney Island, posted up by the Himalaya
Pina Colada champales mixed with Dani'
That's St. Ide's in dunn lingo
Spillin' it on the floor for our dead people
While I spark the sequel shit; my niggas got lungs
When we smoke, that shit only go around once
Dogs, we just killin' time
Somebody just got they shit twisted on the block fuckin' up the grind
So, 'til it pipe down
We just going at these sluts - bitch, we wanna fuck right now

Son I'm on a bench high eatin chicken wings and french fries
A crackhead fuck spent his last bucks on six dimes
I'm one gram from big time, a spliff away from overdosin'
My heart is broken, my man started smokin' again
P, I heard the tunnel open again
I spoke to Flex he said he's gonna let both of us in
Its time to load up the autos and semis
I wish my niggas bank was in a physical form unlike
I got my uptown Nike's thugged out and icy
Mad deep, jumpin' out the Cocaine white Jeep
Through was strugglin', so I resume hustlin'
Rap game or crack game my crew is still bubblin'
Yo, three in the morning and the D's on the corna still
Seems we were born to kill, yo P meet me on the hill

So we can jet through Queens in S-U-V's
Show these motherfuckers how we rep this thang, ya know?

Overall Meaning

The Prodigy's song, 3 Stacks, is a gritty, aggressive track that delves into a world of gang violence, drug use, and police corruption. The lyrics are written from the perspective of a group of young men who are hardened criminals, living on the edge of society. They are defiant, angry, and unapologetic about their life choices. The opening lines refer to their "G-pack niggas", a term used to describe the members of their gang, who are all carrying drugs and guns. The chorus is an anthem to their rebellious attitude, as they proclaim their disdain for law enforcement and the New York Police Department, in particular.

As the song progresses, the lyrics become more detailed, describing the men's daily routines and the struggles they face. They talk about drinking liquor and smoking marijuana, stealing cars and robbing people, and engaging in violent confrontations with police officers. The imagery is often graphic and disturbing, but also raw and honest, giving a glimpse into a life that is completely foreign to most listeners.

Line by Line Meaning

For my G-pack niggas
This is for my crew that carries guns everywhere they go

Shooting at cops nigga what
We don't care about the police and are willing to use violence against them

Fuck the police
We have no respect for the law enforcement

N.Y.P.D. New York Pricks and Dicks
We despise the New York police department and see them as bad people

They can't stop our floss
No one can stop us from living the life we want

Straight up (for you crack headed bitches)
I'm being honest and direct (and insulting)

For my A.M. niggas (for you crack headed bitches)
This is for my friends from Ante Meridian (early morning) who are also addicted to drugs

My Ante Meridian niggas what up dunn?
What's up, my friends who wake up early and smoke crack?

Liquor store closed
The liquor store is not open

Hit the bootlegger, let's hit the bootlegger
Let's find someone who sells illegal liquor and buy from them

Yo dunn, we got guns in the grass, it's three at night
Hey friend, we have guns hidden in the grass and it's 3am

I'm about to take the last swallow of the Eases Jesus
I'm about to finish the last of this drink called Eases Jesus

Who got fifty on the next tree, we gotta stop at the store
Who wants to bet $50 on the next game? We need to stop at the store first

We need D batteries for the theme music
We need D batteries to power the music we're going to play

Snatch the biscuits from out the lawn
Let's take the guns from the lawn (where they were hidden)

Fuck a cab, lets take cracked-out Yolanda's Saab
We don't want to take a taxi, let's steal Yolanda's car since she's high on crack and won't notice

We gave that bitch two wibbles
We stole two things from her

And skated off with her vehicle for that pillow
We drove off in her car because it's comfortable

All outside the borough, dunn what happened to Queens
We're driving outside of our area (borough) - what happened to Queens?

Like Supton? and 1-2-1, Farmers and 116th
These are names of streets/areas in Queens that we used to hang out in

The got us on the B-Q-E, just to get a taste of that greenery
The police are stopping us on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway just because they suspect we have drugs

We took our smoke out to Coney Island, posted up by the Himalaya
We went to Coney Island to smoke our drugs and hung out by the Himalaya ride

Pina Colada champales mixed with Dani'
We're drinking Pina Colada champales mixed with a drink called Dani'

That's St. Ide's in dunn lingo
That's St. Ides beer in our slang

Spillin' it on the floor for our dead people
We're pouring some of the drink on the ground as a tribute to our dead friends

While I spark the sequel shit; my niggas got lungs
While I light up more drugs, my friends also smoke because they can handle it

When we smoke, that shit only go around once
When we smoke drugs, the joint only gets passed around once because we don't like to share

Dogs, we just killin' time
We don't really have anything to do, we're just hanging out

Somebody just got they shit twisted on the block fuckin' up the grind
Someone is ruining our chance to make money by causing trouble in our neighborhood

So, 'til it pipe down
Until the situation calms down

We just going at these sluts - bitch, we wanna fuck right now
We're going to approach these women and try to have sex with them

Son I'm on a bench high eatin chicken wings and french fries
I'm sitting on a bench, high and eating chicken wings and french fries

A crackhead fuck spent his last bucks on six dimes
A drug addict spent all his money on six packets of crack cocaine

I'm one gram from big time, a spliff away from overdosin'
If I can sell one more gram of drugs, I'll have made it big. But I'm also close to overdosing on drugs

My heart is broken, my man started smokin' again
I feel sad because my friend has started drug use again

P, I heard the tunnel open again
I heard the tunnel where drug deals happen has opened again

I spoke to Flex he said he's gonna let both of us in
I talked to Flex (a friend) and he said he will let us in on the drug deals

Its time to load up the autos and semis
We need to prepare our cars and trucks for drug transport

I wish my niggas bank was in a physical form unlike
I wish my friends' wealth was tangible instead of being from drug money

I got my uptown Nike's thugged out and icy
I'm wearing my trendy and fashionable Nike shoes that are appropriate for my gangster lifestyle

Mad deep, jumpin' out the Cocaine white Jeep
There are a lot of us and we're getting out of a white Jeep that was probably bought with drug money

Through was strugglin', so I resume hustlin'
Things were tough financially, so I returned to drug dealing

Rap game or crack game my crew is still bubblin'
Whether we become successful in the rap industry or drug industry, my crew will still be making a lot of money

Yo, three in the morning and the D's on the corna still
It's 3am and the police are still patrolling on the corner

Seems we were born to kill, yo P meet me on the hill
It feels like we were meant to be killers. Let's meet on the hill

So we can jet through Queens in S-U-V's
Let's drive through Queens in our SUVs

Show these motherfuckers how we rep this thang, ya know?
Let's show everyone how we represent our gangster lifestyle

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS