"Survival of the Fittest" is the second single from Mobb Deep

Mobb Deep

Mobb Deep is an American hip hop duo from Queensbridge, Queens, New York, U.S., that consists of Havoc and Prodigy. The duo is "one of the most critically acclaimed hardcore East Coast hip-hop groups." The group is best known for its dark, hardcore delivery, as exemplified by the single "Shook Ones...

's The Infamous

The Infamous

Upon its release, The Infamous earned critical acclaim and was widely considered to be a cornerstone album of New York hardcore rap. Rolling Stone magazine originally rated the album 3½ out of 5 stars, and called it "a darkly nihilistic masterpiece". It, however, gave it a 5 out of 5 star rating in...

album. The song was the duo's second hit single from the album, following "Shook Ones Pt. II

Shook Ones Pt. II

"Shook Ones " is the lead single from Mobb Deep's 1995 album The Infamous. The song was hailed as an instant classic and, in many ways, was the pinnacle of Mobb Deep's critical acclaim, making it their signature song to this day...

". The track peaked at #69 on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 charts and hit the Top 10 on the Hot Rap Singles

Hot Rap Tracks

Rap Songs is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio stations and sales in hip hop-focused or exclusive markets. From 1989 through 2001, it was based on how much the single...

 chart. The song is similar to "Shook Ones Pt. II" in sound and content, featuring a dark piano loop and gritty street narratives, and also uses the chorus from that song in a verse.

The remix

Remix

A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....

 of the song was featured as a bonus track

Bonus track

In terms of recorded music, a bonus track is a piece of music which has been included on specific releases or reissues of an album. This is most often done as a promotional device, either as an incentive to customers to purchase albums they might otherwise not, or to repurchase albums they already...

 on the 2004 rerelease of The Infamous. In 2006, the song was included on the compilation album

Compilation album

A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...

 Life of the Infamous: The Best of Mobb Deep

Life of the Infamous: The Best of Mobb Deep

Life of the Infamous: The Best of Mobb Deep is the greatest hits album from Queensbridge rap duo Mobb Deep. It contains songs dating back to their 1993 debut album, Juvenile Hell, through their 2004 album, Amerikaz Nightmare...

. It is sampled in Immortal Technique

Immortal Technique

Felipe Andres Coronel , better known by the stage name Immortal Technique, is an American rapper of Afro-Peruvian descent as well as an urban activist. He was born in Lima, Peru and raised in Harlem, New York. Most of his lyrics focus on controversial issues in global politics...

's "Dance With the Devil" from Revolutionary Vol.1, AZ

AZ (rapper)

Anthony Cruz , better known as AZ is a Grammy-nominated American rapper of Dominican & African American descent. He is known for being a long time and frequent rhyme partner of Nas, and also a member of hip-hop group The Firm alongside Nas, Foxy Brown, Cormega and Nature.In a countdown of the 10...

's "Animal" from The Format, Dilated Peoples

Dilated Peoples

Dilated Peoples is an American hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. The group achieved notability in the underground hip hop community, although they have had little mainstream success in the US, with the exception of the song "This Way," a 2004 collaboration with Kanye West and Xzibit...

' "Worst comes to worst", Epik High

Epik High

Epik High is a South Korean indie hip hop group from Seoul, South Korea. The group is composed of Tablo, Mithra Jin and DJ Tukutz...

's "Follow the Flow", "혼" (Soul) and CunninLynguists

Cunninlynguists

CunninLynguists are a hip hop trio from Lexington, Kentucky and Atlanta, Georgia. The group currently consists of Deacon the Villain, Kno, and Natti...

' "War" from Southernunderground. Laron Pierce freestyle to the beat under "Can't Turn Back" and "Can't Turn Back 2"featuring Chris Of 94.

The music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

 of the song features cameos from Puff Daddy

Sean Combs

Sean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...

 and fellow Queensbridge rapper Nas

Nas

Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, who performs under the name Nas , formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper and actor. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in hip hop and one of the most skilled and influential rappers of all-time...

 at the end.

The song is also featured on the video game Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure

Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure

Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure is a video game released on February 14, 2006. It was developed by The Collective, Inc. and published by Atari under license by Marc Ecko...

Track listing

Side A

1. "Survival of the Fittest" [LP Version]
2. "Survival of the Fittest" [Remix]

Side B

1. "Survival of the Fittest" [Extended Version]
2. "Survival of the Fittest" [Remix Instrumental]
3. "Survival of the Fittest" [Acappella]