Schoolboy Q

After trying to make a name for himself in the rap industry for three years, rapper Schoolboy Q, who was born Quincey Matthew Hanley on October 26, 1986, made his debut above ground when he signed with Top Dawg Entertainment in 2011. Schoolboy Q was born in Germany to parents who were involved in the military. They lived for a few years in Texas before moving to South Central Los Angeles, where Schoolboy Q began his rap career. He was heavily involved in sports when he was in high school, but the fast life of drugs and gangs lured him away from that. Finally, in 2007, he realized he needed a change, and he looked to his rap influences Nas, Notorious B.I.G., and 50 Cent for an answer.

That year, Schoolboy Q released his mixtape Schoolboy Turned Hustla, which caught the eye of the Top Dawg Entertainment label. He followed that with his second mixtape Gangsta & Soul in 2009, and later debuted his album Setbacks in 2011. After having worked with fellow Black Hippy rapper Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q released Oxymoron in 2014.