Schoolboy Q is an American rapper raised in South Central Los Angeles, born in 1986, and a core member of Top Dawg Entertainment's Black Hippy crew alongside Kendrick Lamar, Jay Rock, and Ab-Soul. Oxymoron (2014) hit number one on the Billboard 200; Blank Face LP (2016) is arguably the masterpiece. Shop Schoolboy Q vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Quincy Matthew Hanley, performing as Schoolboy Q, was born in Wiesbaden, West Germany on October 26, 1986 (his father was stationed there in the U.S. Army). He was raised in South Central Los Angeles and attended Crenshaw High School. He launched his recording career in the late 2000s and is a member of the foundational Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) collective alongside Kendrick Lamar, Jay Rock, Ab-Soul, SZA, and Isaiah Rashad - central to the Black Hippy sub-collective with Lamar, Jay Rock, and Ab-Soul. His 2014 album Oxymoron - featuring the singles Man of the Year and Studio (with BJ the Chicago Kid) - became his commercial breakthrough, reaching number one on the Billboard 200. His 2016 follow-up Blank Face LP continued his trajectory. He has continued releasing material across multiple decades with commitment to representing South Central LA hip hop.
Schoolboy Q's sound combines hip hop, West Coast hip hop, gangsta rap, hardcore hip hop, trap, and alternative hip hop with his distinctive vocal delivery (use of energetic flow and growled adlibs), TDE signature production approaches (Sounwave / Tae Beast / Cardo production), and lyrical content addressing South Central LA life, the drug trade, fame, family, and personal experience drawing on West Coast hip hop traditions.
TDE and Interscope Records pressings of the Schoolboy Q catalog have been issued in color variant editions and limited deluxe pressings.
Listeners new to Schoolboy Q typically start with Oxymoron (2014) or Blank Face LP (2016).
