The breakthrough success of Kendrick Lamar’s major label debut album, good kid, m.A.A.d city, has the rest of the West Coast Black Hippy collective positioned for hip-hop stardom, as well. And ScHoolboy Q is the member most likely to experience a similar ascendance. The Los Angeles native took to the stage at SOBs this week for a grueling two-show set, and reminded everyone that K. Dot isn’t the only Black Happy/Top Dawg Entertainment rapper that has the goods.
Opening acts Bishop Nehru and 1ShotDealz got the crowd warmed up, with Nehru, in particular, winning everyone over after a shaky start. The youngster’s rhyming is undeniable, even if he still needs to work on his stage presence. But everyone was there to see ScHoolboy Q. On the strength of his two indie releases, Setbacks and Habits & Contradictions, Q has built up a strong fanbase; and coming off of an acclaimed performance at SXSW, he brought the ruckus to SoHo—walking onstage carrying blunts and engaging the crowd.
The Smoker’s Club emcee also paid tribute to Lamar with a performance of “A.D.H.D.” and gave a shout-out to Harlemite A$AP Rocky. And of course, gave the crowd favorites like “#BETiGOTSUMWEED” and his most famous cut to date, “Hands On the Whee.” And Q didn’t hesitate to remind everyone that his major label debut, Oxymoron, drops in a few months—he even debuted a new song “Yay-Yay” for the crowd.
Hit the click to check out some shots from the TDE rhymer’s show…
