Rich Homie Quan

Dequantes Devontay Lamar (born October 4, 1989), known professionally as Rich Homie Quan, is an American rapper. Beginning his career in 2011, Lamar first saw mainstream success with his 2013 single "Type of Way", which peaked at number 50 on the Billboard Hot 100. His 2015 single, "Flex (Ooh, Ooh, Ooh)" saw further success at number 26 on the chart. Alongside fellow Atlanta rapper Young Thug, Lamar was a member of Cash Money Records' spin-off project Rich Gang, who found success with their 2014 single "Lifestyle".

Lamar's debut studio album, Rich as in Spirit (2018) moderately entered the Billboard 200.

Early life
Dequantes Devontay Lamar was born on October 4, 1989 in Atlanta, Georgia. In school, Lamar had a particular interest in reading. Literature was his favorite subject and he enjoyed creative writing classes. He played baseball for over four years while he attended Atlanta, Georgia's Ronald McNair Sr. High School with the aspiration to play professionally. As center fielder and leadoff hitter, Lamar began playing at the varsity level during his freshman year and earned a scholarship offer from Fort Valley State University. Due to the expenses of tuitions, Lamar dropped out after attending for two weeks, so he got a job at a nearby airport.

When he lost his job, Lamar got involved in burglaries, which led to him spending 15 months in jail. "I never saw myself going this far with music. Music was just a hobby at first. I never saw myself being on stage and rocking out shows. After I got out of jail, I started to take it more serious and that's when my dream came true", he said in an interview with XXL. Rich Homie Quan was influenced by dirty south music, including Jeezy, Gucci Mane, T.I., Lil Boosie, Lil Wayne, Kilo Ali, Outkast, and Goodie Mob.

Career
In 2012, Lamar's song "Differences" was released as the first single from his mixtape Still Going In. In 2013, he toured with Trinidad James. He was also featured on Gucci Mane's album Trap House III on songs such as "I Heard", "Can't Trust Her" and "Chasin' Paper", which also features Young Thug. Reviewing his single, "Type of Way", The New York Times wrote that he was "part of Atlanta's rising generation of rappers—think Future, Young Thug, Young Scooter—who deliver lines with melody and heart, like singers on the verge of a breakdown". The song peaked at number 50 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Still Goin' In (Reloaded) would be named the tenth best mixtape of 2013 by Rolling Stone.

In August 2013, "Type of Way" was released to the iTunes Store by Def Jam Recordings, suggesting that he had signed to the label. However, Rich Homie Quan was still independent and was considering signing a deal with Cash Money Records. Quan was featured on the song "My Nigga" by YG also featuring Young Jeezy, which peaked at number 19 on the Hot 100. He was also featured on 2 Chainz' second studio album B.O.A.T.S. II: Me Time, on the song "Extra". In September 2013, he confirmed that he was 30% done with his debut album. His mixtape, called I Promise I'll Never Stop Going In was released on November 26, 2013. It was supported by the single "Walk Thru" featuring Problem. The 2013 Michigan State Spartans football team adopted "Type of Way" as an anthem, and Quan joined them on the sidelines in a green jersey at the 100th Rose Bowl, while also participating in their post-game locker-room celebration singing "Type of Way". He was named to the 2014 XXL freshman class.

On May 6, 2014, Rich Homie Quan went home to Atlanta to shoot the video for his single "Walk Thru" with Los Angeles rapper Problem. Hours later, it was reported that he had two "seizures," falling and "cracking his head" on set, according to TMZ. Rich Homie Quan cleared up the rumors by sending Billboard a statement saying that he fainted and hit his head. In this statement, he also denied that the instance had anything to do with drugs. On September 29, 2014, he was part of the mixtape, called Rich Gang: Tha Tour Pt. 1. In February 2015, him, Tyga, Wale, Kid Ink, and YG released the song, “Ride Out,” which would be part of the soundtrack for Fast & Furious 6.

His song "Flex (Ooh, Ooh, Ooh)" and its music video were released on April 1, 2015, on YouTube. The song peaked at #26 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the dance Quan did in the music video would become popular on Vine.

On March 16, 2017, Quan released his first single since 2015, "Replay". A mixtape, Back to the Basics followed on April 14, 2017. His debut album Rich as in Spirit was released on March 18, 2018. The album was supported by the two singles, "Changed" and "34".

In October 2022, Quan released his EP Family & Mula, which included the single “Krazy” and one guest appearance from NoCap. Speaking of the EP’s release, Quan said he felt good to have a project out after not releasing one in over 3 years. The EP was re-released on November 18, 2022.

Legal issues
In November 2016, Quan sued his former label Think It's A Game for $2 million for unpaid royalties. The label counter-sued him for breach of contract. Both suits were settled out of court.

On May 28, 2017, Quan was arrested with four others on felony drug charges after being stopped at a checkpoint on Highway 1 in Louisville, Georgia. Police claimed to have recovered heroin, marijuana, drug paraphernalia and weapons from the vehicle. Quan was charged with felony drug possession with an intent to distribute.

Personal life
Lamar has four sons. His oldest, Devin, was born in 2006, which Lamar didn’t know about until five years later.

On September 29, 2014, Lamar’s father, Corey Lamar, was shot during an attempted robbery at a barber shop in Atlanta, but he survived.

Discography
Studio albums
 * Rich as in Spirit (2018)