Kevin Perez (born April 20, 2003), known professionally as Kay Flock, is an American rapper. Hailing from the Bronx, he began his career in 2020 and rose to fame through a variety of singles, most notably "Shake It". He released his debut mixtape, The D.O.A. Tape, in 2021.
Kay Flock | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Kevin Perez[1] |
| Born | April 20, 2003[2] Belmont, Bronx, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Rapper |
| Years active | 2020–present |
| Labels | Capitol |
| Website | kayflockmusic |
Early life
editPerez was born on April 20, 2003, in the Bronx, New York City; he is half Dominican and Puerto Rican.[3] He later described the area he grew up in as "dangerous". Perez‘s half brother on his father's side is fellow Bronx drill rapper JoWvttz, named Johnny Hernandez.[4]
Career
editKay Flock began his music career in May 2020, issuing his first single, "FTO";[5] other songs that he released following this included "Opp Spotter" (featuring B-Lovee), "Brotherly Love" (featuring B-Lovee and Dougie B) and "PSA".[6]
Kay Flock released his debut mixtape, The D.O.A. Tape, on November 5, 2021, which peaked at number one on the Heatseekers charts. In August, he released "Is Ya Ready"; the song was named within journalist Jon Caramanica's top 28 songs of 2021.[7] He later released "Being Honest",[8] which samples "Changes" by XXXTentacion.[9] The song was said to be "reminiscent of G Herbo" and was named within Pitchfork's top 38 rap songs of 2021 and top 100 songs of 2021.[9][10] A remix of the song, featuring G Herbo, was released in November.[11]
In October, he was featured on "Not in the Mood" by Lil Tjay, which also featured Fivio Foreign.[12] The song peaked at number 61 on the Billboard Hot 100. In November, Kay Flock was named Billboard's Hip Hop Rookie of the Month.[13] During an interview with XXL, he stated that his style of rapping was compared to King Von and Pop Smoke,[6] with Asian Doll saying that Von would have been a fan of Kay Flock.[14]
In April 2022, Kay Flock released "Shake It" with Dougie B and Cardi B, featuring Bory300;[15] it peaked at number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100. The track was leaked months prior, although the leaked version of the song featured Yonkers rapper Mula Gzz, whose verse was replaced with Cardi’s.[16]
Legal issues
editWhen Perez was 15, he was charged with third degree robbery and received 1 year probation.
On November 12, 2021, Perez was arrested for having an illegal weapon (gun), but the case has never been adjudicated, thus no charges were ever filed.
On December 23, 2021, Perez was arrested after allegedly shooting and killing 24-year-old Oscar Hernandez, also known as OY Wasca and/or Honcho, in Harlem, New York.[17] According to the New York Police Department, on December 16, 2021, as Perez walked past a barbershop near the scene of the crime,[18] Hernandez ran out of the shop before allegedly being shot in the neck and back by Perez. Hernandez later died from his injuries at Mount Sinai Hospital.[19] After Perez was named as the main suspect in the investigation, he turned himself in to the NYPD on December 23, 2021. He was sent to Rikers Island and was held without bond.
On February 23, 2023, Perez and 7 others were federally indicted on Racketeering charges, with the feds also picking up his murder case. He’s currently facing federal first-degree murder charges, attempted murder allegedly taking place on November 10, 2021, and racketeering charges in relation to the Sevside/DOA crew and was moved from Rikers Island to a federal prison pending trial. Perez was initially facing the Death Penalty, but on July 31, 2023, the US government said they would no longer seek the Death Penalty in his case.
Perez is the only defendant in the indictment who has not entered into a plea agreement with the Government. He plans to take it to trial, which is currently set for January 21, 2025 and if found guilty on all charges, he faces mandatory life in prison.[20]
Discography
editMixtapes
edit| Title | Mixtape details | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| US Heat [citation needed] | ||
| The D.O.A. Tape |
|
1 |
Singles
editAs lead artist
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [21] |
US R&B/HH [22] |
NZ Hot [23] | ||||
| "FTO" | 2020 | — | — | — | The D.O.A. Tape (Care Package) | |
| "Opp Spotter" (with B-Lovee) |
— | — | — | The D.O.A. Tape | ||
| "Speed Racing" (with B-Lovee) |
— | — | — | |||
| "Brotherly Love" (with B-Lovee and Dougie B) |
2021 | — | — | — | ||
| "T Cardi" (with Dougie B, Lil Skrap 1090 and Justo B) |
— | — | — | |||
| "Being Honest" | — | — | — | |||
| "Is Ya Ready" | — | — | — |
| ||
| "PSA" | — | — | — |
| ||
| "Being Honest (Remix)" (with G Herbo) |
—[A] | — | — | |||
| "Shake It" (with Dougie B and Cardi B, featuring Bory300) |
2022 | 51 | 14 | 9 |
|
The D.O.A. Tape (Care Package) |
| "Make a Movie" (featuring Fivio Foreign) |
— | — | — | |||
| "Brotherly Love (Pt. 2)" (featuring B-Lovee and Dougie B) |
— | — | — | |||
| "DOA" (featuring Set Da Trend) |
— | — | — | |||
| "Geeked Up" (with Gucci Mane) |
— | — | — | |||
As featured artist
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [21] |
US R&B/HH [22] | |||
| "Not in the Mood" (Lil Tjay featuring Fivio Foreign and Kay Flock) |
2021 | 61 | 22 | Non-album single |
Notes
edit- ^ "Being Honest (Remix)" did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 24 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart.[25]
References
edit- ^ Bloom, Madison; Strauss, Matthew (January 4, 2022). "Kay Flock Arrested on First-Degree Murder Charge, Lawyer Investigating Allegations". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
- ^ Leung, Yasmine (December 24, 2021). "What is Kay Flock's real name? Question trends after rapper deletes his IG". thefocus.news. Retrieved January 10, 2022.
- ^ Mogeni, Rodah (February 3, 2023). "Kay Flock's real name, bio, parents, nationality, career, profiles, net worth". Briefly. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ Hunter, Xavier (September 1, 2021). "KAY FLOCK – BEING HONEST". wyexpect.com. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
- ^ "Kay Flock Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved January 25, 2023.
- ^ a b Seabrook III, Robby (December 1, 2021). "The Break Presents – Kay Flock". XXL. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ^ Pareles, Jon; Caramanica, Jon; Zoladz, Lindsay (December 7, 2021). "Best Songs of 2021". New York Times. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
- ^ Pierre, Alphonse (September 1, 2021). "Listen to Kay Flocks "Being Honest": The Ones". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
- ^ a b Helfand, Raphael; et al. (December 13, 2021). "The 38 Best Rap Songs of 2021". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
- ^ St. Asaph, Katherine; et al. (December 6, 2021). "The 100 Best Songs of 2021". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
- ^ Cho, Regina (November 4, 2021). "G Herbo hops on Kay Flock's "Being Honest (Remix)"". Revolt. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
- ^ Espinoza, Joshua (October 23, 2021). "Lil Tjay Drops Video for "Not in the Mood" f/ Fivio Foreign and Kay Flock". Complex Networks. Retrieved March 23, 2022.
- ^ Panaligan, EJ (November 24, 2021). "Kay Flock: November R&B/Hip-Hop Rookie of the Month". Billboard. Retrieved January 10, 2022.
- ^ Zidel, Alex (January 6, 2022). "Asian Doll Snaps At Fan Who Says She's Embarrassing King Von". hotnewhiphop.com. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
- ^ "CARDI B, KAY FLOCK, BORY300 & DOUGIE B CONNECT IN 'SHAKE IT'". HipHopDX. April 14, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
- ^ Kay Flock- Shake It (ORIGINAL FULL UNRELEASED), retrieved April 18, 2022
- ^ Parascandola, Rocco; Moynihan, Ellen; Annese, John (December 27, 2021). "Rapper Kay Flock charged in Harlem slaying; NYPD got tip someone else was shooter". nydailynews.com. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
- ^ Coleman, C. Vernon (December 24, 2021). "Kay Flock Arrested For Murder". XXL. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
- ^ "Photo shows suspect in Harlem barbershop murder". ABC7NY. December 17, 2021. Retrieved April 17, 2022.
- ^ Espinoza, Joshua (February 23, 2023). "Kay Flock Indicted on Racketeering Conspiracy Charges". Complex. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
- ^ a b Peaks on the Billboard Hot 100:
- "Shake It": "Cardi B Chart History - Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
- "Not in the Mood": "Lil Tjay Chart History - Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
- ^ a b Peaks on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs:
- "Shake It": "Cardi B Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
- "Not in the Mood": "Lil Tjay Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
- ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. April 25, 2022. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
- ^ a b c d "American certifications – Kay Flock". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
- ^ "G Herbo Chart History: Bubbling Under Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2022.