Schoolboy Q Sells Out Shrine Expo Hall for a Special Homecoming

Joseph Baura

Schoolboy Q started out as another L.A. rapper with his eye on the heights of hip hop. He took a detour, though: Q, also known as Quincy, did six months in jail and house arrest on a marijuana charge. Once he paid his proverbial debt to society, Q began to take his rap career seriously as a member of the rap supergroup Black Hippy, also featuring Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, and Kendrick Lamar. 

Now, almost 10 years, two mixtapes and two studio albums deep into the game, Q is now mentioned among the hip-hop elite. For a guy who was a kid on L.A.’s Hoover Street, it’s something to sell out the Shrine as he did this week. As it was the only night Q would spend in his hometown, he made sure the fans got the love and appreciation that they deserved.

He hit the stage all smiles as he walked out for the L.A. stop on the “Blank Face” tour to promote the album of the same name. From the jump, Q made sure to keep the energy high, performing the singles “Gangsta” and “What They Want,” two of his most raucous tracks. Then he goaded the audience to get more lively, mentioning that L.A. is usually the least energetic show on his tours, so he urged the fans to start rapping along and cheering.

He also did older numbers, such as “Hands on the Wheel,” and also took to performing some of his song features, such as his popular verse on A$AP Ferg’s “Work (Remix).” While one member of Black Hippy wasn’t in attendance, Ab-Soul, the other joined him on stage. Jay Rock came out to perform “Vice City,” and Kendrick Lamar contributed with his single, “Untitled 7 (Levitate).” Q finished with his latest hit, “That Part,” a solid end to a well-deserved homecoming.

Opening the show was New York’s Joey Badass, who could easily sell out the same venue as a headliner. Badass touched on all of his projects, including his very first mixtape, “1999.”

ScHoolboy Q brought LA out to The Shrine for a special homecoming on Oct. 18.