You may not know the name iLoveMemphis, but you've probably heard the rapper's catchy track Hit the Quan, or watched one of the viral videos featuring the song's playful dance.
The song marked a breakthrough for the 22-year-old, who achieved a Top 20 pop hit with the tune, and also performed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Hit the Quan became a Top 10 hit on both the Billboard rap and R& B/Hip-Hop songs charts, and it peaked at No 15 on the Hot 100 chart. The music video has racked up millions of views, and the single has sold more than 500,000 copies.
The idea for Quan came as Richard Colbert was dancing in his backyard to rapper Rich Homie Quan's song Flex (Ooh, Ooh, Ooh). He rushed to the studio and finished the track in one session – and on a shoestring budget.
“I paid US$35 (Dh128) and I didn’t look back,” he says. “I dropped it on Sunday. By Tuesday I knew it was a hit.”
Celebrities including Dwayne Johnson, Chris Brown, Kendrick Lamar and Terry Crews – along with toddlers, teenagers and even police officers – have hopped on the dance craze and posted videos featuring their attempts at Colbert’s moves.
The performer says he wanted to be a rapper since the seventh grade. Colbert said he has always had positive influences around him to help him reach his goals, including his parents. “My mom’s always been in the church, my dad in the military, so I’ve seen him work very, very hard to take care of our family,” he says.
Colbert plans to drop more dance singles and hopes to inspire young people with his own brand of energetic pop music. “Everyone is asking about an album,” he says. “You know, I have so many dance records, I’m gonna stay in the dance lane for a while. I’d rather be in a lane that many people are not in then hop in the lane that everybody’s in.”
* Associated Press
