There are two things becoming very apparent in contemporary Hip Hop. First, Atlanta is becoming its new and divisive stylistic epicenter. Second, social media does a better job of promoting unknown artists better than television or radio. One of 2015’s best examples of this notion is Memphis rapper iHeartMemphis ( real name Richard Colbert) and his Rich Homie Quan inspired “Hit The Quan.” Besides taking a large cue from the former Rich Gang member’s eccentric dance, the Buck Nasty produced track is a bona fide viral hit. “Main it’s a great experience for me to be apart of a phenomenon,” says iHeartMemphis of the dance craze.
By the time this feature hits viewers eyes, Buck Nasty Entertainment’s Soundcloud page has reached 25 million streams of “Hit The Quan” since dropping in June and nearly 20 million on YouTube when that hit month after. That doesn’t even pull into account the tens of millions gained from various dance compillations, Vine videos and parodies. For a dance originating from Atlanta, it’s easy to see why “Hit The Quan” has become the most entertaining dance from Memphis since Crunchy Black made G-Walking cool. Sure, the track isn’t an exercise of lyrical gymnastics but, iHeartMemphis employs a loose aggression that perfectly compliments Buck Nasty’s entertaining bounce in production. Helps a ton that the only offensive word used in the entire track is 2015’s most overused descriptive term THOT and most won’t even understand its meaning anyway.
At this point, traditional methods of promoting music be damned. “Yeah growing up, people think you have to pay for promotion,” explains iHeartMemphis who hopes to eventually crossover. “The fact that everything is working through social media is a blessing, but you can hit more people with radio and television also.” In his eyes, he couldn’t stop its growth even if he wanted to. “ I can put out a song called “Hula Hoop,” he explains. “I get the right people doing the dance and I can get something to the spotlight.” Before “Hit The Quan” became 2015’s latest dance obsession, iHeartMemphis was a party promoter which has his rise to prominence even more sensable. “That’s where my work ethic comes from,” he says. “I could throw a party in one day and have people come verse promoting for two or three weeks.”
Is there really a point of putting out an official video? News anchors and even Chris Brown himself have been caught hitting The Quan. From the looks of things, everyone is doing a lot of the legwork for iHeartMemphis. “I’d say Chris Brown because he has a lot of followers and huge fanbase,” he explains. “It’s been extra promotion.” Right now, iHeartMemphis isn’t even concerned with dropping an official video considering the song’s been out for two months. According to him, he wants to build momentum before taking that next step. “Probably a video will come, then a remix and then a video for the remix.” For someone caught outside of expectations of Memphis’ Hip Hop scene, he counts everyone from Lil Wayne and Quan to the city’s own Don Trip and Yo Gotti as some of his favorites. However, he avoids placing himself in the trap and street themes of those rappers. “When I look at other people’s lifestyle and stuff, they would drive me to make certain music,” says iHeartMemphis. “I want to make music that makes people happy and dancing adds to that.” While many would describe iHeartMemphis’ take on Quan’s dance as simply biting, that’s not the case. “I haven’t talked to him[Quan] personally but I’ve talked to people from his camp and they’ve congratulated me on the success,” he says. If things become truly perfect in iHeartMemphis’ world, Quan hopping on the “Hit The Quan” remix would probably fulfill just that. Some would call it coming full circle.
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Despite his newfound fame, it hasn’t hit iHeartMemphis yet. Developing a loyal following, there are clear obstacles he’ll have to face. Staying out of trouble and insuring he doesn’t become a one-hit-internet wonder. This includes being charged with aggravated rape in early September. While he’s gone on Twitter to defend himself against the allegations, he’s kept quiet. Regardless, he’s attempting to push forward, proclaiming that fame “hasn’t hit me yet to be honest.” As Silento’s “Watch Me” currently bathes in the waters of crossover success after enjoying early viral triumph, iHeartMemphis should be next at bat. Working on more music, he’s still deciding on his next move. Whatever that next move may be, the effort is clearly visible. “I have more hard work to do,” says iHeartMemphis. “This is only the beginning.”
