Quadeca

2.1. Birth and Family

Benjamin Fernando Barajas Lasky was born on October 2, 2000, in Los Angeles, California. His father, Mitch Lasky, is a general partner at Benchmark and has a background as an entrepreneur and video game executive. His mother is Cecilia Barajas. Quadeca has two sisters: an older sister named Natasha and a younger sister named Anna, the latter of whom appeared in some of his earliest online videos.

2.2. Education and Early Interests

As a child, Lasky was an avid soccer player, continuing to play throughout his student years and eventually becoming a tri-captain of his school team. His passion for hip hop music and other forms of music developed early. In 2015, he was admitted to Menlo School, where he continued his involvement in soccer. On June 11, 2012, before formally pursuing music, Lasky launched his YouTube channel under the name QuadecaX8. His initial content focused on video game commentating and the FIFA franchise, alongside comedy sketches.

3.1. YouTube Beginnings

Quadeca started his online presence in 2012 with a YouTube channel named QuadecaX8. His early content primarily revolved around video game commentary, particularly featuring the FIFA franchise, and also included various comedy sketches. This foundational period on YouTube helped him gain an initial following.

3.2. Transition to Music

In 2014, Quadeca began shifting his creative output towards rap-related content, including freestyles. A significant early public performance was at a middle school talent show in February 2014, which gained considerable traction and went viral on YouTube. This marked a clear step away from his original video game content to focus more intently on his musical aspirations, leading him to release four mixtapes before his official studio albums.

3.3. Major Career Developments

In late 2018, fellow YouTuber KSI publicly challenged Quadeca and other YouTube rappers, labeling them as "frauds." Quadeca promptly responded with a diss track titled "Insecure" within a week, which quickly accumulated over 8 million views in 10 days. KSI later praised the track, suggesting it warranted a response from himself. In December 2018, KSI released his own diss track, "Ares," to which Quadeca gave a measured response on social media. Interestingly, Logan Paul later revealed that he had attempted to collaborate with Quadeca to create a joint diss track against KSI, but Quadeca declined.

On March 8, 2019, Quadeca released his debut studio album, Voice Memos. The album saw commercial success, peaking at No. 42 on Billboard's Independent Albums chart and No. 15 on the Heatseekers Albums chart by March 22, 2019. He also provided an explanation for the lyrics of his song "Uh Huh!" in an interview with Genius.

Following his debut album, Quadeca continued to release new music and engage in collaborations. On April 12, 2019, he was featured on the song "Roll the Dice" from KSI and Randolph's collaborative album New Age. He independently released the single "Not a Diss Track" on April 21, 2019. Later that year, on May 12, veteran American rapper Twista reacted to Quadeca and other emerging rappers on Genius's The Cosign, offering criticism of Quadeca's style. Quadeca then released a music video for "The Man on my Left Shoulder" on May 26. Collaborations continued with the single "Tomfoolery" (with Egovert, Kil, and Moxas) on August 1, 2019, followed by his solo single "I Don't Care" on September 6, and "Schoenberg" with Moxas on September 27.

On January 29, 2021, Quadeca officially announced his second studio album, From Me to You, via YouTube. The album was subsequently released on March 30, 2021, under AWAL. Prior to the album's release, he put out the self-produced single "Sisyphus" on March 20, 2021, which received widespread critical acclaim.

Quadeca's third album, I Didn't Mean to Haunt You, was previewed with its lead single, "Born Yesterday," released on September 19, 2022. The second single, "Tell Me a Joke," followed on October 25, 2022, when he also unveiled the album's cover art, tracklist, and official release date. This album, a concept album where Quadeca embodies the role of a ghost who died as a child, was released on November 11, 2022. It notably features experimental rapper Danny Brown, whom Quadeca had originally contacted jokingly for a feature, and the Sunday Service Choir.

On October 3, 2023, Quadeca announced "The Scrapyard Series" on his social media. This project was intended to be a collection of five separate EPs, each containing two to three songs that had not made the final cut for I Didn't Mean to Haunt You, with releases scheduled every two to three weeks. The first EP, SCRAPYARD I, was released on October 11, 2023, followed by SCRAPYARD II on October 30, 2023, and SCRAPYARD III on November 22, 2023. However, on December 24, 2023, Quadeca announced the cancellation of the remaining SCRAPYARD EPs, promising that the series would conclude with a significant final release. This culminated in the release of the mixtape SCRAPYARD on February 23, 2024, which compiled all songs from the previously released EPs along with other unreleased tracks. A music video for his song "WAY TOO MANY FRIENDS" was released on February 15, 2024, as promotional material for this final installment.

4.1. Studio Albums

4.2. Mixtapes, EPs, and Collaborative Albums

Quadeca has released several mixtapes and extended plays, as well as one collaborative album.

4.4. Guest Appearances

5.1. Musical Style and Genre Evolution

Quadeca's early releases were often categorized as "YouTube rap," reflecting his origins as an online content creator. However, he has since diversified his sound considerably, moving beyond this initial classification. His music now incorporates elements from a variety of genres, including experimental hip hop, art pop, neo-psychedelia, and folktronica. Additionally, his work has been noted for including aspects of glitch pop and emo rap, showcasing his unique artistic characteristics and willingness to explore different musical territories.

5.2. Influences

Quadeca's musical direction has been shaped by a wide array of artists across different genres. His earlier projects drew inspiration from rappers such as Logic and J. Cole. For his second album, From Me to You, Quadeca cited influences like Tyler, The Creator, Joji, Childish Gambino, and Frank Ocean. Furthermore, for his third studio album, I Didn't Mean to Haunt You, Quadeca identified a distinct set of inspirations including The Microphones, Duster, Lingua Ignota, Björk, Jane Remover, and Caroline Polachek.

6.1. Chart Performance and Critical Reception

Quadeca's debut studio album, Voice Memos, achieved notable commercial success, reaching No. 42 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart and No. 15 on the Heatseekers Albums chart. His self-produced single "Sisyphus," released in 2021, received widespread critical praise. His third album, I Didn't Mean to Haunt You, also received a high evaluation from the international music review site, "Album of the Year."

7.1. Family Relations

Benjamin Fernando Barajas Lasky's family includes his father, Mitch Lasky, a venture capitalist and former video game executive, and his mother, Cecilia Barajas. He also has an older sister, Natasha, and a younger sister, Anna.