Kay Flock was sentenced Tuesday (Dec. 16) to 30 years in prison for a series of shootings in his Bronx neighborhood, per the Associated Press. The case derailed a music career that was just taking off before his 2021 arrest. The 22-year-old rapper, whose real name is Kevin Perez, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman.
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Judge Pops Off Before Sentencing Kay Flock
Judge Liman criticized Kay Flock for sending the wrong message to his young peers by glorifying violence during a less-than-18-month stretch from 2020 to 2021. During that time, dozens of people on Bronx streets were shot at, injured or killed, per prosecutors.
“You taunted, you celebrated and you helped create a cycle of violence,” Liman said.
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The judge also highlighted that Kay Flock bragged on social media about being exonerated on the top count. Also, he wrote “KILL ALL RATS” on Instagram after a trial in which gang members testified against him.
Rapper Says He’s Changed, Judge Cites Lack Of Remorse
While Liman called Kevin Perez a “man of promise,” the judge also said a lengthy prison sentence was necessary for four separate shootings that injured multiple people. At the time of those shooting, Kay Flock led a gang known as “Sev Side/DOA.” Perez was convicted in March 2025 of charges including racketeering conspiracy and attempted murder.
Kay Flock insisted that he had changed, saying: “What I was at 18 is not what I am today.” Saying everyone deserves a second chance, he added: “I was just a kid. Didn’t really know better.” But Judge Liman criticized him for not expressing any concern for his victims.
“To date, you’ve shown no real remorse for your conduct,” the judge said.
Prosecutors Went In About Kay’s Drill Rapping
The rapper was named Billboard Magazine’s R&B/Hip-Hop Rookie of the Month in November 2021, after releasing his first album, ‘The D.O.A. Tape.’ It put him on the map as a newcomer in New York’s drill rap scene. But it also featured performers who wield weapons and lyrics containing slang about violence. The music includes threats and taunts, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick R. Moroney noted as he asked Judge Liman to impose a 50-year prison sentence. This was the same sentence the court’s Probation Department officer recommended.
“He was very good at celebrating his violence and getting under the skin of his rivals,” the prosecutor said.
In their sentencing brief, prosecutors wrote that Perez signed with a music label and used violence to further his career. “The music that had glorified gang violence made the defendant famous and now rich,” they wrote, accusing Kay Flock of encouraging violence through private messages.
Meanwhile, defense attorney Michael Ashley had asked the judge to levy the mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years. Ashley said his client grew up in one of the nation’s most dangerous neighborhoods and fell under the influence of an older man who encouraged gang activity.
In response, the judge said he took into consideration that Kay Flock’s crimes occurred while his brain was “still evolving and maturing.” He also factored in that six of Kay Flock’s friends died from gun violence before he turned 18. And yet, Kay Flock still got 30 years behind bars.
“The life of the street, it seems to me, is all you’ve ever known,” Judge Liman said.
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Associated Press writer Larry Neumeister contributed to this report.
