Why was Hotboy Wes sentenced? All about the artist from Gucci Mane's 1017 in the wake of Enchanting's death

As news of former 1017 rapper Enchanting's death made headlines, netizens took notice of Hotboy Wes, another 1017 musician who was sentenced earlier this year. This comes after rumors of the Gucci Mane-founded label being "cursed" resurfaced.

On Tuesday, June 11, 2024, Gucci Mane shared an Instagram post mourning the No Luv rapper. Soon, the post was filled with a torrent of comments blaming Guwop for the ill fate of current and former artists under his label.

Rumors of 1017 being cursed surfaced around January 2023 after Joe Budden, in his namesake podcast, remarked that the label founder's scouting needs to be examined as it was "no coincidence" that so many of his artists and former artists were troubled.

One of them, Hotboy Wes, received a 15-year prison sentence after entering a guilty plea to 10 counts stemming from six different indictments. This included two enhanced counts of assault, family violence, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, robbery, unauthorized use of a vehicle, endangering children, criminal mischief of more than $2,500, and theft from a person.

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Hotboy Wes rose to fame after signing with Gucci Mane's 1017 Records in July 2021

Wesley Takquan Lewis a.k.a. Hotboy Wes hails from Waco, Texas. He began his career by sharing music on his YouTube channel. In 2019, he released his mixtape Never Had Sh*t, which included his viral single, I Can't, which currently boasts over 2.7 million views.

In a May 2021 interview with Billboard, Gucci Mane expressed his desire to expand 1017 despite the then-ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This included signing Hotboy Wes in July 2021. He soon rose to fame, releasing songs like My Lil Dance (with Guwop), Rolling Loud (ft. Bif Scarr and BidWalk Dog), and Free Speech.

Per his website, the Texan rapper grew up in a rough neighborhood, being raised by his aunt due to an incarcerated father and an addicting mother. However, things took a turn for the worse when his aunt was sent to the penitentiary. It explained:

"That's when sh*t became really turbulent and rocky for me. My mom ended up hooked on that dope. I was always in trouble, but I started rapping. I had it in my heart I was going to be a rapper, for real."

However, following the success of I Can't, Gucci Mane contacted him with an offer, and he "decided to put (his) gun and dope away."

In February 2022, news of Hotboy Wes's arrest in a robbery incident involving a Roxex watch made headlines. Per a Waco-Tribune report, he allegedly took $9000 and the watch and struck the victim with the car door before fleeing. At the time, he was released on a $30,000 bail bond.

It was soon revealed that Wesley was previously arrested in February 2020 after he tried to run a vehicle with a woman and two children into a cement barrier on Interstate 35. Per KWTX, citing court documents, the woman in question was the mother of his two children (also in the vehicle). At the time, he told the officer he was trying to see his kids.

Per the Waco-Tribune report, Wes has a record of run-ins with the law. This includes being sent to a Texas Department of Juvenile Justice facility in 2010 on charges of engaging in organized criminal activity, followed by a seven-year prison sentence in 2013 and a twenty-month jail sentence in 2014 on similar charges.

Following his sentence hearing, prosecutor Christi Hunting Horse released a statement, saying:

"In addition to being a known gang member, Mr. Lewis has repeatedly demonstrated his complete disregard for the law. Such actions have consequences. Those consequences were realized today with the sentences imposed. The state will continue in its commitment to stand up for abused women and victim of crime."

Hotboy Wes must serve 7.5 years of his sentence before being eligible for parole.