“Long live Dolph” chants erupted and echoed through 713 Music Hall as Key Glock’s “Glockaveli” tour reached its second stop in Houston – the city he considers to be his second home.
Young Dolph was Key Glock’s cousin by marriage but would eventually be his right hand in hip-hop by choice. In 2017, Dolph signed a 19-year-old Key Glock to his own record label “Paper Route Empire” and the two would begin releasing hits together almost immediately.
The currently Platinum-level track “Major” was one of the first smash-hits released by the pair back in 2018, and the Memphis duo went on to release two joint-albums with Dum and Dummer in 2019 and its sequel, Dum and Dummer 2 in 2021. Both albums found their way onto the charts and landed them both their first top 10 debuts on Billboard.
Unfortunately, the run the two were on would be cut short soon after the release of their second joint project. Young Dolph was shot dead in Memphis outside of Makeda’s Homemade Butter Cookies on November 17, 2021, just eight months after the release of Dum and Dummer 2.
A grief-stricken Key Glock would release a tribute song not long after titled “Proud”, which appeared on the deluxe version of his Yellow Tape 2 album released in 2021 and sparked his first solo-appearance on the Billboard Hot 100.
It has been roughly three and a half years now since Dolph’s death, and Key Glock has now released two solo projects since. His latest album marks his tenth studio album and is titled Glockaveli: The Don, hence the name of his tour.
As time passes and Glock navigates the post-Dolph chapter in his journey as an artist, he hasn’t forgotten to honor the friend he lost and who played a crucial role in getting him there. He tries to make sure the crowd and his fans don’t forget Dolph either.
“I want the three biggest Dolph fans on stage with me right now.” He said signaling to his stage assistants who began searching for eager fans to come up on stage.
Each of the three selected would go on to perform a song of Dolph’s along-side Key Glock.
Fortunately, the three fans knew the words and knew them well. It allowed them to get a glimpse of what life as a big-time artist is like up on that stage – a glimpse at what Dolph had once had when he commanded the microphone.
The night of tribute continued and eventually shifted to the city that Glock has had much love for in the past.
“Houston y’all know this my second home, right?” He said before Houston’s own Maxo Kream made his way out to perform his 2018 hit song “Fetti”. This was followed with yet another Houston hip-hop legend, the Trill OG himself.
“Y’all know I’m an old soul, let me bring out a legend for y’all.” Glock said as the strings of “Get Throwed” queued and Bun B emerged.
The rest of the night was filled with classics from Key Glock, from the classic hit “Russian Cream” from his 2018 album Glock Bond to recent hits like “Let’s Go” and “Ambition for Cash.”
One thing to be appreciated about the performance – Glock rapped every word. While there were track overlays for the many of the songs, it was hard to notice with the way he rapped.
The last few years have been about Key Glock finding his way and managing being a rapper on his own. This latest project and the tour that followed has felt like another step forward for Glock as a solo artist, but while making sure to remember and embrace the duo that was Young Dolph and Key Glock.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2025.