Richard Lamar “Ricky” Hawk (born January 23, 1998), known professionally as as Silentó is an American former rapper and singer-songwriter raised in Atlanta, Georgia.

In an interview with St. Augustine, Silento explained about how he has gotten his stage name, stating:

I used to always tell people what I wanted to do and how I wanted to do it, so it’s less talk and more action

Silentó has stated that he was born with multiple drugs found in his system and that he grew up seeing his family members attempting to kill one another and talking to walls. Raised in Atlanta, he began performing music as part of a group while in middle school before making solo music as a high-schooler.

Prompted by losing a high school talent show, Silento independently released his debut single “Watch Me (Whip / Nae Nae),” which became a commercial success. The music video of the song would exceed over 2 billion views on YouTube, as well as a dance challenge with TuneCore in April 2015. Thanks to the viral dance being a social media sensation, the single would peak at #3 on the Billboard 200 and was later certified 6x platinum by RIAA. After the single was released, he signed a deal with Capitol Records.

Throughout the years, Silentó would capitalize heavily on “Watch Me (Whip / Nae Nae),” being in appearances on Good Morning America, performing at the BET Awards, an official collaboration with Nickelodeon, and many more. On August 3, 2018, after four years, Silentó would release his debut studio album Fresh Outta High School, with a sequel being released in December 2018. He would continue to release music, although none of his later catalog would match the success of his breakout single.

In 2020, Silentó would be arrested and taken into custody with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, after he was seen weilding a hatchet in search of his girlfriend, to which he swung at two people before his friend came to inform him he was at the wrong house. Silentó’s career would be put on an indefinite holt in early 2021, where he was arrested in connection with the murder of his older cousin, Fredrick Rooks. In June 2025, Silentó was sentenced to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty but mentally ill to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter, as well as another five-year sentence for aggravated assault.

His final project, Bars Behind Bars, was released on March 13, 2021, while he was still in jail at the time waiting for his trial.