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Keyon Marcell Fails
Criminal status	Imprisoned
Conviction(s)	Possession of a firearm by a convicted felon Wire fraud Mail fraud Conspiracy to commit wire fraud Conspiracy to commit mail fraud Identity theft Forgery Possession of counterfeiting tools
Criminal penalty	4 years and 131 days prison (reduced to 3 years and 82 days) $34,000 fine
Details
Span of crimes	2019–2021
Country	United States
Weapon	Taurus G3
Date apprehended	March 4, 2021
Imprisoned at	FCI McKean, Pennsylvania, U.S

Keyon Marcell Fails, known by stage name FWC (Fam' with Cash) Big Key, is an American rapper and convicted felon from Linwood, Michigan. He is a member of rap group FWC Cashgang. Over the span of his music career, he has collaborated with rappers such as Rio da Yung OG, Foolio, Icewear Vezzo, Baby Smoove, and OTF Timo of Lil Durk's OTF collective. He has faced significant legal troubles and is currently incarcerated at FCI McKean, expected to be released on January 1, 2026.

Early life

Fails used to play basketball in middle and high school and recalls being good at it, but quit after being moved down from varsity to junior varsity. On December 13, 2012 he was selected as Allen Academy (Detroit) "player of the game" after a basketball game between Allen Academy and Melvindale High School.

While imprisoned in 2016, Keyon was informed his father had stage IV cancer, which caused his father's death the next year. Keyon's grandmother had also died from cancer.

According to Fails, he was introduced to gangbanging by his older brother and to fraud by FWC Cashgang rapper FWC Lonnie, shortly after his father passed in 2017.

Rap career

He is a member of the rap group FWC Cashgang, who have feuds with other Detroit rap groups Glockboyz and BandGang. Fails refers to himself as "Detroit's biggest opp'" because of the hatred he receives from Glockboyz and BandGang due to insulting their dead members is songs, which he explained as being retribution for his rivals insulting his dead father and grandmother.

He began rapping in 2017 as a legal source of income after he was charged with credit card fraud. His first official release, the intro to his debut EP Welcome to Linwood, was released as a single on January 8, 2018. He later attracted the attention of local rapper Rio da Yung OG, and Rio da Yung OG appeared on Big Key's 2019 debut album, Key to the City and Key's 2019 single "Pressure"

. In 2021, Key released the single "Key30Six", which featured Foolio and OTF Timo. This, and the songs "No Wrong" (featuring Baby Smoove) and "Same Opp's" (featuring OTF Timo) would appear on Key's 2021 album, Key to the World, a sequel to Key to the City. He followed it up with 2022 album Industry Ready, which featured artists such as Peezy and Icewear Vezzo.

On October 12, 2022 Key was sentenced to 1 year in prison, which was later extended to 4 years in 2023 before a reduction to 3 years and 82 days. While incarcerated, he released albums Blackballed and Free 24.

Legal issues

Michigan gun case

In 2016, Fails was incarcerated in Kent County Juvenile Detention Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan for being a minor in possession of a firearm in a public place, but was let out early after it was found out his father had cancer.

Federal fraud case in Ohio

On February 20, 2019, Fails was sentenced to 4 years probation after being pleading guilty to forgery and possession of counterfeiting tools, which he committed in Lucas County, Ohio, but was supervised by the Michigan Department of Corrections.

Federal fraud, gun, and flight case

During his probation, on October 22, 2019, Fails was arrested again in Longview, Texas for felony fraud. Subsequently, he made bail. He did not return to Texas for a court hearing, causing a warrant to be put out for his arrest. According to an affidavit, Fails "knew he was a 'fugitive from justice'," and "refused to answer" his charges. On March 4, 2021, a search warrant was executed on an Oak Park, Michigan property Fails was believed to be staying at, in which he was found to be in possession of a Taurus G3 pistol. He was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and flight to avoid prosecution. Despite the nature of the charges, he was let out on bond, during which he began recording more music and appeared on the podcast No Jumper on June 4, 2021.

On October 12, 2022, Fails was sentenced to 1 year in federal prison for fraud and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Additionally, he was discharged from probation due to the conviction, meaning he would be required serve the remaining 131 days of his 4-year suspended sentence in prison.

Federal fraud conspiracy case

While in prison for the Texas case, he was tried and convicted of unemployment fraud committed during the global coronavirus pandemic. According to prosecutors, Fails conspired with other criminals to defraud multiple US states through using mail and Email to file and collect unemployment benefits under the names of other individuals, leading Fails to be convicted of wire fraud, mail fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, and identity theft. On January 11, 2023, Fails was sentenced to an additional 3 years in federal prison and being required to pay $34,000 in restitution.

During his stint in FCI McKean, his sentence was reduced by 1 year and 49 days and he is expected to be released on January 1, 2026.

Other fraud cases

In an interview, Fails said he served 7 months in prison for credit card fraud and was "caught instantly" after attempting it again in 2017, which motivated him to rap to make legal money. He also said he had faced prior extraditions due to being charged with fraud in Missouri and Kentucky.

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

1. ^ "Offender Tracking Information System (OTIS) - Offender Profile". mdocweb.state.mi.us. Retrieved 2025-01-08.
2. ^ No Jumper (2021-06-04). The FWC Big Key Interview: How He Became Detroit’s Biggest Opp. Retrieved 2025-01-09 – via YouTube.
3. "Keyon Fails' Allen Academy Career Home". www.maxpreps.com. Retrieved 2025-01-09.
4. ^ Baldas, Tresa. "Feds: Oak Park fugitive busted on Instagram — his necklace gave him away". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved 2025-01-09.
5. "OIG Investigations Newsletter" (PDF). Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Labor. Vol. 44. January 31, 2023. p. 5. Retrieved 2025-01-09.
6. "Inmate Locator". Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved 2025-01-09. BOP register number 33007-509