DeVante is a teenager from Garden Heights who is heavily featured in The Hate U Give book. He joins the King Lords in hopes of being able to provide for his mother and brother, as well as being attracted to the sense of family that the gang advertises. The fear of ending up dead or in prison leads him to ask Maverick for help him leave the gang. DeVante eventually moves in with Starr's uncle Carlos, and agrees to turn witness against King to protect the Garden Heights community. DeVante is also the one who reveals that Khalil wasn't actually involved with the King Lords and King was attempting to save face at the funeral. Truthfully, Khalil was selling drugs to pay back his mother's debt after she stole money from King.
In the movie, DeVante doesn't exist. Small bits of his storyline are given to Starr's half brother Seven — mainly the incident where he's beaten up by King and Iesha sacrifices her own safety to get him away from the King Lords.