Hip-Hop Show Vol. 4

Hip Hop Grows Up Inc, a non-profit centered on guiding youth emotional development, has announced a partnership with the mothers of Daz Dillinger and Keyshia Cole.

Both mothers, Dr. Allean Varnado and Dr.. Yvonne Cole, are evangelists who minister to youth around the country.

The non-profit states one of its main goals is to “help youth better prioritize images and words they receive from entertainment, and to greatly enhance the self-esteem within youth.”

“As an educator, evangelist, singer/songwriter, I am delighted to be a part of Hip Hop Grows Up, Inc. I want to see first above all things, (that) Hip Hop Grows Up Inc, train youth to put God first and His word first and make sure that they know, you want to be able to grow up spiritually and educationally,” Dr. Varnado explained to AllHipHop.com. “We want the youth to find out who they are in Christ. Then they will know that no man can stand in the way, of getting what God has provided for them through Jesus Christ. We want them educated. It is very important that they get the best.”

Founders Talia Ashley and Cece Morris are very excited about the partnership and feel the religious experience of both women will be vital to their success with the children.

“Having a spiritual connection to God is far too important to the growth and transformation of our youth and to Hip Hop Grows Up, Inc,” stated Morris.

As an elder, Dr. Cole also feels an obligation to impart the life lessons and wisdom she’s learned throughout her life.

“As a minister, I see the challenge our kids face today. I feel our kids want someone to hear them and Hip Hop Grows Up, Inc is that ear,” Cole said. “If the elders don’t hear the kids, then who will?”

For more information visit www.hiphopgrowsup.com

Incarcerated former drug kingpin “Freeway” Ricky Ross has decided to break his silence on the recent revelations into the past of the rapper that bears his name, Miami artist Rick Ross.

Since the rapper’s debut, many have wondered of a possible connection, since the artist not only bears the name of the former kingpin, but also sports a similar beard and cites stories of extensive drug and criminal activity in his rhymes.

Now that the rapper, real name William Roberts, has been confirmed to have worked as a correction officer, the original Ricky Ross tells AllHipHop.com that he attempted to steer his rap counterpart away from public embarrassment.

“After seeing all the stuff that has been going on with the Correctional Officer (William Roberts) that stole my name, [it] makes me think back to a year and a half ago when we spoke,” Ross explained to AllHipHop.com. “I tried to talk to him like a big brother and let him know to be you, and that he couldn’t be me. And that if he wanted to rap the lifestyle that he couldn’t frame it based on my life.”

Roberts has repeatedly denied that he based his music persona on the real Ross’ criminal exploits.

Ross, who today regrets the actions that helped destroy his community and land him in prison, can only shake his head at the unnecessary predicament Roberts has put himself in.

“How different his life would have been if he would have taken my advice,” Ross reflected. “You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all the people all the time.”

In the early and mid 80’s, Ross controlled most of the Los Angeles drug trade, and had ties to the Iran-Contra scandal due to his suppliers.

In 1996 Ross was sentenced to life in prison for attempting to purchase over 100 kilos from a federal agent.

He successfully appealed and had his sentence reduced to 20 years.

Ross is scheduled to be released on August 13, 2010.

Building on his already lucrative portfolio of reality show brands, mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has announced the launch of his new VH1 show, I Want to Work for Diddy.

The first hour long episode is set to premier August 4 at 9:00 pm and will follow 13 aspiring assistants as they struggle through a myriad of emotional, mental, and physical challenges, for the opportunity to work directly under Diddy.

The applicant’s work will be narrowed down by a panel of judges: Warner Music VP Kevin Liles, Sean John Marketing Director and former Diddy assistant Capricorn Clark, and Island Def Jam Chief of Staff Phil Robinson.

Diddy spoke exclusively to AllHipHop.com about how the new show came about and his long term plans for his various television brands.

“This is an overall plan of mine I’ve had for the past year to take over the airwaves,” Diddy revealed to AllHipHop.com. “For the month of August I have three shows on the air. On Monday you have I Want to Work for Diddy, Tuesday you have Run’s House, and Wednesday you got Making the Band. So every time you turn on VH1 or MTV you’ll see the Bad Boy logo or hear the music. It’s a lot of real estate and brand marketing that I’m experimenting with along with the creative content that I’ve put together.”

Even with the large amount of airtime, Diddy is not worried about overkill or monotony, since each show remains distinct and showcases positive images of successful young African-American’s and Latinos.

And as a pioneer in reality TV shows focused on African-Americans, Diddy feels an obligation to show his community how to empower themselves.

“It’s a lot of African-American talent that’s on the shows,” Diddy beamed. “I’m very proud of that and to add color to MTV, VH1, and Viacom. It’s [about] the positive messages but making them all distinct. It’s about us being able to empower ourselves, not asking for any handouts. You see that on Run’s House where the children are starting their own businesses. With Making the Band we’ve taking the show on the road for the first time. You’ll be able to see the competitive nature between the groups in different cities. And I Want to Work for Diddy is about following your dreams no matter where you come from.”

Run’s House is in its fifth season and airs Wednesdays at 10pm on MTV.

I Want to Work for Diddy premiers Monday August 4 on VH1.

Pundit Bill O’Reilly has responded to Nas’ protest at Fox headquarters yesterday, calling the demonstration nothing more than a publicity stunt.

On his show, O’Reilly again took aim at the Queensbridge poet’s lyrics.

“As you may have heard, that guy [Nas] is accusing Fox News of being a racist organization. This from a person that makes a living peddling the ‘n word’ and violent lyrics to his target audience of children and young adults,” O’Reilly stated last night on his show the O’Reilly Factor. “He is a real champ.”

O’Reilly further dismissed the media attention the protest received, which was fueled by over 600,000 petition signatures condemning the network’s alleged demeaning actions, such as O’Reilly threatening a “lynching” party on Michelle Obama and the network referring to her as “Obama’s baby mama.”

“The good news is that very few media have given him attention and those who did don’t deserve your attention, they are corrupt,” O’Reilly claimed.

Despite Nas’ untitled album’s standing as the number one release in the country, O’Reilly was adamant that the critically acclaimed LP is a disappointment that fueled Nas’ protest.

“Nas had an obvious agenda. His new album is a bomb, a disaster, a catastrophe, and he desperately wants attention” O’Reilly explained. “Two years ago his last album sold 355,000 copies his first week and this time only 187,000 copies. Not good. I hope I’m not a racist for pointing that out.”

The feud between O’Reilly and Nas began last year when the controversial commentator denounced Nas as a violent rapper, after the he was scheduled to perform a benefit concert for Virginia Tech victims.

Nas responded in various print media before an official response on his new album titled “Sly Fox.”

Yesterday, Nas delivered over 600,000 petition signatures to Fox’s Manhattan headquarters and delivered a short speech criticizing the network as a “propaganda machine” and racist in its coverage of African-Americans.

Later, the rapper was interviewed by political satirist Stephen Colbert on his show “the Colbert Report” and performed “Sly Fox.”

There, he once again revealed he would be willing to debate O’ Reilly on their differences.

Nas’ untitled album was released on July 15 and is currently ranked #1 on Billboard’s top 200 album chart.

Lil Wayne has been named as the defendant in a new copyright infringement and unfair competition suit filed a Manhattan court on Thursday (July 24).

The owners of portions of the Rolling Stones’ catalogue are seeking unspecified damages for what they say is the rapper’s unauthorized use of the song “Play With Fires,” by creating a song by the same title.

According to Reuters, Abkco Music Inc. accuses Wayne, born Dwayne Carter, those with whom he collaborated on the track, and Cash Money Records, of releasing an altered version of the Stones’ recording, borrowing too closely from the song’s original lyrics and music.

One example cited is Lil Wayne‘s use of the line “but you can’t blame me if I set this stage on fire,” which Abkco says is too similar to “but don’t play with me, ’cause you’re playing with fire” from the original.

Abkco also takes issue with what they call “explicit, sexist and offensive language” used on Wayne’s “Play With Fire,” which appears on his latest release Tha Carter III.

The company states in it’s suit that the similarities between the two versions could lead audiences to believe that Abkco and the Rolling Stones approved the alleged “remake.”

This is the second lawsuit levied against Lil’ Wayne this year, for a track featured on Tha Carter III, which slipped to the number 2 position on the Billboard 200 chart this week, after a five-week run in the top slot.

In May, popular South African singer Karma-Ann Swanepoel accused him of using her track “Once” on the controversial song “I Feel Like Dying,” which started out as a popular mixtape release before being added to the new album.

2 Live Crew founder Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell married Kristin Thompson Saturday (July 19) at Saint Luke Community Methodist Church in Dallas, Texas.

According to People, the event, which was attended by 300 guests, was followed by a reception at the Opus Grand Ballroom at Hotel Palomar.

Rap icon Doug E. Fresh did double duty at the reception by DJing and performing. Legendary R&B singer Betty Wright was also on hand to serenade the newlyweds.

After years of being single, the wedding marked the end of a long road for Campbell.

“I waited 47-years to find the love of my life, the woman of my dreams to [make me] do this,” Campbell told AllHipHop.com in an exclusive statement. “I have four brothers and I am the fifth and all of them have been married for 25 years. That’s the kind of family I come from. This is the best thing that happened to me in my entire life and this weekend has been the best weekend of my entire life. I have never been married before and this is my first and my last and I will not do it again, because I am going to be with this woman for the rest of my life.”

News of the wedding comes as the couple prepares to give TV viewers a glimpse into their world with the upcoming VH1 reality series Luke’s Parental Advisory.

The hour-long show centers on the challenges Campbell faces while balancing life with his children and Thompson.

Luke’s Parental Advisory centers on Campbell, who spends time at the office producing various adult themed content and traveling the country with beautiful women as “Uncle Luke” Campbell.

Luke’s Parental Advisory will premiere Aug. 4 at 10:30 p.m. EST. on VH1.

The rap pioneer’s exchange of vows with Thompson will be featured on the show’s season finale in September.

Bay area rapper and producer PSD Tha Drivah, a protégé of the late Mac Dre, remains in custody at the Sacramento County Main Jail, facing charges of possession with intent to distribute ecstasy, following an arrest at Sacramento International Airport earlier this month, AllHipHop.com has confirmed.

The 34-year-old rapper, born Steven Davison, stands accused of attempting to board a flight to Oklahoma on July 14 with 6,000 ecstasy pills hidden in his clothes, which were discovered after he was selected for a security screening.

During the screening, Transportation Security Administration agents discovered a bulge in Davison’s leg, which he claimed was a colostomy bag.

Believing that he had a justified medical condition, authorities say a TSA supervisor offered to examine PSD in private, at which point he asked to go to the restroom.

According to Special Agent Brian Nehring in an affidavit to the U.S. District Court in Sacramento where Davison appeared for a hearing yesterday (Jul 24), once in the private room, a Sacramento County sheriff’s deputy searching Davison found one hundred dollar bills totaling $5,600 in his front pocket.

During the search, Davison changed his story about the contents of the bag in his pants, first telling authorities that it contained vitamins, then saying it was a bag of ice.

As his behavior became increasingly suspicious, the deputy decided to handcuff Davison, at which point he removed the bag, containing 1,000 ecstasy pills.

He had reportedly hidden the other 5,000 pills in the screening room, where he had been alone for a short time prior to the search.

Signed to Thizz Entertainment, the company co-founded by Mac Dre before he passed away in 2004, PSD That Drivah was one third of the Cutthroat Committee, alongside Dre and Dubee.

Following his 1997 debut Game Costs, PSD went on to release six solo albums through 2005, before releasing 2007 Da Bidness, a collaborative effort with Keak Da Sneak and Messy Marv.

PSD is ineligible for bail until his next court appearance, scheduled for Monday (Jul 28).