Wyclef Jean presented Shakira with the 2023 MTV Video Vanguard Award on Tuesday night (September 12), an honor delivered to the Colombian star for her outstanding career in music. The global superstar has reportedly sold more than 125 million albums worldwide, making her the greatest-selling female Latin artist of all time.
Before the Fugees’ de facto leader exited the stage, he said, “Right about now, New Jerusalem, New Jersey! Free the Wave. Y’all give it up for Shakira.” No, he wasn’t talking about Harlem’s Max B—but another wave. Tsunami Surf.
Surf’s mother, Tsu Umi Surf, posted the clip on her Twitter and Instagram. She said on one platform that she and her son appreciate the love shared by Wyclef.
As previously reported by AllHipHop.com, the Ultimate Rap League battle rapper was arrested on racketeering conspiracy charges and possessing firearms and ammunition as a convicted felon. He pleaded guilty to those charges. He’s now on lockdown and awaiting his sentencing, which was supposed to take place on Tuesday but was pushed back.
In May, his mother called for his fans to fast and pray every Tuesday leading up to the September date, changing the day of the week to “Tsu-sday.”
Will The Weeknd call it quits on collaborating with other artists? According to Diddy, the Canadian star is done with features following the release of their upcoming song.
Diddy’s “Another One of Me” will hit DSPs on Friday (September 15), a date the Hip-Hop mogul has dubbed “Diddy Day.” The forthcoming single includes contributions by The Weeknd, French Montana and 21 Savage.
On August 30, Combs uploaded a 17-second clip for “Another One of Me” to his verified YouTube channel. The Love Records founder titled the teaser, “IT’S OFFICIAL @TheWeeknd LAST COLLAB OF HIS CAREER WILL BE ON THE LOVE ALBUM: OFF THE GRID!”
A James Larese-directed music video for “Another One of Me” comes out on Friday (September 15) as well. Diddy also plans to drop The Love Album: Off the Grid that same day.
The Love Album: Off the Grid signifies Diddy’s return to R&B-influenced sounds. He previously used a full-length body of work to tackle that genre on 2010’s Last Train to Paris with Dirty Money (Dawn Richard and Kalenna Harper).
Dirty Money appears on The Love Album: Off the Grid track “Deliver Me.” The album also contains guest appearances by Justin Bieber, Mary J Blige, Jazmine Sullivan, H.E.R., Summer Walker, Babyface, John Legend, Teyana Taylor, Busta Rhymes and many more.
Diddy’s last studio LP, Press Play, peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. The billionaire musician/entrepreneur also scored a No. 1 with 1997’s No Way Out, which came out as a Puff Daddy & The Family project.
Veteran radio personality DJ Envy probably has a lot of industry stories. The Queens, New York City native recently recalled an unsuccessful scheduled studio session with R&B singer R. Kelly.
DJ Envy sat down with VladTV for an interview. During the conversation, the 46-year-old Hampton University graduate spoke about traveling to Illinois in the late 1990s to work with Kelly.
“This was the mixtape days. So this was when I was like 19, 20,” said DJ Envy. “They reached out to me and R. Kelly wanted to do an R&B mixtape, flew me out to Chicago. And that was it.”
He continued, “It sounds crazy saying, ‘flew me out.’ I got flown out on a Friday. I get there, get in the hotel, nice hotel, five-star, everything’s first class. Friday, nothing. They didn’t return my call. No studio. So, I said alright. And it was supposed to be a weekend thing, so Friday, Saturday, Sunday.”
DJ Envy went on to say he got himself back to New York that Saturday night. The Power 105.1. presenter also added, “I felt like I was an Instagram model that somebody flew out. I was too ugly to holla at.”
A Federal Jury Convicted R. Kelly On Nine Counts
Around the time of DJ Envy’s failed meeting, R. Kelly released the R. studio album. That project arrived in record stores on November 10, 1998. The 3-time Grammy winner dropped the TP-2.com LP two years later.
“Through his actions, Kelly exhibited a callous disregard for the devastation his crimes had on his victims and has shown no remorse for his conduct,” stated Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, at the time of sentencing in June 2022.
It appears the producer/rapper combination of Metro Boomin and Future is ready to drop a full-length project. One-half of that musical duo reminded their fans about the upcoming body of work.
The MTV network booked Metro Boomin as a performer for the 2023 Video Music Awards which took place on September 12. The Boominati Worldwide founder shared the stage with several Hip-Hop stars.
Swae Lee, Nav and A Boogie wit da Hoodie joined Metro at the VMAs for a live rendition of “Calling.” Additionally, “Superhero (Heroes & Villains)” featuring Future (aka Pluto) kicked off the televised set.
“MTV, VMAs, ‘23. What we doing?” said Metro Boomin at the start of his Video Music Awards performance on Tuesday night. “Me and Pluto album on the way.”
Metro Boomin and Future have a long history of working together on music. Tracks by the Atlanta native such as “Honest,”“Karate Chop” and “Wicked” feature production by the Grammy-nominated beatmaker.
“Superhero (Heroes & Villains)” lives on Metro’s Heroes & Villains studio LP. That album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart with 185,000 first-week units. Heroes & Villains earned Platinum status in June.
Throughout his career, Metro Boomin has created collaborative projects with acts such as 21 Savage, Offset, Big Sean and Nav. He also curated theSpider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse soundtrack which came out in June.
2022’s platinum-certified I Never Liked You is Future’s most recent album. Plus, he partnered with Drake for 2015’s What a Time to Be Alive, Young Thug for 2017’s Super Slimey and Lil Uzi Vert for 2020’s Pluto x Baby Pluto.
Memphis-bred recording artist NLE Choppa dropped “It’s Getting Hot” in July. The Draco, Project X and Superstar O-produced track borrows heavily from Nelly’s Hot 100 chart-topping “Hot in Herre.” Some listeners criticized NLE Choppa for remaking the classic single from 2002. However, Nelly once again co-signed “It’s Getting Hot” by appearing on stage last night with the 20-year-old rapper.
Choppa performed at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards pre-show. The Cottonwood 2 album creator brought out Nelly during his set to run through a “It’s Getting Hot” and “Hot in Herre” mash-up.
“It’s Getting Hot” peaked at No. 36 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and No. 25 on the Billboard Rhythmic Airplay chart. The song’s “Hot in Herre”-inspired music video crossed the five million view mark on YouTube.
Nelly’s Grammy-winning “Hot in Herre” spent seven weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 2002. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) awarded the single with a 2x-platinum plaque in May 2014.
“WAP” hitmakers Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion reunited for a new single titled “Bongos.” Rapper-turned-podcaster Joe Budden was not a fan of the song.
This week, Budden addressed the reaction to his review on the latest episode of his show. “Bring Back Dogpiling” featured the 43-year-old commentator suggesting unspecified foul play caused the media attention for his negative comments.
Joe Budden Says No One Checked Him For His “Bongos” Review
“Did somebody check me? No, I actually got an invite tonight to the ‘Bongos’ listening party,” said Joe Budden. He later stated, “TMZ and along with a number of other outlets and publications did, like y’all always do, post my opinions and put it on the assembly belt.”
The “Pump It Up” performer also added, “I want to say that I know when that happens that one of y’all’s labels or teams or publicist people out there doing that. I know that it’s y’all.”
He continued, “When I’m saying something bad and it gets picked up like that and put everywhere that’s somebody else’s team, somebody else’s squad holding them down and they’re just using me as the frontman. And don’t play with me like that because y’all know I f### with Cardi. But I stand in what I said about the song.”
Cardi B & Megan Thee Stallion’s “Bongos” Performance Shuts Down The VMAs
Last night (September 12), Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion performed “Bongos” at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards. The YouTube version of the performance is one of the most-watched videos from the ceremony.
The official $2 million “Bongos”music video has already amassed over 10 million views and 425,000 likes on YouTube in five days. According to reports, Cardi and Megan’s joint effort will likely debut near the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Previously, “WAP” became an international smash. That 2020 single by Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the Billboard Global 200 Chart. The RIAA certified “WAP” as 8x-Platinum in the United States.
Yung Bleu has dramatically cut short his Love Scars tour, canceling after performing less than half the dates on the 17-stop trek.
The “You’re Mines Still“ hitmaker has been going viral on social media recently following a couple of public spats. His wife aired him out after a Philadelphia woman revealed her flew her out before Bleu apologized to his spouse. Then Boosie Badazz reignited the beef with his former protégé over their contract dispute.
However, earlier this week, fans began complaining that dates for his upcoming shows were being canceled.
Bleu was slated to perform in Richmond, VA, and Philadelphia, PA, on September 9 and 12, respectively, but fans noticed they could not access their tickets.
Then, on the day the show was due to roll into Philly, Yung Bleu finally updated fans, announcing he axed the remainder of the tour.
“Words can’t explain how I feel about the remainder of this tour being canceled,” he wrote. Bleu said that he wrote the update himself before taking accountability for calling off the tour.
“I sincerely apologize to every fan I disappointed,” he added. “When things like this happen the only person to blame is “The Artist” so I accept it . I won’t make excuses.”
The Alabama native explained he’s prioritizing getting his house and family back “in order.” He also revealed he’s dissociating from social media and getting his mental health right.
“A man cannot do anything if his house is not in order,” Yung Bleu stated before offering free shows to ticket holders who missed out on the canceled tour dates.
Diddy was honored for his illustrious career in the music industry and his contributions to Hip-Hop, receiving the Global Icon Award at the 2023 MTV VMAs.
The Bad Boy Records founder also took the stage at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on Tuesday night (September 12), to perform a career-spanning medley of hits. In his first performance at the awards show in nearly two decades, Daddy rocked the stage with a nostalgia-inducing set of hits, including “It’s All About the Benjamins,” and “Bad Boys For Life.”
The multi-hyphenate mogul placed his loved ones front and center during his set. Diddy’s 17-year-old daughter, Chance Combs, joined Mary J. Blige to present her father with the Global Icon Award.
King Combs filled in for Ma$e, performing “Mo’ Money Mo’ Problems” with Diddy, while his sisters also got in on the act. 16-year-old twins Jessie and D’Lila Combs acted as Diddy’s backing dancers during his “I’ll Be Missing You” rendition.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9EKhDTBfalI
Diddy’s daughters paid tribute to the NYC icon during a pink carpet interview before the show.
Chance told E! News, “We’re proud of everything he’s accomplished over all of these years. For him to be honored as an icon this year is really amazing.”
The twins also gushed over their father’s achievements, adding, “We’re very proud of our dad.”
Yung Miami and Keisha Cole also graced the stage with Diddy, with the latter performing their 2006 hit, “Last Night.” Check out Diddy’s heartwarming MTV VMA Global Icon Award acceptance speech below.
Ice Spice has nabbed the award for Best New Artist at the 2023 MTV VMAs.
The rising star rapper was the fan-favorite to win the award at this year’s ceremony at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, Tuesday night (September 12). Nonetheless, Ice Spice became overwhelmed once her name was read out, receiving a standing ovation as she took to the stage.
She expressed her immense gratitude during her teary-eyed acceptance speech amid a rapturous reception from the audience.
“Thank you so much. Thank you MTV. Oh my God, this is so cool,” Ice Spice said above the applause. “I just want to thank my Munchkins. I love you guys so much.”
She added, “I want to thank my manager James. I want to thank my producer Riot, for making the best music with me. Shout out to all the other nominees in this category. I want to thank my label 10K and Capitol for always supporting me. And of course God. Without God none of this would be possible.”
She concluded with a salute to her hometown, adding, “Shout out the Bronx. Period!”
https://youtu.be/yE7xpBvQUt4?si=b5Vp8Sd1P55Xm421
The Bronx-bred rapper rose to viral success following the release of “Munch (Feelin’ U),” in 2022. She followed up with a PinkPantheress collab on “Boy’s a Liar Pt. 2,” before teaming up on a pair of tracks with none other than Nicki Minaj on “Princess Diana” and “Barbie World.” Earlier this year, she reached for mainstream acclaim, teaming up with Taylor Swift on the “Karma” remix.
Her latest collab comes from a new Dunkin’ commercial with Ben Affleck, who hilariously freestyles for the rapper in the ad. Ice Spice and Affleck’s fall-themed frozen pumpkin spice drink commercial premiered during Tuesday night’s VMAs.
Offset couldn’t keep his hands off his wife, Cardi B, following her sensational performance at the 2023 MTV VMAs Tuesday night (September 12).
The Hip-Hop power couple arrived at the pink carpet hand-in-hand and gazed at each other lovingly before sharing a kiss for the cameras. Once inside, Cardi hit the stage with Megan Thee Stallion to perform their new single “Bongos,” much to the delight of the Migos rapper.
He watched on, mesmerized as the duo shut down the VMAs stage with their lively performance. Both Cardi and Megan wore barely there blue sequin bodysuits as they danced up a storm, leaving Offset jumping up and down as they wrapped their set.
However, things got a little heated once Cardi B and Offset headed backstage. While the VMA cameras were not rolling, the NYC icon whipped out her camera and started recording as her husband bent her over a restroom sink. Check out the cheeky video below that Cardi shared on her Instagram Story.
Their VMA racy PDA comes after Cardi B admitted she wants to make a “freaky” song with Offset.
“I do wanna do more songs with him,” the “Jealousy” hitmaker said during an interview with SiriusXM’s Hip Hop Nation.
She added, “I do wanna explore. I feel like we do so much rough songs and it’s like, let’s talk about f######. It’s like we always talk about the music. Let’s talk about f###### because I feel like we always like on attack mode when we do songs together. Let’s do a little something, something – freaky, freaky, freaky, freaky.”
Nelly officially confirmed his relationship with Ashanti. The diamond-selling rapper spoke about rekindling his romance with Ashanti on a new episode of Philo’sBoss Moves with Rasheeda.
“Yeah, we cool again,” Nelly said when asked about Ashanti. “I think it surprised both of us. It wasn’t anything that was planned. I think we both was pretty much doing what we do. But sometimes being separate, you understand one another more. You could be like, ‘Well, yo, let me exactly see maybe what they see.’ Because we all can be defensive sometimes in our own relationship. And we know we wrong, but we gonna stand on it. But we all a victim to that.”
Nelly mentioned how he felt “no pressure” in his current relationship with Ashanti. He thought they were both in a much better place now.
“Before I felt like both us were doing what we were doing career-wise and when you got so many people in the middle of it, it can be tough,” he said.
Nelly wasn’t ready to walk the wedding aisle with Ashanti but admitted he wanted to get married at some point in his life. He said his goal was to die knowing he had someone who loved him.
Baby Jungle is only 21 years old and already living out his dreams.
Hailing from Macon, Georgia, the rising star arrives on the scene with his own unique sound, style, and swag… and he’s ready to share his talents with the rest of the world. Recently, Baby Jungle collaborated with Luh Tyler on “Groove In,” proving his ability to make a banger with one of the hottest rising rappers.
A true rags to riches story, Baby Jungle tells the story of someone who fell victim to the streets, found music to be his saving grace, and went on to sign to a major label (Epic Records). Spitting nothing but truth in his rhymes, Baby Jungle’s story serves as inspiration and motivation to anyone who’s listening.
Most recently, Baby Jungle unveiled his highly-anticipated new single and visual for “No Dissin.”
AllHipHop caught up with Baby Jungle to discuss his roots, favorite artists, new music, friendship with Luh Tyler, and more!
AllHipHop: How would you describe your sound?
Baby Jungle: My sound is real! Everything I’ve been through. The ups, downs , getting money, losing friends. I take all that and put it into my music.
AllHipHop: You’re from Macon, Georgia, what was that like growing up?
Baby Jungle: It has its ups and downs! On one side, it’s good having a lot of family and people close with it being a small town. But on the other side, you don’t get the opportunities people get in big cities. It just made me grind harder though!
AllHipHop: Biggest influences?
Baby Jungle: Juice WRLD, Rod Wave, DaBaby, Lil Baby, Lil Uzi, Lil Wayne and Polo G.
AllHipHop: At what point did you realize this music thing was forreal?
Baby Jungle: I had a song called “Purge” that did over 700K views and everybody around the city was singing my songs word for word. That’s when I knew I had a wave!
AllHipHop: What was the inspiration behind your name?
Baby Jungle: The streets are like a jungle… you come up around the wildest stuff!
AllHipHop: What was the inspiration behind “No Dissin’”?
Baby Jungle: How I was raised you can’t let people play with you or they will keep trying to play with you. So it’s really a song for the feeling you get when you’re fed up and have to spazz out.
AllHipHop: Best memory from the video shoot?
Baby Jungle: Just the lit vibes with my team, I love doing run and gun videos! I feel like they capture the rawest moments/
AllHipHop: What do you want fans to take away from the single/visual?
Baby Jungle: I want the fans to tap in! Listen to the song to get them hype. When they are working out, getting ready for a football game or whatever. Turn it all the way up and go crazy!
AllHipHop: How did you get tapped in with Luh Tyler? What’s the bond you guys share?
Baby Jungle: Tyler is like my brother! You rarely come across genuine people but he keeps it 100 and shows love! I want to see him win and he wants to see me win.
AllHipHop: Bring us back to when you guys made “Groove In.”
Baby Jungle: I went to Florida to tap on with him and we just went crazy in the studio! We knocked out like three songs, but “Groove In” stood out!
AllHipHop: Three things you need in the studio?
Baby Jungle: iPhone charger, Gatorade, and good vibes.
AllHipHop: Goals yourself as an artist at this point of your career?
Baby Jungle: I want to be mentioned with the greats. I want to achieve all the goals! Sold out shows, Gold plaques, Platinum plaques, Grammys, BET Awards. All that!
Cardi B’s lawyers secured an opportunity to scrutinize the finances of Tasha K, who filed for bankruptcy after losing a defamation lawsuit to the rapper. According to court documents obtained by AllHipHop, Tasha K is scheduled to be examined under oath as early as Wednesday (September 13).
“The examination is pursuant to Bankruptcy Rule 2004 and Local Rule 2004-1 and will be recorded by video and/or stenographic means before a court reporter or any officer duly authorized by law to administer oaths and record testimony,” Cardi B’s legal team wrote to Tasha K. “The scope of the examination shall be as described in Bankruptcy Rule 2004 … Pursuant to Local Rule 2004-1, no order shall be necessary.”
Last year, Cardi B won a defamation case against Tasha K. A jury awarded roughly $4 million in damages to the Atlantic Records artist.
Earlier this year, Tasha K filed for bankruptcy after losing her appeal in the case. The vlogger, whose real name is Latasha Kebe, proposed paying $220,239.20 to Cardi B as part of a bankruptcy plan.
Cardi B’s legal team requested an extensive list of documents for their examination of Tasha K’s finances. Lawyers want access to the vlogger’s tax returns for 2019-2022, financial transfers to Tasha K’s husband Cheickna Kebe from 2019 to the present and much more.
Attorneys asked for a “detailed listing and photographs of all household goods and furnishings, furs and jewelry.” Cardi B’s lawyers sought “statements from any and all Social Media Platforms evidencing payments made to Debtor as a result of monthly subscriptions, pay-per-view (PPV) content, private messages/media and/or tips or YouTube ‘super chat’ donations or payments since March 21, 2019.”
Cardi B’s examination also intends to look at any advertisers who’ve paid Tasha K for product placements and endorsements. Lawyers demanded copies of “all paystubs, receipts or communications reflecting payments” to the vlogger since 2019.
Kanye West and his wife Bianca Censori keep showing skin in Italy. Photographers caught Ye’s butt crack on display once again while his wife exposed her nipples in a revealing outfit.
The couple’s latest show of skin happened a few weeks after their indecent exposure incident in Italy. Cameras captured Kanye exposing his entire butt while engaged in a lewd act with his wife on a water taxi.
Venezia Turismo Motoscafi, the company that rented the boat to Kanye and Censori, banned the couple over the incident. The company said it was unaware of what happened on the boat until the photos were published.
“On board, the driver had to keep a lookout for traffic and did not see these obscenities,” the company told the Daily Mail. “If this had happened, he would have immediately disembarked and reported the transgressors to those in authority.”
It added, “We completely dissociate ourselves from such acts and behavior. Mr. West and his wife will certainly no longer be welcome on board our company’s boats.”
Kanye and his wife faced public scrutiny for their indecent exposure in Italy. Italian critics of Ye and Censori called for arrests or fines.
View Kanye and his wife’s controversial antics below.
Sexyy Red is apparently taking over the world right now—well, at least reigning supreme over the New York Jets’ rabid legion of fans right now. Bolstered by the success of her hit single “SkeeYee,” which hit the Billboard Hot 100 Chart this week at No. 67, Sexyy Redd basked in the limelight at the Jets Monday Night Football game against in-state rival Buffalo Bills on Monday (September 11).
Despite Aaron Rodger’s season-ending Achilles injury being a lowlight of the game, Big Sexyy shared a number of incredible highlights from her inaugural NFL appearances, one of which included her s link-up with star draft pick Sauce Gardner—who went viral earlier this year after losing his mind during practice when the DJ on the field played Sexyy’s “SkeeYee” banger.
Sexyy Red pulls up to the NY Jets game after they were blasting “SkeeYee” at practice two weeks ago. pic.twitter.com/Dvuvy28N2l
Truth be told, I would be lying right now if I didn’t say Sexyy Red herself is having a moment and not just going viral because of “SkeeYee.” I mean, yes, of course there are thousands of social media videos, TikTok audio and social media remixes (such as this flip of GOOnica’s “Gone” and Sexyy’s latest ratchet magnum opus) that continue to boost the track streams like a human growth hormone. However, it’s Sexyy’s personality that’s winning over the hearts of millions. Don’t believe me? Just take a second to scroll through her tweets or Instagram feed and see if you don’t end up laughing.
Check out Sexyy Red kicking it with Gardner while having her way in and around the Jets’ facility.
Breakdancing stalwart Richard “Crazy Legs” Colón addressed allegations of sexual misconduct in an interview with AllHipHop’s Chuck Creekmur. The Hip-Hop pioneer maintained his innocence and said he was the victim of a scheme to slander his name ahead of the 2024 Olympics, which will feature breakdancing for the first time.
“My public apology was to my girl, not to anyone else,” Crazy Legs told AllHipHop. “People tried to flip my words around. They did. Fine, whatever. I should have shut up and just listened to my lawyer. But I felt like I gotta say something. And I got in my own head. But when it comes down to it: if you only knew the s### that I found out ‘cause I found out who set it off.”
He continued, “I found out everybody who was—and it was all over the Olympics. Because they didn’t want me—they thought, ‘Oh, Legs is gonna have all the power at the Olympics. It’s like, ‘Yo, so you’re gonna try to slander my name and do all this s###?’ And if I want, I could put the names out of everyone out there. But if I do that, I’m gonna f### up the scene so badly for everyone. Because there’s some pieces of s### that should be in jail right now that try to say s### about me.”
Crazy Legs insisted he “never touched anyone” in response to his alleged sexual misconduct. He told AllHipHop he knew the people responsible for spreading the accusations against him, but he would not reveal their names.
“I have somebody in a very powerful position … They were finding out all these fake pages,” he said. “And they were finding out that Change.org and Wikipedia had the same coding but different names as the posts. And then we found out—for me, when it comes to street s### or war, I have a long game. I know when to shut up and let s### play out. I found out that the person doing the Change.org and f###### with the Wikipedia was a dude from Chicago. And he was doing it with a girl from New York. And these are people who are vying to be on some sort of governing board for national qualifiers in the United States.”
Crazy Legs also revealed his own allegations of sexual misconduct against one of his accusers.
“The crazy s### is the girl who was moving in silence and thought I would never find out—because actually, somebody snitching on them ‘cause they had a falling out with one of their friends,” he said. “They came over to me. ‘Oh yeah, these two started it.’ And then I had girls coming, ‘Oh yeah, they called me up to see if I could say this about you. And if you ever go to court, I’ll go on the stand for you.’ And so the funny thing is that one of the girls is a straight-up groomer.”
He added, “And I know this: she’s also a molester because I know because we were on tour together and she jumped in the shower with another girl that was on tour with us. And we had to separate their rooms because she tried to take advantage of the girl in the shower. And she’s actually still at the forefront of some of the s### that’s going on within the dance scene.”
Crazy Legs said he contemplated suicide when he was accused of sexual misconduct in 2020. But he refused to expose any names, fearing how it may affect other breakdancers.
“I’m thinking about all the kids that this is gonna mess it up for with breaking going to the Olympics,” he said. “It had to be bigger than me. And that was tough to deal with … You’re looking at the worst thoughts you could think of and those went through my head, from revenge to offing myself.”
Check out AllHipHop’s interview with Crazy Legs below.
Mayor Ras Baraka and the City of Newark are celebrating Hip-Hop 50 by digging into the poet/politician’s in-depth relationship with the rap community. On an August episode of the “Ras 60” podcast, Baraka sat down with the Sugarhill Gang, rap music royalty and artists who cemented New Jersey as the birthplace of commercial rap music.
New Jersey is not just home to Sugarhill Gang but also Queen Latifah, Naughty By Nature, Redman, The Fugees (Lauryn Hill, Wyclef Jean and Pras Michel) and many more. The podcast also features West Ward Council Member Duprè Kelly, also known as DOItAll from the Lords of the Underground. Kelly took his platform as a MC and transitioned it into being an elected official who serves the community from the bottom up.
Hakim Green, the co-founder (with Mayor Baraka) of the 24 Hrs of Peace initiative, appeared on the show as well. The anti-violence campaign brings out top artists to inspire the residents of Newark to aspire to a more drama-free lifestyle with peace as the motivating factor. Part of the initiative is to push the community to commit to a 24-hour cycle of nonviolence once a year—with the goal that this is adapted for 365 days a year.
Baraka is the son of poet laureate, Amiri Baraka (aka LeRoi Jones) and a close friend of L-Boogie—and is featured on the interludes of her legendary album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.
Nicki Minaj is utilizing her powers as the host of the MTV VMA Awards to help spotlight her talented legion of Barbz fans—and this TikToker may be the first to reap the benefits.
The Queens-bred rapper has seemingly taken notice of TikTok creator @rickyjab, who’s a guitarist specializing in the creation of metalcore mashup content. His latest claim to fame is a brilliant original remix of Nicki’s cult favorite “Last Time I Saw You,” which features an interpolation of his own metal-driven composition along with a dub of the song’s original lyrics. Some four million views later, Nicki caught wind of the video and apparently thought, “Sign this man up for the VVMAs” and nothing else.
“HIRED!!!!” Nicki wrote in a recent tweet. “Someone get this man to the @vmas !!!!!! #LastTimeISawYou It’s #BARBIE B!CHHHHH!!!!!!! I’m HOSTING!!!!! GET YA MTHFKN.”
With the VMAs upon us, the creator confirmed in a new video that he has indeed been hired by Nicki and is set to go to the VMAs—except there’s one problem. He says he’s still in Nashville and somehow needs to make it to New Jersey by showtime.
While it’s highly unlikely the talented content creator will make his VMA debut tonight, there’s still hope that he may touch the stage with Nicki soon enough. Until then, check out an additional version of the flip below.
Harlem rapper A$AP Relli, who’s at war with fellow A$AP Mob member A$AP Rocky, is reportedly suing the “Praise The Lord” recording artist and his lawyer Joe Tacopia over defamation of character.
According to Rolling Stone, Relli has enlisted the services of Camille Vasquez to represent him. Vasquez, a celebrity attorney, made headlines for her representation of her client Johnny Depp. The lawsuit revolves around Rocky’s not guilty plea to two counts of using a semiautomatic firearm in an altercation in which Relli alleges he was shot in November 2021.
A$AP Rocky has some muscle behind him also. Tacopia is the lawyer who represented former president Donald Trump in his lawsuits against Stormy Daniels and E. Jean Carroll. Tacopia says Relli is just jealous of his former friend and “trying to get money from Rocky,” which apparently has Relli fuming.
Vasquez and her legal team argue Tacopina conducted a media campaign to harm Relli’s reputation after his client was hit with a civil case. They point to 10 instances where Tacopina, through Mayers, provided untrue statements to the press about Relli to help shape their case.
Tacopina isn’t backing down and told Rolling Stone he “welcomes this litigation.” He added, “Especially before the resolution of the criminal case. It will expose the fraud committed by their client. It’s unfortunate that these lawyers don’t know the facts of this case or the actions of their client but I will be happy to educate them.”
Tacopina expounded in another statement to TMZ, saying, “This is actually nothing more than a publicity stunt which is going to backfire badly. I more than welcome this lawsuit especially because the resolution of the criminal case has not happened yet.
“This opens up this extortionist to depositions under oath now before the resolution of the criminal case. It will expose the fraud he committed and unfortunately for his lawyers, it will cause them to be responsible for legal fees in this case. They don’t know the facts of this case or the actions taken by their client. But, I will be more than happy to educate them.”
Tink has shed even more light on her falling out with Hitmaka—which reportedly led to their physical altercation in Cancun. For anyone just catching on to this story, Tink recently went on Instagram Live to air out her ex-flame and current A&R, saying she had to defend herself from a physical attack. However, the rapper-turned-producer says she hit him and even claimed he had footage of the R&B singer attacking him first. Tink followed up with her own response, threatening to “expose” him if he released the video of the incident.
Now it appears more of what Tink was seemingly holding over Hitmaka’s head has come to light. Apparently, Tink says she told Hitmaka she wanted to handle the making of her Winter Diary 5 project on her own—whilst also concurrently negotiating a two-album deal with EMPIRE. According to her claims, Hitmaka decided he would cut ties with her during the process but not before allegedly making a hefty demand.
“Along with me making that decision, Hitmaka is upset because I would not pay him two million dollars,” Tink said in the video. “So now we have a man who, number one is upset I want to work on my craft and number two is looking for money.”
Tink went on to also address the women who were allegedly with Hitmaka when the two purportedly came to blows outside of a restaurant, seemingly labeling them as clout chasers unaware of the full scope of the situation. She also spoke on the dynamic of the relationship she and Hitmaka had, remarking that while she knew he dated other women and that they weren’t together, she at least deserved “respect.”
While Hitmaka has hinted at taking legal action in regards to the manner, he maintains he wishes not to to “speak ill” of Tink and still has love for her.