TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

A$AP Rocky says his time behind bars in Sweden is exactly why he's returning to that country -- which seems insane -- but he's on a mission to help the inmates and immigrants he met there.

We got the rapper Tuesday evening outside the swanky Rick Owens clothing store in NYC and asked why in the world he'd go back. A$AP says the month in jail for his assault case opened his eyes to the plight of immigrants. He says he was especially aware of the support he was getting, as a celeb, while some prisoners around him were rotting for 10 months or more before seeing a judge.

He's on a mission to change that. For starters, A$AP says he's donating proceeds from his December 11 concert in Stockholm to an immigrant rights org called FARR, the Swedish Network of Refugee Support Groups.

As we first reported ... Rocky was held in inhumane conditions while prosecutors decided whether to charge him for aggravated assault stemming from a street brawl. The case drew worldwide attention ... and even President Trump and his administration got involved.

A$AP was ultimately found guilty but did NOT have to serve any more time behind bars. Rocky wasted no time jetting outta Sweden, and it seemed that would be the last time he'd ever be there -- until Live Nation announced he'd be returning to Sweden next month.

A$AP had said jail was scary and humbling during his first performance in the States after getting back from Sweden. Still, he tells us he's not letting fear hold him back, and even plans to visit an area where police don't go ... just to boost spirits of Swedish immigrants.

There was one topic he did NOT want touch, though. We asked about Trump's efforts to free him, and ... well, just watch. Fair to say, Rocky would rather play a Swedish jailhouse concert than discuss POTUS!

Kanye West's appearance and performance at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church was one of the biggest Christian events in recent memory, with streaming numbers that shattered records.

Kanye's Sunday night service was broadcast across 4 Lakewood-related platforms on Facebook and YouTube with 4.17 million unique viewers total. We're told by comparison, Joel's Sunday morning service usually pulls between 700k and 1.3 million sets of eyeballs.

The 4.17 million is certainly impressive, considering Kanye's appearance at Joel's service earlier in the day also amassed hundreds of thousands of viewers. It was also broadcast on SiriusXM radio and will hit television sets in the coming weeks.

People in Christian circles tell us the Kanye collab was one of the biggest faith-fueled events in recent history ... and the effects are still being felt around the community.

Kodak Black wants approval to enter a drug rehab program while he's serving his Florida prison sentence -- but he could end up getting more than just clean and sober.

According to docs filed Monday in federal court, the rapper is asking the court to send him to a prison that offers the Residential Drug Abuse Program. The 500-hour program lasts 9 months and involves group therapy, as well as one-on-one treatment.

It also requires all participants to live in a separate unit from the general population -- a pretty clear benefit to a celebrity rapper doing time.

The biggest fringe benefit, though, for Kodak could be shortening his sentence. Upon completion of the program, inmates can get as much as 12 months knocked off their prison bid.

It's an interesting request from Kodak, who -- as we first reported -- claimed last week, someone in his current prison had drugged him, causing him to get involved last month in a prison brawl.

He's serving 46 months right now on federal weapons charges, and still has to deal with a sexual assault case in South Carolina.

Tyga's got a type, and TMZ's confirmed she's got a name too ... other than "Kylie Jenner Doppelganger."

As we reported ... the rapper left Delilah restaurant in WeHo Saturday night in a fire red Ferrari with a fire date who looks a lot like his ex. We've learned that's Ana Beatriz Boaretto.

Our sources say the 2 met through mutual friends and have been hanging out since May ... though it's unclear if they're officially dating or not.

Ana's listed as a creative director on Yella Beezy's new music video for "Restroom Occupied," which features Chris Brown. From the looks of it ... she's also an aspiring model.

As for Tyga ... he's been linked to the actual Kylie a couple times lately. The 2 were spotted together at Hyde nightclub on the Sunset Strip last month, and were also in Vegas together at the end of summer.

Post Malone is celebrating the final leg of his tour in the most Posty way possible ... by renting out Hooters to chug beer and rip cigs with his boys!!!

We got the "Rockstar" rapper outside the world-famous Hooters on Hollywood Blvd bright and early Monday morning ... sipping a cold brew (not coffee) and bumming a cigarette after spending some quality time inside the wing joint with his buds and a solo Hooters waitress.

The family restaurant normally opens at 11 AM, but when you're Post Malone and you decide you want wings and things to kick off your Monday morning, you make a few calls, pull a few strings and get the place to yourself!!!

Post tells us he rented out the Hooters to celebrate life and the final 2 shows of his tour ... but he must want to keep the party going. Live Nation just announced a 2nd leg of his tour that extends into 2020.

Quavo is sick of watching his favorite Atlanta Falcons squad underperform on Sundays ... so he's giving some advice to Dan Quinn -- bench Matt Ryan for Colin Kaepernick!!!

"We need to get Matt Ryan out of there!" the Migos rapper tells TMZ Sports.

Of course, Colin ain't on the Falcons' roster ... and it's unclear if Atlanta even sent a rep to watch his workout near the team's facility Saturday.

But, Quavo tells us he doesn't care ... and says the Falcons need to add Kap and subtract Ryan ASAP!!!

"I love Colin," Quavo says. "Colin should be on a team!"

Doesn't seem likely the Falcons take Quavo's advice ... Matty Ice is locked into a 5-year, $150 MILLION contract -- and he actually hasn't been horrible this season.

But, hey ... Kap might be better than Ryan's backup, Matt Schaub, who is 38 years old now.

Kanye West is going back for an extra helping of ranch -- he just scored another massive property in Wyoming!!!

Kanye plunked down a huge chunk of change -- $14,495,000 -- for an estate called Bighorn Mountain Ranch ... a sprawling property outside Cody, WY, known for its beautiful hikes and climbs.

The ranch has mountains, rolling hills, canyons and bluffs filled with wildlife -- as well as some of the best trout fishing in the state, thanks to the creeks running through the 6,713-acre property.

BMR has been around since 1906, but it's pretty modern now with 2 heated helicopter pads. There are also several log cabins and lodges with walk-in saunas and sweeping views of the surrounding mountain ranges.

If you're looking for world-class elk hunting, hit up Ye ... his new pad has that along with deer, antelope, pheasants and turkey. Sounds like he's gonna love roaming around the property on his ATVs.

It's Kanye's second massive, $14 million ranch in the Cowboy State. As we first told you, back in September he scooped up Monster Lake Ranch. Now, he's planning to build a huge amphitheater on that land.

Dax Hayden and Bill Vacek of Hayden Outdoors Real Estate had the listing.

Kanye West is about to perform his Sunday Service at Joel Osteen's megachurch in Houston ... and TMZ is streaming it live.

As we previously mentioned ... Ye brought his choir out for the weekend trip, where they're set to take the stage at 7 PM CT (5 PM PT) at the Lakewood Church -- a place thousands of worshipers come out each week to hear Joel and co. preach from the pulpit.

It's bound to be a packed house again for Sunday's ticketed event, especially after Ye made an appearance in the morning ... standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Joel and talking God.

You'll recall ... it was an eventful chat Kanye and Joel had onstage, with Ye touching on everything from his own upbringing in the church, to how he's an employee of God's now, and even going to bat and defending Joel and his reputation in the Christian community.

Ever since Kanye dropped his new album, 'Jesus is King,' he's been performing pretty consistently with his choir ... playing a bunch of his new songs too, of course. The format thus far has been pretty similar in style to what we've seen in Calabasas and elsewhere.

But with such a big audience tuning in this time around -- and a just-announced opera on the horizon -- it'll be interesting to see what surprises Kanye and his team have in store for the Lakewood congregation.

Diddy had the bubbly overflowing this past weekend ... but it wasn't a Sunday Funday on the heels of his ex's death anniversary.

Diddy and his crew hit up BBCM on Sunset Blvd. in WeHo on Sunday and guzzled mimosas. It looks like he had a variety of flavors ... evidence the near-empty flutes on his table. He looked somber.

The mimosa fest came just 2 days after the 1-year anniversary of the death of his ex, Kim Porter. He paid a touching tribute to her over the weekend, saying, "I MISS YOU SOOOOOO MUCH. Every time I get sad I look at this video and it brings a smile to my face."

Diddy went on to say, "I thank god for the precious time he allowed us to have with you. I wish you were here with us right now and this was all a dream. I will never give up on that wish. Never!!!! Love you forever Kimberly Antwinette Goodwin Porter."

Big Sean and Jhene Aiko's on-again, off-again relationship appears to be very much so back on after they released a super personal song with a little TMI attached.

The rapper and singer -- who've dated and broken up at least a couple different times over the past few years -- were spotted grabbing dinner in Malibu Saturday at a fancy place called Geoffrey's ... where they looked like more than just friends and collaborators.

TMZ obtained photos of Jhene sitting on Sean's lap at one point as they looked out at the ocean on the restaurant's patio deck. He's holding her pretty tenderly too, BTW.

This, of course, is a major development considering the new song they released together Thursday. JA's single, "None of Your Concern," caught fans off guard with a Big Sean feature.

The song is incredibly introspective, and touches on their relationship ... and a big takeaway from Sean's verse was how he pleases his lady in the bedroom. Apparently, he once made Jhene orgasm 9 times in a day -- and he doesn't think any average Joe deserves her.

Well ... it certainly seems the collab might've brought 'em closer than ever -- 'cause the homie-lover-friend wheel they often spin seems to be on the lover corner right about now.

Oh, and if you're wondering who picked up the tab during this intimate meal ... it looks like BS did, as he's seen signing off on the bill here. Good man right there.

Kanye West's highly anticipated chitchat with Pastor Joel Osteen is about to go down at the Lakewood Church in Houston and we're live streaming the whole thing.

TMZ broke the story ... Kanye and Joel have been talking on the phone quite a bit since Ye committed himself to God, and it all resulted in Kanye and Kim making the trek to H-town this weekend.

We're told Kanye's gonna talk to Joel about his journey in rediscovering religion at 11 AM Central Time. There's another service Sunday night at 7 PM and that will feature Kanye's now-famous Sunday Service, complete with a choir of around 120 people. We'll also be live streaming that.

As we reported, Ticketmaster is doling out free tickets for the 7 PM service, but there have been problems with scalpers.

Kim's also in Houston and presumably will show up for the service at Lakewood. On Saturday Kim, Saint and North hit up an ice skating rink at The Galleria in Houston.

Jay-Z is unhappy with the way Colin Kaepernick handled his workout on Saturday -- our sources tell us Jay felt Colin "turned a legitimate workout into a publicity stunt."

As we previously reported, Colin bailed on the NFL's workout Saturday and held his own workout instead. Colin claims he wanted transparency -- insisting the NFL would not allow him to have media at the workout.

Sources close to Jay-Z tell us ... Jay is unhappy with the way things went down because he feels the league was genuine in trying to give Colin an opportunity.

Colin went through with his workout at a high school nearby and reviews are mixed. Some scouts are reportedly impressed with Kap's arms strength and talent. And, others are reportedly saying he looked average at best.

Now, the waiting game begins ... and we'll see if an NFL team will pull the trigger and sign the 32-year-old QB.

Tyga's undeniably got game ... and you don't have to go further than this pic for proof.

Kylie Jenner's ex was leaving Delilah restaurant in WeHo Saturday night in a fire engine red Ferrari and a beautiful woman riding shotgun. Is it just us or does she resemble Kylie in a big way?

Several people at Delilah -- including our photog -- tell us Kylie was also there, but we have no evidence of that. The 2 were seen together at Hyde nightclub on the Sunset Strip last month, fueling rumors they were getting back together. They were also in Vegas together at the end of Summer. Hard to know ... but based on the photo it sure looks like Tyga's moved on.

Lil Jon says he got held up by Vietnamese officials at an airport while trying to get outta there ... something he claims happened because of his massive stash of jewelry.

The rapper posted footage and photos of himself allegedly being detained Friday while he and his crew were attempting to fly out of Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City after performing in Saigon. Apparently, their version of TSA wasn't feelin' his ice.

On Intagram, LJ wrote ... "Vietnam got me hemmed up over my iceeeee smh." He then posted a photo of what appears to be airport officials going through his many chains and other jewelry he had with him, with most of it laid out on a table being inspected.

It's unclear why they gave Jon such a hard time, but luckily for him ... this story's got a happy ending. Lil Jon says he was able to call the U.S. Embassy in 'Nam and get some personnel down there to vouch for him and get him sprung from detention.

One of his buddies posted an aftermath pic showing Lil Jon posing with a bunch of folks, some of which appear to be uniformed airport honchos ... while also shedding a bit more light on what exactly happened. The guy, SKAM Artist, wrote ... "Jon was detained earlier today in Vietnam...but w the assistance of 2 staffers from the US Embassy, and a few locals...he's free!!" Another one of his friends credited the "Royal Family" too.

We got a call in to LJ's rep to get to the bottom of this one, but the good news is that he's back to work and keeping the show going in what looks to be China. Can we get a YEAH???

Kanye West's appearance at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church in Houston Sunday will be the most important appearance Ye has made since devoting himself to God, and there's such a demand for tickets we've learned scalpers have reared their ugly heads.

Kanye will have all eyes on him Sunday morning when he takes the stage with Joel Osteen -- which normally isn't an issue -- except this time, the crowd won't be full of Yeezy fans.

Kanye is set to take part in Joel's 11 AM ceremony at Lakewood Church Sunday and will chat with Joel for 20-30 mins about his religious journey. It'll mark the first time Kanye's talked about his religious transformation in front of a large audience -- 45,000 people!!!

Joel's 11 AM service will mostly be made up of his regular churchgoers, and not droves of Kanye fans like at Ye's Sunday Service ... so for Kanye, this is uncharted territory.

Our sources say he's excited to share his message and journey with a room that not only includes Joel but those who have had their own religious awakenings.

As for the service Sunday night -- when Kanye's choir will perform -- we're told both Kanye and Joel's teams expect a crowd made up of mostly Yeezy faithful. TMZ broke the story ... Lakewood teamed up with Ticketmaster to coordinate ticket distribution.

Our sources say scalpers are already trying to mess things up. The tickets are free, but some have already been scooped up by people who just want to make a buck. We're told the tickets they have identified as being held by scalpers have been invalidated.

Kanye West is breaking ground on his very own amphitheater on his sprawling Wyoming ranch ... TMZ has confirmed.

Kanye and Park County, Wyoming officials are already deep into communications about the project -- and in docs, obtained by TMZ, Ye says he wants to build a 70,684-square-foot amphitheater. Photos from the site show he's already moved large amounts of land, apparently clearing a footprint.

Kanye describes the facility as the "West Meditation Space Large Impact Structure."

In the latest docs, County officials inform Kanye he'll have to construct 175 parking spaces, but the State says he could get an exemption to reduce that number in half. Kanye says in his application he does not intend to bring any utilities on the property -- no electricity or plumbing. Sooo ... strictly a port-a-potty situation?

Kanye says the facility will be open-air, the amphitheater will be a circular, concrete design with the ground sloping downhill towards the center of the circle. Sounds like a theater-in-the-round.

It's interesting ... the Park County Planning and Zoning Department is pushing back on some things, they submitted docs asking for more information on the impact construction would have on local wildlife. Officials are suggesting Ye avoid construction in winter months because it would disrupt local wildlife migration patterns.