TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Kanye West has not only bagged a girlfriend, he's bagged all of her friends. Let us explain.

Ye took GF Julia Fox and her friends out for a birthday bash at Lucien in New York City, and following tradition Julia -- who turned 32 -- opened her presents with considerable excitement as Kanye and Co. looked on.

He got her some jewelry which we're pretty sure is super expensive, but that wasn't the extent of his gift-giving. Everyone at the table -- Julia and her pals -- all got Baby Birkins. It's good to know Julia, especially now!

Seems there was a dress code for the soiree ... all black.

Julia followed tradition, blowing out the candles on her birthday cake. Lots of desserts came out ... one after the other.

Kanye and Julia also hit new hot spot, Sei Less, before the night was over. The two were joined by the likes of Dave Chapelle and Fivio Foreign ... where Kanye played songs from his upcoming Donda 2 album.

Of course, it was a madhouse when Ye left the building, with fans, cameras and autograph seekers all wanting a piece.

Kanye West has lots of drama with Kim Kardashian at the moment ... but he looks like a man without a care in the world, at least while he's surrounded by hot chicks at the beach.

Ye was all laughs and smiles as he chatted up some sexy women Sunday, soaking up golden hour on an oceanfront balcony at Soho's Little Beach House Malibu.

Kanye looks happy as a clam here ... just check out the gallery and the videos ... and it's worth noting the ladies he's talking to are NOT girlfriend Julia Fox, but they are strikingly similar. Guess Ye's got a type.

There are lots of reasons for Kanye to be stressing about Kim ... the kids, the divorce, Pete Davidson -- but those all seem, at least temporarily, forgotten in the right seaside setting ... with the right company.

Outside the restaurant, Kanye was dressed in his traditional all-black Balenciaga look ... complete with a mask covering his entire head -- but his personality on the balcony was pretty damn bright and cheery.

Rihanna and A$AP Rocky are expecting, and they are showing off that baby bump with style!

The two were absolutely glowing out in Harlem (his hometown). Her outfit seems to compliment the reveal super well … with a gold cross and some jewels resting on the bump! They weren’t out long, as it seemed pretty chilly out there, before heading back to their apartment.

The couple has been friends for years, but started dating back at the end of 2020, and have been inseparable ever since … TMZ reported at the beginning of that year, they were seen hanging out quite a bit after her breakup with Hassan Jameel, and speculation started flying around about the now-lovebirds.

Since they’ve gone public, they’ve been spotted out in NYC nonstop.

It's been an incredible 24 hours for Joe Burrow -- after defeating the Chiefs to advance to the Super Bowl, the Bengals star QB says his childhood idol, Kid Cudi, hit him up to congratulate him on the victory.

"One of my idols growing up, Kid Cudi, reached out to me yesterday," Burrow told reporters after the huge win.

"You’ve got LeBron [James] tweeting at me or whatever you said it was ... That part is surreal. The football part, not so much. That stuff is crazy."

Cudi -- who was celebrating his 38th birthday on Sunday -- tweeted at Burrow saying, "Man this has to be the illest s*** ✌🏽❤️😭 beautiful f***in' game today brother!!"

BTW -- Joe says he listens to "New York City Rage Fest" -- one of Cudi's Songs -- to get himself ready mentally every game day. But, Burrow likes too many of Cudi's songs to pick a favorite.

Of course, Cudi is a native of Ohio (shoutout Shaker Heights) ... so it's not hard to see why he's so fond of the former LSU standout and #1 overall draft pick in 2020.

Speaking of the NFL draft ... the seeds for the bromance between Burrow and Cudi were planted when the Bengals selected Joe with their first-round pick.

"Congratulations on being the number 1 draft pick," Cudi said at the time. "That's wild. That's crazy. You on your way. You just gettin started brother."

Joe Cool even said Lakers star LeBron James tweeted about him, calling him a "generational talent" and saying we all knew and saw that he'd be special.

High praises coming from one of the greatest players in NBA history ... and a figure familiar with the sports landscape in Ohio. After all, Joe did just beat Patrick Mahomes when he erased an 18-pt deficit on the road.

Car sales go down every day, but how often can you say you bought a tank from Kanye West???

Kanye struck a deal with the Diesel Brothers to sell them his Ripsaw EV2, and this thing's insane!

Dave 'Heavy D' Sparks tells TMZ ... the partnership between Ye and the two friends (not real brothers, BTW) started a few years back. West's team reached out to them to get some work done on his trucks, but unfortunately, the timing never lined up.

Fast forward to last October, when someone from Kanye’s team reached out once again, looking to see if they’d want to buy the Ripsaw he was trying to unload. It was a no-brainer because the waiting list to get one is around 3 years, so they rushed down to his ranch in Wyoming to pick it up.

It was reported that Kanye bought it for $500,000. 'Heavy D' wouldn’t say how much change they handed over to seal the deal … but he did say Ye gave them a sweet deal. Kanye posed with the vehicle for a GQ photoshoot back in 2020, and featured it in his “Closed on Sunday” music video.

One odd thing -- the DVD player's built into the dash. Heavy D says for whatever reason, it only plays a K-Pop music video on a loop. We don’t know if Ye is a BTS fan, but they can’t figure out how to turn it off without ripping the player out entirely.

The Diesel Brothers made it big when their YouTube videos caught the attention of Jay Leno, who brought them on his show. Since then, they’ve started their own TV show on Discovery and even kicked it with the Paul brothers recently.

The Rams' huge win didn't go off seamlessly on Sunday ... 'cause the Jumbotron operator at their stadium mistook Big Sean and Jhene Aiko for Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr. -- and the scene was hilarious.

Just before L.A. beat the San Francisco 49ers to advance to the Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium ... someone really screwed up as the camera was panning around to celebs in the crowd.

When it got to Big Sean and Aiko ... the graphics below them read "Sarah Michelle Gellar" and "Freddie Prinze Jr."

Fans noticed the gaffe quickly -- pointing out the blunder all over social media ... and even Michelle Gellar had to poke fun at it all on her Instagram page.

"@bigsean do you get mistaken for me as often as I get mistaken for you?" she said.

"somebody about to get fired," she added.

Of course, Big Sean and Aiko didn't seem bothered by it ... they were spotted livin' it up in their on-field suite throughout the game, and the two appeared to even celebrate the Rams' win afterward.

As for Prinze Jr., he didn't even attend the game -- and he's yet to respond to it all, but we're sure something witty is coming shortly.

Kanye West needs a shot in the arm ... if he wants a shot at performing down under.

Kanye reportedly has his eyes set on performing a couple of stadium concerts in Australia in March ... but he said recently on the "Drink Champs" podcast he's only one jab in. Australia requires 2 shots for entry into the country.

If anyone is wondering whether Aussie officials are serious, take a look at how they booted Novak Djokovic from the country on the heels of the Australian Open. And the government fought hard to boot him ... there were court hearings that went back and forth for nearly 2 weeks.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison made it clear Saturday ... celebs are not exempt from the rules of COVID, saying, "Those are the rules. They apply to everybody, as people have seen most recently. It doesn’t matter who you are, they are the rules. Follow the rules. You can come. You don’t follow the rules, you can’t."

It's unclear if Kanye has received the second dose or plans to ... Ye said, "I traveled to Paris a couple of weeks ago, and I had to go through Lisbon because you can go through Lisbon without being vaccinated."

Kanye has had issues with the vaccine in the past ... in 2020 he called it "the mark of the beast" and claimed it was an attempt to microchip people.

It's interesting ... it seems Australia kicked Djokovic out because he's an anti-vaxer and his views are damaging to a country promoting vaccines. Kanye's past comments may not serve him well if there's an issue with the Australian government.

Kanye West and Julia Fox posed for a scorching shot, presumably showing they're a full-on couple ... this in the wake of a slew of stories suggesting he's still obsessed with soon-to-be-ex-wife Kim Kardashian.

Kanye and Julia struck the pose for photographer Danielle Levitt. It's a full-on kiss with lots of touching.

It's classic Ye. She's wearing a Jetsons-like getup. Kanye settled for a black jacket and hoodie.

Apparently, the pics were snapped during a dinner in Paris with Mos Def and Pusha T.  They're in town for Paris Fashion Week, which seems to go down every other week.

The pics were posted on the heels of terrible allegations that Kanye has been spreading false rumors Pete has AIDS. Kanye's team calls it "nonsense," but sources tell TMZ they've heard the same thing DJ Akademiks claimed ... "Kanye's been telling everybody within earshot."

Kanye's also threatened in song to kick Pete's ass.

Tyga and his ex-GF Camaryn Swanson were spotted out together for the first time since she accused him of domestic violence ... and though they seemed to be boo'd up, they are NOT together again ... at least, not yet.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Tyga and Camaryn are not together romantically. For now, things are casual. We're told that the two are easing back into hanging out again, since Tyga made headlines for allegedly getting physical with her during an argument a few months back.

And, they don't seem to be reuniting under the radar either.

Camryn recently celebrated her 23rd birthday in Cabo with her family and friends. And, although Tyga wasn't able to make it, he managed to celebrate her bday with her at celeb hotspot restaurant Nobu in Malibu.

Though our sources made it VERY clear that they are not a thing, they seemed to be getting on pretty well ... judging from the photos.

As we've previously told you, Camaryn accused Tyga of putting his hands on her when they got in an argument at the rapper's home, back in October. He was arrested for suspicion of domestic violence ... Tyga later turned himself in to LAPD and his bail was set at $50k.

We recently learned Tyga will not be charged with a felony for the case, The L.A. County District Attorney's Office has passed the case to the City Attorney.

Kanye West's bizarre behavior might be at a new low -- he's allegedly telling friends Pete Davidson's suffering with AIDS, and while the false rumor's gotten back to Pete ... people close to Ye are denying it.

Sources close to Davidson confirm what DJ Akademiks claimed earlier this week, "Kanye's been telling everybody within earshot" that Pete has AIDS. We're told Kanye's claim has made for a few awkward phone calls between Pete and mutual friends he has with Kanye -- who are confused and disturbed by the childish behavior.

Our sources say Kanye's brutal diss track, where he raps, "God saved me from the crash, just so I can beat Pete Davidson's ass" ... diss didn't come as much of a surprise to friends of either man, as he's been known to take shots in song.

But, those close to Pete are disturbed by the fact Kanye would allegedly use such a serious health issue to try and lash out at Pete.

However, one source close to Ye tells us the allegation he's spreading the rumor is "nonsense."

Yes, Kanye's made no secret of the fact he wanted to get back with Kim ... as recently as December he said as much during his concert at the L.A. Coliseum.

Nicki Minaj and her husband have a funny way of thanking security guards at her concerts ... at least according to one of them who claims Kenneth Petty ambushed and punched him backstage.

The guy was head of security for one of Nicki's concerts in Germany back in March 2019 ... and in a lawsuit, he claims the rapper was pissed at a security staffer for allowing a male fan to get onstage during the show. In docs, obtained by TMZ, Thomas Weidenmuller alleges Nicki yelled at the female security guard -- calling her a "f**king bitch" -- and recorded the whole thing.

Weidenmuller says the security guard was left in tears ... so, he interceded and went to speak to Nicki about the incident. According to the suit, Nicki screamed at him too, saying, "Who do you think you are?" ... and allegedly threw her shoe at him. He says her aim was off, and he escaped unscathed.

However, he claims he was later called back to Nicki's room for another discussion ... and while she ripped into him again, Kenneth allegedly came outta nowhere and punched him square in the face, breaking his jaw.

Kenneth packs one hell of a punch, apparently ... Weidenmuller says he's had 8 surgeries to fix his jaw, now has 5 plates in his face and will need an additional 6 operations to get right!!!

Kanye West has a radical new idea to address the homeless crisis in Los Angeles ... he wants the homeless to get some experience modeling clothes they make.

Here's the deal ... Kanye is working with streetwear brand Skid Row Fashion Week on a new collab and fashion show with the ultimate goal of helping the homeless.

David Sabastian, the founder of Skid Row Fashion Week, tells TMZ ... he met with Kanye earlier this month while Ye was recording 'Donda 2' at his studio in L.A.'s Arts District -- near Skid Row -- and they decided to create a Yeezy X Skid Row Fashion Week clothing collab.

David says his company donates a portion of all sales to helping those living on Skid Row and the factory that makes the clothes employs the homeless. In addition, the Yeezy collab will use 100% of the proceeds to help the homeless on Skid Row.

The fashion line drops Feb. 22 and we're told the money from sales will help hire more people struggling with homelessness to work at the Skid Row Fashion Week factory.

What's more, David says he and Kanye are in the early stages of planning a fashion show where they'd hire people from the SRFW factory to model the clothes.

We're told they also want items found on Skid Row to be integrated into the ensembles. One of the ideas being kicked around -- a trash bag puffer jacket.

The Antonio Brown cross-country turn up continues ... the NFL star spent Wednesday night partying with Rick Ross at the rapper's 46th birthday party in Miami, and TMZ Sports has video of the bash.

The ex-Bucs wideout hit up the invite-only, star-studded event last night at Mr. Hospitality's El Tucan restaurant in south Florida to celebrate another trip around the sun for Rozay (and the release of his new album, "Richer Than I Ever Been")

In addition to AB, we're told Nelly, Timbaland and French Montana were also in the house.

Brown and Ross are both Florida natives ... and have been friends for years. In fact, Ross made a cameo in AB's "Whole Lotta Money" music video.

Of course, AB pulled up in grand style ... sporting a grey suit and black turtleneck and lots of jewelry to accompany the drip.

Cardi B shining light on the death of Lauren Smith-Fields helped spur a criminal investigation in Connecticut ... so says the girl's family, who is applauding the singer.

Smith-Fields' family attorney Darnell Crosland tells TMZ ... Cardi was instrumental in getting Lauren's tragic death to become a criminal case, because police launched their investigation only after Cardi spoke out.

As you know ... 23-year-old Lauren died while on a date, back in December, with a man she met on a dating app. The medical examiner announced Monday Lauren died from an accidental drug overdose, which the family questioned ... and as public pressure continued to mount, police finally said Tuesday they were opening a criminal probe.

The family's attorney says Cardi B's Sunday night tweet calling for "Justice for Lauren" -- and accusing Connecticut of failing her -- brought extra attention and made a big impact ... because there's been a ton of progress ever since.

A Texas home owned by NBA YoungBoy -- where his mother currently lives -- became the target of an intense SWAT raid ... resulting in the arrests of 3 men and the seizure of multiple weapons.

A spokesperson for the Harris Co. Sheriff's Office tells TMZ, SWAT officers served a warrant at the property Tuesday morning. We're told NBA Youngboy purchased the home, and his mom, Sherhonda Gaulden, lives there ... although it's unclear if she was home when cops arrived.

Neither YoungBoy or his mother were arrested ... but cops call the 3 men who were busted associates of YoungBoy. We're told they were arrested on charges ranging from aggravated robbery to aggravated assault.

The Sheriff spokesperson, Thomas Gilliland, tells TMZ the arrests are related to the November shooting. Cops say the man was shot multiple times in the body and head, but survived and is out of the hospital now.

We're told the SWAT team also seized weapons, including AR-15s, pistols and long guns.

Travis Scott's fans are pushing hard for him to headline next year's Coachella, and even have a petition going to get him on stage this year ... and they're getting a big wave of support.

Following the tragedy at Astroworld, Travis has pulled out of multiple festivals, including Coachella, and while he's opting for a break ... his fans still want him to return to live performances.

The petition that's circulating online is pushing for a Coachella make-good -- they want organizers to commit to Travis being a headliner next year ... OR guarantee Kanye West brings him out as a guest during his set this year.

After 3 days, the petition has almost 70,000 signatures.

Keep in mind, there's another petition out there ... this one started immediately after 10 people died at Astroworld in Houston, and demanded Coachella ban Travis, who, at the time, was rumored to be headlining in the desert. Right now that one has 63,000 signatures and counting.

According to the new petition, many of Trav's fans feel Coachella did him dirty -- it says, "After Coachella unfairly removed Travis Scott for Harry Styles, they need to do the right thing and rebook him immediately."

It also absolves Travis of any wrongdoing in Houston, saying ... "We all know Astroworld tragedy wasn't Travis's fault. Let him get back to performing on the biggest stages!"

As for the potential guest spot with Ye? We do know they have the Kardashian-Jenners in common, and Ye recently thanked Trav for helping him find Chicago's birthday party.

Right now it seems unlikely he'd be up for performing -- especially because he voluntarily bowed out -- but then again, the festival's not until April.