TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Kim Kardashian's divorce case will be front and center Wednesday as she asks a judge to formally restore her single status, and the wild card is Kanye West, whose lawyers have raised a weird issue about their prenup.

TMZ broke the story ... Kanye's lawyers filed legal docs claiming prenups in California after 2002 are presumed invalid. It's weird because Kanye himself has NEVER suggested their prenup -- which kept almost all their property separate during their marriage -- is anything other than valid.

As for prenups being presumed invalid ... that's not exactly true. The law says a prenup is presumed invalid IF one of the parties who signed it challenges its validity ... Kanye has not done that, so it's unclear why the lawyers are suggesting it.

What's more ... even if Kanye challenged the prenup, he'd have to show either it was not entered voluntarily or it was "unconscionable." Kanye had a lawyer represent him when the prenup was signed, so it's hard to imagine it wasn't voluntary. As for it being unconscionable, Kanye made a fortune during the marriage and all that money is his ... so this doesn't make sense either.

As for the argument Kanye's lawyers are making -- that his social media posts blasting Pete Davidson and Kim are hearsay -- Kanye himself has never denied posting. In fact, he's said the opposite -- that his account was not hacked. Besides, it's kinda irrelevant whether he posted or not ... Kim simply wants the divorce to become official and then work out custody and any property issues that remain.

Our sources say Kanye has not been working with his lawyers, other than to make his position clear he doesn't want a divorce, but the lawyers haven't really produced any evidence that would carry weight in tomorrow's hearing. And, we're told it's highly unlikely he'll show up for the hearing.

Kanye West certainly has a new muse in Kim Kardashian look-alike Chaney Jones, but the two don't consider themselves a couple, at least not yet.

Sources close to the two tell us ... while they've been together here and there over the last couple weeks, it's all for fun. We're told Kanye's obviously attracted to Chaney ... undeniably drawn to her because of her similarities to Kim.

As for how they met ... nothing fancy. We're told Chaney slid into Kanye's DMs and things went from there.

Of course, Chaney and Ye started hanging out shortly after he and Julia Fox split up -- Julia herself had admitted things were never that serious -- and our Kanye sources echo that ... he's not looking for commitment with anyone right now.

Chaney's style lately has almost been a carbon copy of Kim ... especially the tight-fitting bodysuits. She's even worn the same sunglasses as Kim.

Kanye West might not be able to have Kim Kardashian -- but he's got the next best thing, it seems, in her look-alike ... who's almost like her carbon copy down to a curvaceous T!

As you know ... Ye's been trotting out his new flame, Chaney Jones, more and more lately -- stepping out in public with her in full view, whereas before ... he seemed to be trying to keep their relationship low-key.

The parading continued into the weekend, with Ye and Chaney leaving ZZ's Club in Miami very early Friday morning at around 3:30 AM ET ... coming down an escalator together, staring deeply into each other's eyes and then departing in the same SUV.

Just like she usually does, CJ was looking like a dead ringer for KK -- and Ye seemed to be all about it ... flashing a huge grin as they walked side by side.

As you know ... he still is very much trying to halt his divorce from Kim at the moment -- and seems desperate to get her back any way he can. It would appear that until he can have her to himself again -- which is probably NOT going to happen -- he's willing to settle for Chaney.

She's certainly not the worst consolation prize by any means, though ... evidenced in what she put on display Saturday at the beach -- namely, her rockin' bod, which she showed off from the front and the back.

Indeed, she's got the hourglass figure -- with quite the caboose -- just like Kim does ... so, you can see what Kanye digs about her in the looks department.

Rick Ross isn't one to pay extra cash for something he can do himself -- which is exactly why he became a lumberjack in his own backyard ... saving a pretty penny in the process.

Renzel was on landscaping duty this weekend at his Atlanta estate -- which is hundreds of acres in size, consisting of quite a bit of land -- after deciding to cut down a flock of oak tress he had standing around that he wanted outta there ... one way or another.

He explains that he did a little shopping around for quotes on how much a job like this might cost, and he was hit with a huge price tag ... $1,000 per tree. At 10 trees ... that's $10k!!!

No deal for RR ... who decided he'd just do the damn thing himself. As he explains here, Rick tasked a buddy of his to hit Home Depot and snap up the biggest damn chainsaw they had on their racks.

Looks like the guy came back with just what the Boss needed ... 'cause he immediately got to work, slicing up the trunk of one of the behemoths he wanted removed ... until it started to keel over.

In the end, it would appear Rick got the job done -- and he also had a little fun with the saw too ... Leatherface-style. Easy there, big fella ... that thing's still pretty dangerous. 😅

Kanye West has just made it clear ... he's not gonna end his marriage without a fight, but the fight he's waging is, well, bizarre.

Kanye just filed legal docs ... trying to make his social media posts attacking Kim, Pete and others inadmissible in next week's hearing. As we reported, a judge will decide next week whether to restore Kim's single status.

Kanye's argument -- How does Kim really know he wrote those posts? His lawyer is arguing these social media posts are not only hearsay ... they're double hearsay!

Ye's lawyer says, "Kim claims she read something online allegedly by Kanye and characterizes the posts in her declaration as misinformation ... Kim needed to offer the social media posts into evidence, and show that the posts were written by Kanye."

The docs never say Kanye didn't write the posts ... just that Kim hasn't jumped through all the hoops.

But, that's not all ... Kanye's lawyer now says the prenup can't be viewed as valid, at least not now. Ye's attorney says there's a presumption in California that prenups signed after 2001 are invalid, and the only way they can be validated is either during a trial or if both parties agree. So, it seems Kanye is saying he hasn't agreed it's valid, so it can't be enforced until there's a full-blown trial, and that means a big delay.

What Kanye is doing is throwing up roadblocks to stop Kim from becoming single. He previously filed docs saying he would agree to it, but one of the conditions is that all assets be frozen for now. The thing is ... they have a prenup that makes all their property separate and Kim needs that money to run her businesses.

It's highly unlikely the judge will buy what Ye's lawyer is selling ... restoring single status is a routine procedure, and the very point is to separate division of assets from marital status.

Kim Kardashian isn't just moving on from Kanye in marriage, she's apparently moving on from him in fashion, too ... changing in the signature Balenciaga looks he styled her in for Prada.

Kim's been in Milan for fashion week, and has looked noticeably different ... rocking 3 menswear getups from Prada's autumn/winter collection, all designed by Raf Simons. In fact, she's not just wearing Prada, she's hanging out with brand honchos too.

Kim was spotted leaving a private dinner at Restaurant Torre at Fondazione Prada Thursday night -- where she chowed down with Miuccia Prada, Anna Wintour and Raf Simons -- all after taking in the Prada fashion show.

A source close to Kim tells us, "Kim has relied on Kanye's style direction for the last 10 years and is finally feeling confident enough to step out without his help. She is working directly with designers of her choosing and is finally finding her own voice."

Of course, Kanye's dressed Kim for years but has almost exclusively dressed her in Balenciaga for the past year, including the full-mask look at the Met Gala.

Kim's switch-up certainly seems to be just another declaration she's moving on ... and is set to legally do just that next week in court when a judge will almost without a doubt restore her to single status. If she shows up in court, we're guessing it will be Prada head to toe.

It appears Kanye West has a new sidekick, he's been spotted again with Chaney Jones ... the woman whose style has seemingly mimicked Kim Kardashian time and time again.

We got pics of the new duo out in Miami Thursday, grabbing a bite to eat for lunch. Chaney dressed head-to-toe in a black body suit, sunglasses, black purse and what appears to be a black pair of Yeezys ... a look Kim has worn on multiple instances.

It's the second time we've seen the two together in 2 days ... Chaney accompanied Kanye backstage at his "Donda 2" listening event in Miami on Tuesday. During the show, Chaney wore the same pair of sunglasses that Kim sported during a "Donda" event in Atlanta in 2021.

We should also note, it appears Chaney ditched her hair extensions for a tight bun look -- just like the one Kim's been wearing in Milan this week.

Unlike Kanye's last fling, Julia Fox, Chaney hasn't said much about their new apparent relationship ... but we've now seen the pair together both in L.A. and Miami -- so safe to say they're bicoastal.

Jay-Z's pockets just got fatter after coming out on top in a 6-year legal war with Parlux ... the perfume company that sued him over his now-defunct fragrance.

Parlux had sued Jay in 2016, claiming he failed to hold up his end of the promotional bargain when they teamed up to launch his cologne, Gold Jay-Z. The company said the whole deal was a stinking disaster because the rapper refused to do media and public appearances to pump up sales when the fragrance dropped in 2013.

It was seeking $18 mil from Jay-Z, but now he's effectively turned the financial tables on Parlux. On Thursday, an appellate court ruled Jay is entitled to the $4.5 mil in royalties from past cologne sales which he had requested during the NYC trial last fall.

That jury said Mr. Carter didn't owe Parlux a dime, but also rejected his royalties demand. However, the appellate court overruled the jury decision, so ... big win for Jay-Z.

Jay-Z's attorney, Alex Spiro, declined to comment.

Kim Kardashian wants a judge to make her single ASAP ... because Kanye West's Instagram posts are hurting her emotionally, and all she wants now is to move on and co-parent in a healthy manner.

In new court docs, obtained by TMZ, Kim says it very directly, "I very much desire to be divorced." She tells the judge she's asked Kanye to keep their divorce private, "but he has not done so," and talks about Kanye's barrage of social media posts about their relationship.

Kim says, "Kanye has been putting a lot of misinformation regarding our private matters and co-parenting on social media which has created emotional distress."

As we've reported, Kanye's accused Kim of kidnapping their daughter, Chicago, says she's accused him of ordering a hit on her, and gone after her for allowing North to be on TikTok.

Kanye had also asked to prevent Kim from transferring assets out of any trust. Kim says that ridiculous -- they have a prenup which keeps all their trusts and other assets separate, and Kim needs access to her trust to run her businesses. And, in the docs, Kanye's lawyers recognize the prenup is valid.

She also notes Kanye's lawyers acknowledge they're having trouble getting through to him. In October 2021 they wrote to Kim's attorney about trying to break down the prenup for Ye, saying ..."But as you also know, we face challenges in communicating with our client -- and the validity of the prenup (with all of its related legal implications) is a heavy issue to broach."  The upshot -- it seems Kanye isn't throwing up the roadblocks -- his lawyers are, because Ye isn't involved.

Kim bottom lines her request for single status by stating ... "While I wish our marriage would have succeeded, I have come to the realization that there is no way to repair our marriage. Kanye does not agree but at least it appears that he has come to the realization that I want to end our marriage, even if he does not."

She adds that she needs to be single, so "I can begin the healing process and so that our family can begin the healing process and move forward in this new chapter in our lives."

Floyd Mayweather sang his damn heart out to celebrate his 45th birthday ... and he called on Kanye West, Aaron Donald and Antonio Brown to be his backup singers!!

TMZ Sports has learned -- TBE hosted a private party at David Grutman's Sushi Fly Chicken in Miami on Wednesday to celebrate his big day ... and the karaoke machine was getting put to good use.

The 50-0 boxing legend donned a baby blue plaid blazer and pants for the rager ... and he was certainly in great spirits -- dancing with a huge smile on his face.

The whole room was getting in on the fun -- singing along as Donell Jones' "Where I Wanna Be" blasted over the speakers.

But, the most surprising performance of the night?? AD and his wife, Erica, rapping along to "Set It Off" by Boosie Badazz -- and Floyd was loving every second of it.

The party then made it to Gold Rush Cabaret strip club ... where Floyd was honored with cutouts and signs -- including a shot of him beating up on Conor McGregor during their fight in 2017.

Megan Thee Stallion is ripping into Tory Lanez, after he called her a liar, by posting what she claims is proof he begged for forgiveness for shooting her.

Tory was supposed to be in court Wednesday regarding the 2020 shooting incident that left Megan Thee Stallion seriously injured, but the date was pushed to April. After the hearing, he tweeted ... "u can't buy and tweet your way out of this one ..not today" -- seemingly referring to Megan.

Well, she quickly, and strongly, responded on Instagram.

The post, which she's since deleted, included alleged text messages from Tory ... showing him apologizing.

Megan added in her caption ... "Lie yo way out of this … if you aint do s*** what you was apologizing for? THEY GOT YOU RECORDED ON THE JAIL PHONE TALKING TO KELSEY APOLOGIZING BEGGING US NOT TO TALK."

Kelsey is the former friend of Megan's who was also in the SUV the night of the shooting.

Tory didn't seem to back down from this feud, tweeting his explanation for the apology -- "Good D**k had me f***ing 2 best friends .... and I got caught 🤷🏾‍♂️ ... that's what I apologized 4."

Translation: He allegedly had sex with Megan and Kelsey, and they were the ones arguing over him.

You'll recall ... Tory, Megan and Kelsey were party hopping in Hollywood when police responded to shots fired in their vehicle. After Megan got out with a bloodied foot -- and cops finding a weapon under Tory's seat -- he was arrested and eventually charged with possession of a concealed weapon and assault with a firearm.

No one is safe from 50 Cent's trolling -- not even the NBA's G.O.A.T. -- 'cause the rapper came after Michael Jordan on Wednesday, clowning His Airness for his handsy embrace with Mary J. Blige over the weekend.

Fiddy just dropped the joke on his Instagram page ... poking fun at the way MJ held on to MJB while posing for a pic at the NBA All-Star Game on Sunday in Cleveland.

(BTW, Blige posted the photo to her Instagram page earlier this week. See below.)

50 zoomed in on Jordan's hand, which appeared to be creepin' close to the top of a butt cheek, and wrote, "MJ & MJB, he palmed the ball 🏀LOL"

The "In Da Club" rapper added a pic of a surprised Denzel Washington to make the ribbing extra spicy.

Kanye West had at least one guest of honor by his side behind the scenes at his "Donda 2" listening event ... and she looks an awful lot like his estranged wife.

We got photos of Kanye backstage at LoanDepot Park in Miami Tuesday night joined by Chaney Jones aka the Kim Kardashian look-alike. Chaney was decked out in a white bodysuit, heels and sunglasses as she accompanied Ye through the arena.

Chaney sported a serious expression, but there was at least one pic where Kanye was seen with a big smile on his face while the two walked together.

And get this ... Chaney's sunglasses are identical to the Rick Owens pair Kim wore to Kanye's very first "Donda" listening event in Atlanta back in August ... safe to say she's taking the lookalike thing to new heights.

At least two of Kanye's kids -- North and Saint -- were at the event ... but unlike his recent shows in L.A. and Chicago, Kim Kardashian was not in attendance -- she was in Milan.

Of course, Kanye was recently dating Julia Fox, but that ended a couple weeks ago. He's now been spotted with Chaney in various cities since the split with Fox ... so it would appear things are heating up between the two.

The listening event marked the first time fans were able to hear "Donda 2" however, the event had some serious audio hiccups. During his performance of "Jail 2" Kanye tossed his mic out of frustration, and did not perform a single verse after the incident.

Kanye West might finally have someone else to aim his anger at other than Pete Davidson -- his "Donda 2" event's sound engineer -- who seemingly blew it in Miami ... causing West to throw his mic in frustration.

Ye premiered new tracks from his album Tuesday night at a live listening event for fans at LoanDepot Park in Miami. While the whole thing started smoothly, with Kanye playing tracks from the new album, by the end, the event -- streamed on stemplayer.com -- had totally unraveled and Kanye looked visibly pissed off.

Things really seemed to take a turn during the song "Jail 2" when Marilyn Manson and DaBaby joined Kanye on stage. It appeared Kanye was supposed to perform the song live -- but was having some serious issues with his in-ear ... eventually throwing his microphone in frustration, Kanye never picked the mic up again.

The final song of the night, "Off The Grid" -- a song from the first "Donda" album -- was a total mess, Fivio Foreign and Playboi Carti joined Kanye to perform it, and Fivio's mic was totally out of sync totally off with the music playing ... sounding like he was trying to catch up to the song the entire time.

We spoke with a couple people who were in the audience, who said the audio issues weren't as noticeable as they were to those streaming from home.

While most of "Donda 2" sounded like it was incomplete, the fans in Miami certainly got their fair share of guest appearances during the show -- Jack Harlow, Migos, Pusha T, Alicia Keys and The Game, to name a few. Elon Musk was among the celebs in the crowd.

Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott have a knack for giving their kids unique first names, but turns out middle names are also important to them ... especially to Travis.

Wolf Webster's birth certificate, obtained by TMZ, is pretty standard. But, notice Wolf's middle name -- Jacques. It's actually Travis' birth name -- Jacques Webster.

Baby Wolf was delivered by Dr. Thais Aliabadi, the same OBGYN who helped to welcome big sister Stormi and cousin True into the world.

It's interesting ... according to Stormi's birth cert, she doesn't have a middle name, so K&T switched things up the second time around.

As we reported, Wolf was born Feb 2 -- we still haven't seen a photo of the latest addition to the Kardashian/Jenner fam, although they did treat us to a pic of his hand. His birth marks Kris Jenner's 11th grandkid.

The Weeknd had himself quite a weekend -- not only hooking up with a new flame in Simi Khadra ... but linking with an old pal in Drake, who was there for the good time.

Drizzy just posted some photos that showed him having a ball with Abel in Vegas during the latter's 32nd birthday celebration at Delilah. The shots feature Drake and Weeknd embracing in the DJ booth ... and generally enjoying themselves in the lounge and surrounding casinos.

The caption he included ... "We’ve done everything like it’s nothing…isn’t that something." If you aren't familiar, Drake and Weeknd are close buds and longtime collaborators.

Like we told you, Champagne Papi was far from the only celeb in attendance -- Swedish House Mafia was also on hand, as was Kaytranada.

More importantly ... Simi Khadra from twin duo Simi Haze was nearby ... and locking lips with the birthday boy, as seen in exclusive video we obtained.

There have been rumors they're seeing each other, and the clip seems to confirm they're more than just friends.