TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Offset’s legal filing against his ex-label Quality Control has opened up a can of worms … and they’re crawling in every direction!

Quality Control CEO Pierre "Pee" Thomas reacted to the breaking news that Offset was suing for solo independence with disdain — calling the estranged Migos rapper’s complaints "lame."

Offset — and his wife Cardi B sharply fired back at Pee … Offset claiming Pee had him blackballed for the past two years without even communicating.

Cardi echoed the lawsuit’s details … Offset paid QC millions to obtain his solo rights as an artist, but when he released his “5,4,3,2,1” single last week, he says QC tried to claim ownership, effectively ticking him off in the process.

Retired NBA star Gilbert Arenas says he's happy to still be breathing after he cost Irv Gotti and Ja Rule $175k ... claiming he purposely busted up a bet they had on a game he was playing in -- and they were FURIOUS over it!!

Arenas -- who was on the Warriors at the time -- said he was playing a road game against the Rockets when he overheard Gotti and Ja mentioning they had bet on the Dubs to cover the spread that night.

Agent Zero says he had no idea what the spread was, but made it his mission to spoil their night ... knowing he had to score some more points to kill the bet.

Arenas said his Warriors were losing to the Rockets, led by Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley, and with the game out of reach, he came down the court and threw up a half-court three-pointer.

Naturally, the wild shot went in ... sinking any hopes Gotti and Ja had of cashing out that night.

"[I] came down and shot it," Arenas said. "And I could see the disappointment in their face. I won. I won the game. We're going back to the locker room, and I'm sitting there like, 'Yeah, I hurt somebody's feelings today.'"

"I didn't know how much money they had on the game. I didn't really know it was about betting, but I knew I hurt [Gotti's] feelings. I knew I hurt his feelings. He was disappointed even though they won. He was disappointed, so that means I won."

Thanks to a recent interview on the "Drink Champs" podcast, we now know that Gotti and Ja bet $175K on the Rockets to cover the spread against Gilbert's Warriors.

"We wanted to kill Gilbert Arenas after that," Gotti said on the podcast. "The whole arena knew we had 175 [thousand dollars] on this. The refs knew. Everyone knew."

Megan Thee Stallion's following up her "Traumazine" album release by playing some legal hardball -- forcing J. Prince and Carl Crawford to sit for depositions in the lawsuit over her contract.

Megan filed docs Tuesday notifying the court her lawyers will be grilling 1501 Entertainment honcho Crawford, as well as Prince ... the Rap-A-Lot Records founder, who Megan claims has been advising Crawford on business dealings.

The date and place are already set ... J. Prince goes first on October 24, and Crawford follows the next day -- both depos will be taken at an office building in Houston, and they will be recorded on video.

It's a major power move for Megan, who, as we've reported ... is suing her label, 1501 Entertainment, because she believes she satisfied the terms of her contract with her last 2 albums -- "Something for Thee Hotties" and last week's release, "Traumazine."

Megan says Crawford and co. aren't viewing those projects as albums, simply to keep her tied to 1501 -- but she says she's done with the label. She wants out, and she wants a judge to force Crawford to cough up royalties and other money she says 1501 owes her.

She says that number is at least $1 million, but wants a proper accounting to determine the actual damages.

Tensions boiled over on Tuesday morning ... when Megan, Prince and Crawford all volleyed accusations that ranged from the 2 men mishandling her business to Megan conspiring with Roc Nation to get out of her contract.

Getting an industry powerhouse like Prince to sit for a deposition is no easy task, and Megan's hope could be this forces Crawford to settle the lawsuit beforehand.

While Migos continues dodging break-up rumors, Offset's going to war with the group's record label ... filing a lawsuit over his solo career.

Offset filed docs, which TMZ Hip Hop obtained, and in them he accuses Quality Control Records of ignoring a deal they made back in January 2021.

According to the suit, filed Tuesday, Offset says he negotiated his solo deal, and "paid handsomely" for his artist rights ... but now that he's dropped a new solo project, he says QC isn't honoring the deal.

He just released the Baby Keem-produced solo single, "54321" … which he says QC incorrectly tried to claim as its own, an action he calls "hostile."

Offset also plans on releasing another song entitled "Code" with Moneybagg Yo this Friday, presumably just on Motown Records, the label he signed with for his solo career.

Migos sparked break-up rumors earlier this year when Quavo and Takeoff began releasing music under the moniker "Unc & Phew." Quavo was willing to talk about everything -- except the alleged split.

Offset's Migos deal with QC remains in place -- but when it comes to his solo work, he wants the court to declare QC does NOT own anything he's made since January 15, 2021, or in the future.

Lil Yachty may have been born in August -- but the trendsetting rapper celebrated his 25th birthday with Drake like he was October's Very Own!!!

Yachty, Drake and several other friends took a coast on Drake's "Air Drake" private jet ... toasting to more life over chicken wings and Sprite.

Yachty was clearly in OVO mode -- debuting a new owl tattoo and even pulling up to Drake’s PJ wearing the Canadian megastar’s Chrome Hearts jeans, which he accidentally ripped!

Released as a merch rollout to support Drake's 2021 album "Certified Lover Boy," the collection has since grown hard to come by online ... and is extremely expensive.

Drake and Lil Yachty have been friends for years … Yachty recruited Drake for his platinum "Oprah's Bank Account" and cameoed in Drake and Future’s diamond-selling "Life Is Good" video.

Kanye West has been wearing a lot of black lately, but he's thinking blue for his future ... at least when it comes to landing a logo for his clothing line.

Ye's filed two new trademarks, obtained by TMZ, for a bizarre blue design he hopes to lock down as a logo. Unclear what the motivation is behind the logo ... it's a solid blue circle encased by another blue circle with jagged edges.

Interestingly enough, Kanye filed for another variation of the logo back in July, one without the color blue ... but it appears he's changed his mind.

However, this time the docs state, "The color(s) blue is/are claimed as a feature of the mark." Kanye fans might recognize the shade of blue is slightly similar to the same one he used on his "Jesus is King" album ... but we can't see any correlation between the album and logo.

As for the logo's use, the documents state it'll be for retail stores, online ordering services and online retail store services including clothing, footwear and headwear.

TMZ broke the story, Ye recently filed docs to land a trademark for "YZYSPLY" for retail stores -- so it's always possible the new logo and stores could go hand in hand.

Kodak Black is lending a major hand to Haitians cut off from food and water -- due to extreme gang violence -- by sending more than 35,000 bottles of H2O.

Kodak heard about the Caribbean nation's crisis, and decided to do something to help the situation -- dropping $50k to get tons of bottled water shipped there from Florida ... according to the rapper's attorney, Bradford Cohen.

We're told Kodak is using cargo ships to send over alkaline water, and the labels on the bottles read "LAST" because Kodak wants this to be the last time anyone in Haiti goes without water.

Once the shipment reaches Haiti ... Kodak and his team are working with Haitian government officials to ensure the bottles get to their intended destinations.

Cohen says Kodak is calling for a ceasefire in the rising gang violence that's turning Haiti into a war zone ... and the water donation is just his latest step in an ongoing effort to help the island.

Capitol Records is pulling the plug on its AI rapper FN Meka, and calling the unconventional and controversial signing an insensitive move on their part -- in retrospect, that is.

The label went public with Meka's contract on August 12, but Tuesday it did a complete 180° … apologizing to the Black community for not thinking things all the way through.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ Hip Hop ... Factory New, the company that concocted FN Meka, was virtually blindsided by the news, learning of their shredded contract just moments before Capitol announced it was cutting ties.

We’re also told by label sources ... some angry staffers blame Capitol’s lack of diversity for the deal getting a greenlight, in the first place. One source claims the label has very few senior-level Black executives running departments.

FN Meka -- an artificial intelligence rapper with computer-generated lyrics -- featured overly exaggerated African-American tropes ... which triggered a major backlash.

Many fans and pundits took issue with the AI entertainer (or its creators) using the n-word, and romanticizing run-ins with police.

The virtual rapper’s debut single “Florida Water” single actually features Gunna, who is currently incarcerated.

We recently spoke to Krayzie Bone of Bone Thugs-n-Harmony about the situation ... who felt the dawn of the AI rapper is not only inevitable, but ultimately bad for human rapper job security down the line.

Kodak Black earned a platinum plaque for this year's hit “Super Gremlin” -- a passionate accusation of betrayal toward his former Sniper Gang artist Jackboy, but now Jackboy's clearing the air.

He's just dropped a new track ... "Renegade Freestyle (Closure),” which samples Jay-Z and Eminem’s legendary duet.

Kodak and Jackboy had a public falling out over numerous topics on Instagram Live last summer and Jackboy opens up as many old wounds as possible on the record.

According to Jackboy, Kodak has never visited Haiti despite repping the country's culture regularly, and even serves as a “federal agent” in exchange for immunity through Donald Trump. Again, that's just Jackboy's claim ... but it is true Trump was Kodak's saving grace when he was incarcerated.

Kodak’s recent run-ins with the police suggest he’s not above the law -- he's also not above a lawsuit.

Florida rapper Hotboii’s career stalled last year when he got caught up in a RICO case that authorities claim involved warring gangs … but he just scored a legal victory that may help his chances of being released on bond.

Hotboii’s lawyer, Bradford Cohen, tells TMZ Hip Hop his client’s Miami gun possession case was dismissed on Tuesday … but the RICO case in Orlando remains open.

Hotboii's bond was revoked when he surrendered last month in Miami to deal with the gun case and Cohen thinks this dismissal could provide a silver lining to getting his bond reinstated.

Hotboii was also part of the 34-person indictment dubbed “Operation X-Force” … a concentrated effort to thwart the alleged crimes of rivals Army Gang and 438 Gang.

The 22-year-old rapper was riding high this past summer when Drake put the stamp of approval on his newly released “WTF” single … but saw the buzz fizzle when he surrendered to authorities last month.

Miami rapper Zoey Dollaz recently dropped "Dollaz" from his handle, but added a money notch to his biz profile -- essentially starting a bulletproof version of Uber or Lyft.

On Tuesday, Zoey hit up "TMZ Live" to discuss Aegis -- the bulletproof car service he named after the Greek god Athena’s protective cloak -- and he told us he was partially inspired by his own brush with death.

Zoey is actually a shooting survivor himself, having been shot in December 2020 outside Teyana Taylor’s birthday party in Miami.

On top of that, he and Young Thug survived a shooting while driving around Atlanta … where he guestimates 75 rounds were fired in their direction.

That was enough of a spark for him to start Aegis operations with just 2 vehicles back in January 2021. Zoey says proudly he rented out 23 cars to artists during this year's Rolling Loud Miami festival.

Zoey says his company isn’t just for rappers ... he actually counts Manny Pacquiao as a past client and he wants pro athletes and regular citizens fearful of road rage to utilize his services.

He's based in Miami but has availability in major U.S. cities such as Los Angeles, Atlanta, Texas, Chicago and NYC.

The Washington Post reports Americans have purchased more than 43 million guns over the last 3 years -- and many, in and out of the industry, have called rapping. "the world's most dangerous job."

Kanye West will not be charged for allegedly punching a fan after a heated exchange outside an L.A. hotel.

The Los Angeles City Attorney's Office tells us, "After a thorough and careful review of all the evidence, our office is declining to file based on no reasonable likelihood of conviction." Translation -- there's likely just not enough evidence for a conviction.

As we reported, Ye got into an argument that turned physical back in January near the Soho Warehouse, according to law enforcement sources. We're told things got so heated, Kanye pushed and punched the male fan.

The case was being investigated as a misdemeanor battery, which carries a maximum jail sentence of 6 months.

We obtained a video of an irate Kanye, shot around the time of the alleged assault. You hear Kanye yell, "Did y'all say that or not? Did y'all say that or not?" "Cuz that's what happened right f****** now."

Rick Ross is tired of Jake Paul's boxing opponents backing out, so he's reaching deep into his pockets, offering up a whopping $10 million on top of the fighter's purse ... all to secure a fighter for the Problem Child.

Of course, 25-year-old Paul was scheduled to fight Tommy Fury (twice) and Hasim Rahman Jr., but both men never made it to the ring ... and Ross tells TMZ Sports he's so sick of it, he's cutting an 8-figure check.

Rick, who is friends with Jake, says the $10,000,000 will be awarded in addition to whatever fighter pay is negotiated with promoters. He doesn't care how the cash is split up (all to the winner, 50/50, etc.).

Ross believes fighters are (let's say) a bit hesitant to step into the ring with Jake ... after the YouTuber turned boxer starched Nate Robinson in 2020, turning the former NBA star into a meme.

It's unclear how Ross, a renowned businessman, would make his money back.

Rozay says the 10 milli isn't directly tied to any one fighter, but the rap mogul tells us he'd love to see the Fury fight finally go down.

Tommy and Jake, who have beefed for years, were twice supposed to fight in the past. In 2021, Fury, brother of heavyweight champ, Tyson Fury, withdrew from his bout with JP over a chest infection and broken rib. Tyron Woodley stepped in ... losing by KO.

In 2022, Fury, citing issues traveling internationally, again pulled out of his scheduled bout with Jake. Rahman Jr. stepped in ... but that fight was also canceled after contractual disagreements relating to the weight of the son of the former heavyweight champ.

But, despite the fight seeming cursed, all hope isn't lost that the men will face in the squared circle. Earlier this week, Tommy hit social media and reaffirmed his desire to scrap with Jake, flatly saying "no one is afraid to fight you!"

Paul, 5-0 (4 KOs) professionally, announced several days ago he'd fight at 185 lbs. in October ... but did not specify an opponent.

Capitol Records is raising eyebrows with its recent signing of a digital rapper named FN Meka -- an artificial lifeform that creates music through computer intelligence -- and veteran human MC Krayzie Bone has mixed thoughts!

We got the Bone Thugs-N-Harmony member outside of Dash Radio and on one hand, he thinks it could start a booming trend ... which isn't hard to see, given the popularity of TikTok, the metaverse and cryptocurrency.

Of course, Krayzie sees the writing on the wall ... real rappers could be out of work and label signings as a result of the digital uprising.

He's not alone in his thinking ... The Game, Lil Mama and R&B singer Sammie all railed against the announcement ... forcing FN Meka (or its handlers) to make the Instagram account private, which is not a good look for a new artist -- real or otherwise.

One weighty cosign FN Meka has going for him/it is Gunna, who was featuring with gaming streamer Clix on the AI rapper's debut single, "Florida Water."

Krayzie also took time out to address the ongoing legal drama brewing between Swizz Beatz, Timbaland and their Verzuz partners at Triller.

If you remember, Krayzie was a part of one of the most memorable episodes ... Bone Thugs Verzuz Three 6 Mafia, most notable for Bizzy Bone's wild on-stage brawl that almost shut down the event.

Beyonce and Jay-Z are doing their own version of "The Love Boat" -- sailing the high seas through Europe ... this after setting the music world on fire.

The couple was spotted Monday on a mega yacht -- a multi-level vessel that looks damn expensive -- where they were looking out onto the ocean blue ... or at least Bey was, snapping some pics with a digital camera.

Jay eventually was out there as well -- and he, too, was taking photos -- not too far from their kids, who were enjoying an onboard swim with nannies and staff in tow. When you're this rich and you're cruising on a boat this nice ... that's how ya do childcare.

Take a look at this thing in the wide shots ... it's like a floating palace on water.

Seems like the Carter-Knowles brood is enjoying these final days of summer ... but if we're being honest, they can kinda take a vacation like this anytime they want.

Their trip here is well-deserved. Bey's fresh off a major album drop -- her eighth solo project, "Renaissance" topped the charts and crushed in sales ... despite some early criticism of its dance tracks.

Firmly back on her throne ... Queen Bey apparently needs some R&R. Or, in this case, mega R&R.

Vanessa Bryant had some emotional support Monday in her trial against L.A. County over crash-site photos ... walking in shoulder to shoulder with Ciara and Monica.

The 2 singers arrived with VB and her daughter Natalia ... all the women forming a united front. They sat behind Vanessa during testimony from an internal officer with the Sheriff's Dept.

They never left her side ... at certain points in Monday's proceedings, Vanessa had to step outside -- and both Monica and Ciara went out with her.

The trial's been going on for nearly two weeks, and it's been an emotional rollercoaster for the Bryant family ... and Vanessa in particular. She got on the stand herself last week to testify about how the thought of photos of her late husband and daughter's remains being circulated among County employees -- including first responders -- mortified her to this day.

As you know ... she's suing L.A. County for emotional distress, among other claims, and the jury got to hear firsthand how this whole ordeal has affected her since Kobe and Gigi's passing.

Vanessa has remained stoic as she comes and goes each day -- but inside it's been difficult for her ... especially during graphic testimony.