TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Akon says he and Michael Jackson were discussing plans to open a number of music-focused schools across Africa ...  which got tragically derailed with the death of the King of Pop.

We got Akon in New York City and he told us about a concept he and MJ came up with back in the day ... a series of music universities in Akon's home continent.

Akon says he and Michael wanted to supply students with instruments, infrastructure and industry advice to hone their skills ... because as he and MJ discussed, there was -- and still is -- a lot of undiscovered talent in Africa.

Sadly, Michael died in 2009 before he and Akon could break ground on any schools ... but Akon says it's something he still wants to make happen in the future.

The Super Bowl Halftime Show could be lit beyond words, because TMZ has learned the NFL and Roc Nation have been in talks with Rihanna to headline.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... there have been multiple discussions with Rihanna and her team. We do not know if she's a firm go, but our sources say the NFL may reveal who they've locked up as early as Sunday afternoon via tweet.

Rihanna makes a lot of sense, because she's a Roc Nation artist, so it's an easy call for Jay-Z. BTW, Rihanna has been teasing her new music for more than a year, and if she's ready to release it there's no better platform than the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

We're told there have also been discussions with another performer, but it's not either/or -- in other words, there would be at least 2 performers on stage.

It's interesting ... Rihanna turned down an offer to headline at the 2019 Super Bowl Halftime Show because of her opposition to the way Colin Kaepernick was treated by the NFL.

TMZ broke the story ... the NFL asked Taylor Swift months ago to headline the Halftime Show, but she took a pass.

We're told she'd like to do the Super Bowl, but only after she rerecords all 6 of her early albums, and she's only rerecorded 2 so far.

Actor Kadeem Hardison is a little hesitant about the "White Men Can't Jump" reboot ... but speaking as one of the stars from the OG flick, he sees some potential -- and even has his eyes set on who could play him in this new-gen version.

We got Kadeem in NYC Tuesday ... and he's got a reason to be timid about the new 'WMCJ" -- it's missin' Ron Shelton, the original film's writer and director, who's arguably the reason the movie's still big today.

But, there might still be hope ... the actor's been hearing good things about Jack Harlow, who's playing Billy Hoyle -- Woody Harrelson's role from 1992.

Kadeem puts it plainly -- the "First Class" rapper could be bringin' some serious flair to the new project.

He also knows who should be playing his role for the reboot -- RJ Cyler, or as Kadeem calls him, the "lightning with the blam blams" dude from Netflix's "The Harder They Fall."

A$AP Rocky is apologizing for his truncated Rolling Loud set -- but the reasons for the short performance are getting under some people's skin ... particularly, clock management.

The rapper was on duty Saturday night in NYC, where he hit the Fashion Nova stage pretty late into the evening ... around 9:45 PM, we're told. He was able to do just two songs, this in between what people are saying was a lot of chatter about moshing with the crowd.

In the end, his show came to an abrupt halt right around 10 PM ... something A$AP was visibly upset about in the moment, with his DJ issuing a mea culpa right on the spot.

Not only was Rocky mad, but some folks on the ground were pissed too ... saying he was quite late, and that he should've just stuck to pure performing instead of all the side speeches he was giving. A handful of people also feel like it wasn't Rocky's greatest outing.

Sources connected to the event tell TMZ ... yeah, AR was very tardy here. We're told he was supposed to be up there at 8:55 PM, but didn't go on until a good 45 minutes later. Our sources say the reason festival organizers hit the kill switch is because of a noise ordinance that was in place before things got underway ... and they were clearly aiming to respect it.

Rocky himself is owning up to it, taking to social media to say he's sorry for the way things unfolded ... and takes full responsibility. He didn't really acknowledge timing at all, but it seems he's absorbing most of the blame and promising to deliver next time.

Jamie Foxx is ready to perform on the drop of a dime -- proven in his impromptu singing of one of his most famous songs ... which had an assist from Diplo.

The comedian hit XS Nightclub in Vegas Friday, rolling in around 3 AM with a large crew and joining Diplo -- who was DJ'ing -- onstage. Seems he was in the mood for a classic ... diving into his and Kanye's smash hit, "Gold Digger," as if it was 2005 all over again.

It's pretty cool to see Jamie belting out his old ditty ... dude hasn't lost a step, and people definitely haven't forgotten it either. They were singing along word for word. We're told Jamie stuck around a bit longer to help sing "Rack City."

JF wasn't the only celeb to pop in either ... Imagine Dragons' Dan Reynolds also made a cameo at XS. He showed up almost at 4 AM, and he too waved to the crowd from Diplo's elevated position. Dan also got on the mic a bit, but didn't sing or anything.

Speaking of Diplo ... he's on a bit of a high right now. The guy recently won a lawsuit against a woman who was allegedly harassing him, scoring a massive judgment in arbitration.

Trippie Redd is currently spreading his sounds and touching his fans down under, and his Australian supporters are getting treated to new music before anyone else!!!

The "Love Scars" rapper/rocker packed out Melbourne streetwear boutique Culture Kings this week for a meet-and-greet -- finally getting a chance to connect with the people post-pandemic.

Fans in attendance got to see Trippie's multi-layered cool side ... he hosted a 3-point shooting contest, where the winner laid claim to precious store credit.

He even took time out to listen to aspiring rappers and treated the crowd to an unreleased track ... which we're told had everyone in attendance in a frenzy once they were getting exclusive stuff!!!

Trippie's in town for the Listen Out Festival ... with appearances in both Melbourne and Perth set for this weekend.

Tekashi 6ix9ine knows he's on thin ice, legally, here in the States -- but it seems when he's overseas ... he lets it rip, just like he did on this poor guy here in the club.

Check out this video, obtained by TMZ, that shows the rapper in Soho Garden in Dubai ... where he approaches what appears to be the DJ for the night -- only to start swinging on the dude in what appears to be an unprovoked attack.

The DJ starts to scuffle with 69, that is ... before Tekashi's security swooped in and started separating the two, pulling their boss away -- but by then, even more people started flocking.

It actually looks like Tekashi gets wailed on by a few bystanders on the perimeter, and it also seems he was getting his chain yanked, his hair grabbed and his shirt pulled off toward the end as the fight evolved into an all-out mini brawl.

Now, as for what exactly might've caused this ... well, eyewitnesses tell us T69 was supposedly upset that the DJ wasn't playing any of his jams, and apparently felt the need to confront him about it. We've reached out to Tekashi ... so far, no word back.

Waka Flocka Flame and DJ Whoo Kid are teaming up ... challenging AEW stars Swerve Strickland and Keith Lee to a match -- with a twist -- loser has to donate $100K to donate to a charity!!

TMZ Sports spoke with Whoo Kid, who attended AEW Dynamite at Arthur Ashe Stadium in NYC on Wednesday ... and he broke down the beef between him and Swerve.

The famous DJ said he was supposed to walk out with Strickland and his partner, Lee, but he switched places with NY-born rapper Fabolous at the last minute, leaving the tag team duo pissed off.

Whoo Kid told us he didn't want to be booed by the fans, so he decided to walk out with Strickland's opponents, "The Acclaimed," made up of Max Caster and Anthony Bowens.

During the interview, Wacka Flocka (who happened to be with WK at the time) crashed the party and threw down the gauntlet ... telling Strickland and Lee, if they're looking for a fight, he's down to make it happen, no matter the time or place.

"We'll have a match right in the parking lot," Flocka said. "Wherever I see 'em, it's a match. Get the refs. It's going down."

As for what entrance music Whoo Kid and Flocka will use if/when they fight Strickland and Lee .. you guessed it, the 2010 hit song "Hard in da Paint."

A$AP Rocky's swag just hit his waistline ... thanks to the purchase of a custom belt boasting some semi-precious gemstones.

Celeb jeweler Alex Moss tells TMZ Hip Hop, Rocky wanted to go all out with a special project that would be revered as more than just a simple, run-of-the-mill jewelry piece.

He commissioned Alex for a custom hand-crafted belt and blinged-out buckle that A$AP designed himself, which ran deep into Rocky's pockets ... $322k in total!!!

We're told the entire project took 4 months to complete, which isn't surprising considering it's loaded with VVS natural white diamonds, green diamonds, black diamonds and natural rubies.

The buckle itself is made of solid 18k white gold and Alex says it was no easy task to make but he handled the grueling process in his NYC shop.

Rocky's been teasing the GRIM tagline for a while ... even performing his "GRIM" freestyle earlier this year at Splash Festival to promote his new clothing capsule.

Swizz Beatz and Timbaland's $28 million legal war with Triller over their Verzuz payouts has come to a close -- the 2 hip hop superproducers have settled.

TMZ broke the story ... Swizz and Timbaland sued Triller following the sale of their series, accusing Triller of failing to deliver on all the promised payouts -- and although the terms of their settlement are confidential, both guys say they're happy with the outcome.

Tim and Swizz say ... “Verzuz has always been a platform that is by the artists, for the artists and with the people.”

Their joint statement to Rolling Stone continues, “We’re glad to come to an amicable agreement with Triller and continue giving fans the music and community that they’ve come to know and love from the brand.”

Swizz added, "Was I ready to go to war? Yes. Am I used to it? I’m from the South Bronx. But I had to take my emotions out of it. There were too many creatives for me to lock this whole thing in the lawyers’ box.”

Verzuz was a huge draw for hip hop and R&B fans throughout the pandemic ... boasting marquee matchups like Jeezy vs Gucci Mane and Brandy vs Monica.

After news of the lawsuit spread, the hip-hop community rallied around Swizz and Tim and threatened boycotts.

Diddy, Jermaine Dupri and Styles P were just a handful of the rappers of who promised to move on from Triller if the company didn't do right by the Verzuz co-creators.

Trae Tha Truth is making sure Dave Chappelle stays shining during his stand-up gigs -- he just hooked up the GOAT with a diamond and gold rendering of his signature logo!!!

The Houston rapper was recently in L.A. when he surprised the legendary comedian with the custom pendant, straight from famed H-Town jeweler Iceman Nick.

We're told the piece consists of 15 carats of VS quality diamonds and is valued at $25,000. It was intended to be a small gesture -- Trae noted Dave already has everything money can buy, but he picked wisely.

DC was floored when he opened the jewelry box, and admitted he didn't have a logo chain in his collection ... and graciously accepted the chain and pendant combo.

Dave and Trae have been friends for several years ... Trae regularly shows out to support when Dave is touring around the country, as he is now.

Trae has been in a giving mood lately ... his Relief Gang charity recently delivered clean water and supplies to Jackson, Mississippi residents struggling with contaminated water pipes.

In a far less kind gesture ... he helped hand out a certified beatdown to his former rapping partner Z-Ro a couple of weeks back -- but according to Boosie Badazz, J. Prince's mediation skills have been activated to squash that beef.

Desiigner is trying to complete his next album, but it looks like all hopes of snagging red-hot rapper EST Gee's contributions are in the crapper.

According to Desiigner, he reached out to Gee for a feature verse ... only to learn the tab would run him a cool $75k. Desiigner used to be signed to Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music label ... which is probably why he took such offense to Gee's price and ripped him a new one on social media.

He apparently ripped more than that -- he claimed to be on the toilet taking a dump when he fired off his response to Gee!!!

Desiigner then went on to scoff at EST Gee's gold plaques and advised the Kentucky-bred rapper to keep all his gold chains ... and accused him of being a slave within the music industry. Yikes!

It's unclear if Desiigner wanted Gee for his clout or credibility. He does call the Yo Gotti-signed rapper complete garbage -- but those disses came only after he didn't like Gee's fee.

Don't sleep on Drake's ability on the basketball court ... 'cause the hip hop superstar can flat out hoop, so says Dribble2Much, Drizzy's longtime trainer.

TMZ Sports recently talked to Dribble2Much -- AKA Johnny Stephene -- and we asked him, who is the best hooping rapper.

"Big shoutout to my boy Drake right now because listen, me and Drake have been working for several years. We're good friends, first of all, and he really loves basketball. He loves the game. The fact that he loves the game and so passionate about getting better at something that he loves, put us on the same level as far as mentality-wise."

FYI, in addition to Drake, Dribble2Much has worked with celebs like 2 Chainz (and many more), and NBA superstars like Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, DeMar DeRozan and Chris Paul.

So, when the man says Drake can play ... listen.

Drake wasn't always regarded as a good player. In fact, he was routinely clowned on social media back in the day for his perceived lack of ability on the court.

But, Johnny says there's been a huge improvement.

"Listen, he's not that Drake from five years ago my man. He's got way better, man. I'm excited just because it's healthy for him to be playing and just being happy doing what he loves. That's dope."

His biggest strength?

"Shooting the ball."

'F.N.F.' rapper GloRilla is maximizing her rookie season with acts of kindness -- just ask her alma mater, who were just surprised with a $25,000 check!!!

Glo was back home in Memphis Thursday at Martin Luther King Prep High School where she donated the funds to the school's fine arts programs in hopes of fostering more talented acts down the line.

MLK Prep principal Chiquita Perry accepted the check in front of students and faculty members, and Glo called being in the position to give back a blessing, just like her recent single.

As we reported, Glo's charitable check comes on the heels of Cardi B also visiting her former school stomping grounds, where she presented her high school with a whooping $100k check earlier this month.

As fate would have it, the two rap stars are combing forces for Glo's upcoming single "Tomorrow 2" ... which drops on Friday.

Glo is a leading favorite for hip hop's 2022 rookie of the year. Her breakout hit "F.N.F. (Let's Go)" dropped in April and peaked at No. 49 on the Billboard Hot 100 ... which earned her a cash-filled contract with Yo Gotti that boasted a $500K stipend.

The last time we spoke to Glo, she said she was already looking to invest her signing bonus and wasn't splurging just for the sake of the 'Gram.

Nardo Wick will be taking names when he hits the road, thanks to the Florida rapper's recent purchase of an insane supercharged Apocalypse HellFire 6x6!!!

Apocalypse Manufacturing tells TMZ Hip Hop ... Nardo dropped a cool $270,000 for the super truck ... which isn't hard to fathom with all its high-powered trimmings and 750 Horsepower Hemi Hellcat engine that can flex 0 to 60 mph in just 4.3 seconds!

The truck is a 6x6 wheel drive vehicle ... and Nardo himself specifically ordered the biggest accessories he could get -- a 12” infotainment screen, 40" tires, 22" inch SFJ rims, purple accents on its weatherproof interior to combat hurricane season, and a premium sound system to test out his new jams.

Those jams include DJ Khaled's "It Ain't Safe" from his No. 1 album "God Did" ... where Nardo stunted with his Apocalypse HellFire alongside Kodak Black in the official video.

Ludacris' manager, Chaka Zulu, has been arrested for murder in connection with the fatal shooting of a man outside his restaurant -- but new video from the incident shows Zulu getting beaten by a group of men before he fired -- giving way to a self-defense argument.

We've obtained surveillance footage recorded June 26 outside Zulu's Atlanta restaurant Apt4B. A group of men, including Artez Benton -- who was killed in the melee -- arrive to Apt4B, park in the valet area and make their way inside. 10 minutes later, the men leave the restaurant after some sort of dispute.

That's where the video starts. Zulu, who was previously in the parking lot speaking to a friend, starts making his way back toward the restaurant ... when he gets into a heated exchange with Tre'mon Robinson, one of the guys who was told to leave the restaurant.

During the argument, a man named Corey Crawford is seen retrieving something out of a vehicle. A source directly connected to the case tells us Zulu's legal team believes Crawford was getting a gun.

Robinson motions to his friends to come over and then appears to chest bump Zulu ... and that's when all hell breaks loose.

Chaka grabs Robinson, but Crawford and Benton jump in and they all begin pummeling Chaka. At one point, Chaka's female assistant (in the orange shirt) attempts to help Chaka, but Robinson punches her in the face ... knocking her to the ground.

Crawford ducks for cover behind two vehicles, and that's when shots ring out. It appears Chaka is the first to fire, striking Benton ... a plume of smoke is visible from Chaka's gun. Another plume of smoke appears to emanate from Crawford's gun. It appears he fired several shots and one hits Chaka in the back.

Benton was hit in the chest ... you see him crawl away. He later died from his injuries.

As we reported, Chaka's been arrested for murder, aggravated assault, simple battery and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime. He turned himself into authorities last week, but from the beginning, he's maintained he acted in self-defense.