TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

LAPD is naming a suspect in the murder of PnB Rock ... he's still on the loose, and should be considered "armed and dangerous."

Cops announced Wednesday morning, Freddie Lee Trone, is the guy detectives have fingered as "a person involved" in the Sept. 12 slaying of the rapper as he sat in a Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles.

They've released this photo of Trone, but haven't yet said if he's the only person they're seeking in the case. You'll recall, police said there was a getaway car waiting outside the L.A. restaurant after PnB was shot and killed.

The killer fled with several gold and diamond chains the Philly MC was wearing as he ate lunch with his girlfriend.

Police are urging the public to contact 911 if you see Trone or have any info on his whereabouts.

Kodak Black is doing good in his hood -- well before the holidays hit -- paying off the remaining rent balance for dozens of South Florida households facing eviction.

Kodak's attorney, Bradford Cohen, tells TMZ Hip Hop ... many South Florida rental home prices have skyrocketed by as much as 31.5 percent -- way higher than the typical 3 to 5 percent!

And, that's where the "Super Gremlin" rapper steps in -- he joined forces with community leader Francky Pierre-Paul and the Zachariah McQueen Foundation to assist a total of 28 families within West Palm Beach's Merry Place Housing Projects.

We're told Kodak will also cover any back fees ... making his grand total of charity $88,902.80 this time around.

Kodak tells TMZ ... "I'm happy about making other people happy. It makes my heart happy to know those 28 families are being taken care of through the end of the year. I don't always post the good I do, I just try to do right by people."

In a separate post, Kodak put his rapping skills on display ... brandishing an acronym for his beloved projects: People Relying On Just Enough Cash To Survive.

Kodak loves his native South Florida and is no stranger to giving back.

During a July 2021 heat wave, he hand-delivered 100 air conditioning units to folks living in the projects of Pompano Beach. He also famously donated $10,000 to the Jack and Jill education center and created a memorial fund for Florida police officers killed in the line of duty.

Tekashi 6ix9ine's recent brawl in Dubai won't be his last one ... not if the DJ he punched that night has anything to say about it!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with the DJ, Lucasdirty ... who wants to resolve the whole thing mano a mano in a real boxing ring.

Lucasdirty's looking to finish what started last weekend ... he tells us he was alerted by the club's management that 6ix9ine was indeed in the building, so he was asked to spin his tunes.

He refused, though, because he says 6ix9ine's music goes against his core beliefs and morals -- and that's what sparked the nightclub melee captured on video.

You can see how things blew up ... 6ix9ine approached the DJ booth 10 minutes after getting rejected, some words were exchanged and then the club was flipped upside down.

Now, Lucasdirty is looking ahead to the recently announced exhibition fight between Floyd Mayweather and YouTuber Deji this November in Dubai, and sees it as the perfect opportunity to settle his differences with Tekashi.

Lucasdirty doesn't even fancy himself a boxer, but he's willing to put on the gloves if it means punching the rainbow.

Sean "Diddy" Combs is being sued by Kim Porter's niece ... who claims she was wrongfully terminated after she told him she got pregnant and needed to take maternity leave.

In legal docs, obtained by TMZ, a woman referred to as Jane Roe -- who identifies herself as Kim's niece -- is suing Diddy, Tri Star Sports, and others, claiming she became a full-time nanny to Diddy's twins after Kim passed away in November 2018. Jane says she was then fired 2 years later when she requested maternity leave.

She claims the day after Kim passed away, Diddy asked her to live at his estate and become a full-time nanny to his twins, Jessie James and D'Lila -- adding she "was responsible for the twins' 24/7 care."

Jane says she got pregnant in August 2020 and told Diddy she needed to take maternity leave ... but says Diddy was "infuriated" and terminated her employment around the time she was set to begin her time off.

Roe claims she was told through Diddy's reps she was canned because she was pregnant and unmarried -- which "purportedly set a bad example" for his daughters.

She's seeking unspecified damages.

TMZ broke the story ... Kim was found dead at her Toluca Lake home in 2018, it was later revealed she died from a form of pneumonia.

Rihanna and her creative team are hard at work -- planning her Super Bowl Halftime Show and figuring out whether or not she'll be joined by guests -- with a list of nearly 50 possible names to hit the stage with her ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge of the plans tell us everyone Rihanna's collabed with over the years is fair game to possibly appear -- with stars like Kanye West, Paul McCartney, Calvin Harris, Pharrell, Jay-Z, Drake and more on Rihanna's resume.

We're told at this time, there have been no final decisions on who may join Rihanna, but she will absolutely have the final say. Our sources also tell us there's still a chance she does the whole thing solo and without a guest ... though it's likely she'll have at least one person, if shows in the past few years are any indicator.

As we reported, Rihanna and boyfriend A$AP Rocky were spotted hitting a New York City recording studio Monday night, so it's possible they're working on something together -- maybe even for the big game.

TMZ broke the story, Rihanna will be Super Bowl LVII's Halftime headliner. There were previous reports it was Taylor Swift, but we learned Swift isn't willing to take the SB stage until she's finished rerecording the rest of her old albums.

Lil Wayne is celebrating 40 years of life today, and apparently wants to shed some serious real estate ... because he just listed the Miami mansion he built in 2017.

The Hip Hop megastar is looking for a sizeable come-up ... asking $29 million for the lavish 7 bedroom, 11 bathroom palace after originally paying $16.8 million. That being said, future buyers can't say they won't get their money's worth.

Wayne laced the place with high-end luxuries ... which include a commercial-grade elevator, wine cellar, floating staircases, and an outside dock that spirals 110 feet across the waterfront.

The most attractive amenity within the mansion's 10,300 square footage could arguably be the awesome movie theater ... decked out with suede walls, making for an ideal space to entertain guests.

On the outside of the Allison Island gated community also sits a large pool, complete with an open-air cabana with its own kitchen.

Wayne's living in the California Hidden Hills these days after moving close to Kylie Jenner last year. He just celebrated his 40th birthday in L.A. with plenty of famous pals ... and looked right at home!!!

Pusha T is back with his 2nd McDonald's diss track of the year ... and this time, he's burning the McRib to a crisp!!!

On the new record "Rib Roast," King Push peddles Arby's Real Country Rib Sandwich while sending shots at the Golden Arches with lyrics like ... "McDonald's what you selling mystery meat?/Hop up and go away, what does history teach?/ Mickey D's McRib you ain't it in the streets/The real country style rib sandwich here to compete."

Call it get back from the grill ... Pusha and his brother No Malice of The Clipse wrote McDonald's iconic "I'm Lovin' It" jingle back in 2003, but the brothers didn't cash out on any royalties on the business end.

While speaking to Complex about the premiere of "Rib Roast," Pusha says he has no ill will toward McDonald's, admitting it wasn't the best business for him per se -- but that's not stopping him from killing Ronald & co. on wax.

Pusha's "Spicy Fish Diss Track" dropped back in March, and reportedly gave Arby's an $8 million marketing bump, as well as a better deal for Pusha ... 40% ownership of the track!!!

Pusha says he's trying to take "street hip hop" to the next level, and his partnership with Arby's is just another notch in the résumé.

Charlamagne Tha God recently went viral for not having Chief Keef in his "most influential list" -- a snub that angered many, but not the man, the myth ... Love Sosa himself!!!

TMZ Hip Hop connected Monday with the Almighty So in NYC -- a rare opportunity to gauge his thoughts about his name circulating on social media lately.

On a recent "Brilliant Idiots" podcast, Charlamagne named Kanye West, Jay-Z, 2Pac and Lil Wayne as rap's most influential but rejected the suggestion of Chief Keef because he "didn't influence the world."

Sosa pretty much rejected all of that when we asked him about it ... he dismissed Charlamagne as an opinion factory.

While Charlamagne is denying Chief Keef's legacy, DJ Akademiks has inserted himself in the past as a cornerstone in popularizing drill and Sosa's sound.

Akademiks infamously covered deadly Chicago rap feuds ... much to the disdain of many rappers, but Sosa isn't giving Ak the credit that easily.

He seemed much more interested in showing off his drip and fashion, but casually shot down Ak's claims ... or simply ignored them.

Sosa was in the Big Apple to link with Juelz Santana in the studio and also check out his artist Lil Gnar's Rolling Loud appearance.

Singers, rappers ... Aljamain Sterling will walk to the Octagon to your music -- blasting in the arena, on TV -- at his next UFC title fight, if your song's good enough.

The bantamweight champ is teaming up with 2x Grammy nominee Joyner Lucas ... and they're launching a contest aimed at putting a spotlight on independent artists.

The way it goes ... artists submit a song on Tully, and if Aljo and Joyner like it, you might hear it on the UFC 280 broadcast next month.

Aljamain is fighting T.J. Dillashaw on October 22 in Abu Dhabi ... and the winner's song will be the last thing Aljo hears before he scraps.

Sterling and Lucas' friendship began in April earlier this year ... after Aljamain walked out to Joyner's "I Love" at UFC 273 before his bout with Petr Yan.

Aljamain became UFC champion that night ... and the men later came up with the contest.

Joyner, who pushes independent musicians like him, has also worked with some of the industry's biggest names ... Will Smith on "Will (Remix)" and Lil Baby on "Ramen & OJ."

It's not the first time Joyner's been part of a big-time sporting event. He's a huge Boston Celtics fan ... and performed at halftime of Game 6 during the 2022 NBA Finals.

Larsa Pippen looks like she's super into the son of her ex-husband's famous teammate -- the 'Real Housewives' star and Marcus Jordan were all over each other at a music festival.

Larsa and Marcus were spotted together again Sunday ... this time at Rolling Loud in NYC, and video shows them dancing on each other, getting handsy and snuggling.

TMZ obtained this footage of Scottie Pippen's ex with Michael Jordan's son at Citi Field in Queens, and they certainly look like a couple now ... they're clearly more comfortable with one another since we first saw them hanging out in Miami.

Larsa and Marcus are face-to-face, slow dancing and grinding ... with Larsa nuzzling Marcus' neck and even appearing to kiss him.

At one point, Larsa grabs Marcus by the waist and she later turns around and leans back on him ... and Marcus leans in close and appears to whisper in her ear.

Folks who were there tell us Larsa and Marcus were dancing together all night, hugging and kissing and engaging in a bunch of PDA. We're told Larsa was kissing Marcus' neck, laying her head on his chest and trying to make it clear to all they were there together.

It's interesting to see Larsa and Marcus spending more time together ... as we first told you, they hung out in Miami earlier this month, but both of their camps quickly put to bed rumors of a relationship.

The new video doesn't lie though ... and it's gonna be hard to deny the sparks are flying.

Ya gotta wonder how Michael and Scottie feel about all this -- the 'Last Dance' documentary made it clear there's still some hard feelings between the Hall of Fame Chicago Bulls teammates.

Rihanna's already gearing up for her Super Sunday comeback ... at least that's what fans are hoping as she hits a studio with A$AP Rocky right on the heels of her big NFL news.

Rihanna and her BF were on the move Monday night, heading into a NYC studio session together -- and the timing is just fueling anticipation for her Super Bowl Halftime Show performance.

RiRi hasn't spoken out about the big gig yet, and the big question is whether she'll finally drop some new music before she takes the stage at Super Bowl LVII. So, every time she gets near a studio between now and February 12 it's gonna be news.

She's been teasing new music for quite some time now. We know she's been really busy lately with all of her business ventures, and welcoming a baby with A$AP ... but if she's diving into new music, this would be the time.

You'll recall, Rih 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 ... but this time she's all in.

Akademiks is addressing the “broke and dusty” slander head-on after making himself hip hop public enemy No. 1 last week -- mostly due to LL Cool J giving him a tongue-lashing on the subject.

The embattled rap journalist visited The Breakfast Club to plead his case, and said he would’ve agreed with LL Cool J … if his “broke and dusty” remarks weren’t clipped and taken outta context.

Ak says he was actually speaking on the larger issue of legendary rappers who refuse to pass their education down to the next generation.

Ak openly admitted he has no problem taking his lumps for his content, but says when it’s time for the culture to attack important issues like rapper murders and the music that’s fueling them, conversations go silent.

There was another elephant in the room to confront … Ak’s comments against Reginae Carter’s dating life and her new relationship.

Reginae is the daughter of Lil Wayne and entrepreneur Toya Carter ... and had been dating YFN Lucci before his incarceration. She now makes YouTube food videos with her current BF … and Ak basically scolded her for switching up when things got tough.

Toya lashed out at Ak for almost calling her daughter a “bitch” on live stream … to which Ak retracted and apologized and has a sit-down scheduled for next week with T.I. ... who says he's Reginae's godfather.

Working relationships are key to locking down guest features ... so says superproducer Hitmaka, who thinks Desiigner blew his top when reacting to EST Gee's $75k asking price for a collab.

We got Hitmaka at LAX and picked his industry brain about Desiigner's recent outburst over EST's steep quote.

He notes artists typically do business off the internet, which could allow for a lower negotiated price. But, ultimately without the established connection, Hitmaka says the price is the price ... whether it's 75 cents or $75k!!!

Desiigner lost it on EST Gee last week ... calling him "garbage" after getting the verse quoted. The Brooklyn-born rapper is now independent after leaving Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music ... which means more DIY opportunities.

Shortly after the viral IG diss, Desiigner seemingly had a change of heart and accepted EST's five-figure fee ... walking back the attacks on the CMG rapper's character -- a humble gesture, but doubtful it'll get him that feature!!!

We also couldn't help but notice Hitmaka was rocking his drippy umbrella chain from NYC Mazza ... and picked his brain on rapper travel protocol with jewelry in the aftermath of PnB Rock's murder.

Hitmaka doubled down on DJ Envy's instructions about artists protecting their valuables ... a clear sign of the times in hip hop culture.

Lil Wayne got an early start to his 40th birthday celebration ... with a star-studded birthday party fit for the legendary rapper!!!

Sources close to Weezy tell TMZ Hip Hop ... the shindig went down at popular L.A. hot spot, The Nice Guy -- and several close friends and family members -- including all 4 of his children, flew in from New Orleans for the event.

Special guests ranged from YG and Yella Beezy to Mack Maine and Cortez Bryant on the hip hop side ... and Skip Bayless, Shannon Sharpe and Marcus Wiley repped for the sports culture.

NBA YoungBoy understandably couldn't be there on an account of his highly publicized house arrest, but sent a video message addressing Wayne as "his son" ... as they're both branches from the Louisiana rap family tree.

The biggest shocker of the night came courtesy of R&B legend Keith Sweat ... who surprised Wayne with a special performance of his classic track "Don't Stop Your Love."

Wayne's actual birthday is Tuesday, when he'll be getting the royal birthday treatment from the National Museum of African American Music in Nashville. We've learned they're unveiling a special exhibit in his honor.

NMAAM and Vanderbilt professors will host an event for the exhibit, which features personally donated antiques from Wayne -- including his Best Rap Album Grammy for "Tha Carter III," his first handwritten letter during his stint on Rikers Island and much more.

Snoop Dogg is ready to roll out another full-length project ... and once again, he's tapping DJ Drama to connect the dots and deliver a gift to mark his latest trip around the sun.

Tha Doggfather announced Monday morning ... he and the Gangsta Grillz founder had a mixtape in the works, slated for an October 20 release date -- his big B-Day!

Snoop will be turning 51 on that day, but still wants the young whippersnappers to know his pen has plenty of ink left to document his raps.

Snoop and Drama have several GG collaborations under their designer belts, including his "That's My Work" series installments 1-5, 2008's "The City Is In Good Hands" LP and his Locke High series alongside producer Terrace Martin.

He's also having a stellar year ... having kicked off 2022 with his Emmy Award-winning Super Bowl halftime show performance, and teasing in-studio collaborations with fellow headliners Dr. Dre and Eminem along the way.

Not to be excluded, Drama's been putting in overtime stamping his Gangsta Grillz seal of approval on plenty of projects.

Kanye West added a little bling to his wardrobe, rocking bedazzled flip-flops to one of London Fashion Week's biggest events.

Ye -- dressed in black leather pants with a black leather jacket and hoodie -- made his way into The Burberry Spring/Summer 2023 show in Bermondsey Monday. It's the first time in a while we've seen Kanye with anything other than black boots or Yeezys on his feet.

Instead, he wore a pair of black flip-flops with socks ... and a diamond trim.

Ye doesn't usually wear anything flashy, even jewelry, so the diamonds are certainly a new look ... whether real or not.

As for Kim Kardashian, she's been with the kids in Milan after starring as Dolce and Gabbana's leading lady at their show over the weekend.

Kanye recently sat down with 'GMA' where he apologized to Kim and for causing stress in her life through his various attacks on social media.