TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

T-Pain is wishing he never slapped down 6 figures on his infamous "Big Ass Chain," but wants it to be a living cautionary tale for other rappers looking to ice up.

Mr. Penderazzdown was speaking with Oliver Tree on his Nappy Boy Radio segment when he admitted the hefty purchase ran him about $400k back in the day. The most painful part, though … he says the chain's now depreciated to about $200K!!! 😓

T-Pain relived the chain’s origin -- he says a random fan dared him to get the diamond-encrusted wonder with the words "Big Ass Chain," and he did it on a whim!!!

The fan still has never been ID'ed to this day, and T-Pain says he keeps the chain around as a reminder not to be dumb with his moolah.

Financial literacy and rapper's extravagant purchases are like oil and water, but Charlamagne Tha God recently set off the conversation about depreciating assets with a simple, yet hilarious, post.

Quentin Miller says he's utterly disappointed in Big Sean's behavior when it comes time to pass out songwriting credits, because he claims Sean Don went MIA on him.

QM says he and Sean first met through Drake circa 2014 while working on their classic duet, "Blessings." He says Sean was impressed with his input, and recruited Quentin to work on "What You Expect" -- Sean's 2021 joint EP with Hit-Boy.

Things started out smooth ... Quentin says he and Sean got close and frequently bounced ideas off each other. When he noticed "Blessings" had won a BET Award, he figured it spelled prosperity for their future collabs.

But then, 2 weeks before the EP release ... QM says Sean stopped responding to texts, and all future communication went through Sean's management.

To make matters worst, QM claims it took 3 months to get his name on the credits and proper publishing once it was officially released -- without his paperwork being signed.

In hindsight, he says he would’ve asked for cash up-front if he knew it was gonna be a ghostwriter situation, but he thought it was gonna be a legit deal.

Dr. Dre has his sights set on a lucrative music deal, one that would sell the rights to some of his royalties and master recordings ... and we're told the price tag is well over $200 million -- WAY MORE than is being reported.

The music mogul is close to selling off some of his music assets in two separate deals ... one with Shamrock Holdings, and another with Universal Music Group ... according to Billboard.

The possible Shamrock deal looks like this ... Dre sells his artist royalties from two of his solo albums -- his share of N.W.A artist royalties, plus his producer royalties and the writer's share of the music where he doesn't own publishing rights.

The potential deal with UMG is a little different ... Dre sells the master recording of his first solo album, "The Chronic," plus his share of some Kendrick Lamar music.

Dre's not selling all of his music ... Billboard characterizes these transactions as mostly "passive income streams" that generate about $10 million annually ... and he's NOT selling his ownership stake in his record label, Aftermath.

Sources close to Dr. Dre tell TMZ ... the actual selling price is actually tens of millions of dollars higher than the $200 million figure Billboard is reporting.

Congrats, Dre. 💸

Joe Budden isn't vibing with Gucci Mane's massive string of losses within the 1017 Records roster, and he sharing his opinion in that unique Joe Budden kinda way!!!

On a recent episode of the 'Joe Budden Podcast' ... the outspoken host called for a thorough background check from record labels and owners, A&Rs, etc. when they're bringing a new artist into the fold.

Gucci and his wife Keyshia Ka'Oir were recently entangled in a hefty war of words with Big Scarr's family over payment for his funeral -- but Joe feels Gucci is putting the young artists in a position to be hit with tragic circumstances.

Joe points out hip hop has put up record numbers in the past 10 years when it comes to deaths, RICO cases and overdoses -- and he's blaming those stats on a lack of good A&R skills, and the "death" of real musicianship in rap.

Despite putting out several releases in the past couple of years, Joe's analysis of Gucci's label isn't without merit.

In addition to Scarr's passing, Gucci's flagship artists Pooh Shiesty, Foogiano and Ralo are currently incarcerated ... as are his rookie rapper Mac Critter, on murder charges, and former signee Hoodrich Pablo Juan in a RICO case.

Another rapper, Baby Racks, lasted about 24 hours before he was dropped from the label for speaking ill of the city of Houston following Takeoff's shooting death.

J Prince is coming to his family's defense following Takeoff's murder ... as his son J Prince Jr. has the center of controversy and conspiracy theories since the dreadful November 1 shooting.

The Rap-A-Lot Records founder was a guest on Chris Gotti's 'Givin Them The Business' podcast where he spoke to the rumors Prince Jr. was cold and heartless for walking past Takeoff's lifeless body immediately after the shooting.

J Prince points out the clip the internet witnessed was only a few seconds throughout the entire day Prince Jr., and their cousin Mike, had spent with Takeoff. He also said Prince Jr. was frazzled from having to go to a bathroom to wash Takeoff's blood off his hands.

Prince Jr. had allegedly reached behind Takeoff's head in an attempt to administer aid, but the Migos rapper died at the scene at the age of 28.

J Prince's statements will likely provide some clarity to social media users, but naysayers should know Houston Police don't consider anyone else a suspect except Patrick Xavier Clark, the man they arrested and charged for Takeoff's murder.

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene talked a big game after Dr. Dre went after her for using his song, "Still D.R.E.," as a music bed for her entrance to the House chamber, but after Dre. delivered a legal threat -- stop using my music, or else -- she backed down.

A Greene staffer just sent a letter to Dre's lawyer, Howard King -- obtained by TMZ -- which reads in part, "On behalf of Congresswoman Greene, please be advised that no further use of Mr. Young's copyright will be made by a political committee or via social media outlet she controls."

It's really something ... Greene responded well before the 5 PM deadline imposed by King.

It had gotten really nasty. King initially fired off a letter to Greene in which he made clear, his client would not allow Greene "to promote your divisive and hateful political agenda."

Greene fired back with a statement of her own, saying, "While I appreciate the creative chord progression, I would never play your words of violence against women and police officers, and your glorification of the thug life and drugs."

So now Greene will have to find another artist if she wants a music bed to accompany her videos. Thoughts?

50 Cent is taking the high road ... despite all his social media posts to the contrary, he's apologizing to Megan Thee Stallion for not believing her testimony about Tory Lanez shooting her.

The G-Unit legend switched from promoting season 2 of "BMF" to reflecting on his wild Instagram posts where he compared the embattled hottie to Jussie Smollett's lying ways via a meme that went viral.

50 explains he was taken aback by Megan's infamous interview with CBS' Gayle King where she denied having a sexual relationship with Tory -- which we now know was a lie -- but 50 says that fib prompted him to disbelieve everything else she said for nearly a year!!!

Like many people following the case details, 50 says once the mountain of evidence came out, it began to sway his opinion ... with Tory's jailhouse phone call with Kelsey Harris sealing the deal for him.

50's probably one of the least likely rappers to swallow his pride and offer Megan a mea culpa -- trolling is his thing, after all -- but Soulja Boy is calling for the entire hip hop community to do just that ... apologize!!!

SB recently went on the warpath during an Instagram Live session where he threatened to beat up Tory (if) he's ever released from prison, and wished gang rape on him throughout his stint behind bars.

Tennis superstar Naomi Osaka just shared a major life update -- she's expecting her first child ... and TMZ Sports has confirmed it's with rapper Cordae!!

The 25-year-old made the announcement just minutes ago ... saying, "The past few years have been interesting to say the least, but I find that its the most challenging times in life that may be the most fun. These few months away from the sport has really given me a new love and appreciation for the game I've dedicated my life to."

Osaka shared a picture of a sonogram on Twitter ... adding, "I realize that life is so short and I don't take any moments for granted, everyday is a new blessing and adventure. I know that I have so much to look forward to in the future, one thing I'm looking forward to is for my kid to watch one of my matches and tell someone, 'that's my mom,' haha."

Osaka -- who went public with Cordae in 2019 -- says she will not be competing in the meantime ... but plans to return for the Australian Open in 2024.

"I don't think there's a perfectly correct path to take in life but I always felt that if you move forward with good intentions you'll find your way eventually," she added.

Gunna has access to his social media accounts again and in a defiant return, he's defending his status with YSL … the label, that is.

In his first IG post since taking the Alford plea deal that got him sprung from prison on December 14 ... Gunna called for Young Thug and Yak Gotti's freedom, and reiterated his allegiance to the crew.

Gunna also let off a belated RIP to Lil Keed, as he was incarcerated at the time of Keed's death in May 2022 ... which was recently discovered to be the result of a blood cell disorder.

The post didn't sit well with Keed's brother, Lil Gotit, who showed his emotions when he, incorrectly, thought Gunna was referring to him when he called Keed his "twin."

Young Thug's brother Unfoonk also flexed some umbrage ... flipping Gunna's patented P emoji against him while slamming the post.

We recently bumped into Thug's sister Dolly White and Gotit at LAX and her reaction was pretty similar to Unfoonk's -- Gunna still has some explaining to do!!!

Convincing the YSL collective is only half Gunna's battle reentering the rap game.

A$AP Rocky caught Rihanna’s manager trying to sneak in a couple of winks as they chowed down on a post-Golden Globes dinner … so he whipped out his phone to clown the dude!

Rocky and Rihanna were out in Santa Monica at their favorite eatery, when Rocky got the heads up Roc Nation exec Jay Brown was snoozing in the car ... a magic moment for professional and amateur photogs like Rocky.

Jay was out cold and at a point, Rocky decided enough was enough, so he waived off the cameras and knocked on the hood ... which served as a wake-up call.

Rihanna was nominated at the Globes for “Best Original Song in a Motion Picture” for the track “Lift Me Up” from the “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” soundtrack.

The song lost out to “Naatu Naatu” from the Indian film “RRR” ... but RiRi still turned heads inside the Bev Hilton … decked out in a gown by Daniel Roseberry.

The stage is now set for Rihanna’s big Super Bowl Halftime performance next month, where she’s admitted to having a few pregame jitters.

New photos show the horror from the night Tory Lanez shot Meg Thee Stallion in the foot after an argument in Hollywood ... including the damage done to Meg's foot and the weapon used to commit the crime.

We've obtained several trial exhibits from the Meg and Tory case that show everything from the blood in the backseat of the SUV, to the condition and X-rays of Meg's foot after she was hospitalized.

You can see blood splattered in the vehicle, from when Meg got back inside after Tory shot her ... there's also blood smeared on a suitcase that was in the vehicle.

For the first time, we're also seeing the pistol Tory used to shoot Meg, laying on the ground near the backseat of the SUV.

As we reported, Tory was found guilty of all three charges against him -- felony negligent discharge of a firearm, assault with a semiautomatic firearm and carrying a loaded and unregistered firearm back in December.

Coachella has dropped this year's highly anticipated lineup ... and some of the biggest artists are comin' to bring the house down.

Bad Bunny is set to hit the stage Friday, with Gorillaz, Metro Boomin, and Pusha T goin' all out throughout the day, amongst others. Idris Elba is also touching down on day 1, performing as a DJ for the crowd.

Saturday's headliner is K-pop group BLACKPINK -- while other performances that day will come from Rosalía, The Kid LAROI, and Charli XCX, to name a few.

Don't sleep on Sunday -- because Frank Ocean will finally be gracing the desert stage. For those unaware, he was set as a headliner for the 2020 concert before the whole thing got scrapped.

Other than Frank, Sunday's packed with artists like Björk, Dominic Fike, Latto, Rae Sremmurd, and lots more.

Fake lineups have circulated online, including one that said Justin Bieber would headline. Sources say Bieber was asked, but he turned it down in order to focus on his album. However, we're told there's a good chance he does it in 2024!

Remember, Billie Eilish, Harry Styles, Swedish House Mafia and The Weeknd all headlined in 2022 ... and they surely didn't disappoint.

Despite putting on a great show more recently ... honchos working behind the scenes of the 2-weekend long festival have seen some hiccups over the last few years.

You'll recall, there was a bit of drama over who would fill the spot ... after Kanye West dropped out of the show a week before the festival began. He had plans to bring out Travis Scott, but of course, that didn't happen once Ye pulled the plug.

Coachella made its comeback that year ... after canceling the festivals in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID.

Well, this year the show will go on ... and it seems like it will be a hell of a time!

Cardi B and Offset are taking the Super Bowl by storm with some lovey dovey burgers and fries, because they've teamed up with the golden arches for a major ad ... and it's all about love.

Sources tell TMZ the couple shot a commercial for McDonald's right around Christmas time ... which was filmed with a small crew -- even though we're told the scale of the ad is going to be huge, and it's expected to make a splash on game day.

Cardi and Offset shot it solo -- so, no kids in this -- and our sources tell us it's Valentine's Day themed. Unclear what exactly is going to be depicted, but we imagine it'll be lovey-dovey ... which CB and Offset already are on their own.

Obviously, this is going to air on Feb. 12 -- the day of SB LVII -- just a couple days before V-Day.

As for why these two decided to shoot during the Christmas holiday ... we're told everyone felt it'd be the best day to get some work done, seeing how everyone (celebs included) usually take it easy. It also gave them a good window to get some work done without distractions.

This is Cardi's second go-around when it comes to Super Bowl ads -- she famously did one for Pepsi a few years ago ... and now, she's been tapped by another giant corporation.

Dr. Dre just went in hard on Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, threatening her with legal action for exploiting his music "to promote your divisive and hateful political agenda."

Dre's lawyer, Howard King, fired off a letter to Greene, saying "Mr. Young [Dre] has not, and will never, grant you permission to broadcast or disseminate any of his music."

As we reported, Greene posted a video of her walking to the House floor Monday, using Dre's song, "Still D.R.E." as the music bed.

King fired off a demand letter to Twitter, asking the company to block her post. For its part, Twitter not only blocked the post ... it also locked her Twitter account.

But King wasn't done. Dre's lawyer went after her in a blistering way, saying "you would have a passing familiarity with the laws of our country. It's possible, though, that laws governing intellectual property are a little too arcane and insufficiently populist for you to really have spent much time on."

Dre and King were not done ... "We're writing because we think an actual lawmaker should be making laws not breaking laws, especially those embodied in the constitution by the founding fathers."

And then the ultimatum ... King demanded that Green cease and desist from using any of Dre's music, and he set a time deadline ... "please provide me with written confirmation that you have complied with these demands before January 11, 2023 by 5:00 pm EST."

Before the letter was sent, Greene told TMZ, "While I appreciate the creative chord progression, I would never play your words of violence against women and police officers, and your glorification of the thug life and drugs."

We will follow up on this ... promise!

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene used a Dr. Dre song to tout her political prowess -- but she didn't have the green light for it ... according to Dre himself.

The Georgia lawmaker posted a highly-produced clip to her social feeds showing her strutting her stuff through the halls of Congress, apparently flexing the fact that she helped get Rep. Kevin McCarthy elected as House Speaker ... after an excruciating process.

In the video, you see her walking around and feeling herself -- even taking a call from "DT" at one point -- and all throughout ... DD's "Still D.R.E." beat is playing in the background.

The fact she even knows the song took some by surprise, let alone her feeling free to drop it into her GOP-fueled vid. You can count Dr. Dre as one of those shocked to hear his work being used by MTG ... because he tells TMZ he never gave the okay for this to happen.

The mega-producer tells us ... "I don’t license my music to politicians, especially someone as divisive and hateful as this one." So, yeah ... he ain't a fan of her collab here in the slightest.

No word on whether he plans to do anything about it, or if he's just gonna let it be. Fact is ... Republican politicians have long used popular songs for their political purposes for years now, starting with the head honcho himself -- Donald Trump -- who does it often at rallies.

Countless artists have told us they don't condone it, and some have even demanded he stop -- but Trump has continued on anyway ... often without any real repercussions of note.

We'll see if Rep. Greene follows his lead and does the same with Dre.

Kanye West is back to his regularly scheduled program -- getting out and about again, and with a new mystery woman by his side during his first time in public in several weeks.

Ye appeared to be all smiles Sunday afternoon as he drove around his Maybach in Bev Hills. In what's become his typical single guy move ... he had a new female companion riding shotgun for their Sunday Funday.

Unclear who the woman is, but they were basically hand in hand as they walked into the Waldorf Astoria hotel.

Ye's been off the map for several weeks now -- rumors started spreading he was missing when his ex-business manager Thomas St. John said Ye was nowhere to be found.

As we reported, Ye made himself persona non grata just about everywhere after he unleashed a slew of antisemitic remarks and bizarre comments ... all of which ultimately cost him a ton of business deals, and his billionaire status.

At one point, he was traveling the country with white nationalist Nick Fuentes by his side, and the duo went to Mar-a-Lago to dine with Donald Trump, stirring a war of words with the former president.