TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Maino is rejecting any notion Troy Ave's hands are clean following Taxstone's guilty verdict for manslaughter.

In fact, he's in total defense of the podcaster and says Troy is simply moonlighting as the victim!!!

The "Hi Hater" rapper made his return to "Way Up With Angela Yee" on Monday ... painting Troy Ave and his crew as the aggressors during the deadly night of May 26, 2016.

Maino says he and Uncle Murda were inside Irving Plaza and scheduled to perform when he witnessed the scene unfold.

According to Maino, Tax was simply chilling inside the venue and enjoying the T.I. concert when trouble confronted him, and the tables were turned.

Following the trial, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr. slammed Tax for "killing a man and shooting 3 others" ... with the deceased being Troy's bodyguard Ronald “Banga” McPhatter.

Troy's been going on the rampage with multiple diss tracks, and even took the stand in the case -- but Maino's calling BS and says Troy finagled a deal with prosecutors to erase his own gun possession charge from the altercation.

Maino says Troy thought he was going to get a "WorldStar moment" by messing with Tax, and doesn't think Troy should be dropping diss tracks bragging about his enemy's conviction.

Akademiks thinks big-name rappers Drake, J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar have gotten big heads and are now too afraid to sit and talk to the very hip hop outlets they once used to build industry clout.

Cole recently conducted his first on-camera interview in years with ESPN's Bob Myers, with the biggest headline being the North Carolina-bred rapper smoking cigarettes at age 6 ... and Ak says the entire set-up screams "weirdo."

Ak is adamant he's not bitter for not personally getting face time with the hip hop heavyweights -- but, instead, says he's speaking for the loads of scaredy-cat journalists who don't want to rock the boat.

Translation: They're all playing the PR game, but Adademiks is refusing to join 'em.

He recalled a time he criticized SZA -- a Top Dawg Entertainment artist -- while working for Complex, and claims the mag's staff was frantically trying to patch things up in hopes of scoring an interview with Kendrick, TDE's flagship rapper.

Kendrick jetted off to Ghana following the release of his long-awaited album "Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers" and later conducted a softball interview with "W" magazine -- a complete distancing from traditional rap culture outlets, Complex included.

Drake spoke to Lil Yachty during a seaside chat for the release of his last project "Her Loss" .... but Ak says the Canadian megastar is overdue to return the favor to publications that first threw him street cred.

Ak scolded the rap stars for falling into "white boy conversations" ... but added, in his eyes, there are still some real ones out there.

Quavo just announced he's been cooking a new "bun" in the oven and is ready to pull the finished product from the studio!!!

On Monday, Quavo posted a pic of himself in a fur coat, puffing on something ... and, in the post, revealed he had something called "Honey Bun" dropping this Friday. He dedicated the rollout to his late nephew Takeoff.

Sources close to the Huncho tell TMZ Hip Hop the announcement is for a new song that will find the former Migos leader back in his OG bag after he sought therapy through a string of tribute tracks.

The former Migos leader has, understandably, been in mourning since Takeoff's shooting death in November ... and released the songs "Without You" and "Greatness" in his memory, and even performed at the last Grammy Awards.

Quavo's first and only solo album dropped back in 2018 ... but with the end of Migos, we're told his solo discography is primed to be beefed up in no time!!!

Khia's not impressed with the loads of rappers who have repurposed her 2002 breakout hit "My Neck, My Back (Lick It)" ... which mainly includes Saweetie's version, the one that actually took an artist's career to the next level!!!

The 'Thug Misses' rapper was quizzed on the spot about the legacy of her XXX-rated track — and immediately targeted Saweetie's 2017 song "Icy Grl."

Khia had a hard time reciting the song and began dubbing Saweetie "Sweet Pea" as a diss ... while digging into her further, claiming green peas were her least fav veggie as a kid.

YG and the City Girls were offered a handful of props for their songs that borrowed from 'My Neck, My Back,' but Khia ultimately doesn't think anyone has improved on the record she originally created.

TMZ Hip Hop recently talked to Larrance Dopson -- from the Grammy Award-winning outfit 1500 or Nothin' -- and he ripped some producers for being lazy, and dropping the ball when it comes to upgrading the samples. Much like what Khia's fuming about.

Drake missed his headlining Lollapalooza Brazil set Sunday night -- less than 24 hours after he was partying in Miami with 50 Cent the night before.

The 2 superstars linked up inside the Booby Trap On the River, which would have been a monumental occasion ... had thousands of fans not been expecting him on the stage down in Brazil to cap performances from Rosalía, Tove Lo, Armin Van Buuren and more.

Drake was quickly replaced with Skrillex on the bill, which, as you'd expect, didn't sit well with some fans.

The festival issued a mea culpa ... explaining Drake didn't have all the necessary tools to nail his performance and offered Day 3 ticketholders the opportunity for a refund.

A translated statement on the festival's social media says, “Due to unforeseen circumstances, Drake is without members of his sound and production team, essential to the realization of the Lollapalooza show in Sao Paulo. Drake was excited to perform for his fans in Brazil. Unfortunately, this is beyond his control. Sorry.”

Drake and 21 Savage are set to go on tour latest this year ... but as of now, Brazilian fans are SOL as the dates only hit North America!!!

Rihanna's home is on a streak, and not a good one -- turns out it was the scene of another recent crime ... a thief just shut up and drove off with one of her driver's cars.

Law enforcement tells TMZ ... RiRi's driver told cops he pulled up to her L.A.-area home late last week, running inside to grab something while leaving the keys in the whip and the engine running. Big mistake. Huge.

We're told the driver came back out to find the 2012 Audi sedan was gone. For obvious reasons, he believes someone just jumped in and took off with it.

It's unclear if Rihanna was home at the time of the incident.

LAPD is investigating, but it appears the suspect made a clean escape.

The stolen car makes it 2 straight weeks of alleged criminal activity at the singer's home. TMZ broke the story, cops raced there Thursday after a man showed up claiming he wanted to propose to her.

Back in 2018, another man was arrested at her house after allegedly crashing there for at least a day and telling cops he was there to have sex with her.

As far as this new incident goes -- yes, it sucks the driver's ride got jacked ... but, word to the wise in just about every major city in America: Don't leave your keys in a running car in the middle of the night!

Jim Jones is a proud gym rat but when it comes to rats in the gym ... he doesn't have a whole lot to say!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with the Dipset Capo promoting his new "Back In My Prime" album ... but he immediately burst out laughing and hit a meannnn Milly Rock when we asked his thoughts about 6ix9ine's now infamous lopsided brawl inside an LA Fitness gym.

Tekashi 6ix9nine and Jim have a pretty contentious past ... thanks to 6ix9ine repeatedly attempting to get him arrested after the two clashed several years ago.

Jim finally did offer up some insight in between his hitting the whoa ... and suggested Tekashi's choice of a public gym wasn't the brightest and is certain that would never happen in the facilities he works out at.

The Harlem rapper is currently plotting his own line of Vamp Fitt gyms, and frequents New Jersey's Impact Zone with fellow artists Fabolous, Dave East and Maino ... but discouraged knuckleheads from attempting to pull similar stunts in his sanctuary. You've been warned!!!

Fivio Foreign is back on the scene after some sort of health crisis forced him to cancel his Rolling Loud Cali performance, and he's assuring fans he's 100% back to form.

We caught Fivio out at LAX where he told us he's fully recovered since his last-minute cancelation three weeks ago in L.A. -- and while he wasn't any clearer about what exactly he was going through ... he did say simply hydrating more helped bring him back.

The "Big Drip" rapper alarmed fans by asking for prayers when he abruptly dropped out, only saying his body was dealing with some "real issues."

He also didn't get to make up for the missed show with his hometown crowd, in light of Rolling Loud New York being permanently shuttered.

While it might seem like Fivio's downplaying whatever he went through, dehydration has taken down artists from time to time. Wyclef Jean was recently ordered by a doc to rest and drink fluids after he was hospitalized for going too hard.

Jhené Aiko's in the market for a new luxury SUV after the worst possible restaurant valet experience -- witnessing a thief make off with her vehicle.

Law enforcement tells TMZ ... Jhené went out to dinner with family last weekend, grabbing a bite at L.A.'s Tasty Noodle House. She walked away from her white 2020 Range Rover around 8:30 PM Saturday.

We're told when the singer arrived she gave the valet her keys, then went inside to eat. Typical night out up to that point.

But, about 30 minutes later, Jhené saw someone drive away in her Range. We're told she figured the valet staff was just moving it, but it was never returned.

It's unclear who made the clean getaway; it wasn't any of the valet drivers, but cops say there was an extra key inside the SUV --- which, obviously, made things a lot easier for the car thief.

Police are investigating ... no arrests at this point, and no sign of Jhené's Range Rover.

Kanye West says he's done a 180 on his views about Jewish people and is no longer an antisemite -- thanks to actor Jonah Hill.

The rapper took to Instagram Friday night to announce that he was watching the 2012 film, "21 Jump Street," starring Hill and Channing Tatum, when he had his epiphany about the Jewish race.

Kanye said, "Watching Jonah Hill in 21 jump street made me like Jewish people again. No one should take anger against one or two individuals and transform that into hatred towards millions of innocent people."

He continued, "No Christian can be labeled antisemite knowing Jesus is Jew. Thank you Jonah Hill. I love you."

Kanye's statements are hard to swallow, given his recent professed love for Hitler. He went on a prolonged, scorched earth campaign against Jews as he alluded to issues he had with some execs in the music biz.

And, it was all very ugly. Kanye went on "Infowars" hosted by conspiracy nut Alex Jones and praised Hitler and the Nazis. Ye also hung out with white nationalist Nick Fuentes and the two even flew to Mar-a-Lago for an infamous dinner hosted by Donald Trump.

During an interview with Piers Morgan, Kanye doubled down on his antisemitic remarks, but clarified that he was only referring to Jews who had done him wrong. This was in reference to an earlier remark he made about going "death con 3" on Jews. Again, hardcore antisemite.

His comments led to a crushing downfall. Kanye became a pariah of sorts within Hollywood and the music industry. His close friends dropped him like a bad habit. And he lost major business deals with Adidas and Balenciaga.

He also had his honorary college degree ripped from him by the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. A watchdog group called StopAntisemitism named Kanye "Antisemite of the Year" in 2022.

Kendrick Lamar's Grammy Award-winning collaborator Rance of 1500 or Nothin' says rap music produced today is missing some serious must-haves for success.

We spoke to Rance at LAX this week, and while he praised sampling for being the culture's core creation process, he frowned upon new producers who don't understand the beats they're making.

Rance compared the language of music to language in general and producers should learn the basic chords just like one would learn their ABCs but thinks most artists are "playing it safe" at the behest of their record labels.

The veteran musician has been in the studio with other music heavyweights such as Jay-Z, Bruno Mars, Snoop Dogg and Ludacris, so his opinion is more educated than formulated!!!

It's not just rookies swinging for the low-hanging fruit, either. Missy Elliott pimped out two of her classic records this week ... BIA's "That Bitch," which borrows from her 1999 hit "She's a Bitch," and new girl group Flo's "Fly Girl" single, which updates Missy's 2002 smash "Work It" were both released.

Tekashi 6ix9ine's baby mama says he didn't just embarrass himself by getting jumped at the gym ... he embarrassed his daughter, too.

Sara Molina, through her rep, tells TMZ ... Tekashi's very public altercations have been sad to see, adding their seven-year-old daughter, Saraiyah, will eventually see the ways he's acted when she grows up.

Although he did nothing wrong when he was beaten at an L.A. Fitness, Sara believes he was reckless by not having security, especially given his history of public altercations.

She also points out he was recently kicked out of the World Baseball Classic because he was heavily intoxicated. Sara says she's surprised 69 has been walking around like he can't be touched, and the beatdown proves he's misguided.

Sara's been concerned with their daughter's safety ever since Tekashi started beefing with other rappers years ago. Sara claims Tekashi hasn't reached out about Saraiyah since late last year ... but she's doing fine, regardless.

All things considered, Sara tells us she's more focused on Trump getting indicted than Tekashi getting jumped at LA Fitness ... but she's hoping her baby daddy will get the help she says he needs.

Mike WiLL Made-It’s 34th birthday is one for the record books, literally ... at least in the ATL, where he's earned the city's Outstanding Citizen Award!!

T.I. and Philiana Williams, the director of mayor’s office of film & entertainment, presented the rap superproducer with a proclamation making March 23 "Mike WiLL Made-IT Day" in Atlanta … and plenty of his friends and fam were there to celebrate.

Rae Sremmurd, DJ Greg Street, Outkast’s Big Boi, Xscape’s Tiny, Sonny Digital, Tricky Stewart, ATL Jacob, Spence Lee and Soulex all rounded out the guest list Thursday at Hal’s Steakhouse.

The occasion also served as a birthday party for WiLL, so, appropriately, his parents Shirley and Michael Williams Sr. were also there to celebrate ... along with former City Councilman Kwanza Hall.

Mike just scored a couple of tracks on Miley Cyrus’ new album and is prepping his own project with features from Pharrell, Future and J. Cole ... just for starters.

Troy Ave is reveling in the fact he helped put his mortal enemy, Taxstone, behind bars -- he just released a very disrespectful track celebrating his pending prison sentence.

The Brooklyn MC unleashed the fiery-titled, "Dear Hater I Won (Taxstone Found Guilty)" ... dropping it Friday, just hours after a jury in NYC found the pioneering hip hop podcaster was guilty of manslaughter.

The song opens up with audio of Boskoe100 slamming Taxstone for writing a letter to the judge that spoke against Troy, which provided the fuel for the slanderous chorus ... "Since you n***** like writing letters, here go one/Dear hater, I won/I'ma boss, you a bum/Suck a d**k, till it c**s." 🙊

Troy codirected the visuals with Shanicerayneil, and wildly captures himself rapping outside the NYC courthouse where the trial took place.

He justified his decision to testify against Tax ... by using an image of Jay-Z in court during his 2021 perfume lawsuit, assuring his critics he was in the right and his rival was in the wrong.

Taxstone, real name Daryl Campbell, was convicted of killing Troy's bodyguard Ronald McPhatter, and wounding three others -- including Troy -- during T.I.’s 2016 concert in NYC. Troy used clips of the shooting in the 'Hater' music vid.

We broke the story back when ... several people were caught in the Irving Plaza melee that spawned massive chaos inside the venue.

CeeLo Green is responding to backlash over his horseback entrance to a birthday party ... he says the idea was all in fun, and he meant no ill intent towards the horse.

The singer broke his silence Friday after being dragged for the horse incident, explaining ... "I felt like it could be fun and funny to make a grand entrance on this beautiful animal for a very special occasion."

Remember ... CeeLo rode into Wednesday's party on a horse, with the animal looking nervous around all the lights and partygoers, jolting around and slipping on the tile floor ... causing the horse to buckle and sending CeeLo crashing to the ground.

PETA came out strong against CeeLo ... telling us, "It doesn’t take a genius to know that horses don’t belong at a noisy, crowded party, where slippery floors and strobe lights can agitate these vulnerable animals."

CeeLo says he was just trying to show love to his late friend Shawty Lo -- the party was in Shawty's honor -- and he's chalking it up to his sense of humor.

CG claims he "went through all the proper channels to make that happen with no ill intent towards the animal." But he admits, "It should've been short and sweet but some malfunctions happened and it is what it is but know that I'm ok and yes the horse is ok as well."

Beyoncé and Balmain have just unveiled a new couture collaboration ... and the timing works out perfectly considering she just split with Adidas.

French fashion designer Olivier Rousteing spearheaded the new 'Renaissance' collection, directly inspired by listening furiously to Bey's Grammy Award-winning album.

Beyoncé expressed her gratitude to Olivier on IG ... "thank you for allowing me to celebrate the human form, to take artistic risks, to push boundaries and to freely express myself."

Olivier returned the thank-yous while also bigging up fashion icon Marni Senofonte for her extending vision ... dubbing her his "Alien Superstar" ... a fitting title, seeing that all the collabs pieces are named after all the tracks on the album!!!

The "Renaissance" collab introduced several ambitious ensembles that use chrome such as "Plastic Off the Sofa” which bursts of pink fabric or "Break My Soul," which wrapped the model in a black chrome dress.

Beyoncé fans were left in shock on Thursday when news broke that she and her Adidas "Ivy Park" collection was to be discontinued following a $50 million L in sales.