TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Marques Houston says he's a happily married man and Internet trolls poking fun at the huge age difference between his wife and him ... will just have to find a new hobby.

We caught the R&B vet out Monday evening in L.A. amid the rabid backlash against his TV One special, "Uncensored." The first trailer for it has some people irate because it highlights how he first met his young bride Miya, fueling speculation she was a minor when they started dating.

Marques insists he's not sweating the opinions of strangers, he's well aware everyone has them -- and what he really wanted to clarify is he started dating Miya when she was 18 ... and they were married a year later.

She's now 22, while he's 41. They welcomed their first child in December 2021, and he says it's been bliss ever since.

He says the online misconception began when someone allegedly published the wrong birthdate for Miya ... leading folks to believe she was underage when their relationship began.

Chloe Bailey's new album didn't get the attention she hoped it would, but her good pal Druski's telling her to brush the dust off her shoulder!!!

The '4Lifers' funnyman was out Tuesday in NYC as fans reacted to the news Chloe's debut solo album only ranked #119 on the Billboard 200 ... with just 10k records sold.

The album got a lot of attention for her "How Does It Feel" collab with Chris Brown ... and Druski himself even helped promote the single, "For the Night" -- which was aimed at Gunna -- but the track was eventually scrapped from the final album cut.

Druski tells Chloe to look on the bright side ... she sold more than a lot of other people -- including him, as he has music on streaming services as well.

Druski and Chloe got tight on the set of the upcoming film "Praise This," which also stars his homie Quavo ... and Druski had jokes for him.

The former Migos frontman recently claimed he was open to creating a gospel album, as the film is centered around a church choir, but Druski has known Quavo for years and he thinks he was big capping for the sake of the interview!!! 😂

As for Nick Cannon's intention to have baby #13 ... Druski thinks he's wildin' out and needs to cut it on new fatherhood.

NBA YoungBoy’s new album title "Don’t Try This At Home" apparently applies to everyone but him -- the prolific rapper’s throwing a huge party in L.A. while he's home ... on house arrest in Utah!!!

Sources close to the rap star’s camp tell TMZ Hip Hop the event goes down Thursday, April 20, and NBA’s team is paying $200K to rent party space at Elevate Lounge DTLA.

We’re told Team NBA is pulling out all the stops -- 50 Cent’s Branson Cognac is sponsoring, and there will be fully decked out with customized decor, sounds provided by DJ Carisma and a fan raffle. The winner gets to talk to NBA over the stream during the party.

Might sound like a standard Hollywood event, except the guy hosting will be several hundred miles away ... due to his lengthy house arrest for a gun possession charge.

NBA linked with Nicki Minaj for the album’s latest single “WTF,” which dropped last Friday and already has a couple million views.

Intruders beware at Leon “Roccstar” Youngblood Jr.'s home -- when the "Love & Hip Hop: Hollywood" star found some guy creeping on his roof, he handled it on his own ... according to law enforcement.

Cops say the platinum-selling Chris Brown producer told officers he was awakened a little past 5:00 AM Monday by an alarm alerting him someone was on the garage roof at his Chatsworth, CA home.

He says he went outside and, at gunpoint, ordered the guy off his roof ... but when he came down, an altercation broke out between them.

We're told Roccstar overpowered the guy, and then security for his gated community arrived to help detain the man until cops arrived.

The suspect was evaluated at the hospital for injuries before he was arrested for attempted burglary, vandalism, and possession of burglary tools.

Lil Baby is finally taking last October's No. 1 album, "It's Only Me" on the road ... and he's bringing several of his friends along for the ride.

The rap star revealed Monday GloRilla, The Kid LAROI, GLOSS UP, Rylo Rodriguez and Hunxho will be joining him on the 32-city tour, which kicks off in July.

The 4PF leader and Glo famously linked up backstage last year where she taught him how to do her signature dance, and the relationship has culminated into a power move of concert money!!!

At first glance, DJ Holiday has a new “podcast” that's totally unfiltered ... based on his grilling of Wiz Khalifa and O.T. Genasis.

TMZ Hip Hop obtained the video of Holiday sitting down with both rap stars and coming out the gate swinging … asking Wiz if he still misses his ex-wife, Amber Rose.

O.T. didn't get off easy either -- Holiday had the nerve to ask if he’s ever slept with Keyshia Cole!!!

The good news for all parties involved is ... this isn't a real podcast, it's a scripted scene from Holiday's upcoming "No Stress" video, which features raps from Wiz and O.T.

Still, his questions will definitely push some buttons for fans -- Wiz and Amber successfully co-parent their son, Sebastian, while O.T. had a public fallout with Keyshia after royally butchering her classic track, “Love.”

Cardi B couldn't contain her disgust after seeing the clip of the Dalai Lama asking a young boy, "suck my tongue" -- and even though her criticism made some people go after Cardi, she's not backing down.

An irate Cardi ripped child "predators" Monday, and urged parents to always know what's going on in their kids' lives.

Some fans agreed with Cardi's take on the odd video -- showing the Dalai interacting with a young boy during a public appearance -- but others brought up a shady moment from her pre-stardom past.

You might recall, Cardi admitted drugging and robbing men back in her strip club days.

She addressed the haters, head-on, saying those dudes were adult, drunk lowlifes who attempted to take advantage of her and she just happened to get the upper hand.

Unlike Cardi, the Dalai Lama's office is apologizing for the incident -- from February, BTW -- saying he "teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras."

Doesn't seem like the "Bodak Yellow" rapper is buying what the Dalai's selling.

Nick Cannon is back on the morning show hustle ... thanks to a new partnership with Amazon's live stream app Amp, and he's keeping it in the family!!!

On Monday, Nick launched "A Morning Show You Don't Want to Sleep On" ... which costars Abby De La Rosa, the mother of 3 of his 11 children, and Mason Moussette, a radio vet who last worked in Dallas.

Abby's actually a radio vet also ... she worked for Real 92.3 years before adding to the Cannon family tree with their 3 children Zion, Zillion, and Beautiful Zeppelin.

Gucci Mane's former artist Ralo had a Happy Easter despite his ongoing prison bid for weed trafficking ... the Georgia rapper got to hug his daughter for the first time in 5 years!!!

Ralo posted pics of the father and child reunion -- showing himself and his daughter embracing. On IG, he compared their prison meeting to an out-of-body experience that lasts a lifetime.

He admitted current hip hop culture made him want to cut the "rapper" tag from his résumé, but says proceeds from his music are providing for his daughter and much more.

So, he's not bowing out of the game just yet.

Ralo was sentenced to 97 months last year after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute, but has released several projects while behind bars.

He's been teasing his upcoming "97 Months" album ... titled after the length of his prison sentence and dropped off its first single, "Street Honors" with Jadakiss, ahead of the project's April 21 date.

Young M.A says she's "very much sober" at this point in time --  and, as a result, she's ready to flood the summer with new music.

On Sunday, Young M.A admitted to making plenty of "wrong decisions in her life" ... and she said, for a while, those decisions affected her ability to continue her career.

She didn't specify what bad habit she'd cut out in her sobriety, but assured fans the summer would be lit with new Young M.A music and she would be dropping a documentary that would disclose more details in due time.

The Brooklyn rapper alarmed fans in March by posting a video of herself in a barber chair ... babbling incoherently while her eyes appeared to be a dark yellow complexion.

She celebrated her 31st birthday last week, providing evidence she was in high spirits -- and this update feels like a double down on that notion.

Blueface will be back in a boxing ring in less than two weeks ... the rapper just agreed to fight TikToker Ed Matthews, who called Blueface out in an antagonizing video last month.

The fight will go down on April 22 at OVO Arena in England ... and the trash talk between the guys has already begun.

Just two weeks ago, Matthews appeared to poke fun at Blueface for his up-and-down relationship with Chrisean Rock in a TikTok that garnered nearly two million views.

The "Thotiana" rapper, meanwhile, posted a video of his own jabbing at Matthews over the weekend ... claiming he has no idea who the British social media star is.

The fight -- which will be on the same Kingpyn card that features the highly anticipated rematch between Anesongib and Austin McBroom -- will be the first for Blueface since July 2021, when he dominated a TikToker and then beat up a fan afterward.

The 26-year-old had been slated to fight former L.A. Laker Nick Young last year, but the tilt was canceled jays days before it was set to go down after he failed to secure a boxing license in time.

As for Matthews, he's no stranger to celeb fights -- he made quick work of social media star Simple Simon in a boxing match last year.

Students at Kanye West's Donda Academy are being deprived of the education they deserve, but the parents should be concerned if they try to go somewhere else -- so says one of the teachers suing the rapper over the school.

Former Donda teacher Cecilia Hailey's now giving a word of warning to parents, telling TMZ they're severely behind educationally -- but that doesn't mean moving somewhere else will instantly correct the problem.

She says the kids aren't getting graded at the unaccredited school, so transferring could be problematic.

Cecilia's worried about the students' futures ... angry the kids are way behind on the learning curve.

As we reported, Cecilia and her daughter claimed they were fired from their teaching gigs at Donda after calling out the school's flaws ... also saying race was a factor.

Cecilia tells us Kanye might not be involved with the school's issues, although she's named him in the suit. She listed numerous problems with Donda, BTW -- including a lack of chairs, locked front doors, and no lesson plans. She also complains the only item on the lunch menu was sushi.

Unlike her pregnancy announcement, Spice is doubling down on the seriousness of her recent health scare ... telling us it took nearly a year of recovery just to get walking again.

TMZ Hip Hop spoke to Spice this week and the dancehall reggae queen relived her worst nightmare ... a ruptured hernia that resulted in sepsis, and a 30 lb. weight loss!!!

The "Go Down Deh" crooner fooled fans with a "pregnancy" announcement back in March ... later explaining the photo only signified her return to life, not that she was actually expecting. She dropped a new track, "God a Bless Me" as the cherry on top.

Spice says things got so bad during her hospitalization, she actually prepared a will ... as she legitimately feared she was on her deathbed.

She describes the pain as if her organs were under attack and her skin was being eaten away.

It took a team of 14 doctors and 3 chest-busting operations to save Spice's life ... which caused her to spend 2 months in the hospital, and another 6 months relearning basic life functions like eating and talking.

Doja Cat says she's ready to prove she's a good rapper, and to do that ... she's shelving her pop style, maybe forever.

The artist -- who's been labeled a lot of things, but never quite fits into any given box -- took to Twitter on Saturday to reveal she's heard the people loud and clear ... namely, that her bars aren't quite up to snuff and that her rap prowess has been, thus far, pretty weak.

It's a consistent criticism Doja's faced since she splashed onto the scene ... especially since most of her biggest hits are straight up bubble-gum pop ones -- where she's singing.

Now, DC says she's gonna show everyone what's what on her next album ... writing, "i also agree with everyone who said the majority of my rap verses are mid and corny. I know they are. I wasnt trying to prove anything I just enjoy making music but I'm getting tired of hearing yall say that i can't so I will." In other words, Doja's gonna flex her stuff in due time.

There's more she addressed in responses to other Twitter users who reacted to this news -- including the fact that she does, in fact, consider herself a rapper ... up there with the likes of Nicki Minaj, Megan Thee Stallion, Latto, Cardi B and other major femcees, it seems.

Doja also says pop music simply doesn't excite her anymore ... and wants to pivot toward a different sound and vibe. Lastly, she says she talk her s*** on this new project, "Hellmouth."

It's interesting that she wants to delve into straight up rap considering how much success she's had in her current lane. Doja has trotted out a number of singles that all charted well, including 'Say So,' 'Kiss Me More,' 'You Right,' 'Woman' and 'Best Friend,' among others.

That last one leans more rap, but her pop indulgences have proved to be money-makers ... and award contenders too. She's already won a Grammy, and has racked up tons of other accolades for her pop-centric records. The fact she wants to get away from that is ... risky.

Regardless, she sounds confident she can get it done ... and with her track record, there's no reason to believe she can't. Doja Cat is one of the biggest names in music right now, so we're sure she can whip up a damn good album with stellar production and features.

There've been reports she plans to do this new album solo, without any collabs, but there's no evidence backing that. What she has teased, however, are some title names ... like 'Balut,' 'Wet Vagina' and 'Agora Hills.' Gotta say ... those sound like straight bangers.

Brad Fischetti, the last living member of LFO, says he's not scared by the fact death seems to come early to those involved with the band ... he's alive and well, and touring in their honor.

Brad tells TMZ ... he was shocked and dumbfounded at the end of March, when original LFO member Brian "Brizz" Gillis suddenly died, leaving Brad as the last surviving member.

Lots of folks didn't even know Brian was in LFO ... and some thought it was really Brad who passed. Brian was LFO's third member when the band started, but he left before Devin Lima joined the group in 1999, the same year "Summer Girls" became a huge hit.

Remember ... Devin was only 41 when he died back in November 2018, and Rich Cronin was just 36 when he died in September 2010 ... with cancer taking both their lives. Brian's cause of death is still unclear.

Brad says it's not just LFO band members who have died young ... he says their OG record label head, keyboard player, choreographer and a producer they worked with are all dead too.

Still, Brad says he hopes there's not a death curse on LFO. He hopes he lives a long life and tells us he's got no plans to stop touring, viewing it as a way to carry on LFO's legacy.

Bu Thiam's role as EVP at Columbia Records has him scoping for new artists from all walks of life ... and he's looking to add NCAA champ Flau'jae Johnson to his roster!!!

We caught up with Bu at LAX and he had nothing but praise for Flau'jae, who recently helped the LSU Tigers win their first women's basketball national championship ... in controversial fashion at that.

Bu says he looked into Flau'jae's credentials and everything checked out, as it should have. The 19-year-old's been rapping long before it became trendy on the Internet ... going viral through appearances on "The Rap Game," "America's Got Talent," and her 2020 "Sway In The Morning" freestyle.

She inked a deal with Roc Nation management last year ... so, at least Bu knows who he needs to convince for a joint venture.

As a music exec, Bu also has to be mindful of the industry's changing landscape ... and he's surprisingly open to the idea of artificial intelligence artists, unlike some of his counterparts, like Swizz Beatz, who's expressed concern.

AI recordings mimicking the likes of Drake, Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole and Kanye West are littered all over YouTube ... but Bu thinks the industry needs to be more open-minded and embrace the technology.