TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Timbaland's back in the studio -- with real humans, after entertaining the thought of AI -- with his longtime pals Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado!!!

The "Dream Team" trio was apparently up late in the studio on Tuesday night ... sharing several pics of themselves with huge grins, a good sign the tunes are turning out right.

Nelly dialed in remotely from FaceTime while Timbaland and Justin were together in-studio ... but the reunion was still full circle.

Back in 2006, Timbaland oversaw the production of both JT and Nelly's blockbuster albums ... "FutureSex/LoveSounds" and "Loose" ... with both projects selling millions of records, opening the door for more collabs as the artists owned the dance floors for years.

It's no secret Drake loves his mom ... but he proved it in a huge way at his NYC concert Tuesday night, celebrating her in front of a sold-out crowd.

Drake escorted the family matriarch, Sandi Graham, onto the stage at Madison Square Garden and sat down on a leather couch alongside her.

He then cracked open a composition book and started rapping, "Look What You've Done," a 2011 tribute song he wrote for Sandi, his uncle and his grandmother.

As Sandi grooved to the lyrics, Drake slightly turned his head to her and sang, "You love me and I love you."

The two then embraced in a big hug before Drake ended by repeating the phrase, "Look what you've done," causing Sandi to get choked up with tears.

The audience also got emotional, shouting and wildly clapping.

Before this cute kid cheesing for the camera in his Mickey Mouse shirt turned into an EGOT winner, he was just playing on his piano, performing in his church's choir and hangin' with his 3 younger siblings in Springfield, Ohio.

He started to bust out his singing chops under the guidance of Kanye West ... and in more recent years, you've probably heard some of his classic hits like "All Of Me." When he's not "craving" some quality time with his family, you can catch him eating his favorite, rotisserie chicken and steamed veggies.

Netflix is celebrating hip hop's 50th anniversary with a documentary dedicated to all the women of the culture -- well, almost every woman, as fans have peeped the trailer and noticed it excludes Nicki Minaj!!!

On Tuesday, Strong Black Lead pushed out the first look for "Ladies First: A Story of Women in Hip-Hop" ... which appears to be a gripping depiction of several female rappers' rise to stardom.

The trailer for the doc features commentary from a generations-spanning group of women -- Queen Latifah, Roxanne Shanté, MC Lyte, Coi Leray, Kash Doll -- while also highlighting content from Ice Spice, Young M.A., Latto, Saweetie and others.

However, the preview had zero sign of Nicki, and when her Barbz fanbase picked up on the snub they exploded on Twitter X.

Livid fans made Nicki the subject of several trending topics while accusing Netflix of intentionally trying to erase her from the history books.

The "Pinkprint" rapper is the highest-selling female rapper of all time by several miles with well over 100 million records sold, which you'd think would be enough for a prominent spot in the doc and its trailer. It's worth noting, the trailer opens up with a shot of Cardi B, so lines in the sand were probably drawn!!!

Snoop Dogg seems to be making a statement to Tinseltown about the SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild strikes -- 'cause he's nixing 2 of his big shows here in solidarity with the union members.

The rapper announced the move Tuesday, writing ... "We regret to inform you that due to the ongoing strike and the uncertainty of when this will be over, we need to cancel the Hollywood Bowl show."

Snoop adds, "We continue to stand in solidarity with all of our brothers and sisters in the WGA and SAG/AFTRA during this difficult time and remain hopeful that the AMPTP will come back to the negotiating table with a REAL proposal and we can all get back to work."

Snoop's cancelation of his big L.A. concerts appears to be symbolic ... as he has other gigs lined up elsewhere around the country, which he did not address. Presumably, they're happening as scheduled.

Now, while Snoop's decision might seem like it's coming out of nowhere -- after all, musicians aren't impacted by the SAG/WGA strikes -- it actually tracks with some bold statements he's made lately demanding change in the recording industry.

He recently sounded off on modern-day artists getting stiffed on residuals in the age of streaming -- while also pointing out showbiz writers and actors are fighting over the same stuff in their strikes.

Bottom line ... he's quite privy to the struggle, and is most certainly in SAG/WGA's corner in the ongoing negotiations. Also worth noting, his Death Row guys are on board as well -- as a handful of Death Row artists and affiliates have been seen on the picket lines themselves.

Travis Scott has shifted his focus back to promoting his "Utopia" album after a brief side mission with The Weeknd and Bad Bunny ... and the rollout is nothing shy of a summer blockbuster!!!

On Tuesday, Travis gave fans a sneak peek of the "Circus Maximus" movie that will accompany the "Utopia" release on Thursday ... a montage of scenic visuals from all over the globe he orchestrated with some of his favorite directors.

The film will hit theaters that day and could be a hot ticket. Travis is shown trekking through a cave and sand dunes, and there's a speeding cop car and looming helicopters ... real chaotic stuff.

The Astroworld architect's intense promo run also saw him unveiling an alternative version of the "Utopia" album cover ... a slideshow of several zombie-like individuals with white eyes clutching international currency, sitting in a bombed-out car.

The meaning of the artwork remains unclear, but it won't be the final version ... Travis says he's dropping that one on Thursday.

Cryptic theatrics are totally Travis' specialty, word to his scheduled performance this Friday at the pyramids in Egypt.

Ne-Yo is clearly exercising ALL his options in his post-divorce dating life ... the R&B superstar was recently spotted with not one, but 2 damsels on his arm!!!

The "She Knows" singer happily greeted a fan in Miami on Monday who captured him strolling and holding hands with his dual dates. Even with his hands full, he replied to the fan, "Hey, yo, baby. What up?”

If he only had a third hand.

Some of Ne-Yo's fans had a cow over his openly open lifestyle, but they might wanna chill ... the guy isn't breaking any laws.

Per the story we broke in February, Ne-Yo finalized his divorce from his ex Crystal Renay ... and they still remain friends to this day, so he's free to roam as he pleases.

The last time we spoke to him, he told us the single life couldn't be better and he was even open to dating loyal fans.

The female fan who caught Drake's attention with her bra at a recent concert is makin' moves after the viral moment ... and we've learned Playboy is ready to sign her.

ICYMI, 21-year-old Veronica Correia tossed her 36G bra on stage during the rapper's show at Barclay's Center in New York last week -- and Drake picked it up, hilariously saying "Locate this woman immediately."

We spoke with Veronica, who gave us a breakdown of that entire night, particularly the big bra moment ... and says Drake's already responded to one of her posts, but she hasn't hit the guy back yet.

She also got a DM from Playboy, offering her the chance to join the team in some capacity -- an offer it sounds like she couldn't refuse.

For those unaware, Playboy's done away with its long-running magazines and has switched over to an OnlyFans-style business model. While Veronica hasn't been that gung-ho for OF, despite getting asked, something about Playboy must've called to her.

BTW, Veronica owns a coffee shop called Café La La in Cumberland, RI ... and after the wild interaction, she's considering renaming a drink after Drake -- either the Drizzy Drizzle or straight up the 36G.

Quavo was on board a yacht in Miami when two men allegedly threatened the boat's captain ... and video shows the rapper being detained by police, although nobody ended up being arrested.

TMZ obtained footage from Sunday's incident on the Miami River, and you can see Quavo handcuffed with zip ties as he sits on the boat deck and appears to interact with at least three police officers.

Cops in Miami say they got a 911 call about an alleged strong armed robbery on a yacht, and police say folks on the boat told them two men got aggressive with the captain, who said the rental time was nearing its conclusion … allegedly prompting the men to demand a refund.

The incident report, obtained by TMZ, says one of the men threatened to kill the captain and throw him off the yacht if he turned the boat around.

One crew member told police he saw a man take the captain's wallet and cell phone, but cops say folks on the yacht gave conflicting statements on this allegation.

In the video, you also see a group of women sitting on the dock ... as police lights flash and Quavo sits near officers with his hands behind his back.

Police also say they found two firearms on the boat but add that the guns weren't used in any alleged threats.

Wiz Khalifa is on the road, touring with Snoop Dogg ... so, a group of would-be burglars thought it'd be a good idea to roll up on his L.A home while he was performing.

Key word being thought ... as they, oddly, didn't expect the security guards who sent them running during the attempted Sunday evening heist.

LAPD tells TMZ Hip Hop ... 3 guys tried to get onto the property through a side gate around 6:38 PM -- just as Wiz was in Michigan burning through live renditions of his classic songs for the High School Reunion Tour.

Wiz is, unfortunately, familiar with home intruders ... crooks broke into his house back in 2018, but this time he would not be a victim again.

We're told Wiz's security at the house sprung into action, running out to the gate ... where the 3 stooges spotted them and immediately turned to flee.

LAPD responded to the alarm, but the suspects had bolted by the time officers arrived. They filed an attempted burglary report, and opened the investigation.

Meanwhile, Wiz caught wind of the caper while at his concert venue, and noted the timing ... pointing out he was actually on stage while it was going down.

Britney Spears is brimming with creative ideas on the music front, according to will.i.am -- with whom she just collab'd for her latest track -- and he says there's good reason to expect more music from her.

The Black Eyed Peas frontman's joining us "TMZ Live" on the heels of his and Britney's new single, 'Mind Your Business,' which just dropped Friday. It's the second song Britney's been featured on since her conservatorship ended.

The track came as a surprise to many -- Will acknowledges they actually recorded most of the song back in 2013, but says this was the perfect time to finish production and release it.

That's because of the song's message -- on the surface, it's all about Britney's storied history with paparazzi, and her general feeling of losing all privacy ... but Will adds, it's not just about her.

It's interesting ... he says everyone's personal life is invaded these days, which makes this an issue that transcends celebrity.

As far as any future projects together -- this is already their 4th collab -- Will says it's a bit TBD ... but he does tell us Britney is still very much invested in music -- proven, he says, by the suggestions she was making while they were working on "Mind Your Business."

The food critic in Too Short is putting his stamp of approval on Snoop Dogg's arsenal of food products ... as he's been able to get his chops on as much as he can handle!!!

TMZ Hip Hop linked with the OG Short Dog at LAX on Monday who says his Mt. Westmore bandmate has left his personal cereal and wine brands in his dressing room during their tour this summer!!!

Short says he's loaded up with so much Snoop Cereal, he gives some away to fans, who give him rave reviews on the spot as they scarf it down in front of him.

Snoop gave all praises due to Master P and Martha Stewart when he hopped on TMZ Live on Monday and debuted yet another menu item to his growing catalog: ice cream.

The power of the BTS Army is on full display, backing their captain Jung Kook's debut solo single -- which happens to feature Latto -- and they've pushed it all the way to No. 1 on Billboard!!!

On Monday, Billboard posted updated SoundScan data, showing Jung Kook and Latto's "Seven" dethroning Morgan Wallen's runaway hit "Last Night," and beating out Jason Aldean's controversial 'Small Town' ... which debuted in the No. 2 slot.

The raunchy-n-rosy track hit hard with 21.9 million streams, and saw its video reach 100 million views in just 10 days ... all of which contributed to Latto becoming the first rapper to have a No. 1 hit this year!!!

"Seven" is also the 2nd BTS-led song to top the charts this year after Jimin’s “Like Crazy” debuted at No. 1 in April.

The City Girls are sending out a warning to whom it may concern -- don't you dare question Yung Miami's maternal instincts, or you'll feel the wrath of TWO protective mama bears!!!

Godmom JT posted footage from Rolling Loud with Miami's son in big boy mode, throwing money at strippers while he was surrounded by adults ... a moment many fans thought was too grown for the 10-year-old tyke.

The scenario looked identical to a rap music video, with several people twerking and getting lit to the music. Miami can even be seen smacking Ari Fletcher's butt cheeks at some point.

The backlash pushed Miami and JT to their breaking points, and they exploded on their critics. Miami fought for her son's right to party, and called Rolling Loud the best day of his young life.

JT also backed her up ... revealing her beau Lil Uzi Vert had the area blocked off so Miami's son couldn't get a handful of any of the gratuitous flesh on display ... only an eyeful.

The "Barbie" movie had a huge weekend at the box office with $155 million ... a success shared by its "Barbie World" theme song by Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice.

Millions of fans streamed the song to the point it ranked in the top 10 for all genres -- it also placed in the top 5 on Spotify and Apple Music, and jumped 6 spots on the radio airplay chart.

"Barbie: The Album" dropped Friday, and also features Lizzo, Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish and others -- but "Barbie World" was probably destined to be the breakout hit after Margot Robbie personally requested the song be highlighted on the soundtrack!!!

Nicki and Ice clearly did their job helping promote director Greta Gerwig's film ... which had a historic debut as the biggest opening weekend from a female director.

"Barbie" is already the top-earning film so far in 2023, and "Barbie World" marks the biggest female rap collab in more than 2 years.

A$AP Rocky sent a few stray shots in Travis Scott's direction during his headlining set at Rolling Loud Miami … at least that's what fans think about a new track he performed!!!

Rocky previewed 3 unreleased songs Sunday night from his upcoming album, "Don’t Be Dumb," and completely crapped on an unnamed artist he says has been swagger-jackin' him for too long ... and there are plenty of indicators that artist is Travis.

Rocky was all smiles letting his lyrical missiles fly ... “First you stole my flow, so I stole your bitch/Then you stole my style, I need at least like 10 percent/ All due disrespect, I hope you take offense!!!"

The A$AP Mob rapper is currently expecting his 2nd child with Rihanna, but years before, back in 2015 ... she and Travis were a thing -- and that's about as long he and Rocky have been rivals.

If you remember, it was also that same year when Travis completely lost his cool after someone in NYC mistook him for Rocky ... something Rocky thinks is totally on Travis.

Just last year, Rocky publicly stated he felt Travis stole his entire style, but didn't take much offense to the copycatting ... referring to the Astroworld rapper's imitation as flattery.

Obviously, Rocky's tone has changed, and he's using the controversy to market "DBD."

Travis also has a project to promote ... he revealed his long-awaited "Utopia" album will drop on Friday during his Rolling Loud set.