TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

2 PM PT -- Turns out Kanye West's threatening letter to Kim Kardashian accusing her of exploiting their kids is a hoax.

After we spotted a bunch of red flags pointing to this being a phony correspondence -- Kanye's camp confirms to us the letter is bogus ... and they say Ye had nothing to do with it.

Kanye West says Kim Kardashian is not only exploiting their children, but he claims she left North all alone in a car while prancing around the Met Gala this week ... and now he's threatening to drag her to court over all of it.

The rapper's lawyer, Kathy Johnson, sent Kim's attorney, Laura Wasser, a cease and desist letter, "concerning the welfare and custody of Mr. West’s minor children: North West, Saint West, Chicago West, and Psalm West."

As you know, Kim and Kanye got divorced in 2021 after 7 years of marriage and 4 kids. As part of their divorce settlement, they have joint custody of the kids and Kanye pays $200K every month in child support.

The graffiti-covered Hollywood Hills house that Chris Brown used to own is back on the market ... and it can be yours for a cool $2.9 million -- some original murals included!

Fans may remember ... neighbors were outraged by the smiling monsters Brown spray-painted on the outside of the modern abode -- and even got into a back-and-forth with the city of Los Angeles over the artwork. The "Freaky Friday" singer offloaded it in 2014 for $1.69 million.

While those controversial pieces of art are not visible in the listing photos ... the inside of the house is still a spray-paint artist's dream, with eye-catching artwork throughout the 2,800 square feet of living space.

The list of alleged Diddy victims involved in his sex trafficking trial is expanding ... because we've learned the feds also have a witness they're calling "Victim 5."

Prosecutors buried the existence of a 5th alleged victim in legal documents last month, but "Victim 5" just came up in court Friday as Diddy's trial proceeds.

Now, this person's identity is still unknown, but that could soon change ... because Judge Arun Subramanian ruled Friday "Victim 5" will NOT be granted anonymity in the trial.

Diddy's defense team is leaning in hard that the music mogul was abusive toward his ex, Cassie ... but they're also saying Cassie was no angel either ... because she allegedly got violent with him, too.

Day 4 of the Diddy trial saw prosecutor Emily Anne Johnson and Diddy attorney Marc Agnifilo having a very interesting exchange with Judge Arun Subramanian in an NYC federal courtroom.

It kicked off with Johnson telling the judge that Victim 1 -- who is believed to be Cassie -- will not be cross-examined about certain medical issues.

The judge then said if prosecutors open the door on the rest of the issues, the defense can walk through it and cross-examine the witnesses.

Summer Walker's winter fling with her rapper BF Rico Recklezz is officially over ... and the R&B superstar's hinting it may be her last hurrah dating a dude!!!

Before the weekend kicked off, Summer posted a pic with herself, Playboi Carti, and his GF ft.gioo AKA Giovanna Ramos ... while revealing she's a newly single woman -- suggesting things with Rico ran their course.

The unlikely couple made headlines going official on social media back in December after a heavy pursuit from Rico ... but Summer says she's better off alone and is "literally honestly & truly over men" going forward.

Mark Geragos won't answer the question -- Is he a member of Diddy's defense team? -- and it made for some lively discussion on TMZ's new Tubi weekly show ... "TMZ Presents: United States V. Sean Combs: Inside the Diddy Trial."

Geragos joined Nancy Grace, Ashleigh Banfield and Eboni K. Williams, when Harvey pressed him on his association with Diddy. It's true, Geragos has repped Diddy on various legal issues in the past, but the question now is whether he's part of the current defense team.

Geragos tried to skirt the issue, but then TMZ producer Brian Andrews popped up and laid out what he saw in the courthouse -- Geragos sitting behind the defense team and passing notes to Diddy's chief lawyers Marc Agnifilo and Teny Geragos (Mark's daughter), Geragos chatting it up with Diddy's lawyer during lunch breaks in the courthouse cafeteria, and Geragos coming out of the judge's chambers as Agnifilo had his arm around Mark's shoulder.

DDG boasting to us about releasing hip hop's first-ever album created on live stream has backfired ... DJ Statik Selektah will be damned if any young whipper-snapper will take credit for his credentials!!!

Last week, we spoke to DDG about his new album "Blame the Chat," which he made for fans in real-time and even let them in on the creative control by picking beats and features.

On Thursday, Statik angrily entered said chat and gave DDG a history lesson on his discography -- including his joint projects with Freeway, Freddie Gibbs and the 4 collab albums with Bun B he created live on YouTube!!!

Federal prosecutors are taking a big gamble with one of their star witnesses in Diddy's sex trafficking trial, because the woman they call "Victim 3" has always made it clear she does NOT want to testify ... TMZ has learned.

During jury selection this week, lead prosecutor Maurene Comey admitted the feds do not know whether the alleged victim -- one of Diddy's ex-girlfriends -- intends to appear in court to testify against him. Comey said the woman does not live locally, there's an issue getting in touch with her attorney ... and she may not even show up to court despite a subpoena.

Our sources with direct knowledge say the woman has never cooperated with prosecutors, and never gave them an indication she would be willing to take the stand during the trial.

Memphis rapper Big Boogie has been known to say some outlandish things ... but he wasn't joking when he had to suck up his fear of Chuck E. Cheese -- to please his daughter!!!

Boog posted video of himself admitting he hasn't confronted the pizza-slicing rat since he ran away scared from the mascot as a kid, and his profession as a street rapper has kept him distanced from rodents ever since.

It's a moment of hilarity when Boogie and Chuck E. Cheese meet face to face, prompting the rapper into a wide-eyed stance ... but he manages to overcome his anxiety, at least for the moment.

Boogie kept his distance for the most part and wedged his daughter between himself and Big Chuck for a photo-op she'll likely tease him about when she gets older.

That Charles Entertainment Cheese childhood trauma probably led to making decisions to turn down multimillion-dollar college scholarships ... but the party appeared to be a hit with the tykes, at least.

Gloria Estefan says Diddy was nice to have as a neighbor ... but that doesn't mean they had any "Freak Off" parties together.

We got Gloria leaving iHeartRadio in New York City on Thursday and our photog asked her about a lawsuit she was named in last month ... where a man claimed he was sexually assaulted, raped and humiliated at a "freak off" party in Miami attended by Jay-Z, Beyoncé, LeBron James, Diddy, and Gloria.

Gloria says the guy behind the lawsuit is "not well in the head" ... and she's doubling down on her vehement denial of some serious allegations against her.

The New York Knicks' unexpected 2-0 lead in their playoff series against the Boston Celtics isn't sitting well with the green team's core fan base ... and veins are popping out of temples as a result!!!

On Thursday, Benzino dared all Knicks fans to bet him that his Celtics would prevail in Game 3 ... at Madison Square Garden with their backs against the wall.

Benzino noted how the Knicks haven't won a chip since 1973 and didn't foresee it happening this year ... they're running with the Mets colors, for cryin' out loud.

Cassie is set to testify against Diddy in his federal trial ... and, it better be sooner rather than later -- 'cause it looks like she may need to rest, recuperate and get ready for baby number 3 soon!

Photogs snapped Cassie out in New York City Wednesday ... standing on a stoop in a gray sweater that just barely covers her massive baby bump.

It's hard to tell exactly how far along the singer-songwriter is here, though she did announce she's with child back in February ... but, it's clear she's deep in pregnancy mode now -- and, she'll be waddling up to the witness stand soon to testify.

Ashanti wouldn't be the R&B star she is today if it wasn't for Irv Gotti ... so says his brother Chris, who's also pissed she'd deny her past sexual relationship with the late mogul!!!

Chris appeared on the "Let's Keep It 100" podcast and ripped into Ashanti ... pointing out how she and 50 Cent's career lineage will always be tied in with Irv's Murder Inc.

Irv died from suspected stroke complications in February, further highlighting the rift between him and Ashanti after Murder Inc. was dismantled.

Drake's label says there's a giant hole in the lawsuit he's filed over Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" ... and they're basically saying Drizzy should've paid closer attention to the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

As expected, Universal Music Group filed a motion to dismiss the defamation lawsuit, and in the docs they point out Drake, or his lawyers, made a major misstep when they amended their lawsuit following Kendrick's performance at Super Bowl LIX.

UMG says Drake's lawsuit isn't really about K Dot calling him a "certified pedophile" ... because he didn't even include those words during the performance. Now, the reality is the Superdome crowd did the damage itself, chanting the lyrics ... but that's not on Kendrick.

Mark Geragos may not like that Diddy's lawyers are subject to a gag order -- and so is he ... but, a prominent prosecutor from L.A. says prosecutors need it to avoid a possible appeal.

Kirsten Brown-Neil -- a deputy district attorney for L.A. County -- spoke with us on "TMZ Live" about Judge Arun Subramanian warning Geragos to watch what he says on our "2 Angry Men" podcast.

When asked about Geragos citing a Supreme Court ruling saying defendants and their attorneys have the right to speak publicly about the case, Kirsten said she thinks Geragos is taking a very narrow view of the ruling.

Kendrick Lamar's verse on Future and Metro Boomin's "Like That" record will forever go down in infamy for its shots aimed at Drake and J. Cole -- but the guy behind one of the samples in the track, Rodney O, says it pains him to even hear it because he hasn't been getting paid his royalties!!!

Rodney says he doesn't really have much beef with Kendrick, Metro or Future, but blames Epic Records and the Estate of Barry White for his lack of royalties.

TMZ Hip Hop obtained legal docs filed by the "Everlasting Bass" rapper on Wednesday and spoke to him about his past year since K. Dot and the boys went super viral at Drake's expense.