TMZ Hip Hop - Page 22

10:46 AM PT -- Meghan Markle just gave fans an inside look at her fun night at Beyoncé’s "Cowboy Carter" tour -- and there's some PDA with Prince Harry!

MM posted a carousel of pictures and videos from the concert, and the pair seemed to be in their own little world in one clip showing Harry giving her a loving kiss on the cheek.

One adorable snapshot shows the pair cracking up as they cozied together, while they grin from ear to ear in a selfie.

John Legend is heartbroken to see the "devolution" of his former mentor and friend Kanye West ... saying in a new interview that his rampant antisemitism and anti-Blackness is "sad" to watch.

The "All of Me" hitmaker candidly spoke about his ex-pal while chatting with The Times, explaining he is not the Kanye who signed him to his G.O.O.D. Music record label back in 2004.

He explained ... "Back then Kanye was very passionate, very gifted, and he had big dreams not only for himself but also for all the people around him ... It does feel sad, sometimes shocking, to see where he is now."

Kanye, of course, has had an array of public woes and breakdowns over the years, from bad-mouthing the wife of his four kids, Kim Kardashian -- such as wishing he had children with her friend Paris Hilton instead -- to his more recent shameless passion for all things Adolf Hitler.

Diddy's lawyers better not bully the prosecution's very pregnant star witness when she takes the stand next week ... so admonishes Nancy Grace!

Cassie Ventura's upcoming testimony became an explosive topic on our new Tubi weekly series, "TMZ Presents United States V. Sean Combs: Inside the Diddy Trial."

Nancy appeared with Harvey, Mark Geragos, Ashleigh Banfield and Eboni K. Williams as they discussed the optics of grilling Cassie about the freak-offs for which Diddy is being tried.

"The Real Housewives of New Jersey" alum Siggy Flicker says karma is coming for Kanye West following his seemingly never-ending antisemitic rants and the recent release of his despicable new song titled "Heil Hitler."

TMZ caught up with Siggy this week after President Trump appointed her to the Holocaust Memorial board. During a Zoom call, Siggy told us that although she agrees with Ye's right to free expression, his Nazi rhetoric will ultimately catch up to him.

In fact, Siggy tells us that Kanye is missing out on the "true gift" of life because he's unable to raise the four children he shares with Kim Kardashian. Instead, Siggy says, Kanye's living in sin by parading his nearly naked wife -- Bianca Censori -- around in public all over the world.

Druski's not only fighting back against the woman accusing him of rape -- he also wants her attorneys held accountable for not vetting claims he says are provably false ... and he's going to court with receipts.

The comedian and actor filed docs Friday in federal court, calling out Ashley Parham's legal team, citing several documents that clearly refute her allegation he raped her in Northern California on March 23, 2018 ... along with Diddy, Odell Beckham Jr. and others.

However, in the docs, Druski says Parham filed a police report accusing a guy named Shane Pearce and an anonymous white man of raping her on March 23, 2018. The report apparently makes no mention of any other alleged attackers, and Druski says the document was "easily obtainable from the public record."

Kanye West's threatening letter to Kim Kardashian accusing her of exploiting their kids is just a stunt designed to piss off Kim -- one with zero legal bite ... TMZ has learned.

Here's the deal ... on Friday, Ye's purported lawyer, Kathy Johnson, supposedly 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."

But we spotted a bunch of red flags pointing to this being a phony correspondence, including the claim Johnson works for a JB Law Firm in Palma, Spain. We've found no record of any such firm in that town ... there is one in the Canary Islands, but a website link for that firm doesn't work, nor does the phone number.

Al B. Sure! says he's the last man breathing who knows the truth about Diddy, and has no issue using the last of his oxygen -- to take him down!!!

The R&B singer appeared on FOX 5 New York earlier today to promote his forthcoming memoir, where he raised questions about his late ex Kim Porter's death.

Al claims Kim used to warn him to "watch his back" around Diddy and disputed the coroner's ruling that a healthy 47-year-old woman could suddenly die from pneumonia.

50 Cent has been using A.I. magic to highlight his thoughts on Diddy's ongoing federal sex trafficking trial and jury selection ... all roads point to GUILTY!!!

On Friday, 50 laughed at Diddy's current defense strategy by posting A.I. images of himself as a lawyer in the courtroom rummaging through docs with a wisecrack ... "Your Honor this theory of Cassie kicking Diddy ass, I’m not buying it!"

Diddy's defense team argued that Cassie was an equal distributor of pain throughout their relationship ... more details could emerge when she takes the stand next week.

Keke Palmer channeled the spirit of Usher to clap back hard at her baby daddy Darius Jackson on her new song ... he tried to cut her down and now she gotta let him BURN!!!

It's been nearly 2 years since Darius put Keke on blast for slipping into a sexy black dress to get close to Usher during his Las Vegas residency ... but Keke is claiming on her track "My Confession" they were broken up at time, due to Darius' childish antics.

The song lightly interprets Usher's own "Confessions" and a couple of his other hits, and it's ripe with getback ... by labeling Darius a stone-cold liar and even celebrating the fact that Keke's fans gave him a tough time online.

Kendrick Lamar is currently beaming with pride over the release of Lefty Gunplay's new album ... they turned the "TV off" and now the up-and-coming rapper has been put on!!!

On Friday, Lefty and JasonMartin AKA Problem's "Can't Get Right" joint album released with plenty of support from the West Coast ... The Game, Ty Dolla $ign, Mike & Keys, and Wallie the Sensei, who also appeared on K. Dot's "GNX" with Lefty.

JasonMartin broke the news via text to Kendrick, who's currently out in New Jersey on tour with SZA, and the megastar rapper exclaimed he dropped everything to give it a whirl.

Finesse2tymes can count a new legal win on his stacked docket ... his wild terroristic threat criminal case from the top of the year has been thrown out!!!

TMZ Hip Hop obtained court docs filed on Friday, May 9, showing prosecutors moved to dismiss Finesse's case because the allegations couldn't be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.  The judge signed off on the dismissal.

Carl A. Moore, Finesse2tymes' attorney, tells TMZ Hip Hop … Mr. Ricky Hampton maintained his innocence from the onset of this case and justice prevailed today.

Diddy jurors are going to see plenty of video of Diddy beating Cassie in a hotel hallway ... because prosecutors say they plan to show multiple versions of the graphic footage during his trial.

The feds revealed during Friday's court proceedings in Diddy's sex trafficking trial in NYC that they plan to show two videos of the beating that a security guard at the InterContinental Hotel in Los Angeles recorded on a cell phone.

What's more, prosecutors say they will also show three versions of the Cassie beating video that first aired on CNN.

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.