TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

10:54 AM PT -- Diddy's attorneys tell TMZ ... "Ms. Tanea Wallace has no credibility and her claims about 'freak offs' and minors are completely and categorically false. As we've said before, Mr. Combs cannot respond to every new publicity stunt, even in response to claims that are facially ridiculous. Mr. Combs has full confidence in the facts and the integrity of the judicial process. In court, the truth will prevail: that the accusations against Mr. Combs are pure fiction."

A woman who says she was at what she believes was a Diddy "Freak Off" says there were minors present ... minors surrounded by adults.

Tanea Wallace, an aspiring singer-songwriter, says she was invited to Diddy's party by a Saudi Prince who flew her from L.A. to Miami. She spoke with TMZ as part of our new documentary, "TMZ Presents The Downfall of Diddy: Inside the Freak Offs."

Tanea describes in vivid detail how she observed clusters of people having sex ... many of whom seemed high on drugs or alcohol. Mind you, she says this was at 7 AM ... Tanea says the party had been going all night.

Next year's Grammy Awards is stacked with competition from rappers of all shapes and sizes but hip hop podcaster/producer Rory Farrell thinks the running favorite is questionable -- Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us"!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with the "New Rory & MAL" cohost at LAX this week ... and while his inner hip hop head won't allow him to crown the Grammys of the culture, he has no beef with this year's rap picks.

Doechii is up for Best Rap Album -- which would make both Kendrick and Rory happy, but he's also a big J. Cole guy.

Kristin Chenoweth is standing by her prayers for Diddy ... even though the rapper is currently in federal detention, awaiting trial on racketeering and sex trafficking charges.

We caught up with the Broadway legend in New York City and asked her if she is still keeping Diddy in her thoughts ... given the gravity of the charges brought against him in September.

Per Kristin, she's "still praying" for Diddy ... but acknowledged the case against the Bad Boy Records founder is "really bad."

Jason Sudeikis lived out his childhood fantasy (we suspect) this past weekend ... the "Ted Lasso" star dreamed he was Chuck D -- and woke up in real life performing with Flavor Flavvvvv!!!

TMZ Hip Hop obtained footage of Jason and Flav flawlessly nailing Public Enemy and Anthrax's classic headbanger "Bring The Noise" in Kansas City at the 8th annual THUNDERGONG charity concert inside Uptown Theater this weekend!!!

Flav gets credited as one of hip hop's greatest hype men, and Jason definitely held his own with full breath control all the way to the end of the track!!! Don't worry about Chuck ... he's still out here dropping lyrics louder than a bomb!!!

Beyoncé will have Ivy League students saying her name next semester ... the chart topper's history-making career will be studied at Yale University in 2025.

Daphne Brooks, a professor of African American Studies, American Studies, Women’s, Gender, and Music at the famed university, will be teaching a class inspired by the evolution of Beyoncé's career ... including her sound, fashion, and use of visual media.

The class, titled "Beyoncé Makes History: Black Radical Tradition History, Culture, Theory & Politics through Music," will be offered next semester ... and will trace "the relationship between Beyoncé’s artistic genius and Black intellectual practice."

Diddy won his first Grammy Award memorializing The Notorious B.I.G., riding The Police's already established hit ... and Sting says there's no need to disrupt history!!!

In a new interview with the Los Angeles Times, Sting was asked about potentially canceling Diddy's "I'll Be Missing You" ... the 1998 smash hit that sampled his group's "Every Breath You Take" from 1983.

Diddy's catalog has been streaming well since his indictment and arrest, which would naturally include one of his biggest hits -- much to the approval of the legendary rocker.

Diddy's lawyers say they've received a trove of discovery material from the government over the past 6 weeks — and they’re going after the federal prosecutors' assertion there's a possible second victim.

According to legal docs filed Friday and obtained by TMZ, Diddy's attorneys attacked the government's claim there was a potential second victim of Diddy's alleged sex trafficking operation.

As you know, the original indictment pointed specifically to one unnamed victim, who seems to be his ex-girlfriend, Cassie, based on the allegations. The feds charged Diddy with racketeering, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.

Bhad Bhabie's boyfriend, Le Vaughn, was spotted out in public for the first time since TMZ confirmed she’s been battling cancer.

Vaughn was in Tarzana in L.A. Friday, taking a casual stroll with their baby daughter -- who they welcomed in March -- in a stroller, making the most of some one-on-one time in the sunshine.

There was no sign of Bhabie, AKA Danielle Bregoli, who we're told is currently under the care of a doctor.

Diddy's once again trying to get out of jail while awaiting his trial ... filing a new motion on Friday asking for bail -- and pointing to cases where his lawyers claim defendants facing similar charges were released.

According to the legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the music mogul's lawyers say Diddy's offering a comprehensive bail package -- complete with a $50 million bond and basically round-the-clock surveillance to ensure he doesn't try to flee the country or intimidate witnesses.

It's a similar argument to the one they made back in September when his bail was shot down twice. But, the attorneys cite other cases where they say defendants accused of similar crimes were allowed to post bail while awaiting trial.

10:15 AM PT -- A family source confirms to TMZ ... Bhad Bhabie does have cancer. She's currently under the care of a doctor.

Bhad Bhabie issued a cryptic message that has many of her fans concerned, implying that she may have cancer.

Bhabie, AKA Danielle Bregoli, hopped on Instagram Thursday and posted, "I'm Sorry my cancer medicine made me loose [sic] weight. I'm slowly gaining it back. So stop running w the worst narratives."

Of course, it's a mystery what all that means ... but Bhabie recently revealed her dramatic weight loss in photos she posted to her social media accounts.

Logic is proud of his legacy as a true school MC -- but his bank account is telling him it's time for a new wave ... spitting all that hip, hop, hippie hoppity gonna leave him broke!!! 😫

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with Logic en route to Detroit for the Motor City Comic Con, excited to congregate with his fellow nerds!!!

On the music front, Logic chalks up his recent album, "Ultra 85" as a bittersweet experience because of its reception.

The 2025 Grammy Nominations were announced Friday and as expected, Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" is being considered for some of the biggest honors!!!

Kendrick's monster diss record against Drake raked in 5 nominations ... Song and Record of The Year, Best Rap Song and Performance, and Best Music Video -- the last nom being a double win for K. Dot.

He co-directed the visual with Dave Free!!!

It's no surprise Kendrick is set to headline next year's Super Bowl halftime show ... "Not Like Us" is the No. 1 song on Billboard's Hot Rap Songs chart with 21 weeks at the top ... in addition to debuting on top of the Hot 100.

It's wild to think Kendrick could go down in history for calling Drake a pedophile on digital wax -- but, if you remember, we caught up with Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. right after the song took off and he had a hunch Grammy voters would be leaning toward it.

The Grammys go down Sunday, Feb. 2 in L.A. -- a week before Kendrick takes the Super Bowl stage.

Lil Durk was charged with 2 additional felony counts in his murder-for-hire plot on Friday ... the Chicago rap star is being accused of conspiracy and using interstate facilities to assist in the assassination of Quando Rondo's cousin.

Feds outlined the new charges and are essentially treating Durk as the kingpin of the operation in a superseding federal grand jury indictment.

Durk and his 5 co-defendants have yet to enter a plea ... the charges are stemming from the August 2022 shooting outside a Los Angeles gas station close to the Beverly Center shopping mall.

J. Cole's work effort is being vindicated after taking a lot of lumps from the hip hop community after releasing his recent album "Might Delete Later" ... it's nominated for Best Rap Album at the Grammys!!!

Friday, the stage was set for Cole to face off against the category leader Eminem, as well as Common and Pete Rock, Kendrick Lamar's top pick Doechii, and Future and Metro Boomin's trouble-causing "We Don't Trust You."

Cole released the album in April but soon shied away from promoting the album after removing the "7-Minute Drill" diss track aimed at Kendrick Lamar ... and apologized for its lameness at his Dreamville Festival in May.

Beyoncé's country crossover has really paid off -- she’s finally getting some award season love for "Cowboy Carter" ... 'cause she's infiltrated some major country categories in the 2025 Grammys!

After Queen Bey's massive award season snubs earlier this year, she’s just bagged a whopping 11 Grammy nominations, making her officially the most-nominated artist this year -- and of all time.  Among the big nods -- Best Country Performance for "16 Carriages," Song of the Year for "Texas Hold 'Em," ... and, most impressively, Album of the Year.

Beyoncé's "Tyrant" didn't quite make the cut for Best R&B Song this year, marking her only submission that didn't earn a nomination. But with all her others, it’s safe to say it's a pretty spectacular Grammy season for her -- with all the country love a long time coming.

Kodak Black appears to be out the $200K he ponied up after his West Palm Beach charity event was suddenly canceled ... and he suspects it's all due to Donald Trump's election victory.

Here's the deal ... KB over a month ago locked in a deal to host an event at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches to ring in Kodak Black Day, which is Nov. 11. Then, on Wednesday ... law enforcement and event organizers canned it ... claiming no bandwidth to host the event, saying security was a major concern.

Bradford Cohen, Kodak's lawyer, tells TMZ ... he suspects all this is political, since it is well known the rapper is an avid Trump supporter -- and DT just won a historic second WH term.