TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

If kids really do see ghosts, they're gonna see the corpse of what was Kanye West and Kid Cudi's once-tight relationship -- which Cudi is now laying to rest. For good.

Cudi put the final nail in the coffin Tuesday when Pusha T's "It's Almost Dry" tracklist hit the internet.

While the Jay-Z-featured "Neck & Wrist" has penetrated Hip Hop news, it's the song "Rock N Roll" that Kid Cudi has an issue with ... because it also features Ye.

The Man on the Moon crushed longtime Good Music fans by tweeting the ONLY REASON the song is being released to the public is his love for Pusha T. He added that "Rock N Roll" was recorded when he and Ye were on friendly terms.

It was, in fact, Kanye who severed their friendship this last time around when he sliced Kid Cudi's "Donda 2" contribution ... because Cudi refused to end his friendship with Pete Davidson, which Ye wanted nixed for obvious reasons.

Kanye and Cudi's relationship has been roller-coaster-like for years, with some of the highs including collaborating on blockbuster albums such as "808s & Heartbreak" and "The Life Of Pablo" while Ye produced Drake's Kid Cudi diss "Two Birds, One Stone" is one reason they're at the end at the road.

If it's one thing Drake is good at, it's making a hit song ... and his latest photo with Taylor Swift has us thinking there could be one in the works with the pop artist.

The OVO rapper dropped a series of photos on Instagram, Monday ... and the last of five is with no one other than pop star, T-Swift.

It's not clear if it is a throwback photo or if it was taken recently ... but Drizzy captioned the gallery saying, "They too soft to understand the meaning of hard work".

And, he could be on to something ... both Taylor and Drake have worked super hard and rose from the ranks in the music industry. Drake's been bestowed the award of Artist of the Decade by Billboard and Taylor was named Billboard’s Greatest Pop Star of 2021.

Of course, a music collab wouldn't be the biggest stretch ... Taylor and the Champagne Papi have been friends for a minute. They've been spotted together as far back as 2013, at the MTV Video Music Awards.

In Taylor's 2019 song "I Forgot That You Existed" she sings ... "And I couldn't get away from ya. In my feelings more than Drake, so yeah."

Benzino says the bad outweighs the good when it comes to 50 Cent's track record in hip hop ... claiming when you talk "just the facts," the facts aren't great for Fiddy.

The former "Love & Hip Hop" star is the latest guest on the "It's Tricky With Raquel Harper" podcast, and he's addressing his 50 Cent beef head-on by strongly hinting he's about to drop a lawsuit on him and several others.

Then Benzino, who was co-owner of The Source, rips his nemesis, saying ... "He's the first 6ix9ine. Like, the first hip hop rat!!!"

As you know Tekashi 6ix9ine infamously snitched to the feds on fellow gang members to get a reduced sentence -- and Benzino's referencing an old allegation Fif ratted on former record exec Jimmy Henchman.

Benzino even references federal "paperwork" allegedly signed by 50 that would prove he snitched -- a claim often repeated by Ja Rule and others at Murder Inc. Records.

However, 50 Cent's always denied this, and as TMZ first reported ... law enforcement sources told us those documents were fake.

Here's the odd part ... Benzino reminded Raq he went out of his way, back in 2000, to help 50 -- and possibly save his life -- when he got stabbed at Hit Factory studios.

Clearly, things have gone way south between them since then, and Benzino's not backing down.

Erica Banks is on an island by herself after unloading on Nicki Minaj and the female rappers on her collabs -- Asian Doll is making sure she doesn't get dragged into the simmering feud.

The beef started sizzling when Erica – who earned a Gold plaque last year after her single "Buss It" blew up on TikTok – revealed on REVOLT's Big Facts podcast that Nicki blocked her on social media, because she feels the Queen Barbz prefers working with female rappers who lack lyrical skills.

When the Big Facts crew pressed Erica to name her peers who can't find bars, the Dallas native pleaded the Fifth ... which led the Internet to speculate it was yet another Coi Leray dig. She's been taking shots from every which way following Billboard's report she only sold 9,000 units for her debut album, "Trendsetter."

The album featured the colorful Nicki collaboration "Blick, Blick" ... which does have 15 million YouTube views, but clearly isn't helping move her album

When Coi got wind of Erica's shade, she reacted to the clip with a series of laughing emojis ... a much softer reaction than that of Asian Doll.

Erica's fellow Dallas native has also been vocal about her desire to work with Nicki, but in a fiery round of tweets, she shut down all association with Banks' salty remarks, and even went as far as to say she played herself.

As for Coi ... she's taking the wave of newfound attention in stride, and claiming her final sales figures were closer to 11.5 million.

Tekashi 6ix9ine is all flash and no cash ... at least that's what he wants a judge to believe, because he's claiming to be broke at the same time he's flaunting $2 mil on camera.

Hip-hop's most infamous heel was on "TMZ Live" Monday when he copped to using "prop money" in a recent video where he boasted he has more cash on hand than a rival rapper's net worth. Most people took it as a subliminal shot at Fivio Foreign, though 6ix9ine never says his name.

All that money flew in the face of Tekashi telling a judge he's broke.

He still owes $1 million to robbery victims in the criminal case where he snitched on ex-friends to get a reduced sentence.

Claiming he's faking his riches because, "I'm an entertainer," won't help Tekashi's street cred -- but, to that point, he also told us he doesn't get why everyone blames him for ongoing beefs with Fivio, Lil Durk and others.

In his new music video for "Gine," 6ix9ine calls out Durk over the murder of King Von -- one of Durk's closest friends. It's a brazen and cold-hearted line, for sure.

One of the drug dealers who supplied fentanyl-laced pills to Mac Miller just received his sentence after copping a plea last year -- and he's going to prison for a long time.

Ryan Reavis will be behind bars for 10 years and 11 months after pleading guilty in November to one count of distributing fentanyl. The sentence is longer than what Reavis himself had asked for -- 5 years -- but shorter than the 12.5 years prosecutors were gunning for.

Remember ... the feds say Reavis supplied the deadly oxycodone pills to Mac's alleged drug dealer, Cameron Pettit ... on orders from Stephen Walter, who also recently pled guilty to distributing fentanyl. Reavis said in court Monday that he was just a middle man.

More importantly ... he claimed he had no idea that the pills he was supplying were counterfeit. Despite this, the judge seemed to have dished out an even-handed sentence -- but not before hearing a statement from MM's mother, Karen Meyers.

It read, in part ... "He would never knowingly take a pill with fentanyl, ever. He wanted to live and was excited about the future. The hole in my heart will always be there." In other words, she insisted the alleged dealers/suppliers in this case were solely responsible for his perish.

As we reported ... Reavis was first arrested back in 2019 out in Arizona -- where authorities say they found a bogus doctor's notepad, from which he presumably filled prescriptions. They also claimed they found firearms and drugs ... including prescription-only pills and marijuana.

Two famous Seattle ballers in Macklemore and Marshawn Lynch are now biz partners ... in a completely new field for both of them.

On Monday, the NHL announced the rapper and ex-NFL great are both minority owners of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken, the league's newest franchise.

Mack, a 4x Grammy Award winner, and Beast Mode, a Super Bowl champ and 5x Pro Bowler ... are almost getting in on the ground floor -- this is the Kraken's first season on the ice.

Team CEO Tod Leiweke admitted he was initially taken aback when the guys approached the team last summer, but their missions to uplift the Seattle community proved to be an invaluable addition to the organization.

Plus, Macklemore can always be a handy choice for pre or post game entertainment. The hometown hero says he has nostalgic ties to the team's arena.

Speaking of hometown, Macklemore will be using his association with the team to cross-brand with his Hip Hop-centric, youth development program, The Residency, to continue to foster kids in the area.

Kendrick Lamar just turned the hip hop world upside down with a single Instagram post --.a platform he hardly ever uses, but this time it was to reveal some gigantic news.

The rap megastar has been keeping an extremely low profile in preparation for his final album on Top Dawg Entertainment and now, we not only have a name but an actual release date to expect new music!

It appears King Kunta has settled on the album title "Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers" ... with an expected release date of May 13.

The self-explanatory statement was posted on pgLang letterhead, the music imprint he runs with his longtime friend/manager Dave Free. In the brief message, Kendrick is adamant he will be the only source for information regarding the album.

After launching in 2020, all appears to be going well: pgLang's flagship artist, Baby Keem, just took home a Grammy for Best Rap Performance for the Kendrick duet, "Family Ties."

K Dot is coming fresh off the still-buzzing Super Bowl LVI Halftime show opposite legends, Dr. Dre, Eminem, Snoop Dogg and Mary J. Blige. Spotify numbers following the performance revealed he saw a 250% increase in his 2015 "Alright" streams — and that was just one song.

With so much talk about artists not sustaining an audience due to low streams and sales, Kendrick could ignite a jolt in rap, much like he's done several before.

DJ Khaled better hit up Lil Baby (remember?) for some jump shot tips ASAP ... 'cause the rapper/producer hilariously airballed a 3-pointer during the Heat's playoff game on Sunday.

The "We The Best" star was on tap for the first game of Miami's 1st round series against the Hawks ... and decided to get in a "practice shot" during a break in the action.

In the video, you see Khaled take one dribble to gather his shot before launching a 3-pointer from the top of the key ... and, well, he misses everything.

In Khaled's defense, security was coming over to stop him from shooting, even going as far as to put a hand up to try and block the attempt.

So, the degree of difficulty was definitely there, but the airball wasn't even the funniest part ... 'cause security then booted the hip hop icon off the court in epic fashion.

Khaled, however, was a good sport about it all ... leaving the court and returning to his seat to enjoy the rest of the game.

On a recent episode of LeBron James' "The Shop," Khaled's close friend, Rick Ross, was asked what would happen if the two played one-on-one.

"I'd do em dirty," Ross said ... and judging from Khaled's airball, it's kind of hard not to agree with Rozay.

DJ Kay Slay has died after a 4-month battle with COVID ... this according to his family and peers.

The NY-based legendary hip-hop ambassador passed away Sunday, first confirmed by Wack 100, and then others, as tributes started to pour in from across the industry. His family writes, "Our hearts are broken by the passing of Keith Grayson, professionally known as DJ Kay Slay."

They add, "A dominant figure in Hip Hop culture with millions of fans worldwide, DJ Kay Slay will be remembered for his passion and excellence with a legacy that will transcend generations."

Kay Slay, AKA Dez, started out as a graffiti artist in the '70s and '80s -- and later branched out into music ... making his big splash in the early 2000s through the local radio and music scene with his big personality and unique beat selection ... not to mention his wicked flow.

He's most famous for his mixtapes -- cranking out more than a dozen dating back to 2003 -- plus other solo and compilation artists, which often featured huge names in the game ... including Nas, Swizz Beatz, N.O.R.E., Raekwon, Lloyd Banks and Foxy Brown.

His "Streetsweeper" series is one of his major claims to fame, as was his recurring radio spot on Hot 97 -- which was dubbed the Drama Hour ... another nickname he bore. DJ Kay Slay was also known for his disses in his tracks, and was once called "Hip-Hop's One-Man Ministry of Insults" by the New York Times.

Dez contracted coronavirus in December and was hospitalized for a while. While he showed signs of recovering thereafter, it became clear over time he was struggling to get back to 100%.

DJ Kay Slay was 55.

The Weeknd and Swedish House Mafia wrapped up Coachella weekend 1 with an epic set on night 3, giving the massive crowd a night to remember.

SHM played solo for the first hour, with classics like "Don't You Worry Child" and "Save The World" -- easy to say the crowd was hyped.

The Weeknd joined the group onstage for remixes of songs like "Moth To A Flame" and "Sacrifice" off his latest album, Dawn FM. After their collab performance, the solo artist stuck around for the final hour to do some of his own chart-breaking hits like "Blinding Lights" and "The Hills."

The Weeknd headlined the Indio festival back in 2018, as well as held performances in 2015, and again in 2012 -- the same year SHM headlined.

Doja Cat had her first solo performance at Coachella, and she brought Tyga to the stage to perform one of their hits.

The recent Grammy winner got her own lineup spot Sunday, and the crowd was loving every minute ... along with her hits, she performed a new song, "Vegas," which is in Baz Luhrmann's new Elvis movie.

At one point, she started her song, "Juicy," but couldn't do it alone ... bringing fellow artist Tyga to the stage to collab. She also brought up Rico Nasty for their song, "Tia Tamera."

Doja joined Rico at the festival back in 2019, but this is the first year she's been given her own slot -- fitting to bring Rico back on the stage after she did the same for her years ago.

As you know, Doja claimed to be quitting music at the end of March after tweeting about her poor performance at Lollapalooza in Brazil ... her fans in Paraguay got upset that she never tweeted about missing their recent festival -- one that was canceled due to a deadly storm, so not really her fault.

A war broke out online between her and fans, even journalists, in Paraguay ... going off about leaving the music game, changing her handle to "I quit" and saying "This s*** ain't for me so I'm out. Y'all take care."

The investigation into DaBaby's bowling alley fight has hit a snag ... and we're told, oddly enough, the alleged victim is the reason.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the investigation into DaBaby's bowling alley brawl with DaniLeigh's brother, Brandon Bills, has hit an unexpected roadblock because the alleged victim is no longer cooperating with police.

We're told, even though much of the fight was caught on camera, it's very difficult to move forward without a victim.

As we showed you, DaBaby and his crew got into a massive fight with Brandon at a CA bowling alley, back in February. Cops were on the case, after video footage seemingly showed the "Suge" rapper throwing the first punch ... before his crew gets involved.

After reviewing the footage, police reportedly opened an investigation into the rapper.

ICYMI, beef between DaBaby and Brandon escalated ... after Brandon's sister, DaniLeigh -- DaBaby's baby mama -- publicly aired some issues. At one point, DaBaby and DaniLeigh got into a blowout fight and DaniLeigh was arrested for assault.

We're told the bowling alley investigation remains active but isn't going anywhere at the moment ... because Bills isn't working with police.

No word on why Bills isn't cooperating ... but of course, he could change his mind.

Last week, DaBaby shot a trespasser on his North Carolina property. In the 911 audio following the shooting, DaBaby talked back to the dispatcher and told them he'd refuse to put his gun down when cops arrived.

Isaiah Rashad broke his silence this weekend about a sex tape that appears to out him as LGBT friendly -- and he's taking all the love and support he's received in stride.

The TDE artist -- who's had a solid and loyal fanbase for years, dating back to the 2010s -- performed Saturday at Coachella ... the first time he's taken the stage publicly since a private tape of his leaked back in February, showing him engaged in a sex act with two men.

The clip went viral, conjuring lots of reaction from the hip-hop community, including shock. Fact is, Isaiah had only ever indicated he was into girls ... at least in his music, anyway.

While there were some who chimed in with homophobic jokes and insults, there were just as many who spoke up having Isaiah's back -- including some prominent figures in the industry, like The Game, who said people's private lives were no one else's business but their own.

Isaiah was clearly keeping tabs on all the chatter that surfaced, as he compiled a lot of it into an intro video that he played before coming out to rock his set.

IR performed with tons of energy and didn't explicitly say anything about the sex tape until later on when he was nearing the end ... giving thanks to his fans for the solidarity, even indicating they may have saved his life with their messages of positivity and embrace.

It also appears the guy was getting emotional during one of his songs -- eagle-eyed viewers watching the live stream from home spotted what look to be tears coming down his face.

Tons of people are giving Isaiah props for tackling this issue head on at Coachella, the most public of spaces. Also ... him getting embraced like this is indicative of where we are as a culture ... namely, it ain't that big a deal if a rapper is anything but straight these days.

Megan Thee Stallion might be taking a page out of Tory Lanez's book -- she seems to have addressed their legal battle/past relationship in song ... and she did it at Coachella.

The MC performed Saturday in Indio, and at one point during her set ... she took to a moment to debut a new track, while also touching on its significance to her as talked to the crowd. And she did it in not-so-subtle terms either, although refrained from naming names.

Meg says, "This song is very mf'ing personal to me, and it's to whom the f*** it may concern -- and I really feel like my ladies with f*** with me on this one," telling the DJ to drop it.

Listen to it for yourself ... it's all about Meg dissing dudes she used to mess with, and promoting the idea she's independent, etc. Empowering stuff, no doubt, and while it could be directed at anyone ... it's hard to shake the feeling this might be aimed at Tory too.

The reason we say that ... there's a telling lyric in there about how "d*** don't run me," and of course -- Tory himself used that very same term not too long ago on Twitter, which landed him in trouble with a judge, albeit temporarily.

You'll recall, TL suggested he was sleeping with both Megan and her friend (the other woman in the car) and that's what he apologized for ... not for shooting her in the feet.

Earlier this month, Tory was briefly remanded into custody for this tweet ... a judge found he was indirectly speaking to Megan, which violates her protective order against him as their case plays out. Tory was sprung the same day, however, and went on to drop a new song/music video within 72 hours of bailing out -- again, seemingly addressing the sitch.

Travis Scott didn't get to perform on any official Coachella lineup this year -- following the Astroworld tragedy -- but he settled for the next best thing ... an after-party.

The rapper got on the mic early Sunday morning during the Bootsy Bellows get-together in nearby La Quinta, where we're told he got onstage around 3 AM (about an hour before things were set to start shutting down) and cranked out 5 of his songs from the DJ booth.

As you can see ... it was a very stripped-down and limited show, similar to what he did at a pre-Oscars party last month. Travis was keeping it relatively chill as far as energy ... nothing compared to what he might normally do at a regular concert.

At one point, Trav even played DJ ... pulling double duty, and the remaining crowd that was there seemed to dig it. It's safe to say, the guy's testing the waters slowly but surely ... and it would appear he's still very much got an audience that's down to see him.

Of course, Travis making an appearance in the vicinity of Coachella is interesting in and of itself -- as you know, he was slated to headline until he got bumped over Astroworld -- but there was still some hope he could cameo seeing how Kanye West was hired ... and there were rumblings he might bring Travis out during his set.

That fell through, so it was all but certain TS wouldn't pop up on stage there in Indio.

Plus, there seemed to be bad blood between him and Billie Eilish -- at least from the outside looking in -- who sorta took shots at him during a concert of hers a few months back -- even though she downplayed any animosity toward him specifically when confronted by Ye.