TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Lizzo dressed up as Blueface's girlfriend, Chrisean Rock, for Halloween this year -- but the getup is catching some backlash ... because some perceive CR as someone not to mock.

Lizzo trotted out a costume Friday that was, no doubt, meant to recreate Chrisean's look -- missing tooth and all -- and while it was in good fun ... there's been a lot of reactions online that aren't in favor of it and are actually condemning turning Chrisean into a Halloween gag.

The reason ... many feel like Chrisean isn't in the healthiest relationship as it pertains to Blueface. There've been much harsher terms used to describe their sitch.

Fact is, Chrisean and Blueface are in constant ups and downs -- either fighting or loving up on each other ... sometimes in explosive fashion. It's made for some great entertainment on the internet, but there's also been much concern for Chrisean these past several months.

The latest twist in their rocky relationship ... it's all being documented for a new show, "Crazy in Love," which has sparked controversy in and of itself. Some see it as exploitative.

With that in mind ... there's a good portion of bird app users who are taking offense to Lizzo's cosplay, as they feel she's making fun of someone who they see as needing help.

FWIW, Chrisean herself appears to dig it ... she's retweeted/commented on Lizzo's videos. Of course, there's also the usual fatphobic crowd clowning Lizzo over this ... but their hate is pretty much white noise at this point. Not even Lizzo is letting it get to her anymore.

Kanye West closing his Donda Academy has left the program's student-athletes in limbo ... wasting a season's worth of developing their talents.

Sources connected to the Donda boy's basketball team tell us the season has essentially been put on ice, with little to no games scheduled. We're told the kids have been dropped from several tournaments because of Kanye's antisemitic rants, and have limited practice.

Our sources say if the kids do want to practice, they have to organize on their own ... Donda isn't there for an assist, though some coaches are working to make it happen.

What's more, we're told it's becoming more and more difficult for students at Donda to transfer to another school's basketball program ... mainly because Donda's season hasn't yet been OFFICIALLY canceled. It's especially bad for the kids who have real talent and prospects to play college ball.

Our sources say one potential savior is NBA star Jaylen Brown, who recently announced he was leaving Donda Sports. We're told Jaylen is trying to save the Donda Academy team, working to help find tournaments for the players.

One game he's helped to schedule for the team already will happen next Sunday against Morehouse College.

Kanye West's downward spiral isn't impacting his music on streaming platforms -- not yet, anyway, and Ty Dolla $ign's supremely confident their "Ego Death" will be just fine.

We bumped into Ty$ at Dash Radio in Hollywood, where he was all about showing off his freshly manicured nails -- but we got him to weigh in on the future of Ye's music and the Billboard charts.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek recently condemned Kanye's antisemitic tirades, but said his music would remain on the platform ... and Ty$ agrees that's the right move.

As for the growing contention about hip hop and R&B being lumped together on Billboard ... he's cool with that too!!!

Ty$ says he's happy to see his music on any chart that'll have him. His sentiments are reminiscent of Brian McKnight's take ... which is that music shouldn't be confined to any genre.

Brian doesn't think any modernized version of singing qualifies as classic R&B, but Ty$ point is even simpler -- call it whatever you want, "Just make good music!!!"

Joyner Lucas creates some of the most cinematic visuals in hip hop music and he's taking his talents to the big screen for his first feature film ... alongside none other than Mark Wahlberg.

Sources close to production tell TMZ Hip Hop ... Mark personally handpicked Joyner for the cast of the film, which we've learned will be shooting for the next 6 months and is expected to be released in late 2023 or early 2024.

We're told Mark and Joyner sparked a fast friendship after the actor appeared in Joyner's "Zim Zimma" video back in 2021. They both hail from New England and have an affinity for good vibrational rap, so the pairing makes sense.

Mark praised Joyner's acting chops on Friday, suggesting his "skills" will help make the film a success.

Antonio Brown has a new rap beef after finding out Detroit rapper Sada Baby's been taking shots at him for his "Put That S**t On" antics.

Sada dissed AB earlier this week, essentially calling everything he stands for "lame" ... which understandably angered the former NFL star.

On Friday, an amused Sada reposted a DM AB sent, commanding him to "turn your bitch ass soda. water."

It doesn't read all that fluidly, but is likely a diss on the "Aktivated" rapper's love for lean.

Sada didn't back down, and, instead, doubled down on his stance ... slamming AB for taunting Tom Brady over his divorce from Gisele Bündchen, which was made official today.

Like many sports fans, Sada feels AB selling shirts mocking TB12 is a low move and also took issue with his infamous mid-game retirement last season ... with a "b*tch ass" remark of his own.

Chaka Khan thinks singers who rely on Auto-Tune need to try a different J-O-B, and she's even got a suggestion for 'em ... delivering packages to her doorstep!!!

The R&B icon laid an opinionated smackdown on a portion of this generation's studio-boosted singers when she said, "There’s some very fine young artists out there doing great, great work that I am impressed with. But, the others, they just need to get them a job at the Post Office - they are always hiring!"

Chaka didn't name any names when she spoke to Page Six, but feels saddened by many of today's female R&B artists ... saying they lack confidence and ooze insecurity.

The OG "I'm Every Woman" singer's issues with modern music go beyond Auto-Tune -- for years, she's ripped Kanye West for altering her voice in a high pitch to create the foundation for his breakout 2003 single "Through The Wire."

Apparently, Chaka and Usher are on the same page.

Remember, T-Pain made the bombshell revelation that Usher told him his vocal enhancements essentially "ruined" music as we know it ... spurring years of depression for the Florida rapper.

There's an entire market of people patiently waiting to sell their Yeezy shoes for what they hope will be a big chunk of cash ... and it's exactly why resale websites are among the only entities yet to cut ties with Kanye West.

We've spoken with several people at some of the resale industry's biggest sites who all tell us the same thing -- Yeezys are about to go way up in value. We're told this will happen as supply for the shoes continue to dwindle now that Adidas has cut the cord.

Our sources say resale sites and the sellers obviously have a big motivating factor -- profit -- and that's what Yeezys bring to the market.

Of course, it's assumed in doing so, Kanye will choose a new design type -- different from what he created with Adidas. As a result, the Adidas designs will skyrocket in value --  so resellers and resale sites will rake in the dough.

Chlöe Bailey is spilling the deets on her short-lived romance with Gunna ... hinting she was just another cog in his wheel of women during their time together.

The R&B star previously revealed her new song "For The Night" was specifically written about the incarcerated YSL rapper and delivered the final product on Friday.

Chlöe begins the song questioning why their bond wasn't stronger singing "I play those same games a thousand times over/And you crave those long nights with me."

She also claims Gunna would make his exit before they could spend quality time together ... in the bed. In the self-directed visual, Chlöe shuts things down throwing the apology flowers in the garbage.

"You and your mouth, cashing checks that you know gonna bounce, You say you promise and promise, you'll figure it out, But I can not wait, you're teasing me, I back down," Chlöe croons later on the record.

Latto is also featured on the London On Da Track-produced song ... but didn't claim her savage lyrics of betrayal to be based on real-life experiences like in Chlöe's case.

Gunna and Chlöe were spotted in public several times on shopping trips and NBA games ... but Gunna later admitted on The Breakfast Club that he was far away from settling down.

Rihanna is officially back in the music scene ... releasing 'Lift Me Up' for the latest 'Black Panther' movie -- her first solo drop in about 6 years.

While it's not a dance track like many fans had expected, RiRi harmonizes over a slow beat ... before singing "Lift me up, hold me down, keep me close, safe and sound” in the chorus.

As we've told you, the tune will be featured in the upcoming Marvel sequel "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever". What's more, it was written as a tribute to late 'Black Panther' star Chadwick Boseman, who died back in 2020.

Rihanna, Afrobeats star Tems, Oscar-Grammy Award-winning producer Ludwig Göransson, and 'BP' director Ryan Coogler all came together to write the song.

The last time RiRi released music on her own was the "Anti" album, which came out back in 2016.

The singer has had a lot on her plate during her time away from music, like her fashion line, Savage X Fenty, which launched in 2018 and her beauty line Fenty Beauty which debuted the year before.

Of course, she recently entered the mommy club, after welcoming a baby boy with her boyfriend A$AP Rocky.

Kanye West and his company, Yeezy, are getting hauled into court by his former business manager, who claims the rapper flagrantly violated their deal ... a deal Kanye says he was never going to honor.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Thomas St. John claims he was hired as Ye's senior financial advisor and Chief Financial Officer for a guaranteed term of 18 months ... and was to be paid a monthly, $300,000 retainer fee.

St. John says after getting the first three payments, Ye got "heated and aggressive" during a meeting at Nobu ... proclaiming he didn't want to work with St. John anymore.

St. John says he brought up the 18-month term, and Kanye responded, “The 18-month term was bulls***” and “You’re insane for even thinking I would stick to it.”

St. John is seeking $4.5M in damages -- $900K for the months missed so far, and another $3.6M for the remainder of the contract. He's gunning for punitive damages as well.

Halloween is just around the corner and Memphis rapper Duke Deuce is bringing the carnage ... with his new horror-themed mixtape "Memphis Massacre 3."

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with the Quality Control Music rapper on the hallowed eve ahead of his release -- one he's extremely proud of, considering he only used collaborators from his hometown Grind City.

Drumma Boy recently tripled down on the notion Memphis has surpassed Atlanta's long-running grip on hip hop ... and Duke agrees. He says there are plenty of superstars on the move -- Moneybagg Yo, GloRilla, Key Glock, Big Moochie Grape just to name a few -- and he adds ... social media has those artists and himself shining more than ever.

He does admit Memphis still has a little work to do in terms of infrastructure and popularity, but he's confident his crunk sound will create a ripple effect.

For this album, Duke is summoning power from his alter ego -- he says a doll he's dubbed "Deucifer" supplies all the dark energy used for the project. He's betting Deucifer will stir a little controversy in the space ... so, we'll just have to wait for the grand disruption.

Duke's been down with QC for several years now, and is starting to get recognition for his musical labor.

Earlier this week, he was honored by his Memphis alma mater high school ... where he received the Key to the School, was inducted into its Hall of Fame and got his own day. October 26 is now Duke Deuce Day on campus!!!

Kanye West's school may be shut down for good ... because we've learned educators there have been quitting in protest.

Sources connected to Donda Academy tell TMZ ... the main issue preventing the school from running as usual is a recent wave of staffers quitting due to Kanye's antisemitic rants.

We're told Kanye's hateful comments, his musings on George Floyd's death and his 'White Lives Matter' clothing have pissed off educators at Donda Academy, and that has triggered the departure of a growing number of teachers and staff.

As we reported ... Kanye made his return to social media Wednesday night, saying, "My school is being shut down." He later deleted the post.

Also Wednesday night, the school's principal, Jason Angell, blasted out an email to students' parents, informing them "at the discretion of our founder, Donda Academy will close for the remainder of the 2022-2023 school year effective immediately."

TMZ broke the story ... in a bizarre twist, a parent sent out another email around midnight Wednesday to parents and students, reading, "Join us tomorrow morning in worship for the return of Donda Academy. With the help of our parents and community, we are back and returning with a vengeance!"

So, some parents are already finding new schools for their kids, and others want to stay at Donda. Those parents are trying to rally and get students to gather at the school Friday morning ... but the fate of the school is up in the air.

Kanye West is back to inspiring his fellow rappers, who are trolling him over his empire imploding due to Adidas, Balenciaga, TJ Maxx and others leaving him in the dust.

Everywhere you look on social media, Ye's the butt of endless jokes and memes ... and rappers like 50 Cent, N.O.R.E., Jadakiss and Young Thug (from jail, even) are jumping on the sarcastic "cutting ties" trend.

Lil Duval even dropped his tiny moniker after GloRilla reversed a joke on him earlier this week.

Ye also partook in the trend … although it may not be as humorous to him, considering Forbes says his net worth plummeted from $1.3 billion to $400 million. Ye says he lost even more than that ... $2 BILLION!

He responded to 50 Cent’s "cutting ties" post by pleading for him to help build Donda schools in Houston. 50 took him up on the offer but agrees with the majority that he needs time on the sidelines to clear his head.

About the only good news Ye’s had this week is that, somehow, the parents of his Donda Academy students are rallying to keep the school open after he told the staff he was closing it.

One rapper not amused by Kanye memes is Boosie Badazz … who’s currently fuming over Ye’s apology to the Jewish community and lack of regret towards Black people for his 'White Lives Matter' tirades.

"Power" will no longer be played before AFC Bournemouth games this season ... the Premier League team is pulling the plug on the pregame song -- after Kanye West's recent antisemitic remarks.

The Athletic reported Tuesday that the team made this decision this week ... following in the footsteps of multiple huge organizations that have cut ties with the artist over his recent, highly offensive comments.

The Cherries had played the hit before games for YEARS -- running onto English soccer fields to the tune as fans in stadiums roared.

So far, no word yet on what song will replace the Ye beat.

The futbol team's decision comes after Adidas, T.J. Maxx and Balenciaga severed their relationships with West -- and just two days after superstar athletes Jaylen Brown and Aaron Donald dropped from his Donda Sports agency.

Texas rapper MO3's manager Brian Rainwater is dispelling persistent rumors his late client was murdered in 2020 due to yet another rap beef.

According to Rainwater, MO3's killer was jealous of the rapper's relationship with the man's own children. MO3 was dating the mother, and her kids had proudly posted the slain rapper on social media.

He also says MO3 upgrading the woman's lifestyle and taking her on lavish trips was enough to push the killer over the edge.

Rainwater was a recent guest on "Say Cheese!" where he also ripped into the downpour of social media clout chasers who circulated false info ... and dismissed the string of local rap songs that claimed involvement after the shooting.

Rainwater says MO3's celebrity status made him a target for the killer, suggesting the relationship was beneath the "Shottaz" rapper altogether ... comparing it to Atlanta rapper Trouble's murder, who was killed inside the home of a woman he was seeing.

TMZ originally broke the story ... MO3 was shot and killed in his hometown of Dallas on November 11, 2020, after being tailed during an intense car chase on the highway.

He attempted to run for his life after fleeing his vehicle but was gunned down shortly after.

Police arrested a man named Kewon Dontrell White a month later ... who has been charged with MO3's murder, but has yet to stand trial.

L.A. rapper Saviii 3rd won't be getting tricks or treats on Halloween, instead, he'll be in court for an arrest -- cops say he bolted out of a studio session with over $3,000 worth of equipment.

Burbank police sources tell TMZ Hip Hop ... Saviii was recording inside Royal Rehearsal studio Wednesday night before he allegedly stole a speaker, mic, mac hard drive and a monitor ... and a few other pieces of equipment.

We're told officers detained the ex-Cash Money Records artist and his entourage in the back of the studio's parking lot. Saviii, whose government name is Tyrus Washington, identified himself as Johnnie Lee Brown ... according to cops.

The fake name didn't help ... police searched Saviii and say they found what they believe to be methamphetamine on him. They also allegedly found codeine cough syrup, evidence of identity theft and the studio equipment.

Saviii was arrested and booked into Burbank jail. They didn't discover the fake name until they fingerprinted the rapper, and they also found an active warrant for a probation violation under his real name.

Before his arrest, Saviii's final Instagram story shows a bottle of Wockhardt promethazine codeine and several bottles of Faygo soda. It's unclear if these are the bottles cops allegedly found in his car.