TMZ Hip Hop - Page 40

A horror film starring 50 Cent set for release in July to launch the new GenTV platform may not make it to any screens ... because the megastar rapper says he never inked a final deal with producers, and he's now suing over its release!!!

TMZ Hip Hop obtained legal docs filed by 50 on Thursday, making good on the social media warnings he's been sending to GenTV's owner, Ryan Kavanaugh, about taking legal action to try to block the rollout.

According to the documents, 50 says he looked past Kavanaugh's controversial past and provided his acting talents for the movie after they sketched out the basic terms of a deal ... with the expectation they would reach a final agreement and sign a contract.

Kendrick Lamar recently became the first musician ever to appear in a Gatorade commercial while using his own song "Peekaboo" as the soundtrack ... a fairly easy payday for AZ Chike, the song's costar!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with the red-hot Los Angeles rapper out in West Hollywood this week and chopped it up about Kendrick's new “Lose More. Win More." campaign ... AZ Chike says dealing with Gatorade pays great -- and all he had to do was hit 'em with that, "Bing-bop-boom-boom-boom-bop-bam!!!"

AZ Chike's been rapping for several years but saw his career go into warp overdrive in November when Kendrick's "GNX" was released ... no worries, he had his paperwork straight and prepared!!!

Kanye West and Bianca Censori are shopping till they drop over in Spain ... picking out her new outfits from an erotic store!!!

Check out this new footage of Kanye going in and out of a sex shop in Palma, Mallorca ... he's trying to be low-key with a black hoodie, but he couldn't evade the paparazzi.

Folks who work in the store say Kanye came in first, left, and then returned with Bianca ... and then they spent about an hour browsing around.

Ari Lennox has opened the latest chapter in her music career -- a chapter that finds the platinum-selling singer going forward without J. Cole and her longtime label Dreamville!!!

TMZ Hip Hop has confirmed that Ari is no longer on the Dreamville roster and will proceed on Interscope, the sole credit for her new song ... but all signs point to a completely amicable split.

This past April, Ari performed her curtain call at Cole's final Dreamville Festival, and thanked him and the label for essentially making her dreams a reality in 2015 when she first signed.

Eric Bellinger is one of R&B's leading traditionalists, but Akon's idea about reformatting the catalog to go country sounds mighty enticing!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with EB at LAX on Tuesday as the Grammy-winning singer was en route overseas for Mario's "Glad You Came" Tour ... and he called Akon a flat-out genius for genre-swapping.

Akon told us last week he's been strategizing the country switch-up for 5 years and plans on recruiting the hottest cowboys and girls in music to boost the tracks.

Three 6 Mafia legend Project Pat has a new purpose in life thanks to his newfound faith in God -- his once gangsta mentality has shifted to gospel!!!

The Memphis rapper and his pa'tna Mike Brown linked with TMZ Hip Hop at LAX this week and discussed his spiritual transition.

The year got off to a rough start for Pat -- his son, Patrick Houston Jr., was murdered in Memphis -- but Pat's been staying grounded, giving back.

Shannon Sharpe's media career is hanging in the balance in the wake of his explosive sexual assault lawsuit -- a totally avoidable scenario, had he taken Mo'Nique's advice!!!

The blunt comedienne was on Sharpe's "Club Shay Shay" podcast back in Feb. 2024, when she warned him about dating young girls and urged him to get an "ol' fat gal" who cooked him soul food and catered to his needs.

Fast-forward to the present day, and Sharpe is battling a $50 million lawsuit filed by a 20-year-old OnlyFans star.

Quavo just saw his second film starring opposite John Travolta released -- and feels his acting chops will go on to be among the legends!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with Quavo at LAX and asked him how he plans on surpassing the works of Will Smith, Queen Latifah, Tupac Shakur ... you know, the rappers whose legacy lives in both music and movies.

Quavo boldly shoots down every name we throw at him ... he's been on a roll and is coming in hot for Hollywood.

Kanye West is firing off more than just disturbing, antisemitic rants online these days ... the rapper is also making a racket with his SUPER LOUD casting calls, and offending neighbors with a prominent racist hate symbol, in Los Angeles, TMZ has learned.

Here's the deal ... Kanye plastered L.A.'s Larchmont neighborhood with an "urgent" advertisement seeking "AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES" for his "hooligan choir," which has set up shop in a warehouse near an elementary school.

In the flyers, Kanye requires any prospects cannot be "fat" and must wear all black with the skin complexion of Sean "Diddy" Combs -- who is about to go on trial for alleged racketeering, sex trafficking and other federal crimes. The ad also requires anyone to be "COMFORTABLE WEARING SWASTIKAS," and, of course, there are other conditions.

Lizzo has been on a mission to live a healthier lifestyle ... and after shedding 16% of her body fat, she's pulling back the curtain on how she made it all happen.

The singer hopped on TikTok Live on Tuesday to open up about her weight loss journey, and credits much of her transformation to cutting certain foods from her diet.

For example. Lizzo says she was previously drinking 2-3 Starbucks beverages a day -- totaling around 1,200 calories. She's since dropped Starbucks entirely -- and coffee altogether -- focusing on "calories in versus calories out" approach.

The woman who accused Jay-Z and Diddy of raping her when she was 13 years old is now taking legal steps to try and dismiss a lawsuit Jay-Z filed against her.

Jay's accuser, who first sued him for rape as a Jane Doe, filed new legal docs Tuesday to dismiss the defamation suit the music mogul filed against her and her attorney, Tony Buzbee, in Alabama.

In new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the woman claims Jay-Z can’t sue her over the claims because she made them in court documents and are therefore privileged ... adding that the interview she did with NBC was based on her claims in the court docs.

Wiz Khalifa says his time and value as an artist is very valuable -- and you won't see him onstage unless he's getting paid a 7-figure sum!!!

The megastar rapper recently paid the Joe Budden Podcast a visit out in NJ, where Wiz revealed his stock is still up from 10 years ago, when he and Charlie Puth released their mega-Diamond-certified single "See You Again."

Joe was in disbelief ... but Wiz maintained his guest feature price is a cool $250,000 a pop ... and upwards of $2 million per show!!!

Kanye West claims he hasn't been around his son Saint at all this year ... but we know that's not even remotely close to the truth.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ … Ye can see his kids whenever he wants and mostly chooses not to, but he has definitely seen Saint in 2025.

Kanye's kids mostly live with their mother, Kim Kardashian, in California ... but we're told Ye spent about 3 months in Los Angeles this year and didn't ask to see Saint or any of his kids, aside from North ... until a week before leaving town.

Beyoncé’s love story could’ve had a totally different soundtrack -- she was actually torn between Jay-Z and another guy back in the day, and had to bring in her mama for some decision-making.

It was the singer's mom, Tina Knowles, who spilled the tea in her new memoir "Matriarch," revealing that while Beyoncé was bonding with Jay-Z over the phone back in the day, she was also juggling another guy in the industry at the same time.

Tina elaborated ... saying Bey and Jay were giving each other solid advice about the industry in 2001, and as their phone chats kept going, their friendship started to run deeper.

Kanye West struck chords and nerves in abundance by revealing he and his convicted murderer male cousin used to hook up as young teens ... and many of his rapper peers feel it explains the root of his troubles.

Boosie Badazz, who's typically on the offensive on non-heterosexual relationships, cut Ye some slack ... but felt that energy would be channeled to fighting enemies down the line.

A$AP Ferg also sent Ye love from afar, as the situation hits close to home for him.

Lil Uzi Vert is currently getting medical treatment in NYC -- the "Eternal Atake" rapper was rushed to a hospital ... TMZ Hip Hop has learned.

Paramedics responded to an EMS call Monday afternoon for a "sick person" in Lower Manhattan.

An eyewitness at the scene tells us Lil Uzi was wheeled out of the lobby of a luxury condominium building on a gurney around 2:30 PM and loaded into the ambulance.