TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Special moment from Lil Wayne on Sunday night -- he perfumed his 2009 track, "Kobe Bryant" ... with new lyrics to honor Mamba and Gianna.

It all went down at the BET Awards -- where Wayne debuted a new music video for the song, performing in front of the screen with Kobe's name on it.

The original lyrics already painted Kobe as a legend:

"He the greatest on the court ...
And I'm the greatest on the verse.
Goin' for the 4th ring like it was his 1st...
Gotta get the gleam. Do it for Kareem ...
2-4 so nice. My flow is so mean."

But, in the wake of recent events, Weezy updated the track to acknowledge the passing of Kobe and Gianna.

"Two fingers for the Mambacita. I’m screamin’ 'Black Mamba matters.'"

He continued ... "Heart goes out to Vanessa and the whole Black Mamba family."

"G-O-A-T like Kobe Bean, rest in power and hope for peace.”

Vanessa acknowledged it on her IG page -- calling the performance a "beautiful tribute."

Kobe, Gianna and 7 others passed away in a helicopter crash on January 26. He was 41. She was only 13.

Kanye West has until 2030 to fulfill his mission of providing clothing for the masses ... and he just might make Gap cool again, in the process.

The rapper and his fashion company just landed a 10-year deal with Gap to launch a new clothing line called Yeezy Gap. The retailer -- widely known as a mall brand -- will introduce the Yeezy merch in the first half of 2021 in its stores and online.

Yeezy's design studio says its plan is to make "modern, elevated basics for men, women and kids at accessible price points" and of course ... Kanye will call the shots, including deciding how his clothes will be marketed at Gap.

The mega retail deal reportedly starts this month and comes with the option to renew at the 5-year mark ... at which point Gap expects YZY to be generating $1 BILLION in sales.

To put that in perspective ... the struggling retailer only hauled in a total of $4.6 billion globally in 2019. But, considering Kanye's Yeezy shoe line topped $1 billion in sales last year ... it's certainly possible.

The collab between the rapper and the retail chain is a long time coming for Kanye -- in 2015 he declared he'd like to be the "Steve Jobs of the Gap," and said he dreamed of being its creative director. He also worked there as a teen.

Some things are just meant to be.

Kanye West's new Gap deal isn't only huge for budget-conscious consumers ... Daymond John says it could also be a game changer for Gap's corporate culture ...if it's smart, at least.

The "Shark Tank" star helped us follow the money on the Yeezy Gap 10-year deal ... breaking down how it could greatly benefit customers, Gap and Kanye. On Friday's "TMZ Live," Daymond said the new partnership will give the masses access to so-called "knockoffs" of Kanye's high-end, high-priced designs.

That's the obvious W for the public, but DJ added ... the real win for Kanye goes well beyond dollars and cents. He says for the amount of revenue Ye stands to make for Gap -- it's already estimating a BILLION annually -- the rapper/designer deserves a seat on the corporation's Board of Directors.

That possibility couldn't come at a more opportune time for Gap, as corporations nationwide are desperately trying to diversify their staff -- from top to bottom -- in response to the protests demanding racial equality.

Daymond -- whose FUBU brand also had Gap ties, courtesy of a late 90s LL Cool J commercial -- says Gap can take a huge step forward by adding Kanye to its Board.

Man knows what he's talking about, because it turns out the 'Shark' is in super-high demand with more than a dozen corporations right now.

Tekashi 6ix9ine's Instagram page will stay up and running despite renewed uproar over his criminal record -- because the platform feels he hasn't violated their rules.

Here's the deal ... 6ix9ine ran into some legal trouble even before he hit it big. When he was younger -- age 18 -- he pled guilty to one count of Use of a Child in a Sexual Performance.

In light of that, folks started asking why he's even allowed to have an IG since Facebook -- the parent company -- has explicit terms saying convicted sex offenders are barred from the platform. FB said his account would be put under review.

We've got an update on that review from the folks at FB and Instagram -- and it's basically this ... Tekashi is NOT technically in violation of FB/IG's sex offender policy, at least that's how they're viewing it.

A source at Instagram tells us ... FB and IG took a hard look at his record, and turns out ... they found the guy's case -- which went down in NY -- and saw he was adjudicated as a “youthful offender” which is different from having an adult criminal conviction.

As a result, our source tells us Facebook will not be removing his account, as they don't believe -- based on their interpretation of things -- he meets the criteria that would mark him as a sex offender. Look it up yourself ... Tekashi (whose real name is Daniel Hernandez) does not appear on the state's sex offender registry.

The Manhattan D.A. confirms Tekashi's 2015 case was adjudicated as a Youthful Offender, but declined to offer more details. His attorney, Lance Lazzaro, shed a bit more light, telling us yes ... the crime was committed when T69 was 18. But, after he completed some sentencing requirements, the court granted him youthful offender status.

BTW, T69 has addressed the conviction himself on the Breakfast Club -- insisting he didn't know the girl was underage. Prosecutors say Tekashi was at a party where a nude 13-year-old girl was taped performing sex acts on a man, and T69 was seen making thrusting motions behind her and slapping her buttocks at one point.

Kodak Black is pissed at Walmart -- claiming the megastore is letting someone sell a knockoff version of one of his famous chains, and he's threatening a lawsuit if it doesn't stop -- but the retail giant is putting the blame on third-party sellers.

Here's the deal ... Walmart is getting dragged online because its website features a cheap chain that looks nearly identical to the Sniper Gang bling Kodak usually rocks.

Kodak’s attorney, Bradford Cohen, tells TMZ ... "We have been aware of the situation and have prepared a cease and desist letter to Walmart and the seller on the Walmart website."

The rapper's legal team adds ... "If Walmart refuses to recognize that the seller is not a licensed authorized dealer of Sniper Gang products, we will be proceeding with a lawsuit against both Walmart and the unauthorized seller."

Kodak is currently serving a 46-month prison sentence for gun possession.

Kodak's protege, Jackboy, has also called out Walmart for selling the Sniper Gang chains ... and he too is threatening legal action.

It appears the company has gotten wind of Kodak's anger, they tell us they're taking steps to remove the knockoffs and the chains are strictly from a third-party seller.

Mega-producer Mustard just came up with one helluva remix ... not only delivering free meals to those in need, but making sure they're healthy meals.

The hitmaker hopped on "TMZ Live" Monday to talk about his latest venture ... teaming up with his pal, YG, to buy up 7 L.A.-based Fishbone Seafood restaurants. But, the partnership doesn't end there. The L.A.-native ballers also partnered with Postmates to give back to their community ... delivering $100k worth of free food to L.A. residents and community organizations.

Check out the video and the pics ... Mustard said he wanted to lead by example and give back to his community, never forgetting his roots. The producer says he's not doing this for the praise. Far from it. It's about showing kids that those who make it out have a responsibility to give back.

Mustard -- who BTW, earned the stage name because his first name is Dijon (as in Dijon mustard, get it?) -- is also looking much different these days. Dude tells us being locked up in quarantine is what triggered the transformation ... with an assist from one of his camera guys.

Tory Lanez made a huge difference this Father's Day, helping 100 black men recently out of incarceration celebrate with their families for the first time on the outside.

The rapper and his Dream City Fund launched 100 Black Fathers with Van Jones and Cut50. The initiative is a partnership with Amazon Music, Door Dash and criminal justice reform organization Dream Corps to provide free dinners and gifts for the former inmates and their loved ones.

The 100 fathers were released from incarceration during the pandemic, so the food deliveries were of course "contactless." Their children got their hands on some Amazon gift cards codes, and gave them to their dads, no doubt leading to some hugs and huge smiles.

Tory is pretty passionate about the project ... he wrote an open letter to each of the fathers offering his support and empathy, because it's not every day you're released from prison straight into a pandemic and period of social and civil unrest.

TL wrote, in part ... "You're with your family. You deserve to enjoy today! I’m grateful to be a very small part of it. I know as a Black father raising Black children in this world, things aren’t easy."

Offset got showered with love on Father's Day by the 2 very important ladies in his life -- his wife, Cardi B, and their almost-2-year-old daughter.

The family trio hit up Tao restaurant in Hollywood Sunday night to celebrate dear old dad's special day, and the parents looked super flashy while Kulture went with downright adorable ... in a plaid dress with matching shoes.

The kid was also holding some sort of toy she seemed real happy about.

Though Offset was the man of the hour, it was Cardi who walked out at the end of the dinner with a huge bouquet of flowers ... but it looks like Kulture snagged one of those for herself too.

Ja Rule has made his services widely available to the general public -- the dude's offering up private party bookings now ... something his old foe, 50 Cent, finds awfully hilarious.

The rapper made an appearance this weekend at a private house party in New Jersey, where it looks like he was hired by a bunch of hotties to perform a few hit songs and hang out for a bit. One classic jam of his that he got around to playing ... "I'm Real," featuring J Lo.

Everyone was having a good ol' time, and Ja certainly had no shame in announcing that, yes, people CAN book him for gigs like this now. He's partnered up with ICONN, and there's an official way you can go about getting Ja to come to your shindig ... for a pretty penny.

Sounds neat, but of course ... there's always haters lurking in the back ready to pounce. In this case, Ja's nemesis, Fitty, came with a bag of jokes ready to fly at JR's expense.

He took to IG and wrote, "if you don’t want to end up doing private birthday parties for 15 people. 🤷🏽‍♂️stay out of my way, OK." Some folks credit 50 with stunting Ja's career -- at least that's how 50 sees it -- and he rides that narrative to no end ... constantly clowning the guy.

Jay-Z, Beyonce and the kids hopped aboard a private jet Friday for the Hamptons, but not before Bey released a new song -- "Black Parade" -- on Juneteenth.

Bey and Jay were decked out in face masks and super comfy sweatsuits. She's carrying Rumi Carter, and Jay's with Sir Carter. Blue Ivy was also front and center.

Beyonce's new song is an anthem to support black-owned businesses, and proceeds will benefit these small shops and companies. It was inspired by the brutal murder of George Floyd and is all about resilience and empowerment.

Bey said, "Happy Juneteenth Weekend! I hope we continue to share joy and celebrate each other, even in the midst of struggle. Please continue to remember our beauty, strentgh and power," adding, "BLACK PARADE celebrates you, your voice and your joy and will benefit Black-owned small businesses."

Post Malone is adding digital bartender and sommelier to his ever-growing resume ... because his new line of French wine is already a huge hit!!!

The "Better Now" rapper officially released his own French rosé, Maison No. 9, and it's already in high demand ... we're told Posty sold 50,000 bottles in 2 days during its pre-sale, wiping out the first round of inventory in a flash.

Post's fans sure are thirsty ... we're told Vivino, the sales platform hawking the booze, crashed on the first morning of the pre-sale because it couldn't handle the flood of orders.

The rosé is flying off the shelves at $21.99 a bottle ... it's named after Post's favorite tarot card (yes, he has one), the Nine of Swords. This is no cheapo novelty wine, either ... the drunk good folks at Wine.com rated it a 90 overall.

If you missed the pre-sale rush, chill. Post's rosé will be available online Monday in almost all states.

As if Post needs another reason to pop bottles. Cheers!!!

Travis Scott's new home looks more like a vacation destination, and one he paid all cash to get ... because that's just how the "Astronomical" rapper rolls.

Travis is the newest resident in Brentwood -- one of L.A.'s ritzier neighborhoods -- after dropping $23.5 million on the epic, 16,700-square-foot mansion ... which could double as the Getty Center museum, if needed.

Seriously, this pad is almost out of this world, with 7 bedrooms, 11 baths, 3 full floors of ultra-modern living space ... and it sits atop a hill with panoramic views over the city.

And, get this ... he got it for a bargain! The mansion was first offered last summer at nearly double the price -- $42 mil -- before undergoing 2 big price chops. That's when Scott swooped in and covered the entire purchase price in cash ... which is still one of the biggest in L.A.'s luxury real estate market.

Along with what you see, the property also boasts a 20-car "auto gallery" of a garage. Other highlights include a gym, bar, sauna, 15-seat theater, wine closet, massive pool and a lot more. Check out the gallery and you'll see ... this house is more like a resort.

Trav's new home's not far from LeBron James' either.

Of course, the rapper still has a $13.5 million mansion in L.A. -- which he co-owns with Kylie Jenner -- so that might be on the market soon. Or, who knows ... maybe he'll keep both.

Seems like he can afford it.

Drake should get more than 3 points for this shot, but it looks like he's playing solo ... so he wins no matter what. Also, he's playing from his 35,000 sq. ft mansion, so he'd already won.

The rapper was practicing cornhole trick shots Thursday night from long-distance -- about 50 feet away from the second-story window of his Toronto palace, and put one right in the hole after a few tries.

He was pretty pumped about it ... as was his lone spectator -- the guy recording the toss for the 'Gram.

Drake captioned his epic next-level shot, "Highlight of summer 2020 so far."

XXXTentacion's been gone for 2 years, but there's still fresh family drama brewing -- his half brother's suing XXX's mom, and accusing her of stealing.

Jodi Kavney, the mother of XXX's half brother, Corey Pack, claims XXX's mom, Cleopatra Bernard, concocted a plan to siphon off millions of dollars from her own son's trust -- money the late rapper set aside for Corey ... according to legal docs obtained by TMZ.

Jodi, who's suing on behalf of Corey, says in docs, XXX left behind assets in excess of $50 million ... including a trust that lists Corey as 1 of 3 beneficiaries. She claims the breakdown is supposed to be 50% to Cleopatra, 25% to XXX's brother, Aiden Kerr ... with Corey getting the remaining 25%.

But, in the lawsuit, Jodi claims Cleopatra cut a deal with XXX's baby mama which helped her cut Corey out of his portion of the estate. Jodi's now seeking to recover assets she claims were "improperly and surreptitiously transferred" by Cleopatra to herself.

Jodi's suing for $11 million in damages and may try to triple that amount ... if she can prove this was intentionally done. She also claims Corey's entitled to ownership rights to XXX's record label, Bad Vibe Entities.

Jodi's attorney, Natasha Shaikh, tells TMZ ... they originally sent a demand letter to Cleopatra seeking the $11M but says that fell on deaf ears ... so they filed the lawsuit to let the court decide. We reached out to Cleopatra for comment ... so far, no word back.

TMZ broke the story ... XXX was gunned down back in June 2018 while shopping for motorcycles at a South Florida dealer. Four suspects were arrested and indicted for the rapper's murder.

2 Chainz's got more drama over his ATL joint, and this time it's beef with the keepers of Pablo Escobar's name ... who are suing the rapper over the restaurant's name.

Pablo Escobar's family company, Escobar Inc., is suing 2 Chainz for at least $10 million ... claiming his Escobar Restaurant and Tapas -- there are 2 of 'em in Atlanta -- violates federal law with its unauthorized commercial use of the Escobar name and likeness.

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, the company's pissed 2 Chainz slapped the family name across his famous ATL restaurants, their websites and social media -- not to mention the clothing sold with the restaurant name.

The company says it owns the trademark to Escobar's likeness and 2 Chainz is using the name to generate traffic and sales. The company says, for example, 2 Chainz has Escobar's likeness painted inside one of his joints. They also point to the menu featuring "Escobar Crab Cakes."

Escobar Inc. wants the 8-figure damages, minimum, plus an injunction blocking use of the name and likeness at the restaurants.

As we've reported, 2 Chainz's ATL joints have had plenty of unrelated drama recently, stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.

Kids -- do NOT try this at home!!!

Lil Jon just took CRUNK to a whole 'nother level ... with the rap legend joining a pro Trophy Truck driver for the most INSANE joyride you'll ever see!!!

But, don't worry, everyone was wearing a helmet.

The "Turn Down For What" hype man joined 2020 Baja 1000 winner Alan Ampudia for a drive through the streets of Ensenada in Mexico ... and it's equally awesome and terrifying.

The duo -- with Jon in the passenger seat, obvi -- zoomed through the streets of the city, twisting and turning at every curve ... and even coming within inches of the edge of cliffs.

Ampudia even makes his own path and does some WILD jumps ... all while Lil Jon is trying to keep his cool (spoiler alert: he doesn't).

FYI -- Ampudia is one of the best drivers in the extremely dangerous industry ... he's a 2-time world champ, so Jon was in great company.

Once the boys made it to their destination safely, Lil Jon gave his Uber review -- saying, "That s**t was crazy. I got a different respect for y'all motherf***ers being in the car now. Y'all do this for a whole day!?"