TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Too Short is giving props to his home city of Oakland, a place that just named a street after him and dedicated a day as a holiday to the rapper.

TMZ Hip Hop linked with $hort Dawg Monday after his big weekend in Oakland, and he humbly tells us the honor couldn't have happened without immense support from the community.

In spite of racking up several platinum and gold plaques, Short says he didn't get into music for accolades and says his inner circle of people kept him grounded as his celebrity grew.

Over the weekend, Short was flanked by Ice Cube, Mistah F.A.B. and Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf at his old high school for his proclamation ceremony and then again for the street signing.

The "Blow the Whistle" rapper downplayed the abundance of flowers he received from the public -- but was eager to discuss the plans his Mount Westmore supergroup has on the horizon -- that could include Dr. Dre down the line!!!

On Friday, Short and Cube, along with Snoop Dogg and E-40, released their debut album as a unit and Short tells us Dr. Dre actually recorded a full verse for the album -- in addition to Dre's intro that appears on the song "Too Big."

Short says Snoop was adamant The Good Doctor appeared on the project in any capacity they all anticipate him appearing on at least one of their future projects.

Takeoff's alleged murderer, Patrick Xavier Clark, wants a taste of freedom at a discount ... asking a judge to reduce his bail so he can afford to get out from behind bars.

According to legal docs obtained by TMZ, Clark filed a motion in Texas Monday to reduce his $2 million bail ... his attorney, Carl Moore, says it's too much for his client to afford.

The alleged gunman wants a reduction to $100K, which he thinks he can pull together with the help of a professional bondsman. If granted, Clark says he'll stay with his parents, where he says he's always lived.

His legal team also says he'll wear a GPS monitor and abide by any curfew that may be imposed by the judge. Clark is also willing to surrender his passport and says he'll willingly follow any "no-contact" order with respect to certain people.

Takeoff was shot and killed outside a Houston bowling alley in November. Clark was arrested and charged with the murder of the Migos rapper.

The court is finally hearing opening arguments in the Tory Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion case  ... and both sides are laying out what happened the night Meg was allegedly shot in the foot by Tory.

Prosecutors kicked things off on Monday -- claiming that Tory fired 5 shots on the evening of July 12, 2020, striking Megan in both feet -- claiming Tory was set off after Megan insulted his skills by sarcastically calling him a "beautiful artist."

According to the prosecution, Tory's text messages after the fact admitting to being too drunk and apologizing profusely are pretty damning evidence.

You'll recall ... after leaving Kylie Jenner's pool party, Megan, Tory and Kelsey were said to have gotten into a black SUV with a man named Jauquan Smith, who prosecutors say drove Tory to the party and brought a 9mm handgun.

According to prosecutors, following Megan's alleged diss, Jauquan pulled the truck over and Megan and Kelsey got out of the car ... when Tory is said to have fired the gun at Megan, instructing her to "dance bitch."

As for Tory's side ... they claim the pair was at Kylie's home for a pool party when things went south and Meg was asked to leave. It appears the defense is trying to make the jury believe Tory was not the trigger man.

Tory's attorney, George Mgdesyan, also argued Tory's DNA wasn't on the gun and that he was wearing a swimsuit during the alleged incident, asking the jury, "Where did he pull the gun from?"

E-40's Goon with the Spoon ice cream brand just got a bit more flavorful ... thanks to the debut of the Bay Area legend's new chicken and waffles flavor!!!

The Mount Westmore member unveiled the interesting new dessert Monday ... marking the inaugural rollout for his soul food division.

The concoction is actually more scientific than you think ... we're told 40 didn't use chicken but Flock Chicken Chips to recreate the fowl flavor and mixed with waffles, maple syrup and brown butter ice cream to enhance the experience.

40 tells TMZ Hip Hop he always wanted to create a food brand that reflects diversity and culture -- "Culinary arts is my passion and, as a Black entrepreneur with a prominent platform, I’m committed to doing my part to bring the worlds of food, culture and entertainment together like never before.”

The chicken and waffles treat follows Cookie Dough, Bourbon Vanilla, Vanilla Bean, Strawberry, Mint Chocolate and Salted Caramel flavors in 40's GWTS brand but we're told the next flavor on the menu will be "Black Wall Street."

Curren$y's hometown New Orleans Pelicans are on a hot streak, winning their last 7 games -- so, now he's getting in on the celebration ... in a very personal way.

The NOLA rapper was on hand for the Pels' overtime victory against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday, and afterward MVP candidate Zion Williamson -- who scored a season-high 35 points -- gifted the veteran lyricist his worn jersey!!!

Curren$y's other homie, Chris Paul, sent the game into overtime with a tying bucket, but the Western Conference-leading Pels prevailed, and Spitta thinks their last 2 wins -- both against the Suns -- have done wonders for the city.

An appreciative Curren$y said the postgame gift meant "the world" to him -- and he's been a proponent of the Pels' uplifting the community for some time.

We last spoke to Curren$y during the Pels' playoff run last season when it was cut short -- ironically by Chris Paul and the Suns -- where he predicted the experience would not only help the team but boost ticket sales, which in turn, boots camaraderie throughout the city.

Diddy shocked the world when he revealed he had recently welcomed a new baby girl into the world ... and now we've learned more about the baby's mother.

According to the baby's birth certificate, Love Sean Combs was born October 15 in Newport Beach, CA. Diddy is listed as the father and 28-year-old Dana Tran is the mother. Dana goes by Dana Tee on most of her socials ... though it appears her Instagram was recently deleted.

Dana works in the cyber security industry and appears to be a SoCal native.

It's unclear exactly when Diddy and Dana met, or the extent of their relationship ... but obviously Diddy isn't hiding the fact he's a new dad.

He wrote Saturday, "I'm so blessed to welcome my baby girl Love Sean Combs to the world. Mama Combs, Quincy, Justin, Christian, Chance, D'Lila, Jessie and myself all love you so much! God is the Greatest!"

21 Savage couldn't fully enjoy the moment he and Drake had performing during Lil Baby's friends and fam concert inside State Farm Arena over the weekend.

The "Her Loss" co-star surprised his hometown audience during Drake's performance of their song "Rich Flex" -- and nailed his cameo but after the show, he admitted he was lamenting the absence of several ATL superstars.

Despite Future, Chris Brown, Lil Yachty and several other high-profile rappers turning out for Lil Baby's extended birthday bash ...  21 said the event didn't feel the same without the incarcerated YSL members Young Thug and Gunna and added an extra heartbreak for Lil Keed and Takeoff ... who both died this year.

Takeoff's Migos brother Offset has also been coping with the pain ... recently dedicating The Jackson 5's "Never Can Say Goodbye" to the slain star while performing at the SteppinOut Music Festival in Bengaluru, India on Sunday.

Desiigner appears to have reconsidered his decision to quit rap following Takeoff's murder ... and is using his new song to once again distance himself from the Future comparisons that have plagued him since his career began.

Over the weekend, Desiigner released the song "Bigger and Bigger" ... an Auto-Tuned blowout that finds the New York-born rapper bragging about his wealth increasing and detailing his past crimes.

Desiigner was obviously peeved by the criticism the song reminded fans of a Future track and used the opportunity to take aim at his critics on TikTok ... captioning the video "When they say I sound like Future" with his new song playing as his nose grew like Pinocchio.

Ironically, Desiigner earned a Billboard No. 1 single before Future when his debut single "Panda" went topped the charts in 2016, but to Desiigner's point ... confusing the two artists at this point doesn't make a ton of sense.

Future recently won Song of the Year with triple-platinum Drake and Tems collaboration "Wait For U," is up for 6 Grammys next year -- and just dumped his song catalog for several million dollars!!!

Desiigner threatened to retire over hip hop's violence ... but is back to rapping about his gang of hitters on the new track.

Too Short is officially getting his flowers from his hometown of Oakland -- he now has a street sign in his honor for his years of community service!!!

The ceremony was a full circle moment … the Bay Area rap legend was honored inside his '84 alma mater Fremont High School, where he was a standout drum player.

As a result, Mayor Libby Schaaf proclaimed December 10 as "Too Short Day" and renamed the stretch of Foothill Boulevard after the legendary rap star.

Oakland OGs Sway Calloway and Mistah F.A.B., who himself just received the key to city, were also on hand to show love -- which Short passionately lobbed back to the people of the Bay, touching on many key points that shaped his globally successful career.

Short's Mount Westmore bandmate Ice Cube also shared some emotional words … crediting the "Blow the Whistle" rapper for creating his own rap lane and bringing hope to the state of California as a whole.

It was Mayor Schaaf's last proclamation in office as her term is ending at the end of the year, but she left Short with some bars of her stating, "You have told the stories of Oakland’s streets, so it’s only right that Oakland gives you a street!!!"

DaBaby's famous song "Rockstar" is a total ripoff, according to a new lawsuit ... because a music producer claims the rapper straight-up jacked his rhythm.

DaBaby is being sued by a music producer with the stage name JuJu Beatz, who claims DaBaby stole the entire beat for his No. 1 song.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, JuJu claims he sent DaBaby's camp a musical composition back in 2019, which was then sampled for "Rockstar" without his permission.

In the suit, JuJu claims he sent the beat in a digital file to DaBaby's team ... and he says DaBaby's camp accessed the file more than 40 times between late 2019 and early 2020. "Rockstar" came out in April 2020.

JuJu claims "Rockstar" has earned millions of dollars since it dropped ... but he says he hasn't been compensated for his beat, which he says was sampled illegally.

The music producer says he's tried to resolve the matter without going to court, but DaBaby has been unwilling to "cooperate or accept responsibility for blatant and willful copyright infringement" ... so now he's suing for damages.

Teddy Riley and his Guy bandmates are getting back together for a classic R&B reunion that will take them on the road for what's shaping up to be one of 2023's biggest tours.

We're told it will be a full group reunion for Guy, with Teddy Riley, Aaron and Damion Hall all in, and they're relinking with New Edition is especially epic -- the 2 groups haven't toured together since 2016.

Guy was one of the hottest acts in the early '90s, selling millions of records, but more importantly, helping pioneer the "New Jack Swing" era that later set up hip hop culture to dominate down the line.

As if those 2 acts wouldn't be a big enough draw ... we're told R&B legends Keith Sweat and Tank will also be in the mix, cementing an era of R&B millions hold dear to their hearts. 💘

TMZ Hip Hop recently spoke to Bobby Brown at LAX ... where he initially popped the lid on the tour, and told us why he and the rest of NE's bond will forever be strong.

We're told New Edition will be performing a host of new songs they didn't do on their last tour -- which previously ranked as one of Pollstar Awards Top 10 U.S. tours.

Kanye West apparently finds the idea of Meek Mill being a high-ranking celebrity that's to be taken seriously laughable -- to which Meek says ... hey, at least I still have my wits about me.

The Philly rapper responded to a Clubhouse chat that Ye participated in this weekend -- during which, he mentioned Meek being part of a group of stars whom Kanye suggested were being rallied to reign him in amid his ongoing media appearances.

Ye -- apparently referencing someone else's plan to confront Ye in what sounds like an intervention setting -- name-dropped Diddy and Dave Chappelle ... and then Meek, which made KW laugh out loud and uncontrollably for several seconds.

He added, "What made somebody think Meek Mill could say something to me?" Somebody else on the CH tried defending Meek, saying he's a gangster -- but Ye wasn't buying it.

Welp, MM himself caught wind of the shade ... and he fired back with pretty spicy comments of his own. He took to Twitter Sunday and wrote, "Never lost my mind for fame or money … I still have my family …my people respect me … I’m freeing people from prison… I’m doing community service all month with children up close and personal."

Meek adds, "I’m chilling wit my son and his friends today.. y’all on clubhouse at 50 lol."

Meek and Kanye have been on fairly good terms in the past, having attended the same events and posing in the same shots even. MM has even gone so far as to say recently that he used to find Kanye to be a huge source of inspiration early in his career. Used to ...

French Montana is on top of the world, and it showed as he led a massive Times Square rally to celebrate his homeland of Morocco making World Cup history.

The rapper was a proud cheerleader Saturday evening as he stood on top of scaffolding, waving the Moroccan flag and chanting along with a crowd of thousands who were hyped up about their soccer team defeating Portugal -- sorry Cristiano Ronaldo -- and making it to the World Cup semifinals.

French -- who was born and raised in Casablanca, Morocco until his teen years -- had pure joy written all over his face after watching his Atlas Lions play the Cinderella role.

Morocco is now the first African, and first Arab-speaking country to advance this far in the World Cup tournament -- and they've defeated powerhouse teams like Belgium, Spain, and now Portugal, along the way.

Kanye West may never win another music-related award again, but there's one group that's honoring him with a not-so-flattering title ... "Antisemite of the Year."

After several weeks and nearly 10,000 votes from members online, watchdog group StopAntisemitism has named Ye the most problematic person of 2022 when it comes to the group's mission.

Liora Rez, SA's Executive Director, tells TMZ, "Kanye uses his celebrity platform to push dangerous antisemitic tropes about Jews and power and he refuses to stop. His continuous onslaught of bigoted statements has resulted in horrific antisemitic acts perpetrated by white supremacists, Black Hebrew Israelites, and other fringe groups looking to cause Jews harm."

She continues, "Jew hatred is already out of control in the United States and the last thing we need is a celebrity like Kanye to add fuel to that fire.”

It's not hard to find the evidence backing Kanye's "Antisemite of the Year" victory.

As we reported, it was shortly after he declared he was, "going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE" when a group was spotted hanging a "Kanye is right about the Jews" sign over an L.A. freeway.

Just a few days after that, Kanye told Piers Morgan he only wished harm on Jewish people who did him wrong in music and business deals.

Finally, it was last week on Alex Jones "Infowars" when Kanye declared he loved Hitler, denied parts of the Holocaust and demanded Nazis get hated on less when things really ramped up.

We know Adidas, Balenciaga and some of Kanye's closest friends have all cut ties ... he even lost an honorary degree.

Diddy has added another member to the family ... announcing he's welcomed a baby girl into his life, who really takes after her old man.

The Bad Boy honcho broke the news Saturday, which came out of nowhere -- saying he has a new daughter whom he's effectively named after himself. Diddy writes, "I’m so blessed to welcome my baby girl Love Sean Combs to the world. Mama Combs, Quincy, Justin, Christian, Chance, D’Lila, Jessie and myself all love you so much! God is the Greatest!"

It's unclear when this kid was born, or who the mother is ... Diddy didn't spill those details. But, he's clearly happy about the latest bundle of joy, so we suppose that's all that matters. The baby marks the 7th child of his -- he has 6 other children from different women.

Of course, this is taking the internet by complete surprise ... as no one even seemed to know Diddy was an expecting father of late. We know he's in a polyamorous relationship with Yung Miami -- but there's no suggestion she's the mom, as she hasn't appeared preggo at all.

They were spotted out together as recently as this past week, and YM looks as slim as ever. It's also not entirely clear at this point if Miami was even aware of this child of Diddy's. She responded to a Twitter user who told her to hop on a podcast, as the public has questions.

Her reply was simply a pair of eyeball emojis ... which is pretty telling in and of itself.

We've reached out to Diddy's rep for more clarification ... but so far, haven't heard back. In the meantime -- congrats, Puff.

Fat Joe’s latest round of storytelling has landed him in the crosshairs of Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell … who disagrees with Joe’s recollection of a key Florida rap timeline.

Joe was a guest on Math Hoffa’s “My Expert Opinion” over the summer -- where he claimed to have been the first cosign for future legends Trick Daddy and Pitbull … and spun their early demos into successful career launches -- like the Don he says he is.

Joe also took credit for blowing up his fellow Bronx rapper French Montana — but the 2 Live Crew founder, who just came across the interview, couldn’t stomach the Pitbull and TD comments and dug into his bag of receipts ... which Rick Ross found rather amusing.

He actually commented under Luke's long caption, laughing at his word selection.

Anyway, Luke says it was HE who put Trick Daddy on -- via their 1996 booty-shaking anthem collaboration "Scarred" -- recorded right when TD came home from jail and started his career ... suggesting FJ was full of it for claiming he had discovered him.

The proud Miami native said the same for Pitbull ... noting he signed the Cuban megastar to his Luke Records imprint during his career origins, which happened back in 2001.

Bottom line ... Luke is directly contradicting Joe's recollection of events, and dares him to correct the record, as he says he has proof to back his memory. Not just that, but Luke went on to say he actually dug DJ Khaled out of obscurity and made him mainstream too.

Joe hasn't responded yet -- but the dude's been catching a lot of flak lately for such tales -- including the assertion that Latinos were equally important in founding the hip hop genre.