TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Shaquille O'Neal says everyone needs to chill about his "booty" comment to Megan Thee Stallion -- saying he was just showing love, not trying to smash.

People went crazy recently over a comment Shaq left while watching Megan Thee Stallion twerk it out during an Instagram Live.

The comment? "Watching that booty."

Yeah ... even his son, Shareef, commented ... saying, "I feel you pops."

So, was Shaq shooting his shot? The Diesel says it was just a compliment and nothing more.

"This is what happened America … I was in [the IG Live session]. Somebody said, 'What are you doing in there?' And, I typed what I typed. I wasn’t trying to hit on her."

When asked if Meg responded to Shaq's comment, O'Neal downplayed it ... saying, "I don't know, I didn’t even check."

Mmmmmmmhmmmmm ...

There's more ... Shaq also heaped praise on LaMelo Ball -- saying the #3 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft is straight ballin' right now.

He's right -- did you see that pass Melo hit during a pre-season game the other day? Good lord!

And, to cap it off ... Shaq also tried out a motorized tricycle (also called a standing scooter) -- and props to whoever made it, because it ran with some zip, even with a giant like O'Neal riding on it!

Too Short and E-40 played their classic tracks, put down some classic dancing and told classic stories -- so yeah, the last "Verzuz" of 2020 was a West Coast classic.

The Bay Area rap legends acknowledged their longstanding friendship from "BR" -- before rap, as 40 puts it -- but then went at each other in a tight competition. As with most "Verzuz" battles ... the online debate about a winner was fierce.

Too Short played hits like "Freaky Tales," "Life Is...Too $Hort," "I'm a Player," "Buy You Some'" and "Blow the Whistle."

E-40 brought it with "U and Dat," "Captain Save A Hoe," "I Got 5 On It" (Remix), "Yay Area," and "Hope I Don't Go Back."

Both were sipping on drinks throughout the night which, for E-40 at least, meant it was time to do some dancing -- hilariously entertaining.

As TMZ first reported ... the stage setup featured 2 classic lowrider whips behind each MC, and they also repped for the Bay with street signs for their hometowns of Oakland and Vallejo.

So, the consensus is E-40 hit hard early on in the battle, but Short put together a 2nd half streak of bangers -- as for who won overall?

Where's Maury Povich when ya need him? Lil Pump's probably hearing him in his head, 'cause TMZ's learned the rapper is NOT the father of the baby he claimed was his. Let us explain.

Earlier this week, Pump posted a pic -- taken last Sunday on a yacht in Miami -- holding a baby boy. Cute and nothing out of the ordinary ... except the caption shocked his 17 million followers: "Baby momma ain’t s**t won’t let me see my son #fathers right."

That created a big stir on social media, and in the hip-hop world ... with several outlets reporting Lil Pump had disclosed he was a father for the first time, and was dealing with baby mama drama.

But, as MJ put it ... the kid is not his son!!! Sources tell TMZ the baby boy is actually the son of Andre Malek, a yacht captain who operates charters in Miami.

We're told the baby boy's known for taking pictures with celebs and hot women who hire his dad.

Hell, Andre's son even has his own Instagram account ... @CaptainAdorable305.

Earlier this year he took a pic with Cuba Gooding Jr. and the pic was captioned, "This not what I meant when I asked for some OJ...😅🙈."

Kansas City Chiefs receiver Tajae Sharpe is paying tribute to King Von with his newest cleats ... repping the late rapper with an incredible custom paint job.

As we previously reported, the 26-year-old rising rap star was shot and killed last month outside an Atlanta nightclub ... a tragedy that shook sports stars from LeBron James to Montrezl Harrell, Stephen Jackson and more.

TMZ Sports has learned ... Sharpe wanted to pay homage to one of his favorite rappers  .. and hit up artist Joe Castro from California to bless him with a pair dedicated to Von.

Castro -- who's worked with huge names like Chase Young and DeSean Jackson -- got to work on the special project ... and delivered an awesome product.

Each cleat has an image of Von on each side ... and features phrases that honor the rapper's background -- from the famous Chicago "O Block," which he repped, and his nickname "Grandson," which is also the name of his first mixtape in 2019.

Castro tells us Sharpe picked the perfect portrait of King Von for the cleats ... and the whole project took him 6 hours to complete.

Sharpe just signed with the Chiefs this week ... and you gotta assume he'll be hoping to wear them on the field in Von's honor.

"Verzuz" is pulling out all the stops for its 2020 finale, and when Too Short and E-40 hit the stage it'll look like a full-fledged arena concert ... proving how much of a cash cow the show's become.

The Bay Area icons will face off on a soundstage in NorCal that will reflect the nearly $500,000 budget for this single event ... according to sources involved in the production.

TMZ obtained a blueprint of the stage setup for 40 and Short, and you can tell Swizz Beatz, Timbaland and Apple are thinking big.

We're told the MCs will be surrounded by concert-style lighting and some expensive props -- 2 classic old school cars will be on stage behind each of them. Makes sense, both Short and 40 have told us their battle will be an homage to the Bay's hip-hop scene.

Our sources say Apple -- which is now streaming all the "Verzuz" episodes -- realizes how much of a cultural phenomenon the show is, and they're spending like it.

In fact, Short and 40 almost squared off at the Steve Jobs Theater on the Apple Campus, but due to COVID safety concerns, the show had to be moved.

Unlike Jeezy and Gucci Mane, the Oakland legends are longtime friends who come into the "Verzuz" beef-free. However, when they came on "TMZ Live," it was very clear they're both playing to win.

Mulatto's encouraging voter turnout in Georgia by doing what she does best ... grabbing a mic.

The "Muwop" rapper hit up a polling place Friday in DeKalb County where she gave people waiting in line to vote an impromptu concert while riding on the bed of a huge truck. She had the whole setup on that truck ... from huge speakers to even a hype man.

There was also a banner that read "Joy to the Polls" ... making her message crystal clear. The 21-year-old rapper's trying to get as many young people to the polls in Georgia's Senatorial runoff, which has huge national ramifications.

Remember ... Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock are respectively taking on GOP incumbents David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler. The outcome will determine which party controls the Senate. If the Dems win out they'd have the Senate and the House, and President-elect Joe Biden gets a much easier path for his agenda.

Mulatto told us she's aware of the influence she has on young voters ... adding "whatever I do, they're gonna do. If I encourage people to vote, they'll come out and vote." She's not the first rapper to take to the streets in Georgia pushing for voter turnout.

Too Short and E-40 don't want you to get it twisted ... they're buddy-buddy now, but there's gonna be plenty of smack talk leading up to and during their rap battle ... and it's already heating up.

The Bay Area rappers joined us on "TMZ Live" Friday ahead of their highly-anticipated matchup on "Verzuz," and we asked them if they're really going to keep it friendly during Saturday's match.

Short and 40 say don't let their chummy attitudes fool you ... they're coming out swinging. In fact, each of 'em threw a jab or 2 while we were talking to them.

Remember ... this week in Bev Hills, Too Short made it sound like it was going to be all love between them -- and nothing like the beef-fueled "Verzuz" Gucci Mane and Jeezy put down.

But, now, as they get close to game time ... their competitive juices are flowing.

Eminem's clapping back at Snoop Dogg in a new song after Snoop left him off his top 10 rappers list ... and he's also giving Rihanna a long-overdue apology.

The Detroit rapper just released a deluxe version of his album, "Music to Be Murdered By - Side B" and he responds to Snoop on his track, "Zeus."

Em raps ... "And as far as squashin' beef, I'm used to people knockin' me. But, just not in my camp. I'm diplomatic, 'cause I'm tryna be. Last thing I need is Snoop doggin' me. Man, dog, you was like a damn God to me. Man, not really. I had dog backwards."

Pretty soft as disses go, but Eminem's rebuttal comes after Snoop left him off his list of top 10 rappers of all time. Back in July, Snoop called Eminem "the great white hope" ... but basically Em owes all his success to Dr. Dre.

Em and Snoop have performed together -- they're both tight with Dre -- but now their beef seems to be heating up. It'll be interesting to see how/if they patch things up.

As for Rihanna ... Eminem said he's sorry for an older track -- not released, but leaked -- where he said he "sided" with Chris Brown.

He raps, also on Zeus, "But, me, long as I re-promise to be honest, and wholeheartedly, apologies, Rihanna. For that song that leaked, I'm sorry, Ri. It wasn't meant to cause you grief. Regardless, it was wrong of me."

Too Short's promising no hate between E-40 and him for their upcoming Verzuz, and instead of bad blood -- a la Gucci Mane and Jeezy -- they're dropping knowledge.

We got the legendary Bay Area rapper Thursday as he shopped in Bev Hills. He told us he's not coming for his opponent's throat when the battle goes down this weekend ... but he's not taking it easy either.

Too Short admits there won't be any diss tracks about fatally shooting other rapper's friends -- but, watch the video, he explains what he and E-40 have planned and declares there will definitely be a winner.

Verzuz is going down Saturday, but you can tell Short's pretty chill about it and feeling a lot of love for his and E-40's hometown. That's obvious considering he stopped to pick up a new chain at Peter Marco Extraordinary Jewels with his friend and 'RHOC' star Liz Vargas as well as the pair's manager, David Weintraub.

Short says he'll be wearing some bling specifically for the Verzuz, and he says it's going to be auctioned off for charity after the battle.

Lil Baby is looking out for George Floyd's family ... by hosting a huge bash for George's daughter, Gianna.

Her 7th birthday party is going down right now in Atlanta. Our sources tell us the rapper is covering all the expenses, and it looks like he pulled out all the stops. We're told the party idea was conceived by restaurant owners Ericka and William Platt of Restaurant Ten and Rosie's Cafe.

Video from the bash shows a huge playroom at The Pink Hotel decked out with tons of colorful balloons, birthday signs and a bunch of food.

The venue looks pretty big, it's at least 2 stories, and there are other areas where Gianna and the girls are getting their hair done, plus manicures and foot spas.

Sure seems like the balling-est 7-year-old turn-up we've ever seen -- which means lots of dollhouses.

Lil Baby and Shaq stopped to take a couple pictures with the birthday girl ... and Gianna says she was totally surprised.

Dionne Warwick's musings on Chance The Rapper and The Weeknd are turning into tangible benefits -- they're getting together to help feed the hungry.

Here's the deal ... Dionne and Chance are working together on an initiative to feed homeless people, after starting a friendship on Twitter. Chance announced Tuesday on Windy City LIVE in Chicago they'll be raising money with a new song -- and TMZ's learned The Weeknd will be joining them for the collab.

Dionne's son, Dionne Damon Elliott, tells TMZ ... he's writing and producing the track, which is called "Nothing's Impossible." DDE says The Weeknd decided to get in on the action after a phone call with Dionne, where he expressed how food insecurity is personal for him. The Weeknd was once homeless himself.

We're told money from song streams will benefit Hunger Not Impossible ... an org connecting folks in need with prepaid, nutritious to-go meals from local restaurants all over the country.

DDE says the track will drop early next year ... they haven't nailed down a release date because production is in the early stages. We're told Dionne's sent some of her vocals over to Chance and The Weeknd.

J Lo claims love don't cost a thing, but Cardi B's proving otherwise by handing Offset keys to a very rare Lamborghini for his 29th birthday.

The "WAP" rapper blindfolded her hubby Monday night and slowly walked him over to his birthday gift ... a Lambo Aventador SVJ 63 Roadster. The sticker price is a whopping $600k. Keep in mind, Offset just gifted Cardi a new Rolls-Royce for her bday -- so, sorry J Lo.

One look at the bronze-ish Lambo and Offset was stunned -- and even speechless for a sec -- but it didn't take long for him to erupt in celebration once he got a closer look at the SVJ.

The initials stand for Super Veloce Jota -- Italian for super-fast, and the 63 is for the number of them Lambo made. Cool car facts that Offset definitely knew.

Anyway ... the birthday celebration continued in what appears to be a nightclub, presumably in the Atlanta area, and the joint was packed. There seemed to be very few people wearing masks, and social distancing was non-existent.

A source close to the couple tells us COVID tests were taken and the party followed CDC guidelines in place for Atlanta.

Prior to kicking off the festivities ... Cardi B took to Instagram to honor her hubby saying, "Happy birthday Hubs ❤️ I wish you many more."

She added, "Thank you soo much for helping me these past months getting my business in line (somebbody gotta be the mean 1 😅 ) I ❤️ u. Let's turn it up tonight!!"

Well, that they did, as you can see in the video.

It's unclear if any testing went down prior to Offset's shindig, but it's interesting coming on the heels of the convo we had with him over the weekend about COVID-19 and the vaccine.

Offset says he is not planning to get vaccinated for coronavirus -- and his reasoning all boils down to trust and fairness.

We spoke to the Migos rapper Saturday in Bev Hills, and straight up asked if he'd take the COVID vaccine ... which is on the verge of being distributed to the first group in the coming days.  He's blunt and to the point -- he's planning on passing.

Offset mentions a viral photo that's been making the rounds ... showing a few people with their faces frozen in a distorted position, with their mouths slightly open.

The photos were supposedly taken of a few volunteers who were inoculated with the Pfizer vaccine.  The online chatter -- these were some of the side effects. The word from Scientists -- the side effects are generally mild, flu-like symptoms.

The FDA DID acknowledge 4 Pfizer volunteers were struck with a bout of Bell's Palsy -- but the government agency notes there was no way to conclusively link the vaccine to the development of their temporary facial paralysis. Still, people got freaked out.

Same goes for Offset -- who tells us that he simply doesn't trust the government (for the most part) and that even Barack Obama being willing to get vaccinated on video isn't enough to sway him. Offset then pivoted to a different train of thought.

Check it out ... he starts talking about how celebs and politicians get special treatment when it comes COVID therapeutics and medical treatment -- and he wouldn't feel right getting vaccinated ASAP knowing there are others just as deserving who get lesser treatment.

He also talks about the fact that the government at large hasn't done enough for the Black community to convince him they have his and his people's best interest at heart. What he touches on here is a huge problem too, BTW -- only 40% or so of the African-American community say they'll take the vaccine, and even less (14%) say they trust it.

That probably stems from several things, not the least of which includes the Tuskegee experiments, in which 600 Black men were shockingly deceived and mistreated.

It's a complex and pervasive issue in the community -- a view people in power are trying to reverse. It's also why Dr. Tony Fauci recently made a point to say the vaccine was developed, in part, by a Black woman.

Snoop Dogg thinks Cardi B needs to rein it in a little when it comes to talking about and showing off her lady parts -- which has a lot of people scratching their heads.

The legendary rapper -- who's no stranger to getting raunchy -- sat down for a virtual interview recently with Central Ave and gave his honest thoughts about Cardi's hit song 'WAP,' which he says is a bit much on the explicit front ... and not a good look.

He says Cardi should "slow down" when discussing her privates, because he feels like a woman's vagina is something that should be cherished and kept secret for whoever's fortunate enough to encounter it. He says he'd like to see more privacy and intimacy, and 'WAP' pretty much epitomizes the exact opposite of that ... in his eyes.

Of course, folks were quick to jump on Snoop and call him out for what seems like hypocrisy -- seeing how he's made a career rapping about women and sex, and sometimes in very explicit terms.

Not to worry, because that irony was not lost on Snoop in his chat -- he acknowledged that if he was a younger man, he'd probably be all about it ... and might even hop on the 'WAP' remix. With that said, he notes that he's just older and sees things differently now.

Snoop mentioned having a daughter changing his perspective on life, but in the same breath ... he says she's "of this generation," so he tries not to flex too much.

Oh, the times ... they are a-changin', Snoop.

Lil Wayne just pled guilty in federal court to illegally possessing a loaded weapon while traveling to Miami on a private jet.

The feds say an anonymous tip led them to Wayne's PJ at the Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport on December 23, 2019, and when they boarded to speak to the passengers ... Wayne told them he had a gun in his bag.

Police say they found a gold-plated Remington 1911, .45-caliber handgun loaded with 6 rounds of ammunition. They also claim they found a bag containing personal use amounts of cocaine, ecstasy, and oxycodone.

Lil Wayne pled guilty to the gun charge Friday in Miami, and his sentencing is scheduled for next month. Weezy, who was convicted of a felony gun charge in NY back in 2009, is now facing up to 10 years in prison.

However, he's likely to get leniency. Our sources say Wayne agreed to the guilty plea and in exchange, the government agreed to recommend a lighter sentence because he's accepting responsibility. Ultimately, his sentence will be up to a judge, but it's a good sign for Tunechi.

Dionne Warwick's calling on her A-list friends to help celebrate her 80th birthday ... which is doubling as a fundraiser for an important cause.

The legendary singer hopped on "TMZ Live" Friday to dish deets on her Holiday Musical Birthday Celebration ... a virtual party and concert, going down Saturday, her 80th birthday.

Dionne's using the occasion to lift spirits with her angelic voice while also raising money for Hunger Not Impossible ... an org connecting kids and families in need with prepaid, nutritious to-go meals from nearby restaurants.

Some of Dionne's pals joining the festivities include Aloe Blacc and country stars John Rich and the Oak Ridge Boys -- but anyone can join through her website, where fans can buy packages with cool perks. Aside from getting entry to the virtual event, you can get a private Zoom meet-and-greet with Dionne and a special shout out from her.

And, Dionne's still making new friends ... she told us all about the friendship she's formed with Chance the Rapper since she playfully checked him on his stage name.