TMZ Hip Hop - Page 7

50 Cent was pleasantly surprised with Diddy dodging the feds' most serious charges and came up with a new nickname for his arch-rival -- the "Gay John Gotti"!!!

The backhanded compliment has its merits in Teflon ... Diddy was found NOT GUILTY on 3 of 5 counts ... acquitted of racketeering and sex trafficking of Cassie and Jane following their tearful testimonies -- all cleared off the table!!! He's guilty of 2 counts of transportation for prostitution.

50 trolled Diddy throughout the trial, even adopting the evil genius of A.I. images ... but had to tip his hat and acknowledged his OG title as a "Bad Boy" within the music industry.

So now that disgraced music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs has been found guilty on two of five counts in his federal criminal trial in NYC, what happens to him now?

Shortly after the jury verdict was read in court, Judge Arun Subramanian thanked the jury for their service and dismissed them. Diddy defense attorney Marc Agnifilo implored the judge to let his client walk today pending sentencing ... since he's been acquitted of the most serious charges.

The judge asked for briefs from the prosecution and the defense teams on release pending sentencing ... Judge Subramanian has indicated he could rule on whether to keep Diddy in custody until he's sentenced, or released on conditions on bond. The sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.

Diddy is about to learn his fate ... because the jury in his federal criminal trial says they have reached a verdict.

This is the second time the jury sent a note about a verdict ... on Tuesday, they said they reached a verdict on the sex trafficking and Mann Act counts but were unable to reach a verdict on the racketeering conspiracy charge.

Diddy's just waiting to hear the verdict now ... and, he and his family members are falling back on prayer during this difficult time.

The rapper led his family in prayer Wednesday morning before heading back to his holding settle in the Manhattan federal courthouse ... telling his fam to be strong.

He asked God to bless his family and the hearts of the jurors during the prayer, finishing off the remarks with an "Amen."

Tupac went up in smoke ... at least according to Suge Knight, who says Pac's friends and family rolled his cremated remains into a blunt and started puffing.

Suge laughed recalling the smoke sesh in an interview with PEOPLE ... telling the outlet he was one of the only ones in 2Pac's circle who didn't hit the blunt.

The Death Row Records mogul says he was on probation at the time and told Tupac's mother he would love to smoke on Pac's remains but feared he would get in trouble if he took a hit.

Diddy is on the verge of finding out if he's going to federal prison or being set free ... because the jury in his criminal trial is nearing the finish line in terms of a verdict.

The jury came back Tuesday afternoon and said they had reached a verdict on four of the five charges against Diddy ... but they were deadlocked on the racketeering conspiracy charge.

Deliberations only began Monday and jurors asked earlier Tuesday for transcripts about some Cassie testimony regarding freak-offs ... and they only need to find one instance of Diddy using force, fraud or coercion to get Cassie to engage in a freak-off to find him guilty of sex trafficking.

Drake debuted his washboard waistline this week to a bit of skepticism -- but Benzino doesn't want anyone to get it confused when it comes to his own workout regimen!!!

The ex-"Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta" star tells TMZ Hip Hop he commits to fasting at least once a week while locking into the gym approximately 5x a week!!!

He also fuels those weekly workouts with a simple smoothie for breakfast -- keeping his BMI slim to none.

Sean “Diddy” Combs is in a real nail-biter after a partial verdict was reached Tuesday in his federal criminal trial -- and the mogul tried to calm his family's nerves.

Diddy turned to his mother, Janice, seated behind him in the second row, after she asked him a few muffled questions inside the NYC courtroom. Diddy then leaned in and whispered to his mom, "I'll be alright" and "love you," while thumping his chest.

The Bad Boy Records CEO also said something under his breath to his six adult kids, who were present in the gallery, including Christian, Justin and Quincy. The children then exited the courtroom with sad faces.

Diddy won't learn his fate until Wednesday at the earliest because the judge in his federal criminal trial told jurors to continue deliberating on the racketeering conspiracy charge ... even though they say they have reached a verdict on the other four charges.

Judge Arun Subramanian just dismissed the jury for the day ... and they will come back Wednesday morning and head straight for the jury room to continue deliberations.

The jury previously sent a note saying they reached a verdict on the sex trafficking and Mann Act counts but were unable to reach a verdict on the racketeering conspiracy charge.

5:30 PM ET -- Judge Arun Subramanian just dismissed the jury for the day ... jurors will come back Wednesday morning and head straight for the jury room to continue deliberations.

Diddy is one step closer to learning his fate ... because the jury in his federal criminal trial says they have reached a verdict on four of the five counts against him ... but they don't have a verdict on the racketeering conspiracy charge.

The music mogul is huddling with his lawyers in the federal courthouse in Manhattan, where he's stood trial for the past 7 weeks ... he was brought out of a holding cell after jurors sent a note revealing they had reached a verdict on 4 counts.

The note says jurors are unable to reach a verdict on Count 1 as they have jurors on each side. Count 1 is racketeering conspiracy.

The Ying Yang Twins recently got LOWWWWWWW for a viral performance at SeaWorld that had social media wondering how so many colorful words were allowed in the family-friendly theme park ... the answer being, the PARENTS KNEW ALL THE DIRTY LYRICS!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with D-Roc and Caine and the Atlanta rap legends urge everyone to go back and re-watch and tune out the San Diego crowd.

They're adamant they didn't cuss -- not one, damn time!!!

Halle Bailey found the perfect way to relax in Italy after her grueling custody battle with her ex, DDG -- with the company of a new beau while her buns baked in the sun!!!

"The Little Mermaid" actress was in Positano, Italy, on Saturday, where she and her mystery man were spotted splashing, kissing and cuddling under the Mediterranean Sea.

Halle looked happy posing her bikini bottom for her chocolate, dreadhead man -- but couldn't prevent her thong, th-thong, thong, thong going up the wrong, wr-wrong, wrong, wrong way!!!

Ja Rule recently made 50 Cent the target of ridicule with claims his longtime rival had a paltry crowd turnout at his recent Euro tour stop ... a misfire diss, because we've obtained proof the show was actually at capacity!!!

50 Cent was live inside Hannover, Germany's Heinz-von-Heiden-Arena for his "Legacy" tour on June 28 ... a show where he sold more than 25,000 tickets.

A representative for Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson provided ticketing info and tells TMZ Hip Hop, “Like all of Jackson’s other tour dates, this show was completely sold-out.”

3:09 PM PT -- We confirmed this afternoon that Jay-Z and his legal team have filed a notice of appeal with the court over today's ruling ... so, the fat lady can pipe down for now!!!

Tony Buzbee is taking a victory lap around Jay-Z ... because after a judge dismissed a lawsuit Jay filed against him, Buzbee told us he's planning to go after HOV's attorneys for a lot of money.

Here's the deal ... Jay-Z was suing Buzbee for extortion and defamation, until a California judge stepped in Monday and tossed the lawsuit out of court.

Buzbee's now licking his chops, telling TMZ ... the case was dismissed "in a lengthy, well-reasoned opinion" and he will now be asking for "a lot" of money for attorneys' fees for "defending against a meritless case."

The prospect of Diddy possibly being acquitted in his criminal trial isn't weighing on an ex-girlfriend whose name kept coming up in witness testimony ... 'cause she says she's not scared of him.

Diddy's ex Gina Huynh was leaving a Whole Foods in Las Vegas on Monday when a photog asked her if she thought Diddy was going to walk free.

Gina says she's not sure what the jury verdict will be -- deliberations started a few hours before she was asked the question -- but if he does get acquitted, it sounds like she won't run for the hills.

It's the second day of jury deliberations in the Sean "Diddy" Combs federal sex trafficking and racketeering trial in NYC Tuesday, and arguments over a late-afternoon note sent to the judge Monday shed some light on the opposing legal teams' strategies.

Jurors sent a note to Judge Arun Subramanian asking ... "If an individual asks for a controlled substance and the person hands it over, it is distribution?"

In the back-and-forth in the courtroom, the prosecution team wanted a clear "yes" answer to the question. The defense team simply wanted a restatement of the judge's original instructions ... which seems to indicate they wanted the jury to continue to wrestle with the issue because the jury presumably already had the instructions packet when they sent the note to the judge.