Hip Hop

Matisyahu says Macklemore's new track isn't about freeing Palestine, as Mack claims -- instead, it only sows deeper discord by pushing what he sees as antisemitic tropes.

We caught up with the Jewish singer-songwriter in L.A., and he tells TMZ he's heard Macklemore's song, "Hind's Hall" -- and, quite frankly he thinks it'll keep people in conflict because of its inflammatory lyrics.

Matis starts by mentioning Macklemore's controversial 2014 disguise... one that featured a prosthetic nose, beard, and hat many called antisemitic.

Xzibit got fans hyped with a video teaser making it seem like he's bringing back his "Pimp My Ride" franchise -- but it's actually a mobile game that confirms he's still fully dedicated to car culture!!!

Mr. X to the Z checked in with TMZ Hip Hop Friday to discuss his partnership with Chrome Valley Customs, which added his likeness and all sorts of digital accessories to the app.

X tells us he was surprised fans associated the announcement with 'PMR' -- especially because it's been off the air since 2007 -- but understands the passion for it.

Ne-Yo has the type of vocals ripe for AI programs to duplicate -- even he knows it's an inevitable reality -- but the R&B superstar is supremely confident computers can't replace the original.

We got Ne-Yo at LAX, where he admitted ... even though he's not a lawmaker, it's clear to him the music industry is going to need some serious policing with the advent of AI tech.

Ne-Yo's not completely against AI but is adamant permission and payment are necessary in all cases, especially with posthumous releases.

Tray Chaney and JD Williams, former stars of the acclaimed TV show "The Wire," are actively campaigning to portray legendary rap group Mobb Deep in a biopic, and they're in luck ... Havoc is a big fan of their resumés!!!

On Friday, Chaney celebrated his reunion with Williams on a new episode of 50 Cent's "BMF" series, and put himself starring as Havoc and JD as the late Prodigy on his next vision board.

Havoc tells TMZ Hip Hop, "I couldn't find a better pair of iconic actors, to portray and capture the legacy of Mobb Deep!!!"

Well, there you have it.

The two famously starred as Poot and Bodie on the HBO crime series, and the surviving Mobb Deep member loves their on-screen chemistry so much, he can see them tackling the rap duo's life on screen.

Prodigy passed away in 2017 and Hav has been upholding the group's legacy ... the Queensbridge duo released several critically acclaimed platinum and gold albums and their "Shook Ones Pt. II" hit has been hailed by countless authorities as one of the greatest rap tracks.

Adding a motion picture about the group's life would be icing on the cake, and as fate would have it, MD's former collaborator 50 Cent just opened up a massive Louisiana studio ripe for shooting content!!!

Diddy is asking a judge to toss a Jane Doe's lawsuit which alleges sexual misconduct against him ... and he lays out a few different reasons.

According to the filing, obtained by TMZ, Diddy's attorneys want Jane Doe's suit -- in which she alleges she was violated by Diddy and others at the age of 17 back in 2003 -- dismissed with prejudice ... and they say the statute of limitations on the statute she’s suing under has lapsed.

In other words, Diddy's attorneys say this woman missed her window to sue -- but more importantly, they point out ... she didn’t include many pertinent details -- outside of her alleged assault -- which they feel makes her claims paper thin and not worthy of being heard. They also insist … her allegations simply never happened, period.

Drake is looking to unload his Beverly Hills estate anew -- and these days, he has every reason to hightail it out of California ... this as his Kendrick Lamar beef starts to wind down.

The rapper relisted his 10-bedroom home in the swanky SoCal neighborhood last week -- slapping it with a hefty price tag of $88 million. If you're able to cough up the money to nab this luxury estate, the 24,757 square feet of living space and its 22 bathrooms can all be yours.

The house -- which sits on 20 acres of lush grounds -- is split into 2 parts ... a 7-bedroom main house and a nearby pool/guest house. Indeed ... it has all the bells and whistles here.

"We killed [Reggie Miller at The Garden.] The whole crowd, 20,000 people. 'F you, Reggie.' I ain't gonna lie, I might have been in on the chat."

That's New York legend, and forever Knicks superfan, Fat Joe ... recounting the insanely loud chant directed at the Pacers legend as game 2 came to a close, and the NY K took a 2-0 series lead.

58-year-old Miller was part of the ESPN broadcast ... and the Hall of Famer wasn't shy, continually taking jabs at Knicks fans throughout the game, reminding the MSG faithful that he "owned" NYC.

Stevie Wonder isn't entertained by Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef -- all war gets a thumbs down in his book ... including real-world ones, which he says are more important.

The music maestro spoke with TMZ Hip Hop Friday about his thoughts on the feud between Drizzy and K.Dot ... -- and while their respective diss songs may have racked up colossal numbers -- Stevie flat-out calls their battle a distraction to real problems going on right now.

Specifically, SW points to actual wars that are unfolding around the globe -- and while he doesn't pinpoint a specific one ... it seems pretty clear he's referring to Israel-Gaza.

The Game is done sitting on the sidelines of the 2024 Rap Wars -- and Rick Ross is the target of his pent-up aggression!!!

Game had been taking shots at Ross all week, and on Friday, the Bompton rapper made his grand reveal … dropping a ruthless diss track, “Freeway’s Revenge.” The title references the reformed Los Angeles drug dealer from whom Rick infamously got his stage name.

Game’s lyrics blur the lines between rap competition and pure disrespect … he makes slick references to Drake and Kendrick’s ongoing battle (“This ain't the Kendrick beef, my Drake [Draco] sing songs”) and essentially says the diss spurred from Ross trolling Drake these past few weeks.

Video of Rick Ross performing for a scattered group of people recently went viral, suggesting the Bawse is taking an 'L' in his beef with Drake -- but that's not really what went down.

Craig Mogil, the head of venue and agency relations for GigFinesse, tells TMZ Hip Hop ... Rozay was booked for a private afterparty connected to ROCKET-X Dallas' home services conference.

Ross' May 3 performance had been booked since way back in January ... clearly enough time to generate ticket sales if that was the goal, but that wasn't the case here.

Drake and Kendrick Lamar's heated rap beef is the talk of every town, and Malcolm Jamal-Warner thinks that's precisely the problem -- hip hop culture is getting props for bad stuff!

The 'Cosby Show' alum vented his thoughts on Drake and Kendrick's 2024 rap war, and the 53-year-old version of himself refuses to accept the notion their fiery back and forth -- which seems to be on ice now -- was great entertainment.

MJW knows his message isn't a popular one, but thinks Black culture has been conditioned to normalize songs about murder, misogyny and even glorifying the n-word.

Metro Boomin's smack in the middle of the 2024 rap wars, but that hasn't slowed the superproducer's motion -- he performed to thousands inside the Egyptian Great Pyramids complex!!!

We got some groovy snaps of Young Metro's booming set from April 30 in Giza, where the stage sat near the Great Pyramid, the Pyramids of Khafre and Menkaure, and the Great Sphinx.

He's already a big deal in the Middle East ... a source close to the situation tells us Metro's Egyptian escapades included a meeting with officials at the royal Abdeen Palace in Cairo.

J. Cole caught a little flak for bowing out his Kendrick Lamar battle ... but fans have been joking he's probably on a beach chillin' amid all this ... and turns out, they're half right!!!

A TikTok user named Lale says she randomly bumped into Cole at the beach on Tuesday this week and she even posted a pic of them together for evidence. Sure enough, it looks like Cole.

Lale fielded various questions from her Cole encounter in the comments ... she had gone to the beach to clear her head when she spotted the elusive rap star.

Drake's had a rough past few weeks beefing with Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd, Rick Ross and having his house shot up ... and things may be taking their toll.

On Thursday morning, Drake shared an IG story from the new Netflix series "A Man In Full" ... which shows Jeff Daniels' character Charlie Croker appearing to spurt out his last thoughts as he dies on the floor.

The show's premise follows a fallen real estate tycoon looking to reclaim his empire as enemies swirl around him.

Ryan Garcia launched an all-out social media attack on Errol Spence Jr. on Wednesday ... challenging the fellow boxing star to a fight -- and doing his best Kendrick Lamar impression in the process.

The feud sparked after one of Spence's fans said they'd like to see him take on King Ry as his next opponent ... to which Garcia unloaded a number of fiery responses, including a post claiming he already told his camp to make it happen.

Garcia even threw out a date and a place ... saying he'll be ready to throw hands on August 10 at AT&T Stadium in Texas. He also seemed to be down with Spence's pitch to fight between 154 and 160 pounds (super welterweight or middleweight) ... despite that being at least 14 pounds more than what he was supposed to come in at ahead of the Devin Haney bout.

Cardi B is taking heat for blanking on the designer of her epic Met Gala gown right when it mattered most -- but Ayra Starr says don't judge, because it's impossible to always be perfect in the heat of the moment!

TMZ Hip Hop ran into the Afrobeats superstar Wednesday in Bev Hills, and she understood where Cardi was coming from -- the "Wap" rapper couldn't recall who put together her ridiculously huge and long gown when she was interviewed entering the Met ... and she felt the wrath of a former Vogue exec.

Ayra's no stranger to events like the Met Gala, and says no preparation can save you when your nerves take over.