TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

The artist formerly known as "Yung" Bleu isn’t here for any Chris Brown slander over him charging fans for photo ops, and he let a fan know in real-time.

CB is currently out on tour with Lil Baby to support his new album “Breezy” (which YB appears on via the track “Possessive” with Lil Wayne) … and the going price for posing with Chris backstage is, apparently, $1,000 a pop.

Nice side biz, for sure -- and most of Chris' fans are ride or die, so they're not whining about the cost.

However, one man got publicly trashed for deciding to spend his extra coins on the CB camera time, sparking Bleu's ire.

He reminded a guy who was roasting the CB fan that time waits for no one and a picture can be worth 1,000 words -- especially if you spent $1K on it!!!

Now, even Bleu would have to admit he's kinda biased. He had CB on his “Moon Boy” album for the song “Baddest," so ... yeah, they're tight.

Last time we spoke to Bleu he told us about CB’s genius as an artist, and said he deserved his own class outside of the Michael Jackson debate.

Usher also gave CB his props on Thursday, as he denied they'd be squaring off in a Verzuz.

Beyonce and her famous friends have the Internet in a Thursday tizzy for her new album, which is still a week away ... but now we know, it'll be hip-hop heavy when it's released.

The megastar revved up her 269 million Instagram followers with a slick "Renaissance" tracklist drop that revealed popping song names like "Alien Superstar," "Heated" and "America Has A Problem."

Apple Music put the album up for pre-order today ... unveiling the entire contributor list and Queen Bey's enlisted some heavy hitters!

Jay-Z, Drake, The-Dream + Tricky Stewart, Pharrell + Chad Hugo, Kanye artist 070 Shake and many more are listed as contributors ... meaning they could have either collaborated on the project, been sampled or both!

Hit-Boy also reunites with Bey yet again to produce the song "Thique."

The album drops on July 29 ... when the Beyhive will likely force a new world order.

Fans already lost their minds over the album cover art -- Beyonce stunting on a crystal horse, while promising an escape from "perfectionism" and plenty of options to wiggle!

Welp, now we know Drake's biggest fear ... 'cause he was floating like a butterfly to avoid getting stung by a bee -- and it happened when all eyes were on him at a St. Tropez party.

A brief, but pretty hilarious clip shows Drizzy dodging like mad while his crew swats at the buzzing guest at their table. Seriously, he looked like Creed ducking jabs in a boxing ring!

But, it's good to be the Champagne Papi ... because his entourage was working OT to keep him safe

He's got no shame in his game, though, when it comes to his melissophobia!

When fans saw all the buzz -- and the comical video clip -- around Drake, he openly admitted ... "I hate bees on god."

Perhaps looking to change the conversation ... Drake posted what we gotta call a thirst trap pic of himself shirtless and lounging in the south of France.

Effective.

BTW ... that sting operation went down at the same party where Drake had posted videos trolling Joe Budden after his 2003 hit "Pump It Up" was played at the party.

Kevin Gates is not one to mess with -- the popular rapper straight-up clocked AEW star Tony Nese during Dynamite on Wednesday ... after he was told his music sucks!!

It all went down at the Gas South Arena in Duluth, GA ... where Gates was standing ringside as the newly-crowned tag team champs, Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland, celebrated their titles in the ring.

During the segment, Nese and his on-screen manager, Mark Sterling, interrupted the festivities ... and the duo immediately went up to Gates and demanded he sign a petition to have Strickland removed from the AEW roster.

Gates refused ... which set off Sterling, who said, "Just like Swerve Strickland, you're untrustworthy, and your music sucks!!!"

After Tony stepped in between Gates and Sterling ... and BOOM, down went Nese with a mean right hand from the 36-year-old "2 Phones" hit-maker.

Based on the vid of the incident, it certainly looked like Gates made contact with Nese ... which sent him to the ground.

The AEW fans ate it up ... applauding the AEW superfan for exacting some revenge on Nese for crashing the celebration.

Kim Kardashian is taking interest in a new legal case ... she wants to see Gunna released from his jail cell while he awaits trial.

Kim, who has helped a ton of folks get out from behind bars over the years, tweeted out her support for the rapper Wednesday, with a hashtag and a nod to one of Gunna's popular songs.

KK tweeted to her 73.1 million followers ... "#FreeGunna" and emojis saying "Free P" ... a reference to his song "Pushin P."

As we reported ... Gunna was recently denied bond a second time in his Young Stoner Life RICO case and will be held in a Georgia jail until at least January, when his case is scheduled to go to trial.

Gunna's accused of possession of drugs with intent to distribute and receiving stolen property, pleading not guilty to the allegations, and he's been going hard for his freedom ... penning an open letter about the U.S. Constitution on his birthday, which he spent behind bars.

Now Kim appears to be in Gunna's corner ... and it will be interesting to see if her celebrity can help his cause.

Polo G complains about not being able to enjoy his birthday on his latest hit song "Distraction," but his son certainly doesn't share his father's pain.

This past weekend, the "Hall of Fame" rapper went all out for his son Baby Cap as he celebrated his 3rd year around the sun.

Here's what we mean by all out ... Polo G splurged for this 13x10 foot blue and silver display from a company called Balloon & Paper.

If you're thinking your kid needs a massive balloon display like this to tower over their next birthday party, we hope you've saved well. Sources involved in planning the event tell us Polo plunked down about $10k in "RAPSTAR" money.

That'd be a baller move for a 30-year-old's party, much less a 3-year-old's!

Polo called his little man his "main priority" and tossed additional spoils his way in the form of a Lamborghini toy car, a slippery slide and the type of love that's gonna tire a toddler all the way out!

He may not remember the party as he gets older ... but he can always link back to this post. 😉

Jay-Z is saying yes to Jermaine Dupri's request to sample a classic track -- even though he recently admitted he rejects many collab requests -- but Jay's approval comes with a disclaimer.

So, JD is producing Drake's artists, the duo dvsn, and on Wednesday he posted a text convo with his “Money Ain’t a Thang” collaborator, in which Hov cleared the sample -- after all, who is he to knock the hustle, right?! But, he had some commentary on the dvsn track.

Jay claims the song beats out his 2001 heartbreak anthem “Song Cry” in terms of “toxicity,” and, as a result, said he wants the world to know he ain't cosigning on the message of dvsn's song, which is called "I Get Caught."

Sources close to the situation tell us 'Caught' actually samples “Song Cry” -- and dvsn is doing a serious hype job, claiming it's in the same class as other emotional wrecks like Usher’s “Confessions Pt. II” and SZA’s “The Weekend” ... but better.

Drake's offering some hilarious observations -- some of them subtle -- about his fellow hip hop artists while he's kicking back in St. Tropez.

Drizzy was hanging at a pretty lively spot in the south of France when he playfully clowned a daytime rager for Crip walking to Latto’s “Big Energy” -- which seems like a win for female rap fans everywhere.

He quickly got distracted, though, when the DJ played Joe Budden’s biggest hit, “Pump It Up."

Drake didn't hesitate to clown the retired rapper-turned-podcaster for the played-out party jam ... and OVO Chubbs said a lot more with his facial expression.

With his dance album still in the Billboard 200's top 10 after its release several weeks ago, Drake has been tearing down Europe ... partying in Sweden, Ibiza, St. Tropez, or wherever the good vibes take him.

Nelly belted out several home runs ... on a stage in Los Angeles as the co-host and performer for his carnival-themed MLB All-Star after-party with Dodgers star Mookie Betts.

The Diamond-certified rapper brought Betts and his wife Brianna up on stage, dedicating his “Hot In Herre” performance to them … just like he did a few months prior at their wedding!!!

Mookie and Nelly have become fast friends since that big day back in December, and collaborated on Tuesday night's event to celebrate the All-Star Game ... which Mookie played in a couple hours earlier on his home turf at Dodger Stadium.

He also clowned Mookie's National League squad for disrupting sports bets by blowing their 2-0 lead to lose 3-2.

Drake's dad, Dennis Graham, was also in the building, as were YK Osiris and Kid Ink.

Trina's family is reeling after the devastating loss of her niece, who was shot and killed in Miami ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Trina confirmed with TMZ that her niece, who the rapper endearingly referred to as Baby Suga, was killed Tuesday night ... telling us she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Law enforcement sources say it appears the teen was visiting the area, they're still investigating the circumstances surrounding the shooting to determine if the attack was random or targeted.

Suga and 2 other women sustained gunshot wounds during the incident ... the condition of the other 2 is not currently known.

A rep for Trina tells TMZ, "We kindly ask that everyone please respect the privacy of Trina and her family at this devastating time."

Baby Suga, whose real name was Toni Chester, was only 17.

Day26, former winners of Diddy’s “Making The Band” MTV series are back together, and they’re out to prove R&B sorely needs them.

We caught up with all members of the five-man group -- Que, Willie, Brian, Robert and Michael -- who were all excited, promising their past in-fighting's been squashed and they're ready to deliver an R&B classic.

They sent the feelers out on IG this week, and are now confirming a full-fledged comeback.

As Season 4 winners of “MTB,” the fellas say they’re thankful to Diddy for putting them together but ... even Puff couldn’t grasp the full depths of their potential as an act.

They say there are no hard feelings, but being on Bad Boy is a thing of the past ... and they want to convince the world it’s okay for men in music to soften up.

Their rollout should provide interesting competition for their mentor -- Diddy is currently perfecting his new Love Records venture, which he says houses the "R&B Biggie."

Day26's sentiments on R&B’s current standing echoed that of Boyz II Men’s Shawn Stockman, who said the singing community is too much like the rapping sector these days.

The group is looking ahead to its 15th anniversary live stream concert on July 26 where they’ll debut new material, which they say will re-cement their stake to the throne.

Joey Badass is currently in the middle of a national tour and just hit a speed bump named Delta -- he's blaming the airline for damaging critical gear he needs to perform.

The rapper/actor landed in Portland Tuesday afternoon for his 1999-2000 Summer Tour's stop ... but says he quickly discovered his studio rig equipment was broken during the flight. It wasn't even in its case!!!

JB then proceeded to rip Delta for smashing up the knobs and buttons before finally putting an invoice on it: $12,000. And, he says this isn't the first time it's happened.

There’s still a considerable number of West Coast dates left, including stops in Los Angeles and Seattle -- but at this rate, he might have to do a cappella shows.

Joey's gotta feel like he can't win -- he made the switch to Delta from American Airlines after accusing AA of racism back in 2018.

His new album, entitled “2000,” drops on Friday -- maybe that will bring some better luck his way.

50 Cent and director Josh Stolberg have an instant promo for their upcoming horror flick, "Skill House" ... it's so terrifying, even the film's crew is losing consciousness on set!

TMZ Hip Hop obtained this footage ... it's the camera operator's reaction while filming a particularly bloody scene, and whoever's behind the lens has a weak stomach ... because he passed out on the spot.

The clip opens up with an extremely bloody actor and you can see the camera become wobbly almost immediately as the cameraman loses consciousness (but thankfully not his lunch!).

If you're squeamish too, you get why the guy went down -- 50 still couldn't believe it when he shared the gory story on Instagram ... and he was just getting it secondhand.

We're told Fiddy wasn't on set at the time but several other cast members, including Amira Mertaban, were present -- Amira was actually the first person to rush to the cameraman's side. Medics stepped in, and we're told the camera guy is fine ... he'll be back on set to finish the film.

Hollywood SFX legend Steve Johnson is credited (or blamed) for creating the gut-wrenching scene. He and Stolberg -- who worked on the last 2 'Saw' movies -- seem hellbent on pushing the limit on "Skill House."

Kodak Black claims he had a perfectly good reason for having several oxycodone pills when he was busted last weekend … his legal team insists he needs them to deal with serious pain.

Kodak's attorney Bradford Cohen tells TMZ ... the "Super Gremlin" rapper has battled chronic pain after getting shot in February during a scuffle in L.A. over Super Bowl weekend. Cohen says Kodak was prescribed pain pills to take as necessary to deal with that injury.

What's more, prior to the shooting, Kodak alleged he was assaulted by guards during his stint in a Kentucky federal prison, before Donald Trump commuted his sentence and released him. We're told he suffers ongoing pain from the attack and the meds help with that pain.

Cohen says he's handed over proof to prosecutors that the pills were legally prescribed, in an effort to resolve the matter STAT.

Lil Baby is in especially high spirits heading into his Washington, D.C. tour stop with Chris Brown, and briefly clued us in on Gunna and Young Thug's moods ... even though we interrupted his Future flow.

The 4PF Records CEO kindly stopped his rapping rendition of Future’s "Back to the Basics" Tuesday afternoon outside Reagan National Airport. We caught him right at the "DC sniped it" line, so yeah ... he was getting hyped for the Capital One Arena show.

We asked if he had any update on how Thug and Gunna are holding up on the inside, and LB pumped the brakes on the lyrics. He assured us both YSL superstars are in good spirits and added a thumbs up, which is rarely faked in this day and age!

Earlier in the week, Gunna was able to video call with some relatives, and a short clip posted online was filled with laughs ... a good sign, for sure.

And just last week, Young Thug’s sister says she paid him an in-person visit that yielded similar vibes.

Both Atlanta-based rap stars have to wait until at least 2023 before they see trial but a friend like Baby is sure to keep them plugged in the rap world.

Desus and Mero’s Showtime series’ untimely demise put the spotlight on internal negative intentions … at least that's Charlamagne Tha God's take as he digests the surprising news.

Charlamagne pointed out how numerous outlets rushed to cover the breakup in spite of D&M’s 6-year TV run on Showtime and Vice ... and blamed the “culture” for rushing to highlight failure over success.

The Breakfast Club host didn’t specify which culture he was referring to, but D&M’s brand intersected the worlds of music, movies, comics and ... generally speaking, all things NYC.

The show’s official Twitter account closed the curtain Monday on Desus and Mero’s run -- all but citing the irreconcilable differences fans suspect behind the split.