TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Kanye West is no longer a member of the ten-digit club -- he's lost a fortune as a result of Adidas pulling the plug ... not to mention the other partnerships that have dissolved.

Forbes made it official Tuesday ... saying Ye had lost his billionaire status in the wake of Adidas ending their partnership with the guy. While Adidas on its own might not have technically torpedoed his billions -- they say it's a combination of several deals, including Gap, falling apart of late -- Forbes does note it was a HUGE part of his wealth, and the final nail in the coffin.

Now -- after all this fallout -- Forbes claims KW is worth somewhere in the ballpark of $400 million. This is a huge dip from where he was a couple years ago, when his net worth was valued at around $1.3 billion with a majority of his public assets in consideration.

The majority of Kanye's riches are now coming from a select few sources, Forbes says, including real estate, liquid cash, his music catalog and a less than 5% stake in Kim Kardashian's Skims brand.

Unclear how much of his money was wiped out by just Adidas, but ya gotta imagine it was a pretty penny's worth ... considering the company says they're losing nearly a quarter of a billion dollars in net profits by cutting him/his shoes off, just in this fourth quarter alone.

Drake celebrated his 36th birthday in true Drake fashion ... bringin' a bunch of big names to the club to party -- and even raffling off some HUGE prizes to the crowd!

Drizzy's big shindig went down Monday night at Sexy Fish in Miami ... and the rapper was giving partygoers the chance at $5k gift cards, $10k in cash, Chanel bags, and even a Rolex!!!

Of course, some people in attendance weren't really in dire need of freebies -- DJ Khaled, 21 Savage, Lil Baby, and Chaney Jones were just a few of the celebs partying with Champagne Papi. "Love Island" stars Emily Salch and Genevieve Shawcross were hangin' too.

Drake ripped a page outta Usher's big money playbook for his big night -- Drake bucks, featuring his face on $500 bills -- were circulating around the venue throughout the night.

The place even changed its name to Sexy Gyal for the night, just for Drake.

Kanye West's biggest corporate partnership is over -- Adidas says it's cutting off all business with him, due to his recent antisemitic and bigoted actions.

The German shoe company says, "Ye's recent comments and actions have been unacceptable, hateful and dangerous, and they violate the company's values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect and fairness."

As result, Adidas says it "will terminate the partnership with Ye, end production of Yeezy branded products and stop all payments to Ye and his companies."

The announcement comes amid worldwide pressure for Adidas to, at the very least, condemn Kanye for repeating antisemitic tropes every time a microphone's been in his face for the last few weeks. During this erratic and disturbing phase he's also unveiled "White Lives Matter" T-shirts at Paris Fashion Week, and claimed George Floyd didn't die from Derek Chauvin's knee, but from fentanyl.

The hashtag #boycottadidas had been trending on Twitter over the weekend, especially as the company announced the sale of new Yeezy shoes. While other companies, like Balenciaga and Vogue had already cut off their relationships with the billionaire rapper and designer ... Adidas had been silent, except to say their partnership was "under review."

That review actually had nothing to do with Ye's recent rants -- for months, he'd publicly accused the company of ripping off his designs for non-Yeezy branded merchandise, so the relationship was already on ice.

Ye knew his incredibly profitable deal with Adidas was hanging in the balance -- he said so on Friday night ... even as he railed that any backlash against him was only proving his initial antisemitic remark that the Jews were controlling Hollywood and the banks.

Adidas was especially under pressure to react -- not only as Ye's biggest partner, but due to its founder supporting the Nazi party.

Adidas and Kanye started their partnership in 2013, and his Yeezy brand is widely credited with reinvigorating Adidas in the shoe game. While the company has some huge athletes as brand ambassadors -- James Harden, Lionel Messi and Damian Lillard to name just a few -- Ye's designs were key to the company's recent success, and Adidas' backing allowed him to expand Yeezy well beyond sneakers.

Adidas was the distributor and manufacturer of Yeezy shoes and athletic gear ... so, Kanye currently has no outlet for his creations.

Steve Lacy is a relatively new artist, but he's making one thing clear early ... he won't tolerate things being thrown on his stage -- and made an example out of one fan, and their phone, in particular.

Steve was in New Orleans on Monday night for his Give You The World Tour ... performing "Bad Habit" when a phone tossed from the crowd hits him square in the torso.

Steve was politely profane at first ... stopping the song to instruct the audience not to throw "sh** on his f****** stage" -- even with a please attached.

Then without warning, Steve asks for a fan in the front row's cell phone -- seemingly at random -- only to smash it on the stage, and then storm off.

The crowd was understandably confused and pissed ... as there was still plenty of show left, and some felt they didn't get their money's worth.

A fan in the stands hopped on TikTok following to show ... claiming Steve had grown fed up with the crowd for not really knowing his music, but blamed rowdy NOLA fans in general for typically ruining an artist's experience when they come to town.

"Entourage" creator Doug Ellin says Adidas staying silent about Kanye West has everything to do with money, and therefore, he sees a boycott as the best way to apply pressure.

We got Doug Monday in WeHo, where he told us the German shoe company's silence -- as other brands cut ties with Kanye -- speaks volumes about whose side it's backing. He adds we should all be on the same page when hate's in play.

He sees money as the sole reason Adidas has kept quiet -- so, if people stop buying their gear ... the hope is that will make the honchos understand the harmful impact of Ye's antisemitic remarks.

As we reported, Kanye's been losing brand deals left and right ... including Johnny Depp's attorney, Camille Vasquez, who was brought on board last week to handle his business matters. After he doubled and tripled down on his bigotry, she told her firm she'd no longer work with the rapper.

What's more, a rally in L.A. Saturday supported the rapper's comments, with members of the group throwing up Nazi salutes at passing drivers.

B.o.B is finally responding to the 2016 flat-earth controversy that threw his career out of orbit ... and he's still, rather defiantly, dropping a diss-fueled track titled "Ted Talk."

B.o.B. tells TMZ Hip Hop the 6+ years since he released his viral song "Flatline" has rattled his perspective a bit, leading to more confusion.

Naturally, we asked if he still believes the Earth is flat, and he said ... "I've heard so many theories at this point from all the people that have come my way I don't know what to believe anymore.

"Neil Tyson said it’s an oval, let’s just go with that for now"

The new song-video mashup finds B.o.B's alter-ego Bobby Ray giving himself a tongue-lashing as they tackle the flat-earth fallout ... which mirrors the wackiness of a sci-fi thriller with twists and turns.

Bobby Ray questions throwing away their career to prove a point and should have left all the conspiracies to YouTuber Eric Dubay ... something everyone can probably agree on in hindsight.

The track includes B.o.B's admission he fumbled the bag turning down 2 offers from CBS -- one to appear on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" to explain his antics and another to have his own series.

Let B.o.B tell it, the whole plot was created by the media to take him down ... calling out Comedy Central and Complex after they allowed scientists Neil deGrasse Tyson and Bill Nye to slice and dice him online.

He even says NASA started attending his concerts to pass out pamphlets containing accurate information -- and he really pissed off The Root when he stated he'd never seen a slave ship in his lifetime.

He also still has bitter bars for Charlamagne Tha God and Lil Duval for their viral reactions to his flat-earth comments, and unlike Kanye West, laments being called an anti-Semite after saying he identified with the rants of Holocaust conspiracy theorist David Irving.

Kanye West is not being scrubbed from Netflix in the wake of his antisemitic rants ... the streaming giant says the biopic on his life is staying put.

While tons of companies are distancing themselves from Ye, including Balenciaga and talent agency CAA, a rep for Netflix tells us there are no plans to take down its 'Jeen-Yuhs' documentary trilogy on Kanye's life.

Netflix's position is they are not in business with Kanye because he was the subject of the doc, and he wasn't involved in creating or promoting the movies.

The streaming service also says there is nothing antisemitic in the documentary ... and Netflix points out they don't remove content about or by people who later spark controversy.

When the documentary debuted earlier this year, Kanye showed up to the Los Angeles screening with Chaney Jones ... and a ton of celebs were there too.

Iggy Azalea experienced her first in-person NFL action Sunday ... soaking up the Las Vegas Raiders and Houston Texans game, and it was everything the Aussie rapper hoped for ... and then some!

The home team Raiders won and Iggy was paid to be there ... performing her No. 1 hit song "Fancy" during halftime, while wearing the hell out of a custom cheerleader 'fit.

During the 1st half, Raiders reporter Tashan Reed said he was dreading the performance and Allegiant Stadium's efforts to make proper BBQ.

His Iggy shade eventually came up on her radar, and she proceeded to make Tashan green with envy ... from all the green the Raiders paid her to perform!!!

Iggy didn't disclose her payout, but it was enough to prompt thousands of retweets ... and memes from Tashan that waved the white flag.

The NFL has been getting a healthy dose of hip hop and R&B this season -- Moneybagg Yo recently became the first rapper to introduce an NFL team, walking out his hometown Tennessee Titans at their home opener ... and Nelly performed during the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals Week 5 matchup.

And, of course, the biggest of them all ... Rihanna's confirmed to perform at Apple Music's Super Bowl LVII halftime show in February.

Just about as quickly as it began, the working relationship between Kanye West and Johnny Depp's attorney, Camille Vasquez, has come to an end.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us after Kanye doubled and tripled-down on his antisemitic remarks over the weekend, Camille informed her firm, Brown Rudnick, she would no longer work with Kanye.

We're told Brown Rudnick still attempted to work with Kanye, but only under the condition he publicly retract his hateful and antisemitic words. Our sources say Kanye refused to do so, and fired Brown Rudnick.

TMZ broke the story, Kanye brought Camille and the firm onboard last week to handle his business matters. The law group was not involved in handling the proceedings of his divorce from Kim Kardashian.

Billboard's blistering article about hip-hop's "magic" slipping away is totally on point, according to Eminem's artist Westside Boogie ... who says rappers have been slipping in their craft.

TMZ Hip Hop got the Compton-bred MC at LAX over the weekend, and picked his brain on the ongoing conversation about rap losing its dominance. We were looking for his 2 cents, but we got a dime.

Boogie says he can actually relate to Billboard's claim ... he says he's been listening to pop music closely and thinks those artists are putting more attention to detail in their music than rappers these days.

Now, he's not saying rap's devoid of talent ... in fact, he said there are plenty of capable rappers, but they're doing little to differentiate themselves in terms of verses, beat selection, or even lyrical delivery.

Boogie's been spitting for a decade now and knows how the roulette wheel operates. He says the magic will reoccur when today's hip-hop stars put more effort into their craft.

The proof is in the DSP pudding -- Taylor Swift's new "Midnights" album drop fractured Spotify, and is projected to go platinum in just a week.

That would be more than Drake, Lil Baby and Kendrick Lamar's 2022 first-week outputs ... combined!!!

WSB dropped off his latest album on Eminem's Shady Records this year  ... the critically acclaimed "More Black Superheroes" ... and thinks his label boss needs more recognition from the younger generation in wake of his 50th birthday.

He says kids like his 13-year-old son, don't understand the full impact of Eminem's career, because it was before his time.

Kanye West's antisemitic remarks have already sparked one radical group to show face -- but what may come next is of even more dire concern for the Jewish people ... so says one man who advocates for the community.

Ivan Wolkind -- an exec of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles -- came on 'TMZ Live' Monday to explain the ripple effect Ye's words are already having ... and where it could lead from here, potentially resulting in real-world violence.

He says the freeway signs and mailed flyers that made the rounds this weekend are just the first of possibly more steps that he fears will be escalating in nature the more people start to see this as normal ... especially with someone as famous as Kanye leading the charge.

Wolkind also tells us that, unfortunately, he and his org have already started to issue warnings to Jewish people and Jewish institutions in and around L.A. as it pertains to keeping an eye out for troubling behavior that could signal imminent danger or threats.

Tee Grizzley can't leave rap, the game needs him ... so he tells TMZ Hip Hop, clarifying some recent comments that made it sound like he was retiring.

The Detroit rapper appeared on Bootleg Kev's podcast last week, emphatically signaling the end of his career himself -- but, at LAX, he told us he was just trolling, mainly because he just dropped an album full of storytelling raps in "Chapters of the Trenches," which he likens to mini-movies.

TG has a 'Grand Theft Auto' online empire that brings in thousands monthly so he's not hurting on cash, even if his music output slowed, but is still plotting on breaking through in Hollywood and shared his unique plan with us.

Most rappers are usually typecast as fictional rappers or hood dudes in TV and movie projects, but TG says he's looking for unconventional roles -- like starring as a TJ Maxx clerk who earns Employee of the Month.

Offbeat roles have come for some rappers -- Busta Rhymes doing kung fu on Michael Myers or Ice-T warring with a leprechaun come to mind -- and we welcome the sight of TG in a tie and khakis nailing his lines!!!

NLE Choppa is defending his right to show off what he's packing in his boxers ... even if half his fanbase wishes they could push the dislike button.

The Memphis rapper was apparently feeling sexy and posted a provocative mirror selfie over the weekend ... garnering much attention from appreciative women, and disapproval from male supporters, including one fan account.

Popular YouTuber Adin Ross couldn't believe his eyes and sent NLE several texts in disbelief ... which were put on blast online as well.

The response was overwhelming to the point NLE issued a response ... stating he was comfortable enough in his own sexuality to pull off such a photo, but did clarify he was a heterosexual male.

NLE is just about a week away from his 20th birthday -- but has been exhibiting sexual maturity in his tweets and music for several years now.

The last time we spoke to him, NLE was steadily promoting his "Slut Me Out" single and spoke on the extent of his fetishes ... highlighted by his love for armpits.

Quavo recently poured gasoline on the Migos' burning house ... sparking rumors for many that Saweetie hooked up with Offset -- and Cardi B is stepping in to tell everyone to mark their calendars for the truth!!!

Cardi took some heat over the weekend after a blog called her out for caring more about her short-lived beef with Madonna than cleaning up the public perception of her marriage.

Cardi let everyone know Offset would seize the moment to put an end to the rumors on his upcoming solo album, which is due out on November 11.

Call it fighting fire with flames ... Quavo initially sold the sensation on his and Takeoff's Migos-deflecting album "Only Built 4 Infinity Links."

While rapping on the song "Messy," Quavo erupted the volcano with the lyrics, "'Caresha Please' 'cause she too messy/Bitch f****d my dog behind my back, but I ain’t stressin'/You wanted the gang, you should’ve just said it, we would’ve blessed it."

Offset previously filed a legal injunction to separate himself from his longtime label Quality Control ... and it's safe to say Cardi is securing his buzz to boost the first-week streams boost.

Lil Durk is off the hook for a 2019 shooting case in Georgia, and the 5 felonies he was charged with should have been dropped long ago for a lack of evidence ... at least according to his attorney.

Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis recently filed paperwork with the court declining to move forward with the case against Durk because of "prosecutorial discretion," but she's declined to elaborate beyond that. Willis noted there was probable cause to initially arrest Durk, but after a thorough review of the facts, she decided against moving forward with the case.

Durk's attorney, Manny Arora, tells TMZ ... Willis simply didn't have enough evidence to prove her case against the rapper.

Arora insists Durk never committed a crime that day despite his presence at the scene. He added it was a "shame" it took 3 years to finally drop the charges, but he's not surprised since he believes prosecutors often drag out cases to save face.

TMZ broke the story...Durk surrendered to police in May 2019 in connection with a non-fatal shooting at The Varsity restaurant in Atlanta.

Police responded to a 911 call on Feb. 5 and found a man with a gunshot wound. Witnesses told police the wounded man had been involved in an argument with an unknown black male before the shooting. The man was rushed to the hospital, where he underwent surgery. He ultimately survived.

Durk was originally hit with a slew of felony charges ... aggravated assault, criminal attempt to commit murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, and more.

Khloe Kardashian is publicly sending her support to the Jewish community amid Kanye West's continued antisemitic rants ... becoming the first to do so in her family.

The youngest of the OG 3 sisters reposted a simple statement which reads ... "I support my Jewish friends and the Jewish people." Pretty straightforward, but powerful at the same time -- especially since it's her ex-brother-in-law fueling the hate against Jewish people.

Her remark comes as Ye's bigotry sparks rallies in his name with neo-Nazis coming out of the woodwork in all sorts of forms throughout Los Angeles.

None of the other Kardashians, Kim included, have spoken up about the issue so far ... instead, it seems like they're just giving Kanye the silent treatment.

Khloe might be the first KarJenner to pipe up, but she's certainly not the first A-lister in general to say something about the wave of antisemitism.

Sofia Richie, Reese Witherspoon, Julianne Moore, Jennifer Aniston and several others reposted the same message Khloe did, but also expressed their horror and anger over the images of that Nazi rally over L.A.'s 405 freeway.

For his part, Kanye continues to get further and further isolated -- both professionally and socially -- but his biggest business partner, Adidas, is feeling the heat the most right now.

They've remained silent throughout this whole mess.