TMZ Hip Hop - Page 50

Juicy J is turning his pain from losing his fallen Three 6 Mafia comrade Gangsta Boo into new music ... TMZ Hip Hop has learned.

The Memphis rap legend is preparing to release his latest mixtape "Mental Trillness" on Friday ... and fans will be delighted to know it samples the late GB's classic track “Where Dem Dollas At” on the Finesse2Tymes-featured "Work Out."

GB's voice pops again on the track “Follow Home Robbers,” where her verse from her 2014 song "Come Off Dat" song is used to complete the record.

Juicy, DJ Paul, Crunchy Black, and the rest of the Three 6 crew have been in mourning since GB's death on New Year's Day -- due to a purported drug overdose -- and he's now using his music to prevent fans from experiencing their own downfalls.

Juicy created the “Mental Trillness" mantra for listeners who are fighting "frustration, depression, confusion, drug abuse, relationship problems" etc. in an effort to get them closer to the healing stage.

He's already dropped off the single "No Rapper" alongside newcomers Aleza, Slimeroni, K Carbon and there's 17 more tracks to follow ... with contributions from the likes of La Chat, Hittkidd, Gilbere Forté, Xavier Wulf and more!!!

Young Metro Boomin is fired up to play ball -- he's partnered with MLB Network to be its voice of Opening Day!!!

The diamond-selling superproducer dropped off a video Thursday morning ... detailing the grueling 162-game regular season with shots of MLB stars like the NY Mets' Justin Verlander, NY Yankees' Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Angels' Shohei Ohtani, Miami Marlins' Jazz Chisholm Jr. and more.

Metro's airtime makes good use of his hit songs "On Time" and "Trance" from his Billboard chart-topping "Heroes & Villains" album ... and also doesn't shy away from his allegiance to his hometown St. Louis Cardinals, rocking their ballcap in a recording studio.

MLB Network tells TMZ it's "thrilled to partner with Metro Boomin for Opening Day, and we’ll continue to explore opportunities to work with him throughout the season."

“You can’t beat this time of year," Metro quips in the vid. "Everybody’s staring at 162. 162 chances to make that beautiful music you can’t get anywhere else. Play ball.”

A Tennessee restaurant owned by hip hop star Yo Gotti is the site of a mass shooting that's killed 2 people, and left at least 5 others injured.

Law enforcement officials tell TMZ ... cops were called to Prive restaurant in Memphis around 11:30 PM Wednesday after a barrage of gunfire erupted in the parking lot, following a confrontation inside the restaurant that eventually spilled outside.

We're told one man was found dead in the parking lot, and the other passed away at a hospital.

Police say 4 other men and one woman were also sprayed with bullets. All of them were driven in private vehicles to hospitals for treatment. Their conditions were not released.

While Gotti does own Prive, a source tells us he was not in Memphis last night ... and none of his family members are among the victims.

The assailant or assailants fled and are still at large. Police have not said what triggered the initial altercation.

Images surfaced online showing officers investigating the scene with crime tape around the perimeter of the restaurant and patrol cars parked in front.

You might recall, Prive was temporarily closed in November 2021 for fear of retaliation violence after rapper Young Dolph was murdered about 10 miles away in Memphis. Police officers stood guard outside the establishment, but nothing happened.

Tory Lanez is not going down without a fight ... he has just asked a judge to throw out his conviction for shooting Megan Thee Stallion, claiming, among other things, prosecutors tried to dirty him up with irrelevant evidence.

Tory's lawyer, famed criminal defense attorney Jose Baez, claims in legal docs obtained by TMZ, prosecutors submitted a shirtless photo of Tory with a firearm tattoo on his chest. During trial, prosecutors said it was merely for identification purposes, but Baez is calling BS, saying prosecutors used the photo to underscore to the jury his client had a fondness for weapons.

There are numerous other grounds ... notably Baez says it was a reversible error for prosecutors to threaten to present Tory's rap lyrics to the jury.

And there's this ... Baez says the jury heard an 80-minute interview prosecutors had with Kelsey Harris -- Megan's friend who was in the car the night of the shooting. The audio was devastating to Tory's case, but Kelsey later recanted a lot of what she said in that interview.

Baez also says it was wrong to admit an Instagram post that included a comment from one of Megan's producers, claiming cops had matched bullets from Tory's gun to the fragments in Megan's foot.

Another claim ... it was wrong to allow statements Megan made to cops that Tory said to her immediately after the shooting, "Please don't say anything because I'm on probation."

Tory is facing 22 years in prison for three felony firearms violations. He's scheduled to be sentenced next month.

Ice Spice is not the victim of a chain-snatching, but rather the target of a big ol' attempt at clout-chasing for Internet fame!!!

Video of a man claiming to have possession of Ice's icy "Queen" necklace made its rounds across social media Wednesday -- and while many fans reacted with concern for Ice, the whole drama was merely a TikTok user looking to make a viral breakthrough.

The TikTok user fended off a wave of backlash ... we mean, he was bragging about robbing a woman for her chain 😐 ... and a source close to the "Munch" rapper doubled down against the shenanigans, assuring TMZ Hip Hop that Ice has never even owed such a piece.

"Queen" branding actually belongs to Nicki Minaj ... and a closer dive through Ice's jewelry box reveals the Bronx-bred rapper rocked her custom "Isis" name pendant the past couple of years as her star power grew.

In January, she dropped her "Like..?" EP and upgraded to her current $100k chain and showed it off when she pulled up on Kim Kardashian and North West ... for an authentic viral TikTok moment.

Killer Mike and El-P are hitting the road this fall to celebrate their 10th year together as Run The Jewels ... and fans in New York City, Atlanta, Chicago, and Los Angeles will reap the benefits!!!

The dynamic duo lifted the veil Wednesday on their "RTJX" tour series, which will see them playing 4 nights in each city ... and each night they'll perform a different album set.

We're hearing plenty of special guests are expected along the way and they're making up for lost time, having performed some of the records only a few times in their 10-year existence.

It's a big year for RTJ ... they've also collaborated with Nike for a furry, active pink SB Dunk High colorway that drops on Mike's birthday this 4/20.

DJ Drama is using his all-time favorite film to promote his upcoming album, and he's literally doing his best Tupac Shakur impression to bring attention to the project!!!

On Wednesday, Drama unleashed the Jim Jones-directed video teaser to his "I'm Really Like That" album promo, recreating the testy apartment scene from the hip hop classic film "Juice."

Drama takes on Pac's iconic and deranged "Bishop" character and recruited the film's original costars -- Omar Epps, Khalil Kain and Jermaine Hopkins -- to reprise their roles. Hell, Omar even put on the same sweater he wore in the film!!!

It was a full circle moment for Drama ... he credits Omar's fictional portrayal of DJ Q for inspiring his real-life career as a legendary DJ!!!

Drama and Jim really dug deeply into 1992 flick -- another scene has the "Gangsta Grillz" artist reimagining the audition scene that starred Queen Latifah (and a bonus Juelz Santana cameo) ... while another duplicates the record store conversation.

Plies is taking his ass to Church's ... a declaration arrived at after his latest trip to Chick-fil-A got his blood boiling over what he, obviously, considers ridiculously high prices.

The Florida rapper called out the chicken chain Tuesday right after he ordered three items -- a cobb salad with nuggets, a large fruit cup, and a bottled water ... all of which ran his pockets $18.74.

Plies immediately rethought his decision to hit Chick-fil-A and began to compare its prices to Church's and Applebee's ... and all the value he missed out on.

Chick-fil-A is renowned for its drive-thru speed, but Plies says he's willing to wait a bit if the meal is more reasonably priced.

Jonah Hill was in no chatty mood Tuesday night -- beelining it to his car after dinner ... and ignoring questions about Kanye West.

The actor was in the middle of a brisk walk as he left dinner at Giorgio Baldi in Santa Monica, exiting by himself ... and getting ready to drive away by himself, but photogs were waiting for him outside and ready to flash and talk.

Check it out .... Jonah wasn't having any of it. The dude tells one of the paps to clear the way so he can get to his ride, and then he was asked about Ye.

The photog asked the obvious ... how do you feel about changing KW's POV on Jews -- something the controversial artist said this past weekend on social media. Remember, he insultingly attributed JH's performance in '21 Jump Street' for making him Jew-friendly again.

It would appear Jonah might agree with just about everyone else on the issue ... namely, it's utterly ridiculous -- and not even worthy of a discussion. That's what we can glean, anyway.

We will say this ... Jonah seemed to be somewhat in a good mood -- flashing a big smile as he left Giorgio, which is encouraging. As you may have heard ... the guy's been going through some mental health stuff lately.

Ed Sheeran is admitting Jay-Z was in the right to decline a guest verse on his 2017 monster hit “Shape of You.”

The bubbly record went Diamond in the United States alone and topped the Billboard Hot 100 for 12 weeks throughout the year ... and Ed says Jay had the foresight to leave the record as it was when he was approached for the feature.

"We were in touch,” Ed explained in an interview with "Rolling Stone." “I sent him the song, and he said, ‘I don’t think the song needs a rap verse.’ He was probably right. He’s got a very, very good ear. He usually gets things right. It was a very natural, respectful pass.”

Ed still found assistance on the "Shape of You" remixes ... he recruited Stormzy for the official remix and Zion and Lennox for a Latin version.

He's looking toward his anticipated 5th album, "Subtract," which he played in full for the first time earlier this week at Hammersmith Apollo.

Bhad Bhabie and her mom have come a long way since Dr. Phil, but not that far -- on her 20th birthday she's still living up to her moniker by shaking what her momma gave her ... for her momma!!!

A source close to the family tells TMZ ... Bhad Bhabie, aka Danielle Bregoli, turned 20 on March 26, and to celebrate she flew private to her home in Florida ... where she was surrounded by close friends and family, and ready to really cut loose.

We're told the birthday shindig was an intimate gathering at her home ... which, included her mom Barbara, her mom’s friend and BB's friends. As you can see, the birthday girl was rocking a pink bikini and was NOT shy about showing off her dance moves for mom.

Up close and, seemingly, too personal for Barbara!

Guess you could say we caught Bhad Bhabie outside, putting on a show by the pool ... bending over in her swimsuit and putting her butt cells in motion.

At one point, she puts her leg across the chair where Barbara is seated and continues twerking. How 'bout dat?!?

While her mom doesn't seem to be moved by the show, she says ... "She didn't learn this from me because I don't know how to do it."

Screw birthday cake candles -- nearly seven years post-Dr. Phil, Bhad Bhabie's still doing it her way!!!

Producer Bangladesh is entering the chat started by Hit-Boy and Hitmaka's beat-making feud ... and is accusing both of those guys of mailing it in.

The "A Milli" creator took to IG Tuesday to deliver a PSA about original compositions -- and how both Hit-Boy and Hitmaka were lacking in that department.

Here's how Bangladesh views sampling ... he says it's “cool, but it’s not as impressive as creating your own beats from scratch."

Then he really went in, adding, "Sampling is cheat codes. I ain’t talking about crate-digging sampling. I’m talking about sampling s**t that was just out 10 to 5 years ago, or even just like obvious samples that was already a hit. Of course, it was gonna be a hit again!!!”

Grammy-winning musician Larrance Dopson of 1500 or Nothin' recently told TMZ Hip Hop ... lazy samples have become a problem as rappers now repeatedly release tracks that are mid.

Bangladesh, who's earned Grammy noms with both Lil Wayne and Beyonce, is definitely with the smoke and is building his "BMG" empire as we speak.

Flying Lotus is moving full steam ahead with the feature film, "Ash" -- his second time directing -- and he's got new cast members Eiza González and Aaron Paul on board for the space thriller.

Sources connected to production tell TMZ Hip Hop ... Fly Lo is going the "untraditional" route when it comes to scoring this particular sci-fi film, which begins filming in New Zealand this May.

On Tuesday, it was revealed Tessa Thompson and Joseph Gordon-Levitt were no longer attached to the project ... after they were previously announced as leads.

We're told the switch was just a matter of scheduling conflicts, but the studio is extremely happy moving forward with the new leads.

Fly Lo has been letting his production prowess soar in movies for years now. His first film "Kuso" dropped back in 2017, and his last released project was the soundtrack to "Ozzy's Dungeon," the segment he directed in the 2022 film "V/H/S/99."

Lil Uzi Vert is fully supportive of his girlfriend JT's decision to start going to therapy ... and he's urging anyone on the fence to take control of their mental health.

We got the Pink Tape lyricist Monday in NYC, fresh off his energetic performance of “Just Wanna Rock” on 'The Tonight Show' ... fully engaging the fans outside 30 Rock while openly lending his support to JT.

Last weekend, the City Girls rapper announced she was excited to begin therapy sessions, and said she wanted to encourage all of her fans to do the same.

Uzi's definitely on board with that message -- he told us JT's move is entirely positive and he echoed her sentiment, saying he wants fans to love and embrace themselves.

Kanye West watching an old Jonah Hill movie and saying it made him like Jewish people again does not erase his antisemitism ... not in the eyes of some prominent Jewish orgs.

Watchdog group StopAntisemitism and the American Jewish Committee both tell us they need to see much more than a simple social media post from Kanye to believe he's sincere in his new feelings towards Jewish people ... and they're willing to meet with him to discuss further steps while calling on him to do way more to prove he's a changed man.

Liora Rez, SA's Executive Director, tells TMZ, "Joking about a movie with Jonah Hill is not the apology that the Jewish people deserve from Kanye, particularly when his antisemitic tirades continue to have a dangerous trickle-down effect of hatred against Jews."

Remember ... it was only a few months ago when Kanye professed love for Hitler, and he also hung out with white nationalist Nick Fuentes ... and tweeted about going "death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE." To think a Jonah Hill movie changed his thinking is insulting.

Liora Rez, whose watchdog group named Kanye the "Antisemite of the Year" for 2022, says forgiveness is a major Jewish value and Ye can still be forgiven, starting by publicly denouncing Fuentes.

The AJC isn't rushing to forgive Kanye just yet either, with spokesperson Richard Hirschhaut telling TMZ ... "It is a little odd that all it might take for Kanye to renounce his vile antisemitism is to watch and 11-year-old Jonah hill movie. Whether Kanye is sincere, only he knows."

The AJC says Kanye's still got a lot of explaining and apologizing to do, but they're willing to meet with him in his effort to turn the page, do the right thing, and become better a better person ... if he's being authentic

The Jewish org is also issuing a call to action for Kanye ... telling us they want him "to take a serious and detailed look at his constant doubling down on antisemitism over these past several months and renounce each of these repeated, threatening and vile expressions of antisemitism. Then and only then could we contemplate a fresh conversation."

Brittney Taylor of "Love & Hip Hop: New York" fame has been arrested ... after allegedly assaulting her kids' father with a baseball bat ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Brittney got into a physical altercation earlier this month with Afeez, father of her 2-year-old and 8-month-old. She turned herself in last week after a warrant was issued for her arrest.

A source familiar tells us the alleged beating came after Afeez flew to NY to see his kids, although he'd been keeping his distance due to some bad blood between him and Brittney.

As he and his mom were leaving the apartment with the kids, Brittney allegedly said something to him which he ignored, and we're told that set her off.

According to the criminal complaint, obtained by TMZ, Afeez told cops Brittney then punched him in the face while his kids were present.  Afeez then left the residence, but cops say Brittney followed him out with the bat, hitting him and leaving him with a laceration and significant facial bleeding.

Docs say Afeez ended up going to the hospital, getting stitches for a cut above his eye. She's now been charged with two counts of assault, one count of endangering the welfare of a child, and one count of criminal possession of a weapon.

Afeez recently made some claims on social media about getting assaulted, which got fans wondering if Brittney was involved. It sounds like this incident may be what he was referring to in the posts.