TMZ Hip Hop

Rihanna is throwing her full support behind A$AP Rocky .... because she's planning on showing up Wednesday for his Los Angeles criminal trial, TMZ has learned.

Of course, RiRi will cause quite the stir when she makes her grand entrance at the downtown L.A. courthouse, with a circus-like media atmosphere surrounding the high drama. A source with direct knowledge of the case tells us the plans could change, but right now RiRi is slated to be there tomorrow.

And while it's unclear what testimony will be heard Wednesday in court, RiRi will likely be sitting in the gallery with all the regular folks, which should be an interesting visual in and of itself.

A$AP Rocky's assault trial is sparking debate about "snitching," and the man he allegedly shot entered the chat outside court ... on the heels of taking the stand in the trial.

A$AP Relli strolled out of the downtown L.A. courthouse Tuesday evening, and a paparazzo immediately asked, "Some people call you a snitch, what you say about that?" Relli calmly and quickly responded, "Would you be a snitch if somebody shot at you?"

This set off a heated convo between Relli and the photographer (not a TMZ employee), who oddly bragged about having a bullet in his leg.

Rihanna and A$AP Rocky aren't going to let his assault trial stop them from having some fun, as the couple was seen out and about after the rapper's long day in court.

The famous duo hit the town for dinner at Verse, a swanky L.A. restaurant. Rihanna is generous with her time, offering to sign records for a man waiting outside -- and her interaction with him is hilarious. The grapher tells her that he wants to get Ri's autograph tattooed on his hand, and she tells him that's a bad idea.

A$AP is seen in the same outfit he had on in court ... wearing a white collared shirt, paired with a nice black tie and tan trench coat.

A$AP Rocky's alleged victim, and former friend, says he couldn't believe Rocky would pull a gun on him, and he boldly dared him to pull the trigger.

A$AP Relli took the stand Tuesday in the rapper's assault trial, and recounted the moment he first saw the gun Rocky allegedly pulled on him during their heated 2021 arguemnt.

Relli, whose government name is Terell Ephron, told the jury it all unfolded very quickly, and upon seeing the gun he blurted out, "You better use that s**t, what the f**k you got a gun for?"

Brian Keith Thompson, a celebrity tattooist and body piercer, is issuing a major warning to those wanting to jump on the butt crack piercing trend like Cardi B.

Brian, who owns Body Electric Tattoo in Los Angeles, applauds the "WAP" rapper for getting such a "cool" bit of drip ... but warns the strategically placed piercing is NOT for the faint of heart.

Thompson tells us the gluteal microdermals -- a horizontal surface piercing -- take a long time to heal and can scar "really badly" ... with the risk of infection being high due to the location of the jewelry.

BKT believes Cardi can pull off this tricky piercing given her extensive track record ... she already has piercings in her ears, nose, lip, chest, belly button, and eyebrow. Yet, he says he'd warn "the general public" against getting the piercing, since he feels responsible for all his work.

He adds ... "Once you do something like that, you own it. So, all the problems that come in, you've got to own those too."

Though Brian didn't do Cardi's latest piercing, he did give her the microdermals for her chest and the lip piercing she rocked on her 2020 Elle cover.

Omari Hardwick’s weighing in on the backlash Snoop Dogg, Nelly, Soulja Boy, and Rick Ross got for performing at Donald Trump’s Crypto Ball -- and he’s sharing his thoughts exclusively with TMZ Hip Hop.

The "Power" star first cracks a joke, saying he’ll call Snoop to get the scoop, but then he gets serious, reminding us Hip Hop has always championed expression -- and we should give the rap stars space to share their sides of the story, despite any feelings they betrayed their community by making a political statement.

You’ve gotta check out the clip -- Omari breaks down his POV, hinting there could be more to their decision to perform than just politics ... so they should have the chance to explain their motives.

The man cops say is responsible for Tupac Shakur's death was involved in a jailhouse brawl while awaiting trial in his 2Pac murder case ... and now he's facing a new charge.

Duane "Keefe D" Davis got into a physical fight with a fellow inmate at Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas ... according to multiple reports.

Keefe D and his opponent engaged in "mutual combat by grappling and throwing closed fist strikes" ... and Keefe D allegedly put the other guy in a headlock.

WWE's "Monday Night Raw" didn't just bring the high-flying action to Atlanta ... it also attracted some of the biggest names in the rap game!!

The final Raw before the Royal Rumble was a who's who of hip hop ... including Lil Yachty -- who trolled Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston by wearing a shirt that read "The New Day Sucks."

Quavo decided front-row seats weren't enough ... so he made his way through the crowd with WWE Superstar Jey Uso, a moment that blew the roof off State Farm Arena.

6:16 PM PT -- An attorney for 50 Cent tells TMZ … "Mr. Jackson has neither been served with or seen a filed copy of a lawsuit filed by Ms. Allred’s firm. However, if and when such a frivolous claim is filed and served, rest assured that Mr. Jackson’s legal team will swiftly move to dismiss the matter and seek the maximum costs, fees, sanctions and other remedies that are available under law.

They continued, "Based upon the leaked reports presumably by Ms. Allred, Mr. Jackson is not alleged to be the driver of the vehicle or even the individual who the Plaintiff paparazzi alleges opened the door as he charged a vehicle as it drove away from the bookstore."

TMZ can confirm the lawsuit was not leaked. It was filed publicly in L.A. Superior Court Monday afternoon.

50 Cent allegedly directed his entourage to hit a photographer with a car door, knocking the man from his electric scooter and injuring him in the process ... at least according to a new lawsuit.

The "In Da Club" rapper is being sued by a man named Guadalupe De Los Santos, who claims 50 Cent used an SUV to assault him.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, the man claims he went to 50 Cent's September 11 book signing at The Grove in Los Angeles to shoot video of the celebrity.

Rihanna is courting A$AP Rocky, as in she's figuring out how best to support her man during his criminal trial ... TMZ has learned.

Sources familiar with the situation tell us ... RiRi is "considering" appearing in the L.A. courtroom where Rocky's standing trial for the alleged 2021 shooting of A$AP Relli.

Rihanna possibly sitting in the courtroom gallery is noteworthy for a lot of reasons. First, she's a huge celeb and mother to Rocky's 2 kids ... so, both things could have an influence on a jury.

Cardi B is proving she's a woman of her word ... posting an up-close look at her new butt crack piercing, after some fans doubted its existence.

Check it out ... the rapper posted on her X account Monday, where she declared to her more than 36 million followers that she had punctured her intergluteal cleft with some new "Drip" ... or as she eloquently put it, she had her "butt crack pierced."

But ... fans were quick to voice doubt about the bold addition to her already extensive list of tattoos and piercings on her body.

Eminem is not the plaintiff in the lawsuit. Eight Mile Style controls his early catalog, and therefore, filed the suit. We're told Em does not have ownership in Eight Mile Style.

Eminem's ride or die for his home state, but not when it comes to a Ford dealership in Michigan using his biggest hit to sell limited edition trucks.

Eight Mile Style, which controls part of Em's music catalog, fired off the lawsuit Monday against LaFontaine Ford St. Clair -- which owns multiple car dealerships -- over an online ad it started running last fall to promote a limited edition Detroit Lions Ford F-150 pickup truck.

The ad is not only scored with "Lose Yourself," but it also features a caption that reads, "You only get one shot to own a Special Edition Detroit Lions F-150."

A birthday party for one of Kodak Black's kids apparently turned into a huge brawl over the weekend ... and we're told it's all because of some baby mama drama.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... one of Kodak's baby mamas got into an argument as the bday bash was winding down -- and a massive fight broke out. We're told Kodak was there celebrating his 3-year-old daughter, Queen Yuri.

Our sources say Queen Yuri's mom, reality TV star Maranda Johnson, was part of the argument that led to the fight ... though it's unclear who she was beefing with.

DJ Unk's cause of death has been revealed ... the Atlanta rapper died from a heart attack ... TMZ has learned.

Unk's wife, Sherkita Long-Platt tells TMZ he died in his sleep on January 24 after suffering a heart attack. She says the family is aware of various rumors going around as to how he died … and she wants people to know the truth. She tells us speculation he died from drugs is not true as he didn't do drugs.

We're told a candlelight vigil is taking place later today in his Atlanta neighborhood.

Bhad Bhabie's already flaunting her new nose in public, leaving a facial care clinic in L.A. ... how 'bout dat?

The rapper and OnlyFans model stepped out in the City of Angels Friday ... walking out of the clinic in a gray sweatshirt and sweatpants.

Her curly hair is styled in a perm and she's holding a Louis Vuitton bag that costs more than $3K ... though, the accessories almost certainly played second fiddle to her new sniffer.