Following reports of battery investigation into West against unnamed man, rapper’s team allege wife Bianca Censori was being assaulted
Representatives for Kanye West have alleged that a man physically and sexually assaulted his wife Bianca Censori in an incident in Los Angeles.
Sources previously told TMZ that West was being investigated as a suspect in a battery incident earlier this week, after the rapper was alleged to have struck a man who had grabbed Censori.
Continue reading...Tributes paid to music producer who helped write TLC’s Waterfalls and worked on albums by OutKast and CeeLo Green
Rico Wade, one of the architects of Atlanta’s “dirty south” hip-hop sound, who co-produced albums by OutKast, Goodie Mob and CeeLo Green and who co-wrote TLC’s 1994 hit Waterfalls, has died. He was 52.
Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens paid tribute to Wade, saying he had “led in the creation of a hip-hop sound that has spanned decades and genres. Rico left an indelible mark on music and culture around the world and for that, the south will always have something to say.”
Continue reading...Sex-trafficking investigation comes amid multiple lawsuits including singer Cassie accusing him of rape and physical abuse
The rapper and mogul Sean Combs is facing mounting legal troubles after federal agents searched his properties in Los Angeles and Miami as part of a sex-trafficking investigation.
On Monday morning, US Department of Homeland Security agents in tactical gear and armored vehicles raided two of Combs’ mansions as part of an investigation by federal authorities in New York, sources told the Associated Press.
Continue reading...The winners of every category at the 2024 Brits, updated as the ceremony progresses
• Brit awards 2024: women dominate as Raye scores record-smashing six wins
• Brit awards 2024: as it happened
Blur – The Ballad of Darren
J Hus – Beautiful and Brutal Yard
Little Simz – No Thank You
Raye – My 21st Century Blues – WINNER!
Young Fathers – Heavy Heavy
Allegations, which rapper and mogul denies, is the latest in a series of lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault
Sean Combs, the rapper and mogul known as Diddy, was sued Monday by a music producer who accused the hip-hop mogul of sexually assaulting him and forcing him to have sex with prostitutes.
The suit, filed in federal court in New York, accuses Combs of repeated instances of unsolicited groping and sexual touching. It also says the man had to work in a bathroom while Combs showered and walked around naked.
Continue reading...London MC wins best male and song of the year, while Potter Payper beats stiff competition to win album of the year
Central Cee has topped the winners at the 2024 Mobo awards, winning best male for the second year in a row, and best song for Sprinter, his collaborative track with Dave, that dominated the summer months with a 10-week run at No 1.
Elsewhere the awards, which celebrate black musical artistry in the UK and globally, spread the garlands across a diverse range of music, with no one artist dominating.
Continue reading...Rappers entered breakfast market with Snoop Cereal in 2023, and allege conspiracy between manufacturer Post Consumer Brands and supermarket chain Walmart to ‘choke’ startup brand
Rappers Snoop Dogg and Master P are suing US supermarket chain Walmart and food manufacturer Post Consumer Brands, claiming that the two companies conspired to sabotage the success of the pair’s new breakfast cereal enterprise.
Snoop Cereal launched last summer, with Master P hailing parent company Broadus Foods as the first Black-owned cereal company in the US: “This has been going on for over 100 years, that we’ve been consumers and never owners, so we’re changing that game.” The rappers partnered with Post to produce the cereal itself.
Continue reading...Karl Jordan Jr, 40, and Ronald Washington, 59, are accused of murdering the musician over a drug deal in 2002
Jury selection began Monday in the trial of the two men charged in the 2002 fatal shooting of Jam Master Jay, a member of the legendary hip-hop group Run-DMC.
The defendants, Karl Jordan Jr, 40, and Ronald Washington, 59, are accused of murdering the musician over a drug deal. Opening statements were expected in a state courthouse in Brooklyn after the jury is selected.
Continue reading...Settlement to their ‘mutual satisfaction’ announced in a statement released on Friday evening without details being disclosed
Sean “Diddy” Combs and singer Cassie said on Friday that they have settled a lawsuit containing allegations of beatings and abuse by the music producer.
Combs, a hip-hop icon and the founder of Bad Boy Records, was accused of rape and abuse in a major lawsuit filed by Cassie, whose legal name is Casandra Ventura, that alleges he used his powerful network to keep her trapped in a violent relationship with him.
Continue reading...Kate Bush and Soul Train creator Don Cornelius were also inducted, with Missy Elliott closing the ceremony with roof-shaking set
Sheryl Crow and Olivia Rodrigo kicked off the 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Friday night and Missy Elliott closed the show more than four hours later with a roof-shaking set, as the hall celebrated a strong representation of women and Black artists.
Chaka Khan, Kate Bush, Soul Train creator Don Cornelius, the Spinners and DJ Kool Herc were also inducted in a celebration of funk, art-rock, R&B and hip-hop, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Continue reading...Duane ‘Keffe D’ Davis, a former Los Angeles drug dealer, was indicted Friday for one count of murder with a deadly weapon
Las Vegas police have arrested a man for the 1996 drive-by shooting of Tupac Shakur, a long-awaited break for one of the most infamous unsolved murders in hip-hop history.
Duane “Keffe D” Davis, who has described himself as one of the last living witnesses of the shooting, was taken into custody early Friday morning after he was indicted by a grand jury for one count of murder with a deadly weapon in affiliation with a criminal gang, Marc DiGiacomo, the Clark county prosecutor, said in court on Friday. The 60-year-old was arrested while on a walk near his home in Henderson, a Las Vegas suburb.
Continue reading...Five of ‘afro-trap’ pioneer’s fellow defendants also imprisoned over killing in what prosecutors said was a fight between rival gangs
French rapper MHD has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for the 2018 murder of a young man in Paris who was rammed with a car before being set upon by a mob and stabbed.
Five of his fellow defendants were also jailed over the killing, receiving terms of between 10 and 18 years over what prosecutors said was a fight between rival gangs. Three other men were acquitted.
Continue reading...Band say unexpected win is ‘testimony to good, special people putting time and effort’ into helping young people to play music
The 2023 Mercury prize has been awarded to Ezra Collective, the London band whose propulsive blend of jazz, funk and Afrobeat has electrified audiences and cemented the capital’s jazz scene as one of the world’s most exciting.
“We met in a youth club,” said drummer and bandleader Femi Koleoso on accepting the award for the year’s best British or Irish album for Where I’m Meant to Be, the band’s second release. “This moment we’re celebrating right here is testimony to good, special people putting time and effort into [helping] young people to play music … let’s continue to support that,” he added, citing grassroots collectives in London such as Tomorrow’s Warriors and Kinetika Bloco.
Continue reading...Gary Wilcox allegedly performed to graphically sexual and violent songs while wearing his robes at court and in chambers
A judge in New Jersey is under investigation for allegedly filming TikTok videos in which he lip-synced to popular songs, at times in his bed or his judicial chambers.
Last Friday, the advisory committee on judicial conduct in New Jersey’s supreme court filed a complaint against Gary Wilcox, a 58-year-old superior court judge who presides over criminal cases in Bergen county.
Continue reading...Bristol-born vocalist celebrated for political lyricism and highly expressive style was influential both with the Pop Group and a long solo career
Mark Stewart, who was celebrated for his dizzying and politicised blend of post-punk, dub and funk as frontman of the Pop Group and in a solo career, has died aged 62.
News of his death was confirmed by his label Mute, who wrote: “In honour of this original, fearless, sensitive, artistic and funny man, think for yourself and question everything. The world was changed because of Mark Stewart, it will never be the same without him.” No cause of death has been given.
Continue reading...Fontaines DC, Aitch, Becky Hill and the 1975 also won gongs, while Tom Grennan flubbed it. Here’s all the action from the 43rd annual music awards
• Read the full report here
• The trouble with the Brits
• The night in pictures
Shania is here! And in a week where she has a UK No 1 album with Queen of Me to boot. She’s performed with Harry Styles in the past; wonder if they’ll have a redux (or if she’ll present him with one of the awards that he’ll inevitably walk away with tonight).
RuPaul’s Drag Race contestant Bimini Bon-Boulash has arrived in extremely punk fashion, wearing a dress that transplants the colours of the trans pride flag onto the union jack – a nice little injection of chaos onto this year’s red carpet.
Continue reading...The far-right Republican congresswoman was served with a cease-and-desist letter after she soundtracked a promotional video with his 1999 hit Still Dre
Dr Dre has successfully blocked Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene from using his music in any context to do with her political career after she used his 1999 hit Still Dre to soundtrack a promotional video.
In the nearly two-minute video, posted on 9 January with the caption, “It’s time to begin … and they can’t stop what’s coming”, the far-right Georgia lawmaker walks out of her office in slow motion to the familiar first notes of the song, which features Snoop Dogg.
Continue reading...Felonies facing rapper Tory Lanez include assault with a semiautomatic weapon and could lead to up to 22 years in prison
A Los Angeles jury on Friday found rapper Tory Lanez guilty of three felonies in the 2020 shooting of hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion that left her wounded with bullet fragments in her feet.
The jury deliberated for one day before convicting the 30-year-old Canadian rapper, whose legal name is Daystar Peterson, of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, having a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle and discharging a firearm with gross negligence. The counts could lead to up to 22 years in prison.
Continue reading...Elon Musk intervenes after rapper posted image hours after airing antisemitic views in Alex Jones interview
Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, has been suspended from Twitter after he tweeted an image of a swastika blended with a star of David, less than two weeks after he returned to the platform.
The suspension took place hours after Ye praised Adolf Hitler and the Nazis in an interview on Infowars, a show hosted by the rightwing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.
Continue reading...Atlanta-based Quality Control issues statement speaking of ‘monumental loss’, as Houston police appeal for any of 40 people at scene to come forward
Migos’s Atlanta-based record label Quality Control has shared a statement on the fatal shooting of their rapper Takeoff. “It is with broken hearts and deep sadness that we mourn the loss of our beloved brother Kirshnik Khari Ball, known to the world as Takeoff,” the label wrote on Instagram. “Senseless violence and a stray bullet has taken another life from this world and we are devastated. Please respect his family and friends as we all continue to process this monumental loss.”
At a press conference, Houston mayor Sylvester Turner and police chief Troy Finner responded to the shooting, asking any of the supposedly 40 people who were present on the scene to come forward with details.
Continue reading...