Hip Hop

Nicki Minaj probably wanted a mulligan on her comments about J.D. Vance during a Turning Point USA event ... calling the VP an "assassin" -- during a chat with Erika Kirk.

The rapper appeared onstage at TPUSA's AmericaFest Sunday ... sitting down to heap praise on the current administration while Charlie Kirk's widow asked her questions about her foray into politics.

At first, Nicki's getting the crowd energized ... telling young men not to be "new-scum" -- a dig at California Governor Gavin Newsom. Instead, she encourages them to be like the "handsome" and "dashing" President Donald Trump.

A suspect has been arrested in connection to the scary invasion of Tekashi 6ix9ine's home ... TMZ has learned.

Pedro Roriguez -- a 19-year-old man -- was arrested and charged with armed home invasion robbery with a firearm, false imprisonment, grand theft and posession of marijuana with intent to sell or deliver ... according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office.

Authorities say Rodriguez is just one of several suspects ... and, the investigation remains ongoing.

Tom Brady posted for the first time since news of his ex-wife Gisele Bündchen's marriage to Joaquim Valente broke ... and, a song he added to his posts will have some raising some eyebrows.

Here's the deal ... the ex-NFLer shared two photos to his Instagram story Saturday morning -- the first of which shows TB12 in a white hoodie with "Forever Young" written on the chest. While it's only a photo, Brady added audio to the post ... the song "1-800-273-8255" by Logic featuring Alessia Cara and Khalid.

If you're not familiar with the track, it has lines like "I feel like my life ain't mine" and "I don't wanna be alive." The title is the old suicide prevention hotline number, though it's since been changed to the simpler 988.

T.I. is aiming for some Christmas Eve calamity in households everywhere -- with the release of his debut stand-up comedy special!!!

On Friday, Tip dropped the trailer for "Cheaper Than Therapy" ... his all-jokes, non-musical romp which was filmed at the famed Atlanta venue Center Stage.

We're told the hip hop legend got the support from his fellow hometown heroes during the special's taping ... Usher, The-Dream, and Young Dro were all in the building!!! Tip also shared the stage with his own comedy collective, The HaHa Mafia.

Timothée Chalamet still won’t confirm or deny he’s EsDeeKid ... but he’s absolutely riding the chaos, teaming up with the masked singer himself for one heck of an epic collab!

The Oscar-nominated star just dropped a wild video collaborating on the Liverpudlian’s "4 Raws Remix," releasing both the track and visuals with them appearing together -- which might put the rumors to bed ... except it’s 2025 and A.I. can stitch anyone together🤷‍♀️.

Either way -- undercover British rapper or not -- Timmy put his rap game all the way out there, name-checking his "Marty Supreme" film, flexing about stacking $100 mil, and even shouting out GF Kylie Jenner with the line, "It’s Timothée Chalamet chillin', tryin’ to stack $100 million / Girl got a billion."

The internet is still buzzing about whether or not Drake and Kendrick Lamar's iconic rap battle hurt the culture overall but Top Dawg Entertainment President, Terrence "Punch" Henderson is simply chalking it up to the circle of hip hop life!!!

The Top Dawg Entertainment President addressed the state of rap with TMZ Hip Hop at his label's 12th annual Christmas charity concert that boosted big names such as Kendrick Lamar, SZA, Dr. Dre, and Snoop Dogg!!!

A lot has happened within the culture in the past few weeks such as Hot 97 ending its decade-plus running "Ebro in the Morning" show and VIBE Magazine firing the bulk of its staff ... Punch says it's all been a transition period that's changing by the second.

YouTube music stats won't be represented on the Billboard Charts next year after a dispute the streaming giant called an "outdated formula" ...radio and podcast host Bootleg Kev agrees!!!

TMZ Hip Hop linked with Kev at TDE's 12th annual Christmas giveaway ... boosted by appearances from Kendrick Lamar, Dr. Dre, SZA, and more!!!

the Real 92.3 personality tells us Russ was right on the money in his criticism of Billboard refusing to acknowledge YouTube as an equal to DSPs such as Spotify, Apple Music, and more.

Tory Lanez is focused on being released from prison after 3 years into his 10-year sentence for his involvement in the 2022 Megan Thee Stallion shooting case ... because he believes there's new evidence to free him!!!

The embattled "Color Violent" artist gave his first broadcast interview from prison to NBC News this week and maintained his innocence ... citing the newly surfaced evidence is “overwhelming."

The evidence stems from Megan's recent defamation trial against blogger Milagro Gramz ... Tory is seeking the bullet fragments from the shooting that were never turned over, and Megan's medical records -- after Gramz's attorney discovered a document that wasn't originally identified in the 2022 trial.

Charlamagne Tha God is here to stay at "The Breakfast Club" and iHeartMedia, despite hater reports ... the radio czar just signed a new $200 million deal with iHeartMedia!!!

Much speculation surrounded Charlamagne's status with iHeart in the wake of the shake-ups at Hot 97, which led to the departure of Ebro Darden, Peter Rosenberg, and a few others.

However, Charlamagne broke the news through Forbes on Friday, expressing his desire to expand his Black Effect network into the "BET" of podcasting!!!

Top Dawg Entertainment's annual Christmas Concert was once again the talk of the city of Watts with plenty of gifts and cheers being distributed ... and performances from several of the biggest artists, EVER!!!

TMZ Hip Hop was live and direct inside the renowned Nickerson Gardens housing projects once again to take in the festivities, which included blockbuster performances.

Kendrick Lamar and SZA shut down the evening, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg spread "California Love," and R&B sensation Mario performed "Let Me Love You."

Ebro Darden's morning show exile from Hot 97 last week blindsided the entire Tri-State area ... including DJ Drewski, who found out about his coworker getting canned like everyone else -- on the internet!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with Drewski outside Johnny Donovan's 9th annual Celebrity Christmas Party this week, which benefits Little Flower Children Services.

Drewski is thankful to still have a job this holiday season and was aware his station was making changes. Still, he thinks Hot 97 skimmed out on the HR protocol, giving everyone the heads up "Ebro in the Morning" had been canceled.

Mustard is on the beat and on his ex-wife Chanel Thierry's case, claiming she's been blasting him on social media ... and now he's asking a judge to give him full legal custody of their kids over it.

In court documents, obtained by TMZ, Mustard -- whose real name is Dijon McFarlane -- says he wants sole legal custody of his and Chanel's three children -- Kiylan, 13, Kauner, 10, and Kody, 6.

The ex-couple shared legal custody of the kids under the previous order. At the time, the judge also specifically prohibited both of them from speaking in a "negative, disrespectful, or derogatory manner to or about the other" in their children's presence or "within hearing distance of the child."

In new court papers filed by attorney Samantha Spector, Mustard alleges Chanel violated that order by making disparaging social media postings about him ... including Chanel posting to Threads on October 26, writing, "Dijon I know you are reading this, I'm so sick of your s***. You suck."

"The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants" became ground zero for panicked parents testing their cover-your-kids'-eyes reflexes ... 'cause Ice Spice rolled in to the family-friendly affair practically naked!

The rapper -- who has a role in the flick and contributed the original song "Big Guy" -- went shockingly bold at the NYC premiere for the PG-rated movie Wednesday, rocking a sheer lace getup that left little to the imagination, flashing her thong and plenty of bare cheek.

Ice was posing up a storm in front of that bright, bubbly SpongeBob backdrop ... a wild juxtaposition, considering this was a kids’ movie premiere with families everywhere.

Bianca jumped out of her 20s and into a bathtub -- completely nude -- for her 30th birthday.

The black-and-white video, taken by husband Kanye, came just before the two reportedly split for a brief couple of months.

Before officially confirming their romance, the pop star and former Canadian Prime Minister were seen dining together at swanky Montreal hotspot Le Violon.

Wiz Khalifa is facing a potential 9-month stint in Romanian prison for weed ... but he's hoping to find an alternate solution to a definitive sentence just handed down by that country's government!!!

Thursday, Romania's Constanța Court of Appeal upheld an appeal filed by DIICOT Constanța Territorial Service -- a prosecutor's office in the country -- to sentence the "Young, Wild & Free" rapper to 9 months ... despite a previous citation that only fined him 3,000 lei -- roughly $700 USD.

Sources close to the situation inform TMZ Hip Hop that nothing is set in stone just yet ... his team is currently in the process of appealing the sentence.

AEW Star MJF made his surprise return to the ring Wednesday night across the pond in England ... and not only did it shake up the championship scene -- but it also sent the internet ablaze when he compared a wrestler to Diddy.

The former AEW World Champion looked like he hadn't lost a step in the three months he was away from the company ... and unfortunately for Swerve Strickland, he found himself right in his crosshairs.

"You really remind me a lot of this famous musician," MJF said. "You guys have a lot in common. You both call yourself moguls, you both rock chains, you both rock way too much baby oil and you're both dogsh*t rappers."

It was at that moment that the crowd realized where he was going.