Music

Jadakiss isn't down in the dumps over the cancelation of his first major acting gig ... because he says it's opened the door to more roles in the near future.

We caught the 'King of Verzuz' outside the MLB store in NYC, just a few days after ABC pulled the plug on "Queens" -- a hip hop series starring Eve, Brandy and Naturi Naughton -- after just one season.

Jada appeared in several episodes, but as he tells TMZ Hip Hop, get ready to see him in several other projects, and hear him doing voiceover work too.

While Hollywood's calling, he's still keeping up on the latest and greatest in rap ... and took time to praise Kendrick Lamar and Dave Free's new visual masterpiece, "The Heart Part 5"

Although K. Dot hasn't released a solo project in over 5 years, Jada says it doesn't matter because music is a feeling and should be expressed when the timing feels right.

That expression comes for Kendrick this Friday the 13th when his album "Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers" is unleashed unto the world.

iLoveMemphis, the rapper responsible for the "Hit The Quan" dance craze, allegedly had a little too much fun at a raging block party ... because he left in handcuffs.

Memphis was arrested Saturday after cops say they responded to a home hosting a bash with at least 50 people, where someone reported bottles being thrown at passing cars.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, when cops arrived at the scene a shirtless Memphis approached officers with slurred speech and reeked of booze.

Police say they asked Memphis several times to identify himself with his first and last name and date of birth ... but when he failed to do after repeated requests, officers tried taking him into custody.

Cops say when they started placing Memphis into restraints, he tensed his arms ... preventing the cuffs from being slapped on. They say he also tensed his upper body and screamed as police tried putting him in the cop car.

When officers finally got him inside their vehicle, Memphis allegedly called one cop a "p**** a**" and an "immigrant."

Memphis was arrested and booked for multiple charges, including resisting arrest and disorderly intoxication.

Rude awakening for Roddy Ricch Monday morning -- he's now the butt of Internet jokes after seemingly forgetting the words to his MASSIVE hit "The Box," but it was really a huge technical error to blame ... TMZ Hip Hop has learned.

Roddy was hired as a secret performer for the Stoned Ape Crew NFT group's showcase Saturday night in L.A., and the crowd thought he flamed out during the first verse of his Diamond-certified hit.

You can see him sheepishly pointing to his earpiece while signaling to the DJ booth before jumping back on the beat later in the verse.

Roddy's label reps tell us the Compton-bred rapper powered through "major" audio issues during his set -- his earpiece wasn't connecting with the track, leaving him to take his cues from the sound blaring from the speakers.

When you know that, it's actually impressive how quickly he snapped back into action.

Released in December 2019 just as the COVID-19 pandemic was setting in, it would be kinda crazy to forget the lyrics to such a well-traveled song as "The Box."

After spending 11 straight weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100, it was eventually given Diamond honors by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for going 10x Platinum.

Roddy has plenty of festival appearances coming up this year -- Governors Ball, Hot 97, UK's Wireless to name a few -- so, it's definitely time to sharpen that stage setup.

Travis Scott is officially firing from all cylinders on his journey back to being one of music's biggest performers ... he's scheduled to hit the 'BBMA' stage next week.

Sources connected to the "Billboard Music Awards" tell us TS will perform at the upcoming show. It'll be his first televised performance in 6 months, and will be watched by millions of people around the world.

As we reported, Travis hit the stage in Miami over the weekend, as part of Miami Grand Prix weekend ... so it's safe to say he's getting back into the swing of things. Travis certainly didn't hold anything back, and the crowd loved his performance.

As we've reported, Travis has performed at a few private parties in the last couple months ... like the Pre-Oscars event and a Coachella after-party, but an award show is a different level.

He's also gearing up to headline his first musical festival since Astroworld at the Primera Sound festival -- where he is expected to perform in front of more than 100,000 people.

As you know ... Travis, Astroworld promoter Live Nation, and others have been hit with several lawsuits after 10 people tragically died at the Astrowold festival, last November.

The investigation continues into who was responsible for those that died ... and Travis maintains he was unaware of the severity of things at the time.

Speaking of comebacks ... we've told you, Country music singer, Morgan Wallen, will also be performing his first gig since 2020 at this year's Billboard Awards ...  after he came under fire for saying the 'n-word'.

YG is off the hook for an alleged robbery in Sin City ... his criminal case was just dismissed on the morning of jury selection.

Sources close to the rapper tell TMZ ... YG settled out of court with the alleged robbery victim, and the guy was no longer interested in cooperating with prosecutors in the criminal case.

TMZ broke the story ... YG was facing a felony robbery charge for allegedly yanking a dude's chain off his neck in a 2018 altercation at the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, before making off with the diamond-laced pendant.

We're told YG maintained he never stole the chain from the man, though he admitted the bling snapped off when the two were in a fight.

YG’s lawyer, Joe Tacopina, tells TMZ … "Justice was served expeditiously, we would've had the same result if the case went to trial."

Mommy-to-be Rihanna lit up the night with her Mother's Day get-up ... stepping out for date night with Boyfriend A$AP Rocky.

The two hit Giorgio Baldi in Santa Monica Sunday, RiRi wore a sparkling set with lots of cutouts, but made sure to stay warm with a fur shawl. It'll be Rihanna's last Mother's Day without a kiddo of her own ... as it's expected she'll give birth in the next few weeks.

Rihanna and A$AP are frequent fliers at Giorgio Baldi -- it's actually one of her favorite places to grab dinner -- but one thing's for sure ... there are ALWAYS cameras there, so you gotta imagine RiRi knew they'd get her flashy fit.

Of course, pregnancy hasn't slowed RiRi down much. She and A$AP recently enjoyed visiting family and friends in her hometown of Barbados.

Kendrick Lamar is a man of many faces, including some very famous ones he features in his new music video ... addressing the most infamous moments of the past few years.

KL dropped a song Sunday called 'The Heart Part 5,' where he talks about the culture at lightning-quick speed, hopscotching through different scenarios and employing the monikers of celebs to make his point -- including Will Smith, Kanye West and Jussie Smollett.

It's true ... the video shows Kendrick's face change to all of these men at different points in the song, using some fancy technology that we suppose you could equate to a deep fake.

He also features O.J. Simpson briefly while bringing up a "bulletproof Rover," seemingly referencing the Ford Bronco from way back when. Then, he transitions to Ye's face while mentioning "friends bipolar," and finally to Jussie as he says "the streets got me f***ed up."

Eventually, his face becomes Will's as he raps this ... "In the land where hurt people hurt more people // F*** callin' it culture." Of course, he's addressing the Oscars slap there.

There are two other stars he morphs into ... the late Kobe Bryant and Nipsey Hussle. In both instances, he's referring to death and reflecting on the legacy he leaves behind ... praying it's a worthy one.

The Nipsey line is especially telling ... Kendrick raps, "To my brother, to my kids, I'm in Heaven // To my mother, to my sis, I'm in Heaven// To my father, to my wife, I am serious, this is Heaven" ... going on to say he forgives the killer who sped up his demise.

French Montana could be getting dragged to court soon 'cause a rapper is accusing him of stealing his lyrics ... and, he is demanding French settles it soon, or else.

'Hot Boys' rapper Turk had his lawyers fire off a demand letter to French Montana's lawyer, claiming French ripped some of their client's lyrics for his 2021 song, "Handstand".

According to the letter, obtained by TMZ ... Tab Virgil Jr., aka Turk, claims French lifted lyrics from his group's 1999 hit, "I Need A Hot Girl" without permission ... and say, FM's track with the stolen lyrics has already scored more than 17 million views on YouTube.

In case you didn't know, The Hot Boys was a hip hop group formed in the '90s ... the members were Lil Wayne, B.G., Juvenile, and Turk.

The song, "I Need A Hot Girl", was a huge hit for the group and even appeared on Billboards Hot 100.

In French Montana's song, Doja Cat and Saweetie join him to sing "I need a project b****, a hood rat b****. One don't give a f*** and say she took that d***". These are close to the exact lyrics Turk claims he wrote and performed in the throwback song.

A source with direct knowledge tells us French had actually purchased the beat and the hook with the understanding all was clear. However, there must've been some sort of confusion ... nonetheless, we're told French's team is already working to rectify the situation.

Megan Thee Stallion looked more like Megan Thee Rag Doll in NYC this weekend -- and that's because her boyfriend was having his way with her in the club ... woof!

The femcee was hosting a party Saturday night in the Big Apple in honor of her new single, "Plan B," which she debuted at Coachella a few weeks ago. Seems like it was a rager, with MTS and her man, Pardison Fontaine, leading the charge in the hot and heavy department.

Check it out ... at one point, Pardi picked up Megan and started bouncing her up and down with hip thrusts, this as she had her arms wrapped around him. Yeah, it's pretty hot.

Even before this pony ride, it looks like Pardi had a firm grasp on her/the sitch at large -- literally carrying her upstairs like nothin'. It's wild ... Meg's not a small girl by any means -- she's reported as 5'10", so for him to be able to hoist her up like this is ... impressive.

Anyway, once they were in their own zone ... the dirty dancing continued, with Meg twerking and Pardi coming in for a taste. Looks like they're all about showing off PDA early and often -- which is great for everyone else taking in the show.

Sam Hunt and his wife called off their divorce and all signs point to reconciliation.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Sam's wife, Hannah Lee Fowler, asked the court to dismiss the divorce case last month, and a judge signed off.

Remember ... Hannah cited infidelity when she originally filed for divorce back in February, but she quickly withdrew her petition and refiled it in a different county in Tennessee.

But, this time around it looks like the divorce is really being called off.

There's more evidence Sam and Hannah are giving their marriage another try ... he's been wearing his wedding ring again.

Sam was NOT wearing the band during a performance in March when the divorce was still working its way through the courts, but he was rocking the ring last week on stage in Florida.

And, get this ... witnesses say Sam and Hannah have been spotted together recently, walking their dog in Franklin, TN.

They have a pretty good reason to reconcile ... Sam says they are expecting a baby girl at the end of the month, which would be their first child.

TMZ broke the story ... Hannah filed for divorce back in February. In her divorce docs, she said Sam was "guilty of inappropriate marital conduct" and "adultery." She asked the court for primary custody of their future child and alimony.

Travis Scott made his move Saturday night ... performing at his first public venue since last November's Astroworld tragedy.

Travis headlined at E11EVEN during the Miami Grand Prix weekend. It was not for the faint or weary ... T.S. showed up at 3 AM. He first beelined it for the DJ booth, told the crowd he'd be back in 10 and then warned people when he re-appeared, everyone "better lose their motherf***ing minds!"

He did indeed come back 10 minutes later and hopped on the stage ... the sold-out crowd went nuts.

Travis' set lasted around 45 minutes, and he did not disappoint ... with "Sicko Mode," "Antidote," "Pick Up the Phone," and "Goosebumps."

What's interesting ... Travis didn't seem uneasy about going full throttle, telling the crowd to take shots as he gripped a bottle of 1942 Don Julio. Travis was happy to throw some loot into the audience.

Logan Paul was there, and at one point he screamed, "The one thing I know about you is that you turn the f*** up!"

Toward the end of his set, Quavo jumped on stage ... they did "Dubai S**t" and ended up handing the mic to a fan who was super impressive.

Travis did not blow out of there ... he stayed until 6 AM. Prior to his performance, Travis grabbed a bite at Prime 112.

There were tons of celebs on hand ... Future, Tyga, Zedd, will.i.am, Busta Rhymes, Joakim Noah, Danny Amendola, Damson Idris, Travis Kelce, P.K. Subban, Terrence J, Teyana Taylor, Karrueche, Carnage, Alec Monopoly, and Todd English.

Travis has performed after Astroworld, but only at private events, like the pre-Oscars event and a Coachella after-party.

Anna Nicole Smith's daughter Dannielynn Birkhead kinda took a page from Kim Kardashian, wearing an iconic getup to a big, fancy event.

The 15-year-old daughter of Anna Nicole and Larry Birkhead showed up at the Kentucky Derby's Barnstable Brown Gala in the same outfit Janet Jackson wore to the exact same event back in 2003. The outfit included a black pantsuit and an old-fashioned cap.

The proud papa said, "It was purchased as a part of Janet’s @juliens_auctions benefitting charity.“#prouddad."

And guess who was there ... Janet!!! The 3 took pics together at the soiree.

Larry was gushing afterward ... "What a night! Janet was so gracious and complimentary of Dannielynn in her outfit. She made Dannielynn so happy and even graciously posed for a photo with us."

Larry and Dannielynn attend the Derby events every year. In fact, Larry and Anna Nicole met at the Derby years ago.

Larry has done an amazing job raising his daughter ... especially in the face of incredible turmoil after Anna Nicole's death.

Eminem packs just as much of a punch as any heavy metal band out there -- at least that's what the guy who runs the Rock & Roll HOF says ... which isn't going over so well.

Greg Harris -- the CEO of the Hall -- said as much this much this week in an interview with Audacy ... where he discussed the many inductees who are getting enshrined at this year's ceremony -- including, of course, Dolly Parton, Lionel Richie, Carly Simon and Slim Shady, among others.

During his chat, Harris was singing everyone's praises -- including Judas Priest, who are also getting inducted after being snubbed twice before -- but especially for Mr. Mathers ... whose music he dubbed "as hard-hitting and straight-ahead as any metal song."

Harris went to say that Em's going to be the 10th hip-hop artist to be inducted into the Hall -- the first was Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five in '07 -- adding that Slim's been an integral part of the Hall for a while now ... helping induct Run-DMC and LL Cool J.

Indeed, Em has assisted in celebrating hip-hop acts on the big stage ... and he is definitely deserving himself, even in his 1st year of eligibility. Here's the problem, though, at least in some folks' minds -- Harris seems to be downplaying the impact/importance of metal.

Whether Eminem's music actually matches the energy of a traditional metal song/act is up for debate ... but what some die-hards hear in his remarks is disrespect for the genre.

Some argue this is further evidenced in the fact that Judas Priest is only now getting their flowers ... even though they've been eligible for induction for over 20 years now.

Frontman Rob Halford recently shouted out the significance of JP getting in, albeit late, and what it means for metal bands everywhere ... or even legendary hard rock acts in general, several of which were also inducted after years of missing the ballot ... or which have yet to be acknowledged at all, like Motorhead or Iron Maiden for instance.

Meanwhile, it appears -- at least to some, anyway -- that Hall voters are eager to induct certain artists right away ... making it come off more like a popularity contest than anything.

Mickey Gilley -- a mega country star in the '70s and '80s -- has died ... this according to his own Texas community, which officially made the announcement.

The singer and founder of the "world's biggest honky tonk" died Saturday surrounded by loved ones -- sad news that the mayor of Pasadena, TX broke this weekend via the city's official Facebook page. Jeff Wagner writes, "It was my great honor to know this man most of my life. Mickey was a true musical talent who charted 42 singles in the Top 40 Country Charts over a span of two decades." The exact circumstances of his death weren't revealed.

Wagner went on to give a nod to Gilley for putting Pasadena on the map via the John Travolta flick, "Urban Cowboy," and added ... "We were so honored to have Mickey perform at our State of the City in February, 2020. Our prayers for comfort and peace are with Mickey's family, his loved ones and his fans." He attached photos of the event mentioned.

Gilley will probably be best remembered for launching Gilley's Club -- a dance hall that rose to prominence after it was heavily featured in 'UC' ... and which went on to become a tourist attraction for country fans everywhere.

The guy also had some of his own music in the film, including his rendition of Ben E. King's "Stand by Me," which became a smash hit at the time ... peaking at #1 on Billboard's Country chart, and even climbing other charts as well.

Even before his resurgence in the '80s, MG had a lot of success in the '70s from songs like "Room Full of Roses," "Don't The Girls All Get Prettier at Closing Time," "Honky Tonk Memories," "Here Comes the Hurt Again," "Bring It on Home to Me," among others.

He's won several awards ... mostly with the Academy of Country Music, including Single of the Year, Song of the Year, Entertainer of the Year, Top Male Vocalist, and Album of the Year, etc.

Mickey's survived by his wife, Cindy Loeb Gilley, and his 4 children. He was 86.

There was a massive party in South Beach Friday night ... and just about every celeb in the 305 was there.

The bash was thrown by Major Food Group and American Express in partnership with The h.wood Group and Sports Illustrated during Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend. The party, called Carbone Beach -- after awesome chef Mario Carbone -- drew tons of stars, including, David Beckham, Derek Jeter, Dwyane Wade, Gabrielle Union, LeBron James, James Corden, Patrick Mahomes, Rich Paul, Wyclef Jean, Jorge Perez and Wayne Boich.

But, wait ... there's more ... Chantel Jeffries, Larsa Pippen, Serena and Venus Williams, Fabolous and Food God.

Wyclef Jean performed "Hips Don't Lie" -- the song he's featured with on Shakira. She was MIA from the party.

Now get this ... the sit-down dinner was $3k a person, and that got you shellfish, oysters, caviar, pastas, truffles, tomahawk steaks, veal parm and LOTS of Lobos 1707 tequila.

The 300 partygoers called it a night at around 3 AM.

Snoop Dogg's son, Cordell Broadus, got his brand new whip jacked ... but the car was recovered pretty quickly ... this according to cops who were hot on the trail.

LAPD sources tell TMZ ... Cordell's 2022 BMW X6 was jacked Wednesday in L.A. We're told a tracking company located it, passed the info on to the LAPD and cops rushed to retrieve it.

Officers found the BMW and took the alleged carnapper into custody.

As for how the car was stolen ... we're told someone left the keys in the car, making it an easy steal.

The alleged culprit already had an active warrant and was booked on a charge from that incident -- burglary of a motor vehicle. Cops say they found stolen items in Cordell's BMW. The D.A. will now decide whether to charge the guy.