Stories related to: hip-hop

Lil Wayne has become the first artist to sell more than a million albums in a week since 50 Cent in 2005, Billboard reports. Tha Carter III, the rapper's sixth album, exploded out of record stores last week, selling close to half a million its first day. The milestone sales are way ahead of the 238,000 Wayne's last release notched up in its best week. More »

Rapper Sean Combs—also variously known as Puffy, Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, and Diddy—appears to be going retro and reverting back to Puff Daddy, which he hasn’t used since 2001, E! Online reports. His rep says there’s no change in the works, but Combs suggested otherwise on his MySpace page and on a new single. More »

NERD frontman Pharrell Williams has lent his Midas touch to more than just hip-hop, Erica Kennedy writes in a Paper profile. The multi-tasking taste-maker boasts luxe clothing and jewelry lines, and friendships and collaborations with assorted style icons. "Pharrell doesn't buy something because it's fashionable," says one comrade in charms. "Pharrell makes fashion." More »

It took "live bands, big sound, pyrotechnics and showmanship," not to speak of an assist from an R&B diva, but Jay-Z and Kanye West have brought hip-hop into the big leagues in the touring business. The Jay-Z tour that ended last month grossed more than $23 million, and Kanye West's current tour will pass $21 million soon, Rolling Stone reports. More »

Rapper Remy Ma was sentenced to eight years in prison yesterday, following her conviction on two counts of assault for shooting her friend in the stomach. The self-proclaimed "Queen of New York" broke down in tears at the sentencing, which was somewhat more lenient than expected, reports MTV. The judge may have been swayed by an emotional statement Ma made, in which she apologized to her victim. More »

Many rappers tout anti-gay attitude, but some are secretly gay too—or so claims a former MTV exec in his upcoming memoir. “The book is not about outing people,” said Terrence Dean, author of Hiding in Hip Hop . “I wrote it so that people realize the industry has a gay subculture and we are part of this music.” His exposé uses code names to keep artists’ double-lives hidden—unless readers can read between the lines. More »

Police arrested rapper DMX early this morning on animal-abuse and drug charges, the Arizona Republic reports. Police seized five pit bull puppies, and unknown quantities of marijuana and cocaine from the house northeast of Phoenix. More »

Even though Jay-Z and Beyoncé still haven't publicly confirmed rumors about their not-so-secret wedding, the couple has filed their marriage license in Scarsdale, NY, People magazine reports. The license lists the wedding date as April 4. Beyoncé has been seen since the ceremony on tour with Jay-Z sporting a large diamond ring. More »

Before Chingy or Master P came Shaq's failed try at rap. And before him were many other shameful attempts at the lyrical flow. Yahoo lists the worst rappers ever: V anilla Ice : The "Ice Ice Baby" king also failed as an actor in Cool as Ice . MC Hammer started a fashion craze—thankfully brief—with "U Can't Touch This." More »

Feisty rapper Foxy Brown walked free from Riker's Island prison yesterday after serving 8 months behind bars for battling with manicurists in a New York nail salon, E! News reports. Brown had been sentenced to a year in jail for probation violations stemming from the fight. The rowdy hip-hop star waved to a crowd of waiting fans and was whisked away in a Rolls-Royce. More »

50 Cent and Universal Music Group were sued yesterday for promoting a "gangsta lifestyle" that encourages violence. The plaintiff: 14-year-old James Rosemond, who was assaulted on a Manhattan sidewalk by 50's fellow G-Unit member Tony Yayo. Rosemond is the son of a record exec whose label represents The Game, a former colleague of 50 Cent who has since become a rival rapper. More »

The Los Angeles Times today formally retracted its story that had an FBI informant implicating Sean "Diddy" Combs in a 1994 assault on fellow rapper Tupac Shakur. The paper previously apologized and reported that documents key to the March 17 story appeared to have been a hoax; it said today it was removing that story, and related posts, from its website. More »

Rapper Jay-Z is about to decamp from record label Def Jam and sign a $150 million deal with concert promoter Live Nation, reports the New York Times. The deal, Live Nation's biggest to date, will give the superstar financial backing for tours, his own record label and other related ventures such as talent consulting. It reflects the ongoing scramble in the music business as CD sales plunge and fans download more and more of their music. More »

Looks like Beyonce and Jay-Z could be headed to the altar. The power couple, an item since 2002, took out a marriage license yesterday morning in New York's Scarsdale,  People magazine reports. The license is good for 60 days. Beyonce’s rep had no comment, and a spokesman for Jay-Z could not be reached. More »

Rapper T.I.—aka Clifford Harris—pleaded guilty today in Atlanta to weapons charges, the AP reports. Harris will have to spend about a year in jail but must complete 1,500 hours of community service first; he also faces three years' house arrest and a $100,000 fine. Addressing youth groups on the dangers of guns, drugs, and gangs will be his first stop. More »

50 Cent has a new video game coming out in the fall in which he battles international gangsters in desert warfare, MTV News reports. "Blood in the Sand" follows the hop-hop star's “Bulletproof” of 2005, though it's not being pitched as a sequel. Details of the game’s plot are on tight lockdown, but Vivendi says that unlike “Bulletproof”—a fictional extension of 50’s criminal past—“Blood" will have the rapper fighting crime syndicates. More »

The Los Angeles Times was duped into reporting that associates of Sean “Diddy” Combs were involved in the 1994 shooting of rapper Tupac Shakur, the Smoking Gun reports. The paper based last week's story on FBI reports fabricated by a long-time con man who has long sought to insinuate himself in the rap world.  More »

Sean "Diddy" Combs has vehemently denied claims that he, the Notorious BIG, and other rap figures were involved in an attack on Tupac Shakur in 1994. Shakur was shot outside a New York recording studio, triggering the East Coast-West Coast rap wars in which Shakur and others were murdered. In an interview with MTV, Combs insisted that the Los Angeles Times story was "beyond ridiculous." More »

Tupac Shakur was right: Associates of Sean "Diddy" Combs and the Notorious BIG were behind the beating and shooting of Shakur in New York in 1994. New info uncovered and interviews conducted by the LA Times show Combs' buddies set up the ambush, which kicked off the countrywide feud that eventually led to Shakur's death. More »

Move over indie-rock—Hip-hop got a big bump at South by Southwest this year. Houston's emerging hip-hop scene helped spread word within the rap community, the AP reports, and some 150 acts took the stage this year. "Honestly I didn't know too much about this," says Del the Funky Homosapien, but "people would say, 'If you don't go, you trippin'!'" More »