Nicki Minaj and Meek Mill have officially called it quits. On Thursday (Jan. 5), the “Anaconda” emcee confirmed what the masses have been speculating for weeks, expressing that she’s looking ahead and focusing on her career.
With a tweet heard around the world, Ms.Minaj opted to keep the update on her relationship status short and sweet.
To confirm, yes I am single. Focusing on my work & looking forward to sharing it with you guys really soon. Have a blessed New Year. Love u🎀
Of course it didn’t take long for Meek to get in his petty bag following Nicki’s announcement with a post of his own which he has since deleted. The Shade Room was on deck with receipts though.
Nicki has so far chosen to take the highroad while the Dreamchasers 4 emcee is clearly in his feelings which may mean he was the dumpee. Ouch!
While rumors were constantly swirling around Omeeka, over the past few weeks the break-up rumors appeared to bear more fact than fiction.
Both Nicki and Meek took to social media to hurl subliminals at each other culminating with the MMG rapper posting a photo that featured the backside of a mystery woman, which has since been deleted but of course hasn’t vanished. Even more bizarre was the accompanying caption:
Now that we know Omeeka is no more the question on everyone’s minds is “What happened?” Nicki and Meek were the epitome of a fairytale romance. The couple even sat down with GQ back in July where The Pinkprint emcee gushed,
“I just knew that after our first conversation on the phone, I was in trouble.”
It’s sad to see the once blissfully happy couple call it quits. They weren’t strangers to flaunting their love. Take a walk down memory lane with a gallery of when Omeeka were still an item. We wish both Nicki and Meek best.
Chris Brown once again finds himself at odds with the law. The Grammy-winning singer was arrested at his home Tuesday evening after a woman reported being threatened by him with a gun. Brown was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon and later released on $250,000 bail.
The LAPD received a call at about 3 a.m. local time (6 a.m. ET) and several patrol cars were dispatched to his home. At the scene a woman, Baylee Curran reported an incident that occurred between her and Brown where he pointed a gun at her prior to her leaving his estate in the Tarzana community of Los Angeles.
Curran spoke to E! News about the incident where she described how events unfolded as they sat in Brown’s kitchen admiring some bling.
“I admired this one piece, a diamond cross necklace. I did not pick it up, I did not touch it, take it or grab it, anything to that sort.”
It was at this point Curran says that one of Brown’s friends confronted her.
“Get out, don’t touch the jewelry. [The friend] was calling me names and that’s when Chris Brown kind of went off, pulled out a gun and said, ‘Get the f–k out.’ He was saying, ‘Get the f–k out! Haven’t I told you guys enough?’ And kind of threatening me with the gun like if I didn’t get out he’s going to shoot me with it.”
Curran claims that it was then that she immediately exited the house before realizing she had left without her cellphone and shoes. She had turned her phone over earlier in the evening when she first arrived at the residence. According to Curran her belongings were retrieved by one of Chris’ friends to be returned to her, but the friend was hesitant to return her cellphone before she signed an NDA. At this point she claims she grabbed her phone, ran down the driveway, and then proceeded to hide under a truck because saw his vehicle heading towards her.
The LAPD outside of Brown’s home in the Tazana enclave of Los Angeles
Prior to his arrest Brown took part in an hours long stand-off with police after refusing to speak to them. During this time the Royalty artist posted a video to Instagram voicing his frustrations with law enforcement.
“Every three months, y’all come up with something, bro. What is it? What’s going to be next?” At the same time, when I call police for stalker people they don’t come until the next day.”
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So who is Baylee Curran, Brown’s accuser?
She is a beauty queen who most recently won the title of Miss California Regional 2016, but was stripped of her crown two months into her reign amid controversy.
TMZ reports that shortly after winning the title nude photos of Curran were sent to the pageant director. Curran adamantly denied it was her in the photos and she was given a second chance. However, Curran failed to show up for community functions and other events instead choosing to spend her time frolicking on a boat and working on photo shoots. It was at this point that Curran was dethroned. She has yet to return her crown.
Curran is also currently wanted for questioning in New York City. Back in 2013 while vacationing with friends at The Plaza an incident took place. After an argument police records state Baylee snatched a $1,000 Louis Vuitton purse from one of the girls and fled the hotel. The bag contained $200 in cash, credit cards, and a Michael Kors wallet. She was chased by security and at this point dropped the purse, but disappeared with all the contents. The victim in the incident was also successful in getting an L.A. judge to issue a restraining order against Curran.
Baylee’s reps claim she was unaware that she was wanted for questioning in NYC and that the friend is the actual thief.
Since his arrest and release Chris’s fans and several of his pals including 50 Cent and Ray J along with his attorney Mark Geragos have taken to social media to declare his innocence.
Thanks to everyone for their support and well wishes. Chris is out and well. The allegations against him are demonstrably false #TeamBreezy
50 Cent posted the image below with the following message,
“I have a different relationship with Chris, That’s my boy. I watched him come up, a lot of the shit he go thr[u]ew is crazy to me. If you[‘]r[e] not safe at home when do you get a break? If someone calls 911 and says you pulled a gun on them in your house, are the police coming to creat[e] a bunker at the end of your driveway for 11 hours to wait for a search warrant? Then live stream it, This must be VIP Treatment. SMH”
The LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division, which handles high-profile and complex murders and robberies as well as cases involving VIPs and celebrities, is investigating the case. We will keep you posted as details continue to emerge.
What are your thoughts? Do you think Chris threatened Baylee with a gun or is she just looking to get her 15 minutes (besides E! News she also sat down for a segment for TMZ Live) and a payout?
Not sure who to believe just yet, but it is pretty outlandish that the LAPD camped out at the entrance of Brown’s driveway for hours until they secured a warrant. Stay tuned.
The MTV Video Music Awards announced the nominees for this year’s ceremony via Facebook live this morning. Leading the pack was Beyoncé with 11 nods for her Emmy-nominated visual album Lemonade.Adele follows with 8 nominations for her record-breaking album 25. The songstress’ will be competing for Best Female Video along with Rihanna ft. Drake “Work”, Sia “Cheap Thrills,” and Ariana Grande “Into You.”
Beyoncé performing at the 2014 MTV Vide Music Awards Credit: Mirror
The award show returns to the Big Apple this year. Grande landed 5 nominations along with Drake who nabbed Video of the Year, Best Collaboration, Best Hip-Hop Video, Best Male Video, and Best Art Direction. Kanye West received two nominations for “Famous” while his foe Taylor Swift on the other hand garnered zero nominations. The pop star’s “1989” album came out in 2014 so her recent singles “Wildest Dreams,” “Out of the Woods” and “New Romantics” were ineligible.
Taylor Swift at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards
West’s infamous track features naked images in the likeness of the rapper and other celebrities, including his wife Kim Kardashian, Swift, Donald Trump, and Bill Cosby. ‘Famous” is at the heart of the current feud between the Chicago emcee and Swift. Kardashian recently delivered receipts; leaking audio of Swift giving West her blessing to the lyrics, “I feel like me and Taylor might still have sex.” The “Wildest Dreams” singer originally denied West’s claims he reached out to her prior to releasing the song. She quickly changed her tune, now claiming West did not play her the entire track or reveal the lyrics in full omitting the line, “Why? I made that bitch famous.”
Kim Kardashia and Kanye West attend the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on August 30, 2015. Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
West’s video for the controversial “Famous,” garnered the Video of the Year nomination and will be facing-off with Beyonce’s “Formation,” Adele’s “Hello, “Justin Bieber‘s “Sorry,” and Drake’s “Hotline Bling.” Newcomers Bryson Tiller, Desiigner, Zara Larsson, Lukas Graham, and DNCE, will battle it out for the Best New Artist award.
Drake at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards at the Barclays Center on August 25, 2013. Photo Credit: Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage)
The late David Bowie, who died from cancer earlier this year, earned four nominations in the categories of Best Direction, cinematography, art direction and editing for “Lazarus.” The video featured the icon frail and lying in bed, eyes bandaged and was released several days before his Jan. 10 death.
Others artists who earned multiple nods include Alessia Cara, Calvin Harris, Coldplay, Desiigner, Fergie, FKA Twigs, and The Weeknd.
Voting opened online Tuesday. Nominees for best song of the summer have yet to be announced. The MTV VMA’s will be airing live from Madison Square Garden on August 28 at 9 p.m. ET. Will you be tuning in?
The Black community is still reeling from the tragic murders of Philando Castille and Alton Sterling at the hands of police. Many have taken to the streets and social media to protest, voice their opinions, and demand a change.
Mic along with a plethora of actors and musicians that include Alicia Keys, Beyoncé, Bono, Chance The Rapper, Chris Rock, Common, Pink, Janelle Monáe, Kevin Hart, Rihanna, Taraji P. Henson, Queen Latifah, Rosario Dawson, Swizz Beatz, Talib Kweli, Lenny Kravitz, Zoe Kravitz, A$AP Rocky, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Jennifer Hudson, Adam Levine, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Maxwell have teamed up for PSA titled “23 Ways.” The PSA aims to shed light on the non-stop brutality and countless murders of POC at the hands of the police; simply for doing things most wouldn’t think twice about like walking home with a friend, trying to get help, and making eye contact.
Each harrowing account of the the men, women, and children of color who have been murdered by police, serves as a painful reminder of the deep rooted and systematic racism still prevalent in society today. Watch the PSA in it’s entirety below.
Brooklyn rapper Troy Ave has been arrested in connection with the shooting that took place last night at New York City’s Irving Plaza during a T.I. concert. Three people were wounded with one of the wounded succumbing to his injuries.
The NY Daily News reports:
“An up and coming rapper from Brooklyn with a beef was charged Thursday with opening fire backstage at Irving Plaza during a T.I. concert, killing one and wounding two others, police sources said.
Troy Ave, of Brownsville, accidentally shot himself during the chaos in the leg, sources said. He was charged with reckless endangerment and illegal weapons possession, according to sources.
Troy, who was to perform at the show, had a beef with Maino, who had just left the stage when at least five shots rang out, sources said.
“There is clear video, very graphic video. He walks right out, women all around, and starts shooting his gun,” a source said.”
The fatal shooting victim was Ronald McPhatter an affiliate of Ave’s B$B Banga and his bodyguard. McPhatter and Ave were apparently close and at this time it is unclear why Ave shot him. The victims mother criticized the Brownsville rapper for not reaching out following her son’s death.
“He actually cared a lot about Troy Ave. My wish is that Troy Ave cared as much about my son as he cared about him. I say that because I watched how my son would always bend over backwards to help him. If he [Troy Ave] cared about my son as much as he alleged he does, I would’ve received a call from him. He didn’t call me. He didn’t call any of my other sons.”
According to Police they were waiting on ballistics report before charging Ave real name Rolland Collins with murder. Collins was arrested at NYU Langone Medical Center. Surveillance footage shows Collins running into the green room and immediately start shooting. You can watch the graphic video below at your discretion.
We send our condolences to the family of Ronald McPhatter and our prayers to the families of the other shooting victims. You can read the NY Daily News complete coverage of the incident here.
H&M is teaming up with Parisian fashion house KENZO for their newest collaboration. A favorite among celebrities and fashionistas, the label is known for their creative designs and bold prints. Founded by Japanese designer Kenzo Takada, and led by the founders of Opening Ceremony Carol Lim and Humberto Leon as creative directors, this collaboration promises not to disappoint.
When speaking on the partnership in a press release Lim and Leon had this to say,
“With this collaboration with H&M we want to think big, push the boundaries and bring the new energy of KENZO to everyone around the world.”
The announcement was accompanied by a teaser posted on Instagram that features KENZO’s signature leopard print and is full of bold, colorful designs.
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If you’re already bursting at the seams with excitement unfortunately the collections debut is still a few months away. There will be a runway show in October to celebrate the launch and it will be available online and at select retailers on November 3.
In the past H&M has partnered with Balmain, Versace, and Alexander Wang for their collaborative collections.
A collaboration between KENZO and H&M was bound to happen and boy are we looking forward to seeing what they come up with. Creative Advisor for H&M Ann-Sofie Johansson also shares in this excitement saying,
“We can’t wait to share the world of KENZO x H&M with everyone, with all of its creativity, fun and love of fashion”
So get ready fashionistas! You have five months to prepare for what will probably be one of H&M’s most sought after and biggest collaborations to date.
Russell Simmons has spent the past few months rebuilding his company UniRush, LLC following a catastrophic service outage that affected over 130,000 RushCard holders that gave way to a period the business mogul referred to as “one of the most devastating times in his adult life.”
Rather than give into the stress Simmons has been committed to making amends. He literally put his money where his mouth is offering five months of free service to RushCard holders, cutting into a reasonable chunk of profits. Simmons went even further putting aside $25 million to cover a settlement with affected customers which came out to $20.5 million. UniRush will pay $100 – $500 per claim along with $1.5 million in legal fees. You combine this along with their transparency with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s investigation into the outage, and its clear UniRush’s dedicated to doing right by its customers.
In spite of UniRush’s growth and continued resolve to be held accountable the industry refuses to view the financial company as a serious player, something Simmons touched on while speaking with HipHopDX.
“We invented this industry. They should stop calling me a celebrity company. I didn’t brand the company. I invented the entire form of banking. All of what American Express is doing, all of what Green Dot is doing, all of what Netspend is doing, all of what Chase Manhattan is doing—we did first. We invented an industry for underserved community members. We’re not a credit card. We’re a virtual bank. For people saying [negative things] about our service, as part of the competitive service with all the people who joined our industry, the Consumer’s Union—which you know is not something you can pay for—[ranked RushCard] one of their top five companies.”
Simmons’ passion for providing services to underserved communities cannot be denied. He also shared his plans to create a credit agency to help individuals unable to build credit through traditional means, establish a solid credit history.
“One thing I’ve been fighting for and have been at the forefront of is credit—building credit for past due services. You pay rent every month for eight years on a RushCard, why can’t you get a mortgage? I think that’s a travesty. I think a lot of the big companies like Mastercard, the Visas, the others that do the processing and infrastructure work—a lot of us could come together and force them to accept this information on credit reports—the FICOs of the world. Or we should build one. Now I’m committed to building [a credit agency] if I can’t get a change in the next couple of months. I have to build a credit reporting agency that people who have consistent and strong ties to, whoever their partners are, build credit as a result of it. Whether it’s rent or paying a past due phone bill or just consistently being on-time and paying it, it should build credit. This industry has been overlooked by anybody because it’s not a big pay.”
UniRush’s growth is due in part to Simmons not shying away from innovation.
“I try to do the best I can with my company. I also realize there’s lots of innovations that no one is doing that I have to either do or do with my new partner. I have to make my new partners step up their innovations or I have to do it myself because the industry itself doesn’t care so much. It’s a sidebar for Chase Manhattan, American Express, to everyone except Green Dot and Netspend, who are our real competitors and real inspirations in some cases.”
This innovation has allowed UniRush to establish relationships with an unintentional demographic, millennials and they’ve seen significant growth within that group.
“This card should be for affluent people as well as underserved community members and it should be the wave of the future for millennials. This is the bank for millennials, for the future. I haven’t started doing the branding, but the growth rate for our company is 70% millennials, when it used to be single mothers. Our main target was single mothers because they were the ones that ran the family and managed the funds. Millennials who don’t like banks are coming in our direction and we haven’t even begun the branding exercise to speak to them. All of our new customers are millennials—60 to 70%.”
While most companies facing similar circumstances would never be able to recover UniRush is well on its way due in part to company’s willingness to own up to the mishap and making amends with its customers. Simmons continued involvement in the company and his dedication to making financial services accessible in underserved communities and beyond is commendable.
You can read more about Simmons plans to bring various philanthropic programs to benefit these communities, what’s he’s learned throughout this process, as well as what sets UniRush apart in his full interview with HipHopDx.
It’s only been a few weeks since Kylie Jenner and Tyga split, but if the reports of a new budding romance for the reality starlet are true it might be over for good.
According to the The Sun, Jenner has moved on to singer/rapper PARTYNEXTDOOR and things are picking up pretty quickly.
Photo Credit: Barron Roth
The Sun reports that an anonymous source had this to say about the new romance,
“Their relationship started quite suddenly but it just feels right. They are mad for each other.”
Now while this match may seem totally out of left field Jenner and PARTYNEXTDOOR have been friends for some time. Jenner and her sister Kylie appeared in his music video for “Recognize” back during the summer of 2014. While these two have yet to confirm or deny whether they are indeed a couple PARTYNEXTDOOR’s Instagram post from a few days ago is only adding more fuel their romance fire.
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So what do you guys think? Is PARTYNEXTDOOR the latest rapper to fall victim to the Kardashian/Jenner clan?
Kesha will no longer be performing at the upcoming Billboard Music Awards and it’s all thanks to Dr. Luke‘s label rescinded their approval.
Kemosabe Records had given Kesha written approval to perform at the BBMAs on May 22; but ultimately took back their approval on Tuesday after reports surfaced that Kesha planned on addressing Dr. Luke during her performance.
Dick Clark Productions in charge of the awards ceremony released this statement Tuesday via Billboard
“Kesha accepted an invitation to perform on the show and she received written approval from Dr. Luke’s record label, Kemosabe Records. Kemosabe subsequently rescinded its approval following a media report on Wednesday, May 11 regarding Kesha’s appearance on the BBMAs. Unfortunately, Kesha and Kemosabe have since been unable to come to an agreement for Kesha to perform on the show.”
Kesha took to Instagram to confirm that she was indeed no longer performing at the BBMAs.
“I was very excited to perform a tribute to Bob Dylan by singing a cover of “It ain’t me, babe” at the Billboard awards this year. I’m very sad and sorry to say I won’t be allowed to do this. I just wanted to make very clear that this performance was about me honoring one of my favorite songwriters of all time and has never had anything at all to do with Dr. Luke. I was never going to use a picture of him, speak of him or allude to my legal situation in any way. I simply wanted to sing a song I love to honor an artist I have always looked up to. thank u all for the continued support.”
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It’s unfortunate that Kesha won’t get to do what is apparently clear is all she wants to do, and that is perform. It’s shameful that Dr. Luke and Kemosabe Records have fed into the rumors and rather protect their image than allow Kesha to partake in her art. Hopefully, Dr. Luke and the label reconsider prior to the BBMAs on Sunday. Keep your head up Kesha!
We’re almost halfway into 2016 which means it’s time for Forbes to drop The Forbes Five list identifying Hip Hop’s wealthiest. This year’s cash kings are no stranger to the list with the exception of one newcomer who landed this year’s number five spot.
Drake came in at #5 with a net worth of $60 million from touring and his endorsements with Sprite, Nike, and Apple.
Coming in at #4 is a man who demands respeck, Birdman with $110 million down from $140 million the previous year, due in part to the turmoil surrounding Cash Money.
Rounding off the #3 spot is self proclaimed “I’m a business, man” himself Jay Z with $610 million, propelled by his Tidal streaming service which is now worth three times the $54 million purchase price.
Dr. Dre once again nabs the #2 spot with a net worth of $710 million thanks to his record setting sale of Beats by Dre, the biopic Straight Outta Compton, and a pretty impressive portfolio of California real estate.
Of course Money Making Mitch once again tops Hip Hop’s wealthiest list with $750 million. Diddy continues to prove his business savvy with stakes in Ciroc, his TV network Revolt, Sean John, and Aquahydrate.
These Hip Hop moguls know how to use their celebrity and business acumen to go straight to the bank! You can head over to Forbes.com to check out the full coverage on this year’s The Forbes Five List.
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