Author: hhns

KRS-One To Sue Radio Stations That Bump His Music

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KRS-One recently addressed mainstream radio stations during an interview where he was asked why he “never went mainstream.”

“If the radio ever played my music, I would sue them,” KRS-One said in a recent interview with whomag.net. “And they know it, which is why they don’t play my music. If you play KRS, I’ll sue you. Straight up. I don’t even want my music on mainstream radio. They don’t deserve it. They destroy careers.”

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“Here’s a secret,” KRS continued. “I’m going to drop a jewel on you right now. Less is more. Small is big. Marketing and promotion is shit. Physics, mathematics, and cosmology. Why do we breathe? What is oxygen? This is the truth. I only want the truth. I existed before the mainstream. Why would I join them? I watched the mainstream come up and now I’m watching it collapse. I don’t want to be a part of that. I was born in Hip Hop. That’s all I ever needed. That’s it.

“As long as I do that, the devil can’t get me on any angle,” KRS continued. “I’m faster than the devil. Always. Now, how do you know? You have to go to hell first. You cant just say your better than the devil just out your mouth. No, face the devil face-to-face and tell him, ‘God has arrived. Now here’s what you are going to do.’ And you direct the devil. Only if you’re God though. What does that mean? Jive Records dropped everybody in 1999, A Tribe Called Quest, DJ Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince, everybody. They signed Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys and N’Sync and got rid of their entire Rap roster. I went to Warner Bros. I asked God, ‘What I should do?’  He said, ‘Go to California.’  I went to California. I linked up with my man who was A&R of another label in Cali who I met at Columbia. He quit Columbia and went to Warner Bros. I went to Warner Bros. He made me Head of A&R for Warner Bros., actually of Reprise Records, but since it was Warner Bros., the whole label bugged out.”

One of KRS-One’s most celebrated songs, 1997’s “Step into a World (Rapture’s Delight),” was released on KRS’ I Got Next album via JIVE.

On “Step into a World (Rapture’s Delight),” KRS-One discusses his views on “marketing and promotion.”

“Yo, I’m strictly ’bout skills and dope lyrical coastin’,” KRS says on the song. “Relying on talent, not marketing and promotion.” 

Beyond this, the song’s first verse also features KRS’ thoughts regarding record labels.

“Stop wastin’ your money on marketing schemes,” KRS says on the track. “And pretty packages pushin dreams to the fiends / A dope emcee is a dope emcee / With or without a record deal, all can see / And that’s who KRS be, son / I’m not the run of mill, cause for the mill I don’t run.”

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Nas To Hold Press Conference Covering Harvard Fellowship

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Legendary emcee Nas will join with Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. of the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute and Professor Marcyliena Morgan of the Hip Hop Archive and Research Institute for a press conference covering Harvard University’s Nasir Jones Hip Hop Fellowship.

The event will take place on September 19th at the Hip Hop Archive in Cambridge, Massachusetts at 11 am. It will be moderated by Harvard student Christian Ramirez.

The Nasir Jones Hip Hop Fellowship will be featured as part of the Hip Hop Archive and Research Institute in conjunction with the Hip Hop Archive Fellowship. Fellows will be able to participate in projects like performance pieces, album work, curriculum planning, primary archival research, and exhibition preparation. It is designed to demonstrate that ”education is real power.”

“With the introduction of the Nasir Jones Hip Hop Fellowship, we will continue to be the leading resource for those interested in knowing, developing, building, maintaining, and representing Hip Hop,” says Professor Morgan.

For more information about the Hip Hop Archive and Research Institute visit hiphoparchive.org.

Game Donates $10,000 For 6 Year Old Shooting Victim’s Funeral

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Game may be one of the most tough-talking emcees in Hip Hop, but the Compton native may just have a heart of gold.

TMZ reports that Game is donating $10,000 to the family of a 6-year-old Los Angeles girl who was fatally shot outside her home this weekend.

The funds will go to cover the funeral costs for Tiana RIcks, who was shot when two men approached her family’s Moreno Valley home and opened fire.

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Tiana and her father were struck, with the young girl reportedly asking her father, “Are you okay, Daddy?” as she lay dying.

Upon hearing the story, Game took to Instagram and posted his thoughts on the tragedy:

“This very sad story hit me in a place nothing ever has,” wrote Game on his Instagram page. “The picture above is of 6 year old ‘Tiana Ricks’ who was gunned down in Moreno Valley this past weekend holding onto her fathers leg as men approached & opened fire wounding both Tiana & her father…. Tiana did not know she was shot & kept asking was her father okay until 2 1/2 hours later when lil Tiana was passed away just after midnite on Sunday… I read about this story here in Australia & immediately tracked down her mother @lost_the_love_of_my_life & noticed her & the family trying to raise $10,000 for funeral costs…. So I got her on a 3 way with my accountant & now I’m in the process of transferring $10,000 from my account to hers !!!!! Follow her now @lost_the_love_of_my_life & show her support thru this tough time…… Prayers are definitely needed. My sincerest condolences to you & your family Marquia. Glad that I could be of some help….. I don’t know what else to say, but @therobinhoodproject got you !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! #TheRobinHoodProject”

TMZ spoke with the young girl’s mother, Marquia Macklin.

“Game told me that he heard about my story and was really sorry,” said Macklin. “He said that he wanted to help out and put me in touch with his financial team.”

Macklin was grateful for Game’s generosity, but admitted that the donation “only covers half of the casket and the plot.”

Game has been in a charitable mood as of late, offering to pay fines for pants-sagging citations in Wildwood, New Jersey. He also recently announced that he has plans to give away $1,000,000 of his money through TheRobinHoodProject.

Anyone with information regarding the shooting is encouraged to contact the Moreno Valley Police Department.

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Concert Promoter Cancels Chief Keef Performances

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Chief Keef is not having a good 2013. A month after a judge ordered Keef to pay $250,000 to concert promoter Team Major over missing performance date, concert promoter ScoreMore announced they have canceled Chief Keef’s upcoming Texas shows.

According to ScoreMore’s press release ontheir website, the concert promotion company cancelled Keef’s September 18th show in Austin, TX along with his September 19th show in San Antonio over looming legal problems:

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Yesterday we were told that Chief Keef was summoned back to court and that he may indeed going back to jail… We are not willing to gamble with your money, and quite frankly, he has failed to report for some of his recent shows, which made us feel like the promises of change were aspirational rather than actual…. We will not allow that to happen. Chief Keef’s shows on September 18 in Austin and September 19th in San Antonio are officially CANCELLED.

While ScoreMore did not go into details on what would bring Chief Keef back to jail, the embattled MC was sentenced to an 18 month probation, 60 hours of community service, random drug testing and eight hours of traffic school in July for speeding violations.

No word yet on if Chief Keef’s lawsuit from Team Major violated his probation.

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Gucci Mane’s Twitter Account Was Hacked

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Atlanta rapper Gucci Mane left the social media world in a frenzy yesterday (September 9) and over the weekend, after letting loose a series of malicious Tweets aimed at Nicki Minaj, Waka Flocka Flame, Iggy Azalea, T.I., and a number of other artists.

It now appears that the person behind the slew of Tweets may not have been Gucci Mane after all. Yesterday, a man claiming to be Gucci’s brother announced that the rapper had been hacked and suggested that he was sabotaged

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@gucci1017. Eh this gucci brother sum1 hack brah twitter. Yall tr y sabotage brah. Dat messed up let gucci b. GOD kno d truth. Hackers

The Tweet sent from Gucci’s alleged brother was also ReTweeted from the official Twitter account of the Trap House III creator.

Additionally, TheFader.com reports that Gucci’s Twitter rant follows news that the rapper may have been dropped from Atlantic Records and is no longer with his manager, Kevin “Coach K” Lee.

“He’s not with Atlantic anymore,” said a rep for Atlantic Records, according to HotNewHipHop.com. “Not sure how the deal ended, it may have been a time thing…It looks like it just wasn’t working out with Coach—which based on the tweets and his behavior, one could see why.”

Following Gucci Mane’s social media diatribe, a number of artists including Nicki Minaj and Tyga fired back with comments of their own. Both artists have since deleted all Tweets made about the rapper.

Since the release of Trap House in 2005, Gucci Mane has gone on to release a number of studio albums including Hard To Kill, The State vs. Radric Davis, and his most recent LP, Trap House III. Released on May 13 of this year via 1017 Brick Squad, Trap House III included guest features from 2 Chainz, Rick Ross, Chief Keef, and more.

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DMX To Appear On Dr. Phil Show

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DMX’s troubled history will receive a televised psychological analysis at the hands of Dr. Phil soon. According to DMX’s reps, the Yonkers rapper will be interviewed on Dr. Phil’s talk show.

The interview is scheduled to be an hour long and will discuss many aspects of DMX’s life including his relationship with God.

The interview will be taped in Los Angeles next Monday (September 16th) and fans are welcomed to be apart of the audience. Sign up for the Dr. Phil/DMX audience is available here.

Brick Squad Possibly Over As Gucci Mane & Waka Flocka Exchange Fire On Twitter

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Numerous Brick Squad artists all attack each other on Twitter as the fate of the heavily-followed group hangs in the balance. it all started Saturday morning when Gucci tweeted “Fuck bricksquad im. Sucka free. 1017,” an apparent reaction to accusations that Gucci Mane paid the lawyer fees for Young Vito’s trial. Vito was eventually acquitted for the murder of Brick Squad artist Slim Dunkin.

Frenchie accused Gucci of stealing money he owed him after his signing with Brick Squad, but Gucci claimed the money was taken by his former manager, Debra Antney, who happens to be both Waka’s mother and Frenchie’s aunt.

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— Gucci Mane (@gucci1017) September 7, 2013

Lil Wayne On Season Premiere Of Katie Couric’s Talk Show (VIDEO)

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Back in 2009, Lil Wayne sat down with Katie Couric for CBS’ “All Access Grammy Special.” Thatinterview led to Wayne’s famous response, “I’m a rapper. That’s who I am Miss Katie, and I am a gangsta, and I do what I want.”

The Cash Money rapper and the talk show host are meeting up again on the season 2 premiere of Katie airing September 9th. During the episode Wayne discusses dropping out of high school, his recent hospitalization, his time in prison, his mother’s request for him to stop drinking syrup, and more.

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Katie is nationally syndicated. Check local listings for airtime.

 

 

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Judges Denies Meek Mill’s Move To Miami

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Philly rapper Meek Mill appeared in court last week, where his etiquette instructor gave him a positive review in front of a judge,’during a probation hearing.

Meek, who is on probation for gun and drug convictions, was ordered into etiquette classes by Judge Genece Brinkley, after several disastrous appearances in court, that made the Judge question his appearance, as well as his demeanor on social networks.

Meek Mill’s instructor Gail Madison told Judge Brinkley the rapper was a good student who was willing to learn proper etiquette.

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“I felt very certain at the end of the four hours that he had a firm grasp of the information,” Madison told Judge Brinkley, reports The Philadelphia Daily News.

Meek Mill’s progress was so impressive that the rapper no longer has to call to check in with his probation officer when he travels to different states.

While Meek is free to travel, the judge shutdown the rap star’s request to relocate from his hometown of Philadelphia to Miami, Florida.

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Eric Wright, Jr. Talks His Reaction To His Late Father’s Virtual Performance

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Following the highly anticipated debut of Eazy-E’s virtual performance during Rock The Bells 2013, the Hip Hop legend’s oldest son, Eric Wright, Jr. (also known as Lil Eazy), shared his initial reaction with HipHopDX. “It was a beautiful performance, a beautiful scene of work that we put together,” said Lil Eazy in an exclusive interview with HipHopDX. “I’m finally glad that my father [was honored] on stage and stood in the forefront.”

Eazy-E’s virtual performance was part of Bone thugs-n-harmony’s set during the first night of the Los Angeles, California-leg of Rock The Bells 2013. After running through hits “East 1999,” “Thuggish Ruggish Bone,” “1st Of Tha Month,” among others, Bone introduced N.W.A’s DJ Yella, who subsequently introduced the virtual Eazy-E.

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The virtual Eazy-E performed his verse from “Straight Outta Compton,” along with “Boyz-N-The Hood” before closing with his verse from Bone thugs-n-harmony’s “Foe Tha Love of $.”

View a video of Eazy-E’s virtual performance below, courtesy of REVOLT.

When asked by HipHopDX whether he was nervous about seeing his father’s likeness on stage, Eric Wright, Jr. said, “I actually was, man.”

“I was nervous to see what it is,” he continued. “I definitely was in the beginning. I’m glad the crowd loved it. [It was a] good reaction. Individuals said they wanted to walk up there and ask him questions. I’m beautiful for the response. It’s a blessing.”

Eric Wright, Jr. also announced that he and younger brother Baby Eazy plan to tour with DJ Yella.

“We’re getting on the road,” he said. “We’re gonna continue with this Compton thang.”

Guerrilla Union made headlines last Spring when the company revealed that the 2013 Rock The Bells tour would include virtual performances of late icons Eazy-E and Ol’ Dirty Bastard (May 15). In July, Guerrilla Union CEO, Chang Weisberg described the difference between a “virtual performance” and a “hologram” (July 31).

“The technical definition of a hologram requires glass and refractions and projections of a sort that I can’t describe in laymen’s terms,” Weisberg said during an exclusive interview with HipHopDX. “A true hologram is not what we’re doing. What we’re going to be creating with these virtual performances is what looks like a hologram…I will tell you that we are leveraging at the highest level, very creative and artistic 3-D recreations, that we are leveraging video and motion capture and projection and multi-media, to project hologram-like performances on stage. When I hear hologram, I’m comfortable with it so people can understand. I think I can call it a hologram and I don’t think anyone can disqualify me from that. If they went be very technical terms, I’ve said it’s a virtual performance, a virtual performance that will look and feel like a hologram but will be so much more because of the circumstances of what’s happening at the show, who was involved and the moment.”

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Jay Z’s Bodyguard Died Suddenly

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Jay Z’s personal bodyguard has died suddenly after a fracas with police.

Norman Oosterbroek, 43, has an extensive tenure as a personal bodyguard for the likes of Jay Z, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Kanye West, Drake and even Nelson Mandela. He died Monday night.

Oosterbroek was a 6 foot, 10-inch tall behemoth that weighed about 300 pounds and was very well-known in entertainment.

Published reports say that Oosterbroek was running around naked around 11 p.m. scaring other homeowners in Miami, Florida.

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When police arrived, Oosterbroek was apparently fighting another homeowner, but in the midst of the fight, he ingested an unknown substance.

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In an effort of subdue him, police tazed Oosterbroek and he died.

“It’s possible that he may have been under some type of a narcotics. Again, he was observed swallowing, ingesting some kind of substance, unknown substance that is,” Miami-Dade Police spokesman Det. Javier Baez said of Oosterbroek.

An autopsy is expected to offer some reasons as to how such a popular celebrity fixture died in such way.

“Its (Oosterbroek’s death) not as clean cut as everybody is reporting on,” a source told AllHipHop.com. “There is much more that is going to come of this. Its very suspicious.”

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Meek Mill “Kendrick You Next,” A Diss Track

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Meek Mill released a video preview of his Cassidy diss track, “Kendrick You next.”

“You said you’s a gangster, but you never pop nothin,”Meek Mill says on the song over the instrumental to 50 Cent’s “Wanksta.” “And you locked your homie out when you heard the cops comin’ / Rappin’ for a long time, nigga you ain’t got nothin’ / You ain’t wanna battle Mook neither, nigga, stop frontin’.”

Meek continues on the song preview, which was premiered by DJ Enuff‘s website, by describing a funeral.

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“Couple months we at the funeral,” Meek says. “I swear to God it was beautiful / 5X tees, du-rags, the usual / Your mom screaming like, ‘Cassidy, what they do to you?'”

The video ends with Meek confirming the title of the song.

“This shit’s called ‘Kendrick You Next.'”

Meek tweeted today (September 5) about an upcoming song about Kendrick Lamar.

He wasn’t readddddddyyy tho lol I’m out…….. Next stop the library so I can write this fire for kdot …. I gotta

The preview of the song can be viewed below.

Meek Mill and Cassidy have been involved in an on-going feud for nearly a year. Cassidy released his Meek Mill diss tracks “Me, Myself & iPhone” and “Raid” in December 2012 and January 2013, respectively. Meek said in January that he would no longer address his beef with Cassidy.

“If we [release] diss records and whatever and after your diss record, the next day you gotta try and drop a new song and you try to benefit off me,” Meek Mill said. “That’s when it becomes not a game anymore. You ain’t benefitting off of me.”

On Kendrick Lamar’s “Control” verse, the TDE rapper mentions Meek Mill among others.

“I’m usually homeboys with the same niggas I’m rhymin’ with,” Lamar says on the song. “But this is Hip Hop and them niggas should know what time it is. That goes for Jermaine Cole, Big K.R.I.T., Wale, Pusha T, Meek Mill, A$AP Rocky, Drake, Big Sean, Jay Electron[ica], Tyler[, the Creator], Mac Miller. I got love for you all but I’m tryin’ to murder you niggas. Trying to make sure your core fans never heard of you niggas [and that] they don’t want to hear not one more noun or verb from you niggas. What is competition? I’m trying to raise the bar high.”

Meek Mill responded to the song with a statement.

“I’m in a lane by myself,” Mill said of Kendrick Lamar’s verse on “Control.” “I’m the only [one] that’s lyrically spittin’ some street music and gettin’ money. Kendrick [Lamar and Black Hippy], I’ma tell ’em in a rap: y’all can run that backpack, I’ma run these streets.”

UPDATE: The complete version of Meek Mill’s “Kendrick You Next” can be heard below viaPaperChaserDotCom.

 

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Questlove Addresses Racial Profiling

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The Roots’ ?uestlove was recently featured onDemocracy Now! in an hour-long program that addressed a slew of issues.

The first subject that ?uesto touched on was racial profiling, a discussion that began with a recollection of the first time he was ever pulled over by police.

The incident began as a routine trip to the record store. “There was a point where I was coming home from Bible study,” he explained. “Like teen Bible study, on a Friday night. There was a Tower Records on South Street, and a friend of mine wanted to purchase U2’s The Joshua Tree album, which just came out. They were coming to Philly at RFK’s stadium, so you wanted to study the record and know all the material before they came, so we went and purchased The Joshua Tree.”

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Soon after departing from the store, things took a turn for the worse. “We were driving home, and then, seconds later, on Washington Avenue in Philly, a cop stopped us, and he was holding a gun on us. There’s nothing like the first time that a gun is held on you. We’re sixteen, mind you. Sixteen, seventeen years old. And I just remember the protocol. I remember my father telling me, ‘If you’re ever in this position, you just slowly keep your hands up.’ He did it in sort of a humorous way that Richard Pryor did… My friends didn’t know that, so they just thought it was normal, and I was like, ‘Yo, get your hands up! Get your hands up!'”

“How I knew that was the protocol at such a young age, that’s probably sad commentary. It was also a matter of survival,” he added, somberly.

The discussion naturally shifted to the recent ruling by a federal judge who held that the NYPD’scontroversial stop-and-frisk policy was unconstitutional, as it unfairly targeted Black and Hispanic communities.

“I was utterly shocked. That’s something that just came out of left field, because I, too, was wondering…will stop-and-frisk just be a way of life? Just two, three weeks ago, I wasn’t frisked, but I definitely know that I was stopped for unknown reasons, that I was just the wrong person in the wrong automobile. I get stopped all the time.”

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Kanye West Faces Criticism From Human Rights Groups

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Kanye West’s much publicized performance at the wedding of Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s grandson is being criticized on multiple fronts.

In a post on the Human Rights Foundation’s website, the organization’s president Thor Halvorssen says West would be imprisoned for expressing his freedom of speech if he lived in the central Asian country. Halvorssen refers to Kazakhstan as a “human rights wasteland.”

The former Soviet republic has been admonished by human rights groups for lack of a free press, restrictions on political expression, and a corrupt judiciary. Nazarbayev was elected in 2011 with 95.5% of the vote leading international observers to question the democratic reforms the nation agreed to enact.

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HRF’s chairman, Garry Kasparov, also charges that the reported $3 million dollars West received for his private show was taken from Kazakhstan’s treasury. Kasparov nor the Human Rights Foundation provide any evidence that was the case.

While acknowledging West’s previous work in international human rights, the HRF compares West’s decision to play Nazarbayev’s event to Jennifer Lopez’s heavily criticized choice to perform for the president of Turkmenistan earlier this year. The Human Rights Foundation is asking the public to “hold them accountable.”

Bill O’Reilly also took aim at Kanye on his Fox News program suggesting that the Chicago rapper should perform for Syrian President Bashar Assad next.

Kanye West has yet to comment publicly on the matter.

Watch O’Reilly’s segment about Kanye’s Kazakhstan performance and footage from the event in the videos below.

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A$AP Rocky Charged With Assault allegedly slapped a female fan

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The alleged victim filed a criminal complaint today (September 4) with the District Attorney’s Office claiming that A$AP Rocky was walking through a collection of dancing fans who were pulling on his shirt, as per TMZ. The rapper then turned around and landed an open-hand slap on the face of the alleged victim, who says she suffered whiplash from the alleged assault, according to TMZ.

In June 2013, A$AP Rocky appeared to slap a female fan in the face, as seen in a video from the rapper’s performance at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney, Australia, according to XXL. As A$AP Rocky walks through the crowd, fans are trying to get his attention by patting him on the head and reaching for his hands. When a female fan reaches down from her seat, taps A$AP Rocky on the head and blows him a kiss, the rapper appears to turn around the slap the woman in the face. He then appears to point at her as she reacts to being hit.