Author: hhns

It looks like Kanye West came out stronger in a recent lawsuit over his 2007 single.

 

Two years ago, Kanye West was hit with a copyright infingement lawsuit over the hook of his 2007 single“Stronger.”  Now, in a recent report from AllHipHop, it looks like the courts have ruled in favor of the G.O.O.D. Music emcee.

 

The original lawsuit claims that ‘Ye stole portions of the lyrics of Viriginia producer Vincent Peters’ 2006 song of the same name, specifically an interpolation of philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche’s idiom “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” Now, Judge Diane Wood of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of West, indicating that maxim has been quoted in a host of different songs and does not fall under the auspices of copyright law.

 

“Although the fact that both songs quote from a 19th century German philosopher might, at first blush, seem to be an unusual coincidence, West correctly notes that the aphorism has been repeatedly invoked in song lyrics over the past century,” Judge Wood said. “We are not persuaded that the similarities alleged by Vince P rise to the level of copyright infringement.”

 

AllHipHop further compared Kanye and Peters’ differing hooks, the latter of whose reads, “What don’t kill me make me stronger/The more I blow up the more you wronger/You copied my CD you can feel my hunger/The wait is over couldn’t wait no longer.”

 

Birdman explains that whatever Lil Wayne says is “law.”

 

Earlier this week, Lil Wayne made a controversial statement that he “flat out [doesn’t] like New York.” After Senator Malcolm Smith demanded an apology from the Young Money chief, Wayne’s mentor Birdman said that he backs his feelings against the Big Apple, stating that whatever Weezy says is “law.”

 

“Well, to me, I feel personally whatever my son say, I’ma ride with,” he told Fuse. “So if he say he don’t like it, that’s what it is. He don’t like it, we don’t like it. I don’t like it if he don’t like it. If he say it, that’s law.”

 

Senator Smith held a press conference yesterday in Times Square to put Wayne on blast. “If you don’t like New York,” said Smith, “you don’t have to come to New York. You don’t have to sell your products here. And perhaps we won’t come to your concerts.”

 

E-40 says that the city of Mountain View has banned him and Too Short from performing at the Rock the Bells stop.

 

E-40 and Too Short rocked the stage at last weekend’sRock the Bells 2012 festival, but don’t expect them to hit the stage at this weekend’s Mountain View, California stop.

 

During an interview with Fuse (via HHNM), E-40 said that he and Too Short have been banned from performing at the event, stating that the city has prohibited them from making an appearance.

 

“I’m not even going to be there. For some reason, the city of Mountain View won’t let E-40 and Too Short perform,” he said. “They can’t even give us an excuse or nothing. They can’t say nothing. They don’t even know why they won’t let us perform. I’m putting it on that the city of Mountain View won’t let Too Short and E-40 perform. Anyway, they don’t want us performing on our own soil, man.”

 

He said that his performance with Too Short at last weekend’s San Bernardino event was “classical” and described it as “electrifying.” “My man always classical to do anything with Too Short. Always classical to do Rock the Bells. We ain’t at the Bay Area one in Southern California, but it’s still groovy like a drive-in movie. The energy? It’s electrifying in that thang, man. Turnt up. I love every minute of it, I love to see my fans with a smile on they face, I love to be performing.”

 

Bow Wow has lost control of his Twitter account to a rapper, who is using the account to promote his own mixtape. The issue started yesterday evening, when a 19-year-old hacker from Indiana took over Bow Wow’s account and began sending out messages, in addition to some of Bow’s business dealings. The hacker, who was impressed with the amount of ladies Bow Wow interacts with, then started tweeting out messages promoting a mixtape, “Code of the Streets Vol. 1.” That didn’t sit too well with Bow Wow’s 2 million fans, who dissed the mixtape. “Well you can hate me all you want. YOU PEOPLE are mad because I’m going to make it big. You people are childish. Go Get my mixtape,” the rapper tweeted. At press time, Bow Wow still does not have control over his Twitter account.

Rapper Lupe Fiasco will debut the video for his new single “Bitch Bad” on MTV’s RapFix Live today (August 22).  The song “Bad Bitch” is taken from Lupe Fiasco’s upcoming album Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1.  According to Lupe, the track will be sure to “start a conversation.” ”Whether right or wrong, some things need to be said in order to start a conversation, that’s all I try to do with my music,” Lupe Fiasco said. Immediately after the premiere of “Bad Bitch,” Sway will sit down and chat with Lupe and a variety of industry heads, about the video’s contents and meaning. Philly rapper Beanie Sigel will also drop by RapFix Live to discuss his new album This Time, in addition to his pending prison sentence for tax evasion. Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album Pt. 1. is due in stores September 25.

Rapper 2 Chainz’ debut album Based On A T.R.U. Story debuted at #1 on the BillboardTop 200 Albums chart this week. The rapper’s Def Jam debut moved over 147,000 copies during its first week in stores, making it the top album in the country this week. The album bumped the previous #1 holder Now 43, to second place this week. 2 Chainz will continue to promote Based On A T.R.U. Story with the upcoming tour of the same name. The “Based on a T.R.U. Story Tour” will kick off August 30 in Norfolk, Virginia and will feature a number of guest artists, including a surprise artist on the G.O.O.D. Music roster. The tour will wind down September 27 in Austin, Texas.

Lil Wayne asks fans “please don’t judge me” from his verse on 2 Chainz’s “Yuck!”

 

Lil Wayne helps open 2 Chainz’s chart-topping debutBased on a T.R.U. Story by dropping a verse on the track “Yuck!” But as his own worst critic, Weezy says he doesn’t feel like lived up to his full potential on the track.

 

During an interview with MTV News, the Young Money honcho said that he didn’t know the song would be the first on the album and that when they were in the studio, he was just messing around with the verse. He emphasized that fans shouldn’t “judge me from that.”

 

“I’m very upset at that just so everybody know, he put me on that, I sound wack as hell on there,” he said. “He did not tell me that was gonna be the first song on his album. We was just in the studio and he was like man, I just did that. I was in there just messing around and I come back and hear it’s [the] #1 [track] on his [album]. Please don’t judge me from that. My bar game is way higher than that, man.”

 

The story of United States drug gang Black Mafia Family (BMF) will make its world premiere during the 16th annual Urbanworld Film Festival.

The 80-minute documentary, titled “BMF: The Rise and Fall of a Hip-Hop Drug Empire,” will be spotlighted during the 16th annual event, which will take place from September 19-23 in New York.

“BMF: The Rise and Fall of a Hip-Hop Drug Empire” was helmed by Don Sikorski. The doc details the rise and fall of  Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory as well as his brother, Terry “Southwest T” Flenory.

The brothers headed up the multi-state drug gang, which took in over $275 million in illegal proceeds from the cocaine trade, before they were caught and sentenced to 30-years in prison, after a 15-year investigation.

Over 11,000 government documents and a number of taped conversations are featured in the documentary, which tells the BMF tale from both the law enforcement side, as well as from the inside, through exclusive  interviews.

DEA agents, as well as rappers like Young Jeezy, Gucci Mane, Rick Ross, Fabolous and others are featured in “BMF: The Rise and Fall of a Hip-Hop Drug Empire.”

Bobbito Garcia’s “Doing It In The Park,” will also be screened during the Urbanworld Film Festival, which is being presented by BET Networks.

Kanye West is “on the fence” about taking on a role as judge on the reality singing competition.

 

After news broke that Nicki Minaj was on track to become a judge on the next season of American Idol, TMZ is reporting that Kanye West is in negotiations to grab a seat on the judging panel.

 

Sources close to production claim that Idol producers reached out to ‘Ye to appear as a judge on the singing competition, and he expressed interest in joining the fold. The source continues that he is unsure about accepting the offer and is “on the fence,” because he doesn’t know if its suits his best interest.

 

Nicki Minaj is now “close to signing a deal or has signed one to become a judge,” but producers are going to add a fourth judge. Other artists being considered for the slot include Keith Urban, Enrique Iglesias and Brad Paisley. Mariah Carey has already inked a deal to appear, netting a reported $18 million for the gig.

 

Lil Wayne tells MTV how he really feels about the Big Apple, and it’s not too friendly.

 

Between getting arrested on gun charges following a performance in the city and his YMCMB starlet Nicki Minajbeing insulted by Hot 97’s Peter Rosenberg at this year’s Summer Jam, Lil Wayne hasn’t had the best history with New York City. Now, in a recent interview with MTV, the Louisiana rapper explains his true feelings for the home of Hip Hop.

 

Weezy said that he simply doesn’t like New York City, regardless of the recent events at Summer Jam 2012. Still, he said that he feels he made the most of negative situation at Nicki’s performance last week at the Roseland Ballroom, which was intended to make-up for pulling out of Summer Jam at the last second this summer.

 

“Flat out, I don’t like New York,” he said. “The whole Summer Jam/Nicki thing, I can’t really remember the situation, but I know it was my call. As far as last week[‘s show], last week was awesome. I think everything happens for a reason, and I think when people say that, you’re not supposed to leave it at, ‘Everything happens for a reason.’ I believe everything happens for a reason and then you make the most of that reason. I think we made the most of it last week.”

 

 

 Rapper Juvenile was arrested in Miami, Florida at the Fontainebleau Hotel, sources say.
According to reports, Juvenile’s behavior at the hotel resulted in the arrest.

Additionally, he was kicked out of an area club for disorderly conduct, TMZ reports.

The rapper was in town and reunited briefly with Lil Wayne at LV nightclub. He was arrested and booked at about 7am this morning. Details have been scant.

Juvenile, real name is Terius Gray, has been arrested for a number of reasons throughout the year. He was arrested for child support issues, possession of marijuana and was accused of driving with a suspended license.

Boxing legend Mike Tyson recently warned rapper 50 Cent about the pitfalls of the boxing industry in an interview with Entertainment Sports Radio.

 

BoxingScene.com reports that Tyson discussed his views on 50 Cent’s new venture with Floyd Mayweather Jr., The Money Team Promotions aka TMT Promotions.

 

50 Cent and Floyd Mayweather have already signed several high-profile boxers to TMT Promotions, including Yuriorkis Gamboa, Andre Berto, Billy Dib, and Celestino Caballero.

 

“I wish 50 Cent the best of luck in the world with the endeavor that he’s doing, but this is something that 50 Cent has to know when you’re dealing with something like boxing and you’re dealing with human beings,” Mike Tyson said. “We calling it peddling the flesh. Even though you’re paying them, you’re still dealing and flesh.”

 

According to Tyson, the sport of gambling is so corrupt that he believes it should be taken over by the government.

 

Tyson warned 50 Cent that his new company with Floyd Mayweather could also cost him his career as an entertainer.

 

“50 is a rap star, 50 is an entertainer, 50 is an entrepreneur,” Mike Tyson said. “He doesn’t really know the ins and outs of boxing. He probably knows what Floyd tells him, but once he gets in this arena, everyone that was ever his friend on the other side is [now] his enemy.”

 

 Jay-Z is suing his former personal chef, who also ran the 40/40 Club’s kitchen, over the menu at the rap mogul’s famous sports bar.

 

The rapper recently filed a $1.5 million lawsuit against Mike Shand, in Manhattan Federal Court.

 

According to the lawsuit, Mike Shand failed to perform significant aspects of his deal with the 40/40 Club, which called for him to spice up the menu for the club’s $10,000,000 renovation earlier this year.

 

But the lawsuit claims that the chef’s lack of performance cost the club lost profits, along with the alienation of its patrons.

 

Additionally, the 40/40 Club claims it was not able to replace the menu items that Shand was paid to provide.

 

A lawyer for Shand told the New York Post that his client, who has traveled around the world with Jay-Z, was surprised by the lawsuit.

 

“Mike’s a great chef, and it is unclear why 40/40 would contemplate a lawsuit against him,” Shand’s lawyer Vik Pawar said. “Nevertheless, we will respond accordingly when he gets served with the complaint.”

 

Benzino says he regrets beefing with Eminem and taking extremely personal shots at the rapper’s daughter Hailie.

 

Perhaps one of the most volatile and highly publicized Hip Hop feuds of the past decade occurred betweenBenzino and Eminem. Now, in a recent video interview with Global Grind TV, Benzino reflects on his verbal back-and-forth with the Detroit emcee.

 

Benzino said that in that era, he felt untouchable because of his position as CEO and co-owner of The Source. As a result, he had no qualms about publishing content disparaging Em or even threatening Em’s daughter Hailie on a song. But now, 10 years removed, Benzino says that he regrets taking their beef to such a personal level, and would apologize to the Shady Records impresario if he ever got the chance.

 

“When the Eminem situation happened, I was just on top and I didn’t have to answer to nobody,” he said. “When you’re on top and even with a lot of people in New York [and] even with labels, you still have to answer to somebody. Me and Dave [Mays, co-founder] was [at The Source], and at that point, I wanted to prove to everybody like, ‘Listen, I’m the one running this here and I can do this without reservation’…it was a mistake for me getting involved in the situation with Eminem.”

 

He added, “The Eminem thing started getting uglier and uglier, and of course I can take responsibility for some of the stuff I said as far as directly towards his family, you know, really personal shots. It was out of order. I believe some of the stuff that he said was out of order also, but at the end of the day, it’s all fair in war…if I could do it over again, I definitely would. Eminem was and still is a major force. Hip Hop has brought cultures together – Asian, Latino, Black, White – and I should have been more responsible…[If I met him today] first I’d want to apologize for the Hailie references.”

 

Complex captured two G.O.O.D. Music stars playing the highly anticipated “Madden 13” video game.

With the release of leading sports video game franchiseMadden 13 coming on August 28, Complex Media Network recently arranged for two of G.O.O.D. Music’s stars to preview the game in a showdown. 2 Chainz, who just released Based On A T.R.U. Story, played label-mate Pusha T in the game.

Complex has aired a video clip of the two rappers playingMadden 13. A fully-produced segment is expected on August 28, the same day Madden 13 is in stores. Both the XBox and Playstation pages have demos of the new game.

Ice-T faces legal action for allegedly using an idea for a documentary drama series.

 

A&E Networks and Ice-T have been named in a suit by Roy Colbert of Los Angeles.

 

Deadline.com reports that Colbert alleges Ice-T and A&E used his idea for a TV docudrama about gangs.

 

The suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims that Ice-T and A&E breached an implied contract under which Colbert provided the network’s director of nonfiction and alternative programming Colleen Conway an idea about the series on August 7, 2008.

 

The idea was for a documentary drama focused on combating gang violence in Los Angeles County and making peace between rival gangs. Colbert states the the idea was based on his own experience documenting efforts to stop gang violence in 2004.

 

In the suit, Colbert states that he presented his idea to Ice-T’s manager Chris Smith, and that it was “fully and clearly understood” that the idea for the series, originally titled by Colbert “Banging Peace,” was to only be used if Colbert was involved and fully compensated.

 

Instead, says Colbert, Ice-T and A&E took his idea and made an identical docudrama titled “The Peacemaker,” which aired in 2010.

 

MC Eiht stands between U.S. Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte and the trademarking of the phrase “jeah.”

 

MC Eiht’s beef with DJ Quik was one of Hip Hop’s most storied rivalries. But even Eiht could not have predicted that he would one day be beefing with an Olympic Gold Medalist.

 

TMZ reports that MC Eiht has taken issue with United States Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte, over the latter’s attempt to trademark the phrase “jeah.”

 

“Why try and trademark something his ass didn’t even create? I am mad that he isn’t giving me proper recognition for taking my saying,” explained the West Coast veteran. “He is just disrespectful.”

 

Adding that his concern is about “respect and truth,” and not about money, Eiht revealed that he plans on sending a cease and desist letter to Lochte.

 

Lochte claims that he created the term by deriving it from Young Jeezy’s use of “chea,” and states that his phrase means something “good.”

 

Lochte’s manager tells TMZ, “Ryan has beeen using JEAH for years…This is the first time I have heard of this claim by MC Eiht.”