New Hip Hop News

Jake Paul celebrated New Year’s by sharing a picture of himself partying with Drake on Instagram. The two posed in front of a scenic view in St. Barths.

This isn’t the first time Paul has interacted with the Toronto rapper. Back in April, Paul said that Drake DM’d him a congratulatory text after his fight with Ben Askren.

“Drake DMed me last night,” the undefeated fighter revealed on his brother Logan’s Impaulsive podcast. “[It was] one of the best moments of my life. He says, ‘You’re a demon crow, wow. How much you make for a one-minute set tonight?'”

Rich Fury / Getty Images

Paul also kicked off 2022 by beefing with UFC President Dana White. Saturday, Paul offered to join the UFC and retire from boxing on the deal that White improve the conditions for all of his fighters with increased pay and lifelong healthcare coverage.

“To all UFC fighters – time to take a stand and create value for yourselves and peers,” Paul wrote in a statement. “You deserve higher pay, you deserve long term healthcare and above all you deserve freedom. Support each other. I am not your enemy, I am your advocate…who selfishly wants to KO a few of you to make some big bank.”

Check out Paul’s New Year’s picture with Drake below.

The Houston Rockets 2021-22 season has gotten off to a rocky, uneventful start. After asking point guard John Wall to sit to allow their young stars to develop, and enduring several losing skids, the Rockets now sit at 10-27 and last place in the Western Conference.

While this is a developmental year for their blossoming talent, things still have not come together as planned for Houston. Last night (Jan. 1), things went awry again at halftime of their game in Houston against the Denver Nuggets. According to Adrian Wojnarowski and Tim McMahon of ESPN, third year shooting guard Kevin Porter Jr. got into a heated debate with assistant coach John Lucas at halftime. 

Shams Charania of The Athletic reported that Porter Jr. threw an undisclosed object at Lucas, and would eventually leave the arena at some point in the second half. The feud also involved young star center Christian Wood, who struggled with zero points in the first half. Wood apparently showed up late to warmups and was subsequently removed from the starting lineup. After the argument, he refused to enter the game in the second half.

The Rockets would eventually lose the game 124-111. Rockets head coach Stephen Silas did not shy away from these reports, confirming the halftime scuffle in his post-game interview: “We had a spirited debate. I have certain demands of this team as far as playing hard. … I wasn’t satisfied with the effort.”

Silas also said that it was ultimately his decision to keep Wood out of the game after halftime. Porter Jr. spoke to the team after the game and offered his apologies for his attitude. However, this is not the first time KPJ has acted this way. Before being traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers last season, it was reported that he had thrown food in the locker room in a tirade after his locker had been given to newly acquired Taurean Prince.

Kevin has gotten off to a rough start in the league, which is disappointing considering his tremendous upside.

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On Jan. 1st, Uncle Murda returned with “Rap Up 2021,” the latest edition in his annual installment of yearly recaps. Murda dived in on a plethora of topics from Lil Nas X to Donald Trump, and more. However, he didn’t miss the opportunity to throw a jab at Freddie Gibbs over allegations that he was attacked by Jim Jones at Prime 112 in Miami. If you recall, rumors floated around that Jones attacked Gibbs at the Miami restaurant last month. It wasn’t just that, though. Murda also expressed his disdain towards Gibbs’ critical praise including the 2021 Grammy nomination for Alfredo. 

“Let me smoke a blunt right now and get in my zone/ Akademiks said Freddie Gibbs got beat up by Jim Jones/ Not a big fan of his, the streets don’t rock with him/ That be Elliott and B. Dot giving all those props to him/So when he talk tough, we don’t believe what he saying/ His father a cop and his brother down with the DEA/ Yeah, I ain’t like his reaction when Nas won the Grammy/ He never lost in court ’cause law enforcement is his family/ I know I ain’t the only one who feel like he hated/Freddie album ain’t deserve to be Grammy-nominated.”

Gibbs let his Twitter fingers fly following the diss track, as well as Akademiks’ continuous commentary. In a slew of posts shared to both Instagram and Twitter, Freddie expressed his excitement to return to New York City. “N***az talkin shit go your pay your rent bitch,” he tweeted. “I can’t wait to go to New York.”

“So many NY rappers on my dick right now. I can’t wait to go to y’all city and show u how to sell it out byke byke,” he wrote before directing his energy towards Murda’s pen. “NYC should be ashamed of y’all non rapping ass n***az This my shit now.”

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images 

Akademiks did not simply let this slide without chiming in, reposting both of Gibbs’ stories on his Twitter page. “FEDERICK Gibbs gets beat up by one New York rapper and dissed by another now he calling out the whole New York,” he wrote. “@FreddieGibbs
where the same trolling energy for Jim jones n Uncle Murda N***a…”

The back-and-forth ensued with Akademiks continuing to drag the Jim Jones altercation. “U started wit me u irrelevant trash broke ass piece of shit. I just exposed u the entire year til u a punch line now . N***as mention ur name to laugh at u. I’ll take credit for that,” Akademiks wrote after Gibbs vowed to continue trolling the media personality throughout the new year. 

After Ak pressed Gibbs to mention Jim Jones, Freddie Gibbs formally denied that he was ever touched during the alleged fight with Jim Jones at Prime 112. “N***a u scared to even mention Jim jones name .. n***a must have really gave u amnesia,” he added.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments. 

Kanye West and actress Julia Fox, best known for her role in the Safdie brother’s 2019 film, Uncut Gems, were spotted on a date in Miami, Saturday night. The two hit up the Italian restaurant, Carbone, for dinner.

West has been partaking in the single life since he split with Kim Kardashian in 2021. Despite his attempts to get back with his ex-wife, Kardashian has repeatedly said she has no intention of rekindling with the Donda rapper. Kardashian has recently spent her time dating Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson.

Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images

Fox recently slammed her own ex, Peter Artemiev, as a “dead beat alcoholic drug addict,” father.

“I just don’t want my son fucked up cuz he feels like his dad was absent or loved alcohol and partying more than him,” she wrote in a post on social media ahead of Christmas. “As a mother anyone could understand that. TAKE CARE OF YOUR KIDS MEN!!! AND OTHER MEN, HOLD DEAD BEAT DADS ACCOUNTABLE!!! It’s damn near 2022 how can u say u care about women and mothers and single mothers and ur out here enabling the behavior!!!”

West has also been seen dating 22-year-old model Vinetria in recent months.

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In honor of the new year, Sounwave says he’s working on “new creations,” and fans are expecting it to mean Kendrick Lamar’s long-awaited final TDE album is on the way. Lamar’s longtime producer hinted at upcoming music in a post on his Instagram page.

“Took a full year off to get realigned with what I love to do,” he captioned a scenic photo of a laptop. “New creations on the way.”

A bunch of fellow hit-makers popped up in the comments to share some love including Kenny Beats, Boi1da, and more.

Kevin Winter / Getty Images

Back in August, Lamar confirmed that he was working on a new project and that it would be his last with TDE.

“As I produce my final TDE album, I feel joy to have been a part of such a cultural imprint after 17 years,” Lamar wrote in a statement at the time. “The Struggles. The Success. And most importantly, the Brotherhood. May the Most High continue to use Top Dawg as a vessel for candid creators. As I continue to pursue my life’s calling. There’s beauty in completion. And always faith in the unknown. Thank you for keeping me in your thoughts. I’ve prayed for you all. See you soon enough.”

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Dana White made a counteroffer to Jake Paul regarding his recent statement about joining the UFC. The UFC President wants Paul to be randomly tested for steroids for the next two years.

“You publicly stated that I use cocaine. I do not,” White said in a video posted to social media. “So I told you [that] you could randomly cocaine test me for the next 10 years. I believe that you’re a cheater and I believe that you use steroids, so I want to randomly steroid test you for the next two years. And that thing that you came out with today, nobody on Earth thinks that you really wrote that. You’re too stupid. And for those of you that don’t know — if you’ve ever watched one of his fights and you see the staredowns, the guy that’s standing in the middle with the warlock nose and the big wart on his face, apparently that’s his manager.”

Ethan Miller / Getty Images

He continued: “That guy used to be an accountant for me. And let me say this, he no longer works for me and I think he’s a scumbag. But if you two think you can do it better than we do, [that] we’re doing the whole thing wrong and you’re treating fighters better than we do, knock yourself out. Go start your own business, it’s easy to do. Get the warlock on it. The warlock can get it started for you.”

Paul originally offered to join the UFC and retire from boxing on several conditions. White would have to increase the payout for all fighters in the UFC and provide them with lifetime health care as well.

Paul responded to White’s counter by agreeing to be tested for steroids.

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Since he unleashed The Algorithm in the last half of 2021, Snoop Dogg has been on a roll, constantly giving his beloved fans more reasons to revisit the Def Jam compilation project. On Friday, December 31st, the “Bitch Please” rapper delivered Algorithm: The Movie, which sees several artists featured on different tracks come together to discuss how Uncle Snoop’s project came to be.

As HipHopDX reports, Blxst, Dave East, and Fabolous all appear on the California-born recording artist’s latest endeavour, along with Ice Cube, Too $hort, YK Osiris, Ty Dolla $ign, Larry June, E-40, October London, and tons of over vocal superstars.

The hour-long movie is said to consist of a combination of music videos from the album along with interviews from the voices that appear on Algorithm. 

Days before his film was released, Snoop announced that he’s got even more music – more specifically, an album titled B.O.D.R. – on the way in 2022. The west coast legend’s longtime producer and friend DJ Battlecat posted a message with a warning ahead of the upcoming project’s premiere.

“WHAT YOU THOUGHT ITS RAINING CATS & DOGG OUT IN THIS MF WE NOT FUCCIN AROUND WITH @snoopdogg @therealoctoberlondon & @nefertittiavani BATTLECAT YOU’Z A BAD MUTHA SHUT YA MOUTH!!”

As if his original 25-project release wasn’t enough, a few weeks later the father of four returned with a 40-track “Global Edition,” which saw a handful of remixes showcasing the talents of recording artists from all around the world, as Snoop so often loves to do.

Check out Algorithm: The Movie below and let us know what you think in the comments.

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HBO Max continues to impress us with its endless roll-out of content. Most recently, the streamer premiered a Harry Potter reunion that has spent New Years Day captivating fans of the beloved franchise as they watch Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, and other cast favourites reunite on their small screen.

The stars got together in honour of the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, which was released back in 2001, with producers decorating the set to look as though they had actually returned to Hogwarts. As PEOPLE reports, everything from on-set crushes to behind-the-scenes details about casting and filming were discussed.

From the sounds of things, the nostalgia of the reunion special has put a large number of people in their feelings as they transport back to their childhoods when they were first introduced to Potter and his wizard friends.

“Harry Potter reunion. Laughed at the interview with [JK] Rowling that was labelled ‘interviewed in 2019’ in order to reassure viewers that she was not involved recently. Cried during the in memorium,” one person wrote, drawing attention to the series author’s problematic comments that have caused many involved with the films to distance themselves from her.

Others found it hard to watch seeing as so many of the original stars have passed away in the 20 years since the first film hit theatres, including Richard Griffiths (Vernon Dursley), Richard Harris (Albus Dumbledore), Helen McCrory (Narcissa Malfoy), Alan Rickman (Severus Snape), and Robert Hardy (Cornelius Fudge), among others.

Did you check out the Harry Potter reunion special on HBO Max? Drop a comment and let us know.

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Like many of us, La La Anthony has spent the first day of 2022 reflecting on the tumultuous year that we’ve just left behind us while getting clear on what she hopes to bring in more of with this fresh start. In a new Instagram post, the mother of one got vulnerable with her 12.6 million followers about what she’s got in store for the forthcoming months.

“I brought in the New Year a little different this year,” she began. “Kept things calm which is not my usual AT ALL lol but instead of being down about it I had to remind myself maybe that’s exactly what I needed. Time to myself and time with me and Kiyan just to reflect and be grateful for all the blessings in our lives.”

The TV star revealed that she spent her evening writing down “goals and manifestations,” then went on to wish everyone “an amazing New Year with more LOVE more BLESSINGS, GOOD HEALTH and most of all HAPPINESS. Love y’all so much,” she told her fans, thousands of whom have double-tapped the selfie and left the 42-year-old supportive comments.

In case you missed it, La La and her husband Carmelo Anthony announced their divorce not long ago, with the entertainer admitting that she was “caught off guard” by the whole thing. She subtly addressed her life as a single woman in her recent Instagram post, admitting that she hopes to bring in love that looks like Ciara and her NFL husband Russell Wilson’s, or even one of the characters from Issa Rae’s hit show, Insecure.

“PS. I saw what YOU did for Ciara (I mean I was around for that) and what you did for Issa and Molly from Insecure sooooo… Yeah [you] know the rest,” she concluded her reflective post; check it out below, and read more about C and R’s coveted relationship here. 

Things are heating up between Michael B. Jordan and Lori Harvey. On Friday night, the 24-year-old shared a Boomerang with her boyfriend, dubbing him her “baby daddy,” which has obviously raised some eyebrows.

As PEOPLE reports, the model and the Black Panther star celebrated their one-year anniversary in November, and on Thanksgiving, Harvey said she was “extremely thankful” to have Jordan – among other people and things – in her life. It remains unclear if she’s actually expecting a child with the 34-year-old, but they’re clearly very happy together.

Last month, Jordan opened up to The Hollywood Reporter during his cover story interview about how he’s managed to navigate a romantic relationship while living life in the spotlight. “When I was younger, I don’t know if I could have handled the onslaught of opinions and being picked apart, and also being conscious of what the other person’s going to go through,” he explained.

“It takes a special person to deal with that. There’s a premeditated planning of staying out of the way [of the public eye] that sometimes kills spontaneity and intimacy,” he continued. The California-born star then went on to say that he wanted to give his relationship with Harvey “the best chance it had, in this weird world that we live in, to be somewhat normal.”

“Long story short, I think it’s just the timing of everything. It was the right time for me,” he confirmed. “Yeah. I’m happy.”

Harvey also spent the holiday celebrating with a group of her girlfriends – check out footage from their NYE below.

@loriharvey/Instagram 

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