New Hip Hop News

After sustaining multiple severe injuries during his last couple years as the face of the Washington Wizards, John Wall was granted a fresh start last offseason when he was traded to the Houston Rockets. 

Now he’s looking for another fresh start. 

Coming off a season in which Wall averaged 20.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and nearly 7 assists in 40 games with the Rockets, the veteran point guard was not shy in expressing his frustrations and has now made it clear that he wants out of Houston. The Rockets, very-much in the midst of a re-build after trading James Harden to Brooklyn, were the the worst team in the NBA last season and despite landing Jalen Green with the second pick in this year’s draft, Wall does not want to be there. 

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Agreeing that Wall would not suit up at all for Houston this season, the two sides are in agreement that a trade is the best course of action. Unfortunately for both Wall and the Rockets, however, the five-time All-Star is set to make $44M in the upcoming season. As has been seen with the likes of Chris Paul, it is possible to move that type of contract, but Wall is not Paul. His services are not in demand like Paul’s were a summer ago and based on the conversation surrounding the University of Kentucky product, it is going to be tough for a team to take on that large of a contract knowing that, in all likelihood, Wall’s best days are behind him. 

A tough situation all-around, it will be interesting to see where John Wall ends up when the dust settles. As of now he will be working out away from the team and that huge pricetag might keep it that way for a while. 

Where do you think Wall will end up? Is there a team out there willing to take on a $44M deal? Let us know in the comments. 

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Memphis rapper Duke Deuce must be thanking his lucky stars right now. The “WTF!” artist, who has been rising up the ranks as a member of Quality Control’s impressive roster, was forced to run for cover after seemingly getting shot at during an Instagram Live stream. Thankfully, he has been posting on social media since the incident, so he appears to be fine.

The terrifying moment happened as the rapper seemingly taunted his opps. “Come outside and fuck with me, Peppertree,” he said in the video. “We ain’t on none of that bougie shit, none of that Hollywood shit.”

Before he finished his sentence, shots rang out from behind him. As the shots seemed to get closer, Duke Deuce ran for cover. It wasn’t immediately clear if the rapper was harmed during the shooting. 

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It’s also presently unknown who Duke was taunting during his video, but it’s possible that he was referring to the Peppertree apartments in Memphis, which have seen multiple shootings this summer.

The self-proclaimed “CrunkStar” has been sharing updates on social media, so he seems completely alright following the scare.

This comes shortly following the release of Duke Deuce’s new single “WTF!” 

Earlier this year, we spoke with Duke for Rise & Grind. You can read our full interview here.

We will keep you posted with any updates on this story.

Styles P is one of the game’s wisest sages, speaking with authority and approachable good-natured humor. He also happens to be one of the most consistent rappers in the game, respected by his peers and valued by the hip-hop community at large.

A few days ago, Pinero held it down with an appearance on the I Am Ahtelte podcast, chopping it up with Brandon Marshall, Chad Ochocinco Johnson, Channing Crowder, and Fred Taylor. Though a variety of interesting topics were covered, one of the more entertaining moments arrived when P was asked about the ongoing drama between Drake and Kanye. 

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“It’s a worthless battle,” declares Styles. “It’s really an egotistical and prideful battle. Think about what we’re doing right now. One guy saying he’s a Certified Lover Boy,” says Styles. “One guy titled the album after his dead mom, God rest the dead, much condolences. Why are we comparing them? Sonically, I like Drake’s album better. Content-wise, I like Kanye’s album better. I don’t have to put myself in a box and say which one is better.”

“I have two fuckin’ individuals in myself that say ‘content-wise, this guy’s relating to his mom, talking about Christ and all types of other shit,” he continues. “[Drake] is talking about rich shit, money, chicks he forgot, people mad at him, how much money he got, chicks he loved who left him, he’s singing. He’s singing about girls, [Ye’s] singing about Christ. I want to hear Nas, Westside, and myself!” 

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“I love them both,” concludes P. “We can’t let them give us the narrative and keep programming us for the crab in a barrel narrative. They ain’t gon’ fight. They ain’t saying no crazy shit. They gon’ try to dress better than each other, buy better watches. Date better models. Buy better cars. Mention paintings. I’m tired of it. You should get Nas album. J. Cole’s album. Westside Gunn’s album. My fuckin album. Everybody else album — they ain’t even fighting or arguing! Go around the corner and sqaure up or fuckin’ hug!”

Protect Styles P at all costs — he truly does have an incredible way with words, cutting straight to the core. Check out his full appearance on I Am Athlete below, and for more from the Ghost, check out our own exclusive interview with The LOX right here. 

WATCH: Styles P Versus Chad Ochocinco Johnson  | Is Kanye vs Drake Too Messy For Hip-Hop

It looks like the twenty-year feud between 50 Cent and Ja Rule has kicked off once again. During Ja Rule’s Verzuz battle against Fat Joe on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden, hip-hop fans wondered about 50 Cent’s reaction to the event, given his issues with both artists. Irv Gotti stepped into the comments section to silence trolls who continually mentioned the Power producer, saying, “All y’all talking that 50 shit. All good. He got beat up stabbed up. Shot up. And sued us. That’s all I’m gonna say. Your hero ain’t what you think he is. Period. And Facts.”

The remark prompted a couple of responses from Fiddy on Wednesday morning, who said, “Wtf am i trending for, I said i ain’t doing whatever that shit is they doing. I put they whole label out of business, f*ck with me if you want to. I would stay out of my way if i wasn’t me. LOL.”

Now, Ja Rule has stepped into the conversation, calling into the Big Tigger Morning Show and discussing Fif’s latest comments.

“You know, the feds’ tactics, that’s what they do, they treated us like a criminal mob organization. And when they do that, what they do is they suck all your resources. They shut you down financially. They take down your bank accounts, they take all your assets, they seize everything so that you can’t fight,” said Ja Rule. “So how you think I’m fighting a rap battle, I’m fighting a real fight! And then, on top of it all, come on man, I’m battling seventeen rappers. It ain’t like I was just battling [50 Cent]. He likes to throw his hat on it like he was the guy, man, stop. Eminem made you, created you. You’re nothing without that f*cking white boy. Stop it!”

Listen to Ja Rule’s response below and let us know what you think.

The last couple of days have belonged to Kid Cudi and Lil Nas X. Both have gone above-and-beyond with their outfits for New York Fashion Week, the VMAs and the Met Gala. Lil Nas shut down the VMA stage, winning Video of the Year and performing “Call Me By Your Name” and “Industry Baby” with Jack Harlow and a couple of nights ago, Kid Cudi and ASAP Nast killed a couple freestyles at a Virgil Abloh-hosted jam session at Carbone. Beyond the last 72 hours, the two rappers have both had standout years, which makes it even more fitting that Kid Cudi was responsible for writing Lil Nas X’s blurb on the Time Magazine 100 Most Influential People of 2021 list. 

In the two-paragraph long explanation of why Lil Nas X is one of the most influential people of the last year, Cudi wrote, “What he’s doing is what we need right now. To have a gay man in hip-hop doing his thing, crushing records — that is huge for us and for Black excellence.”

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Continuing to lament over the “homophobic cloud over hip-hop” and Lil Nas’ ability to remain true to himself and “not (give) a f**k what anyone says,” Cudi explained that when Lil Nas responded to tweets about his upcoming album Montero not featuring any Black male artists, saying “maybe a lot of them just don’t wanna work with me,” he was sad and let Lil Nas know that he always has the Man on the Moon rapper’s support. 

It has been a crazy year for Lil Nas X including so many social media sagas — outrage over giving the devil a lap dance, outrage over blood-infused Nikes, Boosie’s outrage over everything — and so many high notes in the form of super hot songs, insane performances and a general sense of doing whatever he wants and expressing himself how he pleases. After “Old Town Road” there was debate on which direction Lil Nas would go and while some may not have expected him to become one of the biggest stars in music and pop culture, that’s exactly what he is and now he has a spot on Time‘s list of the 100 Most Influential People of 2021 to prove it. 

Do you agree with Time putting Lil Nas X on this list? Do you disagree? Let us know in the comments. 

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Former Minneapolis police officers Derek Chauvin, Thomas Lane, J. Kueng, and Tou Thao have pleaded not guilty to federal charges accusing them of violating George Floyd’s civil rights. 

According to a report from NPR, a federal grand jury indicted the four men in May 2021 over their treatment of George Floyd on May 25th, 2020. As many know, Floyd was held face-down with a knee on his neck, with his eventual death sparking protests around the world. The charges alleged that the conduct of all four officers was a direct violation of Floyd’s civil rights.

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Chauvin is currently serving a 22.5-year murder sentence, and the disgraced former officer attended the latest hearing by way of videoconference. The other three were also in attendance with their respective lawyers. The report notes that Thao and Kueng are seeking to separate their trials from Chauvin’s, believing that the association would ultimately lead to unfair treatment. Prosecutors have argued that all four men should face the same trial, as their charges all center around the same incident.

As for this most recent indictment, the allegation centers around the violation of Floyd’s civil rights, with Chauvin specifically accused of depriving Floyd “the right to be free from unreasonable seizure and unreasonable force by a police officer.” The others face similar charges, with all four being accused of depriving Floyd of his right to medical care. For context, Keung and Lane restrained Floyd by kneeling on his back and legs respectively, and while Thao prevented bystanders from intervening.

While Chauvin currently serves a 22.5-year sentence, Lane, Kueng, and Thao are set to face trial in March 2022 for aiding and abetting. 

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Fat Joe and Ja Rule went head-to-head on Tuesday night for a Verzuz battle live from Madison Square Garden. The two New York rappers brought out a bunch of their biggest collaborators, including Nelly, Ashanti, Jadakiss, Remy Ma, and more. Ja Rule even performed with Lil Mo and Vita, his “Put It On Me” collaborators, but Joey Crack had some disrespectful things to say about the two ladies once they got done performing.

“Oh, them dusty bitches,” said Joe about Lil Mo and Vita. “You had to go to the crack house to find them bitches.”

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Many of the people watching were appalled at the level of disrespect shown by Fat Joe when he referred to Lil Mo and Vita as “dusty bitches” before suggesting that they’re addicts, and Lil Mo said after the show that she was “disappointed” in an Instagram comment. Fat Joe has since taken to social media to apologize to the ladies and anybody that he offended.

“Shout out to the ladies very sorry if i disrespected,” wrote Joe on Twitter. “i love vida and lil Moe I’m super sorry love my sisters.”

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It was likely unintentional that Joe misspelled both of their names, but it’s pretty funny that things worked out that way.

What did you think when Fat Joe called Vita and Lil Mo “dusty bitches”?