News

After taking over the Billboard Top 200 last Wednesday (April 6), hip-hop seemed to have lost its presence in the upper echelon of the album charts this week. The only two rap discs to make it in that category were Wiz Khalifa and Jim Jones.

Rapper Lil Wayne wants to, or maybe just needs to, unload his Miami mansion on La Gorce Island, Fla., that he purchased early last year for $14 million. He is asking $12.9 million for a possible quick sale given he has an Internal Revenue Service tax lien hanging over his head.


The IRS says the rapper, whose real name is Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr., owes the government a total of $5.6 million, which breaks down to $3,351,078 owed for 2008 and $2,258,956 for 2009. Last year, he had liens against him for more than $1 million for the tax years 2004, 2005 and 2007.

More details have come to light regarding the arrest of troubled rapper Gucci Mane. The rapper was taken into custody by Dekalb County Police while visiting his probation officer on Friday, April 8, after allegedly pushing a woman out of a moving vehicle.

The war-of-words continues to wage on between "Bad Girls Club"'s Natalie Nunn and Amber Rose, as the reality star has fired more shots toward the buxom model over the weekend.


Speaking through Internet broadcast, Nunn aired out her issues with Rose over her current relationship Wiz Khalifa.

Rick Ross is not the only Def Jam artist signing rappers these days as his hip-hop rival Young Jeezy has officially inked rap newcomer Freddie Gibbs to Corporate Thugz Entertainment.


Details of the signing landed online over the weekend.

The New Jersey Nets have been fined $50,000 for Nets minority owner Jay-Z's presence in the Kentucky locker room after the Wildcats clinched a Final Four berth.


League spokesman Tim Frank confirmed the fine Friday before the Nets played the New York Knicks at the Prudential Center.

NBA rules prohibit team personnel from having contact with players who are not yet draft eligible.

According to the terms of his probation, Lil Wayne has been ordered to refrain from drinking or using drugs for the next three years, a major adjustment for the New Orleans MC who previously relied heavily on weed and cough syrup as part of his writing process.


Though Wayne has noted that his straight edge lifestyle has made recording more difficult, he appears to have finally come to terms with his court-enforced sobriety, revealing that it's a "great feeling" during a recent interview at the Providence, R.I. stop on his I Am Still Music tour.

Though music industry vet Steve Stoute and Recording Academy president Neil Portnow vowed to work together to increase diversity at the Grammy awards -- as a result of Stoute's claim that the awards were "losing touch," it looks hip-hop and R&B artists are losing again.


The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences made more than 30 modifications to the awards on Wednesday, April 7, a move which Stoute has referred to as "a step in the right direction, but still a Band-Aid on the problem."

Wiz Khalifa's major label debut has rolled into a pretty good spot on the Billboard charts this week.


The Pittsburgh native's latest, 'Rolling Papers,' made a second place finish on the Billboard 200 chart selling just over 190,000 copies. Although final figures have yet to be released, Khalifa's album met industry expectations with its sales. He lost the top spot to Britney Spears whose seventh release, 'Femme Fatale' beat the 23-year-old by close to 80,000 copies. Khalifa however topped the Hip-Hop/R&B charts and took to his Twitter page to thank his fans.

The FBI has been revamping its website and a brand new feature called the Vault should yield some interesting finds.


The site, which contains more than 2,000 documents that have been scanned from paper into digital copies, has unveiled the FBI records belonging to Notorious B.I.G. The information had been sealed until a Freedom of Information request lead to them getting processed and digitized.

Rumors that longtime New York DJ Mister Cee, real name Calvin Lebrun, was busted for public indecency last week have been largely unfounded until today (April 5). While his fellow Hot 97-associate Funkmaster Flex has been aggressive and staunch in Cee's defense, official police documents confirm that he was indeed exposed in a homosexual act when arrested.

Drake made a surprise appearance during the Washington, D.C. stop on Lil Wayne's I Am Still Music tour, performing several songs with his mentor, and addressing the rumors that he had split from his Young Money crew.


Introducing his Canadian protégé with a heartfelt dedication before launching into their duet, 'Miss Me,' Wayne thanked the crowd for their support.