AllHipHop Reports
Philadelphia-bred rapper Freck Billionaire and his personal manager Animal Steele responded to the comments made by Floyd Mayweather Jr In a recent interview with AllHipHop
Mayweather, who signed Freck to his Philthy Rich Records, claimed that Freck Billionaire knowingly joined his company though he was already in another contract.
The boxer also alleged that the rapper stole a diamond watch. In an exclusive interview with AllHipHop.com, Freck Billionaire responded to Mayweather’s remarks.
“Since you really at the bottom of your heart don't wanna see anyone around you with anything, I'll send a courier to you with my watch. Maybe you can use it to lure in your next victim," Freck told AllHipHop.com.
Freck and Animal Steele both claim that the watch in question was a gift given to the newly signed rapper by Mayweather.
“The watch was a gift from Floyd to Freck. It symbolized the business arrangement that we were all heading into together. Floyd's out of control ego hindered any chance of success. We decided to weather through the storm and every time that Freck received any shine, all progress came to a screeching halt,” said Steele.
In a recent AllHipHop interview, Mayweather charged the watch was stolen and attempts to recover from Freck have failed.
Mayweather said, "We were working with an artist named Freck Billionaire. When he came aboard we asked if he had any contracts and he said no. Come to find out he was signed with somebody. The guy was trying to sue us and Freck stole one of our watches and left. So we’ve been looking for Freck Billionaire but he’s been ducking and dodging us. He stole a diamond watch and left."
Steele also claims that Mayweather was trying to break Freck apart from the rap group Street Family, which also consists of Fabolous, Paul Cain and Red Café.
“Once Floyd made it obvious that he didn't want Freck affiliated with Street Fam and more specifically Fabolous, the line was crossed. It was Floyd's "Philthy Rich or die" attitude that forced us to make a move back east. After all it was Fab's guidance and leadership that put us on the map in the first place. At the end of the day our loyalty is to Street Fam and our personal relationship with Fabolous," continued Steele.
In May it was reported that a Long Island-based company, Just for You Entertainment, was suing Mayweather, claiming that he stole their artist-- Freck Billionaire.
“As far as the allegation of a prior commitment is concerned, we all know that if Floyd had any true intentions of working on a Freck Billionaire project, his capital could've gotten to the bottom of any situation.”
Freck continues to receive support from Brooklyn rapper Fabolous who featured him on his new album Loso's Way on the track “There He Go” alongside Paul Cain, Red Café.
Last week Freck released his latest mixtape This Is Family Pt.2, which features Fabolous and Red Café, among others.
Read more…
ESPN Reports
Brett Favre, who three weeks ago had told coach Brad Childress that he would remain retired, signed a deal Tuesday with the Minnesota Vikings.
The deal is worth between $10 million to $12 million, according to ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen.
The Vikings made it official with a news release early Tuesday afternoon. A news conference to introduce Favre is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET.
The first inkling that something was afoot came early Tuesday, when two television stations in Hattiesburg, Miss., and Minneapolis reported that the Vikings had sent a private plane to Hattiesburg to pick up Favre.
Coach Brad Childress, who greeted the Favres at the airport, had confirmed the planned meeting in an e-mail to The Associated Press. Asked if the plan was to sign Favre, Childress replied: "In a perfect world."
Favre, 39, and his wife, Deanna, arrived in Minnesota in the early afternoon, getting off a team plane at a small St. Paul airport and getting into an SUV after shaking hands with the ground crew.
Childress' wish for a perfect world came true shortly afterward, when the Vikings announced the signing. The deal had been pending a physical. By 2 p.m. ET, he was observed at Vikings practice in Eden Prairie, Minn., wearing a No. 4 jersey and a helmet, while stretching and warming up.
A throng of fans who somehow already had learned of Favre's arrival ran alongside the SUV as it arrived at the Vikings' practice site from the airport, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, with a lone police officer trying to herd them.
Favre's mother, Bonita, told the Biloxi Sun Herald that her son would be working out with the Vikings on Wednesday. ESPN analyst Cris Carter reported Tuesday that Childress already has told the Vikings that Favre will be starting in Friday night's preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
"I have mixed emotions, but I have always loved to watch him play," she told the Sun Herald. "This time, however, I thought he would stay retired and stay home. I guess he could not do it.
"They [Minnesota] seem to have a good team in place, and he liked that. I guess I need to get a Vikings jersey now."
John David Booty, who had been wearing No. 4, was assigned No. 9.
Favre, a longtime star in Green Bay, came out of retirement last season to play for the New York Jets. He retired again, only to then entertain the idea of joining the Vikings. Three weeks ago, Childress said the quarterback would stay retired.
The pronouncement now appears to be premature.
Two television stations first reported that Favre was seen boarding a plane Tuesday morning that was headed to Minneapolis.
Sources told Hattiesburg television station WDAM, which initially broke the story, that Favre had said: "We may know something by dinner."
A high-level source first told Minneapolis TV station WCCO that Favre was expected to sign a deal with the Vikings on Tuesday.
ESPN's Ed Werder reported that according to a source, Favre told close friends and family members before boarding the plane Tuesday: "I'm going to play football.''
The decision to do so comes even though Favre has informed the team that Dr. James Andrews detected a slight tear in his right rotator cuff in May while performing arthroscopic surgery on the quarterback's passing shoulder in May, according to a source.
It was concern about that injury, and the pain in both of his ankles and left knee, that discouraged Favre from signing with the Vikings before training camp.
Favre, who holds almost all of the NFL's career passing records, has never been much of a fan of offseason practices, though. Last summer, he ended his retirement with the Packers and forced a trade to the Jets, where he faded down the stretch amid problems with his throwing arm.
But Favre remained in regular communication with the Vikings' coaching staff the past three weeks, and a source said that owner Zygi Wilf had to do very little convincing when the two met this week near Favre's home in Hattiesburg.
"He had a lot of aches and pains and they basically needed a commitment from him before he felt he was ready to play,'' a source told Werder. "He wants to be able to do the best he can do and doesn't want to disappoint them.''
The Vikings are aware of the small tear in Favre's rotator cuff.
"The tear is still there and there's always a possibility something could happen with it later on,'' a source told Werder. "He wanted to give it the best chance he could before he made a commitment. But the last three weeks, it hasn't gotten any worse and he's been working hard. Hell, who knows? It could flare up again if they make him throw 50 or 60 balls a day.
"Three weeks ago, he wasn't ready to go play and didn't feel physically he could do what they needed him to do. But three more weeks of working out and now he's feeling that he's able to throw the football and he's going to give it a try.''
Favre has been working out regularly with Oak Grove High school players in Hattiesburg, according to WDAM-TV, and has not missed a practice even after telling the Vikings he would remain retired.
The Vikings finished training camp last week and beat Indianapolis 13-3 in their preseason opener Friday. They got a strong performance from quarterback Sage Rosenfels, who has been competing with Tarvaris Jackson for the starting job since Favre jilted the team July 28.
The Vikings are expected to challenge for the NFC North title this season, with whomever is behind center.
Rosenfels and Jackson have had some rough moments during practice. Jackson hurt his knee, missed a few workouts and then returned, but he was out of sync last week against the Colts.
Rosenfels did well, but preseason games are tough to evaluate and Indianapolis held out all four starting defensive backs.
On Monday, Jackson, responding to the day's scuttlebutt that Favre was predicted to play in Minnesota this season, said he was not paying attention to any of the talk.
"I pretty much have said [Favre] probably will follow me even when I retire. I'll probably have to hear about it. I'm just trying to take care of my business, and I can't worry about that stuff," Jackson said, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "If I let that stuff get to me, ain't no telling where I'd be right now. I just let it roll off my shoulder and just keep going. Just keep trying to get better."
Packers coach Mike McCarthy said after practice Tuesday he was not surprised by Favre's return.
"I don't think anybody should be surprised by it," McCarthy told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Aaron Rodgers, who inherited the starting quarterback position after Favre retired -- then unretired -- said, "I don't have a reaction," the Journal Sentinel reported. "It doesn't pertain to me. It has absolutely nothing to do with me. It doesn't change anything. It has nothing to do with the Green Bay Packers."
Packers linebacker Nick Barnett told the newspaper: "Ater all those years of not being able to hit him, do I want to hit him? Of course I want to hit him. He's an awesome guy. I wish him the best."
Read more…
AllHipHop Reports
In less than one month, fans of M.O.P. will receive the group’s first official Hip-Hop album in nearly ten years.
In a recent interview, co-founder Billy Danze exclusively revealed the release date for the group’s forthcoming E1 Records debut.
Originally scheduled for a June 2009 release, The Foundation is now set to hit stores on September 15.
The album features production by Alchemist, DJ Premier, Statik Selektah and Jake One, as well as guest appearances by Heltah Skeltah, Jadakiss, Beanie Sigel, Styles P, Redman, and Busta Rhymes, who graced the project’s lead single “Blow the Horns.”
“If you understand what’s going on, if you understand real dope music,” Danze told AllHipHop.com. “If you want some dope s**t to help get you out this dope music recession – ‘cause we getting all this wack s**t now, pick up that album September 15.”
Since parting ways with G-Unit Records in 2008, both Billy Danze and longtime rhyme partner Lil’ Fame have kept busy. Aside for steady performances as a duo, including this summer’s Rock The Bells Tour, which concluded in San Francisco on August 9, they’ve each gone on to establish themselves individually.
Though he plans on releasing a solo project, Fame has been honing his skills as a producer, amassing a resume that includes Wu-Tang Chamber Music, released in June.
Danze, who has released several solo tracks online, is much closer to the release of his own solo project, he says.
“It’s been working, I been getting a lot of good feedback,” he explains. “I got Alchemist on the production, Lil Fame, my man Tommy T. DJ Premier’s gonna slide me some s**t in a minute. It ain’t all the way done yet, I’m about halfway done, working on all the features."
While the combined five years on the rosters of Roc-A-Fella Records and G-Unit did not yield an official M.O.P. studio release, the fans received new music and remixes through several compilation projects, including 2004’s Mash Out Posse, a collaborative effort with rock band Shiner Massive.
Despite a certain amount of frustration, both Billy Danze and Lil’ Fame maintain they hold no ill feelings towards 50 Cent, Jay-Z or Dame Dash.
“50 was a fan like every other label that we signed to after the first deal we had with Select [Records],” Danze stated in a recent AllHipHop.com interview. “Every other situation after that, was because the people [signing the deal] was fans. As far as 50 goes, they never tried to change us. Dame Dash, same thing.”
Read more…
ESPN Reports
Carmelo Anthony is suing his former business manager, alleging he misappropriated more than $2 million of the Denver Nuggets star's assets.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Sacramento, Calif., on Monday, alleges that Anthony's former business manager, Larry W. Harmon, and employees of Larry Harmon & Associates P.A., breached their fiduciary duties by transferring $1.75 million of Anthony's money without his knowledge or consent to a company formed by Harmon, most of it in 2008.
Another $265,500 was discovered to have been invested in third parties without Anthony's knowledge or consent between 2005 and 2008, according to the lawsuit, which seeks recovery of the approximately $2 million, plus punitive damages.
"I intend to aggressively represent Carmelo Anthony," his Beverly Hills-based attorney, Robert W. Hirsh, told The Associated Press. "The evidence which I have reviewed strongly suggests that Carmelo Anthony's former business manager plundered his assets. It is reprehensible that professional athletes are so often victimized."
Reached at his office in Roseville, Calif., Harmon said he was unaware of the lawsuit.
He declined to comment on the allegations in the lawsuit or on his dealings with Anthony. "I guess I'll just wait and see what he alleges," Harmon said.
The discrepancies were discovered after Anthony ended his business relationship with Harmon and hired a new manager to manage his assets earlier this year, according to the lawsuit. That new financial management firm, Gelfand, Rennert & Feldman, discovered the financial discrepancies.
The lawsuit alleges that significant documents were missing when Harmon transferred Anthony's records to his new business manager.
"Further, portions of the books and records are miscoded in a deliberate attempt to hide moneys converted by defendants," according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit also contends that Harmon and the other defendants failed to produce any documents requested by Anthony's lawyer to explain the transfers of Anthony's money that are in question.
Anthony was the third selection in the 2003 NBA draft after leading Syracuse to the national title as a freshman. Last year, he led the Nuggets to their best season in 24 years after helping the U.S. team win the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics.
Anthony is entering the fourth year of a five-year, $80 million contract extension he signed in 2006.
Read more…
HipHopWired Reports
It seems that when established artists look to bring their team on and help create a career for them, that is never actually the case. Shady Records has began to chip away as it has lost members such as Obie Trice, Stat Quo and most recently Bobby Creekwater.
Another camp that has gathered a strong force behind it is CTE (Corporate Thugz Entertainment) which is run by rapper Young Jeezy. This camp, however, has been suffering the same fate as camps such as G-Unit with M.O.P. where artists are suppose to blow, but they never come with a project.
Recently, HipHopWired.com conducted an interview with Roccett who is a California-bred rapper that was under Jeezy's label. While DJ Drama made the statement that he was no longer with CTE, the rapper took some time out to actually clear up the speculation surrounding his business relationship with Jeezy.
“In life man, I feel like there's times where you have to make decisions that's better for you and your career. To be honest with you, Jeezy didn't really put out anybody. That's my boy and we cool, but there's no artists the he put out or was successful. I don't think that he put in a hard enough effort to put out an artist that would be successful.”
Although the business side may not have gone the way that he once thought, Roccett assured the fact that he understands that's just the way some things happen.
“I'm not knocking him because he's a rapper too, so at the end of the day he has to worry about his career so how can he really worry about yours unless he's really ready to take that role.”
Roccett states that no matter what the situation may be, he is still friends with Young Jeezy and is not sour about what transpired and only takes it as an extra push to make sure that he can make a name for himself even if he has to do it on a solo tip.
“I just feel like I have a good solid team behind me and I'm not trying to be in the music game to be somebody's sidekick. I want to be my own man and have my own music.”
Roccett released his mixtape Another Day Another Dollar with DJ Scream and is currently in the works of prepping his next mixtape tentatively titled Chronic 2009 or The Free Agent while shopping a new deal. For more info on the West Coast lyrical killer, log on to iamroccett.com and stay tuned for his upcoming feature with Hip-Hop Wired.
Check out his new video “I'm Getting Money/Bang Dat” below.
Read more…
NY Daily News Reports
Hey, Omarosa - you're inspired?
The reality show bad girl, best known for her appearances with Donald Trump on "The Apprentice," began studies this week to become a minister.
The swap of reality for spirituality began Monday at the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. Omarosa is studying for a doctorate of ministry.
When Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth arrived at the seminary, President Wendy Deichmann greeted her with a gift: A mustard seed.
The present referred to the biblical Parable of the Mustard Seed, where Jesus Christ compares the kingdom of heaven to a tiny seed that blossoms into something much bigger.
"Very few people have faith in my transformation, so this is a wonderful gift," Omarosa told her.
The doubters may have caught her villainous act on "The Apprentice" or another reality show, "The Surreal Life." And even Omarosa herself was a little nervous about the move.
"First day of school jitters," she wrote on her Twitter page.
Omarosa is studying the Old and New Testaments, along with the history of Christianity. Her education also requires field work among the sick and dying at local hospitals.
Read more…
HipHopWired Reports
Houston rapper Lil Flip has resurfaced from the underground and has already placed his foot on the gas as he is already prepared for his next release. Entitled, Respect Me, the upcoming project is set to hit stores on September 29.
His upcoming work is set to be produced by J Silva and will feature the likes of Keyshia Cole, E-40, Daz Dillinger and more. Oh, and of course it wouldn't make sense for any artist to release an album without the feature king, so of course Lil Wayne will also be leaving his mark on Flip's album. The first single is titled, “Da #1 Fly Boy.”
The album will also feature tracks such as “Respect Me” which brings fans into the life of the rapper as it delivers a scope of his past and present conducts and “Shawty Wanna Thugg” which should re-create the R&B magic that he had from his 2004 album, U Gotta Feel Me, on the track “Sunshine.”
For those that have been too busy snapping their fingers and making out with their cell phones in Hip-Hop, Lil Flip gained the peak of his notoriety through his beef with rapper T.I. and cuts like “Game Over” and “The Way We Ball.”
“The thing about this album is that it's so reflective of me, my music, life and lifestyle," says the 28-year-old Lil Flip. "Trust me; everything I rap about is based on truth. So when I rhyme dirty style about the Bentleys, the clubs, the platinum, the girls, my life's lessons or whatever, it's not bragging, it's just fact."
Flip will be distributing the record of course through E1 Entertainment. The independent label has clearly dug its foot into the dirt and maintained its stance as artists have been flocking there in order to get their musical projects out. What once was deemed to be the graveyard label has clearly made a resurrection and has now developed itself into the premier place to be if an artist wants to be an artist and release their own music without the pressures of major labels and record executives.
Not taking anything away from Flip and his mark as a rapper, but some may have been under the impression that when he made the song “Game Over,” it might have actually been like a swan song, ironically. Let' s see if he can still bring the heat.
Read more…
HipHopWired Reports
The United States Supreme Court has granted Troy Davis' request to postpone his execution in yet another attempt to clear his name and prove his innocence.
Davis is an inmate that was sentenced to death after the 1989 murder of a Savannah, GA police officer. Since his incarceration, Davis has gained international support behind his claims of innocence.
Justice John Paul Stevens ordered a federal judge to "receive testimony and make findings of fact as to whether evidence that could not have been obtained at trial clearly establishes petitioner's innocence."
Among the supporters of the motion were Justices Ruth Bader and Stephen Breyer. The newest member of the high court Sonia Sotomayor, however, did not participate in the petition. "Brother" Clarence Thomas did however and was one of two judges that dissented their reasons for not taking another look at the case and going ahead and killing Davis.
In the last year or so, Davis' case has been quite turbulent, even being granted a stay of execution just two hours before he was to be put to death.
Despite the execution delay, Davis will continue to sit on death row, reports CNN.
Davis insists that he is innocent of the charges brought upon him in the murder of Officer Mark MacPhail. Witnesses claimed they saw Davis, then 19, and two other men harassing a homeless man in a Burger King parking lot when officer MacPhail arrived to the help the man. Witnesses identified Davis as the shooter claiming he shot MacPhail twice and fled on foot.
Since the 1991 conviction, however, seven of the nine witnesses have recanted their testimonies. In addition to the witnesses reneging, no physical evidence was ever presented to the trial jury or court.
In recent years and months, world leaders and celebrities, including former president Jimmy Carter and Harry Belafonte have extended their support and have asked that Davis be granted a new trial.
Hip-Hop artist Killer Mike has been vocal about the execution and has appeared at rallies for Davis. Killer Mike, whose father was a police officer stated,
“I don't just have a fuck the police mentality. It really is a question with me if true justice isn't being served. If it's really a question that a man could be innocent or not guilty of killing that police officer, I can't stand there silent and see Black blood just bleed. I can't allow myself to do that and that's coming from the son of a police officer. So I sympathize with a family that lost a father, a brother and husband and with a police department that lost a officer. I sympathize but if there's even a question that this man could be innocent, I don't see how the State of Georgia or The Supreme Court of these United States can allow more Black blood to run. I can't support that in no way, not state sponsored murder.”
Boyce Watkins also commented on the case and how it's not fair to not consider all the evidence but still try to condemn a man to die.
“Well it certainly blows a hole in the idea of American justice if this man does not get some type of objective review of that situation. It's completely non physical to even have all this evidence out here and to ignore it. Why do you stay with a decision when you have strong reason to believe that the decision is fraud? At the very least, they should go back and do the investigation to ensure that you're executing the right man so I do think that if he is executed and nobody else does a thorough review of what happened, then justice was not served. And justice not being served does not mean that he's innocent, justice not being served means that he did not have a fair hearing by the American public by the judicial system and again it's also reflective of a broader problem in our system and we all know the statistics for Black men in terms of incarceration and execution.
We know that the prison system is modern day slavery. So as Black people I think we should all be offended by Troy Davis's execution and also we must remember that there are many, many cases of individuals who are not as well known as Troy Davis who are also not having justice served. So the whole justice system really needs an overhaul and I don't know how that's going to get done but that needs to happen.”
Watch below as Killer Mike goes into detail about the Troy Davis case:
Read more…
Posted by Billy Baymaac on August 17, 2009 at 10:14pm
Philadelphia's Beanie Sigel was arrested on a marijuana possession charge early Sunday morning while on his way to a performance at a local tavern, state police said today.Sigel, real name Dwight Grant, 35 was found in possession of under 50 grams of the drug during a 12:44 a.m. traffic stop.The driver, Karl S. Dargan, 24, of Philadelphia, and another passenger, Justin S. Gaines, 25, also were charged with marijuana possession of under 50 grams, Castellanos said.source(Look out for his new album "Broad Street Bully" coming this Septebmer/October)
Read more…
HipHopWired Reports
While C-Murder begins his life sentence in a New Orleans prison, one man is coming forward to promote a more positive image of the convicted killer. Cyrus A. Webb, president of the Shadow Play Entertainment/Conversations Book Club and host of Conversations LIVE! Radio plans to release exclusive interviews and memoirs from his friend, Corey Miller.
He released a statement saying:
“Cee has managed to do something that few in Hip Hop have accomplished. He made it cool to read and to believe that no matter what you have done in your life, it's never too late for you to make a difference."
The pair first began corresponding in 2006 via his Myspace, after Miller released his book, “Death Around The Corner.” The pair hit it off and Webb ended up joining him on his book tour.
“I was so impressed by how he shared parts of his life and the lessons he had learned in the book while also writing a story that people of all walks of life could appreciate,” said Webb.
With the help from the president of the book club, Miller went on to sell hundreds of copies of his book and was even named the Most Fascinating Author of 2008 by Webb's Conversations Book Club. Now that he finds his friend and colleague away for life, President Webb is working to make sure that Corey Miller's voice will still be heard through exclusive interviews and discussions.
“Because of a gag order, Cee wasn't able to speak much to the public, but in the videos and radio interviews we are sharing, you get to hear him talk about himself, his work and his convictions. One of the things I have learned from Cee is that he has no problem taking responsibility for what he has done wrong in his life. He has never made excuses, and tries to use his skills as an artist and author to show a better way than what he chose at times. If he says he is not guilty of something he is accused of, I have no reason to doubt him. I just want people to know the man that I got to know through these events and discussions”
Read more…
NY Daily News Reports
The Notorious B.I.G. didn't live to see his baby girl turn 16, but T'yanna Wallace made sure he was there for her Sweet Sixteen party last night.
Dolled up in a pink dress and Nikes to match, the hip-hop princess wore a button over her heart emblazoned with her slain father's face.
"I needed to have him here with me," she said, standing outside of Taj, an upscale lounge in the Flatiron District.
"I feel like I'm all grown up now," the teenager added.
T'yanna showed off her custom-made dress by Bronx designer Walter Steele.
Lollipops and Jolly Ranchers were scattered across the dress, in keeping with the party's theme of candy.
"It was a combination of a magical candy land meets rock star," Steele explained.
The hit "Candy Girl" by New Edition played as she skipped down a red carpet outside the club and greeted friends.
"You guys look so cute," she said.
T'yanna's father, whose real name was Christopher Wallace, was shot dead in a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles in 1997. He was 24.
T'yanna was only 3 years old when her famous dad was killed.
Kid Cudi, her favorite rapper, was scheduled to perform at her birthday party.
"I'm excited," she said, hoping to hear the up-and-coming rapper's hits, "Day 'n' Nite" and "Make Her Say."
"I dressed up for him," she said, smiling from ear to ear. "I got this little pretty dress just for him."
Read more…
}