Compound Ft. Dave East - NINJA (Official Music Video) (Dir. GinoRocks)
Check out the official visuals from Compound for "NINJA" featuring Dave East, off of his forthcoming self-titled album. Which will be released on April 10th.
BGM Blakk x Curtis Coke - BATTERING RAM (Prod. Midnite) (Official Music Video) (Dir. Phresh Vision)
If you haven't gotten up to speed with the heavy volume of high quality music BGM Blakk has been releasing, it's about time you familiarize yourself with this fast rising Upstate, New York artist.
BGM's new single "BATTERING RAM" and it's accompanying music video finds him collaborating with fellow Rochester native Curtis Coke.
Richpockets leans into real-life perspective, delivering bars that reflect ambition, pressure, and the hunger to be understood beyond surface-level success. His cadence rides the beat with confidence, balancing raw emotion and calculated delivery, making the record both relatable and aspirational. The production provides a cinematic feel, allowing his voice and story to take center stage while still knocking with modern appeal.
The single stands as another statement from Richpockets’ growing catalog, reinforcing his position as an artist building momentum through consistency, vision, and independent hustle
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (Local10) — Rapper Lil Tjay had a lot to say as he exited the Broward Main Jail on Tuesday, 1 day after a disorderly conduct arrest outside the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. It’s the same casino in which fellow rapper Offset was shot the same night.
The 24-year-old Lil Tjay, whose real name is Tione Jayden Merritt, has not been charged in the shooting & denies any involvement.
Lil Tjay denied any fight between him & the 34-year-old Offset, whose real name is Kiari Kendrell Cephus.
“I don’t do no damn fightin‘,” Lil Tjay told media outlets as he walked out of the Fort Lauderdale jail.
He gave an expletive-laden account of what he said happened.
“‘That n---- shot me.’ ‘That n---- shot me.’ ‘That n---- is a rat.’ ‘Cap n----,’” Lil Tjay said. “Weirdos. Y’all gettin’ a good a-- interview.”
According to an arrest report by Seminole tribal police, Lil Tjay, of the Bronx, New York, “directed members of his party to start a fight” with Offset & his group.
The report states that Lil Tjay exited a vehicle, pointed at Offset & his group began fighting with Offset. Lil Tjay, police said, “had his phone out, recording members of his group” attacking Offset.
At some point, police said “1 of the males associated with (Lil Tjay) pulled a firearm & discharged it, wounding 1 of the individuals.”
2 people were taken into custody.
A representative for Offset confirmed he is in stable condition & is being closely monitored at a hospital.
“Did he put his hands on you?” Local 10 News reporter Bridgette Matter asked Lil Tjay, referring to Offset.
“Hell naw,“ Lil Tjay replied. ”How many times I gotta tell you that ain’t nobody touch me?”
NBC News - Rapper Lil Tjay was arrested on Monday night in connection with rapper Offset's shooting in Florida.
The Seminole Police Department said Lil Tjay, whose real name is Tione Jayden Merritt, was arrested and "charged in connection with the incident that took place Monday night at a valet area outside of Seminole Hard Rock" in Hollywood, Florida.
Offset, whose real name is Kiari Kendrell Cephus, was shot in the valet area outside the hotel and casino around 7 p.m. that evening. The rapper, who shares 3 children with superstar Cardi B, was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
Lil Tjay was booked into the Broward County Jail on a disorderly conduct charge, according to online arrest records. The 24-year-old is being held on a $500 bond as of Tuesday morning.
A lawyer for Lil Tjay, Dawn M. Florio, denied that her client was involved in Offset’s shooting, calling the accusation "rumors."
"Lil Tjay has not been shot, nor has Lil Tjay been charged with any shooting. Any reporting to the contrary is false," she wrote in a Monday statement on Instagram. "We encourage people to consult trusted news sources & to verify the accuracy of any reporting, before reflexively sharing or repeating baseless rumors."
Gary Bitney, a spokesperson for the Seminole Police Department, said the incident began as a fight & that a second person detained at the scene has not been charged.
TMZ was first to report Tjay's arrest & alleged connection with the shooting.
Lil Tjay is best known for his rap hits "F.N." & “Calling My Phone."
Offset rose to fame as a member of Migos. Another member of the hit group, Takeoff, was killed by gunshot wounds to the head in 2022.
Bitney added that an "investigation to identify 1 or more additional persons involved in the incident is ongoing."
TMZ - Scary update involving Offset ... the former Migos rapper was shot near a popular casino in Florida.
A rep for the rapper confirms to TMZ ... Offset was shot Monday near the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, FL.
Per the spokesperson, Offset is "fine" and "is currently at the hospital receiving medical care."
The rep added, "He is stable and being closely monitored.”
A rep for the Seminole County Police tells TMZ, "We are aware of an incident that occurred at a valet area after 7 p.m. Monday outside of Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood that resulted in non-life threatening injuries to an individual who was transported to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood."
The rep added, "Seminole Police were on site immediately and the situation was contained quickly. Two individuals have been detained by police. The investigation is ongoing. The site is secure and there is no threat to the public. Operations continue as normal."
Offset's Migos' bandmate Takeoff was fatally shot in November 2022.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - A federal judge determined there is probable cause to move forward in the case involving Memphis rapper Pooh Shiesty and the kidnapping of Gucci Mane.
Memphis rapper Big30, who’s real name is Rodney Wright Jr., and Pooh Shiesty’s father Lontrell Williams Sr., were among five defendants in court in Memphis on Friday
.
Williams Sr. was given a $250,000 bond.
Wright and Williams appeared in court alongside other defendants Damarian Gipson, Demarcus Glover, Kordae Johnson and Darrion McDaniel.
Shiesty, also known as Lontrell Williams Jr., was arrested in Dallas and remains in custody there.
The group is accused of robbing and kidnapping multiple victims at a music studio in Dallas.
According to the DOJ, on Jan. 10 Shiesty and three other music professionals traveled from Memphis to Dallas for a meeting with two music professionals to discuss a contract with one of the victims.
Investigators allege that while the men were inside the studio, Shiesty and eight co-conspirators held them at gunpoint. The DOJ says Shiesty forced one victim to sign a release form from the music label while being threatened with a gun.
Authorities allege the other suspects stole cash and high-value items, including a Rolex and jewelry.
Pooh Shiesty was released from federal prison six months ago after pleading guilty to firearm and drug charges.
Joey Majors (BSF) Ft. GREA8GAWD, Coleone, Kaine Sosa (Prod. Thvnos) - CRUSHED GRAPES (Official Music Video)
VIP Life Music Group CEO and Black Soprano Family (BSF) artist, Joey Majors, brings GREA8GAWD along with VIP Life artists Coleone and Kaine Sosa for his new single "CRUSHED GRAPES"
This is off the forthcoming EP titled "THE RED WOLF" coming soon
Rappers Pooh Shiesty and Big30, along with others have been arrested in Dallas by the FBI. They are accused of orchestrating an armed kidnapping and robbery of fellow rapper Gucci Mane.
Gucci, the owner of The New 1017 Records, was also allegedly forced at gunoint to sign a release of Shiesty from his recording contract with the label.
Phenomeinal - GROWTH (Official Music Video) (Dir. Tyler Frumusa)
Phenomeinal creates an atmosphere by displaying the roller coaster ride one can have during their personal journey in "GROWTH."
In a euphoric way Phenomeinal describes the ridicule, betrayal, and realization a person experience in their transitional stage of becoming greater than before.
Self-improvement can be a lonely journey and can take a toll on someone's mental well-being.
It take great self-awareness to understand dedication is pivotal for "Growth" to happen internally and externally.
Strong emotional maturity is coming to the conclusion that some relationships, friendships, and family ties must be sacrifice.
Becoming aware of the parasitic natural some relationships possess and the hindrance it could have on a person's self worth.
Phenomeinal is definitely an artist with an incredible economy of words, that he use display the topic at hand. Powerful vocal inflections, smooth delivery, majestic presence and incredible literary techniques it's all on display with this song.
The instrumental have a great blend of boom bap drums, contemporary/conscious hip hop infuse with new age style progressions. The combination of the instrumental and lyrics give the song an overall sense of growth, tranquility, relaxation, peace and self-reflection.
Check out the revised version of the official music video for "CHOIR IN THE CHURCH" from Symph of the Rochester, New York collective Da Cloth featuring GREA8GAWD.
This version is very powerful as it showcases footage not included in the original video, highlighting GREA8GAWD's verse dedicated to his son Tahj Smith, who is currently incarcerated.
CBS News - The Azusa Police Department has released bodycam footage from the officers who arrested Eric Valencia nearly a week before he was found dead in the back of a patrol car.
The footage is from the night of March 20, when officers pulled him over with suspicions that he was intoxicated with children in the backseat of his car. On the video, an officer asks Valencia if he'd been drinking, to which he replies that he had 1 beer at 10 a.m. that day.
The officers then had the 37-year-old perform various sobriety field tests. A breathalyzer test's preliminary results showed his blood alcohol content was about twice the legal limit.
He was arrested shortly after on suspicion of DUI & child endangerment.
Valencia was released from jail 3 days later, on Monday. Shortly after, he was shown on security footage climbing into the back of an out-of-service patrol car that was left unlocked. He showed no signs of distress at the time, police said.
The day after his release, his family reported him missing – an action they claim that APD didn't handle as they should.
"They didn't take us seriously when we were telling them," sister-in-law Julia McCormick said during a news conference on Monday. "Come to find out that he was here, in a car, the whole time."
It's not clear why Valencia entered the car in the first place, but on Thursday morning, a department employee preparing to wash the car found his body inside.
The cause of death is yet to be determined. Investigators didn't find obvious signs of trauma on his body.
Police Chief Rocky Wenrick said that Valencia had a "working" cell phone in his possession inside the vehicle & he never made an attempt to call the department. The department hired an outside firm to investigate the situation.
Wenrick didn't answer whether Valencia was trapped inside the vehicle.
To Valencia's family, the more information that comes out simply spurs more questions.
"He was a good person & he didn't deserve to go like this," McCormick said. "We want answers & justice for him."
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