MTVNEWS Reports
Last week, one of the Big Apple's most legendary MCs, Rakim, performed a gaggle of material from his new LP, The Seventh Seal, as well as his classics. Backstage, Ra sat down and reflected on our upcoming Hottest MCs in the Game list. (The 2009 Hottest MCs in the Game list has been rescheduled for October — so you, the fans, can have a seat at the table! The readers' poll now closes September 21. Head here for more info and voting information.) Rakim was voted on our Greatest MCs of All-Time list a few years back, and when looking at who's hot right now, the first name he says is another G.O.A.T.: Jay-Z.
"You gotta give it up to Jay. He's holding New York right now," Rakim said. "You have brothers like Fabolous that's holding New York right now. Rap is spread out right now. It's like the NFL last year. A lot of the teams we thought was going to the Super Bowl last year didn't make it. You have young teams that people sleeping on in the playoffs. It's the same thing in rap. New brothers is sprouting out. It's crazy. From Drake to you name it. I'm a fan of hip-hop as well. I like everybody who keeps the game on their toes and keep it pushing."
Rakim said he's a huge fan of 50 Cent's song "OK, Alright," and he co-signed another New York thumper: Jadakiss.
"Jada, he's the definition of the streets," the legendary MC said. "Jada, Styles P, the LOX, period. You throw on one of their joints ... I'm in the whip, I try to keep my cool in the whip. I don't like bouncing around, getting my crazy on, but it's certain joints you gotta wild out. Roll the window down, blast the joints, let it be heard. That's one of them groups that bang it out."
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ABC News Reports
Steve Harvey, the author, comedian, actor and host of "The Steve Harvey Morning Show," has joined "Good Morning America" as a contributor.
Harvey will bring "GMA" viewers a series of reports on topics ranging from relationships to parenting over the next few months. He will bring his own unique perspective, style and humor to morning television while interacting with viewers around the country via ABCNews.com, Skype and live guests in-studio. His first report is scheduled to air Wednesday, Aug. 19.
Harvey is an author, comedian, actor and radio host who has appeared in television and movies, including seven years starring on the WB's "The Steve Harvey Show."
Harvey has also appeared in numerous movies, including "Don't Trip …; "Johnson Family Vacation" and the animated film "Racing Stripes." Harvey's book "Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man: What Men Really Think About Love, Relationships, Intimacy, and Commitment" was an instant hit with women across the country and landed the #1 spot on the New York Times Bestseller List for an impressive 26 weeks.
Harvey's radio show, "The Steve Harvey Morning Show," is syndicated by Premiere Radio and heard in 60 markets around the country. Steve Harvey is also involved in helping young people and founded the Steve Harvey Foundation. Harvey is a native of Cleveland and currently resides in New York City.
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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.
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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."
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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.”
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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)
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