October 14, 2011

Report: Rick Ross Suffers Seizure During Flight [UPDATED]


TMZ reports that rapper Rick Ross fell unconscious today immediately after taking off on a flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Memphis. It is assumed that Ross suffered a seizure on board the plane, which was forced to make an emergency landing. He’s currently on his way to a local hospital.

A Twitter update at 1:45pm ET from rapper Wale reports that Ross is doing just fine after the incident. Wale writes “I just talked to Ross…he’s 100 pct ok…@tmz #dontpanic #dontpanic #mmg !!!! #gfid dec 13th!.” DJ Sam Sneak also tweeted “I’m wit @rickyrozay now he good…”

We’ll be sure to update you with the latest news about Ross’ condition as it becomes available. In the meantime, we’re wishing him a safe recovery.

UPDATE: Rick Ross has suffered another seizure, TMZ reports. While en route to his performance in Memphis, the rapper’s private jet was forced to make another emergency landing when he suffered his second seizure of the day while on board. His flight was diverted to Birmingham, AL where he’s currently in a hospital in stable condition.
[Photo: Getty Images]

Tags: , Rick Ross (Hip-Hop)

September 20, 2011

Last Lap: Tuesday’s Odds And Ends In Music News

Rick Ross: Gentleman Rap Boss
Devin Friedman admits that he’s “basically eating out of [Rick Ross's] hand” for the majority of his time with the rapper, but manages some good insights (e.g. “Rick Ross is always both inside and outside a joke he’s making about hip-hop music”) and many more entertaining observations about the kindly boss, whom he describes as “the fat black McConaughey,” in his profile for October’s GQ. [GQ]

Complex On Kreayshawn In Brief
Ernest Baker‘s profile of Kreayshawn for Complex is less intriguing; luckily for us (and you), Katherine St. Asaph sums it up at Popdust. Key facts: she wants to slap The Game in the face, and she bought that Game Boy Color she always wanted after she got signed. [Popdust]
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Tags: , , Rick Ross (Hip-Hop), Kreayshawn, Amy Winehouse, Zooey Deschanel

September 18, 2011

VH1′s 40 Most Shocking Hip Hop Moments [COMPLETE LIST]

VH1 debuted the latest countdown in our long-running The Greatest series, the 40 Most Shocking Hip Hop Moments, this evening. If you missed it, don’t worry; it will rerun tomorrow night, Monday, September 19, at midnight. If you’re looking for the complete list, look no further. Here are the 40 Most Shocking Hip Hop Moments … so far!

40) Nicki Minaj gets butt slapped by Regis Philbin
39) Wyclef runs for president of Haiti
38) 50 Cent shockingly thin Twitter pics
37) Lil Wayne goes to prison and gets grillz removed
36) Redman’s shocking Cribs episode [WATCH]
35) Cam’ron’s anti-snitching 60 Minutes interview
34) Dr. Dre’s shocking transformation at VMAs
33) Sir Mix-A-Lot’s raunchy “Put ‘Em on the Glass” video
32) Lil Mama crashes stage during Jay-Z and Alicia Keys VMA performance
31) Suge Knight knocked out

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Tags: , , , The Greatest, Geto Boys, Sir Mix-A-Lot, Warren G, Three 6 Mafia, ODB, P. Diddy, Gucci Mane, Nicki Minaj, Rick Ross (Hip-Hop), Tupac, 2 Live Crew, Lil Mama, DMX, Lil Wayne, Flavor Flav, Wyclef Jean, Snoop Dogg, Redman, Notorious B.I.G., Nas, Lauryn Hill, Kanye West, Foxy Brown, Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Common, Cam'ron, 50 Cent

September 13, 2011

Exclusive Interview: Ice-T Puts Planet Rock Target “Fake” Rick Ross On Blast, Nicknames Him “Identity Crisis”

“Don’t start that article with none of that Ice-T disses Rick Ross bullsh*t,” Ice-T tells me, mere moments after dissing Rick Ross.

The scene was the 11th floor of the Paley Center for Media, roughly an hour or so before last night’s world premiere screening of VH1′s latest Rock Doc, Planet Rock: The Story of Hip Hop and the Crack Generation. The green room was filled with some of the larger-than-life personalities that make this powerful movie what it is: Notorious crack kingpin turned socially conscious rapper Azie Faison (pictured above), cultural critic and highly regarded journalist Nelson George, and the O.G. himself, Ice-T (I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Ice-T’s bombshell wife, Coco, was typing away on her Blackberry while sitting on a couch on the other side of the room). Because Ice was very forthcoming with his thoughts, I’m going to honor his request and put his scathing words for the likes of Rick Ross, Lil Wayne and Kanye West on hold for a bit (but don’t worry, we’ll get to ‘em quick).

Planet Rock is the first documentary film to focus on the undeniable effect that the crack cocaine “epidemic” of the 1980s had on the world of hip-hop, and vice versa. After watching the doc and its strikingly honest interviews with former gangbangers turned music superstars like Snoop Dogg, B-Real of Cypress Hill, and RZA and Raekwon of the Wu-Tang Clan, you really get a vivid picture of not only how these worlds were intertwined from the outset, but also the incredible fallout that resulted when crack was introduced into these neighborhoods (which, some allege, was the direct result of C.I.A. intervention). Even Ice-T, who was out of the game when his single “6 In The Mornin” hit big in 1986, was running with some of the crack game’s biggest players.

“Freeway Rick is my friend, he came to my wedding,” Ice-T tells me when I ask him if he ever crossed paths with Freeway Ricky Ross, who has a starring role in the documentary and was the crack game equivalent of Scarface‘s Tony Montana in mid-eighties era Los Angeles. “I knew all those cats, I grew up with them. People would ask me if Freeway Rick was a drug dealer, and I would tell them that I never saw him deal drugs. How can you say that’s what someone is if you never see it personally?”

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Tags: , , , , , Rock Docs, Rick Ross (Hip-Hop), Ice-T

September 12, 2011

Rick Ross vs. Kreayshawn: World’s Most Lopsided Rap Beef Continues In The Pages Of XXL

The altercation backstage at the 2011 Video Music Awards between Rick Ross and Kreayshawn‘s manager Stretch now looks to have been the fulfillment of a promise made by Ross to XXL contributor Ben Detrick for the cover story of XXL‘s October 2011 issue, due out next week. KarenCivil provides an excerpt from the interview:

He even threatens Kreayshawn, the fledgling Bay Area rapper who called Ross “fake” in a recent freestyle. “I can’t wait to slap the s—t out of whoever carries her bags,” he sneers. “And I hope it’s her n—a. Dirty b—h. You better know the f—k you talking about. I’ll pay 50K to mess up your whole week.”

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Tags: , Kreayshawn, Monica, Rick Ross (Hip-Hop)

June 27, 2011

Tuned In: Alicia Keys Revisits Songs In A Minor With Help From Bruno Mars (And A Rick Ross Sidestep)

The 2011 BET Awards remembered the past while honoring the present last night in Los Angeles, with a full fifteen musical performances—mostly multiple-song medleys—that spanned decades and genres. We highly recommend you check out all of the performances, especially Mary J. Blige‘s mega-medley of “Mary Jane,” “Real Love,” “You Bring Me Joy,” “Rapture” (with Anita Baker) and “It Ain’t Over Till It’s Over (with DJ Khaled and Jadakiss), and the Patti LaBelle tribute featuring Cee Lo (dressed as LaBelle!), Marsha Ambrosius, and Shirley Caesar.

The highlight of the night, though, was Alicia Keys‘s own four-song medley. She stood on her piano as she opened with new-old song “Typewriter,” a Songs in A Minor outtake that will be included on tomorrow’s 10th Anniversary reissue of the album. She took to the keys for single “A Woman’s Worth,” from the same album, for which she was joined by Bruno Mars on guitar and vocals. This wasn’t merely a throwback performance, though. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that—see Alexander O’Neal & Cherrelle‘s “Saturday Love”, which sounded as good as ever.) Rick Ross took the stage for a triumphant rendition of “Maybach Music 2,” with Keys providing T-Pain’s hook and Bruno Mars providing the guitar riff.

After she shouted out Rozay and Bruno Mars, Keys closed out her medley alone, with “Fallin’,” which retains its power and charm millions of radio plays and a decade later. We’re still processing the fact that these songs (except 2009′s “Maybach Music 2″) are all ten years old, and they sounded so good and fresh last night that we’re even more confused.

Tags: , , , , , Bruno Mars, Rick Ross (Hip-Hop), Alicia Keys