Author Archive

Law enforcement officials have found the body of missing Memphis basketball star Lorenzen Wright in a wooded area at Hacks Cross and Winchester in southeast Memphis.

A law enforcement source confirmed the body was that of Wright, 34, who has been missing since July 19, though the Memphis Police Department won’t officially comment. Police are referring to their ongoing investigation as a “death investigation.”

Curtis Wright, Lorenzen Wright’s uncle told The Associated Press that police called the player’s father, Herb Wright, a couple of hours ago.

According to sources, a 9-1-1 call was made from Wright’s cell phone on July 19. A Germantown dispatcher could hear the loud blasts of several gunshots. The cellphone call ended at that point.

The dispatcher called back, but no one answered.

The body was found by someone who called police today.

At the Collierville home of Wright’s ex-wife, Sherra Robinson Wright, white bed sheets covered the windows.

A woman who arrived just as the family heard the news, said, “I’m just here to see my sister.” She left about 10 minutes later, with two children, a girl and a boy wearing a Lorenzen Wright Grizzlies jersey.

About 4:45 p.m., eight or nine adults and children left the house in a caravan of cars, including two identical black Porsche SUVs and a green sedan.

A large crowd of onlookers had gathered by late afternoon along Hacks Cross. There were adults with small children, even their pets. Many did not personally know the former basketball star but milled around the scene anyway. Cars lined the street. Among those gathered were former University of Memphis basketball stars Penny Hardaway and Elliot Perry, as well as family members and friends.

Wright was thought to be carrying some amount of cash when he was last seen leaving his ex-wife’s Collierville home, fueling concerns he may be the victim of foul play, according to a Collierville police report released today.

He recently flew from Atlanta to Memphis to visit friends and his six children, friends said. He was scheduled to drive back to the Atlanta area July 19, with his six children and a friend. He was last seen at about 2 a.m. July 19, leaving his ex-wife’s Whisperwood Drive home. His former wife told police she doesn’t know who he left with or what type of car they were in, according to the missing person’s report.

Wright played 13 years in the NBA, including five with the Memphis Grizzlies, after playing two seasons at the University of Memphis.

Wright kept up an active Twitter feed that he often updated several times daily. It featured a picture of him playing in the old Grizzlies uniform, wearing No. 42 and guarding Shaquille O’Neal. It includes observations about his kids (playing Monopoly with them, teaching them to swim), including a picture from July 14, just days before his disappearance, featuring a smiling Wright and six kids wearing Japanese chef hats at a hibachi restaurant.

The feed went suddenly dormant on Sunday, July 19, with a timestamp of 12:22:41 p.m., with a response to someone with a handle of THEonlyMARY_P.

It is just one word: “why.” It is the last update from his feed, which had 125 followers and 375 tweets.

Wright’s standing comment for the page: “Entering a new part of my life with my eyes wide open!”

Former University of Memphis standout Chris Douglas-Roberts posted on his Twitter account: “RIP Memphis Tiger alum Lorenzen Wright.” Douglas-Roberts said he didn’t know what had happened to Wright or want to know.

“Lorenzen never backed down from any challenge given him, whether it was guarding Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal) or anyone else,” Grizzlies’ owner Michael Heisley said by phone from London this afternoon shortly after learning of Wright’s death. “He was a team player, a great locker room guy. There was never an instance that I talked to him when he wasn’t a positive, outstanding guy. “I am heartbroken today. I’m sure there’s a lot of people in Memphis who are very, very sad. He was a good man who had his share of tough times, and I’ve got to believe he’s in a better place.” Memphis Commercial Appeal

This story appeared on ESPN Los Angeles this morning and was quickly removed from the site. It is presented here in its entirety.

LeBron James leans against a waist-high stone wall with a 16-foot-tall Buddha hovering over him.

He’s at Tao, a bustling restaurant and nightclub inside the Venetian hotel in Las Vegas, and his arms are crossed as he listens to Lynn Meritt, senior director of Nike Basketball, and Charles Denson, president of Nike Brand.James is quiet, occasionally applying Chap Stick on his lips and nodding when he hears something he likes.

Five security guards are stationed around him, one at each corner of the table he’s about to sit at and another roving around with him, watching his every move. Anyone who takes two steps toward James is stopped and must have James’ approval to come closer.

The waiter bringing him his cup of green tea with a spoonful of honey and a dash of lemon juice makes the cut, as does the scantily clad brunette with a tattoo of a heart on her right shoulder.

She wants to take a picture with him. “I can’t right now,” says James. “Maybe later, upstairs, I’ll remember you’re the one with the tattoo.”

James will host a party later in the upstairs nightclub at Tao, but he is currently hosting a dinner for his friends and family in the downstairs restaurant. Wearing a gray striped shirt and gold crucifix around his neck, he bobs his head to music played by an amped-up saxophonist who weaves his way around the table like a one-man mariachi band.

I have somehow found myself at this exclusive table, seated beside Eddie Jackson, who is introduced to me as James’ father (though he actually began dating James’ mother, Gloria, after LeBron was born and the two are no longer together). Jackson, wearing a muscle shirt accentuating his large biceps, looks like a member of James’ four-man entourage, like one of his childhood friends.

James’ circle includes Randy Mims, seated to his right at the center of the table, Maverick Carter, seated at the head of the table, and Richard Paul, seated in front of James. The quartet makes up the initials behind LRMR Marketing, the management firm James founded almost four years ago with his buddies. Their offices in downtown Cleveland gained notoriety this month as the location teams flocked to for their meetings with James.

LeBron James partied at Tao last weekend, complete with a kings’ cake and an entourage to make heads of state jealous.

Seated to the right of James is Chris Paul, whose brother, C.J., is seated across from him. The New Orleans Hornets point guard has seen how James has positioned himself to win a championship by signing with the Miami Heat and joining forces with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh and has reportedly considered a similar move himself.

The truth is, in James’ dream world, the duo he would love to play with for the next decade would be Wade and Paul, his two closest friends in the NBA. Paul has been like a brother to James since the two were in Las Vegas four years ago for USA Basketball training camp, when as a rookie he carried James’ and Wade’s bags to and from the team bus.

James and Paul are fairly quiet at the center of the table as they take in the scene around them. As family style plates of miso-glazed Chilean sea bass and crispy lobster and shrimp dumplings are brought to the table, James effortlessly picks up the food with his chopsticks and occasionally raises his cup of green tea to passersby as they raise their martinis and mojitos in his direction before being helped along by security guards.

When trays of dessert plates are brought over, James gets up, preferring to start his party upstairs instead of indulging in the giant fortune cookies and chocolate cake. A security guard comes over and puts plastic wristbands on our wrists and escorts us through the back of the restaurant, up a flight of stairs in the bowels of the hotel and through a back entrance into the club. About a dozen security guards, moving their flash lights, direct us to a roped off section on the dance floor of Tao next to a couple of apparently nude women in a bathtub full of water and rose petals.

James, now wearing sunglasses in the dark club, immediately stands up on the couch and folds his arms high on his chest and nods his head. He smiles as he looks at the dozens of people crowded on the dance floor. Noticing him, they stop dancing and snap pictures as the DJ screams out, “LeBron James in the building!” and plays LMFAO’s “I’m in Miami.”

Carter, LeBron’s childhood friend and manager, begins dancing around James like Puff Daddy in a Notorious B.I.G video. A giant red crown-shaped cake is brought over to James while go-go dancers dressed in skimpy red and black outfits raise four lettered placards that spell out, “KING.” Carter grabs a bottle of Grey Goose and pours a quarter of it on the floor and raises it up before passing it off.

James’ infamous one-hour special, “The Decision,” was reportedly the brainchild of Carter, a 28-year-old who has never managed anyone outside of his friend James. This three-day party marathon in Vegas (which James is being paid six figures to host) is also Carter’s idea.

Bottle after bottle of “Ace of Spades” champagne is delivered to the table by a waiter flying down from above the dance floor like some overgrown Peter Pan on a wire. One time he’s dressed like a King, another time as Indiana Jones and another in a replica of James’ No. 6 Miami Heat jersey.

James, who can hardly see the flying figure through his tinted glasses, almost gets kicked in the head on the waiter’s last trip down. He looks at the girls around him and says, “I wish they’d have one of these girls with no panties do that instead of the guy.”

Toward the end of the night, Boston Celtics forward Glen Davis walks past James’ party and looks at the scene up and down several times like a painting in a museum, soaking in the images of the go-go dancers, the “King” sign and the costumed man delivering bottles of champagne.

Davis shakes his head and walks on.

James dances on the couch and sings along with the music blaring from speakers all around him.

The more you hang around James, the more you realize he’s still a child wrapped in a 6-foot-8, 250-pound frame. The night after the party at Tao, he and his crew walk through the casino at the Wynn and Encore and he pretends to dribble a basketball as he walks past ringing slot machines and tourists who do double-takes. In a Nike T-shirt, jeans and sneakers, James’ pantomime seems unconscious. He stops every few feet to shoot a jump shot, his right hand extended above his head on the follow through. He weaves through a pack of a dozen friends and pretends to connect on a layup as he walks past a gift shop. He passes overhead casino signs and jumps up and slaps them, pretending to dunk. Columns covered with advertisements for lounge acts become stationary defenders, chumps to fake out before connecting on imaginary mid-range jump shots.

James probably goes through a practice’s worth of shots as we walk from the XS nightclub at Encore (James left his poolside table when he saw the club was practically empty), through Wynn and over the bridge to the Palazzo.

Soon after arriving at Lavo, a restaurant and nightclub at the Palazzo, a scene straight out of “West Side Story” breaks out when James and Lamar Odom, seated at a nearby table, engage in an impromptu dance-off to California Swag District’s “Teach Me How To Dougie.”

Odom, smoking a cigar, can’t quite keep up. James celebrates by crossing himself and taking a shot of Patron. Moments later, a handful of girls dressed as cheerleaders walk toward his table with someone dressed in James’ Heat uniform. Someone throws talcum powder in the air as James does before every game, while his new unofficial song, “I’m in Miami,” plays.

Odom casts a glance James’ way before looking in the opposite direction and raising his glass at a couple on the dance floor who point to their ring fingers and smile.

Back at his table, James and his crew sing every word to Rick Ross’ “Free Mason.” LeBron raps every line to former teammate Damon Jones (who played with him in Cleveland). Jones, puffing on a cigar, nods.

James rips out the lines:

“If I ever die, never let it be said I didn’t win/ Never, never say/ Never say legend didn’t go in/ I just wanna die on top of the world.”

While he looks at club-goers flashing the LA and Westside signs at him, James smiles and points to Jackson’s T-shirt, which reads, “Another Enemy,” and raises his glass of champagne.

Finally, Carter tells James it’s time to leave the club and they do, LeBron pretending to cross-over tables and shoot over slot machines all the way back to his room.

Hosted by both Drama and Whoo Kid, here is the latest installment of Gotti’s Cocaine Muzik series. Sniff away and download here. Tracklist after the jump.

01. Yo Gotti – Chapter 1 Intro
02. Yo Gotti – Fishcale Dreams
03. Yo Gotti – Where They Do That At
04. Yo Gotti – Mirror
05. Yo Gotti – Bang Bang (Feat. Gucci Mane & Zedzilla)
06. Yo Gotti – BMF Memphis
07. Yo Gotti – Chapter 2
08. Yo Gotti – Thin Line
09. Yo Gotti – Right Now
10. Yo Gotti – White World
11. Yo Gotti – Make It Work
12. Yo Gotti – Chapter 3
13. Yo Gotti – Millionaire
14. Yo Gotti – Cocaine Muzik (Feat. Young Jeezy, Rick Ross & The Clipse)
15. Yo Gotti – I Go Ham (Feat. All-Star & Gucci Mane)

New York rapper Shyne has lived up to his word by releasing a new record called “Belize” which takes subliminal jabs at 50 Cent and Rick Ross.

Within the track, Shyne reflects on his life in Belize while also calling out Ross’ former employer as a corrections officer and taunting 50 Cent’s rap alias.

“I be smoking trees in Belize when they find me,” Shyne raps, “Dude, dude, did everything he said, I’m about a dollar what the f*ck is 50 Cents…They want to know what I’m up to, sh*t, I’m living like I’m accustomed — in and out of customs, what the f*ck you thought fool, I’m a hustler, no, no, no, not the CO, bro, bro, it’s the C-E-O…”

Now that’s facing the music in style!

Like a red carpet arrival, Foxy Brown rolled up to court in a black Lamborghini Tuesday.

She emerged from her fly ride dressed to the nines in a teal dress, plunging neckline and heels to the heavens.

Her fans loved it, but Judge Geraldine Pickett couldn’t care less, instead extending an order of protection a neighbor took out against Brown in 2007 when the raunchy rapper beaned her with a BlackBerry.

Brown was in Brooklyn Criminal Court for a status hearing on allegations she violated the original order when she tangled with Arlene Raymond outside her Prospect Heights home last week.

Brown cursed Raymond out, bent over and thrust her exposed butt out, authorities said.

“B—-, what are you looking at?” she snarled, according to the criminal complaint. “Kiss my a–.”

Foxy, whose real name is Inga Marchand, was represented by a new lawyer, Salvatore Strazzullo, hired Sunday after Bruce Barron surprisingly announced he was no longer working with her.

“We deny the allegations that she mooned Ms. Raymond,” Strazzullo said. “Ms. Marchand is innocent, absolutely innocent.”

Prosecutor David Weiss said evidence would be presented to a grand jury.

“Yes, I will testify before a grand jury,” Foxy said outside the courtroom.

“We just had a sold out concert at B.B. King’s,” she added.

“LeBron James couldn’t make it, but I’m here.”

Strazzullo also asked that an an order of protection be issued against Raymond.

The judge denied it.

He writes a thank you note to his fans and Facebook via his blog:

To all my friends at Facebook,

Many times in life I’ve had to deal with moments of doubt. And as it’s been a minute since I’ve performed any fresh material in front of an audience, this could’ve been one of those moments… but it wasn’t. Your energy was a gift so electric, so genuine, that it really helped me give my best. The energy was so inspiring I had to keep going!

I just hope you got as much from me as I got from you…which was everything!

Love to all my fans, especially at Facebook.

Kanye West

The album is scheduled for release in September and will feature verses from Rick Ross and T.I. as well as production from DJ Premier and Q Tip.

Just a couple of months ago, everyone was looking for Kanye West and now he’s pretty much everywhere. He stopped by Facebook headquarters yesterday to perform new songs off his upcoming album.

Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z upset that newly minted Miami Heat player LeBron James didn’t consult him

“Jay never expected LeBron to sign with the Nets. He knew that no 25-year-old kid with James’ profile was going to spend years in Newark,” the source tells Gatecrasher. “But he’s pissed, or at least disappointed, that LeBron didn’t consult with him.”

Still, our source says, “I don’t think it’s going to affect their friendship.”

According to insider, James’ silent treatment made Jay-Z look bad with Nets’ management. While LeBron was making his decision, “he didn’t even take calls. It made look like he couldn’t deliver to the Nets management. If Jay-Z could have landed a star player, “he could have been seen as a legitimate asset to the team,” the source said. “Now they see him as just dead weight.”

Perhaps, but our source points out that given Jay-Z’s minuscule $1 million investment in the Nets, the responsibility to put together a killer team doesn’t really lie with him.

“It’s not Jay’s team,” says the source. That dubious honor goes to Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, who paid $200 million for an 80% stake in the Nets.

Another NBA insider says Jay-Z’s real source of dissatisfaction should be Prokhorov. “The Nets have no basketball team,” the source says, saying that Prokhorov “overpromoted and overmarketed” the team, but wasn’t able to deliver a player with genuine box-office appeal.

Jay-Z’s spokeswoman did not respond to our request for comment by deadline, and a spokesman for James declined to comment.

THE NUMBERS ARE IN…RICK ROSS IS NO. 1
Here’s the numbers!

Rick Ross sold – 188,816

Eminem sold – 187,958

A lawyer for DMX has confirmed that the rapper surrendered to authorities in Los Angeles today (July 26th) to begin serving a three month prison sentence.

DMX appeared in a Los Angeles court, where he was sentenced to the three months, for violating the terms of his 2002 probation for a reckless driving charge.

“Mr. Simmons is here today to fully cooperate with respect to any matters of the Court’s concern,” DMX’s lawyer Aja M. Southern told HipHopNews. “This is one of many steps towards rebuilding his image and rapport with the community and his loyal fans.”

The jail sentence comes on the heels of DMX’s release from prison earlier this month, after he served four months in an Arizona jail.

In that incident, the rapper violated his probation when he tested positive for cocaine and was found guilty of other infractions, which violated his probation in another case.

Alexis Neiers, the ‘Pretty Wild’ reality starlet who just served a month for her involvement in the Bling Ring, shared a cell block with Lindsay Lohan for the last three days of her sentence. Now she shares her story with E!, the network that made her a star.

Alexis did not interact with Lindsay since both were in protective custody, but she could hear her crying through the wall.

“Crying. She was crying. I could hear her,” Alexis said. “She was crying. She was talking to deputies and, you know, just trying to–I couldn’t really like make it out, but from what I saw the first day, I mean, she was lying in there and just trying to like calm down.”

One reason for Lindsay not to cry: the special treatment her hair received.

“I mean, she got to keep her extensions in and everything, which most people don’t, and the girls were like, ‘Ah, they had to take my weave out and cut it all out and,’ you know, stuff like that,” Alexis said.

Family members are searching for former Memphis Tiger and NBA Grizzlies player Lorenzen Wright. FOX13′s Marcus Hunter spoke with Wright’s mother, Debra about the last time he was seen by family members.

Debra said his last known where abouts was at his ex-wife’s house in Collierville, Tenn. He was last seen wearing white gym shorts and gym shoes.

She said the family is concerned because he is not answering a cell phone to his daughter. Family members said he always returns her phone calls.

Mark Heuberger with the town of Collierville has confirmed Wright’s family filed a missing person report on Lorenzen Thursday.

FOX 13 can also confirm that Wright was last seen in Memphis on Monday.

Heuberger says the family hasn’t heard from him since Sunday.

Heuberger said the 34-year-old Wright could be traveling, but, in his words, “we don’t know.”

Wright played center for five NBA teams, including the Grizzlies, after being the No. 7 overall selection by the Los Angeles Clippers in 1996.

A Memphis native, Wright averaged 7.9 points per game over 13 NBA seasons.

Jermaine Dupri may have fallen to a low, as he threatens to kill Blogger Sandra Rose. This is what she said happen:

“I’ve got people ready to kill you!”

Jermaine Dupri

An enraged Jermaine Dupri launched into a profanity-filled tirade during a late-night phone call last night that left the hair standing up on the back of my neck.

A friend called me around 11 pm to say he had Dupri on the line and was it alright if he spoke with me. I agreed to listen to what he had to say. Dupri began by ranting and raving about bloggers in general, and about me specifically.

JD, as he likes to be called, was reacting angrily to a post I wrote yesterday titled “How the Mighty Have Fallen: Jermaine Dupri Rebounds.”

While not denying that anything I wrote was false, he angrily vented about me “always” going in on him and his artists, including Dondria and Bow Wow.

He basically let me know that his goons were coming for me — with his blessing.

“I got people ready to kill you right now!,” he screamed. “I’m letting you know it’s serious in the streets right now,” said JD in a 3-way call from France where he had just finished partying.

He said repeatedly, “I run Atlanta! I got ni**as calling me saying they don’t know what you look like, but all I gotta do is point you out and they will FUCK YOU UP!!!!”

I was extremely offended by all his yelling and cursing and I reminded JD that I was a grown ass woman. “I’m grown too!,” he responded. “I got ni**as that will fuck you up on sight!”

He wasn’t at all subtle with any of his threats — even though he insisted he wasn’t threatening me. “I know you’re recording this,” he yelled, “and I’m recording it too!” He made death threats unapologetically: “You already dead!,” he screamed.

After taking as much of the verbal abuse as I was willing to tolerate, I hung up on him and called the police.

This morning I will be speaking to my attorney.

No blogger should tolerate death threats from a celebrity. Whether the threats are veiled or direct, they are still threats against your life. And that it is against the law.

Christina Milian filed legal papers last week stating that when The Dream filed for divorce, the marriage wasn’t over as they had “Marital relations on several occasions”.  In the document, Christina Milian admitted to signing a divorce settlement waiving her rights to alimony and ownership rights to each other’s properties, however she claims she only signed the docs because The Dream brought them to her bedside when she was 9 months pregnant. She was in no condition to comprehend exactly what she was signing.

So in a nutshell, she’s not entitled to alimony from the marriage! The Dream made sure to protect his assets, meanwhile she left the relationship with extra baggage and a baby. (who I hope doesn’t google this stuff when she gets older)

See, this is what happens when you only date a few months before getting married. Everything happened between these two way too fast. People should start taking vows a bit more serious!

. Christina Milian’s husband — The-Dream — filed for divorce nine days before she gave birth to their only child.

According to documents filed in Georgia, The-Dream — aka Terius Nash — claims the marriage is “irretrievably broken.”

The-Dream filed his papers on February 17, but the docs never surfaced until we found out.

Milian gave birth to their only child, a daughter, on February 26.

In the divorce docs, The-Dream declares, “There is no hope for reconciliation.”

TI and Tiny have decided to GET MARRIED after all. TI and Tiny jumped into action and put together a “small” wedding – which will take place on July 31st in Miami.

And guests didn’t learn that the wedding was happening until YESTERDAY.

Well SHOUT OUT to Tiny for making that dude DO THE RIGHT THING. And shout out to the WEDDING PLANNER – who’s supposed to put together an ENTIRE WEDDING in just two weeks.

Rick Ross Lands in a Helicopter from Halo Media Entertainment on Vimeo.

Ricky Rozay and Trina were spotted at King of Diamonds Amusement Park Strip Club last night in Miami for “The Teflon Don” album release party. Rick Ross arrived to the event in a helicopter and his crew popped bottles of Ciroc all night. Rick and Trina looked liked a item last night.

Ask anyone in Miami and they’ll tell you it was a movie. Surprisingly, Diddy was not in the building but Gucci, Bobby Valentino, DJ Khaled and more came through to show support.

Time heals nothing for pugnacious rapper Foxy Brown. The 30-year-old entertainer was busted at 5.40 p.m. today in Brooklyn after a nasty, name-calling run-in with her old nemesis and neighbor Arlene Raymond, sources said.

Brown allegedly snarled at Raymond “What are you looking at — what’s your problem?” sources said. “They were getting into each other’s face,” said one source.

Another source said the B-word got bandied about by the fuming Foxy as the pair squared off at 151 St. Marks in Fort Greene. Neighbors stepped in and held Foxy before any contact was made, according to another source.

Raymond — who has a restraining order against Brown — called cops, and Brown was hauled off to the 77th Precinct for violating the order of protection.

It seems to be a summer thing between Brown and Raymond. The rapper was previously accused of hitting Raymond with her Blackberry on July 30, 2007, when Raymond complained that Brown was playing her car stereo too loud. Brown then ran into Raymond a few days later. “Brown hurled her BlackBerry at her , cutting her lip and knocking a tooth loose,” authorities reported at the time.

Brown has been released on $50,000 bail. Chaz Williams, her manager, says the charges are false.

Drake’s main squeeze Maliah Michel can be seen in the latest issue of Vibe Magazine, and boy, what a spread it is. If you like what you see up there, Check them out:

Rick Ross has pissed off The Gotti Family. In an interview with The New York Daily Times, John Gotti’s grandson Carmine explains his beef with Rick Ross naming his album “The Teflon Don”.

My grandfather paid his dues for that nickname. That was my grandfather’s life,” Agnello said.

John Gotti was dubbed the “Teflon Don” after winning acquittal after acquittal in the 1980s. He was finally convicted of murder and racketeering in 1992.

“He should have asked for permission. A standup, respectable guy would come and ask ‘If I could use the nickname,’” Agnello, who is trying to launch a music career under the name Carmine Gotti, said of Ross. “I think he’s a great artist, but you can’t just start calling yourself that to sell records …He wants to go for that whole image, but hey, be yourself.”

He adds:

Only in America can you go from being a corrections officer to calling yourself Teflon Don

Celtics captain Paul Pierce is finally a married man. No. 34 wed his longtime girlfriend, Julie Landrum, in California over the weekend. The couple exchanged vows in front of about 80 friends and family members, a crowd that included coach Doc Rivers, Pierce’s teammate Kevin Garnett and wife Brandi, as well as Patrick Roy, Pierce’s former basketball coach at Inglewood High School. The intimate seaside ceremony took place Saturday night under a gazebo at the Resort at Pelican Hill in Newport Coast, Calif. Landrum, a 27-year-old interior designer, wore a strapless Ines Di Santo gown while Pierce, 32, looked sharp in a custom tux by Elevee Custom Clothing. The couple’s daughter, 2-year-old Prianna, served as the flower girl. We’re told the menu was inspired by Katana, one of Pierce and Landrum’s favorite LA restaurants: Appetizers included robata-grilled skewers of meat, fish, and chicken, and dinner was served in a bento box with a choice of beef tataki, black miso cod, Asian chicken, or lobster. For cocktails, there was a saki bar with a choice of infused flavored saki. The cake? A multitiered confection with chocolate, red velvet, and coconut layers. A jazz quartet serenaded celebrants during dinner, and the wedding party worked off the calories afterward dancing to DJ Tendaji Lathan. The couple’s first dance was to R. Kelly’s “You Made Me Love You.’’ Mr. and Mrs. Pierce will be in Boston for a while. The 2008 NBA Finals MVP just signed a four-year, $61 million contract.

There seems to be a little beef brewing between Ricky Ross and Young Jeezy. Earlier reports said that there was no beef between the two, but after hearing both of their comments when asked about the beef questions the reports.

1st listen to Young Jeezy : Click picture to hear

Now Listen to Rick Ross:

Ice-T plays a cop on TV’s “Law and Order” but today the NYPD showed him NO LOVE! The rapper/actor was pulled over for not wearing a seat belt and hauled in!

Ice-T has been arrested in New York City. Ice was allegedly driving on a suspended license, pulled over for driving without a seat belt and taken into custody.

Ice tweeted a while ago that he and Coco were taking their dog to the vet. Spartacus was having knee surgery.

We’re told Ice was processed at the 10th Precinct in Chelsea and released.

Last night Chris Brown might’ve, inadvertently, subliminally thrown a shot or two at his ex-girlfriend and her new boo. Take a look:

Ladies this is the main reason you should go out and purchase one of Kim Kardashian’s bathing suits called Beach Bunny Swimwear. Just look at the pictures again. Kim wrote of her new line:

“This was the first time we had seen our suits on the runway and it was an amazing feeling to see our collection being rocked by the gorgeous models, and being so well received by the crowd.”

G-Unit leader 50 Cent has taken his issues with Diddy overseas by dissing the rap mogul during a Brazil performance this past weekend.

Leading into his “B*tch” performance, 50 mocked Diddy’s “Hello, Good Morning” single before name-checking him in Rio de Janeiro.

“Hello, good morning, you like that sh*t,” Fif asked a crowd of screaming fans.

“Well the next time you see Puffy, tell him I said ‘N*gga don’t act like a b*tch.’

He say he love her man, he really think he love her man/She a super freak, freakier than he understand/She not the type of girl that you take home to your mother/She’s the type you take to the track to come up on a sucker…”

Damn…Diddy is gonna have to wack 50

R&B singer Alicia Keys and her fiance Swizz Beatz will MAKE IT OFFICIAL THIS WEEKEND!!

According to our source, the couple chartered a 200 FOOT YACHT to host the festivities.

The insider explained “We’re being picked up in Miami and then we’re going to the Caribbean. I don’t know exactly where, but it’s very exciting.”

Among the guests will be Jay Z and Beyonce and OPRAH WINFREY!!

Wow, sounds like the wedding of the YEAR to us!!!

Well now we’ve got the DREAM’S side of things – unofficially, of course. One of his friends sent us the following report:

You guys are going way too hard on .

I’m not going to act like he was perfect, but there is no way that Christina can act like she didn’t know they’re marriage was over before last week.

They had many discussions about how things weren’t working out. But Christina was not trying to hear it. Maybe it was the pregnancy hormones or whatever. But they would have a conversation about separating, and the next time they talk she would act like everything was cool.

But real talk. How could she think everything was OK. The man did not live with her, they didn’t spend the Holidays together, and he didn’t go to her baby shower.

Just try and put yourself in his shoes, he realized that he rushed into a marriage and he tried to be honest and get out. I know that she’s hurt, but she can’t act like all this stuff is coming out of left field.

Hopefully your readers will understand and go a little easier on him.

This whole Christina – The Dream thing is just ALL OVER THE PLACE. We’re not sure what to think . . .

According to reports, Lebron James who recently signed a 6-year, 110 million dollar deal with the Heat, is in the process of purchasing a $50 million dollar mansion in the Coral Gables section of Miami. The 8 bedroom/11 bathroom home was once owned by Heat coach Pat Riley and was taken off of the market shortly after Lebron’s “Decision” special aired.

Some down time for Ri Ri at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.

Remember Caviar from FOR THE LOVE OF RAY J . . . she’s the one that claimed she was from RUSSIA and had that BAD ACCENT. Well now she’s Sucking and @#%$ for dollars on the internets.

…this recession’s got chicks doing all kinds of stuff for RENT MONEY

Click Here For Link To See Her In Action

Damn… The Espy Awards is the same place Reggie met Kim!!!

Reggie flirt with Kanye West’s former girlfriend of two years, model Amber Rose, at the ESPY Awards after-party at Drai’s Hollywood nightclub at the W Hotel — and she even gave him a lap dance!

Reggie, 25, partied with his fellow New Orleans Saints before moving to a cabana with his coach and a few ESPN sportscasters, where he was approached by Amber, who didn’t leave his side for the rest of the night.

Amber Rose grabbed Reggie’s hand, stared deeply into his eyes and began to give the athlete a sensual lap dance. Although there was music playing in the background, Amber moved to her own beat and Reggie loved every second of it.

After dancing for more than five minutes, Amber slowly stood up and Reggie whispered something in her ear. Judging from their smiles, it was obvious the couple’s late-night rendezvous was going to continue late into the night.

Platinum rapper Too Short was arrested for battery last night after he allegedly tried to beat up three bouncers in Boise, Idaho.

According to the Boise Police Department, Short and another man are accused of punching, kicking and pushing three security guards at a concert venue … after the guards allegedly tried to stop Short from bringing “underage females backstage and into his dressing room.”

Cops say “underage” means under 21 … not under 18.

Short was arrested and booked for three misdemeanor counts of battery … while the other man was hit with two counts of battery.

We’re told Too Short has since bailed out of jail.

Spotted front row with Angela Simmons at the Trina Turk 2011 Fashion Show in Miami.

Could a relationship start again?

The Dream sent the following message:

In My Own Words:

.

First I want to thank God for the trials of life, without them we can’t know purpose!

.

I would love to tell the truth as to why my relationship wasn’t successful, but today that is between me and Christina. Its easy to say that it’s because of another woman or a new relationship but truthfully, IT’S NOT.

.

I take FULL RESPONSIBILITY for misleading everyone into thinking everything was fine and okay when we knew problems existed for awhile! I wanted to speak up but we decided it wasn’t for anyone to know. I would NEVER intentionally hurt a soul and everyone around me knows that! There was so much going on in me and Christina’s personal world that I tried to deal with it as delicately as I could and tried to regain my footing. Instead of being direct in order not to cause even more hurt or hurt someone’s feelings, I carried the weight in secret!

.

I am Human and people fall in and out of Love all the time… This is Life. Nothing’s promised or perfect, neither am I. I am not proud that I lost something we once had…LOVE! I’ve always been a Loving Father, Hard Worker, Generous, Stern and Eager to prove myself. My faults are I can be irresponsible and an ass sometimes, but I HAVE NEVER and WILL NEVER be a malicious person or wish harm to anyone, especially those I love or the mother of my child. I’m sorry for the embarrassment to everyone involved! If there’s anyone to blame and you can’t fathom this happening, please blame me and me alone for not being upfront! Even though we were trying to overcome personal things between us, I was just simply scared and embarrassed to let everyone know we WERE FAILING and HAVE NOW FAILED!

.

This is not to justify anything, it’s true emotion! It’s a real thing that involves real people! I’ve cried about this for months, after interviews, after prayer and I’ve tried to take my own life at a point because of the failure that was looming.

.

But I was reminded by my MOTHER that I am not “Superman” and its okay to lose sometimes…

.

This too shall pass! And everything will be fine!

.

~ Terius Nash ~

We’re not sure WHAT to think!!!

It looks like he and Rihanna might possibly patch things up and be friends at least.

According to South Africa’s Heat Magazine, Rihanna and Chris have been in contact since he broke down and cried at the BET Awards.

An unnamed source told the magazine:

It’s been almost a year since they last spoke, but Rihanna felt like she could try to be friends with Chris again. Seeing how emotional he was on set really touched her. She’d never seen him like that before.

The source also added:

Chris told her that he felt like he’s grown up in the past year. He’s said he’s so happy to be back in touch with her. They were each other’s first love and he’s missed her so much. Rihanna knows that if he wanted him back, he’d be there in a second.

The two have reportedly text messaged each other since the phone call and a friend of Rihanna’s suggested that there is a chance of a face-to-face meeting.

However, Chris has to stay at least 100 yards away from Rih Rih for five years under the terms of his August 2009 probation. So….that doesnt seem too likely.

wow….so not only does Christina Milian have to suffer the humiliation of seeing her husband and baby father, The Dream, cheating on her with his own personal assistant Melissa Marie…..but we, the innocent public, have the image of these two porpoises doing remedial kama sutra in the ocean.

So basically DreaMilian split up at the end of 2009, while Christina was pregnant with their daughter Violet, and just 3 months after their princess-diaries wedding ceremony in Rome. Dude, you don’t break up after you’ve worn equestrian boots with your woman. It’s just not right.

Here’s Ricky Rozay’s official video for his summer anthem, cameos from Diddy, Khaled, Fab, Jadakiss and more. Directed by Parris.

Kim Kardashian was the official flag girl for the AMP Energy Bullrun Rally. The event took place yesterday, July 10 in NYC. For the event, the reality star turned business mogul looked sexier than ever (if that’s possible) in a head-to-toe skin tight white body suit.

a little laugh at Gucci Mane, Soulja Boy, OJ Da Juiceman and Waka Flocka Flame as their shortcomings are put on blast in this hilarious parody.

Lindsay Lohan is “scared to death” about going to jail, and is planning to appeal her 90-day sentence with a new lawyer, her mother Dina Lohan said in an interview.

“She’s a fighter, and until the final result — we’re not giving up,” Dina Lohan told celebrity news television show Entertainment Tonight in an interview to be broadcast on Friday.

“I think it’s time we get another attorney just to see it from another light and do damage control,” she added, saying her daughter hoped to file an appeal.

Lindsay is scheduled to begin her 90 day jail sentence in just a few weeks, on July 20. She was ordered to jail by Judge Marsha Revel, who is clearly tired of Blo-han’s dumb sh*t, because she ruled on Tuesday that Lindsay violated her probation for a 2007 drunk driving and cocaine possession case by failing to attend weekly alcohol education classes imposed by the court.

What a moron…

We gotta applaud Lohan’s lawyer Shawn Chapman Holley because she abruptly quit on Thursday, hours after issuing a statement calling the sentence “harsh and unfair” but stating that Lohan was prepared to serve her jail time and comply with the court’s orders.”

Holley did not give a reason for leaving, but Dina Lohan suggested Lohan’s team was unhappy with her work.

“I feel like Shawn, Lindsay’s attorney, should have stood up (in court on Tuesday) and said, ‘Listen, I didn’t know you were going to have witnesses.’ We would have had ten witnesses. We didn’t get a shot. We didn’t get a shot at fairness,” Dina Lohan said. “It’s very difficult, we’re not sleeping well, we’re not functioning. We cry a lot and we hug a lot. She’s petrified, we all are. We’re angry. We’re disappointed in the system,” Dina Lohan said. “Lindsay’s scared to death.”

Sounds like some bulldooky to us. It’s more likely old girl was tired of Lindsay’s bullsh*t too. And as for being scared to death. It’s about damn time. She wasn’t scared to death when she hijacked them boys on the PCH or had Samantha Ronson filing restraining orders. SMH!

Marty-Mar has done it again:

Martin Lawrence and his longtime girlfriend, Shamicka Gibbs, were married in an intimate wedding on Saturday at the actor’s home in Beverly Hills, PEOPLE confirms.

Lawrence, 45, and Gibbs, 35, exchanged Christian vows in the backyard in front of 120 guests, including Eddie Murphy and Denzel Washington. Their daughters Lyana, 9, and Ameria, 7, and Lawrence’s daughter Jasmine, 14, from a previous marriage were flower girls.

After the ceremony, the newlyweds joined their guests under a tent for a reception. For the family-style celebration, event designer Diann Valentine arranged for two long tables in the shape of an “X” for all the guests to sit together. “They wanted an intimate celebration,” says a source. “This wedding was all about family.

Congratulations are definitely in order. Nothing like a nice intimate gathering…

Lala Vazquez officially became Mrs. Carmelo Anthony just moments ago in a ceremony at Cipriani 42nd St. in NYC. The couple traveled back to their home state to put on a fantabulous wedding with their family and celebrity friends.

Bride LaLa looked stunning in her Vera Wang gown and red rose bouquet. And Mr. Melo’s looking like a hot groom himself.

The Miami Heat had quite a celebration last night at the American Airlines Arena as they welcomed The Heat’s “Three Kings” Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. The trio received keys to the cities of Miami, Miami Beach and Miami-Dade County with the team’s announcer pegging the arena “Dwyane Wade’s House,” “LeBron James’s Kingdom,” and “Bosh’s Pit.”

After getting a warm reception from Miami fans, Lebron voiced his opinion on what his former team’s owner had to say about him leaving Cleveland:

“I really don’t have a reaction to what Dan said. When things hit the fan, you see a guy’s true colors, and I understand that. I wish the organization the best of luck and I wish the fans the best of luck, because I still do love those fans. . . . Dan’s comments are not going to stop me and my family from sleeping at night. It just won’t do it.”

I understand now I made the right decision. And to hear my former owner’s comments, I also understand I made the right decision.”

On This Show Jamie Foxx And Crew speak on Lebron James, Claudia Jordan Returns, Mel Gibson using the N-Word And More! Hilarious Show!     Click HERE to Hear The Show

RihRih is just not packin’ ‘em in like she hoped to! The “Last Girl On Earth” may need to change her name to the “last girl in the arena” at the rate she’s going.  She Just had to cancel 6 shows!

Apparently the folks in Seattle, Indianapolis, Phoenix, Atlanta, Dallas and Denver who were not buying tickets to Rihanna’s Last Girl On Earth tour. That’s SIX dates!!! While promoters have been blaming “scheduling conflicts” and “production changes” for the canceled shows we’re pretty sure poor ticket sales have more to do with it.

Mikey: Fat Joe spoke to MTV News about his recent trip to visit Lil Wayne at Rikers Island. Weezy has already served approx. 4 months of his 10 month sentence for weapons possession and could possibly be released as early as November with good behavior. Joe said Weezy was doing just fine and adjusting well to his new found sobriety.

“He’s in great spirits. I love Lil Wayne; that’s like my little brother. He’s just the coolest dude on Earth. I tell you one thing, him not being high made me realize how much funnier he is. This guy has jokes. We were up in there for four hours, just telling jokes, dying laughing, falling on the floor.

Jeezy shot the video for his “All White Everything” fashion manifesto in Atlanta yesterday,  Yo Gotti, Slick Pulla (home from jail), Trey Songz, NBA player Josh Smith, Drumma Boy, DJ Infamous and more on set. Also on part of a car on Jeezy’s video set, their are Masonic symbols. let the illuminati theories run wild.

After visiting Lil Wayne in jail on Thursday, Kanye West changed out of his green striped polo, dusted any album-hack rumors off his sharp suit shoulders, speed up to Greenwich CT, and joined his buddy LeBron James at the vainglorious announcement of his announcement.

Brandy’s behind-the-scenes photo shoot for 160g Magazine where lil Moesha was looking like a certified banger.

Former Cash Money Records producer Mannie Fresh recently talked about his stint on Baby’s label and claimed Lil Wayne tried to get him out of the picture.

Speaking on Wayne’s success as of late, Fresh said the rapper had issues with him during their Cash Money Records run.

“I just seen the dude grind, he’s doing his thing, that’s all I can really say and the biggest compliment, not to pat myself on the back but you start from somewhere, you will see you grow into something and you graduated from this school and look at the results. That’s all I can say. But there are times even with him, and this is not a hater statement but I guess it was because of things that were going on, he tried to ex me out of it. You cant ex me out of it, I am apart of your history… is possible, I can tell you this, can tell you this, I don’t know how Wayne feel but BG can tell you this, all that depends on them, cutting the check and that’s the last line of it.”

Grammy-winning rapper Eminem’s Recovery remained at No. 1 this week with 313,300 sold copies. According to Nielsen SoundScan, the rap star’s latest effort has sold 1,057,700 records in 14 days.

Young Money rapper Drake’s Thank Me Later also stayed put at No. 2 with 104,900. With three weeks in the books, the Canadian-based emcee’s debut has moved 708,900 units.

R&B singer The-Dream’s Love King debuted on the charts this week at No. 4. Making this his final album, Dream’s new record has shelled out 58,700 pieces.

Grammy-winning singer Usher’s Raymond V. Raymond remained at No. 14 with 24,000. Making its way into week 15, the singer’s new album has sold 898,400 units.

Philadelphia rap group The Roots’ How I Got Over slipped out of Top 10 moving down 11 slots to No. 17 with 20,700. After two weeks, the crew’s latest effort has moved 72,200 units.

Grand Hustle rapper B.o.B.’s Adventures of Bobby Ray dropped three slots to No. 23 with 15,100. Heading into his 11th week, the rapper’s debut stands at 283,000 scanned discs.

Pop group Black Eyed Peas’ E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies) moved down one notch to No. 24 with 14,900. With 56 weeks to their names, the group’s 2009 album has sold 2,640,200 records.

Grammy-winning singer Alicia Keys’ Element of Freedom received an eight-slot boost to No. 27 with 13,600.

Headed into her 30th week, the singer’s new album has sold 1,354,300 units to date.

R&B singer Dwele’s Wants World Women debuted on the charts this week at No. 28. With seven days in the books, the singer’s new album has moved 13,600 units.

Pop star Ke$ha’s Animal dropped five positions to No. 29 with 13,500. After 26 weeks in stores, her new release stands at 813,300 sold records.

R&B singer Christina Aguilera’s Bionic dropped ten slots to No. 32 with 12,400. Upon completing a month on store shelves, her latest solo effort has shelled out 181,900 records.

R&B veteran Keith Sweat’s Ridin’ Solo took a hard hit falling 31 slots to No. 44 with 9,100. With two weeks to his name, the singer’s new album stands at 34,000 sold copies.

Grammy-winning rapper Ludacris’ Battle of the Sexes moved down three slots to No. 49 with 8,100. After 17 weeks, the Distrubin’ Tha Peace leader’s compilation project has moved out 478,900 units.

Evening things out in Top 50 is Trey Songz’s Ready which received a power boost moving up 24 slots to No. 50 with 8,100. After 44 weeks, the singer’s latest effort has sold 761,100 records.

Sorry Cleveland … and Chicago … and New Jersey … LeBron James is headed for the New York Knicks … at least according to Phoenix Suns superstar (and TMZ special reporter) Jared Dudley.

Jared just phoned into TMZ Live … and revealed that his top secret NBA sources have information directly from the Knicks … that LeBron has informed team officials that he will be joining the team.

In the past, 50 Cent’s made skits and songs to crush his enemies. But now, he’s taking a different approach. Before leaving for Brazil today, Fif formed a viral petition to stop Diddy from exploiting the memory of his former artist The Notorious B.I.G. Twitter uses can signhere.

Enough is enough, Biggie’s name should never have become Diddy’s Black Card. Just check out his latest video “The Ghost of Christopher Wallace”http://www.bit.ly/jay-diddy Let Diddy know to let B.I.G. rest in peace. When was the last time Diddy really was “biggin up his brother,” not biggin up his bank?

Kendra Wilkinson signing copies of her book “Sliding into Home” at Borders in Columbus Circle, New York City. (July 6, 2010)

Serena sounds like she’s a bit upset at Common. The couple called it Quits recently. When we asked Serena why they broke it off?  She said this:

“His schedule is actually worse than mine. He didn’t want the responsibility. It’s really tough.”

When Common praised her, he confused the media and Serena when saying she was ”beautiful, intelligent woman, fun and spiritual woman. I think she’s an incredible person.”

“So I called him and I was like, ‘Why are you saying all this stuff when we’re not together?’”

Judge Marsha Revel today sentenced troubled actress Lindsay Lohan to 90 days in jail for violating the terms of her probation. Prosecutor Danette Meyers called witnesses from the Right On Drug & Alcohol Rehab to show that Lohan was not in compliance when she failed to attend 9 alcohol education classes in direct violation of Judge Revel’s orders.

Meyers was ruthless when grilling Rehab co-owner Cheryl Marshall, who confirmed that she did not report any of Lohan’s absences to the court. Meyers testified that she did not believe it was her responsibility to report Lohan’s absences. Meyers said she worried that she would be held liable for violating Lohan’s rights.

Lohan was also ordered to wear a SCRAM alcohol monitoring ankle bracelet. The monitoring agency reported a violation to the court during the MTV awards last month. A subsequent blood test was negative for alcohol.

Lohan was ordered to enroll in alcohol education classes in 2007 after being charged with a DUI. The judge pointed out that it took Lohan 3 years to complete a 1½-year program. Lohan’s attorney, Shawn Chapman Holley, argued that while Lohan was not in compliance by missing 9 education classes, she would have completed the program on time this month.

A tearful Lohan addressed the judge, saying she didn’t realize she was out of compliance and she did everything she was supposed to do. “I’m not taking this as a joke. It’s my life and my career. I thought it was OK that I missed those classes.”

The judge was not moved by her tears.

In making her decision, Judge Revel pointed out that Lohan had not been in compliance with a previous drug treatment program. The judge said at that time, Lohan used the paparazzi as an excuse to miss prior education education classes.

“I couldn’t have been more clear,” said Judge Revel. “Nowhere did I say that she could attend classes whenever she felt like it.”

Check out the below video, where 50 claims that he had photos of Cassie getting “penetrated” by some other dude. Plus Calls Diddy A Bitch and other Thangs!!

Kim’s having trouble sleeping. Is it her new boo hottie Miles Austin keeping her awake? The new season of Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami? Lil Duval thinks he might know…

Duval’s referring of course to this picture of Reggie and Amber hugged up in the Hamptons.

After two years of delays, OutKast’s Big Boi has hit up Twitter to reveal his excitement about his solo album, Sir Luscious Left Foot, finally being released in stores today.

“@jleeondatrak: go to i tunes now! i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes i tunes,” he wrote Tuesday (July 6) morning.

“@ThisIsDAO: Attention hip-hop: @Therealbigboi breathed some new life in2 this sh*t. Front to back “Sir Lucious Left Foot” is a classic.”

“24hour Walmart say’s Sir Lucious is now ready for pick up!”

“R.I.P Tony Andre Kearse A.K.A Chico Dusty for u miss u pop”

“@sleepybrownatl I feel like it’s my motherf*ckin birthday… I’m so crunk I can’t sleep.”

“#FACT- If you have ” Lookin For ya ” with stacks and sleepy. It came after “HustleBlood”, in the album sequence. Add it to your playlist” (Big Boi’s Twitter)

Thanks to Nicole for giving me the scoop on this story.

OJ Simpson is getting married again…and it’s to a woman he’s never met.  According to reports, the former sports star became pen pals with a woman who goes by the name “Anna” while serving time in a Nevada jail for armed robbery.  This would be OJ’s third wife and insiders claim that she is the splitting image of his late wife Nicole Brown Simpson.

They’ve been writing to each other for a while now. She sent him her photo, and he just flipped for her.

It’s amazing to me that this guy was on trial for murdering his ex-wife, was acquitted but later wrote a book titled “If I did it; Confessions of a Killer” and he’s still getting pen pals and panties. Forget a background check, do women have any morals?

Madness!

OJ Simpson is currently serving a prison sentence of up to 33 years behind bars.

Singer/actress Janet Jackson gives an Dance

member some “Discipline” on the main stage at the Essence Music Festival on Friday night (July 2) in New Orleans.

The star had a 9+ outfit change set and performed most (if not all) of her hit songs. Check out our HQ photos from the show. Very dope!

Five things to note about this video:

1. Apparently, Wayne shot his portion of the video while Gucci was in prison, and Gucci Mane shot his part during Wayne’s stay at Rikers.
2. So, Lil’ Wayne can actually shoot a video in his own house, which is just insanity. Ironically, the move managed to be low budget, yet show off his wealth.
3. Beyonce dusted off her Grammy’s in her “Why Don’t You Love Me” video. Wayne ashes his blunt in his. Perfect.
4. The @liltunechi tees that Lil’ Wayne and friend have on in this video are too perfect. Can’t wait till he gets out to tweet more about love.
5. “What the f*ck is up/It’s Gucci Mane the G” will forever be two of the most inexplicably catchy lines in hip-hop.

Drake is going to be m.i.a. this summer. He just announced he will be by his mother’s side helping her get through a difficult time. He puts it via his twitter, “Back at my moms house…please include her in your prayers tonight as tmrw she faces a true challenge.”.

Drizzy Drake was scheduled to go on tour in Europe for the entire summer but instead he is showing his commitment to his mother. This is truly inspiring as it’s a testament to what a great artist is willing to sacrifice. At the BET awards Drake thanked his mom while accepting his award for Best Male Hip Hop Artist.

Our hopes and prayers go out to Drake, his mother and his entire family and wishing his mother a speedy recovery.

Esther Baxter didn’t mind getting dirty for a good cause — bringing attention to the Gulf Oil crisis with a PSA using real oil. Get a better look at Esther’s cakes and learn more about her love life and career when you …

VIBE interviewed Esther on the set of her PSA about the Gulf Oil Spill, check out what she had to say about the cause, her career and her love life:

VIBE: How did you get involved with the Oil Spill PSA?

Esther Baxter: Well, I was just talking to a friend of mine one day who also models and we felt like we needed to get involved. It just didn’t make sense to us that more wasn’t being done to fix the problem. I mean 70,000 gallons of oil are being spilled out everyday. Plus, not enough people in the industry are aware of it. So we decided to try and help the cause and bring awareness to the problem. No one in the industry has really took the initiative to speak out and help bring attention to the cause, so hopefully more people will catch on and help after this.

You really got down and dirty for the cause…

That’s the whole point of this campaign—we want to show people that we’re really getting involved and doing whatever we have to in order to fix the problem, even if that means getting down and dirty. I don’t see enough people reaching out—I just can’t understand how BP is allowed to get away with it and they’re still selling gas! We’re covering ourselves in oil to show that nobody or nothing can be as beautiful as their full potential when they are covered in this stuff. I mean we have like a swimsuit thing going on but yeah it’s pretty much just oil.

Four days later, people are still talking about Chris Brown’s BET Breakdown. After rumors hit the internet streets that his own bodyguard gave him “tear inducing eye drops” before hand, Chris Brown’s rep denies it.

Chris’ stated today that he simply “was moved by the opportunity to pay tribute to his idol.” He got caught up in his emotions, understandably during his “Man In The Mirror” performance.

I’m usually the first person to spot fakery from a mile away, and it never crossed my mind for a minute he was faking. Chris has said from the time he first hit the R&B scene years ago that MJ was his idol. And that particular song has so many parallels to his own life at this time. And it was his very first time on such a public stage after being dragged over the coals (whether you believe he deserved it or not) for a year and a half. Is it THAT hard to believe this dude would have an emotion or two? Damn.

It wasn’t what the Nets said. Or even how they said it. It was where they said it — within full view of Madison Square Garden at 34th Street and Eighth Avenue. And that ticked off the Knicks.

That is where the Nets have placed a 225-by-99-foot ad on the side of a building proclaiming “The Blueprint for Greatness” and depicting hip-hop mogul Jay-Z and the team’s new billionaire Russian owner, Mikhail Prokhorov. The Knicks were not amused.

Nets sources say Knicks and Cablevision owner James Dolan called Jay-Z to complain. Others in the Knicks hierarchy called the Nets and the NBA. The Nets did nothing wrong, according to the league.

In Other Jay Z News, Check out His 15 Min. Documentary.

According to LA Fox News affiliate, Fox 11 News, the fake Rick Ross is ready to settle with the former crack dealer whose name and image he hijacked for his own financial gain.

“Freeway” Ricky Ross says the former corrections officer, whose real name is William Leonard Roberts, has made millions exploiting his name and image.

In an interview two years ago, after he finally came clean about his former life as a prison guard, Roberts denied ever knowing who Ricky Ross was when he assumed the name of the former crack dealer.

Now that the real Ross has filed a $10 million lawsuit against him, Roberts quickly changed his name to “Ricky Rozay” and he’s anxious to ante up some cash to settle the suit.

But Ross wants the lawsuit to proceed through the courts. He told Fox 11 that the fake Ross has made millions using his name and it’s “too late in the game” to settle now. He also wants 50% of Robert’s royalties.

Virgin airlines unveiled a new jet dubbed “Air Drake” to celebrate Virgin America’s first international flight to Toronto, Canada.

Actress Nicole Ari Parker and husband actor/model Boris Kodjoe were spotted arriving at the Philippe Chow restaurant in Hollywood on Tuesday night (June 29).

Beyonce and Jay-Z were spotted leaving dinner at the popular Italian restaurant Nello’s on Monday night (June 28). He also showed off his new iPhone 4.

Plus Alicia Keys and baby daddy Swiss Beats who is having Tax troubles.

DJ Khaled gathered up some of the heavyweights in Hip Hop for the remix to “All I do is Win”. The video features appearances by T-Pain, Diddy, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj, Busta Rhymes, Ludacris, Fat Joe, Jada Kiss, Swizz Beatz and Fabolous.

Khaled and company also performed this song during Sunday Night’s BET Awards show but someone forgot to call Fabolous to join the festivities. He sat in the audience and watched as they performed the song without him which left him feeling a certain kind of way:

Kat Stacks Gets BEAT UP AGAIN . . . This Time By One Of Young Moneys AUNTIES!! (The Lady DRAGGED RAT STACKS By Her HAIR) Sad!!

Busta Rhymes was involved in some sort of infraction at a party surrounding the BET Awards.

This happened at Mr. Chow’s (diddy’s party) or some swanky restaurant. Anyway, whatever happened, happened. Some people are saying that Busta hit a woman over the head with a bottle, but some other sources are telling us that he actually threw a glass bottle to the woman. Striking her? Not sure.

Here is the other side. I am hearing that the woman in question is the lady of a big time Crip in Los Angeles. From what I understand and hear, Busta may have a real issue right now. The “streets” are saying that Busta is going to need to squash this or he’s not going to be able to have fun in Cali.

Earlier today, BET aired footage of actress Vivica A. Fox critiquing the fashions displayed by celebrities on the red carpet at the 2010 BET Awards last night.

Vivica wasn’t very flattering when it came to her assessment of Monica’s avant garde gown. Mo responded to the perceived insult by taking to her Twitter page this evening, and ever so politely, slammed Vivica’s age and fashion sense.

Jay Z, Rihanna and Beyonce were all INVITED to perform at the BET Awards. But when they learned that Chris Brown would be performing. They said they were busy.

Rihanna and Jay have tours coming up that they are having trouble selling – of course they needed the exposure.” But the insider told us, “It was a matter of principal, if BET was willing to support Chris after what he did – that was THEIR BUSINESS. But were not going to have ANYTHING to do with the show.”

And not having any of the BIG THREE on the show was a problem. According to Nielsen, this years BET Awards drew 15% fewer viewers than last years.