Soulja Boy Hit With Two Public Paternity Battles
Soulja Boy is facing two separate paternity disputes playing out in court filings and on social media, with both accusers saying he’s dodging proper legal channels and reacting aggressively when pressed. [Rolling Out] In one case, Jackilyn Martinez sued in October 2025 for custody of their three-year-old son KeAndre Way, and court documents say that after a phone call suggested both sides wanted a quiet resolution, Soulja allegedly responded to her lawyer with a profanity-laced email instead of sending counsel. [Rolling Out] In the other, Lindsay Reid went to TikTok claiming he’s the father of her child, saying he provided no financial or emotional support and threatened to leak explicit content if she didn’t unblock him. [Rolling Out] He denies paternity, points to documents he says close the child-support matter, and is threatening defamation suits against her and the outlets covering it. [Rolling Out]
→ Break down Soulja Boy’s two paternity cases and what happens next →
Diddy Faces New Lawsuit Alleging Assault of a Minor
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been hit with a new lawsuit from a man identified as John Doe, who says that as a child model in the ’90s he was sexually assaulted by Combs, with the filing also naming his talent agents for allegedly knowing Combs had a predatory history and still sending Doe into unchaperoned situations. [Rolling Out] Doe is suing for unspecified damages and lists claims including childhood sexual assault, sexual battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent supervision, and false imprisonment. [Rolling Out] Combs is already incarcerated at Fort Dix Federal Prison after a New York federal sex-trafficking trial, convicted on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, a case that accelerated after Cassie Ventura’s 2023 civil suit alleging rape, trafficking, and years of abuse. [Rolling Out] A separate case involving him is also under review by the L.A. County DA. [Rolling Out]
→ Get the full timeline of Diddy’s legal cases and the new lawsuit →
Cardi B Calls 35-Year Sentence for Teen Athlete ‘Disgusting’
Cardi B blasted the 35-year sentence handed to Karmelo Anthony, a Texas high school track athlete convicted of murdering fellow runner Austin Metcalf after a fatal altercation at a 2025 meet. [HotNewHipHop] She told her tens of millions of X followers the punishment is “DISGUSTING,” saying it’s not justice but the system “trying to make an example,” and accused the court of putting on a performance instead of applying the law fairly. [HOT 97] Prosecutors argued for a harsh sentence to reflect the loss of life, while supporters say the court ignored Anthony’s age and context, and commentators are comparing his outcome to Kyle Rittenhouse and George Zimmerman’s acquittals despite similar self-defense claims. [HotNewHipHop]
→ Explore the Karmelo Anthony case and the backlash to his sentence →
Kanye West Back Outside — Georgia the Country, Not Atlanta
Kanye West is continuing his post-controversy touring pivot with a newly announced show in Tbilisi, Georgia, leaning on a strategy of playing markets that will separate the art from his antisemitic and political meltdowns. [Rolling Out] The move follows two stadium shows in Arnheim, Netherlands on June 6 and June 8 — his first there in more than a decade — which went ahead despite a Jewish council’s organized attempt to block his entry over fears he posed a public-order risk. [Rolling Out] A judge in Amsterdam rejected that effort, saying there was no concrete evidence he’d disturb public order, while the council and the country’s immigration minister called his past remarks deeply objectionable but said there was no legal basis to ban him. [Rolling Out] West is planning a three-day stay in Tbilisi around the concert. [Rolling Out]
→ See the full timeline of Kanye’s European tour and deplatforming fights →
Snoop Dogg Gets the Key to Long Beach
Snoop Dogg was honored with the key to the city of Long Beach at the sold-out opening of the new FMB Amphitheater, with Mayor Rex Richardson framing the show as “a historic cultural moment decades in the making.” [HipHopHero] Richardson said, “Long Beach created the culture, and Snoop Dogg shared it with the world,” crediting not just his music but the authenticity and pride with which he’s repped the city globally. [HipHopHero] The honor lands differently given that Snoop wasn’t allowed to perform in Long Beach until 2016, when he openly wondered if the city had something against his background, and he’s now fresh off dropping 10 Til’ Midnight on Death Row Records with contributions from Pharrell and Swizz Beatz. [HipHopHero]
→ Break down Snoop Dogg’s history with Long Beach and the new album →
Teyana Taylor Crowned BET Icon of the Year
BET announced that Teyana Taylor will receive its Icon of the Year Award at the 2026 BET Awards, with executive Connie Orlando praising her as someone who doesn’t just look for “a place in the room but builds it from the ground up” and crediting her for setting the tone for culture at large. [Rolling Out] The ceremony, hosted by Druski and airing across BET and multiple Paramount networks, will also honor Lauryn Hill with the Living Legend Award. [AllHipHop] Taylor’s recognition caps a career of acclaimed work in music, choreography, and direction, while Hill’s award formalizes the reverence fans have held since The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. [Rolling Out]
→ Get the full rundown of the 2026 BET Awards honors →
CeeLo Green Wants a Lauryn Hill VERZUZ
CeeLo Green says that if he ever does a VERZUZ, Lauryn Hill is the only matchup that makes sense, calling her his “twin sister” Gemini, noting they did their first tours together, and describing the event as “nothing but a love affair” built on mutual respect. [The Source] On the On the Spot with Rickey Smiley podcast, he argued he needs someone with a similar “dynamic” who can both rap and sing. [The Source] VERZUZ itself recently relaunched via Complex at ComplexCon 2025 in Las Vegas, and has since hosted matchups including Mike WiLL Made-It vs. Hit-Boy, French Montana vs. Rick Ross, and a Tank–Tyrese R&B battle. [HOT 97]
→ Explore CeeLo’s Lauryn Hill VERZUZ pitch and the series’ relaunch →
Drake’s ICEMAN Era Keeps Dominating as LeBron Stays Quiet
Drake’s latest album ICEMAN is in full takeover mode, with fourth-week projections still described as “eye-popping” and two tracks — “Janice STFU” and “Shabang” — sitting in the Billboard Hot 100 top 10, with “Janice STFU” having already spent two weeks at No. 1. [HotNewHipHop] The project is being hailed by many fans and even some detractors as a “return to form” that mixes bar-heavy records with melodic hits to argue Drake still has the range to claim rap’s top spot. [HotNewHipHop] In the background is his friction with LeBron James, whom Drake appears to address on “Make Them Remember,” and when asked recently what he’s listening to, LeBron didn’t mention ICEMAN at all. [HotNewHipHop]
→ Break down Drake’s ICEMAN chart run and the LeBron tension →
That Mexican OT Doubles Down on Using the N-Word
That Mexican OT addressed the backlash he’s faced for using the N-word in his lyrics during an appearance on the Bootleg Kev Podcast, insisting he has “no ill intention” and saying, “I’m not no motherfucker that’s trying to lynch y’all… I’m from this shit too. I’m from where you from.” [HipHopHero] He argued that online outrage made him into a “boogeyman” that doesn’t match how people experience him in person, and justified his usage by pointing to growing up around Black people. [HipHopHero]
→ Get the full context of That Mexican OT’s comments →
Latto Stays 10 Toes Down About Rapping Her Relationship
In a new interview, Latto explained that the recording studio is the one place she feels completely alone and honest, using it to process her relationship and life, especially her long-running and now-public partnership with 21 Savage. [Rolling Out] She pushed back on fans who criticize her for being too open or too “in love” on records, making clear she refuses to fake heartbreak for relatability and intends to rap her reality of stability even when it clashes with listeners’ expectations. [Rolling Out]
→ Find out how Latto and 21 Savage kept it private for years →
Fenix Flexin Has to Swear His Viral Track Isn’t AI
Fenix Flexin’s new song “Rubberz” has thrown listeners so much that some are convinced it’s AI, with comments joking that he asked a bot to “make me a Miami Vice/Scarface 70’s song using my voice” and broader complaints that “everything is AI” now. [XXL] He hopped into the comments to shut it down — “No sirrrrrrr, recorded same as all music I do! Only difference is auto tune reverb and me using my fake UK accent lol” — and previously told Bootleg Kev the same thing. [XXL] In a January XXL interview he said he was working on revamping his sound, with the piece pointing to “Rubberz” as evidence. [XXL]
→ Explore why Fenix Flexin’s ‘Rubberz’ got called AI →
Bushwick Bill’s Legacy Revisited Seven Years Later
The Source published a remembrance of Geto Boys legend Bushwick Bill, marking seven years since he died following a battle with pancreatic cancer and framing him as one of the most distinctive voices in Southern hip-hop. [The Source] Born Richard Stephen Shaw in Kingston, Jamaica, and raised in Texas, Bill helped turn the Geto Boys, alongside Willie D and Scarface, into a late-’80s and early-’90s force that put Houston on the map long before the South dominated the industry. [The Source] The piece highlights “Mind Playing Tricks on Me” as perhaps his definitive work, a 1991 classic that tackled paranoia, trauma, and mental health, and recalls the infamous We Can’t Be Stopped hospital-gurney cover after his self-inflicted eye shooting. [The Source]
→ Get the full story of Bushwick Bill and the Geto Boys →
Rakim, Kurupt & Masta Killa Album May Reunite Jay-Z and Eminem
A new collaborative album from Rakim, Kurupt, and Wu-Tang’s Masta Killa has underground heads buzzing after executive producer and A&R M80 shared a tracklist that includes a Jay-Z and Eminem interlude on track six. [The Source] XXL, which spotted the tracklist, notes fans are eager to know whether Hov and Em will actually rap or contribute in some other capacity, and that if they both appear it would be their first musical link-up since “Renegade” on The Blueprint. [The Source]
→ Break down the album and the possible Jay-Z and Eminem reunion →
Westside Gunn Teases His “Awesome Gods” Saucony Collab
Westside Gunn teased his new Saucony “Awesome Gods” collab, building on his previous wrestling-inspired pair and further embodying his “Flygod is an Awesome God” mantra in footwear form. [HotNewHipHop] The shoe leans into animal print uppers, splatter-paint details that give it a raw, hand-done aesthetic, and bronze metallic accents that bring in Gunn’s love of high fashion, with Saucony again giving him leeway to push beyond standard sneaker design. [HotNewHipHop]
→ See the details of Westside Gunn’s Saucony ‘Awesome Gods’ →
Independent Artists Eye Direct-Support Streaming as the Next Phase
A HiphopSince1987 feature breaks down how independent artists are rethinking streaming economics, arguing the future isn’t replacing Spotify or Apple but “enhancing” them by focusing on community rather than just discovery. [HiphopSince1987] The piece notes that artists historically built careers through fan clubs, merch, live shows, and direct relationships, and points to models like Scrybe Streaming, which lets fans subscribe directly to specific artists instead of paying for a giant catalog. [HiphopSince1987] Its thesis is that algorithms create casual listeners, but only real community creates supporters, and supporters, not streams, make careers. [HiphopSince1987]
→ Explore how indie artists are rethinking streaming revenue →
