Long standing Hip-Hop MC Lil Wayne is caught up in yet another financial situation, this time in the form of a lawsuit from American Express. Weezy, who has had substantial history with lawsuits with a variety of people, allegedly owes AMEX $86,396.75, which he has had over six month’s time to pay, says TMZ.

Weezy’s has been involved various of lawsuits throughout the years, from being sued by Rolling Stone for copyright infringement, to suing Cash Money for unpaid royalties in the past, despite having settled disputes with Birdman, to owing 2 million for a private jet.

The rapper has released a substantial amount of albums in the past and will surely continue to do so, which means his net worth of approximately $150 million dollars will only continue to rise, making AMEX’s $80,000 lawsuit and his $2 million for a private jet, almost look like pocket change.

Suggested Articles:

Meet the Trillectro 2016 Lineup

Alicia Keys & 23 Other Celebs’ Message to Black America

The post Lil Wayne is Being Sued by Amex appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

A$AP Rocky tweets after attack in New Zealand hotel elevator. While the life of a celebrity may be overwhelming at times, (no please, tell me how you can’t handle the pressure of fortune and adoration) a rapper’s accessibility adds a whole other piece to the celebrity puzzle. TMZ reported that Flacko was jumped by three men in a New Zealand hotel elevator. Witnesses reported that amidst the attack, Rocky protected the girls who were in the elevator with him, until hotel security eventually broke it up the altercation. While I’m obviously speculating, there had to be more than just terrible judgment and too much “Lord Of The Rings” involved. (Get it? LOTR was filmed in New Zealand – never mind) Nevertheless, the police arrested a 35 year-old New Zealander and Rocky took to Twitter to clear the air in what is obviously the most “I be that pretty muthat fu*ka” type of way. All kidding aside, it’s great news he’s fine and what this shows is not only is everyone susceptible to violence and inexplicable nonsense, but the limelight often times positions people to be more prone to these things, almost creating a target of sorts. Between the music and fashion worlds, the limelight shines heavy on Rakim Mayers. Playing it in my head and hearing the absurdity of the “Fu*k A$AP” chant, all I can hear is “Rocky, Rocky, Rocky.”

LIL SCUFFLE , STILL PRETTY, STILL HANDSOME , STILL FUCCKIN YO BITCH TOO. DEFENSE SQUD DONT TRIP… LOVE 2 AUCKLAND ! pic.twitter.com/rE6YM3Ahop

— LORD FLACKO JODYE II (@asvpxrocky) February 25, 2016

The post A$AP Rocky Tweets After Attack In New Zealand Hotel Elevator appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Kevin Gates Mr. I don’t get tired himself has recently dropped off a video for his single “Kno One.” The video begins with Gates at a cookout surrounded by friends, women and lots of his energy drink “I don’t get tired” and then transitions to a more sensual dim lit scenery where he cozies up with one special lady.

Considering the lyrics the video are very tame and gives you the feel of a love song. We know from 2015’s headlines that Kevin is a lover even if it’s with his own cousin. Kevin told TMZ earlier this year that he was in a sexual relationships with is blood relative for two years, but based on the “Kno One” video, it appears Gates has expanded his horizons and is sleeping with a wide variety of women who don’t share the same familial history.

Check out “Kno One” below.

The post New Video: Kevin Gates- “Kno One” appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

Last Friday, at the height of the national anxiety to find and neutralize Boston Marathon Bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev and his brother Dzhokhar, TMZ posted an article connecting the two brothers to hip-hop. While TMZ has never and will never be known for making flattering representations, its misrepresentation of hip-hop is especially gross. According to TMZ, listening to hip-hop and viciously maiming and murdering innocent people are related activities. This is both absurd and unacceptable.

Although hip-hop is sometimes characterized by images and messages of violence, these images do not define the entire genre of hip-hop. For every fist raised in the name of harm, there are other fists raised in the name of solidarity, justice, defiance and even just plain-old fist pumping, among other things. Furthermore, images are never static. Hip-hop is constantly on the move, expanding, transforming and evolving, just like the world we live in. To connect the actions of rogue murderers to the complex and varying themes of a vast, international and intergenerational musical tradition is bad journalism at best and gross caricature at worst.

The Boston Marathon bombings were only a week ago. The wounds haven’t even begun to scar yet. In fact, for many of the victims, the wounds won’t ever be able to scar because they are more than wounds: things are missing, irreplaceable things. With all this in mind, we can’t allow TMZ to exploit our anxieties, our fears and our vulnerabilities. Yes, hip-hop is violent at times, but to cut out that violence from the larger, more complicated genre in which it exists, is a violent move itself. Don’t believe the TMZ hype. Keep calm and hip-hop on.

The post disRESPECT: TMZ Misrepresents Hip-Hop appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.

With the groundbreaking (or, rather, glass ceiling breaking) Frank Ocean news everyone’s felt the need to comment, even Lil Scrappy. In an interview with a mostly confused Harvey Levin of TMZ, Lil Scrappy adds his two cents about Frank Ocean’s admission and homosexuality in rap. At first he supports Ocean and his openness, but then goes on to say some shockingly ignorant statements. Apparently a lot of rappers are gay and this worries Lil Scrappy because he doesn’t want to risk any “real” women getting AIDS. According to Scrappy, being gay is a scientific gateway to AIDS. Go back to school, Mr. Scrappy. The only way to really believe this conversation is to watch and listen for yourself. disRESPECT.

The post disRESPECT.: Lil Scrappy Talks Frank Ocean and AIDS appeared first on RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture.