WHAT BEEF??...WALE & J. COLE HIT THE FLOOR TOGETHER AMID BEEF SPECULATION [VIDEO]

Maybach Music Group’s Wale and J. Cole have put an immediate end to the beef speculation. Following Ralph Folarin’s “Groundhog Day” response to Jermaine’s “False Prophets,” the duo teamed up for a basketball game.

Wale went to Twitter Saturday (December 3) with a clip of himself alongside Cole.

On Wale’s “Groundhog Day” song, the MMG rapper directly goes at Cole for allegedly blasting him.

Wale’s response is produced by Jake One. The D.C. MC makes it clear that he is rebutting the North Carolina rapper. “I’m heavily flawed, but far from a false prophet Ima honorable Folarin, Cassius, Muhammad…why you talking?, he rhymes in the intro. He even addresses Cole directly but not in a dissing way. “I remember me and Cole would open for Hov/Everyday a star is born I guess I died in the womb/I aint make it on Blueprint/So made me a blueprint/You got you a nice watch my minute was finished.” (XXL Mag)

Hip-hop artist Heems took exception to Cole’s song and ripped him on social media for allegedly going at rap star Kanye West.

A few hours prior, a clip surfaced of Cole dropping big bars at an unnamed rapper.

Who is #JCole coming for?

A video posted by Baller Alert (@balleralert) on Dec 2, 2016 at 5:15am PST

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J. Cole Returns With a 40-Minute Documentary Titled 'Eyez' & Two Videos From His New Album

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On Thursday (Dec. 1), J. Cole broke the Internet, after news of his fourth studio album 4 Your Eyez Only surfaced on the web. Today, the "Can't Get Enough" rapper is serving up ear candy for his rabid fans to gush over in preparation for his newest endeavor. 

In lieu of his new album - which is slated to be released next Friday, Dec. 9 - J. Cole released two music videos Friday (Dec. 2), titled "False Prophets" and "Everybody Gotta Die." On the former, J. Cole ruminates on fans' decision to idolize rappers who direly seek love and adoration. He also trounces on artists who fail to pen their own lyrics. "Wonder what happened / Maybe it’s my fault for idolizing n----s based off the words they be rappin' / But come to find out, these n----s don’t even write they shit / Hear some new style bubblin' up, then they bite the sh-t," he rhymes. 

On the latter track, Cole is a one-man wrecking crew on a mission to obliterate lackluster rappers with minimal wordplay abilities.  "Clap at the fake-deep rappers, the OG gate-keep rappers / the would-you-take-a-break-please rappers / A bunch of words and ain’t saying shit, I hate these rappers / Especially the amateur-8-week rappers / Lil “whatever”, just another short-bus rapper / Fake drug dealers turn tour-bus trappers."

In addition to his new videos, J. Cole also provided his fans an in-depth documentary titled "Eyez", which illustrates the rapper diving into his notebook and penning rhymes at New York's Electric Lady Studio, to him playing basketball, and also riding around NYC in his bicycle. 

Gear up everyone, because the lyrical avalanche that is J. Cole is coming this winter. 

Eyez (Documentary)

J. Cole - "False Prophets" (Be Like This)

J. Cole - "Everybody Gotta Die"

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Grammy Predictions 2017: Who Will Score the Major Nominations?

Adele, Beyonce and David Bowie are going to appear in the big four categories. Here's who else is likely to join them.

On Tuesday (Dec. 6), the nominations for the 59th annual Grammy Awards will be revealed... so it's time to get those final predictions in. After months of seeing superstars dominate, new artists rise and certain songs hijack mainstream radio, we can speculate as to which songs, artists and albums will be saying hello to the side of Grammy nomination heaven this week -- and which ones will sorrowfully be saying hello from the other side.

The Grammy Awards nominations always contain surprises, but we're going to do our best to guess Tuesday's big nomination names. Check out our predictions for the four major Grammys categories -- Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist. Remember: these are unofficial prediction, with no prior knowledge of Tuesday's results.

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

One year after Taylor Swift's 1989 made her the first female solo artist to ever win two Album of the Year Grammys, Adele has a good shot at becoming the second female solo artist to do the same, with her mega-selling 25. Adele has won all four of the major Grammy categories, including the top album prize in 2012 for 21; she is a powerhouse, an awards darling, and not the type of artist that will get snubbed here. Although Beyonce has been so far shut out of actually winning an Album of the Year trophy -- her self-titled opus was famously upset by Beck's Morning Phasetwo years ago -- Lemonade was a universally acclaimed tour de force, so she's got nothing to worry about in terms of locking up a nomination here.

Speaking of universal acclaim, who doesn't love David Bowie -- and how can you not appreciate his artistry even more now that it is complete? The legend's swan song, Blackstar, was being hailed as a return to form in the days prior to his January death; now, it stands as a beautifully self-aware farewell, and the Grammys will move swiftly to honor that. Meanwhile, Drake somehow reached an even higher level of ubiquity with Views, and although critics were mixed on his latest album, the public was not, with the biggest debut sales week of 2016 and smashes like "One Dance," "Hotline Bling" and "Too Good." With Kendrick Lamar only releasing a B-sides compilation this year and Kanye West's The Life of Pablo likely too polarizing, Drake is the crowd-pleasing choice to stand for hip-hop here.

The fifth slot could go to a number of high-profile projects -- maybe Justin Bieber's star power secures a nod for Purpose, Radiohead's return to form gets A Moon Shaped Pool in there, Chance The Rapper brings his Coloring Book to the table, or Sia rides a huge year to a nomination for This Is Acting. However, our money's on Rihanna, whose Anti was worth the (very long) wait and soared with experiments in sound and vocal delivery. Five years after her first Album of the Year nom with Loud, expect RihRih to "Work" her way into this competition (sorry).

RECORD OF THE YEAR

Expect another Adele vs. Beyonce showdown, as "Hello" and "Formation" are no-brainers to be included here. We're also anticipating Drake to double up in the album and record categories: "One Dance" was one of the biggest hits of the year, and that's because of its undeniable hook and hypnotic dancehall production. Speaking of "undeniable," Grammy voters will lap up the squeaky-clean sensibility of Justin Timberlake's "Can't Stop The Feeling!" a surprise No. 1 from the Trollssoundtrack. Timberlake has not had much success in this category as a solo artist -- "Mirrors" was notably snubbed three years ago -- but "Can't Stop The Feeling!" should appeal to older voters  during a contemplative year for pop.

And that leads to the fifth nominee, which could go to Bieber or Bowie or Lukas Graham… but we're going with another former boy band member to stand alongside JT. Zayn's "Pillowtalk" was sonically different to latter-day One Directionand resonated with listeners during the first half of 2016; just like how Zayn topped the Hot 100 chart after 1D failed to ever do so, "Pillowtalk" could get him into uncharted territory in the Grammys' big four categories.

SONG OF THE YEAR

The songwriting category is the one most likely to leave one of Adele or Beyonce on the outside looking in… and we're betting that "Hello" greets a Song of the Year nod, while "Formation" does not get in. Although Bowie's "Lazarus" could get into the Record of the Year wrestle, it seems more likely that a song that prophetically begins "Look up here, I'm in heaven" will have its writing remembered and honored. Another likely outcome: Lukas Graham's inescapable "7 Years" muscles its way into a nod here, after its melancholy storytelling dominated Top 40 radio over the summer. When a wholesome hit places this much emphasis on its lyrical content, a Song of the Year nomination feels like a no-brainer.

Did you know that Justin Bieber has not appeared in the four major Grammy categories since he lost out in the Best New Artist showdown six years ago? That will change this year, thanks (in part) to a team-up with Grammy darling Ed Sheeran; "Love Yourself," the acoustic kiss-off from Purpose and a No. 1 hit, will love itself a nomination here. And in a category that typically nods toward country music, Maren Morris' "My Church" -- a celebration of music itself, delivered by a supremely likable new talent -- will round out the nominees with a "hallelujah" and "amen."

BEST NEW ARTIST

Speaking of Maren Morris, her Hero album was one of the country crossover success stories of 2016, and a win in the New Artist of the Year category at the CMA Awards last month makes her a shoo-in here. Lukas Graham's name recognition thanks to "7 Years" makes them a natural fit to join her here, and have a shot at becoming the first band since Fun. to win this award. And there's an obvious choice for hip-hop representation: Chance The Rapper, whose release strategy forced the Grammys to re-examine its eligibility rules, is going to get nominated here, especially if Coloring Book somehow charges into the Album of the Year category.

That leaves two open slots left in a very crowded field. Bryson Tiller? Desiigner? Charlie Puth? Rachel Platten? Shawn Mendes? Troye Sivan? Let's go with Alessia Cara, a talented R&B-pop upstart whose new hit "Scars To Your Beautiful" reminded voters that she's much more than just "Here," and The Chainsmokers, the dance duo that dominated pop radio this year with sensitive smashes like "Closer" and "Don't Let Me Down." If you thought the duo responsible for the song "#Selfie" had no shot of ever mining Grammy gold… it's time to think again.

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Wale Drops 'Groundhog Day' in Response to J. Cole's 'False Prophets': Listen

Just a day after J. Cole fired shots on "False Prophets," Wale hit back with his own new song, "Groundhog Day."

The rapper released "Groundhog Day" via Soundcloud on Saturday (Dec. 3), opening with a lyric directly referencing the title of J. Cole's latest track: "I know since I got my deal and s--- got real I ain't been the easiest n---- to deal with. I'm heavily flawed, but far from a false prophet. I'm a muf---ing honorable Folarin Cassius, Muhammad, McGregor, Conor of these rap artists."

"I remember me and Cole would open for Hov," he later raps, recalling his time on tour with J. Cole and Jay Z. "Everyday a star is born, I guess I died in the womb. I ain't make it on Blueprint, so made me a blueprint. You got you a nice watch, my minutes was finished."

All is seemingly well between the two as of Saturday night, when Wale shared a video of them together, taking in a basketball game, on social media. 

"See you at the game, Bro," he wrote on Twitter.

Listen to "Groundhog Day" and check out the clip of the pair of rappers below.

"See you at the game, Bro" pic.twitter.com/jgzxQ85uA5

— Wale (@Wale) December 3, 2016

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The Weeknd's 'Starboy' hits No. 1 on Billboard 200 With Third-Biggest Debut of 2016

The WEEKND blasts in at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart with his new album, Starboy, earning 348,000 equivalent album units in the week ending Dec. 1, according to Nielsen Music. That’s the third-largest debut of 2016, behind only the arrivals of Drake’s Views (1.04 million units) and Beyonce’s Lemonade (653,000). Of the Weeknd’s overall start, 209,000 were in traditional album sales.

The Billboard 200 chart ranks the most popular albums of the week in the U.S. based on multi-metric consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA). The new Dec. 17-dated chart (where The Weeknd bows at No. 1) will be posted in full to Billboard’s websites on Tuesday, Dec. 6.

Starboy, the Weeknd's second Billboard 200 No. 1, was released on Nov. 25 through XO/Republic Records and is the follow-up to his first leader, Beauty Behind the Madness. The new set was initially released commercially as a download and through streaming services. Its CD release followed three days later on Nov. 28.

Starboy’s debut got a jolt from streaming equivalent album units, as a whopping 117,000 of its total unit sum were driven by streaming units (equaling 175.2 million streams of Starboy’s songs in the week). That’s the second-largest debut streaming week ever, following Drake’s Views, which clocked 163,000 streaming units in its opening frame (equating to 245.1 million streams of songs from the album that week).

Starboy is only the second album to surpass 100,000 streaming equivalent album units in a single week, following Drake’s set. Views actually did it three times: during its debut week, along with its third (124,000) and fourth (111,000) frames.

Previous to Starboy’s release and following its bow, the Weeknd offered some high-profile TV performances on Saturday Night Live (Oct. 1), the MTV Europe Music Awards (Nov. 6), the American Music Awards (Nov. 20), The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (Nov. 24) and The Ellen DeGeneres Show (Nov. 28). He also sat down for interviews with Zane Lowe on Apple Music’s Beats 1 (Nov. 24), The Wall Street Journal (Nov. 2) and The New York Times (Nov. 28). Meanwhile, the set's title-cut lead single has so far peaked at No. 2 (for five weeks) on the Billboard Hot 100 and led the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for six weeks.

At No. 2 on the new Billboard 200, Pentatonix’s A Pentatonix Christmas rises two spots with 131,000 units (up 29 percent). Last week’s No. 1 debut, Metallica’s Hardwired… to Self-Destruct, dips 1-3 with 75,000 units (down 74 percent) and Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic slips 2-4 in its second week with 73,000 units (down 68 percent).

The Moana soundtrack vaults 16-5 with 66,000 units (up 153 percent), granting Walt Disney Records its highest charting album since the Star Wars: The Force Awakens soundtrack peaked at No. 5 for one week on the Jan. 9-dated list. Moana’s huge gain is owed to the film’s release in U.S. theaters on Nov. 23, two days before the chart’s latest tracking week began (on Nov. 25).

Another animated film soundtrack, Trolls, holds steady at No. 6 with 53,000 units (down one percent).

Two holiday albums jump back into the top 10, as Pentatonix’s That’s Christmas to Me and Michael Buble’s Christmas return. The former rises 12-7 with 40,000 units (up 38 percent) and the latter vaults 19-8 with slightly less than 36,000 units (up 57 percent). As the two titles join Pentatonix’s latest holiday set at No. 2, there are three Christmas albums in the top 10 for the first time in nearly two years. It last happened on the Dec. 20, 2014-dated list, when That’s Christmas to Me ranked at No. 2, followed by Idina Menzel’s Holiday Wishes at No. 6 and Buble’s Christmas at No. 7.

Rounding out the new top 10 is Miranda Lambert’s The Weight of These Wings, which falls 3-9 with 36,000 units (down 73 percent) in its second week and the original Broadway cast recording of Hamilton, which dips one rung to No. 10 with 34,000 units (down 11 percent).

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Diddy, Dr. Dre, Jay Z & Drake Listed Among World's Highest-Paid Musicians

Forbes has once again combed through the numbers and listed the world’s highest-paid musicians, with a handful of Hip-Hop notables making the cut. Among the stars in the listing this year: Diddy , Jay Z, Dr. Dre and Drake.
The highest-earning Hip Hop mogul was Diddy, coming in at #10 with $62 million, thanks in part to his deal with Ciroc vodka.
Beyoncé landed in the 17th spot with $54 million earned, just one spot ahead of her husband, Jay Z, who earned $53.5 million. Dr. Dre clocked in at #25 with $41 million earned and Drake didn’t do so bad for himself either, earning $38.5 million to hit #30, the list’s final spot.
Forbes’ Zack O’Malley Greenburg, a senior editor with the publication, lorded over the minutiae of numbers regarding the entertainers. It should come as no surprise that pop darling Taylor Swift sits atop the ranking after pulling in $170 million in a period between June 2015 and June 2016. Rounding out the Top 5 are boy-band One Direction at $110 million, Adele at $80.5 million, Madonna at $76.5 million, and Rihanna at $75 million.

Embed from Getty Images

Hotline Cha-Ching: Drake’s $38.5 million put him dead last on this list this year. Musicians are still cashing in, just in case you thought otherwise.
Greenburg’s team looked at pre-tax earnings from that range and used data from the RIAA, Nielsen and other sources including the entertainers’ own statements.
See Forbes’ full list of the world’s highest paid musicians of 2016 via slideshow
here.

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New J. Cole Album "4 Your Eyez Only" Coming December 9

Good news for J. Cole fans today, as it seems they’ll have a new album from the Dreamville boss to devour by December 9.
iTunes posted a pre-order for a new project, titled 4 Your Eyez Only , in its store. Details are scant, although the write-up describes the project as: “The rapper’s highly anticipated fourth studio album.” It appears to have 10 songs on it and the release date is listed as December 9, which would mark to the day the two-year anniversary of the release of J. Cole’s last studio album, “ 2014 Forest Hills Drive .”
Cole, an artist on Jay Z’s Roc Nation, has bordered on reclusive in 2016, even telling the audience at The Meadows Music & Arts Festival in October that he was talking a long hiatus from playing shows.
With the project on the calendar now, it’s inevitable that we’ll start seeing some singles and videos soon.
Will the album go platinum ? WILL IT HAVE NO FEATURES? Only time will tell.

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Diddy Says Suge Knight Claimed He Was Naming Jermaine Dupri In 1995 Source Awards Rant

Over a table stocked with Cîroc and an aura of blunt smoke, Diddy dropped a bombshell revelation regarding Suge Knight’s infamous 1995 Source Awards speech, which many pinpoint to be the breaking point of the East Coast/West Coast beef that ultimately claimed the lives of Tupac and Biggie.

The former Death Row CEO, who is currently awaiting his day in court on a murder trial, allegedly didn’t own up to calling out his NYC rival when he stepped to him at the show’s official afterparty at the once prominent Hip Hop hotspot, The Tunnel.

Noreaga and DJ EFN’s highly entertaining Drink Champs podcast is now aligned with REVOLT TV and the Bad Boy Records mogul recently joined the fray to reminisce about the good ‘ol days and claimed prior to that controversial moment in Hip Hop history, the two music moguls were “friends.”

“He would pick me up from the [LAX] airport … the whole entire thing,” Puff said, astonishing both EFN and N.O.R.E. “I was just networking with the brother. He would come pick me up from the airport; show me a lot of love. I had really thought we were cool — cool acquaintances. Just being respectful from people coming into other cities and stuff. So when he said that, I was like “Whoa. I know where that’s coming from. Are they crazy? I could blow this ‘thing’ up right now.'”

“Any artist out there that wanna be an artist, stay a star, and won’t have to worry about the executive producer trying to be all in the videos, all on the records, dancing … come to Death Row!” — Suge Knight

Everybody inside Madison Square Garden’s Paramount Theater knew Suge was talking about Puff Daddy and the Family. To this day everybody knows Suge was talking about Puff Daddy and the Family. But according to Puff’s account, the embattled label boss uttered a completely different name when he was asked about the ruckus he brought.

“So when I ran up and asked [Suge], he said, ‘Nah, I was talking about Jermaine Dupri,'” Puff recalled, smelling the lie. “At that point, I was scared because I know the wolves that was with me … they was like real-life wolves. And I from Harlem. I don’t want no violence … no danger … none of that shit. So I really put it in my head that it gave me reason for my ego to walk away.”

Circa 1995, JD’s So So Def was a successful imprint in its own right and while he did indeed share a lot of shine with the artists on his roster, it was So So Def that went on to beef with half of Los Angeles’ rap pulse.

The Source Awards scene was set for drama and the New York audience was looking for blood. Outkast had been booed for their Best New Artist win and there was a sense of eagerness to wreck shop once The Notorious B.I.G. graced the stage for his Best Album win for Ready to Die. Realizing the power he had (and knowing the odds were heavily stacked in his favor), Diddy says he ultimately decided not to act recklessly because business trumps beef any day of the week for him.

“I think it would have been worse,” Diddy replied, when questioned whether or not him turning up on Suge would have yielded different results. “It was a decision that the city was waiting for me to make. They let me know they was with me. You already have to be yourself. Some people are gangstas at the end of the day that could be like ‘fuck it’ and just turn it up and some people have a level of conscience because of their relationship with God. And so me knowing I could do mass destruction wasn’t something that was authentic to me. That wasn’t who I was. I just wanted everybody to get money, be fly and dance. Have pretty girls and smiling and get treated with respect. So my thing wasn’t there, know what I’m saying?”

We think we do, Puff.

Watch the video up above.

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Wu-Tang Clan's U-God Sues Rest Of Group For $2.5M

All’s not well in the Wu-Tang Clan as original member U-God is taking RZA and the rest of the group to court because he claims he’s owed at least $2.5 million, according to TMZ.

U-God is claiming that he hasn’t received his cut from his work on 170 songs across 12 Wu-Tang albums. He also says he has an agreement with the group to receive two annual payments from merchandise sales from the group and cites the $2 million deal for the Once Upon a Time in Shaolin album that he’s also due a cut from. He says he hasn’t been getting his proper cut for at least six years now.

In the court documents, U-God reportedly places most of the blame on RZA and his brother Mitchell “Divine” Diggs, saying that they have been instrumental in blocking him from his fair pay.

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Lil Wayne's Tour Bus Driver Taking Birdman To Court Over Shooting

The legal woes for Birdman continue as the driver of Lil Wayne’s tour bus is taking the mogul and Cash Money to court for the shooting that occurred in April of last year.

According to Courthouse News, Alvin Lewis, who was driving the bus that Lil Wayne was a passenger in, filed a lawsuit against the CEO, PeeWee Roscoe, Cash Money and Young Money, seeking damages for the mental anguish he’s suffered as a result of the shooting. The buses were hit with $20,000 in damages from the incident.

Roscoe pleaded guilty a year ago to various gang-related charges related to the shooting and received a 20-year sentence, 10 of which will be served in prison. He is appealing the sentence. Throughout the case, the rapper, known as Jimmy Winfrey, said Birdman should be held liable for the shooting. The label boss and Young Thug were named in an indictment for conspiracy in the case, but Birdman denied any involvement.

Lewis’ complaint says that Roscoe called both Birdman and Young Thug after the shooting.

Birdman is also embroiled in a multi-million dollar lawsuit from Weezy after Wayne took his father figure to court, demanding off the Cash Money label for blocking the release of Tha Carter V. That case is going on two years with no resolution in sight.

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Kanye West Released From Hospital

Kanye West has been released from Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center after being admitted on November 21 for psychosis brought about by dehydration and lack of sleep.

Multiple publications have reported that the 39-year-old rapper left the Los Angeles hospital on Wednesday under the care of his wife Kim Kardashian and his own personal doctor, Michael Farzam. TMZ reported that West is now at home with Kim and their two children.

Earlier reports had suggested that Kanye had been eager to get back to work, requesting for recording equipment to be brought to his room in the medical center, and demanding to work on his fashion lines from the hospital.

Reports also clarify that despite being released, Kanye is not yet “in the clear” and will need continuous psychological and medical help.

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Lil Twist Gets Jail Time For Beating Up Former Nickelodeon Star Chris Massey.

 Lil Twist had been fairly quiet on the music scene for a while until a coupleof mixtapes in 2016, but he apparently picked up a second career as a violent break-in artist right under our noses. The Young Money Entertainment artist will serve a year in jail for robbing and assaulting former Nickelodeon child star, Chris Massey.

Twist was given his sentence on Wednesday (November 30) after facing charges for breaking and entering into the apartment of Massey’s brother, That’s So Raven actor Kyle, in November 2014, according to TMZ. Twist supposedly put hands on Chris Massey and took a Rolex off his wrist. After skipping a court date in September, Twist turned himself in to face the music.

The Texas rapper took a no contest deal for six charges and will be sitting comfy in a Los Angeles County jail. According to the outlet, Twist was facing nearly 10 years. The good news for Twist is that he has a few months to go before serving his time in February and could get out early as August if all things shake out.

Twist sent off a few tweets after his court appearance.

Just left court . TMZ bout to break the news I'm sho!! It's over but not really, GOD got me !! 🙌🏾

— Lil Twist #TeamTwist (@LilTwist) November 30, 2016

I'm still out chea … We got some time before clock in ! Prayers up doe https://t.co/0lXW2xUaTn

— Lil Twist #TeamTwist (@LilTwist) November 30, 2016

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