TMZ Hip Hop

Cardi B is not having it ... delivering the clapback of all clapbacks when someone had the nerve to ask online if she’d been bleaching her skin.

The rapper quoted the offending X post Wednesday ... calling out the skin-bleaching accuser as dumb, and explaining her paler look is due to her unborn baby sucking the life out of her -- leaving her pale, anemic, with sunken eyes and popping veins.

Cardi threw in that sunbathing was also a no-go ... 'cause she gets hot and dizzy in no time, making it a real health hazard ... so for the time being, she has to embrace her natural, paler complexion.

Fat Joe's got every door in New York unlocked ... 'cause he's officially got a Key to the City -- and, Mayor Eric Adams gave it to him on his old stomping grounds.

The rapper's all the way up, receiving the ceremonial key Tuesday evening before his concert at the Bronx's Orchard Beach ... Mayor Adams handing over the key at the star-studded event.

Adams highlighted Fat Joe's skills as a rapper, as well as the philanthropic work Joe does, before presenting him with the key onstage.

Kamala Harris has her share of celeb endorsements ... but Lil Jon was the real MVP Tuesday night, cranking up the energy and hyping up the crowd during the Democratic National Convention roll call.

The rapper repping Georgia made an unexpected splash in Chicago ... dropping a few bars from his 2013 anthem, "Turn Down For What" -- electrifying the vibes with his musical salute.

The party didn’t stop there -- he also busted out "VP Harris … Governor Walz," set to the tune of another of his hits, "Get Low."

Yung Gravy isn't mad at Haliey Welch for rebuffing him in the DMs ... telling us he's still a big fan!

We got the "Betty" rapper at LAX, and our photog asked him about the "Hawk Tuah" girl claiming he slid in her DMs to ask her out.

Haliey told us last week Gravy was among the celebs in her DMs ... but she wasn't interested in what she felt was a date idea.

The USA women's water polo team took the party from Paris to Sin City this month -- jet-setting to Vegas following their run in the Olympics -- and their hype man and sponsor, Flavor Flav, was right there by their side for the festivities!!

Maggie Steffens, Rachel Fattal and the rest of the American squad got back to the States after finishing fourth in the Games ... and one of their first orders of business for some of the women was to let loose in Nevada.

The athletes -- plus Flav -- hit up Resorts World on Saturday night ... and grabbed some grub at FUHU before putting on their dancing shoes at Zouk Nightclub.

Sexyy Red is heating up summer with a new business venture ... a line of NSFW lip glosses, seemingly channeling her "Pound Town" anthem.

The rapper revealed the sexually-charged makeup brand online Monday, called "Sexyy," by posing for a series of provocative photos ... including one where she held the box of lip glosses on her behind as she bent over.

She also gave fans a close-up of the glosses' erotic names ... which are "Coochie Juice," "Bootyhole Brown," "Nut," "P***yhole Pink," "Yellow Discharge," "Gonorrhea," "Blue Ballz," and "Sex On My Period" -- which just so happens to be fruit-scented.

Bianca Censori seems like she's toning down her nearly-naked style lately ... but even wearing pants and a top, there's not much left to the imagination.

The Yeezy architect stepped out for a shopping outing on Melrose Ave with her mother, Alexandra, and her 2 sisters, Angelina and Alyssia, over the weekend ... and chose to wear a skin-colored crop top and matching footless tights on the bottom.

Bianca kept it seriously simple for the shopping spree ... as she wore her dark hair slicked back in a bun and didn't display any noticeable jewelry.

YG's making peace over a hearty meal ... organizing a walk to put an end to years of strife between rivals Compton gangs -- and breaking bread, or in this case buns.

The rapper led the truce and walk Sunday ... joined by members of the Treetop Pirus and Fruit Town Pirus gangs, family members and kids as they journeyed through the streets of Compton.

During the walk, YG stopped off for food at Tam's Burgers ... bringing the whole squad into the small little shop with music bumping and the rapper even showing off some of his dance moves.

Kanye West is still riding for Donald Trump, but now he's doing it in a Cybertruck with new wife Bianca Censori ... and their surprise appearance at a Trump rally quickly got outta hand.

Ye and Bianca rolled up Saturday in Bev Hills, where supporters of the former president were waving American flags and "Make America Great Again" banners. They just stopped on the side of the road, but that was enough to fire up the crowd.

Check out the video ... a group swarms the Tesla, not realizing at first it's Kanye behind the wheel, but when they spot him, they go nuts and start chanting his name!

Haliey Welch, AKA "Hawk Tuah," is spittin' off about her celebrity suitors ... including one rapper who has already asked her out on a proper date.

We got HT outside the Westin Hotel in NYC, where she confessed Yung Gravy slid into her DMs after she skyrocketed to fame with her now famous "spit on that thang" moment.

Per Haliey, YG asked her out on a date. ... watch the vid -- her response was less than enthusiastic.

Blake Lively is in the middle of more beef, Dr. Dre has a new nickname, and LeBron James is letting loose in France with another NBA star ... all this on today's TMZ TV Hot Takes.

First up on "TMZ Live," Harvey and Charles chat with the reporter from the viral Blake Lively interview diss.

If Dr. Dre is serious about competing in archery at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, he has a two-time Olympic gold medalist in his corner willing to help him bring home the gold!!

Justin Huish -- a fellow Cali native -- was thrilled after the hip hop icon revealed he wants to participate in the Olympics archery event in four years ... telling TMZ Sports he believes he can succeed -- even at 59 years of age.

"Anyone can do it at any age. There's not really an age limit," Huish said. "You can be a phenom and you don't really know."

Nicki Minaj is probably feeling vindicated ... because she just settled a lawsuit with a woman who made some wild statements against her ... and the woman had to apologize, admit she lied, and not mention Nicki and cocaine anymore … or else she'll have to pay a big penalty.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the settlement calls for Marley Green -- who goes by the social media persona "Nosey Heaux" -- to apologize for her false statements about Nicki ... namely, bogus claims Minaj was a cokehead.

TMZ broke the story ... Nicki sued Green back in September 2022 after she posted a video claiming Nicki was "shoving all this cocaine up her nose."

Blac Youngsta's checking off a legal issue that's dogged him for years ... a judge just dismissed his gun case in a Dallas court.

The rapper was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon stemming from a 2020 arrest, but the case was was dismissed this week ... according to documents obtained by TMZ.

BY's lawyer Carl A. Moore tells us his client's happy to put this case behind him after dealing with it for nearly four years ... saying he feels the District Attorney's Office did the right thing by dropping the charge -- and, justice has finally prevailed.

BeatKing, a beloved Houston rapper and producer, has died ... and TMZ has learned what caused his death.

A rep for the rapper tells us ... BeatKing passed away in a Houston hospital Thursday after suffering a pulmonary embolism. We're told the rapper was doing a morning takeover at the Urban One/Radio One station, when he fainted and was rushed to a nearby hospital.

He passed away later that same day with his 2 daughters by his side.