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Lil Flip Cleared in Credit Card Case, Grand Jury Refuses to Indict

After turning himself in to authorities last month, Lil Flip has cleared his name in connection with an alleged credit card scam.

According to the Houston Chronicle, a Harris County grand jury declined to indict the rapper in the case, which concerned airline tickets purchased with a stolen credit card.

Flip and his camp maintained his innocence throughout the ordeal, saying that the $671 Southwestern Airlines ticket in question was purchased through what the rapper believed to be a legitimate travel agency.

Prosecutor Joe Vinas announced that the investigation is complete, and no further charges are expected to be filed. “He’s extremely happy,” said Stanley Schneider, Flip’s attorney. “He feels vindicated.”


Bill O'Reilly Criticizes Nas

Bill O'Reilly recently criticized Nas (whom he alleges the title of "gangsta rapper" to) and the governing body of Virginia Tech for allowing the rapper to perform at the Virginia Tech memorial concert.

O'Reilly, who in the past has criticized rappers such as Ludacris and Cam'Ron, expressed qualms with Nas' violent lyrics and a past gun charge. In light of those things, O'Reilly lambasted the decision to have the rapper at the concert, which serves as a memorial to victims of gunfire in the recent Virginia Tech massacre.

Lupe Fiasco Weighs In On 50 Cent Vs Kanye

Since taking the mix tape world by storm and dropping the critically acclaimed Lupe Fiasco’s Food and Liquor, Lupe has sounded off on everything from geo politics, the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Recently, the Chicago rhyme sayer took a break from speaking on the ills of the world, to touch on the lighter side of Hip Hop and his upcoming projects in an interview with Pitchfork.

Lupe remained neutral on the ongoing “competition” between fellow Chicagoan Kanye West and 50 Cent saying that the competing albums are good for Hip Hop.

"You know what, I think it's good for hip hop," he said before adding, "Like, I'm a fan of both of them so... you know people are always surprised to hear that I'm a fan of 50's 'cause I was promoted as this whiteboy, suburban friendly image and everything. But I love 50's music, and have ever since his mixtapes back before Get rich Or Die Trying came out. Also, he's an incredibly smart person, and you can tell that in his interviews."

In typical Fiasco fashion, he briefly exposed the media machine, saying that some folks in Ye’s camp encouraged him to heighten the drama by going at Fif head on.

“When I was around 'Ye, everybody, I mean his people, were trying to hype him up to go at 50, but he didn't want to entertain it. I remember Kanye said he feels like making an incredible album is the best "diss" so to speak, that any rapper can deliver. Not that he wants to diss him."

Lupe also noted that his next album, The Cool will drop in November and he parallels his upcoming offering to Nas’ It Was Written.


Ja Rule In Court Over Unpaid Leak Repair

While Ja Rule faces a serious weapons charge after being arrested last month in New York, the Murder Inc. rapper was in a court last week for a less minor offense – allegedly not paying his plumber.

Ja Rule, born Jeffrey Atkins, is disputing a criminal complaint brought by a local contractor who claims he was never paid $8,000 after fixing a bad leak at the rapper’s $3.5 million mansion in Saddle River, NJ.

“We put in 150 hours of manpower, which I gave to him for $13,000,” said Joel Tobia, insisting that he and six other men finished the work in three days.

“He paid me $5,000 and wouldn’t pay me the rest. I don’t know why.”
Brian Neary, Ja Rule’s lawyer, claimed that “some work was done,” but that the actual amount owed was $4,000 and disputed “whether the work was done properly and whether money is owed.”

The hearing on Thursday follows a previous ruling of $8,000 awarded to Tobia after Ja Rule failed to show up in civil court.

Meanwhile Ja Rule is currently free on $150,000 bail stemming from an incident in July, when the rapper was arrested after police pulled over his vehicle and found a semi-automatic handgun in the car.

Raekwon Talks New Wu-Tang CD, Searches For Home For "Cuban Linx II"

As Wu-Tang prepares to plant the iron flag back into solid hip-hop ground, Raekwon sheds a little light on the hold-up of his latest solo CD, his Clan's reunion album and his proteges, Ice Water.

Being hands on with multiple projects lately, Raekwon has stayed quite busy as of late. Now poised to see the fruits of his labors, the Staten Island MC says that he's still not letting up with his hustle.

"One thing about the Chef, I'm constantly working, man," Raekwon told Billboard. "If I'm not doing one thing, I'm doing another thing. I'm trying to wear all these hats right now as far as being an artist, a writer, a businessman, a producer. I constantly stay on my job."

Though he says that he's "99 percent finished" with the long-awaited Only Built 4 Cuban Linx II, he may be looking for a new label to distribute the sequel. Rae says he and Interscope "didn't come to a complete understanding about the project." Cuban Linx II features production from sample wizards RZA, Dr. Dre, and the late J Dilla.

Yet the Chef says that he has put the project on hold in order to concentrate his energy on the new Wu album, 8 Diagrams, slated to drop on November 13, which is the third anniversary of the death of fallen Wu member ODB.

"I guess RZA stressed to the people about how much that date meant to us," he admitted. "It's like just thinking about our brother, just wanting to keep him around us mentally, y'know?"

As far as the album's sound, Rae said its strictly for real Wu heads.

"We're still debating about certain tracks as far as, will the people understand or will they be able to ride with it," he explained. "If you're a real Wu fan then you know what to expect from Wu-Tang. But if you're trying to expect anything close to anybody else, you don't really know us."

The Chef's also been cooking up the right recipe to help launch the careers of his group, Ice Water, who are prepping their debut on August 28. With an solid line-up of MC's dropping verses on the disc, including Method Man, Busta Rhymes, Rick Ross, Three Six Mafia, Remy Ma, Jagged Edge and Raekwon himself, the crew is looking to make a real splash when the album drops.

"I always knew they had potential but had to grow to that level of coming into the business on my strength," said Rae. ""The guys had to figure out what they wanted to do before I could actually give them the opportunity to be heard, and it just finally arrived. The dudes got their heads together and the music is flawless.

DJ Envy Dials Up Fans With New Mixtapes

Hot 97's DJ Envy and mobile content provider Cellfish Media have joined forces to create "The Monthly Mixtape," a monthly service which sends exclusive music and mobile content to a subscriber's cell phone.

As part of their agreement, Cellfish Media will distribute a seven-track mixtape compilation mixed by DJ Envy to subscribers which will also come with ringtones, daily hip-hop insider tips and exclusive interviews.

Subscribers will also be able to interact with Envy via his community page on Cellfish's website which also offer prize giveaways.

"Yesterday, kids would have to wait for a mixtape to be pressed up and distributed; today, they have to run home to their computers and search for it; tomorrow, the instant something is blowing up, it shows up in your pocket," said Cell Fish Vice President Jonathan Dworkin via a statement. "Yesterday is over."

In related news, Envy and New York mixtape standout Red Café are currently gearing for the release of their collaborative compilation titled The Co-Op.

The set, which will hit stores September 25, features appearances from Fabolous, Fat Joe, Styles P and Sheek Louch, Paul Wall and Nina Sky, among others.


PACMAN’ JONES TO RELEASE RAP RECORD

Adam “Pacman” Jones has added another hobby to pass the time during his season-long suspension from the NFL.

Following his debut with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling last weekend, the Tennessee Titans cornerback is part of a rap duo called Posterboyz and will drop their first single, “Let it Shine,” on Aug. 27 via his own National Street League Records.

According to the Associated Press, the song covers the usual hip hop topics of big money, cars and jewelry.

Officials are reportedly looking into whether or not the record label's name, National Street League Records, infringes on the NFL’s trademark, league spokesman Greg Aiello said.

As previously reported, Jones has also signed a contract with TNA Wrestling and debuted in a pay-per-view event Sunday night.

Snoop Dogg Sells Claremont, California Home

Snoop Dogg has sold his Claremont, California home for a reported $1.830 million. The house was originally listed at $1.995 million but was sold at the lower price after 3 and a half months on the market and 3 offers on the home.

According to the Claremont-Courier, Snoop hasn't resided at the residence since 2000. Snoop Dogg originally bought the home in 1994 for $660,000 from a bank repossession venture.

“There were regular parties, and they were loud,” police captain Gary Jenkins said. “So we would receive a lot of noise complaints. There were a lot of cars in the neighborhood and people loitering around in the streets, but no major problems.”

The home was then extensively remodeled, doubling square footage and adding a second floor. Completed in 2006, the newly renovated 6500-square-foot home boasted 8 bedrooms, 5.5 baths, a home theater room, a recording studio and a 4-car garage. The luxurious compound also features lush park-like grounds, a swimming pool and spa, a pool house, a basketball court and a tennis court.

“He is married and has 3 kids,” realtor Goeff Hamill said. “He lived in Los Angeles before but once he had his first child, he felt that Claremont was a better place to raise a family.”