Rapper Chris “Mac Daddy” Kelly (left), one-half of the 90′s teenage rap duo Kris Kross, has been found dead in his Atlanta home at 34, Billboard reports. Sources say Kelly died of an apparent drug-overdose, as he was found unresponsive, and was pronounced dead-on-arrival at Atlanta Medical Center. An autopsy is scheduled for this afternoon [cont.]

Lil Wayne had two big stories hit today, the first being that he penned an “apology” letter of sorts to the family of Emmett Till, after using the slain teenager as a punchline on the remix of Future’s “Karate Chop”. The letter reads as follows: Dear Till Family: As a recording artist, I have always [cont.]

In a recent string of corporate companies lifting endorsement deals from rappers, PepsiCo has pulled the third in a series of Tyler The Creator directed ads for Mountain Dew, as the latest has been deemed “racist” and “violent against women” by the company. “We understand how this video could be perceived by some as offensive, [cont.]

The New York Times reports that the two remaining Beastie Boys, Mike D and Ad-Rock, are planning on penning a memoir of the group’s story, in collaboration with hip-hop scribe Sasha Jenkins, due 2015. The as-of-yet untitled project (No Sleep Til Brooklyn? Rhymin’ & Stealin’?) will not be a straight-forward autobiography, but will instead be [cont.]

According to Hot 97′s Peter Rosenberg, Kanye West’s as-of-yet-untitled LP, is finished, and has been previewed to select members of the industry at Def Jam last week. Rosenberg has elaborated, saying that the album is “dark, but really good”. Lisen to the whole clip of Rosenberg’s report, below.

What is largely considered The Roots best LP, 1999′s Things Fall Apart, has finally been certified platinum by the RIAA, selling over 1 million copies. ?uestlove took to Twitter to make the announcement, stating: “It took 14 years…..don’t let it be said that dreams don’t come true. #platinum,” and then Instagramming the pic below. Congrats [cont.]

Joey Bada$$ has announced via Twitter that his debut album will drop this Fall, and will be entitled, B4.DA.$$. We’re not sure if that’s pronounced “Badass” or “Before Da Money”. He also stated that his Pro Era crew will deliver a mixtape dedicated to their deceased friend and crew member, Capital Steez, entitled King Capital, [cont.]

King of rap music, Jay-Z, makes the cover of TIME Magazine, for their “100 Most Influential People In The World” issue. This is cover 1 of 7, which will also feature names like Rand Paul, Jennifer Lawrence, Li Na, and more.

4/15/13: Here is the final, revised tracklist for Prisoner of Conscious, which hits May 7th: 1. Intro 2. Human Mic 3. Turnt Up 4. Come Here (ft. Miguel) 5. High Life (ft. Rubix and Bajah) 6. Ready Set Go (ft. Melanie Fiona) 7. Hold It Now 8. Push Thru (ft. Curren$y, Kendrick Lamar and Glen [cont.]

For fans of our house/EDM sister site, WeAllHitPlay.Com, Daft Punk news exploded over the weekend, including a new preview of their track with Pharrell, “Get Lucky”. But there’s something more interesting worth reporting over here for the hip-hop heads, that being that Kanye has reportedly recorded at least two tracks with the Daft duo, which [cont.]

P and Al’s joint effort hits June 11th. Here’s a look at the cover and tracklist. 1. Intro 2. LMDKV 3. Give Em Hell 4. Stay Dope 5. Curb Ya Dog 6. Death Sentence (Feat. Roc Marciano) 7. Bear Meat 8. Y.N.T. (Feat Domo Genesis) 9. R.I.P. (Feat Havoc & Raekwon) 10. Dough Pildin 11. [cont.]

Following yesterday’s fallout with Reebok, Rick Ross has released an official statement to the press, apologizing for a lyric glorifying rape on Rocko’s “O.U.E.N.O.” track. “Before I am an artist, I am a father, a son, and a brother to some of the most cherished women in the world. So for me to suggest in [cont.]

Looks like Rick Ross’ corporate sponsors were none-too-happy with his controversial “rape lyrics”, as heard on Rocko’s “U.O.E.N.O.”: “Put molly all in her champagne/she ain’t even know it/I took her home and I enjoyed that/she ain’t even know it.”. The shoe brand has buckled to demands of women’s organizations such as UltraViolet, who have blasted [cont.]

This morning, Hot 97 revealed the line-up for Summer Jam XX’s Festival Village stage, which is the smaller stage for a lot of the underground acts. This is the infamous stage where Peter Rosenberg dissed “Starships” last year during Kendrick Lamar’s performance, resulting in Nicki Minaj’s boycott of the show. While we expect Kendrick to [cont.]

The official line-up for Jay-Z and Budweiser’s second annual Made In America festival, to take place in Philadelphia on August 31st-September 1, 2013. Tickets go on sale April 17th at www.madeinamericafestival.com 2 Chainz Kendrick Lamar Ab-Soul Jay Rock ScHoolBoy Q Wiz Khalifa A$AP Rocky Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Public Enemy Beyonce Solange Miguel Phoenix nine [cont.]

Gearing up for a pair of shows in the UK to celebrate the Wu-Tang Clan’s 20th Anniversary, a press release for the event also has a huge reveal: the title to their reunion album. The statement reads as follows: Wu-Tang Clan are currently working on their upcoming album A Better Tomorrow, due for release in [cont.]

Questlove answers the big question: Will the Roots stay when Jimmy Fallon takes over hosting duties from Jay Leno on the Tonight Show in 2014?

Soho workers and passersby enjoyed a lunchtime improvised set atop a parking structure today from two collaborate artists in order to kick-off 34 nights of music in New York City for the Red Bull Music Academy. Set amongst a giant painted backdrop of himself on the corner of Prince and Lafayette, ?uestlove, of The Roots [cont.]

Jay-Z has released this amazing recap video from last summer’s Made In America festival in Philadelphia, which he hosted and produced in 2012. This comes on the heels of the announcement that the festival will happen again on August 31st-September 1, 2013, once again in Philadelphia. So far, the line-up for this year has not [cont.]

As previously reported, Jay-Z was signed on as music supervisor for Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby, and the just revealed tracklist shows an interesting mix of collaborators. The soundtrack will feature a new track by Jay called “100$ Bill”, a remake of Amy Winehouse’s “Back To Black” by Beyonce and Andre 3000, as well as [cont.]