Rappers Showbiz Cheat Sheet

Rappers
Kanye West (Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images)
Rappers
Rappers are some of the most prominent artists on the top 40 charts. Rap/ hip-hop is a musical style and genre featuring rhythmic and sometimes rhyming speech that is rapped over a musical backing. Rap originated in African American communities in New York City and started to become part of the mainstream music scene in the 1970s. Rap Trivia:
- "Rap" is said to stand for "rhythm and poetry."
- Jay-Z has the most Grammy Awards for any rapper, with 23 wins and 80 nominations over his career.
- Kendrick Lamar won Pulitzer Prize in Music for 2018 for his 2017 album Damn, the first time the award has gone to an artist outside the classical or jazz genres.
Genre Origin: New York City, 1970s Popular subgenres: Trap rap, gangsta rap, Boom-bap, Soundcloud rap, and Lo-fi hip-hop Notable Rappers: Tupac Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G., Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Eminem, Ghostface Killah, Lauryn Hill, Nas, Nicki Minaj, and Drake.
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Kanye West

Celebrity

Kim Kardashian and ‘Entire Family’ Irate That Kanye West’s ‘Sexual Kinks’ Are Coming Out in Lawsuit

Kim Kardashian and her 'entire family' are allegedly 'livid' over a lawsuit containing details of Kanye West's sexual kinks. Here's what an insider claimed.

by Lauren Weiler

Published on October 23, 2024

3 min read

Kanye West in an all-white outfit with a white mask next to Bianca Censori, who's wearing a nude bodysuit and pink hair

Celebrity

Bianca Censori Participated in ‘Twisted and Bizarre Sexual Behavior’ With Kanye West, New Lawsuit Alleges

Kanye West's wife, Bianca Censori, is mentioned in a new lawsuit against West. Here's what West's ex-assistant said about her 'bizarre' sexual behavior.

by Lauren Weiler

Bianca Censori and Kanye West walking hand in hand in Los Angeles

Celebrity

Bianca Censori’s Mother Refuses to Respond to Kanye West’s Alleged Kink Concerning Her

Bianca Censori's mother doesn't want anything to do with the current lawsuit concerning Kanye West. Here's how she responded when asked about an alleged kink concerning her.

by Lauren Weiler

Jay-Z Lost a Competition for Aaliyah’s Romantic Attention

Aaliyah had two men competing for her attention. Jay-Z, who was interested in her, reportedly wasn't thrilled about this.

by Emma McKee

Published on October 14, 2024

3 min read

Sean 'Diddy' Combs, Beyoncé, and Jay-Z posing together in 2004

Celebrity

Jay-Z and Beyoncé Are ‘Sending a Message’ on Diddy Case, Attorney Says

Jay-Z and Beyoncé's lawyer recently spoke out after Piers Morgan posted an interview containing false claims regarding the couple and Sean 'Diddy' Combs. Here's what the lawyer said about the couple 'sending a message.'

by Lauren Weiler

Beyonce and Jay-Z posing next to each other at the premiere of 'Lion King'.

Celebrity

Beyoncé Once Confronted an Actor Who Was Flirting With Jay-Z

Beyoncé has shown a couple of times how protective she was of Jay-Z and their marriage, as she’s been willing to confront anyone who might pose a threat to them.

by Antonio Stallings

Tupac Shared Why He Thought Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Bad Boy Records Was in ‘Hell’

Sean 'Diddy' Combs' record label feuded with Death Row, which represented Tupac. Tupac shared his thoughts on Bad Boy.

by Emma McKee

Published on October 21, 2024

2 min read

Sean 'Diddy' Combs wears a black denim jacket and sunglasses. He holds a microphone.

Music

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Didn’t Think Tupac or Suge Knight Would Have Ever Hurt Him

Sean "Diddy" Combs knew there were rumors about his safety being at risk. Here's why he didn't take them seriously.

by Emma McKee

Sean 'Diddy Combs' wears a white shirt and poses in front of a blue background.

Celebrity

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Said His Feud With Suge Knight and Tupac Hurt Him ‘Spiritually’

Sean 'Diddy' Combs feuded with Death Row Records for years. He shared why he wasn't happy to be in the rivalry.

by Emma McKee

Jay-Z’s Hit Song ‘Big Pimpin” Contained a Lyric That Pimp C Thought Was About Masturbation

Jay-Z teamed up with Pimp C of UGK for his hit single 'Big Pimpin'' in the late 1990s. But there was one lyric from the song that gave Pimp C some pause.

by Chris Malone

The Notorious B.I.G., rapper behind 'One More Chance', on stage performing

Music

Inside The Notorious B.I.G.’s Star-Studded ‘One More Chance’ Music Video Shoot

The Notorious B.I.G. released his music video for 'One More Chance' in the mid-1990s, which featured some big-name starts of the day in the video.

by Chris Malone

Yung Miami and Sean "Diddy" Combs, who recently introduced his mom to Yung Miami

Music

What Yung Miami Thinks of Diddy’s Mother

Diddy and Yung Miami have been in a relationship for nearly two years. Yung Miami got to meet Diddy's mom and the rest of his family and shared her thoughts about them.

by Chris Malone

Music

What It Took to Turn Doja Cat Into ‘Doja’s Inferno’ for Paris Fashion Week

Doja Cat broke the internet with her red crystallized look she wore to the Schiaparelli fashion show at Paris Fashion Week in January 2023.

by Chris Malone

Diddy at the Apple Music premiere of 'Can't Stop Won't Stop: A Bad Boy Story'

Celebrity

Diddy Once Shared He Didn’t Want Anymore Kids Until Marriage

Although Diddy was already the father of six kids, he didn’t rule out having more in the future if certain circumstances were met.

by Antonio Stallings

Kanye West and North West, who recently met her dad's new wife Bianca Censori, on stage together

Music

Kanye West Introduced Daughter North West to His New Wife Bianca Censori on a Fancy Dinner Date

Kanye West's daughter North West was the first of his children to meet Bianca Censori, the Yeezy architect from Australia he married in January 2023.

by Chris Malone

Jay-Z and Beyoncé, who had their wedding in 2008, on stage together in 2018

Music

What Jay-Z and Beyoncé Have Said About Their Intimate 2008 Wedding

Beyoncé and Jay-Z got married in 2008. After nearly a decade of dating. The music power couple had an intimate ceremony with their closest friends and family.

by Chris Malone

Yung Miami and Sean "Diddy" Combs, who have had a relationship timeline filled with ups and downs, posing for a photo together

Music

Diddy and Yung Miami’s Relationship Timeline, From ‘Caresha Please’ to New Year’s Eve

Diddy and Yung Miami reportedly first started dating in 2021, and the two have celebrated a number of milestones together since going public with their relationship in 2022.

by Chris Malone

Christian 'King' Combs, who spoke out about nepo babies, and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs on stage together

Music

What Diddy’s Son King Combs Has to Say About Being a ‘Nepo Baby’

Diddy's son King Combs is a rapper himself, and following the controversy around nepo babies, the rapper is speaking out with his thoughts on the conversation.

by Chris Malone

Drake, who teased a new album at his 2023 Apollo Theater show, on stage wearing a black leather jacket

Music

Drake Teased Another New Album During His Apollo Theater Show

Drake performed at the Apollo Theater in January 2023, and during the show the 'Her Loss' rapper teased that he could have another album on the way soon.

by Chris Malone

Music

The Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z Were ‘Going at It’ While Recording ‘I Love the Dough’

The Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z had a relationship dating back to before they were rappers. Once Jay-Z had become a rapper, the two teamed up for the song 'I Love the Dough.'

by Chris Malone

Easy Mo Bee, friend of The Notorious B.I.G., smiling for a photo

Music

Why Easy Mo Bee Was Initially ‘Scared’ of Biggie’s ‘Going Back to Cali’: ‘Is This the Healthy Thing to Do Right Now?’

Easy Mo Bee, who produced The Notorious B.I.G.'s song 'Going Back to Cali', was 'scared' of the song before it was released.

by Chris Malone

The Notorious B.I.G., who was signed to Diddy's label Bad Boy Records and performer of 'My Downfall' wearing a blue plaid shirt rapping into a microphone

Music

Diddy Once Said The Notorious B.I.G.’s ‘My Downfall’ Was Inspired by His Anger

The Notorious B.I.G. recorded 'My Downfall' for his second (and what would be his final) album. Diddy said the D.M.C. collab was birthed out of Biggie's anger.

by Chris Malone

Music

There’s Some Disagreement About if The Notorious B.I.G.’s ‘Long Kiss Goodnight’ Is About Tupac

The Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur were two legendary rappers who shared a close friendship for years. But their relationship soured in the mid-1990s before Tupac’s death in September 1996. Six months later, The Notorious B.I.G. released “Long Kiss Goodnight,” viewed by some to be directly about his onetime friend. Biggie’s ‘Long Kiss Goodnight’ was …

by Chris Malone

The Notorious B.I.G. showing off his jewelry on the red carpet

Music

The Notorious B.I.G. Used Wads of Cash to Pay for Jewelry

The Notorious B.IG. wore lots of jewelry and spent his money on new pieces. But he wouldn't pay with a credit card: he would use wads of cash at the jewelry store.

by Chris Malone

Celebrity

Sade Turned Down Collaborations With Rappers Like Jay-Z Because She Was Scared

Jay-Z and other artists hoped to one day be able to feature on a Sade song, but the famous singer couldn’t bring herself to get out of her comfort zone.

by Antonio Stallings

Lil' Kim and The Notorious B.I.G. posing together

Music

The Notorious B.I.G. and Lil’ Kim Were in a Huge Fight While Recording ‘Another’ for ‘Life After Death’: ‘I Hit Biggie So Hard’

Lil' Kim and The Notorious B.I.G.'s relationship was filled with plenty of arguments and fights, one of which overshadowed the recording of their collaboration 'Another' from Biggie's album 'Life After Death.'

by Chris Malone

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, who once collaborated with The Notorious B.I.G., performing together

Music

How Bone Thugs-N-Harmony Came to Collaborate on ‘Notorious Thugs’: ‘When Biggie Did Our Style, That’s When Bone Received Respect’

Bone Thugs-n-Harmony collaborated with The Notorious B.I.G. on the song 'Notorious Thugs.' For them, getting to work with Biggie was a huge gift to them and their careers.

by Chris Malone

Dr. Dre and Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson posing for a photo together

Music

50 Cent Fought Dr. Dre to Have ’21 Questions’ on His Debut Album ‘Get Rich or Die Tryin”

50 Cent included the song '21 Questions' on his debut album 'Get Rich or Die Tryin''. But the album's executive producer, Dr. Dre, didn't think the song belonged on the album.

by Chris Malone

Drake, who released 'Jumbotron S***' with 21 Savage, wearing green and holding a mic on stage, pointing at the audience

Music

Drake Releases ‘Jumbotron S*** Poppin’ Video Hours After 21 Savage’s Heated Clubhouse Argument

Drake and 21 Savage collaborated on the album 'Her Loss,' released in November 2022. One of the songs on the album, 'Jumbotron S*** Poppin,' just got a new music video, not long after 21 Savage got into an argument on Clubhouse.

by Chris Malone