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Bobby Shmurda officially received his seven-year prison sentence today, although not without a fight. Shmurda attempted to renegotiate the plea deal at the last minute, with claims that his lawyer had forced him into the deal. “I was forced to take this sentence. I don’t want to take this sentence. I want to drop the plea,” the New York Daily News reports Shmurda telling the judge during the hearing. He then addressed his lawyer directly, saying “I want to drop my plea and fire you.”

Although it’s not clear exactly what caused him to have a change of heart, it didn’t end up mattering. The terms of the deal were already negotiated with prosecutors, and the judge went ahead and officially handed down the sentence to Shmurda. The deal saw him plead guilty to 4th-degree conspiracy to criminally possess a weapon and 2nd-degree criminal weapons possession, despite his claims that the gun was a prop for a music video.

“You don’t have any rights in that courtroom,” said Shmurda’s mother Leslie Pollard, expressing her frustration at the court proceedings to Billboard. “It’s heartbreaking. It’s disappointing.”

Shmurda originally told Complex that he had taken the deal to help Rowdy Rebel. “I did it for Rowdy. They offered me five [years] and offered Rowdy 12,” he said. “They said the only way they’ll give him seven is if I took seven, too. So, you know, I had to take one for the dawgs.”

Shmurda has already served close to two years of his sentence.

It’s only been a few days since Gucci Mane dropped his tenth studio album Woptober, but the 1017 general is already back with an announcement for a followup album. Titled The Return of the East Atlanta Santa, Wizop took to Twitter to reveal that the project is set for a release on December 16. After being released from his three-year bout in prison, Guwop dropped his first No. 1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album charts with Everybody Looking in August, and followed it up with Woptober last Friday. The long-rumored Drake and Gucci collaboration project, tentatively titled The 6ers, could also arrive in time for Christmas this year. Stay tuned for more news on the forthcoming projects.

Kanye West is currently in the midst of the first leg of his ‘Saint Pablo’ tour, which is set to conclude on October 29th in Las Vegas. For those who haven’t had the chance to check it out yet, worry not as the Chicago artist just announced the second leg. 23 additional dates start on November 7 in San Jose, California and finishes off on New Year’s Eve at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. The run also includes the Philadelphia and Detroit dates that were postponed due to the news of Kim Kardashian being robbed at gunpoint in Paris. At the moment, only North American dates have been announced, so fans outside of the US and Canada will have to hold tight for now. Check the dates out below.

Kanye West – ‘Saint Pablo’ Tour (Second Leg Dates)

November 17 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center at San Jose
November 19 – Sacramento, CA – Golden 1 Center
November 22 – Fresno, CA – SaveMart Center
November 23 – Anaheim, CA – Honda Center
November 26 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center
November 28 – Denver, CO – Pepsi Center
December 1 – San Antonio, TX – AT&T Center
December 2 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center
December 4 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL – BB&T Center
December 6 – Orlando, FL – Amway Center
December 8 – Atlanta, GA – Philips Arena
December 9 – Columbia, SC – Colonial Life Arena
December 11 – Albany, NY – The Times Union Center
December 13 – Philadelphia, PA – Wells Fargo Center (RESCHEDULED)
December 15 – Philadelphia, PA – Wells Fargo Center
December 16 – Newark, NJ – Prudential Center
December 18 – Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre
December 20 – Louisville, KY – KFC Yum! Center
December 22 – Detroit, MI – Palace of Auburn Hills (RESCHEDULED)
December 27 – Washington, DC – Verizon Center
December 28 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
December 30 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center
December 31 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center

Frank Ocean’s sophomore album Blonde was one of the most talked-about and highly anticipated albums of the last few years. Following its summer release, it looked as though the project would be a strong contender for the 2017 Grammy Awards; however, we now know that isn’t going to happen.

According to Billboard, Blonde, as well as Ocean’s visual album Endless, have been disqualified from the Grammy race because neither of them were submitted by Ocean’s labels or management. But it should be noted that Blonde and Endless dropped Aug. 20 and Aug. 21, respectively, which was well before the Grammy eligibility cutoff date on Sept. 30. A representative for the Grammys confirmed to Billboard the projects had not been submitted for consideration.

The news is disappointing, to say the least. Blonde not only received critical praise, it was also a commercial success. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart with 276,000 equivalent album units earned, which was the third-largest debut of the year. It was is an impressive accomplishment for Ocean, especially when you consider the album was illegally downloaded over 750,000 times.

Judging by Blonde’s reception, it’s safe to say it would’ve earned at least several 2017 Grammy nominations; however, as pointed out by Billboard, Endless’ eligibility isn’t so clear. The visual album, which was Ocean’s last project with Def Jam, was dropped exclusively on Apple Music. Thanks to a Grammys rule update in June, streaming-only projects are now eligible for nominations, but there’s some question if Endless would have received a nomination due to its untraditional “visual album” status.

According to a report from Billboard, a source close to Frank Ocean claimed that Ocean’s management was aware of the filing deadline and chose not to submit the albums for consideration.

Times are rough for Troy Ave.

Back in July, the Brooklyn rapper was indicted on one count of second degree attempted murder as well as four counts of second degree criminal possession of a weapon. And although Troy was eventually released from jail on a $500,000 bond, his bail conditions have led to some serious financial struggles. And we mean serious.

Sources close to the rapper told DNA Info that the 30-year-old is “barely able to get by” because the bail stipulations have kept him from making money. Troy, whose real name is Roland Collins, is reportedly under an 11 p.m. curfew, and is not allowed to leave NYC or be in nightclubs or other venues. His lawyer John Stella said that Troy has missed dozens of tour dates and lost tens of thousands of dollars because of the stipulations. Stella recently asked the judge to loosen the bail restrictions so Troy can go back to earning an income; however, the judge said he wants to wait for additional evidence before he can make a decision on the request.

Troy’s charges stem from a deadly shootout that took place at Irving Plaza back in May. The incident, which occurred backstage at Irving Plaza during a T.I. concert, resulted in the death of Ronald McPhatter, Troy’s bodyguard and close friend. The situation became more complicated after surveillance footage showed Troy wielding a firearm and shooting backstage. Police eventually arrested Troy and charged him with attempted murder.

The rapper has maintained his innocence, and has also filed a lawsuit against Irving Plaza, claiming its lax security is was what ultimately led to the shooting.

Troy reportedly makes between $6,000 and $10,000 for each performance. Since his arrest, he has had to cancel more than 50 shows, some of which were paid in advance. Stella says he wants Troy’s conditions to be similar to those of Rick Ross. Back in 2015, Ross was released on a $2 million bond after he was accused of kidnapping and assault; however, he is still permitted to travel and perform under 24-hour monitoring.

“Just like Rick Ross, Troy should be given the ability to work and provide for his family,” Stella told DNA Info.

Nicki Minaj called in to The Breakfast Club Monday morning to talk about meeting her idol Lauryn Hill for the first time. “Oh my God, such a surreal moment,” she said. “I couldn’t control myself I was at a loss for words. And she was super sweet and gracious and I was not expecting that.” According to Nicki, she was totally caught by surprise. “All of a sudden, I literally said the words ‘Do y’all realize my idol is right there,’ and within 30 seconds of me saying that she walked into my room,” she added.

Nicki revealed that her Marie Claire cover was actually shot several months ago. She said it was odd to suddenly be hearing about it when it all came together so long ago. She also discussed the state of her Freeform sitcom, which she said has been delayed due to changes she wanted to make to the pilot. She didn’t give a timeframe for when it might finally air, but still sounded excited about the project.

Fresh off the drop of his Migos-assisted track “Dat Way,” Rich the Kid hit up Twitter this weekend to preview a new track with frequent collaborators Quavo and Desiigner.

Though there aren’t many details—like the song’s title and whether it will be featured on one of Rich’s upcoming projects—there is one thing we do: The cut sounds fire. As you can hear in the one-minute sneak peek, Desiigner provides the hook while Rich and Quavo spit verses that sound very similar to those that we heard on “Dat Way.” You can check out the snippet below.

This new shit Goinnnnnnnn!! a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/desiigner?src=hash”>#desiigner #quavo pic.twitter.com/rKOjWL9K1T

— Rich The Kid (@richthekid) October 16, 2016

Earlier this year, Rich promised fans he would drop two projects in September: The fifth installment of Streets On Lock with Migos, as well as his Keep Flexing mixtape that will include “Strippers” featuring Designer. The former project is slated to drop Nov. 5, while the latter’s release date is still unknown. Will this new track be included on either records? We’ll just have to wait to see.

Yes, his project’s are a little late, but it’s clear Rich hasn’t been slacking at work. Just a day before dropping the preview, he posted an Instagram photo of him and Lil Wayne in the studio. Wayne rapped on the Atlanta rapper’s “Jumpin Like Jordan” on Sorry 4 The Wait 2, which was one of his biggest songs at the time.

Again, he didn’t provide many details, but it seems a Rich and Tunechi collaboration is coming our way soon. Stay tuned.

Shawty Lo was killed in a car accident in September shortly after leaving the Blue Flame Lounge in Atlanta, dying from blunt force trauma to the head after his car went over the guardrail, hit trees, and caught fire. According to TMZ, the Atlanta rapper also reportedly had painkillers on him and smelled like alcohol at the time of the crash.

The Fulton County Medical Examiner apparently found a prescription bottle on him labeled Promethazine that was instead filled with Percocet and Vicodin. Strangely enough, the TMZ report states that the two women with Shawty Lo in the car at the time of the crash asked cops on the scene if they could take money out of his pockets and were allegedly allowed to do so.

The rapper was only 40 years old and left behind 11 children. In light of the tragic news, the hip-hop community quickly took to social media to share their heartfelt condolences. “Legends never die…Shawty Lo Forever,” Future tweeted while DJ Drama wrote, “RIP Shawty Lo. Prayers to his family and friends. ATown Legend.” Meanwhile, Shawty’s fans from all over the world have been rallying together to with an online petition to change the name of an Atlanta highway to Shawty Lo Parkway.

Azealia Banks and Russell Crowe were reportedly involved in an altercation in his hotel room in Beverly Hills, California on Saturday night. According to reports from TMZ and Daily Mail, Banks was a guest in Crowe’s hotel suite thanks to RZA, with whom she recently signed a record deal. From there, stories differ as to exactly what went down.

Azealia leveled some serious claims at Crowe in a now-deleted Facebook post. “I went to a party at Russell Crowe’s suite, at which he called me a nigger, choked me, threw me out, and spat on me,” she wrote. “The men in the room allowed it to happen. I feel terrible today.”

There’s an old saying that goes something like, “Never meet your heroes because you’ll only be disappointed.” Though it can be a life-altering experience, stories about people meeting their childhood idols and coming away from the experience with lesser opinion of them as a result are everywhere. Fortunately for Nicki Minaj, she managed to escape the same fate when she came face-to-face with her own musical hero Lauryn Hill in Brooklyn last night.

Both artists were onhand at the Barclays Center to take part in the TIDAL X: 1015 Charity Concert to help raise funds for the Robin Hood Foundation as well as other charities dedicated to children’s health and education. When their paths crossed backstage, Minaj fell to her knees and praised the former Fugee. “No, no, no, no, please,” Minaj cried as Hill entered the room. “I’m in love with you!” she added while holding her hand.

Minaj’s good mood didn’t stay that way for long however. As soon as she hit the stage, she had a message to deliver about the wife of the Republican presidential nominee. “You n**gas are so fucking weak, ya’ll got the audacity to be intimidated by a bad motherfucking queen and get your motherfucking feelings hurt,” Minaj told Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. “‘Cause Barack needed Michelle, bitch. And Bill needed a motherfucking Hillary, bitch. You better pray to God you don’t get stuck with a motherfucking Melania.”