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Kid Cudi took the witness stand Thursday (May 22) in the sex-trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, telling jurors that he believes Combs broke into his Los Angeles house and later torched his Porsche with a Molotov cocktail out of anger over his relationship with Cassie Ventura.
The “Day ‘n’ Nite” rapper (Scott Mescudi) was a much-anticipated witness in the criminal trial of Combs, who’s accused of coercing Ventura and other women into participating in drug-fueled sex shows known as “freak-offs.” The trial closed out its second week on Thursday (May 22) and is expected to continue for at least another month.
Mescudi was photographed arriving at the Manhattan federal courthouse in a leather jacket and smoking a cigarette. According to reporting from CNN and the Associated Press, he began testifying in the morning and told jurors he briefly dated Ventura in 2011.
From the stand, Mescudi said Ventura, an R&B singer who dated Combs for 11 years, became very scared when the music mogul learned about her new relationship in December 2011. He then claimed Combs broke into his L.A. house while he was at a hotel with Ventura, and that items were moved and his dog was locked in a bathroom when he returned.
Combs allegedly tried to talk to Mescudi after this incident, but the rapper said he ignored the mogul’s texts: “You broke into my house, you messed with my dog, I don’t want to talk to you,” Mescudi testified.
Ventura claimed during her marathon testimony last week that Combs had threatened to blow up Mescudi’s car out of anger about their relationship, and, in her 2023 civil lawsuit against Combs, said that shortly after Combs issued these threats, Mescudi’s car was blown up. Mescudi seemed to confirm this, saying his Porsche 911 was torched in his driveway in early 2012.
At one point, the jury was shown a photo of Mescudi’s burnt-up luxury car. “It looks like the top of my Porsche was cut open, and that’s where the Molotov cocktail was put in,” Mescudi testified of the photo.
Mescudi later said he met up with Combs to discuss their differences after the incident, and that Combs acted “like a Marvel supervillain” during their meeting. He added that Combs promised he wasn’t responsible for the car explosion, but Mescudi said he believed Combs was lying.
Combs has not been officially linked to the car explosion — a point that Combs’ attorneys emphasized when cross-examining Mescudi. Defense attorney Brian Steel suggested that DNA collected from the car was identified as belonging to a woman, though Mescudi responded that he never heard from authorities about this.
Steel did get Mescudi to confirm on cross-examination that Ventura confided in him about physical abuse from Combs, but never mentioned sexual abuse. This supports the defense’s argument that while Combs committed domestic violence, he never engaged in trafficking and that all of his sexual encounters were consensual.
Mescudi posted a video on X thanking fans for support after departing the courthouse.
Also on Thursday, the jury heard additional testimony from Combs’ former assistant George Kaplan, who said he quit in 2015 after witnessing the rapper’s violent treatment of Ventura and other girlfriends.
“The central reason that I left my job as Mr. Combs’ assistant was that I was not comfortable or aligned with the physical behavior that had been going on,” said Kaplan, who began his testimony on Wednesday (May 21). Notably, Kaplan was granted immunity after initially being reluctant to testify.
A parade of other witnesses also briefly took the stand on Thursday. This included Ventura’s former makeup artist, Mylah Morales, who said she saw Ventura with extensive injuries after an argument with Combs in 2010, plus a hotel employee and a computer forensics agent.
The trial is off for the next few days and slated to resume on Tuesday (May 27).
Combs was indicted in September, charged with running a sprawling criminal operation aimed at facilitating the freak-offs and using violence, money and blackmail to keep victims silent and under his control. (Read Billboard‘s full explainer of the case against Diddy here.)
Once one of the music industry’s most powerful men, Combs is accused of racketeering conspiracy (a so-called RICO charge), sex trafficking and violating a federal prostitution statute. If convicted on all of the charges, he faces a potential life prison sentence.
Fat Joe thinks Kendrick Lamar and SZA could eventually dethrone Ja Rule and Ashanti as the greatest rapper/singer duo. During a recent episode of their Joe and Jada podcast, Jadakiss brought up Lamar and SZA’s hit record “Luther” making history by spending the most weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 among duets […]
Kid Cudi took the stand as a witness in Diddy’s sex trafficking and racketeering trial on Thursday (May 22). Following his hours-long testimony surrounding his brief romance with Cassie in 2011, Cudi took to X to reflect on his time in court and thanked his fans for their support along the way.
“I’ve been seeing all the love and support and I just want to say thank you so much, man,” Cudi said. “People been hitting me up the past week just checking in and even today, it really means a lot to me, man. You guys are the best. I love y’all.”
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The Cleveland native continued: “This is a stressful situation. I’m glad it’s behind me. Yeah, I love y’all.”
Producer BNYX and Cudi’s fans showed their appreciation in his replies on X for taking the stand. “You did great Scott! Glad it’s over and done with,” one person wrote. While another added: “I’m so proud of you baby!!!!! Take time for yourself , you did that.”
The “Day ‘n’ Nite” rapper was questioned on the stand Thursday about his short stint dating Cassie in the early 2010s, and Cudi opened up about Diddy allegedly setting his Porsche on fire with a Molotov cocktail. Cudi also recounted a break-in of his home around the time of his relationship with Cassie, which he tied to Diddy.
Cassie’s initial bombshell 2023 lawsuit against Combs accused Diddy of blowing up Kid Cudi’s car in his driveway after repeatedly threatening Cudder.
“Too much danger, too much uncertainty of what could happen if we continued to see each other,” she reportedly said of why she ended things romantically with Cudi during her emotional testimony last week.
“[Diddy] said he wanted Scott’s friends to see Scott’s car blown up,” Cassie recalled. “We met, [Diddy], [Kid Cudi] and me. [Kid Cudi] said, ‘What about my vehicle?’ And [Diddy] said, ‘What vehicle?’ And that was the end of the meeting.”
The Bad Boy mogul could be sentenced to life in prison if found guilty on all counts of sex trafficking and racketeering. Diddy’s trial is expected to last into July.
Watch Cudi’s full statement on his experience at the Diddy trial below:
Mozzy is all smiles and good energy as he sits in a darkened studio.
The West Coast rapper is hard at work on Intrusive Thoughts 2 — which he tells me unprompted, without any lead in. That tape will serve as the follow-up to April’s Intrusive Thoughts, which is why he’s chatting with Billboard in the first place. The album delves even deeper into the trials and tribulations that have come to define some of Mozzy’s best work. His relationship with fame versus the streets, the loss of his loved ones to incarceration, death and more. Like his 2024 record Children of the Slums, Intrusive Thoughts explores difficult topics head on in the hopes of finding motivation in the darkness.
“I would appreciate if the youth got some good game up out of it and utilized it through the gangsta s—t that they gotta endure,” Mozzy says of the album. “I done seen a lot of young throw they life away. That s—t heartbreaking and disappointing. So if I can throw a n—a an alley oop and he can cram it and push for it off of that, I’m gonna throw it every time.”
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Billboard chats with Mozzy about working with CMG, his new album and what the vibe is on the West Coast right now.
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Take me through the recording process of Children of the Slums vs. Intrusive Thoughts. How did you approach Intrusive Thoughts differently? How did the album start to come together?
Children of the Slums, I was more reflective of the people that I lost, people that I loved dearly. I think on Intrusive Thoughts it’s self reflection. Hoping I made ‘Pac proud — I don’t wanna be no role model, it’s self reflection. That’s the difference.
You talk about some pretty intense topics on this record. You’ve explored such tough themes dozens of times in your career at this point. Does it ever get emotionally taxing to keep diving into such intense emotions for your music?
I like how you said that, “emotionally taxing” — emotional extortion. Most definitely. But it’s also helped with the healing process. I just wrote a bar the other day: “I think of Skeemo every day, because I’m still grieving,” and he had died a couple of years ago. I’m able to identify that through the music. It naturally ooze out of me — and when I get to reflecting on what I was really saying in that booth, I can hear that pain, that trauma. So I think it’s very therapeutic.
On “Seven 2’s” you rap, “cleaning up my image, but there’s still a glimpse of residue.” How have you gotten better over the years at navigating your complex journey from a kid from the West Coast projects to the rap star you are now? What lessons have you learned along the way and what kind of “residue” has been difficult to leave behind?
As far as the residue, that’s just the trenches. Like [Nipsey Hussle] said: “My circle got smaller, everybody can’t go.” That s—t is heartbreaking, still dealing with losses, n—as goin’ to jail, expiring at an early date. That’s the residue of me staying connected and still loving that part of me, but I’m most definitely cleaning up my image. I’m not talkin’ about nobody dead ones in my music. I’m providing more nutritious bars for the youth. The way I conduct myself, I’m a business man now. I can’t afford to go to jail… You can’t play in water without gettin’ wet. So it’s about transitioning, bossing yourself up and understanding that you’re bigger than some of these circumstances.
Has navigating that journey of bettering yourself been an intentional act that you’ve constantly had to be aware of, or has it become more subconscious now?
Nah, I think it requires the same amount of intentional energy. I’m forcing myself. I’m currently on paper probation, and it’s like, I gotta walk this thin line. I gotta deal with they stipulations but it’s okay because it’s forcing me to stay within my envelope. It’s forcing me to focus on things that matter. Ain’t nobody gonna come save me.
I wanna ask briefly about your bar on “10 Percent,” where you rap, “Quit asking why I signed to CMG/ Advise you guys not to get me started.” What type of push back have you gotten about your relationship with CMG? What’s your relationship like with Gotti at this point?
Everybody’s entitled to their own opinion. So, when I see n—as asking, I be feeling like, “N—a, mind your muthaf—kin’ business. Don’t ask me why I do what the f—k I do. I got us this far, n—a. Let me do my s—t, fall back, watch out.”
I’m cut from an independent cloth, so you know my independent loved ones have been rooting for me. So now, to sign is like — you just exited out the chat, you hear me? [Gotti] my thug, my loved one. Imagine someone walk you in the building and get you a million. How your relationship gonna be with ’em?
What’s changed for you on the business side since inking that deal with CMG?
I just learned how majors tweak their projects, run their roll-outs, a lot of political things. I was very asleep on the process and how tedious they is — the business they stand on is very strict. Independent ain’t that strict, you can kinda do it as you please. [CMG] just on point.
How has your expectation of rap success measured up to the reality of it?
As a kid, I expected this s—t to be like — you remember how they was trippin’ over Michael Jackson? Bobby Brown, Whitney [Houston]? Even Lil Wayne, the dopest to do it. Remember that Bow Wow era? I thought it was gonna be like that. I didn’t know this s—t was gonna be regular, and 100,000 n—as from each city doin’ the same shit. But it’s a gangsta party. It’s just about being a regular, real n—a.
You gonna meet a lot of entertainers and they gonna be on that entertainment, Hollywood bulls—t. You once looked at him like a super hero, and now it’s like, “F—k that man.” So I feel like I just don’t wanna ever give nobody that feeling. Never do no corny s—t.
What can you tell me about Intrusive Thoughts 2?
There’s most definitely gonna be a Part 2 and you can expect the same things as Part 1. Just more detail, a little more emotional about the situation, etc. I’m not gonna give you the feature list but you know I’m comin’ with my thugs!
You and Millyz just linked on “Trenches Famous…”
You think we need a whole EP or something?
I was just gonna ask. Any chance we could get a collab tape?
Shout out Millyz, that n—a the truth with what he do. One of the dopest to do it. Most definitely, I think we got an EP or somethin’ on the way.
What is the general feeling on the West Coast right now?
It’s a gangsta party, it’s been a gangsta party, it’s still a gangsta party. That’s the aura, that’s the energy, that’s the vibration. So that’s why you get that out of my project. When you hear this next one that’s gonna tell you the vibes of what the West Coast on right now.
Tory Lanez’s father, Sonstar Peterson, joined NewsNation’s CUOMO hosted by Chris Cuomo on Wednesday night (May 21), where he revealed that his son is being transferred to a new prison after being stabbed while in prison earlier in the month.
Peterson explained that Lanez isn’t receiving any special treatment, but his move is part of California prison protocol following an act of violence.
“He’s being moved because it’s part of the prison’s protocol that when a situation like this happens. They believe it’s better for him to be in another facility, and so he is being moved as we speak,” he said. “One thing of course, we are concerned about is because my son is a high-profile person and when things like this happen, there is always some kind of weird news going out trying to spin it to be something else.”
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Lanez was attacked on May 12 by another inmate at California Correctional Institution in Tehachapi around 7:20 a.m. PT, and rushed to a nearby hospital, a spokesperson for the prison told ABC News. A message posted to the singer’s verified Instagram account said he suffered a pair of collapsed lungs and was stabbed 14 times in total, but was in “good spirits” while recovering.
Lanez’s father said that when he arrived at the hospital, he spoke to correctional officers who claimed they were surprised that the singer was involved in an altercation because Tory, according to his dad, “is someone who is liked. He’s not someone who is a troublemaker.”
The Toronto native is currently serving a 10-year sentence in prison after being convicted on three felony counts tied to him shooting Megan Thee Stallion in the feet during an argument outside of a Hollywood Hills party in July 2020.
Between the stabbing and claims of new evidence, Lanez’s case is picking up steam once again. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida’s 13th district called for California’s Gov. Newsom to pardon Lanez. The congresswoman claimed that there was new evidence exonerating Lanez.
Unite the People attorney Walter Roberts claimed that Kelsey Harris’ bodyguard, Bradley James, filed an affidavit saying he overheard Harris admit to firing the weapon and not Lanez.
Megan Thee Stallion posted a message to her TikTok calling Lanez a “demon” and pushed back against the hate she’s received in recent weeks regarding the shooting case, while SZA also came to Meg’s defense. “FACTS ARE FACTS, he did it , it was PROVEN IN COURT,” she wrote in part. “Ain’t no new f–king evidence yall been saying the same s–t for years.”
Megan’s legal team also released a report on Thursday (May 22) pushing back against the claims of new evidence and support from Tory fans, arguing that the findings are filled with “false narratives” from “foolish bullies.”
Watch the interview between Chris Cuomo and Tory’s father below.
Ye’s (formerly Kanye West) time spreading antisemitism is over, according to the rapper. The embattled rap mogul claimed on X Thursday (May 22) that he’s turned a new leaf and that his time with anything associated with antisemitism is “done.”
“I am done with antisemitism,” he wrote to kick off a series of posts. “I love all people. God forgive me for the pain I’ve caused. I forgive those who have caused me pain. Thank you God.”
Ye has been vocal about having visitation rights with his children, and it appears seeing his kids on a FaceTime call has inspired him.
“I simply got a FaceTime from my kids and I wanna save the world again,” he wrote. “Share peace. Share love.”
Back in October 2022, Yeezy wore a shirt proclaiming “White Lives Matter” at his Paris Fashion Week show, then days later posted on social media he was going to go “death con 3 on Jewish people,” which set off a chain reaction of businesses and entities such as adidas, Balenciaga, Universal Music Group, Gap and more cutting ties with Ye.
The rapper apologized to the Jewish community with a post on social media in Hebrew in late 2023. Fast-forward to 2025, and Ye’s continued to spew antisemitic remarks as part of plenty of explosive X tirades, which also featured praise for Hitler and other forms of hate speech, as well as his attempt to sell a T-shirt featuring a swastika on his website in February, a move that the Anti-Defamation League criticized, writing on X, “There’s no excuse for this kind of behavior.”
But Ye wasn’t done. “I love Hitler, how what b–ches,” he wrote in March, followed by “I’m a Nazi.” The rapper has since claimed he’s not a Nazi and is now waving the white flag on antisemitism as well, though recent actions appear to show the opposite.
Earlier in May, Ye attempted to release his “Heil Hitler” track, but claimed the controversial single was “banned” from all digital streaming platforms. “Heil Hitler by Ye has been banned by all digital streaming platforms,” he wrote on X while calling out the double standard he sees in streaming censorship. “While Rednecks by Randy Newman remains streamable They’re literally keeping the n—-s down.”
He’s since released “Alive” — featuring YoungBoy Never Broken Again — a song that Playboi Carti on Thursday (May 22) slammed. The “Magnolia” rapper alleged in a since-deleted social media post that Ye used an unauthorized sample on the track.
The embattled rapper’s concert scheduled for May 31 in South Korea was also canceled due to “recent controversies” swirling around him.
See Ye’s posts on X about ending his antisemitism below:
God forgive me for the pain I’ve caused— ye (@kanyewest) May 22, 2025
I simply got a FaceTime from my kids and I wanna save the world again…— ye (@kanyewest) May 22, 2025
When Ye (formerly Kanye West) shared his “Alive” collaboration with YoungBoy Never Broke Again, which samples Playboi Carti’s “Crank,” to his Instagram on Wednesday (May 21), many thought it signaled a truce between West and the Opium frontman, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.
Shortly after the embattled rapper shared “Alive,” Carti dropped his version with YoungBoy and fired at Ye with his caption, claiming ownership of the track. “DIS MY SONG LIL BRA @ye,” he wrote in the since-deleted post.
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Billboard has reached out to the “Stronger” rapper’s camp for comment.
It’s unclear who had the track first, but streamer Sneako, who has been with Ye over the last month or so in Spain, claimed that it’s Yeezy’s and he made the beat for the track, which sounds like a sister of the blaring “New Slaves” from West’s Yeezus album.
“Ye made the beat, clearly,” claimed Sneako. “If you listen to Carti’s version, it’s not good.”
Ye — who has been criticized for his repeated hate speech the last few years — ended up releasing “Alive” on Apple Music on Thursday morning (May 22), while Carti and YoungBoy have remained quiet. It’s unclear whether Carti will take action, since “Alive” samples DJ Swamp Izzo’s version of “Alive,” which is featured as part of Playboi Carti’s “Crank” track.
Carti moved on quickly Wednesday and leaked another song titled “Some More” on Instagram, but that post was also deleted. YoungBoy even shared a solo track called “Finest,” so it ended up being a great day for hip-hop fans of the three artists.
There have been instances where Ye has had issues with sample clearances in the past, as tracks from his Vultures album were removed due to unauthorized use, including “Good (Don’t Die)” for a Donna Summers sample.
Yeezy and Playboi Carti’s relationship soured earlier this year when the Atlanta rapper left Ye off his Music album and opted to invite guests including Travis Scott and Kendrick Lamar into the fold.
“I DECIDED NORTH WONT BE DOING ANY SONGS WITH CARTI HOW IT LOOK FOR ME TO GET LEFT OFF THE ALBUM AND THEN HE ASK KIM TO HAVE VOCALS FROM MY DAUGHTER,” Ye wrote to X in March.
Carti’s response to that? “YE STFU.”
Rob49 has spoken about the negative reception Justin Bieber‘s verse got on his “WTHelly” remix, and tells Billboard he doesn’t know if he’s gonna drop it.
The New Orleans rapper speaks about his new album, Let Me Fly, and touches on the divisive reception he got after teasing an unreleased remix of “WTHelly” featuring Biebs. After teasing the song on a Twitch livestream with the streamer Reggie, fans were quick to clown the pop star for trying to turn a lighthearted track into a soulful ballad. Rob said after speaking with Justin, he doesn’t know if he’ll officially release it to the public.
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“I talked to Justin a couple of days ago and he was telling me he wanted to do some more songs, so I don’t know,” Rob says when when discussing whether he’ll drop off the remix. “It’s funny, when he first did it he was like, ‘What you think? You think I can go harder?’ I told him like, ‘Man, I love it bro, if you feel comfortable about it, if you like it, then I love it.’ You know? I just told him, ‘If you like it you like it.”
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When asked about whether he was surprised the verse was so divisive, Rob shares, “No, not really. I knew it was a possibility because, it was the same way when he asked me, ‘Do you think I can go harder?’”
Rob admits that he knew the singing aspect of Bieber’s verse would turn some heads, and said that’s just how it goes when trying to make a hit record.
“You just never know what it’s gonna be, and fans don’t understand that all the time,” he says. “That you don’t know what a hit is! Like it just kinda happens. Some people might’ve been like, ‘Oh my god he sung!’ and if it would have been a hit, it would have been a crazy banger. That be the difference between songs.”
However, Rob says other “WTHelly” remixes will soon see the light of day, and that the G Herbo revamp will be the first to arrive.
“I was gonna drop the [remix] with [G Herbo] first and add it to the album, but we wound up doing it too late,” Rob says of why it wasn’t on Let Me Fly. “So it might come out the next day on the album, then we’re just gonna go from there with it.”
Let Me Fly drops Friday (May 23) and includes features from Birdman, Meek Mill, Sexyy Red, Quavo, Polo G and Fridayy.
After a blockbuster 2024, PlaqueBoyMax has announced he’s signing to Captiol Records and Field Trip Recordings. The streaming star made the announcement on Thursday (May 22), with the producer capping off an insane year after emerging in 2024 with his Twitch series In The Booth and Song Wars. He dropped off his debut EP 5$TAR […]
Megan Thee Stallion’s legal team released a detailed report Thursday blasting claims from Tory Lanez’s supporters about new evidence that will exonerate him, calling them as “false narratives” from “foolish bullies.”
The report came after Lanez’s legal team claimed they had uncovered new evidence that would prove he did not shoot Megan in 2020, a crime for which he was convicted in 2022 and is currently serving a 10-year sentence.
In the 31-page document, Megan’s attorneys said claims of a new witness were “unsworn rumors being spread as fact” and that Ring camera footage of the 2020 shooting – purported to be new evidence of Lanez’s innocence – was already played at his trial.
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“Despite Mr. Lanez being convicted at trial by overwhelming evidence (that included his own admission of his guilt), he and his team – flanked by any ignorant person they can find – have pushed whatever misleading narrative they can,” said Alex Spiro, Megan’s longtime attorney.
“One by one, their misleading statements unravel and all that is left is the simple truth: he was convicted by overwhelming evidence and those who seek to traumatize the victim of the crime should be called out as foolish bullies,” Spiro added.
The new response echo Megan’s own statement on the claims. In a social media post Tuesday, the superstar said that “FACTS ARE FACTS” and that the case was already decided in court: “TORY PLEASE LEAVE ME ALONE you are a f–king demon.” SZA has also expressed support for Megan, saying Wednesday that she was “shocked” by statements supporting Lanez.
Lanez was convicted in December 2022 on three felony counts for shooting Megan in July 2020 during an argument following a pool party at Kylie Jenner’s house in the Hollywood Hills. In August 2023, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison. He has filed an appeal of that verdict, which remains pending.
Last week, Lanez’s legal team from the group Unite The People held a press conference claiming they had new evidence in the case. They argued that Bradley James, a bodyguard of Pete’s former friend Kelsey Harris, had overheard Harris say that she fired the gun – the central defense argument advanced by Lanez’s team during his trial.
Then earlier this week, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (FL-R) called for the singer to be pardoned, claiming there was new “compelling evidence” that would exonerate him. In a later interview, Luna cited surveillance footage that she said corroborated James’ account.
But in Thursday’s report, Megan’s team said both of those claims were false. They noted that James was “not present at the scene of the crime” and had never spoken publicly about the case, in court or otherwise.
“James has not publicly addressed these claims himself — Peterson’s team merely alleges what James said,” Spiro and the other lawyers write. “Despite being cited as a key source, James failed to appear at the press conference to support these allegations.”
As for the surveillance footage, they argued that was nothing new: “There is no new Ring camera footage,” Megan’s lawyers write. “The Ring camera footage was previously admitted as evidence during Lanez’s trial, it was played for the jury, and the footage captured the sound of 5 gunshots.”
They also say other claims from Lanez’s supporters – including longstanding suggestions that DNA evidence calls his guilt into question – are also false: “When the firearm was tested by DNA experts, testing established that there was a 90% chance that the DNA found came from a man.”
A representative for Unite The People did not immediately return a request for comment. Lanez’s appeal of his verdict, lodged with California’s 2nd Appellate District, has been fully briefed since October but has not yet been argued before the court.