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Alleged Rollin’ 60s Los Angeles Crips gang leader and music executive Eugene “Big U” Henley Jr. has been charged as part of a 107-page sprawling indictment that compares his “Big U Enterprise” to a “mafia-like organization,” the Department of Justice announced on Wednesday (March 19).
According to the DOJ, Henley, 58, remains at large and is considered a fugitive as he faces conspiracy charges related to the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. He and his associates are accused of racketeering, extortion, human trafficking, fraud and the murder of a 21-year-old aspiring rapper who signed to his Uneek Music label, among other charges.
Henley is credited with helping launch the career of rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was a member of the Rollin’ 60s in South Central Los Angeles prior to his death in 2019.
Two others named in the indictment, Sylvester “Vey” Robinson and Mark “Bear Claw” Martin, have been arrested on the same criminal complaint in which Henley was charged; both were expected to appear in U.S. District Court in L.A. on Wednesday afternoon. Overall, 10 Rollin’ 60s members have been arrested in the past 24 hours, while another four were already in custody. Law enforcement is currently tracking down five other defendants, “three of whom are expected to be in custody shortly,” according to the DOJ press release. In addition to Henley, one other unnamed defendant is considered a fugitive.
“The allegations in the complaint unsealed today reveal a criminal enterprise that engaged in murder, extortion, human trafficking, and fraud — all led by a supposed anti-gang activist and purported music entrepreneur who was nothing more than a violent street criminal,” said acting U.S. Attorney Joseph McNally in a statement.
McNally continued: “Eliminating gangs and organized crime is the Department of Justice’s top priority. Today’s charges and arrests target the leadership of this criminal outfit and will make the neighborhoods of Los Angeles safer. I am grateful for the work of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners.”
According to the DOJ, Henley was involved in the murder of rapper “R.W.” — the victim’s initials — who signed to his Uneek Music label in January 2021. While recording at a studio in Las Vegas, R.W. allegedly recorded a diss track taking shots at Henley. According to the DOJ, Henley and Robinson then confronted R.W. in Vegas, with Henley allegedly later shooting R.W. in the head and leaving his body in a ditch off Interstate 15. He also allegedly had the studio’s security camera footage scrubbed and ordered any witnesses not to speak with authorities following the murder.
The indictment states that Henley rose to prominence with the Crips gang in the 1980s and has remained a leader within the organization. The feds accuse him of leveraging his relationships with the Rollin’ 60s to the benefit of his Big U Enterprise, which allegedly used violence, fear and intimidation tactics to increase its power.
While associated with the Rollin’ 60s, Big U Enterprise is being treated as an independent organization tied to various crimes also including robbery, exploiting sex workers and illegal gambling.
Per the Los Angeles Times, athletes, celebrities and musicians were among Henley’s extortion victims, who were required to “check-in” for “protection” when visiting Los Angeles. He allegedly defrauded companies, donors, athletes and celebrities, including former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal and Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green. Henley allegedly took donations from both men that were meant for charity and transferred the funds to his personal bank account.
Pop singer-songwriter Sia has always been keen on keeping her personal life private — so private, that according to a new report, the singer welcomed her third child almost a year ago. According to documents obtained by The Associated Press, Sia welcomed a baby named Somersault Wonder Bernad with her now-estranged husband, Daniel Bernad, on […]
Attorney Tony Buzbee is withdrawing from more than a dozen sexual abuse lawsuits against Sean “Diddy” Combs in New York federal court two days after telling a judge he had “made an error in judgment” by failing to disclose that he was not admitted to practice law in that court.
Buzbee, who’s filed more than 20 cases against Combs and has fought an acrimonious battle with Jay-Z after filing a lawsuit by a woman who briefly accused him of rape, filed motions Wednesday (March 19) to withdraw across 15 different civil lawsuits in the Southern District of New York, the federal court district covering Manhattan.
The moves came two days after Buzbee told Judge Ronnie Abrams in one of those cases that he’d “made an error in judgment by failing to inform you that I was not admitted to the Southern District” and would “remedy this error by withdrawing my representation” until he was admitted.
In the same filing, Buzbee stressed that he was “in good standing of the New York State Bar” and would still be “eminently qualified” to continue handling the case, but said he would step away “as I sort these issues out.”
“My admission status has become a distraction that has shifted the focus of the matter away from where it should be, which is securing justice for the plaintiff,” Buzbee told Judge Abrams in the Monday letter.
The lawsuits against Combs will proceed with other attorneys at the helm, and Buzbee will remain in cases filed in New York state courts or other jurisdictions. Buzbee did not return a request for comment from Billboard, but in a Tuesday statement to the Houston Chronicle, he said: “Until that administrative issue is sorted out, my colleagues who are formally admitted in the SDNY will continue to push those cases while I continue to march forward in the New York State cases.”
Combs is facing a flood of abuse accusations, including dozens of civil lawsuits and a sweeping criminal indictment from federal prosecutors. He faces a jury trial on those charges in May; if convicted, he’s looking at a potential life prison sentence.
Buzbee, a well-known plaintiffs’ attorney in the Houston area, announced in October that was representing 120 individuals who had been victimized by Combs and would soon begin filing civil lawsuits on their behalf. He’s since filed more than 20 such cases, mostly repping anonymous Doe accusers who say the star sexually assaulted or raped them.
In December, Buzbee added Jay-Z as a defendant to one of those cases, accusing the star of joining Combs in raping an unnamed 13-year-old girl in 2000. The star vehemently denied the shocking allegations and has subsequently sued Buzbee and the accuser for defamation. In February, Buzbee’s client voluntarily dropped the case against Jay-Z without a settlement.
50 Cent is never one to shy away from just about anything these days, but even he’s distancing himself from Ye (formerly Kanye West).
While West sniped at plenty of his peers — from Drake to Playboi Carti and Kendrick Lamar — he actually showed some love to 50 Cent.
“50 Cent is one of my favorite people,” Ye wrote to X on Tuesday (March 18). “He will be one of the people who brings back Black economic independence.”
However, 50 was hesitant to associate with the rapper, who has been criticized for his repeated hate speech. “Damn it Ye ya dangerous right now, what you say about the kids man,” 50 replied with a repost to his Instagram hours later.
Fans had plenty to say about the interaction between the hip-hop titans. “50 the only n—a who Ye didn’t crash out on this week,” one person wrote in the “In Da Club” rapper’s comments section.
Another chimed in: “50 like ‘leave me out this ish ye, not the time.’”
During a 2024 interview with Billboard, 50 said nobody’s been through more or had as many reasons to crash as Ye, but credited him for powering through to have one of the most decorated careers in rap.
“I don’t think anybody’s been through more or have more reasons to fall apart than Kanye,” he said at the time. “The success of his project comes, and his mom passes away. So what you been praying for — the gift is a curse. You lose that, and he had real reasons to f–king be out of it. He did the right thing. He went to work.”
While representing different pillars of hip-hop, 50 and Kanye have been pop-culture fixtures for more than two decades. They famously matched up for a memorable 2007 sales battle, which saw them face off at the MTV Video Music Awards and join forces for the cover of Rolling Stone.
Kanye’s Graduation ended up throttling 50’s Curtis (957,000 versus 691,000 first-week album sales), which elevated West’s superstar status in music to another level.
“We made the highest sales week for hip-hop culture, doing that and being competitive,” 50 told Billboard when looking back at their battle. “People that were participating as fans were buying more than one copy of it, because of the competitive side of it. When you look at it… we had to stand together to face off, but we never had an issue.”
Cardi B also seemingly responded to one of Ye’s X messages, in which he broke down how he sees the hierarchy of female rap and claimed Megan Thee Stallion replaced the Bronx native. “WHERE CARDI B GONNA BE 10 YEARS FROM NOW THEY USED HER,” he wrote.
The “WAP” rapper appeared to respond on X, flexing her staying power even without dropping an album going on seven years now. “7 years 1 album… STILL being a topic and STILL being asked about my music,” she wrote. “I’m anointed and I have a real fanbase. They come and go but The Brim is still here and will stay!”
Ye has been embroiled in controversy again in recent weeks due to his repeated antisemitic rants and willingness to engage in beef with just about any of his collaborators outside of 50 and A$AP Rocky. However, he did drop his Bully album as part of a short film starring his son Saint on March 19.
Ye (formerly Kanye West) surprised fans with the leaked release of his Bully album early Wednesday (March 19), which became available on a file-sharing app through a short film directed by the rapper himself.
The 30-minute wrestling-themed flick was edited by rap video dignitary Hype Williams and stars Ye’s eldest son, Saint West.
There are 11 tracks showcased in total, including previously teased records such as the Kden Drip-sampling “Preacher Man,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “Highs and Lows” and “Close to You.” Playboi Carti and Ty Dolla $ign are the lone features on the album closer “Melrose.”
The project drew a polarizing reaction due to Ye’s antisemitic tirades and hate speech, as well as his support for Diddy and since-deleted attacks on Jay-Z and Beyoncé’s children. Others were willing to overlook his recent behavior and enjoyed the project, as he recalled some of his 2000s brilliance chopping up soul samples and themes from 808s & Heartbreak.
“Of course BULLY is sonically the greatest s–t Kanye has worked on in years lmao,” one person wrote to X. “This clown is so annoying dawg.”
Another replied, “I will never listen to his crap let alone support it. You don’t have to intentionally hurt folks to promote your music. Time out for rewarding bad behavior.”
Don’t expect the project to land on streaming services anytime soon. “I may stop using DSPs cause streams are fake and the French and Jewish record labels treat artists like prostitutes,” he wrote.
However, it appears West will be turning his focus to his next solo effort, which looks to be Donda 2 — a sequel to his 2021 album named after his late mother.
Find more fan reactions to Bully below.
Yeah Kanye ain’t gonna be able to clear no samples off BULLY but that shit sounded nuts— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) March 19, 2025
BULLY IS FUCKING INCREDIBLE— Kent Escobar (@yzyscholar) March 19, 2025
Listening to Bully, the album Kanye West leaked himself after working on it for a year, it is so clear musically nobody is even close to him. Its so sad he is in this state, knowing we won’t get this from him. So much talent and nobody around to help him. Hope he gets it together— O (@ashahzy) March 19, 2025
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Playboi Carti has responded to Ye (formerly Kanye West) after the embattled rapper bashed him about allegedly snubbing Ye from his Music album and then requesting vocals from Ye and Kim Kardashian’s daughter North West.
“YE STFU,” Carti replied on X early Wednesday (March 19).
West — who has been criticized over his repeated antisemitic hate speech — addressed the “Magnolia” rapper hours later. “SHOULD CARTI HAVE EVEN SPOKEN TO MY BABY MAMA AT ALL,” he seemingly asked his 33 million X followers.
Ye continued to take shots at Carti: “CARTI IS JUST A WAY MORE BASIC DUMBER VERSION OF VIRGIL FINESSING YE AND DRAKE CO SIGNS.”
Kanye is referencing whenKardashian posted a SKIMS shout-out on Music to her Instagram Story, and Carti replied by asking his “niece” North to send some vocals for a potential collab. The embattled Chicago artist had felt Carti crossed the line with his initial request for North to send some music, and declared that his daughter wouldn’t be working with the “All Red” rapper.
“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 earlier. “I DONT A F–K ABOUT NONE OF THIS INDUSTRY S–T AND HOW ITS A SKIMS LINE IN THE FIRST PLACE AND I DONT GIVE A F–K WHAT NO COMMENTS THE MAN HAS THE FIRST AND FINAL SAY OVER HIS KIDS.”
He went on to bring up Carti’s baby mother, Iggy Azalea, and their son, Onyx, in a separate tweet, seemingly trying to get the little boy on Ye’s own music. Azalea chimed in and requested that he keep her son out of whatever issues he has with Carti.
“Ye, I understand the point you want to make,” she wrote in part on X in response. “I say this with kindness & as a mother: Please, leave my child out of this.”
It’s been a turbulent week for Ye, who has fired away at peers such as Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Ty Dolla $ign, Travis Scott, Tyler, The Creator, Pusha T and more already. He even released the self-directed short film version of his Bully album early Wednesday, which stars his son Saint West — whom he also shares with Kardashian — and was edited by Hype Williams.
There was once a time when Playboi Carti made Ye’s (formerly Kanye West) list of rappers who never crossed him, but that doesn’t appear to be the case any longer.
The embattled rapper went on an extended X tirade targeting Carti and many of his collaborators and superstar peers throughout hip-hop early Tuesday (March 18).
He initially voiced his issue with Carti (born Jordan Carter) allegedly taking him off his Music album, and felt the “All Red” artist crossed the line when requesting vocals from West’s daughter North after Kim Kardashian posted the project to her Instagram Story.
“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. “I DONT A F–K ABOUT NONE OF THIS INDUSTRY SHIT AND HOW ITS A SKIMS LINE IN THE FIRST PLACE AND I DONT GIVE A F–K WHAT NO COMMENTS THE MAN HAS THE FIRST AND FINAL SAY OVER HIS KIDS.”
Ye flipped the script on Carti while using the Atlanta rapper’s ex Iggy Azalea and brought the “Magnolia” musician’s son, Onyx, into the mix.
“HEY IGGG AZALEA I NEED TO GET ONYX VOCALS ON MY SONG THATS MY NEPHEW OH AND IMA RAP ABOUT ONE OF YOUR BUSINESSES THE F–k,” he added. “I HELD MY TONGUE ABOUT MOT BEING ON CARTI ALBUM HIM GOING TO MY EX TO ASK MY DAUGHTER TO BE ON A SONG 2 DAYS LATER WAS TOO FAR NOBODY FINNA PLAY WITH ME.”
Azalea got wind of Ye’s remarks and fired back in her child’s defense. “Ye, I understand the point you want to make. I say this with kindness & as a mother: Please, leave my child out of this. At the end of the day, Jordan has other children (less famous… Does it matter?) but it seems only my son gets harassed in perpetuity about or on behalf of a man he has no relationship with,” she wrote on X. “Does he read it? No. Hes a child. But it creates a digital legacy & an odd (s—-y) situation for him to one day discover & endure in perpetuity from strangers online. Can I please have some peace?”
The embattled Chicago artist turned his focus elsewhere and claimed he actually “HAAAAAATED” Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” Drake diss.
He continued to go after Pusha T and Ty Dolla $ign. “NOBODY GET A PASS I WAS A PART OF SO MANY OF THESE NIGGAS SUCCESS AND A LOT OF N—-S,” he ranted, blaming to his antisemitic hate speech — for which he’s been roundly condemned — as the reason for his peers pulling away. “PUSHA TALKING ABOUT HE DONT AGREE WITH MY POLITICAL OPINIONS BRO I HATE ALL THESE N—-S THATBIVE SAT AND CHOPPED SOMGS FOR TY AINT HAVE TO USE THE TERM HATE SPEECH EVERY NIGGA IN THE INDUSTRY IS A SLAVE TO THIS F—-T A– JEWISH INDUSTRY EVERRRYYYYY ONE DO YOUR F–KING DISS SONGS OR PULL UP.”
West also posted photos hugging Kid Cudi, Playboi Carti, Travis Scott and Virgil Abloh while saying they turned their backs on him after his hate speech.
He went on to target Tyler, the Creator, saying he’s never made a “memorable song” and called out Future and Metro Boomin after they allegedly called him to hop on the “Like That” remix only to dead him afterward.
“THIS N—A HAS NEVER MADE A MEMORABLE SONG HES LIKE IF AN ARTIST CHECKED EVERY BOX OTHER THAN HAVING ANY GOOD VERSES OR SONGS AND HIS LAST ALBUM RIPPED OFF MY WHOLE LANGUAGE,” he wrote about his “Smuckers” collaborator.
Billboard has reached out to reps for Future, Pusha T, Ty Dolla $ign, Playboi Carti, Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott and Tyler, the Creator for comment.
Over the weekend, Ye released a song titled “Lonely Roads Still Go to Sunshine,” which appears to feature Diddy and North. Kardashian had reportedly trademarked their daughter’s name in a legal tactic to block the track’s release.
Dropkick Murphys singer Ken Casey has never been shy about his disdain for Donald Trump. The vocalist for the “Warriors Code” band was at it again on St. Patrick’s Day on Monday (March 17) when he dissed the commander-in-chief for being what he described as the opposite of a member in good standing of his Massachusetts-bred “Wicked Sensitive Crew.”
“One other thing Dropkick Murphys has always been about is a lot of songs about standing with your friends and family and the things you believe in, whether it’s politics, or just how you were raised. And Donald Trump is the exact opposite of everything we sing about,” Casey told Meidastouch in an interview.
“He’s turned on his friends. He’s turned on America’s friends and our allies. He’s a rat and a coward when you think of it that way,” Casey said of the second-term Republican who has spent his first two months in office launching trade wars with Canada and Mexico, pulling out of international climate and aid pacts and siding with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin in his unprovoked war against Ukraine.
“America shouldn’t be turning on our allies,” Casey added.
The latest broadside from Casey against Trump is in keeping with the singer’s disdain for 47, which lately has come in the form of calling out fans who rock Trump gear at the group’s shows. Last month at a gig in Clearwater, FL, Casey called out a man wearing a shirt and hat supporting Trump and noted that the Murphys merch is all made in America before making a “friendly” $100 bet about where the MAGA gear was manufactured.
“If you lose the bet, we switch shirts, OK? If you win the bet, I give you $100 and the shirt,” the singer told the man before revealing to fans that the MAGA shirt was made in Nicaragua. “He’s taking the shirt off. We’re taking crime off the streets,” Casey joked.
Then, during one of their annual St. Patrick’s Day shows at MGM Music Hall at Boston’s Fenway Park on Sunday (March 16), the singer called out an attendee who waved around a MAGA hat the gig.
“If you’re in a room full of people and you want to know who’s in a cult, how do you know who’s in a cult?” Casey asked the crowd. “They’ve been holding up a f—ing hat the whole night to represent a president.” He then spoke to Trump-supporting fans in the house directly. “This is America, there’s no kings here,” he said, adding, “Anyway, if you mind, sir, we’re gonna play a song about our grandparents and people who fought Nazis in the war and s—. So if you could just shut the f— up for five minutes.”
Casey also described the man’s MAGA hat as the “Elon Musk True Nazi edition,” seemingly in reference to the style of hat billionaire and X owner Musk has been wearing as he leads the so-called Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) dismantling of the federal government. As of Tuesday morning (March 18), the official Dropkick X account had been suspended, with no clear explanation offered for why the action was taken. A spokesperson for the band had not returned a request for comment at press time about the suspension.
During Trump’s inauguration in January, Musk twice made what was widely described as a Nazi-like salute, throwing up two rapid, straight-armed hand gestures during a celebration of Trump’s second swearing-in, drawing comparisons to the signature “Sieg Heil” salute of reviled Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. And on Friday, Musk shared a post by an X user that falsely claimed that Hitler, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin and People’s Republic of China founder Mao Zedong were not responsible for the deaths of millions of people under their watch, but that “public sector workers” were; Musk later deleted the post.
Watch Casey call out Trump supporters during the Boston show and see his interview below.
Dropkick Murphys’ lead singer, Ken Casey: Dropkick Murphys has always been about standing with your friends, your family, and the things you believe in.Trump is the exact opposite of everything we sing about. He’s turned on America’s friends and allies—he’s a rat and a coward. pic.twitter.com/aDNTffHc9n— Acyn (@Acyn) March 17, 2025
Two months after the first-ever winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK The Vivienne died, the drag performer’s cause of death has been confirmed. In a statement shared with Attitude, the star’s manager Simon Jones revealed that James Lee Williams — The Vivienne’s off-stage name — died “from the effects of ketamine use causing a cardiac […]
The Dropkick Murphys’ Ken Casey paused one of the band’s annual St. Patrick’s Day shows at MGM Music Hall at Boston’s Fenway Park over the weekend to call out an attendee holding up a black MAGA hat. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The black version of […]