Sean Levert Dies

Sean Levert, son of O’Jays singer Eddie Levert and brother of late R&B legend Gerald Levert, died over the weekend while in a Cleveland jail.

Levert had reportedly been in the Cuyahoga County Jail serving time for failing to pay roughly $80,000 in child support when he collapsed late last night. The warden of the jail tells TMZ that after Sean collapsed, he was immediately rushed to the hospital. He says Sean died at the hospital, not the jail as others have reported.
The warden says that they were unaware of any condition Sean may have been suffering from. The Coroner confirms they have received his body and are currently investigating the cause of death.

Sean, who as member of the 80s group Levert, hit it big with the song “Casanova.” He was also featured in a few movies, including “New Jack City.” His brother Gerald died in his sleep in November 2006.

Beanie Segal gets 3 months

Sigel was sentenced to three months in prison for giving his probation officers a fake a urine sample. Oh yeah, he had also tested positive five times this month for Xanax and Percocet.

Sigel, who, thank God, changed his name from Dwight Grant (that’s sooo white collar), was in the middle of serving a six-month term in a halfway house for violating a prior supervised release. Even if you aren’t following this precisely, you’re getting the point.

Oh yeah, in 2004, he was sentenced to a year in prison for weapons and drug charges. But Sigel had some good news, too — in 2005 he was acquitted of attempted murder charges.

Remy Ma’s Shooting Victim Drops Civil Suit

 

The woman who was allegedly shot by Remy Ma has dropped a $20 million civil lawsuit against the rapper, but meanwhile her criminal trial continues on.

Makeda Barnes-Joseph, a close friend of Remy Ma, was shot in Lower Manhattan outside of a nightclub in July 2007.

According to her testimony, the two friends were arguing over $2,000 which went missing from Remy Ma’s purse, when the Bronx rapper allegedly pulled out a gun and shot her twice in the stomach.

Barnes-Joseph was subsequently hospitalized for 16 days.

Ivan Fisher, Remy Ma’s defense attorney, maintains that the shooting was accidental.

Remy Ma, born Remy Smith, was arrested for attempted murder, first-degree assault, and weapons possession. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Yo! MTV Raps Turns 20, MTV Pays Tribute

In honor of its 20^th anniversary, MTV is set to kick off a month long tribute to the groundbreaking video show Yo! MTV Raps, beginning next month.

The tribute is scheduled to span the entire month of April, beginning April 1, and will be spread across various MTV networks and online properties, including MTV, MTV2, MTV Tr3s, MTV Jams, MTV Radio and MTV On Demand among others. The network will be launching several online initiatives via both their MTV.com and ThinkMTV.com sites showcasing the impact and influence of the show.

Special programming for the month will include “Yo! MTV Raps Top 10 Episodes”, “Yo MTV Raps Top 20 Videos Countdown” and “Yo! MTV Raps Top Artists Then And Now”, a show which will highlight artists in hip-hop with a considerable amount of longevity throughout their careers.

Beanie Sigel sent back to the slammer

According to the philadelphia daily news,Sigel, who spent a year in jail after being sentenced in 2004 for drug and weapons offenses, was back in federal court yesterday for violating terms of his supervised release for a third time. Authorities said Sigel, whose real name is Dwight Grant, gave a false urine sample to probation officials on Feb. 29 and also tested positive five times earlier this month for controlled substances, including Xanax and Percocet.

The former is used to treat anxiety and the latter is typically used to treat moderate to severe pain, but is considered very addictive.

U.S. District Judge R. Barclay Surrick sentenced Sigel, 34, to three months in prison and one additional year of supervised release, which he is to continue in a drug-treatment program.

Surrick rejected a request by defense attorney Fortunato N. Perri Jr. to permit Sigel to “self-surrender,” meaning that he would surrender to authorities after getting his affairs in order.

T.I. Pleads Guilty To Weapons Charges; Faces Year In Jail

On Thursday afternoon (March 27), T.I. pleaded guilty to several federal weapons charges, as part of a plea deal that could send the rapper to prison for a year.

U.S. District Judge Charles Pannell Jr. will first need to sign off on the plea bargain. When sentenced a year from now, the 27-year-old rapper (born Clifford Harris) could be ordered to perform 1,500 hours of community service, which he would serve by talking to youth groups across the U.S., and about 12 months behind bars.

In addition, T.I. could be sentenced to three years’ supervised release, including a year of home detention. He could also be ordered to pay a $100,000 fine.

“While I’m not looking forward to being incarcerated, I have a long road of redemption to travel,” T.I. told reporters outside the courtroom, according to The Associated Press. “I am dedicated and committed to that. I’m looking forward to turning this negative time in my life into a positive. I’d like to thank God for blessing me with a second chance in life and success. I realize I completely violated the law, and I take it very seriously.”

Game Manager Jimmy Rosemond — Implicated In L.A. Times’ Tupac

The Los Angeles Times issued an apology and Chuck Philips acknowledged he was “duped,” but Jimmy Rosemond, who was implicated in Philips’ contested article along with Diddy for organizing Tupac’s 1994 Quad Studios ambush, wants even greater vindication.

Papoose Exclusive: He And Remy Ma Will Get Married Next Month — In Prison

MTV News has confirmed that he and Remy are, in fact, a couple and had plans to marry next month.Pap said the two are moving forward with their nuptials despite Ma’s predicament and are making arrangements to marry in prison.

“We always wanted to keep our personal lives personal, so that’s why we never went public with our relationship,” he wrote in an e-mail to MTV News. “Right now, I just feel like she gotta live through me. Yes, we were scheduled to be married on a yacht April 27th. But due to circumstances beyond our control, we are now making arrangements to be married in prison.”

New York Rapper Cavlar Shot Dead

Up and coming New York rapper Cavlar was shot and killed on a Brooklyn street yesterday as he was leaving a seafood restaurant.

Cavlar (born Leval Lyde), 36, had just begun to garner a name for himself with his own music and “Step Up Your Game” DVDs featuring well-known stars when he met an early demise.

According to reports he was leaving Fish & Crustaceans Quality Seafood in Fort Greene at 4:50 p.m. when, as he approached the maroon jaguar owned by his child’s mother, he was shot with a single bullet.

The co-owner of the restaurant, Charles Kearney, saw the whole thing happen.

“He fell right in front of me,” Kearny told New York’s Daily News.

Reportedly, the rapper had been arguing with the gunman and two men with him, all of whom ran after the shooting.

He died at Brooklyn Hospital Center.

India.Arie Launches “SoulBird” Imprint

Soul songstress India.Arie is launching a new label, SoulBird Music, in partnership with Universal Republic Records.

“In this era, soul is not a sound or a color, it’s an intention,” Arie said, expliaing the philoshy behind her new label in a statement. “That’s the kind of music I want SoulBird to represent: music with intelligence and heart, music that moves people in their souls and their bodies. Music with wings.”

The first release under the label, according to Billboard, will be Georgia native Anthony David’s Acey Deucey,. The new disc will compile material from David’s two previous independent releases, 2004’s Three Chords and the Truth and 2006’s Red Clay Chronicles.

A former backup singer for Arie, David describes his sound as ” Bill Withers meets Mos Def.” He’ll make his major-label debut when Acey Deucey arrives in stores on June 17 via SoulBird