In the high stakes battle for Hip Hop superiority, it appears that the two top money earners in the rap game – Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter and Sean “Diddy” Combs respectively – are in a quiet duel to become the first billionaires by way of their shared industry.

With various streams of revenue flowing for both savvy businessmen, some unrelated to music, the potential is vast for both men according to a recent analysis from Forbes magazine. However, another Hip Hop mogul believes he and his team will eclipse Jay-Z and Diddy in the money race all in due time.

CEO of Cash Money Records Brian “Birdman” Williams threw his and protégé Lil Wayne’s Young Money imprint names into the billionaire sweepstakes pot, defiantly stating that the YMCMB machine is well on its way to the top. “I think Young Money Cash Money would be the first billion-dollar brand in hip-hop,” said Birdman plainly in an email to Forbes referencing his label ventures. “We strong and growing every day as a brand and fast. Within the next few years we will be billionaires.”


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According to Forbes numbers, Diddy is at the halfway mark with an estimated net worth of $500 million, much of that tied up in Diddy’s business ventures such as his Sean John and Enyce clothing lines along with his stake in Ciroc vodka. Jay-Z is right behind his rich pal with assets that include a lucrative $10 million dollar Live Nation deal, the 40/40 club chain, cosmetic company Carol’s Daughter and his partial ownership of the New Jersey (soon to be Brooklyn) Nets amongst other deals. Continuing the dollar tally, only Dr. Dre and 50 Cent are within range for the coveted billionaire status.

With his popularity and success still at a supreme zenith, is it really close to the end for the man who will have the number one album in the country? Back in the July/ August issue of XXL magazine, Lil Wayne declared that he was retiring soon to spend more time with his children.

“I’m bowing out still on top,” Wayne said during his interview for the cover story. “I’m bowing out still on top,” he says. “I’ma make y’all want me when I retire. I’ma make y’all be like, ‘Nooo!’ I ain’t leaving out this bitch when y’all be like, ‘Yeah, it’s about time, dawg.’ Carter IV might be my last one. I’ma make y’all be like, ‘Fuck!’ Yeah, nigga, I’m gone.”

“…Nah I’m fuckin wit y’all man,” he would say later. “Y’all know a nigga ain’t going nowhere till he bout 31. By 31. I’m gone by 31 shawty.”

Obviously none of his fans want to see Wayne leave the game, but what does his Young Money family think?

“As far as that retirement goes, I don’t know what he’s talking about,” YM President Mack Maine told XXLMag.com. “I’m not trying to hear that… I mean technically he can. We paved the way where Young Money the brand is gonna be so big. And he’s done so much where he can just tour. But I know his love and passion for the music…. I also know he has love and passion for his kids and family and he sacrificed a lot of this life we living. So at 30, if he says he wants to hang it up and be a family and a businessman, I wouldn’t be mad at it. He’ll be like 18, 19 close to 20 years in the game. And [have put out] that many albums. He’ll be a vet at a young age. It’s not like we’re gonna need to put out albums, it’s just the passion. Can you walk away from it?”

Well luckily, listeners still have a few years for Weezy to change his mind. As for now, reports are putting the first-week numbers for Wayne’s Tha Carter IV (released August 29) as high as 900,000 copies sold. He also has two songs on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. “How To Love” is currently number seven while the Drake assisted “She Will” debuted at number three just last week.

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Rapper Lil’ Wayne has been hit with a $15,000,000 lawsuit over the hit single “BedRock.”

Done Deal Enterprises, based in Waynesboro, Georgia, filed a lawsuit against Lil Wayne, Young Money Records, and Cash Money Records, in the United States District Court, Southern district of New York, over the song.

The lawsuit, which was filed on August 1st, claims that the rapper stole their copyrighted tune “BedRock,” and incorporated it into the track of the same name, that was eventually featured on the compilation album We Are Young Money.

We Are Young Money peaked at #1 on the Billboard Rap charts upon its release in December of 2009.

The Young Money version of the tune featured guest appearances by Drake, Nicki Minaj, Lloyd, Tyga, Gudda Gudda, Jae Millz and was originally produced by Kane Beatz.

According to the lawsuit, the single has moved an estimated 3,000,000 copies, while the album has been certified Gold (500,000 sold) by the RIAA.

The rapper and his counsel have been directed to appear in court on October 12th, 2011.

Few artists ever reach the heights Lil Wayne has, and for the Young Money captain, that is both a gift and a curse. And it’s a dilemma that Weezy tackles on “Nightmares of the Bottom,” a new track off the New Orleans lyricist’s upcoming album Tha Carter IV.

After performing the track for the first time during the taping of his “MTV2 Presents: Lil Wayne Unplugged,” set to air Sunday on MTV, MTV2 and MTV.com, the self-proclaimed Martian broke down the song’s meaning. “I mean simply, sleeping at the top with nightmares of the bottom,” Wayne told MTV News’ Sway. “Everybody says it’s lonely at the top. It is lonely, so I dream, though, and the only thing I dream about is being down there with the people that ain’t lonely. Thank God I am alone.”

With eight solo albums and more than 10 million records sold, Wayne has tasted too much success to see his stock dip, so for him, a fall back to earth is a definite fear, he admitted.

“And that’s simply what it is: nightmares of the bottom,” he added before rapping the song’s lyrics: “Sleeping at the top/ Nightmares of the bottom/ Everybody wanna be fly, until you swat ‘em.”

“Lil Wayne Unplugged” features Tunechi performing acoustic versions of his already classic catalog and places Weezy in the same class as hip-hop luminaries Jay-Z, Lauryn Hill and LL Cool J, who also took the unplugged stage.

“Lil Wayne is an amazing choice for Unplugged as he is at hip-hop’s forefront — leading a new generation of artists whose appeal spans across music genres and playlists,” Amy Doyle, MTV’s executive vice president of music and talent, said in a statement. “Lil Wayne’s skills, influence, and catalog are a powerful addition to the legacy of artists who have rocked the ‘Unplugged’ stage.”

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Nicki Minaj took her unique rap flow all the way to the top of the pop music industry, but the Young Money First Lady recently revealed that music wasn’t her first career choice.

In fact, she says it happened by accident, and instead, wanted to become an actress initially.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly at Sunday’s (June 5) MTV Movie Awards, Minaj explained that she has taken lessons, and plans to make her dream a reality following her upcoming tour with Britney Spears.

“I went to school to be an actress. I never expected to be a rapper. It just fell in my lap,” said the rapper. “I would like to get an acting gig. I hope that when I am done with the tour, I can go back and do some acting. That is my long-term goal.”

Her acting aspirations won’t be the typical transitions you see for a rapper/actor though. Nicki says she definitely won’t be doing any straight-to-DVD type releases that most rappers self-produce and release to their fans. She wants to be a player in Hollywood.

“I want to work with Will Smith, because he’s a very successful rapper-turned-actor and therefore a role model,” Minaj said. “And Tim Burton because I love his crazy imagination. He comes up with these characters that are just so fascinating and the costumes and just creates these whole worlds.”

As far as actual roles, and any movies she’s interested in, that remains unknown.

The Young Money rapstress switches up her management team and links up with Gee Roberson and Kyambo “HipHop” Joshua.

More than a year after signing with Sean “Diddy” Combs and James Cruz as managers, Nicki Minaj is no longer associated with the business moguls. According to XXLMag.com, the Harajuku Barbie is now being managed by Gee Roberson and Kyambo “HipHop” Joshua from Hip-Hop Since 1978, which also manages Lil Wayne, Drake and more.

The news may be surprising for Lil’ Kim fans, as Roberson and Joshua previously served as A&Rs for Atlantic Records for her 2005 album The Naked Truth. The Queen Bee also made a similar move earlier this year by linking up with Fendi, who is credited with launching Nicki’s career.

Before Diddy, Nicki was managed by Debra Antney’s firm, but switched over after firing Antney in April 2010. Rumor has it that she expected Diddy to be more hands-on with her career, and decided to move on when she realized he wasn’t as involved as expected.

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