Court documents uncovered by The Blast last year reportedly showed that former Roc-a-Fella honcho Dame Dash stated that he was instrumental in developing Kanye West’s career. Then, in October of last year, Dame got into a heated discussion with Adam 22 over Kanye West and the Jesus Is King‘s rapper’s influence on the culture, regardless of Ye’s political leanings. “What I like to do is talk about the sh*t I do agree with him with…What he’s done in fashion, and you can’t act like Louis Vuitton would be Louis Vuitton without Kanye…That’s the bigger picture.”

As controversial as both Dame Dash and Kanye West are individually, their additions to hip hop culture as a whole are undeniable. The pair of longtime friends were back at the forefront of conversations on Wednesday (June 10) after Dame shared an enigmatic photo to his Instagram page. Usually, Dame likes to post content with a caption explaining exactly what’s going on, but with this one, he left interpretations up to viewers.

In the picture, Dame and Ye are seen standing together in an open field. Many fans have suggested that the pair of influencers are together in Wisconsin cooking up something good, but we’ll just have to wait on confirmation. Would you be down to receive a collaboration of some sort between these two?

Dame Dash has faced a ton of legal trouble in recent times and it appears to keep mounting. According to TMZ, the music mogul has been forced to pay a six-figure judgment to an author after a falling out over a film.

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Back in 2015, Dame Dash had struck a deal with author Edwyna Brooks to direct a mafia film titled Mafietta which was based on her series of published books. However, Brooks claimed that things turned sour shortly after. Court documents obtained by the tabloid publication reveal that Brooks accused Dame of using the funds and production time for side projects unrelated to Mafietta. 

Because of the mishandling on Dame’s part, Brooks said that she fired him from the gig. However, this escalated after Dash claimed co-authorship and on top of that, attempted to sell it on iTunes and the Dame Dash Studios website. Brooks stated that she never gave Dash any authorization for that and proceeded to file a suit against him. 

The judge ultimately sided with Brooks and ordered Dame Dash to pay her $300K in damages, along with interest. 

“The copyright claim was incorrectly decided in our opinion as you were the dominant author,” Dash said. “In any event the damages awarded were based on pure speculation so both findings are being appealed.”

Check out the trailer for the film below. 

WEtv is kicking out these seasons of Growing Up Hip Hop. The show has been faced with major changes now that Romeo Miller and his father Master P have stepped away from the series. Fans will now get a glimpse into what led up to the hip hop mogul family deciding that they no longer wanted to be associated with the franchise.

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A trailer for the new season of Growing Up Hip Hop was released on Friday (March 27) and the show is certainly turning up the drama. Pepa and Treach’s daughter Egypt Criss finds herself at odds with her friends over her fiancé Sam. Things even come to blows with Briana Latrise, former step-daughter to Mary J. Blige. While things kick up with that storyline, the tit-for-tat between Angela Simmons and Romeo rages on. 

The Millers suggested that Romeo was doing the right thing with Angela, especially because he could have taken advantage of her while she was morning the death of her son’s father, Sutton Tennyson. In a later scene, Romeo and Master P are confronted by others like Dame Dash’s son Boogie Dash and Eazy-E’s son Lil Eazy-E. Things get heated during the talk and Percy Miller wasn’t about to have anything go left in his presence. Check out the trailer for the explosive season below including Dame getting arrested and speaking about the accusations against him.

The producers of Growing Up Hip Hop are claiming that Dame Dash’s accusations that they made his son, Boogie Dash, drink alcohol on camera are completely false, and they’ve demanded that the whole lawsuit be tossed. According to court documents, Entertainment One Reality Productions have denied any wrongdoing, and even accused Dame of filing the lawsuit in “bad faith.” They have called his claims “frivolous, unreasonable and without foundation,” and claimed that, if any damages were ensued, they would have been exclusively caused by third parties. As the documents read, “Plaintiffs’ claims are barred, in whole or in part, to the extent that Plaintiffs failed to take advantage of any preventive or corrective opportunities provided by Defendant, or otherwise, to avoid the damages about which they complain, prior to filing of the Complaint.” The producers have demanded that the whole case be thrown out immediately.

Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images for WE tv

Dame initially sued the production company, along with WE tv and AMC Networks, back in January. In the lawsuit, he accused the defendants of requiring his son, Dame “Boogie” Dash II, to drink alcohol on Growing Up Hip Hop in an effort to increase ratings for the reality show, despite WE tv promising him that they wouldn’t let Boogie drink alcohol on set. Boogie has publicly struggled with substance abuse in front of the cameras in the past before going to rehab, so the producers’ alleged actions were very upsetting for Dame and his family. He has sued the defendants for breach of contract, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, and fraud.

Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images

In addition to these claims, Dame is also suing the network for allegedly failing to pay him for his own appearances on the show. He noted that while the network claimed his creditors presented court order seizing his paychecks, his television checks should have been paid to his company and not him personally. He was under the belief that his checks were not subject to the court order. Dame is also currently facing a $50 million lawsuit himself, in which he’s been accused of sexual assault.

The Dashes may be going through a few family problems, but Dame “Boogie” Dash II is moving forward with his goals. The Growing Up Hip Hop star has lived out his truth on television, often to his own embarrassment. It’s not pretty when the world watches you tackle your personal problems with a front-row seat, but Boogie has managed to overcome many of his demons with the help of his loved ones. Recently, Boogie expressed on social media that he’d like to open a rehabilitation center, and it looks as if he’s on his way to making that happen now that he’s purchased his first home.

Just a few hours ago, Boogie shared a photo of himself with his younger sister Ava Dash posing in front of his new house. “So this was a proud moment for me,” he wrote in the caption. “I finally got a chance to take my lil sister to my first house that I ever bought! Not only is it my first house, it’s my business. A sober living. I’m out here trying to save the world an be a great big brother one day at a time.”

Ava commented that she was proud of the moves her brother was making to not only make a better future for himself but for others working through recovery. The brother-sister pair were recently featured in an explosive Growing Up Hip Hop scene with Dame as the three attempted to work out their differences with a therapist. Instead, Dame became irate at his kids, called them “clowns,” and stormed out. Check out Boogie’s photo below.

Media mogul, Dame Dash, is taking action hoping the court will dismiss the case against the photographer who sued him for sexual assault and wants $50 million in compensation. Earlier this week, Dame Dash and his legal team filed court documents stating that he intends to ask the federal court to dismiss Monique Bunn’s lawsuit due to lack of service. According to Dash’s lawyer, the Roc-a-Fella co-founder was never properly served the lawsuit and the sent her court complaint to unmonitored postal service box, which could possibly void the lawsuit altogether.  

Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images

Monique Bunn originally sued Dame Dash, his wife Raquel Horn, and his production companies Dame Dash Studios, and Poppington LLC, after she claimed an intoxicated Dash had fondled her in her sleep. Bunn also claimed that Dash refused to return her personal computer, hard drive with photos from her 20-year career, and other personal effects that she left onsite at their studio.

Late last month, Bunn was urging the courts to push for a default judgment after he had failed to respond to the court case. Monique Bunn is represented by attorney Chris Brown, who Dame Dash has been very vocal about after being on the opposing side of three separate lawsuits against the lawyer. 

Now, Dame is pushing back in his own way and might have a legitimate reason for the case to be dismissed. A hearing for this specific case has been set for the spring. Both sides will meet and the evidence presented will hopefully determine a just outcome. 

Recently, Dame Dash opened up a lawsuit against his ex-wife, Rachel Roy, accusing her of hiding clothing company royalties from him. While the multifaceted entrepreneur might be in the midst of several legal disputes, he’s living a life of purity in the content realm. Check out a preview of some of the streaming content Dame Dash Studios is cooking up in the video provided below. 

The animosity between Dame Dash and his children continues to grow. The former Roc-a-Fella Records mogul has been a featured cast member of Growin Up Hip Hop for a few seasons now, but this is the first time that the tables have turned on the famous father. We’ve watched as Dame’s son, Dame Dash II also known as Boogie, has been at odds with his father over his addictions. It was believed that the alcohol and substance abuse was the cause of the division between father and son, but now that Boogie is sober, it’s clear that their problems run much deeper.

In the current season of Growing Up Hip Hop, Dame’s daughter Ava has openly vocalized that she believes her father is neglectful and angry. She’s said that Dame cuts her off if she refuses to try to talk to her mother, Rachel Roy, about selling her business to Dame. Ava also wrote a letter to the family court judge revealing what she said is the truth about her father’s uncaring parenting style.

In a clip from the series, Dame, Boogie, and Ava come together for a family therapy session. It didn’t take long for things to go left and Dame stormed out after yelling at his children. Ava told Dame that he’s the reason they don’t talk, and the father replied, “You’re straight spoiled. I’m very disappointed in you. You’re a child, I took care of you and you never gave me nothing in your life. You’re disrespectful.” He then turned to the therapist and said, “Ask her why she went to court, why she got involved? How do you justify that?”

Boogie interjects, but Dame wasn’t having any of it. He called his son “crazy” and a “little girl.” As Boogie is standing and shouting at his dad, Dame gets up and makes his way to the door. “Don’t yell at me, bro,” Dame yells at Boogie. “The disrespect’s gotta stop, stupid. Sit down or I’m leaving! Stupid. Family, no matter what, never goes against family. You’re a clown, you’re both clowns.” Watch the clip below.

Roc-a-Fella co-founder and entrepreneur, Dame Dash, is taking his ex-wife, Rachel Roy, to court for funds he's allegedly owed from her Rachel Roy Brands clothing company. In 2008, Roy created the brand while the two were still married. According to Dame Dash, he was one of the company's original investors and board members and helped establish the venture that now includes several lines that are sold in department stores like Macy's, Bloomingdales, and more. 

Evan Agostini/Getty Images

According to court documents obtained by TMZ, the network owner claims that Rachel Roy and her team conspired with several other companies to conceal the funds that Dame Dash was owed. Allegedly, Roy submitted fraudulent accounting documents, withheld payments, and undervalued Damon's share of Rachel Roy Brands. 

With the company profiting millions annually, Dash became suspicious when a royalty payment of $175,000 was withheld in 2014. The following year, a $200,000 royalty check was withheld from the media mogul. According to the court documents, Dame Dash and his legal advisors believe that Roy "manipulated, diverted, misappropriated, transferred, concealed and embezzled funds" just to avoid paying her ex-husband. 

In the lawsuit, Dame Dash declares that he and his ex-wife had a verbal agreement that she would buy his stake in Rachel Roy Brands for $1 million, but reneged on the deal without explanation. The multifaceted businessman isn't just suing Rachel Roy, he's also suing her brand's accountants, legal team, and more for plotting against him. 

As of late, Dame Dash's legal woes have made headlines as he insists that he's being targeted by one particular lawyer by the name of Chris Brown. Over the past year, Chris Brown has represented three defendants against Dame Dash including Monique Bunn who claims that Dash sexually assaulted her while she was working for him. 

While the "Spiritual Business" producer may be getting in the busy in the courtroom as of late, he's still one of the best curators of culture around. Check out Dame's latest Instagram post celebrating one of his courtroom victories over Chris Brown as well as a clip of his self-produced talk show, Boss Talk with special guest, Chamillionaire in the videos provided below. 

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@chamillionaire and Dame sit down to discuss the entrepreneurial lifestyles! Watch the full episode now at www.damedashstudios.com @damedashstudios

A post shared by Dame Dash (@duskopoppington) on Feb 17, 2020 at 5:59pm PST

Not everyone can break through the glass ceiling. For every transcendent star that sets the world alight, there’s a whole graduating class of aspiring artists they’d once shared mics with that find themselves left in the dust. At a time when New York hip-hop scrambled to meet the rising tide of west coast gangsta rap, the east coast of the mid-to-late 90’s was bustling with talent that were happy to pool their resources and act for the betterment of the genre’s birthplace. Leading the way for the empire state, Bad Boy & Rocafella Records would grow from humble beginnings to become twinned powers and were unified by the close-knit ties between their two flagship stars, Jay-Z and The Notorious B.I.G.

Repping Bed Stuy and Marcy respectively, these Brooklynites became the two defining voices of the time. But even though the dust has settled and Big has been gone for 23 years, there are those who still have grievances to air from that whirlwind of an era. In the wake of Diddy’s speech at the 2020 Grammy’s that placed an onus on providing an “even playing field” for black artists, one dissenting voice from his past couldn’t help but point out the apparent hypocrisy.

Sauce Money at Jay-Z concert, 2006 – Johnny Nunez/WireImage/Getty Images

“Just watched Diddy Icon acceptance speech at the Recording Academy and I can honestly say I respect the message, just not coming from him,” proclaimed BK veteran Sauce Money on Instagram. “He practices the same backdoor politics against his own people.” Not content to stop there, the tenured MC broadened his scope to issue a stark warning to both Sean Love Combs and Hov himself, stating “Him and his friend Jay-Z. If the Grammys are on the clock, then ya’ll are too!”

Without prior knowledge of Sauce Money’s legacy, this could be chalked up to nothing more than a disgruntled older rapper sniping at an icon a la Lord Jamar. But if anyone is qualified to speak on the ecosystem of 90’s east coast hip-hop and beyond, it’s Sauce. From 1991 onwards, Marcy Projects’ Todd Gaither has carved out what could appear to be a relatively innocuous career. Always in the relay team but never the frontrunner, his decision to lay low for much of the past decade has downplayed how indispensable he was at certain points in the journeys of more commercially and critically-esteemed artists.

Like Sean Carter, whom he first met at the age of 13, Sauce Money was initially thrust into the spotlight by way of an endorsement from the legendary Big Daddy Kane. Armed with a commanding rasp that bear similarities to that of Raekwon, Daddy’s Home single “Show & Prove” was an intergenerational endeavour from Sauce’s then-manager that gave him, Hov, Shyheim, Big Scoob and the Wu’s Ol Dirty Bastard a chance to shine.

After spitting his first ever verse in front of Jay, the two rappers/hustlers were doing their utmost to get their presence felt but, as he informed DJ Vlad, noone could “see the vision.” Fast-forward to two years later and Jay had grown weary of waiting for the industry’s green light and facilitated his own come-up on his classic debut album Reasonable Doubt. Laden with quotable bars and a typically timeless Preemo beat, Sauce’s lyrically astounding performance on “Bring It On” remains one of the keystones of his legacy to this very day. That said, the track’s hallowed status doesn’t mean that there’s any love lost between him and Jaz.

“He’s a piece of shit,” he declared in 2012. “Without getting too much into it, he’s a twofaced kind of n***a. He’ll backbite with you about a n***a then we get with the n***a, he’ll do the same.” Unsurprisingly, Jaz-O was aggravated by Sauce’s remarks and has since vowed to “punch him in the face” for this sleight and other comments he’s made over the years.

Across Jay’s next two projects— In My Lifetime Vol 1 & Vol 2… Hard Knock Life, the always welcome Sauce Money guest spot would become a recurring trope on “Face Off” and the Erick Sermon-produced “Reservoir Dogs.” Capable of wizardry with the pen, it was this reputation for conjugating stunning verses that granted Sauce a platinum opportunity. Despite it being one of the most solemn moments for his borough and hip-hop culture at large, Sauce’s most commercially successful offering came when he was drafted in to write Puff Daddy’s verses for the Grammy-winning “I’ll be Missing You.”

“It was going to be difficult at that time to open up and eulogize a good friend,” Sauce told Genius in 2016. “For whatever reason, he [Hov] reached out to me and said ‘I’m going to introduce you to Puff.’ I remember going to the studio and sitting down with him, I didn’t know which record it was at the time.” With Puff historically comfortable with the checks but less adept at the rhymes, Sauce’s name is found on the official credits as opposed to being enlisted as a ghostwriter.

“It was bittersweet,” he continued. “I’m still affected by Big’s death but having the chance to participate in something like this. It was an honour. He just wanted to capture some of the things they did, the conversations they had…I made sure that I walked him through it and got as close to the rhythms as he could. He did a great job.”

Memphis Bleek and Jay-Z on the red carpet of a movie premiere, 2000 – SGranitz/WireImage/Getty Images

Although Jay had been instrumental in presenting him to Puff and mainstream audiences alike, Sauce Money wasn’t part of the Roc-A-Fella dynasty in the official capacity that Beans or Memphis Bleek would be. Operating under the tutelage of former Orlando Magic player Dennis Scott, an appearance on the Combat Jack Radio Show saw Sauce reveal that he’d actually been an offered a deal with Atlantic when Jay was still getting rebuffed by the majors. Opting to sign to MCA Records but still informally linked to the ROC camp, Sauce’s next few years would be fraught with roadblock after roadblock. Yet for all that they’d styled themselves as an everlasting monarchy in hip-hop that’d span generations, there was one MC from Marcy that had always detected impermanence.

“I was gone early, but from the time that I was there, I didn’t see how it could last,” Sauce told ForbezDVD. “If nothing else, just for a business move on Jay’s behalf because it’s like ‘ok, we’ve reached a certain plateau.’ Jay’s a very ambitious person and it’s only right that he should be able to eat totally off himself and not break up his money three ways. ‘Cause at the end of the day, he’s the one that’s carrying the shit.”

No matter how structurally unsound Roc-A-Fella was by the turn of the millennium, Sauce was flagging too. As his record deal unravelled, Sauce Money set a course for pastures new. However, it proved to be too little too late for his debut project Middle Finger U.  

Armed with two Hov features in the form of the brooding “Pregame” and “Face Off 2000” his long-awaited studio project arrived in November 1999. Helmed by an all-star assembly of producers that featured Juice Crew progenitor Marley Marl, DJ Clark Kent and DJ Premier, the album’s title track caused unexpected friction with another legendary New York artist in Big Pun. Complete with the line “Did you hear? I’m the fattest, nicest n***a you know,” Punisher and the Terror Squad had misinterpreted the line as a diss and as a result, DJ Whoo Kid’s placement of the track led to him having an uzi pulled on him by the late Puerto Rican in Harlem.

His lyrical skill notwithstanding, Sauce is candid about the album delays and how they’d diminished the cultural relevance that it may have had otherwise. “I was having problems with MCA, so I moved the project to Priority. Like I said, it was two years late. There was a lot of other things that went into that situation that I won’t mention,” Sauce told Vlad TV. “The timing was bad, some of the material was a little dated to me. Even though I did have some good songs on it, the timing of it, the separation, everything played a part in that. It was impossible for it to do anything good.”

Left deflated by the middling response, Sauce would turn his attention towards his lucrative ghost-writing business, penning plenty “songs you love” but keeping discretion as to for who. But over the past year, a new, more embittered side of Sauce Money has begun to seep out into the public eye. In March of last year, the Brooklyn MC emerged from his self-imposed hiatus and with a renewed fire in his belly. Implored to act due to the “sucker shit” that Diddy had allegedly been partaking in, Sauce unveiled a diss track that took Puff to task in eloquent but foreboding fashion. As well as claiming that he’d kept “my mouth shut, but I guess it wasn’t good enough,” Sauce issued a stern warning to the Bad Boy CEO that didn’t skimp on intensity.

“Should’ve flamed your ass in ’06/Did the drugs make you forget, who it was who wrote your biggest hit,” Sauce spits on the track. “N***a my pen the reason you the shit, you are crossing a thin line about 10 times/Shorten my bag, now I gotta go in mines with you in mind.”

Promising that’ll “only get worse from here” as the beat tapers off, there’s every possibility that his comments about Diddy’s Grammy’s speech could be the overture to another diss track that he’s been sitting on for a rainy day. However, what’s even more uncharacteristic about his most recent outburst is the fact that his long-time friend Jay-Z wasn’t merely caught in the crossfire, but was an active target. Adamant that Jay actively “toned it down” for mainstream listeners and had a “disgusting flow” from his earliest years, Sauce and Hov’s relationship has had its fair share of tumultuous moments but it’s nothing that their bond couldn’t overcome.

Diddy and Biggie performing, 1995 – Raymond Boyd/Getty Images

“We family,” he assured Vlad in March 2019. “I’m not gonna make diss records and put them on the internet, that’s corny to me. Me and Jay don’t always get along. We bump heads y’know? But if I have an issue or he has an issue, we talk to each other.” So, when he held this opinion just 9 short months ago, what’s caused this change in tact that’s made Sauce Money willing to admonish his brother before the world’s prying eyes?

Well, if we can get speculative for a minute, it’s hard not to take notice of the close proximity between Sauce’s first barb that’s been directed in the way of the Roc Nation president and the release of his adversary Jaz-O’s first single on the label just one day prior. Formerly content to operate behind-the-scenes, all signs point to Sauce Money harbouring a renewed desire to take his rightful spot in New York’s hip-hop mythology. Or at the very least, root out falsehoods in hip-hop. Now rallying against the same music industry inner-workings that had extinguished his chances to be a star in his own right, it’s safe to say that this won’t be the last we hear from the Marcy Projects veteran in 2020.

Dame Dash is currently in the midst of three separate legal disputes all involving one lawyer who goes by the name of Christopher Brown. Once again, no, this is particular Chris Brown is not the world-renowned R&B/Pop sensation responsible for creating and selling millions of records, but a lowly attorney on the opposing end of Roc-a-Fella co-founder, Damon Dash, in multiple court cases.  

Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images 

Recently, Dame Dash revealed that he was livid with the lawyer’s choice of clothing and his apparent halitosis problem. Now, the studio owner and businessman is back at it again taking shots at the attorney that continues to gun for him on the legal front. This past Wednesday (Jan. 29), Page Six ran into Dash at the Canary Club in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, as he was overhead continuing his onslaught of cracks aimed at Chris Brown stating:

“This dude’s day could be more productive if he used breath mints and wore proper clothing.”

Honestly, this charged opinion isn’t exactly bad advice regardless of who is on the receiving end of it. When you look good, you feel good, thus you perform better in any type of environment that requires attentiveness and precision. 

Currently, Chris Brown is representing photographer, Monique Bunn, who has opened up a sexual assault case against Dame claiming he inappropriately groped her. Bunn is currently seeking a default judgment that would reward her with a total of $50 million in Dash’s assets. The producer turned entrepreneur claims that Chris Brown and his clients are attempting to extort him using fraudulent lawsuits as catalysts to line their pockets. 

During a recent interview with the Breakfast Club, Dame Dash revealed that one of his biggest regrets during his and Roc-a-Fella’s rise to prominence was his treatment of women. These days, the 48-year-old is producing 24-hours worth of continuous television content and supporting his wife, Rocky Horn. 

Check out a clip of Dame Dash’s Charlotte-based DTV 24-hour television programming in the video provided below.