Celebrity Tattle: Hip-Hop

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Jay-Z Joins T.I., Fat Joe, Fabolous As A Hip-Hop Dad

'It's serious being a hip-hop rapper and being a father in the real world,' Fat Joe tells MTV News.By Rob Markman

Jay-Z isn't the first rapper to become a dad, not by a long shot. But now that he and wife Beyoncé welcomed Blue Ivy Carter into the world on January 8, there has been much speculation over what kind of parents they will be.

So how will Jay balance his street-bred rap persona with his new fatherly responsibilities? It's a balancing act that MCs like T.I., Fat Joe and Fabolous have been juggling for some time now.

Before rap, Fat Joe had quite the reputation on the streets of the Bronx, and over the course of his 19-year career, his music has reflected just that. His teenage son, Ryan, sometimes feels the pressure to live up to his dad's rep, but Joey Crack works hard to guide him right. " 'Everywhere he goes people tell him, 'I remember when your father was this, this and that,' so he's tryin' to live up to that," Joe told MTV News. "But I'm tryin' to tell him, 'Yo, we live in a mansion, B, like you know that's done.' "

Ja Rule, who is currently serving a two-year sentence on a gun charge, talked to MTV News correspondent Sway Calloway about how his life decisions ultimately affect his kids when he appeared on "RapFix Live" in April. "She needs her father," Rule said of his teenage girl, Brittany. "My boys, they need me right now too, as well as my wife. They need Daddy, and Daddy f---ed up."

Nick Cannon was recently hospitalized for kidney failure and spoke to MTV News about maintaining a healthier lifestyle to be there for his and wife Mariah Carey's children."There was a second I was thinking like, 'Damn, what if I'm not able to instill the things that I want to instill into my children?' " he said of his time in the hospital earlier this month. "It just makes you think, 'Yo, I need to give them everything I can possibly give them right now,' and obviously it starts with love."

Being a hip-hop father definitely changes things. Before he became a dad, Fabolous rarely rhymed about his personal life, but in 2009 he opened up about his son Johan on "Stay," a track from his Loso's Way album. On his upcoming Loso's Way 2, Fab figures he will open up even more. "[Children] change the way you look at things and do things and I think the music will reflect that too," he said.

T.I. has been balancing rap and family life for almost his entire career. He and wife Tameka "Tiny" Harris now star in the VH1 reality series "T.I. and Tiny: The Family Hustle," where cameras follow the couple and their six children around. On the show, Tip's kids exhibit a star quality similar to their famous dad; his son Domani is even starting a rap career of his own. "I'm not going to encourage him," T.I. said about his son following in his footsteps. "However, I will support him if I see that he's sincerely passionate."

There's a lot to consider when being a hip-hop dad, so Hov has his work cut out for him. "It's serious being a hip-hop rapper and being a father in the real world," Fat Joe said.

Share your advice for Jay-Z in the comments!

T.I. and his son DomaniPhoto: MTV News

Rihanna's 'Thug Life' Joins List Of Hip-Hop Tattoo Tributes

Nas, Snoop and Game have all paid homage to other MCs with body art.By Gil Kaufman

Rihanna has raised a lot of eyebrows this week with her latest body modification: a tattoo that reads "Thug Life", in honor of late hip-hop icon Tupac Shakur. While 'Pac had the words emblazoned across his abdomen, Rihanna opted to write them across her knuckles in what appears to be glow-in-the-dark ink.

Say what you will about whether the pop princess is living the kind of rising-up-from-the-streets life Shakur was honoring by splashing the name of his crew across his stomach, but she joins a long list of musicians who've used body art to pay homage to fallen homeys or musical inspirations.

When hip-hip hookmaster Nate Dogg died last year, his old friend and collaborator Snoop Dogg had an image of Nate's face with the legend "All Doggs Go to Heaven" written on his arm as a remembrance of the G-funk singer. And while Faith Evans once proudly bore a heart-shaped tattoo that read "B.I.G." in honor of her then-husband Biggie Smalls. (After the couple split, however, she added some ink so it read "B.I.G. FAYE.")

After his best friend and fellow D12 member was shot and killed in 2006, Eminem filled the space on his left forearm with a giant "Proof" tat encircled with flames. Fellow Detroit MC Kid Rock has the name of his former bandmate, Joe C., on his body as well, in honor of the hype man who passed away in 2000.

Drake got in the game last year when he reportedly added a portrait of late singer Aaliyah to his collection of back ink. Well before that, Nas paid a sideways tribute to Tupac with his "God's Son" stomach piece, which paid homage to both the fallen MC and to Nasty Nas' nickname.

But an artist doesn't need to have passed on to get the tribute treatment, as evidenced by D12 member Bizarre's love letter to Nicki Minaj, which he added to his collection last year in the form of a head shot of the female MC rocking blue hair. And while Game is no stranger to face-to-toe ink, he made a serious commitment in 2009 when he got the logo from producer/rapper Pharrell's Star Trak label on his arm while he worked with Williams on his The R.E.D. Album.

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