WQHT (97.1 FM, “Hot 97″) is an American radio station in New York City that primarily plays mainstream urban hits, with a few pop-leaning titles on occasion. It is a famous radio station in the hip-hop community across the country, and it is also known for the drama and controversies that occur surrounding its staff and guests. And this past weekend wasn’t any different.

On Sunday evening at hip-hop’s biggest concert the Hot 97 Summer Jam Concert, just hours before she was slated to perform, Nicki Minaj pulled from performing along with Lil Wayne – the president of her label Cash Money Records. The reason? Lil Wayne was angered by disparaging comments made by Hot 97 morning host Peter Rosenberg about Minaj’s song ‘Starships’ in which he suggested that the song was not “real hip-hop.”

“I know there’s some chicks here waiting to sing ‘Starships’ later. I’m not talking to y’all right now,” he said. “F— that bullsh-t. I’m here to talk about real hip-hop sh-t.”

After hearing that, Lil Wayne then canceled Minaj’s performance in a tweet: ”Young Money ain’t doing summer jam,” he tweeted, referring to his rap crew, which includes Minaj who also tweeted: ”I go above and beyond for my fans. But won’t ever go against wayne’s word. What he says, goes,” she tweeted.

In another tweet, Minaj hanked other cities for hosting her: ”I’d like to thank the staff @ philly & boston summer jams for treating their guests w/respect! Had a blast,” she tweeted.

Rosenberg, the self-described “Jewish Johnny Carson,” tweeted: “Tonight just got interesting.”

Hot 97 DJ Funkmaster Flex then backed Rosenberg during the concert, taunting Minaj for recent weaker sales. ”You don’t go gold. It’s all your fault,” he said. “I’m dedicated to tearing you down.”

On Monday night, Minaj called in to the station to explain her decison to pull out of the concert which turned into an hour long heated debate with DJ Funkmaster Flex. Minaj apologized to her fans and promised them a free concert in the New York area this summer. She then made it clear that she had been deeply offended by Rosenberg’s comments.

“When you want our team to come to your show, treat us with respect,” she said. “And that’s all we’re asking.” Later she added: “When you disrespect Nicki Minaj, you’re disrespecting my fans. I don’t have a problem with anyone saying what they have to say to me. But don’t make fans feel inferior in any way for their personal taste in music.”

Minaj also felt that he had singled her out because she’s a woman.

“If that’s not some bitch-ass s**t – for this person to single out the only female on the bill, I’m holding it down for women,” Minaj said. “I respect men who are real men, but if all you do is take shots at women.”

Talking to the morning show crew at the rival hip-hop radio station Power 105.1 Minaj stated that she wasn’t even going to perform ‘Starships.’

“After all this has been said and done, I wasn’t gonna do ‘Starships’ and I think people know that,” she told the crew, The Breakfast Club. “I’m way smarter than that. I know what people wanted to see…It was horrible timing. It was in bad taste.”

Minaj also said she was disappointed because she had a Summer Jam set planned that included surprise performances from Brooklyn’s Foxy Brown and Harlem’s Cam’ron.

“We had an amazing, amazing show, and that was the only disappointing thing,” she said.

Fellow Summer Jam performers Nas and Lauryn Hill slid into the headliner spot and, according to Rolling Stone, pulled together an impressive set that included the Fugees’ “Ready or Not” and “If I Ruled the World.” As rumors surfaced claiming that Hill was invited to Summer Jam as Minaj’s guest and therefore shouldn’t have performed, Hill took to Twitter to clarify the situation and to support Minaj’s decision not to perform.

“No disrespect to Nicki, but I need to clear up an inaccuracy,” she wrote. “I was not scheduled to be a special guest on her set at Summer Jam, I was invited by Nas to perform with him.

“I don’t have details on exactly what transpired between the station and the artists, but I do support artists standing by their beliefs, and walking with integrity. We have to find a better way to commercially exploit music, while giving artists their proper respect.

“This cannot be done while taking their contributions for granted, or trying to control the scope of their growth and power through threats and fear tactics. We can do better than this, there is a better way, or else ‘we’ (the proverbial we) find ourselves in danger of being hypocrites!!!”

As for the Hot 97 staff, Rosenberg refused to apologize for his remarks stating, “There is a get me to apologize movement, to which I can say, I’m absolutely not apologizing, because I didn’t do anything wrong,” he said on Monday evening. “I’m not going to change my stand because I’m at Summer Jam. I’ve been saying it for six months.”

While DJ Funkmaster Flex admitted that Rosenberg didn’t pick the right time and place to say that, he also faulted Lil Wayne for asking Ms. Minaj and the other artists on his label to boycott the show, thus depriving Ms. Minaj’s fans of a chance to see her.

The station’s program director Ebro Darden also appeared on one of the station’s morning shows on Tuesday to make it clear that he stood by Mr. Rosenberg. He said though Minaj’s records were not popular, the station had supported Ms. Minaj for years because she hails from Queens. However, he believes that Rosenberg had a right to disagree with her foray into pop music with ‘Starships’.

“That’s a hip-hop show,” he said referring to Summer Jam. “When artists want to go out and make songs for other formats, that’s their prerogative, but that doesn’t mean our hosts have to like it. It was not a direct shot at her, at her personality, at her as a woman — there was no sexual reference, there was no disrespect…It’s a real hip-hop stage, and in real hip-hop, things get said.”

Image Courtesy of   Nicki Minaj

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It has been 20 years since the L.A. Riots, the four days of unrest, looting and rage that paralyzed Los Angeles and sent racial shockwaves throughout the country.

After decades of racial tension in South Central Los Angeles, VH1′s Emmy Award-winning “VH1 Rock Docs” franchise explores the connection between the violence manifested on the streets during the 1992 riots and the rage expressed in Hip Hop by NWA, Dr. Dre, Ice T, and Ice Cube among others with VH1′s “UPRISING: Hip Hop and the L.A. Riots” premiering Tuesday, May 1 at 9PM ET/PT on VH1.

Executive produced and narrated by Hip Hop legend Snoop Dogg and directed by Mark Ford , “UPRISING: Hip Hop and The L.A. Riots” tells the story of the most destructive riot in American history and is scored by some of the most iconic and controversial hip hop tracks of all time, such as NWA’s “F Tha Police” and Body Count’s “Cop Killer.”

With definitive first-hand accounts and exclusive rare footage that was locked away and hasn’t been seen until now, the documentary gives an inside look at the four fiery days that left 53 people dead and over 12,000 arrested, ”UPRISING” is told through the diverse perspective of the rappers, musicians, police officers and victims who lived through the landmark L.A. Riots in April, 1992.

Viewers will also witness never-before-heard stories from well known figures and Hip Hop artists who were affected by or actual participants in the riots, including: Rodney King, Arsenio Hall, Ice T, Professor Todd Boyd (USC), Connie Rice (Civil Rights attorney), John Singleton, Too Short, KRS-One, Nas and Henry Watson (one of the “LA Four” convicted of beating Reginald Denny) and many more.

After making its successful debut and receiving rave reviews at the SXSW Film Festival this past March “UPRISING: Hip Hop and the L.A. Riots,” puts a searing spotlight on race relations, revisits Hip Hop’s warning of what was to come and documents the turbulent days of the riot with first hand accounts from residents that were caught in the cross hairs.

VH1′s Emmy Award-winning Rock Docs are feature-length documentaries that tell unique stories of artists and music from a wide range of genres, styles and musical perspectives. ”UPRISING: Hip Hop and the LA Riots” is executive produced by Mark Ford  and Kevin Lopez for Creature Films and executive produced by Brad Abramson, Stephen Mintz, Shelly Tatro and Jeff Olde for VH1.

About Creature Films: Creature Films (www.creaturefilms.net) is a full service television and film production company and one of the leading producers of music driven entertainment. The company is owned and run by Mark Ford and Kevin Lopez. Together, they’ve produced over a hundred hours of television, with credits that include MTV’s Laguna Beach and Taking the Stage, VH1′s Behind the Musicand Bravo’s Kandi Factory.

VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with TV series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in 99 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital channels and services including VH1Classic, VH1 Soul, VH1 Mobile, and extensive video on VH1.com. Connect with VH1 at VH1.com.

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The 8th annual Rock the Bells festival will come to New York City on September 3rd, showcasing some of hip hop’s most popular musicians. Just in time for Labor Day weekend, heavy hitters in the hip hop industry will be performing on Governors Island for a jam packed concert.

Over 30 performers will be in attendance on four different stages across the island. The hip hop festival will surely bring together music lovers with an exciting and energizing way to end the summer. A-list acts including Ms. Lauryn Hill, Nas and Erykah Badu will be headlining Rock the Bells. With unique set lists, these hip hop musicians will be performing their internationally known albums in its entirety.

Ms. Lauryn Hill is set to perform her most famous songs from “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill,” which is sure to please the audience. Her album has gone platinum several times, also receiving five Grammy awards including Best New Artist and Album of the Year. Hill’s 1998 album put her on the map and has had an outpour of loyal fans since.

Erykah Badu is set to perform her album entitled “Baduizm.” Often referred to as the Queen of Neo-Soul, Badu’sperformance of her 1997 album will bring fans back to the days of her hit singles, including the famous “On & On.”

Badu’s albums have reached platinum, and she has won a Grammy award for her collaboration with Jill Scott on “You Got Me.” Through her neo-soul songs, she is known to incorporate her emotions, thoughts, and politics into her lyrics.

For his Rock the Bells performance, Nas will light up the stage with his debut album, “Illmatic.” The album was released in 1994, but is still considered to be one of the best of his career. Popular singles include “One Love” and “The World is Yours.” Nas has released over a dozen studio and compilation albums, making him a prominent rapper in the hip hop industry.

The rapper will have special guests AZ, Pete Rock and DJ Premier join him during his performance. Other famous musicians to take the stage include Cypress Hill, Common, Mobb Deep, Raekwon and Ghostface, Immortal Technique, and Doom.

Mos Def and Talib Kweli join forces as Black Star as well. The list of acts to take the stage on Governors Island is long and still growing, with more performers to be announced. Surprise guests are also on the lineup, leaving the audience with a surprise feeling.

Rock the Bells is a festival that has toured around the country, promoting the music and culture of hip hop. The tour is presented by Boost Mobile, powered by Blackberry and in association with GUERILLA UNION.  General admission tickets for the Governors Island concert are $99. For VIP access to the show, tickets are available at $199.

The VIP access includes opportunities to meet the musicians, two drink tickets, a Rock the Bells shirt, poster, backpack, and credentials. Along with its stop in New York City, the Rock the Bells tour will be making its way to three other cities across the country.

Having already performed in Los Angeles on August 20th, Rock the Bells kicked off its first show at the San Manuel Amphitheater. August 27th’s show was  in San Francisco at Shoreline Amphitheater, and the final Rock the Bells concert will be in Boston on September 10.

Governors Island will be buzzing with excitement for the full day performances of hip hop’s finest artists.

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