In today's Daily Rap man charged with vandalising Tupac statue, T Pain was not arrested, BET joins rappers for HIV/AIDS awareness and American Gangster takes $46m at box office.Tupac Vandal chargedA man has been charged by Atlanta authorities after vandalizing a statue of the late rapper Tupac Shakur, gunned down in 1995. The statue which stands outside the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts in Atlanta was covered in stickers and underwear placed on the head of the slain rapper. Kenneth Anthony Wilson was charged and held on $1500 bail. There had been reports of the attack being a hate crime and rumors circulated that a noose had been placed around the statue. This however was not the case.T Pain not arrestedAkon apprentice T Pain signed to Jive Records was not arrested as many sites and publications reported this last week. The R&B sensation actually turned himself in on numerous traffic offenses according to representatives from the Tallahassee natives record label. There was no bail set and he was free to walk away after surrendering. T Pain born Faheem Najm will not miss any scheduled appointments or engagements because of this.HIV/Aids Awareness
BET has joined forces with some of Hip-Hop/R&Bs most influential purveyors to encourage awareness of the HIV/Aids epidemic. Common, Ciara, Lyfe Jennings have all offered their services in participation with the What U Know About That? Rap-It-Up Sex Quiz. The premise behind the one hour special is to have the BET news staff visit major metropolitan cities such as New York and Atlanta to test the target demographic on safe sex practices. The AIDS virus has killed over 25 million people since it was first recognized back in 1981.
American Gangster
The movie that encouraged Jay Z to stay out of retirement amassed a staggering $46 million this past weekend in America where the movie was released on Friday. Jay Z's album also titled American Gangster is set to hit shelves in the US tomorrow and has been deemed another classic from the Brooklyn rapper born Shawn Carter. This will be the Def Jam Presidents tenth studio album, his second since coming out of retirement last year to record Kingdom Come.
Melanie Cornish