After two separate sentencing delays, New Orleans rap star Lil Wayne was officially sentenced to prison today (March 8th) in Manhattan Criminal Court. 

Lil Wayne was sentenced to the prison term after the rapper admitted to possessing a loaded .40 caliber handgun that was found on his tour bus after a performance in New York in July of 2007. 

The rapper was taken away in handcuffs to begin serving his time on Riker’s Island, a prison that is just emerging from a scandal over preferential treatment of certain inmates and celebrities. 

In October of 2009, several prison officials resigned from the prison after it was revealed that Brooklyn rapper Foxy Brown and other inmates had been given preferential treatment while serving their time behind bars. 

Lil Wayne was originally supposed to be sentenced to prison on February 9th but the date was postponed to March 2nd, because the rapper needed root canals, in addition to having his platinum “grillz” removed. 

The March 2nd date was rescheduled to today (March 8th), after a fire broke out in Manhattan Criminal Court’s basement which sent eight people to the hospital.

Lil Wayne could be out in as little as eight months. He is expected to remain in protective custody during his time behind bars. 

"Law is mind without reason. .................I'll return," Lil Wayne told fans on his Twitter page this morning.  

Chicago rapper Lupe Fiasco has two high profile projects lined up for 2010, in addition to launching a major tour to support his upcoming album Lasers.

Lupe Fiasco has formed a new group with producers Kanye West and Pharrell Williams to form Child Rebel Soldiers and he is working on an untitled book.

Lupe told New Zealand’s Channel 3 News that the book will be released under his birth name, Waasalu Muhammad Jaco.

"I started off as a writer. You know, since I was a little kid, I've been telling stories and actually Hip-Hop has just been an extension of me telling stories,” Lupe Fiasco said. “So putting it in a more traditional form as far as a book has always been a part of the plan."

Lupe Fiasco recently kicked off his Steppin’ Lasers tour to promote his fourth release, Lasers, which has been turned into Atlantic Records, although there is no release date for the album.

Lupe Fiasco’s Steppin Laser tour will kick off this Friday (March 5th) in Claremont California with B.O.B., who will make appearances on select dates.

Tour dates for the Steppin’ Lasers Tour is listed below:

Friday 3/5 - Bridges Auditorium - Claremont, CA - (w/B.o.B)
Saturday 3/20 - Bob Hope Theatre - Stockton, CA
Wednesday 4/07 - House of Blues - Boston, MA - (w/B.o.B)
Friday 4/09 - House of Blues (Atlantic City) - Atlantic City, NJ - (w/B.o.B)
Saturday 4/10 - The Fillmore NY at Irving Plaza - New York, NY - (w/B.o.B)
Tuesday 4/13 - 9:30 Club - Washington, DC - (w/B.o.B)
Wednesday 4/14 - Royal Oak Theatre - Detroit, MI - (w/B.o.B)
Friday 4/16 - Eagles Ballroom - Milwaukee, WI - (w/B.o.B)
Saturday 4/17 - Lund Arena (Gustavus Adolphus College) - St. Peter, MN
Sunday 4/18 - Midland Theatre - Kansas City, MO
Tuesday 4/20 - Peoria Civic Center Theatre - Peoria, IL - (w/B.o.B)
Thursday 4/22 - East Tennessee State University Center - Johnson City, TN
Friday 4/23 - UNC – Charlotte - Charlotte, NC - (w/B.o.B)
Saturday 4/24 - Worcester Polytechnic Institute - Worcester, MA
Monday 4/26 - House of Blues - Houston, TX - (w/B.o.B)
Tuesday 4/27 - House of Blues - Dallas, TX - (w/B.o.B)
Thursday 4/29 - Ogden Theatre - Denver, CO - (w/B.o.B)
Saturday 5/01 - House of Blues (Las Vegas) - Las Vegas, NV - (w/B.o.B)
Sunday 5/02 - House of Blues (Sunset) - Los Angeles, CA - (w/B.o.B)
Wednesday 5/05 - Regency Ballroom - San Francisco, CA - (w/B.o.B)
Friday 5/07- Showbox SoDo - Seattle, WA - (w/B.o.B)

 50 Cent will drastically change his image for his new role in the upcoming movie Things Fall Apart, which is being produced through his Cheetah Vision Films. 

The movie centers around 50 Cent’s character, a football star who is suffering from cancer during his senior year in college. 

In order to accurately portray the role, 50 Cent will shed over 60 pounds from his muscular physique, which he has prominently displayed in numerous photographs and album covers. 

"Fifty is in the process of losing 65 pounds" for the role,” the film’s co-producer, Randall Emmett told Daily Variety. 

Mario Van Peebles has signed on to direct Things Fall Apart, which also stars Van Peebles, Lyn Whitfield, comedian Mike P and Steve Eastin. 

Before he sheds the pounds, 50 Cent will tour Europe to promote his latest albumBefore I Self Destruct. The tour kicks off tomorrow (February 23) in Berlin, Germany. 

Dates are listed below: 

Tue 02/23/10 Berlin, Germany Columbiahalle 
Thu 02/25/10 Paris, France Zenith Paris 
Fri 02/26/10 Brussels, Belgium Forest National 
Sat 02/27/10 Essen, Germany Grugahalle-Messe Essen GmbH 
Sun 02/28/10 Zurich, Switzerland Hallenstadion Zurich 
Thu 03/04/10 Neu-Isenburg, Germany Hugenottenhalle 
Sun 03/14/10 Hamburg, Germany Docks Konzerte Disco 
Fri 03/19/10 Birmingham, United Kingdom LG Arena 
Sun 03/21/10 Dublin, Ireland The O2 Dublin 
Mon 03/22/10 Belfast, United Kingdom Odyssey Arena 
Thu 03/25/10 Manchester, United Kingdom Manchester Evening News Arena 
Thu 04/01/10 Belgrade, Serbia Belgrade Arena 
Sat 04/03/10 St. Petersburg, Russia Ice Palace 
Mon 04/05/10 Moscow, Russia Olympiiski 

Grammy nominated Canadian rapper Drake has announced his first ever North American solo tour with the launch of “The Away From Home Tour.”

Drake will hit the road for 25 dates with fellow Canadian rapper K-Os and New York City based synth-pop band, Francis & The Lights.

The 25-date tour will kick off on April 5 at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois and will wind down May 8 in Plymouth, New Hampshire at a private location.

Drake has teamed with Reverb, a non-profit environmental organization, to make the tour eco-friendly , by “greening” the tour using biodiesel fuel in his tour bus, in addition to using biodegradable and recycled products on his tour bus and backstage.

Drake will play a variety of festivals on the tour, including the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and The Bamboozle festival.

The tour is Drake’s first official tour since wrapping up the Lil Wayne headlined, Young Money Presents: The America’s Most Wanted Music Festival Tour dates are listed below:

Date City/State Venue 
4/06/2010 Charleston, IL Eastern Illinois University 
4/07/2010 Columbus, OH Private Location 
4/09/2010 State College, PA Penn State University 
4/10/2010 Boston, MA Private Location 
4/11/2010 Lock Haven, PA Private Location 
4/14/2010 East Lansing, MI Michigan State University 
4/15/2010 Rochester Hills, MI Oakland University 
4/16//2010 Morgantown, WV West Virginia University
4/21/2010 Orlando, FL University Central Florida 
4/22/2010 Greenville, SC Furman University 
4/23/2010 TBA 
4/24/2010 New Orleans, LA New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 
4/26/2010 Kansas City, MO University of Missouri – Kansas City 
4/27/2010 Lexington, KY University of Kentucky 
4/29/2010 Lowell, MA University Mass Lowell
4/30/2010 Syracuse, NY Private Location 
5/01/2010 Boston, MA Private Location 
5/01/2010 East Rutherford, NJ Bamboozle Festival 
5/04/2010 Worcester, MA Holy Cross 
5/05/2010 Towson, MD Towson University 
5/06/2010 Cheney, PA Cheyney University 
5/07/2010 Ithaca, NY Private Location 
5/08/2010 Plymouth, NH Private Location

 Criminal charges against Kanye West and his manager Don Crowley have officially been dropped, after the pair fulfilled their community service obligations.

According to TMZ.com, West and Crowley’s attorneys appeared in a Los Angeles court this morning (January 29) and provided proof that the pair worked 50 hours at the Red Cross and completed an anger management class.

The rapper and his manager’s attorneys struck a deal with a judge to dismiss the charges if they successfully completed the court mandated services.

West and Crowley were hit with criminal charges after they smashed two photographers’ camera equipment during an altercation inside of LAX on September 11, 2008.

They were originally charged with vandalism, battery and grand theft but all charges have officially been dismissed.

Hip-Hop star Lupe Fiasco could help determine who sits in the controversial vacant seat left by President Obama.

The rapper will perform at a fundraiser for Chicago Urban League Chief Cheryle Jackson, who is one of five democratic hopefuls running for the seat in the February 2 primary.

The seat was held by ousted Governor Rod. Blagojevich, who was impeached and removed from office twice for trying to sell Obama’s seat.

Cheryle Jackson, who was Blagojevich’s press secretary during his initial inauguration, left the governor’s office to head up the Chicago Urban League.

“I am running to fight for our families and to help our communities all around the state of Illinois prosper, particularly at a time of such tough economic declines,” Jackson said during a press conference. “The people of Illinois deserve an honest, independent broker and a bold advocate in Congress who is a problem solver and not another politician.”

Lupe will perform at the Shrine Chicago in support of Jackson on January 28.