There’s still a lot of fallout to wade through when it comes to the sexual assault lawsuit against Jay-Z, which alleges that he took advantage of a 13-year-old girl at a 2000 VMAs after party. Not only does this relate to the barrage of legal updates in this case, but also to how much it divided, shocked, and invigorated hip-hop culture to discuss it. For example, Memphis Bleek recently called Van Lathan out for speaking about Hov’s presumed guilt, and it’s clear that he’s sticking by the Roc. “N***as really tried the god [goat emoji] #MarcyDontRaise Those!!” he tweeted along with some bullseye emojis quote-tweeting the following message: “You a b***h a** n***a for automatically peddling bulls**t, implying that Jay-Z is guilty. @VanLathan.”
“Oh I can actually reply to you,” Van Lathan responded to Memphis Bleek’s scolding over the Jay-Z lawsuit. “The other page has me blocked. I i no way shape or form said he was guilty or innocent. I said they were allegations that would be very hard to prove. Go check the pod. Y’all got c*m in ur ears from d**kriding.”
Van Lathan & Memphis Bleek Clash Over Jay-Z Allegations
Furthermore, this is far from the first time that Memphis Bleek has publicly supported Jay-Z as of late, whether against Van Lathan or otherwise. For example, he backed up the music mogul’s assessment that artists angry at him aren’t angry over what Jay did to them, but rather what Jay didn’t do for them. This radio interview comment resurfaced when Nicki Minaj was going hard at him on social media, and this new darker context also paints them under a particular light. We’re sure that at least a few more defenses and rebuttals will come as this accusation develops in court.
Speaking of which, Jay-Z wants to dismiss the whole thing as fast as possible, so despite Memphis Bleek and Van Lathan’s difference of perspective, they might all land under the same lens. These heavy and very serious allegations formed a bit of a circus online, which will hopefully redirect into more engaged and genuine fan concern. With a narrative as salacious as this, people will always want to dig deeper.
About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022.
Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case.
Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.
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