Mystikal leaves No Limit
Mystikal is the latest artist to leave No Limit Records. A publicist for Mystikal confirmed rumors that he has left the ranks of the No Limit Soldiers. Kane & Abel, Fiend, Mia X and former production team Beats By The Pound also have left the fold in the past year or so. Mystikal's last album on No Limit was the 504 Boyz' release, Goodfellas.
More news on B-Legit, Puff Daddy and Juvenile
www.the411online.com
All contents ©1994-2000 The 411 Online
News | Reviews | Interviews | Discussion | Coming Up | Flashbacks
In the Trunk | Radio | Best of '99 | Source Awards | Exhibit | Links | E-mail
Master P and Method Man will add to their acting resumes with appearances on HBO's prison series, "Oz." Both will be featured during "part two" of the show's fourth season. Part one is airing now and the second half's eight episodes currently are in production and will premiere in January. Master P is expected to play a pimp in a January episode, while Meth's appearance will air in February. Brand Nubian's Lord Jamar recently joined the show as Supreme Allah, a "five-percenter" who causes tension among the prison's cliques. Lord Jamar made his debut a couple of weeks ago on the fifth episode of this season. Naughty By Nature's Treach also appeared on the show, but his character, Malcolm Coyle, was stabbed to death last season in retaliation for murdering a family. 
The Roots are definitely pioneers in the hip-hop game, and their latest project won't do anything to change that reputation. The group, which is known for playing all of its own instruments, is planning to serve as the band for Common, Mos Def and other artists in a series of three-hour shows being billed as the "Okayplayer" tour. The tour also will include Dilated Peoples, Talib Kweli & DJ Hi-Tek, dead prez and Jill Scott. A schedule has not been announced, but it is expected to hit at least 20 cities, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. The concerts also will feature "activity stations" with laptop computers and educational information. Okayplayer.com was launched by The Roots in 1999 and is the official web site of Common, D'Angelo, Talib Kweli & DJ Hi-Tek and others. 
Rosa Parks has hired lawyer Johnnie Cochran to help her appeal a district court decision allowing Outkast to use her name as the title of a song. Parks, who became a prominent figure in the U.S. civil rights movement when she refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama, bus in 1955, sued Outkast last year for using her name as the title of its Grammy-nominated song, "Rosa Parks," from 1998's Aquemini. Outkast and LaFace Records claimed that the First Amendment protects song titles and U.S. District Judge Barbara Hackett agreed in a ruling in November. 
De La Soul's first album since 1996, Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump, hits stores Tuesday. To celebrate, the trio will be meeting with fans and performing at the Virgin Megastore in New York City's Times Square at 6 p.m. The album, which is De La's fifth, hits the streets with plenty of buzz, thanks in part to the hot single, "Oooh," featuring Redman. Xzibit, Busta Rhymes, Freddie Foxx, Chaka Khan, J-Ro and Tash of the Alkaholiks and Mike D and Ad-Rock of the Beastie Boys also make guest appearances on Art Official Intelligence. 
Ice-T will take another shot at television with a starring role on "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." Ice will play police detective Odafin Tutuola, the partner of John Munch (Richard Belzer). "It's a great thing to be asked to be on board such a great show," Ice-T said in a press release. The show, which debuted in the fall of 1999, was nominated for a TV Guide Award for favorite new series. In 1997, Ice starred in the NBC series, "Players," as one of three scam-artist convicts that satisfied their parole requirements by helping out the FBI. Ice also had a small role in a 1998 "Law & Order" TV movie and a recurring role on "New York Undercover." He also has made appearances in well over 25 movies. As far as his music career, Ice-T's Greatest Hits: The Evidence drops Tuesday. The compilation features classics like "I'm Your Pusher" and "6 in the Mornin'" as well as "Colors" and "New Jack Hustler," which previously were available only on movie soundtracks. The album also features a new song, "Money, Power, Women." 
Cheryl "Salt" James, one third of the legendary female hip-hop group Salt-N-Pepa, has announced plans to release her first solo album, Salt Of The Earth, in early 2001 on GavFam Records, her joint venture with Rap-A-Lot Records that will be distributed by Virgin Records. "For a long time, I've wanted to take more control in my career as an artist and as a businesswoman," Salt said in a press release. "Starting my own record label is a key part of making this vision a reality, and the label's name reflects the themes that are most important to me. 'Gav' comes from Gavin, the name of my husband and the father of our two children. 'Fam' comes from the word family, because my family is always going to be my top priority. It's really what I'm all about." However, Salt-N-Pepa have not broken up. The trio recorded four new tracks for a greatest hits album that was released overseas, but the collection has not yet arrived in the U.S. due to scheduling delays. 
Sean "Puffy" Combs was in a New York City courtroom Monday, but the only thing accomplished in his weapons and bribery case was setting a date to set a trial date. Sept. 13 was the date agreed upon to discuss scheduling conflicts and finalize a starting date for the trial. Puff Daddy pleaded not guilty to charges of criminal possession of a weapon in the second and third degree and bribing a witness in connection with a shooting late last year at Club New York in Manhattan. Bad Boy artist Shyne is facing attempted murder charges in connection with the incident.