Rapper Hurricane G, First Female Hit Squad Member, Dead at 52

Hurricane G in a screengrab from her video for "Somebody Else." 

Trailblazing rapper Hurricane G is dead at 52.

Hip-hop legend Erick Sermon, who shared a daughter with her, of EPMD confirmed the news on Sunday. 

“My heart is hardened today. One of my good friends… my oldest daughters mother passed away today,” Sermon wrote on Instagram in a touching tribute.

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A post shared by Erick Sermon (@erick_sermon)

He added that Hurricane G, born Gloria Rodríguez, was "a legend in her own right in the Hiphop community."

"She rapped with me. @redmangilla she paved the way," Sermon said.

The Brooklyn native never forgot her roots. She performed in both English and Spanish throughout a career spanning 30 years.

She was the first female member of Hit Squad — the hip-hop collective originally formed by Sermon and his partner-in-rhyme with EPMD, Parrish Smith, in the 1990s. Hurricane G made her mark on the loaded roster which included future icons Redman and Das EFX.

Her career as a solo artist peaked in 1997 with the release of "Somebody Else." The single, from her debut album "All Woman," charted at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart.

Her impact went far beyond her own music, though, through collaborations over the years with several prominent artists, including Redman, Xzibit and Diddy.

Hurricane G's appearance on Redman's 1992 hit "Tonight’s da Night" was her big break in the industry. She also was featured on tracks with Keith Murray, Delinquent Habits, Funkdoobiest and the Cocoa Brovaz.

In 1999, she was featured on the track "P.E. 2000" from Diddy's platinum-certified second album, "Forever." 

Her final solo effort was 2013's "Mami & Papi," featuring Thirstin Howl III.

No cause of death was given for the artist, but her daughter Lexus Sermon, revealed on Facebook in May that her mom was battling lung cancer.

"My mom has stage 4 lung cancer," captioned a photo of her mother smiling. "Don't know how many of you understand what that means but even after 30 years of life I'm still trying to process it myself. I have never cried so much in my life I have never felt so disconnected from reality in my life.

"Yet my mom still managed to be the one to hold it together and say ''don't worry baby everything's gonna be alright."

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A post shared by Lexus Sermon (@lexxcannon)

Diddy Announces $185 Million Cannabis Deal

Sean "Diddy" Combs

A lot of rappers have claimed they got their start selling drugs to support their art. However, Sean "Diddy" Combs was a Howard University man before leaving the prestigious historically Black university early to pursue his music dreams.

With sweeping changes in attitudes towards some Schedule 1 drugs, as well as laws governing the production and distribution of cannabis specifically, the music and fashion mogul has decided the time is right to enter the game. Like everything else he does, the brash billionaire is doing it big.

Today, the entrepreneur announced his agreement to purchase licensed cannabis operations from Cresco Labs Inc. and Columbia Care Inc., two of the largest cannabis businesses in the U.S., for up to $185 million.

If U.S. and state regulators approve the deal, Combs will control an operation that has licensed marijuana operations in three states — making the new entity the nation's largest Black-owned cannabis company.

"My mission has always been to create opportunities for Black entrepreneurs in industries where we've traditionally been denied access, and this acquisition provides the immediate scale and impact needed to create a more equitable future in cannabis," Combs, Chairman and CEO of Combs Enterprises, said of his reasons for making the purchase. "Owning the entire process — from growing and manufacturing to marketing, retail, and wholesale distribution — is a historic win for the culture that will allow us to empower diverse leaders throughout the ecosystem and be bold advocates for inclusion."

Combs told the Wall Street Journal he desired to get into the business to help address long-running inequities that have seen Black people disproportionately arrested and jailed for marijuana crimes even as they make up a "tiny" percentage of the market for legal weed.

"It's diabolical," Combs, 53, said. "How do you lock up communities of people, break down their family structure, their futures, and then legalize it and make sure that those same people don't get a chance to benefit or resurrect their lives from it?"

If approved, the sale will give Combs significant entry into a legal market currently worth $27 billion annually. His company would be able to grow and manufacture cannabis products and wholesale and distribute those branded products to licensed dispensaries in major metro areas, including New York, Boston and Chicago, as well as operate retail stores in all three states.

Al B. Sure Shares New Details About Medical Ordeal That Led to Him Being in a Coma

Al B. Sure, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A day after his son, Albert Brown IV, shocked fans with the revelation of his recent release from the hospital after spending two months in a coma, Al B. Sure took to social media on Tuesday to thank fans for their support.

The legendary R&B singer tweeted, “A very humble thank you for the prayers my @WBLS1075NYC family. I’m alive, awake, on the mend. Submissively grateful!#AllPraiseisDuetoAllah. I’ll share more of my health experience soon in hopes to encourage us all to stay on top of our #HealthandWellness #GoSeetheDoctor.”

Posted alongside a picture of Sure being attended to by hospital personnel while standing in a dressing gown, the words were the latest in a long line of health updates by the artist that began over the summer.

In previous posts, he had alluded to his health issues and even provided pictures as he went into different surgeries but offered no specifics as to what illness or affliction he was facing.

A very humble thank you for the prayers my @WBLS1075NYC family. I’m alive, awake, on the mend. Submissively grateful!#AllPraiseisDuetoAllah. I’ll share more of my health experience soon in hopes to encourage us all to stay on top of our #HealthandWellness #GoSeetheDoctor ❤️ ABS! https://t.co/2xxJ2jHUd1 pic.twitter.com/J910PBzZRU

— Al B. Sure! (@OfficialAlBSure) October 31, 2022

On Wednesday, the 54-year-old finally shed some light on his medical ordeal. Sure, posted a three-part letter to his fans on Instagram, and videos from his hospital stay.

According to the Grammy Award-nominated crooner, he underwent various medical procedures, including an organ transplant, multiple blood transfusions, a hernia repair, intubation and being placed on a ventilator — after losing feeling on the entire left side of his body in July and being taken to the emergency room.

Sure said he was not made fully aware of what happened while he was under until October.

"This unforeseen medical roller coaster has been a complete life changing experience and I truly value everyday functionality like Walking, Talking and Breathing on your my own with no assistance from a medical professional or machines," Sure, who noted that his doctors were fully prepared to send him to hospice, wrote. " Take none of the forementioned for granted."

#AlBeez 🐝 around 🌎 #AlBSure’s official #MedicalUpdate • Pt. 1, 2 & 3 on IG / FB now! 🛑 Video Images may be graphic or disturbing to some. Viewer Discretion is Advised. For the full story visit ⭐️ https://t.co/FekhOlMKEa & ⭐️ https://t.co/rw2FZodmgS #AllPraiseisDuetoAllah 🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/LCslqv12tk

— Al B. Sure! (@OfficialAlBSure) November 3, 2022