We're rarely shocked when rappers who put tales of street life into their lyrics wile out in the public sphere. Not so much in R&B, where love and heartbreak are the central themes. Chances are you won't hear Sisqó singing about slangin' on the side.
Still, there have been several cases over the years where singers have shown off their more vicious sides. Like when Chris Brown and Frank Ocean got into a physical altercation. Or that time Ray J threatened Fabolous after the Brooklyn rapper joked about his singing on TV. Rihanna, Solange, and more have thrown down as well. Just another case of When R&B Artists Get Gully.
Faith Evans attacks Lil' Kim after finding her in bed with the Notorious B.I.G.
Rihanna and Ciara exchange unpleasantries on Twitter.
Date: Feb. 25, 2011
Ciara found out firsthand that Rihanna doesn't take shade lightly. During an interview with E!, Ciara described an encounter with her fellow R&B peer that she wasn't happy about. “I ran into [Rihanna] recently at a party. She wasn’t the nicest,” she said. “It’s crazy, because I’ve always loved and respected what she’s done in fashion. It wasn’t the most pleasant run-in.”
After finding out about Ciara's comments, Rihanna fired back on Twitter. "My bad ci, did I 4get to tip u? #howrudeofme." The two went back and forth for a bit, before making up. Still, we don't think Ciara will bad-mouth RiRi any time soon.
My bad ci, did I 4get to tip u? #howrudeofme
— Rihanna (@rihanna) February 26, 2011
Trust me Rhianna u dont want to see me on or off the stage
— Ciara (@ciara) February 26, 2011
Good luck with bookin that stage u speak of
— Rihanna (@rihanna) February 26, 2011
Ciara baby, I love u girl! U hurt my feelings real bad on TV! I'm heartbroken! That's y I retaliated this way! So sorry! #letsmakeup
— Rihanna (@rihanna) February 26, 2011
Rhi u know its always been love since day 1! Doing shows/everything. you threw me off in that party! Apology accepted. Let's chat in person
— Ciara (@ciara) February 26, 2011[via]
Ray J lashes out at Fabolous after an altercation in Las Vegas.
Date: Sept. 18, 2011
A beef between Ray J and Fabolous took place in September 2011 after Fab joked about the R&B singer performing in Floyd Mayweather's house for a taping of HBO's 24/7. A few days later, the two artists were both in Las Vegas for Mayweather's anticipated bout with Victor Ortiz. Ray J went as a member of Floyd's #MoneyTeam entourage, while Fabolous was scheduled to perform at the Palms nightclub. When the two crossed paths, Ray J confronted the Brooklyn rapper, which led to a physical altercation.
The most interesting part of this whole fiasco is Ray J's interview on "The Breakfast Club" the following the day. The singer lashed out at Fabolous, recklessly threatening him and yelling expletives over the phone like he was ready to go to war. Over a joke. On Twitter. In a separate interview, Fabolous merely shrugged off the altercation.
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Chris Brown gets into a scuffle with Frank Ocean.
Ray J taunts Kanye West about dating Kim Kardashian with “I Hit It First.”
Date: April 6, 2013
It seems as though Ray J is only able to make headlines these days with controversy. In 2013, the R&B singer released his single "I Hit It First," which explicitly referenced his past relationship with Kim Kardashian in an attempt to taunt Kanye West, Kim's then boyfriend and now husband. While Ray J tried to play it off as coincidence, the video that followed pretty much threw that theory out the window. Kanye would get his revenge, calling Ray J "Brandy's little sister" live on national television a few months later.
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Miguel lays the smack down on an unsuspecting fan at the Billboard Music Awards.
Date: May 19, 2013
Miguel can do no wrong. Except of course, when he's performing live on national TV and decides to jump over a crowd of fans, injuring two women in the process. One of them received a WWE-style leg drop from the R&B crooner, which, as you can see below, looks really terrible on Miguel's part. Following the fiasco, producers from the Billboard Music Awards came out and said they warned Miguel not to take the leap of faith during his performance. Miguel's rep denied their claim of a warning. Still, it's clear Miguel was out of fucks to give that night.
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August Alsina puts Keshia Chanté on blast on 106 & Park.
Date: April 15, 2014
There are three things to know about August Alsina before interviewing him. One, he's from New Orleans. Two, he's from the streets. Three, whether you're male or female, he's going to tell it like it is.
That's exactly what happened earlier this year when August appeared on 106 & Park to plug his debut album, Testimony. Instead of following the script, co-host Keshia Chanté asked August about his rift with Trey Songz, despite being told beforehand not to. "So you just gonna go against the grain," he replied. "I just told ya'll not to ask me that shit." A month later, August Alsina apologized to Keshia and BET. Lesson learned.
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Solange attacks Jay Z in an elevator while Beyoncé watches.
Date: May 5, 2014
We're still perplexed as to why Solange flipped out on Jay Z in an elevator ride following the Met Gala this past spring, as both have been mum on the incident. What's not hard to decipher is that the 28-year-old singer can throw down. And if you ever want to see Beyoncé in her best acting role since Austin Powers in Goldmember, watch the video below.
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Lil' Mo throws shade at Prince before getting destroyed.
Date: July 4, 2014
Why anyone would want to taunt Prince is beyond our understanding of life itself. Lil' Mo took her shot when she blamed Prince for her being harassed by cops as he made his way to the stage to perform at the 2014 Essence Music Festival,. "had VIP passes to meander the whole superdome dude talmbout ‘we gotta hold the walk through cuz PRINCE coming through the back,” she explained on Instagram. “bitch wtf. I don’t want to see him. I had to PEE. this industry shit is CRAZY. erbody think they not human!”
"yall have NO idea how these celebs be actin," she continued. "i was pushed in my stomach cuz somebody was coming through." Later, Lil' Mo called out Prince for not singing his songs correctly. This didn't sit well with his fans, who lit up Mo's Instagram page with nasty comments, while a lone tweet from The Purple One sealed her fate.
WINNER OF THE CAPTION THIS PICTURE THANG: "I hope she know, none of her clothes match." pic.twitter.com/c8cZl1naW4
— 3RDEYEGIRL (@3RDEYEGIRL) July 6, 2014[via]
Dawn Richard punches Danity Kane bandmate Aubrey O'Day.
Sisqó wrestles with Kyle Norman of Jagged Edge.
Date: Aug. 31, 2014
Dru Hill and Jagged Edge evidently have a long-standing feud that dates back to the '90s. That came to a head this year when Sisqó and Kyle Norman of JE got into a shoving match backstage at the Concord Pavilion in California. A short video of the skirmish shows them pushing each other, and attempting to land a clean punch, but toppling over before the clip ends. If only they channeled this energy into making better music in 2014.
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Keyshia Cole attacks a woman at Birdman's condo.
