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Rolling Stone’s recent headline “Lil Wayne Goes to Jail” has finally come true: After a pair of temporary reprieves, Lil Wayne was officially sentenced to a year behind bars in a New York courtroom today after pleading guilty to weapons charges stemming from an incident in the Big Apple in 2007. Following the sentencing, Wayne was handcuffed as he exited the courthouse en route to New York’s Riker’s Island, the city jail where the rapper will serve his prison stint. According to the AP, Weezy’s legal team requested that he be placed in protective custody as opposed to the general population due to his status as a celebrity and the numerous dental surgeries the rapper underwent prior to his sentencing.

USA Today reports that while Wayne was given a year-long sentence, there’s a good chance he’ll only spend two-thirds, or eight months, of his term behind bars, as in these situations inmate often get time off for good behavior. Wayne sat quietly next to his legal team during his sentencing, opting not to address the court and simply nodding his head when the judge asked whether he understood the charges he was facing. Upon exiting the courthouse, his hands handcuffed behind his back, he gave the crowd of 100 fans and supporters a slight bow before heading off to prison.

As Rolling Stone previously reported, Weezy managed to avoid sentencing twice prior to finally being shipped off to prison today: Wayne’s initial sentencing was postponed three weeks so the rapper could undergo dental procedures — reportedly eight root canal surgeries — before starting his jail term. Last week, a courthouse fire forced Weezy’s sentencing to be postponed yet again, and Wayne celebrated his unexpected freedom by appearing onstage with Young Jeezy and Drake at Jay-Z’s Madison Square Garden concert. Wayne spent the rest of his last week of freedom on Twitter and Ustream, and unveiled on last pre-prison video for “Drop the World.”

Grammy award winning R&B singer D’Angelo was arrested early Saturday morning after allegedly soliciting a police officer for sex. D’Angelo, whose real name is Michael Archer, had been driving through the city alone that evening with $12,000 in cash when he propositioned the woman.

According to the New York Post, the 36 year-old artist offered the female police officer $40 for oral copulation. He was immediately apprehended and charged with solicitation, the sources told New York Post.

This is not the first time that D’Angelo has been in trouble with the law. Over the last five years the singer has been arrested and charged with a slew of offenses as well as admitted to drug addiction including marijuana and cocaine.

D’Angelo is currently working on a follow up studio album to Voodoo, which was released in 2000. James River, the tentative name of the forthcoming album does not have a release date and has experienced countless delays because of his prior legal woes. No comments have been made to the public at this time by his management.

With a courthouse fire giving Lil Wayne at least another day’s reprieve before going to jail on gun charges, Weezy enjoyed his surprise freedom by making what will likely be his last pre-incarceration live appearance at Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 tour stop in New York City last night. According to MTV, after Jay-Z handed the mike over to his tourmate Young Jeezy about 45 minutes into his set, Jeezy informed the crowd of Weezy’s unexpected situation and brought out Wayne’s Young Money teammate Nikki Minaj, dedicating “Bedrock” to Tha Carter III rapper.

Following the song, the beat for “I’m Goin’ In” started up, and as evidenced by the shaky video above, Lil Wayne suddenly emerged from the area where Jay-Z’s backing band was assembled and a shocked Madison Square Garden crowd loudly welcomed the rapper. If Weezy alone wasn’t enough, he was also joined by his protégé Drake, who donned an all-white suit. “We with you 100 percent,” Jeezy told Wayne onstage after the performance.

As Rolling Stone reported yesterday, Wayne was set to be formally sentenced after pleading guilty last year to weapons charges stemming from a 2007 incident, but the fire at the courthouse postponed Weezy’s sentencing for a second time. Wayne was originally supposed to be sentenced on February 9th, but dental surgery for a reported eight root canals pushed back the hearing until March 2nd. As the 100 Centre Street courthouse fire was fairly serious — eight people reportedly suffered minor injuries from the blaze — it’s unclear if the courthouse will be reopened today. When Weezy is finally sentenced, it’s expected he’ll spend a year behind bars at New York’s Riker’s Island.

With various sites comprising lists of artists, it’s an interesting find when rapper Lil Wayne sits between the iconic Tina Turner and legendary Beatle Paul McCartney. But, this may make sense once you know the list we are talking about. Every year, Billboard releases a Money Makers list, a group of individuals in the music world who have made their money through sales, touring, publishing royalties and “all forms of streaming.” Recently, Billboard released their Top 40 Money Makers, a list that features U2, Bob Dylan, Madonna, Beyonce and Lil Wayne.

1. U2 $108,601,283
2. Bruce Springsteen $57,619,037
3. Madonna $47,237,774
4. AC/DC $43,650,466
5. Britney Spears $38,885,267
6. Pink $36,347,658
7. Jonas Brothers $33,596,576
8. Coldplay $27,326,562
9. Kenny Chesney $26,581,141
10. Metallica $25,564,234
11. Fleetwood MAC $24,751,540
12. Nickelback $23,674,124
13. Beyoncé $23,658,131
14. Elton John $22,141,315
15. Miley Cyrus $21,285,996
16. Il Divo $20,909,735
17. Dave Matthews Band $20,046,148
18. Andre Rieu $19,468,768
19. Rascal Flatts $17,996,964
20. Michael Jackson $17,301,639
21. Taylor Swift $17,204,646
22. Depeche Mode $16,035,102
23. Billy Joel $15,721,607
24. Trans-Siberian Orchestra $14,606,313
25. Kings of Leon $14,421,763
26. Celine Dion $14,326,129
27. Brad Paisley $14,299,322
28. Keith Urban $14,075,581
29. Tina Turner $13,169,806
30. Lil Wayne $12,866,174
31. Paul McCartney $12,203,170
32. Green Day $12,152,004
33. Toby Keith $11,941,345
34. Kiss $11,833,930
35. Cher $11,421,553
36. Andrea Bocelli $10,711,746
37. Phish $9,998,242
38. Bob Dylan $9,610,011
39. Leonard Cohen $9,511,958
40. Bette Midler $9,421,947

Billboards of another kind are causing outrage in Newark, New Jersey. Akoo Jeans, T.I.’s clothing line, has caused a bit of a stir over a billboard that depicts a woman on her knees with her face by a man’s legs, his jeans down, his underwear showing. A local ABC affiliate did a story on the billboard, which is on the corner of Market and Washington streets. Newark’s Mayor, Cory Booker, released a statement on the matter.

“So often when I am out in the community, I see kids wearing their pants too low and others using inappropriate language in public. I will work with my city council to see if we can address it so we don’t see these types of advertisements displayed in our city in the near future.”

While longtime-but-former Disturbing Tha Peace artist Shawnna is notably absent, Ludacris has enlisted some of the biggest female emcee talent from the last three decades of his forthcoming Battle Of The Sexes album. While the project first was introduced to the public as featuring Shawnna, the March 9th album instead features female talent including Lil Kim, Trina, Eve, Lil Mo, Crime Mob’s Diamond and DXnext alum Nicki Minaj.

For male assistance, Luda’s enlisted Trey Songz, Gucci Mane and Flo Rida for his March 9th DTP/Def Jam album.

The following is a tentative tracklisting:

1. Intro [Prod. by Xcel (for The Beatbangers)]
2. How Low [Prod. by T-Minus]
3. My Chick Bad (feat. Nicki Minaj) [Prod. by The Legendary Traxster]
4. Everybody Drunk (feat. Lil Scrappy) [Prod. by DJ Montay]
5. I Do It All Night (feat. Shawnna) [Prod. by B-Crucial & Tony Dinero]
6. Sex Room (feat. Trey Songz) [Prod. by Kajun]
7. I Know You Got A Man (feat. Flo Rida) [Prod. by Infinity]
8. Hey Ho (feat. Lil’ Kim & Lil’ Fate) [Prod. by Khao]
9. Party No Mo’ (feat. Gucci Mane) [Prod. by Bangladesh]
10. B.O.T.S. Radio (feat. Shawnna & I-20) [Prod. by The Runners]
11. Can’t Live With You (feat. Monica) [Prod. by Khao]
12. Feelin’ So Sexy (feat. Shawnna) [Prod. by Gaggie]
13. Tell Me A Secret (feat. Ne-Yo) [Prod. by Swizz Beatz]
14. My Chick Bad (Remix) (feat. Diamond, Trina & Eve) [Prod. by The Legendary Traxster]
15. Sexting (Bonus Track) [Prod. by The Neptunes]
16. How Low (Remix) (Deluxe Version Bonus Track) (feat. Ciara & Pitbull) [Prod. by T-Minus]
17. Rollercoaster (Deluxe Version Bonus Track) (feat. Shawnna & Dru Hill) [Prod. by Bangladesh]

Bryan “Baby” Williams, co-CEO of Cash Money Records, has made his first public statement on reports last month on the label’s foray into the oil and natural gas industries.

As first reported on AllHipHop.com, Cash Money opened a website for Bronald Oil & Gas, an independent company focused on finding and utilizing oil and gas reserves in North and Central America.

In an interview with Ozone Magazine, Williams revealed that he also has his own oil company, and that he’s been involved in the business for close to 5 years.

“I’ve been in the oil business about 4 or 5 years now. That’s something me and my brother decided to do outside of music,” Baby explained. “I read about oil a lot and I was able to get in business. [My company] is called Browner Oil, and I’m making good money off that; that’s something for my kids and my kids’ kids. They can live off that money forever.”

The Bronald Oil & Gas company has been looking for investors to expand drilling opportunities that are both environmentally safe and lucrative.

With new albums from Drake and Nicki Minaj under development, and music to be released from Lil Wayne while he serves a 1 year jail sentence, Baby admitted that his oil business has not gotten as much attention as he would prefer.

But with the return he’s had on it to date, Williams plans to put more resources into the project.

“I did a few different deals. That was just one of them. When you’re dealing with oil, you buy in different areas,” Baby detailed. “Right now I’m active; I got pumps and s**tthat are getting money monthly. I like that oil shit. I’m gonna put some more time into it.”

Potential investors can contact Bronald Oil at http://bronald.com/about.php

(AllHipHop News) As thoughts turn to flowers, chocolates, balloons, cards and romance with someone special for many people this weekend, Valentine’s Day will be just another day in the life for Omarion.

The former B2K frontman, whose music may supply the soundtrack for lovers on Sunday (Feb. 14), revealed that the special day of love is not on his radar. According to Omarion, holidays in general are not observed at all by him.

“I actually don’t celebrate any of the holidays,” said the singer/actor, who cited “spiritual reasons” for his refusal to acknowledge the special days of the year. “..it’s more a spiritual thing. I have to go with my conscience. I just decided not involve myself in Pagan holidays.”

Omarion’s views echo many who list Valentine’s Day, along with Christmas and Easter, as a holiday with pagan roots.

According to History.com, the official website of The History Channel, “while some believe Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death or burial — which probably occurred around 270 A.D — others claim that the Christian church may have decided to celebrate Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February in an effort to ‘Christianize’ celebrations of the pagan Lupercalia festival.”

The site further notes that in Roman times, February was regarded as a time of purification as well as the official beginning of Spring.

It wasn’t until the Middle Ages when the day of romance concept for the middle of February took form. This was further enhanced by a common belief among those in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of the mating season for birds.

Omarion’s perception of holidays comes as he confessed to taking steps to become a Jehovah’s Witness.

Despite classifying his denomination as being Christian, the entertainer expressed a desire to explore the other religion.

“I’ve been studying to be a Jehovah witness,” he said. “I am not baptized yet; so I can’t technically call myself a Jehovah witness yet. But I have been studying.”

Musically, Omarion is focused on promoting his latest album, Ollusion. The album, which features rapper Gucci Mane and Marques Houston, comes as the singer replaced hip-hop choreographer Shane Sparks as a judge on the fifth season of MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew.

(AllHipHop News) Dr. Dre has filed a lawsuit against Death Row Records, the legendary record label he co-founded with Suge Knight.

Dre, born Andre Young, filed a federal lawsuit against the company that purchased Death Row out of bankruptcy, WideAwake-Death Row LLC.

According to the lawsuit, Dr. Dre has not seen any royalties from his groundbreaking hit album The Chronic since 1996, the year he left the label due to a strained relationship with Knight.

Death Row Records was put up for sale, when Knight lost a $107 million dollars default judgment to Michael and Lydia Harris.

The Harris’ claimed they invested $1 million dollars, but were cut out of profits by Knight.

WideAwake-Death Row Records LLC purchased the storied gangsta rap label and all of its assets for $18 million dollars during a sale in 2008.

Dre claims the new owners, who have issued releases and reissues by Snoop Dogg and Kurupt, are selling digital, remastered copies of The Chronic and The Chronic Re-Lit, both without his permission.

Ownership of the label is still in question.

In November of 2009, Laura Lavi, who claims to be the sole CEO of Wideawake-Death Row LLC., accused co-owners New Solutions Financials of diverting funds and assets illegally.