Cash Money and No Limit To Face off in Verzuz’s Comeback at Complexcon Las Vegas

Swizz Beatz and Timbaland’s Verzuz series will return Oct. 25 at ComplexCon Las Vegas with “Cash Money VERZUZ No Limit,” reuniting two of New Orleans’ most influential rap labels for a new chapter in hip-hop’s Southern story. (Photo: VERZUZ TV via Instagram)

When two of New Orleans’ most powerful rap dynasties meet on one stage, it’s not just a reunion — it’s a reckoning.

Verzuz, the online battle series created by Swizz Beatz and Timbaland during the pandemic, is set to return Oct. 25 at ComplexCon Las Vegas with “Cash Money VERZUZ No Limit.” The event promises a collision of legacies that once defined Southern hip-hop’s rise from regional pride to global dominance.

Verzuz itself has traveled a long road to this moment. What began in 2020 as a live-streamed experiment between friends turned into a communal ritual at the height of lockdown, when millions of viewers tuned in to watch artists face off hit for hit. By 2021, the brand had been acquired by Triller in a deal meant to expand its reach and grant equity to participating performers.

Within a year, Swizz Beatz and Timbaland accused the company of failing to deliver on its commitments, filing a $28 million lawsuit before eventually reaching a settlement. In 2024, they regained control of the platform and struck a new distribution partnership with X, formerly Twitter. “VERZUZ is still 100 percent Black-owned,” Swizz said after reclaiming ownership — a statement that reasserted the show’s purpose as both cultural archive and act of independence.

🚨 IT’S OFFICIAL 🚨
Verzuz is BACK — live at #ComplexCon Las Vegas.
Cash Money #VERZUZ No Limit Celebration 🙌🏽
One stage. Two legendary iconic Labels . History is about to be made !!
October 25.
Live Streaming details coming soon !!!!!!
Stay tuned for more info ….. pic.twitter.com/tM4TZibBuN

— VERZUZ TV (@verzuzonline) October 7, 2025

That context makes the upcoming battle feel less like a nostalgia trip and more like a symbolic passing of eras. Cash Money Records, founded in 1991 by Bryan “Birdman” Williams and Ronald “Slim” Williams, shaped the glossy, radio-ready sound that turned bounce into mainstream pop currency. From Juvenile’s “400 Degreez” and Big Tymers’ “Still Fly” to Lil Wayne’s “Tha Carter” series and Drake’s global dominance, its artists redefined what success from the South could look like.

No Limit Records, founded a year earlier by Master P, built a different kind of empire — gritty, self-reliant, and defiantly prolific. The label’s rapid-fire releases and signature Pen & Pixel album art made its soldiers — Silkk the Shocker, Mystikal, C-Murder, Mia X and Fiend — household names. Master P’s philosophy of ownership and community uplift would go on to influence an entire generation of independent entrepreneurs.

Their rivalry fueled one of the most important shifts in rap history. Long before Atlanta became the genre’s capital, New Orleans created the model — ambition on one side, autonomy on the other. Cash Money and No Limit didn’t just compete for charts; they competed for narrative, for the right to define what Southern success sounded like.

Pooh Shiesty Freed After Serving Three Years on Florida Gun Charge

Rapper Pooh Shiesty, whose real name is Lontrell D. Williams, in a 2021 booking photo released by the Miami-Dade Police Department. Williams was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison for a gun conspiracy charge. 

Memphis rapper Pooh Shiesty, born Lontrell D. Williams, is officially free — and his return marks one of hip-hop’s most closely watched comebacks of the year.

According to federal Bureau of Prisons records, the 25-year-old artist was released from custody in early October, months ahead of his scheduled April 2026 date. His attorney, Bradford Cohen, confirmed the news on social media, writing, “@poohshiesty is ready... wait until you see his comeback. He will be bigger than ever.”

The rapper, best known for his breakout single “Back in Blood” featuring Lil Durk and his 2021 mixtape “Shiesty Season,” had been serving a 63-month sentence after pleading guilty in 2022 to one count of conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of violent and drug-trafficking crimes. The plea deal led prosecutors to drop three other charges — including one carrying a potential life sentence — tied to a 2020 shooting in Bay Harbor Islands, Florida, where two men were injured in a robbery involving designer sneakers and marijuana.

Memphis rapper Pooh Shiesty came home to a bag 💰 pic.twitter.com/Bgkg7yEht5

— Kollege Kidd (@KollegeKidd) October 7, 2025

He was sentenced in April 2022 to a little over five years and three years of supervised release. The government had sought a ten-year term, but Cohen convinced the court to impose the shorter sentence, telling reporters at the time, “He took responsibility and we felt it was fair.”

Shiesty, whose name became synonymous with Memphis trap’s new wave, was just 20 when Gucci Mane signed him to The New 1017 imprint. His rise was meteoric — “Shiesty Season” debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and turned the rapper’s menacing drawl into a generational sound.

Even during his incarceration, Shiesty remained culturally relevant. His comments under Cardi B’s Instagram post earlier this week — “I love you” — racked up thousands of likes and immediately went viral, reminding fans that his charisma hadn’t dimmed. 

Pooh Shiesty back home and already shining like he never left 🧊🐍💯 The whole team celebrating his return — big energy, big ice, and big Memphis vibes only 🔥#PoohShiesty #Big30 #Memphis #TrapsNTrunks #WelcomeHome pic.twitter.com/q1Fo4UIOAP

— Traps N Trunks (@trapsntrunks) October 7, 2025

A Comeback in the Making 

Shiesty’s release has sparked both optimism and reflection inside hip-hop. Fans flooded social media with clips of his homecoming, including one viral post showing him stepping out of a luxury car surrounded by family and supporters. “Memphis rapper Pooh Shiesty came home to a bag 💰,” read the caption.

Cohen, his attorney, called the moment “a climb back up to elite status,” while adding that Shiesty’s journey wasn’t finished: “His story isn’t over — it’s just starting.”

Diddy Sentenced to 50 Months in Prison in Federal Mann Act Case

Sean “Diddy” Combs was sentenced to 50 months in prison on federal Mann Act charges.

Sean “Diddy” Combs was sentenced to 50 months in federal prison Friday — four years and two month — after a jury in July convicted the hip-hop mogul of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution stemming from conduct involving Casandra “Cassie” Ventura and a woman who testified under the pseudonym “Jane.”

U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian said he was sentencing Combs for the offenses of conviction — not for counts on which the jury acquitted him — and noted both the scope of harm and Combs’ broader history. “The court has to consider all of your history here,” Subramanian told Combs, while also acknowledging the 54-year-old’s “celebrated and iconic” career and the trauma of his father’s violent death when Combs was a child.

Combs, who faced a statutory maximum of 20 years — 10 per count — had been acquitted of racketeering and sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion, charges that could have brought a life term. Prosecutors had sought more than 11 years (no less than 135 months) and the maximum $500,000 fine, arguing Combs showed little remorse and that the punishment should reflect the “psychological, emotional and physical” damage to victims. The defense urged no more than 14 months, essentially time served since his September 2024 arrest, saying his “legacy has been destroyed” and that he had already been punished in public view.

Before the sentence, Combs addressed the court at length. He apologized to his family, his community and specifically to Ventura, calling his actions “disgusting, shameful and sick,” and said he was “out of control” while using drugs. “I take full accountability and responsibility,” he said, adding, “If you give me another chance, I won’t let you down.”

Diddy’s 50-Month Sentence at a Glance

• The crimes: Two counts under the federal Mann Act (transporting women for prostitution).
• The term: 50 months in prison — four years and two months.
• Acquittals: Not guilty on racketeering and sex trafficking by coercion.
• Prosecutors wanted: At least 135 months (11+ years) and a $500,000 fine.
• Defense asked for: 14 months (time served).
• Judge: Balanced sentence, citing Combs’ iconic career and traumatic past but stressing accountability.
• Why it matters: A moment of reckoning for one of hip-hop’s most influential figures.

The hearing featured dueling portraits. Prosecutor Christy Slavik called Combs “a master puppeteer of his own image,” describing abuse that was “consistent, casual even, but life-changing for the people on the bruised end of it.” Defense attorney Brian Steel countered that Combs has been sober and “transformed,” pointing to his in-custody class “Free Game with Diddy,” his past philanthropy, and plans to teach rehabilitation programs if released.

Combs wept as several of his children asked the court for leniency. “We’re still just daughters who need our father,” one said through tears. Subramanian, who earlier indicated he saw no reason to depart from advisory guidelines of roughly six to seven years, ultimately split the difference between the parties’ positions and the range — imposing 50 months.

The case turned on the federal Mann Act, which criminalizes transporting individuals across state lines for prostitution. Jurors found that Combs transported women for commercial sex acts; they acquitted him of the sweeping racketeering conspiracy and coercive sex-trafficking charges. At trial, jurors viewed 2016 hotel surveillance video of Combs assaulting Ventura — footage that catalyzed public outrage when it surfaced last year — and heard testimony about what Ventura called “Freak Offs” and what Jane called “hotel nights.”

Subramanian told Combs he had weighed both the downfall and the record. “You are being sentenced for these offenses,” the judge said, urging Combs to continue treatment and accountability. The courtroom, packed with reporters and supporters, fell silent as the term was read: 50 months.

For Combs — who once seemed to personify hip-hop’s expansive promise — the number marks a coda to a summer of hard contradictions: a partial acquittal, a pair of felony convictions, and a public reckoning in which a cultural architect asked for mercy while victims asked to be believed. The next chapter will unfold behind bars.