Drake, Chris Brown on NYPD’s Hip-Hop Watch List

The hip-hop police are on high alert in the wake of the Suge Knight shooting in Los Angeles. Authorities have formed a special "watch list" to monitor the activities of music artists -- including Drake and Chris Brown -- who frequent nightclubs.

According to the New York Post, rappers French Montana, Fabolous, Wiz Khalifa, Fat Joe, Lil Wayne and Jim Jones, among others are also on this special list.

"All New York club owners are required to inform the Hip-Hop Police in advance if anyone on the watch list is coming in," said a source. "They want to be there to monitor the crowd and in case any trouble starts. They don’t want any situations like the Suge Knight shooting. If something does go down, they want to already be on the scene.”

The secret police force has been keeping tabs on criminal activity within the rap game for quite some time. From analyzing rap videos, to surveilling concerts and nightclub appearances, the cops are there to enforce peace and non-violence.

“Their job is to investigate crimes and curtail violence in the hip-hop industry. So when they find out there is a beef between rappers, they monitor it. They are plainclothes cops, they go to clubs and shows. They were at J.Lo’s show in The Bronx because French Montana and Fat Joe were coming."

Knight is currently recuperating at home after being shot several times at a Chris Brown-hosted pre-VMA party. Unsubstantiated reports stated that Brown was the initial target, but police said that wasn't the case. So far, the former rap mogul has not been cooperative with investigators.

While one could argue that the hip-hop police are overreacting and possibly practicing racial profiling here, authorities believe that it's better to be safe than sorry.

“It’s better to have them on hand. They’re not there to bother any of these artists, but make sure things run like they’re supposed to run," a source said. "The other part of it is, there’s a lot of really street-leaning gangster guys on the fringes of the industry. The police task force keeps tabs on who is around certain rappers and what movements they are going through.”