The Game has been known to tell a tall tale or two, but his newest yarn takes the cake.

According to the Game, recently deceased pop legend Michael Jackson attempted to intercede during the height of the beef between 50 Cent and Game, calling the Compton rapper/fan in 2005 and offering to play "peacekeeper" between the feuding MC's.

"I was on tour in Canada, sitting in my room, cutting my hair," Game told MTV News. "I was messing my hair up. Then my road manager knocks on my door. Boom, boom, boom. He told me, I got MJ on the phone. I ran and snatched up the phone."

Rapper Royce da 5'9 is the poster child for work-life balance. He manages to juggle all of his projects -- which include a tour and forthcoming albums by himself and Slaughterhouse -- yet still finds time for his three children.

"As long as I'm at home, I have babies to take care of," he said via telephone from his Detroit-area home. "I have one on a swing. I have another I have to constantly chase around that we're trying to potty train, and an 11-year-old outside that never wants to stay in and help us."

Royce has taken a break from the family life to embark on the Rock the Bells tour with Slaughterhouse, a super group of sorts that also features Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz and Crooked I. The 10-date festival tour runs through Aug. 9.

The City of Phoenix honored Arizona-based rapper Willy Northpole with a Friend of the City designation for his work with at-risk juveniles during a ceremony last week at Doc's Place in the state's capitol.

"I love the city," said a blinged-out Northpole during an interview with The BoomBox after the ceremony. "They love me back. They honored me for my community work. I go to a lot of the juveniles and talk to them.

"I was incarcerated as a teen. I go and I talk to youths. I have community functions. I have eating events -- barbecues. I bring jumpers out for the kids. I just give back. Whenever I'm in town, I'll always think of something to do for the community. People get a chance to know you. They get a chance to touch you. They get a chance to be around you. It's different when you hear the music. When you meet the person, it's more official and they feel that now they really have to support that guy. I know him personally. 'That's my boy.' It's real. It's not an act. That's the kind of person I am."

The City of Phoenix's representative was District 8 Councilman Michael E. Johnson, Northpole's uncle. Johnson said the City took notice of Northpole's activities of reaching out to at-risk youths to give them a positive role model.

Queens stand up! The New York City Council has approved a bill that will rename a city street in the borough of Queens in honor of hip-hop icons Run-DMC and the late Jam Master Jay.

The bill, which was Introduced by Deputy Majority Leader Leroy Comrie (D-27 District), was approved at the Council's Stated Meeting in City Hall and calls for the corner of 205th Street and Hollis Avenue, located in the Hollis section of Queens, to be renamed "Run DMC JMJ Way."

Darry McDaniels, known as DMC, has also donated Run-DMC memorabilia for a proposed Hollis Hip Hop Museum, which would be located just two blocks from "Run DMC JMJ Way."

According to reports, VIBE, one of the nation's top urban music magazines, is shutting its doors.

The rumors began early this afternoon, and were just confirmed when a spokeswoman for the magazine made a formal announcement that the VIBE staff would be notified about the magazine's closing in an all-company meeting at 2 pm.

The news came as a shock to many, as the magazine has been in print for 16 years and enjoyed a loyal readership, however the Wicks Group, which bought VIBE in 2006, reduced its circulation and cut salaries and hours in February in an effort to save funds.

In a formal statement to the staff, Steve Aaron, CEO of Vibe Media Group said they struggled to recapitalize the company for months in vain, seeking "to restructure the huge debt on our small company."

"The print advertising collapse hit Vibe hard," Aaron said. "Key ad categories like automotive and fashion, which represented the bulk of our top 10 advertisers, have stopped advertising or gone out of business."

A Florida man was arrested for calling 911 requesting that he be taken to meet rapper Lil Wayne. Micheal Kruse was charged with making a false emergency call, which is a misdemeanor.

According to the St. John's Country Sheriff's office report, the 20-year-old dialed the emergency service and requested a police escort him to meet the rapper. Confused by the call, the operator asked "What is a little Wayne sir?" Kruse explained that Wayne was a rapper, mistakenly calling him Shawn Carter, which is Jay-Z's legal name. The operator continued to questions Kruse, "You want a police escort to take you to Miami?"

Multiplatinum rapper/singer Wyclef Jean has reportedly been chosen to replace former Fugee Lauryn Hill at the Montreux Jazz Festival in July, after Hill canceled her entire European tour due to "health concerns."

Wyclef will only be replacing his former groupmate at Montreux, though Hill had dates in Sweden, Greece, Holland, Austria, Poland and Italy.

Organizers for the legendary event noted that Clef's appearance on July 11 at the Stravinski Auditorium in Geneva, Switzerland will be his only European performance for the summer.