It was all a dream… Meek Mill reflects on his rags-to-riches story in the pensive video for “Dreams and Nightmares,” the intro track to his debut album.

The Maybach Music MC, who is readying his new mixtape Dreamchcasers 3, walks down the steet and has flashbacks from his troubled past as a dreadlocked felon on the streets, fast forwarding to himself driving Bentleys and doing songs with Mariah Carey.

His rhymes get more intense as the visuals also heat up with a fiery car scene. He and his Dreamchasers crew ride their BMX bikes and mob the streets. For a second, Meek imagines himself in the back of a cop car, but he’s not about to go down that road again.

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Old school met new school at the Hip Hop Inaugural Ball II sponsored by Heineken at Harman Center for the Arts in Washington, D.C. On the eve of President Obama’s inauguration, MC Lyte, Doug E. Fresh, 2 Chainz, Maxwell, Meek Mill, and more gathered to celebrate their peers and hip-hop’s impact on the election.

2 Chainz, who launched Respect My Vote! to educate convicted felons on voting, cleaned up nicely in a suit as he accepted the street soldier award.

“Doing my thing on the charts is one thing, but to be honored on another avenue, it just feels like a blessing,” he told Newsday. “I’m keeping my head leveled and staying humble.”

His fellow honorees Swizz Beatz and John Legend were also dressed to impress in suits. Lil Mama sported blonde bangs as she joined Yo-Yo and Smooth in a tribute to her idol MC Lyte, who received the lifetime achievement award along with Doug E. Fresh.

Legend was on hand to accept the humanitarian award and spoke about hip-hop’s role in re-electing Obama.

“I think hip-hop had a role in making sure we elected a black president in America because we made it so that black people were in people’s homes through our music and through our culture,” he told Newsday. “I think it made Barack Obama and more people like him possible, so I’m really thankful for hip-hop and the role it plays in society.”

Meek Mill and Marsha Ambrosius also took the stage to perform. The British songstress entertained with “Butterflies” and “Hope She Cheats on You (With a Basketball Player),” joking that it was Obama’s favorite song.

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Meek Mill does some soul searching on the inspirational “From Da Bottom,” the first leak off his mixtape Dreamchasers 3. The Maybach Music MC reflects on his rags-to-riches story, his haters, and his family.

“They screamin’ be humble, boy be humble, but ain’t nobody say that when my stomach used to rumble,” he raps, while his Dreamchasers Records signee Guordan sings the hook.

The former felon assures himself that he won’t be going back to where he started. “We ain’t never going back to da bottom,” promises Meek.

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Juelz Santana goes hard (pause) on his new joint “Soft” featuring Rick Ross, Meek Mill, and Fabolous. The Diplomat talks a big game on his heavy-hitting verse (“I’m Russell Simmons, you JoJo”), while Rozay provides the hook, describing the softness of his Louis shoes, car seats, and his girl. Juelz’ mixtape God Will’n drops January 14.

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Ace Hood toasts to his success on “It’s Going Down,” his celebratory anthem featuring Meek Mill. The Florida rapper reflects on his rags-to-riches journey, while the MMG MC goes into beast mode on his verse. The track, produced by Lee on the Beats (“Pop That”), will appear on Ace’s mixtape Starvation 2, dropping Thursday.

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Cassidy sprays “R.A.I.D.” on his rival Meek Mill with his second diss track. The 10-minute song, whose title is an acronym for “Robert Ass Is Dead,” is a response to Meek’s diss “Repo,” which he released over the holidays in response to Cassidy’s original diss “Me, Myself, & iPhone.”

Cassidy claims that he taught the MMG MC to write his rhymes. “Now you want to disrespect your teacher? Well you got a problem on your hands that you can’t deal with, bitch,” warns Cass, who adds, “Your whole career is a gimmick/ You must’ve lost your damn mind screaming all the damn time.”

Meek responded on Twitter, trashing his rhymes. “10mins of fiction ….. And a old ass flow that nobody will never play in a car! #yadone atleast ya got back on da radio #saythanks,” he wrote.

Did Cassidy exterminate Meek with “R.A.I.D.”? You be the judge.

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Meek Mill had 2012 on lock, and he’s not slowing down anytime soon. Only days into the new year, the Maybach Music rapper is already hard at work on his next project.

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After an intense bidding war, Kid Ink rings in the new year by announcing his deal with RCA Records. The L.A. rapper, who gained recognition with his self-released mixtape Rocketshipshawty and independent album Up & Away, celebrates by dropping his debut single “Bad Ass” featuring Wale and Meek Mill. A snippet of the Devin Cruise-produced banger appeared on his tape.

“We achieved so much last year independently but we just felt it was time to team up with a major in 2013 to take it to the next level, and RCA is as excited as we are about the vision and possibilities,” said Kid Ink.

He is currently in the studio recording his Tha Alumni Music Group/RCA Records debut. Toast the “man of the hour” below.

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