Funk Flex is giving his version of the confrontation involving former HOT 97 colleague TT Torrez and her husband, Shadow Stokes. The veteran DJ claims the encounter was an attempt to provoke him into a lawsuit, while Torrez alleges he shoved her.
The incident unfolded Tuesday, Oct. 20, inside Madison Square Garden’s Delta Lounge during the Knicks’ season opener against the Philadelphia 76ers. Clips of the confrontation circulated online, fueling claims that Flex had been punched. Jeweler Alex Todd, who attended the game, also claimed on social media that he saw Flex get hit.
Footage subsequently shared by Flex showed a chaotic confrontation, with people intervening as he moved through the crowded room. Additional footage surfaced Wednesday. The clips have not established the full sequence of events, and claims that Flex was knocked unconscious have not been substantiated.
Flex rejected the punch claims on Instagram: “YOU WISH I GOT PUNCHED IN THE FACE!” Elsewhere, he insisted, “SHADOW STOKES COULD NEVER PUNCH ME!” He also accused the couple of “TRYING HARD TO BAIT ME INTO A PAYOUT!”
The people involved have longstanding ties to the music business. Torrez joined HOT 97 in 2014, held leadership positions including music director and Vice President of Artist and Label Relations, and also hosted on the station. She exited in 2025 during a lineup overhaul that also included DJ Enuff’s departure, according to RadioInsight.
Stokes, meanwhile, is a veteran record executive whose background includes radio promotion at Koch Records. Contemporary Radio & Records coverage identified him as the label’s vice president of urban promotion, working records during an era when Koch’s roster included acts such as Jim Jones, DJ Khaled and Yung Berg.
On Wednesday, Torrez’s representatives released a statement alleging that an exchange between her husband and Flex escalated into a physical confrontation in which Flex “shoved her violently.” Her team said she filed an online police report that night. “The brief video circulating online does not tell the full story,” the statement read. “What the public saw was a husband defending his wife.”
Her representatives also alleged that Torrez had experienced years of harassment and intimidation from Flex. According to her team, she pursued the matter privately through legal channels, reaching a settlement with MediaCo’s Hot 97 that included a nondisparagement agreement. They allege Flex continued to violate that agreement.
As spotted on HotNewHipHop, Flex addressed the incident on his HOT 97 show Thursday, Oct. 22. According to his account, Stokes began insulting him, questioning his finances and calling him a “puppet,” a “pawn” and “broke.” Flex claimed Stokes repeatedly challenged him to throw the first punch.
“Hit me first, so I can sue you,” Flex alleged Stokes told him. “I work for MediaCo./HOT 97 and they have a case against Hot 97,” Flex said. He argued that any physical response could have been used to claim he was acting on his employer’s behalf and pursue a financial payout. That alleged motive is Flex’s account of the encounter.
Flex also claimed Stokes threw a drink on him. He said tensions escalated after he told the couple they would not be returning to HOT 97. “Y’all are out, never to return,” he recalled saying. Despite those accusations, Flex said he still viewed the couple positively and recalled Torrez checking on him after his mother died. He also said a temporary ban from Madison Square Garden following the confrontation had been resolved.
“They’re actually good people, but they’ve let that music industry and that greed turn them into different people,” he said. The settlement described by Torrez’s representatives and the active legal matter referenced by Flex should not be assumed to be the same proceeding. Public reporting has not established their precise relationship.
Flex has previously faced a case involving another radio personality. In 2003, he pleaded guilty to a harassment violation following a 2002 encounter with former HOT 97 and Power 105.1 personality Steph Lova outside HOT 97’s offices. Lova accused him of physically attacking her. AllHipHop reported that he was ordered to complete 35 hours of community service; his attorney, Murray Richman, said Flex denied striking her and stressed that the plea was to a violation rather than a misdemeanor.
Torrez’s representatives say she will continue addressing the current dispute through her legal counsel. Her allegation that Flex shoved her remains disputed, and the circulating videos do not resolve the competing accounts.
