Pat Dollard

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PHOENIX – A beating has left rap producer Marion ‘Suge’ Knight hospitalized in Arizona.

Police say it happened early Monday at a private party at the “W” hotel in Scottsdale.

Two men were arrested including a man who said he is the business manager for hip-hop singer Akon.

Scottsdale police spokesman Sgt. Mark Clark says Akon was not present when the scuffle occurred.

Clark says officers arrived and saw a man identified as 38-year-old Robert Carnes Jr. of Bethlehem, Pa., repeatedly punch Knight in the face.

Thomas Leon Anderson Jr. (left) and Robert L. Carnes Jr., who said he is the manager for rapper Akon

Police have not been able to confirm what started the fight.

Officers used Tasers to break up the scuffle and arrested Carnes and Thomas Leon Anderson Jr., 33, of California. Both are accused of assault and disorderly conduct.

Carnes and Anderson were booked and are being held in a Scottsdale jail.

Carnes told authorities that he is Akon’s business manager. Akon, whose real name is Aliaune Thiam, has several hits, including “Smack That.”

Knight was taken to Scottsdale Healthcare Osborn.

Knight, a California resident, is a figure from hip-hop’s earlier years. He co-founded Death Row Records, a label that once boasted artists such as Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre.

(AP) & Arizona Republic

In recent years, Knight has been less prominent in the music industry, but he has had several brushes with the law, including an August incident that led Las Vegas authorities to charge him with felony drug possession and misdemeanor battery. The charges were later dropped.