Funk Flex and Shadow Stokes Clash at Madison Square Garden

By Grace Kim

Funk Flex said he was not punched in the face on Oct. 21, rejecting reports that Shadow Stokes attacked him at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 20. He made the denial through a series of Instagram posts.

TMZ reported that the Hot 97 DJ attended the New York Knicks’ NBA regular-season opener on Tuesday evening, Oct. 20, to see his hometown team receive NBA Championship rings. The confrontation involved Stokes, an entertainment executive, and Stokes’ wife, TT Torrez, a former Hot 97 radio personality and employee, TMZ reported.

On Wednesday morning, Oct. 21, Flex posted a series of Instagram updates denying that he had been physically harmed. He shared a screenshot of a TMZ email seeking comment, posted footage of the run-in and mocked Stokes as his supposed assailant.

The competing accounts

Flex wrote in the first post: “YOU WISH I GOT PUNCHED IN THE FACE!” He suggested Stokes tried to provoke him into attacking Stokes, giving Stokes grounds to file a lawsuit. Flex added: “I GUESS I GOT THESE LABEL GUYS KINDA ANGRY! THEY WANNA SUE WHEN THEY DONT GET THEY WAY!”

In later posts, Flex accused Stokes of throwing a drink at him and telling him to punch Stokes so Stokes could take civil action, or a court case, against him. He described Stokes as pursuing an “active case” against him and called him an “ambulance chaser” trying to “bait” him into a payout.

Torrez’s representative told TMZ that Flex physically assaulted her during the altercation with Stokes. The representative said: “What was meant to be an enjoyable evening out for Mrs. Torrez and her husband became a deeply disturbing and traumatic experience.” The statement continued: “A verbal exchange between her husband and Funkmaster Flex escalated into a physical confrontation in which Funkmaster Flex shoved her violently.”

Torrez’s representative said Stokes was “defending” her and called the circulating footage misleading. “The brief video circulating online does not tell the full story,” the representative told TMZ. The two sides therefore disagree about what the footage establishes.

The workplace history behind the dispute

Torrez worked with Flex at Hot 97 for several years before leaving the station in 2025. Her representative said she endured “ongoing harassment, intimidation, and bullying” by Flex. According to the representative, the alleged mistreatment resulted in a settlement with MediaCo Hot 97 and a “non-disparagement agreement” (a contract restricting public criticism). The representative alleged that Flex’s recent comments violated that agreement.

What does the disputed footage establish?

For anyone assessing the incident, the practical answer is limited: the reported material does not independently establish who made physical contact. Flex used the footage to deny physical harm and to mock Stokes. Torrez’s representative called the clip misleading and said Stokes was defending Torrez. The published accounts leave the central physical question unresolved.

The distinction matters because an allegation from one party is not a verified fact. No additional response from Flex, Stokes or Torrez had appeared when TMZ sought comment.

The next steps and an older connection

Flex teased that he would discuss the incident in depth on Thursday, Oct. 22, during his radio show on Hot 97. According to Torrez’s representative, Torrez filed a police report (a written account given to police) online on the evening of Oct. 20. TMZ reported that Flex, Stokes and Torrez did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Stokes’s connection to Flex predates the confrontation by decades. The credits for Flex’s 2005 Carshow Tour CD & DVD name Stokes as a co-executive producer (a shared production credit), and Koch Records distributed the project. In 2023, a proclamation (an official public declaration) signed by former New York City Mayor Eric Adams honored Stokes with his own day.

The next scheduled development is Flex’s Oct. 22 Hot 97 broadcast. The online police report and the alleged violation of a non-disparagement agreement extend the dispute beyond the clip without resolving who made physical contact.