Flavor Flav, 54, was stopped by police for speeding and arrested on one count of felony aggravated unlicensed operation and traffic violations on Thursday morning in Valley Stream, N.Y. The rapper and reality show star was caught with a small amount of pot in his car, officials confirmed. He was eventually released by officials to attend his mother's funeral.

Born William Drayton, the 54-year-old rapper was discovered to have 16 suspensions after his driver's license was confiscated for investigation, reported the New York State Police in a press release.

Officials confirmed that Flavor Flav was speeding, driving his black Hyundai at 79mph in a zone with a 55-mph speed limit.

The reality show star tweeted earlier that his mother, Anna Drayton died on New Year's Eve. "Hey everybody I just lost my mother Anna Drayton this morning new years eve she passed away and I'm gonna miss her. She lived good a good life," the rapper said in a tweet.

Flavor Flav's rise to fame came with his debut as a member of a Hip-Hop group called "Public Enemy," where the 54-year-old famously wore a large clock necklace. When the group disbanded, the rapper went on to release solo albums and star in several reality shows including "The Surreal Life," "Strange Love" and "Flavor of Love."

While filming for The Surreal Life, Flavor Flav met and started dating actress Brigitte Nielsen. After the show's run ended, the couple was given their own show, Strange Love.

Flavor of Love featured the rapper attempting to find a wife, following his break up with actress Brigitte Nielsen.

This was not the first arrest for the 54-year-old rapper. 

Flavor Flav has previously been arrested for marijuana possession. One such case was an incident in 1996 where the rapper was arrested while riding a bicycle along South Bronx with two pounds of pot in his pockets.