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Juelz Santana is enjoying his newfound freedom thanks in part to Meek Mill ... and now he wants to give back to the inmates he met while behind bars.

Here's the deal ... Juelz is fresh outta prison after serving 19 months of his 27-month sentence in his airport drug case, and he's got Meek to thank for some smooth sailing.

Our sources tell us Meek helped Juelz by connecting his wife, Kimbella, with a lawyer who helped guide them through the process to ensure everything worked out. Courts and the prison system can be tricky, and we're told Meek wanted to ensure things would work out for Juelz.

The Dipset MC was able to come straight home and skip the halfway house he was originally destined for. Many halfway houses are shut down because of the pandemic.

Juelz is now on supervised release, which, as we first reported, means he'll have to submit to a drug test within 15 days of his release.

Now that he's out, Juelz tells us he wants to give back to inmates by working with non-profits whose missions include overturning sentences for wrongly convicted prisoners. Juelz says he also wants to help people in prison find a platform for the music and movie scripts they write in lockup.

On that same front, Juelz tells us he wrote a ton of new music on the inside, as well as a script for a TV series. He says he's going to get back in the studio Monday, but also wants to take time to focus on his family and make up for the 19 months he spent in prison.

Juelz's wife is happy to have her husband home ... she says it's surreal to have him back, wake up next to him and see him with their kids.

Now entering the game for the (insert NBA team name here) ... J. Cole?!?

NBA player Larry Sanders says HELL YEAH ... telling TMZ Sports he truly believes the rapper has a real chance at making his pro ball dreams come true.

Of course, the idea took off when 35-year-old Cole -- who grew up loving and playing basketball -- starred in a Puma commercial hinting at trying to get a shot at the Association.

Master P told us Cole is dead serious about making it happen ... and even the Detroit Pistons told the "Lion King On Ice" MC to hit 'em up for a tryout.

We spoke with Sanders -- who's played in 6 NBA seasons -- and asked if Cole's got a realistic chance ... and his answer may surprise you.

"I do, for real. I've seen him hoop before in some games and I knew he took the game seriously when he was younger."

"He always raps about it, so that's dope. I'm excited to see that."

Sanders knows exactly what the process will be like, but in reverse -- the 31-year-old has made waves in the music industry off the court ... and even produced a song for PARTYNEXTDOOR.

"It's gonna be just like the music game. Me doing music, everybody laughed at me, everybody went at my head and challenged me ... and I had to go prove myself."

Sanders -- who recently told us he's working on making it back to the league as well -- says he loves the idea of joining forces with Cole on a team next year ... which could end up in some music collabs!!

This weekend's Summer Hot Shots comes from a safe and at-home hottie Kayla Fitzgerald where she treats us to some delicious foodie photos from her Beverly Hills pad for you to feast your eyes on!

When Kayla Fitzgerald isn't serving up mouth-watering selfies on her Instagram she can be spotted on SI Swimsuit runway shows, "The Amazing Race" and taking trips around the world ... and, of course, enjoying some of her favorite foods like tacos, thai and Italian.

Yum!

This year’s Summer Hot Shots are coming to you a little differently … we have teamed up with smoke shows from around the world to create some eye-popping photo galleries with a DIY flare (social distancing, duh!) for you to enjoy.

Kim and Kanye are giving it the 'ol college try to save their marriage, as tongues are wagging over the Bradley Cooper/Jen Garner sighting. So we gotta ask ...

Cardi B's giving a lot of love to one of the famous female faces that appeared in her new music video -- giving fans a sneak peak at Normani's viral dance moves.

CB posted a video Saturday that showed behind-the-scenes footage of how the video for her new single 'WAP' was shot -- especially the dance solos featured by several different women ... including Fifth Harmony's Normani, who had the internet ablaze with her sexy number.

Turns out, the whole thing was shot on a green screen with the main song playing in the background. It's funny though ... Cardi was singing the lyrics to Normani's own song, "Motivation," over the 'WAP' beat -- giving her a little extra juice/hype for the performance.

Normani also posted incredible photo stills from the shoot -- and naturally, her fans (and her contemporaries) loved it. Her cameo was definitely one of the more notable standouts, according to Twitter anyway. Other appearances weren't as well-received, unfortunately.

As we reported ... the whole idea behind 'WAP' was women empowerment -- that's why Cardi and Meg had cameos from a bunch of different famous ladies across the entertainment industry, in an attempt to show solidarity.

Americans are far from the only ones going stir-crazy -- because chaos can be found anywhere these days ... notably, Belgium, where cops are fighting their own citizens.

Check out this insane brouhaha that broke out Saturday at a Blankenberge beach -- where cops were sent in to break up a crowd of young'ns who were sitting on the breakwater ... this after a lifeguard had told them to scram since it was prohibited.

Welp, when the cops showed ... all hell broke loose. The video picks up right in the middle of the action -- officers were creeping upon beach-goers with batons drawn and face masks on, but the crowd was quick to strike back early and often ... against the cops and even against themselves.

You see some people trying to stop the violence, to no avail. People are hurling beach chairs and umbrella poles and umbrellas. Speaking of the latter, watch how one guy straight up swings a giant beach umbrella at a cop, who doesn't flinch.

Kanye West wants you to donate to his campaign so he can become the 46th POTUS, and he's making the pitch by laying out his positions on various issues, and one thing's clear ... he's playing to both Democrats and Republicans.

Ye, who calls his platform, "Creating a Culture of Life," is seeking contributions ranging from $20 to a grand. As for his positions, the first is revealing ... "Restore faith and revive our Constitutional commitment to freedom of religion and the free exercise of one's faith, demonstrated by restoring prayer in the classroom including spiritual foundations."

That seems to be a cornerstone of his campaign ... freedom of religion, which for him includes a hard-line, antiabortion stance. This position clearly targets Republican voters.

But, then he pivots to the Dems, promising to reduce household debt and student loan debt. He also wants to restructure the educational system, by opening it up to "at-risk and vulnerable populations."

He takes a stand on policing, promoting policies that "treat all Americans the same, regardless of race, color, or ethnicity." And, he promises to protect the environment by promoting clean air and water as well as renewables.

And, then he pivots back to Republican voters, promising to "place Americans' best interest first and foremost." He also vows to "Maintain a strong national defense."

Kanye says he's not a spoiler ... he's in it to win it. This turn shows he's trying to win votes by traversing party lines.

Nick Cannon says America needs another Black man in the White House ... that's why he's team Kanye 2020.

Nick was at LAX Friday when the photog asked him what he thought of Ye's run. Answer: "I love it!"

Now, the photog took it a step further and asked if he'll still be with Kanye when he casts his ballot, and Nick gave the semi-emphatic "Yes." We say semi because there's clearly a slight smirk.

On another subject ... Nick was asked about his recent troubles over some anti-Semitic comments. Nick has been earnest in attempting to educate himself ... even meeting with rabbis.