TMZ.com Home

Jermaine Dupri fears Atlanta's black community will see a spike in COVID-19 deaths IF the city reopens for biz Friday, so he's begging ATL ... "Don't fall for the okie doke."

The "okie doke" is a clear reference to GA's Gov., Brian Kemp, giving the state the green light to open barbershops, hair and nail salons, tattoo parlors, bowling alleys and several other businesses. But, Jermaine -- an ATL and hip-hop icon -- says it's too early, and it's the wrong image for his city's black community.

JD came armed with stats for his nearly 10-minute plea to Atlanta -- pointing out COVID-19 is killing African-Americans at a disproportionately high rate, and that Georgia ranks last in virus testing.

He did acknowledge the challenges of quarantine, and said he does understand why people want to get out, but added the stakes are just too high to give in now. As he put it, "Don't die 'cause you bored!"

The NAACP is going even further than Jermaine, directly calling Gov. Kemp's decision "reckless and unilateral." The org. says Kemp is placing "at risk communities in direct danger" of contracting COVID-19, and it's calling on citizens to push back ... and stay home.

Tekashi 6ix9ine has been out of prison for weeks now, and his baby mama says he's still ghosting their kid -- but he says that's not what's going on at all.

The rapper's ex, Sara Molina, tells TMZ ... just like before, Tekashi has shown little to no interest in reconnecting with their daughter, Saraiyah. Sara says she wasn't expecting him to change out of nowhere, but she's still disappointed by the radio silence.

She is grateful, however, Tekashi's mother is actively trying to keep a bond alive with the little girl. Sara says grandma's been in close contact over the past month or so ... coming over to see Saraiyah in-person a number of times.

It's interesting ... Sara says Tekashi, while still incarcerated, reached out to her mother, to set up a neutral location for his mom to meet Saraiyah. That apparently went off without a hitch, but Sara says right before 6ix9ine was set to be released ... his mom cut off communication and went off the radar.

So why's Papa 6ix9ine been M.I.A.? Sources close to the guy tell us the only reason he hasn't reached out and attempted to connect yet, is because he wants the coronavirus pandemic under control first, as he wants to put his child's safety first.

We're also told Tekashi is claiming Sara's begging to get back with him ...  suggesting he's afraid she's using their daughter as a ploy to reunite.

That might explain why he's anxious to get a custody arrangement hammered out in court ... according to our Tekashi sources.

For now, Sara says Tekashi's mom is still welcome to visit her granddaughter -- but a daddy-daughter reunion seems to be on the back burner.

Leave it to Sofia Richie to deliver some sobering news while still looking like she stepped off a bikini runway, but she could just be breaking the law because it looks like that runway is closed.

Sofia hopped on her e-bike Wednesday and hit the beach ... social distancing was not an issue because the beach was empty. Unclear what beach she was at, but L.A. County beaches are closed, and she was definitely in Malibu Wednesday, which is off-limits.  Nevertheless, it's hard to dispute her declaration summer 2020 is over before it begins.

Sofia's BF, Scott Disick, had a lighter spin on things ... calling his Wednesday "Earth Day at its finest" with some help from his e-bike. He looked like he was having a ball, for sure, but again, he's tooling around without a mask, and if it's L.A. County, the beaches are closed. Maybe Sofia hadn't told him yet about summer getting out of dodge.

Things were much simpler just 8 months ago when Sofia turned 21. She got a couple of cars for her birthday -- seriously, a Bentley and Range Roger -- and hopped on a jet with Kylie.

Ah, the good ol' days.

Insane Clown Posse's giving Michiganders short on masks a reason to bust open some Faygo and celebrate ... a helpful donation from the Juggalo world.

Detroit's very own horrorcore hip-hop duo delivered more than 300 band shirts Wednesday to be made into masks, which will be distributed to community members and healthcare workers in need.

A member of ICP's record label -- decked out in clown gear, of course -- dropped off the boxes of merchandise at the Detroit Sewn donation center. Every Juggalo would probably love to get their hands on some of these shirts, but let's face it ... they probably already have enough gear.

Glamorous Moms Foundation has partnered with Michigan's Detroit Sewn to take in fabric donations from all around and turn them into masks that are free to the public during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Shaggy 2 Dope and Violent J tell us they linked up with the good cause to simply do their part to help out locally, like so many others are.

We're told it will take a few days for the ICP shirts to be sewn into masks, which will feature the names and faces of the duo ... but mostly 2 Dope, if you believe what J's saying.

ICP also just recently dropped their new app, Custom Clown Clips, as a way to send personalized messages and stay connected with all the Juggalos during the pandemic.

Either way, there's nothing clownish about their good deed.

Tommy "Tiny" Lister has no patience for kids or teens disobeying orders to stay home, and he's threatening vigilante justice -- "Friday" style -- if they don't straighten up.

Tiny, best known for playing Deebo in the 'Friday' flicks, is delivering a stern warning to any kids tempted to blow off coronavirus quarantines ... and it would make Craig and Smokey say, "Damnnnn!!!"

Tiny's strongly urging children to act like adults and put on gloves and masks when they have to go outside, but for the most part ... get their butts in the house and stay there.

He's even threatening Deebo-esque intimidation tactics to make sure they comply.

As you may know ... young people are at much lower risk of developing serious symptoms if they contract COVID-19, but they can still be contagious carriers and infect those who are more at-risk. Hence, the stern message from Lister.

BTW -- for those who are of age -- don't forget Tiny's going to be out in L.A. this Friday for special weed deliveries to 4 lucky winners ... and he'll be wearing the proper safety gear.

Don't worry about your bed head, sleep-chic is in ... and these stars have been challenged to grab their favorite pillows and find a way to wear it ... and nothing else!

Celebs such as Sarah Michelle Gellar, Halle Berry, Anne Hathaway and several other famous faces have decided to share their chic new looks ... cause there's no better way to help pass this time than to join in on a nude new trend!

Take a look at all the other stars that have taken on the challenge by scrolling through our gallery! Get a good look at how these ladies are styling their new fits!

Chris Cuomo is taking a huge step in his COVID-19 recovery -- he's returning to bro mode, getting in some outdoor exercise and, apparently, setting up a home gym.

The CNN anchor, who' been doing his show from his basement, emerged Wednesday for a jog near his home in the Hamptons. It's the first time we've seen him outside since he announced he'd contracted the coronavirus.

Seems Chris is still pushing it physically as he recovers. Remember, he outlined his game plan to beat COVID-19 ... and the playbook from his doctor called for as much movement as possible because the virus can set up shop in the body when you're sedentary and passive.

There's little chance that would ever happen with Chris ... looks like he's gonna be stepping up his in-home workouts. Some gym equipment was delivered to his crib.

It's probably no coincidence ... CNN announced Wednesday most of their staff would not return to their offices until September. So, Chris is hunkering down for a long haul.

Unfortunately, he also got some bad news today -- his 14-year-old son Mario's tested positive for COVID-19, which comes on the heels of finding out his wife Christina tested positive last week.

Rep. Ilhan Omar says the Trump Organization has a lot of nerve asking the federal government for rent relief ... when regular Americans can't get it themselves yet.

We spoke to the Minnesota congresswoman Wednesday about the Trump International Hotel in D.C. making a formal request to its owner's administration to be able to delay its monthly rent payments of $268k. It certainly seems to scream ... conflict of interest.

Eric Trump -- who's in charge of Trump's business affairs while he serves as president -- told the NYT he just wanted to be treated like everyone else ... seeing as how their revenue has taken a nose-dive during the coronavirus pandemic, similar to other hotels in the country.

That's definitely not cool, though, according to Rep. Omar -- who tells us President Trump and his cabinet should NOT be prioritizing hotels over everyday Americans when it comes to rent relief ... as there's a lot more of the latter than the former.

She says no one bats an eye when corporations and businesses ask for help, but when the people need assistance -- more than the federal stimulus checks -- everyone makes a fuss. It sounds like the congresswoman is teasing a potential new bill that would help out with this issue specifically -- namely, rent deferments.

Rep. Omar says there's another reason for the feds to step in quickly ... and it has to do with getting ahead of the curve. Not for the virus, but for a potential housing crisis.