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Former "SNL" cast member Jay Pharoah was jogging down a San Fernando Valley street, when multiple LAPD cops pulled their guns on him, ordered him spreadeagled on the ground and one officer then put his knee on Jay's neck ... Jay says all because he matched a vague description of a black suspect wearing gray.

Jay posted the video Friday night and said the incident went down approximately one week before Ahmaud Arbery's murder. He says he was getting exercise, wearing noise-canceling headphones, when he saw the cops approach. He thought whoever they were after was in big trouble ... and then it dawned on him -- they were after him.

The cops told Jay he fit the description of a suspect -- black male wearing gray sweatpants and a gray shirt.

You see the security footage in Jay's video, and it matches his narration. You see a cop approach Jay from behind, with gun pointed. Another officer arrives with his gun in the air, and a patrol car rolls up and one of the 2 cops exits with his gun drawn.

Jay was cuffed, and with a knee to the neck, he urgently tried explaining he was not the guy they were looking for. He told the cops to look him up on Google, adding, "You will see that you made a big mistake." He says the cops released him "a minute later."

Jay says he's gone public with his story because he could have been Ahmaud Arbery or George Floyd, and "I'm still here to tell my story."

Jay ended by saying his parents tried to shield him from racism, but now he says as black men, "we have the knowledge and we have the power to overthrow," adding, "I'm Jay Pharoah, and I'm a black man in America and my life matters. Black lives always matter."

Matt James celebrated his new "Bachelor" status by hopping on a boat with buddy and fellow "Bachelor" Tyler Cameron and his female friend.

Matt was enjoying the R&R aboard Tyler's boat in sunny Jupiter, Florida.

As you know, "The Bachelor" has finally selected the show's next leading man -- the first African-American in that role in the 40 seasons.

Rachel Lindsay became the first black female lead on season 13 of "The Bachelorette" ... way back in 2017. It's clearly no coincidence ... Matt got tapped because of what's going on in the country and the world.

ABC said, "We know we have a responsibility to make sure the love stories we're seeing onscreen are representative of the world we live in, and we are proudly in service to our audience. This is just the beginning, and we will continue to take action with regard to diversity issues on this franchise. We feel privileged to have Matt as our first Black Bachelor and we cannot wait to embark on this journey with him."

The 28-year-old works in real estate, and was a football player at Wake Forest University. He tried unsuccessfully to make it on a couple NFL teams.

Donald Trump's latest decision to hold a campaign rally on the anniversary slaves were freed -- at the site of one of the most horrific massacres in our history -- has drawn outrage. Meanwhile, for millions ... corona what?  So we gotta ask ...

Don't let these two almost identical images of Logan Paul have you feeling confused ... Keep your eye on the prize and try to find the sneaky switches that have been made to this tricky pic!

The Youtube star was spotted out protesting in Los Angeles, CA earlier this week ... And we have made a few changes to this pic. Pull out your detective cap cause now it's up to you to see if you have what it takes to spot the differences between these two super similar snaps!

Faith Evans is off the hook in her felony domestic violence case ... TMZ has learned she won't be prosecuted for allegedly attacking Stevie J.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office tells TMZ ... they are declining to prosecute the singer because the alleged victim, her husband, declined to testify against her.

We broke the story ... Faith was arrested last month after she allegedly got into a heated argument with Stevie at their L.A.-area home, which at some point turned violent.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Stevie was the one who called cops to their home the night of the fight. We're told he just wanted her out of the house, and never wanted her arrested or prosecuted in the first place.

Our sources also tell us cops had no choice but to arrest Faith for domestic violence because Stevie had visible scratches on his face when officers arrived at the scene.

You'll remember ... it was just last year when rumors started that their marriage was in trouble. As we first reported ... there was palpable tension after our camera guy got the couple leaving the Essence Festival in New Orleans.

However, things seem to be OK -- even after this arrest -- the couple is still together and Stevie recently told The Shade Room he's not going anywhere.

Matt Alexander, who survived 21 days on "Naked and Afraid," is now accused of beating his girlfriend and holding her against her will in a car.

The former reality show contestant was arrested in Louisiana on a warrant for domestic battery and false imprisonment, after Jefferson Davis Parish Sheriff's deputies spoke with his GF about an alleged fight she and Matt had last Sunday.

According to law enforcement ... the couple was driving down Interstate 10 when they started arguing, and Alexander allegedly struck her in the face several times. She told cops Matt kept her in the car for 40 minutes before she was finally able to escape.

Deputies who spoke to the woman said they saw bruises on her face and busted blood vessels in her left eye. They found Alexander at his home the next day and arrested him. He's since been released after posting a $3,500 bond.

She's beaten everyone.

Ronda Rousey. Cris Cyborg. Holly Holm. Miesha Tate. Valentina Shevchenko (twice!).

But, Amanda Nunes is still often excluded from "Greatest Of All Time" conversations. And, Dana White thinks he knows why ...

"I think it's because she's a woman, to be honest with you."

32-year-old Nunes currently holds belts in TWO divisions -- bantamweight and featherweight -- and hasn't lost a fight since 2014.

But, after that "L" to Cat Zingano, Nunes has been on an 11-fight win streak ... defeating some of the biggest names in the history of women's MMA.

Most recently, Nunes dominated Felicia Spencer at UFC 250 ... just months after a 5-round victory over Germaine de Randamie.

"It's getting very hard now for people not to start respecting her, especially after this last performance," White says.

"When she fought Germaine de Randamie, people were like 'Ohh she looked awful human in that fight.' She looked human?!! What?!? She fought the greatest female striker ever and she won the fight. What do you guys want from this woman?! And, this last fight against an unbelievably tough durable Spencer, she put on an absolute clinic."

So, who's next for Nunes? Some have been calling for a 3rd fight with Valentina Shevchenko (who's a beast) or even a boxing match with undefeated champ Claressa Shields.

White weighed in on both situations ...

First, Claressa ...

"The hard part with a fight like that is where do they fight? Do they box or do they do MMA?"

"I know Clarrisa's been training [in MMA] but she couldn't possibly be at the level as Amanda Nunes."

Still, White says he likes Claressa and recently met with her manager ... but they've gotta figure out how to make a fight work.

As for Shevchenko ...

"'Well, maybe we throw Shevchenko at her again' is what people are thinking. And, I don't like anything about that because they already fought twice and Amanda beat her twice."

There isn't much labor involved for these pregnant ladies during the shelter-in-place!

These bursting bellies are taking their maternity leave early and passing the time by soaking up the sunlight, floating in their pools and flexin' some yoga moves. Whether these stars are just starting to show or approaching their due dates, it won't stop them from getting through the bumpy 2020 year.

Scroll through this gallery of celebrities about to pop to see if you can guess the mommies-to-be stuck in quarantine!

It's a crazy idea, but Britney Spears statues could soon replace Confederate monuments across Louisiana ... if a petition signed by thousands sways politicians in her home state.

Here's the deal ... one Britney fan is behind a growing petition on Change.org, asking Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards to replace Confederate statues with busts of Britney. Seriously.

The petition, started by Kassie Thibodeaux, is hurtling towards 10,000 signatures and counting ... and it calls on the Governor, Sen. Bill Cassidy, Rep. Cedric Richmond and the Louisiana State Senate and House to "do the right thing: Replace Confederate statues with an actual Louisiana hero and influential human being, Britney Spears."

There are a lot of Confederate statues and monuments in Louisiana, nearly three dozen in all, so it would be a pretty monumental task to replace them all with Britney's likeness.

As you know ... historical statues are being toppled all across the country in the wake of George Floyd's death and the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, and Taylor Swift just called on Tennessee to remove its symbols related to the Confederacy.

The petition paints Britney as the perfect solution ... citing her long list of contributions towards Louisiana, including money for Hurricane Katrina relief and flood victims.

Crazier things have happened in this crazy world.

New rule (apparently): Where there's a park, there's an angry white woman -- aka "Karen" -- spewing hateful, racist words ... and this winner does her biz in a Southern California park. Meet Torrance "Karen," everyone.

Her tirade went down Wednesday at the Charles H. Wilson Park in Torrance, CA ... because she was pissed a young woman was using a set of stairs to exercise. Now, she claims "Karen" intentionally walked through her workout ... and, as you see in the vid, she said "Jesus" ... which set off "Karen.'

She jumped in headfirst, threatening violence ... "Next time you ever talk to me like that, you're gonna get your ass kicked by my family. They're gonna f**k you up!"

She continued to unload profanities, and then quickly got racial.

"Karen" screamed, "Get the f**k out of this world, get the f**k out of this state, go back to whatever f***ing Asian country you belong in. You little f***ing bitch! This is not your place. This is not your home. We do not want you here!"

The vile woman then tells her to post it on Facebook and threatens more violence, before finally -- and strangely -- laying into her for wearing black clothes in the California sun. Seriously? Pick your beef "Karen!"

The young woman working out told reporters she was in shock over the lady's attack and it's left her shaken and afraid about returning to the park.

Torrance PD is investigating the incident.

Taylor Swift is on a crusade to rid her home state of racist statues honoring "villains" ... and she wants to give them the boot forever.

The singer opened up in a big way Friday, zeroing in on monuments in Nashville celebrating "racist historical figures who did evil things."

Taylor says it makes her sick that men like Edward Carmack and Nathan Bedford Forrest are honored with statues in Tennessee ... she says they are both "despicable" figures who should be remembered and treated as such.

Taylor's first salvo took aim at Carmack's statue, which was sitting inside the state Capitol in Nashville until last week, when Black Lives Matter protesters tore it down.

Tennessee has vowed to replace the toppled statue -- it's part of state law -- but Taylor says it's a waste of state funds and missed opportunity to do the right thing.

Carmack was a state lawmaker and newspaper publisher in the early 1900s, who published editorials against Ida B. Wells. Taylor says he was also a white supremacist.

Next, Taylor turned her ire to NBF -- the Ku Klux Klan's first grand wizard and a confederate general.

Taylor calls his statue, which is still standing, a "monstrosity." She says she's tired of stomaching 'Nathan Bedford Forrest Day' in Tennessee, which until now was observed in the state each July 13.

But, Taylor isn't stopping at just toppling statues ... she says that alone won't "fix centuries of systemic oppression, violence and hatred that black people have had to endure."

Taylor says statues honoring folks who "perpetuated hideous patterns of racism" should be retroactively changed from heroes to villains and removed ... because "villains don't deserve statues."

Taylor's imploring the Capitol Commission and Tennessee Historical Commission to stop fighting to preserve these monuments.

Bottom line for Taylor ... "When you fight to honor racists, you show black Tennesseans and all of their allies where you stand, and you continue this cycle of hurt."

A teenage soccer player in Mexico allegedly murdered by police scored the final goal at his own funeral Friday ... and the video of it will bring you to tears.

The powerful scene all went down in Oaxaca ... where teammates decided to honor their fallen 16-year-old friend by setting him up for one last shot attempt.

Check out the clip, the boys positioned his casket so they could redirect a soccer ball off of it ... and when the ball slid past the keeper into the makeshift goal -- things got emotional.

All of his teammates surrounded the casket, hugged it and sobbed uncontrollably.

Sports reporter Guillermo Schutz posted the vid to social media ... captioning it in Spanish, "In Oaxaca, this is how they bid Alexander a final goodbye, the 16-year-old teen murdered by municipal police. His friends honor him with one last goal. We're all crying."

The footage was so touching ... even former UCLA hoops star Lorenzo Mata had to share it on Twitter.

Powerful stuff.

Stassi Schroeder is feeling the fallout after losing her ''Vanderpump Rules'' gig due to alleged racist behavior -- 'cause now her revived speaking tour's hit a speed bump.

The reality TV star's "Straight Up with Stassi LIVE" roadshow -- which is based on her podcast and began in late 2019 -- was set to return at New Jersey's Basie Center in January ... but the venue just announced its cancellation.

Stassi's tour was already on hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but on the heels of getting fired by Bravo, losing sponsors and streaming platforms dropping her podcast -- it's starting to look like the whole tour could be done ... according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

So far, though ... only the NJ stop's gotten the official ax.

As we reported ... Bravo fired the 'Vanderpump' OG, along with her fellow costar, Kristen Doute, over claims they were racist "Mean Girls," basically, toward former cast member Faith Stowers.

Faith, who's Black, says Stassi and Kristen lied to police, saying Faith fit the description of a woman who was drugging and robbing L.A. men in 2018. They both fessed up, and went on an apology tour.

Too little, too late ... they've lost their spots on 'VR,' and Stassi's on the verge of losing even more.

Rep. Eric Swalwell says District Attorneys across the country should not prosecute cops they normally work with on cases -- there are just too many conflicts of interest, perceived and real.

The Congressman from CA joined us Friday on "TMZ Live" to talk about the police reform bill Democrats are proposing, and he said the challenges of prosecuting has to be addressed. Swalwell, a former prosecutor himself, says D.A.s and cops are partners who develop bonds over time.

As you know ... the D.A.s in nearly every major city are the ones tasked with investigating officer-involved shootings and police brutality incidents ... like we've seen in Minneapolis, Atlanta and Buffalo.

Swalwell's thought about this problem, and you have to hear his solution. He laid it out for us ... describing a system that would greatly reduce, if not eliminate, all conflict of interests when putting bad cops on trial.

Eric thinks the tide is turning after George Floyd's death, and believes it's time for the country to make major changes and reforms that could go a long way toward ensuring justice for all.

Jay-Z and his social justice team are going after the Charleston PD, claiming officers violated the constitutional rights of a peaceful protester by hauling him off in handcuffs.

Jay's Team, ROC, is outraged over the arrest of Givionne "Gee" Jordan Jr., who told police he loves and respects them during a May 31 peaceful protest. Givionne wasn't even in the faces of the cops while speaking to them ... he was a good 20-feet away.

Still, they arrested him for disobeying a lawful order, and although he was released on $465 bond ... Team ROC says Gee is still facing charges, and has an upcoming court date. That doesn't sit well with Jay-Z and co.

Right after the arrest, attorney Jordan Siev sent a letter to the Charleston PD calling it “unconstitutional,” and demanded discipline for the officers responsible and a dismissal of the charges ... but to no avail.

Instead, an attorney for the PD wrote back ... "The City is continuing to navigate through the unprecedented and violent attack by rioters on the City and its citizens on Saturday May 30, 2020, and continues to hold the safety and security of citizens and visitors as a top priority."

Team ROC calls that response "lackluster," and say it deflects from Jordan Jr.'s case and the request to dismiss it.

Dania Diaz, Director of Philanthropy, says ... "We are outraged by the Charleston police department’s reprehensible arrest of Givionne Jordan Jr. -- not to mention their dismissive response to our concerns about their conduct. Giovionne’s arrest was unlawful and the Charleston police clearly violated his Constitutional right to peacefully protest. We applaud Givionne and demand that his charges are immediately dismissed."