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G Herbo recorded himself hitting the high notes from Usher's famed "Superstar" challenge Tuesday night — and it elicited a cryptic jab from the R&B star himself.

Herb kicked things off by light-heartedly posting to Instagram that he could sing better than Usher on his "worst day."

Clearly, Usher wasn't amused 'cuz he responded with a 🧢 emoji, which means "You're lying." Of course, the legendary crooner has good reason to be a little irritable ... he recently paid homage to his grandmother, who died earlier in the week.

Meanwhile, Herb captured himself on a separate IG vid squaring off against his "No Regrets" collaborator YK Dee in a B-Boy dance … the Chicago rapper was sipping a clear liquid -- or some liquid courage as they say -- with every pop lock and two-step.

Herb's fans, including Lil Wayne's daughter Reginae Carter, were eating up his brand of humor, commenting with laughing emojis.

The man accused of putting a bullet in David Ortiz's back during a 2019 assassination attempt was sentenced to 30 years in prison this week ... authorities announced Tuesday.

27-year-old Rolfi Ferreras Cruz, who allegedly shot the former Boston Red Sox star at a bar in the D.R. back in June '19, learned his fate at a hearing on Monday.

Nine others were also ordered to spend time behind bars due to their alleged roles in the shooting -- including 28-year-old Alberto Miguel Rodríguez Mota ... who prosecutors said "paid those who carried out the act."

Mota was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

But, the alleged mastermind behind the attack, Víctor Hugo Gómez Vásquez, was acquitted ... due to insufficient evidence.

As we reported, Ortiz was struck by gunfire while he was sitting with friends at the D.R. hotspot ... and was rushed to a nearby hospital.

Officials said his liver and his small and large intestines were damaged by the bullet -- and the former baseball player required multiple surgeries in the ensuing days to fix the issues.

The 47-year-old has since made a full recovery ... returning to his role as an MLB analyst for Fox -- while also making regular appearances at Red Sox games.

Authorities ultimately said they did not believe Big Papi was the intended target of the attack ... instead, revealing they believed a man named Sixto David Fernandez was the man the shooter wanted, allegedly because he'd once ratted out a drug runner to cops.

Jeremiah Green, drummer for Grammy-nominated rock band Modest Mouse, is fighting late-stage cancer, this according to his family.

His mom, Carol Namatame, posted a Facebook message about Jeremiah's diagnosis, but did not reveal his specific type of cancer. Carol asked everyone to "send healing vibes" to her son, whom she described as "so strong" and "so brave."

Seattle radio DJ Marco Collins also took to FB to give an update about his friend, saying Green had to slam the breaks on touring with the band so he could receive chemotherapy. Still, Collins says Green's "prognosis is good!"

Modest Mouse had been touring to celebrate the 25th anniversary of its popular second album, "The Lonesome Crowded West." Green, who's 45 years old, was last seen performing Dec. 1 in Los Angeles.

Drake's one of the biggest things to ever happen in music -- which makes it all the more surprising some of his lyrics from his early days allegedly ended up in the trash -- and are now up for sale.

That's right, Drake fans with serious passion and some serious cash can own a piece of Drizzy history for $20K according to the good folks over at Moments In Time.

A rep for the MIT auction house tells us Drake was working in his uncle's Memphis furniture factory as a youth and the lyrics were found in the dumpster when the factory eventually closed down. Now, they'll be posted for sale.

You can see the greatness brewing in Drake's alleged bars, even though the lyrics weren't fully realized just yet. The pages read like poems, with lines like, "Plates/passed around for collection/Raising money for cheap cell phones with no reception."

Young Drizzy also supposedly penned a song called "Come Spring" which OG fans will recognize eventually evolved into "Come Winter" from his pre-fame debut mixtape "Room For Improvement."

He apparently was a "Certified Lover Boy" even back then, too. Someone by the name of Syliva has her Toronto-based phone number that appears on one of the pages, likely waiting for him when he returned to The 6ix.

Practice makes perfect and naturally, Drake evolved into quite the dominant artist ... ranking #3 globally for most streams in 2022, partially due to the pair of No. 1 albums he dropped this year!!!

Kato Kaelin is once again making himself at home on someone else's property in bizarre fashion -- and no, we're not done making O.J. Simpson jokes for this kooky story.

The actor/media personality was caught snagging some fresh fruit last week from a random person's home in a Burbank, CA neighborhood ... where he and his wife, Nan Xue Kaelin, were strolling along.

Check out the surveillance video, obtained by TMZ ... you see them chatting -- even though we're told they were supposedly arguing -- and then Kato trying to pick an orange from a tree right next to them.

Nan stops him, tugging him back ... but Kato eventually breaks free and snags 3 orbs from the branch -- cradling 'em in his arms as Nan appears to find it funny.

The homeowner tells us she didn't recognize Kato or Nan at first, but her husband did shout at them from the porch to not take his fruit -- not because he found their behavior offensive, but because they simply weren't ripe.

Kato, ever the rebel, did not listen ... proceeding to wander even further onto the property -- toward the back of the path ... where he seems to have grabbed even more oranges, some of which he dropped on his way back to the sidewalk -- kind of like that glove.

The homeowner tells us Kato and Nan walked away. The homeowners weren't pissed ... but definitely found the interaction to be strange.

Morbid as it may be ... this somewhat parallels his role in the murder trial way back when. Remember, he was a friend of Simpson's who was staying in the dude's backhouse at the time -- and he was also a key witness who couldn't account for O.J.'s whereabouts during a key hour and a half when Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman were slaughtered on Bundy Dr.

WWE Superstar Kevin Owens is eager to team up with John Cena to face Universal Champ Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn on the final Smackdown this year ... telling us sharing the ring with the 16-time World Heavyweight Champion is a "full circle" moment for him and his son, Owen.

"I started with John when I came to WWE, and now he's going to be my partner against Sami," Owens said when he joined Babcock and Mojo, his friend and former colleague, on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1).

"Me and Sami have had so much history in WWE, let alone our entire careers."

Kevin continued, talking about the magnitude of the moment, saying ... "To be in that kind of situation now together, it's all just so surreal. I'm just grateful for the chance to experience that stuff."

Kevin said his 15-year-old son Owen is a big fan of Cena ... and his boy will be in Tampa to watch the WWE icon team up with his father.

"Me and my son will always have a little bond over John Cena. My son, as he was growing up, was a huge John Cena fan. When I signed my WWE contract, I told my son, 'maybe I'll get to fight John Cena one day, then I did.'"

"He's still excited that John's coming around. It's a cool little thing to share with my son anytime John's involved. My son likes WWE but is not an avid fan like I was growing up."

Owens is thankful that Cena, who parlayed his career as a WWE Superstar into a successful acting career, is still committed to performing for the WWE universe after all these years, despite being a big Hollywood star.

"Anytime John comes back around, it piques his [Owen] interest, and now I get to team with him. He saw us fight each other. Now he's going to get to see me team with him."

2022 has been a big year on many fronts ... take a look at the most lavish real estate stories of the year with some of the most eye-popping price tags.

For starters, Byron Allen set a record when he broke the bank on his $100 Malibu mansion ...  spending the most money an African American has ever spent on a home in the U.S.!!

Mark Wahlberg and Cher were among other celebs to list their homes ... they both asked for nearly $90M. Adam Levine also sought to make a huge profit, selling the home he snagged from Ben Affleck.

Remember, Ex-Disney CEO, Michael Eisner listed his massive Malibu mansion with a draw-dropping, record-breaking price tag of $225 million ... yeah, the one with 9 buildings that sits right on the beach!!

BTW, he could increase his wealth by 25% just by selling this bad baby.

You'll recall, "Full House" creator Jeff Franklin relisted his Bev Hills estate with a huge discount ... which, still came with a $60 million price tag. It sits on the property where the Manson family notoriously murdered Sharon Tate, Abigail Folger, Steven Parent, Wojciech Frykowski and Jay Sebring back in 1969. It's a true beaut, despite the dark past!

Adele didn't go easy on her pockets when she scooped up Sylvester Stallone's lavish estate, and plunked down a whopping $58M!!

Former Navy SEAL John Devine is giving back to other vets and saving animals through his org. ... pairing rescue animals with disabled veterans, free of charge!

The Rescue22 founder joined "TMZ Live" to talk all about his org. ... and the impact of turning rescue dogs into service animals for vets in need.

John tells us, his foundation prides itself on saving "two at a time," changing the lives of dogs and veterans ... by traveling to different shelters, training dogs and donating them to injured vets.

And, it's kind of a big deal ... many vets have PTSD, traumatic brain injuries or other medical conditions. Nearly 1,600 returned are now amputees. He says service dogs for vets can cost anywhere between $20K and $40K. So, his foundation not only saves lives but it saves them a ton of money.

We're told training dogs can take anywhere from 6 months to 1 year, depending on the disability ... but it's super impactful. He notes 22 vets die by suicide per day, on average ... hence where he got the name for the org.

As a former U.S. Navy SEAL, he wants to use the skills he learned to train dogs and help others. His hope is to become "Rescue0" ... in other words, he wants to prevent the number of deaths amongst veterans and help transition back into civilian life.

Canadian actor Zack Ward was just 13 years old when he was cast as Scut Farkus -- the scraggly and provocative redhead who bullied other kids -- in the Christmas classic "A Christmas Story" back in 1983.

Zack shared the big screen with Peter Billingsley as the young boy convincing everyone -- including Santa Claus --  why he deserves a BB gun, Ralphie Parker and Ian Petrella as Ralphie's younger and at times whiny brother, Randy.

The sequel "A Christmas Story 2" hit theaters back in 2012 with a whole new cast including Daniel Stern from "Home Alone."

Bob Marley's grandson, reggae artist Joseph 'Jo' Mersa Marley, has died.

Sources tell TMZ Joseph, known in the music world as Jo Mersa, passed away Tuesday due to asthma-related conditions ... although the specifics surrounding his death are unclear.

Joseph, son of Stephen Marley, took to Miami Dade College and studied audio engineering after spending his early years in Jamaica.

He went on to drop an EP in 2014 called "Comfortable" ... which held some tracks like "Rock and Swing" and "Bogus." He also released the hit single, "Burn It Down," in 2016 -- and put out a 2nd EP, "Eternal," last year.

He was only 31.

Whoopi Goldberg is rolling out a much-needed apology ... after making claims about the Holocaust that many found incredibly antisemitic.

Whoopi offered her "sincere apologies" Tuesday, telling Rolling Stone, "It was never my intention to appear as if I was doubling down on hurtful comments, especially after talking with and hearing people like rabbis and old and new friends weighing in."

She says she's still learning -- but confirms, "I believe that the Holocaust was about race, and I am still as sorry now as I was then that I upset, hurt and angered people.”

As we reported, Whoopi faced severe backlash after recently telling The Times Jewish people themselves are divided on whether they're actually a race or not, even quoting one Jewish friend as saying ... "Not for nothing is there no box on the census for the Jewish race. So that leads me to believe that we’re probably not a race."

Whoopi went on to double down on the notion that the Holocaust wasn't about race, from her POV, by saying ... "Remember who they were killing first. They were not killing racial; they were killing physical. They were killing people they considered to be mentally defective. And then they made this decision.”

Moscow PD seems to still be struggling to find significant leads in the case of the slain college students ... but the cops investigating have been offered counseling as pressure to get answers ramps up.

The counseling services have been activated in the department as a way to take "care of our officers," according to department spokesman Captain Anthony Dahlinger ... who told DailyMail the resources are there "for anyone who needs them, and our priority is to keep our force healthy as we work until we get this investigation to its conclusion."

Capt. Dahlinger says morale is still high, however ... adding, "We're all committed to seeing this investigation through to the end – it being the holidays is kind of moot. We're just focused on that goal."

A rep for the department confirms the news with TMZ, and says "Our officers and their families are continually offered support through several avenues including our regional Peer Support Team," adding counseling will continue to be offered on an as-needed basis.

We're also told patrols around Moscow and Univ. of Idaho are constant and will continue -- thanks to the help from Idaho State Police.

Actor Daren Kagasoff's ex-girlfriend has dismissed the temporary restraining order against him ... and he sees this as a huge win -- especially after she claimed he threatened to leak nude pictures of her, amongst other things.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Breanna Trupiano filed a request for dismissal in Los Angeles court last week ... although a reason for wanting to drop the TRO isn't given.

The "Devotion" star's obviously thrilled about the news ... because he tells TMZ, through his attorney, Tiffany Feder, "I was advised by my attorney to not make any statements and let the legal system run its course.  However, I was accused of things that are totally untrue."

Daren tells us the restraining order disappeared as quickly as it surfaced -- and says he's going to go after whoever's responsible for the alleged false claims ... adding "No one should ever have to go through this."

He also says, "We inhabit a world in which everything can be traced back to the sender.  And thanks to a dedicated legal team for being so vigorous in uncovering the truth."

Diddy just dropped something major on social media, and it ain't new music -- it's the first full look at his beautiful new baby girl.

Sean 'Diddy' Combs put up the cute pic Tuesday ... showin' off his daughter, Love Sean Combs, to the world -- this after spending the holiday weekend with his family in the Caribbean.

The comment section is going nuts, BTW ... because just about everyone thinks she's perfect. One even wrote, "What in the most beautiful baby in the world is going on here 🥺."

As we reported, Love was born on October 15 in Newport Beach, CA ... and he had her with 28-year-old cyber security specialist Dana Tran.

Yung Miami, someone Diddy's also publically dated, recently confirmed he made her aware of the upcoming newborn before October, too.

In case you missed it, fans almost got a glimpse of Love's face the other day ... but Diddy had to tease everyone, facin' her away from the camera.

Jeff Bezos and his boo Lauren Sanchez are living their best lives this holiday season ... tacklin' the slopes in the snow as a couple!

Jeff and Lauren strapped on some ski boots and took to Aspen, CO Tuesday -- enjoyin' each other's company, no doubt ... as they tried their luck on some of the many slopes in the area.

We're told the couple was on the slopes for about an hour and a half before comin' back down around lunchtime. JB and LS were also a part of a big group with an instructor -- unclear if any of Jeff's high-profile pals tagged along, though.

As you know, Jeff and Lauren have been inseparable for the last 3 years, traveling the world and essentially living together. Lauren even revealed she's planning on blasting into space on Bezos' Blue Origin rocket next year, and it's gonna be an all-female crew.

'Tiger King' star Joe Exotic's divorce from Dillon Passage is extremely close to being finalized, TMZ has learned ... because the 2 are just waiting on a judge to sign off and make things official.

Joe's lawyer, Autumn Blackledge, tells TMZ ... divorce docs between Joe and Dillon are finished -- they just need a judge's signature to officially close things up.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, there are no joint assets or marital property between them, so they're each entitled to whatever separate property they have.

The docs say they've waived the right to any alimony, and there's a nondisparagement agreement -- meaning one ain't allowed to bad-mouth the other.

Dillon also has to give up "any right to distribute, profit from, sell, transfer or use" any of the likenesses of Joe Exotic from Tiger King and "Joe Exotic For President."

Joe is dropping Dillon's last name, which he had taken when they got marriage -- so he'll be Joseph Maldonado once again.

TMZ broke the story, Joe filed for divorce earlier this year, saying the marriage was irretrievably broken. Joe tweeted shortly after filing, "Dillon, please just sign it and go away."

Dillon's lawyer Parastoo Majd tells TMZ ... Dillon is very happy to close this chapter of his life, move on and leave Tiger King behind.