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Idris Elba is clearing up what he meant when he recently said he no longer calls himself a Black actor -- this after much debate online -- by now saying, my job ain't about race.

The actor's original quote showed up in an interview he did with Esquire magazine this past week, in which he said ... "I stopped describing myself as a Black actor when I realized it put me in a box."

IE added at the time, "As humans, we are obsessed with race. And that obsession can really hinder people’s aspirations, hinder people’s growth. Racism should be a topic for discussion, sure. Racism is very real. But from my perspective, it’s only as powerful as you allow it to be. We’ve got to grow. We’ve got to. Our skin is no more than that: It’s just skin."

His answer here sparked a lot of discourse, as many felt this was a controversial take ... seeing how it's in the same vein as what Morgan Freeman once said about Black History Month and racism -- namely, the best way to get rid of it was to stop talking about it.

Welp, Idris heard all the chatter ... and decided to set the record straight on how he feels about his Black heritage. On Saturday, he wrote ... "There isn't a soul on this earth that can question whether I consider myself a BLACK MAN or not. Being an 'actor' is a profession, like being an 'architect' ,they are not defined by race."

He added, "However, If YOU define your work by your race, that is your Perogative. Ah lie?"

In other words, Idris is saying that he finds it counterproductive to describe everything a Black person does -- especially as it pertains to work -- with a racial qualifier. Good of him to clarify, because -- for a minute there -- there were some who felt he was falling into the O.J. Simpson category.

Cops in Miami have descended upon an area near Bad Bunny's downtown restaurant -- leaving many wondering if he's okay ... but we've learned this has nothing to do with him.

The reggaeton artist's Japanese steakhouse, Gekko, is surrounded by dozens of police vehicles right now -- with SWAT units on the scene as well. The streets are getting blocked off ... and bystanders are filming the dramatic scene.

There are multiple units parked right in front of BB's establishment, with officers seen going in and out the front entrance -- so, naturally, there was panic that something may have happened to the beloved rapper ... that's not the case, though.

Sources directly familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... the owners of Gekko have been notified about a possible fugitive situation that's playing out at the SLS LUX Brickell Hotel -- which is adjacent to Gekko and shares the block. This explains this type of police response.

Our sources tell us Gekko is not directly involved in this matter. We're also told Bad Bunny isn't in FL at the moment, so he's no even in the vicinity of what's happening.

Gekko has become a huge hot spot in the city ... when Bad Bunny and Grutman opened this place back in August, it drew a big crowd and a lot of celebs. So, it's quite well-known.

It sounds like whatever the police are dealing with is fluid. We've reached out to the department for clarification on what exactly is going on, and if there's an active threat.

So far, no word back.

Rihanna has A LOT of songs to consider as she finalizes her 13-minute Super Bowl set -- but if she's curious what her peers think she should sing ... she might wanna watch this.

We got Christina Aguilera and Winnie Harlow heading into Drake's SB party Friday in Scottsdale -- and, of course, we asked them about RiRi's many options in terms of tracks she could perform Sunday ... and what exactly they'd like to hear during the Halftime Show.

Check it out ... each of them gives us a response, and they're quite different. CA says she wants to see Rihanna's take on an ODB classic -- while going on to tell us she thinks Ri's gonna kill it.

Winnie had her own pick for a Rihanna song she'd like to see performed -- a fan fave, no doubt -- but she also had a lot to say about the fact that Rihanna is one of the first Afro-Caribbean women to take the big stage. Winnie is of Jamaican descent, BTW.

George Lopez is getting dragged through the coals for what some say is him acting like a gate-keeping elitist in standup comedy -- this after kinda putting down a fellow Latino comic.

The legendary funny man was on a podcast this past week for the All Things Comedy network -- chatting with Steve Treviño and others ... and they were talking about George's legacy, especially as it pertains to paving the path for other Hispanic comedians.

Trevino said it was incumbent on the OGs of the biz -- like George -- to pass down the knowledge and assist up-and-comers in breaking through ... but GL disagreed on the way to go about that. He acknowledged he hadn't always been the most helpful, but noted he had shown the way ... arguing it was on others to chart their own path, the way he has.

Trevino pushed back, invoking Ralph Barbosa -- a young guy who's blowing up right now in standup -- and George almost immediately took issue with his name being mentioned.

George asked why Trevino was bringing RB up, suggesting he wasn't famous/worthy of getting roped into the convo. He then asked the room if it was messed up he was saying that ... but in the end, he stood his ground in writing Barbosa off as a relative nobody.

His takeaway point was ... look out for yourself. It would seem, in his mind, that means not talking about other comics or giving them a plug of any kind -- something Paul Rodriguez has alluded to when it comes to what he says is George's track record on this sort of thing.

A resurfaced clip of Paul telling a story about George is now making the rounds in the wake of this Barbosa snub ... and it paints an interesting picture. It would seem that even among George's contemporaries ... he's got a bad rep for not extending a helping hand to Latinos.

George would likely disagree with that characterization -- but he's also pretty clear in how he thinks he can best serve people, including Hispanics. A bootstrap approach, no doubt.

As for Ralph ... he's responded to all the chatter this has spawned, and a clip he reposted is quite telling. It's a scene from the movie 'Blood In, Blood Out' -- where Benjamin Bratt is getting grilled by his relative for turning his back on his own people.

An unidentified flying object -- literally, a UFO -- was shot down by the United States just outside of Alaska ... but it isn't another balloon, and TikTok is having a tinfoil hat field day.

Here's the deal ... the White House announced Friday that President Biden had ordered the downing of yet another object in the sky that was inexplicably in our airspace, which the Pentagon said posed a reasonable threat to civilian aircraft due to its altitude (40,000 feet).

It had been spotted and surveilled by U.S. intelligence/Alaska-area military Thursday, and the next day ... JB said to take it down, which an F-22 fighter jet then did without issue.

As for what exactly it is -- and more importantly, how the government is talking about it -- is shrouded in mystery ... as White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby described it to the media as the size of a "small car," but didn't offer any more details.

Fortunately, other outlets were able to get a better read on this from anonymous national security sources -- with one unnamed high-ranking official describing it to ABC News as "cylindrical and silverish gray," while also saying it looked to be unmanned and FLOATING ... and not appearing to be steered or propelled with any recognizable aviation systems.

In other words, it sounds like a good old-fashioned flying saucer -- or, at the very least, like something that's been described by Navy officials, of late, as something out of this world.

There's a retrieval mission underway to gather the remains of whatever this thing was, but so far ... there isn't much else out about where it came from, what its capabilities are, or its intent. Uncle Sam has firmly said, however, that it is not another Chinese balloon.

Of course, due to the sci-fi nature of this news ... the internet is off and running with conspiracy theories -- not to mention purported footage and/or images of what some claim to be the actual object ... plus, what some claim have been other recent sightings there.

Par for the course for TikTok, but we must admit ... this is a pretty wild story, especially since the feds are being careful in how to describe the mystery machine. They keep calling it a "high-altitude object" ... but also admit it was, indeed, flying. So, it's a freaking UFO.

BTW, if this feels like déjà vu -- namely, the government admitting to something unknown, while being wish-washy on what exactly it was -- that's because this happened before. Roswell!

The infamous incident from 1947 is top of mind for many right now ... especially since a balloon was just in the mix a week ago, which China said was for weather research. That's what the U.S. ultimately said crashed out there in New Mexico, despite putting out a much more ominous public bulletin about the debris at first ... which definitely didn't sound like a weather balloon. Roswell is by far the most talked-about alien theory to date, at least here.

Time will tell if the feds give more info on what they shot down. With UFO reports at an all-time high -- and with Congress taking it seriously -- this could amount to something. 👀

Damar Hamlin has big plans for the millions that were donated to his foundation after his cardiac arrest medical emergency ... telling TMZ Sports he's "gonna change the world."

Remember, over 240k contributors showed the Buffalo Bills' safety love in the form of U.S. dollars, donating over $9M to his Chasing M's Foundation following the terrifying incident during the Bengals game on Jan. 2.

The initial goal of the fundraiser, originally a holiday toy drive, was only $2,500 ... so when we caught up with Hamlin at the Etta restaurant in Phoenix on Friday, we had to ask what he planned on doing with all the cash.

"I'm gonna change the world," the 24-year-old said. "Change the world."

Of course, Hamlin's world has already changed since the Monday Night Football incident ... the former 6th-round pick is one of the most recognizable people in the league. And, he's already doing good ... Damar partnered with the American Heart Association. He also received the NFLPA's Alan Page Community Award.

Hamlin, who gives the most praise to God, also credited Bills' athletic trainer Denny Kellington for saving his life.

"He was literally the savior of my life, you know, administering CPR on me," Hamlin told Michael Strahan on "Good Morning America".

The BTK serial killer is back on police radar ...but this time we're told it's to see if he has any connection to the disappearance of an Oklahoma teenager back in 1976.

BTK (real name: Dennis Rader) tells TMZ…he was interviewed January 20 by Osage County Sheriff, Eddie Virden and three other investigators at El Dorado Correctional Facility in Kansas. That's where BTK is serving 10 life terms for killing 10 people from 1974 to 1991. He was captured in 2005 after sending police taunting letters using the moniker, "Bind, Torture, Kill."

Rader said the Osage County cops wanted to know if he was involved in the disappearance of 16-year-old Cynthia Dawn Kinney in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, on June 23, 1976. Kinney was reportedly last seen leaving Osage Laundromat and getting into a beige 1965 Plymouth Belvedere with two people under suspicious circumstances. No one has been arrested.

BTK said police thought he might have a connection to the Kinney case because he was actively committing murders in Wichita, Kansas, during that time frame. Wichita is only about a 2-hour drive to Pawhuska.

The killer also said cops asked him about his connection to Oklahoma and the Boy Scouts. BTK admitted he was in Oklahoma as a Boy Scout, but several years before and after 1976.

BTK categorically denied any involvement in the Kinney case.

Sheriff Virden confirmed to TMZ…he and the other investigators visited BTK in prison to interview the serial killer in a roundabout way regarding the Kinney case.

Virden said investigators were pursuing leads and doing their due diligence to see if BTK fits into the Kinney case considering his criminal activities around that time.

Virden said, “There’s similarities between the time frames. She disappeared in daytime – most of [BTK's] stuff occurred in daytime hours. Some of the stuff that motivated [BTK] -- there are similarities,” but Virden declined to further elaborate.

During the interview, Virden said he also gathered personal information from BTK about his early life, military service and his murders.

Machine Gun Kelly got himself a new hair-do during his performance at PGA ... but maybe not the one he wanted.

The rocker-turned-rapper says he got "electrocuted" onstage as he performed at the Coors Light Bird's Nest in Phoenix ... a Super Bowl weekend bash.

As he's singing, you see his hair go from flat to standing straight up on end. It's unclear if something really did happen or if it's just a stage prank. We're leaning toward prank, because he seems unfazed. Also, no EMTs showed up.

MGK performed for nearly 2 hours and, unsurprisingly, it was sold out. Among the guests -- A-Rod and his GF.

After the show, MGK met up with fiancée Megan Fox to hit up Drake's party.

Drake hit the stage for a pretty spectacular pre-Super Bowl bash, with a little help from Cardi B.

Drake performed at Hanger 1 in Scottsdale Friday night, recreating his show at the Apollo last month in NYC.

Several tons of stars were there to watch, including Machine Gun Kelly, Megan Fox, Cher and BF Alexander Edwards, Lil Baby, Tyga, H.E.R., Serena Williams, Meek Mill, Devin Booker, Odell Beckham Jr., Sauce Gardner, Kyler Murray, Davante Adams, Winnie Harlow, Rich the Kid, Christina Aguilera, George Kittle and Druski.

Drakes got skin in the game for sure ... he's betting nearly a million bucks total on the game and prop bets. That includes $700k on the Chiefs, $50k that Mahomes and Smith-Schuster would score the first Chiefs TD, and $50k the Chiefs would score in both halves of the game.

Investigators are probing a third commercial plane mishap within a month ... the latest was Friday night at LAX ... and multiple people were hurt.

An American Airlines commercial plane collided with a passenger bus on the LAX tarmac, leaving five people injured.

The empty jet was being towed from a gate to a parking area when it crashed into the shuttle bus, smashing into the front end and damaging the windows.

Four people were taken to a local hospital and treated for non-life-threatening injuries. The 5th person was treated at the scene and released.

Authorities are now investigating the cause of the collision, which comes on the heels of last month's close call at JFK Airport in NYC ... and a similar incident last Tuesday at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas.

In the JFK incident, an American Airlines plane crossed a runway without getting clearance from air traffic control, which prevented a Delta Air Lines flight from taking off, officials said.

Luckily, the two planes didn't make contact, but they came within 1400 feet of one another. And thankfully, no one was injured.

In the Austin incident, a Southwest passenger jet came within 100 feet of colliding with a FedEx cargo plane, but a quick-thinking pilot averted the disaster.

Bill Maher is OLD-SCHOOL -- he says men as a group are like heat-seeking missiles when it comes to sex, whereas women prioritize communication as an entry point. He thinks women got the short end of the stick over the last 10 years, but it's changing.

The "Real Time" host delivered his Valentine's Day message Friday night, grousing that the phone has been used by men to satisfy their basic instinct ... and women have played along.

Bill generalizes that women like communication ... something that just doesn't happen when the options are either "yes" or "next."

But he says there's a new/old trend -- courting people in person -- and it's kinda hilarious. Markets that have narrow isles so people can feel each other's energy.  His Home Depot story may piss off lots of people, but in fairness, it's really funny.

Sam Smith and Kim Petras have pissed off lots of viewers who filed complaints with CBS and the FCC over their "Unholy" Grammys performance.

TMZ has obtained 18 complaints filed with the Federal Communications Commission  ... and the flashpoint is Satan.

Many claimed the performance was textbook devil worship and were appalled by the imagery shown on TV ... with one adding, "I will be canceling my television service due to this." Seems a little extreme.

Some called the performance anti-Christian. One viewer postulated the song had the potential to "increase violence against Christians." Some took offense to the BDSM and adult images.

And there's more ... "It was wrought with evil imagery, and depicted DEVIL WORSHIPING ACOLYTES writhing around on the floor virtually naked, and in CAGES. It was broadcast on live television, and I cannot believe that CBS allowed it."

One parent was furious ... "The performance of Sam Smith had people being whipped and in a cage. My 15 year old son who is an aspiring musician was traumatized by it."

Politicians even got in the act, with Ted Cruz and Marjorie Taylor Greene finding the whole thing "evil" and "demonic."

Ben Crump doesn't just have a new law school named after him ... the institution's already getting jaw-dropping financial support from his very famous pals!

Will Smith was right by the famed civil rights attorney's side this week in Miami for the dedication of the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law at St. Thomas University -- and sources connected to the event tell us this was way more than a photo op.

We're told Will, funk music legend George Clinton and Bishop T.D. Jakes came together to raise a whopping $10 million for Ben's new school. As Will told the crowd ... he was honored to witness the historic event.

As of the naming ceremony, we're told Crump is now the first practicing Black attorney in the U.S. to receive such an honor.

As you know, Ben has become a renowned attorney taking on many high-profile cases -- most recently, he's been representing the family of Tyre Nichols, who was severely beaten by Memphis cops before dying last month.

He's also stood up for Jacob Blake and the families of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd -- no wonder he's frequently called Black America's Attorney General.

Britney Spears is in crisis, according to a number of people close to her, and who ya got on Sunday?  So we gotta ask ...

Meek Mill doesn't agree with DJ Drama's hot take that "Dreams & Nightmares" has been replaced by Lil Uzi Vert's "Just Wanna Rock" as the Eagles anthem -- instead, he's taking a more inclusive approach.

We got Meek out in Arizona amid the Super Bowl LVII festivities, and he laid out a plan for Philly to use both tracks. He suggests the birds come out amped to Uzi's stadium rocker ...  and then blare "Dreams & Nightmares" when they hoist up the Lombardi Trophy in victory!!!

Meek's hit has been synonymous inside Lincoln Financial Field for over a decade, but sadly, Meek was incarcerated during the Eagles' 2017 championship run -- so, he tells us he's eager to see that kinda moment in-person.

It's a great fix to the dust Drama kicked up when he lived up to his name earlier this month ... proclaiming Uzi's 'Rock' as the new sound of the Eagles.

Uzi's record is currently sitting in the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, but still needs a bit of time before it carves out the same history as Meek's track.

Both songs would definitely extend the celebration in Philly, but Kansas City Chiefs ambassador Tech N9ne is 100% positive his squad will come out on top ... and even challenged Eagles fans Gillie and Wallo to put their dignity on the line with a jersey swap bet!!!

Did you lovers out there think we forgot about Valentine's Day?! Well guess again, because TMZ has got you covered with the sweetest celeb custom cards you'll ever score!

There's really no need for a last-minute panic, because you'll fall in love with these creations the moment you lay eyes on them, plus you'll score some points from your special someone!

All you gotta do is take a look through our adorable and cheeky V-Day cards, and when you find your perfect match click on the link to download a printable version.