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Gervonta "Tank" Davis is a proud Baltimore native -- and the star boxer loves his city so much, he just got it tatted all across his upper back!!!

Of course, the Maryland city is where Davis started down his road to stardom ... learning to box there at just 7 years old.

And now, the 26-year-old champ is deciding to give a major salute back to his hometown ... hitting up his go-to guy, celeb tat artist Josh Levario, for some awesome B-more ink.

The tat came out HUGE ... with the word "BALTIMORE" spanning from Davis' left shoulder all the way to his right.

The piece also came out impressive as hell -- considering Levario (who also did Tank's movie icon tattoo) tells us it only took 3 hours to get done.

Gervonta has already been honored in the past by the city of Baltimore, with Mayor Jack Young once presenting him a key to the city.

Perhaps the new tat persuades Young to give him even more?!?

Ex-Bad Wolves frontman Tommy Vext wasn't "black enough" to be part of the band due to his political stances and support for Donald Trump ... so he claims in a new lawsuit against his ex-manager, who allegedly openly dropped n-bombs.

Vext's suing Allen Kovac claiming that, in response to major political differences between them, Kovac cooked up a scheme to steal the heavy metal band they co-founded in 2017.

In legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Vext says Kovack disagreed with his social media posts criticizing protests in L.A. and Portland, as well as statements he made about the attack on the U.S. Capitol.

And, because of that, Vext alleges Kovac launched a campaign to drive him out of music by demanding radio and streaming services stop playing Bad Wolves -- and they complied because Kovac has that kinda "pull" in the industry.

In the docs, Vext claims Kovac tried to block him from making political statements ... and when he refused to be silenced, Kovac tried and failed to try to buy Bad Wolves. That's when Kovac set about getting Vext booted ... according to Vext, anyway.

Vext, who is Black, believes his old bandmates soiled his good name by locking him out of the band's social media, and insinuating he "was not black enough" because of his political statements.

Vext is also accusing Kovac of regularly and openly using "n*****" in casual convos to belittle him, though he doesn't indicate how the alleged racism relates to his lawsuit. Vext only says it caused him to feel intimidated by Kovac ... "an executive showing he clearly felt so powerful as to think he could use the word with impunity."

He's suing for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty, and wants tens of millions of dollars in damages.

Tommy tells TMZ, "For several years I've poured all of my energy and passion into building Bad Wolves. We've toured the world several times and charted 6 billboard number 1 singles. All the while I've had to endure disparaging, manipulative and at times racially charged misconduct from my former manager Allen Kovak and his record company Better Noise Music."

He continues, "Allen has forced me out of my own band and is now attempting to slander and cancel me. After several failed attempts to settle amicably, I'm now forced to place this in the hands of the courts."

This week's Summer Hot Shots comes from a pack of men that can only be described as the Silverfox Squad (LLC) ... who slipped into some of the most stylish looks money can buy and boarded their yacht for a shirtless photoshoot that is guaranteed A+ eye candy for both the young and old!

The age-defying dudes in the elite Silverfox Squad are comprised of some gorgeous grey-haird guys like Irvin Randle, Winston Warrior, JP Hanney, Darryle Jones, Stephen Adkins III, JL Michaels, Titus Unlimited and Eustace Collens Jr. -- but don't let the white hair fool you ... these shredded seniors are more ripped than models half their age.

Squad goals!

We are continuing to whip up our Summer Hot Shots for 2021 from a distance and have collaborated with some mind-melting hotties from around the world for your viewing pleasure!

Kanye West's listening party might be over and done with -- but the man hasn't left the venue where he held it ... he's made the stadium a home until he finishes his album.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Mr. West will miss his weekend performance at Rolling Loud in Miami because he has literally moved into Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

MBS was the location of Kanye's massive album party Thursday -- where scores of people came together to jam out to his new offering, "DONDA," and watch Ye perform.

We're told Ye is STILL IN THE BUIDLING ... and Kanye and team have created a studio space, living quarters and even have a chef to prepare his meals inside MBS.

Kanye was spotted at the Atlanta United soccer game Saturday wearing the exact same outfit he wore at the Donda event ... and had fans wondering -- what are you doing here, bro??? Well, we have the answer -- to put it simply, the guy is still working.

We're told Kanye was so inspired by the "Donda" crowd, he wanted to stay in Atlanta and finish things up ... with a new August 6 release date as the goal.

It's unclear if any totally new tracks will come from Kanye's stadium visit -- or if he's just mixing and mastering -- but it's certainly a unique way to get things done.

Cade Hudson -- one of Britney Spears' best friends and longtime agent -- is finally breaking his silence on her conservatorship sitch ... agreeing with what many have already demanded -- and that would be, #FreeBritney.

The career talent agent just posted a message on social media that is sure to give the #FreeBritney crowd a vote of confidence -- because he says it is, indeed, time to release her from the clutches of the conservatorship ... which he suggests has been a long time coming.

Cade writes, "I've kept my mouth shut for 12 + years on Britney. Enough is enough. After getting thousands of death threats, getting water bottles thrown at my head in bars from bystanders telling me I'm brainwashing her - Britney I'm now speaking up."

He goes on to detail what led up to Britney's breakdown back in '07 ... saying, "Britney who was accused of some errors as a new mom at 26 with 100 cameras in her face daily waiting to document any wrong move she did gets placed under a never-ending conservatorship?"

To that he says ... "Sexism at its best."

CH goes all in, writing ... "This is a violation of someone's basic human rights that were taken away. I've kept my mouth shut out of the fear of losing my job as her agent and losing the career I worked my ass off for 15 years to build, out of threats from the man we all know who, but I won't even dignify mentioning his name. I’m officially done being quiet."

He says he knows the real Britney Spears -- the one who's spent Xmas with him, who's volunteered at dance classes for underprivileged kids, and adds ... "The system and the public failed her. Her new attorney is the best of the best and knows that the work has just begun but it’s progress & hope and that’s all we can ask for now until action can be taken."

Cade finishes his thoughts this way ... "I'll end with a few things, one person who was in her life (again legally can't name names) was also silenced by the people around her. You silencers know who you are. This person has her best interest at heart."

It's unclear who exactly Cade is referring to here, but our best guess ... it may well be her longtime manager, Larry Rudolph, who has since resigned from his post.

Brit's BFF adds one more warning shot to people he considered against Britney. He says, "Even if people don't see it now, it will come out. To the ones who should be worried, you know who you are too. The nonsense needs to end, and the healing process needs to begin. The lord tends to pay those people back in his own ways. So for the first time I'm publicly saying #FREEBRITNEY."

He also says it's "Time to get my girl and best friend back" and caps it off with a plea to his old pal, writing ... "@Britneyspears it's your time - the world is listening and is on your side. The world NEEDS you freed and back."

It's Jennifer Lopez's birthday -- and if you thought anything short of a nautical hot and heavy make-out sesh with her new/old flame, Ben Affleck, was on the table to celebrate ... you were wrong.

Bennifer 2.0 have fully come out as a public couple now ... and they did it on none other than her 52nd birthday -- for which they're celebrating on a yacht in what we've heard is in the South of France. Jen just threw up some steamy shots of herself in a bikini -- and if you think they're hot ... just wait 'til you get to the last slide. Big kiss for baby Ben!!!

This certainly feels like a full-blown "we're here" type of a moment. Until now, neither party had posted any BF/GF shots to their socials ... although they have certainly been photographed together of late acting like a rekindled couple.

We've seen them get affectionate with each other over these past few months -- even some kissing in public -- but nothing quite like this ... where they're fully embracing, for the whole world to see.

As far as where they're off to ... it's anyone's guess. But, word is they were docked right on the edge of the bay, facing the Mediterranean -- so it seems they're gonna be on the high seas of the French Riviera for a bit. Classic celeb getaway ... but means more in this context.

One last thing we'll note ... Jen definitely looks birthday/yacht ready fashion-wise, and Ben does too. He seems to have ditched his usual grey(ish) tee and cargo pants getup -- opting for a nice button-down. They both look great -- this may just be the photo of the year.

Now, this is weird -- a Black man caught a cop on camera apparently tossing a baggie of drugs into his car ... but the police department in question is saying there may be more than meets the eye here.

A guy who goes by GlockBoy Savoo on Facebook -- who appears to be a musician of some sort under a label called TrechKids -- posted this video that's now going viral. It shows what appears to be a traffic stop underway in a car that Savoo is in ... and captures an eyebrow-raising moment.

You see a police officer -- who has since been identified as belonging to Caledonia PD out of Wisconsin -- approaching the car and quickly tossing something into the back seat. The photog, who appears to be Savoo, questions what it was ... and the cop kinda plays dumb.

The camera man jumps to the back seat for a close-up shot of what it is ... and it looks like a little baggie, indicative of drugs. It's a quick 16-second clip, and you can't see what happened after or before this strange moment. On its face ... it looks kinda sketchy.

Savoo is flat-out accusing this officer of what sounds like planting drugs on him as a way to get probable cause to search the rest of the vehicle. He writes, "First time ever seeing a cop try to throw sum on me just to get reason to search the car💯 he ain’t even know I was recording 💯 you can tell he was nervous 💯." Caledonia PD has another POV.

This what they have to say ... the cop does appear to be one of their own, and they've located the report for this incident. They're doing a full investigation as well into the insinuation something was planted -- including pulling body cam footage, dash cam video and testimony from this officer as well as others on the scene. They say it'll take some time.

Rodney Alcala (AKA, "The Dating Game Killer") -- who killed several women in Orange County, as well as a child -- has died.

The California Dept. of Corrections made the announcement Saturday, saying Alcala passed away of natural causes Friday while hospitalized in a hospital near the city of Corcoran, where he was on death row after being tied to, tried and convicted over the murders of multiple women in and around the Orange County area during the 1970s.

His case is one of the more famous ones among CA's serial killers -- as the guy actually appeared on (and won) an episode of the famous 'Dating Game' in '78 ... after which his would-be date, Cheryl Bradshaw, reportedly canceled their plans after actually meeting him.

Supposedly, she found him to be "creepy" ... and in hindsight, good on her for following her intuition -- because a jury, years later, found that he had, in fact, been on a killing spree even before his TV debut. Who knows what would've happened if she went out with him.

Alcala was initially charged and tried in the 1979 kidnapping and murder of a 12-year-old girl, Robin Samsoe, in 1980 ... for which he was convicted and sentenced to death row. That judgment was reversed, however, in '84 by and Alcala was given a new trial.

There, too, though he was found guilty again ... only to have a federal court of appeals overturn the sentence yet again years later in 2003 -- and a new trial was granted once more. Finally, he got nailed ... and it was all due to the advent of technology.

In addition to Samsoe's murder, OC prosecutors say they found DNA evidence linking him to the murders of four other women in Orange County between '77 and '79. Later, he was indicted for two more murders in NY -- dating back to '71 -- to which he pled guilty.

He was charged with yet another murder out of Wyoming as recently as 2016 -- allegedly killing a woman named Christine Thornton in '78, who was 6 months pregnant. It doesn't appear as though that case was resolved though. BTW, several other jurisdictions across the U.S. either suspected or linked Alcala to murders in their states as well, including WA, AZ, NY and NH. His true victim count is unknown.

A white lady approached a Black woman selling hair products to see if a drug deal was going down, and then suggested she scram ... and, of course, she's being called the new "Karen."

Check out this encounter from TikTok user @prettii_tb, who posted this clip a couple days ago out of Sacramento, CA -- in the Natomas neighborhood. It appears Pretti was attempting to buy some hair products from the woman on the bike ... who was hawking her goods -- extensions and the like -- from a basket, and seemed to be making her sales on the go.

The transaction was interrupted by this so-called "Karen" ... who asked what the heck was going on, and who also went on to say this looked like a good old-fashioned dope drop.

That was not the case, as the woman on the bike calmly and politely explained. You gotta watch this interaction -- the Black woman making the sale had every right to go off if she wanted ... but she kept her wits about her and broke down in detail what was happening.

The white lady says she's just giving her a "heads up" that what she's doing looks a certain way to certain people in the neighborhood, and that the cops might be called if she's not careful. The Black woman welcomes it, though, insisting she's doing nothing wrong.

Rapper Blueface won his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship exhibition match Friday night against TikToker Kane Trujillo, but it was anything but a total crowd-pleaser, because one disgruntled fan jumped in the ring swinging ... and all hell broke loose.

In what was billed as a battle of the influencers, Blueface crushed Trujillo ... winning a lopsided victory by decision. As he celebrated -- hand up in the air -- the fan jumped the ropes and, it looks like one swing made contact with the rapper.

Blueface went ballistic as security swarmed the ring, tackling the jerk, but that didn't end the craziness. The rapper continued swinging and was held back as cops appeared in an attempt to control the situation.

The attacker was dragged out of the ring and eventually things calmed down and the fights continued as fans watched on FITE TV.

As for who got the worst of it ... it's still Trujillo. Blueface barraged him with punches ... his right hand was definitely on point.

As for the other influencers on the exhibition card ... YouTuber and TikTok star DK Money vs. Nick Ireland, and a TikTok battle between Evil Hero and Dakota Olave.

Actor Mike Mitchell, who appeared in "Gladiator" and "Braveheart," has died ... TMZ has learned.

Mitchell's rep tells TMZ the actor/bodybuilder died Friday on a boat in Turkey. The family says they believe he suffered a death from natural causes, although they weren't more specific.

The rep says, "It was very hard to believe ... The sudden death of an international actor we managed, an honest person, a real actor, a true friend, my dear friend, has saddened us deeply. I've always been honored to be your manager. I wish patience to you wife, dear Denise Mitchell, and your children. Getting to know you and gaining your friendship is invaluable. Sleep in the lights. RIP."

Mitchell started out as a bodybuilder and rose to the top ... he won Mr. Universe along with numerous World Fitness Federation's Fitness World Championships.

Mitchell competed for a bunch of titles, including Britain's Strongest Man.  He won 5 Masters Mr. World titles along the way. In 2010, he was given the WWF's highest honor ... the Living Legend Award.

As for acting, he got a big break in 1994 that has shades of Arnold Schwarzenegger. He got cast in "Braveheart" because of his imposing physical presence. He went on to appear in "Gladiator," "The Planet," "One Day Removals," "City of Hell," "Life on the Line" and "Emmerdale."

Mike suffered a serious setback in 2006 after winning his 5th World Fitness title -- he was stricken with a serious heart attack.

He lived on a boat in Turkey with his wife. Mike was 65.

RIP

Here's the first look at Derek Chauvin behind bars since he was sentenced for murdering George Floyd, and he looks ... well, sleepy with a measure of defiance.

TMZ's obtained Chauvin's first mug shot in prison ... a place he'll call home as he serves his 22.5-year sentence. He kept a stiff upper lip as he mugged for the camera in his orange standard issue. He also looks like he's struggling to keep his eyes open ... he looks out of it.

We're told the Minnesota Department of Corrections snapped the new mug shot June 28 ... just 5 days after his sentencing.

As you know ... Chauvin was found guilty of 2nd-degree unintentional murder, 3rd-degree murder and 2nd-degree manslaughter ... but the 2nd-degree conviction is what sticks.

Jonathan Lipnicki is putting his MMA skills to good use ... trying to prevent more anti-Semitic attacks from happening in the L.A. area by escorting Orthodox Jews to temple.

We got the "Jerry Maguire" star in the Fairfax District near The Grove Friday, where he and fellow actor/martial artist Remi Franklin were on the ready to help worshipers safely enter and leave temple.

Jonathan and Remi organized after an attack last May ... where a group of pro-Palestinian men attacked Jewish diners outside Sushi Fumi.

'X-Men' star Alexandra Shipp is praising Sean Penn to the skies, saying she's down with his demand that no one be allowed on a movie set who is not vaccinated.

We got Alexandra at LAX Friday and asked about Sean refusing to set foot on any set where unvaccinated people are allowed in. She thinks Sean's a hero and is saving lives.

Sean has said he won't return to the set of his new production, "Gaslit," until the entire crew gets the shot. The movie is modern day version of Watergate ... Sean plays Attorney General John Mitchell, who played a pivotal role in the scandal.

Penn represents a growing number of people who are sick of the unvaccinated calling the shots. It's become infuriating for some that mask and other mandates have been imposed on the vaccinated because of those unwilling to get a COVID shot.

France has an interesting solution ... anyone who isn't vaccinated by September won't be forced to get a shot, but they'll be barred from restaurants, concerts and sporting events.

A snow leopard at the San Diego Zoo has COVID ... and zoo officials are worried about an outbreak among the cats.

A 9-year-old snow leopard named Ramil caught the attention of zoo staff Thursday, after noticing the cat had a cough and runny nose. The COVID test came back positive, confirmed by 2 labs.

They're doing another test, but the staff expects the result to be the same -- positive.

Here's the problem ... Ramil shared an enclosure with 3 other cats -- a female snow leopard and 2 Amur leopards, all of which have been exposed to COVID. So, the 3 big cats are in quarantine now, although real talk -- they're always in quarantine. In this case it means the public won't be able to go near.

Fortunately, Ramil's symptoms haven't gotten worse. Zoo staff is mystified as to how the cat caught the virus. Zoo keepers must wear masks if they're not vaccinated. Eight gorillas caught COVID in January, though none were symptomatic.

Scientists have known for months that cats can contract COVID. Most cases are not serious, but snow leopards are fast dwindling in population. Estimates put the number of wild snow leopards at 4,000 to 6,500.

Morgan Wallen explaining on 'GMA' his rationale behind using the n-word is gibberish ... so says the NAACP Nashville chapter president.

Sheryl Guinn tells TMZ ... she believes Morgan's sit-down with Michael Strahan is the result of Morgan being sorry not for what he said but for getting caught using the racial slur. She says it's a travesty Morgan never thought about the meaning behind the hateful word.

What's more ... Sheryl says his white privilege was on full display for never caring to learn the hurt that word causes. And, she's is dismayed by Morgan trying to contextualize the word ... saying he used it in a "playful" way.

Sheryl does believe Morgan can turn things around ... and she has a punch list.

According to Sheryl ... Morgan can make amends by addressing serious issues, like inequality. Morgan broached the subject a bit when he told Strahan "it would seem" country music has a race problem ... though he hasn't thought about it too much.

Sheryl says he can start in his hometown of Nashville ... where Morgan is hugely influential.

The NAACP honcho says while Morgan's at it, he should encourage his community to get vaccinated. Less than 40% of Nashville got the shot ... and it's devastating marginalized communities.