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Neither drugs nor alcohol are believed to be factors in the sudden death of Metal Church frontman Mike Howe ... according to cops.

A spokesperson for the Humboldt County Sheriff's Dept. tells TMZ ... cops got a call Monday morning just after 10 AM in Eureka, CA reporting an unexpected death at a home. We're told when deputies arrived they found Mike dead at the scene.

Cops say drugs and alcohol are not believed to be factors in the death and no controlled substances or paraphernalia were located at the scene. At the time of this post ... the cause of death is unknown.

The band released a statement on Facebook shortly after Mike's passing and said, "It is with our deepest regrets that we must announce the passing of our brother, our friend and true legend of heavy metal music."

The statement continued, "We are devastated and at a loss for words. Please respect our privacy and the Howe family’s privacy during this most difficult time."

Metal Church, universally credited with influencing the thrash metal genre, was formed in the 1980s and released 2 albums before Mike joined the group later that decade. He'd ultimately help pump out the band's third album ... "Blessing in Disguise," which churned out one of the group's most popular tracks, "Badlands."

The group would go on to release 2 more studio albums before the band broke up in the mid-1990s. The band ultimately got back together and Mike rejoined them in 2015.

Mike was 55.

Simone Biles has withdrawn from the gymnastics team finals in Tokyo -- the Olympic superstar is dealing with a "medical issue" that has forced her to back out of the event, officials say.

There are conflicting reports on what caused Biles -- quite possibly the greatest gymnast of all time -- to leave the competition. The 24-year-old appeared to suffer an injury early in the event, but the NBC's broadcast stated a coach claimed her withdrawal was due to a "mental issue."

USA Gymnastics released a statement Tuesday morning ... saying, "Simone Biles has withdrawn from the team final competition due to a medical issue. She will be assessed daily to determine medical clearance for future competitions."

Biles seemingly injured her leg after landing her vault attempt ... speaking with a trainer and leaving the floor before returning with her right leg wrapped.

It's crushing news for Team USA -- the Red, White and Blue were favorites to take home the gold for the third-straight Games.

Biles spoke out about the pressure to succeed after prelims on Monday ... saying, "I truly do feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders at times."

"I know I brush it off and make it seem like pressure doesn’t affect me but damn sometimes it’s hard hahaha! The olympics is no joke! BUT I’m happy my family was able to be with me virtually🤍 they mean the world to me!"

There's still hope for the 4-time gold medalist -- she could possibly be recovered in time for the all-around finals on Thursday.

Ben Crump is suing Johnson & Johnson for allegedly targeting Black women with a product he says has been linked to cancer -- and it sounds like they're going class action with this.

The civil rights attorney put on his personal injury lawyer hat Tuesday with a major announcement -- saying he and fellow attorney Paul Napoli are taking the pharmaceutical and packaged goods giant to court on behalf of the National Council of Negro Women.

Ben says it's all over an alleged decades-long campaign at J&J he says was angling to get African-American women to buy its famed powder products over the years with tailored advertising and marketing ... namely, talcum powder, (found mostly in their popular baby powder) which he says has been the subject of research and studies, with ties to ovarian cancer.

Ben insists he's got inside info -- including internal memos from the company -- that prove their efforts to get Black women to buy talcum ... which he says has caused irreparable harm to so many for too long. Ben claims to have data to support the suggestion that Black women were the focus of these talcum sales efforts -- and that, by and large, they worked.

More than just that ... Ben and co. are claiming J&J knew its product was poison for the body -- saying they betrayed that trust with their consumers ... and with the African-American community at large.

Now, he's inviting anyone who might've been affected to hop on ... presumably to get in on the suit, potential damages and/or any settlement that may come of this. Ben will be holding a press conference later in the day to get into the nitty-gritty of the lawsuit.

Stay tuned ...

Dua Lipa says she's "surprised and horrified" by DaBaby's anti-gay and sexist diatribe during his set at Rolling Loud ... she says it doesn't sound like the artist she thought she knew.

Dua Lipa, who worked on a song with DaBaby last year, just responded to his homophobic rant ... saying she can't believe he's spewing all that hate.

DL says "I don't really recognize this as the person I worked with" ... alluding to their 2020 collab on the song, "Levitating."

As we reported ... DaBaby told folks in the Rolling Loud crowd to put up their cell phone lights, encouraging them to do so in a very disturbing way by telling them ... "If you didn't show up today with HIV/AIDS or other STDs that'll make you die in 2-3 weeks" and "Fellas, if you didn't suck a n**** d*** in the parking lot."

DaBaby tried clearing up the vile comments following tons of backlash, posting a video where he claims the words weren't directed at his gay fans because his gay fans aren't "nasty gay n****s" or "junkies." In other words, he only made things worse.

Dua Lupa makes a clear distinction between her values and DaBaby's rant ... saying she stands "100% with the LGBTQ community" and calling on folks to come together to fight the ignorance and stigma around HIV and AIDS.

It's finally over -- Aaron Rodgers has officially made his return to Green Bay ... ending his dramatic offseason feud with the Packers!!!

Of course, no one knew if this day would ever come -- AR12 made it explicitly clear he was unhappy with the franchise over his contract and other front office moves ... and was non-committal on ever suiting up for the Pack again.

But, Rodgers and GB were able to restructure his current deal on Monday, which opened the door to his departure in 2022.

The new conditions pleased the guy so much, he hopped on a private jet and made his way to Wisconsin on Tuesday morning ... before getting in his SUV and driving off to the team facility.

Rodgers made the most of his time away from the team -- he traveled all over the globe with his fiancee, Shailene Woodley ... and even got in some golf with his pals Tom Brady, Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson.

The Black woman selling hair care products who was approached by a white woman asking if the transactions were drug deals doesn't want folks going after this "Karen" ... but she hopes a lesson was learned.

Ronnie Marie, owner of Marie's Luxury Hair Extensions, tells TMZ ... she doesn't want "Karen" to lose her job or get canceled over the incident.

Instead, Ronnie wants folks to keep supporting her hair care biz, like they have since video of the interaction went viral ... because she says kindness is how you kill a "Karen."

As we reported ... Ronnie was approached by a white woman in Sacramento, CA while she was selling hair care products off her bicycle, with "Karen" saying the transactions looked like drug deals to some folks in the neighborhood.

Ronnie, who remained calm the entire time, tells us she delivers her products to customers at the same location every day at the same time ... and claims folks in the area know her well.

She says the positive support from customers and strangers on the Internet is the best way to discourage this kind of behavior from "Karens" ... and she's not planning to take any legal action against the woman.

Todd Chrisley's daughter had the cops called on her after allegedly throwing a drink at one of her brother's friends -- but she says the guy was getting in her and her friends' faces.

Lindsie Chrisley -- who's appeared on her parents' show, 'Chrisley Knows Best' -- is under the microscope of the Atlanta PD after a pal of her younger brother, Chase, filed a report this weekend following an altercation that went down Saturday night in the ATL.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, a guy named Austin Duriez claims he was at a bar in town where Lindsie also happened to be. He says, for some unexplained reason, she threw a glass with a drink at him -- which he says hit him in the head. He says he flagged down a bouncer and had her removed.

He says after she was bounced, Lindsie made a scene -- so he decided to leave. Austin called the cops the next day ... he wasn't sure if he wanted to press charges since Lindsie is his friend's sister. There's body cam footage of his interaction with cops -- and this all seems to harken back to the 2019 drama.

You'll recall ... the Chrisleys faced tax evasion charges at both the state and federal level -- mucked up further by allegations of an affair Todd claimed Lindsie had started with a tax official, which is what he believed led to the authorities getting the dirt they needed.

It was a whole ordeal, and essentially left Lindsie estranged from a good chunk of the family, including Chase.

As for what she has to say about all this ... her attorney, Musa Ghanayem, tells TMZ, yes, Lindsie may have gestured toward Austin as if to throw the drink ... and that if any liquid made contact, it was a tiny bit. The real perpetrator though, according to the lawyer, is Austin.

Ghanayem says Austin accosted Lindsie and her group at their table ... and then started to harass and intimidate them, to the point one of her friends had to push him off her. He also claims Austin was trying to snap pictures of them, and made them feel uncomfortable.

Stephen Dorff has gone from a "s***-talking" mood to mea culpa mode ... saying he feels bad for trashing Scarlett Johansson and her Marvel film.

We got the veteran actor leaving Porta Via in L.A. and wondered what he had to say weeks after the premiere of "Black Widow" and nearly a month after he teed off on ScarJo and practically everything about Hollywood.

The "Blade" star could do nothing but sing Scarlett's praises ... and he explained his interview with the U.K.'s Independent outlet was "taken a little bit out of context."

You'll recall Stephen didn't hold any punches saying, in part, "I still hunt out the good s*** because I don't want to be in 'Black Widow.' It looks like garbage to me. It looks like a bad video game. I'm embarrassed for those people. I'm embarrassed for Scarlett!"

So, what triggered Stephen? He seems to point the finger at the reporter ... who "got me in a moment where I was s*** talking a little bit."

The movie's been out for almost a month and Stephen admits he hasn't seen "Black Widow" ... which, btw, has an 81% score on Rotten Tomatoes. And, for what it's worth, he says he's already cleared the air with ScarJo.

Austin McBroom admits Bryce Hall was NOT paid for their "YouTubers vs. TikTokers" fight, but the social media star claims it ain't his fault ... 'cause another company is holding the money hostage!!

TMZ Sports recently ran into McBroom -- who KO'd Hall in the 3rd round of their June 12 fight -- in L.A. ... and the man behind the event made it clear neither he nor his company, Social Gloves, are to blame for the delayed paychecks.

"Fighters have not gotten paid yet, including myself, but that is because Live X Live," Austin said.

McBroom later explained it like this ... "Everyone thinks that Social Gloves just did everything. No, Social Gloves partnered with Live X Live who live streamed it and collected everybody’s money. Right? So, the reason why the fighters haven’t gotten paid yet is because Live X Live has been holding on to all the funds."

However, in a lawsuit recently filed by Live X Live in L.A., the company tells a very different story.

According to the suit, LXL claims McBroom refused to promote the event ... insisting his popularity alone would translate into millions buying the fight for $49.99.

Not even close, per Live X Live ... who says they ultimately sold only 136,000 PPV's for the fight -- significantly less than they say Austin expected.

There's more, Live X Live says McBroom badmouthed their company after the event ... resulting in a 20% loss in their stock price -- "causing nearly $100 million in damages."

Money Live X Live wants back ASAP ... hence the lawsuit.

But, McBroom isn't giving in without a fight. He says he has also filed a lawsuit (we haven't seen that one) ... against, you guessed it, Live X Live.

Wyoming born wrestler Rulon Gardner inspired the world in 2000 when he traveled to Sydney, Australia to represent Team USA as a heavy-weight Greco-Roman wrestler to compete (and defeat) the unstoppable Russian Aleksandr Karelin in the finals and to take home the gold medal in one of the greatest moments in Olympics history!

That Olympic victory wasn't the most challenging part of Rulon's life ... he also battled through frostbite and hypothermia after a snowmobile accident in 2002 and an airplane crash into a lake in Utah in 2007.

Gardner continues to inspire the world ... but as a motivational speaker!

WWE Superstar Roman Reigns knows exactly how to prep for a huge match against John Cena at SummerSlam -- hitting the beach with his smokin' hot wife in Miami!!!

Of course, the wrestling legend called out RR just last week ... saying he's coming for the Universal championship belt next month.

But, Roman doesn't seem too fazed -- ditching his shirt and soaking up the sun with his wife of 7 years, Galina Becker on Monday.

Just take a look at the pics -- the couple looks absolutely stunning ... with Roman showing off his tatted bod and Galina rocking a fun patterned one-piece.

SummerSlam is set to go down Saturday, August 21 at Allegiant Stadium ... and it's gonna be HUGE.

Cena -- a 16-time champ -- last competed at WrestleMania 36 in March 2020 ... where he lost to WWE Superstar Bray Wyatt.

Reigns ain't impressed by Cena's return, though ... saying, "He came out here, the same music, the same entrance, the same run to the ring, the same outfit, the same promo, the same insults."

"If I wanted that, all I had to do was search online for 2005 John Cena. It's the same thing, over and over and over. It's like missionary position every single night."

Britney Spears' mother is staying pretty tight-lipped about her daughter, which is interesting ... because she said a lot in new legal docs about removing Britney's dad from her conservatorship.

Lynne Spears was at LAX Sunday with Britney's brother, Bryan, but neither had much to say about the ongoing "Free Britney" saga.

Other than Lynne muttering that her daughter is doing fine, she seemed to want to keep her thoughts to herself ... but we know precisely where she stands on Jamie.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ ... Lynne says she supports Britney's petition to remove her father as conservator of her estate.

Lynne says she became involved in the conservatorship in May 2019 during a "time of crisis" for which she clearly blames Jamie, saying he had "absolute control" over Britney's money and health decisions.

Lynne claims Jamie hired a doctor to treat Britney, but she and many others believe the doc was prescribing her "inappropriate medicine" she didn't want to take and forced her to enter a health facility after threatening punishment if she resisted.

According to the docs ... Lynne says with the conservatorship in place, the relationship between Britney and her father has "dwindled to nothing but fear and hatred" of Jamie.

Worth noting -- our sources say Britney can't stand her mom as well and they've been estranged for years. Britney also blames Lynne for her current circumstances.

DaBaby just attempted to explain why he went on an anti-gay and sexist diatribe during his set at Rolling Loud ... by now saying his gay fans don't have HIV/AIDS because they're not "nasty gay n****s" or "junkies."

ICYMI, the rapper performed at RL over the weekend, and at one point encouraged the crowd to put their cell phone lights up in a very disturbing way ... telling fans to put their phones up, "If you didn't show up today with HIV/AIDS or other STDs that'll make you die in 2-3 weeks" and "Fellas, if you didn't suck a n**** d*** in the parking lot."

The rapper attempted to clear up his vile comments Monday, posting a video and claiming his words weren't directed at his gay fans because they're not "nasty gay n****s" or "junkies" and they take care of themselves.

We reached out to festival organizers, but they've been radio silent.

Earlier in his set at RL ... DaBaby also pissed some fans off -- namely, Megan Thee Stallion fans -- when he revealed his surprise guest was Tory Lanez.

Meg had just performed before DaBaby, and in case you forgot ... Lanez is accused of shooting her in the foot after leaving a party last summer. Clearly, many folks think this was deliberate and abhorrent shade thrown at MTS.

Also getting involved in the controversy is T.I., who seemingly defended DaBaby's homophobic comments online, commenting ... "If Lil Nas X can kick his s**t in peace... so should dababy." He added the #equality hashtag as well.

Later, T.I. attempted to clarify his remark by saying he respects gay people, but doesn't believe homosexuals should have more rights than heterosexuals.

He also said he respects all gay people who are living their truth -- like Lil Nas X -- but added that X's performances and music videos "ain't for me" and said he doesn't want his kids watching them either.

Deshaun Watson is open to settling with the 20-plus women accusing him of sexual misconduct -- but only if confidentiality agreements are NOT involved ... this, according to the NFL superstar's attorney.

The Texans QB's lawyer, Rusty Hardin, gave an update on his client's legal battle to ESPN on Monday ... saying he's not opposed to hashing out a financial settlement with accusers -- but any deal HAS to remain public.

"I do not want anybody to be saying that this guy paid off women to stay quiet and so, if there ever was a settlement of any kind, it would have to be public and therefore both sides, [Watson] and the women, would be able to say to the world at large whatever they wanted," Hardin said.

As for the accusers, lawyer Tony Buzbee has previously made it clear there will not be any settlements ... saying, it's "not happening."

Hardin also says 10 women have filed criminal complaints with police ... adding 2 of those women are not involved in the civil case.

Britney Spears and her new lawyer say Jamie Spears has stripped Britney of her dignity, autonomy and fundamental liberties ... and they lay out their case in new legal docs as to why he must be removed as conservator of her estate.

In the new docs, Britney and her attorney, former federal prosecutor Matt Rosengart, claim Jamie has essentially terrorized his daughter, forcing her to get certain treatments and signing off on drug regimens that were allegedly harmful to her.

The docs also challenge Jamie's management of the conservatorship, claiming he's made a king's ransom over the last 13 years. He gets $16,000 a month plus $2k a month for office expenses. He also got 1.5% of the gross revenues from her Vegas residency ... which brought in $137.7 million. The docs say Jamie's cut alone was at least $2.1 mil. The docs go on to say Jamie got $2.95% from Britney's 2011 Femme Fatale tour ... an estimated $500k.

Britney and Rosengart say Jamie is ill-equipped to manage Britney's business affairs, saying his family "struggled financially under his leadership and filed for bankruptcy in 1998."

The docs claim Britney's life has been upended by the conflict she has with her dad. The docs say they don't speak and the current situation is "traumatizing, insane and depressing."

The docs call the relationship "venomous" and "it impairs Ms. Spears's mental health, her well-being, and her ability to pursue and continue with her extraordinary career."

One of the more interesting parts of the document is the intimation Britney may have possibly needed some sort of conservatorship 13 years ago but things have drastically changed ... "Since receiving professional medical care at the outset of this conservatorship over thirteen years ago, Ms. Spears is clearly in a different place now, and she has been for many years. The entire world has witnessed Ms. Spears working tirelessly -- with astonishing dedication, precision, and excellence -- as a musical artist and performer, an exceptional earner for Mr. Spears (and others) who had a financial interest in making sure she would continue to work and perform."

An Olympic gymnast made a powerful statement during her floor routine this weekend ... by getting on one knee and holding up her fist as a tribute to the Black Lives Matter movement.

18-year-old Luciana Alvarado is the first Costa Rican gymnast to EVER qualify for the Olympics ... and used her platform to shine a light on the fight for equality.

Of course, the International Olympic Committee is allowing athletes to demonstrate at the 2020 Games in Tokyo ... as long as it's not at a medal ceremony or during competition.

Alvarado found of a loophole by including the gesture into her performance ... saying she wanted to send a message of "the importance of everyone treated with respect and dignity and everyone having the same rights."

Alvarado says it's special to use her stage to show those fighting for equality that she stands in solidarity with them.

"Because we’re all the same," Alvarado said, according to the AP. "And we’re all beautiful and amazing."