TMZ.com Home

Trinidad James is not onboard the trash Nicki Minaj train for putting out bogus information on COVID vaccines, saying she's an important voice and deserves respect.

We got the Trinidadian-American rapper Friday at LAX, and he seemed frustrated people were going after Nicki hard after she said she heard someone in Trinidad had a reaction to the vaccine that enlarged his balls. There's never been such case that was verified, and health officials in Trinidad were pissed they wasted time trying to track down the phantom person with such an affliction.

Trinidad James says Nicki and the health minister should sit down and have a chitchat, but it's unclear what good that would do ... he's already said she's off base, though TJ doesn't seem to necessarily buy it.

He also gives a peek into COVID on the island. He says Trinidad is so small, just a few cases trigger much greater concern than in the U.S., which views coronavirus on a much larger scale.

Lil Nas X popped back in a big way after giving birth, because he partied his ass off Friday night.

Nas hosted an album release party for "Montero," which dropped Friday -- his debut album.

He's having a great time, rapping along to his songs, graciously accepting a rose, taking selfies with fans ... the works.

He performed for 2 hours to a packed house. Some of the fans were frustrated because he didn't have a mic so they couldn't hear him as he sang some of his new songs and some old ones.

At one point he sat in a large chair, almost like royalty as he posed for photos.

In line with the birthing of his album, sponsors were handing out pink sweatshirts and Beats headphones.

Bruno Mars will bring the Uptown Funk to the ritzy shores of Cape Cod this weekend -- and he's gonna make serious bank for doing it ... at the wedding of a powerful CEO's son.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us Bruno's been hired to perform at the wedding of Troy Brown and Kristin Ryan, and while those names might not ring any bells ... Troy's dad's does.

Motorola Solutions Inc. CEO Greg Brown, aka father of the bridegroom, booked Mr. "24K Magic" for the event going down at a super swanky hotel in the area, and spared no expense. We're told the wedding tab is in the millions.

Bruno, of course, will get a handsome slice of that ... we're told his performance price tag will hover somewhere between the high six-figure to seven-figure range.

As for the wedding guest list, it's unclear how many will attend, but the bride and groom are only allowing those who've been vaccinated to witness their "I Do's" ... and put their pinky fingers to the moon.

So if any possible guests had reservations about getting a COVID jab ... maybe a free Bruno concert convinced them to suck it up and take one for the team.

It sure seems Kim and Kanye are at the very least trying to get along and more likely trying to work things out, and lots of drama on the romance front. So we gotta ask ...

Jermichael Finley says if he were coaching the Packers, Aaron Rodgers would be on a short leash ... telling TMZ Sports he'd bench the MVP by Week 4 if the QB's struggles continue.

"If you don't see it," Finley said, "let's go to [Jordan] Love."

It might sound crazy -- considering Rodgers is coming off one of his best seasons EVER -- but Finley says the way Aaron played this past weekend in a blowout loss to the Saints has him very concerned.

"Aaron Rodgers looks tired," said Finley, who earlier in the week also said Rodgers looked like he had lost his "hunger."

"I bet the guy probably don't want to play football anymore," Finley added.

Finley said he'd be willing to give Rodgers the first quarter of the season to show if he still has the MVP skillset left in him ... but he made it clear, if signs aren't pointing upward by then, he'd start Jordan Love.

"You've got one of the highest-paid backup quarterbacks sitting right behind Aaron Rodgers, so you might as well utilize him and get him going for the future," Finley said.

As for if he thinks Aaron can turn it around ... Finley tells us he's rooting for the QB, but he ain't exactly optimistic it'll happen.

"I don't think [the Packers] are going to have a good year this year," Finley said.

Britney Spears' fiance, Sam Asghari, finally hit the jackpot, but so did Brit ... so says his famous ex.

We got Sam's ex, Mayra Veronica, out in L.A. Friday and she had nothing but good things to say about him. She scoffed at social media haters who said Sam's in it for the money, saying he's a sincere, sweet guy. Not a bad review from an ex.

It's interesting she used the word "jackpot," but she clearly didn't mean $$$, and she also made it clear it goes both ways. Again, that's a raving review considering they broke up.

Now Mayra did throw some shade. Listen to what she says when our photog asked about the ring. Clearly not her style.

Mayra says she can relate to Britney, because when she dated Sam back in 2015 her management team was extremely controlling, warning her about Sam. She clearly didn't buy what they were selling, and is solidly in Sam's corner.

Mayra seems to think Sam's a stabilizing influence in Britney's life, given what she's been through.

Don't let these two almost identical images of Dove Cameron trip you up! Stop and smell the roses to see if you can spot any of the sneaky switches made to this blooming pic!

The actress -- and star of the new 'Powerpuff' reboot -- was showing off her flower power out and about in New York City a few days ago ... and we have made a few changes to the original shot! Use your sugar, spice, and everything nice to see if you have what it takes to weed out the differences between these two super similar snaps!

Summer 2021 is coming to an end ... but luckily we still have the celebrity hot shots to remember the season by!

There wasn't much fun to be had last year during the lockdown and now these sunshine-loving stars are making up for lost time ... and shared their scorching selfies for the record books!

Some celebs have traveled to exotic islands, while others stayed close by their homes by taking a trip to the beach or even just their backyard pool. It's up to you to figure out who is who!

Robert Durst has just been found guilty in the murder of his best friend Susan Berman.

The jury found 78-year-old Durst guilty of first-degree murder Friday in L.A.

Durst arguably confessed to murdering his wife, Kathy Durst and Berman on an open mic during filming of the HBO documentary, "The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst." In the doc, you hear him muttering, "You're caught ... What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course." Durst had said he was high on meth when he made that confession.

As we've previously reported ... Kathy disappeared in 1982 and it was widely suspected Durst killed her. He was never charged for the murder, but that didn't stop Kathy's family from filing a wrongful death lawsuit against him, though Durst scored a victory in that suit.

L.A. County prosecutors set out to prove Durst killed Berman because she knew something about Kathy's mysterious death. Her body was found on Christmas Eve in 2000. Two days later, LAPD cops received a letter from someone telling them where Susan's body could be found.

Colt Brennan died of an accidental drug overdose, TMZ Sports has learned ... after a toxicology report found the former NFL QB had ingested fentanyl and other dangerous substances prior to his death.

Brennan tragically died at the age of 37 in May 2021. The former University of Hawaii quarterback had been receiving treatment at a drug rehab facility in Southern California when he experienced a medical emergency. He was rushed to the hospital ... where he passed away.

Now, after completing an autopsy and tox screen, health officials tell us the death was accidental, caused by a lethal concoction of drugs (polydrug), including the dangerous and illicit substance, fentanyl.

In addition to the incredibly powerful opioid, officials also found methamphetamine, amphetamine and ethanol in his system.

It's unclear if any of the drugs were prescribed by doctors ... or if Colt took them on his own.

After starring at Hawaii, Colt was a 6th-round draft pick in 2008. He bounced around the league ... playing with Washington and Oakland, before playing ball with the CFL in Canada.

Brennan was from Newport Beach, California.

Tory Lanez just dropped a fat stack of cash to help dozens of disadvantaged California families post bail for their loved ones through Unite The People Inc.

The rapper made a surprise visit to the non-profit in Long Beach Friday to meet some of the families who will benefit from his donation. Unite The People offers legal services to folks who are cash-strapped and gives them a fair shot with the legal system.

We're told Tory kicked in $50,000 to the cause ... and the money will help 50 families pay legal fees to bail their family members out of jail.

Tory's been a board member for Unite The People for 2 years and he says he was moved to make the donation after learning what many of the families were going through, including struggles to bring their loved ones home.

Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison's sprawling Malibu compound is now tied to a grisly death -- one of the construction workers on the site is dead after a Pacific Coast Highway accident.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... one of the people working on Ellison's $220 million lot was hit by a car Friday around 6 AM while he was walking across PCH, and died from his injuries.

The fatal crash snarled traffic during the morning rush hour. Cops say the driver involved in the fatal accident remained on the scene and cooperated with officers.

Ellison -- the co-founder of Oracle -- owns a ton of properties along the coastline in Malibu ... mostly on one stretch of the ritzy section known as Carbon Beach.

Playboi Carti has no problem flossin' his chains but the rapper's got problems paying for his shiny ice in full ... at least according to a new lawsuit.

Eliantte & Co. filed legal docs in New York claiming the "Magnolia" rapper owes $97,063.75, which the company says is the balance for 2 custom chains the rapper ordered back in September 2020.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, Eliantte, who has done jaw-dropping work for the likes of Swizz Beatz and many other celeb clients, says he quickly went to work on a 14-carat white gold diamond rosary chain and a custom diamond tennis chain.

The jeweler says PC was billed $197,063.75 for the pieces. Eliantte claims the rapper made a $100k payment on January 25, but then failed to pay off the rest of the balance despite repeated demands.

So now, Eliantte is suing to get what he's owed.

Kim Kardashian says she's is NOT building an underground vault ... despite the claims of a neighbor who has gone to court to block her.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Kim's neighbor, Sarah Key, has filed  a restraining order against the Hidden Hills Community Association to block Kim from building an underground vault, subterranean parking, an attached subterranean wellness center and a detached guardhouse.

But, sources close to Kim tell TMZ ... Kim absolutely has ZERO plans to build a vault on her property. She is building something on the property -- we don't know what -- but we're told it's not a vault. We're also told she's going through the proper channels to get approval from the homeowner's association.

But, in legal docs, Key -- who does not name Kim as a defendant -- says there are two high-pressure gas transmission lines running through the community, and she's concerned the proposed construction would put "Hidden Hills community members at risk of catastrophic bodily injury and irreparable real personal property damage."

Key is also concerned about the alleged project harming the natural and rustic aesthetics of the community.

Ronnie Ortiz-Magro admits he violated his probation by getting arrested for alleged domestic violence, but this must be his lucky day -- because the judge is giving him another shot.

The 'Jersey Shore' star appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom Friday, where he admitted to his probation violation, which could have meant immediate jail time -- but, instead, the court's making this a teachable moment for Ronnie.

We got Ronnie going into court and he told our photog he was hoping for good news ... and he definitely got some.

You'll recall, the D.A.'s Office said Ronnie violated probation in his domestic violence case with his ex Jenn Harley ... when he got arrested for an alleged incident with Saffire Matos, his latest GF.

On Friday, the judge ordered Ronnie to take 26 parenting classes, and there's now a 3-year protective order in place so he can't harass or intimidate Saffire. The judge also gave him credit for completing a rehab program in Florida, so he won't have to spend 30 days in jail.

As we first told you ... Ronnie claims he's since cleaned up his act and he's getting ready to return to the reality TV show that made him famous.

Ronnie's attorney, Scott Leemon, tells TMZ ... they're happy the court was satisfied with Ron's completion of a rehab program. We're told Ron's now been sober for 5 months and is deciding to continue with counseling as he focuses on being a better family man.

The woman who appeared to start the violent altercation at the Steelers vs. Lions preseason game in August has been hit with a criminal citation, TMZ Sports has learned.

A spokesperson for the Pittsburgh Police Dept. tells us after launching an investigation into the Aug. 21 melee ... cops cited the woman for disorderly conduct.

Per the spokesperson, the woman will likely now have to pay a fine as a result of the ticket.

The spokesperson added that no other citations or charges have been handed out as a result of the fight ... though a probe is still ongoing.

As we previously reported, the fight happened at some point during the Steelers' win over Detroit at Heinz Field ... and, as you can see in the footage shot by a bystander, it was chaotic.

The clip shows the woman getting in the face of a man seated one row in front of her ... before she eventually slapped him.

The physical touch set the guy off -- 'cause you can see in the video, he then swung on both her and the man sitting next to her.

It's unclear what started the whole thing ... but, fortunately, other fans were able to separate the combatants before things got even worse.