Controversial S#!T

Prince Andrew has not been helpful at all to the FBI or federal prosecutors hoping to talk to him about Jeffrey Epstein ... so says the U.S. attorney in Manhattan.

Geoffrey S. Berman claims Queen Elizabeth's son has not responded to requests for an interview in the Epstein case, adding, he's provided "zero cooperation" to federal law enforcement.

The U.S. attorney revealed Prince Andrew's lack of assistance Monday outside Epstein's home, while answering a question at a news conference about victims of human and sex trafficking.

As you know, Epstein hanged himself in his jail cell in August while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges. Prince Andrew's been linked to the Epstein case due to his long and continued friendship with him ... even after Epstein's prison release in 2010 following a notorious plea deal in a separate prostitution case.

Andrew's also accused of having sex with an underage woman named Virginia Roberts (now Virginia Giuffre) -- who he met through Epstein -- at least 3 times from 1999 through 2002.

The Prince denied the allegations and tried, but failed, to do damage control in the scandal, including an appearance on "BBC Newsnight" in which he claimed he couldn't remember Giuffre ... despite posing in a photo with her in 2001.

Our palace sources say the issue will be handled by The Duke of York's legal team. Buckingham Palace will not be commenting on the matter.

Diddy railed on the Grammys Saturday, saying it's turned a blind eye to black artists ... notably, hip-hop artists.

Ironically, Diddy unloaded on the Grammys during his acceptance speech for receiving an Industry Icon award. It all went down at Clive Davis' pre-Grammy gala at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

As you know, TMZ broke the story ... Whitney Houston died the evening of the same annual party back in 2012 when she was found in her bathtub at the Beverly Hilton, dead from an OD.

As for Diddy, he gave an acceptance speech that was interminably long -- 50 minutes, seriously. It ended at 12:30 AM, and toward the end is when Diddy set his sights on the folks who run the Grammys.

Among many other things ... Diddy said, "Truth be told, hip-hop has never been respected by the Grammys. Black music has never been respected by the Grammys."

As for Diddy's record ... 3 Grammy wins and 13 noms.

Ne-Yo is feeling a little less proud of the Grammys he believed were well-earned -- because much as it pains him, he admits the recent claims of vote-rigging are entirely possible.

We got the R&B superstar at LAX and with this year's award show -- the 62nd annual -- about to go down, we had to ask about the new controversy sparked by ousted Recording Academy president and CEO Deborah Dugan.

If ya missed it, she blew the whistle on what she claims is a deeply broken process of selecting Grammy winners. In a formal complaint, she claimed it's all rigged and accused Recording Academy committee members of throwing bones to certain artists due to personal or business relationships.

Ne-Yo didn't pull punches and told us exactly why it seems plausible to him. That said, he made it clear he hopes there were NO shady dealings behind his 3 Grammys.

Ne-Yo won two Grammys for his song "Miss Independent," and another for his 2008 album, "Because of You."

Rufus Wainwright says aspiring gay parents have as just much love to offer as straight couples -- which is why he thinks a new law in Tennessee limiting that is horses**t.

We got the acclaimed singer Saturday at Sundance in Utah, and made him aware of a new bill the Governor of TN, Bill Lee, just signed which allows adoption agencies to turn down gay couples. RW and his partner, Jorn Weisbrodt, couldn't help but roll their eyes.

Check out each of their answers ... Jorn says love knows no gender, which Rufus piggybacks on by adding gay people have so much love to offer. He also says there are countless kids who need help, and a person's sexual orientation shouldn't have any bearing on that.

'Bachelor' stars Jade Roper Tolbert and her hubby costar, Tanner Tolbert, just lost out on a million bucks from an online betting competition -- and it seems things weren't on the up-and-up ... according to DraftKings.

DraftKings released a statement Saturday saying that -- after a multi-week investigation on claims of cheating and rigging the standings -- they have updated their leader board on the Wild Card competition they held back in early January.

The company stops short of calling Jade and Tanner cheaters or any other such accusation, but it's pretty clear ... they found something fishy in the way they won the top prize.

They say rather ambiguously, "All customers affected by the updated standings will be notified directly. It is our general policy not to comment further on such matters." You'll recall ... Jade and Tanner were accused of being in cahoots to win the million bucks.

They flat-out denied it at the time, telling us in essence ... they're just lucky. But, per those hawkish online gambling wizzes, the 'Bachelor' pair appeared to coordinate their max-out 150 lineups to increase their chances of winning. That's a clear violation of the rules.

Aerosmith got its award Friday night, and the acceptance speech was, well, awkward, because the band's wayward drummer was right there on stage with the boys, even though he wasn't allowed to play with them.

Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton and Brad Whitford joined temporarily ousted drummer Joey Kramer on stage Friday night as they accepted the honor from MusiCares at an event at the L.A. Convention Center.

If you've been following our stories this week, you know Joey had temporarily taken a leave of absence from the group for personal reasons. When he said he was ready to come back, his bandmates made him audition, and they say he lacked energy so he couldn't play the gig.

Joey went to court to get an order forcing the band to let him play, but the judge shot him down.

Aerosmith, which is celebrating its 50th year, performed "Big Ten Inch," "Dream On" and "Sweet Emotion" ... and Joey was nowhere to be seen because he left the stage.

The group's entertainment lawyer, Dina LaPolt, put it best when she introduced the band ... "They are brothers. They refer to each other as brothers and they even fight like brothers."

The Game was in a celebratory mood for Grammy weekend, but he took a few minutes to vent his anger over YG's arrest this week.

We got Game Friday night, leaving Derriere nightclub in Hollywood, and he seems outraged at YG's arrest for robbery, something his famed lawyer, Joe Tacopina, says is absolute BS.

Game notes that YG is set to perform a tribute to Nipsey Hussle Sunday night. He claims the cops will do anything they can to derail a tribute to YG. Full disclosure ... the photog mistakenly said the LAPD arrested YG ... it was the L.A. County Sheriff's Dept.

BTW ... YG was released Friday night on $250,000 bail.

Boosie Badazz here with a PSA for all the white rappers thinking about dropping an n-bomb in their next rap ... prepare to get a knuckle sandwich, unless you use it in one specific way.

We got Boosie at LAX and asked him about the white rapper who went viral for saying "n***a" in a battle rap and getting punched in the face.

In case you missed it ... William Wolf's black opponent cold-cocked him after he used the term in front of a room fool of black folks.

Lance Armstrong is going on a trip to Spain ... and he's lookin' for some friends to go with him -- as long as they got an extra $30k lying around.

Here's the deal ... the disgraced cycling superstar is putting on a trip called "The Move Mallorca 2020" ... where he and 12 lucky (and rich) guests will ride through the island together for almost a week.

So, what does the hefty price tag come with??? According to the tour company's website, "accommodations, meals, bikes and more” for the 6 day/5 night trip.

Despite the bad taste Armstrong might leave in cycling enthusiasts' mouths, we're told the company has has “been inundated” with inquiries since it was announced on January 20.

By the way, Lance's ex-teammate (and fellow drug cheater) George Hincapie will also be part of the ride.

THIS IS SAVAGE!!!!

Cops in Southlake, Texas just shaded the hell out of the Houston Astros for their cheating scandal in a new speeding PSA ad ... and the video is HILARIOUS!!!

The clip starts out with a cop and his radar gun looking pleasantly surprised that everyone is following the set speed limit.

You can see in the vid, car by car drives by ... and all of them are hitting 30 MPH on the dot.

But then, the camera pans over to a fireman behind a bush holding a trash can ... and that's where the 'Stros shade comes in.

The fireman -- who's wearing an Astros jersey -- is letting drivers know there's a speed trap up ahead by hitting the top of his metal receptacle ... and it's laugh out loud funny!!!

Of course, the 'Stros were just busted by the MLB earlier this month after league commish Rob Manfred said they illegally filmed opponents' signs and relayed them to batters by banging on dugout trash bins.

The cops captioned their vid, "We don't care what it takes for you to slow down and follow the speed limit. Drive astro-nomically safe today in Southlake."

BUUURNNNNN!!!

Joycelyn Savage handled some legal issues in her battery case, but the real drama was outside the courthouse ... where her mother ran up and begged to talk to her.

R. Kelly's girlfriend had a hearing in Chicago Thursday morning, and pled not guilty to battery for allegedly attacking and injuring Azriel Clary -- Kelly's ex and Joycelyn's former roommate.

As Savage left the courthouse, she was flanked by a couple of girls who we're told are her younger sisters -- and they were trying to get Joycelyn's attention while she's on the phone.

Then, Joycelyn's mother approaches and yells she needs to talk to her ... but gets shut down. Joycelyn hurries away and hops in a car with a woman believed to be her lawyer.

As she's getting in, it sounds like one of the sisters urges Joycelyn to "look at the documentary," and adds ... "He's been lying!" Seemingly, this is in reference to R. Kelly and the latest Lifetime docuseries on Kelly.

As we've reported ... Joycelyn's been estranged from her parents for years, ever since leaving home and moving in with R. Kelly. Azriel did the same thing, but recently severed ties with Kelly, moved out of his Chicago condo and reunited with her family ... but not before a blowout fight with Joycelyn.

Gerald Griggs, the attorney for Joycelyn's parents, tells TMZ ... the family's still very concerned about her well-being and safety, and since she's been with Kelly she's been "completely different from the Joycelyn they have known her entire life."

Griggs says her entire family went to Joycelyn's court appearance Thursday to try to make contact with her. The family hopes to at least make contact with her attorney to open up a line of communication with her.

Vice Prez Mike Pence is feeling a big chill, courtesy of Prince Charles ... who blatantly dissed the veep -- but the only question is whether the cold shoulder was intentional.

Take a look -- the Prince walked down the line Thursday, greeting world leaders at the World Holocaust Forum in Jerusalem. Handshakes all around, until he got to VP Pence and his wife. Charles looked him right in the eye ... and moved right along.

No handshake, no shoulder pat, not even a head nod.

Pence appears to reach out and tap Charles on the arm, but the Prince was already engaged with Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Snub or not, Pence's office is already on the defensive ... it released a photo of the VP and the Prince sharing a moment and claims they "spoke prior to entering the event floor and after his remarks as well."

It's unclear if the handshake snub happened before or after what appears to be a friendly greeting outside the event.

Michelle Carter, the woman who encouraged her boyfriend to kill himself in a series of texts, has been released early from prison.

The 23-year-old from Massachusetts walked free Thursday morning out of Bristol County House of Correction ahead of her scheduled release ... due to 'good behavior' on the inside.

Carter -- convicted of involuntary manslaughter in Conrad Roy III's suicide -- was sentenced to 15 months, and 5 years probation last February. So, she's getting out about 3 months early.

A spokesman for the Bristol County Sheriff's Office said, "Ms. Carter has been a model inmate here at the Bristol County House of Corrections. She has participated in a variety of programs, held a job inside the jail, has been polite to our staff and volunteers, has gotten along with the other inmates, and we've had no discipline issues with her whatsoever."

The so-called texting suicide case captivated the nation due to issues of free speech, and whether someone should be convicted for someone else's suicide.

Carter was wearing the same outfit she had on the day she was sentenced as she was released from custody. Her family was there to pick her up.

Neil Young's officially ready to keep on rockin' in the free world, and soon ... he'll be free to express his hatred for Donald Trump in a voting booth.

The legendary rock 'n' roll artist was granted U.S. citizenship Wednesday at the Convention Center in downtown L.A. ... and he's clearly proud to be an American.

Accompanied by his wife, Daryl Hannah, Neil excitedly waved his mini Old Glory as he left the Oath Ceremony while clutching his naturalization documents.

If ya don't know ... Neil's from Canada, but he's been a Southern (California) Man off and on since the '60s, and he recently decided to pursue dual citizenship so he could vote in the 2020 election.

Tony Rock has another nickname for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's decision to trade their Royal Family roles for life in Canada -- think "Coming to America" sequel ... but lighter.

The comedian was in Bev Hills Wednesday night when we asked him about "Megxit" ... he tells us it's like a real-life version of the 1988 Eddie Murphy flick where he gives up his life as a prince to find true love.

Tony describes it a little differently for Harry and Meghan, but still ... it's an apt comparison.

Chris' younger brother also tells us he doesn't think Meghan's going to get her wish for more privacy for their son, Archie ... because the kid's just way too famous. Once again, he hilariously evokes a scene from "Coming to America" to make his point.

As for the actual sequel to the classic comedy -- scheduled to open wide in theaters in December 2020 -- Rock reveals he's not involved in the project at all ... and it seems like he feels a bit snubbed.

Oprah says she's 100% in support of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's exit from Royal life because she knows it was NOT an impulsive decision -- no matter what the British media says.

Oprah spoke out Tuesday night in NYC, telling Adam Glyn she has no issue with the Duke and Duchess stepping back and forging their own path, and more than that ... said everyone should respect it.

She says Harry -- and even Queen Elizabeth herself -- made it clear he and his wife had been thinking about this for a long time. O, who ya gotta remember is in business with Harry, says his move wasn't made lightly either. PH noted that last weekend during his speech.

You gotta see how Oprah frames her staunch defense of Megxit -- she says when someone chooses what they believe is best for them, who are we (the public) to criticize that?

Her pal, Gayle King, was there too, and says nobody in the Royal family was "blindsided" ... especially not QE2.

As we've reported, Prince Harry and Oprah are coproducing a mental health series for Apple TV -- so, we expected her to back him -- but her explanation for why might influence other opinions.

It's kinda what Oprah does.