Controversial S#!T

T-Pain is posing an interesting question about Joe Rogan -- what exactly are people angry about ... perceived harmful content in general, or is the outrage strictly personal?

The singer dished his thoughts about the ever-evolving Rogan saga this weekend in L.A. -- while celebrating the release of his new track, "That's Just Tips," at Nightingale. He says ... yeah, Rogan's use of the n-word is ugly and perhaps even worthy of "cancelation."

In the same breath, TP also acknowledges what Spotify has confirmed -- namely, that JR isn't going anywhere ... and in T's mind, the reason for that is cold, hard cash.

Fact is, Rogan was an expensive buy for the streaming giant -- $100 million, to be exact -- and it's precisely because of that, from T-Pain's POV, that they won't get rid of him. As he puts it, they have to get every cent they spent out of Joe.

With all that said, T-Pain also wonders if the same energy people have for Joe Rogan at the moment is merely selective -- because he says, if folks are truly perturbed by what they consider dangerous rhetoric, why not nix a lot of raps songs too???

Peng Shuai gave her first non-Chinese run interview about her apparent disappearance last year, insisting all is well ... but it sure sounds like she had a gun held to her head.

The ex-tennis star and women’s doubles champ did an interview this weekend with French outlet L’Equipe in Beijing -- where the 2022 Winter Olympics are currently being held -- and during the sit-down, she once again denied ever accusing any Chinese government official of sexual assault, while also downplaying speculation that she’d vanished shortly thereafter ... even though both definitely seem to have happened on the face of things.

When asked about the initial allegation she’d posted on the Chinese social media app Weibo, Peng is quoted as saying it was “an enormous misunderstanding,” while also flat-out rejecting she’d ever even made such a claim -- despite clear evidence she, in fact, had ... via screenshots of her quickly-deleted statement at the time.

Shuai says, “Sexual assault? I never said that anyone made me submit to a sexual assault.” But when pressed about the world having seen the OG post and asked why she’d deleted it, PS answered ... “Why? Because I wanted to.”

You'd think they'd ask why she posted it in the first place, but apparently ... no such follow-up question was allowed, and they moved on to other topics.

We should mention ... although this interview was done with a publication that wasn’t state-run by the Chinese government, they still very much had a hand in how this was playing out -- as Shuai is said to have been accompanied by a Chinese Olympic official during the chat and the questions were submitted ahead of time, on the condition they print her remarks verbatim ... according to L’Equipe.

Shuai thanked everyone who expressed concern for her when she appeared to have vanished from public view after posting that claim -- but then said this ... “I never disappeared. It’s simply that many people, like my friends and among them, those from the IOC, sent me messages and it was completely impossible to respond to so many messages.”

In addition to all this, the IOC also announced that its Prez, Thomas Bach, had had dinner with Shuai in Beijing ... noting she appeared okay. The IOC, however, refused to weigh in on whether they felt she was under duress or not ... insisting it wasn’t their place to do so.

Spotify has called out Joe Rogan for "incredibly hurtful" comments, but they are holding firm ... he still has a place on its platform.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek wrote a memo to staff, saying, "There are no words I can say to adequately convey how deeply sorry I am for the way The Joe Rogan Experience controversy continues to impact each of you."

Ek then zeros in on Joe, saying, "Not only are some of Joe Rogan's comments incredibly hurtful -- I want you to make it clear that they do not represent the values of this company. I know this situation leaves many of you feeling drained, frustrated and unheard."

It seems the comments are directed at Rogan using the n-word -- the full word -- on his podcast, although the COVID controversy may well be part of it.

And then, Ek pivots, explaining, "While I strongly condemn what Joe has said and I agree with his decision to remove past episodes from our platform, I realize some will want more."

Now the support ... "And I want to make one point very clear -- I do not believe that silencing Joe is the answer. We should have clear lines around content and take action when they are crossed, but canceling voices is a slippery slope."

Ek says his company will invest $100 million "for the licensing, development, and marketing of music and audio content from historically marginalized groups."

Joe Rogan getting called out for repeatedly using the n-word in the past is getting an expected whataboutism treatment -- with comparisons being made to Howard Stern.

Here's the deal ... in the wake of Rogan apologizing for his previous usage of the slur, fans of his are now up in arms over the fact that other famous people in Hollywood have also hurled it with impunity, including Stern ... who infamously did so on his old show.

Stern has also donned blackface in some of these instances -- but one that's making the rounds now is a sketch he did in 1993, where he was mocking the Ted Danson-Whoopi Goldberg incident.

With Stern playing the part of Ted -- and Sherman Hemsley portraying Whoopi -- the former drops the n-word A LOT as he lampoons the real-life event ... and right to the face of two Black people, no less. Indeed, it's pretty damn offensive ... even in the context of a skit.

Now, despite HS addressing this exact moment just a couple years ago -- when he said he regretted the Danson blackface gag, adding he'd grown as a person -- many Rogan defenders are resurfacing this clip again and asking ... well, what about Howard Stern?!?

Of course, they're totally missing the point ... namely, that Stern WAS, in fact, called out and just like JR has now done -- he, too, went on the air to apologize for it ... as there WAS outrage at the time, just like there is right now after people discovered Joe's past use.

There also seems to be a misnomer over the term "canceled" as it pertains to these two -- some seem to think that because Joe is the most recent one to be under the microscope ... he's getting silenced or de-platformed, and that Stern should suffer the same treatment.

The reality, though, is he most certainly isn't being censored. Spotify's made clear they're standing by their man (even though they have erased a ton of those controversial episodes with the n-word) ... and Joe doesn't realistically face cancelation, as it were.

Billie Eilish brought her concert to a full-stop halt over one fan who appeared to be in distress -- and if you're thinking about Astroworld Fest here ... well, so was she.

The singer was performing in Atlanta Saturday, where State Farm Arena seemed to be packed to the gills with fans -- especially down below near where she was performing ... and where one gal apparently started getting crushed in the pit.

Check out this video we got of the moment BE paused everything once she became aware of what was going on ... it seems the lady in question was having trouble breathing, and needed an inhaler.

Luckily, Billie actually had one on hand ... and instructed the stage crew to get it to her ASAP. While the fan was being attended to, Billie settled down the crowd, told them to take a deep breath and step back -- at the same time, noting she wants to take care of her own ... something she's made sure to do in past concerts of hers as well, dating back years.

Then came a shot at what was clearly aimed at Travis Scott, with Billie saying ... "I wait for people to be okay before I keep going." That got huge cheers from the audience.

Of course, she's referencing the fact that Travis' November set continued for several minutes after the event was declared a mass casualty event -- with many suspecting TS was aware of what was going on. He's strongly denied that, claiming ignorance to the severity of things.

What's interesting here is the fact that Billie is replacing Travis at Coachella this year. Although an official announcement has yet to be made, the cat's outta the bag -- he got bumped amid the controversy -- other headliners dropped out too, FWIW -- and BE's one of the new artists who've been tapped in their stead.

Cornel West stands with Brian Flores ... telling TMZ Sports he agrees with the former Dolphins head coach that the NFL has a systemic racism problem.

We spoke with the philosopher just a few days after Flores filed his bombshell lawsuit -- one in which he alleged teams are racist when it comes to making hires across the league -- and the former Harvard and Princeton professor told us he couldn't agree more with the allegations.

"The NFL ought to be ashamed of itself," West said. "It's been functioning like a plantation."

West tells us, though, that he believes Flores' suit could be the start of a big change in the league.

"Now," he said, "the chicken's coming home to roost."

West tells us he admires Flores -- lauding the coach for having vision, integrity, courage and humility -- and he says if the NFL focused more on those traits in Black coaches, they wouldn't need the Rooney Rule in the first place.

"Well, the problem is that if they were concerned about quality they wouldn't have to worry about a rule," West said.

"Any time you talk about Black folks -- you're talking about low quality. They got to quit lying about black people."

Awkwafina has been accused of trying to pose as a Black person in the past -- be it in song or on camera -- and now ... she's sorta owning up to it, but stopping short of an apology.

The actress/rapper/internet personality addressed a long-running criticism that's been years in the making -- acknowledging she's aware that folks have dogged her for using African-American Vernacular English ... but at the same time, denying any mal-intent.

Awkwafina took to Twitter Saturday -- her first post in nearly three years -- with a lengthy statement that touched on the fact that Black culture, including AAVE, is often hijacked and monetized by others ... and then passed off as general pop culture and/or modern slang.

She then says this ... "But as a non-Black POC, I stand by the fact that I will always listen and work tirelessly to understand the history and context of AAVE, what is deemed appropriate or backwards toward the progress of ANY and EVERY marginalized group."

Awkwafina adds, "But I must emphasize: To mock, belittle, or to be unkind in any way possible at the expense of other is: Simply. Not. My. Nature. It never has, and it never was."

She goes on to address her upbringing and how she's carved out her own American identity, and essentially says ... there's some learning she's gotta do in reflecting that publicly and in her day-to-day life ... as do Asian Americans at large, she contends.

Some gave Awkwafina props, while others didn't let her off the hook -- noting she never said sorry. In response, it seems she's putting the bird app up on the shelf for a while ... saying she's retiring from Twitter over what sounds like demands she kill herself. Yikes ...

If you're wondering where the AAVE evidence is, go watch her in "Ocean's Eight" and "Crazy Rich Asians," not to mention her earlier work on "Tawk with Awkwafina," among other works. Basically, many say she talks with a "Blaccent" when hamming it up for the cameras ... and as a result, comes off as a caricature -- and, by extension, disrespectful in some folks' eyes.

Eddie Vedder says he hated Motley Crue in the '80s, and now one of the big-hair band's very own is firing off his thoughts on the matter ... calling Pearl Jam a snore-fest.

Bassist Nikki Sixx tweeted out some zingers Saturday, writing ... "Made me laugh today reading how much the singer in Pearl Jam hated @MotleyCrue. Now considering that they're one of the most boring bands in history it's kind of a compliment isn't it?"

He wasn't done mouthing off just yet though ... in response to one fan saying she'd recommend PJ songs for a friend's newborn baby to get it to go to sleep, NS replied -- "Or just sing to the baby with marbles In your mouth…Very zen."

And, yet to another fan who called him a lame who had 3 mid-level songs at best, Nikki wrote ... "Remember there were zillions of brown haired bands for brown haired fans…..Go find them. You will know them by the bored look on their face."

Now, if you're wondering where the heck all this generational animosity stems from ... it's actually Vedder who technically launched the first arrow across the bow -- taking aim at MC, specifically, in a recent NYT article ... in which he called the 4 fellas and their whole vibe, well, thin on substance.

While answering a question about whether any ripples from the Gen X/alt-culture explosion of the '70s and '80s extended to the present, EV didn't hold back while describing an old gear-loading gig of his.

He said, "I'd end up being at shows that I wouldn't have chosen to go to -- bands that monopolized late-'80s MTV. The metal bands that -- I'm trying to be nice -- I despised. "Girls, Girls, Girls" and Mötley Crüe: f*** you. I hated it. I hated how it made the fellas look. I hated how it made the women look. It felt so vacuous."

Vedder went on to say that thank God Guns N Roses came around to put some teeth back into the genre. And finally, he took a shot at Heather Locklear -- Tommy Lee's ex-wife.

He suggests Locklear was emblematic of how rock and roll portrayed and/or saw women in those days, explaining, "But I'm circling back to say that one thing that I appreciated was that in Seattle and the alternative crowd, the girls could wear their combat boots and sweaters, and their hair looked like Cat Power's and not Heather Locklear's -- nothing against her."

Kanye West has expressed, very publicly, his discontent over his and Kim Kardashian's daughter, North, being on TikTok -- but we're told ... the 8-year-old can't even log on without mom's permission.

Sources close to the former couple tell TMZ ... North doesn't have her own TikTok account, nor does she have the app on her own phone any longer. Instead, we're told North can only access TikTok through a joint account on Kim's phone -- and only uses it in her mother's presence.

Not just that ... but our sources say the comments for North and Kim's account are fully disabled. We've even spoken to sources at TikTok who tell us ... North and Kim's account passes the company's terms and conditions for minors.

Now here's why Ye might be in a tiff over this ... according to another source in the know. We know there was, in fact, an incident recently where North did go live on TikTok from her own phone -- but our sources say Kim disciplined her over that and made the changes then.

We're told Kim, Kanye and his cousins even had a discussion over the incident, and they agreed to the new parameters that North is now confined to ... aka, no social media on her phone, and only being able to hop on through her mom's account with her mom there too.

With that said ... our sources say it's confusing to Kim that Kanye is making a big fuss about North's recent video, because she thought everyone was on the same page from before.

As for why an 8-year-old would even have her own phone ... sources close to Kim tell us it's so she can have a direct line to her dad, and vice-versa. Of course, we're told that phone is fully monitored with all the parental blocks you can imagine -- and to reiterate ... there are no social media accounts on it at all.

Adele is giving off big time "don't look at me!" vibes -- this as the first clear photos of her have emerged since her Vegas time-out ... with none other than her BF by her side.

The pop star was seen Friday leaving Mr. Chow in Bev Hills with NBA agent Rich Paul -- and despite their best efforts to keep things low-key ... the paps fired away as their car started to pull out of the backlot, capturing some interesting shots as they exited.

As you can see ... Adele is straight up hiding behind her purse in the passenger seat, not wanting the cameras to get a good look at her mug -- and for the most part, she succeeded.

Adele has been hunkering down at Rich's place here in L.A. in hopes that the residency drama would blow over -- and while it seems to have settled down for sure since her tearful apology ... there are still tons of rumors flying about a possible all-out cancelation.

As we reported ... her story about having to postpone things due to COVID and other logistics simply doesn't add up to the folks over at Caesar's -- as we've been told by those in the loop that any COVID issue would've been brought up way earlier than when she did, and not just that ... but we'd heard much different accounts about what was going on BTS.

Long story short, word is ... Adele wasn't happy with the set pieces and stage design when she showed up for rehearsals -- very shortly before her debut performance, for which folks bought tickets and flew in from all over the world to catch in person.

According to our sources ... she just couldn't be satisfied, and ended up blindsiding Caesar's crew with her announcement. By the looks of it, she definitely doesn't wanna talk about it yet ... or even be seen.

Kanye West now has someone in his corner over his very public spat with Kim Kardashian over parenting -- and that'd be one Candace Owens ... whose support he appreciates.

Ye took to IG Saturday to thank the conservative political pundit for voicing support over whether Kanye and Kim's daughter, North, should be on TikTok or not -- and in CO's POV, the kid definitely shouldn't ... because she says it's harmful for young girls.

Candace says Kim's wrong on this issue, going on to say ... "It's actually Kanye that is trying to protect his daughter in this regard and Kim is spinning this as 'obsession' and 'control'" ... adding there are other ways for kids to creatively express themselves besides TikTok.

KW was definitely feeling the love, and made sure Candace knew about it ... posting a lengthy caption that expressed just how much it meant to him that she was standing by his side ... while others, apparently, keep their vote of confidence on the DL with Ye.

He writes, "THANK YOU CANDACE FOR BEING THE ONLY NOTEWORTHY PERSON TO SPEAK ON THIS ISSUE THERE'S A LOT OF CELEBRITIES SCARED TO SAY SOMETHING IN PUBLIC BUT THEY'LL TEXT ME IN PRIVATE AND SAY THEIR ON MY SIDE."

Kanye adds, "I WILL NO LONGER PUT MY HAND THROUGH A BLENDER TO HUG MY CHILDREN MY MOTHER TOOK ME TO CHICAGO WHEN I WAS 3 AND TOLD MY DAD IF HE CAME TO CHICAGO HE WOULD NEVER SEE ME AGAIN SO I BOUGHT THE HOUSE NEXT DOOR I DREAM OF A WORLD WHERE DAD’S CAN STILL BE HEROES."

This latest dustup comes after Kim filmed a TikTok with North ... which pissed off Kanye, as he's made it clear he doesn't want his kids on there. Kim accused him of attacking her, and essentially brushed off the TikTok use as NBD ... especially compared to his behavior.

Joe Rogan is apologizing for repeatedly using the n-word -- the entire word -- in his past, saying, "It looks f***ing horrible, even to me."

A complication of clips from old podcasts shows Rogan using the slur over and over.

Rogan tried explaining it this way ... "There's a video that's out, that's a compilation of me saying the n-word. It's a video that's made of clips taken out of context of me of 12 years of conversations on my podcast, and it's all smushed together."

Rogan said there were times he thought he could use the word during discussions about pop culture ... citing Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor, but there's an obvious difference. Rogan says he was wrong and is regretful.

He says, "Now, I haven't said it in years, but for a long time, when I would bring that word up, like, if it would come up in conversation and instead of saying the n-word, I would just say the word -- I thought as long as it was in context, people would understand what I was doing."

There's another clip shot 11 years ago that's even more problematic ... in which Rogan says a taxi driver dropped him off in a black neighborhood in Philly and it was "like they were in 'Planet of the Apes.'"

Rogan says, "I was just saying there's a lot of black people there. But, then I went on to talk about what a positive experience it was and how much fun it was to go to see this movie in a black neighborhood."

The popular podcaster says he will never use the n-word again, calling this "the most regretful and shameful thing that I've ever had to talk about publicly."

He says he hopes this will be a "teachable moment" for others.

PETA is not a fan of the new "Jackass Forever" film, and is demanding prosecutors launch a criminal investigation, claiming the production violated animal cruelty laws.

A rep for Peta tells TMZ ... the Paramount Pictures movie, which appears to have been filmed at least partially in Los Angeles and San Luis Obispo County, likely broke state animal protection laws with scenes involving all sorts of critters.

PETA says a spider was "provoked" into biting an actor's chest, a turtle "harassed and goaded" to bite an actor's testicles, and a snake "harangued and provoked" into biting someone's nose.

But wait, there's more, allegedly ... a tarantula "trapped" in a tube, and a bull "deliberately agitated" into charging and injuring Johnny Knoxville.

PETA also claims Knoxville and Steve-O provoked honeybees into stinging Steve-O's penis, killing many bees in the process ... and a scorpion was put in the mouth of an unnamed jackass and repeatedly hit until it stung.

The org fired off a couple of letters, obtained by TMZ, to the L.A. City Attorney and San Luis Obispo County D.A. ... urging them to investigate the production and take legal action.

PETA thinks an investigation could lead to charges against Knoxville, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Eric André, director Jeff Tremaine, producer Spike Jonze ... and others, including those responsible for providing the animals used in the film.

PETA's Senior VP Lisa Lange tells TMZ ... "If Steve-O and Johnny Knoxville want to make a career out of nasty little boy fantasies, they're entitled to, as long as they don't stress, harm, poke, prod, scare, or bother animals who are used as living props for their idiocy."

Lange adds ... "PETA is reminding city and county prosecutors that no one is above the law and that while the rest of the world wants to save bees and recognizes animals as sentient individuals, these jackasses exploit and abuse them for fun."

As we first reported, Steve-O and Pontius are also being sued over a jet ski stunt that allegedly left a man badly injured.

Kim Kardashian has done something she almost never does ... she's gone after Kanye on social media ... this after he attacked her.

Kim is clearly angry over Kanye posting his grievances about Kim posting a short video of her and North West on TikTok.

Kanye responded ... "Since this is my first divorce I need to know what I should do about my daughter being put on TikTok against my will."

Kim has come out swinging, saying, "Kanye’s constant attacks on me in interviews and on social media is actually more hurtful than any TikTok North might create. As the parent who is the main provider and caregiver for our children, I am doing my best to protect our daughter while also allowing her to express her creativity in the medium that she wishes with adult supervision -- because it brings her so much happiness."

Kim clearly made a point of saying she's the primary caregiver, which is undeniably the case.

She went on ... "Divorce is difficult enough on our children and Kanye's obsession with trying to control and manipulate our situation so negatively and publicly is only causing further pain for all. From the beginning, I have wanted nothing but a healthy and supportive co-parenting relationship because it is what is best for our children and it saddens me that Kanye continues to make it impossible every step of the way."

This is an exception post coming from Kim, and it's what we've been hearing privately for a while now ... Kanye doesn't want this divorce, and he's lashing out at her because he's lost control and can't stop her.

She's also making it clear there have been many other co-parenting issues ... some that haven't surfaced publicly. But she's clearly sick of it. She finishes, "Hopefully he can finally respond to the third attorney he has had in the last year to resolve any issues amicably."

In the end, if they can't settle their disagreements over custody, it may end up being decided by a judge in divorce court.

Susan Sarandon is apologizing for a social media post comparing a funeral for a fallen NYPD officer to fascism ... confessing it was "insensitive and deeply disrespectful."

The actress issued the mea culpa Friday after facing tons of backlash for her Tuesday tweet, when she shared a meme bashing cops with an image of slain NYPD officer Jason Rivera's funeral procession.

Susan says she deeply regrets sharing the meme and claims she reacted quickly without connecting the meme to a police funeral. She says she now realizes "how insensitive and deeply disrespectful it was to make that point at that time."

The image Susan posted -- then deleted -- featured a tweet from podcaster Danny Haiphong with a photo of cops lining NYC streets and the caption, "I'm gonna tell kids this is what fascism looks like."

Further anti-cop sentiment was added to the meme ... "So, if all these cops weren't needed for CRIME that day, doesn't that mean they aren't needed ANY day?" ... but Susan's saying she was just sharing someone else's handiwork.

A bunch of police organizations slammed Susan for the social media post ... as well as a horde of Twitter users.

Simon Leviev, the subject of the new Netflix documentary, "The Tinder Swindler," is banned for life from the app he used to con women, with the company stating the obvious ...  he violated the terms of service.

A rep for Tinder tells TMZ ... not only have they fully terminated his account, but if Simon decides to return to the platform using his name -- or one of his many aliases -- the new account will get an immediate ban as well. They say this has been in place since 2019 when his actions were first made public.

They go on to clarify that the terms he violated were "impersonation" and "asking for money." The rep added, "We have conducted internal investigations and can confirm Simon Leviev is no longer active on Tinder under any of his known aliases."

As the documentary reveals, Simon preyed on women through the app, flashing his "enormous wealth," promoting a lavish, globetrotting lifestyle. He would convince the women he matched with to take out money for him, and make off with millions of dollars.

Cops caught up to Simon in 2019, arresting and deporting him to Israel where he was supposed to serve a lengthy sentence for his crimes -- but 5 months later, he was released. According to the report, he met the criteria for a program aiming to reduce the prison population during the pandemic.