Controversial S#!T

Olivia Rodrigo's latest cover art looks an awful lot like something Courtney Love put out years ago -- and the latter isn't afraid to point that out ... not to mention demand credit.

The 18-year-old singer -- who's blowing up right now from her "drivers license" hit, plus her debut album "SOUR" from earlier this year -- teased a new visual project tied to her record, which will apparently be all about prom ... and OR never being able to attend her own.

She posed for a shoot in which she's in a prom dress, a tiara and mascara running down her face ... with a bouquet of flowers in tow. If that looks familiar, it's 'cause it is ... Courtney's band, Hole, released "Live Through This" in the '90s, and it's got a very similar aesthetic.

CL poked fun at this ... reposting Olivia's photo, and captioning it with, "Spot the difference! #twinning! 🥸@oliviarodrigo 😉👸👸." Seems like it was all in good fun, but it would appear Courtney is legit upset about this ... and perhaps rightly so.

Olivia eventually responded in Courtney's comments, writing ... "Love u and live through this sooooo much." Not really an apology or acknowledgment of inspiration (in our minds) ... and it looks like Courtney thought so too, because she told Olivia to send her flowers and a thank you note, while making sure to note her favorite florist. Indeed, it's deliciously petty.

Some are saying Courtney's expecting too much here -- as there's an argument that artists (especially ones from vastly different generations) are ripping each other's style all the time, consciously or unconsciously. It's also unclear if Olivia was aware of Courtney's work when she/her team were putting this whole concept together. Either way, Court doesn't care.

She dug in, writing ... "Does Disney teach kids reading and writing? God knows. Let's see. Yes this is rude. Rage inducing? Honey if I had a dollar for everyone this happens? I'd be real rich!"

Tyler, the Creator seems to be trying to get ahead of the Twitter outrage machine by apologizing to Selena Gomez (via song) for old tweets that are seriously screwed up.

The rapper addresses messages he posted online back in the early 2010s that were specifically aimed at Selena, Justin Bieber and other female artists ... many of whom he was talking about in incredibly graphic/sexual terms, which are too much for us to re-post here.

The tweets -- some of which are still live, BTW -- are in the vein of sexual fantasies and would-be exploits ... but one touches on SG and JB's former relationship, to which TTC took a sour tone and wrote, "Justin Bieber And Selena Gomez Is F****** Dating. F***."

Apparently, Tyler was into Bieber back in those days (in a romantic way, it seems) ... something he touches on in his new track, "Manifesto," where he briefly gets into this.

On Tyler's second verse, he talks about being "canceled" before cancel culture was a thing -- at which point he says he already apologized to Selena for these abhorrent tweets. In the same breath, he gives more context ... "Back when I was tryna f*** Bieber, Just-in"

Tyler and Justin have hung out in the past, and the former has done interviews in which he said he felt Selena didn't like him ... and was always "mean-mugging" when he was around her then-boo. Turns out, it might've been for good reason ... Tyler was apparently out to bang JB.

If that feels like it's coming out of left field for you, it shouldn't -- Tyler has suggested he's part of the LGBTQ+ community, and seems to get down with both guys and gals.

Britney Spears was at the top of her game -- and at the top of album sales in her respective category -- before she was in a conservatorship, and even during ... which mucks up the argument of whether the apparatus was hindering her career in any real way.

Somebody posted a video of a graph over time, depicting Britney's album sales compared to her contemporaries between 1999 and 2017 ... and it's clear that she was the queen of "Diva Pop" during that run, a good chunk of which was during her court-ordered conservatorship.

Remember, Britney splashed onto the scene in the late '90s ... and was a tour de force-type artist in the early-to-mid 2000s. But, after 2008 -- around the time Britney's conservatorship was put into place -- she was STILL the reigning queen in album sales (worldwide) when stacked up against fellow singers like Shakira, Christina Aguilera, P!nk, J Lo, Gaga, Beyonce ... and eventually, the one female pop star who came along to overtake 'em all -- Adele.

BTW, we checked the numbers here ... and this video appears to be fairly accurate as far as who was on top and when -- again, relating to worldwide album sales in this respective window. Even as late as 2017, Britney was beating out the competition ... which is wild.

So ... what does this all mean??? Depends on who you ask, we suppose. On the one hand, you could argue the conservatorship hasn't really harmed her professionally -- as she was clearly very successful even after being placed in it. In fact, we've heard her father, Jamie Spears, say he actually helped whip her finances into shape again following her breakdown.

With that said, it's become obvious that Britney wants out -- she said as much this past Wednesday -- and seems to be putting her professional life on hold until she gets her way.

The Miami condominium building that partially crumbled to the ground -- leaving at least 4 dead and dozens of others unaccounted for -- seemed to be an accident waiting to happen ... at least that's what an engineering report suggested as early as 2018.

The city of Surfside -- where this awful tragedy happened -- released a number of docs related to the building, known as Champlain Towers South, and its architectural history ... and one report from engineering firm Morabito Consultants has some potentially damning findings.

According to the study, the experts found "major structural damage" to a concrete structural slab below the building's pool deck -- where the waterproofing had been laid flat as opposed to at an angle (which would help drain water from the place) ... something MC thought needed to be addressed, and which would require extensive and costly repairs.

Here's what the engineers thought could happen if this wasn't nipped in the bud ... "The failed waterproofing is causing major structural damage to the concrete structural slab below these areas." They add ominously, "Failure to replace the waterproofing in the near future will cause the extent of the concrete deterioration to expand exponentially."

There's more ... the report also found "abundant cracking and spalling" in the concrete columns, beams and walls in the parking garage. Not just that, but what cracks had been found before were apparently repaired with shoddy labor, including slapping epoxy on top.

Quentin Tarantino was immovable Friday night ... standing firm on his desire to retire, despite persistent protestations by Bill Maher.

Quentin was awesome, bluntly telling Bill, “I know film history and from here on in, filmmakers do not get better."

Maher grilled the 58-year-old filmmaker like a cheeseburger, imploring him to keep making flicks ... even suggesting 58 is the new 57, but it was a no-go.

Q.T. caused quite the stir, briefly saying his next film -- which he says will be his last -- will be a "Reservoir Dogs" reboot, before adding he was just joking.

And then, Bill started talking about the PC world of film, and Quentin had lots of thoughts ... saying ideology now trumps everything else in cinema, including art and entertainment.

The Pentagon's UFO report has landed, but it ain't gonna leave much of a mark -- because our government's story is it doesn't know what the hell most of these objects are.

The highly-anticipated report, released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, was supposed to shed light on a rash of recent sightings -- many seen by U.S. military personnel -- but instead, all it definitely noted is 143 of the 144 flying objects spotted since 2004 remain ... unexplained.

The report could be read on the toilet -- the damn thing's only 9 pages -- and doesn't even rule out the U.S. government's involvement. Think about it ... the U.S. government issued the report, but can't rule out itself. 🤔

According to the docs, the UAP (unidentified aerial phenomena) "could be attributable to developments and classified programs by U.S. entities" -- meaning, the government or private industry.

Now, the report does say 18 sightings "appear to have some sort of advanced propulsion or advanced technology." Of course, the question we all have is ... who or what's behind that technology?

We know what you're wondering, and the report never uses the words aliens or extraterrestrials. Instead, it says if and when they can resolve what these UAPs are, they expect they'll fit in one of these categories: airborne clutter, natural atmospheric phenomena, U.S. government or industry programs, foreign adversary systems, or a catchall “other” bin.

We're guessing alien life would be "other."

The one incident they did resolve required 6 months of combing through hundreds of reports in order to find out one UAP was a large deflating balloon.

Ok, here's one positive thing we can say: The government says it's now established a procedure for reporting these sightings to military officials, which should help collect better data to study such objects in the future.

For now, though, leaving so much unanswered will surely fuel greater speculation, especially since parts of the report remain classified.

The person who supplied the tortillas that were thrown at Latino players following a high school basketball game has come forward ... but he's adamant it was never meant to be racist.

Luke Serna -- who says he's half-Mexican -- admits he handed out tortillas to players, cheerleaders and fans at the big Coronado vs. Orange Glen basketball game as part of a "celebratory action" if Coronado won the game. Serna is a Coronado alum.

The problem ... the Orange Glen basketball team (and the OGHS student body as a whole) is largely Latino.

So, when Coronado -- a predominantly white school -- won the game and people began throwing the tortillas after the final buzzer, many players, coaches, staffers and others were offended ... claiming it felt racist.

But, Serna claims his tortilla plan was inspired by a tradition he learned as a student at UC Santa Barbara, and he had "absolutely no racial intent."

"The tossing of tortillas is used as a celebratory action by the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos at various sporting events including basketball and soccer," Serna said in a letter to the Coronado Unified Governing Board.

"There was not a shred of ill-intent or racial animus in carrying out this celebratory action."

Serna continued, "Those who have enflamed this issue into a racially charged issue should be utterly ASHAMED of themselves."

There has been fallout since the incident ... Coronado head coach JD Laaperi was fired following a school board vote.

Serna believes Laaperi should NOT have been terminated.

"The people who have fallen for this frame-up to smear Coach Laaperi are not worthy of being any part of the discussion regarding this event as it is their intent to try and fan the flames of racism where none existed.”

Serna later told FOX 5 in a separate statement ... "I realize the tortilla throwing has been perceived as racially insensitive. I do not condone racially insensitive behavior, and that was not my intent."

Prince Harry left the Royal Family and is having babies with Meghan Markle in America ... but he's still getting his royal due, at least in California.

Harry's making sure to note his royalty on the birth certificate for the couple's second child, Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor ... the doc, obtained by TMZ, lists the father as "The Duke of Sussex" and "His Royal Highness."

As we reported ... Prince Harry and Meghan welcomed their first daughter into the world earlier this month, and the baby's name honors Harry's late mother, Princess Diana, and his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth.

As you know, Harry and Meghan previously called out the Royal Family for racism ... telling Oprah Winfrey some royals expressed concern their first kid, Archie, would have too dark of skin.

Celine Dion's heart will go on for her hometown Canadiens ... 'cause the pop superstar says that pic of her in Vegas Golden Knights gear is a big, fat phony!!!

A photo of the Quebec native decked out in a VGK uniform popped up on the T-Mobile Arena jumbotron ahead of Game 5 of the Conference Finals on Tuesday ... with many wondering if Dion had actually ditched her roots for Sin City.

Of course, home teams love to do this in games -- showing fake pics of their opponents' most famous supporters rocking their threads really gets the fans riled up.

While the image clearly appears to be altered, Dion felt the need to set the record straight on Thursday ... saying, "By the way, I have nothing to do with this photo ... And you know what photo I'm talking about!"

It wouldn't be that farfetched to think Dion is a Golden Knights fan -- after all, her massively successful residency is in Vegas ... and she HAS been spotted wearing their jersey in the past.

But, as the Habs and Knights are set to face off in a heated Game 6, Dion had to make sure her team knew who she'd be rooting for.

Silly?? Yes. But, did you REALLY think we were gonna pass up on getting a Celine Dion sports crossover?!

The Habs are one win from making the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1993 ... so you could say it's all coming back to (them) now.

IKEA has more work to do if it wants forgiveness for a misguided Juneteenth celebration ... because one of Georgia's leading Black voices ain't buying what the company's selling in the apology aisle.

Georgia State NAACP President James Woodall tells TMZ ... the Swedish-based big-box retailer's statement from earlier this week -- when they explained their Atlanta store was wrong for a Juneteenth-themed menu -- is pretty much lip-service without further action.

Woodall says he thinks the whole debacle speaks to a tone-deaf culture at the company -- adding its seemingly harmless gesture actually helps perpetuate attacks against Black people by what he described as white supremacy. He also called the employee menu an empty, performative gesture.

Woodall tells us IKEA should have to answer to its constituents -- AKA employees and customers.

Atlanta's NAACP Prez, Richard Rose, seemed a bit more forgiving -- or at the very least, not ready to torch them like Woodall did.

He says he can't say for certain their intention was to be racist with the menu -- which included fried chicken, collard greens and watermelon -- but does acknowledge it was obviously insensitive. He's chalking that up to a possible lack of diversity among decision-makers.

As for accepting the apology ... Rose says that's up to the 20 employees who called out in protest.

Michael Jordan ain't going to like this ...

Steve Kerr says Kevin Durant is flat-out "more gifted" than His Airness ... explaining the Brooklyn Nets star is "an entirely different breed" from MJ.

The Warriors head coach -- who was Jordan's teammate with the Chicago Bulls in the '90s -- made the somewhat stunning revelation this week ... calling his former Golden State wing "the most talented player on earth, if not of all-time."

"He's just so gifted," Kerr told NBC Sports Bay Area. "I think he's more gifted [than Jordan]."

Kerr continued, "He's 6'11" with guard skills, unlimited 3-point range, passing, shot-blocking -- his shot-blocking at the rim, it's just stunning. Watching him this year was really, really gratifying to see."

Of course, the resumes ain't exactly comparable -- at least not yet.

Jordan's got 6 rings, he was a 10-time NBA scoring champ and he won five league MVPs. Durant, meanwhile, has just two championships, 4 NBA scoring champ titles and just one MVP trophy.

Still, Kerr clearly believes KD's skillset offers more than Jordan's ... saying it was especially evident after the 32-year-old came back from an Achilles injury and still dominated.

Coke Daniels is all for people comparing his film "Karen" to Jordan Peele's "Get Out," but to say he ripped it off? Coke essentially says get the hell outta here with that take!

The writer/producer tells TMZ ... they're 2 totally different films. His about an entitled white, racist woman who tries to run a Black family out of the neighborhood, while "Get Out" is about a mixed-race couple visiting her super-creepy family.

However, it didn't stop people from talking trash. One person said on Twitter, "Jordan Peele only has two films under his belt as a director and he already has people trying to copy his formula."

Now, Coke will cop to the idea that the films do share a similarity in genre ... and the director thinks THAT is what haters were really describing after the trailer dropped on Tuesday.

ICYMI, they slammed "Karen" -- starring Taryn Manning in the creepy lead -- as a wannabe "Get Out." The criticism was so intense, Jordan Peele's name started trending on Twitter.

Coke noticed all the social media buzz, took a screenshot of several posts and captioned it, "Trending on Twitter!! Keep comparing Karen to Get Out! We’ll receive that!"

Michael B. Jordan almost went the way of other celebs when it comes to booze and cultural appropriation -- but he saw the early warning signs, and decided to pivot.

The actor's been under fire since this past weekend for photos that leaked, apparently showing him at some sort of a launch party for a new rum line, with which he seemed to have a direct connection. The rum was called "J'ouvert" -- the name of a traditional Caribbean festival, akin to Carnival.

The photos seriously pissed off some people -- especially those with Trinidadian roots, where J'ouvert is said to have started -- who accused MBJ of cultural appropriation, exploitation and outright insensitivity in trying to commercialize something to which he has zero ties.

There were rumblings he might have partnered with someone with a Trinidadian background for this venture -- but even still, it didn't look good ... and Michael was silent for days over it.

Now, he's finally speaking out and promising to rebrand in the near future, writing in part ... "I just wanna say on behalf of myself and my partners, our intention was never to offend or hurt a culture (we love & respect) & hoped to celebrate & shine a positive light on."

Ugly incident at a boys high school basketball game in Southern California over the weekend ... when opposing fans and players from a predominantly white school fired tortillas at a largely Latino hoops team after a heated playoff game.

It all went down at the CIF championship game between Coronado H.S. and Orange Glen H.S. Saturday night ... where Coronado eeked out a 3 point win in a hotly contested game.

According to reports, instead of celebrating with class ... some Coronado fans (and reportedly several players) began hurling the traditional Mesoamerica food at the Orange Glen players as they stood on the court only moments after the devastating 60-57 loss.

Many people have described the obviously pre-planned attack as being racist.

On Sunday, Coronado's superintendent released a statement addressing the "reprehensible" incident.

“Swift action will be taken to address all those involved, and they will be held accountable. it is our hope to create opportunities to dialogue with the orange glen community in an attempt to repair.”

The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) -- which oversees H.S. hoops -- also addressed the ugly situation, saying their org. "prohibits discrimination" ... and vowing to investigate and "determine the appropriate next steps."

The Coronado school district also announced they will hold an emergency board meeting on Tuesday.

Story developing ...

L.A. Sparks coach Derek Fisher is PISSSSSED OFF that his star player Nneka Ogwumike got left off Team USA's Olympic squad ... and he's letting everyone know!

FYI, 30-year-old Ogwumike is a 6-time WNBA All-Star and was the league MVP in 2016. She's a legend.

So, when Team USA named the squad for the Tokyo 2020 Games and left her name off the list ... Fisher was furious and sounded off to the media.

"We're pissed, honestly" Fisher said ... "I think the thing about Nneka is nothing has to be given to her. She earned it. She deserves it. That's the most frustrating and disappointing part."

Fisher points out Ogwumike turned down opportunities to make more money overseas in order to participate in Team USA events in 2019 ... clearly under the impression she would get a spot on the Tokyo 2020 team.

"[She] could have probably gone overseas maybe to make more money than sacrifice for Team USA. Sacrificing her body in terms of performing well, leading the team in scoring during the tour, won MVP award during their group on the tour. "

"Like, I don't know what else a player is supposed to do. She's been an All-Star 6 times in the last 10 years. She's been the MVP of the league in recent years, 2016, a champion in the league. One of the faces of the league."

Fisher added, "We respect other players, happy for the ones that made it but ain't no way you can tell me you can put a team together and leave Nneke off of it and try to say that it makes sense and that it adds up because it doesn't."

Boxing legend Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. wasn't amused watching his son LOSE to Anderson Silva this weekend ... and he's now calling for JCC Jr. to hang up his gloves for good.

35-year-old Julio Jr. -- who's 52-6-1 a pro boxer -- lost to the MMA star on Saturday by split decision, despite the fact 46-year-old Silva hasn't had a pro boxing match in more than 15 years.

Not only did Julio miss weight for the fight, but he looked completely outclassed and out skilled -- shocking considering Julio was the WBC middleweight champ back in 2011.

Julio even went the distance with Canelo Alvarez in 2017.

Speaking of Canelo, his younger brother, Ramon Alvarez, defeated Julio Jr.'s younger brother, Omar Chavez, on the same card on Saturday.

Now, Julio and Omar's legendary dad -- Julio Sr. -- is calling for both of his sons to retire.

"I prefer that they retire if they are not going to prepare correctly," Chavez Sr. said according to BoxingScene.com ... "They do not prepare in the best way possible to fight."