Controversial S#!T

Kanye West hosting Marilyn Manson at his latest "Donda" event has spurred a reaction from one of the latter's most notable accusers ... Evan Rachel Wood's got a response, in song.

The actress hit the Bourbon Room in Hollywood Saturday night, where she got on stage and did an impromptu performance of the New Radicals' "You Get What You Give" ... with just a guitarist and an iPhone on hand to help out.

It's pretty clear who ERW was dedicating the song to, because her caption alluded to "survivors" who she feels were betrayed this week -- of course, in relation to Manson. Also, as you may know, Manson is name checked in the lyrics ... and when she sang that line (4:40 in the video), Evan threw up a middle finger.

She writes, "For my fellow survivors who got slapped in the face this week. I love you. Don't give up." Evan also said that she'd been saving this cover, and that Saturday felt like an appropriate time to let it rip.

This all comes on the heels of Kanye's third listening show in Chicago this week -- where he not only had Manson come hang out, but DaBaby as well ... both of whom have been embroiled in controversy of late. Manson, however, is another level ... he's been accused of rape and sexual abuse by numerous women -- all of which he's vehemently denied.

Still, it was a bizarre move on Ye's part to bring both of those guys out -- not to mention feature them on one of his tracks. DB and MM are on "Jail, Pt. 2." Some reports say Kanye did it just for shock value and publicity ahead of the release ... which if true, is bonkers.

Speaking of the chaotic upload of "Donda" ... Ye spoke on that just today, saying it was put out by UMG without his final approval. But, he still appears to be firmly in support of "Jail, Pt. 2" being included. For the record ... the song did end up making it on Apple and Spotify.

Not even Oprah is safe from a years-later look back at questionable behavior -- including an interview she did with Dolly Parton that's now under the microscope ... with a 2021 lens.

Clips from the 2003 sit-down with the iconic country singer resurfaced this weekend, and it seems some people have questions about what Oprah was asking Dolly, how she was asking ... and what exactly her goal was by probing for what some might consider personal deets.

In the first video, Oprah asks Dolly how she's able to look so good for her age ... and Dolly gives a jokey answer. O follows up, though, and presses ... noting she's been open about having cosmetic work done -- but Dolly rolls with the punches, and cops to it openly.

Dolly even says she'll probably continue going under the knife - and some people are pointing out that Oprah looks sorta disappointed that Dolly flipped it in her favor. Frankly ... that's kinda reaching -- but that's how some fans are interpreting the body language.

A 2nd clip from that same interview popped up as well, and Oprah dives right in on a heavy subject ... saying she heard Dolly fell into a huge depression at age 40. Yes, she's pretty flip and cavalier about it -- almost in a "gotcha" sense -- but DP is graceful.

There, too, she's nimble, and jokes she wasn't depressed about her age -- but about her whole look in general, to which she got a laugh. In other words, she expertly batted off Oprah's "tough questions" with the utmost charm ... that's what Twitter's saying, anyway.

Now, some analysis ... people are either coming to drag Oprah over this (yes, seriously) or racing to her defense -- pointing out that she's a champion for so many good things, and that this interview doesn't make or break her legacy. And to that point, it certainly doesn't.

With that said, Orpah's sometimes-abrasive style of interviewing is no secret -- she's used this head-on approach throughout her career (including recently with Harry and Meg), and has been called out for not being as sensitive as she perhaps could've been. More often than not, though, she's gotten a pass ... 'cause she's Oprah Winfrey ... and her goodwill with the public goes a long way. Also, a lot of people love her for the no-holds-barred attitude.

Kevin Spacey is back on a film set on American soil for the first time since several sexual assault allegations against him came to light.

The actor -- who was essentially exiled from mainstream Hollywood after the accusations starting coming out in 2017 -- is filming a new movie called "Peter Five Eight" ... and he was shooting scenes this week in Dunsmuir, CA.

Spacey's walking around set dressed in all black ... all smiles and lighting up a cigarette.

Sounds like Spacey's hard at work ... we're told he's been filming in the small NorCal town around the clock.

As we reported ... Spacey booked his first movie role since the scandal erupted, but he had to go all the way to Italy to do it. He filmed "L'uomo che disegno Dio." The movie title translates to "The Man Who Drew God."

Now, Spacey's back on an American film set ... and he looks happy to be there.

This could be the dumbest, most ridiculous woke move ever ... Sarah Paulson is getting dragged for wearing a fat suit portraying Linda Tripp in "Impeachment: American Crime Story," because some critics think the role should have gone to someone with Tripp's body shape.

Yes, there are people who think an actor of Linda Tripp's size was denied a role that rightly should have gone to her.

Now, this is not to say it's not legit to debate actors wearing fat suits. But, is it essential to the role? As Sarah says, "There's a lot of controversy around actors and fat suits, and I think that controversy is a legitimate one. I think fat phobia is real. I think to pretend otherwise causes further harm. And it is a very important conversation to be had."

But, saying size matters in casting a role ... that's another thing altogether. What about actors who use prosthetics? What about a blonde actor who plays a redhead? Or an actor who gains or loses a lot of weight for a role ... a la Christian Bale or any other method actor???

Sarah brilliantly shut down the haters ... "I do think to imagine that the only thing any actor called upon to play this part would have to offer is their physical self is a real reduction of the offering the actor has to make."

She goes on ... "I would like to believe that there is something in my being that makes me right to play this part. And that the magic of hair and makeup departments and costumers and cinematographers that has been part of moviemaking, and suspension of belief, since the invention of cinema. Was I supposed to say no[to the role]."

Sarah was vague at the end, saying now that she knows what she knows, she would respond differently if offered the Linda Tripp part. She says, "I think the thing I think about most is that I regret not thinking about it more fully ... Should I have known? Abso-f***ing-lutely. But I do now. And I wouldn't make the same choice going forward."

Eric Clapton is putting his anti-vaccine sentiments into song -- the guy just released a ditty that's all about resisting COVID vaccines and restrictions ... and it's surreal.

The legendary rocker and guitarist debuted his new track, "This Has Gotta Stop," Friday ... which at first feels like a social justice-like protest song -- based on the lyrics and visuals. But, when you read between the lines and read up on EC's recent COVID remarks ... it's clear what he's talking about.

The chorus goes, "This has gotta stop, enough is enough // I can't take this BS any longer // It's gone far enough, you wanna claim my soul // You'll have to come and break down this door." His first talks about knowing something was wrong when the proverbial man started laying down the law ... which Eric says made him apprehensive and break out in sweat.

He goes on to talk about what he thinks this future (of COVID mandates, vaccine requirements, etc.) will mean for his kids down the road. There's also a lot of animations of people being controlled by strings and hypnotized ... so it's clear what he thinks of it all.

Of course, that's no surprise ... Eric made his feelings known about a month ago when he announced he wouldn't perform at venues with vaccine requirements ... going on to liken it to "discriminated audience(s)." Even before that, he's been pushing anti-vaccine rhetoric pretty much all throughout the pandemic -- so, now, it appears he's channeling that in music.

A Marine Corps lieutenant colonel was swiftly disciplined after railing on the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and other military leaders for bungling the disastrous exit from Afghanistan.

Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller, a 17-year-veteran who has served in Afghanistan, says he knew the brass would come down on him like a hammer, but he felt it was his duty to publicly demand accountability for failing to protect the troops.

Lt. Col. Scheller was relieved of his duties after posting his video, in which he says, "People are upset because their senior leaders let them down. And, none of them are raising their hands and accepting accountability or saying, 'We messed this up.'"

The lieutenant colonel, who says he had a personal relationship with one of the fallen soldiers, says he knew his criticisms would result in a high cost to him, his family and his career, and also said he was urged by some of his fellow Marines not to say publicly what they were all feeling privately.

The Lt. Col. zeroed in on what he believes was a fatal error ... not securing the Bagram Air Base before evacuating our soldiers and Afghan allies.

The Marine brass said they disciplined Lt. Col. Scheller because they lost trust and confidence in his ability to command.

Bill Maher was true to form Friday night, accusing conservatives of "over-romanticizing" America while liberals do just the opposite ... and his words were blistering.

The "Real Time" host drew a contrast between immigrants who fled brutal conditions in their own country, only to come to the U.S. and hear our own citizens rail against our country ... "If you knew about the country I [immigrants] came from, you'd stop sh**ing on your own."

Maher made a compelling case that conservatives have a monopoly on "I love America no matter what." As he says, it's in their DNA. On the other hand, he says liberals think of America as irredeemable, racist, homophobic, oppressive. He says that's why we can't even find a host for the Oscars ... or "Jeopardy!"

Maher contrasted his experiences with others who make similar critical comments in other countries. He points out an Afghan comedian was tortured and murdered for his comments. By contrast, he notes he's been called out by 2 presidents -- W and Trump -- and the Trump dustup is hilarious. 45 sued Bill for his side-by-side pic of Trump and an orangutan!

And, he had a lot more to say ... that there's a reason an Afghan mother handed her baby to U.S. soldiers to get them out of the country.

Carole Baskin's closing the door on Joe Exotic's former zoo for good -- or at least for 100 years -- by selling the property with the stipulation it can't become a zoo again for a century ... and the owners can have nothing to do with 'Tiger King.'

A judge granted Carole's Big Cat Rescue sanctuary control over Joe's former Oklahoma exotic animal park in Wynnewood back in mid-2020 ... to satisfy the $1 million judgment she won against him in their notorious trademark lawsuit.

Carole previously vowed to sell the property on the condition the new owners would not use it as a zoo, and according to legal docs obtained by TMZ ... she did just that.

We got the paperwork showing Big Cat Rescue sold the property formerly known as Joe Exotic's G.W. Zoo for $140k in June to Francisco and Nelly Vazquez.

According to the deed, the Vazquez's are expressly barred from using the land to house exotic animals of any kind -- or as a zoo, wildlife park or menagerie -- for 100 years ... but there's more.

The new owners also can't name any new business on the property after anything related to its 'Tiger King' past ... including Joe Exotic, G.W. Zoo, anything with the word "tiger" or "big cat."

Our photog got Carole and her husband Howard out in Santa Monica where they were promoting a documentary, "The Conservation Game," and they confirmed the sale of the property and even had a suggestion of what it could be used for.

Chrissy Teigen admits everything she does is a little extra, and that's why she was ready and willing to break down a wall in her home to rescue her pet hamster, Peanut Butter.

We got Chrissy leaving Brighton Medical in Los Angeles on Friday and asked her about her pet rescue mission, which saw her save the family hamster after it went missing.

Chrissy says she has the best hearing on the planet, and her senses led her to a wall in her Beverly Hills home where Peanut Butter was trapped.

She busted open part of the wall to free her pet, and Chrissy tells us she was ready to do even more home damage with her hammer.

Chrissy's able to laugh about what she calls a "debacle" now ... because the wall's repaired and Peanut Butter is out of harm's way.

TMZ Sports has obtained LAPD body camera footage of Jaxson Hayes' arrest ... and the NBA hooper appears to shove a police officer, sending him careening into a wall.

The video starts with cops approaching 6'11, 220-pound Hayes outside his GF's L.A. house -- after a woman called 911, claiming she received "disturbing" texts from her cousin who claimed Hayes was "getting loud and violent," adding she was "scared and couldn't call the police herself."

Once on the scene, cops told 21-year-old Hayes they had to enter the home to make sure everyone was safe ... but Hayes objected.

Hayes eventually attempted to retreat inside ... but officers blocked his path. Police attempted to cuff Hayes ... and that's when the situation turned violent.

Hayes appears to forcefully shove an officer ... sending him slamming into an exterior wall of the home. Police later said the officer was injured during the incident ... and required medical treatment.

Officers then wrestled Hayes -- who was struggling with the cops -- to the ground. He is heard on video saying "I can't breathe."

Moments later, after repeatedly ordering Hayes to comply, an officer tases him. Jaxson appears to have been tased twice.

Cops eventually were able to get Hayes in handcuffs.

Jaxson is later heard telling police to take it easy on his arm ... because he feared they were going to break it.

As we previously reported, Hayes was arrested following the July 28 incident with cops ... and was booked on a resisting arrest charge.

At the time, LAPD launched an internal use of force investigation to determine whether appropriate force was used after Hayes alleged he couldn't breathe during the arrest.

A large police union that represents LAPD officers has called on the NBA and New Orleans Pelicans to suspend Hayes for pushing the officer -- and repeatedly using the n-word during the arrest.

Beyonce's mom is out for blood against those who've turned her daughter's Tiffany campaign into a controversy about blood diamonds.

Tina Knowles went off on Instagram on all the "socially conscious activist[s]" who've called out Bey for wearing the famous 128.54-carat Tiffany Diamond ... which is from a colonial mine in Kimberley, South Africa.

If you haven't heard, Beyonce's just the 4th woman to wear the iconic diamond -- and the first Black woman -- as part of Tiffany & Co.'s new "About Love" campaign ... which also features her husband, Jay-Z.

It seems Bey didn't know the jewel was a blood diamond ... so the question -- was Beyonce tricked by Tiffany and Co. into wearing it in the ad? There are reports Beyonce is pissed she didn't get a heads up.

A lot of folks don't care about that though, and have called her out for flaunting it ... but Mama Tina's not having it.

Knowles directed a comment on Instagram toward these critics, asking how many of them own diamonds, and if they do ... "did you go to try to check to see where the diamond came from?"

Her point is ... every person who has an engagement ring or owns diamonds probably does not research their origin, so all the "righteous" bashing of her daughter is hypocritical.

It's a fair point ... but likely not one that will shut everybody up on Twitter.

Speaking of, several Twitter folks have also rushed to Beyonce's defense ... pointing out that there was no such backlash when Lady Gaga wore the Tiffany Diamond at the Oscars in 2019.

Former Patriots QB Scott Zolak says his former team should turn off the rap music at practice ... explaining he believes the tunes are hurting Cam Newton's game.

Seriously.

Zolak -- who played for New England from 1992 through 1998 -- was reporting from Pats practice Thursday ... when he made the wild claim, saying he believes Cam is straight-up "distracted" by rap songs that blare over the team's speakers during workouts.

"I'd turn off the rap music first of all," Zolak said on 98.5 "The Sports Hub." "Because I think it's distracting for Cam here. Because in between every throw he's dancing."

Zolak continued, "He can't help himself."

The 53-year-old former signal-caller then said it's a stark difference when compared to Patriots backup QB Mac Jones, who he said "looks like he came to work again."

"Like, he's here to work. And everything is attention to detail."

"But, again," Zolak added, "that's Cam's style."

Newton has been known to bust a move during Patriots practice ... cameras catch him often bouncing around to hip-hop while on the field.

But, Cam has noted Jones has a similar love for the music ... explaining last month he was "surprised" by Mac's knowledge of rap.

"You catch him in the locker room every time quoting some Future, some Baby," Cam said.

Hard to fathom the tunes are playing any role whatsoever in the Pats' QB competition ... but Zolak clearly believes that's the case.

Kanye West has a lot of people scratching their heads ... his "Donda" listening event has started in Chicago with appearances from DaBaby and Marilyn Manson.

West packed fans into Chicago's Soldier Field Thursday night, the event was supposed to start at 9 PM local, but kicked off closer to 11. He opened the event with one of the album's most popular songs, "Jail" -- which previously featured a verse from Jay-Z -- but the verse was replaced by one from DaBaby ... a puzzling move.

Not only was DaBaby -- who recently made disgustingly homophobic comments at Rolling Loud -- on the song, he also joined Kanye on "stage." Marilyn Manson -- who has been sued by multiple women in the last few months for sexual assault -- was also on stage.

Much like the other listening parties, Kanye has only danced to the album, not performing it live.

As for the stage ... it's a replica of Kanye's childhood home that he grew up in in Chicago.

While controversial, DaBaby's appearance at the event makes sense if he's on the album. As for why Manson -- who looked very out of place -- was included ... that remains to be seen. He's apparently not featured on any of the songs.

Demi Lovato -- who recently revealed they're "California sober" -- certainly isn't scared to flaunt the lifestyle ... sharing vids of a visit to a pot farm and enjoying the product.

Demi posted pics and vids from their visit to the growing site for Ball Family Farms, a premium cannabis company in L.A. ... capped off with a video where they're smoking a joint in a car.

The singer captioned the vid, "Left w some goodies aka MIYAGI DO."

Demi -- who also came out as non-binary in May -- has been very open about their 2018 near-death experience and the recovery process ... which interestingly includes what has been dubbed, "California sober."

Now, there's no exact definition for that term, but it commonly means that the person uses a little marijuana and may drink in moderation.

It's certainly a gray area -- especially for addicts -- and has been met with criticism by many folks ... like 'Intervention' host Ken Seeley. The critics say sober is not a negotiation term ... you either are or you aren't.

More chaos in Afghanistan -- there was just an explosion outside the Hamid Karzai International Airport that appears to be a suicide attack ... according to U.S. officials.

The blast reportedly occurred Thursday at one of the entry gates of the Kabul airport, where crowds of Afghans have been gathering to try to get into the airport.

According to Fox News reporter Jennifer Griffin, the attack's being called a suicide bomber "complex SBIED attack" with firefight ... and there are Afghan casualties reported.

However, a Pentagon spokesperson confirmed the explosion but was not specific as to casualties ... though video from the scene show several people with apparent injuries.

The apparent attack comes shortly after U.S. officials stated they had deep concerns about security around the Kabul airport based on "a very specific threat stream."

President Biden's reportedly been briefed on the explosion, which comes on the heels of his highly criticized decision to withdraw U.S. troops amid the Taliban takeover in the country ... which so far, has led to mayhem and tragedy.

Rachel Nichols is out of a TV hosting gig, but not the big paycheck that comes with it -- 'cause TMZ Sports has learned the network will honor Nichols' deal, and continue to pay her.

Nichols -- who's been with ESPN since 2004 -- was removed from the network's NBA coverage on Wednesday ... and saw her show, "The Jump" canceled.

Question is, with all her current responsibilities taken away, what's the veteran TV host and reporter's future with ESPN?

The answer ... well, no decision has been made.

Our ESPN sources tell us that while Nichols was solely concentrating on the NBA, the network has not yet decided whether they will use her in another capacity.

We're told Nichols' contract doesn't expire anytime in the near future -- and rather than try and find a way out from underneath the lucrative deal -- ESPN has decided to continue to pay the star TV anchor.

Of course, Nichols was at the center of an explosive controversy back in June ... when the NY Times released audio of Rachel venting to a top PR consultant about fellow ESPN employee, Maria Taylor.

Nichols was heard blasting ESPN for attempting to move her aside to make way for Taylor -- a Black woman -- in light of the current racial climate and the network's "crappy longtime record on diversity," as Nichols phrased it on the recording.

As for Taylor, she turned down a big-money offer from ESPN, and left for NBC.

Nichols acknowledged the move on social media, writing ... "Got to create a whole show and spend five years hanging out with some of my favorite people, talking about one my favorite things."

"An eternal thank you to our amazing producers & crew — The Jump was never built to last forever but it sure was fun. More to come..."

ESPN recently charged Senior VP Dave Roberts with overseeing their NBA coverage. We're told the decision was ultimately made by Roberts.

On Wednesday, Roberts issued a short statement on the shakeup, saying both sides "mutually agreed that this approach regarding our NBA coverage was best for all concerned."

Roberts continued ... "Rachel is an excellent reporter, host and journalist, and we thank her for her many contributions to our NBA content."

Nichols reportedly has about a year remaining on the deal ... and will likely have no trouble finding work when her current deal expires.