Drugs & Alcohol

DeAndre Hopkins is back!

The Arizona Cardinals receiver -- one of the best in the NFL -- is making his return to the field after serving a 6-game suspension for PEDs ... and he's amped!

The 30-year-old even dropped a hype video celebrating his comeback hours before the Cardinals' "Thursday Night Football" home game against the New Orleans Saints.

"Don't call it a comeback," DHop captioned the clip.

The video shows the 5-time Pro Bowler's recent workout with a mix of LL Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out' song and Black Sheep's "The Choice Is Yours".

Several NFL players showed support for Hopkins in the comments ... including teammate Budda Baker who wrote, "It’s Time!!! 🔥🔥🔥"

As we previously reported, DH was suspended in May for violating the league's PED policy. Hopkins initially appealed the punishment, before withdrawing.

His return couldn't come at a better time ... the Cardinals just lost star receiver Marquise "Hollywood" Brown for a month due to a foot injury.

And, Hopkins is one of Kyler Murray's favorite targets ... in the last two regular seasons, the two connected for 1,979 yards and 14 touchdowns.

"I'm excited to have him back," the Cardinals QB said earlier this week, "He's been waiting on this moment. He's an electric player."

The Cardinals are currently last in the NFC West but with DHop back ... AZ could make a run.

Jay-Z wants to know just how much money his famous cognac line is making, and he's filed a lawsuit against his partners at Bacardi to get that information.

In docs obtained by TMZ Hip Hop, Jay-Z's company, SC Liquor, is demanding total financial clarity from Bacardi when it comes to D'Usse ... the top shelf cognac brand in which Jay and Bacardi are 50/50 partners.

Jay and the booze giant have co-owned D'Usse since 2011 ... he regularly shouts out the brand in his songs, and even drank it from one of his Grammys once to promote it. However, the lawsuit makes it clear something about the partnership -- officially named D'Usse LLC -- isn't sitting well.

In the docs, Jay-Z's co. says it needs all books and records, the location of all warehouses storing D'Usse barrels, bottles and accessories ... as well as all info regarding Bacardi's physical inventory and its inventory process.

It's unclear what's prompting Jay to demand this info, but it is clear there's a level of distrust between the partners. One sentence from the docs seems pretty telling: SC Liquor says it needs to "monitor the conduct of [Bacardi's] business to protect SC's rights as" a partner in the company.

Charlotte Hornets guard James Bouknight was arrested for allegedly driving while impaired early Sunday morning ... TMZ Sports has confirmed.

The 6'4", 160-pounder was booked around 1:51 AM, according to the Mecklenburg Sheriff's Office in North Carolina. His bond was listed at $2,500.

Bouknight was a star for the UConn Huskies before going 11th overall in the 2021 NBA Draft.

He averaged 4.6 points in 31 games in his rookie campaign ... including a 24-point performance against the Sacramento Kings.

Bouknight's arrest adds to a hellish offseason for the Hornets ... after star Miles Bridges was accused of abusing his girlfriend in front of their children. Former Charlotte forward Montrezl Harrell -- who recently signed with the Philadelphia 76ers -- was also busted for having marijuana in his car.

The Hornets released a statement ... saying, "We are aware of the incident involving James Bouknight and are in the process of gathering additional information."

"We will have no further comment at this time."

Story developing ...

An old lady who attended a wedding became as baked as the cupcakes she ate, and landed in the hospital.

It went down in England ... a 63-year-old grandmother and another guest chowed down on some delicious treats during the reception. The granny, who wanted to remain anonymous, says the next thing she remembers ... she was laying in a hospital bed 12 hours later.

The cupcakes, of course, were laced with weed. The lady was so out of it, her very alarmed sister-in-law was seriously considering CPR. On the surface it was alarming ... her pulse was weak and she was a little grey.

Grandma says no one gave her a heads up the cupcakes were loaded. She says had she known, she never would have partaken.

As for the reception ... it rolled on. Both the party and the guests were lit!!!

Those closest to Tyler Skaggs had no idea the late pitcher was using pain pills at the time of his tragic death ... saying the details behind his fatal overdose were unbelievable.

Tyler's wife, Carli, and his mother, Debbie Hetman, spoke publicly about Skaggs' passing for the first time this week ... just days after ex-Angels communications staffer Eric Kay was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison for providing the drugs that took the pitcher's life.

"I loved him so much," Carli said while tearing up. "We had a love that was so special."

"That day still haunts me," Debbie added.

27-year-old Skaggs died after choking on his own vomit in 2019 ... and his autopsy showed a combination of oxycodone, fentanyl and alcohol in his system.

When asked about the troubling details surrounding his death ... both Carli and Debbie said they had no idea he had been taking pain medication.

"Yeah, that was the last thought that crossed my mind," Carli said. "It didn't even cross my mind actually."

"Not a clue."

Carli revealed the couple had plans to start a family after Skaggs returned from the team's road trip in Texas ... saying, "He would have made an amazing father. He was so great with kids."

"I wonder sometimes if I'll ever be as happy as I was. I have a lot of healing to do. I have faith that I'll get there. I know I'll never be the same. It's going to be different. But, I believe that I can find happiness again."

The investigation into the death of 16-year-old Kiely Rodni has wrapped, with results concluding she accidentally drowned in her vehicle after it was driven into a lake.

The Nevada Co. Sheriff's Office released Rodni's autopsy report Thursday, which says, "descendent drown in a lake while inside her vehicle." What's more ... the documents, obtained by TMZ, state there was no indication of foul play in Kiely's death.

As for the toxicology results, Rodni had both THC and ethanol in her system -- though the ethanol could have been a process of decomposition.

It was back in August when Kiely first went missing after attending a party up near Lake Tahoe, California. About two weeks later, Kiely's vehicle was found by a team of YouTube divers submerged in 14 feet of water with her body inside.

The parents of a 14-year-old boy who died over 2 years ago after taking a fentanyl-laced pill they say he got from a dealer he found on Snapchat are now taking the social media company to court over his death.

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, Amy and Aaron Neville, plus a handful of other parents who lost their children to a similar fate, are suing Snapchat -- saying it "facilitates the overwhelming majority of lethal fentanyl sales."

The docs say Snap's process for disabling known dangerous accounts on the platform is broken ... saying "Snap provides no reporting mechanism, staffed email address, or even a phone number for users to report underage, dangerous, or violating use of its social media product."

The lawsuit also alleges Snap is specifically designed to attract children and illicit activity, pointing to the features like disappearing messages that make it hard to trace illegal drug transactions that may go down on the app.

Amy's now the VP of Void -- a nonprofit that fights against the spread of illegal drugs like fentanyl -- and her org recently claimed social media companies across the board aren't doing enough to cut off the connection between kids and dealers.

She's said the access to drugs through the app was way too easy ... believing Alexander wouldn't have put himself in a situation that was in person -- but dealing behind a screen made it much simpler.

Snapchat's recently said it's been working to address the issue ... doubling down on efforts to ban drug dealer accounts and blocking search results that involve drug keywords.

The plaintiffs are seeking damages, as well as for stricter action to be taken on the platform to help prevent any more fatalities in the future.

A rep for Snap tells us, "The trafficking of fake prescription pills containing fentanyl is an urgent national crisis. We are devastated that these counterfeit drugs have taken the lives of so many people, and our hearts go out to families who have suffered unimaginable losses. We are committed to bringing every resource to bear to help fight this national crisis, both on Snapchat and across the tech industry overall."

The rep says the company uses, "cutting-edge technology to proactively find and shut down drug dealers’ accounts, and we block search results for drug-related terms, instead redirecting Snapchatters to resources from experts about the dangers of fentanyl."

These are NOT Charlie Brown's "Great Pumpkins" -- Customs agents uncovered a huge amount of meth tucked inside a bundle of everyone's fave Halloween gourds.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection revealed their big find in a statement Wednesday ... noting its officers have seen "just about everything and this Tuesday was no exception" -- saying they discovered more than $402K in liquid methamphetamine inside the pumpkins.

The 4 winter squashes, found at Eagle Pass Port of Entry in Texas, held a total of 44 pounds of the drug which was packed into 136 different condoms.

The officers seized the meth and the car that was carrying the pumpkins ... and the driver was turned over to Maverick County Sherriff's Office for further investigation.

The family of Willie Spence, the "American Idol" runner-up who died in a Tennessee car accident, doesn't think alcohol played a role -- instead, their alternate theory centers around his weekend activity.

Family sources tell TMZ ... Willie was leaving Tennessee State University's homecoming weekend when the crash happened, and while some have speculated he was driving drunk, his family says the late singer wasn't a drinker, so that doesn't track.

The accident took place during the day, not late at night ... another reason why they think he wasn't fresh out of leaving some big party.

However, we're told it was a long weekend for Willie -- one that might've left him severely fatigued, and the family's fear is he fell asleep at the wheel.

Police have yet to determine an official cause for the accident or his death.

Willie's family tells us he was on his way back to Atlanta to meet with an organization that helps abused and trafficked women ... a partnership he excitedly told his mother about the day before the fatal accident.

Former Angels staffer Eric Kay has just been sentenced to 22 years in federal prison ... this after he was convicted of providing the drugs that led to Tyler Skaggs' death.

A federal judge in Texas just announced the sentence.

Kay, 48, had been facing a minimum of 20 years ... and up to life behind bars.

The longtime L.A. media relations official was initially arrested back in 2020 ... after authorities alleged he had given pills laced with fentanyl to Skaggs -- which ultimately led to the pitcher's tragic passing.

Officials claimed they had text message conversations between Kay and Skaggs from the night of the pitcher's overdose -- which prosecutors used as evidence to show the two talking about drugs.

Kay was indicted in 2020 on 1 count of conspiracy to possess fentanyl with the intent to distribute and 1 count of distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death. He was found guilty of the charges in Feb.

As we reported, Skaggs passed away in his hotel room in July 2019 just before the Angels were slated to take on the Rangers in a series in Texas. Toxicology results revealed he died from a deadly mix of booze, fentanyl and oxycodone.

Shoreline rapper OhGeesy is free to go chase the bands again -- the Burbank prosecutor declined the gun and drug case he caught in September ... due to a lack of evidence.

TMZ Hip Hop broke the story ... OhGeesy was a passenger in a car leaving a close friend's funeral in the L.A. area when cops pulled them over, and ended up arresting him and 3 others for a gun found in the vehicle.

The prosector's office tells us the 28-year-old is now in the clear.

Prosecutors also declined to move forward with charging OhGeesy for a bottle of codeine they claim was in his pocket. We're told the DA is still pursuing charges against some of the other individuals in the vehicle.

OhGeesy's attorney, Michael A. Goldstein, welcomed the change of fortune, telling TMZ Hip Hop ... “As stated previously, we were looking forward to OhGeesy’s day in court. I have an innocent client and the Prosecutor made the right call dismissing the case.”

OhGeesy just wrapped up his nationwide tour with fellow Cali rappers BlueBucksClan and we're told he's now laying out the blueprint for his next project, "Geezyworld 2."

Xzibit says he's super stoked to toke in light of President Biden pardoning weed possession inmates -- but says people should understand, it's just one small step in the right direction.

The Golden State rap warrior chopped it up with TMZ Hip Hop to add his 2 cents to the brewing cannabis conversation, and while he commended the Prez for cutting federal prisoners the break ... he says the majority of federal marijuana-related convictions will remain intact.

X says there's a lot more the feds -- and individual governors -- can do to ensure no one is incarcerated for Mary Jane.

Already one of hip hop's most trusted cannabis CEOs ... X kicked down doors with his previous company, Brass Knuckles, which blossomed into his current booming biz, Napalm.

We also asked him about his famous 420 shoutouts from 50 Cent's iconic hit "In da Club" off the diamond-selling "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" album .. and he tells us the nod followed him around for years.

Xzibit also revealed during the convo that after 4 decades of blazing mics, he's calling it a career at the top of next year with his final album, "King Maker."

X admits he still has love for the craft and culture of being an MC ... but at this stage of his life, he has other obligations -- including family -- that needs his time the most.

The crowd at Kushstock did exactly what they wanted to do -- get super stoned -- because one of the acts swapped out a simple fog machine for weed smoke that got blasted into the audience!!!

Rapper Chucky Chuck gave his fans an experience they'll never forget, though the memory might be a little foggy ... posting the vid from this weekend's festival in Adelanto, CA with a caption that says, "F*** a fog machine."

The artist says he worked with 2 custom cannabis creation companies to make the impossible possible -- building what looks like a leaf blower attached to a big pipe -- with a bunch of weed inside, of course.

It looks like the audience was loving -- and inhaling -- every second of it ... it's called Kushstock for a reason, people.

Tommy Chong sees President Biden's weed possession pardon as a big step forward in the world of cannabis ... but he isn't ready to celebrate until the government removes marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug -- pointing to his past legal trouble.

The comedian told us ... Biden's decision shows he's got the pulse of America ... but thinks a rescheduling would be a HUGE win for everyone involved in legitimate weed sales.

Tommy thinks marijuana sales will someday become the biggest industry in the world ... so rescheduling it could further validate the legitimacy of the biz.

He's a fan of Biden, and says he'll gladly vote for him again ... but he thinks the Prez can do more, especially regarding anti-paraphernalia laws, which got Tommy locked up back in 2003.

Tommy was sentenced to 9 months in a federal lockup, after pleading guilty to selling bongs through a family-owned business. He tells us he had no choice but to cop a plea.

Aljamain Sterling wholeheartedly believes TJ Dillashaw is juicing, telling TMZ Sports he's "100%" confident the former champ is cheating!!

"I'm excited, man. I can't wait to be standing across the cage and hear Bruce Buffer just go, 'two-time UFC former bantamweight champion Pill.J DillaRoid,' and I'm just gonna be like 'Yeah I'm gonna f**k this guy up!'"

The 33-year-old bantamweight champion is fighting the #2 ranked fighter at UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi on October 22.

You may remember ... TJ was suspended for 2 years for using EPO, a banned substance, during his title fight with Henry Cejudo. TJ admitted to what he did, apologized, and vowed to never again cheat.

But, Aljo ain't buyin' it.

"I think this is a legacy fight for myself to beat a guy like this who's been cheating for years and beating a lot of people for years. I think it does a huge boost to my stock and just go out there and have a good performance. The rest will take care of itself."

We asked Sterling ... you really think TJ's still doping?

"100% man! That guy knows the ins and outs of that whole thing," Aljamain said.

There's much more ... we also talked to Aljamain about the fight, and how he sees himself getting the win.

Jim Jones agrees with Wiz Khalifa ... President Joe Biden's move to pardon marijuana convicts is right on, but if you ask the Harlem Capo, it's the first thing 46 has done right in a long time.

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with the Dipset legend as he conducted boss business around NYC. He's stoked over Biden's move, especially since he's the CEO of his own cannabis co. -- Saucey Farms & Extracts.

Jim co-founded the company with his partner, celebrity jeweler Alex Todd, in 2018 and says at the time there was moderate opposition to them getting things off the ground.

He now sees New York as a completely different place -- recreational cannabis was legalized in 2021 -- but he's warning up-and-coming weed entrepreneurs that the government will still make it hard for average hustlers to get a slice of the pie.

Jim thinks marijuana will become ubiquitous ... and the government will buy up all the farming -- effectively squeezing out the 'lil guy.

He's urging anyone with a stake in the cannabis game to get their licenses and permits because he says no one will be able to match U.S.A.'s bankroll.

Speaking of cigarettes, the celebrated rapper is diversifying his portfolio with the addition of a tobacco company he runs with his fellow Dipsetter, Juelz Santana.