Family

Instead of dancing in the dark, Bruce Springsteen's son has chosen a career of battling blazes ... among lots of other heroic stuff.

Sam Springsteen just became a firefighter in Jersey City, New Jersey ... according to his mom, Patti Scialfa. She shared the cool news on Instagram, saying ... "You followed your dreams…JC firefighter… Stay safe .. love your brave heart."

Of course, Patti peppered in some heart and flexed biceps emojis ... along with a "CONGRATULATIONS" and a fire emoji.

Sam is the youngest of Bruce and Patti's 3 kids at 25 years old. He has an older brother named Evan and an older sister named Jessica. None of them have followed in their dad's footsteps and become Jersey rock icons ... but they're all doing very well for themselves.

Sam was reportedly ranked 42 out of 961 on the Jersey City FD civil service in March, which qualified him to join the new class of firefighters.

None. Zip. Zero.

That's the number of complaints AAU tournament director Gary Charles says he received about LeBron James after the NBA superstar went crazy celebrating on the court at Bronny's game.

Of course, the media went WILD over the footage ... with some people saying Bron was acting inappropriately over the weekend and taking the attention away from the kids. Some people suggested any other parent would have been reprimanded.

But, Charles, who runs the Big Time Tournament in Vegas, says the overall sentiment from people at the tourney was ... THEY LOVED IT!!!

"I thought it was awesome," Charles tells TMZ Sports ... "The way he went out there and showed pure joy."

"But what I loved about it was that I was watching a father rooting for his son's team."

By the way, Charles ain't just blowin' smoke -- he's a legend in grassroots basketball and he's worked with a TON of famous players and parents from Kobe Bryant to Lamar Odom, and others.

Charles says he was with LeBron and the family all week -- and was impressed with the way Bron not only showed love for Bronny's team, but ALL of the kids who played in  the tourney.

"I watched that family all week. They were first class every single day. I watched LeBron the way he handled himself, how he was so enthused when these kids were playing."

Charles says LeBron's energy is infectious and he's obviously welcome back to EVERY one of his events.

Jason Momoa stood tall, proud, intimidating and determined to NOT allow any construction to happen atop Hawaii's tallest mountain.

The "Aquaman" star joined thousands Wednesday on their 17th day of blocking a road that leads construction crews to Mauna Kea's summit ... where crews plan to build a 30-meter telescope. Jason was flanked by his children ... son, Nakoa-Wolf Momoa, and daughter, Lola Momoa, both of whom were wrapped in native flags.

Jason -- who was born in Hawaii -- wore a crown and green leaf lei around his neck. He told the crowd he was honored to be there and followed with, "We are not going anywhere," which drew a roaring ovation.

As we reported ... Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson joined the group last week and said, "It's bigger than a telescope. It's humanity. It's culture." Native Hawaiian groups, of course, are worried the construction site will damage land they consider sacred. The astronomers behind the Thirty Meter Telescope want to put it on Mauna Kea's summit because it has the best conditions in the Northern Hemisphere.

Damian Marley was also there over the weekend ... singing his famous dad's classics while reminding the masses they're doing important work.

'Bachelor' alum Jade Roper Tolbert delivered her child in the strangest of places ... her bedroom closet!!!

Jade, who is married to fellow 'Bachelor' alum Tanner Tolbert, says she suddenly went into labor Monday night at her home ... but she couldn't make it out of the house, let alone to a hospital, so she gave birth in the closet in her master bedroom!!!

As you can see ... Jade is surrounded by medics and firefighters, holding her newborn son as she sits in her closet, surrounded by shoes, clothes and drawers. A wild scene, for sure.

Jade says it was one of the scariest moments of her life ... and she's still trying to process what the hell happened.

The good news ... Jade and Tanner's baby boy is healthy ... and he was 7 lbs., 9 oz and 20 inches long at birth.

Jade and Tanner met on the second season of "Bachelor in Paradise" ... and they have another child together, one-year-old Emmy. But, she was NOT born in a closet.

Courtney Love was able to get her daughter's ex-husband to sit for a psychiatric examination to determine the state of his mental health in the epic legal battle over a famous Kurt Cobain guitar.

Frances Bean's ex, Isaiah Silva, sued Courtney, Sam Lutfi and others last year for allegedly conspiring to kill him to get back Kurt's guitar -- which he'd been awarded in their divorce. Now the defendants have hammered out a deal to have a psychiatrist check out Silva.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, the exam is happening Tuesday at 10 AM PT at a facility in SoCal. It'll run for about 7 hours and will consist of interviews, a mental status examination, as well as standardized psychological testing. In short, they wanna figure out if Silva's in his right mind.

The docs say that Isaiah will be asked a number of questions about the background of what he's alleging in the lawsuit and how it's still affecting him today.

Additionally, doctors could grill him about other topics that are presumably relevant in determining his mental health -- like his education, employment, marital history, legal history, substance use and family history.

The examiner's notes will be included in Isaiah's lawsuit, and the entire process will be recorded on audio.

You'll recall ... Isaiah sued Courtney, Sam and others, excluding Frances, for allegedly getting together and plotting to break into his crib, kidnap and then murder him -- all in an attempt to get Kurt's famed 'MTV Unplugged' guitar back.

They may be estranged, but La La Anthony is still sticking up for her husband, Carmelo Anthony ... at least when it comes to basketball.

La La -- who wasn't wearing her wedding ring at LAX -- was asked about Melo not getting an invite to join Team USA in the FIBA World Cup, which kicks off later this year.

Instead of trashing Melo, La La defended him ... explaining that he's the greatest Team USA player of all time, according to the stats -- and should have gotten the call-out of "respect."

For the record, Melo is the only Team USA basketball player to compete in 4 different Olympics and he's also the first Team USA player to win 3 gold medals.

He also ranks 1st in games played (31), points (336), FGs made (113), FGs attempted (262), rebounds (125), free throws made (53) and he's 2nd in 3-pointers (57).

Melo also ranks 2nd in scoring all-time among all of FIBA Americas championship players.

Not too shabby ...

"Out of respect, they should [invite him]," La La said ... "Who was a better Team USA player than he was? Nobody."

La La says she doesn't know if Melo would accept at this point, but they should make the offer anyway.

Like father, like son couldn't be more true for Meek Mill and his boy -- especially when the tyke proves to be a promising rap star like his old man.

The Philly MC was performing Saturday night at a club called NOTO Philadelphia, where he also hung around for an after-party following his show. At one point in the night, Meek brought out his 9-year-old son, Rihmeek, to take the mic and spit some bars.

Safe to say, the kid didn't disappoint!

Rihmeek -- who Meek calls Papi -- dropped a freestyle of sorts for the crowd, who were very encouraging as he rapped his way through a few lines off the top.

Here's what we could make out ... "My name is Papi and I never understood, (something something) face, you just got hit." OHHHHHHHH!!! C'mon, he's trying.

Meek -- who was fanning down his son's hot fire -- gave his boy big props, and then asked the audience to give it for him -- which they happily obliged. Just the fact he got up there in front of all those people is pretty awesome, and hey ... he might be solid if he sticks to it.

Just another memorable moment in what's a jam-packed week for Meek. As we reported ... a panel of judges overturned his 2008 criminal conviction, saying he deserves a new trial due to the credibility of the key witness, who turned out to be dirty cop.

Here's a friendly reminder of why we love Gigi and Bella Hadid.

The two sisters are currently in Mykonos enjoying a nice, long Greek vacation, with some of their gal pals tagging along as well. On Sunday, the gang was out in their bikini wear at what appears to be pad they're crashing at. It ain't the beach, but we'll take it!

Gigi and Bella looked INCREDIBLE in their two-pieces, showing off their model figures while catching some rays on the patio. Like we said, definitely summer ready.

It's interesting ... even something as mundane as checking their phones -- or, ya know, standing around or even walking -- looks amazing when the Hadid sisters do it ... especially when they're together like this. Makes ya remember why they're the best in the biz.

And, speaking of Greek getaways, Bella and Gigi aren't the first flock of models to jet out there this summer. Kendall Jenner and her own crew were there just a few weeks ago.

If you thought Tom Brady kissing his son on the mouth was weird, wait 'til you get a load of Armie Hammer and his toe-sucking kiddo. Blows the Brady bunch out of the water.

The actor posted a video to his Instagram story Saturday that showed a pretty gnarly sight -- his 2-year-old son, Ford, sucking his dad's toes, big one included.

In the since-expired clip, Armie is being recorded -- presumably by his wife, Elizabeth Chambers -- lying down on a coach with his boy on the other end, and the kid's mouth on two of his pop's toes. Looks like Ford's really trying to get more in there too.

At the time, Armie captioned the clip, "This happened for a solid 7 minutes... #footfetishonfleek" And, the woman on the video jokingly notes, "This is not normal."

Uh, yeah ... we might have to agree with ya there.

Lots of people have had lots to say about the toe-sucking -- but, truthfully, there's really not much to add other than ... to each their own. Bottom line ... Armie and his son are close, just like TB is with his kid.

You'll recall, Tom was filmed giving his 10-year-old son a peck on the lips during a segment from his Facebook series, "Tom vs Time," which tons of folks were weirded out by.

Can't say for sure which one caused more of a stir, but they're both up there.

LeBron James is living vicariously though his son's AAU team -- dancing up a storm when they score a bucket ... and low-key willing them to victory from the bench.

The King was in Vegas Saturday for a basketball tournament that Bronny Jr. and his Blue Chips teammates are competing in right now -- and killing in, BTW -- where he was wearing his dad hat and coach hat at the same time, dishing out pep talks from the sideline.

In this video -- obtained by TMZ Sports -- you can see Bron Bron high fiving the coaching staff and fellow players as they played against the New York New Heights Youth team, which was coming in hot at 5-0 ahead of Saturday's game. The Blue Chips were coming in undefeated as well (reportedly 4-0), although it's unclear if this was a final or not.

Either way, LeBron was definitely treating it like an important match, coaching up his boy before tipoff, and giving suggestions to players on the court as they D'd up against NHY.

At one point ... Bron even did a high-knee celebration dance after we're told his team made a huge dunk on the other end of the court.

Looks like the cheerleading paid off ... we're told the Blue Chips beat the New Heights 60 to 47 Saturday, with Bronny Jr.'s stat line at 10 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists.

J Lo returned the favor to A-Rod Friday night, stopping her show in its tracks to wish her fiance a big, big HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

She was in Miami performing her "It's My Party: The Live Celebration" tour at the American Airlines Arena when she put everything on pause, brought her kis and his kids onstage and then called A-Rod up. As he stood next to a gigantic cake, she led the crowd into a rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday."

She professeed her love for him and conceded, it been all about her this week. J Lo turned 50 on July 24 and A-Rod threw an amazing party for her. His birthday is today, on the 27th, so she returned the favor Friday night.

BTW ... A-Rod's 4-tiered cake, which looked incredible, was from Divine Delicacies. Alex's name was created with swavorski crystals. It also had an edible baseball jersey, bat and ball. The whole thing costs around $3k.

It appears any hope Azriel Clary's family had about their daughter coming back to them have been dashed ... because TMZ's learned Azriel's planning to fly to NYC for moral support in R. Kelly's sexual exploitation case.

Kelly's attorneys, Douglas Anton and Steve Greenberg, tell TMZ ... Azriel is expected to be joined by Joycelyn Savage, both of whom plan to attend Kelly's arraignment next Friday. Azriel and Joycelyn want to make it clear ... this is a united front to support Kelly.

Anton tells us the women are going into "protective mode" because they view Kelly as a loved one in crisis. Anton says Azriel and Joycelyn -- who have supported Kelly at previous court appearances -- plan to arrive Thursday and stay in Brooklyn where Kelly will be held by U.S. Marshals.

As you know ... feds in New York slapped Kelly with a 5-count indictment ... which includes racketeering and kidnapping. He's also fighting a 13-count indictment in Illinois federal court.

BTW ... we're told the women want to visit Kelly, although it's unclear if that's even possible.

Azriel's family had a ray of hope Kelly was losing his grip over her. The family saw Azriel becoming more active on social media, which to them was a sign she was breaking free. Not so, it appears.

Mark Wahlberg is doing it BIG as he marks 10 years of marriage with his smoking hot soulmate ... vacationing on a picturesque Italian island with his model wife!!!

Mark and Rhea Durham are in the middle of an amazing family vacation in Sardinia ... living it up on a yacht, catching rays by the pool, and getting away from the kids at one point for a romantic stroll down the beach!

Check out their matching turquoise swimsuits ... Mark and Rhea are definitely #couplegoals.

Jennifer Lopez's 50th birthday party was insane -- with huge stars, a huge mansion, a huge cake ... and a 6-figure birthday present courtesy of her fiance, Alex Rodriguez!!!

It all went down Wednesday night at Gloria Estefan's waterfront mansion on Star Island in Miami ... where J Lo's famous friends like DJ Khaled, Fat Joe, Ryan Seacrest and Ashanti rolled to party with Jenny from the Block.

43-year-old A-Rod gifted Jennifer a sick red Porsche 911 GTS convertible, worth around $140,000!!!

He also gave a big speech in front of the crowd, telling Jennifer that he loves her deeply and is so happy to be a part of her 50th birthday. It was sweet.

And, speaking of sweet, the cake was lit too! It was 10 TIERS and it was taller than most of the guests and took 5 grown-ass dudes to carry it into the party!

We're also told it was covered with with 24-karat edible gold and featured her name and the number “50” in Swarovski crystals. And, it was delicious too -- a Divine Delicacies Custom vanilla rum cake with dulce de leche filling. The bakery had no comment.

We're told the total cake cost -- $10,000!!!

As for the party itself, everyone was turning up ... even her kids hopped onstage and serenaded J Lo with a birthday rap song. It was adorable!

Also, Fat Joe bumped his hit, "All the Way Up" ... and the place went NUTS!!!

Lopez was also gifted a huge portrait of herself that was also bigger than most of the guests!!

The big grand finale was an explosive fireworks display over the water -- it was like the 4th of July all over again!!!

By the way, Jennifer isn't taking too much time to recover ... she's got a concert in Miami on Thursday, Friday and Saturday night, which will close out her tour.

Props to A-Rod for setting the whole thing up and everyone seemed to have a blast -- and now, we're all thinking the same thing in the office ... how are they gonna one-up this party for the wedding bash?!!

Cameron Boyce's memory is living on in the people he was closest to in his career -- which couldn't have been more clear than at Kenny Ortega's Walk of Fame ceremony.

The esteemed director -- who headed up Disney's "Descendants" film, which starred Cameron -- was honored Wednesday with his own star on Hollywood Boulevard. During his speech, he made sure to mention the late actor, who tragically died this month.

Kenny said Cameron -- whose father and sister attended the event as well -- had inspired him beyond words, and also inspired a generation of kids who were familiar with his work.

He went on to say that Cameron told him something once that he relayed to the crowd -- watch the clip ... it's pretty profound that Cameron was talking like that before his sudden passing. Kenny also touted a foundation Cameron's family has started in his name.

As we've reported ... Cameron suffered from epilepsy throughout his life, before dying in his sleep in early July after enduring a fatal seizure. His exact cause of death has yet to be released, but authorities have listed it as a "natural death."

His family has thanked all of Cameron's fans for the outpouring of love and support, and said of their son ... "He was and is, so cherished and we will hold him in our hearts forever. He is our shooting star."

One of R. Kelly's live-in girlfriend is looking a lot like her old self on social media -- which has her family incredibly encouraged they can get her back.

Azriel Clary -- one of the singer's girlfriends, who's stood by his side to this day -- has been popping up A LOT on social media after being a relative recluse prior to R. Kelly getting re-arrested on new federal charges. The 180 has her family hopeful.

Family sources tell TMZ ... Azriel's immediate brood has been seeing flashes of the daughter they once knew in recently-surfaced Snapchat videos and other clips that show Azriel dancing, trying on clothes, laughing ... and acting like a normal person again.

A lot of these videos appear to be filmed inside R. Kelly's Trump Tower apartment in Chicago -- where Azriel and Joycelyn Savage are presumably still staying -- but the fact that she's getting out there again (in a sense) is giving her fam hope R. Kelly's losing his grasp over her.

We're told Azriel has maintained this entire time that she's had a phone and has been on social media, but the fact is ... she seems to be getting on it a lot more now that R. Kelly's not around. She's been posting content about 4 to 5 times a day.

There's also this ... we're told some of Azriel's old friends have been reconnecting with her on social media, which is yet another sign she's coming back.