Family

Barack Obama's 60th birthday bash looks like it would have been epic, if not for the damn Delta variant ... just look at this massive tent where the party would've been held!!!

As you can see, there's a couple of temporary structures taking up tons of real estate at the Obamas' sprawling property on Martha's Vineyard ... including the tents, which is where a reported 500 or so of his closest friends would have been celebrating. Oh, and about 200 staffers were lined up to serve the guests.

Remember ... Obama nixed the party at the last minute after struggling to make it COVID safe in the face of the surging Delta variant, on top of the CDC now saying vaccinated people can spread the virus as easily as non-vaccinated folks.

The tents are so big you can see them from super far away ... and you can just imagine what the party would have been like. It was supposedly going to be a who's-who of power brokers with folks like Oprah, George Clooney and Steven Spielberg expected to rub elbows with Obama.

Like we told you ... Obama's reps say the event is now going to be a more intimate affair for close friends and family.

Kim Kardashian and all of her children are showing just how much they love and support Daddy ... they're back in Atlanta for Kanye West's encore "Donda" album release.

Kim and their kids -- North, Saint, Chicago and Psalm -- are on the East Coast yet again to attend Ye's second event at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in 2 weeks in anticipation of the release of his 10th studio album ... scheduled for Friday.

Kim and the kids are dressed head to toe in Balenciaga, which sorta makes sense ... the creative director behind the event is the head of Balenciaga.

We're told some family friends are also with Kim -- including KKW's Chief Marketing Officer Tracy Romulus and her kids -- to celebrate the rapper's momentous occasion.

Worth noting -- our sources say this is not some sign that Kim and Kanye are getting back together ... the divorce is still happening, but the family support remains strong.

As we first told you ... Kim and the family were also in attendance on July 22 when Kanye first debuted "Donda" ahead of its initial July 23 release date. It never came out, though ... thus his need for round 2.

Our sources say the plan is for Kayne to put a new twist on the second album release event ... which looks like it may involve transforming into a supervillain.

Then again, as Khloe recently told us ... only Kanye truly knows what's in store.

Vanessa Bryant has settled a lawsuit filed by her mother, TMZ Sports has learned.

Sofia Laine had claimed she worked as a nanny for Vanessa and Kobe for nearly 20 years and said she was owed $200,000 ... computed at a rate of $96 an hour.

She also claimed Kobe promised to take care of her for the rest of her life. She says after Kobe died, Vanessa kicked her out of the home Kobe had allegedly bought for her.

Vanessa called the lawsuit "frivolous, disgraceful and unimaginably hurtful." She went on ... "My husband never promised my mother anything, and he would be so disappointed in her behavior and lack of empathy."

As for getting money for working as a nanny, Vanessa said, "I have supported her for nearly 20 years, and was never my or Kobe's personal assistant, nor was she a nanny."

Vanessa went on ... "In reality, she only occasionally babysat my older girls when they were toddlers," adding, "As of ten years ago, our kids were full-time students and athletes and I didn't have another child until 2016."

Aaliyah fans who've been waiting years to be able to listen to her music on digital streaming platforms, are about to get it.

According to Blackground Records -- which owns the late singer's masters and is rebranding as Blackground Records 2.0 -- it's partnering with the independent label EMPIRE to bring her songs to streaming services worldwide ... along with catalog material from Timbaland & Magoo, Tank, Toni Braxton and JoJo.

The catalog will be released in near chronological order, starting with Aaliyah's "One in a Million" album on August 20 ... though physical vinyl and CD pre-orders, as well as digital pre-orders and pre-saves, are available now on Blackground's site.

In September, the late singer's self-titled album will be released to streaming, followed by "I Care 4 U" and the "Ultimate Aaliyah" compilation albums in October.

If you didn't know ... her songs have notoriously never been available to download or stream, except for her 1994 album "Age Ain't Nothing But a Number." But, now -- 20 years after Aaliyah tragically died in a plane crash -- her music finally will be available for fans to enjoy.

The big news isn't welcome from everyone, though. As you may know, the reason for the hold-out is a long-standing rift between Aaliyah's uncle, Barry Hankerson -- founder of Blackground Records who owns her masters -- and her mother, Diane Haughton, who controls the rest of her estate.

That contention is still there, as it seems Blackground Music is behind the digital streaming release of Aaliyah's music.

This resulted in the Estate of Aaliyah issuing this response -- "For 20 years we have battled behind the scenes, enduring shadowy tactics of deception with unauthorized projects targeted to tarnish." The Estate also calls the streaming deal an "unscrupulous endeavor to release Aaliyah’s music without any transparency or full accounting to the estate."

Britney Spears is sick of waiting for her day in court ... she wants some action now, to get her dad booted from the conservatorship.

Britney's lawyer, Mathew Rosengart, filed legal docs ... asking the judge to move up the hearing date on removing Jamie from late September to August.

Rosengart says every day Jamie continues to act as conservator of Britney's estate, she feels traumatized and loses sleep. Rosengart quotes Britney's personal conservator, Jodi Montgomery, who says, "Mr. Spears's removal as Conservator is critical to [Britney's] emotional health and well-being and in the best interests of the conservatee."

Montgomery also says, "I have had numerous, ongoing conversations with the medical team and we all agree that it would be best for Ms. Spears' well-being and mental health that her father stop acting as Conservator."

Rosengart says, "every day that passes is another day of avoidable harm and prejudice to Ms. Spears and the Estate."

He also says every day that goes by is a threat to Britney's financial health ... "There has been an evident dissipation of assets of Ms. Spears Estate, and that dissipation is ongoing."

Rosengart says Jamie's litigation counsel alone is asking for more than $1.3 mil in attorney's fees ... this for services performed between October, 2020 and June, 2021. He also says Jamie has submitted $541k for "media matters." He outlines what Jamie is making as Conservator and says it needs to stop now.

It's interesting ... he uses a quote from Lynne Spears ... "It is clear to me that James P. Spears is incapable of putting my daughter's interests ahead of his own on both a professional and a personal level ..." What's interesting is Britney seems to dislike Lynne as much as her dad.

Rosengart says if the court won't move up the hearing at a minimum the judge should suspend Jamie immediately from his duties.

Fetty Wap's daughter died as a result of a health issue she'd carried with her since birth ... TMZ has learned.

The rapper and his ex Lisa Pembroke's 4-year-old, Lauren, died from a fatal cardiac arrhythmia due to complications of congenital cardiac anomalies ... this according to the death certificate. Essentially, that means she'd had this heart problem since birth, and the resulting irregular heartbeat killed her.

According to the document, obtained by TMZ, Lauren passed on June 24, 2021 ... at her home in Riverdale, Georgia.

Both Fetty and Lisa have posted touching tributes to their daughter during the last week ... which was the first time they'd definitively shared the heartbreaking news with the public.

Fetty seemed to imply Lauren had passed away a couple weeks ago -- during his set at Rolling Loud, he dedicated the performance to her.

Usually, the last thing you wanna see while stranded in the water is a shark ... but this time, it was a GOOD thing -- 'cause "Shark Tank" star Robert Herjavec saved the day by rescuing an ex-hockey player and his family during a boat trip on the lake!!

Here's the deal ... 41-year-old Tom Lawson -- who played 10 years in several different leagues -- was out with his wife and kids on Lake Joseph in Ontario, Canada ... when their boat ran out of gas.

To make matters worse, the sun was going down and Lawson's boat was not meant to be out at night ... so the whole family started flailing their arms and calling for help.

As it turns out, the businessman was out on his jet ski at the same time ... and noticed the family trying to get his attention.

"My first thought was they must love 'Shark Tank,' but then I realized they were out of gas and stranded," Herjavec told People.

The Shark says he immediately sprang into action and found a rope to tie to Lawson's boat ... and towed them back to land with his jet ski!!!

"Did my good deed for the day," Herjavec said on Instagram.

The group was extremely thankful for the rescue ... and even posed for a pic with their hero.

Khloe Kardashian isn't letting on if she has the inside scoop on whether Kanye West will actually release "Donda" this week ... but she still has his back no matter what.

Khloe was at The Grove in L.A. Wednesday with her daughter, True, and mom, Kris Jenner -- along with nieces and nephews Chi, Psalm, Dream and Stormi -- for what led to a rather large ice cream order.

We asked Khloe if Kanye's upcoming 10th studio album's finally coming out Friday -- after already being pushed a couple weeks -- and her answer's pretty telling.

Still sounds like it could go either way, as far as she knows, but she tells us he's family ... so she'll be supporting him no matter what.

Ye's holding a second "Donda" listening event Thursday night in Atlanta in anticipation of the updated August 6 release date, with plans to make it different from the first.

As you may recall ... the initial release date was scheduled for July 23 and he packed ATL's Mercedes-Benz Stadium the night before to debut the album, but it was never made available to the public.

Gloria Vanderbilt -- the late mother of Anderson Cooper -- lived in a snazzy, one-of-a-kind Manhattan home for more than 2 decades before she passed ... and now it's on the market.

The CNN anchor's listed his mom's 3-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom apartment -- located in Midtown East -- for $1.125 million ... and it's truly a sight to behold.

We could mention how the property is located in one of NYC's most coveted locations with tree-lined streets and features a gorgeous view of the river -- or how it boasts spacious rooms and high ceilings -- but it's really all about the aesthetic.

The home's filled with family treasures and artwork, and Anderson's said her long residency -- she lived there from 1997 until her death in 2019 -- is a testament to her love for the place.

Gloria -- designer, artist and heiress to the Vanderbilt railroad fortune -- passed away from stomach cancer in 2019.

Micah Parsons is quickly checkin' things off his bucket list in 2021 ... first, he got drafted by the Dallas Cowboys -- and now, he's buying his mom a brand new home!!!

The rookie linebacker -- a first-round selection in April's NFL draft -- revealed the huge estate he bought for his mother, Sherese, on Tuesday ... and it looks GORGEOUS!!

Unclear where the property is located -- we're working on it -- but the home is LARGE ... featuring two stories and a ton of big windows.

"One goal after another!!" the 22-year-old said after making the purchase. "Going to be a great year!"

The gesture was so sweet ... Parsons' alma mater, Penn State, gave him an awesome shoutout on Instagram.

"Picture this: You’re 22 years old. You’re a Penn State grad. You were just selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. You finally get the chance to buy your mom a house like you’ve always dreamed to do. Life is good," the school said.

"Proud of you, @_MicahParsons11 👏"

Of course, this was all a big goal of Micah's ... you'll recall, back in the spring, he told BroBible he wanted to buy his mom a new home badly with his first NFL paychecks.

"I moved a lot when I was younger," Parsons said, "and if I could put me and my mother into our own home and have something to call ours, it would be amazing."

Biz Markie held a special place in Barack and Michelle Obama's hearts, as evidenced by the words they shared with his widow ... which touched on a long-forgotten moment they shared in the run-up to the 2008 election.

Mrs. Biz ... Tara Hall herself, provided this copy of the letter the Obamas sent ... and it's way more personal than perhaps people might've expected. The poignant correspondence -- on the Obamas' new official letterhead -- begins, "We want to extend our heartfelt condolences to you as you reflect on Biz Markie's life."

Check out the letter for yourself -- BO and MO say that although they didn't know Biz as well as Tara did, he'd left a great impression on the couple as "one of rap's most innovative stylists and as a great man."

They added, "Biz Markie brightened every room he was in, and we will always appreciate him for his early support in 2008, bringing people together to 'Party With a Purpose' and get out the vote." Looks like Barack actually posed with Biz at one of those events.

The former first couple finished by saying Biz's legacy in hip hop will span generations, just like it had for 4 decades prior to his passing.

Michelle and Barack told Tara, "We hope you take comfort in all the fond memories you have with him. Please know that we are holding you, Averi, and your entire family in our thoughts and prayers."

Fetty Wap was emotional when he asked his fans to pay tribute to his late 4-year-old daughter ... soliciting them to post butterfly pics as a way of honoring her life.

The rapper held a picture of his young daughter, Lauren Maxwell, and kissed it during a brief Instagram Live session ... calling her "my shorty." Fetty asked his followers to do him a solid by posting butterflies in the comments section.

They heeded his request ... butterflies popped up all over the place. Fetty said Lauren loved butterflies, despite her insistence she was actually a mermaid.

As we reported ... Lauren's mother, Turquoise Miami, confirmed over the weekend Lauren had passed away. Turquoise posted on Instagram a Boomerang video of Lauren smiling in a swimming pool.

The cause of death has not been disclosed.

In a separate post ... Turquoise addressed her co-parenting situation with Fetty, saying it had improved and that they "came to a better place" for the sake of Lauren.

Caeleb Dressel says he literally talked to Michael Phelps more than his own wife during the Olympics ... telling TMZ Sports the swimming G.O.A.T. helped the 24-year-old win 5 gold medals.

We talked to Dressel in NYC shortly after he returned to the U.S. ... and asked the new face of swimming whether the old face of swimming reached out to congratulate him after his kickass week in Tokyo.

"I actually texted [Michael Phelps] more than [my wife] Meghan during the games. It was nice being able to lean on him. He helped me a lot throughout. I texted him after a couple of events, he was more than welcome to help me figure out some stuff, but he was great."

Pretty cool of Phelps -- a 23x gold medalist -- to help one of the Games' biggest stars AND best performers.

Dressel won 5 medals -- all gold -- in the 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle, 100m butterfly, 4x100m freestyle relay and 4x100m medley relay.

We also asked Caeleb -- who has the Olympic rings tattooed on his upper arm -- whether he planned on getting any fresh ink to commemorate his medals.

Caeleb says no new tats ... but he's got some ideas of how he's gonna celebrate.

But, before that ... Dressel's immediate plans after flying over 12,000 miles and winning 5 gold medals??

"Go home. Go to bed."

The family of the man who Terry Kennedy allegedly murdered is now suing the skateboarding star for wrongful death, TMZ Sports has learned.

In new court docs, Josiah Kassahun's estate claims Kennedy beat the hell out of Kassahun at a Comfort Suites in Illinois on July 27, and did nothing to help him afterward.

Kassahun's family says Kennedy hit Kassahun, which caused him to fall to the ground and land on his head.

The family goes on to say in the docs that Kennedy kept hitting Kassahun while he was on the ground, and then did not get him medical attention after he had finished the attack.

Kassahun's family says Kassahun later died on July 31 from injuries he suffered in the altercation.

The estate is suing Kennedy and says the damages exceed $50,000, the docs show.

As we previously reported, Kennedy was charged with first-degree murder on Monday over the alleged incident.

In charging docs, prosecutors say Kennedy punched Kassahun in the head, and then kicked him in the torso while he was on the ground. They claim the strikes ultimately led to Kassahun's death.

Kennedy could face up to life behind bars if convicted.

It's still unclear why Kennedy allegedly attacked Kassahun, though social media postings appear to show Kassahun and Kennedy were friends at one time.

Jail records show 36-year-old Kennedy is still behind bars.

Khabib Nurmagomedov is retired FOR REAL ... so says the UFC superstar himself, who tells TMZ Sports there's absolutely no plans of a comeback in the works.

The 32-year-old laid down his gloves after beating Justin Gaethje in 2020 ... but given that he's still in the prime of his career, many believed he'd eventually make his way back to the UFC Octagon.

In fact, his longtime coach, Javier Mendez, recently told Betway Insider that Khabib "misses" fighting, adding, "I guess you could say he wants to fight again."

But, when we got Nurmagomedov out at Catch in Los Angeles over the weekend ... he emphasized over and over and over again that he's done.

"No," Khabib said when asked if he'd return. "No. No. No. No. No."

Khabib is clearly keeping his promise to his mother ... agreeing to never fight again following the tragic death of his dad (and coach), Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov.

Besides, The Eagle is obviously enjoying his post-fighting career as an MMA coach ... telling us he just flat-out loves it when his fighters win their matches.

Bill and Melinda Gates are each officially a very eligible bachelor and bachelorette ... because their bitter divorce is now a done deal.

Court records confirm the judge signed off on their divorce Monday ... talk about a way to start your week.

As we reported ... Melinda filed for divorce back in May after 27 years of marriage, and there was no prenup. Bill's net worth is estimated at more than $130 billion, so the divorce settlement could leave Melinda over $65 billion.

Melinda's been cashing in on the split for months ... remember, Bill lined her pockets with nearly $2 billion in stocks the day she filed divorce docs, and the following day, he hooked her up with 25 million shares of Mexican Coca-Cola.

The judge's signature ties a bow on an acrimonious divorce. As we reported, Bill's family was extremely upset with him earlier this year, when everyone BUT Bill went to a private island when they thought news of the divorce would be made public.

We're told the family is upset over allegations he was coming on to different women ... some of whom worked at his company.