Influencers

Chef Croux Koplin isn’t just cooking up a storm at Coachella … he’s cashing in big time!

The private chef tells TMZ he and his tight-knit crew of six -- including another chef, an assistant and three helpers -- pulled in a sizzling $11K during the first weekend … all while bouncing between luxe desert estates and influencer-packed homes.

Croux says he locked down three separate gigs … starting with a marathon booking to cook for 15 to 17 German influencers from Wednesday through Monday across three different private homes.

Influencer Ashlee Jenae was staying in a luxury villa on an African island when she was found unconscious in her room and pronounced dead at the hospital ... and now the hotel is speaking out amid the tragedy.

Ashlee and her fiancé, Joe McCann, were shacking up at Zuri Zanzibar ... and hotel management tells us they are "deeply saddened by a tragic incident involving one of our guests."

Zuri Zanzibar management adds, "Our sincerest thoughts and sympathies go out to the family and loved ones during this painful time. We are providing our full cooperation to the local authorities and the U.S. Embassy."

Alix Earle and Alex Cooper's drama may be playing out loud now ... but TMZ has learned there's no single explosive moment behind the tension .... just a slow burn that's boiling over again.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... the friction dates back to when Earle teamed up with Cooper to launch her "Hot Mess" podcast under The Unwell Network. At first, things were solid, but over time, their dynamic shifted, and the two stopped seeing eye to eye.

We're told as Earle's Unwell contract was coming to a close in February 2025, that's when the relationship really started to unravel. Our sources say Cooper and her network were not offering Earle what she felt she was worth. Our sources say it wasn't just one issue, but a combination of both business and personal disagreements that made it difficult for them to move forward together.

Ashlee Jenae's family is seeking answers after her tragic death in Tanzania, and it sounds like they will go to great lengths to figure out what happened to her ... including a possible trip to Africa for a face-to-face with officials.

The late influencer's mother, Yolanda, tells TMZ ... Ashlee’s father, Harry, went to Washington, D.C. today to meet with the U.S. Embassy and State Department.

We're told Harry wanted to go in person to see if the family could help get answers from authorities in Zanzibar, where Ashlee was traveling with her fiancé, Joe McCann, when she died.

Influencer Ashlee Jenae died during a trip to Tanzania with her fiancé, Joe McCann, earlier this month ... and police are actively investigating.

According to a local outlet, police initially believed the social media star's death was a suicide after she was found unconscious in her villa at Zuri Zanzibar ... but her family still has questions regarding the "suspicious" circumstances of her passing.

Here's a timeline of her last days:

Madelyn Cline has a hot new boo in her life -- social media star Henry Smith ... they met online and have been seeing each other for about a month now, TMZ has learned.

Sources close to the couple tell TMZ ... Madelyn and Henry are officially an item, confirming rumors the two have been quietly seeing each other.

Our sources say the two met through their shared presence in the online space and quickly hit it off ... and things are already going strong. In fact, they recently spent Easter together and were both spotted at Coachella this past weekend.

Ashlee Jenae's family tells us they've heard next to nothing from her fiancé Joe McCann since her tragic death in Tanzania earlier this month ... and they're looking to get their hands on surveillance video from the hotel where she was found unconscious.

Ashlee's parents -- Harry and Yolanda, and their respective partners -- sat down with TMZ's Charlie Neff and told us about their communications with Joe, or lack thereof, in the wake of Ashlee's death.

The family says Joe only reached out to them once ... 11 hours after she was taken to a hospital ... and her father says that's really strange. He says Joe assured them everything was fine, but Ashlee was ultimately pronounced dead at the hospital.

Ashlee Jenae’s family is reeling after her sudden death ... and now they’re facing a whole new reality: the financial toll of bringing her home to the States.

Her father Harry Robinson has launched a GoFundMe with a $50K goal, saying the money will go toward travel, arrangements, and mounting costs as they deal with an ongoing investigation overseas.

As we reported, Ashlee -- whose real name is Ashly Robinson -- was found unconscious at a resort villa in Tanzania and rushed to a hospital ... where she died the following day on Friday, April 10.

The Alex Cooper vs. Alix Earle drama is officially popping off ... 'cause now Alix is clapping back!

Alix kept it short and sharp, sliding into the comments of Alex’s video -- the one where Alex told her to stop hinting about their beef and just say it outright -- writing, "Okay on it!!"

Now ... that could mean anything. Maybe she’s gearing up to drop a full tell-all ... or maybe it’s a little sarcastic jab telling Alex to relax.

The man who lost his lawsuit against Kim Kardashian -- after he said her misidentification caused him emotional distress -- is begging a judge not to force him to pay the billionaire’s legal bills ... TMZ has learned.

According to court docs obtained by TMZ, Ivan Cantu -- who was shut down in his battle with Kim over an Instagram post she made -- is fighting her request that he pay the legal fees she racked up fighting him in court.

Ivan sued Kim after she made a post on social media about a man with the same name who was convicted of murder and was sitting on death row. Kardashian was pushing for the man's execution to be put on pause.

A routine "60 Minutes Australia" interview didn’t just get awkward -- Clavicular walked out altogether after taking some hard shots at the dude who was firing the questions.

What started as a normal sit-down Sunday night quickly unraveled … when the "looksmaxxer" was asked point-blank if he identifies as an incel ... he fired back hard.

“Do I identify as an incel?” Clavicular shot back. “How could you ask me that question after you asked me about my relationships to women? … That’s quite literally is the worst sequence of questions I think I’ve ever heard.”

Alex Cooper isn’t playing coy anymore … she’s calling out Alix Earle by name and demanding answers.

Cooper hit TikTok on Monday and made it clear she’s been seeing everything about their rumored beef -- the tags, the likes, the comments -- and she’s over what she calls “passive-aggressive” behavior, putting Earle on blast and daring her to stop the hints and say it outright.

“You’re gonna need to get specific and just say what you gotta say about me,” she said, calling out the indirect shots she believes Earle’s been taking.

Lifestyle influencer Ashlee Jenae died during a trip to Tanzania earlier this month ... and now her family is demanding answers.

In a statement released Sunday, the family writes that Ashlee -- whose real name was Ashly Robinson -- was celebrating her 31st birthday on April 5 with a dream stay at a luxury villa at Zuri Zanzibar with her fiancé Joe McCann.

"But just days later, that dream turned into our family's worst nightmare," they wrote. "Ashly was found unconscious in her villa and was rushed to a local hospital, where her death was confirmed hours later."

Everyone always wants an in to Coachella, but this year some last-minute changes ahead of the opening weekend are causing chaos ... 'cause some influencers claim they're being uninvited just a day or two before the big festival opens, and regular folks are crying foul at escalating costs.

Entertainment and lifestyle influencer Tiahra Nelson -- who boasts 4.7 million followers on the app -- hopped on TikTok Thursday and said she was all ready and even got her hair done for the big show in Indio, California ... but she says her ticket was abruptly taken away from her.

Yazmin Marziali, who has more than 280,000 fans on TikTok, said in an 8-minute rant that her brand trip was canceled 2 days before she was supposed to get to the California desert. That's just 2 examples of heartbroken creators who say their plans and deals were axed ... there are plenty more.

Gypsy Rose is banned on TikTok -- at least for now -- after the platform dropped the hammer on her account ... but she’s telling TMZ the whole thing isn’t what it seems.

Gypsy tells TMZ she was hit with a ban after a wave of reporting from other users ... but not necessarily because of any new rule-breaking on her part. In fact, she says her track record on the app has been relatively clean ... only 4 violations in the 2 years she’s had her account -- and nothing recent that would justify a sudden suspension.

We’re told Gypsy has already filed an appeal and reached out directly to TikTok ... and now she’s just waiting to hear back on whether her account will be reinstated.

Alabama Barker is raising eyebrows over her relationship status, fueling speculation after stepping out with French basketball player Diamant Blazi yesterday.

In video obtained by TMZ, Travis Barker's daughter was spotted getting cozy with Blazi in Beverly Hills Wednesday ... and the two weren't exactly hiding their chemistry.

Alabama is seen hopping into a sleek sports car as they leave a hangout together with Blazi behind the wheel ... but the real attention grabber came earlier, when Diamant scooped her up and carried her through the scene, giving serious couple vibes.