Money

T-Pain is wishing he never slapped down 6 figures on his infamous "Big Ass Chain," but wants it to be a living cautionary tale for other rappers looking to ice up.

Mr. Penderazzdown was speaking with Oliver Tree on his Nappy Boy Radio segment when he admitted the hefty purchase ran him about $400k back in the day. The most painful part, though … he says the chain's now depreciated to about $200K!!! 😓

T-Pain relived the chain’s origin -- he says a random fan dared him to get the diamond-encrusted wonder with the words "Big Ass Chain," and he did it on a whim!!!

The fan still has never been ID'ed to this day, and T-Pain says he keeps the chain around as a reminder not to be dumb with his moolah.

Financial literacy and rapper's extravagant purchases are like oil and water, but Charlamagne Tha God recently set off the conversation about depreciating assets with a simple, yet hilarious, post.

Prince William and Kate Middleton are lookin' as unbothered as they can in their first public appearance since Prince Harry's bombshell new memoir aired out a ton of royal family dirt -- much of it related to his brother.

The Prince and Princess of Wales were smiling from ear to ear Thursday as they left Windsor Castle and took off to Liverpool ... where royal fans/subjects greeted them at the opening of a new hospital.

While their faces say everything's peachy keen, Harry's "Spare" has to be on their minds. As it's been WIDELY reported, Harry unloaded his side of the royal family drama in the book, revealing he and Wills have been bitter rivals since even before Meghan Markle came into the picture.

Of course, the Duke of Sussex says things got even more heated post-Megan -- claiming big bro William grabbed him by the collar, ripped his necklace, and knocked him to the ground during a 2019 fight sparked by William allegedly calling Meghan "difficult" and "rude."

It is an interesting coincidence Kate and William are in Liverpool ... birthplace of The Beatles. In better days, at least publicly, royal watchers referred to Harry, Megan, William and Kate as the new Fab Four.

Kobe Bryant's game-worn jersey from his sole MVP season is about to hit the auction block ... and TMZ Sports has learned it could sell for a whopping $7 million!!!

The signed Purple and Gold threads are from Bryant's 2007-08 season -- the only time the legend won the NBA's Most Valuable Player award in his 20-year career -- which he wore for 25 games, including 6 playoff matchups.

Sotheby's, which is hosting the auction, tells us the item is the "most valuable Kobe Bryant game-worn jersey to ever appear at auction" as the Lakers legend "scored a total of 645 points over 8 months in this jersey."

He averaged 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game that season and led the Lakers to the NBA Finals.

What also makes the jersey so rare -- Kob signed the gear by writing his first name on the stitched number on the back.

FYI, this is also the same jersey Kobe was seen tugging on in the first round of the 2008 playoffs -- one of Bryant's most iconic photos of all time.

"This jersey has influenced popular culture in a way that is seldom seen in the sports community, becoming iconic and synonymous with the image of Kobe Bryant," Sotheby's said.

"In California alone, there are more than 15 murals depicting him in this jersey, with wings, American flags, and snakes in the background."

The jersey is expected to sell for anywhere between $5-7 million when bidding opens up on Feb. 2.

The current record for the most expensive piece of Kobe memorabilia is a worn, autographed jersey from his rookie year ... which sold for $3.7 million in 2021.

Dr. Dre has his sights set on a lucrative music deal, one that would sell the rights to some of his royalties and master recordings ... and we're told the price tag is well over $200 million -- WAY MORE than is being reported.

The music mogul is close to selling off some of his music assets in two separate deals ... one with Shamrock Holdings, and another with Universal Music Group ... according to Billboard.

The possible Shamrock deal looks like this ... Dre sells his artist royalties from two of his solo albums -- his share of N.W.A artist royalties, plus his producer royalties and the writer's share of the music where he doesn't own publishing rights.

The potential deal with UMG is a little different ... Dre sells the master recording of his first solo album, "The Chronic," plus his share of some Kendrick Lamar music.

Dre's not selling all of his music ... Billboard characterizes these transactions as mostly "passive income streams" that generate about $10 million annually ... and he's NOT selling his ownership stake in his record label, Aftermath.

Sources close to Dr. Dre tell TMZ ... the actual selling price is actually tens of millions of dollars higher than the $200 million figure Billboard is reporting.

Congrats, Dre. 💸

Nerlens Noel's legal battle with Rich Paul is over -- the two sides have settled their dispute ... with the former first-round draft pick agreeing to pay his former agent and Klutch Sports their cut of his $5 million contract with the New York Knicks.

In 2021, Nerlens -- who has earned around $45 million over the course of his career -- filed a lawsuit against Paul and Klutch Sports Group, claiming he lost $58 million in potential earnings when Paul represented him from 2017-2020.

Noel accused Paul -- whose client list includes several other high-profile NBA superstars, including LeBron James -- of advising him to reject a $70 million offer and take a one-year deal instead.

Noel's lawsuit came after Paul filed a grievance with the National Basketball Players Association ... claiming the former center owed him $200,000 in commission for the Knicks deal, per ESPN.

According to Shams Charania, Noel, Paul, and Klutch Sports Group "amicably settled their ongoing dispute" ... with the hooper agreeing to cough over the dough and withdraw all legal proceedings.

In September 2022, District Judge Jane J. Boyle, dismissed Noel's lawsuit ... recommending that the case be addressed within the NBPA's arbitration system.

FTX Arena is no more -- the Miami Heat's home will be scrubbed of the failed cryptocurrency exchange's branding immediately, a judge ruled Wednesday.

Sam Bankman-Fried's company bought the naming rights to the facility -- formerly known as American Airlines Arena -- in 2021 for $135 million ... but as the exchange faces serious allegations of fraud and mishandling customer funds, the Heat and Miami-Dade County made it clear a change was necessary.

Of course, FTX -- which was one of the largest crypto exchanges in the world -- filed for bankruptcy in November ... and SBF has since been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit commodities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities fraud and more.

According to the Miami Herald, a federal bankruptcy judge terminated the agreement between the county and FTX as the investigation continues ... bringing the deal to a screeching halt ASAP.

In fact, the order states any signage displaying the FTX name will be removed immediately.

The move was mutual, according to the report, as FTX's new leadership also wanted to cancel the naming-rights deal.

WWE has not been sold to Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund ... this according to sources familiar with the situation.

TMZ Sports is told ... a deal has not been made between the two sides, despite widespread rumors saying otherwise.

The reports started to circulate Tuesday night ... claiming Vince McMahon secured a massive payday for handing over the company reins to Saudi Arabia, which would take the WWE private once again.

The speculation came just days after Vince McMahon brought himself back on to the organization's board of directors ... with the intent to help with TV deal negotiations and explore a potential sale of the company.

Hours before the reported Saudi Arabia deal, Vince's daughter, Stephanie, announced her departure from WWE ... giving up her role as Co-CEO.

A sale to Saudi Arabia would certainly cause backlash with WWE fans ... especially considering the country's history of human rights violations.

The promotion even faced criticism for inking a 10-year deal with SA in 2018.

Travis Kelce is addressing all the rumors surrounding his breakup from Kayla Nicole ... saying it's "crazy" to think money was the reason behind the split.

The Kansas City Chiefs superstar and model officially called it quits in 2022 after 5 years together ... with reports -- citing anonymous friends close to Kayla -- claiming the tight end kept a tight grip on his wallet during their relationship, despite making more than $64 million over the course of his career.

Kelce voiced his side of the story on "The Pivot Podcast" this week ... calling all the speculation complete nonsense.

"How crazy is that?!" the 33-year-old said on Tuesday. "Don't buy into that s***!"

"We were in a relationship for 5 years," he added. "A hundred dollars here and hundred dollars there wasn't even thought about, which is ridiculous."

In fact, Kelce says Kayla had her own money to begin with ... so it's not like she needed a handout.

"I would never say that I was supporting her," Kelce said. "She had a very financially stable life and what she was doing in her career."

The Super Bowl champ also talked about his current dating life -- or lack, thereof -- saying he's still single, and the only committed relationship he has right now is with football.

"I'm in the free market right now. I'm out there just enjoying life, focused on my profession," Kelce said.

"I'm outside, though," he added with a laugh.

Cardi B and Offset are taking the Super Bowl by storm with some lovey dovey burgers and fries, because they've teamed up with the golden arches for a major ad ... and it's all about love.

Sources tell TMZ the couple shot a commercial for McDonald's right around Christmas time ... which was filmed with a small crew -- even though we're told the scale of the ad is going to be huge, and it's expected to make a splash on game day.

Cardi and Offset shot it solo -- so, no kids in this -- and our sources tell us it's Valentine's Day themed. Unclear what exactly is going to be depicted, but we imagine it'll be lovey-dovey ... which CB and Offset already are on their own.

Obviously, this is going to air on Feb. 12 -- the day of SB LVII -- just a couple days before V-Day.

As for why these two decided to shoot during the Christmas holiday ... we're told everyone felt it'd be the best day to get some work done, seeing how everyone (celebs included) usually take it easy. It also gave them a good window to get some work done without distractions.

This is Cardi's second go-around when it comes to Super Bowl ads -- she famously did one for Pepsi a few years ago ... and now, she's been tapped by another giant corporation.

MacKenzie Scott is officially single again -- her divorce from her second husband is signed, sealed and delivered ... kinda like an Amazon order.

The former Mrs. Jeff Bezos had her dissolution of marriage from now ex-husband Dan Jewett recently finalized in Washington state ... as the judge signed off on Mackenzie and Dan each going their separate ways, according to court docs obtained by TMZ.

It turned out to be a quickie divorce ... as we reported, MacKenzie filed to end things back in September, a little more than a year after they tied the knot, and now the book is closed on her second marriage.

Remember, MacKenzie and Dan -- a chemistry teacher at her kids' private school in Washington -- announced in March 2021 they got hitched. They did not have any children together.

MacKenzie was previously married to Jeff from 1993 to 2019 before they divorced ... and she walked away from her first marriage with nearly $37 billion, pledging half to charity.

According to the docs, MacKenzie and Dan signed a separation contract that will handle all the details of any property settlement. That contract is not on file with the court.

When Dog the Bounty Hunter's late wife, Beth Chapman, died ... a memorial fund was set up in her name, but now her daughters are dragging its founder to court.

Bonnie Chapman and Cecily Barmore just filed suit against Rainy Robinson -- who was Beth's best friend and costar on "Dog's Most Wanted" -- because they claim she's been running a charity fund baring their mother's name/likeness ... but has been enriching herself instead.

In the suit, obtained by TMZ, Bonnie and Cecily allege Rainy has been soliciting donations for years -- starting shortly after Beth died of cancer in 2019 -- and that, lately, she's been falsely promising to transfer ownership of the fund to the girls, but never actually did it.

That's a big problem for Beth's daughters ... in the suit, they allege Rainy's been acting in bad faith -- never intending to hand over the fund, and instead, starting the process to quietly dissolve the charity.

According to the suit, Rainy made several social media posts about turning over operations of the fund to Bonnie and Cecily, but wen their attorneys demanded an accounting of how she's been using the money ... she reversed course and never followed through on the transfer.

The daughters are suing to block the use of their names and images for the charity and want at least $50K in damages.

Rainy tells TMZ she's been trying to have the girls head the fund since their mom died ... but claims they distanced themselves without explanation. Rainy also says the fund has had good intentions all along, including creating a scholarship and a victim fund for families whose loved ones were murdered.

She also claims she told Bonnie and Cecily they could have the fund, but that they'd need to contact her directly ... which they didn't do. Rainy says she now plans to shut it down.

Jared Jeffries' made over $40 million in the NBA, but proving everyone loves something for free ... the retired NBA vet won a brand new compact car on "The Price Is Right," and his reaction was priceless!!

The former #11 overall pick and Washington Wizards forward appeared on the famous game show (it aired Monday morning) where he was a contestant in the "One Away" game -- the goal being to correctly identify the cost of a car.

You can clearly see Jeffries was anxious before the last two numbers were revealed ... but when he realized he won, he went nuts!

"What a good win!" comedian and host Drew Carey said, "What a good win to start the show! Way to go!"

JJ hilariously gallops over to his car -- which looks to be a new 2023 Toyota -- and he's ecstatic.

"Yes!' Jeffries cheered with the crowd.

Of course, Jeffries certainly has a car or two ... since the 41-year-old made a fortune during his 11 seasons in the NBA. In addition to his time in D.C., JJ also played for the Knicks, Rockets and Blazers. Jared scored over 3,000 points and grabbed over 2,500 rebounds.

Cleveland legend Bernie Kosar was booted from his radio gig with the Browns on Sunday ... and it's all because the ex-quarterback bet on his former team to beat the Steelers.

Kosar -- who played for the Orange and Brown from 1985-93 -- placed the $19,000 wager (in honor of his jersey number) with the Tipico Sportsbook app last weekend ... becoming one of the first legal bets placed in Ohio.

The former Pro Bowler claimed if Cleveland (+120 in most sportsbooks) ended up beating Pittsburgh, he would donate the winnings to charity.

The Browns ended up losing, 28-14, but not only did Kosar lose his $19k ... he also lost his pregame radio show job with the team -- due to breaking one of the league's most unforgivable rules.

"Earlier this week we notified Bernie, that per league policy, we were required to remove him from our pregame radio coverage for the season finale after he violated the NFL gambling policy by placing a bet on an NFL game," the Browns said on Sunday.

"We understand what Bernie means to this community and our history but as team contracted personnel hired to provide content on our media platforms, his bet was a violation of NFL rules and we must adhere to all NFL policy."

Kosar addressed the move on Twitter ... saying, "I am shocked & disappointed. Brown & Orange is my life … Go #Browns."

Prince Harry's been making a lot of claims about his brother lately -- and the repercussions for going against the family, as they say, is apparently not all that bad ... per a new report.

The Times published a story Saturday that claims to have some inside knowledge on how the Royals are digesting Harry's bombshells ... which have been leaking out via excerpts from his forthcoming book, "Spare," due to release next week.

According to the outlet, the only thing PH faces at this point for spilling his guts is being "written out of the script" for King Charles' coronation ceremony in May -- when he's officially crowned and all that jazz. That doesn't mean the Duke can't attend, though.

The Times' Royal Editor, Roya Nikkhah, tweeted this tidbit as a follow-up to her post ... "I can also reveal that Prince Harry has been written out of the script for the Coronation, with no official role in the service if he attends. Breaking with tradition, Charles will scrap royal dukes kneeling and paying homage to the monarch. Only William will perform that role."

So, it sounds like Harry can, in fact, roll through if he wants ... but will have to sit in the peanut gallery with all the others, while Prince William takes center stage next to Dad. All things considered, that's mild. Some speculated Harry would be uninvited altogether.

As for Willy ... The Times claims, through Royal sources, that he's "burning with anger" over Harry's assertions -- namely, that he allegedly attacked his brother, insulted his wife, Meghan Markle, and encouraged him to wear that Nazi costume all those years ago.

And yet, he's staying silent through it all ... which he apparently plans to continue doing for the foreseeable future. Time will tell if even more nuggets emerge when the book comes out.

As we know, Harry's on a full-blown press run right now to promote this thing. Word is, Penguin -- which reportedly paid him $20M for "Spare" -- needs around 1.7 million copies to be sold just to break even. Here's hoping the best deets are still under wraps.

Sammy Hagar takes pride in being the first celeb to have a popular tequila brand ... which is why he explains on "TMZ Presents: Sammy Hagar's Paradise" that selling it was the craziest thing to ever happen to him!

The former Van Halen singer says when he created his Cabo Wabo Tequila line, no other stars had ever done anything like it ... adding that his business started booming like no other.

Remember, we talked to him back in July and he told us he was making a great fortune from his booze, books and bars ... way more than any money he racked up from his music.

Well, now he's telling the story behind his successful tequila. At first, Sammy says he wouldn't dare sell it because he was bringing in so much cash. But, that all changed when he secured a wild offer -- one that literally had him rolling on the floor laughing.

The Red Rocker says the company Grupo Campari agreed to pay him $100 million ... and after that, he sealed the deal!

Ya gotta hear how it all went down.

College football star KD Davis is celebrating the start of his NFL rookie season just a little early ... recently coppin' a diamond-filled shark pendant!!!

TMZ Sports has learned the senior linebacker at University of North Texas hit up Atlanta's "Scoobie Da Jeweler" in December to make a piece that resembled his love of the game.

"He's a shark at what he does," Scoobie told us on Friday, "relentless in his passion for football."

The final piece came out awesome ... you can see the massive pendant looks just like the villain from "Jaws" with its fangs and dark eyes.

We're told the new bling is filled with 35 carats of moissanite diamonds and .25 carats of sapphire for the blue eyes.

Scoobie -- who also made the Kobe and Gianna Bryant pendant for Lamar Odom last year -- tells us he educates players on each metal and stone, so they spend their money wisely.

"I always encourage them to think about general wealth," Scoobie said. "I don't want these players to be exploited into diamonds and be put in a crunch."

Davis led the Mean Green in tackles for three consecutive seasons and was top 10 in the nation with 71 solo tackles this year. He also had 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, and 1 interception this season.