Money

Lewis Hamilton had a victory on the track Sunday, and now he's got an even bigger win in his bank account -- the Formula One superstar just sold his NYC penthouse for an insane $49.5 MILLION ... resulting in a $5.6 million profit!!

The 3-floor apartment is insane -- it has more than 12,000 square feet of space in total, has a fully tricked-out kitchen, private elevator and 20-foot tall ceilings.

36-year-old Hamilton -- who came in first at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix over the weekend -- bought the 6-bedroom, 6-bathroom Tribeca pad back in 2017 ... coughing up around $44 million to lock it down.

Outside the penthouse, LH has access to a 70-foot swimming pool, gym, Turkish bath, courtyard and lounge area.

Fun fact -- the building used to be a bookbinding factory before it was turned into one of the most coveted spots in the Big Apple.

If you think the final price tag for the place is bonkers, Hamilton initially listed the place for $57 million in 2019 ... before agreeing to the $49.5 mil. sale.

Whoever bought the place will be in good company -- Harry Styles, Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel and The Weeknd have been tied to the spot over the years.

But, perhaps the biggest draw to the apartment?? Two private parking spots. And, considering this is New York we're talking about, that's major.

Emmitt Smith's $2.2 million Dallas mansion and private dinner combo was snagged up faster than his 4.55-second 40-yard dash ... 'cause it sold 22 hours after it hit the market.

TMZ Sports has learned ... Smith's listing agent, Arthur Greenstein of Douglas Elliman, got 12 offers right after the 10,806-square-feet home was listed in September.

The amazing estate -- built in 1999 -- comes with five bedrooms, nine bathrooms, a dining area that sits up to 22 people, a game room and a home theater.

There's also a luxurious pool and barbeque area in the backyard of the gated home.

The price tag was $2.2M, which also had a pretty unique bonus attached -- a private dinner with the Hall of Famer!!!

We're told it took "approximately 22 hours" for the right deal ... and the new buyers will be wining and dining with Smith as promised!

And, coincidentally #22 is his former Dallas Cowboys and Florida Gators jersey number ... are you picking up on the trend here??

Travis Scott doesn't believe he should be tied to litigation when it comes to the tragedy that happened at Astroworld ... which is why he's asking a judge to nix one of the lawsuits against him.

The rapper just filed legal docs, obtained by TMZ, denying the claims against him by a guy named Jessie Garcia, who's alleging he was in the crowd at the festival. Trav's asking that his suit be dismissed with prejudice ... specifically, as it pertains to TS himself, his company (Jack Enterprises) and his foundation/label (Cactus Jack).

Travis is issuing a "general denial," which is a legal term in civil suits that allows one to submit one blanket response to all the allegations against them.

In other words, Travis is making clear that the deaths and injuries are not his responsibility, and he's asking the judge to toss the suit against him and his entities.

BTW, sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Travis is planning to issue a similar response for every civil suit against him -- and trust us, there are many. He might be able to do it in one fell swoop though -- last week, there was a motion filed to combine all 275 cases that have been filed thus far into one "multi-district litigation," which would consolidate many of the suits.

The reason for the ask is because a lot of the claims are eerily similar ... so just for efficiency, they're asking one judge be assigned to the case. The court has yet to rule.

DaBaby is putting his Sin City battery case behind him -- we've learned the charges against him have been dismissed.

According to online court records, the misdemeanor battery charge was dismissed with prejudice ... meaning the case is over and done, and can't be refiled.

The Clark County District Attorney's Office tells TMZ ... the charges were dismissed because DaBaby satisfied everything prosecutors asked him to do in order to resolve the case, including paying the alleged victim $7,500 and staying out of trouble.

TMZ broke the story ... a driver in Las Vegas came forward with allegations against DaBaby back in February, claiming the rapper attacked him during a ride in November 2020. DaBaby's camp described the allegations at the time as a "money grab."

DaBaby's attorneys, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, tell TMZ ... the rapper denied the allegations and was prepared to fight the case in court.

Toccara Jones is defending Tyra Banks from being canceled over what some are seeing as exploitation on "America's Next Top Model" ... saying it's unrealistic to pay contestants.

The ex-"America's Next Top Model" contestant tells TMZ ... Tyra did nothing wrong by collecting a fat paycheck on the long-running modeling competition show while the girls only got a $40 per diem and no residuals.

Toccara says that's just the way things go in the modeling industry ... and she says it's unheard of for people to be paid to be in a contest ... because the whole point of a competition is to win and get the prize money.

The 'ANTM' exposure certainly worked out for Toccara, even though she had her own struggles on season 3 ... in part because she was a plus-sized model.

Tyra and 'ANTM' are getting dragged back under the microscope after a fan of the show went viral this week by bringing up the fact Tyra pulled in a huge paycheck as a judge while the models got scraps.

'ANTM' alum Sarah Hartshorne tweeted the fan's complaint, saying models didn't get residuals and had to pay for their own food during the show.

Multiple comedians now have way less comedy albums on Spotify than they did last month -- all because the streaming giant doesn't wanna fork over extra royalties they're asking for.

Spotify yanked several albums from dozens of high-profile comedians -- including folks like Kevin Hart, John Mulaney, Tiffany Haddish, among many others -- just before Thanksgiving, and did so because they'd reached an impasse over this issue ... this according to the WSJ.

The problem ... apparently, a ton of these comics have teamed up with an org called Spoken Giants -- which has been reaching out to companies like Spotify, YouTube, SiriusXM, Pandora and others to demand they pay an additional chunk of change for a comedians' written joke.

Basically, most comics only get paid as performers by their labels and/or distributors ... as opposed to being able to double dip as composers/writers of the works as well, like songwriters do. That's what Spoken Giants is fighting for -- but Spotify won't play ball.

Unclear how many albums they've taken down in total, but it looks like it's quite a bit -- because the above-mentioned comics' Spotify pages look pretty bare, especially TH ... who doesn't have a single comedy album on her profile anymore ... only one-off singles.

The criteria for which albums stay and which don't isn't exactly laid out either -- but in any case, SG is pissed on behalf of the comedians (none of whom appear to have personally spoken out about this, BTW) ... telling WSJ, Spotify hurt their bottom line with the move.

Lil Uzi Vert didn't skimp on his girlfriend's birthday -- the guy rented out a whole theme park for her ... which cost him a pretty penny and then some.

The rapper took over Nickelodeon Studios Park at the American Dream Mall in New Jersey -- with about 20 of his buddies tagging along for the festivities Friday ... all in honor of JT's 29th birthday. JT is one half of the City Girls, and has been dating Uzi for a while now.

Anyway, sources familiar with the excursion tell us it was about $50k or so to get the whole place to themselves. Even though it's inside a shopping center, the park is decked out with dozens of rides, including a roller coaster and a Drop Zone type of attraction.

Speaking of those ... Uzi and JT were front and center for a lot of those rides, posing for pics and looking like they were having a blast.

There were more than just thrills to be had, BTW ... Uzi gifted JT a new car as well -- a McLaren, no less -- among other things, which she seemed to appreciate.

The chef who told the NFL that Antonio Brown faked his COVID vaccine card is now planning to sue the Buccaneers star ... saying the wide receiver still owes him $10,000.

Steven Ruiz spelled it all out to TMZ Sports this week ... saying after the NFL ruled he wasn't lying about Brown's bogus vaccine card --- he's planning to move forward with a lawsuit against AB.

"The game plan now is to file a lawsuit and take it from there," Ruiz said. "People provide a service and you've got to pay for it. That's it."

As we previously reported, Ruiz said he cooked for Brown regularly this past year ... but when it came time to pay a bill for it all, AB balked.

Ruiz said Brown owed him $10K, but he couldn't get the cash from the football player -- even after talking with Brown's attorney.

So, Ruiz ended up going public with his claims that Brown had sought and obtained a fake vaccine card and then later submitted it to the NFL.

The league investigated the claims ... and said it found Brown did misrepresent his vaccine status, and then suspended him three games without pay, costing him over $100K in lost salary.

Ruiz tells us if Brown had just paid up, he probably would've stayed quiet.

"If he had just probably paid me, you know what? He probably would still be getting paid in the NFL right now," Ruiz said. "He'd probably be playing the games that he could be playing and none of this would have even happened."

Jordan Belfort is the proud new owner of a piece of art history, because he bought it from the youngest person ever to have a booth at "Art Miami."

The "Wolf of Wall Street" dropped a fat stack on some artwork from rising artist Andres Valencia -- the 10-year-old responsible for a 29" x 11" work he's entitled, "King and Queen."

Jordan tells TMZ ... he paid $8,500 for the piece after being blown away by Andres' talent. He also says Andres sketched him something on the spot, a work Belfort describes as "shockingly interesting."

It's no wonder Andres is the youngest artist ever to have his work on display at the famous "Art Miami" gallery. Jordan says when looking at Andres' work he asked himself, "What on God's Earth is this kid seeing when he picks up his instrument to draw and paint?"

Art pieces are some of the hottest investments right now ... and Jordan says Andres' eye is "obviously something very different than the rest of us."

Channing Tatum also stopped by Andres' booth this week during Art Basel ... posing in front of his works the night before the Wolf swooped in to scoop some up.

Meagan Good wants to become a gun owner ... and while she says she didn't always feel that way, the recent rise of home invasions in Los Angeles changed her mind.

Meagan explained her change of heart in tonight's interview with Charlamagne Tha God on his Comedy Central show "Tha God's Honest Truth" ... saying she would feel more comfortable with a gun after seeing home invasions on the rise in Hollywood.

The actress says she used to think she didn't need a gun at home because there wouldn't be time to grab the weapon if a situation arose ... but now she says she wants to be able to at least have the option.

While Meagan says she doesn't want to shoot or kill any potential home invaders ... she says she is willing to defend herself with a gun.

Meagan's fears are real.

TMZ broke the story ... Clarence Avant's wife, Jackie, was shot and killed inside the couple's Beverly Hills home Wednesday morning after at least one suspect made it inside during a home invasion robbery.

These cases are part of an alarming trend ... in the days before Halloween, Dorit Kemsley had 3 men (shown above) storm into her bedroom to threaten her life before fleeing with six-figures worth of valuables.

It's evening happening outside of homes ... Terrence J told cops last month he was pulling into his driveway when another car pulled up and the men inside ordered him out of his car, firing shots and giving chase when he refused their commands and drove off.

Bottom line for Meagan ... she's embracing the 2nd Amendment.

Daymond John says Playboy is making its best move in years by joining forces with Cardi B ... because she'll bring her legion of young fans to the iconic brand, while also making much-needed changes to it.

The "Shark Tank" star joined us Friday on "TMZ Live" and we got his reaction to Cardi coming onboard with Playboy as its first-ever creative director in residence.

Daymond says the move makes sense for Playboy on several levels as they move away from traditional print magazine and focus in on a digital rebirth -- he envisions Cardi breathing life back into a brand with a following that skews much older.

Cardi says her new role with Playboy is a "dream come true" ... and Daymond tells us why he wants to see more of those dreams becoming a reality before deciding if Playboy is a worthy investment.

George Clooney says he's so flush with cash that even a $35 million offer to do "one day's work" just wasn't worth it.

Clooney recently spoke with The Guardian and said at this point in his life, he's got all the money he needs and therefore has become more selective in the projects he chooses to do. Clooney says, "I was offered $35 million for one day's work for an airline commercial, but I talked to Amal about it and we decided it's not worth it."

However, Clooney went on to explain his reasoning, saying of the airline, "It was [associated with] a country that, although it's an ally, is questionable at times, and so I thought: 'Well, if it takes a minute's sleep away from me, it's not worth it."

60-year-old Clooney says he's chosen to act less over the last few years, not just because he's not into the parts, but he also wants to spend more time with his wife and twins.

Clooney is, however, still working, as The Guardian interview was to promote the new film he's directing called "The Tender Bar."

Phil Collins could probably feel this coming in the air too ... his ex-wife, Orianne Cevey, is heading back to divorce court, already splitting from the guy she married just last year.

Orianne says it's over with her new husband, Tom Bates, with whom she eloped in August 2020. They'd tied the knot at the Graceland Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas ... even as the dust was still settling from her ultra bitter divorce from Phil.

As for why she's filing for divorce this time? Orianne's blaming the worldwide pandemic. Sure. Why not?

She says, "I believe the emotional stress of the COVID quarantine caused me to act in ways and do things that were out of character."

She also not-so-subtly references her Phil drama by saying, "Fortunately, I have faced challenging situations before and like I always have, I will muster all the strength I can, the best team I can find and the courage to do the right thing."

When Orianne, a jewelry designer, says "best team" she's shouting out her attorneys ... the ones who helped her secure a $43 million divorce settlement from the Genesis drummer in 2008.

She and Phil tried to make things work a second time when they got back together from 2016 to 2019, but their second breakup got downright vicious.

You'll recall, she accused Phil of drinking too much and showering too little. She claimed his "stench became so pervasive that he became a hermit." Collins denied the dirty allegations.

Adding injury to those insults ... Orianne auctioned off several of Phil's prized possessions, scoring as much as $22k for one of his gold records. For his part, Phil booted her from their waterfront Miami mansion.

The prosecution's star witnesses in the Jussie Smollett trial may have a credibility problem with one of the Osundairo brothers ... over supplying Jussie with drugs.

Abimbola 'Bola' Osundairo testified he obtained drugs for Smollett, but didn't sell them to him.

The reason this came up during the trial ... back in 2019, texts surfaced between Jussie and one of the brothers about scoring marijuana, cocaine and ecstasy. Documents in the case refer to the transaction this way ... "Smollett would request ... weed, molly, or Whitney [slang for cannabis and controlled substances]." The document goes on to say Jussie used PayPal and Venmo to pay for the drug transactions. And, the document suggests Jussie tried to cover the drug deal by saying payment was for personal training.

Well, Bola testified that yes, he did supply Jussie with drugs, but added, "I'm not a drug dealer. I don't sell."

It's too early to know how this develops ... but jurors may find it hard to swallow Bola's testimony ... that a couple of trainers who have bit parts in a TV show would dig deep into their pockets to pay for the drugs of a wealthy actor. If the jury has issues with this, it could impact the brothers' credibility, which could create the reasonable doubt necessary to acquit Jussie.

The brothers were in court Thursday ... before entering the building they were seen praying together.

Sylvester Stallone and "Rocky" fans are gonna love this ... a bunch of memorabilia from his acting career and the movie franchise is hitting the auction block, including boxing gloves he wore in the franchise.

Julien's Auctions just announced the massive collection, and the highlights include Sly's boxing gloves used on camera in "Rocky III," and his training gloves from "Rocky Balboa."

The haul also includes the boxing mouth guard SS wore as Rocky in the iconic 1976 film ... and his original handwritten notebooks filled with story development ideas for the first four installments of the film franchise.

Hulk Hogan famously fought Sly in 'Rocky III' ... and the original artwork from their on-set fight is open for bidding.

The OG 'Rocky' won the Golden Globe for Best Picture in 1977, and the announcement card from the award show is up for sale ... along with original concept art for the film poster, and a shadowbox display with 'Rocky' themed boxing shorts produced for Planet Hollywood.

Sly's signed boxing training pad from "Creed" can be yours ... as well as his Air Jodan boxing boots from the movie.

The Stallone auction isn't just about 'Rocky' ... there's also memorabilia from his work on the 'Rambo' franchise.

The 'Rambo' gear includes ... knives, arrow quivers, headbands, scripts, watches, duffel bags, combat boots, prop guns and a machete.

Diddy is swooping in to try to save his namesake brand ... and he's got grand plans to breathe life back into Sean John.

According to new legal docs obtained by TMZ ... the music and fashion mogul's company recently bid $3.3 million to buy the clothing line's assets out of bankruptcy.

Diddy founded the fashion and lifestyle brand way back in 1998, but as it stands now, the brand management firm, GBG USA Inc., which owns 90% of Sean John, is currently in bankruptcy.

The company has reportedly been looking for someone to come in and buy the brand since May ... and now Diddy is stepping up and looking to be the winning bidder.

Sources close to Diddy tell TMZ ... he is very excited about the prospect of reacquiring Sean John and if successful, he plans to reinvigorate the brand.