Money

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West are in marriage counseling with their relationship on the rocks, but it didn't stop them from lavishing each other with over-the-top Christmas gifts.

Sources close to the couple tell TMZ, the 2 spent Christmas together at home with their 4 kids. Kanye gave Kim 5 ... count 'em 5, of the new 2021 Maybachs!!!

It's a pretty expensive gesture from Ye ... the starting price for the Maybach SUVs are just under $200,000 a pop, so figure about $1 million.

Kim returned the favor too ... our sources say she gave Yeezy several James Turrell pieces worth north of $1 million.

Kanye's a huge Turrell fan ... we're told the artist's work has been a leading inspiration behind the visuals Ye uses in his Sunday Service projects, including blue and red lighting and the fisheye camera lens used during the Easter service at Coachella.

Kanye also shot his "Jesus is King" film at Turrell's Roden Crater project in northern Arizona.

Absurdly expensive gifts aside ... the fact they spent the holiday together makes sense. As we told you ... Kim and Kanye remain in lockstep when it comes to their family and parenting, and doing Christmas BIG is a sign of that.

But, of course, while they're in marriage counseling, we're also told divorce is on the table.

Our sources say the Kim and Ye are still on speaking terms as they try to work through their issues and figure out the next steps, which could possibly include divorce papers.

Dr. Dre's full of it if he says he doesn't have the cash to keep supporting his estranged wife's lifestyle ... at least that's what her accountant says in new legal docs.

Nicole Young filed docs detailing how much she claims the couple spent over a 3-year period and how much dough Dre has on hand right now ... and it's impressive.

According to the docs ... Young's CPA says Dre has a whopping $262 MILLION available right now in cash and Apple stock. The accountant says selling Apple stock was the primary source of funding their lifestyle from 2017-19, and believes that will continue to be the case.

So, just how much were they spending during that time? The CPA claims their marital living expenses were $2.3 mil PER MONTH -- and despite spending about $245 mil over that 3-year period ... their available cash still increased by $26 million. Hey, Apple's been a good investment.

Based on these figures, Nicole's accountant insists Dre's got plenty of funds to contribute to Nicole's attorney fees, and "maintain the status quo" of their lifestyle.

Of course, that's a big part of the spousal support battle in their divorce. We broke the story ... Dre has warned Nicole she needs to learn to start spending less and claims he's giving her more than enough to live on for now.

As we reported ... he says he's been dishing out $293,306 a month to her while their divorce plays out, but she's filed docs seeking $2 million a month in temporary spousal support.

It's a good thing Travis Kelce's NFL career worked out -- 'cause the guy says he blew every cent of his rookie contract on awesome/dumb stuff like shoes and watches!!!

"Man, I spent it all," the Kansas City Chiefs tight end revealed on Shannon Sharpe's "Club Shay Shay" podcast ... "I should've been on the '30 for 30: Broke' the way I was spending!"

Here's the deal ... Kelce was a 3rd round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft and signed a 4-year, $3.1 million deal with a $700k signing bonus. Great money for a normal person but far from generational wealth!

So, how did Travis spend his first NFL checks? Shoes and a Rolex.

"I'm a big sneaker fan ... and the Marty McFlys ... the 'Back to the Future' ... the Nike Air Mags were the first purchase of kicks that I got."

"I knew I wanted 'em ever since I saw 'em self tie themselves on McFly's feet!"

There's more ... "On top of that, I always wanted a Rollie man so I went out and got myself a Rollie from a Kansas City jewelry shop."

Kelce says he could barely afford rent -- but hey, he REALLY wanted the kicks and the jewelry!

"Man I was walking in this empty apartment with some Marty McFlys on and a Rolex. I felt like the coolest guy in the world, man."

Don't worry ... things worked out for Travis, who signed a $57 million contract extension in 2020. He'll be fine.

But, he has some advice for the next generation of young guys ...

"All the young guys in the league, all the guys that have the opportunity to get that big first check from the NFL -- save it!"

The family of the Southern California man who died after being arrested at a grocery store is following through with a lawsuit that describes the incident in eerily similar detail to George Floyd's death.

Ernie Serrano's mother, Maria Lowrie, has filed a wrongful death suit against the County of Riverside and its Sheriff's Dept -- along with the Stater Bros. Market where the incident occurred -- claiming they killed her son.

According to the legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Lowrie claims Serrano was shopping on December 15 when store security began to pester him and then physically confronted him.

Serrano's mom says the security contacted the sheriff's office and falsely accused him of assault with a deadly weapon -- she claims he was unarmed. The store claims he had reached for the security guard's weapon.

According to the suit ... when deputies showed up they immediately were hostile toward Serrano and "escalated a very minor situation, into a fatal situation."

Lowrie claims her son was not aggressive toward the officers, but they responded with unreasonable brute force -- including beating him and using a Taser.

According to the suit ... the deputies were not satisfied with tasing and beating Serrano with a baton, so they took him down and pummeled him with their fists. Lowrie claims they continued to torture him for nearly 7 minutes, including slamming him on his stomach on a checkout stand and cutting off his air supply.

Lowrie says while her son was pinned down, he screamed out "I can't breathe man" and pleaded for help. Instead, a spit mask was placed on him, which allegedly restricted his breathing even more ... and Serrano's mom claims he was spitting blood into it as he begged them to take it off.

According to the suit ... after 6 minutes and 40 seconds of being pinned down forcefully, a deputy realized he wasn't breathing and had lost consciousness. Lowrie believes he was likely already dead by the time of this discovery.

Serrano's mom's accusing the deputies of ignoring all of the factors that can lead to death by asphyxia, denying him proper medical care, and assault and battery leading to his death. She wants the Stater Bros. held accountable for negligence as well.

When soon-to-be First Lady Jill Biden takes over the East Wing of The White House, she and her team will be treated to upgraded facilities ... but there's absolutely no proof it's because the current administration clogged the toilet.

According to federal procurement docs obtained by TMZ ... The White House is dropping a little more than $1.2 MILLION on restroom renovations at the 2-story structure where the current First Lady's offices are located.

It's not totally clear what the job will entail -- it's simply listed as "EW restroom refresh" -- but the company that scored the gig is the local, minority-owned Holmes Mechanical Contractors ... which specializes in all sorts of big-building bathroom stuff.

The project is slated to be completed by mid-May -- according to the financial docs -- so Jill and her staff will get to reap the restroom rewards for almost the entirety of President Biden's term.

As Tom Brady prepares for the NFL Playoffs for the first time in 20 years NOT as a member of the New England Patriots, he and his supermodel wife are shedding other parts of their former life as well ... and it comes with a huge payday.

The star Tampa Bay Bucs QB and Gisele just closed on selling their luxury apartment in NYC -- a 5-bed, 1,900-square-foot terrace in the Tribeca neighborhood -- for $36.8 million.

The power couple bought the place for $25 mil in 2018, so do the math ... and Tom clearly still knows how to score big on and off the field.

The sale comes just weeks and he and Gisele also unloaded their 5-bedroom mansion in the Boston suburbs. It's unclear how much they made on that transaction, but it was listed for nearly $34 mil in late 2019 -- before Brady made the move to Florida.

Tom and Gisele aren't completely saying goodbye to their time in the Northeast though -- they reportedly still have a small unit in the same Tribeca complex where they just sold their other one.

It's good to have options be rich.

When it comes to politics, Hollywood is predictable, and it's paying off in a big way for 2 Georgia Senate hopefuls.

The cash has been pouring in for Democrats Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock, who are locked in what looks like a tight race with the 2 incumbent Republican Senators.

With the help of Federal Election Commission filings, we found the obvious ... lots of stars digging deep for the Democrats, and Republicans ... well, hardly a drop.

For Ossoff:
- Kate Capshaw-Spielberg ($5,600)
- Jack Black ($4,070.50)
- Danny DeVito ($2,800)
- Rita Wilson ($1,250)
- Sally Field ($1,220)
- Susan Sarandon ($750)
- Christine Brinkley ($800)
- Rosario Dawson ($673.34)
- Billy Eichner ($651.25)
- Kumail Nanjiani ($554.95)
- John Goodman ($500)
- Alyssa Milano ($250)

For Warnock:
Mark Ruffalo ($4,244)
Jane Fonda ($2,666.67)
Josh Brolin ($2,500)
Holly Peete ($1,300)
Rita Wilson ($1,250)
Kathy Bates ($1,000)
Susan Sarandon ($1,000)
Busy Philipps ($1,000)
Tracee Ellis Ross ($666.67)
Laura Linney ($600)
Andrew Daly ($500)
Taran Killam ($333.33)
Lesley Brandt ($317.86)
John Michael Higgins ($262.51)
Mandy Moore ($216.66)

Wilson and Sarandon double-dipped apparently ... dishing out contributions to both Ossoff and Warnock. Busy Philipps and Mandy Moore were also among the celebs who hopped on the Warnock train.

Republican Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue didn't fare well with celebrity contributions. Loeffler got $250 from Jaclyn Smith, and that's it. According to the records, Perdue didn't get a dime.

There's lots of money outside Hollywood, and money has poured in for Republicans as well.

Russell Wilson just made his teammate David Moore $100k richer ... by calling an audible pass at the end of Sunday's game to get him a fat bonus!!

Here's the deal ... the Seattle Seahawks were lined up to take a knee and finish off the San Francisco 49ers in a 26-23 win ... when Wilson decided to switch it up and hit Moore with a touch pass with 22 seconds remaining.

The announcers were confused during the broadcast -- wondering why Russ didn't just run the clock out. But, they figured it out ...

Turns out, Wilson knew Moore was 1 catch from hitting 35 receptions on the season, which triggered a $100,000 bonus ... so Russ purposely targeted his guy to get him paid!!

The play was simple -- Wilson stepped back into a shotgun, sent Moore in motion and hit him with a quick touch-pass to secure the coveted catch #35.

Watch the video ... you can see Moore smiling in the huddle after the play, along with his teammates who were clearly aware of the situation.

The superstar QB spoke about the move after the game ... saying, "It's a blessing to help his family and daughter and all stuff, so it was part of the game."

"We wanted to get him that last catch. We were able to dial that up for him on that last play."

FYI, 25-year-old Moore -- a 7th round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft -- was reportedly set to make $825k this season ... so the extra $100,000 is a big deal!

Nicki Minaj's being sued for more than $200 million over her song "Rich Sex" ... which a Queens rapper claims she ripped off after he played it for her.

Jawara Headley -- a Queens rapper who goes by Brinx Billions -- is suing Nicki, claiming he let her hear his version of "Rich Sex" sometime before 2016. In docs, obtained by TMZ, Brinx claims Nicki told him it would be extremely marketable and become a global hit.

But, Brinx -- who calls himself a songwriter, artist, music producer, composer and rapper -- claims Nicki jacked his song and put it on her "Queen" album. Although, he's not credited as such ... Brinx insists he's the sole author/creator/composer/writer/producer of "Rich Sex."

Brinx says he's known Nicki since 2007, when they met on MySpace, but he's still pissed his pal allegedly ripped specific lyrics, such as ... "It ain't such a thing as broke and handsome." Beyond lyrics, he says her song also has similar music, musical notes, musical arrangement, musical beats and musical rhythm.

Brinx is suing Minaj, along with Universal Music Group, Young Money, and Cash Money, for more than $200 million in damages. We've reached out for comment, so far no word back.

Blake Shelton's attempt to romanticize earning a minimum wage is pissing off a lot of folks struggling to stay afloat through the pandemic.

The country star's facing backlash since debuting the song "Minimum Wage" during NBC New Year's Eve TV special. It's supposed to be a ballad for his fiancee, Gwen Stefani, but considering they're both multi-millionaires ... the lyrics are under fire.

Lines like, "Girl, your love can make a man feel rich on minimum wage" just are, at best, poorly timed for a lot of Blake's own fans.

One of 'em reacted on social media ... "I love his music but the timing for Minimum Wage isn't great. With so many people out of work and struggling the song feels a little tone deaf. I'd like to hear songs that are more personal. Wish he wrote more of his own stuff because he's an incredible song writer."

Another, who is clearly not a fan, wrote ... "The irony of listening to a millionaire Blake Shelton singing about ‘love on minimum wage’ at the end of 2020 might be lost on its target audience."

Prince's death has been riddled in estate challenges for years, and now the IRS is getting into the act, claiming the folks managing the estate have grossly undervalued it.

Uncle Sam claims the estate is worth double what the money managers claim. The estate set the value at just over $80 million, but the IRS says it's worth more than $160 mil.

Obviously, the taxman wants his cut, and that's why the U.S. Tax Court is now in the picture. The IRS claims the estate shorted the taxes due by $32.4 mil ... that's double what the estate planned to pay.

There have been all sorts of figures thrown around by the various heirs -- some of whom have mounted challenges -- some estimates put the estate's value as high as $300 mil.

The IRS really wants its pound of flesh. It's also asking for a $6.4 million penalty for the undervaluation. The estate filed legal docs this summer claiming the IRS's numbers are way, way off.

Senator Mitch McConnell just got a message from constituents they are pissed off at him for not passing the $2,000 stimulus bill, and they delivered the message via spray paint.

The Senate Majority Leader's Louisville, Kentucky home was vandalized by a really poor speller who wrote the words "Weres my money" on the front door in red and white paint. There were other messages as well around the front porch.

As you probably know, although the House passed the $2k bill after Trump demanded it, McConnell has become the chief obstructionist in the Senate.

Cops say they don't know who's responsible for the vandalism.

The incident follows a similar case of vandalism at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's San Fran home, where the perps wrote "Cancel Rent!" and "We Want Everything" in big black letters on her door. There's mention as well of the $2k stimulus bill. But, in a scene kinda sorta out of "The Godfather," there's also an image of a pig's head and fake blood near her garage.

You know things are bad when people in Canada start fighting cops and hurling the f-word.

The violent confrontation went down in Quebec on New Year's Eve, when cops were called to a home after neighbors complained there was a party raging inside, in violation of COVID guidelines.

Cops say the homeowner lied to them and claimed there were only 2 people inside the house. The noise inside told a different story, as well as the number of cars that were parked outside.

All hell breaks loose, as people inside the home start fighting the cops. The homeowner claimed cops used excessive force, and also tore into the P.D. because one cop was not wearing a mask. A spokesperson for the department says yeah, the cop wasn't wearing one because someone had just hit the guy on the head and his mask flew off.

Cops say it's highly likely everyone inside the home will get slapped with a big fine. The Dept. is also considering assault charges against some of the people inside.

Cops in Quebec City issued 46 tickets for public health violations.

President Trump still seems to be holding out hope he'll overturn the election results and win the presidency, but his D.C. hotel suggests otherwise ... based on their rates for Joe Biden's Inauguration Day.

The Trump International Hotel D.C.’s website currently shows that it's 5 times more expensive to book a room on January 19 and 20 ... and a 2-night minimum stay is required.

To be clear, the 19th is a Tuesday and President-elect Biden's set to be sworn in on Wednesday the 20th. Politico first reported the rates for those 2 nights have hiked up to $2,225 per night ... while other nights in January are in the $400 range.

Of course, Trump's hotel could be banking on a January 6 rejection of the Electoral College results by some of his Congressional allies to help him secure a second term.

That's not gonna happen for obvious reasons, but also because the hotel's reportedly not offering any inauguration specials or planning on having any private events.

Somebody left Speaker Nancy Pelosi a very disturbing message to kick off the new year ... and it seems to be related to the ongoing financial struggles of millions of Americans.

Pelosi's San Francisco home was vandalized overnight ... most of the damage was done to her garage door and driveway. The perp or perps spray-painted "Cancel Rent!" and "We Want Everything" in big black letters on her door ... and there's also a nod to the failed $2,000 government stimulus checks.

Even more unnerving, what looks like a pig's head and fake blood were also staged in front of her garage.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... San Fran cops responded to a vandalism call at Pelosi's home around 3 AM. We're told a police report was taken, but it's unclear if they have any suspects.

As you've probably heard ... Congress has been unable to reach a deal for a $2,000 relief bill in recent weeks, and Speaker Pelosi publicly called out Sen. Mitch McConnell for claiming there was "no realistic path" to make it happen.

Instead, many Americans will receive $600 instead ... but clearly the person who vandalized Pelosi's home doesn't think any of that is enough.

A Nashville musician whose home was decimated by the Nashville blast is starting 2021 off with his cat who was missing for 6 days, and a new guitar to boot, thanks to Brad Paisley.

Buck McCoy was in his downtown Nashville apartment when the blast hit Christmas Day. The place was destroyed, and his beloved cat Molly must have freaked out and escaped.

Authorities who were conducting the investigation at the scene of the blast found the cat roaming the streets Thursday and reunited her with Buck.

Buck was ecstatic, saying, "I know she's just a little orange cutie thing, but she was everything to me ... The last 5 years she's always been there for me."

Buck lost everything in the bombing ... he shot this video immediately after the blast and it shows the devastation inside his apartment. As for why he didn't leave, Buck tells TMZ he heard gunshots -- something others heard as well but authorities say they found no evidence of it -- and then heard something coming from a loudspeaker but he couldn't understand it so he went back to sleep and was awakened by the blast.

Buck got some help from a famous Nashville resident who saw him on TV getting reunited with his feline friend. Brad called Buck and said he was sending him one of his brand new guitars so Buck could get back to work at Legend's Corner, where he plays with his band.

Buck's gonna put the guitar to immediate use when he performs Saturday at Legend's Corner.

Brad also offered Buck unlimited groceries at Brad's place, The Store, which offers food to all the people in town who are struggling.