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6:05 PM PT -- 50 just walked his words back a bit, saying, "I have no ill will towards anyone living on this Earth. The people Shaniquois son looks up to and associates with is a reflection of the negative energy he embraces towards me. I paid his mother $1,360,000 in support to afford him opportunities I never had. They just spent it, over the years I repeated get a job now they have to figure it out."

50 Cent's clearly not going for any "Father of the Year" awards ... by making it known he'd be just fine if his oldest son got injured, possibly even killed, by a bus.

Fif left the shockingly cruel comment on an Instagram pic of his 21-year-old son Marquise Jackson hanging out with the son of Supreme McGriff -- one of 50's rivals.

The rapper wrote ... "if both these little n****s got hit by a bus, I wouldn't have a bad day."

Damn.

The bad blood between father and son goes back several years, stemming from the bitter relationship between 50 and Marquise's mother, Shaniqua Tompkins, who sued the rapper for $50 mil. The suit was tossed in 2009.

Since then, Fiddy and Marquise have taken shots at each other publicly on social media and in their music ... and Marquise told us last year his dad's music sucks.

As for the hate for the other guy in the photo ... it presumably comes from 50 Cent's longstanding beef with his father, Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff. The 2 are archenemies, and Griff -- a former Ja Rule and Irv Gotti associate -- allegedly once plotted to kill 50. Supreme is currently serving a life sentence for murder conspiracy and drug trafficking.

4:12 PM PT -- Kanye has weighed in ... and for Jay and Ye fans, he's created some incredible hype. Kanye tweeted back at Jay-Z teasing the possibility of a follow-up to the duo's 2011 album "Watch The Throne."

Throne 2 🤷🏿‍♂️

Jay-Z's taking direct aim at President Trump with some new lyrics, and while a lot of people think he's also ripping Kanye West ... our sources say that's a huge misinterpretation.

The buzz is over Jay's verse on Meek Mill's new track, "What's Free" ... where he raps, "No red hat, don't Michael and Prince me and Ye. They separate you when you got Michael and Prince's DNA. I ain't one of these house n***as you bought."

As soon as the song dropped, many fans took the "red hat" line as a direct shot at Kanye ... who, of course, frequently rocks the MAGA cap. Sources involved in the song's production tell us, Jay was actually making a call back to the '80s and '90s rivalry between Michael Jackson and Prince, and yes ... taking a shot at Prez Trump.

His point ... just because Ye wears the red cap and I don't, doesn't mean you should pit us against each other ... the way people used to do with Prince and MJ.

Now, the "house n***as" line gets murky. We're told it's a jab at black people in politics who suck up to Trump ... think Ben Carson. However, one could make the argument Kanye's in that bucket too.

As for Meek's new album, "Championships" ... he had a huge release party Thursday night in NYC.

His label boss, Rick Ross, who is featured on "What's Free," was also there.

8:28 AM PT -- Joy and the rest of "The View" crew addressed Rock's statement on air. Behar took it with a smile and invited Rock to join "this bitch and these bitches" on the show and to have a beer together. Check it out.

Kid Rock went on FOX News on Friday to share a message with America -- love everybody ... except "that Joy Behar bitch."

The rock star was on "FOX & Friends" griping about how people are too politically correct these days ... and called for people to stop being so sensitive.

That's when Rock -- who bragged about being all "hopped up on coffee and Baileys" -- took the shot at the liberal host of "The View."

"I would say love everybody ... except I’d say screw that Joy Behar bitch. Everybody but that!"

The crowd behind Rock roared and cheered -- while Doocy immediately tried to cut Rock off and apologize.

"You cannot say that!" Doocy said ... to which Rock replied, "I mean 'Lady.'"

Afterward, Rock insisted he was "joking" -- and said he'd be open to sitting down with her and hashing out their differences sometime in the future.

Rock says the main point of his rant was to bring the country together -- and remind everyone that "we're all Americans."

So far, no response from Joy Behar -- but we're guessing she ain't gonna stay quiet long on this.

Nicki Minaj has made a not-so-subtle casting decision that will, no doubt, reheat her beef with Cardi B ... despite the fact both superstar rappers are claiming it's squashed.

Nicki picked up where her homie Tekashi 6ix9ine left off by hiring the 2 strip club bartenders -- Baddie Gi and Jade -- who are preparing to sue Cardi. The women appear in the video for "Good Form" ... which features Lil Wayne.

The bartender sisters appear -- shaking their asses next to Nicki -- around the 40-second mark.

Yep, that's them alright.

Both Baddie and Jade posted screenshots on IG of their "Good Form" cameos and even got heart and kissy face replies from Nicki.

Nicki even shared a pic from the set with Cardi's foes in front of her.

Remember, Cardi allegedly ordered an attack on Baddie Gi and Jade because she believed Jade had slept with Offset. The sisters were injured, and have been gearing up to sue Cardi ... who got arrested last month for her alleged role in the strip club attack.

And, of course, Cardi and Nicki's beef goes back to the NY Fashion Week party in September when Cardi threw her shoe.

6ix9ine -- who's proudly team Nicki -- also planned to take a jab at Cardi by featuring the bartender sisters in his music video ... but the Bev Hills shooting thwarted that production.

Sooo, think Cardi will see Nicki's cozying up to Jade and Baddie as an act of aggression?

9:26 AM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell TMZ they observed a 2018 Mercedes driving the wrong way just after midnight Thursday. Cops pulled the vehicle over, and smelled marijuana coming from inside ... they searched the Mercedes and discovered 24 circular tins of marijuana.

A$AP was arrested and taken back to the police station where he was strip-searched ... and cops found 3 more tins inside his underwear. A$AP told cops the weed was for personal use.

A$AP Mob cofounder A$AP Bari got busted for drugs in Pennsylvania and is facing 2 felony charges ... TMZ has learned.

The fashion designer was arrested Thursday in Palmer Township, PA and hit with 2 counts of manufacturing, delivery or possession with intent to distribute drugs ... according to law enforcement sources. It's unclear what drugs he was allegedly slinging.

A$AP's also been charged with misdemeanor counts of possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance.

He was booked at the Northampton County Prison and bail was set at $25k. He was released after bonding out.

Bari was also arrested earlier this year -- in London -- for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman at a London hotel in July 2017. She sued him last November, as well, but he fired back with a suit of his own in August.

Josh Groban's famous song, "You Raise Me Up," has been dragged into a legal battle by an Icelandic singer who says the hit was jacked from his original work.

The publishing company for Johann Helgason -- who touts himself as one of Iceland's most prolific singers/songwriters -- just filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group, Warner Music and Spotify. According to the docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Helgason says he wrote "Soknudur" in 1977 which is allegedly hugely popular at Icelandic funerals.

Helgason claims at some point Norwegian musician Rolf Loveland went to Iceland and was mesmerized by "Soknudur" and penned his song called "You Raise Me Up" ... which he dropped in 2001.

Fast forward to 2003 -- when Groban released his massive hit -- selling 6 million copies in the U.S. alone.

Helgason doesn't name Groban as a defendant in the lawsuit -- but he calls the tune a blatant ripoff -- to his credit, it does sound VERY similar.

It's the season of giving ... so Kevin Durant gave his good buddy, Drake, his game-worn jersey ...

AND, A BIG OLE TITTY TWISTER!!

K.D. torched the 6 God's Toronto Raptors on Thursday with 51 points in an overtime thriller ... but the Dinos ended up on top, 131-128.

But, that didn't keep Durant from being super chummy with Drizzy after the game ... choppin' it up with the rap superstar and giving him the jersey off his back.

Of course, that wasn't the only gift K.D. gave Aubrey ... the dude got a nice nipple cripple earlier in the game ... and Drake loved it.

'Tits the season!!

Calling all space cadets ... Travis Scott wants you to blast off with tokes from an "Astroworld" bong, which raises one obvious question: what took him so long to come up with this idea??

The rapper recently filed paperwork to blaze a trail into the marijuana accessories market. Trav wants to slap "Astroworld" all over pipes, bongs and hookahs. And, lest you think this is some half-baked plan ... it's a savvy move to keep cashing in on the title of his hit album, music fest and tour.

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, the gear will be for use with tobacco. Riiiight. That line might fool Uncle Sam -- remember, weed's still illegal federally -- but we all know what plant's really gonna be burning in those pipes.

It's a small step for Travis, after his giant leaps to trademark "S.P.A.C.E" merch and "ASTROWORLD" jewelry.

Seems Travis has figured it out ... there are mountains of money to be made off marijuana.

When Ariana Grande recruited a Kardashian to guest star in her highly anticipated "Thank U, Next" music video, she went straight to the top ... of the family tree.

Yes, TMZ has learned Kris Jenner is the mystery Kardashian who scored the cameo role. Take that, Kim, Kourtney, Khloe, Kylie, Kendall ... and Rob.

As we first reported ... Ariana's music vid -- which is an homage to several famous chick flicks -- drops on Friday, and the big question was which Kardashian she'd lined up to make their dancing debut.

Ariana posted a behind-the-scenes teaser of the making of the music vid -- check it out for some of the other celeb cameos.

We admit it, the odds-on fave had to be one of the sisters who frequently flaunt what they've got. Just remember, they all got it from their mama, which could explain why Kris landed the gig.

"Thank U, Next" has a ton of guests helping AG set up flicks like "13 Going on 30," "Mean Girls," "Legally Blonde" and "Bring it On."

We don't know exactly which movie Kris is getting dropped into ... but our best guess is Amy Poehler's "Cool Mom" from "Mean Girls."

Tekashi69 climbing to the top of the charts doesn't make him immune to the harsh reality -- if ya do the crime, ya gotta do the time ... so says Kevin O'Leary.

We got the "Shark Tank" star outside Benjamin Prime Steak House in NYC -- Tekashi's home turf -- and he surprised us in a couple of ways. For starters, the 64-year-old entrepreneur knows exactly who 6ix9ine is. And, get this ... Kevin's a fan.

Check it out ... Kevin -- an expert in brand-building -- says Tekashi's monumentally successful album, "Dummy Boy," means he won't have to worry about money ... even while he's sitting in a federal prison facility.

Floyd Mayweather had to come out of pocket more than $600,000 to settle charges brought against him by the SEC for his role in a cryptocurrency scandal ... officials have announced.

As we previously reported, Floyd and DJ Khaled both went to social media in 2017 to promote a crypto coin called Centra.

The problem according to the Securities and Exchange Commission ... neither star disclosed that they were getting paid to promote the coin ... which is a violation of federal law.

Turns out, Floyd received $300,000 to promote the coin and DJ got $50,000.

Officials previously said the company behind the coin was operating illegally, misleading investors and several of the execs listed on the company website don't really exist. The whole thing was essentially deemed a giant scam.

The SEC brought charges against both Floyd and Khaled -- but they both were able to settle their cases behind closed doors after writing big checks.

Officials say Floyd ponied up $300k in disgorgement (the money he made for promoting the coin) plus another $300k in fines and another $14k in interest.

Khaled paid $50,000 in disgorgement plus $100,000 in fines plus another $2,725 in interest.

Mayweather -- who was cooperative with investigators -- also agreed NOT to promote any kind of currency for the next 3 years. Khaled agreed to hold off for 2 years.

Nicki Minaj doesn't owe her former stylist a dime -- in fact, she paid him too much money and now she wants it back ... according to new legal docs.

Nicki's countersuing Maher Jridi, who was her stylist in 2017 and hit her with a lawsuit in October for allegedly not returning nearly $74k worth of fancy clothes. Minaj denies Jridi's allegations and is firing back some of her own, claiming she overpaid him $12,000 for stylist services and he kept the cash.

According to the docs ... Nicki has an email chain proving Jridi knew about the overpayment and agreed to return it, but never did. She's now countersuing him for the $12k plus legal fees.

Minaj is also asking the court to dismiss Jridi's original suit.

As we reported ... Maher's known for being the man behind Nicki's famous wardrobe during 2017's Paris Fashion Week.

1:29 PM PT -- Tommy just fired back by saying, "And the plot thickens! After I and our production crew created the 360 and Crüecify, We hired a company called SGPS in Las Vegas to create it. WELLLLL GUESS WHO'S DOING TRAVIS'S SET DESIGN???? F**king SGPS! So all u motha****** tellin me I'm not right can f**k off."

11:50 AM PT -- Travis' attorney, Laurie L. Soriano, tells us, "Tommy didn’t invent the concept of a roller coaster on stage and there’s no legal basis for his accusatory outburst. The actual creator and owner of the system has granted Travis all rights to use that equipment to complement his original stage design."

Tommy Lee has unleashed an all-out assault on Travis Scott ... accusing the rapper of jacking Tommy's famous 360-degree loop stage design.

Travis is in the middle of his Astroworld Tour -- accompanied by baby mama Kylie Jenner and daughter Stormi -- and during the show, there's a part where he straps into a chair like an amusement park ride and completes a 360-degree loop.

Back in 2011, Tommy also did a 360-degree loop, strapped into his drum set ... and clearly saw a video of Travis' show Wednesday night. In a flurry of posts ripping Travis, Tommy says, "Just found out this f**king idiot @travisscott or someone on his team ripped off the 360 AND The Cruecifly! WTF!! Get an original idea bro ..."

The Cruecifly was a floating structure over the crowd Tommy used to go over the audience. Travis also has something similar on Astroworld that was created to look like a roller coaster and takes him from one stage to another.

Kylie Jenner got a chance to ride Travis' roller coaster design Wednesday night at MSG.

Tommy continued, "I get copying is a form of flattery, but this is just straight ripping off my s**t." He also advised Travis to "lawyer up!"

Interestingly enough, Tommy was taken to court in 2014 over the 360-degree drum set by an engineer who accused him of stealing the idea. Lee won that case, ruling the drums were based on Tommy's original concept.

Originally Published -- 6:53 AM PST

The confidential informant the feds are working with in Tekashi 6ix9ine's racketeering case is still a mystery ... despite online rumors that it's a popular hip-hop blogger close to the rapper.

DJ Akademiks has been accused by another hip-hop blog of being the "snitch" in 6ix9ine's crew ... but Akademiks tells TMZ it's completely untrue.

He says he "has zero connection to this criminal case against Daniel Hernandez & other co-defendants. I view them as good people to me." He adds ... "All these charges are a shock to me and do not involve me. I have never been questioned or much less cooperated in this. I am just a news reporter."

The outlet accusing Akademiks of snitching claims to have gotten its info from the lawyer of Tekashi's former manager, Kifano Jordan, aka Shotti. However ... Shotti's lawyer, Scott Leemon, also denies the allegations.

Leemon tells us ... "I never made any public statement relating to this matter. Any statement attributed to me is false. I have not given anyone an interview about this case."

We broke the story ... Shotti is one of the voices heard on federal wiretaps revealing Tekashi's former crew members talked about killing him. These recordings are separate from the ones feds say are possessed by the confidential informant ... which have yet to be disclosed.

6ix9ine's lawyer told us feds having an informant is concerning, but he believes any recorded convos with the rapper will help prove he's innocent.

Drake is highly offended by a music publishing company for allegedly using his image without his permission, but also for playing off a Jewish stereotype. The company's name is Hebrew Hustle.

Drake's been in legal battles with the publisher/management co. for years. Hebrew Hustle first sued him over a sample in his song, "Pound Cake/Paris Morton Music 2." Now, he's suing the co., claiming it used his name and image on its website ... leading the public to think they're working with him.

In new docs filed in that suit, Drake's lawyers call out the company over its name, saying, "The very name of Hebrew Hustle is offensive, as it perpetuates stereotypes regarding persons of Jewish heritage, such as [Drake]."

Drizzy's legal team says he would never have allowed the company to use his image due to its offensive name. According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Drake wants damages for the "mental distress" and "humiliation" suffered from any perceived connection to Hebrew Hustle -- plus any money the company made from using his likeness.

Tekashi 6ix9ine is making sure his girlfriend is well taken care of while he's in a federal holding cell ... surprising her with some super pricey bling on her birthday ... TMZ has learned.

Tekashi's GF, Jade, celebrated her 22nd Tuesday night in NYC with all her family and friends who aren't facing federal indictments -- but her BF still managed to hook her up with a 41mm Rolex DateJust ... blinged out, of course.

Sources close to the rapper tell us Tekashi picked out the piece several weeks ago, and customized it with 18k white and rose gold and 24 carats worth of VS diamonds. In total, we're told it set Tekashi back around $35,000 -- a drop in the bucket, especially considering how "Dummy Boy" has blown up since then.

The watch was hand-delivered to Jade by celeb jeweler JimmyBoi on Tekashi's behalf. She posted a pic of herself with it, saying, "Thank you baby :) your the best even when your not around."

TMZ broke the story ... Tekashi was arrested by federal agents on gun, drug and racketeering charges. He remains in custody and his lawyer's still working on getting him out on bail. His trial isn't scheduled to start until September.