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A woman who says she was in the car with Eric Holder after he allegedly shot and killed Nipsey Hussle tells TMZ ... she was with Holder Sunday but had no idea what he was doing.

We got tipped that the car police say Holder used was taken to an auto shop last June. We found out from people connected to the shop there was indeed a car that came in with the license plate in question. The name on the invoice was Eric Holder, along with a phone number.

We called the number and a woman answered. She said she did not know Holder last June but subsequently did get to know him. That didn't make a lot of sense because it appears the car is registered to either her or someone in her family ... yet Holder's name was on the invoice. She told us it was her car.

The woman then said she subsequently began a friendship with Holder and she was with him Sunday when they drove to Nipsey's clothing store near the Crenshaw District of L.A. She claims she was waiting for him in the alley when he went over to the clothing store. She also claims she didn't know why he was going there and he didn't say anything when he came back to the car.

We are in no way vouching for the veracity of her version of Sunday's events ... it's just what she said on the phone. The woman told us she was going to call police to "clear my name."

We contacted detectives on the case who said they have not yet received such a call.

12:44 PM -- The news conference has wrapped up. Meek spoke for several minutes and underscored the need to change the criminal justice system. He championed the cause by helping introduce House Bill 1925, which has bipartisan support.

Meek, who is still on probation, said there's a lot of statutes and laws that don't make sense ... and he's there to give the voiceless a voice.

Meek Mill's mission to reform the criminal justice system will take a huge step when he introduces a new bill at a news conference slated to begin at noon ... and TMZ will be streaming live.

The rapper will be flanked by 76ers co-owner Michael Rubin, CNN's Van Jones -- who is also the CEO of REFORM Alliance -- and several local politicians at the Philadelphia Municipal Services Building ... where they'll propose new legislation to reform the state probation and parole system.

The proposed bill aims to prevent the courts from sentencing a person to consecutive probation sentences, prevent the court from extending a person's time on probation or parole due to nonpayment of fines and fees, plus establish a system of incentives that reward good behavior.

As you know ... Meek's been pushing for reforms to the criminal justice system all over the country since he was locked up for more than 5 months on a probation violation. He helped launch REFORM Alliance with Jay-Z, among others, and they've vowed to get at least a million people out of jail over the next 5 years with a focus on probation and parole.

Meek calls this proposal the first step to changing the system in his home state. He also said, "I’ve lost too much time away from my son, my family, my friends and fans in Philly because of outdated probation laws, so I want to make sure people don’t have go through what I did.”

9:35 AM PT -- Tom's daughter, Adria, has filed a petition with probate court, accusing Dana of ignoring 2 of Tom's wishes as laid out in his will.

According to Adria's docs, Tom's will gives her and her sister, Annakim, equal input on decisions regarding the Estate ... and Dana's standing in their way. Also, Adria claims Dana was required to transfer Tom's "artistic property" assets out of his trust, and into a separate company that would be jointly administered by all 3 women.

Adria claims Dana's refused to make that transfer ... thereby allowing her to keep sole control of the assets. She wants a judge to force Dana to comply with Tom's will.

Tom Petty's widow claims the late singer's 2 daughters are attacking members of Tom's group, The Heartbreakers, and refusing to put out his unreleased tracks.

Dana York Petty claims in new court docs she's the one who runs the Estate but, for some reason, Tom insisted his 2 daughters from a previous marriage -- Adria and Annakim Petty -- be included in the decision-making process.

Dana says the daughters have conspired to push her out and adds they're making it impossible to manage the Estate.

As for the unreleased tracks, Dana claims in the lawsuit, filed by attorney Adam Streisand, both daughters, but mostly Adria, have gone off the rails ... directing their anger at everyone in Tom's orbit, including the surviving members of The Heartbreakers.

Dana points to an email directed at the surviving members -- Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell -- in which Adria rants, "What I don't have the temperament for is having my entire life raped. Being disparaged. My dad being disgraced. And being surrounded by selfish, unreliable people and drug addicts."

She goes on ... "I am sorry i am not a man and can not earn your respect through the work and deeds I do." And, the daughters are blocking the release of new solo tracks that Petty had recorded 25 years ago. Dana says she wanted to include the tracks in a 25th-anniversary box set release of his smash hit album, "Wildflowers."

Dana claims the release would produce upwards of a million bucks in royalties ... possibly more, but the daughters have blocked it. The suit claims Adria gave no real reason for her objection, other than to say the timing was off.

And, there's this ... Tom had a deep connection to the city of Gainesville, Florida, where he was born. The City renamed a park in Tom's honor and asked someone in the Estate to create artwork for a sign. The rep submitted a well-known image of Tom from one of his album covers.

The lawsuit claims Adria approved the artwork, only to later fire off an email to the rep, saying, "Your name is not Petty and you don't have the backbone to protect the estate from a horrible image like this one. Shame on you."

Dana wants an order from the judge asking him to appoint a day-to-day manager for the Estate, and to force Adria, in particular, to act rationally.

Tom died in 2017 of an accidental drug overdose.

19 people were injured and police and paramedics were on the scene of a Nipsey Hussle memorial after a loud noise sent people scrambling.

Thousands showed up outside Nipsey's clothing store -- where the rapper was gunned down just a day before. Video from overhead shows the crowd suddenly break into a panic and begin to run from the area. People heard a loud noise that sounded like gunfire ... and it sent everyone scrambling, causing a stampede ... injuring a number of people in the process.

There was no evidence of shots fired or gunshot wounds.

The LAPD released a statement saying, "Our men and women are on scene and making every effort to protect everyone in attendance at the Nipsey Hussle vigil. Reports of shots fired at the vigil do not appear to be accurate. We do have injured in the chaos and are attempting to restore order."

The statement continues, "We understand the community is mourning and we feel your loss. We are asking for everyone to follow the officers directions and disperse from the immediate area."

TMZ broke the story ... Nipsey was murdered Sunday outside of his clothing store. Video surveillance of the attack shows a man walk up on the rapper and others before firing multiple shots. The cause of Nipsey's death is listed as gunshot wounds to the head and torso.

Someone was out to kill Nipsey Hussle just days before he was murdered ... and those working with him were warned as such, and took extreme measures to protect him.

Nipsey filmed a music video Thursday for an upcoming song he, DJ Khaled and John Legend collaborated on called "Higher." The track will appear on Khaled's upcoming album.

Sources on the Inglewood set tell TMZ ... there was great concern over Nipsey's safety during the shoot ... specifically over the parking structure the crew used to film. Our sources say the production team wanted the entire structure shut down so that only folks working the shoot would have access.

We're told production only booked the top two floors of the parking structure. People were able to park underneath the top floors.

More shocking ... our sources say the production hired 10 armed police officers because of concerns over Nipsey's safety. It's unclear why, but we're told they were scared someone would try sneaking on set and killing him.

Seems the protection worked ... our sources tell us things went off without a hitch.

Of course, just a few days later ... Nipsey was gunned down in front of his own storefront, no less. Just hours before the shooting, Nipsey cryptically tweeted about "enemies."

Police are still looking for the shooter, who's only been described as a black male in his 20s. Cops have said they suspect the killing might be gang-related.

Nipsey was only 33. RIP

Nipsey Hussle's brutal murder is putting cops on high alert for gang retaliation ... and police are desperate to keep the peace and prevent further bloodshed.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... LAPD has serious concerns the fallout from the rapper's murder will lead to more deaths, and they're planning to step up patrols near Crenshaw and surrounding neighborhoods to curb gang violence and revenge killings.

We're told police will be relying on gang intervention officers to work with local communities, and those officers will be tasked with trying to calm people down. Officers won't just be hitting the streets in Nipsey's community ... our sources say LAPD is sending extra manpower to rival hoods as well.

We broke the story ... Nipsey was shot to death Sunday afternoon outside his store in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, just south of Crenshaw, and we're told the killing appears to be gang-related.

4:05 PM PT -- A longer version of the surveillance video shows the shooter -- the man in the dark shirt -- opening fire 3 separate times on Nipsey Hussle. He shoots Nipsey once ... starts walking away ... then comes back a second time and shoots again, and then a third time.

After the third time, he kicks Nipsey and flees back toward the alley ... where we initially saw him enter the video.

Multiple sources tell us before the shooter unloaded, he had a tense convo with Nipsey. We're told Nipsey asked him if he had snitched to cops in the past because that was the word on the street.

We're told the suspect felt disrespected, left to get a gun ... then returned to get revenge.

Nipsey Hussle's murder happened in view of a nearby surveillance camera -- and the footage could give police a lead in their search for the trigger man.

TMZ obtained this footage from a business adjacent to Nipsey's The Marathon Clothing store. On the left side of the screen ... you can see someone in a red shirt enter the frame from an alleyway, walking quickly toward the front of the store.

The actual shooting is hard to make out, but you can see a victim collapse to the ground, and several people fleeing the area. It's unclear if the gunman is one of those people running from the scene -- but the footage makes it clear there were several witnesses to the shooting.

Also worth nothing ... while everyone's fleeing, you do NOT see the person in the red shirt running out of the lot.

We also don't know if the victim you see on the ground is definitely Nipsey, but you can see he's wearing a white shirt like the one he was photographed in moments before the shooting.

Police have only described the shooter as a black male in his 20s, and say he escaped in a vehicle driven by a woman.

TMZ broke the story ... the Crenshaw rapper was killed Sunday afternoon, and 2 other people were shot, but survived. Nipsey was pronounced dead at the hospital after paramedics performed CPR on the scene and during the ambulance ride.

As we told you ... Nipsey had, ironically, planned to meet with LAPD's police chief and commissioner on Monday afternoon to discuss a plan to prevent gang violence.

Nipsey Hussle is dead because the gunman couldn't stand to see another person shining and leading his community by example ... so says T.I.

Tip is clearly going through a ton of emotions after Nipsey's murder, but still joined us Monday on 'TMZ Live' to offer his theory behind WHY anyone in the rapper's beloved Crenshaw neighborhood would kill him. Ironically, he believes it's Nipsey's amazing outreach to his community -- countless efforts to improve lives -- that sparked a jealous rage inside the shooter.

T.I. says the guy who pulled the trigger is probably trapped in a mindset of hating to see someone from his block, or someone who looks like him ... advancing in life. The sad part being ... that's exactly the kind of person Nipsey tried to uplift.

Check out T.I.'s breakdown of what he sees as a senseless crime ... he points to jealousy and envy as possible motivations -- but it's deeper than that, according to him.

Like The Game, T.I. says he's disgusted and disheartened by Nipsey's killing.

Despite life-saving measures by paramedics, he was pronounced dead at the hospital. Law enforcement sources tell us cops are looking for a black male in his 20s, who escaped in what appeared to be a waiting vehicle after he rolled up by foot.

In the meantime, T.I. -- like the rest of L.A. -- is awaiting answers.

3:30 PM PT -- The meeting's been postponed. LAPD tells us Nipsey's family wanted to attend in his place, but they were unable to do it today. We're told they informed LAPD they were just too "distraught" so soon after Nipsey's murder.

Understandable.

Nipsey Hussle was supposed to be meeting with LAPD brass Monday -- ironically, to discuss preventing gang violence -- and TMZ has learned it's still going to happen ... in his honor.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Roc Nation honcho Jay Brown spoke to LAPD on behalf of Nipsey, aiming to set up a face-to-face between the rapper and at least 2 high-ranking police officials.

Jay reached out to L.A. Police Commissioner Steve Soboroff about 3 months ago to coordinate the summit, and we're told Nipsey's intention was to talk gang violence and ways to prevent it in L.A. ... especially in his Crenshaw District neighborhood.

The meeting was supposed to take place Monday afternoon with Soboroff and LAPD Police Chief Michel Moore -- something Soboroff revealed shortly after Nipsey was gunned down at his clothing store.

Our sources say, despite Nipsey's tragic murder ... the meeting will happen, as scheduled ... at Jay's request. We're told he wanted to press forward to honor Nipsey's wishes. Someone from Roc Nation, possibly Jay, will attend the meeting in Nipsey's place.

We got a hold of Soboroff, and he told us he regretted not holding the meeting earlier. He says, "The sadness that I feel -- I wish we could have had the meeting on Friday. I think he would have been excited about all the possibilities, and I know we were."

50 Cent just made a massive donation to charity ... and the funds are all thanks to the unloading of his mega-mansion in Connecticut.

50 just sold his 50,000 square foot pad -- with a whopping 21 bedrooms and 25 bathrooms -- for $3 million. A source close to the rapper tells us every penny from the sale will be donated to 50's G-Unity Foundation ... a project that provides grants to non-profit organizations that focus on improving the quality of life for low-income and underserved communities across the country.

50's been trying to sell the massive property for years ... he bought it way back in 2007 for $18.5 million.

The baller pad is palatial ... with 9 kitchens, outdoor infinity pool and grotto, indoor pool, helicopter pad, casino, nightclub, basketball courts and a pond!!!

Le'Veon Bell innocently went to Twitter to ask his followers what he thought of his new song on Sunday ... and Keenan Allen did exactly that with a BRUTALLY honest response.

"I gotta keep it band bro. This ain’t it" (while adding a garbage can emoji).

DAMN!

The NY Jets star didn't take the public criticism lightly ... telling Allen to hit him up directly if that's how he really felt.

"if youu honestly felt that way, youu could’ve just txted me and said that," Bell responded, "but it seems even ppl with check marks wanna troll to seek attention for mentions now a days..."

"enjoy this buzz fuzz, it’s still all positive vibes."

Now, remember ... it's April Fools Day. So, is this all just a prank to get people all worked up?? The LA Chargers star's follow-up suggests otherwise.

"I was not trolling on my momma bro. I don’t troll. Like I said I speak facts. You shouldn’t have asked if you ain’t want the truth. All love over here bro"

So ... is Bell's song actually good or bad? We're just gonna post the video below and let you decide.

Everyone is heartbroken over the murder of Nipsey Hussle -- but none perhaps more so than The Game ... who lost sleep over it, and broke down while roaming the streets.

Game posted a few videos of himself driving early Monday morning -- around 4 AM, apparently -- in the wake of Nipsey's shooting death just hours earlier near Crenshaw. You don't see his face, but you can hear how distraught the Compton rapper is over it all.

He's dumbfounded by the fact Nipsey was gunned down at his own place of business ... and in his own neighborhood in the Crenshaw District, no less. Game's disgusted by it, especially because NH was doing so much good in the area.

Game ends with saying, "LA on some bulls***, on me" ... which is similar to how Jay-Z responded when XXXTentacion was shot to death in Florida last year. Jay put the "streets" on blast in a song -- and it sounds like Game is doing the same here.

TMZ broke the story ... Nipsey was shot to death Sunday afternoon in front of his Marathon Clothing store in the Hyde Park neighborhood of L.A., just south of Crenshaw. Paramedics tried to save him, but he was pronounced dead at the hospital. He was just 33.

Nipsey had worked with countless hip-hop artists, including The Game. The music community at large has widely mourned his passing with shock and remorse.

Jussie Smollett getting off scot-free is bad news for R. Kelly, because prosecutors might be itching for a big win ... so worries the singer's lawyer.

Steven Greenberg tells TMZ ... the outcome of Jussie's criminal case in Cook County -- in which all 16 felony charges against him were dropped by the State's Attorney -- might be damaging for Kelly ... especially when it comes to a possible plea bargain.

He says, "I think it makes it more difficult for a friendly disposition because they’re going to be extremely reluctant to admit they brought these cases with scant evidence or that there are any other problems."

Greenberg adds State's Attorney Kim Foxx and her team may now view Kelly's case as a chance to redeem themselves after taking such intense heat from the City of Chicago and for that matter the nation for their decision to cut the actor loose.

It's worth noting -- Foxx seemed much more committed to prosecuting Kelly than Smollett. Remember, she held a news conference in early January before charges were filed, urging victims to come forward. By contrast, Foxx recused herself from Jussie's case after she'd admitted to communicating with Smollett's family.

Greenberg concedes there's no way Foxx will recuse herself in the R. Kelly case because there were no equivalent communications ... at least as far as the lawyer knows.

Kelly's facing more serious charges than Smollett -- he's been hit with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse. All are class 2 felonies which carry a max sentence of 3 to 7 years in prison for each offense.

Nipsey Hussle's murder has rocked the music world, but it has also sparked new spins on his most beloved tunes -- 'cause the rapper is dominating the charts.

The Crenshaw rapper's music has soared on Amazon and iTunes in the wake of his fatal shooting, with a lot of his former projects jumping up in position by as much as 500%. Specifically, Nipsey's debut studio album, "Victory Lap," has skyrocketed to the #1 album on Amazon's Movers & Shakers list ... having risen by a whopping 504,766%.

That's not all though -- Nipsey's album and previous mixtapes actually occupy all four top slots on Amazon's Movers & Shakers list. "Victory Lap" has also jumped to #2 on Amazon's overall bestsellers in digital music.

Nipsey's making an impact on iTunes as well -- his studio album is ranked second on its album chart, and his mixtape, "Crenshaw," has climbed to #12 on the list.

For the record, "Victory Lap" was nominated for Best Rap Album at this year's Grammy Awards. It lost out to Cardi B's record, but it was still a major milestone for Nipsey.

TMZ broke the story ... Nipsey was shot and killed Sunday outside of his Marathon Clothing store in South L.A. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

He was 33.

8:03 AM -- The hearing's now over and, as we reported, Greenberg's requested all communication between Foxx and Avenatti. As for Kelly's request for approval to travel ... that motion's been withdrawn. Greenberg said he understood Kelly's chances to travel were "slim" considering the matter wouldn't be taken up until the next court hearing May 7. Kelly had previously said he needed to travel to Dubai later this month, but the Dubai government said Kelly had no business there.

BTW ... Kelly was not at the hearing, citing an illness.

7:40 AM PT -- Kelly's legal team is already raising Avenatti's federal charges for extortion. According to the motion filed Monday morning, Greenberg says Avenatti bragged about his ability to put public pressure on Nike ... at least, according to federal prosecutors.

Greenberg also points out Avenatti has publicly talked about multiple convos with Foxx regarding the alleged sex tape. In docs, Kelly's lawyer says Avenatti has "acted as a de facto prosecutor."

Greenberg also calls out Foxx in the motion ... saying the Jussie Smollett case shows she is "able to be influenced and wowed" -- a clear reference to Foxx's communication with Tina Tchen. Foxx ended up recusing herself as a result of that communication.

Greenberg is concerned Avenatti might have "bullied or just simply manipulated" Foxx.

Avenatti's response to the motion is, "[Greenberg] is now trying to distract attention away from the clear guilt of his client by raising bogus arguments about me and Kim Foxx. The evidence is the evidence. Multiple witnesses/tapes, plus DNA. R Kelly will be convicted for his sexual abuse of girls."

7:25 AM PT -- Kelly's attorney, Steven Greenberg, wants to know more about Michael Avenatti's relationship with Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx.

Greenberg spoke to the media before the hearing, and said he is going to request all records of Foxx and Avenatti's communications. You know, of course, Avenatti came forward with 2 sex tapes he claims show Kelly having sex with a 14-year-old.

The tapes are part of the new evidence that prompted the 10 count indictment.

R. Kelly's looking for the judge to give him the green light to travel outside the U.S., and he could get an answer when he shows up in a Cook County courtroom ... where TMZ will be streaming live.

The singer and his legal team will be in court for a hearing that had originally been scheduled for May, but it was pushed up to Monday. It's unclear exactly what the judge will cover, but we know there are a couple of unsettled issues from last week's brief hearing.

As we reported ... Kelly's legal team asked prosecutors to hand over copies of the sex tapes it claims to have as evidence. Also, their request to travel was continued but it could be brought up once again.

Kelly's side had previously said he needs permission to travel to Dubai in April for a few scheduled concerts. Problem is ... the Dubai government says Kelly's got no business there whatsoever.

Monday's hearing is set to begin at 7:30 AM PT.

Stay tuned ...

4/1 6:30 AM PT -- A memorial has been set up right next to the place Nipsey was murdered, with fans coming out in droves to mourn and pay their respects.

7:15 PM PT -- John Legend also just sent his condolences to Nipsey's family, but also revealed that he'd just finished filming a music video with the rapper a few short days ago -- Thursday to be exact. John says it's a song they collab'd with DJ Khaled for, and they filmed in Inglewood ... near Nipsey's stomping grounds.

The tributes have not slowed down at all either. Folks like J. Cole, Meek Mill, Pusha T, Issa Rae, Vince Staples, Jalen Ramsey, Marcus Stroman, Michael B. Jordan and more have commented on his death with remorse and shock.

Nipsey Hussle's murder has Hollywood in utter shock ... and tributes are pouring in from all over the hip-hop world and beyond.

TMZ broke the story ... Nipsey was gunned down Sunday outside of his Marathon clothing store near the Crenshaw area of LA. We're told a lone gunman walked up on Nipsey and his crew and fired multiple rounds before fleeing in what appeared to be a waiting vehicle.

Nipsey was pronounced dead at a hospital shortly after.

Drake was one of the first major artists to respond to the news that Nipsey was shot and killed Sunday outside of his clothing store in L.A. The Toronto rapper posted a photo of Nipsey on Instagram and added the caption, "F*ck. My whole energy is just at a low right now hearing this. We just linked for the first time in years and said we were gonna do a new song this summer cause it had been too long."

Drizzy added, "You were having the best run and I was so happy watching from distance fam nobody ever talks down on your name you were a real one to your people and to the rest of us. I’m only doing this here cause I want the world to know I saw you as a man of respect and a don. Rest easy my g."

Offset also posted his own IG tribute, saying ... "BLACK MAN ON A JOURNEY OF POSITIVITY KILLED THIS A SHAME TO OUR CULTURE REST UP HOMIE."

Chance the Rapper tweeted his condolences as well, saying, "RIP Nipsey man. This is tragic."

The tributes are still rolling in, but among the most notable so far is LeBron James, who was apparently a big Nipsey Hussle fan.

Bron wrote on Twitter, "So so SAD man!! DAMN man this hurt."

Snoop Dogg also paid tribute to Nipsey, posting a video an old video of the two of them rapping together. Snoop added a caption, saying ... "Gone 2 soon @nipseyhussle I’m so sad right now I’ll just reflect on the good times we had."

Rihanna responded as well, writing ... "This doesn’t make any sense! My spirit is shaken by this! Dear God may His spirit Rest In Peace and May You grant divine comfort to all his loved ones! I’m so sorry this happened to you @nipseyhussle."

Nipsey was 33. RIP