Music

Nicki Minaj is going back to the well for what could be her next big hit -- snitching be damned, she's got a new collab with Tekashi 6ix9ine.

The 2 rappers just revealed they worked together on a track called "Trollz," which Nicki says will be released Thursday at midnight. She adds that a portion of proceeds from their project -- including merch items -- will go to The Bail Project Inc.

Minaj and 6ix9ine have been tight for awhile now, and previously worked together on Tekashi's smash hit "FEFE" in July 2018, which featured Nicki. It appears the artwork for "Trollz" has a similar vibe to their last collab too ... as seen on 69's online store.

Only difference to the "FEFE" art is they switched sides ... and replaced an ice cream cone with a lollipop.

Of course, Minaj took some heat after their last collab for continuing to support the rapper when he was arrested in November 2018 on racketeering charges and proceeded to snitch on his former gang members -- along with roping in Cardi B during his testimony -- in order for a reduced sentenced.

It worked, and 6ix9ine was even released early to house arrest due to COVID-19 concerns. He then began to get back to business and back on social media almost immediately ... much to the chagrin of many in the hip-hop world, especially Meek Mill.

So, ya gotta think the Nicki/Tekashi collab's not going to make them any new friends or squash any old beefs ... but that's probably no bother for the "Trollz" team.

"As a brother with a good heart, I say 'f*** you' if you racist or white staying quiet, you disabling the changes."

NBA superstar Damian Lillard -- AKA Dame DOLLA -- is sending a strong message about police brutality and the recent peaceful protests across the country ... dropping a spoken word track titled "Blacklist," in honor of George Floyd.

Here are some notable lyrics ...

"We in a pandemic, thought getting out I’d be more joyed, then I watched a cop knee to the neck kill George Floyd"

"As a rich black man living in this country, it’s hard being comfy when the hate your people get is coming from the ones amongst me"

"Used to call us 'monkeys' and 'slaves' and we overcame. Still our work is just beginning, protests look like parades."

"The kind of sh*t we experience, how we felt when the country turned on Kaepernick after he knelted."

Lillard also calls out President Donald Trump for saying, "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" ... calling POTUS a "clown" and a "trust fund baby."

Lillard has personally taken the streets of Portland to protest the recent deaths of Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery ... vowing to bring change to the country.

Travis Scott's "Highest in the Room" has a catchy guitar melody that appears throughout -- but one producer claims Travis and his team lifted it.

The guy's name is Benjamin Lasnier, who says he's a Danish music producer who's made beats for lots of people, especially rappers like Trippe Redd, Desiigner, Don Toliver and if he's right ... you can add Travis Scott to his resume.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Lasnier says he wrote and recorded the guitar refrain featured in Trav's hit song, 'Highest,' back in early 2019 ... which he then started shopping around to different producers, engineers and even artists themselves.

He says he also posted this guitar recording on his IG stories 3 different times -- although it's unclear if he still has them up or not for reference. Either way, Lasnier says he put it out there to more than 700k followers.

Welp, around springtime ... Lasnier claims he got in touch with a guy who works with Travis named Jamie Lepr -- who goes by Jimmy Cash on IG, and apparently solicits beats. Lasnier says he sent Lepr a beat pack, which included the guitar melody in question -- and with no formal deal struck between them ... Lasnier claims he eventually heard a slightly tweaked version of his melody on Trav's new song in late 2019. He says a strikingly similar arpeggio appears around 24 times, which he says makes it the meat of the song.

Of course, Lasnier says he never explicitly authorized Lepr to use the music -- and now wants his cut of the loot for what the song has gone on to make -- which is a lot, BTW. He claims "Highest in the Room" has generated north of $20 million for everyone involved in making it -- it's even had crazy success on the charts ... reaching No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.

If you know, you know it's one of Travis Scott's most popular songs to date, without question. Now, Lasnier's asking a judge to give him an accounting of the profits, damages, and a running royalty share too.

We've reached out to Travis' team ... so far, no word back.

Former "America's Got Talent" champ Landau Eugene Murphy Jr. says he had a much different experience on set than Gabrielle Union ... but there's one thing that's still bothering him.

Landau -- who won season 6 of 'AGT' -- tells TMZ ... he didn't experience any overt racism or discrimination on the show like Gabrielle claims, but he's bummed out because even though he won, he never got asked back on the show.

While Landau isn't certain why 'AGT' gave him the cold shoulder ... he does wonder if it has anything to do with what went down in Vegas after he was crowned.

Landau thought things were going swimmingly, his residency shows seemed packed, but the shot callers apparently saw it differently ... and he tells us what led to his early Sin City exit. He suspects that's playing a role in the radio silence with the show.

The dude's got a good attitude about everything though ... joking about his last song on the show, Frank Sinatra's "My Way."

Landau isn't the only winner who hasn't gotten asked back though ... there's Kevin Skinner, Neal Boyd (who died in 2018) and the Olate Dogs too.

Bonnie Pointer of The Pointer Sisters has died ... TMZ has learned.

The Grammy-winning Motown artist, who was originally part of the popular quartet group of sisters in the '70s, died this morning. Her sister, Anita, tells TMZ, "It is with great sadness that I have to announce to the fans of The Pointer Sisters that my sister, Bonnie died this morning. Our family is devastated, on behalf of my siblings and I and the entire Pointer family, we ask for your prayers at this time.”

Bonnie was one of the OG Pointer Sisters -- which started out as a duo, with her as one of the leads -- but eventually left the group in the mid-1970s to pursue a successful solo career. She's perhaps best known for her cover of "Heaven Must Have Sent You."

Anita continues, "Bonnie was my best friend and we talked every day, we never had a fight in our life, I already miss her and I will see her again one day."

Bonnie had a prolific recording career under Motown Records -- which signed her after she left TPS -- cranking out 3 full albums and producing a number of singles too. Her disco rendition of 'Heaven' peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard's Hot 100 chart.

While she was with the Pointer Sisters, she earned a Grammy award for Best Vocal by a Duo or Group in the country category, no less, for their crossover hit "Fairytale."

After Bonnie went solo, they continued to rack up accolades and hits with the remaining members.

She got hitched to Motown exec Jeffrey Bowen and remained married for several years until they called it quits in the early 2000s.

Another one of the sisters, June, died in 2006 from cancer.

Bonnie is survived by 2 sisters. She was 69.

Josh Groban's been getting sexually harassed and now threatened with a pop-in at his new home by a woman he says he canceled a date with nearly a decade ago ... so he claims in new legal docs.

The swooning singer just got a temporary restraining order against the obsessed female fan, who he claims has been incessantly sending him texts, emails and direct messages since 2011 ... along with contacting his family members and his current girlfriend in recent years.

Some of the alleged messages -- from as recently as May -- are very sexual and graphic in nature, including one saying ... "I came at approximately 7:09 PM this evening with the thought of your d**k between my t**s and your warmness against my ribcage." It gets even more graphic, but we'll spare ya ... this isn't Penthouse Forum.

Another DM to Josh last month allegedly referred to his relationship with his GF. It said, "You wanna try honoring the home we're going to have children in by not f**king other women in it."

Also, on May 26, the woman allegedly sent DMs to Josh claiming she went to his house with the intention of dropping off gifts. One said, "Put on a little bit of makeup in case I got caught, also wore pants with a hole in the crotch for the same reasons."

Josh says he met the woman through a mutual Facebook friend in 2011, and they began flirting and made plans to meet in person ... but he called it off because he was sick. He claims immediately following the missed meeting she wouldn't give up and kept pestering him, so he told her they could never meet.

Groban claims until this year, she's limited her efforts to public places where he's staying or performing, and he's had to have his security intercept her at various locations and have her removed.

According to the docs ... Josh claims things intensified big time in February 2020, especially after she found out online that he bought a new home in L.A. and told him she knew where he lives. This resulted in sending her a cease and desist letter to lay off ... to no avail.

He claims she even sent a package to his home in early May that consisted of a small skull, a flower, and a book with handwritten notes in it that were sexual in nature and made it clear she would never stop.

Justin and Hailey Bieber are practicing some serious social distancing ... getting away from it all for a camping trip in the middle of nowhere.

Justin and Hailey spent their Saturday in scenic Utah, camping in a park and finding a creek for some swimming, rock climbing and cuddles.

After jogging in yoga attire, Hailey slipped into a skimpy, green bikini and tested the clear creek waters ... and then Justin hopped right in with his wife, exploring the creek bed together.

It's pretty cool ... Justin and Hailey had to do some serious trekking to get down to the creek, climbing up and down huge rocks and cliffs. Nothing great comes easy.

The super-cute couple even found a flat rock perfect for laying out and catching some rays and snuggles.

Check out the gallery ... summertime loving and adventures in full effect!!!

As L.A.'s largest protest yet of George Floyd's killing made its way through Hollywood streets -- with huge celebs showing support -- YG used it as a powerful backdrop for his new "F**k the Police" music video.

The peaceful demonstration of more than 50,000 people began Sunday on Hollywood Blvd ... and the aerial views were epic. YG teamed up with BLM LA and joined activist and BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors at the front of the crowd to share some words and explain the importance of using his voice.

Much of the crowd came equipped with face masks, homemade BLM signs and messaging to remember the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and so many other black people killed by police.

YG also used the huge protest as the music video setting for his newly released track, "F**k the Police" ... which he shot during the event. Speaking of which, police presence during the march was minimal, and it remained a totally peaceful event.

Other celebs in attendance included Jamie Foxx, J Lo, A-Rod, Machine Gun Kelly, Vanessa Hudgens, Mod Sun, Margaret Qualley, Kaia Gerber, Michael Rappaport, Madeline Petsch, Karreuche Tran, Ireland Baldwin and Marlon Wayans.

There were separate protests in other parts of L.A as well, including Compton, which was attended by Russell Westbrook, Cassie and Alex Fine.

Sunday's event followed the success of protests last Tuesday which ended outside the home of L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti. Lizzo, Kehlani and Common were among those who marched ... it was shortly after that protest when Garcetti announced an enormous, $150 million cut, from the LAPD's budget.

Jussie Smollett thinks the nationwide protests over George Floyd's killing in police custody relate to his case with the City of Chicago ... because he claims the city's trying to cover up for lying police.

The former "Empire" star is still in a legal battle with Chicago, which is suing him for $130k to recover the cost of investigating what authorities say was a fake "attack" -- and Jussie says he wants information the City is refusing to hand over.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Smollett says ... "As we see millions across the country rise up to protest and expose police misconduct, the City, by its refusal to produce the requested documents, is choosing to actively resist a citizen’s lawful efforts to reveal dishonesty."

Jussie's specifically seeking documents about the termination of Chicago PD Superintendent Eddie Johnson, who he says was involved in his case from the get-go ... so his firing is relevant to Jussie's defense.

The City of Chicago, on the other hand, maintains the case is about Smollett lying to cops, not Johnson, and is opposing Jussie's request.

Jussie maintains his innocence, though, adding ... "the City and CPD knew Mr. Smollett was innocent, and that the City has relentlessly pursued Mr. Smollett even after the charges against Mr. Smollett were dismissed."

As we've reported, the initial criminal charges against Jussie for allegedly staging a hate crime hoax were dismissed, but new charges were handed down in a 6-count indictment in February.

Tekashi 6ix9ine found himself his first musical ally outside of prison -- and it's already proving to be fruitful ... with a remix on the horizon that'll get your 2000s taste buds tingling.

The rapper just posted a video of himself with none other than Akon, and it looks like the 2 of them laid down a new track that's actually an oldie, only refreshed with T69's own verse. Yes, we're talking Akon's iconic tune, "Locked Up," which now features Tekashi.

You can hear a bit of Tekashi's bars -- he raps about feeling regret and trying to strike the best deal possible for himself via his lawyers ... and also wanting to see his daughter again. Here's the thing though ... 6ix9ine is still stuck on his trolling ways (sorta) 'cause while he teased the track, he only promised to fully release it if he racked up 100k comments.

He writes, "100,000 comments if you want this 🧡❤️💚💛💜💙🖤🤍LOCKED UP PART 2 IM ON ALBUM MODE 💿💿💿 THIS ALBUM GOING CRAZYYYYYYY 🔥🔥🔥 @akon." Something tells us he'll get those comments. The post already has 2 million-plus views, and it went up less than an hour ago.

It's interesting ... Akon seems to be the first rapper to hop on the train and get in the studio with the rainbow-haired MC -- which is REALLY colorful right now. We'd heard from several different artists over the past year or so on whether anyone would work with him again.

A BLM protest in Florida this weekend became 10 times more impactful with the presence of one man who also lost a son to racial violence ... one Tracy Martin, Trayvon's dad.

Tracy attended a demonstration Saturday in Miramar, FL where a bunch of people -- including Rick Ross, had gathered to protest the killing of George Floyd.

Of course, Renzel is used to commanding a crowd, but at this event, it was a little different.

Everyone was laser-focused on Tracy ... who reminded the crowd how long it's been since his own son was needlessly and unjustly killed by George Zimmerman. It's been more than 8 years, and Tracy has it down to the day.

He also talked about something that applied in Trayvon's case and still does today -- the fact black people need a "manuscript" to follow if they want to leave their homes and survive police brutality.

The man who got an earful from a woman upset about being detained did not lose his job, despite her best wishes and awesome lyrical skills ... he tells us he's still gainfully employed!!!

The man behind the badge in the viral 'Lose Yo Job' video is Julius Locklear, and he tells TMZ ... he's still working as security detail and a bail bondsman.

As you know ... Julius got his 15 minutes of fame this week when video of him detaining a singing and dancing woman started spreading like wildfire on social media, getting the meme treatment and a fun viral remix to boot.

Julius says the incident went down way back on Feb. 5 in Dillon, SC ... where he was hired as special security detail at Diamonds Gentleman's Club.

The way Julius tells it ... the club was closing and kicking out everyone around 4:15 AM, but the woman in the video was alone and refused to hit the road.

Julius says he told her, "You better leave before you get in trouble," to which he claims she replied, "Go suck a d***."

We all know what happens next ... the woman broke out into a freestyle and a dance, "You about to lose yo job, 'cause you are detaining me, for nothing!!!"

JL says he again told the woman to leave, but she fired back with the same line and refused ... so he cuffed her for trespassing. Julius claims he had the authority to cuff her because she twice refused to leave.

Julius has a good sense of humor about it all ... he says the song and dance were hilarious. Easier to laugh when you don't lose your job, too.

In the end ... Julius says he told her she would be let go if she could find a ride, and the club's DJ took her home.

New Orleans icon Master P says he was disappointed to hear Drew Brees denounce kneeling for the national anthem ... but now that he's apologized, the rap legend wants the QB to step up hit the streets to lead protests.

Of course, the Saints superstar twice admitted he was wrong after initially saying he'd NEVER accept kneeling for the anthem ... a comment that truly puzzled P.

"When I heard the whole Drew Brees thing, I'm just like, 'man, what is he doing? Why is he even entertaining this?'" P tells TMZ Sports. "It's too much going on in the world."

Despite the comments striking a nerve, Master P says he accepts Brees' apology because it's the right thing to do ... but admits the Super Bowl champ may never be viewed the same in NOLA again.

"Everybody makes mistakes. But, I don't think it's gonna be the same. I don't think it's ever gonna be the same, how people just loved him genuinely."

P is calling for Brees to be someone the citizens of New Orleans can lean on ... and it starts with taking action.

"Be there for the people in the community, in the culture. Don't just talk it, do it. Stand up. Show up. You should be leading these protests because a lot of injustice going on."

There's more -- P says he's extremely passionate about the movement against police brutality because he was once beaten by a black officer, who was stopped by a white cop.

"I could have been George Floyd a long time ago if that white cop didn't say, 'Man, what are you doing to this guy?'

"I wouldn't be here for my kids, I'd probably be dead."

Justin and Hailey Bieber are doing camping right -- and by that, we mean hardly camping at all ... 'cause they got a recreational vehicle that takes the "rough" out of roughin' it.

The couple's roaming the Wild West in Utah and looking to pitch a tent as you'd expect a huge pop star to do it ... in a monster of a machine. Check out their sweet RV, complete with built-in canopy and some lawn chairs to boot.

Just imagine how tricked out it looks on the inside 👀

Anyway, Mr. and Mrs. Biebs exited their swag traveling digs at one point to take some pics in the great outdoors, with Hailey doing the modeling (naturally) and JB playing IG hubby.

It's interesting too ... Justin seems to have himself an old school camera, and not a fancy DSLR one either. Almost looks like a disposable ... which you don't see too much anymore. Neat!

We're told the area has horseback riding, in case they wanna saddle up. Then again, that RV seems pretty cushy.

Ah, nothing like unplugging to get away from it all -- in luxury, of course. The only way to enjoy Mother Nature at her finest!

One McDonald's drive-thru employee made the wait for a Big Mac pretty entertaining for some customers when he unleashed a performance of Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande's smash single.

Someone in line was blasting "Rain on Me" in their car speakers loud enough for the employee to hear ... and he took full advantage of the moment. In the video, the drive-thru employee gives customers everything from leg kicks to spins and even a hair flip.

We're told the employee is Gavyn Brewster from the UK -- who also performs as Diana D -- so if Lady Gaga and Ariana are looking for a back-up dancer ... look no further.

"Rain on Me" has been massively successful, making it's debut at #1 on The Billboard Hot 100 last week ... and the official music video already has close to 90 million views.