Music

Kanye West's Presidential run just got a death blow, at least in Illinois, where election officials say more than half his submitted signatures are invalid ... and that means he's off the ballot.

TMZ broke the story ... multiple people stepped up to object after Kanye submitted his petition to get on the ballot in his home state. That triggered a review -- from the State Board of Elections -- of all the 3,128 signatures on his documents.

The tally is in, and 1,928 were ruled invalid ... which leaves Ye way more than a thousand short of the 2,500 needed to be a Presidential candidate on the state's ballots. What we don't know is what was wrong with the bad ones.

It could be any number of issues -- fake names, fake addresses, unregistered voters in Illinois -- or even simply an illegible signature.

Bottom line is Illinois will be officially removing him on August 21, or he still has the option to gracefully announce he's withdrawing.

Although Illinois isn't considered a swing state in the Presidential campaign, it's a big blow for Kanye ... not only because he's from Chicago, but he just boldly declared his "goal is to win."

Hell, he even posted his 2020 vision board, which included the number 46 ... as in the 46th President of the United States.

THIS IS SAVAGE!!!

Blue Jays catcher Reese McGuire was epically trolled by the Atlanta Braves team organist mid-game Thursday ... and the scene was laugh out loud funny!!

McGuire -- playing in his first game since TMZ Sports posted video of his SUPER awkward masturbation bust -- was walking up to the plate in the 3rd inning when he was greeted by "Beat It" over the Atlanta loudspeakers.

The Michael Jackson tune played for several seconds ... and if you get the reference -- try not to smile!!

Of course, McGuire was stopped by cops in a parking lot last February after witnesses say they saw him inside of his car pleasuring himself.

In police footage of the incident ... McGuire apologized profusely for his actions, saying, "I've realized that I made a mistake having my pants down and doing what I was doing."

He added, "I really am apologetic. And, I know I shouldn't have been doing this."

McGuire eventually was forced to pay fines and fees over it all after cutting a deal with prosecutors ... but clearly, MLB teams ain't going to let him off that easy.

To make matters worse for McGuire ... he finished the night 0-for-3 with two strikeouts after the troll job -- AND the Jays lost in heartbreaking walk-off fashion.

Cardi B's long-awaited return to the rap game wasn't just a collab with Meg Thee Stallion -- the two got support from a bunch of famous ladies ... including Kylie Jenner.

Cardi's track, "WAP" dropped Friday with an accompanying music video all about female empowerment -- and to fully embrace that, CB enlisted some hot up-and-coming femcees in the game.

Normani, Rosalia, Mulatto, Sukihana -- all relatively big names in their own right -- are also featured in the video.

Kylie's cameo features the self-made-billionaire decked out in leopard print and strutting down a hallway. Sorry, no rapping or singing from Kylie. We're told the billionaire cosmetics mogul was included to reflect togetherness among women across the entertainment industry.

Our sources also say the video was shot the week before the Tory Lanez drama unfolded last month -- and that could explain why Meg was hanging out with Kylie the night she was shot in her feet. It would appear working on the song/video brought them closer together.

Cardi's fans have been hungry for new music for a while, and now they've got it ... with some visual bonuses.

Someone on President Trump's campaign team is painfully tone-deaf, opting to crank "Live and Let Die" before his Ohio event ... as about 1,000 Americans are killed daily by COVID-19.

Ya probably wouldn't believe it, if there wasn't video, but a reporter covering Trump's speech at a Whirlpool factory posted it -- and Guns N' Roses version of the Paul McCartney classic was, sure enough, blaring on the live feed.

The reporter, Robert Mackey, points out the obviously disturbing nature of the track blaring at a time like this. Not to mention, Ohio's Governor, Mike DeWine, couldn't attend the event because he just came down with COVID-19.

And, of course, the virus is on the rise in a majority of states and killed more than 1,400 Americans just Wednesday.

Bottom line: It's either the worst timing ever or someone's idea of a sick twisted joke. BTW, Mackey says it played twice!

For the record, GnR frontman Axl Rose is no fan of Trump or his handling of the coronavirus, and actually used the song title to mock the President back in May.

The band released a bunch of shirts reading ... "Live N’ Let Die With COVID 45."

Mariah Carey's son clearly knows the rules about Mom being "camera-ready" ... as evidenced by this hilarious video of him trying to get her to appear on his TikTok video!!!

Mariah and Nick Cannon's 9-year-old, Moroccan Scott Cannon, aka Rocky, was playing around on TikTok and one of his fans asked if he could get his famous mama to react ... on camera.

Bless his heart, Rocky's confidence was so cute as he said ... "Of course I can do that!" -- but watch what happened when he found Mariah and asked her to say hi to his fan.

Mariah's response? "Tell her I'm on a business call." Rocky did not ask twice, and quickly explained to the fan, "So yeah, if I bug my mom ... well, I don't really know what'll happen but I'm not gonna test it!" Smart kid.

Even better was his response when someone on TikTok tried to give him crap about not getting Mom on cam. You gotta see him handle the troll!!!

Donald Trump says he's not pulling strings to help Kanye West get on state ballots for the presidential election ... but he's got lots of good things to say about Ye and Kim Kardashian.

Trump denied claims he's encouraging Republicans to help Kanye get on the ballot for prez in swing states. He was asked by a reporter during a Wednesday press conference if he was encouraging several Republican operatives who allegedly were helping Ye ... he said no.

POTUS says he likes Kanye very much. He did not seem to know about Kanye's recent struggles with mental illness but said Kanye has always been nice to him.

That paled in comparison to his praise for Kim, whom Trump largely credited with convincing him to release several inmates, including Alice Johnson.

Ya don't buy a car without checkin' under the hood, right?

And, if you're Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez, ya don't buy a pro baseball team without checking out the stadium!

That's what J-Rod did on Wednesday -- getting a VIP tour of Citi Field in Queens as part of their plan to buy the team.

J Lo -- sporting a flowing white sundress -- led the charge with A-Rod and a few other businessy-lookin' dudes.

As we previously reported, the power couple has been gunning to buy the team for months -- and recently linked up with some rich partners to add to their ownership group.

The most recent addition to Alex and Jen's team is Mike Repole -- who co-founded BodyArmor and Vitaminwater. He's rich and also a life-long Mets fan.

They had previously brought on a dream team of current and former NFL ballers including Travis Kelce, Brian Urlacher, Joe Thomas, and DeMarco Murray.

There are two NBA stars in the group as well -- Washington Wizards beast Bradley Beal and Denver Nuggets center Mason Plumlee.

J Lo and A-Rod had previously tried to buy the Mets for around $1.5 billion -- but it didn't exactly work out since the Wilpon family (which owns the team) was hoping to get around $2.5 billion.

Hedge fund billionaire Steve Cohen was the front-runner to buy the team -- he's loaded and has already made a $2 billion bid, according to the NY Post.

But, ESPN says the Wilpons would prefer to sell to Lopez and Rodriguez if they can come closer to the top bid.

Takeoff's just been sued by a woman claiming he raped her at a party in L.A.

The woman, who's filed the lawsuit as a Jane Doe, claims the Migos rapper made her extremely uncomfortable at an L.A. party back in June before he raped her in the bedroom of the person she says invited her to the party.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the woman claims Takeoff stared at her while at the party and that made her extremely uncomfortable. She also claims he offered her weed later in the evening, but she snubbed him.

In the suit, she says things went south after that -- she claims she was going upstairs with the man who invited her to the party when Takeoff, who was coming down the steps, got pissed. She says Takeoff and the man got into an argument, prompting her to go into the man's bedroom to wait it out.

She alleges that's when Takeoff entered the bedroom and started touching her buttocks. She claims she very clearly refused his advances, but Takeoff then flipped her over face-down, pulled down her clothing and raped her. She claims after he finished he immediately left the room.

After getting over the initial shock, the woman claims she went to a nearby hospital the same day where she claims hospital staff observed physical evidence of forceful rape. She claims hospital staff notified LAPD.

She's suing for sexual battery, assault, emotional distress and more and wants damages.

We've reached out to Takeoff for comment, so far no word back.

Diddy’s son, King Combs, got smoked in his Ferrari by a Tesla, and though both drivers were okay, the guy in the Tesla got taken away in cuffs.

King was involved in a car accident a little after midnight in Bev Hills, when cops say a man in a Tesla speeding down Sunset Blvd. lost control and smashed into King's red Ferrari.

We're told Diddy's son suffered injuries, but was treated at the scene and didn't need to be taken to the hospital. He's super lucky, because both cars were totaled.

Law enforcement sources tell us the Tesla driver -- who can be seen taking a field sobriety test in the video -- was arrested for DUI.

King is the 22-year-old son of Diddy and Kim Porter, who died tragically in November 2018.

"As much as I love Michael Jordan, like, dawg, man, LeBron James is the one, dawg. He the one, man."

Did Allen Iverson just pick LeBron James over Michael Jordan in the great G.O.A.T. debate? Sure seems that way.

But, it's not exactly crystal clear -- we'll explain.

A.I. was on Fat Joe's podcast this week ... when Joe asked Iverson about what music got him hyped before games -- and that's when the former Sixers superstar went on a tangent.

Allen talked about all his favorite musicians ... before eventually saying, "I love what's the best, man. You dig what I'm saying? ... I'm not going to fight what's the best. I'm not going to fight."

"As much as I love Michael Jordan, like, dawg, man, LeBron James is the one, dawg. He the one, man."

"That mother f***er is the one, man," A.I. said of Bron.

So, he's picking Bron over MJ, right?! Maybe ... but maybe not.

But, he then also showed some serious love to Kevin Durant, calling the Brooklyn Nets superstar "the one" as well.

Unclear if that meant A.I. was also putting Durant ahead of Jordan in the great NBA debate ... but Allen did say, "Kevin Durant is the one, man, The one."

Detroit rapper 42 Dugg's wearing a new accessory, but there's no celeb jeweler involved this time -- instead, it's cops who've put a GPS monitor on him after he allegedly tried to evade police.

The rapper was busted Monday in Oakland County, Michigan nearly 2 months after cops say he fled from officers in a Detroit suburb ... according to Oakland County's chief assistant prosecutor Paul Walton.

Walton tells us cops tried to pull over a 2020 Chevy Tahoe that ran a stop sign back on June 5. We're told the Tahoe initially pulled over but took off when the cop approached the car, and actually managed to make a clean getaway.

Well, not all that clean. We're told the cop ran the plates and discovered it was a Hertz rental ... that was under a local promoter's name. A detective did some digging and found out Dugg is one of the promoter's clients.

Walton tells us the detective ultimately reviewed surveillance video in the area and identified 42 Dugg as the driver. The 25-year-old rapper was finally tracked down and booked for fleeing a police officer -- a third-degree felony.

Dugg eventually posted $20k bond but got a GPS ankle monitor as part of his conditional release. If convicted, the rapper faces up to 5 years in prison, a $1,000 fine and suspension of his license for 1 year. He's due back in court next week.

Dugg is best known for his collabs with Lil Baby ... including "Grace" and "We Paid," which have more than 106 million YouTube views. We've reached out to Dugg, so far, no word back.

Paris Jackson is living quarantine life in the single lane now ... she's broken up with her BF, singer Gabriel Glenn.

Sources close to Paris tell TMZ ... she decided it was time for her to go solo. The breakup, we're told, was amicable as neither holds any anger or ill will. Our sources say the relationship just ran its course and it was something that just needed to happen.

As for what Paris will focus her attention on now ... our sources say she's been really invested in her music. She's been so invested, she's been at the studio practically every day. We last saw her out and about last week ... looking happy, mind you.

Paris, as you may know by now, had also been working on a Facebook Watch docuseries dubbed "Unfiltered: Paris Jackson & Gabriel Glenn." The 6-part docu-series debuted on June 30 and its final episode airs tonight. Paris and Gabriel have been dating since November 2018.

Over that time, they were usually out together ... often at L.A. music joints for Gabriel's gigs.

As we reported, she played best roadie GF for his gig at the Viper Room. And, remember ... Gabriel also stood by Paris' side during one of the most turbulent moments in her life.

Kanye West's uphill battle to become President is getting steeper every day, but he IS ahead of Joe Biden in one way ... he's officially listed Michelle Tidball as his running mate.

Kanye 2020 is having an up-and-down Monday, so far, because his campaign submitted petitions to get on the Arkansas ballot for prez -- but then missed the deadline in nearby Kansas.

The big news, though, is Tidball is named in the Arkansas filing as his Vice President ... more documented proof of their partnership. He also put her name down on his Missouri ballot filing last week. As we reported, she's yet to confirm it herself.

As for the campaign's progress ... a spokesperson for the Arkansas Secretary of State tells TMZ Ye also turned in the required 1,000 signatures to become an independent candidate, with just 15 mins to spare before the noon deadline.

If you've been keeping track, this has pretty much been Kanye's M.O. We're told the state will now go through the process of verifying all the signatures are legit. This has already been an issue in his home state of Illinois.

Although he checked Arkansas off his list Monday, Kanye missed Kansas ... and we're told there's no way he will be listed on the ballot now.

According to a spokesperson for Kansas Secretary of State's office ... he needed 5,000 signatures by noon and didn't turn in anything. We're told the deadline is very strict, so the only way Kanye can get presidential votes in the state now is as a write-in candidate.

For the record, both Arkansas and Kansas are worth 6 electoral votes.

As we reported ... the rapper's been working with a company called Let the Voters Decide to amass enough signatures to get on the ballots in several states, including swing-state Ohio.

Despite this seemingly sporadic focus on getting on state ballots, Kanye claims he's committed to winning the White House ... recently tweeting he could beat Biden.

It's relevant that people close to Kanye, including Kim Kardashian, say he's been coping with a bipolar episode.

Dr. Dre's wife is not getting divorced without a fight, because she's challenging their prenup and $1 billion is on the line.

Nicole Young just filed legal docs, obtained by TMZ, in which she claims she was forced to sign the prenup back in 1996.

Nicole says Dre is now worth $1 bil, and says before they tied the knot, "I was extremely reluctant, resistant and afraid to sign the agreement and felt backed into a corner. Given the extraordinary pressure and intimidation by Andre, I was left with no option but to hire a lawyer (of course, with the help of Andre's team of professionals) and unwillingly signed the agreement very shortly before our marriage."

She then says 2 years into the marriage, "Andre acknowledged to me that he felt ashamed he had pressured me into signing a premarital agreement and he tore up multiple copies of the agreement in front of me. Since the day he tore up the agreements, we both understood that there was no premarital agreement, and that it was null and void."

Sources connected to Dre beg to differ, telling TMZ, he never expressed shame over the prenup and he never tore it up or said it was invalid. Our sources also say Nicole had her own lawyer and she had a clear choice on whether to sign or not.

Our sources say Dre has made it clear ... he will pay spousal support and all her expenses, but clearly Nicole wants a big piece of the pie, claiming he amassed most of his fortune during the marriage.

Neil Young just went after President Trump's campaign in court for using his songs at rallies ... and the rocker isn't pulling any punches.

In his lawsuit, Neil claims the President's campaign is still playing his classics "Rockin' in the Free World" and "Devil's Sidewalk" at rallies. According to the docs, Neil says he "in good conscience cannot allow his music to be used as a ‘theme song’ for a divisive, un-American campaign of ignorance and hate."

He's made no secret of the fact he's no Trump supporter, but does say in the lawsuit he's not trying to disrespect people who are.

He alleges the campaign did not have a license or permission to play his songs at any of Trump's public events. And, Young says it's not like this is anything new, either.

Neil's been pissed at Trump's campaign, and warned it to stop doing this when he was a candidate back in 2015. Neil's joined a long list of artists who are telling Trump's team to cut the BS. Tom Petty and The Rolling Stones are just some of the other acts who've gone after the campaign.

Legendary singer Tony Bennett's made it another year around the sun, and a couple other famous voices are honoring him ... with some of Tony's own words.

The "I Left My Heart in San Fransisco" crooner turned 94 Monday, and got beautiful birthday shout-outs from Stevie Wonder and Sting ... who took 2 of Tony's other famous tunes and made them their own to pay tribute.

Wonder reminisced about his history with Bennett and how they sang together, but also praised him for his track record of standing up for equality for all and civil rights ... even saying John Lewis is talking Tony up in heaven.

Stevie then put his own special touch on Tony's "The Best is Yet to Come" with the help of a player piano ... it's awesome.

Sting also paid tribute by covering a Bennett classic -- "The Way You Look Tonight" -- and says Tony's an inspiration who gives hope to everyone ... that we can fix the world and make it a better place.

Can't argue with that.