Music

Tekashi69 is either trolling us, or he's suddenly climbed a few rungs on the hip-hop ladder ... 'cause he says he made it on Kanye West's new album.

We got 6ix9ine Sunday at LAX -- without incident this time -- where he was telling our camera guy why he was the biggest success story in rap, claiming he's won every battle he's been in (literally and metaphorically, we're guessing) ... and that he's never taken an L.

Big wigs at Barclays Center and TUNES Audio might claim otherwise for one reason or another -- but Tekashi's got the ultimate proof (allegedly) ... he says he's on 'Ye's forthcoming studio album, which is set to drop later this month.

You'll recall ... Tekashi said he was on his way to see 'Ye late last week, and if that was true ... it's possible he laid down a track with him right then and there. Kanye did exactly that with T.I. not too long ago during a visit, so it's certainly not out of the question.

Meek Mill is well beyond prison walls now, and any merch signaling otherwise oughta be corrected to reflect his current sitch -- according to Meek himself, who did just that for a fan.

Philly fan Zack Rothenberg spotted Meek sitting in his SUV Saturday after the 76ers game against Boston, and approached the car by foot (in the middle of traffic, mind you) for an autograph on his custom Eagles jersey ... which reads "Free Meek" on the back.

Meek happily obliged, but rather than his usual John Hancock, he signed the jersey with "Meek Free!" We're told the rapper liked it so much, he took a photo of the jersey himself. He doesn't appear to have posted it yet, however.

As we've reported ... Meek's been the toast of the town in Philly since being released from prison a couple weeks ago. He was choppered to the Wells Fargo Center to catch Game 5 of the Heat series, and was allowed to ring the ceremonial bell before tip-off.

Stevie Wonder doesn't have time to waste thinking over Kanye West's ridiculous views on slavery -- ditto for President Trump's proposed race summit, actually.

We got Stevie Saturday at LAX and asked what he thought of 'Ye's controversial comment -- ya know, that slavery must've been a choice black people made after a certain point.

You can tell the he's not having it with Kanye's POV -- he even says as much by calling it "foolishness" ... adding that if you know your history, you don't listen to such BS.

Kanye West not only got people talking with his tweets, he got them screaming so loud the monsters ate them.

'SNL' did a hilarious spoof on "A Quiet Place," where Donald Glover and cast members were in a jungle, trying to stay all hush hush so the monsters couldn't hear them. But when Glover started reading Kanye's tweets about supporting Donald Trump, it proved way too much for silence.

The mere mention of Chrissy Teigen and her awesome recipes was killer, too.

And then there's "Lift Yourself" ... who can stay tight lipped when you heard "poopity scoop"?

Lady Antebellum learned a hard lesson Saturday night ... the National Anthem is impossible to sing.

Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood were front and center at the playoff game between the Nashville Predators and Winnipeg Jets at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, when they sang the song famously messed up by so many.

They did not disappoint. Each sings a different verse during the pesky part of the tune, and the players try hard -- though don't succeed -- not to crack up.

Cardi B seems a little bit haunted by a phenomenon she's experiencing during her third trimester of pregnancy -- vivid dreams.

We got Cardi in Bev Hills Saturday night leaving Mastro's, and asked her about the baby inside her and what she's doing to her head. Cardi answers.

We also asked about her ex-manager Shaft, who's suing Cardi for $10M. Cardi laughed it off ... she says the dude was stealing from her by cooking the books and skimming off the top.

The white hat Melania Trump wore for French President Emmanuel Macron's White House visit wasn't a Beyonce knockoff ... it's your basic hat that was simply made to fit the First Lady's head ... according to its designer.

French-born designer Hervé Pierre frequently dresses Melania and tells TMZ ... he was super surprised over the hat buzz. People noticed the similarity to Beyonce's black hat from her "Formation" video ... especially because of the wide brim. Pierre insists Bey didn't cross his mind when he created the design.

Pierre says he was on the hunt for something sharp to top off Melania's all-white look, adding it's a classic look that existed long before Beyonce came along.

Kanye West's outburst about slavery being a choice is small potatoes compared to the other issues plaguing the African-American community ... according to one of his closest friends, Common.

We got him leaving Equinox in L.A. on Friday and asked if Ye's incendiary comment will end up destroying his career. Common says he doesn't agree with everything his fellow Chicagoan says, but he still loves him.

His major beef, though, is with the national reaction to Kanye's words. Common says it's distracting attention from several important issues.

Sorry, Drake ... your trash talkin' doesn't stand a chance against Julius Randle, 'cause the L.A. Lakers star says he's way too locked in during games to get distracted by celeb hecklers.

It was a hot topic in sports this week when the NBA issued a warning to the 6 God for "bad language" towards Cavs bruiser Kendrick Perkins ... after he allegedly called Perk a "f*cking p*ssy."

We asked Randle what he thought about the whole situation ... and he laughed it off (probably 'cause he's so used to playing against celebs in L.A. all the time.)

Kelly Rowland doesn't see any issue with Michelle Obama referring to herself as "Forever First Lady," because she says it wasn't her idea and besides ... everyone knows it's true.

We got the Destiny's Child singer at LAX Friday and asked about Michelle's new nickname -- which she recently embraced during a speech to high schoolers -- and she tells us it's well deserved.

Kelly raves about the former First Lady's character and dismisses our guy's notion that the moniker might be a tad cocky ... because the way students react to her and how much everyone loves her proves it.

Obama referred to herself as Forever First Lady at Better Make Room's 2018 College Signing Day at Temple University on Wednesday, telling the students ... "If I can be standing here as your 'Forever First Lady,' then you can do anything you put your mind to."

Tyron Woodley told Van Lathan he was proud of the way he handled himself during the TMZ confrontation with Kanye West ... but he needs to be prepared in case they ever have to fight.

The UFC champ had been blowing us up to find out what went down at the TMZ office that day when the cameras weren't rolling ... so we let him ask away on "The Hollywood Beatdown."

And that's when he gave Van a quick lesson on how to fight your favorite rapper.

There's a lot more ... Tyron also weighs in on the Nick Diaz nightclub fight and daps up Dwyane Wade for cutting a $20,000 check to Waffle House hero James Shaw Jr.

Alt-rock band The Used has a scary problem with an ex-member who's threatening to get revenge for his firing by killing himself at one of their shows ... according to the band.

The rockers from Utah just filed to get a restraining order against their former guitarist, Justin Shekoski, who was fired a few months ago over "artistic differences." According to docs, obtained by TMZ, Shekoski has threatened violence against his ex-bandmates ... and even threatened to "f**king hang [him]self in the middle of a show."

They say he's fired off some intensely threatening texts, too. In one, he allegedly said retaliation "is the only way to get justice." In another he says, "those f**ks ruined my life and stole all of my creative work."

The Used were granted the protection ... which requires Shekoski to stay 100 yards away from all members of the group, and any place they work. That includes any venues where the group's performing.

And now ... something from their happier days.

Donald Trump just shouted out Kanye West during his speech at the NRA Convention ... for giving him a boost in the polls with black people.

The Prez thanked Kanye in front of the huge audience in Dallas, telling them the rapper must have some power because he doubled his support from African-Americans ... according to a new poll.

Trump's citing a recent Reuters poll that says 22 percent of black males approve of the job he's doing as President -- doubling his last approval rating of 11 percent. It's unclear from the poll how black females feel.

As we reported ... the bro fest between Kanye and Trump has been going on for nearly 2 weeks. The rapper has voiced his love of the Prez, and even rocked a MAGA hat.

Clearly, the feeling of love is mutual ... at least for now.

3:00 PM PT -- We did some digging into the Reuters poll Trump was quoting, and turns out the 11 percent boost is based on polling only black men, for what it's worth. We also checked several other polls -- of men and women -- and there was still an increase, but only about 4 percent.

Trey Songz is off the hook in his domestic violence case ... TMZ has learned.

The L.A. City Attorney rejected the case Friday and will not slap the singer with a misdemeanor domestic violence charge citing insufficient evidence. The news comes less than a month after the L.A. District Attorney said Trey wouldn't face a felony criminal charge for allegedly hitting a woman, and kicked the case to the City Attorney's office.

TMZ broke the story ... Andrea Buera claimed Trey assaulted her at a Hollywood Hills party because he was mad she was talking to another man. She claimed Trey beat her so badly she suffered a concussion and vomited.

Steven Tyler got lured into a bar by a very familiar guitar riff ... prompting him to make an AWESOME surprise performance on Bourbon Street.

It all went down Thursday night at the Famous Door in New Orleans, where Steven was casually strolling past. We're told a bar patron gave the band a heads-up the Aerosmith singer was nearby, and the guitarist ran out and invited him onstage.

The band fired up "Walk This Way" and Steven did what he does.

The crowd loved it, but the band members might have loved it even more. You've gotta see how they all reacted. Kudos to 'em for keeping up with a Rock & Roll Hall of Famer.

Kanye West has turned the Wyoming resort he's staying at into Kanyeville ... because he and his team are the hotel's only guests.

Our sources in Jackson Hole, Wyoming tell TMZ ... the luxurious resort is currently closed to the public because it's off-season. But get this ... the resort opened its doors when Ye's team came a-calling. As we first reported ... Kanye hit up the Cowboy State to apply the finishing touches on his 5 upcoming albums.

We're told the hotel -- which features suites and private homes -- had zero problem accommodating Kanye since he's one of the resort's most loyal and high-profile clients.

Sources tell us Kanye's staying at one of the several stand-alone homes that costs about $5k per night. The pad has its own private entrance and is separate from the suites, which btw aren't staffed ... save for a maintenance crew and some managers.

As we've also reported ... Kanye will get a stream of visitors who will help him complete his albums. It appears Kim's also there ... making this much clear -- work comes with a spectacular view.