Music

Rapper Anderson .Paak thinks Meek Mill made a mistake backing out of President Trump's prison reform summit, because he believes Meek has power right now to get changes made.

The subject hit close to home for Anderson -- he told us Friday in NYC, his mother was locked up for more than 7 years -- and he strongly believes Meek should've stuck with his gut and attended the White House meeting.

TMZ broke the story ... Meek pulled out after Jay-Z and a couple other people counseled him. Ultimately, Meek decided it wouldn't be the best look for him -- but Anderson says Meek's own prison stint is the best evidence to convince Trump to make some sweeping changes to the system.

He admits it would be tough to go against Jay's advice, but adds ... even though Kanye West infamously plugged Trump, he's still gonna buy his music.

The NY Giants just plucked an offensive lineman from an American Arena League team owned by rap star Jim Jones ... and Capo could not be more proud to let him go.

The "We Fly High" rapper is a joint owner of the AAL's Richmond Roughriders -- which have already racked up a 7-1 record this season with a stacked roster, including Greg Hardy.

But the NY Giants had their eye on the other side of the ball ... because they just signed 26-year-old offensive lineman Malcolm Bunche -- a 6'6", 320-pounder from UCLA.

"This is a great feeling," Jones says ... "I'm smiling, man. I'm smiling! Smiling! Smiling!"

Jones says everyone in the Roughriders organization is pumped for Bunche -- plus, it gives hope for other players trying to get to the NFL.

In fact, Jones says he hopes the AAL can serve as a real feeder league to the pros -- putting a spotlight on players who deserve a shot at the next level.

Aaron Schlossberg -- the Manhattan lawyer who went viral for his anti-Latino rant at a sandwich shop -- hasn't been getting much peace and quiet since then ... even at his own apartment.

A group of protesters gathered on the street outside Schlossberg's building Friday and jeered him with signs, chants of "Si Se Puede" (Yes We Can), and Daddy Yankee's "Gasolina."

We're told the owner of nearby restaurant Jade Sixty is the guy who supplied the crowd with Chinese tacos. Other business owners in the area are joining in too -- including the bar American Whiskey, which is offering free tequila shots and blaring tunes in Spanish all night.

It's been a bad week for Schlossberg since the video of him berating Fresh Kitchen employees for speaking Spanish and threatening to call ICE on them went viral. His law firm's Yelp page got spammed with 1-star reviews, his office lease was terminated ... and now this.

Too bad, hombre.

A$AP Bari, one of the co-founders of A$AP Mob, has been arrested in London for sexual assault ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us, Bari was traveling overseas and made a stop in London Tuesday. Turns out police knew his itinerary and arrested him at Heathrow Airport.

TMZ broke the story ... a woman sued him last November, claiming he attacked her last July at a London hotel, where some members of the Mob were staying. The lawsuit claims Bari burst into the woman's room and yelled, "You f****d my assistant, now you are going to f*** me."

She says she screamed no, but he pulled the sheets off of her. Bari's friend recorded the video and it got posted and went viral.

She says it didn't stop there ... she fled into a bathroom and he yelled, "I'm going to f*** you, you are going to suck my d***." He did not rape her, but she says he did throw her out naked into the hotel hallway.

What's especially interesting ... we're told Bari knew London cops were investigating the incident because they contacted him to come in for an interview. Nevertheless, he stepped into the danger zone by booking a flight with a London connection.

Lil Tay getting busted for frontin' about her cars and her money is simply her take on the infamous Bow Wow Challenge ... according to BW, himself.

We got Bow Wow Friday in Marietta, GA -- where he's shooting a music video -- and got his take on the foul-mouthed 9-year-old rapper who was recently exposed as a social media fraud. Her red sports car really belongs to her realtor mom's ex-boss, and all the fancy cribs are just homes her mom was showing.

Bow Wow says don't knock Tay's hustle 'cause she's just doing her j-o-b ... which is to entertain her 2 million followers. In fact, sounds like he has a project in mind for her.

Singer Howie Day's flip out on his longtime girlfriend, including at least one shove, was captured by surveillance cameras moments before he was arrested for domestic violence.

TMZ's obtained video of the incident that went down last month at the Seattle airport, where Howie threw a violent tantrum when Carrie Pencek, his gf of 8 years, came to pick him up. You can see him kicking the hatch of his Toyota RAV4 ... and slamming his guitar case and luggage onto the sidewalk.

As we first reported ... cops say Howie -- who scored a huge hit in 2004 with "Collide" -- was arrested at home later that night for fourth-degree assault.

Baltimore Ravens rookie QB Lamar Jackson has touched down in L.A. -- so, of course, he's gotta party with a celebrity!

21-year-old Jackson -- along with fellow 1st round draft pick Calvin Ridley -- hit up Hyde on the Sunset Strip ... where they raged with rap star Lil Uzi Vert!

The funniest part ... Jackson's wardrobe -- dude was allowed inside despite the fact he was rockin' Adidas slides!

Didn't stop him from turning up ... the guys danced away to Lil Dicky's "Freaky Friday."

Jackson and Ridley are both in town for the NFLPA Rookie Premiere event ... which is supposed to educate high profile rookies about business moves off the field.

As for Lil Uzi Vert ... dude just likes to party.

By the way, Hyde is one of the most legendary clubs in L.A. -- back in the day, it was the most exclusive place in town ... where the likes of Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan and Kim Kardashian would party together.

9:50 AM PT -- A Jay-Z source says Jay did not force or even convince Meek to cancel the White House trip, adding Meek made the decision after talking to several people.

Meek Mill bailed on a visit to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Friday after a late-night call from Jay-Z ... TMZ has learned.

TMZ broke the story ... Meek agreed to travel to the White House to discuss prison reform. President Trump is hosting a Prison Reform Summit. Participants include members of Congress, various activists and, clearly, people who have become victims of the system.

We're told Jay called Meek Thursday night and made it clear ... meeting with Trump would be problematic for his image and for the cause.

We're told other high-profile African-Americans also called Meek and voiced serious concern.

Meek tells us, "I was originally scheduled to be part of a panel on Prison Reform at the White House to help shed light on the issues within the system. Unfortunately, the focus turned to the President and Myself which concerned me that it might take away from creating a positive result from today’s discussions."

He continues, "As a result, I decided not to attend so that the focus would be solely on fixing our prison system. Most importantIy I remain fully committed to improving our criminal justice system."

Offset's no slacker -- less than 24 hours after wrecking his car, he was showing off his injuries and making it clear they wouldn't stop him from recording ... or puffing on a joint.

The Migos rapper's hand is wrapped in a bandage, and he has several smaller cuts and scrapes on his arm after crashing his Dodge Challenger early Thursday morning.

He flaunted the battle scars early Friday morning in a recording studio, where he was still able to smoke with that banged up hand. Priorities.

TMZ broke the story ... Offset was briefly hospitalized after the accident. Cops responded, but he had already left the scene. Law enforcement sources tell us there's an investigation into why he left without reporting the accident.

7:00 AM PT -- Meek Mill has decided to back out after all. We're told he will not attend the prison reform summit.

Meek Mill is scheduled to go to the big house Friday, but this time it's the White House.

Sources connected with Meek tell TMZ, a meeting is set for Friday. We do not know if it's with President Trump or someone else at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

We're told the subject is prison reform ... something near and dear to Meek's heart. He's still dealing with a judge in his probation violation case whom he believes is unfair and out to get him.

YouTube star Nicole Arbour finally realizes her timing was total crap when she released her version of "This Is America" ... and she's apologizing to Donald Glover -- aka Childish Gambino.

We got Nicole at The Laugh Factory on Thursday in WeHo where our guy straight-up asked her how she's dealing with the allegation she whitewashed Gambino's music video with her "This Is America: Women's Edit" version.

ICYMI ... Nicole posted this video last week, equating the women's struggle with racism and gun violence black America faces. The backlash was swift ... with one person tweeting her, "Yep. This is America alright. Black person creates then it's appropriated."

Another person tweeted, "Nicole Arbour's 'This Is America' parody is proof white people think black pain & oppression is funny. They're constantly joking about things they dont experience because they lack empathy. They laugh at our pain & deny our oppression, while stealin our culture for money. #Evil."

Tekashi69 is already being held on a tight leash by NY cops who blocked the controversial rapper at the door at 1 OAK this week where Snoop Dogg was DJing.

We're told Tekashi went to the gig with the intention of asking Snoop to help him clean his slate on the West Coast, where he's feuding with various rappers and gang members. If you recall ... 6ix9ine was in a brawl with at least 7 dudes at LAX back in February ... the footage is insane.

We're told Tekashi has mad respect for Snoop and wanted his ear on how he can fix some of his West Coast drama. 6ix9ine also has plenty of heat on him on the East Coast, so it's understandable why he'd reach out.

Several NY heavyweights were in the club -- like Lil' Cease, Cedric the Entertainer, Tracy Morgan and Tiffany Haddish -- and we're told Tekashi didn't get to rub shoulders because undercover cops stopped him before he could get in ... to thwart disturbances like the one at the Barclays Center.

5/18 1:18 PM PT -- Tinsley tells us, "I will defend myself against these false accusations. I can only assume the motivation for the lawsuit filed against me. These accusations have caused embarrassment for my family, my friends and my fans. I will fight both in and out of court to repair the damage that has been done."

Boyd Tinsley, the former Dave Matthews Band violinist, has been sued by a man who says Boyd sent him disgusting, sexually suggestive texts, and even masturbated next to him when he was sleeping.

James Winn claims in a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, he was a street musician in San Francisco when Tinsley discovered him in 2007, when he was 18. Winn says Tinsley created a boy band called Crystal Garden. Winn was the trumpet player in the band.

Winn says things turned really bad in 2015, when Tinsley allegedly started flirting, sexting and physically touching him. Winn claims in 2015, he bought 5 tickets to a sporting event for Winn, saying, "Man, you better suck my d*** or something."

In another instance, Winn says the same year they were working on music in Tinsley's living room when they both got tired. Winn says Tinsley began touching him on his leg, putting his feet on his butt and rubbing his back. Winn says he fell asleep and woke up horrified to see Tinsely ejaculating right next to him, rubbing his penis with one hand and Winn's butt with the other.

Winn claims a week later Tinsley texted, apologizing and saying he was "messed up" and he had "confused his pills."

And there were other texts, Winn claims. In one, Tinsley allegedly wrote, "You're such boner material and I want you at your best. I'm actually masturbating to the thought of your shots." It goes on ... "prob will have you shave your pubes, at least above the c*** base."

Tinsley took an indefinite break from the Dave Matthews Band in February, when rumors of the allegations began to surface, saying he needed to focus on his family and health.

The production company behind Virgin America's wildly popular safety video is pissed because it claims the guy who created it, got sloppy ... legally speaking.

The airline's super-bouncy little ditty about buckling seat belts, life vests and oxygen masks was created by Todrick Hall -- a singer and choreographer you probably remember from "American Idol," "Rupaul's Drag Race" and also the safety video. If you've ever flown Virgin, the damn song probably stuck in your head for the whole flight.

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, when Todrick sold the video to Virgin for $3,000, he told them he had cleared all components of it -- meaning he had legal rights to the music, lyrics, voices and performances.

The company that produced the video for Todrick is called Virgin Produced 2.0 (a production arm of Virgin Group). According to the suit, if Todrick had NOT cleared something in the video, he would be on the hook for it.

Enter said hook -- Virgin America and Virgin Produced 2.0 got sued by a woman named Noemi Del Rio, who says she worked with Todrick in 2013 to co-create the safety video. That's her voice during the distinctive "little girl's rap" section. Del Rio says she never gave Todrick rights to her voice, so she's suing to get paid.

In its lawsuit against Todrick, Virgin Produced 2.0 says he's gotta cover their ass, financially speaking, for the lawsuit with Del Rio.

Mac Miller's G-Wagon almost knocked a utility pole over, and based on this video from the accident scene ... he and his 2 passengers are lucky to be alive.

A photog was on the scene around 1 AM Thursday in the San Fernando Valley ... shortly after Mac's luxury SUV slammed into the pole. You can see the airbags had deployed. As LAPD surveyed the damage, one of Mac's friends said he needed to retrieve clothing from the front seat.

TMZ broke the story ... the rapper was later arrested for DUI and hit and run. Although, his friend was still on the scene ... Miller had fled and gone home. Police went to his home, and he admitted he was driving drunk.

Offset totally destroyed his muscle car, and got a little banged up himself in the process ... TMZ has learned.

The Migos rapper wrecked his green Dodge Challenger late Wednesday night in Atlanta, and had to be taken to a hospital afterward for minor injuries ... according to our sources connected to Offset.

We're told he's already been released and is expected to be okay. His car ... not so much.

Our sources say Cardi B rushed to be by her fiance's side after she heard about the accident.

According to law enforcement, no cops or emergency medical workers were called to the crash scene, and no accident report was taken. Offset's wrecked car was towed away afterward.