Music

Andrew Woolfolk -- the longtime saxophonist for Earth, Wind & Fire, and one of the OG members through their historic run -- has sadly died.

The veteran musician, who joined EW&F in 1972, passed away Sunday after battling a long illness he'd been afflicted with for at least six years ... this according to the band's lead (falsetto) singer, Philip Bailey.

PB writes, "I met him in High School, and we quickly became friends and band mates. Andrew Paul Woolfolk was his name. We lost him today."

He goes on to say Woolfolk had transitioned to the 'forever' from the land of the living, reflecting on their great memories and his great talent. Phil adds, "Funny. Competitive. Quick witted. And always styling. Booski…  I’ll see you on the other side, my friend."

Woolfolk was with Earth, Wind & Fire through their most formative and influential years in music -- having contributed to some of their biggest hits, including "September," "Boogie Wonderland," "Reasons," "Let's Groove," "That's the Way of the World," "Sing a Song," "Fantasy," "Shining Star," "After the Love Has Gone," "Devotion" and many more.

He took a break from the band in the late '80s and early '90s -- going on to collab with other artists like Deniece Williams, Phil Collins, Stanley Turrentine and others -- but reunited with the boys thereafter to perform and tour into the 21st century.

He was part of the group that was received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and of course ... was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.

The guy's sax is, no doubt, a huge part of Earth, Wind & Fire's iconic sound ... and considering he was one of just a couple saxophonists in the group -- alongside the iconic work of The Phenix Horns -- he certainly made his presence known in their tunes.

Madonna appears to be hanging on for dear life to her youth ... dropping a series of raunchy photos for all to see/remember.

The pop star posted a bunch of photos on Instagram Monday ...  posing in fishnet tights with her legs spread open while grabbing her crotch.

This is just the latest from the Queen of pop ... From the looks of it, she's desperately trying to get her groove back.

ICYMI, the 63-year-old singer recently shared a bizarre vid on TikTok ... intensely staring at the camera and slowly blowing a kiss.

A few days ago, she posted a vid at a Burberry event ... gettin' low and showing off her dance moves, alongside singer Erykah Badu.

Of course, this all comes as she's busy working on a biopic on her life ... so maybe her look back has made her nostalgic for days past.

Ne-Yo and his wife, Crystal Renay, are as serious as they can be about giving their marriage another go -- TMZ's learned, they just walked down the aisle again, and they did it up big!!!

Witnesses tell TMZ ... Ne-Yo and the former reality star got re-hitched Sunday night on a rooftop at Resorts World in Vegas, exchanging vows and throwing a lavish reception for all their guests.

They had all the bells and whistles, too -- the room was filled with more than 10,000 roses, and we're told it took 3 days to set up. The enormous cake was about 8 feet tall with 4 different flavors!

The guest list included close family and friends like 'RHOA's Nene Leakes, Tammy Rivera from "Love & Hip Hop" and Melody Holt from "Love & Marriage: Huntsville."

And, the night wouldn't be complete without a performance from the singer ... of course, he sang some of his hits and danced along with his renewed bride.

The couple originally tied the knot back in February 2016. The "Sexy Love" singer filed for divorce in March 2020, but quickly withdrew it.

Since then they've been working things out, and Ne-Yo ended up popping the question, for the second time, on New Year's Eve 2020. He's credited the pandemic for saving their marriage.

All that back and forth looks to be a thing of the past for Crystal and her man.

Benzino doesn't appear to have been able to lure 50 Cent into a boxing ring, so he's settling for the next best opponent ... and, apparently, that's Aaron Carter.

Damon Feldman of Celebrity Boxing tells TMZ ... the former pop star is lacing up his gloves again this summer to fight the "Love & Hip Hop" star in the main event. We're told both contracts have been signed ... and they're slugging it out on June 11.

The match is set to go down at the Charles Dodge Center in Pembroke Pines, FL -- and Feldman says BitCoin Rodney is promoting it. Aaron is stepping up for 50 Cent ... whom DF and co. weren't able to book.

Despite the bad blood between Benzino and Fitty -- including the recent back and forth claims of outing attempts and alleged federal snitching -- it doesn't appear 50 was interested in settling their beef with hands ... dude's been mum on their public challenge.

Aaron, however, is coming back for seconds -- you'll recall ... he got pummeled by Lamar Odom last year, where he was greatly outsized. Benzino's also bigger than him, but it sounds like Aaron doesn't care ... and wants his shot to redeem himself.

No word on how much either of these guys is making for going 3 rounds, but ya gotta figure it's a sizable amount for them ... especially if Aaron's coming back after that ass-whoopin'.

It looks like people came to Coachella ready to party and break the law even more so on the second go-around this year -- because cops slapped on way more cuffs than Week 1.

The second-weekend data is out ... and according to Indio Police, officers made a total of 133 arrests from Friday through Sunday -- which is about 20 more busts than what they'd done the weekend prior ... and a whopping 36% more than Weekend 2 in 2019.

As for how the alleged crimes break down, IPD says 106 of those arrests were drug/alcohol or intoxication-related, 17 of them had to do with fake IDs, 5 were possession of drugs for sale and another 5 were miscellaneous.

Their ticket handouts were higher on the 2nd weekend as well compared to the first -- cops say they gave out 96 citations (compared to last week's 72) ... and that figure, they say, is 81% higher than what they doled out in 2019.

Seems lots of people were eager to whip out handicap placards ... because IPD says they gave 91 citations for the unlawful use of those. Four people allegedly parked in handicap stalls and 1 person brought an unregistered vehicle into the desert ... so claim the police.

Like we said ... the numbers are higher than they were on the week of the 15th, so it appears folks came down looking to go out with a bang seeing how Coachella won't be back for a full year.

Antonio Brown just dropped his newest album, but he's already thinking about the next one -- the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wideout just revealed he only wants athletes featured on his follow-up project.

Brown -- who won a Super Bowl with Tom Brady in 2021 -- joined "TMZ Live" to discuss the success of his album "Paradigm" ... as well as what he's envisioning moving forward.

"The next album got to be with all athletes," Brown told Harvey and Charles. "We want to give every athlete a chance to be creative -- NBA, baseball, football players."

"We just want to give premier athletes the opportunity to express themselves, be themselves. I know a lot of players that do it on their own that may not put it out," Brown added.

AB's current album has features from some huge names in hip hop ... and the project has been doing well, with help from his friend, Kanye West.

Brown told TMZ Sports despite Ye not being featured on the album, Kanye had a significant hand in its production, with West overseeing everything and paying for a lot of studio time.

Of course, artists such as Fivio Foreign, DaBaby, Young Thug, and Keyshia Cole are all featured on the project ... but AB is eyeing names like Melvin Ingram, Shaquille O'Neal, Miles Bridges and Darren Waller next time.

Finally, AB admitted Shaq's success as an athlete and rapper helped motivate his side hustle ... and opened up about potentially working with him in the past.

"Absolutely, Shaq was the only athlete that made a successful album that actually went platinum," Brown said. "And he still was a great player."

"He changed the fact of athletes being one-dimensional."

Bhad Bhabie wants her haters to take a good look at her receipts ... offering up alleged proof she's made tens of millions of dollars on OnlyFans.

Bhabie started taking heat last week when she claimed she'd made $50 million on the subscription site, with tons of people online casting doubt that she'd been able to make that much money.

Fast forward to Monday, when BB shared a screengrab allegedly showing her earnings page and the caption, "Go cry about it bitch," while also thanking Scoop Agency Partners.

If it's legit, you can see she's made close to $53M gross, with her net after fees and whatever else you need to pay OF around $43M. It's an INSANE amount of money for the 19-year-old who got her start as a troubled teen on Dr. Phil.

South Carolina Gamecocks superfan Darius Rucker gave "Wagon Wheel" an R-rated upgrade during a concert this week ... getting the whole crowd to chant "f*** Tennessee" in the middle of it -- and it's incredible.

The Hootie and the Blowfish frontman was part of the South Carolina women's basketball championship party on Sunday night ... and naturally, he had to put his passion for the 'Cocks on full display.

In fact, when it came time to do his hit song, Rucker switched up the lyrics that go "But he's a-headin' west from the Cumberland Gap To Johnson City, Tennessee" ... and instead, had the whole arena scream "f*** Tennessee at the top of their lungs to show hate for the Volunteers.

The moment is awesome ... and is quite the proper way to celebrate South Carolina's epic win over UConn earlier this month.

Nelly was also present for the free concert ... so the night was truly one to remember.

Of course, we've seen stuff like this happen in the past ... with Justin Bieber trolling fans in Montreal over his allegiance to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

One of DaBaby's first major legal cases is being discussed anew after a video capturing him fatally shooting someone surfaced online -- sparking a fierce debate about self-defense.

Rolling Stone published surveillance footage Sunday depicting a 2018 confrontation DaBaby was involved in at a Walmart out in his native North Carolina -- before he was super famous -- in which he shot and killed a man.

DB was eventually charged with carrying a concealed weapon for the shooting, but no murder charge.

DaBaby hasn't shied away from this case ... insisting from the jump he was acting in self-defense -- claiming the victim, 19-year-old Jaylin Craig, had pulled a gun ... and he feared for his and his family's life. He was with his GF and baby girl in the store.

RS suggests this video contradicts DaBaby's self-defense narrative, as he appears to be the aggressor in this situation -- at least based on what they posted. He charges at another man (not Craig) and the two get into a scuffle, with Craig monitoring on the outskirts.

Craig appears to reach for and even brandish what was later determined to be a gun on his person -- but RS says his grieving family insists he never would've had to resort to grabbing it if not for DB's aggressive behavior setting this whole thing in motion.

Frankly, it's unclear what exactly set all this off -- DB has claimed Craig and his pals were harassing and threatening him and his brood that night, which is why he went on the attack.

While Rolling Stone appears to be questioning DaBaby's story of protecting himself, others have seen this video and agreed ... he had every right to pull his own gun and fire once Craig pulled his, especially since he wasn't the one directly involved in the fistfight.

Of course, others say this video just proves DaBaby is a bad seed and apparently prone to violence ... something his own history since this incident seems to support, at least in some folks' eyes. As you know, he's been involved in countless physical altercations over the years.

Former MTV 'Making The Band' star Chopper has been busted for sex trafficking ... with law enforcement accusing him of being a pimp.

Chopper was arrested earlier this month in Maryland and he's being extradited to Las Vegas to face sex trafficking charges in Sin City.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, an undercover vice detective in Nevada posing as a sex worker says Chopper direct messaged them on Instagram with an apparent offer to make money through prostitution.

The undercover cop says they searched Chopper's IG account and noticed several posts related to prostitution and pimping, including posts where Chopper flaunted wealth and made references to being a pimp ... including one image of him inside a plane with a phone alongside the caption, "Sending em," with a money bag and crown emoji.

In the docs, the undercover cop says they launched an investigation into Chopper after seeing social media evidence of a potential sex trafficking operation.

The undercover says Chopper called them and bragged about frequent travel and having 7 homes across the country, including one in Las Vegas, while also telling the undercover Sin City was not a safe place to do business because law enforcement was cracking down.

What's more, the undercover says they had a phone interview with Chopper and after passing the test, Chopper told them he would make them part of his "team" and "stable."

The undercover says Chopper then became aggressive with them over the phone, ordering them around like he might do to a sex worker, telling them to pack their belongings, get to the airport and meet him in Charlotte, N.C. to join his "stable."

From there, the undercover says they stalled by telling Chopper they were scared to leave home ... with Chopper trying to verbally force them to make the trip, getting angry and demanding a $2,000 fee.

Between the alleged social media posts, direct messages, phone calls and fee demand ... the undercover says there was then enough evidence to arrest and charge Chopper with felony sex trafficking.

Dustin Johnson and Paulina Gretzky had a self-proclaimed "American Bad Ass" at their wedding this weekend ... with none other than Kid Rock taking the stage to perform for the newlyweds.

DJ and the hockey legend's daughter tied the knot at a lavish event at Blackberry Farm resort in Tennessee on Saturday ... and Paulina shared a short video of the reception, which featured the controversial singer.

"You are the joy of my life @djohnsonpga," Gretzky said on Instagram. "Thank you @kidrock."

Now, KR has a history of being unapologetically himself on the mic -- dropping homophobic slurs and going after Oprah Winfrey in the past.

His performance over the weekend seemed to be free of controversy ... as Rock sang a cover of Chris Stapleton's "Joy of My Life."

The musical act might not be as random as you think -- Rock is tight with DJ and Wayne ... and they've hit the links together over the years.

Sharon Osbourne has had a year of ups and downs ... opening up about a 'horrendous' facelift that left her looking like a "f***** Cyclops" and why she went to an unconventional form of therapy.

The former 'The Talk' host talked a lot about her recent plastic surgery in an interview with The Sunday Times ... "I had a full facelift done in October and I looked like one of those f***** mummies that they wrap".

She wasn't done ... "It was horrendous I'm, like, you've got to be f***** joking. One eye was different to the other. I looked like a f***** Cyclops. I'm, like, "All I need is a hunchback."

Sharon says she wasn't the only one who was upset ... her hubby, Ozzy Osbourne, agreed and even offered to pay to fix it, no matter the price.

Now, months after the surgery, she says she's finally growing into her face. But, Sharon has had other things to worry about this past year.

As you know, Sharon left "The Talk" after defending her friend Piers Morgan who attacked Meghan Markle on his show. When we asked her about a possible return to the show, she said ... "I would never go back to that show because CBS sucks big time d**k."

The Kid LAROI is looking out for his fans, stopping his show after some concertgoers clashed onstage with security guards.

The Australian rapper surprised his fans with a secret concert at the Lodge Room in L.A.'s Highland Park neighborhood, but during the performance ... 2 people got a little too amped and got taken down.

The 2 fans jumped onto the stage, and security had to tackle them to the ground. They didn't get tossed out of the building, though ... and The Kid actually stopped the show to check on them.

Once he made sure they were all good, he even found their shades on the stage and returned them, telling the owner they were "clean as f**k."

Fan safety has been on a lot of artists' minds lately ... as you'll recall, Billie Eilish paused her concert at Madison Square Garden in NYC back in February, telling the crowd to take a deep breath and step back.

Arcade Fire stopped their big Coachella performance last weekend as someone in the audience had a medical emergency ... the fan was taken out on a stretcher.

Forget Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp autographs ... here's one of the coolest pieces of Super Bowl LVI memorabilia you can own -- a ball signed by the Big Game's halftime show performers!!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... a pigskin that Eminem, Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige, Kendrick Lamar and Anderson .Paak all signed following their epic show at the event in L.A. has just hit the block at Heritage Auctions.

And, according to experts, it could be a bargain for a potential buyer ... as it's expected to fetch just around $1,500!!

The ball is pretty sweet ... five of the artists that performed just before the Rams won the Lombardi Trophy back in February all put their signatures on it in bold, black ink.

The leather also features the Super Bowl LVI logo and other Wilson markings ... and comes with letters of authenticity.

Bidding is set to close on the auction in mid-May ... leaving plenty of time to scrounge up the cash for the piece of history.

Brad Fischetti, the last living member of LFO, isn't going to stop playing one of the band's hits even though its lyrics refer to now-canceled Abercrombie & Fitch, which was roasted in Netflix's latest doc ... and it's all about honoring his late bandmates.

Brad tells us he'll continue to perform the 1999 hit "Summer Girls" at his concerts ... as you'll recall, the chorus to LFO's song goes, "I like girls that wear Abercrombie & Fitch ... I'd take her if I had one wish."

A&F's shady work behind the scenes has recently been exposed by Netflix's docufilm, "White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch" ... which features former employees revealing a toxic workplace that emphasized thin, white beautiful people as their vision of "All-American."

Brad's goal with anything he does with the band is to honor his lifelong friends and band members Devin Lima and Rich Cronin.

TMZ broke both stories ... the other two members of LFO both passed away from battles with leukemia - Rich Cronin in 2010 and Devin Lima in 2018. Brad, the last remaining member, has done his best to keep their memory alive.

Megan Thee Stallion is doing her first sit-down interview to talk about what happened with Tory Lanez -- and so far, it sounds like an emotional story.

The rapper is going to get in the weeds about what she claims happened Monday morning with Gayle King, and on Sunday ... CBS aired a portion of MTS's remarks, which show her getting incredibly teary-eyed as she recounts the alleged blow-by-blow.

In her own words, Meg says there were 3 of them in the car that night -- and that the other two people, including TL, didn't want to leave whatever party they were at ... but she did.

Sounds like Megan got out of the vehicle, at which point ... she claims Tory fired a gun in her direction from the car, allegedly saying "Dance, bitch." Megan says she was terrified to misstep because she thought she'd get shot, and breaks down to Gayle remembering it.

As you know ... Tory's been charged in connection to her injuries -- shrapnel being lodged into her feet -- although he's pled not guilty and denied wrongdoing. We haven't really heard his side of the story in great detail, and probably won't until their trial starts in September.