Music

The BET Awards are going off tonight, but what TV cameras can’t show you is how hyped the celebs are behind the scenes.

The audience is full of big names at the Microsoft Theater in LA Sunday night ... Lena Waithe, Cynthia Erivo, Billy Porter, Janelle Monáe, Ari Lennox, Ella Mai, and Lucky Daye -- to name a few!!!

Everyone from the front to the back had good vibes all night with Taraji P. Henson hosting ... and those A+ performances kept them on their feet.

Lizzo kicked the night off in all gold, performing one of her hits -- and you know it was "About Damn Time" for a flute solo.

Jack Harlow brought out Lil Wayne and Brandy for his debut performance ... this coming after the guy got in a little heat -- he recently admitted he wasn't aware of the impact she made in the R&B game.

Latto's W was one of the biggest of the night -- she took home the award for Best New Artist, and the crowd clearly had her support.

Vic Mensa's pleading guilty to possession of a controlled substance, but he won't do any time behind bars after striking a deal with prosecutors ... TMZ has learned.

Kendra Glover, a rep for the Loudoun County Commonwealth's Attorney, tells TMZ ... Mensa pled guilty to one count of possession of a Schedule III controlled substance, which is a Class 1 misdemeanor.

We're told as part of the plea deal he got 12 months in jail, but that was suspended -- meaning instead of serving it behind bars, he'll have a year of unsupervised probation.

Vic will also have to take a substance abuse assessment, perform 25 hours of community service, and pay a $1k fine. BTW, he'll get 50 percent off that fine if he successfully completes the other probation terms.

As we've reported, Vic was arrested back in January at Dulles International airport for going through customs with a stash of shrooms.

Vic tells TMZ ... "In this case, I have decided to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge. I have been extremely vocal about my mental health, the culture at large and access to mental health treatment. It is important to note the extensive research being done on the topic of psilocybin [shrooms] and the many significant movements underway for legalization and decriminalization.

He continues, "Esteemed universities such as Johns Hopkins, University of California, NYU, Mount Sinai School of Medicine and The Imperial College of London have all immersed themselves in years-long research programs with full departments and centers dedicated to this work. Unfortunately, our laws have not kept up with the research showing that psychedelic plants and compounds can be successfully used to treat otherwise treatment-resistant mental illness."

Rapper Shyne is jumping back into the music scene in a big way ... he's set to join a ton of artists at the BET Awards to honor one of the biggest names in the game.

The Belizean rapper-turned-politician is gearing up to take the stage for Sunday night's ceremony ... in recognition of Diddy's Lifetime Achievement Award.

Shyne's going to be performing one of his classics from 2000, "Bad Boyz" ... the guy hasn't done the song live much -- once in a lifetime opportunity for fans to witness.

Shyne's been getting into politics since laying down track after track in the industry ... he currently lives in Belize where he serves as Leader of the Opposition and the Ambassador of Music. He's also in Belize's House of Representatives.

Travis Scott is getting dragged for his latest purchase, a $5.5 million luxury car ... the family of a 9-year-old who died at Astroworld says it's just not a good look.

Bob Hillard, the attorney for the family of Ezra Blount, tells TMZ ... Ezra would still be alive today, enjoying his summer, if Travis would've spent half of what he paid for the Bugatti on simple safety measures at the deadly music festival.

As we reported ... Ezra, who was trampled at Astroworld, sued Travis before he died from his injuries ... and Travis recently splurged on a new Bugatti Veyron Chiron Super Sport despite the mountain of lawsuits he's facing.

While Ezra's attorney says Travis has every right to live life as he sees fit, including buying what he wants, Hillard rips Travis' choices as "excessive" ... and says everything Travis does should be questioned because of what happened at Astroworld.

Ezra's lawyer also has some choice words for Travis' camp ... ripping them for trying to make Travis look good with a $5.5 million car in his driveway as the Astroworld litigation heats up.

We reached out to Travis' reps ... so far no word back.

Move over Hollywood Vampires ... there's an even bigger band on the run.

Paul McCartney performed at the Glastonbury Festival Saturday in the UK, and brought out some musicians you may have heard of ... Bruce Springsteen and Dave Grohl.

It was a closing-of-the-book type concert -- at least that's the hope -- it's the first Festival since the pandemic hit.

Paul, who recently turned octogenarian, played some Beatles classics, like "Can't Buy Me Love," and then went into post-Beatles territory with "Maybe I'm Amazed."

Then the fun ... he brought out Dave for "I Saw Her Standing There," and "Band on the Run."

Then it was Bruce's turn ... he and Paul sang "Glory Days" and "I Wanna Be Your Man" -- interesting he picked one originally sung by Ringo.

Now get this ... Paul sang 38 songs during the 3-hour show. What makes this remarkable is that when Paul was barely 20, the Beatles routinely only performed for 15 or 20 minutes during concerts.

The Festival celebrated its 50th anniversary, and 200,000 people were on hand for the festivities.

Oliver Tree kicked the crap out of a fan who climbed on stage and got way too close for comfort ... and it's all on video!!!

The singer was performing at the Forgotten Runes NFT convention in New York City when someone from the crowd made it on stage and tried to put their hat on Oliver's head ... then got their ass whooped.

As you see, Oliver doesn't skip a beat as he body slams the fan to the ground and starts throwing punches. After a pretty good pummeling, security drags the fan off stage as Oliver tells the crowd, "Get this f****** prick outta here!!!"

Folks who were there say cops weren't called and the fan had some sage advice as he was being escorted out of the event, saying ... "Don't go on stage or you will get beat up by Oliver Tree."

Olivia Rodrigo used her festival set in England to take a shot at the Supreme Court Justices who overturned Roe v. Wade ... saying they couldn't care less about women's freedom.

Olivia brought out Lily Allen to sing her famous song "F*** You" and dedicated it to five members of SCOTUS ... Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barrett, and Brett Kavanaugh.

In speaking out against SCOTUS overturning the 50-year-old precedent that legalized abortions nationwide, Olivia told the crowd she's devastated and terrified ... warning many women and girls are going to die because of the change.

Folks at the Glastonbury Festival cheered as Olivia dedicated "F*** You" to the five Justices she says "showed us at the end of the day they truly don't give a s*** about freedom."

Lily sent a message to the highest court in the United States too ... flipping a double bird.

John Lennon allegedly had an affair with an assistant who was 10 years his junior and it was all Yoko Ono's idea ... according to a new documentary.

According to "The Lost Weekend: A Love Story," a doc that just premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival ... John had an affair in the 1970s with his assistant, May Pang.

The film, narrated by May and from her point of view, claims May initially met John and his wife Yoko when she was 19 years old and starting a job at The Beatles' music company in New York, Apple Records.

The story goes ... John and Yoko liked May so much they asked her to become their personal assistant, working for them for a few years until one morning in 1973 when Yoko allegedly insisted May go out with John.

The doc claims Yoko told May she was not getting along with her husband and feared John would start seeing other people ... with Yoko suggesting May get involved.

May was 22 and John was 32 when the alleged affair began ... and she claims John had previously told Yoko he found her sexually attractive, though she didn't have romantic feelings toward him when he first pursued her.

The alleged affair lasted 18 months, beginning with John kissing May in an elevator ... and saw John and May move across the country to Los Angeles, where Lennon started making music again with Paul McCartney.

Things even got to the point where John and May were sending joint Christmas cards ... according to the doc ... though they are said to have kept their alleged affair secret from everyone outside their tight friend circle.

Michael Jackson's estate claims a man engaged to one of his siblings used the chaos and sadness around MJ's death to jack a bunch of property from the singer's home.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, MJ's estate claims Jeffre Phillips, who they say was engaged to one of Michael's siblings when he died, apparently used his 9-day stay in Michael's Carolwood House to steal personal and private property.

Michael's estate claims Phillips started staying at the home right after MJ died on June 25, 2009 and pulled off brazen acts of theft under the cover of all the hullabaloo around the home ... making off with items including MJ's iPhone, California drivers license, prescription pill bottles with pills inside and some clothes.

What's more, Michael's estate claims Phillips also stole handwritten notes from MJ ... plus a briefcase filled with personal and business papers, as well as video cameras, computers and hard drives.

And, get this ... the estate says Phillips even stole the pajamas Michael was wearing in the final hours before his death -- which had apparently been removed from his body by the paramedics trying to save his life -- and a resuscitator tube that appears to have been used on Michael.

The lawsuit does not specify which of Michael's siblings Phillips was engaged to.

The timing of the filing is interesting ... it was filed Friday, just before the 13th anniversary of Michael's death.

Shaq's generosity knows no limits -- the NBA legend is donating the $50,000 he was set to make from a DJ'ing gig in Buffalo to the family of one of the shooting victims.

"DJ Diesel" has been making his rounds on tour ... and was naturally reticent about continuing on with his scheduled show in Buffalo in the aftermath of the mass shooting that took place last month, sources tell TMZ Sports.

But, the Hall of Famer and 4X-NBA champ decided to still do the show ... knowing how much the event meant to those who attended.

Before Shaq got busy on the ones-and-twos ... he met with the widow and son of Aaron Salter Jr., the retired police officer who was shot and killed while heroically trying to stop the gunman inside Tops supermarket in Buffalo from killing more innocent people.

We're told ... not only did The Big Aristotle have some one-on-one time with members of the Salter family, but he also agreed to give the money he was going to make to them in wake of the heinous tragedy.

The lives of many in the Buffalo community were altered and affected ... when an armed gunman senselessly executed at least 10 people in a vile hate crime.

We've seen countless people step up -- like the Buffalo Bills org. led by star quarterback Josh Allen -- in the city's time of need ... and Shaq, who's no stranger to charitable deeds, is the latest example.

Back in December, O'Neal raised $2 million in charity for his "Shaquille O'Neal Foundation" -- which provides resources and opportunities to the youth in this country without access to either -- by selling unique NFTs of himself.

Lizzo isn’t on board with SCOTUS reversing Roe v. Wade and opening the door for states to ban abortions ... so, the “Grrls” rapper put her money -- a lot of it -- where her emotions are.

In a passionate round of tweets, Lizzo revealed she’s taking $500,000 of her upcoming Special Tour money and donating it to Planned Parenthood.

Tour promoter Live Nation will also match that amount, making for a $1 million donation.

As you know by now ... on Friday, the Supreme Court overturned the 50-year-old Roe v. Wade decision, sparking a wave of protests all across the United States.

Roddy Ricch is shaking off the sophomore slump of his last album with a new EP titled "The Big 3" -- and has plenty of wild stories to share about making it.

During a new interview with DJ Hed and Chuck Dizzle for HomeGrownRadio, Roddy discussed making up with Kanye after he had the cojones to publicly diss Ye’s Grammy piss stunt back in 2020.

The 2 made up to record the “Donda” track “Pure Souls” and Roddy says the creative process was so unpredictable, one minute they’d be in the studio … then Arizona, Chicago -- basically anywhere a private jet could land.

Roddy also shared how he hilariously put Ye into a music-making frenzy -- fresh off a plane without any relaxation time -- while others, like Lil Baby, hinted Roddy should walk on eggshells around him.

RR did admit his last album, “Live Life Fast,” slowed him down a bit, but he’s ready to get back into a groove and even pondered making a DJ Mustard-produced album.

Amber Rose is cooking up her own version of a hot girl summer -- she's now a full-fledged rapper who's applying some of her Slut Walk magic to her music!

Amber unleashed her new song "GYHO/Gotcha" … a sexually charged acronym for "Get ya hoe on" and remix to the Big Tymers classic "Get Ya Roll On."

For the video, Amber and friends burn up Hollywood and flaunt plenty of Playboy promo … which is fitting since Amber recently joined their Centerfold brand where Cardi B serves as Creative Director.

Mannie Fresh made the beat so you know it's Cash Money-approved ... and Amber didn't hold back on details with lyrics like, "Pop that Cris, pop that Mo, smash that bish, freak dat hoe."

All in all, the entire video is a touchy-feely affair.

Amber's dabbled in rap before, about 10 years ago, but it appears she's ready for a career switch.

Post Malone has been on a promotional spree -- for his new "Twelve Carat Toothache" album and newborn baby -- and his "Tommy Lee" collaborator Tyla Yaweh couldn't be happier!!!

We chopped it up with the rager rapper Thursday outside LAX, and he says seeing Post Malone adapt to fatherhood is a beautiful thing.

As Posty's BFF and artist, Tyla is one of the handful of people to meet his baby girl, who was born last month. He also had nothing but kind words for Posty's mystery fiancée!

Of course, Tyla isn't settling down soon — he was in town to drop off his upcoming "RAGER BØY" to his record label, which he says he slapped right on their desk.

And, while he's always down for the turn-up and good libations amongst his fans, he wholeheartedly agrees with the recent Juul e-cigarette ban ... because he says it's killing fans!

He'll need them for his upcoming shows. Expect collabos with Machine Gun Kelly, Travis Barker and Post ... with whom Tyla has a platinum history.

Britney Spears' blood feud with her parents and sister isn't stopping Lynne Spears from wishing her daughter well ... and hoping against hope they can patch things up.

Brit's mom was at LAX Thursday night when a photog asked about the state of the Spears family from Lynne's perspective. We already know exactly how Britney feels.

So, could the family ever get back together? Lynne makes it clear she's not giving up on that yet ... although, it's unclear how she could possibly make that happen right now.

Mama Spears says she just wants to see her daughter happy ... and she absolutely meant those sentimental words she shared on Instagram right after the wedding.

You'll recall, Britney tied the knot with her hubby Sam Asghari, earlier this month but she didn't invite her parents or her sister, Jamie. But, that didn't stop Lynne from publicly showing her support.

Lynne kept a close watch on her daughter's big day via social media.

In an IG comment, she wrote, "You look radiant and so happy! Your wedding is the 'Dream' wedding! And having it at your home makes it so sentimental and special! I am soooo happy for you! I love you!"

Two Travis Scott fans are somewhere cradling his shoes right now, after Trav blew their minds by handing them a pair of shoes ... apparently, right off his feet!!!

Here's how it went down -- Travis was leaving his event Thursday night at TAO in Hollywood, and, as usual, a group of fans were waiting outside to greet him and hoping to snap some pics or get an autograph.

The rapper hopped in his car and decided to swing by the crowd before taking off ... rolling down his window, and shocking the hell out of them by handing out a pair of laced-up Jordans.

Their faces say it all ... complete and utter shock. Even the security guard nearby was showing some respect for their new gifts.

One of the kids took off pretty quick after getting the Jordan 1 Lows -- gotta stash that in a safe place!

TS has been working closely with Nike for a while ... doing shoe collabs that sell out fast -- one of the latest drops had over a million people going online to clean them out in under 30 minutes.