Music

Just follow the Instagram and TikTok hashtags -- up-and-coming Memphis rapper GloRilla's "F.N.F. (Let's Go)" single is the hottest twerk anthem of 2022, and now she’s joined one of the hottest labels in the game ... Yo Gotti’s Collective Music Group!!!

Young Glo checked in with TMZ Hip Hop Wednesday, following her CMG chaining day -- which included a $500,000 cash money signing bonus just for being lit.

According to Glo, 'F.N.F.' (which stands for "F*** N***a Free btw) wasn't inspired by one particular relationship, but rather a sea of bird-brain males she observed in singlehood.

GloRilla tells us she manifested her success through the power of her words, using terms like "when" instead of "if" to speak her wins into power.

She also has no shame in her game...  thanking all her haters for giving her a punching bag on her way to the top 😜❗

Her breakout hit peaked at 91 on the Billboard Hot 100 and had everyone from Cardi B to Saweetie to Kodak Black co-signing the hit -- not to mention her fellow CMG labelmate Moneybagg Yo, who recently gave her a Ja Morant alley-oop at Spotify's RapCaviar event where Gotti was named "Coach of the Year."

GloRilla not only says she's not gonna be a one-hit-wonder, but promises she's got more big records on the way.

Eric Holder has been found guilty in the murder of Nipsey Hussle ... gunning the rapper and activist down in broad daylight back in 2019.

The jury returned the guilty verdict in an L.A. courtroom Wednesday, about 3 weeks after the trial began. He was found guilty of 1st-degree murder for killing Nipsey. Holder shot two other people during the murder -- he was found guilty of 2 counts of attempted voluntary manslaughter, guilty of 2 counts of assault with a firearm and guilty of possession of a firearm by a felon. He was found not guilty of premeditated attempted murder.

The details of the brutal murder were outlined early in the trial -- Deputy District Attorney John McKinney told the jury Holder kicked Nipsey in the head after filling his body with lead, calling it proof the attack was personal.

He then told the rapper "You're through," to which Nipsey replied, "You got me."

Among the people on the stand was Bryannita Nicholson, who was with Holder on the day of the murder. She stated Holder asked her to drive him around the block, she saw he had a gun and heard gunshots when Holder got out of her vehicle.

Kerry Lathan, one of the people that got shot in the back during the incident, took the stand during the trial, but he stayed pretty tight-lipped.

Is it Michael or a Michael imposter? That ongoing debate about 3 of Michael Jackson's posthumously released songs is behind the sudden disappearance of the tracks from major streaming services.

The songs -- "Monster," "Keep Your Head Up" and "Breaking News" -- were all on the "Michael" album, released in 2010 ... the year after Jackson's death. But, ever since they came out some fans, and even Michael's family members, have questioned whether they feature legit MJ vocals.

The songs vanished from Spotify, Apple Music and Tidal streaming services last week, which many fans saw as confirmation that's not really MJ singing on them -- however, a rep for the official MJ website says that's not exactly the case.

The rep confirms the songs "are no longer being made available by Sony Music for purchase or streaming but I should point out that the removal of these three songs has nothing to do with their authenticity. The Estate and Sony Music believe the continuing conversation about the tracks is distracting the fan community and casual Michael Jackson listeners from focusing their attention where it should be -- on Michael’s legendary and deep music catalog."

One fan who probably isn't buying that explanation is Vera Serova, who filed a lawsuit in 2014, accusing Sony Music, the Jackson Estate and the producers of the songs of lying to consumers. She lost the case in 2018, but is now appealing to California's Supreme Court.

The Estate tells TMZ ... taking down the songs was "the simplest and best way to move beyond the conversation associated with these tracks once and for all." Instead, the Estate wants fans to focus on the Tony-winning Broadway production, "MJ: The Musical" and other projects celebrating his catalog. The rep added, "Nothing should be read into this action concerning the authenticity of the tracks."

A scary moment for Carlos Santana and his fans, as the legendary musician collapsed onstage during one of his concerts.

Santana was performing at Pine Knob Music Theater, outside Detroit, Tuesday night, when a concertgoer tells us the medical emergency happened. We're told Santana was bout 4 or 5 songs into his set, and started to sing a song called "Joy."

Realizing something was wrong, we're told Santana sat down in front of the drums, and then collapsed backward. From there, many staffers, including EMTs rushed to his aid.

You can see in video from the show, a black tarp was brought out in order to shield Santana while officials were working on him.

Thankfully, Santana came back around, and was seen waving to the crowd as he was wheeled off the stage.

It's currently unclear what caused Carlos to collapse, but it appears he was taken to the hospital for further evaluation.

It looks like it's back to business for Travis Barker 'cause he's getting back into the studio ... after being released from the hospital.

Travis was spotted Tuesday behind the wheel of a Mercedes G Wagon, heading into a Calabasas studio to make some musical magic.

Clearly, the Blink-182 drummer is feeling a whole lot better and looked pretty healthy, sporting black shades and a "D.O.A." T-shirt as he emerged from his vehicle in the studio's parking lot.

Travis was anything but dead on arrival, though. In fact, he greeted the studio operator with an energetic fist bump, before heading inside.

We're told several other musicians arrived at the studio about 30 minutes later along with Travis' assistant, who went on a food and coffee run for the entire crew. Whatever Travis and Co. are cooking up from behind those walls must be good ... they've been rocking out for hours, we're told.

Of course, this comes after Travis was rushed to the hospital last week. TMZ broke the story ... he had a colonoscopy that triggered pancreatitis, which is a serious health issue that kept him in the hospital bed for days as he was being treated.

Travis told folks on social media, "During the endoscopy, I had a very small polyp removed right in a very sensitive area, usually handled by specialists, which unfortunately damaged a critical pancreatic drainage tube. This resulted in severe life threatening pancreatitis."

This isn't the first time we've seen Travis out since the health scare. Travis and Kourtney were also spotted taking a joyride in a vintage truck on July 4th, with Penelope and Reign cruising in the back.

Scoring anything Janis Joplin owned would be cool, but an instrument that belonged to Janis AND Jimi Hendrix is a whole new level of rock memorabilia.

We're talking about a hand-painted mandolin that fetched a whopping $281,250 after 29 bidders battled it out. The history on this item is pretty cool, so that price could be considered a steal.

Up until now, it has never been up for auction, and had been a part of a private collection for 20 years after it was acquired from the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.

More importantly, guitar god Jimi was the last famous owner ... having received it from Janis as a gift.

Besides just being a cool instrument to own, the mandolin represents the friendship between 2 of the most iconic rock stars of all time. It's painted with flowers and phrases such as "love thy neighbor," "Janis Joplin & B.B.H.Co," and "Jimi Hendrix."

The new owner got themselves 2 Rock and Roll Hall of Famers for the price of one.

BTW, the Johnny Depp motorcycle from "Cry-Baby" was a part of the same auction ... but its reserve price wasn't met. Instead, GWS auctions say it has several museums interested and currently vying for it.

R. Kelly just won a mini legal battle against the feds, who just did an about-face and took the disgraced singer off suicide watch after he filed a lawsuit against the prison, TMZ has learned.

In newly filed court docs obtained by TMZ, Metropolitan Detention Center Warden Heriberto H. Tellez -- who was also named in the suit -- says he made the decision today to remove Kelly from suicide watch following a "clinical assessment." No further details on the assessment were provided.

Last week, Kelly filed his lawsuit claiming that he was being subjected to "cruel and unusual punishment" -- which violates his 8th Amendment rights -- after he was put on suicide watch at Brooklyn's MDC.

In the suit, Kelly alleged that he wasn't even thinking of killing himself and told prison officials just that. Kelly also claimed he was placed in these harsh conditions because of his celebrity.

The feds initially filed a motion opposing the suit, saying they would clinically assess Kelly for the duration of his suicide watch.

Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison last Wednesday following his conviction last year on federal racketeering and sex trafficking charges.

Prosecutors had asked the judge to sentence Kelly to more than 25 years behind bars, while his defense attorneys asked for up to 10 years.

Robert Crimo III, the person of interest in the 4th of July Highland Park massacre, joked about school shootings online and even drew a sketch of him getting shot and killed by cops with a gun by his side.

Crimo has been on social media for years, posting violent images of mass shootings. He called himself a rapper with the name "Awake the Rapper" with 16,000 Spotify listeners every month.

One of his drawings shows a man lying on the ground, presumably dead with a rifle by his side, as police closed in on him.

In one image, you see a man holding a rifle as someone appears dead on the ground and another person is standing hands up as the gun is pointed toward him.

There's another drawing of Crimo throwing bullets on a classroom floor, decked out in armor.

He seemed to have contempt for politicians ... posting a photo last fall of Budd Dwyer, the Pennsylvania official who shot and killed himself on live TV with the caption, "I wish politicians still gave speeches like this."

He did seem to have a soft spot for Donald Trump, appearing at several rallies ... in one case dressed as "Where's Waldo." There's another pic of him draped in a Trump flag.

He was very open about his fascination with mass murder and violence ... and lots of people saw this for years. As far as we can tell so far, there were no direct threats that would have alerted law enforcement ... although apparently, he was 'known to law enforcement.'

Travis Barker has resurfaced after his scary hospitalization last week, and he didn't look the worse for wear.

Travis and his wife Kourtney Kardashian took a ride in a vintage orange truck on the 4th, with Penelope and Reign in the back.

They looked super chill, as they listened to Bruno Mars' "Grenade."

Travis has said he's feeling a lot better after landing in the hospital.

TMZ broke the story ... he had a colonoscopy which triggered pancreatitis -- a serious problem that kept him in a hospital bed for days as doctors ran tests and treated the ailment.

Travis took to social media last weekend and said "I went in for an endoscopy Monday feeling great. But After dinner, I developed excruciating pain and have been hospitalized ever since."

He went on ...  "During the endoscopy, I had a very small polyp removed right in a very sensitive area, usually handled by specialists, which unfortunately damaged a critical pancreatic drainage tube. This resulted in severe life threatening pancreatitis."

Travis Scott stopped his show Monday night because several fans put themselves in danger ... and it's impossible not to think about the tragedy at Astroworld when looking at the video.

Travis and Meek Mill performed at The Day Party concert at Coney Art Walls in Coney Island. He took the stage at around 8 PM, DJ'd and then performed.

The crowd was packed in, so much so that a couple of concertgoers climbed up a lighting truss and dangled as they watched Travis perform. One of the fans must have planned ahead ... he was wearing a Spiderman costume.

Travis saw what was happening and stopped the show, ordering the fans to climb down from the truss. They followed his orders and the concert went on.

As you all know, Travis is facing multiple lawsuits over the Astroworld tragedy, with some of the victims and victims' families alleging he should have stopped the show before the crush. Travis insists he didn't see or know what was going on, and fact is ... apparently neither did the police, who seemed oblivious.

Katy Perry sent a message this holiday weekend to express frustration about the Roe v. Wade decision -- but all Twitter wants to do is point out what it sees as hypocrisy.

The singer tweeted Monday about the 4th of July and what it means in her eyes in the wake of the Supreme Court's ruling to reverse the landmark decision ... effectively outlawing abortions almost immediately in several states across the country, and more to come.

She sarcastically writes, "'Baby you’re a firework' is a 10 but women in the US have fewer rights than an actual sparkler smh" -- clearly referencing her 2010 track of the same name.

NBD, or so you would think ... rather than getting praised for her pro-choice sentiment here -- as many celebs have been lately -- Katy is actually getting dragged to no end right now. And it all has to do with who she publicly supported for L.A. Mayor ... aka, Rick Caruso.

As we reported ... KP was one of many celebs who endorsed the billionaire entrepreneur and real estate developer running for Mayor. And while he didn't outright win in June's election -- he has a chance to take it home in Nov. in a runoff race with Rep. Karen Bass.

The problem ... Caruso, who's running as a Dem, has been perceived as wish-washy on his abortion stance over the years, at least that's what old interviews from the 2000s suggest. Until recently ... Rick was a Republican and has donated to a lot of GOPers, including folks some say have it out for abortion rights -- all of which he's been called out over of late.

Now, he says he's pro-choice and touts himself as an advocate for women's rights. Unfortunately for him (and for Katy, it seems) ... Twitter's not buying it, and they're telling Katy to sit this one out due to her very vocal support for him.

She's far from the only celeb who backed Caruso, though -- Kim Kardashian also got behind him in the run-up to the election last month ... but she appears to have wisely dodged Twitter to lament the abortion sitch lately.

Harry Styles is devastated by the mass shooting in Copenhagen, where he was supposed to perform just hours later.

Harry canceled his concert Sunday ... after a gunman opened fire at Field's shopping centre, which is less than 2 football fields in distance away from the venue where Harry was supposed to perform later that night.

Harry said he was feeling utter "devastation" ... "I'm heartbroken along with the people of Copenhagen. I adore this city. The people are so warm and full of love."

He went on ... "I'm devastated for the victims, their families, and everyone hurting. I'm sorry we couldn't be together. Please look after each other. H."

Police say the shooter was a 22-year-old Danish man, and they believe he acted alone. Authorities have not ruled out terrorism.

The gunman entered the mall with a rifle and then began firing randomly at people inside the mall.

Sammy Hagar makes most of his money from booze, books and bars ... which he says is the precise reason he enjoys rocking out with his band. We will explain.

The Red Rocker joined us on "TMZ Live" and we asked if he made more money outside of music ... he does, and he tells us how his success in the business world benefits his art.

Sammy says the only reason he's still playing shows with his band, The Circle, is because he doesn't have to play music to pay the bills ... a big bonus for a 74-year-old rock star.

The former Van Halen frontman says whenever he plays a show nowadays, it's for fun and not about the paycheck. His wealth allows him to pay his band more, making everyone happy and giving him the feeling they're just like a good ol' garage band.

In addition to being in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Sammy's a savvy businessman ... with legendary restaurants like the Cabo Wabo Cantina, where he sells his own lines of spirits. He also writes books, including his latest, "Sammy Hagar's Cocktail Hits: 85 Personal Favorites from the Red Rocker."

American singer and songwriter Don McLean was just 26 years old when he released his hit song "American Pie" -- the eight-and-a-half minute track that is commonly associated with national pride and patriotism -- back in 1971.

The song's success has led to many other iconic musicians renditioning the classic, including John Mayer, Madonna, Jon Bon Jovi, Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks ... not to mention, "American Pie" was steadfast on numerous music charts for decades!

"Bye-Bye, Miss American Pie."

Janet Jackson was not impervious to technical difficulties that plagued Essence Festival -- losing audio midway through her performance ... but powering through to kill it regardless.

The singer was one of the big headliners at the NOLA concert series this weekend at Caesars Superdome ... where TONS of huge stars performed in an event comparable to Coachella. What was also comparable ... audio issues often experienced in a live show.

No exception for Janet, unfortunately, because during her set ... her mic seemed to cut out while she was in the middle of either talking or singing, seen here in video obtained by TMZ.

The good news is that this little hiccup appeared to go mostly unnoticed, and the rest of Janet's time on stage was a smash hit ... as she rifled through hit after hit after hit for more than an hour -- leaving fans more than satisfied with the tunes and choreography.

Now, it's worth mentioning ... there seemed to be quite a bit of sound issues throughout the past couple days of acts -- including some complaints about Halle and Chloe Bailey's set, with folks saying their levels were off and that they sounded funky to the live audience.

The audio for C/H were the least of some people's concerns though ... even more viewers at home were pissed that Hulu only live-streamed their very last song ... a recurring theme for the festival -- namely, who subscribers watching on Hulu actually got to see.

This was perhaps most notable during Friday's show, when Nicki Minaj was the headliner for the night ... even though her performance didn't end up making it onto the Hulu broadcast.

Angela Yee -- who was on hosting duties that night -- noted they weren't going to be able to show Nicki's set for audiences at home, citing "circumstances beyond our control." NM did indeed perform ... and she aired out her frustrations with whatever was going on BTS.

In light of Nicki's mishaps -- as well as other artists here and there -- many were daring Essence/Hulu to screw up Janet's set (jokingly), saying there'd be problems if they did.

Welp, they did end up screwing the pooch a little bit for JJ after all ... but no harm, no foul. She carried on like a pro, and appears to have put on a helluva number for everyone.

Hip-hop trailblazer and legendary dancer Bruno "Pop N Taco" Falcon has died ... this according to his loved ones.

His sister, Diana Wolgamott, tells TMZ ... the longtime Los Angeles-based breaker and choreographer passed away Saturday at his Long Beach home. She says she believes he may have died from a possible heart attack. We're told his death is considered natural, and no autopsy will be conducted.

Bruno was a staple in the dance scene throughout the '80s and '90s -- specifically, through a style he sorta carved out as his own in locking ... which he popularized in the cult classic film "Breakin'" where he played one of the main characters, Electro Rock 1 opposite Ice-T.

Speaking of, the rapper confirmed his death on Twitter ... replying to a fan who asked if he'd heard of Bruno's death and saying, "Yep, just got a text. He was to young. Smh."

The guy went on to act in other films such as "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey," "Thumbelina" and even Michael Jackson's "Moonwalker." He actually had a pretty tight relationship with MJ ... having danced on and off with the superstar for years, even appearing in some music videos.

He might best be remembered as one of the dancers on "Smooth Criminal" who did the iconic lean dance sequence. Bruno is also said to have taught Michael a thing or two about popping and locking ... a style MJ employed often in his career. Bruno was with Michael during his HIStory tour in the '90s -- he appears to have served in a choreographer capacity.

Bruno has also danced with other Jackson family members including La Toya and Janet. He's also appeared in music videos for Lionel Richie and Chaka Khan, among other storied artists.

He was 58.