Music

The NFL is facing yet another lawsuit ... this time, musician Bobby Nunn says the league used his famous "Rocket 2 U" song during numerous broadcasts -- including a recent 2022 "Sunday Night Football" game -- but never compensated him for it.

In the suit, filed in New York on Wednesday and obtained by TMZ Sports, Nunn says the smash hit that he wrote and produced for the Jets back in 1988 was used without his permission multiple times by the NFL and NBC Universal.

Nunn specifically claims his song was played during the broadcast of the Packers vs. Vikings 'SNF' game on Jan. 3. In the docs, Nunn included a screen grab of the portion of the broadcast where he says the tune could be heard.

Nunn, who's perhaps most well known for his "She's Just a Groupie" song, claims the NFL never licensed the song to use it ... and says when he made contact with the league and its TV partner about it all, they denied infringement.

Nunn is asking for damages ... as well as for the league and NBC to stop using his song without his consent.

This is now at least the third time the NFL has been sued by a high-profile plaintiff in the last few months -- you'll recall, both Jon Gruden and Brian Flores are involved in lawsuits against The Shield as well.

Ashanti's in the middle of a full-fledged renaissance, which includes a new children's book and re-recording her self-titled debut album -- and it's clear she's not looking back when it comes to Irv Gotti or her old label.

We caught up with the R&B sensation in NYC, where she said laying down her album tracks -- including her #1 hit "Foolish" -- would be a sweat because she's been performing them nonstop since 2002.

However, when we asked about the possibility of her appearing in the upcoming "Murder Inc." docuseries, even her "momager" Tina Douglas had to LOL -- and so did Ashanti.

She's turned the page on that chapter of her career -- in fact, she told The Breakfast Club, she's unapologetically redoing the album simply to get better royalties than she did from her "Murder Inc." deal.

She even turned the album into an NFT to celebrate its 20th anniversary!

Not that Ashanti gives a crap, but her big biz moves aren't sitting well with Gotti ... who claims she's trying "f*** him" out of spite.

No matter how many kids he helps create, Nick Cannon is making it clear ... Mariah Carey is his one and true love.

Nick was a guest on "The Hot Tee Talk Show" where he dove headfirst into the topic "Spin The Block" ... which asks about rekindling romance with exes. Without hesitation, Nick admitted if things "could be like they were" -- when he and Mariah were a fun-toting family -- he'd be all in for it.

He also laughed at the notion he still had a hall pass!!!

Mariah's currently dating her ex-backup dancer Bryan Tanaka -- but Nick and Mariah still co-parent their 11-year-old twins Moroccan and Monroe ... so it was a valid question.

Nick's kinda busy himself on the daddy daycare front. He's currently on record as the father of 8 kids and number 9 is reportedly on the way.

Offset and Takeoff are making sure Rich the Kid has a memorable milestone birthday -- turning up BIG with him in NYC, and giving us hope for a Migos reunion sooner than later.

Both Set and Takeoff were making it hurricane Tuesday night inside NYC's Club Motion as they jammed to RTK and Takeoff's "Crypto" single and Gunna's "poochie gown."

Quavo and Takeoff currently have a hit record with "HOTEL LOBBY (Unc & Phew)" and they recently bought matching Migos chains to rep their bond -- but as you can see from the party, Set and Take are also 2 peas in the Migos pod ... and they love to stunt!

RTK has another shindig in Vegas this weekend, and perhaps Quavo will be on board for those festivities.

The rapper/actor and his mother recently nabbed the GQ Hype cover, and discussed a wide range of topics ... including his Saweetie elevator incident. He said, "I don't like what people think. When they saw the elevator thing they thought it was abusive, something crazy."

Huncho also addressed his group's time apart, and said every one of the Migos had to "establish" themselves.

Dipset rapper Juelz Santana is officially a label with the launch of his I Can’t Feel My Face brand.

Juelz hit "TMZ Live" today to give us some insight on his new direction for his artists, Ski, Caesar, and his own nephew, Young Ja.

He promises everything ICFMF delivers will provide numbing entertainment … not an outrageous claim from the guy handpicked by Chris Brown to appear on his debut single “Run It!” back in 2005.

CB actually had to defend Juelz’s legacy on a recent episode of “Drink Champs” after Bow Wow tried to lay claim to the historic feature.

The ICFMF name first came around 2007 when Juelz and Lil Wayne were budding artists and frequent collaborators. They recorded dozens of tracks, but a formal project never materialized.

Juelz tells us his bond with Wayne is still strong so the future could still be bright.

Juelz was appreciative to Jim Jones however for reuniting him with Tunechi via his “We Set The Trends (Remix)” … with other heavy hitters DJ Khaled and all of the Migos.

His career has taken some dips over the last few years -- the Dipsetter recently did 17 months for a handgun found in his luggage -- but he’s been home since August 2020, and he says being a boss is the name of the game going forward.

Blueface and his mostly-on girlfriend Chrisean Rock are a walking, talking reality show … and the latest episode had CR blowing chunks in his fancy 2022 Maybach!!!

In a fit of disbelief, Blueface posted his babe barfing before giving her the sleeping beauty treatment with a wake-up kiss.

We caught the Crippy couple after Blueface’s weigh-in for his upcoming fight against Nick Young. The duo's shrugging off their drunk-n-love moment, saying true love tends to get nasty sometimes ... and they're definitely that as a couple!

Blueface and Chrisean have been going strong this year, despite her losing a tooth ... which she eventually replaced with an implant plastered with BF's mug.

Sounds like she loves him even if he loses one to Nick, but Blueface is saying don't place your bets on that. He has himself winning in three rounds.

The ever-elusive Kendrick Lamar smashed 2022 with the year's biggest rap album ... yet outside of reposting updates on that project, he's not much for social media -- but turns out he's still getting his chat on.

According to Kendrick’s former TDE President Punch, Kung Fu Kenny's actually in a group chat with himself and JAY-Z and he claims they’re some funny mofos!!

Punch spoke to Complex about Kendrick's departure from the label -- after taking it to unprecedented heights -- and revealed he, Kendrick and Jay-Z once debated who was the funniest between them all.

He called Kendrick "super witty" to add to their "super funny."

Humor really has never really been part of Kendrick’s image. “N95,” the only video to drop from his 'Mr. Morale' album, is an artistic presentation for sure … but not very LOL-ish.

Britney Spears was faced with a scary situation as she ran out of gas in the middle of one of L.A.'s busiest freeways ... and cops were called to get her to safety.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ they got a call around 10 PM Tuesday for a report of a white Mercedes blocking the third lane southbound on the 101, just north of Balboa Blvd. Officers say when they responded Britney was seated in the backseat of a passerby's vehicle.

We're told Britney informed officers she ran out of gas while driving, and her car quit in the middle of the freeway.

Once the California Highway Patrol got traffic stopped, an officer got in the driver's seat of Britney's Mercedes to steer while she sat in the passenger's seat and the vehicle was pushed to safety.

LOX rapper Styles P intervened while cops arrested a woman, accusing them of roughing her up outside the NY juice bar he owns with Jadakiss ... and the whole thing's on video!!!

The video starts right in front of Juices For Life, just as a couple of Yonkers Police officers slam a woman to the ground and try to handcuff her.

The officers scream the woman is under arrest, but never specify why ... and that's when Styles P runs into the shot screaming at them. He tells another bystander to keep recording as he gets right up in the face of one of the cops, and yells about their aggressive tactics.

The woman recording claims the cops have been targeting women. Styles then challenges the officers, saying they were scared of Black people and were unfamiliar with the area.

At one point it seemed like they were gonna arrest Styles, but that didn't happen.

After cooling down a bit, Styles jumped on IG, and admitted he was wrong for his hostility towards the officer ... but admits seeing a woman involved in the ruckus made him act "out of character."

Styles has a star-studded 20th-anniversary concert scheduled next month to celebrate his "Good Times" weed anthem.

We're sure he knew how to calm down after this brush with 12.

A rare sighting of Frank Ocean for ya here ... although he tried to keep things low-key, his choice in majestic headwear might have actually drawn even more attention to him.

We spotted the reclusive singer Tuesday at LAX, where he stepped out of his car wearing a wig and a face mask -- good effort, but our photog recognized him all the same.

We asked him a bunch of questions -- about the wig, and his recent revelation that he micro-doses LSD. Not shockingly, he didn't have much to say. But, you really gotta see the hair ... it's kinda the latest craze in R&B. Think Anderson .Paak in Silk Sonic.

Regardless of fashion choices, this rare Frank Ocean sighting and his recent drops on Apple Music aren’t a coincidence.

Frank just celebrated the 10th anniversary of his classic album "Channel Orange" with two new "Blonded" Radio episodes, where he plugged his love for psychedelics. He's also gearing up -- at his own pace -- to headline the 2023 Coachella stage, so you know his return is coming.

Albert Pujols went deep last night -- inching him closer to A-Rod on the all-time HR leader list -- and fans at Busch Stadium went crazy, including Nelly, who got a high five from the baseball legend after he crossed home plate!

Pujols -- who rejoined the Cards after spending 10 seasons away from the team -- smashed the 685th homerun of his storied career ... and celebrated the monster shot with the St. Louis icon on his way back to the dugout.

Of course, Nelly's a huge deal in St. Louie ... and so is Albert. Even though the hip-hop star has seen Pujols belt numerous dingers over his 22-year career, you can tell Nelly was pumped!

At age 42, Pujols -- a 3x MVP and 6x Silver Slugger -- can still put a charge in one and send it into the seats ... as demonstrated by how quickly he turned around a 94 mph pitch from Dodgers pitcher Mitch White.

Pujols announced in spring training that this would be his farewell year ... saying he planned to retire at the conclusion of the 2022 season.

But, don't fret too much Cards fans ... Albert's going out with a bang. On Tuesday, Albert confirmed he was participating in this year's Home Run Derby contest in L.A.!

Fake Drake will get his wish to fight in the Celebrity Boxing arena ... just not against the man to whom he owes his livelihood.

Damon Feldman of Celeb Boxing tells TMZ Hip Hop that Lamar Odom -- AKA ex-NBA champ, husband to Khloé Kardashian -- has agreed to square off against Frake ... and this one feels a little personal.

Lamar dropped a prefight video while rocking a Nipsey Hussle shirt ... and he seemed pissed Fake Drake was trying to drag the real deal into the ring. So L.O. promised to help his friend and lay out the impersonator once and for all.

Not to be outdone, Fake Drake shot a training vid of his pugilistic skills -- although he's mainly ducking punches.

He's gonna need some serious evasive techniques -- Lamar stands at 6'10, won championships with Kobe Bryant annnd has already beat up J Lo's ex-husband and knocked out Aaron Carter in Celeb Boxing matches so ... good luck Fake Drake.

While they're still deciding between Atlantic City or Miami, we're told the fight is definitely on for October 15.

Ne-Yo is a famous conductor of talent and as fate would have it, he crossed paths with Lucky Daye long before the "Roll Some Mo" singer became a Grammy winner.

However, things didn’t pan out between them on the professional level, because of a very personal matter. Ne-Yo revealed what went down when he went on Fuzzy West and Quincy Harris' "FAQ" Podcast.

He says he recruited Lucky in hopes of signing him, and even had him write Jaime Foxx’s part on 2008’s “Miss Independent Part 2” ... aka “She Got Her Own.”

In an act of friendship, Ne-Yo says he gave young Lucky access to his crib while he was away on business -- but with one very important restriction: do NOT treat my master bedroom like an OnlyFans set!

Well, according to Ne-Yo that's exactly what Lucky did, and that's when he knew their partnership was over.

Luckily, Mr. Daye bounced back … signing with RCA/Keep Cool and winning the 2022 Best Progressive R&B Album Grammy for his “Table for Two” LP.

As for his side of the Ne-Yo's bed story -- Lucky's been radio silent.

Lil Wayne's hometown concert event, Lil WeezyAna Fest, is ramping up again for its 6th run in New Orleans.

For this year’s fest, Weezy's recruited Moneybagg Yo, Coi Leray, Babyface Ray and Rob 49 to light up the stage with their performances.

The Live Nation Urban-sponsored event will take place at Champions Square on August 27, and Wayne shared his excitement by getting on IG to plug all the performers.

One key part of the event for Wayne is the fact 50 cents of every ticket sold will be donated to NOLA students' educational opportunities within the culture.

Young Money Records President Mack Maine added ... “As always, we will be honoring the many lives lost in Hurricane Katrina as this year marks the 17th year anniversary.”

Rick Ross and Birdman have a scarred history … and the Cash Money Records bossman clearly has NO issue with picking at that scab very publicly.

Baby was on DJ Akademik’s “Off The Record” podcast discussing his top CM artists like Drake, Nicki Minaj + Lil Wayne and the Hot Boys (although his mind went blank when thinking about something nice to say about Turk 👀) -- but he also listed off several other eventual superstars he had under his wing.

He proudly named Yo Gotti, Future and DJ Khaled as other protégés … but puckered up like a Lemonhead at the mere mention of Rick Ross’ name.

Birdman claims Ross sat in the shadows studying, and stealing moves that would lead to his own MMG imprint gaining traction several years later.

The 2 ‘bawses’ actually recorded an album together back in 2008 … only for it to be released with extra tardy sauce in 2013, but without any friendship to generate buzz for the record.

In 2017, Rozay went at Birdman's throat on the song “Idols Become Rivals” … ironically over his own claims Lil Wayne and DJ Khaled were in terrible label situations.

Prosecutors in New York say they discovered a scheme to sell stolen handwritten lyrics from some of the Eagles' most famous songs ... and now 3 men have been indicted as a result of the investigation.

Here's the deal ... prosecutors say the men were in possession of about 100 pages of Don Henley's handwritten notes and lyrics for the band's "Hotel California" album, with the men allegedly trying to fool auction houses into buying the memorabilia despite them knowing it was stolen.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg says the men fabricated stories about the origin of the documents, and their right to possess them, so they could turn a profit ... even allegedly engaging in a years-long campaign to stop Don from recovering the stolen manuscripts, which are valued at over $1 million.

Prosecutors say the manuscripts were originally stolen back in the 1970s by an author hired to write a biography of the band and then sold to rare books dealer Glenn Horowitz, who in turn sold them to Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinski.

The D.A. says when Don learned Inciardi and Kosinski were allegedly trying to sell portions of the manuscripts, he filed police reports and told the men the materials were stolen, demanding their return.

Prosecutors say Inciardi and Kosinski then worked to fabricate ownership records to try and coerce Don into buying back the stolen property. At the same time, the D.A. says the men were trying to sell the manuscripts through Christie's and Sotheby's auction houses.

The D.A. says their office executed search warrants to recover Don's stolen manuscripts from Kosinski's home and Sotheby's ... and a short while later, prosecutors say Horowitz tried to use the death of Eagles founding member Glenn Frey to prevent criminal prosecution by claiming he got the manuscripts from Frey.

The men are each charged with one count of fourth-degree conspiracy. Inciardi and Kosinski are also charged with first-degree criminal possession of stolen property. Horowitz is also charged with first-degree attempted criminal possession of stolen property, plus two counts of second-degree hindering prosecution.

Don's manager, Irving Azoff, tells TMZ ... "This action exposes the truth about music memorabilia sales of highly personal, stolen items hidden behind a façade of legitimacy. No one has the right to sell illegally obtained property or profit from the outright theft of irreplaceable pieces of musical history."