Music

Beyoncé’s fashion icon status is officially in “Renaissance” mode with the release of the new album!

On Friday, Beyoncé dropped her seventh studio collection … ushering in a new wave of glam shots, which she’s done since her debut solo album back in 2003.

Fans have watched her style evolve from the sexy girl next door to the unapologetic Sasha Fierce to the commanding star ... who sometimes allows Jay-Z to share her spotlight. 😉

For this new album, she’s taking a more bold and elegant approach to her look … sporting long leather gloves, gaudy diamonds and shimmery gowns -- much like a renaissance.

Jennifer Lopez is in no rush to return from Europe after vacationing with Ben Affleck ... she's still overseas for work and some play while Ben's on daddy duty in Los Angeles.

J Lo spent her Friday living the island life in Capri, Italy -- grabbing lunch with her team and riding around the city in a cart with her security detail -- all while showing love to her international fans.

J Lo dressed in all white and drew a crowd as her hired muscle whisked her away in the back of a cart, she waved at fans like a beauty queen in a parade.

As for why she's in Capri, Jennifer is the headliner at a show to benefit the people of Ukraine Saturday, with a star-studded guest list ... including Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx, Jared Leto, Vanessa Hudgens and Naomi Campbell.

Ben was spotted in L.A. Thursday picking up his son, Samuel, from Jennifer Garner's place.

As we reported, J Lo and Ben jetted off to Paris after getting married in Las Vegas, and their time in France included PDA in front of their kids, romantic dinners, a good cry and an infamous nap.

"Bridgerton" is once again a smash hit, but this time Netflix is pissed ... because it says two musicians ripped off their TV series, turned it into a stage production and turned a huge profit.

The streaming giant is going after the duo Barlow & Bear for  "The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical Album Live in Concert" -- a musical production they performed to a sold-out Kennedy Center earlier this week.

In the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Netflix says the production's opening number, "Tis the Season" is nearly identical to the one they used to introduce the show's main characters and setting. Netflix says Barlow & Bear even ripped off "substantial dialogue verbatim" from the TV show.

According to Netflix, the musicians didn't just steal its intellectual property ... but they also lied about getting permission. In the suit, Netflix includes an advertisement that was posted for the stage production and it includes the text, "BRIDGERTON is a trademark of Netflix used with permission."

Nope. Not according to Netflix, which says it actually "vigorously objected" to Barlow & Bear's use of the show's name, characters and dialogue.

Netflix says the duo has plans to take the musical on the road with a performance in London's iconic Royal Albert Hall -- and they're also selling "Bridgerton" themed merch.

Besides ripping off its TV show, Netflix says Barlow & Bear's pirate operation is competing with its "Bridgerton Experience" ... a 6-city event where fans pay to enjoy an "immersive" night in a ballroom with actors and music inspired by their show.

Celebrities have been taking to the skies in their private jets for years, but a recent study is pointing the finger at some celebs most guilty of poisoning the planet.

According to research gathered by Yard, a marketing agency that focuses on "metrics that matter," celebs like Kim Kardashian, Floyd Mayweather, and Blake Shelton have been polluting the air with tons of CO2e this year alone ... but no one has done it more than Taylor Swift.

According to Yard, T. Swift has flown private 170 times since January, with a time in the air of about 16 days. Her total flight emissions for the year come in at 8,293.54 tonnes -- that's 1,184.8 times more than the average person's total annual emissions!!!

To put it into perspective, they say the average person emits 7 tonnes -- annually.

Mayweather comes in 2nd place in the pollution race ... emitting 7,076 tonnes so far -- still over 1K shy of Taylor's mark.

Jay-Z, A-Rod, Steven Spielberg, and Oprah Winfrey also made the list ... and Floyd's plane took the shortest flight of the year, at 10 minutes.

It's interesting ... the Internet started to buzz about celebs and their carbon footprints after Kylie Jenner posted about her and TS' private jets last week, but she didn't make the top ten list. Travis Scott took the #10 spot ... flying a total of 5.8 days so far.

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft had special gifts for Elton John before his final performance at Gillette Stadium ... giving the music legend a customized football and autographed helmet!!

The team posted the touching moment on social media Thursday ... showing Kraft and Sir Elton sharing a smile and holding the presents before the second of two sold-out shows at the Patriots' home venue.

As it turns out, the two are very close friends ... and John is a big fan of the 6-time Super Bowl winners. In fact, the "Tiny Dancer" singer even served as the Pats' honorary captain when they played at Wembley Stadium in 2009.

The commemorative game football reads "Sir Elton John" and the tour's logo ... while the helmet appears to have a special hand-written message from Kraft to his buddy.

"A gift fit for the 🚀 man," the Pats said in a tweet.

Tyga's ticked off many fans, especially in the Latin community, with his new “Ay Caramba” video, which is filled with unsavory stereotypes ... and now, he's apologizing in a new interview.

L.A.’s Power 106 radio station organized an interview with Tyga and American Cholo ... a podcaster who specializes in untangling various stereotypes and misconceptions in the Latino community.

Tyga's vid has plenty of that -- for example, a sombrero-wearing game show host and couch potato with no shortage of tortilla chips.

AC says the stereotypes were the main cause of concern, simply pointing out how reversing the “chips and low-rider” images with “fried chicken and watermelon” would be easy red flags for African-Americans.

Tyga says he was confused by the original backlash, because he and YG had a huge hit with “Go Loko” a few years ago -- it went double-platinum and amassed over 200 million YouTube views.

T-Raww did apologize during his American Cholo chat -- but the interview ended in a bit of a stalemate. When Tyga was asked if he would take the video down, he hesitated because he said he paid $250,000 of his own money to make the video ... but says he will consider.

So far, it has 4 million views in a little under a month ... and that's probably from a lot of shock-and-awe sharing. "Ay Caramba" indeed.

Migos are still looking like they're at a musical fork in the road … because their latest moves are not as a “group” of 3.

On Friday, Quavo and Takeoff continued their rollout as “Unc & Phew” … opting to team with Gucci Mane as their third -- instead of Offset -- for the track “Us vs. Them.”

As Quavo and Takeoff prepped their release, Offset took time to field questions from fans -- mainly about his solo album, where it seemed like he was already moving on ... setting songs with Metro Boomin and Soundside.

And, while Offset is finishing his album, it looks like Quavo and Takeoff will be using the Migos brand name to perform at the Battle of the Bands in Houston next month.

NFL rookie Jordan Davis impressed the hell out of his Eagles teammates at training camp -- but it didn't happen on a football field -- the first-round draft pick sang his ass off to a Rick James classic ... during a performance in front of the whole team!

The impressive performance was caught on video Thursday ... when the 13th overall pick out of Georgia hit the stage at Eagles' camp at Lincoln Financial Field for his rookie performance ... when the vets force you to perform on stage.

Most guys aren't any good ... but the 6'6", 340 lb. defensive tackle isn't most. Dude has pipes.

His song choice? The 1978 Rick James classic "Mary Jane" ... and Davis hit all the notes, high and low, including the "Do ya? Do ya? Do ya?" part ... and his teammates were lit!

Now, rookie linebacker Nakobe Dean's performance didn't hit the same ... but it was still hilarious!

Dean -- 3rd round pick also out of Georgia -- chose Fantasia's "When I See You" from 2007 ... and even though he was off-key at times, the team found it humorous.

The rookies do this every year at Eagles camp (and so do most other teams). Remember, Jalen Hurts was booed during his performance when he attempted to sing "Before I Let Go" by Frankie Beverly And Maze.

It's the greatest day ever for Beyoncé's fiercely loyal fans -- not only did she drop her new album, "Renaissance," but it arrived with a big fat, personalized thank you to the Beyhive!!!

Feel the buzz, baby.

As expected, Bey dropped "Renaissance" Thursday night ... it's her first album in 6 years, and despite the fact it leaked earlier in the week, her fans rallied in a huge way for the 16-track project.

As we reported, the Queen's carefully planned rollout for "Renaissance" was interrupted when a fan in France put a few of the songs -- "Alien Superstar," "Church Girl" and "Cuff It" -- on social media.

The hive tried its best to shut that down ... threatening any fans who listened or, even worse, posted early reviews of the album. That stern defense didn't go unnoticed by Beyonce.

She wrote, “So, the album leaked, and you all actually waited until the proper release time so you all can enjoy it together,” she wrote to her dedicated fans. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” she added, thanking her followers “for your love and protection.”

While Beyonce typically drops her albums in total secrecy ... this one was different. She announced "Renaissance" more than a month before it dropped, did an interview with British Vogue and even made a rare TikTok appearance.

Well now "Renaissance" is here, and it's come with some heavy hitters behind the music -- her husband Jay-Z, Drake, Pharrell ... and many more participating in the dance-heavy collection.

Dua Lipa's apologizing to fans who suddenly thought they were in a life or death crisis when unplanned fireworks exploded inside her Toronto concert -- and new closeup video shows just how scary it was.

The clip shows the pyrotechnics going off in the middle of a floor section of seating, and it's clear how close of a call it was for hundreds of people -- including fans, crew and security -- in the area.

One firework goes off right next to the person behind the camera ... the red-hot sparks flew directly in front of them.

DL posted a statement Thursday, saying "Unauthorized fireworks went off in the crowd during my set in Toronto. Creating a safe and inclusive space at my shows is always my first priority, and my team and I are just as shocked and confused by the events as you all are."

She goes on to apologize to anyone that was scared or felt unsafe ... adding an investigation is still being conducted to determine how the fireworks were set off.

Bob Dylan's sex abuse accuser is now singing a different tune -- she's dropped the lawsuit in which she claimed he had molested her back in 1965 when she was only 12.

As we reported back in August, the woman, identified only as J.C., filed a federal suit in Manhattan alleging Dylan plied her with drugs and alcohol, then escorted her to his Chelsea Hotel apartment and had sex with her while she was underage. She also accused Dylan of a pattern of abuse ... saying he used threats of violence to get what he wanted.

But, her allegations went out the window Thursday when she abruptly withdrew the suit after recently firing her lawyers.

Dylan's attorney, Orin Snyder, took a victory lap, telling TMZ ... "This case is over. It is outrageous that it was ever brought in the first place. We are pleased that the plaintiff has dropped this lawyer-driven sham and that the case has been dismissed with prejudice."

In a letter filed with the court Wednesday, Snyder attacked the accuser's credibility ... highlighting that she erased key text messages.

Beyoncé’s already dealing with leaks ahead of her "Renaissance" album release, and now she's facing accusations of theft from Kelis ... who says she had no part in clearing a sample for Bey's record.

The track "Energy" samples Kelis’ "Get Along with You," which The Neptunes produced for her 1999 debut album -- so, the song's understandably close to her heart.

A Kelis fan page was celebrating the Beyoncé pairing on IG, but then Kelis -- using her celebrity chef account @bountyandfull -- hopped in the comments fuming mad!

Kelis calls "Energy" downright robbery … insinuating everyone involved with creating and clearing the track was engaged in shady practices. Yikes!

The eclectic singer also claims she wasn’t notified prior to the album announcement, having to learn about her inclusion as if she were a normie.

Reports of Beyoncé’s seventh album leaking yesterday spread like wildfire, but an unbothered Bey didn’t address the bootlegging (or Kelis for that matter) on Thursday.

Instead, she offered a rare glimpse into her family life, and also revealed there would be 2 more albums to follow this one.

A horrifying moment was captured by a fan during a concert in Hong Kong, as a massive video screen fell from above, crushing dancers below.

Boy band Mirror was playing at The Hong Kong Coliseum Thursday night when the nightmare unfolded. You can see the group performing when suddenly, a video monitor hanging from the ceiling falls directly on one of the dancers.

The heavy screen makes a direct hit, knocking the dancer flat on his back, pinning him underneath. It then falls on its side, landing on another dancer.

Local reports say as many as 3 people in the show were injured as a result of the collapse.

Gucci Mane is using his veteran status in rap to help end the trend of rappers disrespecting dead people in their lyrics.

On Thursday, Gucci dropped his new song “Dissin The Dead” … which attempts to steer the culture in a more positive direction.

Gucci takes full responsibility for today’s current culture of putting slain victims in rap songs, rapping on the chorus: “I know I should be more careful with the sh*t that I said/I feel like I started a trend, they never gon' stop/They gon' keep dissin' the dead."

Earlier this year, he used the man he killed in self-defense -- late Jeezy affiliate Henry “Pookie Loc” Lee Clark III -- as a lyrical punchline, and got a rise outta 50 Cent in the process.

Gucci's song echoes sentiments shared by Wiz Khalifa last December, urging entertainers to focus on music instead of mocking death.

Dua Lipa's concert in Toronto featured some unplanned effects, thanks to some fans who somehow snuck fireworks inside the venue, lighting them, and injuring a few fans.

The singer took the stage at Scotiabank Arena Wednesday night when a series of fireworks were set off from the floor seats. In video from the show, you see multiple explosions of different colors as Dua and dancers perform.

A rep for Toronto Police Service tells TMZ they got a call to the arena just before midnight for fireworks at the end of the show.

We're told at least three people suffered minor injuries, but fortunately, no one needed to be hospitalized ... the specifics on the injuries was not clear. There was also no damage to the arena, a lucky fact given the possibility of fires.

At this time, cops are working with the security staff at Scotiabank Arena to review surveillance footage to determine how the fireworks were brought inside and who is responsible for setting them off.

Popular Louisiana rapper JayDaYoungan is currently hospitalized, battling injuries sustained when he was shot outside a home in his home state ... TMZ has learned.

A rep for the Bogalusa PD tells us they received a call just before 6 Wednesday night for a shooting at a home on Superior Ave. Cops say one victim had been transported to a local hospital by someone on scene, and another victim -- who was critically wounded -- was treated by paramedics and rushed to the hospital for treatment.

A law enforcement source tells us JayDaYoungan is in critical condition, and a source close to the rapper tells us he's lost a lot of blood and is currently in surgery. Online reports say the second victim is a relative of the rapper, potentially his father.

We've obtained video taken from outside the home where the shooting happened ... you can see the rapper's blue sports car parked outside.

Cops tell us about an hour after the shooting JDY was involved in, another shooting occurred in which a vehicle was struck ... officers believe it's possible the two shootings are related. We're told no one was injured in that shooting.

The rapper first found success when he signed to Atlantic Records in 2017 ... and has gained a steady following thanks to his mixtapes.

The 24-year-old has collabed with artists like Latto, Moneybagg Yo, Lil Durk and Boosie Badazz.

Story developing ...