Music

Justin Bieber's feeling himself after selling the rights to his entire library of music for $200 million ... and the proof is in the pants.

The Biebs busted out some eye-catching polka dot trousers Tuesday night as he headed out to dinner with wife, Hailey in New York City ... fresh off his huge payday.

Justin also rocked a pink jacket, beanie and a pair of black and brown boots ...  while Hailey wore a leather jacket and matching vest and heels.

The couple's got $200 million reasons to enjoy a night out in the Big Apple ... earlier in the day, Justin officially sold the rights to his publishing and artist royalties from his song catalog to Hipgnosis Songs Capital.

As we reported ... the deal's been in the works since December and it's being hailed as the most lucrative music rights sale for any artist from Justin's generation.

The $200 million pact reportedly covers all 290+ songs in Justin's library released through 2021 ... including his latest album, "Justice."

Something tells us Justin's picking up the tab tonight.

Mark Ronson says Justin Bieber's call to sell off his music catalog is a sweet decision, and he also says Bieb fans can chill ... this is not a sign the singer's ready to hang it up.

We got the producer/DJ Tuesday at LAX, and he doesn't see J.B.'s estimated $200 million catalog sale as a dead end -- noting it could be a good thing for fans, possibly showing Justin has a bunch more music to make, and is just looking to maximize profits off what he's done so far.

Obviously, Mark doesn't know exactly what's going through Justin's head ... but he notes money's got to be a big factor.

As we reported, Justin had his eyes on the big deal with Hipgnosis Songs Capital in December, which included his entire music catalog -- 6 albums over a decade, as well as all singles and collabs. Hipgnosis announced the closing of the mega sale Tuesday.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar says Ticketmaster's stranglehold on the concert tickets and venues is a longstanding problem -- but she gives full credit to Taylor Swift fans for pushing the issue over the hump.

The Senator from Minnesota joins us on "TMZ Live" Wednesday to reveal why Swifties' making a historic fuss over the botched presale for Taylor's tour, directly led to Tuesday's Senate Judiciary Committee grilling of Live Nation, Ticketmaster's parent company.

Klobuchar dropped something that's always a bombshell in Washington -- the 'B' word ... as in, bipartisanship! She tells us the much-anticipated hearing had lawmakers in agreement about Ticketmaster's monopoly, and the need for the company to finally face the music.

Although Swifties got the ball rolling ... she says this issue goes well beyond Taylor's tour -- because Ticketmaster dominates the game by selling tickets, running promotions and even owning some of the venues.

The Senator says testimony from industry experts -- including some musicians -- makes it clear to her it's nearly impossible for competitors to drive down rising ticket prices.

She says bands have been sounding the alarm for years, including Pearl Jam back in the day -- but the dam broke in November, when Taylor's legion of fans got pissed off and even Taylor called out Ticketmaster.

Sen. Klobuchar says the tide's finally turning, and she expects real changes from Ticketmaster ... and quickly. You can see the full interview on Wednesday's "TMZ Live" ... check your local listings.

Polo G is looking to set the trend of "smart jewelry" -- the Chicago rap star's cashing out for a diamond-encrusted bulldog that's plenty flashy, but also functional ... as an iPhone case!!!

Skylar Langfeldt of Icebox Diamonds & Watches tells TMZ Hip Hop the pendant took a couple of months of engineering to perfect all the features. For instance, Polo's phone can actually be charged without being removed from the sparkling accessory.

We're told the pendant includes more than 500 grams of 14kt white gold with 90+ carats of diamonds -- and there's another 55 carats of bling on the accompanying chain!

Fans might confuse Polo for a Boston Red Sox fan after seeing the chain and pendant's red letter "B" enamel accents -- but we're told it's actually a tribute to BMoney 1300 ... Polo's friend who was murdered in August 2021.

Rick Ross has a ton of cars in his collection, but one he won't add is a Tesla … as he believes the electric whips are nothing but entrapment on wheels!!!

Rozay explained his anti-Tesla stance Tuesday while speaking to fans on Instagram … the rapper believes the U.S. government can tap into the cars at any given time and in his case, haul him off to jail for questioning!!! 😂

He then hilariously paints the picture of being at one of his Wingstop franchises when his Tesla is overpowered ... and redirected toward the precinct where an agent awaits.

Lawmaking officials may not have a habit of jailbreaking everyday citizens’ Teslas, but Rozay doesn’t have to settle for the trend.

Babyface will be belting out "America the Beautiful" at Super Bowl LVII next month … and the R&B legend tells us he never expected in a million years he'd be tapped for the honor.

TMZ Hip Hop chopped it up with Babyface shortly after the NFL and Roc Nation's Tuesday morning announcement, and he was already predicting he'll be a frazzled mess leading up to game day -- but he still plans on giving the millions of viewers an honest performance that showcases his talents!!!

Face knows he's got big shoes to fill ... the late Ray Charles’ rendition of 'ATB' -- performed at the World Series in 2001 -- is immortalized in the Grammy Hall of Fame, and is a radio staple every 4th of July.

He says the song speaks to his soul melodically, so he plans on putting together one of his classic Babyface arrangements -- and adds he'll even have some divine inspiration.

What's making the once in a lifetime performance even more special, is the fact he's teaming up with the clothing company Shine the Light On -- a special collaboration to pay tribute to his mother, who passed away in 2012.

Fair to say Babyface will have some angels on his shoulder on Super Bowl Sunday because he's also thinking about late brother ... After 7 singer, Melvin Edmonds, who died in 2019, and was an avid football fan.

He isn't the only performer who's admitted to pregame jitters -- when we spoke to Rihanna last year, she copped to being a little nervous for her halftime show performance. Yes, even superstars get butterflies!!!

But, Babyface has zero doubts RiRi will kill it, and he floated his wishes to record with her down the line.

BTW, Roc Nation also tapped Sheryl Lee Ralph to sing "Lift Every Voice" and Chris Stapleton for the national anthem.

Shy Glizzy is defending his name after OnlyFans star Sky Bri accused him of slipping her a pill while they were shooting his "White Girl" music video.

The D.C. rapper addressed the allegation for the first time while he was on Akademiks' Spotify podcast, 'Off The Record' ... he denied doing it, and shot holes in her account of what happened on set.

Shy said, as an artist, he simply doesn't have any responsibilities on a music video set and therefore, wouldn't have been in a position to interact with Sky the way she described the shoot going down last year.

It might have been best for him to stop there, but Shy added ... he's too much of a player to get caught up and didn't feel the need to react to "false allegations."

Calling yourself a "player" is probably not the best choice in this situation, but Shy says fans haven't heard of any previous sexual misconduct allegations against him so he claims Sky's claim can't be true.

Yung Gravy is excited about his 2023 music career trajectory, especially because he says he's getting ready to drop a pair of album collabs ... with Quavo!!!

Gravy was out Monday night in West Hollywood, and disclosed he'd just gotten back from Tibet, of all places, where he and the Migos rapper created 2 albums worth of material.

The Asian country is renowned as a place of mediation and peace ... so, it seems likely Quavo was there decompressing his mind after being front and center when Takeoff was fatally shot in November.

Gravy says fans can expect the new music to drop in the next 2 months -- which would mark Quavo's first full-length release since dropping the joint album "Only Built For Infinity Links" with Takeoff last year.

He recently cut a tribute song -- the somber "Without You" -- but Gravy seems to be stoked about their upcoming tunes.

Demetrius "Lil Meech" Flenory is winning rave reviews playing his father in 50 Cent's hit "BMF" series, but his dad Big Meech isn't as easily impressed as regular viewers.

Lil Meech recently revealed to Lore'l on "The Morning Hustle" that the senior Meech -- who's currently serving a 30-year prison sentence for drug trafficking -- calls him out for stuff he sees on the show that he wouldn't do in real life!!!

Lil Meech explained the smallest things ... such as having his shoestrings tied a certain style, and spiking his dad's antenna -- but one scene, in particular, caused him to flare up from the cell.

During the first season, Wood Harris' character "Pat" punches Lil Meech in the stomach ... a complete fallacy in Big Meech's book, who says he's never been beaten up in his life, and we believe him!!!

Lil Meech says he tried to explain to his dad it's simply a TV show with various arcs, but his pops isn't trying to hear it.

Of course, those little white lies make for good drama -- the series was picked up for a third season last week, capping off a string of good fortune for Lil Meech, who just saw the charges in his airport gun case dropped like a bad habit.

Papoose has an enriching message for all artists who are tired of record labels divvying up all their profits -- come join him at Tunecore, where he's just been named the music distributor's head of hip hop!!!

TMZ Hip Hop spoke with Pap Tuesday morning, and he was more than thrilled to have the opportunity to pivot independent artists away from record deals that don't benefit them.

He explains unlike other distributors, Tunecore allows you to maintain ownership of your masters and obtain 100 percent of the payout your music makes. Sounds like a pretty sweet deal, especially if you're still trying to make a name for yourself.

Pap tells us his own experiences in the music industry led him to champion Tunecore -- he famously signed a million-dollar record deal under the tutelage of the late, great DJ Kay Slay, but he admits he's made the most traction in his career by going the indie route.

In 2021, Pap dropped 12 albums -- each named after months of the year, and featuring heavy-hitting cameos from the likes of Lil Wayne, Jim Jones, The Game and his wife, Remy Ma ... and he released all of them through Tunecore to reap all the rewards himself.

Pap says he understands the artists' plight more than anyone, and doesn't knock them for still signing lopsided record deals -- but going forward he's making it his mission to corral as many artists as possible!!!

While Beyonce's concert in Dubai stirred outrage from some fans -- due to the country's anti-LGBTQ+ laws -- her pops looks at it differently, telling us his daughter has incredible power to bring people together ... from all walks of life.

Mathew Knowles tells TMZ ... Queen Bey united a really diverse crowd with her incredible performance overseas, bringing people closer, as she does best.

He says people who weren't at the show might not understand -- adding she gave respect and got respect back from the country, calling it an amazing moment.

MK notes his daughter's always stood for inclusiveness, and believes everyone was there for love. He adds she'd never do something to deliberately hurt someone.

As for the criticism about her NOT performing hits from "Renaissance," Mathew says hold tight ... Beyonce IS planning a tour, and she'll announce it when she's ready.

TMZ caught up with Bey's mom, Tina Knowles, Monday -- telling us her daughter was pretty nervous before her first big show in years, but notes she pulled it off and it was a great trip. She had less to say about the controversy, though.

As we reported, Beyonce's show brought down the house over the weekend as she performed to a packed house for the opening of the new Atlantis resort, and reportedly got paid $24 million.

The backlash, which Beyonce rarely faces, centered around some in the LGBTQ+ community feeling she'd "sold out" by performing in a "homophobic dictatorship."

Mathew says that's a narrow-minded view of what went down.

Panic! at the Disco singer Brendon Urie is wrapping up a HUGE chapter in his life ... because he says his band, which stood for nearly 2 decades, is no more.

Brendon broke the news to his millions of fans Tuesday morning -- starting by saying, "Well, it’s been a hell of a journey."

He goes on to talk about how he and his wife are expecting a baby, which he's obviously thrilled about ... unfortunately, that means he's got to put the music behind him to focus on the fam, instead.

Brendon says, "Thank you all for your immense support over the years ... Whether you’ve been here since the beginning or are just finding us, it has been a pleasure to not only share the stage with so many talented people but also share our time with you."

The frontman goes on to further express his gratitude, before saying, "I am looking forward to seeing everyone in Europe and the UK for one last run together" -- referring to the final leg of his Viva Las Vengeance tour, which ends in Manchester this March.

Panic! was first formed back in 2004 with Brendon's childhood friends, growing huge popularity with their first big hit, "I Write Sins Not Tragedies" the following year.

Lil Baby strives to be the most fly rapper in the game and that mentality obviously trickles down to his own children!!!

The Atlanta rapper recently hit up Icebox Diamonds & Watches, his home away from home, to lace his 7-year-old son, Jason, with a couple of new diamond emblems modeled after a pair of Baby's pre-existing pieces.

Skylar Langfeldt of Icebox tells TMZ Hip Hop ... Jason's 4PF chain consists of more than 5 carats of VS diamonds with blue and green enamel accents -- a junior take on Baby's chain, which has 70+ carats!

The fresh father and son duo also plan to stunt at NBA games, as they frequent State Farm Arena for their hometown Atlanta Hawks ... and Skylar says they now have matching pieces to rep their team.

Jason's Hawks pendant sports 2 carats of diamonds and 25 grams of gold -- while his dad's has 10x the bling with 20 carats of diamonds, and 150 grams of white gold.

Tyler Cameron's still the ultimate bachelor ... he went to a friend's wedding over the weekend and had a helluva time, tearing up the dance floor and locking lips with his date.

TMZ obtained video of the 'Bachelorette' star making out with a mystery brunette at the Orlando, FL reception -- they're bumping, grinding, kissing and having a great time as a Bell Biv DeVoe classic played. And, no, Tyler doesn't seem at all worried about his date being "Poison."

Folks who were there tell us the woman wasn't someone Tyler picked up at the wedding -- she appeared to be his plus one, as they arrived together and left together.

Tyler and his date even coordinated their outfits, it seems ... because his green Air Force shoes matched her dress.

It should come as no surprise once you watch the video, but other wedding guests tell us Tyler and his date were very intoxicated at the reception. Nothing wrong there.

We haven't ID'd Tyler's date yet, but we know it's definitely NOT Kristin Cavallari ... which is worth noting because Tyler and Kristin appeared to be on a date around New Year's Eve.

Riley Keough is back home in Los Angeles after burying her mother Lisa Marie Presley at Graceland, and she's revealing Lisa's first grandchild -- the daughter very few people knew Riley gave birth to last year.

The actress stepped off a private jet Monday afternoon at Van Nuys Airport, carrying her baby girl in her arms -- marking the first time we've seen her child in public.

Riley and her Hollywood stunt man husband, Ben Smith-Petersen, made the surprise reveal about their daughter's existence during Lisa Marie's celebration of life ... when Ben read a letter Riley wrote to her mom, which referenced the little girl.

The letter, which Riley entitled "A Letter to My Mama," reads in part ... "I hope I can love my daughter the way you loved me, the way you loved my brother and my sisters."

Ben and Riley had never gone public about having a baby, and, obviously, Riley did a top-notch job of keeping her pregnancy private.

Jay-Z and Yo Gotti's legal counsel at Team Roc are dismissing their lawsuit painting a Mississippi State pen as a deadly horror camp -- but they're also reminding the state they'll be back if prison conditions go south again.

The Parchman Farm penitentiary is still open, but it's undergone a string of renovations since Team Roc filed the suit calling out the state for several fatal stabbings, and unsanitary living conditions at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to NBC, the MSP received new stainless steel showers, toilets and sinks after the previous restrooms were crumbling and littered with rat feces. It also has new sports facilities for inmates to partake in basketball, flag football and boxing, and upgraded heating and air conditioning ventilation systems.

As a result, the lawsuit was dismissed, but without prejudice ... which basically means it could be refiled at any moment.

A rep for Team Roc explained that while they're pleased with the new additions, they'll be monitoring Parchman to make sure the facility doesn’t backslide on the improvements.