Music

Tyga and Travis Barker are linking up again and it has nothing to do with any old family ties ... the duo's actually getting ready to drop some new music.

Witnesses tell TMZ ... Tyga and his buddy, Alexander "AE" Edwards, strolled into Travis' studio Tuesday in Calabasas ... something that's become a common sight lately.

Sources familiar with the situation say the rapper and drummer have been spending a lot of time together in the studio, and the tunes they're cooking up will be for an upcoming EP.

They plan to drop the project in the coming months.

The collab isn't all that surprising ... considering Tyga and Travis have worked on music together in the past. There's also some family history, of course.

You'll recall, Tyga dated Kylie Jenner many moons ago -- they were first linked when she was 17 and he was 24. As you know, TB married Kylie's sister, Kourtney Kardashian back in April 2022.

Travis has been rocking out with Blink-182 as of late, after sharing the stage at Coachella with his bandmates Tom DeLonge and Mark Hoppus -- their first shows in 9 years.

Kevin Federline says he and his family have had to endure way too much over the years, and a recent report claiming those around Britney fear she's on meth is just too much to handle ... and he's fighting back.

The report, published over the weekend by The Sun and Daily Mail is from a series of convos journalist Daphne Barak says she had with Kevin. In one instance, Barak reports K-Fed told her, "I fear she's on meth – I've been praying someone would make it public and that she wakes up ... It's terrifying. She is the mother of my boys."

In response to the story, Kevin tells us, "It saddens our family that Daphne Barak and Erbil Gunasti have decided to fabricate lies and publish the heart ache our family has endured, along with the trauma of our minor children in the Daily Mail and The Sun. We did allow Daphne & Bill into our home because we trusted them, but that trust was lost and we severed ties back in March for many reasons we choose not to go into here."

K-Fed never specifically says which part of the story was fabricated, but the whole piece went in heavy on the meth allegation.

He continues, "It is very distressing that she continues to harass our family when we have repeatedly asked her to leave us alone.  As was previously published, our family did speak with Ms. Barak and Mr. Gunasti a few times, and this was done in a respectful way with love & compassion for Britney and the Spears family. Her lies and attempts to exploit minors is click bait and another repulsive example of where, unfortunately, certain journalism has sunk today."

Daphne's spent a lot of time with the Federline and Spears families, first linking up together last summer for a TV news special.

She reports one conversation with Britney's father, Jamie, where he allegedly stated he feared his daughter would wind up dead like Amy Winehouse if she didn't get proper care.

TMZ broke the story, Kevin's moving his family, including his teenage sons Sean Preston and Jayden -- who he shares with Britney -- to Hawaii. Kevin's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan fired off a legal letter to Britney's attorney, Mathew Rosengart, to let him know about the move.

Kaplan had stated he was ready to go to court if Britney and Rosengart didn't approve of the move -- as Kevin's been the primary caregiver for the boys for years -- but in the end, Britney approved the move without issue.

One thing that remains to be seen, however, is whether or not the boys will see their mom before they leave for the island. It's been well over a year since they all spent time together.

We covered it all on the latest episode of The TMZ Podcast, available on all podcast platforms.

Kanye West celebrated his birthday with two very important people by his side, and it appears those same two people are getting along just fine ... as North West and Ye's wife, Bianca Censori, strolled hand-in-hand into his birthday bash.

Check out the pics taken from outside Kanye's party Saturday night in Los Angeles to celebrate his 46th birthday. You see North, wearing her dad's signature black boots and fingers locked with Bianca as the two made their way inside.

It's not the first time North's spent time with Bianca, but she's clearly getting more comfortable with Ye's new wife.

It also appeared North had a series of painful-looking scrapes on her face ... but we're told it's just makeup -- as the 9-year-old likes to experiment with FX looks.

Inside the bash, a DJ played a bunch of Kanye's greatest hits, there was sushi served on models and minimal lighting, mostly by candlelight.

One guest also captured a cute moment between North and Kanye where she recorded him lip-syncing to his song "Off The Grid" while Bianca watched on.

As for other celebs in attendance, it wasn't the A-list filled roster of Kanye parties in the past -- but Chloe Bailey and Ty Dolla Sign both showed face.

Nicki Minaj is the victim of a swatting prank ... one the Sheriff's Dept. says involved a caller falsely claiming Nicki's child was being abused, but also -- that her house was up in flames.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the attempted swatting went down earlier this month when child services got an anonymous call alleging child abuse at Nicki's L.A.-area home.

We're told sheriff's deputies rolled up to Nicki's place around 6 PM Monday, but after speaking with her and her husband Kenneth Petty ... and looking at their almost 3-year-old child, determined there was no abuse and everything was kosher.

Our sources say deputies chalked it up to a swatting call, and officers want everyone to know these sorts of calls are a huge waste of time and resources.

BTW, that wasn't the only thing being falsely reported about Nicki on this particular night -- sources with direct knowledge tell us another call came in around 3 AM to report that her home was on fire ... something that was also found to be completely untrue. In other words, 2 bogus calls came in a span of about 24 hours -- which is pretty jarring on its face.

For the uninitiated, swatting is a form of prank call where the goal is to get a big police response at someone's home ... and it's a growing problem for cops around the country.

Nicki's not the only celeb dealing with swatting calls. As we first reported, it's recently happened to YouTuber Adin Ross and influencer Madison Beer.

Big Boy says emceeing Tupac Shakur's Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony is a full-circle moment for him, considering he spent time with the hip hop icon when he was alive and thriving.

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with the radio legend right after the event let out Wednesday, telling us he was floored when they called him to lead the charge. BB set the alley-oop for Tupac's sister Sekyiwa Shakur's touching and tearful address to the jam-packed crowd.

With over 30 years in radio, BB says he was able to hit the road on tour with Tupac and was able to support once he got on-air.

He's so indebted to him, we couldn't get him to pick a winner between Pac's classic albums "Me Against the World" and "All Eyez on Me" ... but he's urging fans who disliked the 'All Eyez' film to give it another chance!!!

We also ran into Nipsey Hussle's good friend Herman “Cowboy” Douglas, who thinks it's a fitting honor that Pac's star landed so close to Nipsey's — not the other way around.

Cowboy thinks Nipsey's impact in Los Angeles ranks greater than Pac's, bias be damned.

Kelly Rowland's looks over the years will be your "Motivation!"

Here is a 30-year-old version of the stunning star showing off a plunging neckline at the MTV Video Music Awards in Los Angeles back in 2011 (left). This was the same year she released her solo album "Here I Am" featuring the hit song "Motivation" featuring Lil Wayne.

And, 12 years later the now 42-year-old mom recently performed at the Mighty Hoopla Festival in London and was serving Catwoman in a head-to-toe leather look complete with some head-turning diamond bracelets (right).

"There's no other who do it like Kelly" but the question here is ...

Fetty Wap's just starting his 6-year prison bid after pleading guilty in his drug trafficking case ... but even when that's done, he'll be under very strict guidelines for almost as long.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ Hip Hop, Fetty will have to fully disclose his financial records and yearly income tax returns to the U.S. Probation Department.

Fetty is also prohibited from opening any new bank or financial accounts without prior approval from the feds, and will have to submit virtually everything he owns -- houses, vehicles, even himself -- to search whenever there's a reasonable suspicion he's violated any terms of supervised release.

He also must cooperate with the probation officer to get a sample of his DNA upon release from prison.

TMZ Hip Hop broke the story ... last August, Fetty pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute a whopping 500 grams or more of cocaine. He was sentenced to 6 years in prison and 5 years of supervised release.

Swirled into this backward-hat image is a famous rapper who is set to headline at this year's Governors Ball Music Festival, and even after all the success he's acclaimed over the years, he's quite the "humble" guy!

The performer in this pic has caught the eye of Anna Wintour, as he was seen rockin' this leather jacket look to the 2023 Met Gala. He's clearly a talent to reckon with and has worked with some of the music industry's hottest stars including Taylor Swift.

Flavor Flav might be a good old-fashioned hip-hop head, but that doesn't mean you can put the guy in a box ... evidenced in him completely fanboying at a Taylor Swift show.

The rapper -- who's one half of Public Enemy -- pulled up to TS's Detroit stop Friday for her ongoing 'Eras' tour, and the dude was ready to prove his love and dedication from the VIP tent ... posing with tons of fans who swung by, and flexing his Swiftie friendship bracelets.

It's pretty sweet ... you see Flav swapping bead bands with young girls, teens and adults alike -- and the guy was totally rocking out during the actual concert too, singing along and dancing.

In fact, it looks like he even had on some Taylor-inspired merch. While TayTay was performing 'Trouble,' -- Flav showed off his T-shirt ... which reads, "I knew she was trouble." Indeed, the guy is a complete and utter Swiftie ... and there's no shame in his game.

Leading up to the big show, Flav appeared to be hyping it up big time ... saying he got his Taylor shirt made just for the event, and even teasing the fact she was coming to town.

While his Taylor fandom might come as a surprise to some, it might've been in our faces the whole time. Earlier this year ... Flav posed with Taylor just a few months ago in March, when she won the Innovator Award during the iHeartRadio Award show ('memba the hoodie 'fit?)

In other words, it sounds like the dude's been in her corner for a while now -- and we're all just learning about it for the first time in public. And while he was sporting Taylor gear, Flav was still on brand ... his clocks and bling were on full display as well, plus his signature hat.

Gotta say ... the Eras tour has proven to be an endless well for news this year. Not only are there storylines surrounding Tay's personal life that feed the beast ... but moments like these cycle in as well and get people fawning over their fave pop star all over again.

The Miami Heat are on the ropes in the NBA Finals, but their celeb turnout is still top-seeded in the league ... right up there with legendary LA Lakers Showtime.

Lil Wayne, Conor McGregor, G-Eazy, Chris Tucker and J. Balvin filed into the primo seats at Miami's Kaseya Center.

McGregor actually got some playing time -- not in the game, which the Denver Nuggets won -- but he was part of the center court entertainment. The UFC legend squared off with the Heat mascot Burnie ... and earned a one-punch W.

Some other famous fans in the crowd included Odell Beckham Jr., Flo Rida, Forest Whitaker, Neymar, Ozuna and Paul Pogba.

YFN Lucci is rejecting a plea deal Georgia prosecutors offered him in his racketeering case ... we've learned Lucci's instead opting to go to trial to clear his name.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ Hop Hop, Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis recommended a 20-year sentence, 17 of them in prison ... and in exchange, Lucci would have to plead guilty to multiple charges -- including felony murder, racketeering, aggravated assault and violation of the street gang terrorism and prevention act.

Lucci, whose real name is Rayshawn Bennett, is not interested in the offer. His attorneys, Drew Findling and Gabe Banks, tell us the plea offer is "absurd," and they strongly hinted the D.A. is intentionally dragging her feet -- they point out Lucci is still waiting to go to trial after 2.5 years in custody.

The attorneys also slammed Willis for focusing instead on "newer, high-profile cases that have completely monopolized the Court’s resources" and pointed out her "utter inability to prosecute complex cases."

They went on to say ... "Despite the obstacles consistently placed in the way of Mr. Bennett’s constitutional right to a speedy and fair trial, we continue to be ready and prepared to defend these false allegations."

When singer Ed Sheeran strokes his guitar and grabs the mic, his performances are near "perfect" to say the least ... but there appear to be some imperfections in these two stage shots. So, "just dive right in," follow Ed's lead and see if you can locate the minor switch-ups in the images.

After recently giving a crowd-pleasing performance on "Today," the singer removed his earpiece and posed for a photo in the busy "citi." Can you put the missing pieces "shapes" together and find the changes?!

Snoop Dogg's once favorite car -- his '66 Cadillac DeVille lowrider -- has a new owner and home ... as a permanent fixture inside a brand-spanking-new dealership in Texas!!!

The classic Snoop DeVille now resides at Cadillac of Arlington ... which we're told just had a huge party to celebrate its grand opening.

The car's previous owner, Christian Bonilla, tells TMZ Hip Hop he recently brokered a deal with the family-owned dealership group, which has been around since 1935 ... and is headquartered in the DFW area.

Snoop was rich rollin' and winning contests in the whip for years ... until the engine gave out. The car was also famously featured in 50 Cent's "P.I.M.P. Remix" video amid the "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" era.

Lil Jon's doesn't just DJ for people, he's got live animals in the crowd too ... as evidenced in his latest gig in West Hollywood.

The "Shots" rapper rocked the house for the "Secrets & Sisterhood: The Sozahdahs" series premiere party Thursday, a show that also featured a Burmese python and camel on the guest list.

Check out the video, obtained by TMZ Hip Hop, showing the King of Crunk doing his thing on the turntables inside Classic Cat while the snake pop-locked from person-to-person and the camel posted up outside.

We're told Jon didn't interact with the animals -- but still turned the club into an absolute zoo with his own hit records like "Shots" and "Yeah!" in addition to other jams that spoke to the Sozahdah Sisters' Afghan heritage.

Looks like Kanye West's bullying may cost him in court ... because he's been slapped with a lawsuit over a pic he used to troll a Vogue editor.

In case ya forgot -- Ye went after a contributing editor for Vogue named Gabriella Karefa-Johnson amid his various rants last year ... after she called his "White Lives Matter" shirt "dangerous" and "irresponsible."

Kanye blasted Gabriella by posting a photo of her and saying she's "not a fashion person" -- but according to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the pic was snapped by professional photog Michaela Efford, and she says she didn't give the rapper permission to swipe her work for his roast session.

Michaela says she snapped Gabriella's photo in September and notes Kanye used the pic on his social media about 1 week later without her permission.

Rick Ross has managed to up his luxury game even further -- showing off an 18-passenger plane that's wrapped in his signature logos and colors!!!

On Friday, the Biggest Boss showed off the new toy and debuted the name "Maybach Airlines." He also thanked his plug, Duncan Aviation, for the sweet hookup.

A bubbly Rozay danced away on the tarmac, and spouted off inspiration for his followers that one day, they too could have their own autobus with the right amount of effort.

Inside the plane, Ross showed off the spiraling decor and automated features, like a self-folding table and shades that draw with the click of a button.

As we reported, the smoke from his recent car show just cleared up, and Rozay is already planning his next estate event ... an MMG-sanctioned pool party on July 2 where he says Meek Mill will be in the mix.