Music

YNW Melly's career essentially came to an end in 2019 after he was arrested and charged with double homicide ... but his streaming has seen a resurgence as of late.

On Monday, Melly's trial kicked off in Florida's Broward County court, where it was uncovered the 24-year-old rapper had absolutely zero RIAA certifications on his wall at the time of his arrest on February 13, 2019 ... but now has 10 platinum plaques and 6 gold.

Fans have especially been running up the numbers for Melly's more sinister tracks ... "Suicidal" sits at 4x platinum while his signature hit "Murder on My Mind" is fairly close to Diamond status at 6x platinum.

Melly and Kanye West's 2020 collab "Mixed Personalities" is also double platinum.

The Florida rapper, born Jamell Demons, stands accused of gunning down his own friends YNW Juvy and YNW Sakchaser.

Travis Scott's "Utopia" album recently founds its way into the mix of his new Nike campaign, revamping the Nike Mac Attack kicks worn by John McEnroe during his fiery heyday.

The two longtime Nike ambassadors appeared in a new TV spot Monday to preview the Mac Attacks in their OG colorways of Light Smoke Grey/Black-White. In the accompanying photo shoot, the patented briefcase containing the master copy of "Utopia" can also be spotted.

John's been down with Nike before Travis was actually born ... but Travis has loads of Cactus Jack merch collabs underneath the Swoosh umbrella, so their ties with the brand are both deep-rooted at this point.

"The Idol" star Lily-Rose Depp was spotted giving her girlfriend 070 Shake something to smile about ... having some hands-on fun together in the Big Apple.

LRD and her rapper GF were taking in NYC Sunday, but the busy city wasn't the only thing Shake was focused on -- digging around down Lily-Rose's short, black skirt!

Apart from the grabby embrace, the lovebirds grabbed some lunch at Lure and followed it up with a shopping trip at Balenciaga and The Vintage Twin stores.

For those unaware, Lily-Rose and Shake went Instagram official in May when the actress posted a pic of them kissing on her story, captioning it "4 MONTHS W MY CRUSH."

Since then, they've been spotted smooching at LAX as Lily-Rose returned home from the Cannes Film Festival.

And FYI -- Lily-Rose has been previously linked to the likes of Austin Butler and Timothée Chalamet, while Shake's dated singer Kehlani for about a year.

Usain Bolt's speed certainly isn't limited to the track ... 'cause the Jamaican sprinter flew past his opponents to score an impressive goal in a charity soccer match on Sunday!!

The 8-time Olympic gold medalist ditched his running spikes for some cleats at the Soccer Aid for UNICEF event ... and he wasn't just there to show face -- he balled out!!

Bolt -- fittingly rocking a No. 9.58 jersey to represent his world-record 100-meter dash time -- broke things open 23 minutes into the competition ... zooming past the last line of defense to put the ball in the back of the net for team World XI.

The best part of the highlight came when Bolt celebrated the goal -- first, he did English soccer star Marcus Rashford's signature move ... before switching up to his famous "To Di World" point alongside former French pro Patrice Evra.

Bolt's teammate Tommy Fury was the first to run up and congratulate him ... and it was smooth sailing for their squad the rest of the match, thanks to Robbie Keane's pair of goals.

Former One Direction member Liam Payne wasn't all upset about England's 4-2 loss to World XI ... considering the game raised more than $14 MILLION for the humanitarian organization.

Bolt previously flirted with the idea of playing soccer in the States -- remember, he told us back in 2018 he'd listen to offers from MLS teams if they came with the money.

Anita Baker says she won't stand for another minute of disrespect from Babyface or his rabid fan base ... and wants the R&B king to tell his fans he's not the most royal member on The Songstress Tour!!!

On Monday, Anita ripped into Babyface and a random smattering of his followers on Twitter, continuing her tirade from the day before.

According to Anita, Babyface has been breaching his contract as an opening act by staying onstage past his set time, which cuts into her headlining performance.

Fans lashed out at Anita for not acknowledging Babyface as her equal -- to which she informed him the "Whip Appeal" singer is certainly NOT ... at least as where The Songstress Tour is concerned.

The multi-city event is supposed to be celebrating the 40th anniversary of Anita's debut album ... but things have mostly been boiling in beef.

Back in May, Babyface assured TMZ that he and Anita were cool after his set was cut during the New Jersey show ... and this was after a 2-hour delay.

Cam'ron is telling Ja Morant he's seen hoop dreams deflate ... and doesn't want the embattled NBA superstar to flush his career for being too in love with the streets.

The Diplomats founder was once a top basketball prospect coming outta Harlem in the mid-1990s ... but didn't take his academics seriously and saw his career fizzle after tearing his hamstring at junior college in Texas.

Cam'ron shared pics of his basketball playing days throwing up a gang sign to show Ja how unfocused he was at the time, where he says he got kicked outta college for pistol-whipping someone.

The "Oh Boy" rapper says he's not glorifying his past actions and doesn't want Ja, who's currently awaiting NBA Commissioner Adam Silver's judgment after his latest gun-toting video, to make the same mistake.

Ja should probably listen to Cam, as he's had his own run-ins with NBA Commissioners in the past.

Daphne Barak, the journalist claiming Kevin Federline linked Britney Spears to crystal meth, has come under heavy fire from the former couple ... but she's not backing down, insisting K-Fed made the statement, despite his denial.

A spokesperson for Mail on Sunday tells us Daphne and her team spent months working on a documentary with Kevin, his family and Britney's two sons -- Sean Preston and Jayden.

The rep says, "Daphne Barak has assured us that the quotes attributed to Kevin and the family are accurate and fairly reflect the interviews conducted, in which Kevin expressed his fears that Britney might be using crystal meth to Daphne and to her producer Erbil Gunasti and members of the film crew. He did so clearly and repeatedly."

They continue, "Kevin also made it clear to Daphne that he hoped someone would expose the situation, as he saw it, because that would be the way to get help for Britney."

What's more -- they say they reached out to Britney's reps for comments on the meth allegation ... but got no response.

For his part, Kevin's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan tells us in response, "Mail on Sunday knows no more than what they were told by Daphne. Accurate reporting might mean they accurately took down what Daphne told them but in no way means what Daphne told them was accurate."

TMZ broke the story -- Federline went scorched Earth on The Sun and Daily Mail Sunday after a report claimed he stated about Britney, "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."

After the story came out, Kevin told 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."

DC Young Fly spared no expense to celebrate the life of his late partner Jacky Oh! ... as evidenced in the beautiful photos from the mother of three's funeral service.

The celebration of life went down over the weekend in Atlanta, with Jacky getting a grand send-off ... her casket was covered in beautiful flower bouquets, and outside the church DC was surrounded by loved ones as he released a dove into the air.

As you can see, Jacky's casket rode in on a horse-drawn carriage ... and everything was white and gold.

Tons of folks turned out to pay their respects to Jacky ... including friends, family and even a few celebs.

The photos show the full scope of Jacky's funeral ... as we previously reported, video of DC Young Fly's funeral speech featured a powerful message about faith, and in the pics you see him kiss her casket.

TMZ broke the story ... Jacky, a mother of three, died May 31 in Miami at 32 years old and her official cause of death has not yet been announced, though there's speculation swirling online that she was in Miami for a cosmetic procedure.

Looking at the celebration of life here, it's clear Jacky made a huge impact on people's lives.

Rubi Rose's 2021 "TWORK" music video was responsible for the destruction of some very valuable art ... so says the owner of the property next to the rapper's Los Angeles filming location.

According to a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ Hip Hop, a renowned contemporary sculptor named Analia Saban's art studio/creative space is suing Rubi, video directors Jay and Georgio Rodriguez, and her label HitCo, claiming the music video shoot involved a high-pressure fire truck hose that ended up causing major damage to the artist's building and art pieces.

Saban claims you can spot the exact moment above when the water from the fire hose breached Analia's studio ... and says the unwelcome water damaged the building, destroyed valuable art, and caused at least six figures in overall damage.

Hollywood Fire Authority, a Los Angeles-based company that rents firefighter equipment, is also named in the suit ... for allegedly failing to properly train Rubi and the crew on using the equipment. After all, the high-pressured fire hoses aren't exactly toys like water guns!!!

Analia says she has undeniable proof the "TWORK" video wrecked her studio and is suing for at least $300K in damages.

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.