Music

Jeanine Pirro says Jason Aldean intentionally filmed his "Try That in a Small Town" video in the same place where a Black teen was lynched ... because Black Lives Matter protestors are still breaking the law 100 years later.

Yeah, read that again, or even better ... watch the video, because it's pretty stunning. During Wednesday's panel discussion on "The Five" about Aldean's lightning rod of a hit song ... the Fox News host took up for Aldean's music video being shot in front of the Maury County Courthouse in Tennessee.

One of the reasons the music video's become so controversial is the fact an 18-year-old Black man was lynched at that location in 1927 -- but Pirro says it's the perfect place for Aldean to send a message about BLM.

"I think he's trying to show that there hasn't been that much progress. That Black Lives Matter is violating the law themselves at this point ... rioting and burning. That's what happened 100 years later."

Translation: Black people are still committing crimes, just as that 18-year-old did, Pirro's eyes, 96 years ago??? It certainly comes off as pro-vigilante justice, which is one of the reasons critics and the NAACP have been ripping Aldean's song.

Jennifer Lopez got locked out of a workout session and then later took out some frustration on the paparazzi with an f-bomb ... and it's all on video.

J Lo was trying to get inside Tracy Anderson Method Studio in Studio City for a Wednesday afternoon workout, but her key card wasn't working ... and she ended up waiting outside the locked door before someone let her inside.

Following the workout, Jennifer was not in a good mood despite the endorphin release ... swearing at paparazzi as she climbed into a waiting SUV.

J Lo told the photogs ... "Go away. F*** you. Bye." While we can't tell for certain if she was truly mad, it certainly seemed like a not-so-friendly delivery. She and her team then sped off.

Jennifer's been on the defensive lately it seems ... earlier this month, she caught some heat for her new alcohol brand and shot back with a video response.

Jason Aldean's hit song, and its accompanying music video, about small towns in America is sparking huge debate across the country ... and, now the NAACP is joining the convo.

The Tennessee chapter of the civil rights org is strongly condemning the country singer -- President Gloria Sweet-Love tells us Jason's tone, his message and the imagery he's using are all deeply offensive to people of color, especially Black people.

Sweet-Love says the Tennessee State Conference NAACP, as an organization, finds the song/music vid for "Try That in a Small Town" awful and racist.

She adds, in their eyes, the lyrics are bad enough, but Aldean's adding insult to injury by filming the video in front of the Maury County Courthouse in Columbia, TN ... where a Black man was lynched in 1927.

Making matters worse -- GSL says the KKK has recently been hanging flyers in that town as well, and Aldean's project is only adding unneeded fuel to a fire.

Sweet-Love goes on to say she believes Aldean's track is clearly promoting racism and violence, adding Tennessee doesn't need that -- instead, she says the focus of artists should be uniting people, and protecting their children and communities.

While Aldean seems to be inviting rancor ... Sweet-Love says he should, instead, apologize now -- echoing what a lot of others have said about this, including Sheryl Crow.

As we've reported ... JA himself has vehemently denied promoting any racism or violence in the song -- and says it only reflects the community he's familiar with ... not to mention sentiments he says people he knows share. In other words, he ain't walking back anything.

CMT has already yanked the song/vid from rotation ... and Sweet-Love says TN's NAACP chapter appreciates that gesture, telling us it was the right move all things considered.

Oscar De La Hoya is weighing in on one of the best fights in years -- Errol Spence vs. Terence Crawford -- a fight The Golden Boy agrees is as close to evenly matched as a fight could be ... but that doesn't mean the boxing legend doesn't have a prediction!

"I think it is a 50/50 fight," De La Hoya told us in NYC on Wednesday ... before giving us his pick.

"I like Crawford, I've always liked Crawford. I mean, I love Spence, but Crawford has more of the elusive style, more combinations. It's gonna be a good fight. If Spence wins, he's gonna knock out Crawford. If Crawford wins, it'll go to decision."

Vegas seems to agree with the boxing legend ... Crawford is a small favorite in the bout, heading into fight week around -160 (wager $160 to win $100).

Of course, it's the fight boxing fans have been talking about -- clamoring for -- for years ... and it's just a week and a half away, going down July 29 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Spence, 33, is undefeated with a record of 28-0 with 22 knockouts. He's the unified welterweight (147 lbs.) champion, holding the IBF, WBC, and WBA belts.

As for Crawford, he too has never lost ... and comes into the fight with a 39-0 record with 30 knockouts. "Bud" is also a champ, holding the WBO welterweight belt. He's been champion in three different weight classes.

There's more with ODLH. We also talked to the boxing Hall of Famer about the Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou "money grab" boxing match, scheduled for October.

ABC will not edit out Jason Aldean's controversial hit, "Try That in a Small Town," on Wednesday's "CMA Fest," but viewers will not see a frame of the music video ... sources tell TMZ.

"CMA Fest" was filmed between June 8th and 11th at various venues in Nashville. Aldean was one of the headliners, who sang the song that was rising on the charts.

The song has become a lightning rod because of the lyrics combined with the newly-released music video, with images of Black Lives Matter protests, flag burning, and aggression toward police. The music video was also shot outside the same courthouse where there was a brutal lynching years ago. Folks on social media have ripped Aldean, claiming his song is a right-wing dog whistle.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ, ABC will air Aldean's performance but none of the music video will appear in the show. For the record, the music video was released after the festival. ABC could have used the music video in the show open or promos, but our sources say the network has taken a hard pass on that.

Aldean has defended the song, saying it has nothing to do with BLM but rather it's an anthem honoring neighbors helping each other in small towns.

Clearly, not everyone's buying it, but enough people are to propel the song to #1 on iTunes.

Rolling Loud Miami kicks off this weekend with plenty of side projects to accompany the main adventure, just like the youth basketball clinic the organizers slam-dunked Wednesday.

Festival founders Tariq Cherif and Matt Zingler, teamed up with the Miami Heat players Udonis Haslem & Haywood Highsmith and 50 kids from the Miami Gardens Life Skills & Summer Thrill camp ... as the official tip-off for the Rolling Loud Miami Week.

Udonis, being a Miami native and a 20-year vet of the Heat says the Rolling Loud clinic was especially personal for him, as he sees his former self in so many youth today.

Tariq assisted with both the DJing duty and skills training and we're told all the kids at the event had a blast.

Rolling Loud Miami Week will be booming with local community initiatives with familiar sponsors designed to inspire and inform the kids ... great time-fillers for their current school-free days.

On Thursday, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America will team with DGK Skateboards for a skate park clinic, that'll provide the 50 youth participants with skateboards and safety equipment to instill the basics.

Then on Friday, the Black Music Action Coalition will host a rally with NY Congressman Jamall Bowman and Georgia Congressman Hank Johnson to discuss the ongoing controversy of targeting rapper's lyrics.

Of course, the 3-day music fest will bring things home ... with Playboi Carti, Travis Scott and A$AP Rocky serving as the headliners this go around.

Eminem famously went from performing in hole-in-the-wall clubs to emerging as the best-selling rapper EVER -- but he's admitting a couple of icons who came before him almost made him trash his old rhymes!!!

Slim Shady revisited his humble hip hop beginnings for The New York Times' 50-year celebration of the genre ... which also features testimonies from marquee rap stars like 50 Cent, Krayzie Bone, Bun B and Trina.

Em credited his Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Edna for fostering his rap stan-dom and remembered being enamored by LL Cool J, Run-DMC and Kool G Rap ... all of whom eventually inspired him to rap.

But, when Nas and Naughty By Nature hit the scene in the early '90s, Em says he became unsure of himself ... and almost quit the dream that made him a legend.

Em says he bumped NBN's self-titled debut album all summer, so much so, Treach's rhyme skills gave him a serious case of writer's block.

When Nas' debut, "Illmatic," dropped a year later, Em memorized it front to back -- but, again, he says the Source's "5-mic" rating gave him anxiety ... he worried he'd never measure up.

Em recalls being jaded about rapping for several years before he started crushing local open mic nights in Detroit ... and obviously went on to sell a bazillion records.

There's no shame in "Illmatic" giving any young MC nerves -- it's widely considered one of the greatest albums ever, and is even being preserved in the Library of Congress!!!

We actually just spoke to Treach, and he basically alluded to NBN powering through a bit of infighting, but says he's still rapping with the same intensity Em loved back in the day.

A former detective who worked on The Notorious B.I.G. murder case -- which overlapped with Tupac's murder -- says Vegas PD might finally be able to close the infamous case ... especially in light of whose home they raided.

Greg Kading gained extensive knowledge of both Pac and B.I.G.'s murders while he was with LAPD, and joined us Wednesday on "TMZ Live" to offer insight into the Henderson, NV raid. We broke the story ... Vegas cops searched the home of Paula Clemons Monday night, and they say it was in connection with the still-open Tupac murder case.

Paula's husband is a guy named Keffe D, and Kading says Keefe has spoken openly about his involvement with Tupac's murder for years now -- alleging his nephew and fellow Crip Orlando Anderson was the trigger man that fateful night in 1996.

Kading says Keefe first confessed to this way back in 2009, during a police interview conducted by Kading. He says they struck a deal with Keefe, so they couldn't use the info he provided to prosecute him -- but he says that deal went out the window the moment Keefe started telling his story in public.

Kading suspects Keefe still thinks he's safe from prosecution, but the fact cops now appear to be zeroing in on him -- or at least, his loved ones -- will probably make him realize he's mistaken.

As for why Vegas cops are jumping on this now -- Kading tells us they might have been working on this in recent years, and only now have all the pieces lined up to prosecute someone.

Ice Spice says she and Taylor Swift immediately hit it off when recording their hit record "Karma" ... and they still keep in contact via text to this day!!!

The "Munch" rapper relived her experience working with the pop powerhouse with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 ... openly admitting she was having a crummy day until her manager told her TS was requesting her for a collab.

Ice says Taylor wasn't acting Hollywood once they pulled up to the studio either ... the "Midnights" singer was actually waiting for her outside, eager to collaborate.

The song immediately became a hit when it dropped in May, and is one of the reasons Ice is tied with Morgan Wallen for most Top 10 hits in 2023.

According to Ice, Taylor keeps her LOLing at all times, dubbing her "the funniest person ever" as they still keep in frequent contact via text.

Collaborations aren't always guaranteed to create friendships, but Ice also counts her newfound partner-in-rhyme Nicki Minaj as well as Drake as mentors — and soaks up all the advice they give her!!!

Next up for Ice, is the deluxe follow-up to her debut EP "Like..?" which arrives on Friday.

We've learned Clemons did not own the Compton home where the Tupac murder weapon was found back in '98.

Also, KNTV got video of SWAT officers swooping into the neighborhood Monday night to execute the search warrant at Clemons' Henderson home.

The home cops raided in Vegas this week in connection with the unsolved Tupac murder belongs to the wife of a guy who says he was in the car with a man who shot and killed the late rapper.

TMZ has confirmed the address where Vegas Metro executed a search warrant Monday night ... it's owned by a woman named Paula Clemons -- who's married, we've learned, to Keffe D.

Folks familiar with Tupac lore know exactly who Keffe D is -- he's a former Crip, and for years now he's been doing interviews claiming to be the uncle of the late Orlando Anderson ... who's been suspected, at least on the streets, to have been the shooter.

Orlando and his crew -- including Keefe -- were in Vegas that night ... and Orlando was actually jumped by Tupac, Suge Knight and other Death Row affiliates at the MGM Grand. It's an altercation that was caught on surveillance video ... and many thought Orlando might have orchestrated a revenge shooting after the Mike Tyson fight that night. FWIW, Orlando himself had denied any involvement before he was killed in a shootout himself.

As for Paula, she also owned a home in Compton in the '90s ... what's interesting, in 1998, the L.A. County Sheriff's Dept. recovered a gun in the backyard of a Compton home ... a home the Sheriff's Dept. said belonged to the girlfriend of known Crip who was in Vegas the night of the murder.

As we reported, cops raided Paula's Henderson, Nevada home Monday. The reason the raid is significant is because, to obtain that warrant, police had to show a judge there was probable cause to believe there was evidence in the home connected to Tupac's murder.

Cops are not saying what they recovered from Paula's Henderson home.

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

Ryan Cabrera just announced the gender of his baby with Alexa Bliss like an absolute rockstar ... completely destroying a guitar that revealed he and the WWE Superstar are having a girl!!

Bliss posted video of the epic reveal on her Instagram page Wednesday ... and check out the clip, everyone was fired up to see pink smoke billow through the air!!

You can see Bliss raised her hands with joy ... while Cabrera had a massive grin on his face.

"BABY GIRL!" Bliss said in a caption on the video.

The couple announced back in May they were expecting ... saying their first child would be arriving sometime in December 2023.

Hilariously, they said it was an unplanned pregnancy ... showing a photo of a baby onesie with the words "best oops ever!" on it.

Yo Gotti's co-ownership of MLS soccer team D.C. United has opened new doors for the "Rake It Up" rapper ... making a trip to the White House to hang with the First Lady!!!

The CMG boss kicked off his MLS All-Star Week on the South Lawn of the White House Monday as an invited guest. Gotti was part of a youth soccer clinic designed to raise awareness for the sport with future generations.

Sources tell TMZ Hip Hop that Gotti and Jill Biden had a great chitchat on the South Lawn about his own children's growing love for soccer ... and he connected with officials from the Biden-Harris Administration throughout the day.

Gotti joined D.C. United in 2021 and has been proactive in ingraining himself in the soccer community.

We're told he'll be joining the TV booth for the MLS All-Star Game later this evening, as 2 D.C. United players and their coach Wayne Rooney are on the roster.

Jason Aldean's new song has been hit with loads of controversy for its lyrics and music video ... but apparently, fans are still digging it -- because it's a chart-topper.

"Try That in a Small Town" has been called out for being threatening toward people with anti-police and anti-American beliefs. The song was first released in May, but it's been climbing the charts on multiple platforms lately ... and hit the #1 spot Tuesday on iTunes for songs in the U.S.

It's also #9 on Amazon's Hot New Releases list -- and his recently released video's trending on YouTube, reaching #12 amongst all things music on the site. Remember, CMT pulled the video from its channel this week as anger ramped up.

As we reported, Jason's been getting called out for his track and the music video ... which was filmed in front of the Tennessee courthouse where an 18-year-old Black man was lynched almost 100 years ago.

Jason claimed there was no ill intention behind the lyrics, telling his fans it had nothing to do with race ... but instead was just about growing up in a tight-knit community.

Fellow singer Sheryl Crow let him have it Wednesday, saying folks in small towns are sick of the violence happening in our country -- adding his song only supports more hate in America.

We discussed the controversy surrounding the song on the latest episode of The TMZ Podcast, available on all podcast platforms.

Post Malone is a man of his word, fulfilling a promise made to a huge fan who'd gone through a life-altering medical episode, and we've got the pics from the super sweet face-to-face.

The whole thing started last year when Garrett Belanger's sister Taylor made a Tik Tok detailing his story and Post responded. Garrett, a longtime Post Malone supporter, suffered a brain hemorrhage in 2022 -- and he's been slowly (but surely) recovering following a coma.

Post actually sent Garrett a bunch of merch and a video last August -- not long after he came out of the coma -- telling him to hit him up whenever he was ready to come to a show and rock out ... and on Monday, he finally got that chance at Post's concert in Buffalo, NY.

On Monday, Garrett, his sister Taylor, family and friends took Post up on his offer -- getting to enjoy the singer's show. We're told not only did PM get them regular tickets ... but he and his camp rolled out the red carpet for Garrett and his loved ones with VIP tickets and a backstage meet and greet.

The photos are pretty awesome -- you can see Posty and Garrett hugging it out, and Garrett looks absolutely stoked. While he can't talk or walk just yet ... Taylor says Garrett can communicate by blinking now, and he was more than aware he was meeting his idol.

In addition to the meet-and-greet ... the family brought Post a Garrett's Army shirt that he put on while posing for the pictures. Considering how long this has been in the works ... it's truly full circle.

Garrett's family has started a GoFundMe to help with his care and recovery.

Sheryl Crow is coming after Jason Aldean -- saying his heavily-criticized new song spews nothing but violence -- echoing what many online have been up in arms about.

The "All I Wanna Do" singer didn't hold back on Twitter Wednesday morning about Jason's single, "Try That In A Small Town" ... which talks about bringing anti-police and anti-American views to a small community, saying "See how far ya make it down the road."

Sheryl, who says she is from a small town, thinks people in places like that are also tired of the rise in violence in the country ... calling the song "lame."

She adds, "You should know that better than anyone having survived a mass shooting."

For those unaware, Sheryl's referring to the horrifying 2017 Las Vegas shooting at the Route 91 Harvest music festival -- Jason was performing when Stephen Paddock opened fire on the crowd from Mandalay Bay.

As we reported, Jason's been receiving hate over this track ... and he responded to the communal noise Tuesday, saying the idea that it has racist and hateful undertones is BS.

Folks were pissed about his music video, too -- which was shot in front of the Maury County Courthouse in Tennessee ... the same place where 18-year-old African-American Henry Choate was lynched in 1927.

Miranda Lambert might've had good reason to go off on some front-row fans who were snapping photos at her concert -- 'cause there were half a dozen of them ... all on their feet, blocking the view of the people behind them.

One of the ladies in question -- who's now copping to being part of the group that got chastised by Lambert -- posted two pics she says were being taken right before the country singer paused her show over the weekend to give them a piece of her mind.

As you can see ... there are six women pictured here, who are at the foot of the stage, with ML right behind them -- who's trying to get the show on the road. More importantly, all of 'em are standing ... and from the looks of it, apparently blocking the view of others.

On its face ... it sure looks like they, perhaps, might've been a distraction -- that's certainly how Miranda felt anyway, proven in her mini tirade ... which her audience had backed.

Miranda actually caught flak for this ... as some felt she'd overreacted to what many presumed was a couple of girls firing off some low-key selfies during her set. However, that's clearly not the case -- it was a much larger gathering ... and a bit of a photo shoot, it seems.

BTW, the lady who posted these definitely thinks Miranda was in the wrong -- evidenced in her caption.

She writes, "These are the 2 pictures we were talking when Miranda Lambert stopped her concert and told us to sit down and not take selfies 😱." She's echoing what many said about Miranda's response -- mocking her, essentially -- but now ... ML might be vindicated!