Music

Taylor Swift's new album is creating a major mix-up between folks looking for her tunes, and those looking to get their goblin on ... at least according to a fantasy park.

The owners of the Utah-based park called Evermore are suing Tay-Tay for trademark infringement -- claiming they own the rights to the name “evermore,” and saying Swift trampled said rights when she started selling merch with that branding to promote her album by the same name.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, the Evermore park camp claims it's poured many millions of dollars into building the facility, branding and selling its own gear since the park was conceived in 2014 and, of course, when it opened in 2018.

The park owners say they've got 'Evermore' trademarked for a number of different purposes -- including clothing and other merchandise they sell ... all of which they claim was diluted once TS dropped 'evermore' in late 2020.

Evermore park brass alleges since the record came out, their search results are way down in Google, and that it's legitimately causing confusion in the marketplace ... which they say is hurting their bottom line.

They also allege Tay's team was aware that the trademark for 'Evermore' was snatched up, but proceeded with their own campaign anyway ... figuring they'd drown out the park.

Morgan Wallen is feeling an immediate backlash after using the n-word -- music platforms are dropping him left and right, and fellow country artists are also condemning his behavior.

The singer's music was reportedly banned from Cumulus Media overnight, which is one of the biggest radio chains for country music across the nation. A directive from the station's brass told all their affiliates to scrub anything Morgan for Wednesday's slate of programming.

The memo, obtained by Variety, reads ... "MORGAN WALLEN — EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. Team, unfortunately country music star Morgan Wallen was captured on video Sunday evening using a racial slur. Effective immediately we request that all of Morgan Wallen’s music be removed from our playlists without exception. More to follow."

Many of his own peers are decrying his use of the racial slur too -- but there seem to be differences of opinion on whether this is an isolated incident or a bigger problem that's just coming to light now.

For example, country star Kelsea Ballerini wrote ... "The news out of Nashville tonight does not represent country music," to which Maren Morris responded ... "It actually IS representative of our town because this isn’t his first “scuffle” and he just demolished a huge streaming record last month regardless. We all know it wasn’t his first time using that word. We keep them rich and protected at all costs with no recourse."

Despite that, nobody appears to be watering down Morgan dropping the slur ... or excusing it. So, there's a united front there.

TMZ broke the story ... Morgan was filmed by a neighbor Sunday night getting rowdy with his friends, and then dropping the n-word as he made his way inside, seemingly telling a buddy to rough somebody up.

He issued an apology, saying there were no excuses for his behavior ... and promising to do better. It might be too little too late though -- which is a shame for him, because MW was the king of country this past month ... breaking streaming records, and getting tons of love.

Morgan Wallen returned home Sunday from a rowdy night with friends, and as he walked up his driveway he hurled the n-word and other profanities, it's all on video and Wallen is remorseful.

The country star and a group of buddies had just spent a night out in Nashville. When they arrived at Morgan's home at around midnight, they were extremely loud ... honking horns and talking loudly ... loud enough to piss off neighbors. One of the neighbors began recording the antics.

As Morgan appears to stumble toward his house, he tells someone to watch over a guy in his group. He says ... "take care of this "p****-ass mother******" -- and then goes on to say, "take care of this p****-ass n*****" ... before finally heading in.

Video from a neighbor's doorbell cam shows the scene before Morgan hurled the profanities and racial epithet, and it's apparent why neighbors looked outside.

The video (above) was recorded Monday morning -- again by the same neighbor ... more clearly showing Morgan as he left his home with a friend.

As for Sunday, it's unclear exactly where Morgan went, but we do know he made at least one stop at Luke Bryan's restaurant, 32 Bridge, where he jumped on stage for a quick performance.

This is just the latest incident with Morgan. You'll recall days before he was slated to appear on "Saturday Night Live," video surfaced of him partying it up in a bar without a mask and interacting and kissing several women. He was axed from the 'SNL' show but given another chance a few weeks later.

Lamar Odom has agreed to fight Aaron Carter in a celebrity boxing match in June, TMZ Sports has learned ... and the training is already underway!

41-year-old Odom will take on the 33-year-old Carter at the Showboat Casino in Atlantic City on June 12 in a 3 round exhibition, Celebrity Boxing honcho Damon Feldman tells us.

Besides the age difference ... there's a significant height differential -- Odom is 6'10" and Carter is 6'1".

Odom obviously has a background as a professional athlete -- playing 14 seasons in the NBA.

He nearly died in 2015 from an overdose at a Nevada brothel -- and subsequently suffered several strokes and heart attacks. Some doctors didn't believe he'd fully recover.

Miraculously, Odom beat the odds and returned to the basketball court during a short stint with the BIG3 league in 2019.

Now, he's turning to boxing ... where he hopes to put a beating on Aaron Carter, who's also struggled with addiction. He sought treatment in 2017.

Both men have been busting their asses in the gym and we're told they're taking the fight very seriously ... no one wants to be the next Nate Robinson!

Sure, Aaron might appear to be the underdog -- but Carter tells TMZ Sports he "grew up street fighting" and he's ready for the challenge.

Damon Feldman -- who's been behind a ton of celebrity boxing events over the years -- says this fight has real potential to be the best one yet.

A champagne company in which Drake's heavily invested claims it got screwed by a distributor that's treating its luxury product like cheap booze ... and it thinks "racial bigotry" is involved.

Mod Selection is suing the retail store Total Wine & More for allegedly conspiring with the distributor Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits to destroy the brand ... and claims the distributor was downright racist when it came to marketing the champagne.

According to docs, Mod entered an agreement with Southern in 2018, but claims the distributor failed to market the high-end champagne the right way ... and it all comes back to the famous rapper.

Drake -- who's not suing or being sued, but is described in the suit as an investor and brand ambassador for Mod Selection -- was holding a bottle of it on stage in 2019 when he accepted his Billboard Music Award for Best Male Artist.

In the docs ... Mod says Drake permitted the company to use his name, image and likeness to promote and market their champagne, but Mod claims Southern Glazer damaged that relationship when it "repeatedly subjected [Drake] to browbeating and dismissive treatment."

Mod claims Drake considered this treatment to be motivated by "racial bigotry" ... and says he was also angry Southern marketed Mod as a "black" or "rapper's" champagne ... suggesting racial insensitivity. Attorneys for Mod tell us they have texts from Drake calling out Southern.

All of this led to Southern terminating its deal with Mod in 2019, but Mod alleges the distributor twisted the knife one last time ... by dumping its remaining Mod supply at Total Wine & More locations for as low as $49-149 per bottle -- when it should be selling for $300-400.

Drake's high-powered attorney, Larry Stein, says he doesn't know if Drake sent angry texts to Mod Selection -- but says he's been involved in all the negotiations and had no idea Mod was even filing this lawsuit.

T.J. Osborne is coming out as gay, and it's a milestone for country music ... he's the first and only openly gay man signed to a major country music label.

The Brothers Osborne frontman came out in an interview with Time Magazine, becoming one of the only country music stars to share their truth in their prime.

While T.J. is making history here, he says coming out isn't too big a deal for him even though he had a few reservations about industry reaction ... telling Time, "I'm very comfortable being gay."

The Brothers Osborne signed to EMI Records Nashville back in 2012, and they've since released 3 studio albums with 7 singles in the country music Top 40 ... despite the success, T.J. says he's curious how he'll be received the next time he performs in a rural town at a county fair.

T.J. says he knew he was gay at young age, and found being closeted isolating and lonely, so he started pouring his emotions into his music. He says he's been out to his friends and family for years, and coronavirus lockdown made him decide it was finally time to come out publicly.

Dave Chappelle once famously asked, "Where is Ja?!?" -- and for now, the answer is ... on the graduating side of Harvard's online program for biz wizzes.

The rapper and businessman posted the results for his enrollment at Harvard Business School Online Certificate Program ... and it says clear as day -- Jeffrey Atkins (Ja's government name) has successfully completed it.

Looks like there's a focus he was specializing in too ... Entrepreneurship Skills. The description reads ... "This certificate program introduces a framework -- People, Opportunity, Context, Deal -- to evaluate opportunities, manage start-ups, and finance ventures."

Ja Rule was humblebragging about the accomplishment, tweeting ... "I ain’t the sharpest knife in the drawer buuuuut..." OK, we see ya, JR! And, we gotta say, the timing's kinda perfect.

Remember, Ja's got a few things in the oven on the tech and start-up front -- including a new app he's launching called Iconn, which facilitates celeb bookings. He gave us the rundown on it not too long ago, and even invited former Prez Trump to join.

No Proud Boys -- or Proud Boy hate-mongering -- is allowed though, as he made clear in our interview.

Silento's family is banding together on the heels of his arrest for allegedly murdering his cousin ... and they’re addressing reports the rapper's been battling mental health issues.

A rep for Silento, Chanel Hudson, tells TMZ ... the family's trying to move forward as a close-knit group. As we reported, the rapper's facing a murder charge in Georgia for the fatal shooting of his cousin, Frederick Rooks.

We're told the family is reeling from both events -- Rooks' death on Jan. 21, and then Silento's arrest 11 days later.

Hudson claims Silento's been suffering from a "series of mental health illnesses" for years, including depression and we're told the family echoes her concern about his well-being.

Silento is being held without bail in DeKalb County Jail and his entertainment attorney, Bernie Lawrence-Watkins, tells TMZ ... he needs a psychiatric evaluation ASAP and should be watched closely.

She told us they don't think he would take his life behind bars, but admits "anything is possible," and they want to make sure the jail is taking proper precautions.

Silento had an opportunity to get mental health treatment in 2019 after he appeared on "The Doctors" to talk about depression -- however we're told he never followed through. Folks on his team feel that's when things started to unravel.

Gene Simmons has officially kissed his Hollywood Hills crib goodbye ... selling it for a cool $2 million.

The rock star sold his 3-story pad that sits in Laurel Canyon for just a tad under the $2.2 million asking price. The house, and its views, are a beaut ... with 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and iconic 180-degree views of downtown L.A., the Hollywood Sign, Griffith Park Observatory, Beverly Hills and the Pacific Ocean.

As we reported ... the house offers a spacious deck and tons of living space ... with 2,345 square feet that's perfectly suited for any rock star.

As for his other crib ... the KISS singer and bassist's Beverly Hills estate remains on the market, but the price on that one is a tad higher ... at $22 million. That one's way more house!

Maluma got mobbed by fans during a meet-and-greet in Miami ... and cops shut the shindig down because they say it was not COVID safe.

The Colombian singer was promoting his new album, '7 Días en Jamaica,' at an art gallery in Wynwood and asked fans to show up to meet him. The crowd grew so big, cops pulled the plug.

As you see in the video, Maluma rolls up in an SUV and is instantly swarmed by a gaggle of fans. He greeted around 160 people inside the gallery, as they entered in groups of 10, but with 1,000 people still in line, it didn't appear safe ... this according to the Miami PD.

Most of the fans had masked up, Maluma included, and we're told social distancing was enforced inside the gallery ... but cops say that just wasn't enough.

Maluma, who's donating proceeds from his album artwork to 3 different environmental charities, told the crowd he's hoping to make another fan appearance this week.

Either Rita Ora's rep for flouting COVID rules precedes her, or she just flew into a country that takes health protocols so seriously ... it forced her into immediate quarantine.

The singer flew into Sydney Monday, and video shows her getting intercepted by a gaggle of airport cops the second she stepped off the plane. Rita and her many, many bags were ushered away to a hotel ... where she'll reportedly shelter-in-place for 14 days before being allowed to go about her biz with native Aussies.

Rita's down there for a gig as a judge on "The Voice" -- let's hope they worked her 2 weeks of isolation into the shoot schedule.

To be clear, Rita's lockdown isn't Australia dropping the hammer on her in particular. The quarantine is mandatory for all incoming travelers from pretty much anywhere besides New Zealand.

So, no ... officials weren't sticking it to Rita because of her recent 'rona screw-up in the UK.

Remember, she held a moderately-sized party for her 30th birthday -- and paid around $7,000 to make it happen ... this despite London being on lockdown at the time. She apologized for it, but it was a PR nightmare.

Marilyn Manson's record label is dropping the hammer ... cutting him hours after his ex, Evan Rachel Wood, publicly claimed the shock rocker abused her for years.

The "Westworld" star posted a statement Monday morning, calling out her former fiance by name for the first time. She claims ... "The name of my abuser is Brian Warner, also known to the world as Marilyn Manson."

Manson has yet to respond to the allegations, but Loma Vista Recordings has announced, "In light of today’s disturbing allegations by Evan Rachel Wood and other women naming Marilyn Manson as their abuser, Loma Vista will cease to further promote his current album, effective immediately."

The label says it won't be working with Manson in the future either.

In her statement, Wood claimed Manson "started grooming me when I was a teenager and horrifically abused me for years. I was brainwashed and manipulated into submission. I am done living in fear of retaliation, slander, or blackmail."

Wood and Manson were known to be dating in 2007 -- when she was 19 and he was 38 -- and they got engaged in 2010, but split later that year.

In a Rolling Stone article in 2016, Wood began speaking out about being a survivor of sexual abuse and domestic violence and became an activist for other survivors.

She went before Congress in 2018 to describe her struggles as a rape victim, and push for the sexual assault survivor's bill of rights to be passed nationwide. Still, she's never named her alleged abuser until today.

Due to the timing of her public comments, many already believed she was referring to Manson. He'd also made a disturbing comment in 2009 about fantasizing about killing Wood in an interview with Spin.

However, he publicly denied any wrongdoing this past fall.

Dolly Parton's had to reject the Presidential Medal of Freedom twice, but she's gonna get a third chance ... problem is, she's trying to stay outta politics.

The legendary country singer revealed Tuesday former President Trump tried to bestow her with the nation's highest civilian honor, but she had good reasons to turn it down.

Dolly told "Today" hosts Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager, "I couldn't accept it because my husband was ill and then they asked me again about it and I wouldn't travel because of the COVID."

Now, she also confirmed President Biden's administration has already reached out to her about the award -- but, she says that presents a challenge too. She said, "Now, I feel like if I take it, I'll be doing politics, so I'm not sure."

Stephen Colbert jokingly took Barack Obama to task for his administration's oversight on awarding Dolly with the prestigious award. Obama had joked he would tell his buddy Biden to fix his error ... and it seems Biden's camp got the message.

For her part ... Dolly says she's not even sure she deserves the award -- but, of course, she does. Her music would be enough, but then there's her amazing philanthropy ... including her Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, which has donated more than 100 million kids books, and her Dollywood Foundation's support of families in need.

Dolly also donated $1 million to fund COVID-19 research at Vanderbilt University, which helped develop the Moderna vaccine.

D.L. Hughley thinks Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene would be in jail if she were a rapper like Bobby Shmurda ... but he at least wants her held accountable and booted from Congress.

We got the comedian and author at LAX Monday and our photog asked what should be done about the newly-elected Congresswoman from Georgia ... and D.L. didn't hold back.

D.L. says Rep. Greene should be expelled from Congress, prosecuted and never be allowed to hold public office again for embracing online remarks about having Speaker Nancy Pelosi killed and allegedly inciting the Capitol riots.

As you know ... MTG's old Facebook activity suggests she's been cool with executing Democrats like Pelosi, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

D.L. says the fact Rep. Greene is still in office is proof she's being held to a lower standard than rappers, like Shmurda, whose words or lyrics have contributed to their criminal convictions.

Rep. Greene promoted QAnon's baseless conspiracy theories on the campaign trail, and D.L. has a few thoughts on Q -- he's pretty offended white people make up bad things, when Black people actually have real terrible things happening to their kids.

Silento allegedly gunned down his cousin, and now he's facing a murder charge for it.

The "Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)" rapper was arrested Monday for allegedly murdering Frederick Rooks after an investigation into the man's death ... according to the DeKalb County Police Department.

Cops say they found Rooks shot to death in the street on Jan. 21 ... and found 8 bullet casings on the scene. Cops say they still don't have a clear motive behind the shooting.

As for how they connected Silento to the crime, we don't know for sure ... but cops say they obtained Ring camera footage from homes in the area which captured at least one gunshot, and several vehicles fleeing the scene.

As we've reported ... Silento had a rough 2020, legally speaking. He was arrested back in October after cops said he was driving 143 MPH ... and in September, he was arrested and charged with 2 felony counts of assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly threatening people with a hatchet.

He's currently being held in DeKalb County Jail. We've reached out to his camp ... so far, radio silence.

Famed P.I. Jack Palladino has died from the grave injuries he suffered during an attempted robbery in his San Francisco neighborhood.

Palladino never regained consciousness after being attacked by 2 would-be robbers Friday and falling and hitting his head on the pavement. His attorney, Mel Honowitz, says Jack died Monday around noon after being taken off life support the day before.

As we reported ... Jack's family says he went outside Friday evening to snap photos of people he believed were making trouble in his neighborhood, and they attacked him and tried to steal his camera.

Palladino's family says he refused to let go, but fell in the process. However, his photographs may have helped police track down the 2 suspects it arrested Sunday for his attack -- 23-year-old Tyjone Flournoy and 24-year-old Lawrence Thomas.

Flournoy and Thomas were booked for attempted robbery and assault with a deadly weapon, but now that Palladino has died ... they may be facing a felony murder charge.

Jack started his career as a P.I. in the '70s, but became one of the premier names in the biz in the '80s ... and worked a bunch of high-profile cases in the '90s.

Those included investigating the extra-marital affair allegations against Bill Clinton in 1992, the cause of death of Kurt Cobain in 1994, and repping a 14-year-old boy in his civil, molestation lawsuit against Michael Jackson.

Jack was 76.

RIP