Music

Garth Brooks is putting the pandemic in his rearview -- and he wants other musicians to follow his lead -- after he packed the stadium home of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Garth played to a sold-out crowd of 68,000 Saturday night at Allegiant Stadium ... making it the first major stadium concert since COVID-19 shutdowns began more than a year ago. If the country superstar had any rust, the audience couldn't tell as they cheered through more than 2 hours worth of live music.

The only person more excited than fans was Garth, who said, "To every musician out there, all I can say is get back in the game because it’s the greatest feeling in the world." It's been more than 500 days since his last live gig, and he told the crowd, "I’ve never been made to feel at home as quickly as you guys have made me feel.”

There was one reminder of the COVID-19 pandemic ... a disclaimer on Garth's website for all ticket-holders that read, “Purchaser assumes Covid risk. All Covid rules apply.”

Las Vegas has been wide open since June 1, so there were no COVID rules to apply for this show. Next up for Garth is another stadium concert, next week in Salt Lake City.

It's interesting ... Vegas had packed houses all weekend -- besides Garth's show, UFC 264 was going on at the T-Mobile arena ... plus Dave Chappelle and Justin Bieber had sold-out shows too.

Cardi B and Offset threw a princess-themed bash for Kulture's 3rd birthday -- complete with a castle -- but the proud parents also made sure to have some WAP-themed fun for themselves.

The guest of honor arrived to her event in full princess regalia ... she rode in a horse-drawn carriage with mom and dad, while wearing a bright pink dress and, of course, a tiara.

Cardi's outfit matched her little girl's and they made a grand entrance together -- through a tunnel of balloons -- into the castle. The party had the usual kid stuff ... a petting zoo, Disney princesses and a Cinderella cake, but also a DJ to make sure Cardi and Offset had fun.

While the happy couple was grinding on the dance floor ... Cardi's baby bump was very prominent.

Cardi just revealed -- during her BET Awards performance with Migos -- she's expecting their second kid.

Scooter Braun's marriage is on the rocks -- he and his wife, Yael Cohen Braun, are splitting up -- but it's not a done deal, yet ... TMZ has learned.

Scooter -- who manages Justin Bieber, Demi Lovato and Ariana Grande -- and Yael are breaking up, at least temporarily, according to our sources. We're told they've been having some trouble for a couple months ... but it's unclear if they've physically separated yet.

As our sources describe it, the couple is trying to work things out. There was evidence of that earlier this week ... when Scooter posted a "thank you" message to Yael to mark their 7th wedding anniversary on July 6.

We're told it's also unclear if either party has even mentioned the word divorce.

Yael, founder of the F*CK Cancer Foundation, and Scooter started dating back in 2013. Since tying the knot they've had 3 kids ... Jagger, Levi and Hart. The NY Post first reported their split.

In his IG post, Scooter wrote ... "Thanks to you I have grown, I have been pushed to be the best version of myself and to continue growing and learning." He also added, "7 years. The adventure is just beginning."

Britney Spears has just taken the first step to end her conservatorship ... TMZ has learned she's contacted a large law firm ... and assuming the firm agrees and is permitted to represent her, the first order of business will be filing legal docs asking the judge to remove her father as conservator of her estate.

Multiple sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Britney wants to hire powerful lawyer and former federal prosecutor Mathew Rosengart. Britney has signed the following document:

"Pursuant to my statement in open court on June 23, 2021, my rights, and my desire to end the above-referenced conservatorship as to my father Jamie P. Spears, it is my desire to choose and retain my own counsel, at Greenberg, Traurig, LLP as set forth above."

The document is signed "BRITNEY JEAN SPEARS"

Rosengart, a partner in the firm, has represented a number of high-profile clients over the years, including Steven Spielberg, Sean Penn, Ben and Casey Affleck, Eddie Vedder, Soledad O'Brien, Michael Mann and NBA star Jimmy Butler.

TMZ broke the story ... Britney's long-time, court-appointed lawyer in her conservatorship case, Sam Ingham, resigned earlier this week. Our sources say Ingham believed he could no longer represent Britney because, in part, of her comments in court that she was never informed until recently she could end the conservatorship. We're told Ingham and others dispute that and say Britney was told numerous times over the years -- many times on the record in court -- that she could end the conservatorship, but she always declined to do so.

Britney became increasingly upset over the years ... especially with her dad, and wanted him out both as the conservator of her person and conservator of her estate. Jamie resigned as conservator of her person but remains sole conservator of her estate.

Bessemer Trust was scheduled to become co-conservator of Britney's estate but withdrew a week ago.

Our sources say Rosengart and his team have not formally agreed to represent Britney, but if he does the mission will be to attempt to end the conservatorship, although the first step is removing Jamie.

Britney has already asked the judge to end the conservatorship without any further medical evaluation. That will be an uphill climb, because nearly 2 dozen doctors and therapists have weighed in over the years ... saying Britney has a serious mental illness that would imperil her safety if left to her own devices. The judge did not indicate whether she's receptive to bypassing a mental health exam as a pre-condition to ending the conservatorship.

The other hurdle Britney must jump -- she's in a conservatorship, so she's unable to enter into a contract without the approval of her conservator. The person who must sign off -- none other than Jamie Spears. This would explain why the first step would be to attempt to remove Jamie.

Drake's been doing more than just wining and dining his new boo, Johanna Leia, at Dodger Stadium ... he's also been mentoring her basketball prodigy son for months.

Sources close to the pair tell us they first met months ago through high school basketball -- Johanna's son, Amari Bailey, is a top prospect -- and the relationship grew from there. We're told Drake and Amari hit it off, and Drake's offered the kid advice on finances, fame and life, in general.

Amari is headed to UCLA in 2022, and our sources say Drake's given him pointers on how to handle all the attention and pressure that comes with being a star player. We're told they've spent some one-on-one time, and all 3 have hung out at Drake's home.

Our sources say prior to Drake, Johanna was with NBA'er Alfonzo McKinnie -- who helped Amari build his skills on the court -- so it looks like he's more than ready for the next level.

As we reported, ABC7's chopper spotted Drake and Johanna as they had Dodger Stadium to themselves for a date night, complete with a table on the first baseline. A Dodgers source told us the whole thing was a thank you for a sizeable donation Drake made to the team's charitable foundation.

Britney Spears has a front-row seat for a battle royale between her father and her personal conservator, Jodi Montgomery, who's firing back at Jamie Spears ... claiming she's the only one moving Britney closer to her ultimate goal of freedom.

Montgomery filed docs Friday, blasting Britney's dad for attempting to lay blame at her feet for Britney's brutal testimony about her treatment under the conservatorship. In the docs, Montgomery says she's received "countless" messages about one thing -- getting her father out of her life and the conservatorship.

Jodi says, "It is ironic that Mr. Spears now wants the conservatorship to 'reflect her wishes' since it is no secret that Ms. Spears has wished her father out of her life for years."

As for Jamie implying, in a previous filing, that Jodi or others have prevented him from communicating with Britney ... Jodi's attorney writes, "Ms. Spears is the one who cut him off ... That is her choice not Ms. Montgomery's."

According to the docs, Jodi also says it's absurd for Jamie to suggest she's making decisions without him, because "everything costs money," and all the expenses go through Jamie in his role as conservator of Britney's estate.

Jodi insists she is actively working to address the concerns Britney raised during her testimony by working with her medical team to develop a "comprehensive care plan" that will create a path to ending the conservatorship.

The driving point Jodi's making is ... she's down with Britney's desire to be free of the conservatorship, but wants to do it responsibly with input from her doctors -- and she's implying Jamie is not.

In the docs, she points out Britney's father has never fully relinquished control, as he's remained either a sole or co-conservator for the last 13 years -- and she claims he's left open the possibility he'll be the last man standing to claim full control.

As we've reported, several entities have recently jumped ship -- including intended co-conservators of the estate, Bessemer Trust, Britney's attorney, Sam Ingham, and her longtime manager Larry Rudolph ... although he was not directly involved in the conservatorship.

Jodi says she's "committed to staying" so she can complete Britney's new care plan and eventually dissolve the conservatorship. Something she calls "a goal that may not necessarily be shared by Mr. Spears."

Britney Spears' personal conservator, Jodi Montgomery, is looking to get paid for her work ... and she's asking the court to approve a 6-figure check.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Jodi is asking the court to approve her fees of $221,090 for the work she did for Britney's conservatorship from Nov. 1, 2019 to the end of February 2021.

In the docs, Jodi's also asking the court to approve an additional $65,465 to cover the cost for her personal lawyer.

Jodi's fee requests come on the heels of her seeking 24/7 security in the wake of what she claims is a flood of death threats coming her way since Britney's scathing testimony, filled with complaints about her treatment under the conservatorship.

As we first told you ... Britney's dad, Jamie Spears, objected to Jodi's request to have the estate pick up the tab for beefed up security, which she estimated would cost $50k per month.

Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton look like they're happy anywhere following their holiday weekend wedding ... and they're still rocking those country vibes.

The newlyweds just arrived in L.A. via private jet following their July 3 ceremony at Blake's ranch in Oklahoma ... and were all smiles as they drove off in a Chevy pickup truck. See? Still keeping it country.

"The Voice" stars were joined by Gwen's son, Zuma, who was sitting in the backseat, but it was hard to see him past her sparkly new wedding ring.

As we told you ... the singers tied the knot in a Fourth of July weekend event after first getting together back in 2015. They met on the popular singing competition show when they were both judges.

Their wedding seems to have been a pretty small, private affair ... but still looked stunning.

Sharon Stone is hilariously denying she's dating rapper RMR ... and we say hilarious because she couldn't stop laughing when a photog raised the rumor about her and the 25-year-old.

Sharon was out Thursday in Beverly Hills with her son, Roan, when paps asked whether it's true she's dating the up-and-coming artist. You gotta see the reaction from Sharon and her 21-year-old son. Lots of 😂😂😂 .

The actress straight up says she's NOT dating the rapper ... and Roan even tells the photog, "You couldn't have asked a funnier question."

Now, the reason it's even been a rumor is because she was photographed last month at an L.A. club with RMR ... and not just hanging with him, but wearing one of his trademark face masks.

Based on her reaction in this video ... we'd say those pics were nothing more than a friendly photo op for RMR.

BTW ... one other thing Sharon did not find quite as funny was what happened to one of the photogs shooting her. Dude wiped out hard, but Sharon kept a straight face, and was actually super gracious.

The San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus is not backing down from a controversial song in the wake of what they claim is a wave of death threats coming their way.

Here's the deal ... the SFGMC recently posted a song across social media where they satirically sing, "We'll convert your children," but they say it's being taken out of context and they're getting lots of hateful backlash, including violent threats.

The Chorus is laying the blame on "far-right conservative media" ... claiming the song's tongue-in-cheek humor is being lost on folks and instead used to "support a narrative that suits their intolerant and hateful needs."

Their intent with the "convert" line is a double-entendre -- when you hear the full song, they're singing they'll convert children "not to hate."

The SFGMC claims the death threats are coming their way in emails and social media comments, and the group says it won't be threatened and will not back down in the face of violence. The Chorus says it's working with national and local law enforcement to address the alleged threats.

Drake took full advantage of the Dodgers being out of town Thursday ... setting up a date on L.A.'s field with Johanna Leia -- and the whole thing looked like it was taken right out of a Drake song.

While Justin Turner and the boys were in Miami wrapping up their series with the Marlins ... the rapper took advantage of the opportunity to borrow their arena for a cozy date night -- and it's clear, he balled out for the occasion.

A helicopter camera spotted the 34-year-old at a table with Leia near the dugout on the third-base side of the field ... and there was a white table cloth, multiple dishes, flowers and even a personal bartender for the couple.

In fact, the two appeared to have gotten personalized Dodgers jerseys for the occasion ... with Leia rockin' hers right at the table!

Drake recently sat between Leia and Michael B. Jordan at a Sierra Canyon H.S. basketball game. If you're unfamiliar, Leia is the mom of Sierra Canyon star and UCLA commit Amari Bailey, who's teammates with LeBron James' son, Bronny James.

And, with Drake often attending the games to catch Bronny in action ... it's possible the new relationship started courtside.

Only fitting basketball would bring new love to Drake's life, right??

The #FreeBritney movement is feeling extra artistic after Britney Spears' impassioned testimony -- a massive art display, made of yarn, is echoing her call to end the conservatorship.

The artist behind the impressive yarn art, London Kaye, tells TMZ ... she used about 36,000 feet of yarn to create 5 iconic Britney looks and the "Free Britney" signage, and the whole thing stands 15-feet tall.

London hung the art outside the Britney Spears The Zone Museum in Los Angeles, it went up Wednesday and she says it will stay there for about 2 weeks.

London is an L.A.-based street artist who ya might recognize from "The Amazing Race," season 29. She says the Brit tribute recreates the singer's outfits from "...Baby One More Time," "Oops!...I Did It Again" and "Toxic" ... and took her about a week to make.

As you know ... Britney wants to end her conservatorship after 13 years. Celebs like Paris Hilton, Justin Timberlake and Miley Cyrus have had her back ... and now she can add these yarn figurines to the movement.

Lil Baby and NBA star James Harden have been stopped by police in Paris ... with a report claiming the rapper was arrested for weed.

Harden and several other men were swarmed by cops during an apparent search on the popular Avenue Montaigne. In one video circulating on social media, the Brooklyn Nets superstar can be heard saying he doesn't understand what's going on as cops begin to search him.

One photo shows an officer holding what appears to be a vaping device ... unclear who it belongs to or whether is contained the alleged marijuana.

Baby was seated in the back of a police van and appeared to be handcuffed ... local reports say he was among 3 people arrested for some sort of marijuana-related charge. The report said the vehicle the men were traveling in was pulled over and officers could smell marijuana. There were allegedly 20 grams of weed discovered.

We reached out to the Paris Police Dept. who would only tell us the incident was currently an active investigation.

Lil Baby and Harden are in the French city for Paris Fashion Week.

Tekashi69 is back on his grind to be the Internet's #1 celeb troll, and this time he's targeting Blueface over a fresh tattoo.

So, get this ... Blueface recently got a tattoo on the side of his head and it raised a lot of eyebrows because the precious real estate the "Bleed It" rapper carved on his dome was reserved for his celebrity jeweler ... NYC Luxury.

The clowning was swift ... and Tekashi got right in the mix by chiming in on DJ Akademiks' IG post with not-so-veiled comments implying Blueface is broke and can't pay for his bling.

Tekashi wrote, "He definitely owed them money for unpaid jewelry" ... followed by "NYC Luxury" and a bunch of laughing and skull emojis, as in ... dead ass laughing.

Not helping matters is the fact Blueface -- who already sports Yves Saint Laurent and Corvette logos on his head -- doesn't exactly look thrilled with the finished product.

In any event ... the trolling is a far departure from when Tekashi vowed a little over a year ago to be on his best social media behavior after being sprung from prison early.

TMZ broke the story ... Tekashi's attorney, Lance Lazzaro, said the rapper wouldn't start beef or troll other artists because the feds would be watching. Sure, 69 has no restrictions regarding his social media use ... but he still vowed not to post anything inflammatory.

That all seems to be out the window. Remember, Tekashi nearly came to blows with Meek Mill in Miami earlier this year ... and now this. It's also pretty ironic for 6ix9ine, of all people, to be commenting about anyone getting ink on their face or head. Pot and kettle much?

Juvenile's the first to admit he was skeptical when a dating app reached out about collaborating, but that faded when he heard the end goal was educating his community about the COVID-19 vaccine.

The New Orleans rapper joined "TMZ Live" Thursday and explained how and why the collaboration with the dating app BLK came together. He tells us he was all in soon after hearing the dating app's mission to get users vaccinated before going on dates.

Enter Juvenile's "Vax That Thang Up" ... a remix to his 1999 classic, and still a club banger, "Back That Thang Up." The rapper thought the remix was a brilliant idea.

Juvenile probably didn't need too much convincing considering the staggering numbers. Remember, early on during the vaccine roll out there was serious hesitancy and mistrust ... with only 14% of African-Americans trusting the vaccine is safe.

New figures also show COVID cases (18%) and hospitalization rates (11%) jumped exponentially among African-Americans in L.A. County alone between mid-May and mid-June.

But, while vaccination rates have gotten better among African-Americans ... misinformation looms, which leads to hesitancy. But, as Juvenile says, he hopes the remix calms fears -- and, in fact, he told us how it's already impacted someone close to him.

Britney Spears shouldn't have to foot the bill for round-the-clock security guards for Jodi Montgomery, her personal conservator ... at least according to Britney's dad.

Jamie Spears filed an objection to Montgomery's request for increased security in the wake of what she calls a flood of death threats since Britney testified. Jamie's reaction to that is, basically ... welcome to the club.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Jamie says he's been getting threats for years, as has Brit's attorney, Sam Ingham, and others connected to the conservatorship. He's not totally cold-hearted, though, saying the court should evaluate how much security is necessary to keep Jodi and others involved safe.

He bristles at the cost for 24/7 security -- which Jodi herself estimated at more than $50k per month -- and says the estate can't afford that kinda cost for multiple people over an extended period. Jamie also says if the estate covers that expense for Jodi, there will be others coming forward with similar pricey requests for protection.

TMZ broke the story ... there's already tension between Jamie and Jodi because he suggested she's to blame for most of what Britney complained about in her testimony. His rejection of her demand for protection won't help.

According to the docs, Jamie suggests Jodi and the court should consider other security measures ... such as calling the local Sheriff's department -- something Jodi herself says she's already done.