Music

Offset is going from Main Street to Wall Street -- and he's doing it with his wifey by his side ... as they celebrate their music publishing company going public.

The rapper couple was on hand Monday at the NYSE in Times Square to do the honors of ringing the opening bell. Well, Offset did anyway ... but Cardi B was right there too for moral support. They posed for some photo-ops too as they hyped their new venture.

If you hadn't heard, Offset and the Migos' music catalog now belongs to Reservoir Media -- or RSVR -- which has snapped up a ton of masters and rights for a variety of artists in recent months, this as they were ramping up for an IPO last month.

The company hit the exchange in July, but now -- a month later -- the Wall Street heads invited Offset, Cardi and other Reservoir investors for a belated celebration ... and let 'em have some fun with the age-old bell-ringing tradition in the process.

We got Offset on his way out, and he made it pretty clear that this is something he's excited to be a part of -- not just because it's one the first female-led businesses of its kind to put itself out there, but because there's something in it for him and other musicians.

The idea behind Reservoir, it seems, is putting the power of publishing and control back into the actual artists' hands, and based on what Offset says here ... he's all about that.

Kanye West's long-awaited "Donda" album has been worth the added wait for the rapper ... it's Apple Music's top album in 130 countries, the most #1 entries in history.

As we reported ... after delaying the release of his 10th studio album for several weeks and keeping fans on pins and needles as he continued to hold "Donda" listening parties, it finally came out this weekend -- but not without drama.

First, Ye posted texts suggesting a recent holdup was due to DaBaby not signing the necessary releases to clear his verse for the song "Jail, Pt. 2" ... but that was later cleared up and his verse was added.

However, Kanye also claimed Sunday that the album was put out by his label, UMG, without his approval and they blocked "Jail pt. 2" from being included ... but it is included on both Apple and Spotify.

Speaking of Spotify ... Kanye's album's doing work there too -- his "Jail" track featuring Jay-Z and Francis and the Lights debuted at #1 on the U.S. Spotify chart with 4.277 million streams. That's the biggest debut for any song this year.

So, love it or hate it -- and we know there are plenty of people who certainly hate it -- "Donda" is a huge success so far ... and sets up a major showdown with Drake this week.

Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker's romantic Italian getaway is sailing on ... on a gondola in Venice.

The lovebirds did the tourist thing Monday during their ongoing Euro vacation, getting comfy cozy together in the sea vessel on a seat shaped like a heart.

It paints a pretty fitting picture of the 2, who have been attached at the hip in Italy for a few days after kicking off their traveling lovefest a couple weeks ago in Cabo.

We broke the story ... Travis flying to Mexico with Kourt was his first time on an airplane since the deadly 2008 plane crash that killed 4 people and left him with third-degree burns on 2/3 of his body.

Lizzo has weighed in on the King/Queen of Pop debate -- and she's stirring the pot big time by crowning the great Janet Jackson as the latter ... which has Madonna fans up in arms.

The singer dished her rankings Sunday -- this after Justin Bieber took the title of Prince of Pop among his fanbase following a milestone Spotify record -- and she seems to concur ... saying that the Biebs is, indeed, the Prince ... still behind Michael Jackson, the King.

Then, Lizzo threw a wrench in things with her Queen bestowment -- saying Mike's sister is actually right alongside him on the pop throne ... and that was met with pushback.

Of course, music fans had to interject and point out that Madge has long claimed that title for herself -- as she's an iconic artist who did A LOT for the genre in her heyday, and just in general over the years. Some feel Lizzo's putting her head in the sand on this one.

We should point out -- before people start getting too crazy on this whole thing -- that this is simply Lizzo's opinion ... and that none of these titles are all that official anyway. Still, Lizzo seems to have taken notice of the online ruckus she caused ... writing "Ruhruoh."

She clarified later saying that there's a new generation of up-and-coming artists who might take these folks' place one day -- but, for now, Lizzo considers this the standard.

As for the rest of her list -- she thinks Britney's the PoP, Rihanna's the PP, and Beyonce's in her own category. Honorable mentions for other genres include Usher (R&B King), Aretha Franklin (Soul), Mariah (R&B Queen), Tina Turner (Rock and Roll) and Mary J (Hip-Hop/Soul).

Kanye West hosting Marilyn Manson at his latest "Donda" event has spurred a reaction from one of the latter's most notable accusers ... Evan Rachel Wood's got a response, in song.

The actress hit the Bourbon Room in Hollywood Saturday night, where she got on stage and did an impromptu performance of the New Radicals' "You Get What You Give" ... with just a guitarist and an iPhone on hand to help out.

It's pretty clear who ERW was dedicating the song to, because her caption alluded to "survivors" who she feels were betrayed this week -- of course, in relation to Manson. Also, as you may know, Manson is name checked in the lyrics ... and when she sang that line (4:40 in the video), Evan threw up a middle finger.

She writes, "For my fellow survivors who got slapped in the face this week. I love you. Don't give up." Evan also said that she'd been saving this cover, and that Saturday felt like an appropriate time to let it rip.

This all comes on the heels of Kanye's third listening show in Chicago this week -- where he not only had Manson come hang out, but DaBaby as well ... both of whom have been embroiled in controversy of late. Manson, however, is another level ... he's been accused of rape and sexual abuse by numerous women -- all of which he's vehemently denied.

Still, it was a bizarre move on Ye's part to bring both of those guys out -- not to mention feature them on one of his tracks. DB and MM are on "Jail, Pt. 2." Some reports say Kanye did it just for shock value and publicity ahead of the release ... which if true, is bonkers.

Speaking of the chaotic upload of "Donda" ... Ye spoke on that just today, saying it was put out by UMG without his final approval. But, he still appears to be firmly in support of "Jail, Pt. 2" being included. For the record ... the song did end up making it on Apple and Spotify.

Well, it finally happened ... "Donda" is out!!!

Kanye finally released his long-awaited album ... this, after multiple listening parties and would-be release dates that came and went.

The album, which has 26 songs, hit Apple Music and Spotify Sunday AM.

The release was not without drama ... in the middle of the night, Kanye posted tweets which seemed to say the most recent hold-up was that DaBaby hadn't signed the necessary releases to clear his verse for the song "Jail." DaBaby is not on the track, instead, Jay-Z appears. You'll recall, Jay recorded his verse hours before the first listening party in Atlanta ... a sign their feud was squashed. It was confusing when DaBaby replaced Jay's verse at the Chicago listening party, but Jay is now back.

The album was initially supposed to be released July 23. That date got moved to August 6. Then it became unclear exactly when the album would hit streaming services. Kanye's manager promised it would be released following last Thursday's listening event at Soldier Field in Chicago ... and that promise was kept.

Ye famously tinkers with his albums even after their release ... e.g., "The Life of Pablo," so the same may happen with "Donda."

As for the songs on the album, it's heavily religious ... "Donda Chant," "Jail," "God Breathed," "Off the Grid," "Hurricane," "Praise God," "Jonah," "Ok Ok," "Junya," "Believe What I Say," "24," "Remote Control," "Moon," "Heaven and Hell," "Donda," "Keep My Spirit Alive," "Jesus Lord," "New Again," "Tell the Vision," "Lord I Need You," "Pure Souls," "Come to Life," "No Child Left Behind," "Ok Ok, Pt. 2," "Junya, Pt. 2," "Jesus Lord, Pt. 2."

Here's what's interesting ... Drake seemed to drop a clue last week his album will drop Friday ... so with the release of "Donda," Drake and Ye will be going head-to-head for #1 bragging rights.

And, the final mystery ... Kim Kardashian. As you know, she wore a wedding dress at the Chicago listening party. TMZ broke the story, the divorce is not a done deal anymore. Kanye and Kim have been seeing each other privately, and they seem to be trying to work things out ... whatever those things are.

Ron Bushy -- the longtime drummer of rock band Iron Butterfly -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

Bushy passed away Sunday morning at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles -- this according to his family members ... several of whom were by his side, including his wife and daughters. We're told he'd been battling some form of cancer.

The guy was the only member of IB to have appeared on all six of their albums, and is perhaps best known for his iconic drum solo on their 1968 hit, "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida."

The track is legendary for a number of reasons -- not the least of which because it's more than 17 minutes long ... and Bushy completely shreds on the drums for a good 2-3 minutes.

RB went on to help record their second, third and fourth albums into the '70s -- and then took a break until the gang got back together in '74 for albums no. 5 and 6. They continued jamming into the '80s -- when a second breakup occurred -- but they rekindled once more.

There were an infamous amount of lineup changes for IB through the '70s and '80s -- but the one constant mostly throughout was Bushy ... who was usually around to keep the tempo and the beat going, through studio sessions or on tour.

He played with other bands too during his tenure with Iron Butterfly -- including groups like Magic and Gold. Ron hung up full-time playing in the mid-2010s due to health concerns, but word is ... he'd make guest appearances with the new iteration of the band in the years after.

He's survived by his wife, Nancy, their three daughters and six grandchildren. Ron was 79.

Beyonce and Jay-Z celebrated an anniversary Saturday night ... the 18th anniversary of 40/40.

A ton of celebs hit the party, including Megan Thee Stallion, Swizz Beatz, Quincy Jones, Meek Mill, Remy Ma, Lil Uzi Vert, Van Jones, Pusha T, Joe Budden, Belly, Fabolous and Victor Cruz.

We tried asking Jay about the flap over the blood diamond Beyonce was wearing in their Tiffany and Co. ad, but that was a no-go.

Van Jones talked to us about Jay getting into gaming, and why it makes total sense and why it's important for the Black community to get involved at the ground stage.

The 40/40 Club, a chain of Jay's sports bars and lounges, opened in NYC back in 2003, followed by ATL in 2005, Vegas 2 years later and the Barclays Center in 2012.

Beyonce looked amazing ... you gotta give it to her for the pink platform heels.

Young Thug must've been a huge fan of the "SimCity" video game series as a kid ... 'cause the tiny town he envisions building feels like an awesome mini metropolis.

So, here's the deal ... the rapper turned 30 earlier this month and among the fancy gifts that came his way were 100 acres in the greater Atlanta area ... gifted to him by his manager, Geoff Ogunlesi.

Atlanta realtor, Trey Williams, helped Geoff lock down the land deal and the plan's for Young Thug to subdivide the property with the name, "Slime City." Trey tells TMZ ... YT wants to build really nice homes, a waterpark, perhaps a camping site and so much more.

Young Thug wants to host his annual "Slime Fest" on the property. Hence ... "Slime City." YT has hosted "Slime Fest" every year -- sans 2020 for obvious reasons.

Trey says Young Thug will include a dirt bike trail on the property ... where people who love riding bikes and 4-wheelers can cut loose.

Trey says Young Thug's already been chopping it up with architects and engineers. There are a few permits they're waiting on ... but as soon as they get the green light, it's game on.

We're told this is just one way Young Thug wants to give back to his community. Just recently the rapper bought his mom a new home in the ATL ... and he plans to do the same for his dad. As for how much YT dropped for the property ... Trey wouldn't say.

Offset is clearly ready to see the Matt Ryan era come to an end in Atlanta ... telling TMZ Sports he wants to see his beloved Falcons move on to a new quarterback.

The "Bad and Boujee" rapper -- who's from the ATL area -- was talking football with us out in NYC earlier this week ... when he explained he's done with Ryan.

"We need a new quarterback," Offset said. "I love Matt Ryan, though. But, we just need somebody young. You know what I'm saying?"

The 29-year-old continued ... "He's had success every year, but we've got to get a championship. It don't matter 'til we get a ring."

Of course, Offset's Migos-mate, Quavo, has felt the same way for a while ... telling us repeatedly over the years he's not a fan of Ryan's game.

In fact, back in 2019, Quavo said the Falcons should bench Ryan for Colin Kaepernick.

Justin Bieber has left every other artist on Spotify in the dust -- hitting a major milestone by attracting the most listeners ever, which begs the question ... is he MJ's heir apparent???

The Biebs broke a record this week ... raking in the most monthly listeners on Spotify over the course of the streaming platform's history, with a whopping number of 83.3 mil -- the first time that's been accomplished -- this as his "Justice" album continues to surge on the charts.

And, don't get us started on his hit single with The Kid LAROI, "Stay," which continues to cruise at #1 several weeks after its release. Safe to say, August has been good to JB.

BTW, as far as Justin's Spotify lead ... he's far ahead of the rest of the pack by millions of listeners. The Weeknd clocks in at #2 with 74.5 million monthly listeners, Ed Sheeran is #3 with 72.4. And his female contemporaries are even further behind ... in the 60s.

The record before this was around 82 mil monthly listeners -- held by Ariana Grande for a good while. In any case, some major congratulations are in order ... and maybe some title-bestowing too. A lot of people are throwing around the term "Prince of Pop" right about now.

There's some controversy with that ... some feel he isn't deserving (for a variety of weird reasons) -- but the numbers don't lie, and Justin's longevity speaks for itself. So yeah, he may just be the modern-day prince of the genre ... behind the all-time king, Michael, of course.

Speaking of MJ, the dude's music continues to hit new benchmarks in its own right ... even today, more than a decade after his untimely death. "Thriller" was just certified 34X Platinum this week -- yep, people are still playing that classic.

As if it wasn't obvious before, Adele is officially in LeBron's orbit -- because she was partying alongside him, his NBA buddies and his agent/her BF ... all to celebrate the King's wife's bday.

Savannah James hit the big 3-5 Friday night ... and she and her Lakers superstar hubby hit the town for a bash that became a who's who of the NBA -- and of Hollywood at large, it seems, seeing how Adele dropped in with Rich Paul ... whom she's dating at the moment.

A clip of her rocking out inside The Classic Cat restaurant in WeHo -- where the party was thrown -- has surfaced ... and it looks like Cardi's "WAP" was blasting through the speakers as Adele bobbed back and forth.

She and Rich tried keeping a low profile on the way out -- but paps caught 'em getting into a waiting SUV. Adele attempted to obscure her face, but the cat was outta the bag ... and Rich didn't seem to care either way as he buttoned up his shirt and faced the flashing lights.

If ya thought this would be a quick thing, think again ... because Adele and Rich have been going strong for a while now -- even before they went public earlier this year, apparently.

As for the rest of the shindig ... it was a rager and a half, with Savannah as the glowing star. LeBron filmed his wife getting down on the dance floor, and she got major love from just about everyone in attendance. He even booked singer Giveon to perform!

Kanye West and Drake's beef has trickled into real life harassment -- some fan(s) of the latter took it upon themselves to hit up Ye's childhood home with some hateful words in tow.

Photos surfaced this weekend of three different signs that appear to have been left on the front steps of the South Shore Chicago house that Kanye grew up in ... and which he bought in recent years and is reportedly in the process of renovating.

It also served as the centerpiece of his latest listening event there in town -- with Ye creating a replica version of the crib to help tell the story of his "Donda" album. Now, it's tainted.

Somebody left signage touching on Drake's lyrical shots that he fired last weekend ... in which he called Kanye "burnt out," among other things. One sign echoes those words exactly, while another warns that Drizzy's album, "Certified Lover Boy," is coming soon.

And, the middle sign randomly takes a swipe at Justin Laboy -- a social media influencer who's been relaying a lot of Kanye "Donda" news lately ... seemingly on his behalf.

Luckily, no real damage to the home was done ... but it still feels like crossing the line into a space that's obviously sacred to Ye. Unfortunately for him, the address is widely public ... and doesn't seem to have any barricades or security around to keep nosy prowlers out.

The fact someone had the gall to go to Kanye's actual house to do this perhaps speaks to the stunt he pulled on Drake this week ... posting the dude's Toronto address publicly.

Eric Clapton is putting his anti-vaccine sentiments into song -- the guy just released a ditty that's all about resisting COVID vaccines and restrictions ... and it's surreal.

The legendary rocker and guitarist debuted his new track, "This Has Gotta Stop," Friday ... which at first feels like a social justice-like protest song -- based on the lyrics and visuals. But, when you read between the lines and read up on EC's recent COVID remarks ... it's clear what he's talking about.

The chorus goes, "This has gotta stop, enough is enough // I can't take this BS any longer // It's gone far enough, you wanna claim my soul // You'll have to come and break down this door." His first talks about knowing something was wrong when the proverbial man started laying down the law ... which Eric says made him apprehensive and break out in sweat.

He goes on to talk about what he thinks this future (of COVID mandates, vaccine requirements, etc.) will mean for his kids down the road. There's also a lot of animations of people being controlled by strings and hypnotized ... so it's clear what he thinks of it all.

Of course, that's no surprise ... Eric made his feelings known about a month ago when he announced he wouldn't perform at venues with vaccine requirements ... going on to liken it to "discriminated audience(s)." Even before that, he's been pushing anti-vaccine rhetoric pretty much all throughout the pandemic -- so, now, it appears he's channeling that in music.

Kim Kardashian's wedding dress cameo at Kanye West's "Donda" show wasn't a total kumbaya for the pair's marriage, but things behind the scenes are drastically improving for the former couple.

Sources close to K & Y tell us ... there actually is a chance they could get back together. They've been spending time together privately and "working on rebuilding the foundation of their relationship."

While our sources say their divorce is still on, it's possible Kim might withdraw the divorce petition. There's obviously a lot of love and history between the former pair, but many areas of disagreement that have to be worked out.

We're told one of the glimmers of hope is that both Kim and Ye want what's best for their kids, and if they can work things out it's a win for the entire family.

Our sources say Kim and Kanye's main focus is to keep a healthy and sturdy foundation of love and support for their 4 kids ... and Kim bringing them to all 3 of Ye's "Donda" listening events demonstrates that.

Marvin Bagley III -- the Sacramento Kings’ #2 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft -- is jumping on a new track with boxing legend Roy Jones Jr. ... with both stars letting the world know they’re more than athletes ... they’re rappers too!!

The new track is called "Y’all Must’ve Forgot II" ... a direct throwback to Roy’s "Y'all Must’ve Forgot" from his 2002 project, "Round One: The Album."

The 22-year-old Bagley -- who raps under the artist name MB3FIVE -- goes hard on the track over a booming southern rap beat ... making references to his NBA career in the process.

"Gone from the game for a year, I came back like ‘Pac, when he got shot they wouldn’t believe it but they had to watch," Bagley raps on the song’s third verse.

He continued ... "I do not listen to the negative energy, they gon’ envy me. I do not care if they not feelin’ me."

MB also gave RJ some major love on the song -- "I just beat 'em with the left like Roy," he raps. “I was built for this game, I just kill and destroy.”

Okay, Marvin!!