Music

Lil Nas X racked up millions of streams -- as expected -- but, more importantly, he also raised tens of thousands of dollars for various charities with the drop of his debut album.

The long-anticipated "Montero" was released Friday, but hype for the project started weeks before when Nas X announced the album's tracklist. However, in announcing the songs, he also tied a charity important to him to each track.

A rep for Bros in Convo -- a charity out of Florida that helps Black, gay, bisexual and queer men -- tells us as of Friday night, it's received $33,140 in donations thanks to the album. The charity was tied to the song "That's What I Want."

Transinclusive Group -- a national charity that provides assistance to transgender/non-conforming people -- tells us they've gotten $5,000 thanks to promotion through the single "Montero (Call Me By Your Name)."

Organizations CH-PIER and Compassionate Atlanta, groups that work to help members of the LGBTQ community, creating safe spaces and educating the public on issues like HIV tell us they've received close to $1,000 total from the album fundraising.

CH-PIER and Compassionate Atlanta were promoted through the singles "Dead Right Now" and "The Art of Realization", respectfully.

Oscar De La Hoya is obviously feeling great after his COVID hospital stay -- some 7 days after the fact, he was putting his lungs to good use ... with some movie-themed karaoke.

The boxing champ was out in Pasadena this past Wednesday, hitting a place called the Der Wolf bar for some evening time show tunes ... where he got on the mic to sing "Shallow" -- yes, the Lady Gaga song from "A Star is Born."

In video obtained by TMZ, you can see ODLH reading lyrics off the monitor and belting out the second verse (Gaga's part) ... with bar-goers enthusiastically helping him out. Seems like a crowd favorite! He flubs a bit as he goes along -- but carries on nicely regardless.

It's a 180 from how Oscar was doing just a week and change prior -- when he was hospitalized for a handful of days for a nasty bout with COVID ... which prevented him from fighting Vitor Belfort, and requiring Evander Holyfield to step in (and get TKO'd).

Clearly, Oscar's doing great after that ... and maybe this outing means he'll get back in the ring sooner than later. Assuming he doesn't get sick again, that is, in a mask-less environment (like this).

Hailey Bieber is putting a rumor about her and her husband, Justin Bieber, to bed -- namely, that he's a jerk to her ... which she says is so out of touch with reality that it's laughable.

The model spilled with Demi Lovato on the latter's '4D' podcast this week, addressing what she called a persistent narrative about them as a couple ... and one consistent theme she seems to notice time and again is that Justin supposedly isn't nice to her, or mistreats her.

It's BS ... so says Hailey, who tells Demi the best way to combat those types of phony POVs from fans online and elsewhere is to simply know the truth -- which she says she does.

That truth ... is the complete and utter opposite of what folks might speculate. She says JB makes her feel special each and every day, and that he's incredibly respectful. HB also says everyone around them knows that to be true as well, and that they have to remind each other of this fact ... because apparently, the outside noise can get to both of them.

Hailey isn't making this up BTW -- people are constantly taking clips and moments of her and Justin together out of context, and running wild with theories on what it may or may not mean. One recent example of that was during the VMA's last week, when JB won an award ... and didn't appear to hug Hailey on his way up. Some took that as a shady move.

Of course, he shouted her out on stage while accepting ... so this is just one of many moments where folks connect dots that aren't there. Another happened earlier this summer.

A viral TikTok clip showed Justin walking through a Vegas hotel following a show, and you can see him animatedly talking to Hailey. Some twisted that into him "yelling" at her -- but as Hailey is suggesting here, that's complete nonsense. Eyewitnesses say he was simply hyped.

Jennifer Lopez shared something pretty shocking that at first blush seems ridiculous but when you think about it, you get it -- she says she feels like an outsider in Hollywood.

J Lo's featured in a new video on her J Lo Beauty Instagram page. As she hyped her products for Sephora, she opened up about her time in Tinseltown, confessing she often feels she doesn't belong in Hollywood.

On the surface, that seems absurd ... she's got 30 movies in the can, yet she said she feels like "an outsider."

Ben's GF said, "I think for me, I know it is important for all of us to feel like we belong, um, and like most people there's so many times in your life when you feel like an outsider, I feel like that in Hollywood sometimes."

Now she could be unloading her feelings because she wasn't nominated for "Hustlers," which was a little surprising giving some serious Oscar buzz. Tyler Perry went off on the Oscars, saying she richly deserved a nom.

There are plenty of folks who are big stars who don't get embraced by center Hollywood ... and some of it's clearly jealousy and ego. In J Lo's case, she gets more publicity than just about anyone for things she does offset and people she dates, and that probably annoys other actors who don't get the shine she does.

Trinidad James is not onboard the trash Nicki Minaj train for putting out bogus information on COVID vaccines, saying she's an important voice and deserves respect.

We got the Trinidadian-American rapper Friday at LAX, and he seemed frustrated people were going after Nicki hard after she said she heard someone in Trinidad had a reaction to the vaccine that enlarged his balls. There's never been such case that was verified, and health officials in Trinidad were pissed they wasted time trying to track down the phantom person with such an affliction.

Trinidad James says Nicki and the health minister should sit down and have a chitchat, but it's unclear what good that would do ... he's already said she's off base, though TJ doesn't seem to necessarily buy it.

He also gives a peek into COVID on the island. He says Trinidad is so small, just a few cases trigger much greater concern than in the U.S., which views coronavirus on a much larger scale.

Lil Nas X popped back in a big way after giving birth, because he partied his ass off Friday night.

Nas hosted an album release party for "Montero," which dropped Friday -- his debut album.

He's having a great time, rapping along to his songs, graciously accepting a rose, taking selfies with fans ... the works.

He performed for 2 hours to a packed house. Some of the fans were frustrated because he didn't have a mic so they couldn't hear him as he sang some of his new songs and some old ones.

At one point he sat in a large chair, almost like royalty as he posed for photos.

In line with the birthing of his album, sponsors were handing out pink sweatshirts and Beats headphones.

Bruno Mars will bring the Uptown Funk to the ritzy shores of Cape Cod this weekend -- and he's gonna make serious bank for doing it ... at the wedding of a powerful CEO's son.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us Bruno's been hired to perform at the wedding of Troy Brown and Kristin Ryan, and while those names might not ring any bells ... Troy's dad's does.

Motorola Solutions Inc. CEO Greg Brown, aka father of the bridegroom, booked Mr. "24K Magic" for the event going down at a super swanky hotel in the area, and spared no expense. We're told the wedding tab is in the millions.

Bruno, of course, will get a handsome slice of that ... we're told his performance price tag will hover somewhere between the high six-figure to seven-figure range.

As for the wedding guest list, it's unclear how many will attend, but the bride and groom are only allowing those who've been vaccinated to witness their "I Do's" ... and put their pinky fingers to the moon.

So if any possible guests had reservations about getting a COVID jab ... maybe a free Bruno concert convinced them to suck it up and take one for the team.

Britney Spears' fiance, Sam Asghari, finally hit the jackpot, but so did Brit ... so says his famous ex.

We got Sam's ex, Mayra Veronica, out in L.A. Friday and she had nothing but good things to say about him. She scoffed at social media haters who said Sam's in it for the money, saying he's a sincere, sweet guy. Not a bad review from an ex.

It's interesting she used the word "jackpot," but she clearly didn't mean $$$, and she also made it clear it goes both ways. Again, that's a raving review considering they broke up.

Now Mayra did throw some shade. Listen to what she says when our photog asked about the ring. Clearly not her style.

Mayra says she can relate to Britney, because when she dated Sam back in 2015 her management team was extremely controlling, warning her about Sam. She clearly didn't buy what they were selling, and is solidly in Sam's corner.

Mayra seems to think Sam's a stabilizing influence in Britney's life, given what she's been through.

Playboi Carti has no problem flossin' his chains but the rapper's got problems paying for his shiny ice in full ... at least according to a new lawsuit.

Eliantte & Co. filed legal docs in New York claiming the "Magnolia" rapper owes $97,063.75, which the company says is the balance for 2 custom chains the rapper ordered back in September 2020.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, Eliantte, who has done jaw-dropping work for the likes of Swizz Beatz and many other celeb clients, says he quickly went to work on a 14-carat white gold diamond rosary chain and a custom diamond tennis chain.

The jeweler says PC was billed $197,063.75 for the pieces. Eliantte claims the rapper made a $100k payment on January 25, but then failed to pay off the rest of the balance despite repeated demands.

So now, Eliantte is suing to get what he's owed.

Spotemgottem is recovering in a Florida hospital after being shot multiple times in a Miami road rage incident.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Florida Highway Patrol responded to a road rage incident involving a shooting around 3 AM Friday, with the car the rapper was riding in being shot at least 22 times on the driver's side.

Our sources say the driver told troopers he was driving southbound on I-95 when gunshots started ringing out from another car. We're told the driver was shot in his hip, and Spotemgottem suffered gunshot wounds to both legs, and they were both taken to a local hospital in stable condition.

Spotemgottem's manager, Dee Phatboy, tells TMZ ... the 19-year-old rapper was riding in the passenger seat when another vehicle pulled beside them and shot up Spotemgottem's ride with an automatic weapon.

The "Beat Box" rapper's manager says Spotem was being driven from a Miami recording studio when the shooting went down ... and he's expected to make a full recovery.

Spotemgottem has collabed with the likes of DaBaby, Polo G, Pooh Shiesty and NLE Choppa.

Bobby Brown's heard the rumors about the possible remake in the words of Whitney Houston's "Bodyguard" ... and he's not feeling it at all.

We got Bobby out Thursday at LAX, and our camera guy asked him point-blank if he thinks remaking such a classic is a bad move, Bobby didn't hesitate ... saying, "Yeah" without a second thought.

Tony-nominated playwright Matthew Lopez has reportedly been tapped to write a reimagining of the iconic 1992 romantic drama starring Whitney and Kevin Costner -- and much like Bobby, many fans' reaction to the news was essentially, "That's a no for me dawg."

The film was not only a monumental success at the box office with more than $400 million grossed worldwide ... but the soundtrack is the bestselling movie soundtrack of all time, featuring classic Whitney hits like, "I Will Always Love You."

Now, Bobby had a much better reaction to some other musical news -- the fact Rolling Stone named Aretha Franklin's "Respect" the No. 1 song of all time. Bobby gives it 👍🏽.

As for that 'Bodyguard' remake -- no word yet on a possible cast, but that's just fine with fans who are already destroying the concept.

Did you know Patrick Mahomes is a great quarterback AND sick hype man?!?!

It's true -- 'cause the Kansas City Chiefs star took the stage at a Kane Brown show Thursday night ... and his antics had fans losing their minds!!!

Mahomes and his fiancee, Brittany Matthews, hit up the country concert in Kansas City for a date night one day before Patrick's 26th birthday ... and at one point during the evening, the signal-caller was pulled on stage.

And, it didn't take long for him to get the audience into the show ... because as soon as started pumping his arms, everyone went crazy!

The song choice, meanwhile, was perfect for Mahomes' entrance ... it was Brown and Chris Young's smash hit, "Famous Friends."

The lyrics? "When I go back home I've got some famous friends, yeah, I do."

Fitting, right?!

As for the rest of the night ... Mahomes and Matthews clearly seemed to enjoy it all, taking selfies and singing along to all the songs.

Lady Gaga's dog walker says when doctors were working on him after he was shot, blood was spurting out of his chest as he lay on the operating table, and doctors feared he would die.

Ryan Fischer told Gayle King on "CBS Mornings" ... when the dognappers confronted him with a gun as he walked 3 of Lady Gaga's dogs, he knew he was going to get shot. Nevertheless, he felt it was his mission to fight for the safety of the canines.

He says the bullet went through his clavicle near his neck and exited through his shoulder blade, piercing his lung on the way out. Once in surgery, as doctors frantically tried inserting a chest tube, blood started spurting all over the place and his blood pressure dropped to a crisis level.

The good news ... he says Gaga was an angel and went above and beyond to help him in his recovery. She flew his family out to L.A. and he stayed at her house for months where he had family, friends and security around him.

Ryan has really been through it ... he tried walking dogs for a short time after he recovered physically, but couldn't handle the emotional trauma and went on a cross-country trip to find peace. He says he's still struggling.

Los Angeles local Susanna Hoffs was in her 20s when her life changed forever after her pop-rock band The Bangles released their sophomore album Different Light back in 1986 ... which featured the standout singles "Manic Monday," "If She Knew What She Wants" ... and the number one jam "Walk Like An Egyptian."

In their heyday, The Bangles was also comprised of other rocking artists including Vicki Peterson on lead guitar and vocals, Michael Steele (aka Micki Steele of The Runaways) on bass and backup vocals and Debbi Peterson on the drums.

Skrillex has unloaded one of the best houses in L.A. -- spectacular, dare we say -- and he made a fortune in the process.

The EDM star has sold his ultra-modern Malibu beach house for $17.5 million. That's gotta be music to Skrillex's ears ... considering he bought a plot of land nearly 5 years ago and paid $6 million for it, and then built a jaw-dropping home.

The end result was a palatial 1.11-acre custom-built estate ... a 12,000-square-foot home with 6 bedrooms and 10 bathrooms. It's an open floor plan with sweeping views of the Pacific. It comes with all the bells and whistles, including a movie theater, gym, sauna and game room.

There's a good mix of modern and classic ... thanks to a mix of stone and wood. Walls of glass provide a sick indoor/outdoor flow.

The new owners are going to enjoy some of the best views Malibu has to offer. And, the house is designed around the views, which is the smart way to go but often not followed.

The home sits inside an exclusive, gated community with 17 other mansions.

Speaking of the new owners ... they hail from Australia. According to The Dirt, they made their fortune in bathroom and plumbing supplies. So, this is what some good toilets will get ya!!!

T.I. and Tiny won't be charged for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting a woman in 2005 in Los Angeles ... we've learned prosecutors declined to move forward with the case.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, prosecutors decided not to charge the couple because the case falls outside the statute of limitations.

As we reported ... the accuser filed a police report earlier this year, alleging T.I. and Tiny drugged and assaulted her sometime in early 2005 after the trio met at a club.

In the docs, prosecutors say the 10-year statute of limitations has expired.

It's a similar outcome to other allegations against T.I. and Tiny in Las Vegas ... where another woman claimed she was drugged and sexually assaulted in 2010 after meeting Tiny at the airport and being invited to hang with the couple.