Music

Soulja Boy has broken his silence on the death of his friend G$ Lil Ronnie ... in a heartfelt IG memorial showing off their good times together.

If you recall, Lil Ronnie's videographer Mello Music recently told us they took a trip to Cali back in December to kick it with Soulja Boy ... and the "Crank Dat" rapper vividly remembers the day they first met.

Soulja says he surprised Ronnie by revealing he knew who he was, despite Ronnie's indie rapper status, and the two quickly became friends ... and SB went on to feature Ronnie on a few of his albums.

A slew of celebs -- including Cher, Beck, Kate Hudson and Bill Murray -- hit the stage in NYC last night to help raise money for God's Love We Deliver, an organization dedicated to providing food for people with HIV/AIDS and other serious illnesses ... and people affected by January's wildfires in L.A.

The 9th Annual Love Rocks NYC concert was hosted by comedians Amy Schumer, Alex Edelman, Susie Essman, and Tracy Morgan at the Beacon Theatre on Broadway Thursday night.

The star-studded roster also included the original yacht-rocker himself, Michael McDonald, singing a duet with R&B legend Mavis Staples ... classic-rock superstar Peter Frampton delighted fans with his hits, and Cher delivered her show-stoppers, even changing into an Elvis costume.

R. Kelly may be behind bars ... but he proved his vocal chords are as free as ever during a rare podcast interview when he serenaded the audience by singing two snippets of his songs.

The disgraced singer -- who is currently serving a 30-year sentence for federal racketeering and sex trafficking convictions -- appeared on the "Inmate Tea with A&P" podcast and performed part of his 1998 song "When a Woman's Fed Up" and later, some of his 2003 track, "Step in the Name of Love."

Kelly confirmed his conviction hasn't diminished his love for music, explaining ... "Singing is a beautiful disease that's uncurable ... I'm always singing."

Dolly Parton is honoring her late husband, Carl Dean, by pouring her heart in a brand new song.

The song, titled "If You Hadn’t Been There," dropped on Friday ... just days after Dolly announced her longtime partner of more than half a century had passed.

The icon took to Instagram to share the song's cover art ... featuring a vintage photo of Dolly wrapped around Carl, beaming with a huge smile. Below the throwback pic, their signatures appear with the words, "Dolly + Carl = [Love]."

One of the most-filmed private homes in Los Angeles County just sold ... so, sounds like Miley Cyrus won't be able to use it in another music video.

A 4-bedroom, 6-bathroom home in Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley sold Tuesday for $5 million ... and, the house comes with a pretty historic past in the entertainment industry.

The property -- located in Chatsworth -- has been used in multiple movies, TV shows and music videos ... including the flicks "Dreamgirls" and "Bewitched," and TV shows "Beef" and "Mad Men."

Take a seat, 'cause you’re going to want to hear this -- there’s now a Morgan Wallen-inspired drink being served at the very same bar where he tossed a chair off the balcony!

Morgan's buddy, Eric Church, who owns the Nashville rooftop bar Chief's, is cashing in big time by debuting a drink inspired by the whole drama, which comes complete with a tiny chair garnish in a cheeky nod to that infamous moment.

For just $15 (plus tax, of course), you can snag this drama-driven drink only on the venue's rooftop. A TikTok video that went viral revealed it’s a mix of Smirnoff raspberry vodka, raspberry liqueur, lemonade, and a splash of soda ... so it seems like the perfect way to toast to a wild night.

Detective Melissa Mercado, an NYPD officer with 7 years under her badge, is going viral for taking her uniform off ... in favor of a bra and G-string to dance as a video vixen stripper!!!

New York rapper S-Quire released his "Doin That" music video at the top of February, but his views catapulted this week once Det. Mercado was recognized.

The video, directed by Picture Perfect and distributed by WorldStarHipHop, immediately opens up to shots of the cop's cheeks as she twerks on stage in an empty bar as S-Quire raps about p-poppin' and pole dancin'!!!

Selena Gomez has made it crystal clear her fiancé, Benny Blanco, is her perfect match ... but can he prove it where it really counts? Like, beating her face to perfection? Check out this video to find out.

The actress let Benny take charge of her glam (with her Rare Beauty brand products, obvs) in an IG clip Thursday -- and the result was pure comedy as he kicked things off smearing pressed powder on her face with his fingers, before Selena steered him to a makeup brush.

The brushes didn’t exactly save Benny -- his "technique" took a turn for the chaotic when he went all in on the contour, leaving Selena’s cheeks looking quite questionable.

There's no S.O.S. here ... TMZ can confirm JONASCON is proceeding as planned, despite reports the upcoming Jonas Brothers celebration event is having major hiccups behind the scenes.

A rep for New Jersey's American Dream Mall says JONASCON is "basically a takeover" of the 3-million-square-foot shopping and entertainment space ... with a source close to the famous sibs adding it will be a celebration for the fans at the Jonas Brothers' 20-year anniversary.

Why are they taking over a mall? Our source says it's all about honoring the band's roots of performing at malls before they transformed into worldwide superstars. And of course, it's in their home state, and not too far from the North Jersey suburb they called home as kids.

Here's further proof Fyre Fest 2 is officially on ... Antonio Brown says he's been booked to perform at the event.

The former Pittsburgh Steelers superstar -- who's turned into quite the rapper since he last suited up for an NFL team -- announced Thursday he's signed on to hit the stage at the newest Billy McFarland venture.

Brown, whose song "Put That S*** On" went viral back in 2022, promised in a video obtained by TMZ Sports that he'll entertain the masses at the newest iteration of Fyre Fest in Mexico when it all kicks off on May 30.

Carrie Underwood’s having a full-circle moment with her first-time American Idol judging gig -- and she's spilling all the tea about it to TMZ.

We caught up with Carrie in NYC Wednesday, and she’s telling us joining Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie on the panel is great so far -- but when we asked her how she deals with difficult emotional moments on the show, an opportunity arose that showed us.

You have to check out the video we caught -- Carrie displayed her nurturing side and connected with a fan who opened up to her about how her music helped the woman through the loss of her own mother.

Can you guess which sexy singer put his rock hard bod on full display in this shredded shot?

Just last month, the "American Idol" star performed at the Grammys and showed off his "Beautiful Things" in a sheer blue jumpsuit ...

He's got the moves nailed down, his vocals are on point, and he's flippin' hot! Go on, hit up the gallery and see if you can nail him down!

Tory Lanez is absolutely loving Kim Kardashian for using one of his tunes in her latest bikini video ... which has fans clamoring to free him from prison.

Ceasar McDowell, CEO of Unite the People -- the organization currently representing Tory --tells TMZ he spoke with Tory over the phone on Wednesday, and the rapper is well aware Kim shared his song "The Color Violet" on her Instagram.

As a result, Kim's comment section is flooding with Tory supporters who are sharing the hashtag "#FreeTory" ... which, of course, is making him feel pretty good.

Roy Ayers, the great jazz vibraphonist known for his hit "Everybody Loves the Sunshine" is dead after suffering an illness ... his family has announced.

In a statement shared on his Facebook, his family says the music legend died on Tuesday in New York City after suffering from a long illness. The didn't specify what illness he had.

They concluded their statement saying ... "He lived a beautiful 84 years and will be sorely missed. His family ask that you respect their privacy at this time, a celebration of Roy’s life will be forthcoming."

A fraudulent fundraiser claiming to support Angie Stone's legacy just days after her death has been banned by GoFundMe -- after raking in over $12K.

A GoFundMe spokesperson confirmed to TMZ that all donations have been refunded, and the organizer, going by the name "Lenda Peers," has been banned from any future fundraising.

Typically, on GoFundMe, a beneficiary is clearly named if funds are being raised for someone else.

Justin Bieber fired his longtime "assistant" years ago, TMZ has learned -- this amid new reports claiming JB's team recently began shrinking due to concerns about his well-being.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... despite new reports suggesting Justin's assistant quit recently -- as Justin's inner circle gets smaller -- we're told JB's former estate manager, Mateo Caldas, was fired by the singer 5 years ago.

Our sources wouldn't specify why Mateo was cut loose in September 2020, but clarified he was never Justin's personal assistant -- his sole responsibility was to oversee Justin's Los Angeles estate.