Music

Drake's label says there's a giant hole in the lawsuit he's filed over Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" ... and they're basically saying Drizzy should've paid closer attention to the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

As expected, Universal Music Group filed a motion to dismiss the defamation lawsuit, and in the docs they point out Drake, or his lawyers, made a major misstep when they amended their lawsuit following Kendrick's performance at Super Bowl LIX.

UMG says Drake's lawsuit isn't really about K Dot calling him a "certified pedophile" ... because he didn't even include those words during the performance. Now, the reality is the Superdome crowd did the damage itself, chanting the lyrics ... but that's not on Kendrick.

Smokey Robinson's camp says the sexual assault lawsuit filed by 4 former housekeepers is filled with lies, and purely designed to squeeze money out of the Motown legend.

Robinson's attorney Christopher Frost tells TMZ ... "As this case progresses, the evidence (the crucial element that guides us) will show that this is simply an ugly method of trying to extract money from an 85-year-old American icon -- $50 million, to be exact."

He goes on to call out the plaintiffs and their lawyers, saying, "Through this process we have seen the bizarre theatrics of yesterday's news conference, as the plaintiffs' attorneys outlined vile, false allegations against Mr. and Mrs. Robinson, trying to enlist the public as an unwitting participant in the media circus they are trying to create."

Kendrick Lamar's verse on Future and Metro Boomin's "Like That" record will forever go down in infamy for its shots aimed at Drake and J. Cole -- but the guy behind one of the samples in the track, Rodney O, says it pains him to even hear it because he hasn't been getting paid his royalties!!!

Rodney says he doesn't really have much beef with Kendrick, Metro or Future, but blames Epic Records and the Estate of Barry White for his lack of royalties.

TMZ Hip Hop obtained legal docs filed by the "Everlasting Bass" rapper on Wednesday and spoke to him about his past year since K. Dot and the boys went super viral at Drake's expense.

The value of late One Direction singer Liam Payne's multimillion-dollar estate has been tallied up ... but since he died without a will, a UK court has determined Liam's baby mama will be in charge of overseeing his money and property.

Liam's former girlfriend & Girls Aloud member Cheryl Tweedy was appointed as one of the executors of his estate, The Guardian reports today ... and music industry attorney Richard Mark Bray was named co-administrator of the $32 million estate.

The estate's value in total was calculated at about $38M ... after debts and expenses are accounted for, the final value is estimated to be about $32M. Tweedy and Bray will be in charge of decisions regarding Liam's leftover money and possessions ... and will likely set up a trust for Liam and Cheryl's 8-year-old son, Bear.

Diddy's third day of jury selection featured a couple people with close ties to the case ... this despite the judge's direction to both sides to better vet prospective jurors.

Proceedings in Diddy's case are moving forward ... with more potential jurors called Wednesday as both sides worked to put together the 45-person jury pool -- and, it seems they weren't vetted with a fine-tooth comb.

Juror 317 took the stand ... which got Judge Arun Subramanian laughing immediately -- 'cause he and the man used to work on anti-class action cases together.

Diddy's federal trial may begin without one of the biggest witnesses for the prosecution ... 'cause the feds still can't get in touch with the woman known as "Victim 3."

The third day of jury selection in Diddy's federal case wrapped up just a short time ago ... and, the prosecution told the judge they still haven't been able to locate this unidentified person or get through to their attorney.

As we told you ... the prosecution, led by Maurene Comey, admitted Monday that Victim 3 does not live near New York City -- and, try as they might, they're worried about getting her to show up in person.

It's guessing time, y'all! Can you guess which 49-year-old British pop star put her hot bod on display in this eye-popping sexy selfie?! Here are a few clues to get ya started ...

She and her girl group stormed onto the music scene in the mid-'90s, and her friend Victoria Beckham designed her wedding dress. If you're still unsure, she'll "tell you what you want, what you really, really want!"

Brad Arnold -- lead singer of 3 Doors Down -- has cancer ... and, he revealed the news in an emotional social media post.

The musician told the band's many fans that he was diagnosed with clear cell renal carcinoma, a form of kidney cancer. Arnold then says the cancer metastasized to his lungs ... a stage 4 diagnosis.

Brad says he's trying to stay positive ... giving all the glory to God -- adding his faith means he's not scared at all.

Nicole Scherzinger is giving it another shot -- she’s officially re-listing her L.A. pad for a cool $6.5 million after failing to sell it last year.

The singer's shaved the price down from $6.7M, and whoever snags it is in for a treat -- the 4-story stunner above the Sunset Strip comes with jaw-dropping views of the city, from Downtown L.A. all the way out to the Pacific.

If that’s not enough to reel in buyers, the place also boasts a sky-high lounge with a swing, a sleek lap pool, and an open-concept great room that screams luxury.

The judge in Diddy's criminal trial is issuing a warning to Mark Geragos over his public comments about the case, and vows he'll be watching and listening weekly to his podcast, "2 Angry Men."

Judge Arun Subramanian called Geragos into chambers Tuesday -- on day 2 of jury selection -- for a tête-à-tête about the famed attorney referring to the federal prosecuting team as a "6-pack of white women" during last week's episode of the podcast he co-hosts with TMZ's Harvey Levin.

Prosecutors alerted the judge to the comment, which they claimed violated court rules because Geragos appears to be consulting with Diddy's defense team. The rule bars prosecutors and attorneys involved in a trial from making public comments that could influence the jury.

Ben Affleck is showing his softer side for Britney Spears ... revealing he felt "empathy" for the "Toxic" singer back in the day when all eyes were on her in the center of the ring -- as Brit put it -- just like a circus.

The "Good Will Hunting" star spoke about the "cruelty" of fame recently on the "This Past Weekend With Theo Von" podcast ... noting that although he did not know Brit at the height of her fame, he understands "the cycle of having people harangue you and yell at you and hassle you and follow you."

He even compared her to a tiger being poked and prodded until it erupts in anger, and commented on the unfair public perception it creates, explaining ... "What’s taken out of the image that you see are the people around waving the stick at the tiger or poking on it ... all you see is the growling anger."

It’s been 20 years and Shakira’s hips still don’t lie -- and she just reminded everyone with a performance that slapped, shook, and served.

Shakira hit the stage looking like she hadn’t aged a day in 2 decades -- diving into the sand in a fiery red dress, showing off her signature moves before bringing out her collab king, Wyclef Jean, on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon."

The Colombian queen went all out for the anniversary special -- pure nostalgia, hips in full swing, and a crowd-pleasing jam backed by live musicians.

DDG says streaming is the perfect way for artists to reinvent themselves nowadays ... because the usual music industry promotional hustle has simply become a snore, bore and chore all wrapped in one!!!

TMZ Hip Hop recently caught up with DDG and his new haircut out on the town in L.A., celebrating the release of "blame the chat" ... the 15-track album he recorded on live stream right in front of fans' eyes.

The album features Wiz Khalifa, Offset, Rob49, PlaqueBoyMax and many more, details fans were privy to as the songs were being recorded in real-time.

BLACKPINK’s Lisa found herself in hot water for rocking Rosa Parks’ face on her underwear at the Met Gala -- but plot twist: the vision actually came from two Black creatives, including none other than Pharrell Williams.

Check out this clip of Pharrell breaking it all the way down -- walking folks through how Lisa’s Met Gala look nailed the "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" theme -- which was all about paying tribute to dandyism in Black culture.

According to Pharrell -- the Met's co-chair and Louis Vuitton's creative director -- Lisa wasn’t just dressed up, she was wearing a piece of art that was all about honoring Black culture, especially considering how much the world borrows from it.

Smokey Robinson is being sued by 4 women who say they used to work for him ... claiming he repeatedly sexually assaulted and raped them during their employment.

The suit was filed in Los Angeles Tuesday morning by four Jane Does claiming they used to work as housekeepers for the music star and his wife, Frances Gladney Robinson.

The 4 accusers -- who say they overlapped while working for Smokey and Frances -- claim they were assaulted multiple times ... with the first alleged incident occurring in 2007.

It took nearly 5 years, but Spectacular Blue Smith has officially put his Disney World arrest behind him ... prosecutors just dropped the case!!!

We broke the story back in December 2020 ... the Pretty Ricky rapper was charged with battery after being accused of punching an employee at Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom, where he was arrested ... for the first time in his life!!!

The criminal battery charge was officially dropped back in November ... and now Spec is celebrating a win in the civil case over the incident.