Music

The Super Bowl LX halftime show performer is Taylor Swift ... that is, if you're drinking the Swifties' Kool-Aid.

Days after the pop superstar's appearance on Travis and Jason Kelce's "New Heights" podcast (and several rewatches, we're sure), her diehard fanbase is convinced the queen of Easter eggs did just that and hinted at taking the world's biggest stage throughout the two-hour episode.

We're about to break it all down ... so, are you ready for it??

R&B star Givēon is going to give it to you straight -- but also make it sound good. His love anthems are extremely personal tales written by him -- and they just happen to be TOXIC.

TMZ caught up with Givēon outside "Jimmy Kimmel Live" this week, where he performed his new song, "I Can Tell" -- a sweet-talking burner where he tells the girl about her own heart.

Giveon admits his music can be toxic from time to time -- but says you gotta respect it comes from an honest place.

Sean Kingston has officially been sentenced in his federal wire fraud case ... receiving a sentence close to what his lawyers asked for.

The rapper was sentenced in a Florida courtroom Friday to 42 months -- which works out to 3.5 years -- in federal prison.

As you know ... Sean was convicted of federal wire fraud back in March, along with his mother, Janice Turner. Janice was sentenced to five years.

Kanye West and Bianca Censori hit up an L.A. theater for a movie date -- and we're just gonna point out the obvious ... they didn’t exactly blend in with the rest of the popcorn crowd!

Peep the pics -- Kanye left the IPIC in Westwood with his trademark poker face ... but to everyone's shock, Bianca actually broke character to flash a smile. Then again, they’d just sat through the scary flick "Weapons," so it might’ve been more nervous giggle than genuine grin.

Still, Bianca kept the glam game strong -- rocking a skin-tight plunging vest, teeny-tiny booty shorts, and heels. Not exactly the go-to look for battling movie theater AC, but hey ... it’s Bianca. She can take pull off anything!

This is why T-Hood's shooting death is being investigated as possible self-defense -- TMZ Hip Hop has obtained video showing him attacking his GF Kelsie Frost ... whose brother is the sole suspect in T-Hood's death.

This surveillance video -- inside Kelsie and T-Hood's Gwinnett County, GA apartment -- shows her lying down, while he paces around their bedroom. After about 25 seconds, T-Hood stands at the edge of the bed, staring at Kelsie ... and then violently pounces on her, seemingly trying to choke her.

Sources connected to the Frost family tell us this video was recorded earlier this year, and they claim it was not an isolated incident. We've also obtained photos of Kelsie with bruises and scratches on her face, neck and chest.

Jared Goff said Taylor Swift made his Wednesday night one he'll remember all too well going forward ... explaining to reporters that after she name-dropped him on "New Heights" -- his phone blew up.

The pop superstar briefly mentioned the Detroit Lions signal-caller as she was trying to explain to Travis and Jason Kelce how little she knew about football prior to dating the Chiefs tight end ... and Goff said on Thursday that after she brought him up, he went through "a crazy couple hours."

He intimated he got a bunch of texts and calls ... though check out his meeting with media members, he didn't seem to mind it one bit.

8:10 AM PT -- Willow's clapping back at everyone side-eying in her recent clip ... telling them they "forgot funny existed" -- 'cause the selfie was clearly a joke. She calls everyone who reacted to it "slow" ... guess the joke's on her followers!!!

Willow Smith -- the daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett -- is getting her close-up ... but it's not what you think ... she's looking pretty downtrodden and saying some racy sh*t!

The musician -- who's signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation -- uploaded a close-up photo of her face with tears streaming down her cheeks and a caption that reads, "who ate all the p***y."

As you may know, Willow has openly talked about being bisexual and exploration of polyamory -- the practice of engaging in multiple romantic partners at the same time.

Travis Kelce's Kansas City Chiefs teammates' jaws were on the floor when they realized he was REALLY dating Taylor Swift ... with Chris Jones and Patrick Mahomes admitting they were stunned when the pop superstar showed up to her first game.

The topic came up in the new "The Kingdom" documentary that dropped on Thursday ... which broke down the Pro Bowl tight end's journey from publicly shooting his shot on his "New Heights" podcast to landing a full-on relationship with the musician.

The program featured interviews with Chiefs staffers who got the heads up about Swift's plans to attend the Week 3 matchup with the Chicago Bears back in 2023 ... and as Jones put it, even the players were in disbelief.

Taylor Swift is tipping her hat to the late, great George Michael on her upcoming album "The Life of a Showgirl" with a track called "Father Figure" -- and the icon’s former partner says George would’ve totally approved of it.

Kenny Goss -- George’s partner of 13 years -- tells TMZ George would be proud of the tribute, which isn't a straight sample, but an interpolation ... meaning you’ll hear the melody of his '87 classic woven into Taylor’s track.

Kenny tells us George never met Taylor, but he’s pretty sure the icon would’ve been a fan -- and would’ve appreciated someone of her caliber taking an interest in his work.

Flint, Michigan rappers Rio Da Yung OG & YN Jay are among today's generational leaders of horniest hip hop tunes around, so naturally, they abide by an entirely unconventional set of relationship rules!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with Rio at his "F.L.I.N.T. (Feeling Like I'm Not Through)" album release party in Hollywood on Wednesday night with YN Jay AKA "The Coochie Man" in tow ... he's on the project a couple times too!!!

We ask Rio about his lead single "Sneaky B" that's racked up millions of plays on Spotify and YouTube. Rio tells us he's too slick to let cheating go undetected but admits he needs some spice in his life, so he'd rather be suspicious than bored!!!

Lil Jon adopted meditation and wellness a couple years ago, and those results have been paying off in the gym ... let's just say, he's not so little anymore!!!

The veteran hitmaker posted a video of himself completely melting the iron in the gym on Thursday, showing off a muscular and slimmed-down physique.

Jon tells TMZ Hip Hop ... “My diet is high protein, low carbs, spring water, no sugar, and no processed foods. I've been hittin’ the gym 3-4 days a week for 2 years now."

Brandon Blackstock’s death certificate is revealing more about his passing from melanoma -- showing that seizures played a major role in his death.

According to the death certificate from the Butte-Silver Bow County Clerk and Recorder’s Office in Montana, first obtained by People -- Brandon died at 11:13 AM on August 7 -- with seizures listed as a "significant condition contributing to death but not resulting in the underlying cause."

The death certificate reveals no autopsy was performed, and Brandon was cremated.

Here's Dua Lipa turning a stand-up paddleboard into her own personal floating yoga mat ... and she's hitting all her poses in a super skimpy bikini.

Ya gotta see these photos of the "Don't Start Now" singer flaunting her smoking hot body on vacation over in Ibiza ... she's got legs for days.

Dua Lipa slipped into some barely there swimwear during a yacht day with her actor fiancé Callum Turner and a bunch of their friends ... then she grabbed a paddleboard for a steamy yoga session on the water.

Taylor Swift's highly anticipated 12th album will feature a track titled "Elizabeth Taylor" ... and the legendary Hollywood actress' son hopes it might serve as an inspiration to young women everywhere.

In case you've been under a rock for the past 24 hours ... everyone knows TS announced the details of her newest album "The Life of a Showgirl" Wednesday on her bae Travis Kelce's podcast.

She released the track list ... and, the second song on the album is named after Taylor -- the two-time Academy Award winner, activist and all-around badass Hollywood icon!

BigXthaPlug took a moment to celebrate his accomplishments now that his breakout album "Take Care" has been certified Platinum ... depression almost took him out!!!

The Texas rapper thanked all his supporters on his Instagram page and admitted he questioned EVERYTHING ... his goals, his career -- even his reason for being on Earth.

If you remember, we caught up with BigX on the cusp of "Take Care's" release last year when he revealed Wallo267 of the Million Dollarz Worth of Game podcast was his lone guest appearance ... which was more of a spoken word interlude.

Taylor Swift's landed plenty of hits over the length of her career, and we're gonna let you in on a little not-so-secret ... lots of her hits were completed with the help of collaborators.

And the singer's pretty loyal to a select few -- including Max Martin, who's co-written and produced a fair amount of her biggest hits.

We're going to take a look at the music industry titan's work history, as well as Max's longstanding professional relationship with Swift.

Martin -- who was born Karl Martin Sandberg -- is originally from Sweden, and he got his start in the music industry by performing in various bands in the late 1980s and early '90s.

The performer eventually moved into producing, and he worked with artists like The Backstreet Boys, Celine Dion and *NSYNC early in his career.

He eventually worked on some of the catchiest tracks of the 21st century, like Justin Timberlake's "Can't Stop The Feeling" and Britney Spears' "...Baby One More Time," just to name a few.

Oh, and he's picked up plenty of awards for his work, including five Grammy Awards and an impressive 25 nominations.

Martin and Swift began collaborating way back in the early 2010s, when he co-produced several songs on her 2012 record "Red."

The hitmaker was evidently pleased by the producer's efforts, as she brought him back to work as one of the co-producers on the record's follow-up, "1989."

Martin stuck around for Swift's 2017 record "Reputation," serving as one of the main producers and songwriters.

Oh, and remember those Grammy Awards we mentioned earlier? Several of those nominations were for his work with Swift!

Although Martin sat out for the production of much of Swift's post-"Reputation" material, she revealed he was coming back for more on an August 2025 episode of the "New Heights" podcast, which was co-hosted by Jason and Travis Kelce.

The singer spoke highly of Martin and their frequent collaborator Shellback, who she worked with on her 12th studio album "The Life of a Showgirl," and recalled working on the album as a trio "felt like catching lightning in a bottle."

She went on to say she felt as if the group had "all grown up so much" in the years since "Reputation" was released.