Music

Tupac Shakur had a promiscuous reputation in the early 1990s ... and a much-anticipated new book claims it drove Janet Jackson to ask the studio to have him tested for AIDS before a kissing scene.

Jeff Pearlman -- a noted biographer -- has written a new book titled "Only God Can Judge Me: The Many Lives of Tupac Shakur" ... and, in it, he touches on Tupac's time filming the 1993 flick "Poetic Justice" with Janet.

According to Pearlman, the two didn't get along much ... with Janet a consummate professional on-set while Tupac had a tendency to come and go as he pleased.

Diddy's making good on his promise to appeal his conviction and sentence in his federal criminal case ... TMZ has learned.

According to new legal docs, filed in federal court in New York and obtained by TMZ, the notice was filed Monday and lists Alexandra A.E. Shapiro as his counsel. We're told Diddy's team will likely file their substantive brief for the appeal within 4 to 6 weeks.

As you know ... the Bad Boy mogul was sentenced back on October 3 by Judge Arun Subramanian to serve a little over 4 years in a federal prison.

He was convicted on 2 charges of transportation across state lines for the purpose of prostitution, AKA the Mann Act.

Armani White's recent arrest for disorderly conduct for filming a music video on the highway was caught on police body cam.

TMZ Hip Hop obtained the footage of Armani and his crew interacting with London Police Department officers on October 12 just outside Newport, Kentucky, as the "Billie Eilish" rapper was in town as part of T-Pain's nationwide tour.

We also got a clip of Armani breaking his silence during his set at the October 19, Birmingham, AL stop, where he told the crowd, he cracked the biggest smile in his mug shot because he refuses to be painted as a criminal!!!

Playboi Carti's alleged assault on a limo driver was even more sinister than originally thought ... because he's now accused of threatening to shoot the chauffeur.

TMZ obtained the audio dispatch calls from the October 2 incident in Utah ... and, as you can hear, cops sprang into action after driver Carl Reynolds reported what allegedly happened to him while driving the rapper to his tour rehearsal. with his GF, Giovanna Ramos.

Investigators responded to an intersection in Park City, where Carl had pulled over after Carti allegedly socked him in the face during a heated argument with Ramos.

Axl Rose has always had a fiery temper --- and it flared up BIGTIME in Argentina over the weekend while performing onstage with Guns N' Roses.

The legendary GNR frontman was anything but happy during Saturday night's show at Estadio Tomás Adolfo Ducó stadium in Buenos Aires — and Axl lost his cool over technical difficulties with his earpiece, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Check out video posted to YouTube, which shows Axl belting out GNR's classic tune, "Welcome To The Jungle," along with bassist Duff McKagan, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Richard Fortus and drummer Isaac Carpenter.

Boosie Badazz was spotted over the weekend performing at a funeral procession in Detroit, and while some social media users jumped to conclusions, his appearance actually fulfilled his late fan's wish!!!

The veteran rap star pulled up like a 'G' and attended the celebration of life for 26-year-old Alaicha Johnson on October 17 ... who passed away on October 5 after a lengthy battle with cancer.

TMZ Hip Hop spoke to Alaicha's parents, Tiffany and Ramon Johnson, who affectionately remember their daughter as the "life of the party" -- who proudly wore her nickname "Lay Lay Wild" on her sleeve.

Kevin Federline’s getting dragged by folks accusing him of cashing in on ex Britney Spears with his new memoir, "You Thought You Knew" ... but he’s got backup from the last surviving LFO member Brad Fischetti, who says K-Fed’s always been a solid dude.

Brad tells TMZ Kevin was a stand-up guy from the jump, literally, recalling the first time he hit the road with them in 2000, when he jumped in to save him during a random attack ... pulling a guy off who'd blindsided and pummeled Brad.

On top of having his back, Brad says he’s got nothing but good memories of Kevin -- calling him mild-mannered, funny, super personable... and, no surprise here, an incredible dancer.

When you're pop superstar Tate McRae ... what happens backstage doesn't always stay backstage -- The 22-year-old got down for some BTS shots, and we copped 'em all to kick off your week.

Check it -- Tate captioned her latest cheeky post, "Meeeeee after New York show💃💃💃💃 ..." Tate commenced her "Miss Possessive Tour" in March earlier this year ... and is set to wrap things up next month.

Britney Spears' ex-husband isn't the only one dropping bombshells about her, now Brit herself says she's suffered brain damage.

In a tirade posted Sunday evening, she wrote, "I do feel like my wings were taken away and brain damage happened to me a long time ago 100 percent ... I have of course moved on from that troubling time in my life and I'm blessed to be alive..."

There's no clarification on which "troubling time" she's talking about, but her "wings" seemed to refer to her shoulder blades -- the rambling post included a pic from behind of Brit on a horse, and a discussion of the movie character, Maleficent, having her wings clipped.

If there’s one thing Ashanti’s gonna do, it’s live it up -- and she proved it with a carefree beach day down in Barbados.

As you can see -- the singer shut it down in a plunging striped swimsuit, topped off with a matching bandana and oversized hoops ... going full maximum impact mode for her sun-drenched Barbados weekend.

Ashanti was clearly living her best life, partying it up with her crew ... though one thing was hard to miss -- her other half, Nelly, was nowhere in sight.

Kenny Loggins is super pissed Donald Trump ripped his classic "Danger Zone" for a recent controversial video ... and the iconic singer is ready to take action.

Here's the deal ... Trump used the 'Top Gun' classic in an A.I. video in which DT pilots a jet while wearing a crown ... and proceeds to dump poop on No Kings protesters, who were out in several major cities this weekend.

A source close to Kenny tells TMZ … the rocker is exploring legal options to ensure Trump stops using his music … but it’s complicated in this instance ‘cause Kenny doesn’t own full copyright to the tune. Two other guys -- Giorgio Moroder and Tom Whitlock -- wrote and composed 'Danger Zone' along with Kenny for Warner Bros.

Legendary bass guitar player and session musician Anthony Jackson died on Sunday.

The performer was best known for his work with the 6-string bass, and he was one of the first musicians to extensively use the instrument, according to CBS 42.

Jackson was born in New York City and initially focused on piano and guitar before switching to bass after hearing a Glen Campbell track in 1965.

Taylor Swift used to crushing it in packed stadiums ... but, it was Travis Kelce's Chiefs which did the crushing Sunday -- dismantling the Raiders while she watched.

The singer-songwriter -- who's kept a low-profile at her future husband's games this season -- was spotted sitting in her private box at the stadium.

It appears she's sitting with her dad, Scott Swift, too ... and, they watched a flaying by the Chiefs -- with one memorable NSFW moment from Patrick Mahomes in the 31-0 victory.

Brandy says a medical incident drove her offstage in Chicago Saturday night ... revealing a sudden wave of dehydration threatened to make her faint.

The singer-songwriter explained her sudden departure from her United Center show in an Instagram post Sunday morning ... telling her fans that -- after weeks of nonstop rehearsals -- she experienced feelings of dehydration during the show.

Brandy says she did return to the stage after initially leaving it ... but adds she couldn't connect to the tunes sonically -- and acknowledges it wasn't her best show by any stretch of imagination.

Brandy and Monica's The Boy Is Mine Tour hit a snag Saturday night when Brandy abruptly walked off stage mid performance, leaving Monica to close the show solo.

The R&B legends were performing at Chicago's United Center when Brandy appeared frustrated by sound issues and stopped mid song.

"Give me one second y'all, I gotta get my ..." she told the crowd before walking backstage.

Sabrina Carpenter turned "Saturday Night Live" into Saturday Night Lust ... delivering a monologue so cheeky, it probably broke a few FCC rules.

Then came audience interaction time which, in true Sabrina fashion, quickly turned sexual. She flirted with a fan named Will from Maryland saying, "Ooh, what a sexy, unusual place," but bailed when he revealed he works in venture capital. "Okay, never mind,” she said.

The singer didn't waste a second poking fun at her reputation, telling the crowd, "Everyone thinks of me as this, like, horndog pop star. But there's so much more to me. I'm not just horny ... I'm also turned on and sexually charged."