Reality TV

Former "Dance Moms" star Nia Sioux's crossover into scripted TV on "The Bold and the Beautiful" is keeping her pockets deep now that she's no longer on the dance competition reality show.

We got ahold of her minor's contract for the soap opera and Nia, who's 16, is making $2,500 per episode. She's already appeared in 6 episodes this year.

Unclear how long her story arc will run but, if she does return next season, her rate goes up to $2,800.

Neal E. Boyd, the gifted opera singer who won "America's Got Talent," died Sunday from heart failure ... TMZ has learned.

He was in his hometown of Sikeston, Missouri, reportedly at his mother's home, when he died. The county coroner tells TMZ ... Neal passed around 6 PM, and adds no autopsy will be done. We're told he had a known a health condition related to his heart.

Neal won 'AGT' back in 2008 ... wowing the judges and the audience with his operatic voice. He recorded one album, "My American Dream," after the victory.

In early 2017, Neal blacked out while driving, causing an accident that left him and his mother badly injured. They'd been slowly recovering since then.

Neal was 42.

Blake Painter had a variety of drugs near his body when cops found him in his home, and it appears he'd been dead for several days ... TMZ has learned.

According to the incident report from the Clatsop County Sheriff's Office in Oregon ... a concerned friend of the former "Deadliest Catch" captain came by to check on him and spotted him through a window lying on the floor of his living room, so he called the cops.

The officer who entered the home says he could smell "the odor of decaying flesh" immediately and discovered Painter lying on his side ... his face, back and stomach were blue.

The report says a bottle containing the painkiller Tramadol was on the couch, along with another bottle with an assortment of pills. There was also a pipe, tinfoil and an Altoids container with what cops believe were heroin and meth inside. The medical examiner discovered another small pipe in Painter's shorts.

We broke the story ... Blake was found dead in his Oregon home on May 25. His friend told cops he'd been trying to reach Painter since Monday, and he'd been sober and happy in the days prior. Blake even took his daughters swimming the Sunday before he died.

Painter was best known for being a captain on seasons 2 and 3 of "Deadliest Catch."

"Little Women: LA" star Christy McGinity Gibel could hardly keep it together describing what things are like downstairs after her vaginal rejuvenation procedure ... and ya can't blame her!!

We got Christy leaving PUMP in WeHo and she was thrilled to give us an update on her recent operation. ICYMI ... Christy and her co-star, Tonya Banks, recently decided to get a little lady parts tune-up.

Jennifer Williams and Tim Norman suffered a double whammy ... both were denied restraining orders against one another ... TMZ has learned.

The reality stars-turned-exes got shut down after the court found no reason to grant the restraining orders.

You'll recall ... Jennifer alleged Tim -- whose real name is James -- had a tendency to be violent and threatening during their relationship, and that he was allegedly stalking and harassing her. Tim alleged Jennifer slashed his tires and once tried running him over with a car.

Both stars accused the other of trying to drum up publicity for their respective reality shows -- "Basketball Wives" for Jennifer and OWN's "Welcome to Sweetie Pie's" for Tim.

Ronnie from 'Jersey Shore' got into a heated argument with his baby mama over their child and their dead dog ... and it ended with his baby mama allegedly spitting on him ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us Ronnie's baby mama, Jen Harley, called cops on him Thursday night to report their argument at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, but when they showed up around 10 PM she was nowhere to be found.

Cops say they interviewed multiple witnesses and Ronnie, and were told Jen punched him in the head, and spit on him ... then took off. We're told she is now the suspect of a battery.

Ronnie told police they'd been arguing since Wednesday when he found their dog dead at the bottom of their pool. Ronnie and Jen live in the Vegas area. Our "Jersey Shore" sources say they'd also been bickering about who was taking care of their daughter, and things came to a head at Planet Hollywood.

As we reported ... Ronnie nearly came to blows with a guy in Vegas Wednesday at the Flamingo. He's currently shooting season 2 of "Jersey Shore: Family Vacation."

Maury Povich just extended a red carpet invite to Drake to come on his show, take a paternity test and prove once and for all if he's got a kid.

We got Maury at LAX Thursday, and to say he's eager to have Drake come on his show and take a DNA test that proves his paternity would be an understatement.

Maury says he's offered his expertise to other rappers in the past, most recently a lie detector test to Cardi B and Offset who went through a rough patch shortly before she announced she's pregnant.

It's actually not a bad call for Drake. Many feel Drizzy took the L by staying silent after Pusha T allegedly beat him to the punch and hinted he had a son with porn star Sophie Brussaux on his diss track, "The Story of Adidon."

Tristan Thompson's Cavs ain't doin' so hot, going down 0-3 to the Warriors Wednesday night ... but his family?? That seems to be doing WAYYY better.

Khloe Kardashian continued to show her support for her baby's daddy by showing up to Game 3 despite TT being a bum off the court ... and kinda one on it too.

Remember, Khloe wasn't so sure about sticking by Tristan after the cheating scandal rocked her right as their baby was being born ... but, so far, she's been ride or die with him -- sportin' the CLE shirt and getting backstage access Wednesday night.

Ronnie from 'Jersey Shore' came THIS close to an all-out brawl on the second day of filming season 2 in Vegas.

The incident went down Wednesday at a pool party at the Flamingo ... where Ronnie had to be restrained from going after some loudmouth. You can see from the start of this video Ronnie was charging at the guy, but both were restrained by the massive security team present. It's unclear what triggered the confrontation.

You can also see several cameras are rolling ... so the guess here is MTV cameras captured it for the show. Check it out ... the man Ronnie's beefing with keeps shouting something about Gucci and hustling.

Kenya Moore is shutting down any haters who doubt she's preggo at 49 by sharing the ultrasound.

The Atlanta 'Housewife' first hinted about pregnancy during the season 10 reunion episode back in April. She said she and her husband, Marc Daly, "will definitely be welcoming a boy or girl in late this year."

Many didn't believe her due to her age, but the ultrasound appears to be proof it's on the up and up.

Kenya has been struggling to get pregnant since marrying Daly in 2017. She flew to Barbados in November for IVF treatment at a world-renowned fertility center.

Kenya's not saying yet how far along she is right now. She says the ultrasound was captured earlier in in her pregnancy.

Lil Scrappy was hospitalized this weekend after being found nearly unconscious and seriously jacked up following a horrific car accident he was involved in ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to the 'Love & Hip Hop' star tell us Scrappy was cruising along early Sunday morning with a friend as they were leaving the King of Diamonds strip club in Miami. We're told Scrappy believes his buddy fell asleep at the wheel, however cops list Scrappy as the driver in the crash. Either way ... they slammed into a pole, totaling the car.

According to the traffic crash report -- obtained by TMZ -- Scrappy and his pal, Ca$ino Roulette, were found outside of the car and on the ground when authorities arrived. Neither could coherently explain what had happened. The report also notes there were no witnesses ... and no citations issued. Cops say the car was probably driving too fast for the conditions.

Scrappy eventually came to at a hospital, but sources say he doesn't remember who found him or how he got there. We're told he is seriously injured, with a broken foot that needs to be operated on. We're told his friend, Ca$ino, is in ICU ... Scrappy is not.

Scrappy's famous mother, Momma Dee, and his wife, Bambi, are currently at his bedside as he recovers.

Seems there's only one way Shaunie O'Neal would attend Gloria Govan & Derek Fisher's wedding ... OVER HER DEAD BODY ... telling TMZ Sports that's one party she ain't down for.

Derek & Shaq won 3 rings together as Lakers and were tight bros, so one might assume Shaunie could possibly want to attend the nuptials.

Hell no. We got Shaunie at LAX and asked her if she plans on attending, and if the words out of her mouth didn't tell the whole story, the look on her face CLEARLY did.

"No, I don't so. No, I don't think I'll be going to that."

If you didn't know, the ladies have deep issues, stemming from Shaunie's belief that Gloria's sister, Laura, was messing around with Shaq while Shaunie was married to the Diesel.

It led to a HUGE blowup on a past episode of 'Basketball Wives' where Shaunie confronted Gloria ... and it's clear the whole thing isn't water under the bridge.

Die-hard "Big Brother" fans might not be happy about this -- "The Amazing Race" just made some huge last-minute cuts to its upcoming all-BB edition ... including winners and fan favorites.

Our 'TAR' sources tell us ... America's Favorite Houseguest on Season 17, James Huling, and Season 18's Corey Brooks will no longer be partnering up on 'TAR' because CBS called them Thursday night to inform them they've been axed.

Caleb Reynolds, aka Beast Mode Cowboy, was also told he's no longer wanted for the upcoming season, and perhaps most shockingly ... former enemies turned friends -- Josh Martinez and Paul Abrahamian -- also got dropped from the cast.

We're told the news came as a huge surprise to the 'BB' alums because they'd all gone through the interview process and thought they were set ... but production just told them they are moving in a different direction.

On the bright side ... we've learned BB14 winner Ian Terry's been added to the cast, Rachel Reilly's still in and will team up with her sister Elissa, and past stars Da'Vonne Rogers and Bridgette Dunning will be a duo.

Nikki Bella played with fire when she tried messing with the paparazzi ... and it burned her ass.

Nikki tells TMZ ... a story floating around showing her "canoodling with a mystery man" on a Miami balcony does NOT mean she's interested in him. She says it was supposed to be a joke to mess with paps since they had been following her and the rest of the "Total Divas" crew for days.

Nikki says the bartender is a 21-year-old model the show hired to serve them drinks at their penthouse ... but by Thursday Nikki had had enough with the paps. With a little liquid courage, Nikki says she hatched a plan to bring the guy out on the balcony and do some faux flirting to screw with the photogs.

Paps snapped away and a story about her canoodling hit the web ... something she had NOT intended to happen. Nikki wants to set the record straight -- she is NOT dating anyone else right now. And as she told us already ... she's actively trying to work things out with John Cena.

"Dancing with the Stars" pro Sharna Burgess made a splash -- literally and figuratively -- after a night of some heavy partying.

Sharna hit the beach Friday in Miami ... wearing the hell out of her navy blue, strapless bikini. For good measure ... she matched her Apple Watch with a blue-trim strap. Shades were also a must.

The Australian beauty also brought her pooches with her for a little fun in the sand. Sharna was out partying the night before ... turning up with the "Total Divas" crew.

'Jersey Shore' outcast Angelina Pivarnick's made her return and, even though it got a little nasty with the crew, she says they went out on good terms ... until JWoww started running her mouth again.

Angelina tells TMZ ... despite a heated confrontation with JWoww and Snooki on Thursday night's episode of "Jersey Shore Family Vacation," she was actually in a decent place with everyone once her reunion with the cast was done filming.

Then ... she heard JWoww was trashing her about a fan's Change.org petition, which Angelina claims is both immature and incorrect. She tells us this is what led to her "Jersey Whore" diss toward JWoww last week.

There's a soft side to this feud, though -- Ang concedes JWoww's a good person and respects her for being a good mom ... but believes they need to work out their differences in a more grown-up way.