Super Bowl

Jay-Z is once again explaining why his partnership with the NFL is actually for the same cause Colin Kaepernick fights for ... it's just the approach that's different.

Jigga sat down with the NYT this weekend ahead of Super Bowl LIV and re-defended his collaboration with the league, which many saw as a betrayal of Kap and everything he stood for. Jay also took a lot of heat at first, but he seems okay with it for the bigger picture.

He tells the paper, "As long as real people are being hurt and marginalized and losing family members, then yes, I can take a couple rounds of negative press," going on to insist he is still fighting for people of color -- only now, from a position of strength and influence.

Case in point ... Sunday's broadcast will apparently include a PSA-type video -- one in a series, per NYT -- that aims to tell the stories of black men and boys killed by cops.

It'll probably be similar to the PSA Malcolm Jenkins and Roc Nation teamed up to produce, which was called "Everyone's Child." Unclear if this new vid is part of the same "Responsibility Program," but chances are it falls under the same umbrella.

Getting back to Kaepernick though, Jay kinda sticks to his guns in this new interview as far as addressing the guy's situation ... acknowledging he was done dirty by the league, but also strongly suggesting it's time to move forward and start looking for new solutions.

Jay says, "No one is saying he hasn’t been done wrong. He was done wrong. I would understand if it was three months ago. But it was three years ago and someone needs to say, ‘What do we do now -- because people are still dying?'"

Post Malone came bearing strip club-esque gifts to a regular night club ahead of Super Bowl LIV in Miami ... and people were just as willing to stoop low for a taste of cheddar.

The singer touched down in Miami a couple days before kickoff on Friday, and at the ass crack of dawn of 5 AM the next day ... he popped into E11EVEN Miami -- a 24/7 "ultraclub" -- in a celebratory mood. And, by that, we mean he was ready to start chucking cash.

We got this video of Posty being hand-delivered a few different boxes full of single dollar bills ... which ended up adding up to a hefty $50,000. Looks like a delivery from heaven.

Anyway, we're told PM and his crew spent the rest of the night making it rain on people for a few hours. We imagine he had his own elevated booth or VIP area somewhere, so the regular folks down below likely had paper falling on them for a while. Free for all!!!

BTW, this place ain't a gentlemen's club by any means. E11EVEN Miami's just a good old-fashioned disco with trapeze artists and whatnot. Nobody gets full-blown naked though.

Post almost fooled us by the stacks of cash he had on hand. Bandz a make anybody dance, it seems.

Wanna see why it's DOPE to be an NFL player??? Just check out Las Vegas Raiders star Johnathan Abram leaving a Miami hot spot with not one, not two, not three ....but FOUR very attractive women!!!

TMZ Sports spoke with the 23-year-old stud leaving Prime 112 in South Beach on Thursday and he appeared to be in great spirits -- it's not hard to figure out why.

Not only was Abram in good company, but he's also apparently a really generous guy ... 'cause we spoke with his lovely friends after the dinner ... and they say the Raiders safety paid for everyone's meals!!!

But, the group wasn't just munchin' on apps all night ... they told us they were chowing down on steaks and crab cakes!!!

FYI -- Abram is in the middle of a 4-year, $11 million deal ... so yeah, let him splurge a little bit.

We also asked the star safety about the team's move to Sin City ... and the dude sounds pumped!!!

Eventually, Abram parted ways with the ladies, hopped in his Lambo and drove off.

Chance The Rapper is featured in the first-ever TV commercial for Quibi -- a revolutionary new mobile platform -- and the funny spot is hitting the airwaves during the Super Bowl.

The commercial depicts a bank heist gone wrong, leaving the robbers with just 4 to 10 minutes to spare ... which just so happens to be the perfect amount of time to watch a Quibi.

As you can see ... the bank robbers pause mid-heist to check out Chance's revival of "Punk'd" on Quibi.

BTW ... Quibi is short for "quick bites" ... and the first-ever entertainment platform designed specifically for phones delivers episodes and movie-quality shows in 10 minutes or less.

Quibi's launching April 6, with original content from huge celebs like Jennifer Lopez, Liam Hemsworth, Zac Efron, Idris Elba, Kendall Jenner, 50 Cent, Steph Curry, Chrissy Teigen and Kristen Bell ... plus our own celebrity show with a TMZ edge.

Lizzo teaming up with Harry Styles is the collab that had to happen in 2020, and when it finally did -- to exactly NO ONE's surprise -- everyone went berserk!!!

The awesome tag team went down Thursday night for SiriusXM and Pandora's Opening Drive Super Concert Series at South Beach. Lizzo was billed as the headliner, and there had been zero mention of Harry ... until Lizzo dropped the announcement on stage.

And, out came Harry ... rocking a 70s look while fanning out and belting Lizzo's hit track, "Juice." He's been a huge fan of hers. So much so, Harry's sampled the track at his own concerts. He also covered the track back in December during a BBC Radio appearance.

His rendition alone's racked up nearly 10 million views.

Here's Jason Momoa like you've never seen him before ... plucking his eyebrows and reading a young adult romance novel while soaking in a bubble bath.

If that sounds like the makings of a Super Bowl commercial, then someone on Madison Ave nailed it. Aquaman got downright comfy for his Rocket Mortgage spot. He's been teasing it all week ... posting snippets, but Friday morning he gave us the full Monty.

Chill. We meant that metaphorically.

You can see Jason brushing his hair, practicing his baritone movie trailer voice, and talking to his dog in a baby voice -- all while wearing, for some reason, TWO bathrobes or just bubbles.

The 60-second ad will reportedly air during the first half of the game. The theme is something about feeling comfortable in your own home, but do you really give a crap?

It's Momoa in a tub. End of story.

Jason will get plenty of celeb competition on Super Sunday. Chris Evans, John Krasinski, Rachel Dratch and David Ortiz are all costarring in one car company's commercial.

That one's Boston themed, but again ... who cares??

Josie Canseco is soaking up all Miami has to offer during Super Bowl week ... and that means plenty of sunshine and epic yacht parties!!!

Check out these pics of the smoking hot model showing off her flawless figure in a pink bikini Thursday aboard South Beach mogul David Grutman's floating paradise.

Even on vacay she busted out a runway-worthy hair flip. Models. Always working.

TMZ broke the story ... Josie's dating Logan Paul after moving on from Brody Jenner, and the new couple is already crossing some major relationship milestones.

Logan's also in MIA for his brother Jake Paul's fight tonight against AnEsonGib -- so Josie will be sporting a fresh tan ringside. We're assuming she'll be there rooting for Jake.

Most importantly, we hope the NFL is paying attention to these pics. Read our lips: NO MORE COLD WEATHER SUPER BOWL HOST CITIES.

Miami rules.

Barstool Sports honcho Dave Portnoy feels like a million bucks (way more, actually) ... which explains why he's dishing free advice on prop bets for Super Bowl LIV.

Portnoy joined "TMZ Live" Thursday from Miami -- site of Sunday's Super Bowl -- and dude had a million reasons to smile -- more like 450 million reasons, actually, after selling a 36% stake of his media company worth $163 million in stock and cash. The sale bumped the valuation of Barstool's digital media brand to a whopping $450 million.

El Presidente -- as he's referred to by Stoolies -- tells us how he's gloating in South Beach, and ya can't blame him. He also gave us quick advice on this year's prop bets ... such as, the over/under on how long Demi Lovato's national anthem song will last and whether J Lo or Shakira -- co-headliners of the halftime show -- will have a wardrobe malfunction.

TBH, Portnoy's answers make a ton of sense.

As for whether he'll be at the big game, that's unclear -- seems Dave is still on the NFL's bad side after he used a fake mustache to sneak by NFL security at last year's Super Bowl.

The FAA says it will DROP THE HAMMER on drone fliers at Super Bowl LIV in Miami this weekend ... threatening $30,000 fines if people are caught flying the toys near the Big Game!

Drone-flying has become a super popular hobby in America ... especially in Miami where there's a whole hell of a lot of stuff to record from the sky.

But, the FAA is deeming Hard Rock Stadium as a NO-FLY ZONE for this weekend's 49ers-Chiefs matchup ... and if people are caught flying anyway, the punishment is pretty severe.

The FAA says fines could not only reach $30K ... but criminal prosecution is on the table as well.

Yeah, better put those drones in the closet for the weekend.

As for the official rules of flying near the game if ya wanna push it ... the FAA says no drones will be allowed without permission within a roughly 34-mile region around the stadium.

But, good news ... the drones can be broken out shortly after the game -- the FAA says the temporary flight restriction will be removed at 11:59 p.m. ET.

Donald Trump and Michael Bloomberg better put their Super Bowl advertisements to good use, by making them fun and exciting ... so says Congressman Andre Carson.

We got the distinguished gentleman from Indiana on Capitol Hill Thursday, and asked him about the mix of commercials and political ads for Sunday's Super Bowl broadcast.

There's gonna be more political ads than usual -- it's an election year, after all -- and Rep. Carson says candidates are gonna do everything they can to capitalize on the massive TV audience tuning in to the Big Game.

It's pretty crazy ... FOX, which is broadcasting the game, says a 30-second commercial's gonna cost up to $5.6 million ... but Carson says the huge price tag is worth every penny.

Rep. Carson's advice for Super Bowl ads ... make them entertaining and engaging, and don't just talk about personal accomplishments.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says the league is ready, willing and able to help Antonio Brown get his life back on track ... saying, "We are confident that can happen."

AB's life has been a mess over the past several months -- he's been fired from multiple NFL teams, gone to war with the mother of his children and most recently, he was arrested for allegedly attacking a moving truck driver.

Brown's estranged girlfriend has said publicly that she's concerned about Antonio's mental health -- and it seems like Goodell and the NFL agree that he needs help ASAP.

During a media event in Miami on Wednesday for Super Bowl LIV, Goodell was asked about the league's efforts to help the embattled WR ... and he insisted the NFL is actively involved.

"I think the first thing for all of us is to think about the wellbeing of Antonio. To understand what Antonio's going through," Goodell said.

"We don't talk about the wellness of our players publicly but I would tell you that you can be assured that the NFL and the NFL Players Association have a tremendous amount of resources that are available to all players. They are going to be made available to Antonio."

Goodell continued ... "We want to help get him on the right track and get him in a position where he is in the zone where he thinks he can be successful in life."

"We are confident that can happen. We want to work to do that and for our standpoint, that's the first step ... and the first step is making sure we're doing everything to help Antonio."

For his part, AB is still training as if he'll get another shot to play pro football -- though it seems unlikely at this point.

During the media event, Goodell also addressed the investigation into the New England Patriots for illegally videotaping the Cincinnati Bengals during a 2019 regular-season game.

Goodell said, "Our responsibility is to make sure we're being extremely thorough. Our team has been on it. We've been focused on this. We're going to get it right. And when we come to a conclusion we'll certainly make sure that people are aware of it."

Patrick Mahomes, Jimmy Garoppolo and all the other players preparing for Super Bowl 54 can stay focused on the game, instead of worrying about home burglaries ... thanks to a live-sex porn site.

Yeah, you read that right. CamSoda is offering free HD webcams to the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers players to set up inside their homes during Super Bowl week. The offer isn't a gateway to porn ... it's a security measure to ward off potential thieves.

CamSoda's thought is once the cams are installed, players can live stream the feed from their homes 24/7 to monitor their property while they're out of town -- or have friends or family monitor the situation.

The company's VP, Darren Parker, says ... "The last thing members of the Chiefs and 49ers should have to worry about while preparing for, and competing in, the Super Bowl is making sure their residences are secure."

Parker cites the break-ins at the homes of Rob Gronkowski -- during the Super Bowl in 2018 -- and Yasiel Puig when the Dodgers were in the 2017 World Series. He says Travis Kelce and George Kittle don't need to worry about falling victim too.

The offer doesn't require accepting players to "perform" on their webcams -- but ya gotta think CamSoda wouldn't turn 'em down if they were interested.

Friendliest Super Bowl ever?!?!?

The San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs came face-to-face at Marlins Park in Miami on Monday night ... and THEY COULDN'T HAVE BEEN NICER!!

Patrick Mahomes, Jimmy Garoppolo, Richard Sherman, Tyrann Mathieu and more were shaking hands, cracking jokes and posing for pics together ... just days before they do battle!

It's actually really nice to see ... ferocious competitors being super respectful and enjoying the moment before Sunday's big game.

During the Opening Night festivities, players from both teams remembered Kobe Bryant and talked about the impact he's had on their lives.

In fact, 49ers superstar tight end George Kittle said Kobe was "the reason I played sports."

The Super Bowl isn't just a huge weekend for football, it's a massive weekend for strippers who come from all over the world to get in on that Super Bowl cash!!

But it's not just female strippers who hit the jackpot ... male strippers can clean up too.

We've learned that several male reviews have been holding auditions to make sure they're only trotting out the best of the best for customers looking to spend.

In fact, we got one of the auctions from LaBare, where a bunch of ripped ass dudes stripped off to their g-strings and twerked their asses off in hopes of getting a coveted spot on the stage this week.

"We're getting tons of men who want to join the cast for Super Bowl weekend from all over the world," LaBare's marketing manager, Jessica Jones, tella us, "Texas is the most popular."

The crowd at Super Bowl 54 might look like a Grammy Awards after-party, because it's going to include some of the biggest names in music ... TMZ has learned.

Our SB sources tell us ... stars like Cardi B, Lady Gaga and DJ Khaled are expected to be at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami next Sunday to watch the Kansas City Chiefs take on the San Francisco 49ers in the big game.

That's not all, though ... we're told Beyonce's likely to be there -- makes sense with Jay-Z's partnership with the NFL -- and it's quite possible Sir Paul McCartney will be in attendance as well.

Both have headlined the Super Bowl Halftime Show in the past ... so they'll surely be interested to see how this year's performers -- Jennifer Lopez and Shakira -- fare during their set.

Speaking of J Lo, our sources say her fiance, A-Rod, will also be at the game. He was in tow when she was shooting a Super Bowl commercial earlier this month, too.

Famous pro gamer Ninja is also going to be there.

If the 49ers win the Super Bowl, don't expect to see Richard Sherman celebrating at the White House.

The NFL star was asked Thursday if he would go to D.C. to meet Donald Trump, as several championship teams have done in the past ... and Sherman essentially shot that down.

"I haven’t thought about it. We’ve got a long way between now and then, but I doubt it," Sherman told SF Chronicle's Scott Ostler.

As with most large groups of people these days, it's fair to assume not everyone on the team feels the same way Sherman does ... especially since his star teammate, Nick Bosa, is a proud Trump supporter.

First, the 49ers have to win the Super Bowl -- and the Kansas City Chiefs are obviously gonna try to not let that happen. That game goes down Sunday, Feb. 2.

The White House honor has become a VERY politically charged event now -- with star players from various sports boycotting including Chris Long, Torrey Smith, Mookie Betts, Alex Cora and the entire Golden State Warriors team.