TMZ Live

Kim Petras has no clue who is responsible for placing those bombshell billboards right under the nose of a homophobic church ... but she loves sticking it to Westboro Baptist!!!

The transgender singer spoke to us Monday on "TMZ Live" after her mug started popping up on electronic billboards right down the street from the hatemongers' HQ in Topeka, Kansas ... and Kim says she's tickled by the fact folks at Westboro Baptist have to see her every day.

While Kim is coy about who is ultimately behind the placement of ads purposefully directed at the infamously anti-LGBTQ church -- she has a few ideas -- the up-and-coming singer takes a stab at the campaign's endgame and tells us why the move fits her brand.

Irv Gotti is standing by his take on T.I.'s controversial parenting choices, and the Murder Inc. honcho has a confession of his own ... involving HIS daughter's boyfriend and a handgun!!!

Irv was on "TMZ Live" Monday and revealed how his birds and bees chat went with his daughter, Angie, and more importantly ... with her BF. Now, mind you, Irv says this was all in good fun, but still ... imagine being the guy in this situation.

The way Irv tells it ... he was simply reminding the young man about the importance of always being respectful when he decided to emphasize the point by pulling out a gun. Again ... just jokes. Haha?

Well, sounds like he made his point -- Irv says the guy's been nothing but respectful towards his Angie during their 8 years together, and he also has a great relationship with Irv.

Huh, wonder why.

Remember, Irv told us he fully respects T.I.'s right to parent how he chooses -- but also said going to gynecologist appointments with his daughter is not what he would do. Actually, you gotta see Irv describe his honest approach to the sex talk.

BTW ... Angie and her BF are featured on dad's new WEtv show, "Growing Up Hip Hop: New York."

"The Oval" star Ed Quinn has a creepy feeling about his home away from home at Tyler Perry Studios, and it ain't about Halloween ... it's about Confederate Army ghosts!!!

Ed says Tyler Perry was nice enough to hook him up with a place to live while they're shooting 'Oval,' but as he told us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" ... the crib came complete with paranormal residents.

Little backstory ... Tyler's 800-acre complex sits on what used to be a Confederate Army base, and Ed's house on the lot was, apparently, an officer's residence. It sounds like Ed was warned about haunted activity, but wasn't fazed ... at first anyway.

Now, you gotta see him describe what happened the first night he turned off the lights. Let's just say, he flipped 'em back on less than 10 seconds later. As Ed puts it, living and breathing houses will make ya do that.

And, don't even get him started on the third-floor hallway.

It's no joke to Ed ... he told us some of his castmates have experienced the creepy feeling too, including his TV daughter, Paige Hurd, who immediately busted out some burnt sage.

Tyler's gotten the crap scared outta him too, but Ed's not buying it. Watch.

Kanye West didn't hastily throw together "Jesus Is King" -- Kenny G says they recorded their collab for the album way back in February ... in a totally spontaneous and kinda romantic moment.

The legendary saxophonist came on "TMZ Live" Monday after his stirring performance at Kanye's Sunday Service in Los Angeles, and he told us their "Use This Gospel" track traces its roots back to Valentine's Day.

As you know, Kenny G joined Kanye to play "Use This Gospel" Sunday inside The Forum ... and Kenny says there was almost no rehearsal beforehand -- kinda like when he and Kanye recorded the song in the first place.

Kenny says their collab went down shortly after Valentine's Day, when Kanye invited him to the studio to listen to some of Yeezy's new music. Kenny says he told Kanye his sax would sound great on one particular track, so Ye whipped out a mic and started recording Kenny on the spot!

Remember ... Kanye hired Kenny to serenade Kim Kardashian West inside their living room on Valentine's Day ... and Kenny says the gig was the springboard for his "Jesus Is King" feature.

As for Sunday Service, Kenny gushes about the experience ... and he tells us why he went back onstage after his solo to whisper in Kanye's ear.

"One great thing about being old and rich is you can do what you want to do!"

That's Arsenio Hall telling "TMZ Live" why money is making him an even BETTER comic -- because he can do all the risky material he wants without the fear of getting choked out financially.

Long story short ... Hall says he spent years playing it safe because if he pushed the envelope and rubbed people the wrong way, he'd jeopardize his cash flow ... and when you're poor, EVERY DOLLAR COUNTS!!!

But, now that he's rich .... like super rich ... Hall ain't worried anymore -- saying he can say how he truly feels, no matter who he offends, because he can afford to take a hit!

"Comics are supposed to push the envelope and stretch that edge as far as you can," Hall says ... "That’s what creates great comedy. The great ones like Richard Pryor didn’t allow censors and critics stop him from doing what was in his heart."

Hall -- who's got a brand new Netflix special -- admits he needed to conform back in the day when he needed to buy a house and pay for school for his kids ... but he's paper'd up now.

"I’m kind of free!"

By the way, Hall also gave some inside info on the new "Coming to America" sequel -- and even throws out a spoiler to Nicole Murphy, whose daughter is in the flick!!

Tyler Perry's taking the high road in his old rift with Spike Lee by putting his name on a soundstage at Tyler's new studio complex -- which is no small gesture, considering their rocky past.

We had the movie and TV mogul on "TMZ Live" Monday to talk about the incredible grand opening event at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta. The party brought out Beyonce, Oprah, Whoopi Goldberg, Samuel L. Jackson, and many more A-listers ... including Spike.

Check it out ... TP says any bad blood between them had to take a backseat to honoring Spike for paving the way for black filmmakers. Remember, Spike once referred to Tyler's 'Madea' franchise as "coonery and buffoonery."

Artie Lange is days away from being 8 months clean and sober for the first time in decades, and he says the reason is ... he's finally facing the threat of prison.

The stand-up comedian joined "TMZ Live" Wednesday to talk about the long, dangerous road of addiction he's been on ever since getting busted for attempted bank robbery at 17-years-old.

He says things finally started to change after his arrest -- and sad mug shot -- earlier this year for a failed drug test.

Artie told us the judge placed him in drug court, which basically meant if he didn't stop violating probation and breaking laws, he would do hard time. He called it the first real consequence he's faced.

Lange says after spending 2 months in county jail, the possibility of going to prison was the wake-up call he needed to get clean. He also explained how his mom played a very important role.

Artie says drug court saved his life, and he's looking so much better than he did in January. Of course, his nose is still messed up, but like he told us ... there's a reason he's not in a hurry to get it fixed.

Pete Buttigieg is down with a revolution ... in the Marvel Universe.

On the heels of the Democratic debate Thursday night, Mayor Pete joined "TMZ Live" Friday to discuss some major issues like diversity and inclusion ... which led to talk about comic book movies.

We ask the presidential hopeful what he thinks about Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige's potential plan to recast the iconic roles of Professor X and Magneto with African-American actors.

Pete says the beauty of classic comic book stories is the ability to reimagine them onscreen, and he's all for film portrayals better reflecting American culture ... i.e. more diverse and representative of the population.

Ultimately, though ... Buttigieg says the color of the cast shouldn't be what makes a movie buzzworthy -- it's all about whether or not it's any good.

So, actors of color willing and able to fill the shoes of Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender ... Pete says go on and unleash your superpowers.

Mike Posner won't let a near-fatal rattlesnake bite keep him from completing his walk across the U.S. of A. ... because the dude's back on the trail and more determined than ever!!!

The "Cooler Than Me" singer hopped on "TMZ Live" Thursday as he continued his journey from New Jersey to California, detailing his scary encounter with a rattler that nearly took his life.

Mike describes his injury in excruciating detail ... explaining how the baby rattlesnake's venom coursing through his veins had him feeling like he was in the closing credits of a "Looney Tunes" cartoon. Really paints a picture.

Remember ... a rattler tore into Mike's foot last month, after walking 16 miles through the middle of nowhere in Colorado and looking to log 8 more. The bite was as bad as it looked. Mike was airlifted to a hospital and placed in ICU for days, putting his trip across America, like his foot, on ice.

But, Mike's no quitter ... he's picking right up where he left off -- the site of the snake bite -- and says he even saw a few more rattlers on his way toward Arizona.

Mike appeared last April on "TMZ Live," telling us how the deaths of his father and Avicii inspired him to cross the country on foot.

Mike's been releasing new music along the way -- every time he crosses a state line -- and when he gets to Arizona in a few days, he's got a new song -- "Slow It Down" -- for his fans.

Mike feels anything but snake bitten.

Jeff Ross makes his living roasting others, and he says there's one person who stands above the rest when it comes to handling harsh jokes directed their way ... Caitlyn Jenner.

The RoastMaster General himself joined us on "TMZ Live" Tuesday to share some behind-the-scenes info from the Comedy Central 'Roast of Alec Baldwin' ... and Jeff says Caitlyn did a helluva job taking digs from Blake Griffin and others. BTW, she also dished out some jabs.

As you know ... Blake got huge laughs with jokes about Caitlyn's gender reassignment and thanking her -- on behalf of NBA players and rappers -- for giving Kendall and Kylie daddy issues. Don't forget, Blake and Kendall actually dated.

Jeff commends Caitlyn for being a great sport and shares an interesting little nugget about her history with celebrity roasts ... which might explain why she was totally down for this one.

More importantly, Jeff says Caitlyn being the first transgender person to appear on one of his celebrity roasts will have a social impact far beyond the laughs they had that night.

Dog the Bounty Hunter is about to be a first-time viewer, just like Joe Q. Public, of his new reality show ... and he nearly broke down as he told us why.

We spoke to Duane "Dog" Chapman on "TMZ Live" about Wednesday night's debut of "Dog's Most Wanted" and he broke some interesting news. Dog says he has NOT seen the final edit of the of show -- which is not his normal process.

Dog said he usually weighs in on edits of the show, but after his wife, Beth Chapman, passed in June ... things changed for him.

Dog says it was too difficult to watch footage of Beth, and therefore ... he stayed out of how the show was cut. As far as what's documented though -- Dog tells us the show captures Beth's final days before she passed away in June, including one final ass-kicking moment in the field.

We also asked Dog for an update on the break-in at his Colorado storefront last month, in which crooks made off with some of Beth's personal belongings. The investigation is ongoing, but he opens up about what local police begged him to do ... or NOT do.

As we reported ... Dog had a hunch the crime was an inside job based on what a psychic told him, who claimed she'd spoken to Beth from the great beyond.

He admitted it wouldn't be pretty if he ends up getting a hold of the culprits.

Boris Kodjoe brought his new fitness app to life at the TMZ office to show how simple it can be to improve your health, but we proved to be tough customers.

The "Station 19" star dropped in Friday with his brother, Patrick, on "TMZ Live" to promote KOFIT, the health and wellness app he launched this summer with his wife, Nicole Ari Parker, along with his bro and his wife.

Boris lays it all out -- this app's perfect for both busy folks on the go or people who feel intimidated going to the gym ... and it only takes 5 minutes a day to get in good shape.

Still, the prospect of squeezing in some basic exercises at the office proved too much for TMZ Sports producer, Michael Babcock ... but Boris is a great salesman.

The Kodjoe bros corralled a couple other TMZ staffers for squats and desk push-ups to show that the workout's so easy ... even a Babcock can do it.

Singer Eric Keyes says he was at a loss for words when he found his therapist -- who helped him battle PTSD after getting shot -- is the father of the El Paso gunman.

Eric was on "TMZ Live" to talk about the ironic twist. He told us he was in tears when he found out that his mental health counselor, Bryan Crusius, had to cancel a weekly appointment to deal with his own family tragedy after his son, 21-year-old Patrick Crusius, gunned down 22 people inside a Walmart.

Eric, a Texas guitarist and singer, was shot in 2012 at point blank range when a gunman showed up at his house. He said he can't imagine what Bryan's going through, especially when tragedy hits so close to home.

Bryan's had Eric's back for some time now -- he started a GoFundMe campaign for the musician last October after the shooting left him with permanent injuries, like nerve damage in his left arm which meant he couldn't play guitar anymore.

The highly anticipated reboot of "Beverly Hills, 90210" isn't just another cookie-cutter play for nostalgia -- it's taking the idea in a bold new direction ... and Ian Ziering thinks you're gonna love it.

The guy who played Steve Sanders on the wildly popular '90s TV show joined "TMZ Live" Tuesday and broke it down so viewers know what to expect ... as much as possible anyway.

From the sound of it, it's not quite "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and not quite "Desperate Housewives" ... but somewhere in between for the stars of '90210' who've reunited for the project.

As you know ... all the major players -- Jennie Garth, Jason Priestley, Shannen Doherty, Gabrielle Carteris, Brian Austin Green and Tori Spelling -- are back along with Ziering. The exception is Luke Perry, who sadly passed earlier this year.

Ian says the new show -- with the slightly tweaked title, "BH90210" -- will highlight the differences between the actors' real lives and the characters they play on screen ... but with a twist.

He also touches on how surreal it was to gather with his costars back at the ol' Peach Pit after all these years -- especially when Ian's moved on quite a bit from his Sanders character, now starring in and producing a new movie called "Zombie Tidal Wave."

Congressman Adam Kinzinger is having an epiphany after the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton -- saying it's time to change some gun laws, and time to say screw partisan politics.

The GOP lawmaker from Illinois was on "TMZ Live" Tuesday to discuss last weekend's domestic terrorism -- resulting in 31 deaths -- and why it compelled him to do an about-face on 2 key points on gun control. He's now supporting universal background checks -- a House measure he voted against earlier this year -- and raising the gun purchasing age from 18 to 21.

Kinzinger says he's fully aware his new views could potentially hurt him politically, but he doesn't care. Just as importantly, he strongly believes there's a way for Democrats and Republicans to come together on this issue.

You've gotta see what Kinzinger is proposing because, honestly, it's refreshing to hear from anyone in Washington, DC.

Kinzinger makes no bones about it ... he's sick and tired of partisan politics when it comes to preventing future mass shootings.

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard got Senator Kamala Harris good during the Presidential debate Wednesday night, but Harris later shot back -- essentially calling Gabbard a loser -- so now the war begins.

Gabbard appeared on "TMZ Live" Thursday and blasted Harris for dismissing her as a one-percenter attacking a "top tier" candidate.

Watch the clip ... you hear the disdain in her voice as she calls the post-debate attack "pathetic" and a "cheap smear."

ICYMI ... Gabbard went after Harris for prosecuting marijuana users when she was California Attorney General. She also attacked Harris for withholding evidence in death penalty cases where the death row inmate was wrongly convicted. We asked if such attacks are below the belt if the candidate has evolved ... Gabbard stayed strong.