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In the digital era, not even Beyoncé can beat cell phones -- her performance in Dubai was caught on camera by several people ... despite going above and beyond to keep it secret.

The singer's down in the UAE, where she's been booked for a show at (or near) this swanky hotel called Atlantis The Royal ... which supposedly shelled out millions for her services, upwards of $24 million for just a ONE-HOUR set -- that's the word on the street, anyway.

Tons of videos circulated Saturday in the lead-up to her gig, where people who had snagged a seat to the show were reporting that the hotel and other honchos were demanding people put their devices in locked zip bags -- similar to how a lot of comics do these days.

There was also a live feed stream the hotel had up that had been capturing a lot of her sound checks in rehearsal ... which was promptly cut off right at the curtain call. And yet, despite their best efforts -- people on the ground were able to film it all regardless. 🤷🏽‍♂️

You can hop into the Beyoncé trend right now on Twitter and see all the footage for yourself -- it sounds like she opened with a cover of Etta James's 'At Last,' and then went on to perform a few of her own tracks ... like 'XO,' 'Brown Skin Girl' and other 'Renaissance' songs.

Bey was decked out in an elaborate, flowing yellow dress ... and the stage design was pretty intricate too -- coupled with a live orchestra and an awesome rising run backdrop to boot.

Sounds like things are going swimmingly, 'cause the crowd is cheering her on big time ... which is a good sign of what's to come. Reports say this is a precursor to her upcoming worldwide 'Renaissance' tour -- and so far, it seems like the product is being well-received.

BTW, this outing is a family affair ... Jay-Z was spotted near the Atlantis -- cozy up in his own private box with a bird's-eye view of the stage -- and Blue Ivy's there too. She even came on stage with mom at one point, continuing the tradition of sharing the spotlight.

Beyoncé fans are certainly stoked ... they've been waiting for her hit the road. 'Renaissance' came out about 6 months ago, and their appetite to see their Queen Bey get on the mic has been swelling like crazy. Now, they're getting their first taste of what's surely to come.

Official tour dates have yet to be announced, but after this mass leaking ... she might as well come out with it sooner than later. The people are restless!

The names Brian and Bryan are now the male version of Karen ... because those names are plummeting in popularity, and the switch appears to be tied to 3 notorious owners of the monikers.

Admittedly, this would be rock bottom on the list of alleged crimes committed by Bryan Kohberger, Brian Laundrie and Brian Walshe ... however, a spokesperson for Babynames.com tells TMZ they're seeing a steep decrease in those names.

We're told since last August, not a single user added "Brian" to their list of favorites. While it had already been slowly decreasing in popularity -- it was considered "dated" from the 1970s -- it's now fallen off a cliff.

As for "Bryan," we're told it stands a little more popular, but has decreased by about 10 percent recently ... and it might be too early to see the full effects of the Idaho students case and the alleged quadruple murderer.

No doubt, it's been an odd and ominous run for Brians and Bryans, going back to the summer of 2021 ... when Laundrie -- Gabby Petito's boyfriend -- murdered her while on a road trip. His remains were eventually found in a nature preserve in Florida where he died by suicide.

More recently, Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger has been accused of gruesomely killing 4 college students, and is being held without bail until his trial this summer.

Then there's Brian Walshe, who pled not guilty this week to killing and dismembering his missing wife, Ana.

Yung Miami didn't hold back during a discussion about her bedroom fetishes on the latest episode of "Caresha Please," and now fans think her BF Diddy's running a streaming service!!!

Miami and her fellow 305 rap queen Trina were getting sauced while playing a drinking game called "Resha Roulette" ... when she revealed she's into getting peed on during sex!!!

Trina, who's been flipping foul lyrics since Miami was a toddler, was seemingly at a loss for words -- although she copped to making it rain on men, she was confused if her bodily fluid constituted a golden shower. 😅

As for Miami's love for water sports ... the internet soaked it up, immediately directing so many jokes at her man, "Pee Diddy" was a trending topic!!!

Miami and Diddy's relationship has been a big part of fan conversation as of late -- particularly after the Bad Boy mogul recently had a baby girl with another woman.

Don Lewis' family says they're being re-traumatized simply because someone just discovered a nearly 18-month-old, unproven report claiming Carole Baskin's missing first husband is alive and chillin' on a beach.

Jack Smith, spokesperson for the Lewis family, tells TMZ ... Don's daughters firmly believe he's dead, and it's been extremely triggering for them to deal with the fallout of the resurfaced report, which they say is bogus.

We're told Don's daughters are being flooded with calls from strangers and even family members congratulating them on finding their father ... which brings back bad memories.

Social media started buzzing Wednesday over a 2021 interview with Carole about an alleged report the Dept. of Homeland Security found Don living in Costa Rica. As we reported -- back then and now -- that purported report was featured in the second season of 'Tiger King,' so Don's family has already been down this road.

Don's daughters tell TMZ ... "While we would certainly welcome the good news of our Dad being found alive, it's just simply not true."

The Lewis family says in late 1997, after Don went missing, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office -- which is in charge of Don's missing person's case -- told them a report existed from U.S. Customs stating Don had been seen in Costa Rica.

The family says that prompted Don's oldest daughter, Donna, and her husband to travel to Costa Rica in November 1997, but they never found him.

We're told the Customs report is the same one shown in 'Tiger King' -- the family believes it was doctored to reference DHS instead of Customs in order to support a false narrative about what happened to Don.

As we previously reported ... Don's still listed as a missing person on a national database, and, as a legal matter, has been presumed dead since 2002.

The San Francisco art gallery owner caught on video spraying a homeless woman with a hose was arrested Wednesday for the sickly act ... as the District Attorney called his actions "completely unacceptable."

Collier Gwin was taken into police custody Wednesday on an arrest warrant and charged with misdemeanor battery in connection with the despicable Jan. 9 incident outside his Foster Gwin Gallery.

The bust comes as a bit of a surprise. You may recall, cops initially said both parties chose not to pursue criminal charges, despite major public outcry for Gwin to face some type of punishment.

In any case, the city's District Attorney, Brooke Jenkins, announced that police decided to arrest Gwin after reviewing all the evidence.

Jenkins also said, "The alleged battery of an unhoused member of our community is completely unacceptable. Mr. Gwin will face appropriate consequences for his actions."

She added, "Likewise, the vandalism at Foster Gwin gallery is also completely unacceptable and must stop -- two wrongs do not make a right."

A barista working the drive-thru at a coffee shop in Washington state was almost yanked through the opening by a would-be kidnapper ... who seemed ready to tie her up.

The horrifying incident occurred early Monday morning -- around 5 AM, when this longtime worker says she was by herself -- in Auburn, during which a man in a pickup truck ordered something to go and cruised up to pay and get his java ... all of which was on camera.

Check out what happens as he's trying to give her cash with her hand extended -- the dude literally snatches her arm and makes and effort to pull her into his truck in one fell swoop.

Luckily, the woman was able to wiggle her way out of it and escape his clutches ... but the scarier part is what appeared to be in his other hand while doing this -- an instrument that cops have said looks like a black zip tie, which they suspect this man wanted to use.

He almost tries to go for her again, but decides against it ... dropping his money on the ground and slowly driving away after what police say was a failed abduction attempt.

It's a good thing this was on video, because Auburn authorities say they got a massive amount of public tips after posting this clip ... which helped them catch this guy about 24 hours later. Auburn PD says he's in custody, but it's unclear what charges he was booked on.

If you want Madonna's truth -- that she's going on tour again -- you're first gonna have to sit through several racy dares with her celeb friends ... so, apologies to Diplo's balls!!!

Yep, that's just a taste of what went down in Madonna's 'Celebration Tour' announcement video ... which features Madge playing Truth or Dare with the likes of Jack Black, Lil Wayne, Amy Schumer, Eric Andre, Judd Apatow, Bob the Drag Queen, Meg Stalter and yes ... Diplo.

This is the only place you could see Diplo dip his junk in a margarita and then chug it ... followed by Madonna jamming her tongue down Jack Black's throat ... before she strikes an R-rated ménage à trois pose with Weezy and Jack!!!

That's just a sample of what went down at Madonna's twisted game night -- which was a fun tip of the hat to her 1991 concert film, "Truth or Dare."

The tour announcement came when Amy dared Madonna to "do a world tour and play your greatest muthaf***ing hits." The iconic singer responds, "Four decades? All those songs?" -- which gets the whole room singing their fave Madonna classics.

The 35-city world tour will kick off in North America ... first show is July 15 in Vancouver, BC ... and the last is December 1 in Amsterdam -- and yes, she'll be singing all THOSE songs.

In her media announcement, Madonna added, "I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for."

The woman who runs the Miss Universe Organization is denying allegations the beauty pageant was rigged because it was an independent party that handled the results.

Amy Emmerich, CEO of Miss Universe Organization, tells TMZ ... "One of the top four accounting firms in the United States handled the results and verified the process."

As we reported ... Anne Jakrajutatip, the new owner of Miss Universe, has been accused of rigging the pageant for Miss USA, who won the crown over runner-up Miss Venezuela.

One issue many folks have, Jakrajutatip's JKN Global Group owns both the Miss Universe and Miss USA competitions ... which some say is suspect.

But, Emmerich tells us ... "The allegations re: rigging of Miss Universe are false. People saying that it's "suspect" that JKN Global Group owns both Miss Universe and Miss USA aren't familiar with the history of the organizations."

There is precedent for Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA all being under the same ownership ... back in 2015, IMG bought the 3 pageants and brought them under the same roof.

Emmerich also tells us an independent third-party law firm was hired to look into allegations surrounding the Miss USA pageant from back in October, which was also accused of being rigged ... and determined the allegations were unfounded.

R'Bonney Gabriel won the Miss Universe pageant Saturday, becoming the first Filipino American to take the crown. Emmerich says R'bonney was a "strong and dedicated contestant" who is the "rightful Miss Universe."

Corey Struve -- a YouTube mom/influencer who famously posts about her brood -- was in a not-so-family-friendly state this weekend -- according to cops, who claim she attacked one of their own ... but she says she's the one who got roughed up.

According to the Monterey County Sheriff's Department, the 37-year-old best known as half of the Trav and Cor YouTube channel, was arrested Sunday near Pebble Beach, CA on suspicion of a number of crimes ... including public intoxication, trespassing, resisting arrest and battery on an officer.

Law enforcement sources tell us Corey was drinking at a bar near the golf course to celebrate her birthday, which we're told led to her getting belligerent and security eventually asking her to go back to her room. She was staying at a hotel there.

Cops say they were called when she refused to go back to her room, and officers told her she'd be arrested if she didn't scram. We're told she still refused to leave, and ended up kicking one of the arresting officers.

Whatever went down, Struve's mug shot certainly looks like she wasn't happy about it.

Now, a source close to Corey tells us, she was "celebrating her bday with her parents (her kid were not there) and alcohol was consumed. Corey did not resist arrest and was slammed to the floor in handcuffs without her Miranda Rights being read to her. Although this behavior is out of character for her, Corey strongly denies misconduct against a police officer and has retained legal counsel."

What's more ... Struve claims to have suffered injuries to her shoulder, arm and face during the incident, a source tells us officers really roughed her up during the arrest.

Her attorney, Scott Erdbacher, tells us, "I am concerned about how much aggression was used against my client while she was handcuffed. My concern at this point is about Corey's well being and her injuries are currently being catalogued by a medical specialist including head to toe bruising, numbness and loss of mobility to her left arm."

The incident is a 180 from her peppy, cheerful appearances on social media -- where she's often cheesin' it up with her hubby, Travis Talbott and their 3 children. Their YouTube account boasts an impressive 6.2 million subscribers, and the fam is tight with Jake Paul.

The so-called "Puppy Bus" is already a viral sensation, and we got its founders to break down all the tricks and treats behind their suddenly booming dog walking/training service.

Mo and Lee Thompson joined "TMZ Live" to talk all about their biz, "Mo Mountain Mutts" ... after their dog bus unexpectedly became a social media phenomenon.

The husband/wife duo told us the bus is just one part of a day filled with dog training and dog walking around Skagway, Alaska -- and after those incredibly calm bus rides, the pups get out for an adventure, full of exercise and socializing.

They say the outings are planned to be physically and mentally engaging for their 4-legged clients ... like challenging hikes or a beach run.

The Thompsons admit their popular bus videos are the product of carefully choosing which pups have enough obedience training to go to their assigned seats without causing a ruckus. They added that the dogs' personalities, ages and manners are also factors.

As for how it all started ... Mo says at first she was just walking friends' dogs during work breaks, and then she started doing biking and hiking trips with 'em.

Janelle Monae won the SeeHer Award at the Critics Choice show this weekend -- and it seems she wore something that was pretty on theme ... 'cause everyone got an eyeful.

The actress/singer hit the red carpet Sunday at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel in L.A., where she was one of the clear standouts of the night in terms of fashion ... wearing an elegant black dress that appears to be from Vera Wang's Spring 2023 collection.

Of course, while she looked great ... what really turned heads was the fact that her gown was see-through, especially upstairs -- where she didn't seem to be wearing a bra.

There were other somewhat revealing cutouts in the dress -- around the pelvis area -- that made it a total stunner ... and Janelle pulled it off with style. She's naturally a knockout, but a lot of people were kinda shocked she went out there like this ... showing off the bod!

Eventually, she accepted her award for the night -- which was meant to honor artists who offer up representation and authenticity in their roles and performances and work ... and Janelle does both in film and in her music. She acknowledged as much in her speech.

JM identified her pronouns (she/her, they/them) ... and made a point to shout out any LGBT kids at home who might live with families who don't accept them. She said, "I see you."

Andrew Callaghan is speaking for himself regarding sexual misconduct allegations that have been hurled his way -- saying sorry to those affected, while also stepping back.

The host of "All Gas No Breaks" -- as well as HBO's new mockumentary, 'This Place Rules' -- posted a public video Sunday on a YouTube channel that he seems to have just created. It's a 4-minute plus clip, where he outright apologizes to people he's hurt in this saga.

Callaghan says he's been in a state of shock/denial these past several days after allegations made against him -- namely, a handful of women who've come forward to claim he had sex with them only after wearing them down, among other alleged sexual impropriety.

Now that he's had time to reflect, however, Callaghan says he realizes he's been engaging in toxic pursuits of women for years ... noting there's a difference between someone saying "no" and an enthusiastic partner who's clearly consenting to sexual relations.

He says this has forced him to reevaluate some things in his life, and vows to start therapy sessions immediately. Callaghan also urges other young men who've been jumping to his defense to stop and look in the mirror as well -- as this is part of a much larger convo.

Callaghan does note there's some context missing from some of the stories told about him -- and some depictions, he says, are false ... but doesn't go into detail about what those are.

We'd previously been told that one accuser, Caroline Elise, had allegedly demanded money from Callaghan before going public -- something our sources say he refused to cave to, which prompted her to post the now-viral video where she details an encounter with him.

No Steve Harvey, but still a lot of controversy -- the new owner of Miss Universe has been accused of rigging the pageant for Miss USA ... despite some other clear favorites.

Anne Jakrajutatip -- who's the chief of JKN Global Group, which owns both Miss Universe and Miss USA -- is being called out by dissatisfied fans online, who feel like the fact that she literally controls both competitions is a little suspect ... not to mention where this was held.

For starters, Miss Universe was hosted in New Orleans -- airing on Roku -- and some claim the fix was in from the get-go to make sure R'Bonney Gabriel was crowned by the show's ending ... which did, in fact, happen. The runner-up was Miss Venezuela, Amanda Dudamel.

Dudamel impressed throughout the broadcast, especially with her heartfelt answers on certain questions. Her outfits were also less ridiculed than the ones Gabriel wore, particularly in the costume category ... when she walked onstage with a WILD moon landing getup.

All this aside, many are pointing to what seems to be an obvious conflict of interest from Jakrajutatip and co. Her corporation bought Miss Universe this past fall for a reported $20 million, and with it came the rights to Miss USA ... which falls under the same umbrella.

Even before this pageant, there were already gripes about how Gabriel came to be Miss USA in the first place ... dating back to October, when JKN Global came onboard as the new shot-callers. Some have claimed there was favoritism afoot in that competition as well ... and there've even been suspensions in the top ranks as a result of investigations into it.

Of course, another curve ball here is the fact Jakrajutatip is transgender -- something that caught the attention of many when she delivered a powerful speech at one point in the broadcast ... where she said Miss Universe was now owned by women, for women.

A plane crash in Nepal has killed dozens ... but the most harrowing aspect, perhaps, is the fact the final moments from inside were captured by a truly unsuspecting passenger.

The tragedy occurred Sunday during a 27-minute Yeti Airlines flight from Kathmandu to the town of Pokhara -- carrying 72 onboard, including crew members. The plane was in touch with the airport it was headed to, but reportedly lost contact shortly before it went down.

When the plane smacked into the ground, it immediately erupted into flames ... and townspeople rushed out to the crash site. First responders descended onto the scene and attempted to transport as many victims as they could to the hospital. Thus far 68 people are reported as dead, and an additional 4 are still missing ... with search efforts underway.

At this point, it's unclear what caused the aircraft to nosedive -- the matter is under investigation. However, footage taken from the ground seems to show the the last few seconds the plane was in the air before it collided into a gorge ... and it's terrifying.

Even more disturbing footage was taken from the cabin itself. An unidentified man who was in the plane right before it torpedoed was actually going live on Facebook, and as you can see in his clip -- which has since gone viral -- he has no clue they're about to crash.

Before long, he's filming some other passengers in front start to tilt to their right ... and suddenly, the plane hits the ground -- with flames taking up the entire view of the camera.

A statue honoring Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, Coretta Scott King, was unveiled this week -- depicting a famous hug they gave each other ... but not everyone sees that.

The art piece is called "The Embrace," and it was shown off in public for the first time Friday ... with a large crowd on hand in the Freedom Plaza of the Boston Common to help ring in the new addition to the space. Some King family members were also there for the honor.

Sculptor Hank Willis Thomas is the man behind the monument -- and he says he designed "The Embrace" after a 1964 photo of MLK wrapping Coretta up after hearing he'd won the Nobel Peace Prize that year. However, he decided to just show off their arms interlocking.

While the sculpture is being praised by many, it's being questioned by others -- especially on Twitter, where some can't understand why the creator didn't include their heads.

Even more people online are doing double takes ... saying they interpret the piece in different ways, especially from certain angles. For instance, some say it looks like one of the arms is holding onto a thigh -- which comes across as inappropriate for the select few who see it that way.

Of course, there are those who are outright mocking it, despite the seriousness of the subject. Everybody's a critic, we suppose -- and this one's in the eye of the beholder. 🤷🏽‍♂️

A viral article out of the UK is posing an interesting request -- pleading with the public (and the media) to stop using the word "queer" ... as the author apparently views it as a slur.

The brief opinion piece -- which also seems to be a letter to the editor -- appeared in the Guardian this week ... and the headline simply read, "Please don’t use the Q-word." It's written by a fella named Karl Lockwood, who says he's a gay man of nearly 7 decades.

In the 113-word editorial, Lockwood hones into a Guardian piece written last week, which notes that England and Wales had started to count trans and nonbinary people in their census for the first time ever -- while pointing out only 15,000 ID'd specifically as queer.

He adds, "I suspect that many of the others, like me, consider the term to be insulting and derogatory, and certainly not 'reclaimed'. I am a gay man of 66 years with many friends and acquaintances, and know no one who would refer to themselves as queer. It would seem a small minority of activists has encouraged the media to use the word without considering its offensiveness to many people. You wouldn’t use the N-word, so don’t use the Q-word."

In other words, he's referring to a time when "queer" was used to bully others -- which he feels qualifies it as hate speech ... and thus, warrants its censoring in public discourse.

It's an interesting argument, but most of Twitter seems to strongly disagree with this guy ... with a lot of folks on the bird app calling it cloaked "TERF" talk that only serves to erase queer people from the larger conversation. Some also think it targets transgender folks.

Of course, there's also the issue of comparing the use of "queer" to the n-word, which has people fired up. Many say the juxtaposition is apples to oranges -- and that conflating the two is a huge disservice to Black people, not to mention LGBTQ+ people of color.