You Might Want to Rethink

Adam Carolla thinks Joe Biden is a bit of a dinosaur trying to roam the 2019 landscape -- and when he calls weed a "gateway drug" ... AC thinks Biden's making himself extinct.

We ran into the comedian Monday night in WeHo and asked him about something JB said recently on the campaign trail that's kinda having people -- mostly millennials, frankly -- rolling their eyes and looking at the former VEEP as an old-timer and out of touch.

ICYMI ... Biden was at a Vegas town hall this weekend and got asked if his stance on legalizing recreational marijuana nationally has changed. Apparently, Joe wasn't for it in the first place, and still isn't -- saying there's not "enough evidence" to pull the trigger.

Adam notes that the term "gateway drug" is incredibly antiquated, and then goes on to list a number of things and experiences in life that can potentially lead to some damage.

Watch ... he gets pretty introspective, and it kinda makes you think about it. It should also be mentioned -- Adam sits on a weed advisory board, so he's about that life.

Taylor Swift's loyal fans have been on the attack ever since their idol pointed the finger at Scooter Braun and co. ... but now, they've ramped things up by sending death threats.

Sources tell TMZ that Swifties of all ages have been threatening to kill Scooter and other Big Machine staffers -- including big wig Scott Borchetta -- since T-Swift claimed they were holding her back from performing old hits at the upcoming AMAs.

We're told death threats have been sent across multiple mediums -- over social media, over text and through emails.

Our sources say Scooter's wife and young children have been mentioned as targets. Even Scooter's Ithaca Holdings office in Nashville had to be shut down last week because of some of the more intense threats ... and cops have been notified.

BTW, our sources tell us these aren't just loud-mouthed kids coming at the Big Machine crew -- adults are also chiming in and making threats on their lives ... clearly it's serious.

Taylor Swift can perform "Shake It Off" and any of her other early hits at the AMAs this Sunday ... because she's gotten the all-clear from both Big Machine and Dick Clark Productions.

DCP and BM say, "The Big Machine Label Group and Dick Clark Productions announce that they have come to terms on a licensing agreement that approves their artists' performances to stream post show and for re-broadcast on mutually approved platforms."

They go on to say ... "This includes the upcoming American Music Awards performances. It should be noted that recording artists do not need label approval for live performances on television or any other live media."

As we reported, Taylor said she was being blocked by Big Machine -- the label she signed with when she started out and recorded her first 6 albums -- from performing her early hits.  It was always clear she could perform these songs in a live broadcast, but the issue was what happens to the AMA show after it airs on TV. Now, DCP and BM have made it clear ... the subsequent re-broadcasts are within the scope of a live performance.

Taylor has not yet responded.

A bunch of vegans are suing Burger King because they want to have their Impossible Burgers their way ... pristine, without any meat residue on the grill.

Phillip Williams just filed a class-action lawsuit, claiming the burger giant advertises the Impossible Burger as a vegan alternative to its meat burgers, yet they're all cooked on the same grill.

Williams says his burger was contaminated by meat byproducts. He bought the burger in question in ATL.

The lawsuit says Burger King has no disclosures on its menu that would notify a consumer prior to the purchase of the Impossible Whopper that it was cooked in a manner that would result in meat by-products on the burger.

He notes there have been numerous complaints posted online by outraged vegans.

Prince Andrew's very bad publicity run is getting worse -- he's now being accused of casually dropping the n-word while speaking to a former British government employee.

Rohan Silva -- a UK native of Sri Lankan heritage and former aide to Prime Minister David Cameron -- says he was invited to a meeting at the Palace to discuss policy with the Queen's son, and asked him if the trade department could be doing a better job.

To that question, Silva claims Prince Andrew said ... "Well, if you'll pardon the expression, that really is the n***** in the woodpile."

Silva says the prince's racial epithet left him reeling as he left Buckingham Palace, but he's ashamed to say he didn't do anything about it. He says, "For a long time after, I kicked myself for not confronting the prince on his choice of words -- and it's something I still regret today."

Silva claims this wasn't the first time Prince Andrew used bigoted language either. At another Buckingham Palace meeting a year prior, Silva claims the prince told him ... "What you have got to remember is that you’ll never get anywhere by playing the white man."

The former aide says he was unfamiliar with the phrase at the time, but when he looked it up he realized it implies that dark-skinned people are less trustworthy and don't play by the rules like white people.

Silva's claims come on the heels of another Prince Andrew scandal ... related to his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew's accused of having sex with an underage woman named Virginia Roberts (now Virginia Giuffre), who he met through Epstein at least 3 times from 1999 through 2002.

The Royal family has denied Virginia's allegations, but the prince did himself no favors by making an appearance on "BBC Newsnight" and claiming he couldn't even remember Giuffre ... despite posing in a photo with her in 2001.

Lil Jon says he got held up by Vietnamese officials at an airport while trying to get outta there ... something he claims happened because of his massive stash of jewelry.

The rapper posted footage and photos of himself allegedly being detained Friday while he and his crew were attempting to fly out of Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City after performing in Saigon. Apparently, their version of TSA wasn't feelin' his ice.

On Intagram, LJ wrote ... "Vietnam got me hemmed up over my iceeeee smh." He then posted a photo of what appears to be airport officials going through his many chains and other jewelry he had with him, with most of it laid out on a table being inspected.

It's unclear why they gave Jon such a hard time, but luckily for him ... this story's got a happy ending. Lil Jon says he was able to call the U.S. Embassy in 'Nam and get some personnel down there to vouch for him and get him sprung from detention.

One of his buddies posted an aftermath pic showing Lil Jon posing with a bunch of folks, some of which appear to be uniformed airport honchos ... while also shedding a bit more light on what exactly happened. The guy, SKAM Artist, wrote ... "Jon was detained earlier today in Vietnam...but w the assistance of 2 staffers from the US Embassy, and a few locals...he's free!!" Another one of his friends credited the "Royal Family" too.

We got a call in to LJ's rep to get to the bottom of this one, but the good news is that he's back to work and keeping the show going in what looks to be China. Can we get a YEAH???

Black Eyed Peas member Will.i.am claims a Quantas flight attendant had it out for him because he's black ... this after a confrontation that ended with a police escort.

The rapper was on a flight from Brisbane to Sydney when he says the flight attendants were preparing for landing and asked passengers to store their electronic equipment. Will.i.am says he was using his laptop but didn't hear the announcement because he was wearing noise-canceling headphones.

He claims the flight attendant unloaded on him and someone on the flight -- presumably the pilot -- called ahead for cops to meet the plane when it landed. Will.i.am was escorted off the plane by 5 officers.

He tweeted, "I’m currently on a flight from Brisbane to Sydney.” “I’m sorry to say me and my group have experienced they worse service due to an overly aggressive flight attendant… I don’t want to believe she racist. But she has clearly aimed all her frustrations only at the people of colour.”

Will.i.am then posted a photo of one of the cops who met the plane, saying "@Qantas I was making music wearing noise cancelling headphones on the plane… I’m sorry I couldn’t hear the P.A…I complied when she’s tapped me on the shoulder to put my laptop away… It’s sad that your #RacistFlightAttendant sent the police…”

He wasn't finished: “This is how your [sic] greeted when you land from Brisbane to Sydney flying @qantas with a #RacistFlightattendant. She sent the police after me because [sic] I couldn’t hear the P.A while making beats on the plane wearing noise cancelling headphones…”

He expressed gratitude to the passengers who took his side ... “Your #RacistFlightattendant was beyond rude & took it to the next level by calling the police on me. thank god the other passengers testified that SHE was out of Control. the police finally let me go. imagine if the police were as aggressive as [flight attendant].”

Will.i.am got mixed reviews for posting the name and badge number of the flight attendant.

He said, “If I did something wrong....or if I was the slightest bit rude to a FAN or a journalist during work, I would be publicly named...this is what Twitter is for...we are supposed to call out wrong doings so we can have a safer more compassionate world.”

Jeff Bezos must be licking his wounds today because he's now only the second richest person on planet Earth.

Yep ... the Microsoft stock climb has allowed Bill Gates to reclaim the top spot. At the close of business Friday, Bezos' net worth was $108.7 billion ... close but no cigar next to Gates, who came in at $110 bil.

Microsoft's been on a roll this year. The stock value has increased by 48%, and that was enough to get bragging rights ... at least today. Amazon's stock took a tumble Friday ... enough for Bezos to lose top position.

Kanye West's appearance at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church in Houston Sunday will be the most important appearance Ye has made since devoting himself to God, and there's such a demand for tickets we've learned scalpers have reared their ugly heads.

Kanye will have all eyes on him Sunday morning when he takes the stage with Joel Osteen -- which normally isn't an issue -- except this time, the crowd won't be full of Yeezy fans.

Kanye is set to take part in Joel's 11 AM ceremony at Lakewood Church Sunday and will chat with Joel for 20-30 mins about his religious journey. It'll mark the first time Kanye's talked about his religious transformation in front of a large audience -- 45,000 people!!!

Joel's 11 AM service will mostly be made up of his regular churchgoers, and not droves of Kanye fans like at Ye's Sunday Service ... so for Kanye, this is uncharted territory.

Our sources say he's excited to share his message and journey with a room that not only includes Joel but those who have had their own religious awakenings.

As for the service Sunday night -- when Kanye's choir will perform -- we're told both Kanye and Joel's teams expect a crowd made up of mostly Yeezy faithful. TMZ broke the story ... Lakewood teamed up with Ticketmaster to coordinate ticket distribution.

Our sources say scalpers are already trying to mess things up. The tickets are free, but some have already been scooped up by people who just want to make a buck. We're told the tickets they have identified as being held by scalpers have been invalidated.

NHL star Auston Matthews is off the hook in his pants-dropping case ... he settled with the woman who accused him of dropping trou in front her -- and apologized again for the incident on Friday.

"The case has been dismissed and I just want to reiterate again just how truly sorry I am for my actions and my behavior,” Matthews told reporters.

“I never meant to cause any distress to this woman and I can assure you that I’ve learned from my mistakes and my actions."

Matthews allegedly pulled down his pants in front of a female security guard at his condo complex in Scottsdale, Ariz. at around 2 AM on May 26.

The woman claims Matthews and his friends drunkenly tried to play a joke on her by messing with her car door while she was on duty ... and after she confronted them, Matthews took his pants down.

She alleges the 22-year-old Maple Leafs center -- who left his boxers ON -- grabbed his ass cheeks in her direction ... and she was PISSED over the whole ordeal.

In body cam footage obtained by TMZ Sports, you can hear her explaining the incident to cops ... telling an officer, "None of this s**t is funny!"

Matthews was eventually hit with a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct ... but a court official tells us the case was dismissed earlier this week after the parties reached a settlement.

Unclear what the dollar amount might have been to close out the case ... but Matthews, who claimed he was sorry for the incident in a meeting with reporters over the summer, apologized vehemently again on Friday.

Fun Fact -- Matthews is in the middle of a 5-year, $58 MILLION contract.

The rescue puppy with the tail growing out of his head will have to wait to find a forever home, because the shelter's worried some folks applying to adopt him might have the wrong motives.

As we reported ... the undeniably cute little dog named Narwhal is "a perfectly healthy puppy, with an extra tail on his face" who was rescued by Mac's Mission Animal Rescue in Jackson, Missouri. Naturally, he's gone viral due to his unique condition.

The shelter has received hundreds of adoption applications for Narwhal, but its founder, Rochelle Steffen, tells TMZ ... she's pumping the brakes for now. She says on Wednesday alone they got more than 100 applications, which is highly unusual because they are normally lucky to get one for a "special dog."

She tells us the shelter is nervous people may be wanting to adopt Narwhal for the wrong reasons -- for instance, fame and notoriety -- and not for love of a family pet. As a result, Rochelle says they're halting the application process for at least 2 months.

Rochelle says they've never had a dog like Narwhal, so they want to keep him and let him get bigger while they monitor the tail and make sure there are no negative health effects. If all's well in 2 months, they will put him back up for adoption, but she says they'll likely add a few questions to narrow down prospective candidates.

Rochelle adds, Narwhal's been checked by a vet and she's been told there is no reason to remove the tail -- it doesn't wag and has no bone structure -- so it would be a cosmetic surgery.

Waffle House is being sued for discrimination by a black woman whose arrest went viral ... and she's claiming the restaurant treats black customers like crap.

The woman behind the lawsuit is Chikesia Clemons, and she says she went to the WH in Saraland, AL with 2 friends in April 2018 -- a visit that ended with her in handcuffs following a scuffle with police ... all of it recorded by a friend.

In the suit, Clemons claims within 2 minutes of walking in, the manager told a Waffle House employee to call 911 and tell the dispatcher the group was intoxicated and refusing to leave. Clemons claims the 911 operator asked if the customers were male or female, but the employee responded, "They're black."

According to the docs, Clemons claims a white waitress told her she would be charged 50 cents for plastic utensils, which sparked an argument because Clemons says white customers don't get hit with that charge. Clemons says the waitress then refused to serve the table.

Another waitress -- also white -- tapped in, but things didn't go any smoother ... according to Clemons who claims the woman said, "You're racist," and "You need to learn your place."

The viral video shows 2 cops showing up, one grabbing Clemons and throwing her to the ground. One of the officers told her, "I'm about to break your arm," as they tried to put cuffs on her.

In her lawsuit, Clemons claims the only reason the officers roughed her up was because Waffle House employees falsely reported her and her friends as being drunk. She wants Waffle House to serve up some money -- as in damages -- and to stop the alleged discriminatory treatment.

We reached out to Waffle House for comment ... no word back, so far.

Marlon Wayans says Jennifer Hudson kisses like she comes from heaven -- but he wants to keep it our little secret. And, what he especially wants to keep on the down-low ... he gets a woody when he hears her sing.

The actor-comedian broke down what it was like to plant one on his costar on the set of their new movie "Respect" -- which is a biopic about the late, great Aretha Franklin.

Last week, Marlon and Jen were seen sharing a smooch while filming, and as passionate as it looked ... it was apparently even better in person -- for Marlon, anyway. Check out how he intricately describes locking lips with JH ... it's almost too descriptive for comfort.

Our photog crossed the line -- at least according to Marlon -- when she asked who is a better singer ... Jennifer, or Beyonce??? He scolds us for trying to pit two black queens against each other.

California Governor Gavin Newsom says President Trump isn't going to bully the Golden State into doing what he wants -- even with threats that could put thousands of lives at risk.

The Gov. was on "TMZ Live" Tuesday with a fierce response to POTUS tweeting he might cut federal funding to help fight California's wildfires ... if Newsom didn't get his "act together" to stop the fires.

Newsom made it clear he's not about to bow because the reality is the Prez needs Cali more than it needs him. He says Trump likes to spew threats as "political theater," and also because he can't stand NOT getting his way in the most populous state.

As the Gov. put it, Trump's political pressure won't fly in Cali.

On a much lighter note, we also got Gov. Newsom -- who just might have the best gubernatorial hairline in America -- to talk about this year's CA Hall of Fame inductees ... who include George Lopez, RuPaul, Wolfgang Puck and the late Dr. Maya Angelou.

The ceremony goes down in Sacramento on December 10, and Newsom's honored to be inducting such a diverse group of talented people.

Elton John's having a hard time hanging it up for his final time on the road, so for now ... he's gonna keep the show going for just a little while longer.

The British music icon just announced that he's extending his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, and it's not even by just a tad -- he's adding 24 new stops in North America.

The concerts will be a mix of extended stays in cities where he was already set to perform -- like extra days in Chicago, Houston, Montreal and Toronto. He's also going to all new cities ... such as Hershey, PA, Lincoln, NE, Fargo, ND and other smaller markets.

The new dates start in March of 2020 and will run through the summer -- marking the last time he'll play a concert either here or in Canada. His Farewell tour will then head across the pond where he'll do a string of shows across Europe, and finally landing in the U.K.

His final tour concert is slated for December 17 at the O2 in London.

Funny enough, Elton recently canceled and rescheduled a missed concert in Indianapolis due to illness -- looks like he's all better now, and making up for that tenfold.

Hayden Panettiere is shrugging off any suggestion that she and her boyfriend were ever anything but a-OK -- despite the fact he got arrested for allegedly roughing her up.

The actress was at LAX Tuesday when we ran into her and asked for a life update, considering the last time we heard from her was in a very negative light -- her new-ish BF, Brian Hickerson, had been charged with felony domestic violence against her.

As we reported ... the couple allegedly got into a scuffle earlier this year at their home that left red marks on Hayden's body, and police took Brian in for it.

However, you'd never know anything was wrong by the way Hayden reacts here ... insisting the two of 'em never even fought ... comparing it to a squabble with the family dog.

We kept pressing her to make sure things were good, asking if family members were right to worry for her well-being -- especially after she's been seen with Brian again lately, including last week at the airport -- but Hayden doubles down ... noting she can handle herself.

A couple things oughta be noted here -- for one, Brian's criminal case in L.A. was recently dismissed for not being able to secure a "material witness" -- aka, Hayden. Also ... HP seems awfully nervous here as she boards a waiting car that seems to be driven by Brian.