Luka Sabbat Touring is Better for Artists Than Festivals ... Even If Tix Ain't Selling!!!

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Luka Sabbat doesn't think artists should abandon tours, despite the current ticket sales decline ... because he still values the stage experience as a fan.

We caught the "Grown-ish" actor out in West Hollywood this week, in the aftermath of Lil Baby downsizing his nationwide tour ... while other star rappers such as Future and Toosii also shuttered shows this year.

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Luka's big on the live show circuit ... he soaked up the Coachella Festival sunrays earlier this year but says he favors headlining tours, as artists can personalize their set with theatrics, as opposed to sharing a general stage.

He even broke out his phone and shared his current 🎶 favs for us!!! Destroy Lonely and electronic music are at the top of his playlists!!!

Rashad Bilal and Troy Millings of "Earn Your Leisure" agreed that tours are still vital when we spoke to them about the topic in NYC this week ... noting that many artists would sell tickets better if they teamed up and then hit the road.

We also got Luka's thoughts on social media's hot takes that he looks just like singer Steve Lacy ... a resemblance Luka says is close, but no cigar, but still loves Steve's music!!!

Adam22 Threesome With Jason Luv Off Table ... Can't Keep Mouth Shut!!!

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Adam22 says the porn star who banged his wife in camera is on time-out after giving an interview on the sex tape ... telling us a potential threesome is now off-limits.

We got the popular podcaster in Los Angeles and asked about his souring relationship with Jason Luv, and where it all started going downhill.

Adam22 says he's super pissed over Jason's sex tape interview, where he bragged about being better in bed and more well-endowed than Lena The Plug's husband.

The way Adam22 sees things ... Jason broke a code among porn stars by comparing penis sizes and opening up about other bedroom details ... telling us Lena's seen the interview in question and is upset with Jason as well.

Adam22 says he'd been talking with Lena about filming a threesome with Jason ... but he tells us that's all out the window now.

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PUT 'EM UP

And, get this ... Adam22 feels Jason is showing insecurities now that the sex tape is shining a spotlight on all three of them. In fact, he tells us he's even considered a celeb boxing match with Jason to settle their differences ... but says the money he'd make from the event just wouldn't even be worth his time.

It's a fun and interesting conversation ... and Adam22 explains why it's unfair to compare his package to Jason's ... and he tells us how his sex life with Lena is improving.

Blake Shelton Roped Into Aldean Controversy ... Thru Fake Article/Satire Site

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Blake Shelton has gone on the record to support Jason Aldean amid his new song controversy ... at least that's what a satire site wants you to believe, anyway.

Here's the deal ... Blake is trending this weekend, and it's all because of this fake article that has him quoted as explicitly backing Aldean amid the whole "Try That In A Small Town" fracas -- which has divided a lot of people, especially after the music video was released.

The story comes from a site called The Dunning-Kruger Times -- which labels itself as "America's Last Line of Defense." This article of theirs is headlined as such ... "Blake Shelton Cancels $30 Million Project With CMT: 'Jason Is My Friend.'" The problem ... it's a BS piece.

The reason we know this -- aside from the fact this is literally the only "media outlet" reporting such a story -- is that DKT itself calls itself a website that's just for laughs.

Their "About Us" page spells it out clearly ... "Dunning-Kruger-Times.com is a subsidiary of the 'America’s Last Line of Defense' network of parody, satire, and tomfoolery, or as Snopes called it before they lost their war on satire: Junk News." AKA, it's one big fat joke.

Although this site has openly laid out their intentions -- namely, laughing at conservatives -- folks on the right have ran with this fake story regardless ... lifting it up as a rallying cry.

While Blake and Jason have certainly been on friendly terms in the past ... the former has not said anything about all the hubbub his new song/video has caused -- and yet, it appears folks genuinely believe he's on Jason's side. Unfortunately for them, there's no truth to it.

Strangely enough, this article hasn't been hit with a fact check on Twitter yet ... something Elon and co. have seemingly gone out of their way to do for needed context. Bizarre, indeed.

Matty Healy Same-Sex Onstage Kiss Gets Malaysia Music Festival Canceled

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Matty Healy kissed a dude onstage during a Malaysian music festival -- in protest, no doubt -- and now ... the whole thing's been scrapped for the rest of the weekend.

The 1975 front man was performing with his band Friday in Kuala Lumpur, as part of the Good Vibes Festival that was running through Sunday. Unfortunately, the rest of the performers who were booked won't be taking the stage because of what went down.

Throughout their set, Matty made it clear he was pretty pissed about the country's anti-LGBT laws -- which have criminalized homosexual acts, punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

He ranted on camera ... and the dude ripped the Asian country a new one, while also promising to perform angry songs as a result -- apologizing to the crowd for having to bear the brunt of his rage. He said there were likely gay people in the audience that night.

Eventually, he hit his point home by locking lips with his bassist, Ross McDonald ... launching into a full-blown make-out sesh in front of everyone, which got oohs and ahhs.

It wasn't long after that the 1975 abruptly left the stage ... only to see Matty briefly return to announce what was going on. He said they'd been banned, and that the show was over.

Unfortunately for everyone ... this ended up getting the whole festival nixed, at the behest of the government. The festival organizers issued a statement, laying the blame squarely at Matty's feet, saying ... "We deeply regret to announce that the remaining schedule of the Good Vibes Festival 2023, planned for today and tomorrow has been canceled following the controversial conduct and remarks made by UK artist Matty Healy from the band The 1975."

They add, "This decision adheres to the immediate cancellation directive issued ... by the Ministry of Communications and Digital. The Ministry has underlined its unwavering stance against any parties that challenge, ridicule, or contravene Malaysian laws." The Comms Minister is also quoted as saying they won't take stars "(touching) on the sensitivities of the community, especially those that are against the traditions and values ​​of the local culture."

While you'd think Matty might be getting nothing praise, you'd be wrong ... he's actually catching a lot of flak for what some say was nothing but a performative stunt/posturing -- knowing full well they'd probably get kicked out, and ruin everyone else's good time.

'Barbie' Right Wingers Go On the Attack ... 'Anti-Man, Feminist Trash'

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Even "Barbie" cannot escape the great political divide in America, because the right has folded the flick into its culture wars, lambasting it as a "flaming garbage heap."

Ben Shapiro jumped on Twitter Friday, saying, "My producers dragged me to see 'Barbie' and it was one of the most woke movies I have ever seen."

Others on the right have jumped on social media, calling the movie "feminist cancer" and "man-hating trash."

There are also folks on the right attacking trans actor Hari Nef, who appears in the film, saying, "Women being forced to pretend men can be women."

And, of course, there's Rep. Matt Gaetz ... his wife, Ginger, mused Ken had "disappointingly low T."

The movie is not only funny, it has a social undertone, particularly sending a message to women about acceptance and self-love. It's gotten almost universal praise by critics and is expected to have a spectacular weekend in terms of box office.

Carlee Russell Terminated From Spa Job ... Co-Workers Pissed Over Kidnapping Tale

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Carlee Russell's bad week just got worse ... because she was just fired from her job in Alabama.

Russell got sacked Friday from the Woodhouse Spa in Birmingham after her claims of being kidnapped have come under major scrutiny since she resurfaced alive and well one week ago, according to the New York Post.

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CARLEE'S 911 CALL

Her former boss, Stuart Rome, told the media outlet ... Russell's former co-workers are furious with her because they feel they might have been duped.

Rome said his employees have reason to be annoyed ... they were super busy at the spa the Saturday Russell disappeared, but still found time to hand out fliers over their concerns for her well-being.

What's more, the spa received an influx of negative social media posts from trolls, blasting management for employing Russell, which has resulted in many terrible reviews. Rome said business is now so bad he's "just trying to keep the doors open."

Rome also said his workers spent an entire day deleting the nastygrams and closing down the comments sections on the company's Facebook and Instagram pages.

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ODD ACTIVITY

As we reported ... police held a press conference Wednesday, poking holes in Russell's kidnapping story while revealing she searched the internet for information on Amber Alerts and the abduction film, "Taken," before she vanished. Cops also poured cold water on her assertion she saw a child wandering alone along the highway.

Machine Gun Kelly Call My Girl 'Beautiful as F**k' ... I'll Beat Your Ass!!!

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Machine Gun Kelly went off at the O.C. Fair after a dude decided to indelicately compliment Megan Fox ... according to the brother of the guy MGK swung at.

Nelson Zuniga tells TMZ ... he and his fam were waiting to get on the UFO ride Thursday night, when MGK and Megan stepped off it.

His little brother, Angel, recognized Megan, telling her she was "beautiful as f***' ... which triggered the now-viral ordeal.

Nelson says the comment enraged MGK, who retaliated with a slap. He says his youngest brother tried to punch MGK but missed.

As for Angel's comment about Megan, Nelson says it was a compliment and MGK should have taken it as such.

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MOMENTS AFTER ATTACK

As we reported, MGK and Megan's security guard swooped in to push Nelson's brothers back, but he accidentally ended up shoving Megan in the process.

Nelson and co. still aren't sure if they're gonna press charges against Kelly, but they are talking to lawyers. We're guessing that won't go far. BTW, he says they weren't fans of his music before all this -- we doubt that's gonna change any time soon.

Asante Samuel I've Got No Beef W/ Belichick, Sauce ... 'Y'all Stop It!!!'

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Despite being critical of both Bill Belichick and Sauce Gardner, Asante Samuel tells TMZ Sports he's got absolutely "no beef" with either guy ... explaining his comments were simply him just giving his opinions -- and nothing more.

"I'm a critic just like y'all," he said. "Y'all wake up, man. Y'all stop actin' like clowns."

Samuel took aim at Belichick's resume this week during an interview with ex-NFL player Bryant McFadden ... saying he didn't believe the Patriots head coach was the best ever.

Just a couple weeks prior, he took issue with Gardner's resume too ... writing on his Twitter page that he believed Seahawks star Tariq Woolen had a better year than the Jets corner -- while adding that he thought Sauce's status was being buoyed by the New York media.

Both hot takes were widely panned -- and most felt they were actually personal attacks on Belichick and Gardner.

But when we spoke with Samuel about it all on Thursday -- he said that couldn't be further from the case.

"Y'all stop it," the former New England Patriots cornerback said. "It's not a beef. If y'all want to cover it, y'all cover it. But it's not a beef."

He insisted giving his takes on the NFL is something he's done repeatedly over the years -- and it's never once been personal.

"I've been doin' this," he said. "I'm sick of it!"

In spite of the backlash, Samuel said he isn't going to back down from saying what his eyes see going forward ... telling us, "I'ma continue to talk."

Tekashi 6ix9ine & Kodak Black We Gettin' Shaka Laka $$$!!! Boosie Reacts Like a Family Member Died

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Tekashi 6ix9ine is back to dissing his opps -- and he's convinced Kodak Black to join him along for the ride ... and the team up has left Boosie Badazz utterly dejected!!!

The jaw-dropping alliance was unveiled Friday, and marked 6ix9ine's switch from Spanglish rhymes back to hardcore gangsta talk. Kodak makes it clear his loyalty is mostly to money in the opening lines of his verse, as associating with a "snitch" is typically bad for business.

Kodak did appear to show Tekashi some allegiance by dissing his rival Anuel AA with the opening question "How you lose your bitch to a snitch?" ... a reference to the song's other costar, Yailin la Mas Viral, who happens to be Anuel's ex and Tekashi's new flame.

Messy is as messy does but Kodak sees it as one big payday ... it's not like they're not moving weight like Scarface or anything!!!

Wack's been co-managing Tekashi's career as of late and emerged as the track's orchestra ... saluting Atlantic Records and 10K Projects for clearing the record for the streets, and a vape company for funding the entire shebang, very well he adds.

The song still has to prove itself on the charts, but a livid Boosie Badazz hopped on IG Live ahead of its release to diss the entire collab ... but was mainly hurt over Kodak Black's inclusion, as it goes against Boosie's beloved street code.

Boosie says Kodak's now susceptible to becoming gay for working with Tekashi and went on to claim incarcerated Hot Boys rapper B.G. knows secrets about Kodak he's going to spill whenever he gets freed. For crying out loud, Boosie!!!

There hasn't been any confirmation on how much Tekashi and Kodak got cashed out for the track but Boosie says there's no amount of money that Kodak should've accepted ... he actually turned down a billion dollars when we asked him about Gunna!!!

Jon Rahm Drops Loud F-Bomb On Hot Mic ... At Open Championship

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Jon Rahm's gonna have to wash his mouth out with soap ... 'cause the golf star was caught letting an expletive fly after a putt didn't go his way at the Open Championship on Friday -- passionately yelling out, "F***!!!"

The outburst happened on hole 10 in the second round as Rahm was looking to make par ... but things didn't go as planned, and he let everyone hear his frustration.

"Apologies for any language there," the announcer said shortly after the f-bomb.

The 28-year-old Spanish pro hasn't been the happiest of campers at the Royal Liverpool Golf Course this week ... voicing his frustrations over his play, as well as the amount of people surrounding him during the first round.

He even teed off on the media members who were following Rory McIlroy ... saying he had a "boom mic on my ass" as cameras kept up with his pairing partner.

The two-time major winner will have some work to do if he's looking to improve his spot in the standings ... he's currently tied for 49th at +2 through two rounds.

It's not the only wild moment of the Open so far -- as we previously reported, a bird crapped on Viktor Hovland during his first round outing on Thursday.

Wee Man 'Snow White' Movie Making Big Mistake ... Taking Jobs From Us!!!

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Wee Man is ripping Disney for swapping out "dwarves" for taller actors in the upcoming live-action version of "Snow White" ... he says it's another existential threat facing his community.

We got the "Jackass" star at The Apple Pan in L.A., and asked about the Disney movie losing the little people in favor actors of average height.

Wee Man says it's a really big mistake for Disney ... he says it's costing little people jobs, and he's equating it to the looming threat of artificial intelligence in Hollywood.

It's not just changes with "Snow White" that are drawing serious side-eye from Wee Man ... he's also taking shots at Hugh Grant for playing an Oompa Loompa in the upcoming "Wonka" flick with Timothée Chalamet.

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"WHAT ARE YOU DOING???"

Wee Man's takeaway stands in stark contrast to another celeb ... Peter Dinklage went viral early last year in a tirade where he railed against Disney for even remaking "Snow White" -- a tale he says horribly typecasts little people.

Disney's pivot to non-little people actors isn't scoring points with Wee Man, though he tells us the Mouse House can get back in his good graces with one small fix.

Drake I Got That Dog in Me

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Drake is letting the dogs out ... as in, he's leaving his hotel in a dog mask -- which, let's be honest, beats him covering the Baha Men.

The rapper made a major fashion statement Thursday as he headed over to his performance at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn wearing a doberman mask over his head.

Champagne Papi also had a glass of wine with him ... and paid homage to his Big Apple surroundings with a New York Yankees baseball jersey.

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Drake's currently on the road for his "It's All a Blur" U.S. tour with 21 Savage, and Thursday marks the third of 4 straight shows at Barclays ... with three more NYC shows on deck at Madison Square Garden.

It will be interesting to see if Drake busts out the dog mask during his set. Woof!!!

Damon Dash Jay-Z Would've Ethered Nas ... If Not For That Meddling IRV GOTTI!!!

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"THAT S*** WAS WHACK!"

Damon Dash is throwing major shade on his time running Roc-A-Fella Records with Jay-Z ... declaring Nas the winner of the historic rap battle against his camp, although his reasoning is mainly because he wasn't doing the coaching.

The veteran music mogul spilled his thoughts on the "That's F***ed Up" podcast and proclaimed Jay lost the battle when he dropped "Supa Ugly," the follow-up track to his classic diss "Takeover" and released after Nas released his blistering rebuttal "Ether."

Dame says he was away making millions for Roc-A-Fella when he heard "Supa Ugly" on the radio and couldn't believe his ears because he thought it was extremely wack.

The curse-filled counter opened up its own can of worms ... it inserted Nas' child's mother Carmen Bryant into the melee and forced Jay to apologize at the behest of his mother.

Dame blamed Irv Gotti for orchestrating the diss dud and didn't bite his tongue and pooh-poohed every collab the Murda Inc. founder did with Roc-A-Fella.

Irv helped produced several songs for the Roc ... including Jay and Ja Rule's 1998 breakout hit "Can I Get A..." but Dame maintains all his contributions were trash!!!

Despite Dame's harsh playback, Jay and Nas have since moved on, are friends in real life and are even occasional collaborators.

Channing Frye R.J. Ran Up $36k Tab On My Card!!! ... Before 2005 Draft

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Channing Frye had a "welcome to the NBA" moment before he even made it to the league ... 'cause he claims Richard Jefferson racked up a whopping $36,000 tab on his credit card the night before he was drafted!!

The pair of Cavs champions/former Arizona Wildcats detailed the 2005 rager on their "Road Trippin'" podcast this week ... when RJ invited Frye and his crew of 20-30 friends to go clubbing in the Big Apple.

The former No. 8 overall pick says the group included a ton of ex-Arizona guys like Gilbert Arenas and Luke Walton, Nets and Knicks players and fellow class of 2005 draftee "David Lee's punk ass" (RJ's words, not ours) ... but there was no issue with rolling deep, 'cause Jefferson had clout in the city after helping the Nets reach the NBA Finals.

"Richard, for lack of a better term, ran that demographic of New York," Frye says.

Once they got inside the club, it was bad news for Frye ... who willingly handed over his card to RJ after he asked him to "hold the table."

As it turns out, Frye says the massive group ended up partying on his dime the whole night ... with the final damage coming out to a mind-blowing $36,000!!

"They swipe it, they swipe it," RJ says. "He's just getting crushed. And this is kind of like a rookie hazing."

Channing rightfully freaked out over it all ... explaining, "The NBA money hadn't even got into the ozone yet, and my phone is blowing up."

"My s*** is still college s***, I don't even have an NBA check yet!!"

RJ insists he was looking out for his guy the whole night ... saying he was acting as a security blanket in case things went south.

Frye went on to make more than $68 million over the course of his career ... so don't worry, he definitely recovered.

Finesse2Tymes Wanted For Rental Car Theft ... It's Been 4 Months!!!

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Finesse2Tymes is being accused of living out his rap name ... as Houston cops say he stole a rental car, and he's been brazenly driving it around the city for months!!!

According to the court docs we obtained, a man named Ronald Bell rented an Infiniti QX80 SUV on Feb. 28, 2023 from a Houston-area Enterprise location ... marked with a return date of March 10, 2023.

Authorities say the return date came and went so Enterprise sent Bell a notice to bring it back.

Cops say when they finally got in touch with Bell, he fessed up to Finesse being the one actually driving the vehicle.

The report states Bell set up a three-way call with Enterprise and the Rap-A-Lot Records rapper on April 20, where Finesse told the rental car employee his money was tied up in a Zelle twist-up but would have the vehicle returned in a few days.

The docs say when Finesse failed to return the Infiniti by April 24, Enterprise reported the vehicle, valued at $72k, as stolen and HPD issued a warrant for his arrest.

To make matters worse, cops say the stolen rental car continued to be spotted floating around the Houston area ... including a well-known recording studio in the area.

On April 25, HPD questioned a woman outside the studio, who told them she had recently been hired by Finesse days prior to run errands.

Finesse, whose real name is Ricky Hampton, is now facing a felony theft charge. Would've been cheaper just to renew the rental agreement, no?

Jeanine Pirro Defends Aldean Vid at Lynching Site ... It's a Message to BLM Protestors

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Jeanine Pirro says Jason Aldean intentionally filmed his "Try That in a Small Town" video in the same place where a Black teen was lynched ... because Black Lives Matter protestors are still breaking the law 100 years later.

Yeah, read that again, or even better ... watch the video, because it's pretty stunning. During Wednesday's panel discussion on "The Five" about Aldean's lightning rod of a hit song ... the Fox News host took up for Aldean's music video being shot in front of the Maury County Courthouse in Tennessee.

One of the reasons the music video's become so controversial is the fact an 18-year-old Black man was lynched at that location in 1927 -- but Pirro says it's the perfect place for Aldean to send a message about BLM.

"I think he's trying to show that there hasn't been that much progress. That Black Lives Matter is violating the law themselves at this point ... rioting and burning. That's what happened 100 years later."

Translation: Black people are still committing crimes, just as that 18-year-old did, Pirro's eyes, 96 years ago??? It certainly comes off as pro-vigilante justice, which is one of the reasons critics and the NAACP have been ripping Aldean's song.

We discussed the controversy surrounding the song on a recent episode of The TMZ Podcast, available on all podcast platforms.