TMZ.com

Lil Nas X is doing everything he can to change his tune, so don't even TRY to talk to him about the biggest #1 song of all time -- 'cause if you do, he's got a one-word answer for you.

We got Lil Nas Thursday night outside NYC's Soho Grand Hotel and asked him about securing a CMA nomination this week for "Old Town Road." You'd think it's kind of a big deal -- getting a nod for Musical Event of the Year ... especially considering the country music industry hasn't exactly embraced his monster hit.

But, check out the clip ... Lil Nas seemed to downplay the achievement.

As for why the man who just had the #1 song in the country for a record-setting 19 weeks doesn't wanna talk about it? Seems he's fully on to the next. Watch the clip and count how many times he says "Panini" ... his follow-up track to "Old Town Road."

Fact is, no one sets out to be a one-hit wonder, and LNX is working overtime to make sure he doesn't end up in that category. We've got 2 words for him: smart businessman.

Miguel heard Justin Bieber's powerful message and he couldn't agree more ... telling us some of his best work comes in his most vulnerable moments.

We got Miguel leaving Delilah Thursday night and our guy asked about Justin telling his church there's power in weakness when you fight through adversity ... and the R&B great told us he's a big believer in what JB's preaching.

It's pretty interesting ... Miguel tells us the best songs he's written were actually spawned from periods of weakness.

As we first reported ... Justin took the mic and sang in front of his congregation at Churchome in Beverly Hills Wednesday night, telling us his breakout moment was part of a much bigger message he's trying to spread.

One of Prince's six siblings who inherited the music legend's fortune died in his sleep ... TMZ has learned.

Alfred Jackson, Prince's older half-brother, passed Thursday morning at his home in Kansas City, Missouri. Alfred was found by his brother, Bruce Jackson -- who's not related to Prince. Bruce tells us he went to check on Alfred around 10:30 AM and found him unresponsive.

Law enforcement tells us no foul play is suspected, and police believe he died of natural causes.

Prince's half-bro was one of the iconic musician's first family members to speak out in 2016 following his death. Alfred, who had the same mother as Prince, said he hadn't spoken to his brother in years but followed his career and was proud of him.

He said at the time, "I miss my brother because my brother was everything in the world to me ... He's a legend, he really is."

Sources connected to the family tell us Alfred, an Air Force veteran, was able to purchase a new home after receiving his inheritance. Prior to that, he'd been living in VA housing for decades.

Alfred was 66.

Justin Bieber's played hundreds of concerts for millions of people, but it took him years to work up the courage to lead worship at his church ... and he made it count.

Bieber hopped onstage with the worship band at Churchome in Beverly Hills Wednesday night, and poured his heart and soul into leading the congregation in song.

The pastor, JB's buddy Judah Smith, gave some backstory on what led to the big moment ... saying Bieber's always been a worshiper, but the time had come for him to use his immense talent to guide everyone in praising God.

Justin tells the church it's taken him a long time to do so because he doesn't want the expression of his faith to look like a show. Of course, once he started singing ... it wasn't hard to see why he's a star.

At one point, Biebs was feeling it so much he went off the lyrical script. No one seemed to mind.

As you know, Justin's immersed himself in religion in recent years, attending both Churchome and Hillsong services, and now it looks like he's taking on a bigger role.

Aaron Carter's tackling 2 hot button issues ... mental health, specifically his own, and gun control laws -- and insisting it's not only safe for him to own assault weapons but an absolute necessity.

The singer and his mom were at LAX when we talked to him about his recent revelation that he got his license to own a gun. Aaron says he aced his background check, but the fact is police have made several wellness checks to his homes in recent years -- mostly because loved ones were concerned about his mental health

That's all behind him, apparently, because Aaron told us his mental stability is off the charts right now. In fact, he got a little defensive, saying on a scale of 1 to 10 ... his mental stability is "infinite" -- despite all he's been through over the years. His mom agreed.

As for why Aaron feels the need to own assault rifles ... his mother gives an interesting reason, and it's supported by a story in the family's history, at least according to Aaron.

As we've reported, Aaron recently went through a nasty breakup with his girlfriend in which she allegedly got violent -- resulting in a restraining order -- and that was just days after cops performed a wellness check.

Of course, Carter also had his background check flagged when he tried to make a gun purchase 2 years ago around the same time he entered rehab.

Nas had the beat, the crowd and the stage, but one critical thing was missing -- at least for a good portion of his performance -- and still, he never skipped a beat.

The legendary rapper suffered a technical difficulty Wednesday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn during his performance with Mary J. Blige. The duo was performing her track, "Love Is All We Need" featuring Nas, who, BTW, was rocking a Louis Vuitton Monogram Admiral Jacket.

It's a pricey piece of leather ... a cool $6,550. Those pockets tho!!!

Anyway ... the music was poppin' and Mary was dancing. But, as Nas begins, there's an audible silence. For a good 30 seconds you can see Nas rapping but can't hear him. Finally, he's like, "what the hell?!"

Someone in the crowd even yelled about the dead mic. Just as Nas realized the issue, his sound finally came back to life.

Taylor Swift's properties are a magnet for strange men with unrealistic and unnerving expectations ... and the latest one was nabbed early Wednesday morning outside her Rhode Island home.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... a man was busted trying to enter the gate of Swift's mansion in Westerly, RI. We're told he did not have any weapons on him, and cops took him to a hospital for mental evaluation.

Another source tells us the suspect claimed he had talked on the phone with Taylor and he told them he was there to marry her.

We're told he is NOT a repeat offender -- as we've reported, Taylor's had several unwanted visitors show up at her waterfront home. A white pickup truck with odd scrawling, on the inside and out, was towed from in front of the Swift home.

These photos show some of the disturbing hand-drawn images, and it appears the man was sleeping in the backseat.

No charges have been filed, and Taylor was not home during the incident.

Just last month, a 32-year-old man was arrested near this home after acting suspicious and carrying around a backpack with a metal bat, gloves, lock picks and a crowbar inside. He allegedly told cops he was there to "catch up with Taylor Swift."

Of course, she also dealt with a scary stalker situation last year and had another intruder at her Beverly Hills property.

These dudes really need to calm down.

Chester Bennington's music is currently worth more than $8 million ... according to new legal docs filed by his widow.

Talinda Bennington submitted an appraisal detailing some of Chester's assets to the probate court overseeing his estate. The docs, obtained by TMZ, show his music rights are worth $8,140,719.

The biggest chunk of that are his cut of current and future music royalties ... worth $5.2 million. Another $1.5 mil is attributed to his net share of publishing rights, and $1.3 mil in songwriter performance rights.

Important to note, these numbers don't take into account Chester and Talinda's properties, bank accounts and other assets ... it's just a current appraisal of his music assets.

TMZ broke the story ... Chester hanged himself in his home in 2017. He was survived by his 6 children and Talinda.

Missy Elliott knows how to put her thing down flip it and reverse it ... but Alyson Stoner says she didn't know the sexual significance behind "Work It" until long after she starred in the music video.

We got Alyson out at LAX after she got back from her highly-regarded dance routine with Missy at the VMAs ... and the dancer and former Disney Channel actress told our guy she was kept in the dark about the song's true meaning for years.

Alyson, now 26, first danced to Missy's provocative hit 17 years ago ... and she says their reunion onstage at the VMAs is easily one of the best moments in the history of the award show.

But, it wasn't until she was older when Alyson says she figured out what Missy was talking about in the lyrics. Kudos to the person who finally filled her in.

It's pretty wild ... Alyson tells us she nearly skipped her audition back in the day because of her sister and parents. But, thanks to a last-minute change of plans, she tried out for a spot in the music video and got the part.

Diane Warren is offering up her catalog of insanely popular, award-winning music to any candidate running for Prez -- with one BIG exception ... yep, it's you-know-who.

We got the legendary songwriter Tuesday in L.A. and asked if she'd be open to letting some Dems blare her tunes on the campaign trail -- seeing how she's a staunch supporter of the party and all. Turns out, she's declaring open season on her work ... come one, come all!!!

That's right ... Diane tells us that ANY presidential candidate who runs as a donkey is free to use the songs she wrote, if they want a little hype at their public events. She's even got suggestions.

On the Republican side ... not so much. President Trump absolutely CANNOT touch her tracks ... paws off, DT.

Of course, Trump has been asked by several marquee musicians to STOP playing their tracks at his events -- everyone from Pharrell and The Rolling Stones to Prince's estate and pretty much everyone else in between has demanded that their sounds be muzzled at Trump events.

Unfortunately for them, Trump has the legal right to crank any song he wants, so long as it's in a public space and in the U.S. of A. Mick Jagger explained what a bummer it was.

Unclear if Diane's aware of this loophole -- or if Trump is even into her music at all -- but it's the thought that counts, right? Hell yeah ... nothing's gonna stop us now!!!

John Travolta mistook a famous drag queen for Taylor Swift at the VMAs -- and if you wanna know how he got so confused ... go straight to the queen herself!

We got Jade Jolie -- a former contestant on "RuPaul's Drag Race" -- Monday night after the award show and asked her about the awkward moment onstage right after TS won Video of the Year. John, very awkwardly, tried handing the Moon Man to Jade.

Ooops!! Taylor ... the real one ... wasn't even onstage yet.

As you can see (and as Jade acknowledges) ... she's a dead ringer for Taylor, whom she calls her "goddess" and "queen." But, while talking to us, Jade got all wrapped up in her own Swiftie fandom ... and even started talking 'Game of Thrones.'

You can tell by her mood here that Jade wasn't that offended by the case of mistaken identity -- she's clearly overjoyed to have shared in the glory of a VMAs win. The look-alike -- and a bunch of other notable gay and trans people -- appeared in Taylor's video for "You Need to Calm Down."

French Montana wanted heads to roll after some guy allegedly threw a sucker punch ... and TMZ's got video of him going off on his security team for apparently letting it happen.

Sources close to the situation tell us ... French was in NYC early Tuesday morning -- after leaving the Amish Market in Tribeca -- when a guy in a red shirt attacked French's crew from behind. We're told the guy didn't hit French, but did hit someone and that set off a brawl.

In the video, you can see French chewing out some bodyguards, and just as things seem to calm down ... there's another flare-up.

NYPD showed up eventually, responding to a call of a physical fight at the Amish Market. We're told the store was a mess when officers arrived, but everyone involved in the fight was gone.

No report was filed for assault and no injuries were reported.

As far as French is concerned ... no blood, no foul but we're told he was pissed his security let someone get close enough to pop him.

Missy Elliott is soaking up the well-deserved spotlight ... and what started during the MTV VMAs, continued afterward as Cardi B, Lil Mama, and Lizzo all toasted her amazing career.

Fresh off her Video Vanguard Award at the VMAs ... Missy was surrounded by huge celebs who came to kiss the ring, as it were. Cardi presented Missy with her special Moon Man statuette during the show and was still by her side later in the night.

Other legends in the house for Missy's bash included Queen Latifah, Treach and Ice-T. Check out the gallery to see who else came to get their freak on with Missy.

Meanwhile, Taylor Swift was turning up at NYC's Moxy Hotel ... and Monday night her squad was FULLY glam.

Gigi and Bella Hadid were practically draped on T-Swift whose VMA performance was one of the night's standout moments.

Taylor's label, Republic Records, threw the event with other hit makers like Bebe Rexha, Joe Jonas and Hailee Steinfeld.

Miley Cyrus just performed her new single -- which mirrors her recent split with Liam Hemsworth -- at the VMAs ... and it was super emotional.

Miley took the stage Monday night rocking a skin-tight black dress, singing her heart out as she performed her latest track, "Slide Away," which makes some not-so-subtle references to her breakup with the Australian actor.

It was a stirring performance, filmed in black-and-white ... and Miley got the crowd off its feet inside the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey where the awards show is going down.

Miley dropped the single earlier this month, only a few days after announcing her split with Liam ... and the lyrics seem to reflect the real-life struggles of their failed relationship, including drug and alcohol references.

We broke the story ... sources close to Miley told us she desperately tried to save their marriage, but she became tired of Liam's partying. His side says the drug and alcohol accusations are only a cover for Miley's recent outrageous public behavior.

Miley and Liam have a long history together ... they were together on and off for a decade, and tied the knot back in December, hosting family and friends at a wedding celebration inside their Nashville home. But, the good times didn't last.

As we first reported ... Liam just filed for divorce from Miley, and she gets to keep their pets.

The 2019 VMAs were all about Shawn Mendes and some sexy senoritas ... and they dazzled behind the scenes.

The Prudential Center in Newark, NJ was the center of the music world Monday night, with tons of A-listers in the house for MTV's signature award show. Shawn performed his hit duet, "Senorita," with Camila Cabello ... but she wasn't the only mamacita turning heads.

Bella and Gigi Hadid looked absolutely stunning ... and the supermodel sisters stole the show in matching outfits.

Future's got more baby mama drama on his hands ... a woman in Florida just slapped the rapper with a paternity case alleging she gave birth to his SEVENTH CHILD!!!

Eliza Seraphin filed legal docs in Broward County, alleging Future is the father of her 4-month-old girl. According to docs obtained by TMZ, Seraphin -- known to her 320k Instagram followers as Eliza Reign -- claims Future ghosted her ever since she gave birth on April 19.

She wants a judge to declare Future the baby daddy and make him ante up child support. Eliza wants the child support retroactively and she wants Hizzoner to tack on hospital expenses she incurred during pregnancy.

Baby mama drama's nothing new for Future, who back in January told radio legend Big Boy he became a father for the sixth time when his son, Hendrix, was born in December.

Future told Big Boy he wants to have more kids ... never mind the legal drama that's followed with in the wake of several births. You'll recall Ciara's had beef with Future over their 5-year-old son.

We've reached out to Future for comment ... so far, no word back.