Scientists may be advising social distancing among ourselves, but as far as Machine Gun Kelly's concerned ... sex is very much still on the table and about to see a HUGE surge.
We got MGK Saturday in Studio City and asked what he made of speculation that the COVID-19 pandemic could actually spark another baby boom -- ya know, 'cause everyone's holed up and just chillin'. He says he agrees ... as he puts it, "Everyone's f***ing." Nice!
Then comes an interesting question ... what are the rules of the road for hooking up amid an outbreak like this? Sounds like our camera guy's speaking for himself and other guys out there, but Kelly's advice of going the straight-to-business route applies to both parties.
Long story short ... docs might be saying to avoid mouth-to-mouth, but no one ever said anything about other parts not touching. So in other words, no kissing ... just banging.
11:37 AM PT -- Post has decided to postpone the rest of his tour ... Thursday was the last show.
Post Malone was anything BUT POSTponed ... his show in Denver oddly went on despite everything else getting canceled amid fears of widespread of the coronavirus.
The rapper's facing tons of heat after performing Thursday night in front of a sold-out crowd at Pepsi Center ... quite the opposite of social distancing. Fans ate up the performance, but many are confused as to why it was allowed to happen in the first place.
Colorado hasn't banned large public gatherings but health officials in the Centennial State warned against it to steam the fast-spreading disease. Post's show drew even more ire considering the NBA, NCAA, NHL, MLS, MLB and other major orgs halted operations.
The Pepsi Center tweeted Thursday Post's show would proceed as scheduled, and the reaction was immediate and tense. One person replied, "Wow. Wildly irresponsible and greedy. Thanks for the $300 loss." Another said, "Governor should [get] involved and cancel this event what is state of emergency!"
And, get this ... Post's show continued even though Blake Shelton's show originally scheduled for Saturday at the same venue was nixed due to the coronavirus.
Post Malone's next gig is next week at Chase Center in Frisco. So far, it's listed as "canceled or postponed -- TBD" but California officials have called for the cancellation of all gatherings with 250 or more people.
Billie Eilish is celebrating her history-making night at the Grammys with some shiny new bling ... and the piece is an ode to her sweep of the show's top awards.
The custom pendant is 14-karat gold with black diamonds and was crafted by celebrity jeweler Boodaddy Diamonds of Koosh Jewelers. As for the shape, the "5X" signifies Billie's 5 wins at her first-ever Grammys, including Best New Artist and Album of the Year.
Jewelry pieces similar to Billie's new bling have cost around $30,000 in the past ... so we're guessing this one rings up right around there too.
Eilish was the talk of the Grammys earlier this year and her album "When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" has gotten insane praise. She's back on the road and touring the world, so there's a good chance the necklace will hit tour stops too.
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Billie's only 18 ... so if the whole buying jewelry for big accomplishments thing catches on, she's gonna have a whole lotta gold.
As coronavirus fears skyrocket and the stock market plummets ... Soulja Boy's making a whole lot of money off a pretty clean gamble.
Sources close to the rapper-turned-entrepreneur tell TMZ ... he's invested in a company called The Soap Shop -- which, of course, sells soap products and the like. We're told Soulja went in on a franchise location in Mississippi last year with his manager, CEO Miami Mike.
Our sources say Soulja's trying to diversify and heard it was a good investment opportunity. What he didn't know is how well-timed it was.
As you know, the COVID-19 pandemic has people frantically looking for soaps, disinfectant products and anything that'll kill germs. That all adds up to a massive profit for Soulja and co.
Our sources say TSS as a corporation has gone from selling 100 bottles of cleaning products per month to well over 3,000-plus cleaning products in the last 2 months. That's about a 3,000 percent increase, and we're told it's record-setting production.
Soulja and Mike's specific Soap Shop location -- in South Haven, MS -- is seeing similar results. Our sources say profits have tripled without changing anything.
One last thing, the soap venture actually benefits the youth. Soulja has linked his Soap Shop location to a charity called Bubbles for Cash.
Basically, kids sell his soap products via fundraising, and most of that money goes right back into the community to fund programs and services for those same youngsters. Win-win!!!
5:44 PM PT -- Diddy tells TMZ ... “We want to make sure everyone is safe during these times, so we had to make the decision to cancel the in person casting events."
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He adds ... "But at the same time, I want to provide opportunity to everyone to audition from their homes. So I’ve put together a team of A&Rs that will be checking #MTBcasting on all social platforms 24/7 to find gems. Everyone be safe!”
The "Making the Band" reboot is gonna be delayed in its search for new talent because upcoming auditions have been called off due to coronavirus.
Sources close to production tell TMZ ... the final 2 open casting calls -- Friday in Charlotte and March 21 in NYC -- have been canceled amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Those would have been the last in-person auditions.
Even more of a bummer -- DaBaby was set to help out at the Charlotte casting call ... and Diddy was going to be at the NYC auditions at MTV Studios. Not anymore.
MTV tells us ... “As a precautionary measure to ensure the health of our production crew, talent and aspiring artists, all public auditions for MTV’s “Making the Band” in Charlotte, NC on March 13-14 and New York City on March 21-22 have been canceled. Safety remains our utmost priority, and we’re continuing to defer to health officials and the CDC for guidance."
The good news ... 'MTB' hopefuls can still submit their auditions online as they have been, they just won't get that up-close-and-personal touch.
We broke the story ... Diddy recruited some big names -- Quavo, Monica and 112 -- to help him recruit potential big names of the future at the open casting call last month in Atlanta.
There were also in-person auditions held last week in Houston, but with the coronavirus fears intensifying -- it looks like that will be the last one.
10:22 AM PT -- We have learned that Airbnb has started issuing full refunds to some customers who booked around Coachella. We're told a big factor into the company's decision was the fact that local health officials declared the outbreak an emergency situation.
Thousands of people who were stoked to attend Coachella next month aren't only disappointed, they're stressing out too ... over getting their money back from Airbnb.
As we reported ... the music festival's been postponed to October due to the coronavirus crisis, which means the folks who planned to travel to the Coachella Valley-area and booked a place to stay on Airbnb, are now scrambling for their refund.
That's because, so far, the online booking company is only offering full, automatic refunds to people who were traveling to countries like China, Italy and South Korea ... a fairly short list considering the virus has spread worldwide.
So, renters looking to get their money back have instead been instructed to cancel their reservation -- which automatically refunds 50 percent of their payment -- but they then have to reach out to the host, explain the extenuating circumstance for the cancellation ... and request return of the remaining 50% plus cleaning fees and other expenses.
The good news -- if a host rejects the full refund, renters can file a claim with Airbnb for a special review, and this policy includes some language that seems to support giving folks their cash back.
The policy reads ... "Epidemic disease or illness that suddenly affects a region or an entire group of people" qualifies as a special review circumstance, and policy decisions will be "based on announcements by the World Health Organization and local authorities."
Considering local officials declared a public health emergency in the county where Coachella's located, which clearly contributed to the postponement ... it should certainly fall under this category.
But, the ball's in Airbnb's court ... and so far, refunds are no guarantee.
4:08 PM PT -- Organizers have just made the push to October official, saying, "At the direction of the County of Riverside and local health authorities, we must sadly confirm the rescheduling of Coachella and Stagecoach due to COVID-19 concerns."
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They continue, "All purchases for the April dates will be honored for the rescheduled October dates. Purchasers will be notified by Friday, March 13 on how to obtain a refund if they are unable to attend."
Travis Scott, Rage Against the Machine and Frank Ocean will be legends of the fall -- Coachella and its headliners are moving to October due to the coronavirus crisis.
TMZ has confirmed agents for several acts booked for Coachella have been told the new dates are the consecutive weekends of Oct. 9 and Oct. 16. The festival's promoter, Goldenvoice, is in the process now of informing reps for all the acts. The official announcement will likely come once that's done.
The massive music festival was originally scheduled for the weekends of April 10 and April 17, but it's now going the way of several other festivals that are either postponing or pulling the plug altogether.
South by Southwest canceled last week, as did the Ultra Music Festival in Miami. Even live touring legend Pearl Jam just announced it would postpone its upcoming spring dates.
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County music fans gotta change their travel plans too -- the Stagecoach festival is postponing from April 24 to October 23.
All of this comes on the heels of other major shifts due to coronavirus fears. TMZ broke the story ... Justin Bieber is moving several of his stadium tour dates to arenas to ensure they can fill the venues, even with reduced ticket sales amid the crisis.
Megan Thee Stallionis all smiles just days after her EP dropped ... and she's adamant it'll hold her fans over until THE BIG ONE drops.
We got the Houston rapper out over the weekend leaving Coach in NYC and she tells us it's been nothing but love since she dropped her 9-track EP, "Suga," on Friday. She's adamant it's gonna hold her fans over until her big album drops.
When that'll happen is unclear. Remember, Megan's label, 1501 Certified Entertainment, went to court and filed a motion to try and stop her from releasing her new music ... but in the end, it was Megan who notched the W in that battle.
BTW, Megan also had some strong feelings about Coachella after we asked her about the festival's uncertainty. Pretty clear where she stands. Problem is ... best-case scenario for Coachella now is a delay until October.
City Girls member JT is tasting freedom ... because we've learned the rapper is outta federal custody after spending the last part of her sentence in a halfway house.
JT was officially released Friday, the Federal Bureau of Prisons tells TMZ. Remember, she'd been in custody since June 2018 after turning herself in on identity theft charges.
As you can imagine, JT's grateful to be home ... posting a ton of selfies Saturday and saying it's the first time she's woken up in her own bed in 2 years!
JT's not completely outta the woods, because legal docs show she's on probation for a year.
According to the terms of her supervised release, JT has to take a drug test within the first 15 days, and she can't have controlled substances or a firearm ... aaand she has to perform 200 hours of community service.
JT went to prison just as the City Girls were getting super famous ... and her counterpart Yung Miami hooked her up with some custom bling as a welcome home gift.
Madison Beer opened up about a scandal she says has been dogging her for years -- but she's ready to let it go and own the mistake, for which she won't be shamed over anymore.
The singer penned a powerful note Sunday -- making mention of the fact it's International Women's Day -- and basically said she's done being belittled over old private photos and videos she sent to a significant other in her teens ... which have apparently resurfaced as of late.
She writes, "when i was around 14 and exploring my body & sexuality, i sent very private snapchat's of my body to a boy i really liked at the time. i sent these, at 14, thinking i could trust the boy as we had known each other for years & shared feelings for one and other."
Madison continues, "but of course he shared it with all of his friends." She goes on to describe how the pics and vids have popped up over the years, which she says were discussed among her contemporaries, friends, family members and even music execs.
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Welp, Madison says she's finally ready to forgive herself ... and more importantly, to let herself move on and not let the incident have power over her anymore. She writes, "so today, on IWD i am going to free myself of this weight i carry."
Madison ends her wise words with some advice for other young people -- remember she's just 21 -- which entails not letting one's mistakes define you, or keep you in fear.
Lil Baby's concert Saturday night ended abruptly after gunshots rang out and at least one person was injured.
Check out the video ... you hear the shots and then the panic in the crowd. The rapper was performing at the Bill Harris Arena in West Birmingham, Alabama when someone in the crowd began firing rounds. Some fans hit the floor ... others ran out of the venue.
At least one person was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. The person's condition is not known.
What we do know is this ... there was some sort of physical altercation before the shots rang out, so it appears this was targeted.
Post Malone squarely addressed fans who worried he was in a pharmaceutical tailspin ... saying he's clean as a whistle -- never better.
Post performed Friday night at the FedExForum in Memphis and told the crowd he was not using ... no way, no how. In fact, he said he's never felt better.
Fans got super-worried earlier this week after he appeared to fall on stage during a concert and then writhed around on the floor. Post explained last night ... that's not someone who's high -- it's someone who is trying to give his fans an awesome performance and nothing more.
Post is in the middle of his Runaway Tour which began back in September 2019. He heads to Houston next where he will perform on March 9. He's facing what every artist, every sports team, everyone really has to deal with ... coronavirus, and what it means for big venues.
Justin Bieber's tour is the latest live act to feel the effects of the coronavirus ... he's downgrading the venue size in several "secondary markets" and it's all because of the virus.
Bieber's got a massive stadium tour planned for the summer to promote his hugely successful 'Changes' album. Friday they announced stadium stops in Cleveland, Detroit, Arlington, Columbus and Nashville were canceled and moved to local arenas ... essentially cutting seat capacity in half.
Turns out just 3 days after Justin announced his tour ... coronavirus fears really blossomed. We're told prior to the news, ticket sales were hugely successful but then slowed in smaller markets.
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Sources close to Justin say his team made the decision to relocate several tour stops to guarantee they could fill seats instead of performing to a half-empty stadium. We're told it's possible he could do multiple shows at one arena.
Justin isn't the only artist to feel the effects of coronavirus, Miami's Ultra Music Festival and SXSW in Austin, Texas were both canceled earlier this week.
1:34 PM PT -- Turns out, Sushi was thankfully found by TV chef Sandra Lee, who says the cat wandered into her backyard looking emaciated but very sweet ... so she took him in and nursed him back to health. Then she called the number on the collar ... and made Justin's day so much better.
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Justin Bieber's cat has returned home after an incredible journey, and though the kitty's meow sounds sad ... the family's happy he's home.
JB just revealed his furry pal, Sushi, decided to run away about a month ago. He says he and Hailey began to lose hope of ever getting him back as weeks went by, but they got a call Thursday saying somebody had found him.
Justin says Sushi was located miles away, and he's now extremely skinny and has a "very sad miow" ... but he's home safe and sound.
You may recall ... Bieber adopted a pair of Savannah kittens last summer -- Sushi and his sister, Tuna -- and revealed the brother and sister felines on Instagram as "my children."
He took some flak from PETA for dropping $35k on his 2 exotic cats instead of adopting shelter cats, but he clapped back by telling them to "suck it."
Regardless, everyone is happy Sushi and Tuna are back together with their human parents ... and hopefully, there are no more runaways.
Demi Lovato is sending a message about 2 major events in her life -- one involving her ex-BF, Wilmer Valderrama -- but you're gonna have to watch her upcoming music vid very closely to get her point.
TMZ got a not-yet-seen snippet from her "I Love Me" vid, and we noticed a clear reference to the near-fatal overdose she suffered back in the summer of 2018. Demi walks past a parked ambulance and reaches out to touch a young woman on a stretcher.
The lyrics of 'Love Me' are all about self-love and empowerment, and the ambulance scene appears to be an illustration of what she's said in recent interviews: She's pulled through after the OD, and anyone else in her situation can do the same.
The Wilmer reference is more of an Easter egg. Watch for the shot of a bride and groom running across the street, right in front of Demi. Remember, Wilmer -- who dated Demi from 2010 to 2016 -- just got engaged in January to model Amanda Pacheco.
Demi's point here seems to be she's cool with Wilmer moving on because, again, she's got self-love to get her through. Remember, she and Wilmer remained close. He visited her frequently in the hospital during her recovery.
"I Love Me" drops on Friday, and we wouldn't be surprised if it's filled with a few more subtle messages.
Taylor Swift is lending a huge hand to her home state -- she's making a million-dollar donation to aid in the aftermath of 2 deadly tornadoes ... TMZ has learned.
Swift says she donated to the Middle Tennessee Emergency Response Fund and is encouraging her fans to do the same to help out. Taylor wrote ... "Nashville is my home and the fact that so many people have lost their homes and so much more in Middle Tennessee is devastating to me."
The tornadoes moved through the central part of the state Tuesday, tragically killing at least 24 people and destroying hundreds of buildings before the sun came up. Many more people were injured or left without their homes.
Taylor's million bucks will help the Nashville area and its residents in wake of the disaster, much like her $500k donation did back in 2010 did following a major flood.
Swift, of course, launched her country career in her teens while living in The Music City, which eventually led to her superstardom. She currently owns a home in Hendersonville ... about 20 miles outside of Nashville.