TMZ.com

The man formerly known as Kanye West appears to be trying to fit in as much travel time as he can before year's end ... most recently hitting Belize with his good buddy J Prince.

Ye touched down in Central America Wednesday, and was pictured at the Philip S.W Goldson International Airport posing with Prince. Unclear if Kanye's there for work, pleasure or both ... but J Prince owns an island down there, so there should be plenty of space to relax.

It's unclear if Ye and J arrived together, or if Kanye flew out to meet his friend, but the two have certainly collabed a lot lately.

Remember, it was J Prince who played a pivotal part in bringing Kanye and Drake together for the Free Larry Hoover show in Los Angeles earlier this month. The show was a huge success, bringing over 70,000 people to the L.A. Coliseum and bringing the rappers together as friends again.

No word on if Drake has any plans to hit Belize, but obviously another reunion is no longer out of the question.

Katy Perry is the queen of hip hops ... because she opened her Vegas residency with her own brew ... and you gotta see how she did it!

Katy was performing Wednesday night at Resorts World when she started yapping with a giant COVID mask about this and that ... and then had a hankering for a beer.

So, the 37-year-old mother of 1 was super resourceful, using the can attached to her dress to lactate a glass of Corona, and the crowd loved it.

At one point during the show, Katy popped out of a neon toilet.

It's interesting that Katy actually made COVID a theme in the concert, as you can see from the video.

She'll be doing 32 shows through March of next year. She'll also receive a Queen's ransom for her efforts ... reportedly $168 mil! It's not unprecedented ... Celine Dion and J Lo also made a fortune during their residencies in Sin City.

Simon Cowell quietly tried to save the life of Il Divo singer Carlos Marin ... by offering him a private jet so he could get treatment for COVID.

Simon's not the person who made this public ... it was Carlos' wife, Geraldine Larrosa, who told a Spanish outlet, "Simon personally phoned the hospital and offered to help with anything."

Geraldine says Simon offered to fly Carlos to Spain for some sort of treatment ... treatment that presumably was not available at Manchester Royal Hospital where he was fighting for his life.

Carlos' case was so severe, he had to be intubated. He died on December 19 at the age of 53.

Avicii's final words before taking his own life have been revealed in a new book, and it underscores the tragedy.

As we reported ... the 28-year-old Swedish DJ committed suicide back in April 2018, using a broken glass bottle.

Diary entries he wrote just before his death are in the book, "Tim – The Official Biography of Avicii” and they are heartbreaking.

The grim entries were written while he was in the hospital and in rehab ... He wrote, "Those days in hospital were the most anxiety and stress-free days I can remember the past six years, those were my true vacations, as depressing as it might sound.”

The EDM singer opened up about his long battle with drug and alcohol abuse... "I had a hard time accepting never drinking again though strongly suggested from all doctors to wait at least a year before even having a beer.” That had shades of a dangerous turn in the rehab movement -- California rehab, which suggests addicts can drink moderately and smoke weed. Experts say it's a recipe for disaster.

He went on ... “Of course, I didn’t listen to the majority of the doctors, I listened to the couple who said it was OK if I was careful. I was ignorant and naive and touring the world, still on the never-ending tour ..."

The day before his suicide, Avici wrote, "The shedding of the soul is the last attachment before it restarts!"

Tupac Shakur wrote a love poem to one of his old girlfriends back in the day ... it appears to have inspired one of his big hits ... and now it can be yours if the price is right!

The folks over at Moments in Time are hawking a handwritten poem Tupac penned to a former flame named Simi ... the story goes this piece of Tupac history inspired his famous "All Eyez on Me."

The poem is titled "All Eye Was Lookin 4" ... and it's going up for sale for $95,000 ... so this is no cheap holiday present ... if you're still doing your holiday shopping.

The auction house says the poem, dated Aug. 26, 1995, ended up in a private collection ... and 26 years later it's hitting the market.

BTW ... Tupac's "All Eyez On Me" came out in 1996 ... so it all tracks.

As you see ... Tupac put his rhyming skills to good use in the poem ... telling a story of how he fell in love with Simi and the direction he hoped their relationship would go.

Bing Crosby's former estate is hitting the market ... and the place is so nice, even John F. Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe stayed there.

Our real estate sources tell us Bing's former mansion in Rancho Mirage, CA is up for sale at $4.5 million ... and the place includes a guest house dubbed the "JFK Wing."

The sprawling estate is 6,700 square feet with 5 bedrooms ... sitting on 1.36 acres in the esteemed Thunderbird Heights neighborhood in the desert town near Palm Springs.

The place features panoramic views of the surrounding mountains and valleys ... and it's got all the bells and whistles, including theater room, pool and spa, bar, putting green and an outdoor kitchen.

The master suite is 1,400 square feet and comes decked out with a fireplace, walk-in closet and tub, plus indoor and outdoor showers.

The guest house, where JFK often stayed, is on the opposite side of the residence ... and it features 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, plus a full kitchen and living room.

As you probably know, JFK had a well-documented affair with Marilyn, and they found places to meet ... one of which was Bing's pad.

The neighborhood is super private with high-level, 24-hour security ... so it's no wonder the place hosted celebs like JFK and MM, and was home to Bing.

Britney Spears and Sam Asghari had a night out on the town Monday, and they clearly like the restaurant -- problem is, it's one of the few joints in town laced with paparazzi.

Britney and her fiance hit up Catch restaurant in WeHo. You may recall, it's the same place they went last month to celebrate the end of the conservatorship.

Britney shielded herself from cameras during her walk in and out ... but again, Catch is one of 5 restaurants in the City of Angeles where the paps are regularly and reliably ensconced.

Brit's clearly upbeat ... a switch-up from an emotional post that same evening, where she decried the abuse she says she suffered at the hands of her family.

Bebe Rexha opened up about her struggle with weight over the holidays, and she's clearly having a hard time, but at the same time offering encouragement to others.

The singer said, “So, it is the holidays and I know we’re all supposed to be, like, merry and like, ‘Yay, it’s the holidays. I think I am the heaviest I have ever been. I weighed myself just now and I don’t feel comfortable sharing the weight ’cause I feel embarrassed.'”

Rexha then went on to say ... “I just feel disgusting, you know, like in my own body.”

She went on to say ... “I don’t feel good in my skin, and when I don’t feel good, I don’t want to post, and that’s really honestly the reason I haven’t been posting in the last year or so as much as I used to.”

Bebe acknowledged her struggle with body image is from “a place of hurt and confusion.”

In the past she's celebrated her body image, saying she wanted to normalize women who are not wafer-thin. She's blasted body shamers in the past and proudly posted bikini pics, but she's clearly going through it now.

Travis Scott's Catus Jack collab with Dior has been put on ice.

Dior made it clear Tuesday the project between Travis and Dior's men's artistic director Kim Jones -- hawking Travis' Cactus Jack line -- would not be released in the foreseeable future ... and possibly never.

Dior said, “Out of respect for everyone affected by the tragic events at Astroworld, Dior has decided to postpone indefinitely the launch of products from the Cactus Jack collaboration originally intended to be included in its summer 2022 collection."

Sources connected to Scott tell TMZ this was a mutual decision made by both Dior and Travis Scott to postpone the upcoming collection due in Jan '22 with both parties working to reschedule the launch at a later date.

There have been other projects and engagements that have been sidelined in the wake of the Astroworld tragedy. Among the projects postponed -- Nike, which was set to launch a line of Air Max 1 sneakers with Scott earlier this month.

As you know ... 10 people died during the first night of the festival, and more than 300 were injured.

Scott continued performing for more than 40 minutes after fire officials declared it a "mass casualty event." Scott says he had no idea of the calamity below, and apparently neither did cops, who seemed oblivious to the deaths and injured in the crowd.

Britney Spears gave a giant "f you" to her family Monday ... literally saying "f you" to them.

Spears was clearly angry when she posted, “Not doing music anymore is my way of saying ‘F–k You’ in a sense when it only actually benefits my family by ignoring my real work." She went on ... “It’s like I’ve subconsciously let them win.”

She tried explaining why she pulled the plug on doing music ... "So much wasted time to only embarrass me and humiliate me and I guess it seems odd to most now why I don't even do my music anymore ... People have no idea the awful things that were done to me personally and after what I've been through, I'm scared of people and the business!!! They really hurt me!!!!!" She said recently more music is coming.

She continued to unload ... "I had an experience three years ago where i stopped believing in God!!!! From every angle i was being hurt for no reason and my family was hurting me ... I went into a state of shock and the way I coped was being fake denial ... I screamed alone a lot and I kept all that pain to myself!!!!"

Britney is angry over her sister, Jamie Lynn, performing a remix of her song "Till the World Ends" at the 2017 Radio Disney Music Awards. She said, “It didn’t make sense how network television shows are showcasing my music with remixes of all of my music … yet the person who owns the music is told no!!!!” Britney wrote. “They even gave remixes to my sister but I was always told no?”

Britney was self-reflective, saying, “I obviously have serious insecurities. Otherwise I wouldn’t have acted like an obnoxious 8 year old last week defending myself with my accomplishments!!!!” She went on to say, "Honestly my family embarrassed me and hurt me deeply ... so tooting my own horn and seeing my past accomplishments reflecting back at me actually helped!!!!"

Madonna is beefing with Tory Lanez ... she says he's using one of her famous songs without her permission, and that's illegal!

Madonna called out the rapper on Instagram, leaving a comment on one of his recent posts and claiming "illegal usage" of her song, "Into The Groove."

It sounds like Madonna even slid in his direct messages to tell him off ... she's demanding he read his messages.

The song in question here is Tory's recent track, "Pluto's Last Comet" ... and he's been promoting it on his social media ... but Madonna's clearly not a fan. She believes the song -- especially the beginning instrumental -- is a rip-off of her earlier work.

As you know ... Tory's been getting himself into tons of trouble recently, mainly with his Megan Thee Stallion shooting case.

As we reported, a cop took the stand earlier this month and claimed TL shouted "Dance bitch, dance!" while firing gunshots at the ground near Megan's feet, subsequently injuring her.

TMZ broke the story ... a cast member on 'Love & Hip Hop: Miami" claimed back in May he needed medical attention after Tory allegedly attacked him at a nightclub.

Now, Madonna's taking issue with Tory ... though it's unclear if she's preparing to take legal action.

Diddy is doing the responsible thing with his enormous, annual New Year's Eve bash ... he's giving it the ax as the pandemic takes a turn for the worse.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us ... the mogul was planning to throw his annual NYE party in Miami Friday night, for 500 of his closest friends, but earlier this month he decided to cancel the whole thing due to rising COVID cases in Florida and across the nation.

This will be the second year in a row Diddy's NYE bash was put on ice.

Diddy hosted the party yearly before the pandemic hit, and the celebrity guest list was insane as you might imagine, but he also was forced to cancel in 2020, because most people had not yet been vaccinated.

Still, the Omicron variant is coming with a bunch of breakthrough cases for the vaccinated ... so it's the safe play to sideline the NYE soiree again.

The last time Diddy had his NYE party was back in 2019, when a bunch of celebs crammed into Story Nightclub in Miami ... including Fat Joe, Winnie Harlow, Meek Mill, DaBaby and DJ Khaled.

LeBron James seems to agree with Jay-Z -- that no one can stand on the same stage with him for a 'Verzuz' -- and maybe, just maybe, he feels the same way about himself on a basketball court.

LBJ was definitely feeling good Sunday night ... rapping along, line-by-line, to Jay's "Imaginary Player" while in the middle of what looks like a pretty swanky evening with his wife, Savannah, and friends.

What's interesting is ... the video plays like a public service announcement to all the haters dissing the Lakers for their sub-par season -- they're only 16-18 right now. Check the look on LeBron's face as he drops lines like, "Y'all rapping ass n***as, y'all funny to me ... Selling records, being you, but still you wanna be me."

As we previously reported ... Jay-Z recently shot down any hopes he would do a "Verzuz" battle, boasting there's no one on his level in hip-hop who even deserves to stand on a stage with him.

It's no secret LeBron's a big fan of Jigga -- so, you'd expect him to ride with Mr. Carter, but it's also clear certain Jay tracks are really speaking to the Lakers superstar right now.

BTW, LeBron's biz partner, Maverick Carter, joined in later, rapping with him to "Hova Song." Remember, Maverick was kicking it with Jay-Z, Adele and her BF, Rich Paul ... who, of course, is LBJ's agent.

Killer Mike's Atlanta barbershop has been vandalized -- it's a graffiti-riddled mess with a muddled message -- but Mike's message is clear ... the person who did this needs help.

Mike posted a pic of his shop, and it is covered in the ramblings of a troubled man.

Mike says he's angry over the vandalism, but that's not his primary concern. Mike says he can repair the damage with relative ease. More difficult ... he says the guy who did it is mentally ill and desperately needs help.

According to Mike, the vandal thinks he's Kurt Cobain and Mike is part of some sort of conspiracy of silence. That may explain the Dave Grohl graffiti.

Mike says, " ... this man's mind is terribly broken. If u are from OKC and know his family or friends please DM so u can get him some help."

This is so Mike ... looking at the bigger picture rather than just that which affects him. He went on to say, "... I encourage all to check on your mentally ill loved ones because the world may not be as understanding as me."

Kanye West seems to be acknowledging he can't pull his marriage out of the fire, so he's reportedly moving a stone's throw from his former family home ... presumably, so he can effectively co-parent with Kim.

Kanye bought a $4.5 million home across the street from his estranged wife ... so says the Daily Mail. The home is just over 3,650 square feet, with 5 bedrooms. He reportedly paid $421,000 over asking ... proof the real estate bidding war in SoCal is alive and well.

As we reported, Kanye gave Kim his interest in the family home ... a home Kanye designed over a period of years. TMZ broke the story, there are still some property issues that remain unsettled, so Kim has asked the judge to grant her the divorce now, and leave the other issues for later down the road.

Kanye's been wheeling and dealing lately in the real estate market ... he bought a $57.3 million Malibu beach home back in September, and recently listed his $3.7 million former bachelor pad.

As for his new digs, it also has the obligatory swimming pool and a stable for horses. It needs a lot of work, but Ye has more than proven he's up to the task.

As we've been reporting, Kanye has made a full-court press to get Kim back ... most recently at his concert with Drake at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum, he improvised lyrics to "Runaway"  ... I need you to run right back to me, more specifically Kimberly."

Diddy is getting rid of some bad memories ... because he sold the mansion where his late soulmate, Kim Porter, died.

Diddy put the Toluca Lake mansion up for sale back in October, listing it for $7 mil, and now there's a buyer ... the deal is pending and will likely close this week, but the sale is not final.

The sprawling estate is 9,655 square feet with 6 bedrooms and 7 bathrooms ... and it's got all the bells and whistles, including a family-sized pool and spa, plus a sports court.

The gated property sits on a half-acre on one of the most famous streets in the San Fernando Valley ... and the celeb neighbors include Steve Carell, Billy Ray Cyrus, Viola Davis and Sia.

As you know ... Kim, a model and actress, dated Diddy off and on for 13 years and they had 3 kids together, including 2 daughters and a son.

TMZ broke the story ... Kim was found dead in the home back in November 2018 at the age of 47, after losing her battle with pneumonia.