TMZ.com

Jennifer Lopez brought some serious heat to St. Barts ... strolling down the sandy white beach in a teeny white bikini top.

The multi-talented star paraded her toned bod while catching some rays ... completing the vacation look in a large straw hat, shades, and a pink towel wrapped around her hips.

With headphones plugged in, J Lo was in complete R&R mode ... clearly making the most of her festive Caribbean getaway following a busy year.

Things will kick off again in the New Year for Jen -- especially with the February release of her new doc, "This Is Me ... Now."

The film will focus on her rekindled romance with Ben Affleck and their 2022 nuptials ... so looks like the husband/wife duo will be hot on the promo trail soon.

Lance Bass is saying hi, hi, hi to an *NSYNC reunion ... he says there's discussions about getting the band back together.

Lance says Justin Timberlake, Joey Fatone, JC Chasez and Chris Kirkpatrick are talking about making a comeback ... and Lance is hoping to give *NSYNC fans good news at some point.

The boy band member hinted at the potential reunion during a recent appearance on the monthly online game show "Rent Free" which is played in the Bilt Rewards app.

But, when Bilt Rewards founder and CEO Ankur Jain pleaded for their return to be as early as January 1, Lance pumped the brakes ... saying, "Give us a little more time than that."

However, sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ there are still no official talks or plans for *NSYNC to reunite ... despite what Lance is saying here.

Our sources add there's no possibility of a tour, album, or residency happening anytime soon either.

Despite the uncertainty, an *NYSNC reunion would be a huge hit ... especially after the enormous reception to their VMA comeback in September.

Harry Styles is still lookin' Golden, even when the weather is crap ... 'cause he put his hot bod on full display while taking an ice-cold swim with his boo, Taylor Russell.

Harry and Taylor took a freezing cold dip in the Hampstead Heath swimming ponds, in a post recently uploaded on Instagram by a fan -- who we're sure was grinning from ear to ear.

The singer wasn't shying away from showing himself off ... rocking a beanie, underwear, what appears to be socks, and not much else -- we get why folks adore you, Harry.

As you know, Harry and Taylor have been linked since June when they were spotted on a date at a London art gallery ... and she was getting the VIP treatment at his Vienna concert the following month.

Since then, the 2 have been together quite a bit -- including when they got cozy at the press night for Taylor's play "The Effect" in London, as they chatted it up with folks like James Corden.

They also were spotted at U2's concert at Las Vegas' Sphere last month ... and as you'll recall, he was sporting a buzz cut -- which definitely shocked a few fans.

Video of the car crash that took the life of Dixie Chicks founding member Laura Lynch shows a mangled mess that hardly even resembles a motor vehicle.

The mangled vehicle in the video is a Ford truck, although it's almost impossible to make out. According to the crash report, Laura was driving an F-150 at the time of the crash.

According to an eyewitness, Laura was driving on Highway 62 outside of El Paso when a truck entered Laura's lane while trying to go around 2 other cars and struck her vehicle head-on. His account is consistent with the way law enforcement described the crash.

Drivers who witnessed the crash stopped to check on Laura ... and someone got her out of the truck by cutting her seatbelt but she may have already passed ... she had no pulse.

The driver who hit Laura was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Heat exhaustion was the cause of death of a Brazilian fan at Taylor Swift's concert ... a forensic report confirms.

Ana Clara Benevides Machado passed out during Taylor's Rio de Janeiro concert Nov. 17 amid the city's oppressive heat -- 105 degrees -- and was pronounced dead hours later at the hospital.

Rio's Forensic Medical Institute now reveals heat exposure led to a "serious compromise of her lungs and sudden death" -- basically, in medical terms, she suffered a cardiorespiratory arrest.

The report notes she didn't have any preexisting conditions or substance abuse issues that could have contributed to her death.

Rio's public prosecutor has now opened a criminal investigation of her death ... saying in a statement Wednesday representatives of the concert's organizers, Time4Fun, will be called to testify following an in-depth analysis of the report.

Soon after the tragic incident unfolded at Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos ... fans demanded the organizers supply more water at the following shows because they weren't allowed to take any into the venue themselves.

The company execs acknowledged their mistake shortly after ... saying they "did not economize in our efforts or resources to follow the best global practices in our industry to guarantee the comfort and safety of all."

Nick and Aaron Carter's sister, Bobbie Jean Carter, was found unresponsive in a bathroom the day she died ... just like her late brother Aaron.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office tells TMZ ... first responders were dispatched to Bobbie's Tampa, FL home Saturday morning, they found her and rushed her to a nearby hospital, where she was declared dead.

The sheriff says deputies learned Bobbie Jean was on probation for cocaine possession when she died, but her roommates told police she had not used any narcotics since being released from prison.

What's more, we're told deputies did not find any narcotics or drug paraphernalia in Bobbie Jean's bedroom or bathroom ... and there were no signs of foul play.

The sheriff says Bobbie Jean's death is under investigation ... and her official cause of death will be ultimately determined by the Medical Examiner's Office, pending toxicology results.

It's pretty eerie to learn Bobbie was found unresponsive in a bathroom ... because the same thing happened with Aaron.

Remember ... Aaron died last year after drowning in his bathtub. The autopsy report said Aaron became incapacitated due to the effects of prescription pills and huffing before slipping under the water and drowning.

Beyoncé's childhood home went up in flames on Christmas Day.

Officials say at around 2 AM, they responded to reports of a fire at the home, located in the city's Third Ward.

The two-story house was in flames, but first responders put out the fire in roughly 10 minutes.

Thankfully the family -- a couple with two young kids -- were able to evacuate the house. No one was injured.

As we previously reported ... Beyoncé's family bought the house way back in 1981 for $64k, but they moved out just a few years later, before Solange was born in 1986.

The house went up for sale in 2019. It has three bedrooms, three bathrooms, with a spiral staircase leading to a third-floor office space.

Mariah Carey broke the all-time record for most Spotify streams in a single day on Christmas Eve!!!

"All I Want For Christmas Is You" was streamed 23,701,697 times. Mariah shattered the record, which she set on Christmas Eve last year when the song was streamed 21,273,357 times.

It's nothing new to Mariah. She breaks this record every year. We previously reported that she set a new mark way back in 2020 when the song was streamed just over 17.2 million times on Christmas Eve that year, and then she broke that record the following year.

Mariah's been in a "Queen of Christmas" battle with Brenda Lee this year, and for the first time since Mariah's reign began, Brenda snagged the number 1 spot on Billboard's Hot 100 for one week during the lead-up to XMAS.

She was a good sport about it, sending Brenda some flowers and a congratulatory note.

Mariah recaptured the top spot the following week.

Nick and Aaron Carter's sister, Bobbie Jean Carter, has died ... TMZ has learned.

Bobbie Jean's mother, Jane Carter, tells us ... "I am in shock from learning of the sudden death of my daughter, Bobbie Jean; and I will need time to process the terrible reality of this happening for the third time.  When I am able to think clearly, I’ll release a fuller statement; but until then I would request to be left to grieve in private."

She adds ... "[H]owever deeply a parent feels the loss of a child, the suffering of a young child at the loss of a parent must be much greater. So, I would ask the sympathetic to say a prayer for my precious eight year old granddaughter Bella, who previously lost her father and is now also left without her mother."

The exact circumstances of Bobbie's death are unclear, but we know she passed away Saturday morning in Florida.

Bobbie Jean -- otherwise known as BJ -- was somewhat involved in the family's music business during the height of her brothers' careers ... especially Aaron, for whom she served as a wardrobe stylist and makeup artist during his tours back in the early 2000s.

She also appeared on the family's E! reality TV show, "House of Carters," on which she was featured in eight episodes. In the years since, Bobbie Jean lived a relatively private life in obscurity, shying away from the spotlight.

Bobbie Jean suffered from addiction and substance abuse over the years ... something that was documented on TV, and which she continued to battle into her later years of adulthood.

She had legal troubles as well, with arrests documented as recently as this year.

BJ's death marks yet another tragedy for the family at large. Not only did they lose Aaron last year due to a drowning at his home -- which was also found to have been drug-related -- but the Carters also lost their other sister, Leslie, in 2012 ... as a result of an overdose.

Now, the only living Carter siblings are Nick and Angel ... there are half-siblings and step-siblings in the family as well. Bobbie Jean is survived by a young daughter, Bella.

Bobbie Jean was 41.

1:20 PM PT -- The Chicks just addressed Laura's death, writing ... "We are shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of Laura Lynch, a founding member of The Chicks. We hold a special place in our hearts for the time we spent playing music, laughing and traveling together. Laura was a bright light…her infectious energy and humor gave a spark to the early days of our band. Laura had a gift for design, a love of all things Texas and was instrumental in the early success of the band. Her undeniable talents helped propel us beyond busking on street corners to stages all across Texas and the mid-West."

They add, "Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones at this sad time."

11:42 AM PT -- The Texas Dept. of Public Safety has confirmed Lynch's death, and the details thus far about how she died are absolutely tragic. Law enforcement says their preliminary investigation shows that Laura was heading east on Highway 62, and that another car heading west attempted to pass another vehicle in front of it on a two-way undivided portion of the highway.

As that car tried going around, it ended up hitting Laura's vehicle head-on... and killed her. The driver of the other vehicle was transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Laura was declared dead at the scene ... and a full probe has been launched.

Laura Lynch, a founding member of The Dixie Chicks, has died after being involved in a car crash ... TMZ has learned.

The musician's cousin, Mick Lynch, tells us Laura passed away Friday outside of El Paso, TX just after sunset while driving from there to nearby Dell City -- which is about an hour and a half away going east. We're told she was traveling on a highway and got into a collision.

No other details about the exact circumstances of the accident were immediately available.

Lynch co-founded the famous music group -- now known just as The Chicks -- alongside Robin Lynn Macy, Martie Erwin and Emily Erwin back in 1989 ... serving as the upright bassist and eventually taking on the role of lead vocalist for the band.

At first, they had a bluegrass/traditional country sound ... and toward the beginning of their career, they were mostly a local Texas act that toured the area and surrounding states.

Eventually, they released their first album, "Thank Heavens for Dale Evans," in 1990 ... which didn't produce any charting singles. Ditto for their 2nd album, "Little Ol' Cowgirl," from 1992 -- although that one featured a song that got covered and got some play, "Past the Point of Rescue." It was during this period that another OG member, Robin Lynn Macy, exited.

Come '93, it was just 3 Dixie Chicks and they released yet another album, "Shouldn't a Told You That," which didn't receive much commercial success either. This was the last album Lynch contributed to before leaving the band in '95 ... when Natalie Maines replaced her.

There are different reasons cited for why Lynch left ... but it appears she was heading in a different direction big picture -- wanting to focus on family and personal matters. At any rate, in interviews since -- LL expressed no regrets about her decision, and went on to live a relatively private life. Of course, in the following years ... the Dixie Chicks caught fire.

With Maines, the sound of the band changed to become a bit more modern ... and Maines took up lead vocal duties -- with sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer staying on too. They broke through into the mainstream in '98 with "Wide Open Spaces," and took off.

Of course, the Dixie Chicks were at the center of a lot of controversy heading into the 2000s -- including their remarks on George W. Bush and the Iraq War -- and eventually ... they changed their band name too due to the racist southern undertones affiliated with the OG.

As for Laura, she married Mac Tull and had a daughter, both of whom she's survived by. She was 65.

RIP

Scooter Braun is calling out A-listers in the music industry ... demanding they do more with their large platforms to help Israeli hostages in the Middle East.

The music exec sat down with Rachel Goldberg, the mother of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, an Israeli hostage who's been held in Gaza for 76 days. Rachel says she's been struggling to get big celebs to help spread the word about her son, saying, "the silence from the music industry has been so deafeningly palpable for us."

According to Scooter and Rachel ... celebs are hesitant to speak on the subject due to the nuance of the conflict between Israel and Palestine -- but Scooter says that's not a valid reason to stay quiet.

As Scooter puts it, he's begging people to just say "something" and ask for the hostages to come home. Scooter acknowledges this is a sensitive subject matter  ... but the fact that Hamas' attack happened at a music festival should make it personal to everyone who works in the industry.

SB has been spending time in Israel helping people in need.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce might not be anywhere near the baby-making stage of their relationship, but that doesn't mean others aren't ... and it sounds like folks like their names.

A rep for BabyNames.com -- one of the premiere destinations for digital baby name sifting online -- tells TMZ ... it's them, they're the problem (or the reason, rather) for why they believe searches for the monikers of "Taylor" and "Travis" have skyrocketed on their site.

We're told those two names have jumped about 25% between November and December compared to what their users might normally search -- and BN.com says they attribute this to the Tayvis phenomenon that's consumed pop culture throughout the entirety of fall.

Obviously, Taylor was a major star before hooking up with Travis ... but we're told the relationship has, arguably, made her even more popular -- and the proof's in the data.

BTW, if you're wondering what these names mean and where they come from -- we know that too. Taylor is an English gender-neutral name that literally means ... "One who tailors clothes." As for Travis, another English name that means "From the crossing or Tollgate."

We've seen this sort of craze with baby names before -- namely, when the "Barbie" movie came out and people were totally obsessed with it ... flocking to BabyNames.com to look up those names as well at the time. Now, Taylor appears to be dominating their online engines.

Nirvana and Kurt Cobain's estate are being told nevermind when it comes to the dismissal of a child pornography lawsuit centered around a famous album cover ... 'cause the lawsuit is back on.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit revived the lawsuit Thursday, reversing a lower court's decision to toss the whole thing.

Remember ... Spencer Elden says he's the naked baby pictured on the band's "Nevermind" album cover. Of course, he's all grown up now and in 2021 he filed suit against Nirvana and Cobain's estate over the cover.

Spencer accused Nirvana of publishing child porn by using a nude photo of him on the album cover way back in 1991 ... when he was just four months old.

The suit was dismissed in September 2022 ... when a district judge in California ruled Spencer had waited too long to sue Nirvana.

Now, the appeals court says the suit can go forward because Nirvana republished the album cover in 2021 when the band re-released "Nevermind" and held that each republication of the cover may constitute a new injury to Elden ... clearing the way for Spencer to continue his lawsuit against the Seattle grunge band.

Britney Spears hasn't yet scheduled a flight heading east for the holidays, but her mom still believes a last-minute Christmas miracle might happen in the 11th hour ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... there are still talks about Britney returning home for Christmas in Louisiana, where her mother Lynne Spears still resides.

Now, we're told official travel arrangements haven't necessarily been made at this point -- but our sources tell us Lynne and people in Britney's world feel like there's time on the table to make something happen ... and we've been assured Lynne herself is certainly hopeful.

It's unclear what exactly the holdup might be on Britney's end -- especially considering she just recently hosted Lynne here in L.A. for her 42nd birthday and appeared to be on great terms with her mom.

Sounds like Lynne's leaving the ball in Britney's court ... and praying for some movement. BTW, she signaled this same feeling to us on camera not too long ago at LAX.

Whether Brit ends up jetting on over or not remains to be seen -- but our sources tell us ... everyone in this situation feels like Britney should realize she has one mother, and since they've already started patching things up ... they oughta be together for the holiday.

Mariah Carey's reign as the Queen of Xmas is only getting stronger ... as she journeyed to D.C. to spread some festive cheer at the White House.

In a post shared to her IG Wednesday, the singer posed with President Joe Biden ... with her 12-year-old twins Moroccan and Monroe in tow.

Wearing a glittering minidress and matching cropped jacket for some extra Christmas flare, Mariah was in her element as she also got snap-happy with Kamala Harris & her hubby Doug Emhoff.

In the caption, Mariah gushed about all the extensive festive decor she saw during the visit ... which took place last week with her brood.

The twins have been popping up a lot lately in their momma's Christmas-related ventures ... most recently in the music vid for the upgraded version of her classic, "All I Want For Christmas Is You."

Madonna's on Santa's naughty list this year -- and while he looked totally down to revel in some fun smut at her concert, it ended up costing him with an onstage fall.

The singer brought out a Claus -- classic red suit and all -- during Tuesday night's stop in D.C. for her "Celebration" tour, and it looks like they were attempting to do some kind of edgy lap dance sequence with him and some of her backup dancers.

SC plopped down on a chair, waiting for his treats -- with Madonna standing nearby to monitor the choreography. When the dancer finally mounted him ... they both went tumbling.

Nobody was hurt or anything, but it was a lil' embarrassing ... especially for the jolly man, who should be plenty used to folks on his lap by now.

Funny enough, no one skipped a beat in the moment. The dancer who went down immediately got back to poppin'/lockin' (even from the floor) ... and Madge continued handling mic duties like nothing happened -- all of this while Saint Nick was slowly trying to get up.