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The father of singer-actor Harry Connick Jr. has died in Louisiana, according to the Associated Press.

Harry Connick Sr. passed away peacefully in his New Orleans home Thursday, the AP reported, although his cause of death was not disclosed. He was surrounded by his wife, Londa and two children, daughter Suzanna and his famous son Harry.

Connick Sr. was the New Orleans District Attorney for three decades, winning his first election in 1973 and unseating incumbent prosecutor Jim Garrison. He stayed as the city's D.A. for many years, getting reelected four times by developing biracial support among the city's politically powerful African American base.

After his retirement in 2003, Connick Sr. faced harsh criticism for allegedly hiding evidence that could have tipped the scales in favor of several defendants, who later had their convictions overturned.

In one case, John Thompson was exonerated for a murder he did not commit after 14 years on Louisiana's Death Row.

Thompson filed a lawsuit in state court against the New Orleans D.A.'s Office, accusing Connick Sr. of withholding key evidence that would have found him innocent at trial. The judge awarded Thompson $14 million, but the U.S. Supreme Court later overturned the decision by a 5-4 vote.

In 2014, Connick Sr. again came under scrutiny when a judge tossed out the 1990 murder conviction of Reginald Adams.

Adams was released from prison after serving 34 years. His attorneys proved that Connick Sr. kept vital evidence under wraps during his trial.

Later, Adams sued the D.A.'s Office, agreeing to a $1.25 million settlement.

Over the years, Connick Sr. kept silent about his controversial reign as D.A., but he finally defended his legacy in a 2012 interview with The Times-Picayune.

He was 97.

Kurt Cobain died nearly 30 years ago -- but one man has been following the case since, and published what he claims is the official autopsy report ... unviewed publicly until now.

A private investigator named Tom Grant threw up this PDF on his Twitter account Wednesday -- writing ... "Download link for a free copy of the Kurt Cobain Autopsy Report at: http://cobaincase.com/Cobain Autopsy.pdf  Copy/paste the entire link, including 'Autopsy.pdf' into your browser window). This is the first time this report has been made public."

From the looks of it ... Tom has his own site that's been chronicling his investigation into the death case -- dating back to when Kurt took his own life in 1994 -- and it seems TG's come to his own conclusions about it all ... but the bigger point is this document he's published.

He claims it's the real deal, although ... he doesn't explain how he obtained it. Kurt's autopsy was never released back then -- and it all had to with some Washington state laws that prevent the disclosure of that type of info. They do release these docs to family though.

Anyway, you can take a look at the purported report yourself if you want ... because, we'll admit, if it is real -- it most certainly is an interesting read, for Nirvana fans or otherwise.

We won't get into the nitty-gritty of it all, because it's quite graphic ... but what we will say is that the alleged report purports to confirm what most everyone has known about his death for years -- namely, that he tragically died by suicide, and that he used to a shotgun on himself.

There's also info in here about what medical professionals say was found to be in Kurt's system at the time -- and it looks like there was a mix of substances. We've attempted to verify the authenticity of this report ... but King County officials wouldn't comment, and again cited the Washington law.

Kurt left behind his wife, Courtney Love, and his daughter Frances Bean. He was only 27.

50 Cent dodging a criminal charge for decking a DJ with a microphone doesn't mean he's out of the woods ... 'cause he's now staring down the barrel of a hefty lawsuit.

TMZ Hip Hop obtained the docs filed by Bryhana Monegain, the Los Angeles-based radio host for Power 106 who was hospitalized following 50's Final Lap Tour set inside the Crypto.com Arena on August 3, 2023.

According to the suit ... once 50 realized his mic was malfunctioning, he opted to throw it in the crowd, where Bryhana claims it struck her in the face and wrist ... resulting in severe and permanent injuries.

Her alleged injuries, specified in the docs, align with the story we broke at the time ... Bryhana says she suffered a concussion and a forehead laceration, among other bumps and bruises.

Bryhana's since returned to work at her afternoon radio slot, but says she continues to suffer from emotional distress over the incident.

She's suing for the wages she lost during her recovery, in addition to medical expenses and other damages.

We know 50, through an attorney, had previously denied intentionally harming anyone -- but that was when he was being criminally investigated over this ... which he's now clear of.

Snoop Dogg once pushed his luck blowin' ganja clouds in Michael Jackson's direction, which would've been an epic moment -- but the King of Pop wasn't with the smoke.

While speaking to Andy Cohen, Snoop recalled the moment he pissed off MJ ... back in May 2008, both superstars attended and performed at late fashion designer Christian Audigier's Vegas birthday bash.

Following their sets, Snoop says he hightailed it back to his dressing room and lit up a blunt -- where he was put on high alert that his dressing room was right next to Mike's.

Snoop says he hopped up in disbelief, opened the door, and blew a bunch of smoke into the hallway ... and MJ was standing right there looking at him and told him, "Snoop, don't do that."

That smokey encounter didn't damage their relationship too much ... Snoop says he and MJ collaborated on a long-lost track for a philanthropy project, but he has no idea where the vocals are now.

A black metal band might've gone too far with their latest gimmick ... drawing the ire of fans on social media after tossing around a severed pig head at a recent show.

Martyrdom played a gig at the White Swan in Houston, TX on Friday -- when one of the band members made the bonehead move of bringing a severed pig's head to the show ... and later hurling it around the room, some of which was caught on video.

Check out the vid -- pigs really do fly in this case, with the head soaring from the middle of a circle and into the crowd amid screams and blaring music. Someone also took a still of the head ... and it's a pretty terrifying-looking thing to have thrown in anyone's direction.

Now, if you're wondering how social media reacted ... the answer's pretty emphatically NOT good. The boys in the band are getting tons of backlash for bringing the head -- with some people making "Lord of the Flies" references ... and others playing the animal cruelty card.

Martyrdom must've realized they messed up because they've since released an apology -- saying their stunt got out of hand and they didn't mean to offend anyone. They went on to apologize to any "vegans, Muslims or other minority groups" they offended as well as anyone who was "harmed" during the act. At this point, it's unclear if the swine caused any injuries.

The group also apologized specifically to the venue, and the sound operator ... though it's unclear how he might've been affected by the set. Worth noting ... the band has done this before -- and the act of throwing pig heads is kind of a pastime of metal bands, period.

Melanie Safka -- otherwise just known as "Melanie" -- has died ... according to her team.

The sad news came courtesy of the singer's PR firm, which announced her death on Tuesday -- but which didn't disclose any official cause, or the exact circumstances. Her children also confirmed her passing to various outlets.

Melanie is, perhaps, most famous for singing at the OG Woodstock back in '69 ... where she crooned as one of just a few solo female performers that year, and left quite an impression on the audience. In fact, her experience at Woodstock went on to inspire more music.

One song she ended up writing in the wake of that was 'Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)' -- and it apparently had to do with people doing exactly that at the historic gathering.

A couple years after her big Woodstock gig ... Melanie came out with a single that put her on the map, and it was called 'Brand New Key,' which went on to become her biggest hit.

The song ended up being featured across a number of different mediums over the years -- most notably in 'Boogie Nights' during Dirk Diggler's porn audition with Rollergirl. If you've seen the movie, you probably remember this well ... it left an impression.

'BNK' was also heard in 'Jackass 3-D' ... as well as on shows like 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia,' 'The Bridge' and 'Doctor Who,' -- not to mention on late-night shows, plus 'American Idol' and 'The Voice.' Indeed, it was very popular through the decades.

Other tracks she'll be remembered for ... 'What Have They Done to My Song Ma,' 'Ruby Tuesday,' 'The Saddest Thing,' 'Bitter Bad,' 'Ring the Living Bell,' 'The Nickel Song,' and more.

Melanie continued working in and around music late into her life -- including meeting up with stars like Miley Cyrus and other contemporary folks/rock singers who carried on the torch.

Word is ... Melanie was actually working on a new album as recently as this month, one in which she'd be doing covers. She was 76.

It may soon be farewell to the giant ferris wheel, scorchin' desert heat, and Vanessa Hudgens' boho style -- that is ... if this year's Coachella ticket sales are any indication.

As it turns out ... people aren't all that interested in Coachella this year. In fact, 2024 marks the slowest ticket sales in a decade -- this according to SFGate, which cites some troubling stats for Goldenvoice and co.

Long story short ... passes for this year's Coachella just aren't selling like they used to -- and you can verify that yourself by just going to their site, where you can snap up tix right now.

Yes, they're very much still up for grabs 5 days after hitting the market --  a total shock, especially cause it would sell out within minutes in previous years. Now, you can just go to their homepage and buy just about whatever ticket package you want, at your leisure.

Interestingly, this site is also letting people purchase up to 8 tickets this year compared to only 2 in previous years -- so it looks as though festival organizers are practically begging people to splash some cash on them ... at least that's how it feels anyway.

Though they never had this issue before ... fans famously waited hours in virtual queues to get their hands on coveted wristbands in years gone by -- despite the steep prices.

This is very strange ... 'cause Coachella tix are usually such a hot commodity -- selling out in 40 mins in 2015 and 4 hours in 2022. So, the fact that passes for the second and third tier of the first weekend are still up for grabs days later says a lot about the festival's popularity.

Remember ... the likes of the Doja Cat, No Doubt, and Lana Del Rey are headlining this year -- and while they aren't the biggest stars out there, they still have a massive fanbase ... so it's hard to say if they, specifically, are the reason behind the sluggish sales.

Still, some are attributing this slump to the lackluster lineup -- there have been lots of complaints.

Simply put, looks like Coachella's losing its appeal in a sea of cooler new festivals ... for one reason or another.

Elle King will not be taking the stage later this week even though she was scheduled to -- 'cause she pulled the plug on her live gig kinda last minute ... without providing a reason.

The country star was set to rock the house Friday at a venue in Fort Worth, TX called Billy Bob's Texas -- which is basically a concert hall there in town ... and where EK was due to serve as the main talent heading into the weekend.

On Wednesday, however, it was announced by Billy Bob and co. that Elle would not actually be performing ... they said she had to postpone her show, and wouldn't be able to come back until way down the road in September.

TMZ confirmed the news -- and a rep there told us they just got word from Elle's team about this today ... so yes, the entire thing is very sudden. More importantly, we're told Elle's camp did not offer any valid explanation for the postponement.

While nobody has a clear answer on why Elle bailed, a lot of people are already speculating it may have to do with what went down over the weekend ... when Elle went onstage at the Grand Ole Opry and tried covering a Dolly Parton song -- only to botch it terribly.

She was accused of slurring her words, forgetting the lyrics and acting disorderly through the whole performance -- and many thought she might've been under the influence at the time. Elle herself confirmed that in her words ... telling everyone she was "f****** hammered."

Her "tribute" to DP caught a ton of flak ... and now, she's stepping away from the spotlight, it seems. We reached out to Elle's team ourselves and were told she had to postpone for "unforeseen circumstances" ... and they noted they wouldn't be commenting on this further.

Chris Young is accused of starting a fight with a Tennessee bureaucrat in a bar -- but now, new video appears to show he didn't do much of anything at all ... or so it seems, anyway.

You'll recall ... the country singer was arrested earlier this week after law enforcement officials alleged he got physical with an agent from the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission out in Nashville Monday night -- this after they came in to check IDs and driver's licenses.

The arrest affidavit claims Chris blocked the TABC agents from exiting the bar they were at -- alleging he then put hands on one of them ... and even claiming he struck one of their shoulders. That resulted in some sort of scuffle ... and with Chris being booked.

He's facing charges of disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and assault on an officer -- but with this new video here ... many are questioning whether Chris did anything whatsoever.

Chris' attorney has been decrying the charges, insisting these clips of the incident -- which are making the rounds online and elsewhere -- make it crystal clear ... he's innocent.

His client has a court date later in February to answer for these charges ... but Chris' lawyer is pushing to have them dropped outright, and based on what's depicted here -- he might have a point. It certainly looks like Chris didn't start any fight ... the other dude did.

K-pop group BabyMonster is back to being a septet -- 'cause Ahyeon has rejoined her fellow members after missing their big debut to focus on her health.

YG Entertainment just announced the big news Wednesday ... saying Ahyeon has "fully recovered" from her personal issues and is currently working on the group's upcoming projects.

He said in a video message ... "From the mini-album onwards, you can look forward to BabyMonster's activities as a perfect seven-member group" ... adding any previous work will be re-recorded to include Ahyeon's vocals.

Yang also said the group's EP will drop April 1 ... and the plan is to release their first full-length project later this year.

As we previously reported, the 16-year-old singer left the ensemble shortly before its first single, "Batter Up," came out in November ... with only Ruka, Pharita, Asa, Rami, Rora and Chiquita taking part in the audio recording and music video.

Despite Ahyeon's absence, the visuals racked up more than 200 million views online.

It's more great news for YG -- in December, it was reported BLACKPINK's Jennie, Jisoo, Lisa and Rosé agreed to stay with the label for all group-related activities while going elsewhere for solo work.

Fans are also excited ... as Ahyeon was considered to be one of the biggest rising stars in the industry, even drawing comparisons to Jennie due to her wide-ranging skills on the mic.

The Tina Knowles/Janet Jackson beef that fans have been perceiving over the past 24 hours or so is over ... 'cause Beyonce's mom came out and cleared the air on what happened.

Here's the deal ... eagle-eyed fans noticed that Tina had recently liked an IG post that was criticizing the fact that Janet's concerts of late were charging sky-high prices for VIP tickets, which included meet-and-greets, etc. The gripe ... who do you think you are, Queen Bey???

Again, this was some random person's Instagram post -- featuring screengrabs of JJ ticket prices -- and folks saw that Tina was among the people who "liked" this.

Shortly thereafter, a major back-and-forth ensued between Beyhive loyalists and Janet's proverbial rhythm nation ... 'cause everyone thought Tina was cosigning the notion that Janet Jackson ain't no Beyoncé, and her trying to charge similarly was disrespectful.

Welp, Tina poured cold water on all of that ... hopping on IG to clarify what she meant.

As you can see here, she says she didn't mean to shade Janet -- and the whole thing sounds like a case of mistaken heart-button-smashing ... without properly reading.

Tina made sure to note she knows what goes into a killer live production -- and kinda kissed the ring a bit for Ms. Jackson, calling her brood the "first family of music." So yeah, she's showing reverence to Janet ... and clearly holds her in high regard.

TK also hopped on the compliment train once again in her caption, adding she "took Destiny's Child to see Janet when they were 15 years old. They always looked up to her and she opened doors for Beyoncé. Why would I hate on her ?"

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry made a rare public appearance all the way down in Jamaica -- hitting up the premiere for the new Bob Marley movie ... which is interesting.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex flew down to Kingston Tuesday night, where they were in attendance to watch the biopic about the late singer -- and yes, they were dressed to the nines and smiling from ear to ear ... looking pretty dang happy to be there.

Like we said, the Royal couple doesn't really get out all that much ... so the fact they surfaced for this film, specifically, perhaps speaks to a couple different things -- assuming you wanna read into it.

For starters ... it's worth noting Jamaica as a nation, of late, has made it clear it wants to step out from under the British Monarchy and become an independent republic -- similar to Barbados, which broke off on its own in recent years.

In fact, the Jamaican PM has spoken on this firmly ... to none other than Prince William and Kate Middleton during a tour of the country in 2022.

That's why the Prime Minister's presence at the premiere was also eye-popping, especially since Meg and Harry posed with him and appeared chummy. It makes ya rub your chin.

Considering their own history, you'd figure MM and PH are in alignment with what Jamaica wants ... so them standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Andrew Holness speaks volumes.

The other element here is the fact that this Bob Marley movie is being distributed through Paramount -- and a head honcho from the studio, Nickelodeon Prez Brian Robbins, was also there ... and he, too, posed with Meghan and Harry at one point during arrivals.

We know these two are in search of new opportunities in showbiz after taking some lumps last year ... and this almost seems like they're cozying up to the star/mountain crew.

It's that ... or they could just be huge Marley fans -- hard to say.

In any case, Meg and Harry were enjoying themselves ... even though they technically have nothing to do with this flick. Maybe this is the first sign of their redemption song in the biz.

Not to stir anything up, of course!

Frank Farian, the founder of musical groups Milli Vanilli and Boney M. -- both iconic for different reasons -- has died.

The German singer, songwriter, and producer's family confirmed his passing Tuesday ... saying Frank died peacefully at his Miami apartment.

His death comes 2 years after he underwent life-saving heart valve replacement surgery -- he got a pig heart valve inserted in his chest, because his own had shrunk with age.

In his last interview in November 2023, he gushed his new heart valve was working wonderfully and told German newspaper Bild, he was grateful he had a "good pig in me."

Despite his claims of good health, contrasting reports said his condition had deteriorated after the procedure -- he'd lost a lot of weight and had to use a wheelchair and breathing equipment due to lung issues.

Frank was born Franz Reuther in western Germany in 1941 ... kicking things off in the music industry as a solo artist while also training to be a chef.

He made his first big splash in the music world in 1976 ... when he founded the disco vocal group Boney M.

"Daddy Cool," "Rasputin," and "Mary's Boy Child" were just a few hits from the group comprised of Marcia Barrett, Liz Mitchell, Maizie Williams and Bobby Farrell.

His most dubious move, though, came in the late '80s ... Frank founded the R&B pop duo Milli Vanilli. He hired Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus as the eye candy, while he enlisted other performers to do the actual singing on hits like "Blame It On The Rain" and "Girl You Know It's True."

The group would actually win the Grammy for Best New Artist before the whole lip-synching sham came crashing down during a "live" performance. The Recording Academy took back their Grammy.

Frank also worked with the likes of Stevie Wonder and Meat Loaf ... and reportedly sold an estimated 800 million records worldwide.

Country singer Chris Young went out for a drink in Nashville and ended his night in jail after being arrested following an alleged incident with officials.

According to the arrest affidavit, obtained by TMZ, Chris was drinking at the Tin Roof bar Monday night in midtown Nashville when agents from the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission came in to check IDs and license cards ... and things spiraled from there.

The "Gettin' You Home" singer allegedly started questioning the agents after they checked his ID ... and officials say he started recording them and then followed them to the Dawg House, a bar next door where the TABC was doing a routine compliance check.

At the next bar, the officials claim Chris and a group of friends started talking to folks at the bar and the bartender while agents went to the back of the bar to check ABC cards.

The agents say they were walking to the door when Chris blocked their exit, putting his hands on one of the officers to stop the agent from leaving and striking the agent on the shoulder.

The officer says they pushed Chris away and then bar patrons rushed to get between Chris and the agents ... leading to lots of yelling and screaming. The agents say folks who were with Chris followed them out of the bar and made the situation "hostile."

In their report, the officers say Chris' "eyes were bloodshot and watery" and they say he was slurring his speech.

We're told Chris was arrested and booked on 3 charges ... disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and assault on officer offensive contact ... all misdemeanors.

Selena Gomez is making significant strides in her body positivity journey ... embracing her physical changes throughout the years, while acknowledging there's no going back.

The actress posted an old photo of herself, in which she looks significantly different -- sharing a bikini snap to her IG Stories Monday from years earlier ... writing that she'd never look like that again. Hard to say if Selena sees that as good or bad, but she's pointing it out.

SG then shared a recent swimsuit snap of herself from behind -- and while she undeniably still looks great ... the star used it as a reminder to practice self-love. Selena says despite not being "perfect," it's OK to be herself ... and she's proud of being who she is.

Worth noting ... Selena has faced body-shamers in the past, so it's interesting she's speaking up on this.

In 2022, she famously said being skinny wasn't worth the hassle of denying yourself your favorite foods ... adding, "Bitch, I am perfect the way I am."

Rihanna and Natalie Portman are the duo we didn't know we needed ... until now, that is -- 'cause they came together in the most epic of ways, with mutual adoration for the other.

Check out this clip that's making the rounds ... you see RiRI fangirling hard after running into Natalie in Paris -- where she tells her she's the "hottest bitch in Hollywood." NP ain't shy about dishing out the compliments either ... 'cause she's clearly a fan of Rihanna as well.

Rihanna shamelessly makes it crystal clear she's well acquainted with ALL of Natalie's acting resume ... in particular, commending her abilities for pulling off the perfect innocent impression. Yeah, she's not kidding about being a fan -- you know she's seen her work.

Natalie, for her part, is pretty taken aback that RiRi is star-struck ... saying she may faint by all the love being poured on her. Like we said, she's certainly familiar with Rihanna too.

It's pretty funny to watch -- usually, Rihanna has a cool, calm, collected demeanor about herself in just about everything she does ... but here, she's like a kid in a candy store!

The exchange doesn't end there ... Rihanna asks someone to take a snap of them, to which they happily obliged. The two mega stars posed for a pic ... flashing big smiles.