American Idol

Taylor Hicks doubled down saying "American Idol" contestants knew who was getting eliminated because, as he put it, everybody talked ... never mind what Nigel Lythgoe says.

We got Taylor at LAX on Monday night and told him what Nigel, the 'AI' executive producer, said ... denying he gave Taylor -- or any contestant -- the heads-up on results at any time.

Eddie Money's no "American Idol" judge, but he damn sure knows a good voice when he hears one ... even at the airport.

We got the "Two Tickets to Paradise" singer at LAX on Sunday when we introduced Eddie to LAX employee Tahjanae Johnson. We tell Eddie she's got a beautiful singing voice ... and Tahjanae wastes no time showcasing her chops.

Katharine McPhee and David Foster are back in the U.S. after their European vacation and made an interesting first stop after their trip.

The couple -- dressed pretty casually -- was spotted in Tribeca, but reportedly made their way to a jeweler in Midtown Thursday, a few days after getting engaged.

Foster popped the question in Anacapri, Italy and Katharine confirmed the engagement by posting a text exchange where someone described her ring as "beautiful and classic." We also have a photo of her showing it off at dinner earlier this week.

She was wearing a ring on her ring finger Thursday afternoon, so it's possible she was getting it resized ... or maybe they were shopping for Foster.

David Foster and Katharine McPhee are engaged after he popped the question during their European vacation ... TMZ has learned.

Katharine and David were on the Italian island of Capri Sunday as she showed off her engagement ring to family and friends over FaceTime. It's unclear exactly which day he proposed, but we imagine it was shortly before this pic was taken.

Katharine's rep, Leslie Sloan, confirmed the engagement.

The couple's been dating since last year, and haven't been shy about PDA -- including the time Kat grabbed a handful of David's butt, and their full-blown makeout sesh.

This will be the actress/singer's second marriage. Her music mogul fiance's got her beat by a mile ... it's his fifth. If you're checking his first dance card -- B.J. Cook, Rebecca Dyer, Linda Thompson, and Yolanda Hadid were the previous brides.

Mazel tov!

LeBron James just boosted the price of L.A. Lakers tickets in a HUGE way -- with rich stars like Randy Jackson admitting they would pay a bloody fortune to see Bron play at Staples Center.

"[I would pay] anything to see LeBron, dude ... one of the greatest players ever," the former "American Idol" judge just told us outside of Craig's in L.A. ... "I love him. I can't wait to see him."

By the way, season ticket prices on sites like StubHub have reportedly doubled since the announcement about LeBron ... with one buyer paying close to $200,000 for the upcoming season.

Also, Jackson said he'd love to work with LeBron if The King wants to get into music while he's in L.A. -- so, dude's got options.

3:30 PM PT -- Lythgoe tells us he strongly denies giving Taylor, or any contestant, the heads-up on results at any time.

Former "American Idol" champ Taylor Hicks says he had inside information about who was getting eliminated each week when he was on the show -- and says he wasn't the only one.

Taylor was on WJOX radio Friday in Birmingham, AL when he dropped the bombshell. As he put it, "I had an 'in' in the whole production of the show" who told him the results before they were revealed during season 5.

Mr. Soul Patrol says the only night he didn't get the info was the finale in 2006 -- where he was up against Katharine McPhee. He did say executive producer Nigel Lythgoe gave him a "wink and a nod" before the results were announced.

To be clear, Taylor's not suggesting the voting was rigged. However, if what he's saying is true ... you'd have to question the shocked looks on contestants' faces when Ryan Seacrest revealed the elimination.

Also ... for how many other seasons was Taylor's source tipping off contestants?

Jax has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to perform at the White House on Independence Day, and nothing's going to stop her ... despite the inevitable backlash for hangin' with Donald Trump.

The Season 14 "American Idol" finalist tells TMZ she finds it sad people can't separate politics from patriotism because she has a lot of the latter ... and for good reasons.

For Jax, her upcoming performance is all about honoring her country and her family -- her younger bro is a Marine and her dad was a 9/11 first responder -- she says it's not at all about POTUS.

Ex-NBA player Rasual Butler had multiple substances in his system at the time of his fatal crash back in January ... including alcohol, marijuana and painkillers ... according to the autopsy obtained by TMZ Sports.

As we previously reported, Butler was behind the wheel of a Range Rover -- with a female passenger, Leah LaBelle -- when he lost control around 2:30 AM and crashed into parking meters and a concrete wall. Both died immediately from injuries suffered in the crash.

Toxicology results show Butler's blood alcohol level was tested from blood collected from his heart and leg. The heart sample showed a BAC of .118, above the legal limit.

The leg sample showed a .062, which is under the legal limit. One law enforcement source told us the results are consistent with a person who was legally drunk.

Tests also show Butler tested positive for cannabinoids (marijuana), methamphetamine and oxycodone.

The report shows an empty box of Don Julio tequila was recovered at the crash scene.

As for Butler's passenger, Leah LaBelle -- a former "American Idol" contestant, who Butler referred to as his wife -- she had a .144 blood alcohol level.

The information could be relevant to Leah's family if they decided to go after Butler's estate for wrongful death.

Ryan Seacrest's grueling "American Idol" commute ain't looking all that rough -- considering he gets to make out with his hottie gf, before AND after going wheels up.

Ryan and Shayna Taylor were out shopping and grubbing over in Venice, CA ... the day after they jetted from NYC to LA for his little $10 million weekend gig. They did lunch inside Gjelina, and did PDA outside the hot spot.

Now that all the 'Idol' episodes are live, Ryan has to make this cross-country trek every weekend. Soon as 'Idol' ends Sunday nights ... the couple hops back on a jet plane -- private, of course -- to be back in NYC for 'Live' and his radio show.

Three "American Idol" contestants got the boot this week, and Dennis Lorenzo thinks it's complete BS he was one of 'em, just because he was last on the mic.

The former 'Idol' hopeful told us his placement Sunday night in the Top 10 performances might have sunk him even before the voting started. Much like real estate, Dennis believes location is key on 'Idol,' and going last in the lineup meant he had a smaller window to rake in votes.

Dennis says he went along with producers' guarantees that the process was fair regardless of who went first or last -- but after the show, he says folks told him they'd been shut out of the voting process early.

"American Idol" voters don't like voting for minorities, and the show's most recent elimination round proves it, according to Marcio Donaldson, one of the guys who got booted.

Marcio wasn't voted into the Top 10 Tuesday night, and believes minorities have it harder on the show ... because America tends to vote white. Sounds harsh, but he says the show's record stands for itself when it comes to minorities winning 'Idol.'

On the reboot, judges Katy Perry, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie picked 4 of the top 10 finalists from a pool of 8 who didn't make the cut with viewers. Almost everyone in the bottom eight was a minority.

"American Idol" star and fan favorite Ada Vox has made her way to the spotlight ... and she hopes a couple legends in the drag queen world have noticed.

We talked to Ada -- the stage persona of Adam Sanders, who's currently killing it on the first season of the 'AI' reboot on ABC -- about her journey and mindset going forward in the competition. She tells us because Adam tried and failed in the past to get where Ada has ... it's a no-brainer to keep it up with her -- she's the entertainer of the 2.

Ada also says it would be amazing if RuPaul would shout her out ... even more so if she got Cher's attention.

Ada performed last week on 'Idol' with Lea Michele, and really made fans -- along with the judges -- believe she could win with her performance. And there's no doubt she believes in herself.

Interesting note -- Ada auditioned for the show 12 times before, as Adam, and was eliminated during Hollywood Week of season 12. But, the drag queen came out for the latest audition ... and the 13th time was the charm.

"American Idol" dreamboat Trevor Holmes got sent home by Katy Perry this week -- but he ain't mad at her ... 'cause their viral "flirting" put him and his music on the map.

We spoke to Trevor a day after his final episode on 'Idol' aired Monday, in which he got eliminated by the judges ... and had the news delivered by none other than Katy.

In case you haven't been following along this season ... Trevor and Katy have sorta had a thang between them since his original audition -- even though he's got a GF, Sierra.

In hindsight, Trevor tells us he has no regrets or resentment about being booted -- although he acknowledges the Katy-Sierra "love triangle" being played up screwed with him a bit.

Tyga is nothing if not predictable, because he's being sued again where he lives ... and he also got his poor little son sued in the process.

Mezhgan Hussainy, Simon Cowell's makeup artist who he was once set on marrying, has a super cool house in Bev Hills that she rented to him for $40k a month. Tyga moved in in March 2017 and paid rent for awhile .. until he didn't.

Hussainy claims the rent check stopped in January and he's made no effort to catch up.

Former "American Idol" contestant Chikezie Eze has a history of beating his estranged wife, Linda Iruke ... at least according to her, and now a judge is ordering him to stay away from Linda and their kids.

Linda filed docs, obtained by TMZ, saying she was forced to move to a domestic violence safe house in August "because of all the abuse." She says they've been separated since May 2017.

In the docs, Linda says Chikezie -- who finished 10th in season 7 -- once threatened, "Don't make me turn this car around and beat your ass." She says he also threatened to post nude photos of her on the Internet.

She claims the last straw came in January when Chikezie allegedly made a verbal threat. She's not specific about what was said, but says based on prior unreported domestic violence, she believes he's capable of carrying out the threat.

Linda requested, and was granted, a restraining order which requires Chikezie to stay at least 100 yards away from Linda, their kids, and her home and work location.

We've reached out to Chikezie ... so far, no word back.

Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan can learn a thing or two from their rivals Adam, Blake, Alicia and Kelly ... and that's according to an "American Idol" winner!

Nick Fradiani -- who won season 14 in 2015 -- watched the big premiere, and says the "Idol" judges have some work to do if they're gonna build up the same kind of chemistry as "The Voice" coaches.