Miami

The Cavinder Twins are making big moves to kickstart their post-basketball careers -- the social media superstars are becoming business partners with Jake Paul and his Betr company!

The gambling and media platform announced the move on Wednesday ... saying Haley and Hanna -- who have millions of followers on Instagram and TikTok -- are its newest equity partners, content creators and creative directors. The partnership also means their podcast, "Twin Talk," will stream exclusively with Betr Media.

As part of the deal, the recently retired Miami Hurricanes stars will be at the forefront of content for the female audience ... and will appear on camera all over the platform.

The Internet sensations spoke about the decision to work with Jake and Betr co-founder Joey Levy ... saying, "Betr gives us the ability to accelerate the growth of The Cavinder Twins brand in a focused and truly authentic manner."

"We love sports, thrive on competition, and enjoy creating and bringing ideas to life. Betr truly makes The Cavinder Twins and our brand that much better and bigger."

Levy added -- "We are thrilled to partner with the Cavinder Twins, who have already accomplished so much and are just scratching the surface of their potential."

"Betr Media's objective is to attract, enhance, and amplify the next wave of generational content creators, and this partnership is a testament to that approach. Our talent flywheel is continuing to get stronger, and we are just getting started."

A Hollywood music exec, David Bolno, who's repped Justin Bieber, Drake and Post Malone, is in the middle of a death investigation after a potential artist was found dead in a Miami Beach hotel room.

Bolno had a room at the luxurious Setai hotel/condo building on March 30, and Laura Lozano's body was discovered there on March 30. According to a Miami Beach PD report, obtained by TMZ, she was found in the area of the bathtub around 1:22 PM.

Bolno was not there at the time ... police say surveillance video shows him leaving by himself at 4:35 AM. Hotel staffers called Bolno when check-out time came and went, and he told them he'd already left ... but added there was a woman in the room who needed to leave. David paid for several rooms, including Lozano's, and although he was in her room, he visited her there but wasn't staying in it.

According to cops, hotel staffers went to the room and that's when they found Lozano unresponsive. Hotel security did CPR and called the fire department ... when they arrived she was pronounced dead.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... officers did recover an "unknown substance" which they suspect to be narcotics. Police are awaiting the results of toxicology to determine Lozano's cause of death.

As for Bolno ... he told Daily Mail Lozano's death was a "terrible tragedy" and she was staying in his room "because she was recording music the night before. She's a client and she was going to sign a record deal with me. I helped her make music."

Our sources tell us there's evidence Lozano was alive around 8 AM, because she ordered room service.

Bolno was trying to sign Lozano to his L.A.-based management firm, NKSFB, where he is currently a partner. NKSFB bills itself as one of the largest entertainment companies in the nation.

We're told Bolno has been cooperating with police investigating Lozano's death, and he's not considered a person of interest.

Things appear to be smooth sailing for Larsa Pippen and Marcus Jordan -- the couple couldn't get enough of each other while aboard a boat in Miami this week ... and we got the pics!!

Larsa and MJ were spotted cruising on a massive yacht and socializing with a handful of friends ... but made sure to get some private time during the outing -- which, naturally, involved a lot of PDA.

The couple cozied up on a sofa as they shared a few smooches and had a passionate chat ... proving their love for each other is still going strong after several months.

Pippen and Jordan have ramped up their relationship after deciding to go public late last year ... and seem to be damn near inseparable at this point.

In fact, the two can't stop raving about each other on social media ... with Larsa posting a tribute to Marcus on Monday, saying "To the moon and back."

Odell Beckham Jr. and Lamar Jackson are already connecting off the field ... the two NFL superstars hit up LIV nightclub in Miami Beach after OBJ signed a multi-million dollar deal with the Ravens.

OBJ and LJ were seen on video in the famed MIA nightclub ... partying it up as music played in the background, and they were greeted with a sign that read, "Welcome Lamar & OBJ."

Odell was visibly into the moment, enjoying himself after inking the one-year, $15 million deal (which could reportedly go up to $18 million).

The more pressing question is ... how does Lamar feel?

Remember, the 2019 NFL MVP revealed he asked for a trade earlier this month after failing to reach a lucrative, long-term deal with the Ravens.

You've got to imagine Jackson loves the idea of bringing in a top-tier wideout like Odell ... and judging by the fact they're partying together on night 1, it appears that's the case.

Before hitting LIV, OBJ, wearing a Ravens hat, announced the news on social media ... dressing his son, Zydn, in Jackson's No.8 Ravens jersey, with the word "Flock" as the caption.

Jackson publicly congratulated Beckham on signing with the Ravens ... posting a photo on IG of the two on what appears to be a FaceTime call with the caption, #TRUZZ.

Ravens fans have already started daydreaming about what an LJ-OBJ connection could look like on the field ... assuming Jackson's changed his mind on wanting out of Baltimore.

Israel Adesanya celebrated his big UFC title victory at a Miami hot spot ... and, needless to say, he pulled out all the stops.

The champ showed up -- belt in hand -- to E11EVEN nightclub after his second-round knockout of Alex Pereira on Saturday night. As you know, Pereira had previously KO'd Adesanya to snag the UFC 281 title at Madison Square Garden last year.

As Israel made his grand entrance into the club, the DJ gave him a shout-out and played his theme music. Everyone went wild, crowding around Israel so they could shoot videos and take selfies with him.

When Israel finally sat down at his table, he was treated like a king, getting bottle service. NFL star Odell Beckman Jr. walked over to Israel for a little chat. We're told Odell seemed very animated during their convo. Unclear, though, what the two were actually talking about.

Then Israel took to the stage to show off his dance moves with rapper GASHI, who was the headline performer. But, of course, Israel and his championship belt stole the show.

Israel also hit the dance floor with UFC legends Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz and Kamaru Usman.

What a night! Congrats, Israel.

Dana White's adamant Leon Edwards' next fight will be against Colby Covington ... but Jorge Masvidal isn't quite so sure, telling us he believes he can change the UFC honcho's mind with a win over Gilbert Burns, and snatch the fight from "cop-calling charlatan bitch ass Cupcake Covington."

"100% [I can jump Colby]. I feel it in my heart, I see it in my mind," 38-year-old Masvidal told Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weeknights on FS1).

"UFC, at the end of the day is a pay-per-view selling business, and Colby's bitch ass has never sold over 300,000 pay-per-views except when it was against me. What are him and Leon gonna do?"

31-year-old Edwards defeated Kamaru Usman last month, retaining the welterweight title. Following the fight, White told reporters Covington was next in line, to the chagrin of some fans who were really hoping to see Masvidal vs. Edwards.

Of course, Jorge and Leon have serious beef -- er, chicken -- which came to a head in the UK in 2019, when the two men were involved in a backstage altercation after Edwards yelled something at Masvidal as he was being interviewed backstage after beating Darren Till.

Gamebred didn't take kindly to what Rocky said, so he served him up a "3-piece and a soda."

First, Masvidal has to beat fellow contender, Durinho Burns, the 5th-ranked fighter in the division, at UFC 287 on Saturday ... a fight Jorge believes suits his style.

"In the Gilbert fight, I don't have a standout wrestler conditioning freak like that where he can just continue to go for takedown after takedown. He doesn't have that, he's never shown that," Masvidal said.

"And on the standup, yeah, he throws hard, but he doesn't understand the sweet science. He doesn't understand setups. He doesn't understand distance, timing, fakes, things like that. From a technical standpoint, I think this is a great match for me. I just have to show up, put my hard hat on, put my mouthpiece on, and get to work and just put the holes in this guy's face."

When Jorge and Gilbert step into the Octagon, they'll be doing it at Miami-Dade Arena in Masvidal's hometown of Miami, where Gamebred, just a kid, grew up fighting older and bigger dudes in backyards and in the streets.

Masvidal reps MIA heavy to this day ... and the card is especially important to him because as a kid, he told a friend he'd bring a big UFC card back to South Florida one day, and now he has.

"I looked over to my friend who I was with and I told him 'One day I'll bring a show over here to Miami.' It took 20 years but now we're in this bitch!"

And, Jorge says the city couldn't be happier or more grateful.

Haley and Hanna Cavinder and the Univ. of Miami women's basketball team won't play in the Sweet 16 for another couple hours ... but to keep ya occupied in the meantime -- check out 16 sweet photos of the twin hoopers!!

The two Canes superstars have crushed it on the court this year, helping The U make it to the third round of the women's NCAA tournament for the second time in school history.

Haley's leading the team in scoring, averaging 12.6 points per game, while Hanna has chipped in 3.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per contest this year.

But, of course, the sisters have gained national fame for what they've done OFF the court -- as they're two of the most followed people on TikTok.

The ladies make fun vids, dancing and lip-synching -- and have amassed 4.5 MILLION followers!!

Haley and Hanna, though, won't be worrying much about social media Friday ... they've got a tall task ahead of them in Villanova coming up at 11:30 AM PT.

The No. 4-seed Wildcats are the favorite, but the No. 9-seed Hurricanes are no stranger to winning as the underdog -- they just knocked off No. 1-seed Indiana on Monday night.

While the NFL is in a free agency frenzy, Cincinnati Bengals stars Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins are steering clear of the chaos ... by enjoying a yacht party with a group of women in Miami!!

Joe Burrow's favorite targets hopped aboard a fancy boat in Florida on Monday ... and they had plenty of tequila to go around for their day in the sun.

Higgins' Clemson teammate/Arizona Cardinals linebacker Isaiah Simmons and several female companions joined the Bengals stars for the trip ... and everything seemed pretty chill as they sat around and talked.

Of course, Chase is still in the middle of his rookie deal ... so he's not sweating all the deals being made left and right as the NFL's free agency period kicks off.

Higgins, on the other hand, is entering the final year of his current contract ... and the Bengals are hoping to lock him in long-term.

Safe to say he's not worried about his status ... sitting with a bottle of what appears to be Casamigos in front of him as he enjoys some R&R.

The teammates that party on yachts together ... win together??

Senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio are urging President Joe Biden to pull the plug on the vaccine mandate for international travelers ... hoping it'll pave the way for Novak Djokovic to play in the big Miami Open tennis tournament later this month.

The politicians spelled out their wishes in a letter -- which they sent to the commander in chief on Friday -- saying they want #46 to make the change so The Joker can be ready to smash balls at the tourney in Miami Gardens, FL on March 19.

In their letter, they argued that removing the restriction and allowing Djokovic to play could provide a huge economic boost for their local economies.

They also called the current U.S. policy "outdated and worthy of rescission," considering Biden declared on "60 Minutes" back in Sept. 2022 that the "pandemic is over."

The lawmakers, both Republicans, added that they believe since Djokovic is a world-class athlete in world-class shape, he is "not at high-risk of severe complications from COVID-19."

Of course, under the current rule, Djokovic -- who is unvaccinated -- is not allowed to travel to the United States ... precluding the Serbian tennis superstar from playing in the Miami Open and several other upcoming high-profile tournaments.

Miami Open officials have reportedly filed a petition to get him a waiver from the rule -- and Scott and Rubio made it clear, they're in favor of it being granted.

A preschool in Miami is under fire for intentionally putting blackface on some students ... a move staffers proudly touted as a way to celebrate Black History Month.

Parents found out on Feb. 3 what was happening at Studio Kids Little River -- which has a preschool and daycare facilities. One parent, Courtney Politis, who had 2 kids at Studio, tells TMZ she was made aware of the incident by another concerned mom.

She says pictures of at least 2 toddlers in blackface were posted by a teacher on the school's internal app. As you can imagine, those pics started circulating, showing 2-year-olds dressed in police and construction worker costumes, with dark makeup plastered on their faces.

Politis says she brought this up to the preschool's director, Patricia Vitale, to express her outrage ... but claims Vitale downplayed the racist nature of it, asking why it was a big deal.

However, afterward, Vitale sent a letter to all the parents of the preschool ... writing in part, "We have not intended to offend anyone, and we’re very sorry about any inconvenience."

A few days later, Vitale sent another message that was a little more serious. The letter read, "We wanted to let all the parents know that we met on Friday afternoon with all the teachers and staff. We went over several ethical and multicultural education points. I will teach the team a class covering all the necessary topics regarding US history and multicultural education." She added, "[Y]ou may rest assured this will never happen again."

Politis tells us that, as far as she knows, the teacher who did this didn't face any real repercussions beyond a possible talking-to. Although, she's not calling for the teacher to be fired ... she does want there to be some discipline to show this just wasn't right.

Now, as for whether this is part of a larger political issue in FL -- involving Gov. Ron DeSantis' opposition to "wokeness" -- Politis says she doesn't necessarily see a direct tie there ... instead, she points to the fact the people who run the school are Argentinian.

Lil Wayne's former dream home in one of Miami's most exclusive neighborhoods is officially off the market, meaning Weezy's officially pulling outta South Florida ... TMZ Hip Hop has learned.

The YMCMB boss listed his lavish half-acre property back in September, asking $29.5 million ... and then discounted it, slightly, at a mere $28 mil. That seemed to do the trick.

Our real estate sources tell us Wayne accepted a buyer's offer on February 3, and although the sale's still pending ... it's close to getting finalized. Cyril Matz of Douglas Elliman is repping for Tunechi.

Wayne had the 7-bedroom, 11-bathroom castle built for $16.8 million in 2017 and laced it with all sorts of amenities -- including an open-air cabana, outdoor kitchen and a reflecting pool. Basically, the perfect Miami party pad ... if you're into that sorta thing.

If you thought his recent slump in music was gonna make Lil Pump stop smiling, think again, because the guy just got a new set of chompers he's gonna be showing off for a long time.

5 Star Smiles CEO Danielle Noguera tells TMZ Hip Hop Pump came in earlier this year to get a new pair of porcelain veneers.

The set Pump opted for has tons of longevity -- 30 years in fact -- and we're told the procedure cost Pump a cool $25k, done in Pump's hometown of Miami.

Dentists had been reaching out to Pump for years offering to do his teeth, but Pump opted for 5 Star Smiles, a company with plenty of experience with celebs including Lil Meech, Erica Mena, and the Clermont Twins, to name a few, in the past.

As expected, Pump won't just stop with the veneers, we're told he's upping his game even more -- with a pair of custom grills currently in production.

Marc Anthony's married again -- this time saying "I do" to a 23-year-old beauty pageant winner ... with a lot of famous friends in tow, sans one key person.

The singer reportedly tied the knot Saturday with Nadia Ferreira, whom he got engaged to in May. Per Hola!, the nuptials went down in Miami at the Perez Art Museum. Not only was the place packed with celebs, but public officials too -- Miami's mayor included, who officiated.

Other guests in attendance ... David and Cruz Beckham, Salma Hayek, Lin Manuel Miranda, Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, Romeo Santos, Maluma, Marco Antonio Solis and more. We know, you're wondering if J Lo showed up ... so far, there's no sign that she did.

This is Marc's 4th walk down the aisle, and Nadia's first. He's been married to Dayanara Torres, Shannon De Lima and, of course, Jen ... whom he shares two kids with. It's unclear if his children with J Lo were there ... ditto for his other 4 kids from previous relationships.

In any event, it seems everyone had a good time ... these photos showing people mingling inside the venue feature nothing but smiles and laughter -- so it would appear it was a hit.

Considering Marc's arguably the king of modern Latin music to this day ... it makes sense he got everyone in the game out to celebrate. Think 'Godfather' -- gotta pay your respects.

We're told the group believes the crooks were targeting Sam because of the expensive jewelry he flashes on the TV show. Our sources say he's now hired 24/7 armed guards at his house, and cops are still investigating.

According to a police report, obtained by TMZ ... multiple stars on the popular MTV series -- Brandon Gomes, Sam Logan and Jordana Barnes -- were victims of a violent home invasion robbery earlier this month, and cops believe the incident might have been captured on surveillance cameras.

The reality stars told officers they were hanging out and watching sports at Sam's pad on January 15, when all of a sudden 2 unidentified guys with firearms opened a sliding glass back door and dashed into the house.

They claim the men specifically confronted Brandon, and demanded he hands over his watch. We're told Brandon refused, tried to flee, but didn't get far before one of the perpetrators struck him in the head with a gun.

Although they didn't get Brandon's watch, sources connected to the cast tell us the thieves did find and steal Sam's $80k Audemars Piguet watch.

The group told cops the suspects ordered the women to the ground at gunpoint and demanded their cell phones. Cops say they grabbed an iPhone Max Pro and then made a clean getaway in a black sedan.

We're told Sam and cast member Mike Vazquez were upstairs sleeping at the time of the invasion. According to our sources, they heard someone yelling the house was being robbed and barricaded themselves in their rooms.

The report says Brandon only suffered a minor injury from the pistol-whipping, and declined treatment.

We're told the group believes the crooks were targeting Sam because of the expensive jewlery he flashes on the TV show. Our sources say he's now hired 24/7 armed guards at his house, and cops are still investigating.

Forget champagne or a nice glass of vino ... LeBron James opted for hookah to celebrate Tuesday's win over the Magic -- and TMZ Sports has the vid of The King's smoke sesh.

James hit Barsecco in Miami in the hours after he and the Lakers dumped Orlando in Florida, 129-110 ... and you can see in footage we obtained from the popular lounge that he unwound from the big victory by blowin' some big clouds at the hot spot.

Witnesses tell us the NBA superstar got to the place at around 1:37 AM Wednesday morning ... and only stayed for a quick smoke -- leaving after about 15 or so minutes.

You can see in the clip, he was wearing the same outfit he wore to his postgame press conference Tuesday night -- a green and blue colored cardigan with plenty of jewelry on display.

Of course, James had to bolt from the place fairly early ... as the Lakers play again against the Heat in at FTX Arena on Wednesday night.

DaBaby and his legal team are celebrating a big 'W' that's years in the making ... he's come out on top of a battery lawsuit over a 2020 brawl.

You’ll recall … DaBaby and crew were initially hit with allegations of beating and robbing a concert promoter named Kenneth Carey and his buddy. They claimed they'd lost personal items -- including money and a cell phone -- during a fight recorded by bystanders.

As we reported .. the fight was over payment for a Miami event Carey put together, and hired DaBaby to host. When the sides disagreed over dollar figures, it turned into a street brawl.

Prosecutors had dropped a criminal battery charge against DaBaby, but he was still hit with a $6 million federal lawsuit over the incident. The trial wrapped up Monday, with the jury finding in favor of the “Bop” rapper.

His attorney Drew Findling tells TMZ Hip Hop, “Along with our client, Jonathan Kirk (DaBaby), we are thrilled that this federal jury, after a five-day trial, came to the same conclusion that we have maintained for almost 3 years - that these plaintiffs were attempting to use the legal system to shake down Mr. Kirk.”

Findling continued, “Mr. Kirk deserves all the credit in the world for not caving in to these plaintiffs' cash demands and having the confidence in the facts and his legal team to take this to a jury trial for a complete and total victory!”