Music

Queen's catalog is about to change hands, and it'll be an expensive acquisition -- 'cause Sony's acquiring the rights to the band's music ... spending 10 figures to lock it down.

The massive transaction -- valued at about $1.27 billion -- involves Queens' royalties for recorded music rights in the United States and Canada, plus a distribution deal outside the U.S. and Canada ... according to Variety.

Sony Music is buying the rights that used to belong to Disney, while Queen's distribution deal is currently managed by Universal and is going to expire in a couple years, at which point Sony will take the reins.

Jennifer Lopez looks to be on a family-free trip in Italy this week -- this amid the marriage and career troubles over in the States ... and yes, that means Ben Affleck was MIA.

Check out this photo/video, obtained by TMZ, that shows J Lo at a hotel in Positano Wednesday -- where she had a few pals in tow as they made her way through a row of sun loungers, down a flight of stairs toward the water ... where they eventually got onto a boat.

Jennifer had her summer vacay look all buttoned up here -- rocking a teeny-tiny yellow bandeau top paired with matching printed shorts and shirt. TBH, she's quite glowing here.

Elon Musk doesn't want to end up like John Lennon ... and he's paranoid one of his fans will try to kill him, just like the slain Beatles singer.

The Tesla honcho opened up at a recent shareholder meeting about precautions he's needed to take since his notoriety has skyrocketed in recent years -- more so than even before -- and EM claims that at least two "homicidal maniacs" have already attempted to take his life.

Elon says he's probably on someone's hit list because he's so famous ... and with the world getting "a little crazy these days" he says it's entirely possible someone tries to assassinate him ... a la Lennon.

Justin Timberlake has a prime opportunity to save lives in the wake of his arrest, but only if he's willing to own up to the alleged DWI ... so says Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

Stacey D. Stewart, CEO of MADD, tells TMZ that JT is seriously lucky his night out in Sag Harbor, NY didn't end tragically ... with himself or someone else getting hurt. But, that being said, she's imploring the singer to use his celebrity to condemn impaired driving.

At the moment, it doesn't look like that will happen, not for awhile -- not until the case is settled, and JT's high-powered lawyer is, at least, saying they're ready to fight tooth and nail.

Justin Timberlake had sage advice for one of his concert crowds just two nights before his DWI arrest ... and his words of wisdom could have come in handy for himself in Sag Harbor.

TMZ obtained video from Justin's Saturday tour stop in Miami, where he told a packed house at the Kaseya Center to "be careful out there" -- this after chit-chatting with the audience and asking if there were any singles in the building, playfully noting "the night is young."

Check it out ... JT was in jovial mood this past weekend while performing in the Magic City -- bantering with the crowd and eventually noting he'd have to be asking for forgiveness the next day (Sunday) ... which just so happened to be Father's Day.

Pusha T and No Malice are officially a duo again -- the Clipse rappers are rolling out their first new music since 2009, and they're finally addressing a rumored beef with Justin Timberlake.

Pharrell Williams orchestrated Louis Vuitton's Men's Summer '25 show for Paris Fashion Week, and featured his latest production ... Clipse's new song "Birds Don't Sing" costarring John Legend.

In an interview with Vulture, the Virginia rappers decided to eulogize their recently deceased parents ... Pusha's verse is dedicated to their mother and Malice's bars are for their father.

Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us" stands as the game-changer in his lyrical war against Drake -- a chess move the song's producer, Mustard, didn't even see coming!!!

Remember, Kendrick dropped "Not Like Us" out of the blue on the evening of Saturday, May 4 -- on top of his "Meet the Grahams" diss, creating unbeatable momentum.

Mustard scored the West Coast savvy track, but tells Billboard he had no clue-what-so-ever Kendrick was releasing the song -- or even crafted it to be a Drake diss. 😂

Gayle King's sticking up for Justin Timberlake ... saying he's a responsible, upstanding dude who just made a one-off bad decision when he allegedly chose to drink and drive.

The newscaster gave her take on "CBS Mornings" Wednesday after a segment about JT's arrest ... saying he's a great guy who isn't usually a reckless person -- and, calling his alleged slip-up a "stupid mistake."

Gayle adds there's no excuse for driving drunk in general ... and says she's sure Justin knows he messed up.

12:50 PM PT -- Remy Ma is now reacting to her son's arrest, telling TMZ ... "We stand by JaySon's innocence and pray that the NYPD will conduct a complete and thorough investigation to reveal the truth. This is undoubtedly a difficult time for my family and me. While we sincerely appreciate the love and support we have received from all of you, we kindly ask for privacy as our legal team works to prove JaySon's innocence."

Remy's son is being represented by attorney Dawn Florio, and Remy says, via the law office, "As his mother, I want to address this situation personally but have been strongly advised by his legal counsel not to say anything -- as most people in similar situations are informed by their attorneys due to it being an active case.

Remy Ma's eldest child and another man are being accused of first-degree murder -- they're currently in police custody.

2:34 PM PT -- Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... no settlement was struck between Madonna and the plaintiffs, and these guys dismissed the lawsuit on their own accord.

Madonna can put one of her concert lawsuits behind her ... 'cause it's been wiped away from the court docket -- and from the looks of it, a settlement may have been reached.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Michael Fellows and Jason Alvarez -- the plaintiffs who originally brought this class action -- voluntarily dismissed their suit with prejudice ... which usually indicates some sort of arrangement was reached by the parties.

Swizz Beatz and Timbaland are breathing new life into their Verzuz platform through a partnership with Elon Musk that'll have all their upcoming events on X for free ... and yet, some fans are still complaining.

The two superproducers made the announcement Wednesday during the Cannes Lions conference in France, and celebrated by posting pics of themselves toasting with Elon.

Swizz and Timbo's jubilee rubbed a lot of diehard Verzuz fans the wrong way -- the last competition was nearly 2 years ago, and fans thought the show was best back in quarantine days ... when we were all stuck in the house.

Justin Timberlake's got a UFC superstar ready to fight for his freedom ... with Conor McGregor throwing his support behind the singer following his DWI arrest.

Notorious reacted to the "Selfish" crooner's legal troubles roughly 24 hours after the news broke on Tuesday ... and he's certainly not turning his back on Timberlake over the matter.

"Free JT," McGregor said on Wednesday ... sharing a pic of the musician's mug shot for good measure.

Ashanti and Nelly are not just engaged, but they're actually already married -- in fact, they have been for several months now ... and, of course, they got a baby on the way too.

According to public records, the two music stars are legally man and wife -- and their marriage date is listed as having been recorded on December 27, 2023 ... so, a whole 6 months ago.

The paperwork doesn't specify what city they tied the knot in -- but it became official in St. Louis County, so all signs point to them doing the deed in Nelly's hometown. FWIW, they haven't had a public ceremony yet, but have been teasing their wedding in recent weeks.

Katy Perry is facing backlash for again working with music producer Dr. Luke ... almost 7 years after being dragged into his legal battle with Kesha -- who seems to have chimed in.

According to Rolling Stone, Katy is collaborating with a slew of music producers for her untitled 6th studio album. Per the report, Katy has tapped the producers who helped make hits on her albums "Teenage Dream" and "Prism" ... including Max Martin, Dr. Luke, Stargate, among many others.

Because Katy is going back to Dr. Luke well for her new tunes -- Kesha's fans are PISSED and dragging her for the decision ... calling it a betrayal. And Kesha seems to agree.

Justin Timberlake has remained tight-lipped in the aftermath of his DWI arrest ... but his lawyer says he's ready to fight tooth and nail for his client, which is interesting.

JT's defense attorney, Edward Burke Jr., tells TMZ ... "[We] look forward to vigorously defending Mr. Timberlake against these allegations. He will have a lot to say at the appropriate time."

Ed adds ... "He is currently awaiting full discovery from the DA's office." It almost seems like Justin and co. think the arrest and subsequent charges are BS -- that's the vibe here anyway.

Sabrina Carpenter needs a clear path for herself free of adoring fans -- and that's exactly what her security provided this week across the pond ... in not-so-subtle terms.

The singer's bodyguard got filmed shoving people outta the way upon her arrival to London BBC Radio 1 Studios Tuesday ... specifically, photographers that were trying to snap pictures of her as she was heading into the building.

There was one dude on her staff who was leading the way with some pretty rough shoves -- getting handsy with paps and roughly powering through to make way for his client.