TikTok

Jermaine Dupri entered the dissatisfied hip hop customer chat Monday -- immediately after his protégé Bow Wow -- by declaring war on the social media algorithms he blames for ruining the culture.

The So So Def mogul arrived at his moment of clarity by watching a video of Jay-Z, posted by his friend Isaac Hayes III, where Hov questioned the hip hop community for steadily building up social media platforms instead of building its own.

JD then revealed a recent encounter with TikTok opened his eyes wide to the BS when one of his songs got struck with a copyright infringement claim, and it became clear to him the culture had relinquished too much of its power.

The Atlanta rap star praised the industry's contributions of yesteryear -- he says Jimmy Iovine, Diddy, the late Andre Harrell and others cared for the craft -- but believes most of today's figureheads could all be bought ... LVRN Records notwithstanding!!!

JD says he also heard nothing but negativity regarding the recent BET HH Awards ... critiques he was able to dodge thanks to his So So Def 30th anniversary showcase that reunited him with Bow, as well as Ludacris, Nelly and Da Brat-Tat-Tat!!!

Bow mirrored much of JD's gripes earlier today in a Twitter rampage of his own.

The wife of a New York Jets player is furious with "Jersey Shore" castmate Angelina Pivarnick ... claiming the reality TV star slid into her hubby's direct messages this weekend -- despite knowing he was a married man.

Alexis Bawden -- Nick Bawden's longtime partner -- said the incident happened on Sunday afternoon ... right after the fullback had taken the field to play against the New England Patriots at MetLife Stadium in Jersey.

According to Alexis, Pivarnick saw her decked out in gear representing her husband while she was on the sidelines at the stadium ... but ignored it all -- and went on to send a DM to Nick on Instagram anyway.

Alexis says Pivarnick wrote, "See u soon" -- and it made her livid because she believed it was an effort to woo her man.

"I just want to say if you're a fan of her, she's weird," she said in a TikTok slamming Pivarnick. "That's weird. You don't message a married woman's man you're going to see him soon after you see his wife go by on the field. Weirdo."

Pivarnick eventually responded after the TikTok went viral ... saying in a since-deleted statement on her Instagram Stories that she never made a move on the football player.

"This s*** that's being told about me sliding into a married man's IG has gotten out of control," Pivarnick wrote. "His wife is clearly a clout chaser and I only spoke to players I knew and in a friendly way."

"I know she's reaching," she added. "She needs to stop trying to slander me and stop being a liar. I am not into married men and would never write that shit. If she doesn't stop my lawyer will send her a letter of cease and desist soon. Not playing. Add this to TikTok girl. What a joke."

Jake Paul is showin' his support for Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy on the platform that just might decide the 2024 election -- yep, one little TikTok dance can go a long way.

The boxer shared their collab Wednesday, taking a stab at a viral dance made popular by Houston Rockets' Dillon Brooks ... something that's kinda blown up online.

Jake drags politicians for not reaching out to the youth through social media, saying those trying to garner the attention of young voters are missing out on a practically untapped market. He says Vivek is all about these types of connections, however.

BTW, Vivek also spoke about the lack of social media interaction from his fellow candidates, claiming they're all just scared because of the unscripted factor.

Jake and Vivek's video has gained a lot of attention online, but not everyone's as supportive of Jake's endorsement -- one commenter called the video "a terrible idea," while a handful of others claimed Vivek lost their vote just because he worked with Jake.

Haters. Just part and parcel of the social media landscape.

Vivek and Jake's criticism of the other candidates doesn't apply to at least one Democratic hopeful -- Marianne Williamson recently told us why moving to TikTok is helping her overcome what she sees as a blatant bias on TV.

She claims the cable media outlets won't give her airtime because she's running against President Biden.

As for Vivek, it'll be interesting to see if an endorsement from Jake will really make a difference in the polls -- don't forget, he got a stamp of disapproval from Eminem last month, who blocked Vivek from using his songs at his campaign events.

Sexyy Red's raps are making hip hop history -- she just took the game to pound town with the first #1 hit on Billboard's new TikTok chart!!!

On Thursday, Billboard and TikTok rolled out their inaugural chart that monitors musical activity on the app, and it was determined Sexyy Red's "SkeeYee" anthem ranks at the top of the pile!!!

Sexyy Red stated "she always knew" she'd end up being "a #1 type of artist" after her rowdy record got the honor and thanked all her fans for running her numbers up in a statement following the announcement.

The track is a highlight on Sexyy's "Hood Hottest Princess" album, which has taken her career to new heights -- namely, an opening slot on Drake's "It's All a Blur" Tour opposite 21 Savage.

Ray J is taking his "On Top" motto to a new level ... offering up a whopping $25K prize to the best bull-riding cowgirl in Northern California!!!

Sources close to Ray tell TMZ Hip Hop the contest will go down this Saturday at Westwood in San Francisco as part of the promotion for his new collab "On Top" with Bobby Brackins and P-Lo.

The competition is open to non-professional female riders dressed in rodeo-style gear and will be held from 10 pm - 12 am ... plenty of time to get a decent ride in.

J. Espinosa will be spinning on the turntables and the Bay Area's own Too Short will also be in the building ... always guaranteed to be the life of the party!!!

To add more pay to the oola, Ray is also launching a 30-day #OnTopChallenge on TikTok where he'll be giving away $100 to the user with the best creative dance!!!

Expect the band to be in full party mode ... we're told the bull-riding event will predate Bobby's birthday celebration at Apt 200 in Los Angeles that Thursday and they're also putting together special edition merch to pump the song as well.

Paqui, the company responsible for the viral "One Chip Challenge," is yanking the product off of store shelves ... in response to a teenager who died after eating the product.

The company has a statement at the top of its website, saying the challenge "is intended for adults only, with clear and prominent labeling highlighting the chip is not for children or anyone sensitive to spicy foods."

Paqui says it's seen an uptick in minors jumping in on the challenge, despite the warning label on the packaging -- adding the company's now "working with our retailers to remove the product from shelves."

The company is even offering refunds to folks who have already purchased the challenge. Unclear if it's the end of the product, or if the plan is to ditch the product and come up with a new option ... but Paqui says the product already adheres to food safety standards.

As we reported, 14-year-old Harris Wolobah died in Massachusetts last week -- according to his mother, his passing was a result of complications he suffered from consuming the chip at school.

While Harris' official cause of death is still pending, his mother claims the school contacted her on Friday about a stomach ache he had after eating the Paqui chip, but allegedly was feeling better when he got home. However, she says he collapsed and was rushed to a hospital not long after, where he was pronounced dead.

Harris' mom has been pointing fingers at Harris' school -- mainly for not taking him straight to the hospital when his stomach started hurting, which potentially could've saved his life.

A uniformed police officer in Maryland was caught allegedly making out with a young woman in broad daylight, and seemingly on the job -- only to go into his cruiser with her shortly thereafter.

The video is absolutely wild, and it's going viral for good reason. The footage -- which was posted on TikTok Monday -- shows a Prince George's County cop with his arms wrapped around a female in the parking lot of a park ... where other people are out and about.

They appear to be engaged in an intimate moment, which was only punctuated by the fact that the two of them then proceed to hop into the back of his marked vehicle ... closing the door behind them. On its face, it sure looks like something inappropriate is going down.

Obviously, this is causing a stir for a lot of reasons. Namely, it seems to be showing an officer of the law engaged in unbecoming conduct -- especially if he's working a shift.

BTW, there's a 2nd clip that appears to show yet another Prince George's County cruiser pulled up/parked at the park too ... and another young woman is seen running in and out of the vehicle, although the officer doesn't show up in that one. No word if it's the same guy.

A Massachusetts teen is dead after eating an incredibly spicy chip that's the subject of a viral challenge -- and his family is directly blaming the snack.

14-year-old Harris Wolobah passed away Friday in Worcester -- and, according to his mother, it's the result of complications he suffered after eating a Paqui chip at school earlier in the day.

His official cause of death is still pending, but Harris was attempting the "One Chip Challenge," which has been around for a few years now. Paqui advertises its chip with a skull on a coffin-shaped box ... which contains the one tortilla chip.

There are warning labels all over the packaging ... including one that says children should not eat it, nor should people who have certain allergens or who are sensitive to spicy foods.

Harris' mother says she was contacted by his school Friday, because he was complaining of a stomach ache after eating the chip. By the time he came home, she says he felt better -- and was even on his way to a basketball tryout -- before things went south and he collapsed.

He was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Now, his mom is ripping the response, telling NBC Boston Harris should've been taken straight to the hospital by school officials ... rather than being sent to the nurse's office.

The school hasn't responded to that criticism, but the district superintendent says they're mourning his death.

Paqui's One Chip Challenge has been scrutinized before, and the company's defended itself ... saying it goes out of the way to warn consumers about who should and shouldn't partake.

Tom Sandoval got in the middle of a tug-of-war during the wrap party for "Vanderpump Rules" season 11, after a man hurled a glass of wine at a security guard.

The man -- not sure who he is -- just launched as he hijacked the party. After throwing the wine, the dude picked up a chair. You see Tom run into frame trying to calm things down, as another security guard restrains the guy by grabbing his arms. An aggressive tug-of-war then begins.

The TikToker who shot the video says the dude is not a cast member and was not going after Tom. The TikToker said, “We were just sitting at a table and this random guy came and he grabbed the centerpiece [of a] flower vase [and] chucked it at the security guard.”

Lionel Messi was back on the pitch in Florida for the first time in nearly a month Wednesday night ... and, as has become tradition, celebs flocked to see him -- including Floyd Mayweather and Alix Earle, who got VIP treatment at the game.

The new MLS superstar had maybe his quietest night since joining Inter Miami -- scoring zero goals in a 0-0 tie against Nashville SC -- but A-listers were spotted throughout DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale enjoying the GOAT in action nonetheless.

Mayweather and Earle, flanked by NFL superstar Jaylen Waddle, got prime seats and field access as guests of Miami mogul David Grutman.

Ken Griffey Jr. even showed up too ... though he chose to grab a media credential instead of suite seats -- opting to shoot the game with his camera instead of rubbin' elbows in the stands with the stars.

At one point, however, the MLB legend was able to link up with Mayweather -- who was also with friend Lionel Khoury -- sharing an embrace with the boxer and getting in a pic.

Unclear how much facetime all of the celebrities got with Messi -- the soccer player was, after all, busy trying to scrape out another win for his squad -- but everyone was grinning ear-to-ear throughout the night nonetheless.

They'll all have to wait a bit to do it again -- Messi's not set to play in Ft. Lauderdale 'til Sept. 9 now -- unless, of course, they want to fly out to Los Angeles this weekend to see him vs. LAFC.

The famous TikTok lady you see acting like computer game characters on "LIVE" says she isn't trying to trick anyone into thinking she isn't Black ... despite claims of critics and some visual evidence.

We got internet sensation Pinkydoll at LAX Tuesday, where we asked what she made of people being demonstrably shocked over her recent appearance onstage at the 2023 Streamy Awards ... where she did her whole "NPC" shtick while presenting an award.

If you're unfamiliar ... it's a big fad on TikTok, and other live-streaming apps, where hosts repeat silly catchphrases and mimic a non-player character from video games -- something gamers apparently LOVE watching, so much so, they send her digital gifts and money!

Pinkydoll is easily the most recognizable face in that world lately ... but, as you can see here on camera, she's a dark-skinned African-American woman -- and looks quite different from how she usually does on her NPC livestreams, where her skin's much lighter.

Twitter was perplexed to see Pinkydoll is actually darker in the flesh ... and some accused her of trying to purposely bait people into thinking she's some race other than Black.

She's strongly denying that, though, telling our camera guy she's proud of her melanin -- and she offers an explanation for the obvious skin tone difference. Now, whether you buy it ... that's up to you.

One thing that isn't debatable is Pinkydoll's NPC personality is bleeding over into real life ... watch the video, 'cause it feels like we were talking to a bit of a robot in person.

With that said, she makes clear this profession is paying the bills and then some -- and she's gonna keep doing her thing, even though a ton of wannabes are hopping on her bandwagon.

Mmmm, ice cream ... thanks for the roses! 😋

For more influencer news, tune in to the TMZ Verified podcast. Dropping every Thursday on all podcast platforms.

Adele continues to be the people's champion ... turning on her own security for bothering a fan of hers in the crowd, and stopping the whole show to do it.

The singer was performing Saturday at her Vegas residency -- getting ready to belt out "Water Under The Bridge" -- and right as she seemed ready to start crooning ... she came to an abrupt halt, telling the band to stand down as she addressed something out in the audience.

Watch ... Adele zeroes in on a man out in the seats that she can see is being hassled by security, and she wasn't having it -- demanding to know what was going on/what he'd done.

Adele says she noticed he'd been getting bothered by security almost the entire time she'd been on stage, and when she didn't get an adequate response ... she ordered the guards to leave the dude alone -- noting he was just there to have fun, as was everyone else.

There's another angle that captures the action from a further vantage point, and you can actually see the security guard in question. He's a bald guy, and he's aggressively talking to this man before Adele calls him out. Sounds like it might've been over him standing up.

As you can tell, the rest of the concert-goers were thrilled that Adele was defending her own ... and they cheered as she scolded the staff. Once again -- Adele speaks to the people.

TikToker VonViddy has taken his own life ... and his final video to fans is haunting, all about the ups and downs of his life -- talking about how he hopes to be remembered.

Von, whose real name is Joe Muchlinski, died Monday after "losing his long battle to mental illness" ... according to his sister, Martha.

In his final video, posted Sunday, Joe talks about the type of guy he wants to be remembered as, citing his music and comedy as a couple of strong points in his life. He also highlights some of his struggles -- saying he doesn't want folks to remember him "as an addict and an alcoholic who put his family through hell."

He ends his final TikTok by saying how thankful he is for the opportunities he's had over the years ... noting he has an abundance of peace and love for his fans.

Folks in both Joe and Martha's comment sections are sharing their grief for the loss of Joe after Martha's sad news -- one wrote, "Von Viddy we love you. Thank you for all of the laughs. Truly heartbreaking 💔."

Joe garnered over 170k followers and 8.7 million likes on TikTok, sharing his original music and comedy bits since 2020.

He was 32.

RIP.

Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian have a lot to celebrate ... the couple just welcomed their second child together!!

The tennis superstar revealed the major news with a TikTok on Tuesday ... showing her get up from a table and leave the frame before returning with the little bundle of joy.

Alexis and Olympia look happy as can be -- with big sis adorably giving baby Adira River a kiss on the forehead.

The Reddit co-founder also posted about the newcomer ... saying, "I'm grateful to report our house is teaming with love: a happy & healthy newborn girl and happy & healthy mama."

"Feeling grateful. @serenawilliams you've now given me another incomparable gift — you're the GMOAT. Thanks to all the amazing medical staff who took care of my wife & our daughter 🙏 I'll never forget the moment I introduced @olympiaohanian to her baby sister."

Serena and Alexis shared they were having another daughter at a lavish gender reveal just a few weeks ago ... and now that Adira is here, the countdown is on to see her take the court with Olympia -- just like Mama and Aunt Venus!!

Democratic presidential candidate Marianne Williamson says she's been iced out of network TV amid her campaign ... but says moving to TikTok has done wonders.

Williamson, formerly known as the "spiritual advisor" to Oprah Winfrey, joined us on "TMZ Live" Friday, chatting about not being able to bring her campaign to TV. She says she eventually realized the social media app would bring a lot of power to her cause.

She says the platform's been a great way to reach young U.S. voters ... and according to her, there's a shocking difference in intelligence on TikTok compared to on big news orgs.

As for the old stigma that young folks aren't rocking the vote, she says that's BS -- and tells us exactly why.

For those unaware, Williamson is 1 of 2 Democrats -- RFK Jr. being the other -- running against current prez, Joe Biden ... and since the DNC doesn't normally hold debates when a current president is in the mix, her campaign has been crucial to getting the word out.

She also wasn't welcomed into the race by her fellow Democrats, and staffers from her 2020 campaign didn't think she should go for it, but her move to TikTok is seemingly helping.

Williamson has raked in over half a million followers -- the most on the app compared to other candidates -- and since making the switch, she's been polling above 20% with voters under 30.

TikTok star Caleb Coffee is lucky to be alive -- but in really rough shape -- after a horrific fall off a cliff in Hawaii and onto lava rock ... sending him to the hospital with serious injuries.

Caleb was hiking with friends Wednesday when he allegedly slipped and fell from a 60-80ft cliff, landing on the rocks below. He was immediately airlifted to a hospital, but has suffered a fractured spine, broken femur, elbow, and wrist with gashes and burns across his entire body.

A GoFundMe created for the 18-year-old features several images of him in the hospital with his family. The page says Caleb didn't have health insurance at the time of his injury, and currently features a goal of $100K in fundraising.

Caleb's got more than 11 million followers on TikTok, and 1 million on Instagram.

His high-energy posts and photos often feature him out in nature, working out and hanging with friends.