Tag: breaking news

Britney Spears says a brief run-in with ex-boyfriend Justin Timberlake triggered a panic attack before her infamously bad 2007 MTV VMA performance.

Britney was set for a big return to the stage that night with her song “Gimme More” … but was caught off guard when she saw JT at the show.

In her new memoir, “The Woman In Me,” Britney recalls the interaction, writing … “It had been a while since I’d seen him. Everything was going great in his world. He was at the top of his game in every way, and he had a lot of swagger. I was having a panic attack.”

Britney says she “hated the way I looked” … because “It was less than a year since I’d had my second baby in two years but everyone was acting like my not having six-pack abs was offensive.”

What’s more, Britney admits she hadn’t rehearsed enough and knew the performance “was going to be bad.” She says “nothing was going right” backstage … claiming there were problems with her costume and hair extensions. She says she didn’t sleep the night before, and was feeling dizzy.

Britney continued … “I couldn’t believe I was going to have to go out onstage feeling the way I felt.” She says she went out and tried her best, admitting it wasn’t up to par for her.

She added … “I could see myself on video throughout the auditorium while I performed; it was like looking at myself in a fun-house mirror.”

JT, on the other hand, was on the other end of the spectrum in Britney’s eyes.

She says, “Justin glided down the runway. He was flirting with girls in the audience, including one who turned around and arched her back, shaking her breasts as he sang to her.”

Tons of Hollywood stars are banding together to pressure Hamas to release all hostages taken by the terrorist group in Gaza … and they’re asking President Biden to help make it happen.

Tiffany Haddish, Bradley Cooper, Justin Timberlake, Chris Rock, and Gwyneth Paltrow are among the big names who signed an open letter to Biden, which calls on Hamas to set all prisoners free.

The open letter is part of a new campaign out of Hollywood, led by Jewish celebs and executives, called #NoHostageLeftBehind.

It’s a truly extraordinary number of Hollywood honchos who have signed on, and it’s clearly well-intentioned… but what’s clearly lacking is how the letter brings Hamas hostages home … not that we’re expected celebs to figure that out.

Seems Hollywood is looking to the White House for a hand here … the letter also thanks Biden for his leadership in bringing home two American hostages Friday … though the celebs say their “relief is tempered by our overwhelming concern that 220 innocent people, including 300 children, remain captive by terrorists, threatened with torture and death.”

Hamas also released two Israeli hostages on Monday, but their spouses still remain in captivity.

“We all want the same thing: Freedom for Israelis and Palestinians to live side by side in peace. Freedom from the brutal violence spread by Hamas. And most urgently, in this moment, freedom for the hostages,” the group said. “We urge everyone to not rest until all hostages are released. No hostage can be left behind.”

An off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot is in big trouble after allegedly trying to take down a plane from a sister airline — and you can tell by the dozens of charges he’s now facing.

44-year-old Joseph D. Emerson — who’s employed by Alaska — was arrested and booked Monday on 83 counts of attempted murder in Multnomah County, OR … this after law enforcement claims he attempted to shut off the aircraft’s engines mid-flight the night prior.

It’s a strange story … apparently, Emerson was hitching a ride on a Horizon Airlines flight — which is owned by the same company that manages Alaska — that was going from Seattle to San Francisco … but which had to divert to Portland because of this alleged incident.

According to cops — who cite crew members onboard — Emerson pulled this incredibly dangerous stunt while sitting in the cockpit’s jump seat … but thankfully, the captain and first officer were able to subdue him and prevent the plane from going down.

ATC audio reportedly captured crew members discussing what happened over the airwaves — with someone saying, “We’ve got the guy that tried to shut the engines down out of the cockpit and he doesn’t sound like he’s causing any issue in the back right now, I think he’s subdued. We want law enforcement as soon as we get on the ground and parked.”

Well, Emerson was indeed met by officials … and they’re accusing him of a lot. In addition to the 83 attempted murder charges, he’s also been hit with 83 counts of reckless endangerment — plus, endangering an aircraft. No word on what possibly led him to do this.

Britney Spears‘ iconic hit, “…Baby One More Time,” almost wasn’t hers at all … ’cause the producer of the famous track shockingly got turned down by groups like TLC and the Backstreet Boys!

Swedish music producer Max Martin had already made a name for himself in the ’90s, working with Backstreet Boys on “Quit Playing Games” and Robyn on “Show Me Love” … but for some reason, ‘Baby’ wasn’t something his past collaborators were feeling.

He also hit up TLC, who were gearing up for their first album in 5 years, and they didn’t bite either — but 16-year-old Britney, the former “All-New Mickey Mouse Club” member, turned the tides.

Britney was flown out to Sweden as a teen to work with Max on her debut album, and he played her a demo of himself singing the song … and she was hooked.

She went on to record the track, as well as 6 others, with Max during her week in Stockholm … and as you know, what came after was INSTANT success — ‘Baby’ made its way to number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for a Grammy.

It also landed a spot in Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and has been covered countless times by artists.

BTW, Simon Cowell heard about ‘Baby’ before it ever came out — the ‘AGT’ judge revealed on the “Howie Mandel Does Stuff” podcast earlier this year that he called up Max and begged him to give him the song for Five, his boy band at the time, but Max shot him down.

The adults in the room when a 3-year-old shot herself with an unattended gun tried covering up the bloody incident … at least according to the woman who called 911.

In the dispatch audio, obtained by TMZ, the caller says she’s not at the home but has been informed about the shooting and is rushing over to help. She’s not sure if anyone in the home called 911, and the dispatcher can’t seem to find any prior call about the shooting.

The caller begs for an ambulance to rush over to the home, adding …”And, they are trying to hide it. That’s why they didn’t call fire rescue. I need an officer over there. I need fire rescue over there.”

She also tells the dispatcher the people in the home are trying to take the kiddo to the hospital themselves and “they just let her shoot herself in the hand.”

As we reported … home surveillance video shows the young girl, Serenity, playing in the living room at her grandma’s Florida home, jumping onto a couch where a loaded firearm is sitting in plain view.

Serenity grabs the pistol and peers over at a relative, Orlando Young, who is watching a football game on a laptop … and then the gun goes off. The bullet strikes her hand, and she cries out in pain as chaos ensues.

The caller is on the phone with 911 as she races to the house, and she’s still on the line when she pulls up … and you hear her yelling at someone, “Why didn’t they call fire rescue?!?”

Miami-Dade County police say family members took Serenity to a hospital … and Young was arrested and charged with child neglect.

It’s unclear if the caller is the girl’s mother, Warnicia Williams, who told Local 10 News she wants Young held accountable.

Lil Yachty seems to be responsible for getting his own concert canceled early this weekend — because not long before the plug got pulled … he was telling folks to come on down.

The rapper was performing Saturday night in Vancouver, BC … and toward the beginning of his set at the University of British Columbia’s Thunderbird Arena — which looked to be packed — the ticketholders could be seen pouring down onto the main floor and rushing the stage.

Take a look for yourself … in footage obtained by TMZ — you can see tons of young people descending toward the mosh pit area of the arena, seemingly at LY’s behest.

Eyewitnesses tell us Yachty was shouting “fill it up” as he was starting to perform the very first song of his set list … and his fans obliged, with tons of folks climbing over railings and security guards to get to the mosh pit area and be as close to Yachty as possible.

We’re told Yachty did 3 or 4 songs under these conditions, but then his mic was cut off and the house lights came on. Someone over the speaker told everyone to go back to their seats — something Yachty himself encouraged, saying the show would be over if they didn’t.

Sounds like people didn’t head back fast enough … ’cause our sources say when Yachty trying launching into yet another song, the sound was gone — and the gig was canceled.