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Kanye West was a forgery victim and the cost is huge ... nearly $1 MILLION ... sources tell TMZ.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ, a guy Ye knew secretly contacted Philipp Plein, who is staging a big New York Fashion Week event this coming Monday. The guy misrepresented himself to Plein as Kanye's rep and began negotiations for Kanye to perform ... at a STEEP price.

Plein apparently fell for it hook, line and sinker, and they made a deal wherein Kanye would supposedly pocket 7 figures and, in return, he would perform at the NYFW show.

It gets worse. We're told the guy forged Kanye's name on the contract and then had a $900,000 advance wired to an account ... which the guy promptly cleaned out.

Kanye's not performing at the show, and Plein is now out a pretty penny.

As for the guy who committed the alleged fraud ... we're told he's a former friend and associate of G.O.O.D. Music.

We have not been able to reach Plein for comment, but it's a good bet he'll take some sort of legal action.

8:53 AM PT -- Although Ja is a defendant in EHL's lawsuit ... he is NOT on the hook for the $3 mil. The judge only hit McFarland for failing to respond to the suit.

8:32 AM PT -- Ja Rule doesn't seem concerned. He tells us, "this is FAKE NEWS GUYS LOL."

Billy McFarland is gonna have to scrounge together about $3 mil to pay back an investment company that got screwed when Fyre Festival imploded ... TMZ has learned.

EHL Funding sued Ja Rule and Billy over $3 million they loaned the duo less than 3 weeks before Fyre Fest was supposed to go down in April 2017. As we all know now -- courtesy of the Netflix and Hulu documentaries -- McFarland was way over his head at that time and scrambling to get any and all financial support for the concert.

According to docs, EHL won a default judgment because Billy didn't respond to the lawsuit. McFarland's been a little busy -- he started serving a 6-year prison sentence for wire fraud last year.

The judge ordered him to fork over $2,891,600 ... plus 30 percent interest dating back to August 2017 ... and EHL's attorney fees -- which ya just know are gonna be enormous.

Big win for EHL ... on paper. Collecting from these guys might be tough.

Fun fact: McFarland is doing his time at NY's Otisville federal prison ... same place Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino is locked up. President Trump's ex-lawyer, Michael Cohen, will be there soon too!

Originally Published -- 7:21 AM PST

THE PLAYOFF BEARD IS GONE!!!

Julian Edelman parted with his legendary playoff face warmer this week -- and the person wielding the shears was none other than Ellen DeGeneres!

The New England Patriots superstar grabbed the Vince Lombardi Trophy and dropped by Ellen's show to talk about being named the MVP of the Super Bowl ... when things got a little hairy.

Ellen revealed a pop-up barbershop on her set, sat Jules in the chair and got her trim on ... and she actually did a pretty good job!

Edelman had been growing out the face fuzz as a thing pro athletes do in the playoffs -- and if you know anything about pro athletes, they're VERY into superstition.

In Edelman's case ... it worked (it also helped that his QB is Tom Brady).

Oh, also ... turns out Edelman's pretty good looking under all those whiskers.

2/8 -- AMI has responded to Jeff Bezos, and it sounds like his claim has shaken them. The company says, "American Media believes fervently that it acted lawfully in the reporting of the story of Mr. Bezos. Further, at the time of the recent allegations made by Mr. Bezos, it was in good faith negotiations to resolve all matters with him."

They continue, "Nonetheless, in light of the nature of the allegations published by Mr. Bezos, the Board has convened and determined that it should promptly and thoroughly investigate the claims. Upon completion of that investigation, the Board will take whatever appropriate action is necessary."

6:11 PM PT -- Ronan Farrow says AMI also attempted to blackmail him "and at least one other prominent journalist involved in breaking stories about the National Enquirer's arrangement with Trump."

The Pulitzer Prize winner says he "fielded similar 'stop digging or we'll ruin you' blackmail efforts from AMI." He says he did not engage AMI on the topic.

Jeff Bezos is sick of playing games with the National Enquirer -- he's released a series of letters it sent him, threatening to blackmail him over photos he and his lover sent each other.

The Amazon honcho says the Enquirer's parent company American Media Inc. (AMI) is threatening to publish photos he exchanged with Lauren Sanchez if he doesn't shut down investigations into AMI's ties to President Trump and the Saudi government.

Remember, Bezos owns the Washington Post, which has been all over the Trump administration's Saudi ties since its journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, was murdered last year.

Bezos says he also hired a private investigator to find out how the Enquirer obtained his text messages to Sanchez ... which it published last month. He's now gone fully on the offensive by releasing

, threatening to publish new explicit photos of Bezos and Sanchez, if he and WaPo don't back off.

As you can see in the emails, the Enquirer execs claim to have sexually explicit images sent between Jeff and Lauren ... including his naked bathroom selfie, several shirtless snaps of Jeff and sexually suggestive images of Lauren.

Bezos makes no bones about it ... calling it blackmail, but adding AMI miscalculated his reaction. He says he'd rather risk the public embarrassment than give in to the extortion attempt.

We reached out to AMI for comment ... no word back yet.

As we reported, the world's richest man is divorcing his wife, Mackenzie Bezos -- which he announced in January, the day before the Enquirer published its story about his relationship with Sanchez.

Originally Published -- 2/7 4:28 PM PT

More Jeff Bezos related news ... his girlfriend's estranged husband seems to be moving on with a hot young model.

Patrick Whitesell, the husband of Lauren Sanchez and co-CEO of William Morris Endeavor talent agency, hit up The Nice Guy nightclub in WeHo Thursday night, along with Keir Alexa.

Whitesell, a former close friend of Bezos -- who introduced the Amazon honcho to Lauren -- was mum on Bezos' attack on the National Enquirer, claiming the outlet was trying to blackmail him.

Whitesell, who reps Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Amy Schumer, Michelle Williams, John Krasinski and many others, had security who made sure he and the woman could separately beeline it to their waiting ride.

As for Sanchez and Bezos, they've been laying low -- we haven't seen them together for a month.

Emiliano Sala -- an Argentinian soccer player -- has been confirmed dead ... coroner's ID'd a body that was pulled from a tragic plane crash as his, Dorset Police announced.

The 28-year-old had boarded a small plane in France with a pilot on Jan. 21 destined for Wales ... but it crashed in the English Channel shortly after takeoff.

The striker -- who was in the process of completing a transfer from FC Nantes to Cardiff City FC -- was reportedly concerned mid-flight, sending a cryptic audio message in Spanish to friends.

"I am now aboard a plane that seems like it is falling to pieces," Sala said [translated from Spanish] ... "I'm going to Cardiff now, crazy, and tomorrow we get going. I will train with my new team tomorrow."

"If you do not have any more news from [me] in an hour and a half, I don't know if they need to send someone to find me. I am getting scared!"

The plane disappeared from radar ... and after three days of trying to find it -- police called off the official search.

A private search was launched on Jan. 27 ... and the wreckage -- plus a body -- were found. Dorset Police announced Thursday the body had been ID'd as Sala's.

Sala was a star for Nantes before transferring to Cardiff City ... he led the team in goals the past three seasons.

His transfer fee was around $20 million ... a record signing for Cardiff City.

FC Nantes President, Waldemar Kita, said in a statement Friday [translated from French], "I do not have the words, it's a tragedy, I'm devastated."

"Emiliano left his mark, which is why, like many fans, I want to honor him again by retiring the number 9."

Sherri Shepherd says Liam Neeson should have NEVER let his "black bastard" revenge story outta Pandora's box ... and Michelle Rodriguez making excuses for Liam is just pathetic.

We got Sherri out in NYC Thursday afternoon and wanted to get her take on Liam's bombshell revelation that he -- after learning his friend had been raped by a black man -- walked the streets for days with a baton looking to kill a black man to avenge the crime.

Liam tried his hand at damage control by saying he's learned a lot about racism and insisting he's not racist. He called his behavior horrible ... but, the damage was done.

Not helping Liam's cause? Michelle telling Vanity Fair there's no way Liam's racist because he made out with Viola Davis in "Widows." Michelle said, "His tongue was so far down [her] throat. You can't call him a racist ever. Racists don't make out with the race that they hate."

Danielle Bregoli's star continues to rise, because her Snapchat series is bringing in tons of eyeballs to the screen, and she's looking to parlay the early success into even more projects.

Snapchat tells TMZ ... Danielle's new Snap Original, "Bringing Up Bhabie," generated over 10 MILLION unique views in the 24 hours after its Monday debut. We're told the first-day numbers give Snapchat tons of confidence that the show's a hit.

Look out Kardashians ... a rep for Danielle points out 'KUWTK' gets 1.5 million viewers per episode, adding, even though they're not in competition, Bhad Bhabie's numbers are WAY bigger.

Danielle's first-day viewership makes for one of the most successful premieres for this type of series, which started launching back in October. Snap honchos are super happy with the direction of their original content -- thanks, in large part, to Bhad Bhabie.

As you know, Danielle has been rapidly expanding her empire with a 25-city tour, a certified gold single, a futuristic billboard ad, and a lucrative beauty and makeup endorsement deal.

Taking into account all of her revenue streams ... Danielle's reps tell us she should easily surpass yearly earnings of $10 million.

So, what mountain will Danielle climb next? We're told she's looking for TV and movie roles.

Rap icon Kurtis Blow is outraged Virginia's Attorney General chose to "honor" him by wearing blackface.

Kurtis was on "TMZ Live" when he called out Mark Herring for being disrespectful, ugly and degrading when he wore blackface in 1980 as a 19-year-old college student at the University of Virginia. Herring admitted to dressing up as the rapper -- complete with "wigs and brown makeup" -- when he performed Blow's songs.

Virginia's leadership has come under fire after Governor Ralph Northam admitted earlier this week to wearing blackface when he dressed as Michael Jackson during a 1980 costume and dance competition. Herring called for Northam's resignation, but now Herring is dealing with his very own controversy.

Check it out ... Kurtis says even though Herring was a fan, what he did by wearing blackface was a disgrace. Kurtis then gives Jimmy Fallon props for getting it right on 'The Tonight Show.'

2/8 -- A spokesperson with the Georgia State Patrol tells TMZ ... a trooper noticed an orange Corvette fail to signal when changing lanes before speeding past cars in a reckless manner.

Cops say the Corvette also sped past the trooper and swerved in and out of traffic at a high rate of speed before getting stuck in traffic. But, as the trooper finally caught up, the Corvette tried accelerating and change lanes but was unable to do so due to the traffic.

That's when the trooper gave the rapper verbal commands -- get out of the car and lay on the ground, and cops say Lil Baby complied. The spokesperson said the rapper -- gov't name Dominique Jones -- was taken into custody without incident. Cops say a crowd did gather -- which is how the video was taken of the incident -- but said they were peaceful.

Cops say the rapper was turned over to a detention staff without incident. He was charged with failure to use a turn signal, reckless driving and fleeing or attempting to elude.

8:08 PM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Lil Baby has now been released.

Lil Baby just got arrested by police in Georgia who hauled him out of his car on a highway to slap the cuffs on him ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Lil Baby was arrested Thursday in Atlanta for failure to signal, eluding police and reckless driving. We're told he's expected to be released once he posts bond later tonight.

The video of the Atlanta rapper's arrest is wild ... it shows Lil Baby face down in the middle of the street, with his hands behind his back and a police officer pinning him to the ground. Lil Baby is in the tracksuit, laying down outside the orange Corvette.

As we reported ... Lil Baby started off the week like a boss, arriving at the Stripper Bowl in a helicopter!

What a difference 3 days make.

We reached out to the Atlanta Police Department, but they say they had nothing to do with the arrest.

Originally Published -- 4:50 PM PT

Meghan Markle's dad is forcefully pushing back against claims he's refusing to reach out to his daughter ... TMZ has learned.

A close friend of Thomas Markle tells TMZ ... all the claims made by Meghan's friends about his relationship with his daughter are "bulls***" ... and Thomas can prove it.

In a recent People story, Meghan's friends claimed Thomas refused to call or text his daughter since she entered the British Royal Family ... but we're told Thomas says that's complete "nonsense."

We're told Meghan's dad texted a loving message on her wedding day, and they spoke over the phone the day before the royal wedding -- with Meghan expressing worry for her dad's health issues, and Prince Harry wishing him well.

However, our sources say things drastically changed after Meghan and Harry tied the knot ... because we're told the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stopped communicating with Thomas and went radio silent.

We're told Thomas tried reaching Meghan multiple times by text ... to no avail.

Bottom line ... Thomas hasn't heard from Meghan for months.

Jen Selter put her best assets on display in Mexico this week ... and TMZ Sports has the pics!!!

The 25 year old uber-popular fitness model (she has almost 13 million Instagram followers!!) put on a pink bikini and hit the beach in Cabo San Lucas ... and braved the waters for an impromptu photo shoot.

We're told Jen spent the past couple weeks on vacation in Mexico with her mom and sister ... but, as you can see, she took a break from her break to hit the beach for some snaps.

Selter's known to take her booty on tour around the world -- from Greece to Mexico to Miami -- and this batch is sure to heat you up during the polar vortex.

Enjoy!!!

A former guest on Dr. Phil's talk show claims her mental illness became the subject of scorn and ridicule, causing her to have a breakdown -- but sources on the show tell us she didn't present herself as mentally ill, but falsely claimed to be the therapist of another guest.

The woman, named Kaden Mahaffa, says she was on Phil's show back in February 2017, but says her boyfriend was really supposed to be the focus during a show about childhood abuse. Kaden claims she was going to be on the show purely to support him, but during a pre-interview she told producers she has x-ray vision, the ability to hear people's thoughts, and other psychic abilities.

According to the suit, when Kaden went onstage she became the focus of Dr. Phil's questions. She claims he grilled her with hostile questions about her "sanity and beliefs" -- including asking her, "Can you tell me what I'm thinking right now?"

Now, what's clear when you see the clip is Kaden claimed to be providing more than emotional support for her BF, she claimed to be his therapist. Phil did grill her, but mostly about her credentials as a therapist.

We haven't been able to independently verify whether Kaden is a certified therapist.

Kaden says, in docs obtained by TMZ, the audience laughed at her and she felt humiliated. She claims things took a very dark turn when the taping ended. According to suit, she suffered a mental breakdown backstage ... "collapsing in tears and engaging in erratic behavior" including shouting at staffers and tearing out her own hair.

She says police were called and she was involuntarily committed to a mental health facility for 5 days. After she was released, Kaden says she was suicidal and became the subject of online harassment after the episode aired.

She's suing Phil, his production company and CBS for infliction of emotional distress, fraud and negligent misrepresentation ... and seeking unspecified damages.

We reached out to Dr. Phil's show, but they said they can't comment on pending litigation. However, sources connected to production tell us Kaden signed a release that made it clear anything she said was fair game for the TV show.

Ariana Grande says the guy who runs the Grammys is a liar for claiming she was just too frazzled to pull it together and perform on Sunday night's show ... she says it all fell apart because he utterly disrespected her.

Ariana has been promoted everywhere as one of the highlights of the show -- on TV commercials, a billboard on Hollywood Blvd., buses, and on and on. Yet, sources connected to the Grammys show tell us, Ariana never made a deal to show up or perform.

The deal she wanted was to perform her massive, #1 hit, "7 rings." We're told the show's producer, Ken Ehrlich, told Ariana that song wouldn't connect with the audience, so he asked her to choose a different song. Ariana felt strongly "7 Rings" was what people wanted to hear, and when Ehrlich wouldn't budge, she said she'd take a pass.

Fast-forward to Thursday, when Ehrlich gave an interview to AP, saying Ariana backed out because she "felt it was too late for her to pull something together."

We're told Ariana is enraged, because she actually continued to talk to the Grammys and offered to perform a song Ehrlich wanted, as long as she could sing "7 Rings," but he still wouldn't budge. She then said sayonara and, days later, Ehrlich came back and said fine, do a medley that includes "7 Rings" ... but by then, Ariana was done with him. In other words, we're told she feels like Ehrlich is lying because he knows he made a mistake and is looking for cover.

As for why she thinks he made a mistake ... "thank u, next" the album drops Friday, and it's expected to be the best-selling album so far this year, and for Ariana not to appear on the TV show will look ridiculous.