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A black man pleaded for his life Friday as cops put a knee to his neck, punched him in the face, and the circumstances preceding the altercation are shocking.

The man, his cousin and a third person were passengers in a Lyft that was pulled over in Clayton County, Georgia ... they say it was pulled over because a tail light was out. They say Sheriff's deputies asked for his license but he didn't have one.  That's when they say a deputy asked to see the passengers' licenses. They asked the officers why they had to show ID since they had done nothing wrong.

There was clearly a confrontation, because the video starts with the man on the ground with 2 deputies on top of him. At one point, you see a deputy punch the man repeatedly in the face, drawing blood.

You hear a woman -- apparently the man's cousin -- screaming at the cops to stop punching, and the deputy responds, "He's biting my hand."

As the deputy continues to press the man's head on the pavement he screams, "I'm gonna die!" and "I can't breathe." The young child watches as the man on the ground appears to have been rendered unconscious.

We do not know if the man was injured. It appears he was arrested.

The Clayton County Sheriff's Office tells TMZ, "After being made aware of a video posted on social media involving a Deputy using physical force on a man, Sheriff Victor Hill ordered his entire Internal Affairs Unit to come in and begin an investigation that has been on going since 8pm. The Sheriff has ordered that the Deputy involved be placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation."

A city councilwoman in Minot, North Dakota got into it with a resident during a council meeting Friday -- a resident who was clearly upset the City would dare raise an LGBTQ+ flag -- and she shut him down by telling him and the rest of the City ... she's gay and she's proud of it.

Councilwoman Carrie Evans clearly had it with the man who has issues with gays, saying, “So, Mr. Walker, if you’re not aware, and I think a lot of people in this room are not aware, and have come here just because this is a gay issue, I am proudly the first openly elected lesbian in North Dakota. So that is why I am not paying any heed to your crap!”

She went on ... “I am a person. I get to see myself represented on that flagpole just as much as the people who got the Juneteenth flag last month, as much as the POW/MIA will get later this month.”

And that wasn't the end ... “Every single person is entitled to see themselves represented. We are not some group of people who live in San Francisco or Seattle. We are HERE. We are your elected officials. We are your brothers. we are your sisters, and don’t tell me you’re not hatred or anger. That’s all I feel. I’ve had to listen to it for days now, as has the mayor and many of my colleagues. It is unacceptable!”

And then she ended with this ... "I’m sorry that it doesn’t make you feel comfortable, but we’re here, we’re queer, and we’re not going away!”

Joe Biden just got a massive infusion of money that will be pouring into what could be the make-or-break state ... thanks to the deep pockets of Michael Bloomberg.

The former NYC Mayor and current billionaire announced Sunday he's committing $100 million to defeat Donald Trump in Florida.

It's incredibly significant because according to some polls the race in Florida is tightening.  Biden is ahead in most polls, but generally within the margin of error. Bloomberg wants to target Latino voters ... Biden has support among Latinos, but relative to other Democrats his support is somewhat soft.

Bloomberg's not keeping his strategy under wraps. His people said in announcing the donation, "Mike's substantial investment in Florida will allow Democrats and the Biden campaign to invest heavily in other key states like Pennsylvania ... And, this will force Republicans and the Trump campaign to shift even more of their limited resources to Florida."

True to form, Trump responded on Twitter with name-calling, saying, "I thought Mini Mike was through with Democrat politics after spending almost 2 Billion Dollars, and then giving the worst and most inept Debate Performance in the history of Presidential Politics. Pocahontas ended his political career on first question, OVER! Save NYC instead."

Hidden within this stretched out snap is an actor that has worked on a number of different projects over the course of his career!

This talented star has had major roles in television shows such as 'That '70s Show' and 'NCIS'. He has also voiced several animated characters such as Manny on 'Handy Manny', and most recently he voiced Gaxton in Disney and Pixar's 'Onward'.

Black Lives Matter protesters were out in force Saturday night, stopping traffic for a time on the George Washington Bridge in NYC in a loud, tense but mostly peaceful protest.

The crowd chanted "No justice, no peace" as protesters put cones on the bridge to prevent traffic from crossing. The bridge was blocked for only 40 minutes, but the point was certainly driven home.

There were some tense moments between police and protesters, but for the most part, it didn't get out of hand. There were a few shoving matches between protesters and police. At one point you see a cop push a protester who falls on the pavement.

The protest then moved to the 34th Precinct where the group continued to demonstrate, chanting, "F*** the police."

Kylie Jenner's probably a muse for a lot of people, but one creative artist is especially feeling her influence as he watches his sales skyrocket ... all because she wore a hoodie.

Here's what went down -- the cosmetics mogul wore a hoodie made by Muse Clothing in a recent YouTube video to promote her new Summer Sailor Collection.

Muse is a streetwear brand created by Antony Muse, who tells TMZ the hoodie Kylie wore in the vid was one-of-a-kind ... and he has no idea how she got it.

Antony says he's never spoken to Kylie or her team or sent her any of his work, so he was stunned when he found out she wore his clothing ... stunned and elated.

He tells us Kylie randomly wearing his hoodie is "similar to what I think would happen if I won the lottery," adding it seems surreal.

Beyond the excitement ... a major boost to his bottom line. Antony says his DMs immediately began blowing up over the hoodie, so he's re-releasing it.

And, get this -- he says in the first 24 hours after Kylie posted the video, his brand's sales have surpassed any day since the company launched in 2017. Sales increased by 10 fold over a typical day.

Antony's singing Kylie's praises, saying ... "Although it may seem like a small thing for her to just put on a hoodie, her post could be the difference between a smaller artist like myself having to go back to waiting tables and being able to continue to grow and live off of my art."

The NBA bubble was the scene of a Black Lives Matter protest Saturday, as protesters were trying to get the attention of athletes who have led the charge in recent months for social justice.

Protesters gathered around the Walt Disney World campus, close to the public entrance. The demonstrators wanted LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and other NBA stars to see them as they held signs and shouted messages with the help of megaphones.

Many of the protesters focused on the fatal shooting of Salaythis Melvin, a 22-year-old Black man who was shot in the back at a mall in Orange County, Florida ... just 15 miles from the Bubble.

This is a swan after Dr. Fauci's heart ... a bird that clearly understands how to curb the spread of COVID -- or it was just a one-in-a-million crazy goof that landed with a message.

Check this out ... a woman is at some sort of animal park in France -- she has a mask around her neck but not covering her face -- and she approaches a swan.

All's well until the swan snaps at her face. Now get this ... the bird doesn't break the skin -- rather, it latches onto the mask, pulls it back and it snaps right onto her face. It became the perfect covering!!!

The woman falls backward ... probably at once feeling lucky she didn't get bit and super impressed by the bawdy bird.

The video has swept across France ... This clip is captioned, “You’ve been told: wear your mask!”

"Saturday Night Live" will soon be back for season 46 -- just in time for the craziest election season ever -- but things will be different.

Multiple production sources tell TMZ ... the "live from New York" aspect of the show will be true for the first time since March 7, but don't expect a live audience. We're told that's not going to happen, at least not for a while.

Next, our sources say 'SNL' is scouting big spaces around NYC, along with warehouses in Brooklyn and Jersey, to shoot some of the pre-taped sketches. We're told they're looking for a place that allows for proper social distancing and safety for the cast and crew that Studio 8H at Rockefeller Center can't quite provide.

Finally, our sources say Zoom may still have to be utilized for celebrity guests ... much like it was in the 3 spring shows with stars like Tom Hanks and Brad Pitt.

The iconic sketch comedy show revealed its highly anticipated return October 3. We're told a small production crew will be at 30 Rock next week to prepare.

It's unclear how the cast will manage rehearsing at the studio -- or who the cast will include for that matter -- but it should be fun to find out.

Sen. Marco Rubio will NOT follow in the footsteps of Donald Trump's son and boycott the NFL over anthem demonstrations ... telling TMZ Sports players have every right to protest.

"Look, I think players are Americans," Rubio said. "They have free speech rights to say whatever they want."

The Dallas Cowboys -- who have famously NEVER had a player kneel for the anthem -- now have players considering taking a knee for the pregame song during their season-opener on Sunday ... and that really angered Eric Trump this week.

In a tweet, Eric wrote, "football is officially dead" now that America's Team might be participating in the protests.

But, when we got Rubio at Reagan Airport in D.C. this week ... he told us the demonstrations -- which included the Houston Texans not even showing up for the anthem on Thursday -- won't impact his viewing experiences.

"They're Americans," Rubio said of NFL players. "People have a right to express their views whether you agree with them halfway, all the way or none of the way."

"It's the left, frankly, who has been trying to silence people whose views they don't agree with and I hope the right doesn't fall into that."

Rapper Lil Mosey has learned his lesson ... at least when it comes to surfing.

The "Pull Up" rapper doesn't seem to have a single ounce of worry as he took surfing lessons while in the middle of a very serious gun case. Surfing instructor Alex Hoffman tells TMZ ... the rapper and some friends took lessons in Malibu earlier this week.

We're told his lesson lasted nearly 2 hours ... first a tutorial on the sand where Alex taught him how to position himself on the board, paddle and then pop up on his feet. Armed with the basics, he hit the waves -- and even though he ate it, we're told Mosey did pretty well during the training sesh.

This, of course, is one helluva juxtaposition considering he's in the middle of a serious gun case. TMZ broke the story ... the 18-year-old was busted in Burbank last month after cops found 3 loaded 9mm semi-automatic pistols in the Escalade he was riding in with 3 other people.

Lauren Coogan didn't find a man to take home during her short stay at the 'Love Island' villa ... instead, she found her hunk at the airport the day she left the show!!!

We got Lauren at LAX and she was far from alone after leaving 'Love Island' ... she had a handsome man by her side, and their love story is pretty amazing.

Lauren tells us she met her match at the airport while catching her flight outta Vegas, mere hours after leaving the reality dating competition show. Talk about a connecting flight!

On 'Love Island,' Lauren came in saying most men are enamored by her or afraid when they first meet her ... but her mystery man, Garrett Morosky, tells us how he made his airport pickup.

Turns out, women with baggage can be a good thing. Take notes, guys, Garrett's got game!!!

Lauren's not ready to put the "love" label on this relationship yet ... but the two are already having tons of fun traveling and showing each other off on their social media pages. Seems like the perfect Instagram couple.

Call of Duty champs Crimsix and Shotzzy just won $1.5 MILLION playing video games ... and the CoD superstars have a message for parents of future esports players who want their kids to get a "real job."

28-year-old Ian Porter aka Crimsix and 19-year-old Anthony Cuevas-Castro aka Shotzzy are part of the Dallas Empire -- owned by Envy Gaming with investors like Post Malone -- who just took out the Atlanta FaZe in the 2020 CoD League championship.

Crim -- widely regarded as the greatest Call of Duty player of all-time -- says his mom and dad did NOT want him to become a professional gamer at first.

"[My parents] were super strict, super against it," Crim says.

"My parents made me have like a 3.8 GPA. I'm in AP classes. I did summer school so I could actually get off high school earlier, and play earlier."

Porter says he attended college and was on the Dean's List before dropping out of school, and telling his mom and dad ... "I'm gonna make more money than you guys this year!"

BTW, he's been out-earning them since.

Shotzzy says his mom was a little different ... she gave him time to pursue his dream, but told him he'd have to go to school and get a 9-to-5 if he wasn't successful with gaming.

"If your kid has a dream to become a video game player, let 'em be. Try to be not as strict and give it a couple of years and if nothing happens, then you can start being strict on 'em I guess," Shotzzy says.

"She gave me a couple of years and now I'm here."

"Here" is super-rich ... in addition to the $1.5 milli, the guys are paid a salary and have lucrative sponsorship deals.

Crim and Shotzzy also have huge fan bases ... and are regularly watched by millions of people.

We are kickin' off the 2020 NFL season with all of these sexy supporters!

Stars like Ciara, Saweetie, and Sophia Bush are just a few of the famous females that are definitely ready for football Sundays to be back in action and took to social media to share hot shots on IG while reppin' their fav team!

There's a whole roster of celebs that have shared snaps geared up and ready to support their favorite NFL squad ... Just take a look through our gallery of babes in NFL jerseys to see all the other celeb cheerleaders rooting for their teams from home!

Naomi Osaka just won her second U.S. Open title in 2 years -- and as part of her victory speech, she made sure to continue bringing awareness to social justice to the very end.

The tennis superstar defeated Victoria Azarenka Saturday over the course of three sets -- 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 -- and walked away a champion once more ... securing her second U.S. Open women's championship title in 2 years, and her third Grand Slam win in three.

She was clearly overwhelmed by the victory, 'cause she ended up lying down on the court afterward ... and stared straight up to the sky as the crowd cheered her on. Afterward, she was all smiles holding her trophy -- kinda the opposite reaction from when she defeated Serena Williams in 2018.

Anyway, this year has been incredibly noteworthy for Naomi ... not to mention her boyfriend, Cordae, who's been her rock through the entire tournament. Both of them have been very outspoken on racial justice, often wearing clothing with messages supporting BLM.

Saturday proved no different ... Cordae was in the stands and had a shirt on that read "Defund the Police." Prior to her finals match this weekend, Naomi herself was wearing a mask featuring the name of 12-year-old Tamir Rice ... who was gunned down by a cop for playing with a toy gun in Cleveland back in 2014.

Naomi also made sure to make her message clear about the 7 masks she rocked during the U.S. Open -- which blared the names of victims of police brutality. She said she just wants to get more people talking about the issue ... and yes, she certainly achieved that.

Several family members of those people she was amplifying recently thanked her for not forgetting their loved ones ... and shared their gratitude remotely as she went along in the tourney.

Mission accomplished. Congrats!

Kanye West just got schooled on what a 5:00 PM deadline means in Wisconsin -- in one judge's view ... which, for now, is keeping Ye off the ballot there, and it's all over 14 seconds.

A circuit court magistrate ruled this week that Kanye was, in fact, too late by submitting his nomination docs last month to get his name on the ballot come November ... even though his team got it in 14 seconds after 5 o'clock, which they felt was still inside the window.

Not the case, so says Judge John Zakowski. Hizzoner writes, "The court believes at the time a grandfather clock rings out five times is the moment it is 5 p.m. Any time after that is precisely that: after 5 p.m." Oof, tough crowd. But wait, there's more to his rationale.

Judge Zakowski goes on to explain ... "The court used the analogy of midnight. There is significant difference between 11:59:59 p.m. and one second after midnight. The passage of a second after midnight confers an entirely new day." Hmmm, we suppose he has a point.

In other words, a late registration from Kanye ... quite literally. And thus, he isn't eligible to rock the vote on November 3rd. That said, Ye could take one last shot in this legal fight.

There's the option of appealing to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, and if Kanye and co. do that ... they might actually have a more favorable ruling. Fact is, a majority of those justices lean conservative -- and they could interpret the deadline rules a little differently.

Considering Wisconsin is a big swing state in this election ... he might wanna consider it. Not only that, but Dems there are already trying to rally the base with some cool celeb appearances -- namely, a 'Parks & Rec' Q&A session this month with a bulk of the cast. The goal is getting Wisconsin folks to vote.