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Ariana Grande put on a brave face and belted out a big tune in her first public appearance since ending things with Pete Davidson.

Grande performed "The Wizard and I" Tuesday in a pre-taped TV special for the Broadway musical "Wicked." Grande assured fans Monday she'd still be a part of the event, even after the split with Davidson, and she delivered on her promise.

TMZ broke the story ... Davidson was supposed to headline a comedy gig Wednesday at Temple University but dropped out last minute. He's being replaced by Adam DeVine.

Grande has already returned the $100k engagement ring from Pete, and she'll keep their pet teacup pig, Piggy Smallz.

The candidate Chance the Rapper's endorsing for mayor of Chicago says his support goes way beyond the typical celeb endorsement, because he's going to be a key player in her campaign.

We spoke with Amara Enyia Tuesday shortly after Chance announced he was endorsing her in the race to get Rahm Emanuel's office when he steps down next year.

She tells us Chance's backing is more than a "flash in the pan," and the proof will be evident on the campaign trail. Not that the hometown hero needs to prove himself -- Amara reminded us Chance has walked the walk in Chicago ... donating millions to the city's public school system and other services.

Amara compares Chance's shift into politics to people like Kanye West and Kim Kardashian West, who've both gotten in some face time with the President over different issues.

Meek Mill can't lose these days ... first he gets his freedom back, then he squashes beef with Drake, and now he's winning a cool $50k by making a crazy over-the-shoulder, half-court hoops trick shot.

Meek was hanging out with his pal, Michael Rubin -- owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and one of MM's strongest allies when he was inside -- when the two men decided to have a little friendly wager.

Friendly, meaning $50k ... according to Meek.

Meek had 25 tries to make an over-the-shoulder, half-court heave ... and with about 9 tries left, he nailed it.

Listen, the NBA season kicks off Tuesday night and, while we think it's dope someone other than those guys are getting paid for basketball, this whole thing reminds of one very sobering fact.

There are better ways to voice your displeasure for President Trump than by dragging the First Lady through the mud, and T.I. has gone waaaay too far ... so says former Barack Obama cabinet member Julian Castro.

We got the former HUD Secretary Tuesday at Reagan National, and asked about T.I. portraying Melania Trump as his personal lapdancer in the Oval.

Julian says there's no room for lewd antics in our democracy. Although, we gotta say ... that's a funny response considering Trump's exchange with Stormy Daniels today.

He's adamant mafia rules should apply -- as in, spouses and kids are off limits when bashing Trump, or any other politician. Julian's speaking as a very interested party because he's said he's probably running for Prez in 2020.

Pete Davidson is doing everything in his power to keep a low profile after the collapse of his relationship with Ariana Grande.

Davidson was set to headline Wednesday at Temple University's event, "Comedy Night Live." In a statement for the event, we're told Davidson pulled out last minute due to "personal reasons."

TMZ broke the story ... Pete and Ariana ended their engagement and called it quits on their relationship over the weekend. Ariana has already returned her $100k engagement ring to Davidson and Ariana will keep the couple's teacup pig, Piggy Smallz.

Dana White tells TMZ Sports ... he and Khabib Nurmagomedov have worked out their issues and "The Eagle" will not be leaving the UFC.

"We're good with Khabib," Dana said ... "He's staying. This will all work out."

Remember, Khabib threatened to leave the organization if White fired his teammate, Zubaira Tukhugov, for his role in the post-fight madness at UFC 229.

"If you decide to fire him, you should know that you’ll lose me too," Khabib posted on Instagram last week.

So, when we saw Dana out in NYC moments ago, we had to ask if he felt there was a real risk that Khabib would walk.

"We worked it out. We're gonna get everything worked out. Obviously, he was a little upset and a little fired up."

He continued, "Listen, guys get very emotional man and that was a very emotional fight for him. At the end of the day, Khabib is a great guy and we've always had a great relationship with him."

The other question ... does this mean Khabib AND Zubaira will remain on the UFC roster?

"Well, [Khabib's] staying in the UFC," Dana said ... telling us he's not 100% sure about Zubaira's future.

He did assure us that Khabib is happy and "this will all work out."

Dennis Hof -- the owner of the famous Bunny Ranch, and Love Ranch where Lamar Odom overdosed -- has passed away at the age of 72.

Law enforcement sources tell us they got a 911 call from Hof's Love Ranch in Crystal, Nevada around 11 AM. We're told the call was for an unresponsive male. Detectives are currently on scene ... no foul play is suspected.

Hof had recently celebrated his birthday with a weekend-long bash that included celebs like Ron Jeremy, Flavor Flav, Afroman and Johnny Buss. According to Hof's campaign manager, Jeremy was the one who discovered his body.

Hof shot to superstardom as the star of the HBO series 'Cathouse' -- which followed him as he ran his famous brothels in Nevada.

Hof bragged about being a pimp -- and came up with his own catchphrase, "There's no business like ho business."

The most infamous incident under Hof's watch went down in October 2015 when Lamar Odom overdosed after a bender at Hof's Love Ranch South. Blood tests later revealed Lamar had cocaine in his system. Odom was placed in a coma for 3 days after the incident.

In a recent interview, Lamar revealed he suffered 12 strokes and 6 heart attacks while hospitalized for the incident.

Hof was a master when it came to publicity -- he famously hired Tiger Woods' mistress Devon James to work at the Bunny Ranch back in 2010. He fired her and at the time said, "I wish nothing but the worst for her."

Hof was currently in the middle of a campaign for State Assembly ... winning the GOP primary in June.

The Governor of Idaho is appalled at his former fish and game commissioner for slaughtering a family of baboons -- saying not only is the killing itself wrong -- posting a pic is just as disturbing.

Blake Fischer came under heavy fire after sending out an email to more than 100 people that contained a photo of himself posing with 4 baboons he killed during a hunting trip in Africa. One of the baboons was a juvenile ... and a bloody gunshot wound was visible on the animal.

Fischer resigned and Governor Butch Otter issued a statement, saying, "Every member of my administration is expected to exercise good judgment."

A rep for Otter tells us in Idaho hunter education courses -- taught by Fischer's own department -- participants are taught to exercise good judgment when they display images of their kills. This includes covering up wounds and not widely circulating images others may deem offensive ... Fischer broke both of those rules.

On a personal level, Governor Otter says he'd never kill the exotic animals, and urged others to act in accordance with his actions.

CHUBBS IS BACK!!!

Yeah, that massive 15-foot alligator sauntering through a Florida golf course has a name -- because he's become a "regular" ... and miraculously, no one's been eaten yet!

Chubbs was first spotted at the Buffalo Creek Golf Course in Palmetto, FL back in 2016 -- and has become a social media sensation ever since ... mostly because he's a giant, green monster.

But, the gator returned on Saturday -- with stunned golfers crapping their pants as the carnivore strolled through his home course.

Course officials have said Chubbs is almost like a pet -- he does his own thing and doesn't bother anyone.

Just as long as you keep your distance.

Grab your popcorn -- President Trump and Stormy Daniels are trading biting insults, directly at each other, and as you'd probably expect he started it, she finished with ... a d**k joke.

First, POTUS did what he does Tuesday morning ... brag about his victory over Stormy in her defamation lawsuit. As we reported, it was dismissed Monday -- and he celebrated by tweeting "Now I can go after Horseface and her 3rd rate lawyer in the Great State of Texas."

Ouch, right?

Not to worry, Stormy fired back, "In addition to his ...umm...shortcomings, he demonstrated his incompetence, hatred of women and lack of self control on Twitter AGAIN! And perhaps a penchant for bestiality."

Gotta give her 2 bonus points for the self-effacing humor. Her final low blow? "Game on, Tiny."

Here's how we're scoring it at the buzzer:
Trump - 1
Daniels - 3

We hope suspect this ain't over, though.

James Prince thinks it's stupid to avoid interacting with people who have a different world view, and that's why the rap mogul tells us he's willing to have a conversation with President Trump in the Oval.

J Prince was on Van Lathan's 'Red Pill Podcast' talking about his new book, 'The Art & Science of Respect,' when he said he'd accept an invitation to the White House ... promising to lobby for the black community if he goes to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

The Rap-A-Lot Records CEO has tons of experience with famous rap beefs ... so he's no stranger to reaching across the aisle to try and ease tension and settle differences.

Some critics have said Kanye West brought a circus to the Oval, but J Prince says his visit would be totally different.

Check out the full episode with James below, and catch 'The Red Pill' weekly on SoundCloud.

Kanye West's season of giving continued in Uganda ... with tons of kids getting Yeezys!!

Ye and Kim Kardashian West surprised a bunch of kids as their tour of the east African country continues. But first, they had to get there ... and our sources say none other than the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, gave Kimye permission to use his presidential helicopter so they could be flown to a kids' charity event.

We're told Kanye, Kim and their entourage were flown from Chobe, Uganda -- where they're staying -- to the event in Masulita, about 94 miles away. The pic above shows them arriving.

Kanye didn't waste time rapping for the kids ... who went wild as soon as they saw him and Kim. The kids sang but things got really wild when Kanye brought out several bags loaded with Yeezys. You gotta see their reaction ... frankly, it's just heartwarming.

As they were heading out ... Kim -- with Saint in tow -- was swarmed by reporters. Kim stopped to chat with them and shared some thoughts on her experience during their stay in Africa.

As you know ... Kanye gifted President Trump a pair of Yeezys last week, and also surprised the President of Uganda with his own pair. Neither was nearly as excited as these kids.

Well played, Ye!

Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson have called it quits, and that usually means dividing up the pots and pans, or in their case a super expensive engagement ring and a pet pig.

Sources close to Ariana tell us she's already returned the nearly $100k engagement ring Davidson gave her back in June. The ring -- a 3.03 carat diamond set in platinum -- was a one of a kind, made specifically for Grande, and took weeks to complete. We're told there was no struggle over who'd keep the ring. He bought it in contemplation of marriage, and she was quick to fork it over.

Piggy Smallz -- the couple's teacup pig they adopted last month -- became a signature of their relationship ... in fact, Davidson got a tattoo of Smallz on his torso shortly after she became part of their family.

Here's the thing. Ariana bought the pig and it was really hers from the get-go, so she's keeping it ... again, no fight over the porker.

We all know Jerry Seinfeld takes his love for cars quite seriously -- and, apparently, he feels the same way about luxury scooters too. Can ya tell?

The comic was in NYC Tuesday getting ready to take a ride on a spiffy looking Lambretta -- the Italian-scooter that rivals Vespa, kinda like Ford vs. GM. Jerry must've been on one hell of a mission, 'cause he looked super serious -- the scarf and helmet look is working for him.

Normally, Jerry likes to go 4 wheels ... especially for his hit show, "Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee." As far as we can tell, he hasn't taken a fellow comedian out for a scooter ride. It'd spark a great convo though.

Jerry famously owns more than 100 vintage and exotic cars -- mostly Porsches. Nothing wrong with diversifying your portfolio.

8:20 AM PT -- Stephanie Grisham has elaborated on her initial tweet by releasing a statement, saying, "Like it or not, she is the First Lady and this is the White House. It's disrespectful and disgusting to portray her this way simply because of politics."

She continued, "These kinds of vulgar attacks only further the divisiveness and bias in our country - it needs to stop."

T.I. is going directly after President Trump and the First Lady with a salacious video of a Melania look-alike stripping in the Oval Office ... for T.I.!!!

Melania's office is firing back at Tip for the video he released over the weekend ... it shows him in the Oval, kicking back smoking a cigar. After Trump leaves the White House, "Melania" walks in wearing nothing but her infamous "I Really Don't Care" jacket ... but only for a few seconds.

Suddenly, she's naked and on the Presidential desk giving T.I. full view of ... everything.

T.I. was clearly trying to draw the ire of POTUS ... slapping the caption "Dear 45, I ain't Kanye" on the video.

Melania's rep Stephanie Grisham tweeted, "How is this acceptable? #disgusting #boycottT.I."

No response yet from T.I. ... but seems like mission accomplished for him.

This tearjerker comes courtesy of "Empire" star Jussie Smollett, who just made life a little easier for a double amputee -- and if crying's your thing ... grab some tissues.

Jussie -- who plays Cookie and Lucious Lyon's son, Jamal, on "Empire" -- met up with 6-year-old Kayden Kinckle to deliver a handicapped-accessible van ... but first, he met Kayden's fam at a hotel, setting up the big surprise.

The reveal did not disappoint -- the look on Kayden's face when he sees the van is kinda everything. Kayden got a quick lesson on how to work his new ramp, prompting Jussie to say, "It's gonna be just like a chariot for the Pharaoh."

The timing of the gift couldn't come at a better time ... we're told Kayden's about to get new legs and the van will help him and his family get around.