Floyd Mayweather's refusal to take a photo with a teenage fan, allegedly due to said fan's painted nails, has sparked outrage online.

Footage obtained by TMZ, showed a young male fan approaching the 44-year-old boxer for a photo after the Clippers vs. Grizzlies game at Staples Center on Saturday -  only to be rejected by the world-famous athlete.

In the video, Mayweather can be heard saying: "You got painted nails, I don't take pictures with guys with no painted nails."

As Mayweather and his team walk off, the young fan is then heard accusing him of being a homophobe.

In spite of his words in the video, a rep for Mayweather has since told TMZ that he refused to take the picture because he was in a rush to leave the venue. The rep also denied the fan's claim that Mayweather is homophobic.

In any case, since the video surfaced, a number of people have taken to Twitter to share their thoughts on the snub.

One person argued: "Painted nails on men has been around for decades. Anyone alive during the punk era knows this lol."

Directed at fans of the boxing champion, another pointed out that people's outrage wasn't merely due to Mayweather not wanting to take a photo - it was his intolerance that was getting people riled up.

The commenter wrote: "Here they go in the comments acting oblivious again. People aren’t upset about him not wanting to take a picture, they’re upset by the reason why being that the person has painted nails.

"He has freedom of choice and ppl have a right to their opinion on why he made that choice."

A third person asked: "Was anyone under the impression floyd was a particularly great person and humanitarian? Whos honestly shocked by this headline. [sic]"

However, there were a number of people who defended the boxer, with one fan writing: "Before the fake outrage begins, it was Floyd's choice whether he wanted to take the picture or not.

"As much as the young man chose to paint his nails. It is his right. The same right Floyd had not to want to take the picture with him. The right to choose works both ways!"

Another argued: "Ok but what if he refused all pics from everyone there? I’m not a Mayweather fan, but it’s always the case where you only hear 1 part of the story. Like calling Chappelle a trans phobe, yet he had a friend that was transgender."

Featured image credit: Alamy / MediaPunch Inc

Like him or loathe him, Justin Bieber is the undisputed king of pop. He has sold an estimated 140 million records - as many as there are people in Russia - and speaking of records, he also landed eight world records with a single tour.

Having transitioned through the painfully predictable coming-of-age period, Bieber somehow managed to maintain his appeal in spite of a spate of offences including drugs, drink driving and criminal damage.

Bieber is now marketed as a repentant and reformed character. However, at the height of his rebellion, a piece of footage emerged which was so unequivocally abhorrent it caused a PR disaster. Now surrounded by a diverse entourage, the racist clip threatened his reputation, his career and some of his closest friendships.

It was released by British newspaper The Sun however, TMZ had obtained the clip, thought to be from the Never Say Never documentary, years before. Despite others’ protestations, a 15-year-old Bieber goes ahead and tells the threatening and racist joke, receiving a mixed reaction. Curiously, Bieber knew he was being filmed but clearly didn’t bet on the footage landing in the hands of TMZ.

In an article, TMZ bitterly explains: “The video was shot backstage at a promotional event early in his career ... where Justin cracked this terrible joke ... ‘Why are black people afraid of chain saws?’ His punchline, repeatedly saying, ‘Run N****r.’”

“TMZ got this video 4 years ago but we decided not to post it ... in large part because he was 15 and immediately told his friends what he did was stupid. People connected with Bieber say one African American was present at the time he told the joke, although that really doesn't matter much.”

Rather than release the footage, the website reportedly used the it as leverage - persuading Bieber to do countless phone-ins and exclusive interviews. "TMZ has been sitting on this video for 3+ years," a source who worked at the website told Gawker. Furthermore, TMZ had never denied being in possession of the footage.

Bieber was said to be distraught and embarrassed, which is surely the only reaction, and to this day, there are many fans who haven’t forgiven him. TMZ added: “Sources connected with Bieber say he is ‘frustrated and sad’ and now wants to address it publicly, which we're told he will do in the next day.”

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However, this certainly isn’t the first time that a publication has extorted a celebrity. In the UK, the Leveson Inquiry made public the details of a murky and dishonest newspaper industry which hacked and blackmailed celebrities, regardless of why they were famous.

The enquiry was set up after it was revealed that former tabloid paper the News of the World had hacked the voicemail inbox of missing schoolgirl Milly Dowler and deleted messages - giving her family false hope that she might still be alive.

The enquiry found that dozens of people in the public eye had had their phones hacked by journalists in order to illegally obtain information. This was then either published or used to extort said celebrity.

Speaking of the Bieber video, a source told Gawker that TMZ had “been using it as essentially ransom so that Bieber and his team would cooperate with them and give them scoops. It was very close to being released initially, but his team was able to convince them not to by giving them access and compliance." A TMZ spokesperson denied the allegations, stating that the claim is "absolutely not true".

However, according to reports, the deal was struck one day before Bieber appeared for an interview with TMZ. Usually the reserve of C-list celebrities, it was highly unusual to have such a famous star in the studio. Furthermore, where the setup or situation behind a celebrity interview would never usually be broadcasted, 16-year-old Bieber explained that he had decided to pop in after bumping into "my boy Harvey" at a local sushi restaurant.

The video clip came out in 2014, when it was published by the Sun. Bieber was involved in a subsequent scandal whereby he was recorded singing his song One Less Lonely Girl but replaced the word “girl” with “n****r”. This particular tape was released by Bieber himself, suggesting that a publisher may also have been in possession of it at the time.

Clearly, the process of developing into a fully fledged adult with a multifaceted personality isn’t without its pitfalls. Furthermore, Bieber has aged with his audience - leading to accusations that any and all digressions are part of a carefully controlled stunt and therefore somehow worse.

Regardless, racism is never acceptable and it’s intriguing that Bieber has managed to weather the storm with so few consequences. Perhaps it shows just how easily his PR team is able to wash away a scandal with damage control and careful apologies.

Justin Bieber is a strange one, isn't he? It's hard to work out whether you love him or loathe him. He appeared on the world's music scene at the tender age of 14 and, if we're being truly honest with ourselves, he was incredibly annoying. With a stupid haircut and awful clothes, Bieber launched himself to a new realm of superstardom and became a universal phenomenon at an age where the majority of us are fumbling our way through our first sexual encounters.

Then came the bad boy stage. Bieber hit puberty, toned up and got himself some tattoos. For some reason, he was hellbent on trying to coin the term "swaggy" and cut off his mophead hair in favour of a quiff. This change also brought about some temperamental behaviour from the star, with him lashing out at paparazzi, getting arrested for DUI and also breaking up with his first love, Selena Gomez.

While the world mocked the teenage pop star, it was clear that Bieber was struggling. Regardless, he continued with his relentless touring schedule and studio time and in 2015, he dropped Purpose. The album was a seminal moment, with Bieber winning round those people who had previously mocked him (be honest, guys, it was FULL of bangers.) However, while he may have started making music everyone liked, his behaviour was still erratic and, in 2017, Bieber decided to cancel the rest of his world tour, saying: "I want my mind, heart and soul to be sustainable."

Since then, the singer seems to have been enjoying his twenties and he has even found God in the process. Speaking about the change of mindset, an insider close to the star told People:

"It has been a process, but he’s doing so much better. You can talk to him and see that the old Justin is coming back.

"He seems happier, more energetic. It’s encouraging. He’s not completely there, but he’s definitely on his way."

The source also revealed how much Justin was struggling, saying: "For a long time, it was just awful, but it’s not anymore. Justin is seeing the beauty around him.

"He sees that his life is beautiful, that he’s beautiful.

"He’s young and rich, but that’s not enough. He’s now becoming emotionally and spiritually grounded, and the difference is written all over his face. It’s beautiful to watch."

Since he took a step away from the spotlight, Justin has also relaxed his image. The singer has grown his hair out and now seems to be trying to grow a moustache.

Yep, Bieber is bringing back the tache.

Taking to his Instagram story, Bieber declared: "Long hair don't care and my stash is gorgeous."

Unsurprisingly, given the rabid nature of Justin Bieber fans, they went into meltdown and were left divided by the singer's new look.

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Not gonna lie, Biebs; I'm really not sure about the moustache, it sort of makes you look like an Owen Wilson tribute.

Although, with this new look, are we going to see a change of direction from the singer? Anyone fancy a Justin Bieber gospel-country album? Anyone? ANYONE?

Justin Bieber unleashed a full-blown rant at the paparazzi when he spotted them outside a coffee shop.

Justin Bieber went on a wild tirade against the paparazzi. Credit: TheStewartofNY / Getty

The 31-year-old pop star was caught on video, obtained by TMZ, getting visibly agitated as he approached a group of photographers who were filming him with phones and cameras while he was out with friends ahead of Coachella weekend one in Palm Springs.

“Good morning,” one photographer greeted him, but the 'Baby' hitmaker immediately snapped back. “No! Not good morning! You already know. Why are you here?” he shouted, walking up to them and covering his face.

Bieber didn’t stop there, as he went on to accuse the group of being driven by greed: “Money, money, money, money, money,” he said while making a “pay me” gesture with his fingers. “Get outta here, bro. Money, that’s all you want. You don’t care about human beings."

The 'Peaches' singer then repeated himself as the group backed away from the entrance to the café.

“That’s all you care about, guys. Is money. You don’t care about people. Only money. You don’t care about human beings,” he added.

Bieber - rocking a tie-dye hoodie half-off one shoulder, dark shorts, lime green-and-white checkered socks, and matching lime green clogs - stormed into the shop with his friends, leaving the stunned paparazzi behind.

Many fans have taken to the comment section to defend Bieber, who has been in the spotlight since rising to fame as a teenager.

"This man has been followed constantly by paparazzi since he was 12 years old. Give him some privacy," one person wrote.

Another said: "Leave the man alone omg yall on his back since he was a Kid," and a third commented: "He is definitely not crashing out... They are literally invading his privacy and disrespectful his personal space. These celebrities are human beings too, hey."

"Y’all prefer celebs to keep up this not-so-bothered facade and you forget they are human. Yall don’t care about their lives at all," a fourth added.

The tirade comes shortly after the 'One Less Lonely Girl' hitmaker posted online about his struggle with anger.

“I got anger issues too, but I wanna grow and not react so much smh,” he wrote in a cryptic caption last month.

The caption appeared alongside three moody photos - one showing him in a hoodie with his head bowed, another from his younger days, and a distant shot of what appears to be his son, Jack Blues, amid cargo containers on a screen.

In a separate Instagram post, Bieber got candid about the emotional weight of fame, admitting he often feels undeserving of the praise he receives.

"People told me my whole life, 'Wow, Justin, you deserve that,'" he wrote. "And I personally have always felt unworthy, like I was a fraud, like when people told me I deserve something. It made me feel sneaky like, damn if they only knew my thoughts. How judgmental I am, how selfish I really am... They wouldn't be saying this."

Bieber shares a son with Hailey. Credit: Steve Granitz / Getty

Bieber has faced intense public scrutiny in recent months - with everything from his behavior to his relationship with Hailey Baldwin and even alleged drug use under the microscope.

Just last month, a clip of the father-of-one appearing to smoke from what looked like a bong made the rounds online, fueling even more speculation.

In response, Bieber’s rep firmly shut down the rumors, telling TMZ: "The recurring narrative that Justin is using hard drugs is absolutely not true.

"Justin is currently in one of the best places in his life. He has had a very transformative year and ended several close friendships and business relationships that no longer served him."

They added that the speculation surrounding Bieber’s well-being was "exhausting and pitiful and shows that despite the obvious truth, people are committed to keeping negative, salacious, harmful narratives alive".

The rep concluded the statement by saying Bieber is “actively parenting his newborn son” and channeling his energy into new music.

Featured image credit: XNY/Star Max / Getty