Coldplay, Eric Clapton, Richard Ashcroft, Doves, Supergrass and Madness are among the artists scheduled to play the third annual Teenage Cancer Trust benefit concerts from March 24 to 29 at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Teenage Cancer Trust aims to serve the needs of teenagers and young adults in the U.K. with cancer, leukemia, Hodgkin's and other related diseases. ... Eric Clapton, meanwhile, is going back to school Tuesday night (March 18), playing solo and answering questions at the Birkdale School in Sheffield, England, to help raise money for the school orchestra. ...

Alabama's Trust Company opted to begin work on their sophomore album, the follow-up to 2002's The Lonely Position of Neutral, over performing on the second stage of Ozzfest. A replacement has not yet been named. ... Craig David has chosen the next single from his Slicker Than Your Average LP: "Rise & Fall," which features Sting. On Thursday, David will give a special concert at Adrian High School in Adrian, Michigan, as an appreciation for students who brought clothes, food and other aid to the poverty-stricken town of Los Olivas, Mexico, whose residents must forage though a landfill for daily necessities. ...

Jesus Mezquia, the man accused of murdering Mia Zapata, singer for Seattle's the Gits, has abandoned his fight against being extradited to Washington. The Florida man was arrested in January and is being held without bail in Miami on first-degree murder charges, nearly a decade after 27-year-old Zapata was found beaten, raped and strangled on a Seattle street. ...

Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler suffered a broken collarbone and six broken ribs on Monday after the Honda motorcycle he was driving collided with a Fiat Punto in London's Belgravia district. Knopfler was rushed to St. Thomas' Hospital in Central London, treated for his injuries then discharged. Knopfler is scheduled to tour Europe in April. ... Slayer have delayed the release of their DVD "War at the Warfield" until sometime in April. The concert was recorded in San Francisco on December 7, 2001 during the band's God Hates the World Tour. It marks one of the final performances with drummer Paul Bostaph, who left the group to join Systematic. ...

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has sent 300 letters to companies whose employees are allegedly involved in illegally downloading music and films on company computers with file-sharing software including Kazaa and Morpheus. The RIAA pointed out that this is blatant copyright infringement and warned of possible fines and seizure of equipment. Most of the letters were sent to technology firms (35 percent), medical firms (20 percent) and manufacturing companies (20 percent). ...

Pete Yorn has tapped Grandaddy for his U.S. tour set to kick off April 21 in San Francisco and ending June 2 in Santa Barbara, California. Yorn's new album, Day I Forgot, hits stores April 15, while Grandaddy's album Sumday is slated for release on June 10. ... New York rockers the Liars have hit the studio to record the follow-up to their 2001 LP, They Threw Us All in a Trench and Stuck a Monument on Top. The band will showcase some of its new songs during a string of concert dates beginning April 28 in Northampton, Massachusetts, and wrapping up June 1 in New York. ...

03.17.03

Ginuwine has even more people to yell "Hell Yeah" with. For the remix of his current single, Gin teams with the song's writer and producer, R. "The Pied Piper of R&B" Kelly, Baby and the Clipse. ...

B2K will play the Temptations and sing "My Girl" in an episode of "American Dreams" filming this week in Los Angeles. Duncan Sheik and Vivian Green are also slated for appearances on the NBC drama, which has featured Vanessa Carlton, Nick Carter and others since it debuted last fall. ...

Detroit punk legend Iggy Pop will reunite with his Stooges bandmates Ron and Scott Asheton and for the first time in 28 years onstage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 27. The group will presumably play Iggy and the Stooges tunes, as well as a sample from the four songs the trio cut for Pop's upcoming solo LP, due this summer. Taking over the bass role for David Alexander, who died in 1975, will be former Minutemen/ Firehose bassist Mike Watt. Sweden's the Hives have also been added to the two-day festival, headlined by the Beastie Boys and Red Hot Chili Peppers. ... A year after it launched, indie label Sub Pop Records released Nirvana's debut, Bleach, and the rest, as they say, is history. Brush up on your knowledge of the Seattle imprint's chronology with Terminal Sales, a retrospective of the label's legacy from 1988-2003, due June 3. The double-disc set will include tracks from Kurt Cobain and company, Sebadoh, the Shins, Soundgarden, Sunny Day Real Estate, the White Stripes and Bright Eyes, many of which have never before been released on CD and/or were featured in the Sub Pop Singles Club. ...

The Flaming Lips, who surprised fans by performing with Justin Timberlake recently, are continuing their pop aspirations, covering Kylie Minogue's "Can't Get You Out of My Head" (a live favorite for the band) for an EP due April 22. Fight Test will also feature a cover of Radiohead's "Knives Out," a live performance of Beck's "The Golden Age" with the singer, a remix of "Do You Realize??" and two new tracks, "The Strange Design of Conscience" and "Thank You Jack White (For the Fiber-Optic Jesus That You Gave Me)," an ode to the White Stripes frontman. ... If the rumors of friction in the supergroup were true, apparently Gerald Levert, Keith Sweat and Johnny Gill have set aside their differences long enough to record another LSG album. The trio's follow-up to their 1997 self-titled LP is due in June. The first single, "Just Friends," samples Whodini's classic "Friends" and features Loon. ...

Currently on the SnoCore Rock tour through March 25, El Paso's Sparta will gear up for their two-week opening slot (April 19-May 3) on Pearl Jam's North American tour by priming crowds for Bad Religion from April 4 in San Bernardino, California, to April 13 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The band, composed of three former members of At the Drive-In, continues to support last year's Wiretap Scars. ... The Goo Goo Dolls and Hootie and the Blowfish have been added to the Dale Earnhardt tribute concert on June 28 at Daytona International Speedway. Sheryl Crow and several country bands are also performing at the concert, the first non-racing event to be held at the legendary speedway. ...

Teemu "Somnium" Raimoranta, the guitarist for death metal bands Impaled Nazarene and Finntroll, died March 16 in Finland. He was 25. A post on the Finntroll Web Site said, "This is an extremely heavy blow for us. We hope the fans and public won't speculate. More information will be available when things calm down." ... Frost, the drummer for Norwegian black metal band Satyricon, broke a bone in his foot during soundcheck in Milan, Italy, on March 12, but that didn't stop him from taking the stage that night. He also performed the band's next show two days later in Treviso. "Frost was in excruciating pain during our show," said a note on the band's Web site. "But he played remarkably well despite his break." ...

• Coldplay
• TRUSTcompany
• Ozzy Osbourne
• Sting
• Craig David

Avril Lavigne, John Mayer, and Nelly announce 2003 Grammy nominations
Photo: MTV News

When nominations for the 45th annual Grammy Awards were announced Tuesday morning, reactions ranged from sincere congratulations to "What were they thinking?" (Click here for the list of nominees.)

Few readers writing to MTVNews.com's You Tell Us forum had sour sentiments about demure Norah Jones, the jazz-influenced singer/pianist who's got a chance to sweep the four biggest categories — Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year and Best New Artist (see "Eminem, Avril Lavigne, Nelly, Norah Jones Nab Most Grammy Noms"). Jones is also among the eight artists who garnered five nominations. (Click for photos of this year's Grammy nominees.)

"I'm sooo happy for [Norah Jones]," wrote 18-year-old Lexi, from Seattle. "I know many people haven't heard her music, but those who have know how great it is. Big ups to the critics for giving this girl the credit she deserves."

Jones' Come Away With Me faces stiff competition from The Rising, Bruce Springsteen's return to form, and, to a lesser extent, The Eminem Show. Although the mainstream seems to have embraced the volatile rapper, with hardly a protest over his third major-label album or his fictionalized biopic "8 Mile," the Grammys might not be ready to bestow such a prestigious honor to a man who had a hit with a song that talks about killing the mother of his child and stuffing her in a trunk.

Then again, Eminem already has five golden gramophones in his trophy case (though none in the big four categories), and the Recording Academy did grant an Album of the Year Grammy to Steely Dan in 2001, for Two Against Nature, which featured the song "Cousin Dupree," about incest. But old guards like Donald Fagen and Walter Becker have always had Grammy odds in their favor, which is why Springsteen stands such a good shot. And even if The Eminem Show doesn't win for Album of the Year and "Without Me" doesn't lay claim to Record of the Year, Eminem is likely to make good on at least one of his other three nominations.

While Jones stands as the artist with the smallest presence at radio compared with fellow new-artist nominees R&B songbird Ashanti, singer/songwriter Michelle Branch, sensitive guy John Mayer and pop-rocker Avril Lavigne, most of you think the latter stands as her fiercest competition.

"I think Avril Lavigne definitely deserves Best New Artist," wrote 14-year-old Ashley of Thief River Falls, Minnesota. "She's worked so hard and accomplished so much this year."

"There is no doubt that Avril Lavigne should win Best New Artist," echoed 14-year-old Danielle, from Somerset, New Jersey. "She writes her own music, had three top 40 songs in 2002, sold over 4 million copies of her debut, Let Go, and hates Britney Spears. What more could you want in a Best New Artist?"

While statistics may garner gold records, they don't necessarily translate to a Grammy. Awards are (theoretically) doled out to those who demonstrate genuine artistry in their work. And that's Avril Lavigne, isn't it?

"Avril has no business being nominated for as much as she was," disagreed 19-year-old Andrea. "As far as music and creativity go, Britney is more creative — and you know that's a stretch, especially since Britney is nothing but manufactured bubble gum. Avril may have had something going with her and her ties but let's face it, MTV, that's all she has had."

After yesterday's announcement of the nominations, Lavigne has a lot more attached to her, namely a monumental mistake when she mispronounced David Bowie's last name. When reading the list of artists up for the Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, she mispronounced Bowie as "bow-wie" (rhymes with oh, wowee!). An unnerving hush immediately enveloped Madison Square Garden.

"Am I the only person who realizes what a poser Avril Lavigne is?" queried 22-year-old Kim, from Denver. "First of all, she botched the pronunciation of David Bowie, one of the most influential musicians of our time. ... Does Avril know anything about music? ... My point is, although everyone seems to be touting Avril Lavigne as some new prodigy, the fact is that she is not a true musician or artist and is just as fake and untalented as Britney Spears."

And here we thought Avril was the anti-Britney.

While Mayer's the only guy among the gals in the Best New Artist pack, his fans warn not to count him out just because he's outnumbered.

"John Mayer deserves to win the Grammy for Best New Artist," declared 18-year-old Tiffany Johnson, from Austin, Texas. "He is just on a different level from the rest of the nominees. The guy is brilliant."

Nelly, who's up for Album of the Year, Best Male Rap Solo Performance and Best Rap Album honors, among others, is feeling the brunt of haters. For the nearly 5 million copies of Nellyville sold, the St. Louis rapper seems to have just as many, if not more, detractors.

"I want to know what the Grammy folks see in Nelly," demanded 19-year-old Jason Curtis of Seattle. "Everyone is hypnotized by his so-called 'skills,' which are by no means good. As far as I'm concerned, Nelly doesn't deserve a Grammy."

It wasn't all trash talk directed at the St. Louis rapper, however. Many have their fingers crossed that the Band-Aid bearing MC will leave with even more gold than he came in with.

"I'm really anticipating seeing Nelly take home the Grammy for best album," wrote 14-year-old Linzi, from Sandusky, Michigan. "I mean, his music is totally hot, and I'm pretty sure that I don't know anyone who isn't into Nelly."

Linzi, meet 21-year-old James, from New Haven, Connecticut.

"It is clear once again that the awards honor what is popular, not what is good," James began. "Nelly has sunk so far down in the talent pool that he's left rapping about sneakers and some sort of heat wave that has apparently swept Nellyville. Talk about meaningless music. Seriously, if it's that hot in 'herre,' then drink a glass of water. Don't make a freakin' song about it."

Fellow hip-hopper Petey Pablo, up for Best Rap Album with Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry, faced some harsh reactions, with fellow nominee Mystikal also catching some heat.

"I am very upset to see that Pete Pablo has been nominated for Best Rap Album," expressed 25-year-old Curtis, from Tallahassee, Florida. "Also, Mystikal's Tarantula album was very disappointing. How come someone like Trick Daddy or Cee-Lo never gets nominated? He is pure trash, and I understand why people like Jay-Z protest the Grammys. If we want to make it mainstream for all these old white people, let's nominate Will Smith. Even though his album sold probably 200 copies, he does not curse."

Such outrage over those who were nominated couldn't rival the furor over those who were left out: uber-producers the Neptunes and anyone from the neo-garage school, such as the Hives, the Vines, the Strokes or the White Stripes.

"How did Dr. Dre get nominated in the Producer of the Year category, while the Neptunes were ignored?" wondered Venni, 18, from Blacksburg, Virginia. "Dre didn't do anything in 2002. Every single song on the radio was produced by the Neptunes."

OK, Venni may be exaggerating a bit, though Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo are responsible for Justin Timberlake's "Like I Love You," Nelly's "Hot in Herre" and Mystikal's "Bouncin' Back (Bumpin' Me Against the Wall)," all of which are Grammy-nominated.

"I'm surprised the new 'the' bands didn't get major nods," typed an aghast CJ, 18, from Newmarket, New Hampshire. "I'm sad that the White Stripes were shafted, when overrated Avril Lavigne gets all the credit. Well, the Grammys are pretty lame either way."

If the nominations aroused such fervent feelings in these folks, they'd better be prepared for the shock of February 23. While some surprises can be expected with the nods, utter jaw-droppers like the over-the-hill Jethro Tull winning for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance in 1988 are unmatched.

Stay tuned and stay calm.

For a look back at previous big Grammy winners, red carpet photos and much more, visit our Grammy News Archive.

• Eminem
• Norah Jones
• Nelly
• Dixie Chicks
• Bruce Springsteen

Nelly
Photo: Universal

With eight artists grabbing five nominations each, this year's Grammy Awards looks to be one of the most competitive in the ceremony's 45 years. (Click here for the list of nominees and for photos of this year's Grammy nominees and performers.)

Three relative newcomers, Ashanti, Norah Jones and Avril Lavigne, join Sheryl Crow, Eminem, Nelly, Raphael Saadiq and Bruce Springsteen as the artists with the greatest chances of leaving New York's Madison Square Garden on February 23 with the most golden gramophones in their arms.

All eyes will be on Norah Jones, who stands to reign supreme on Grammy night with four of her five nominations arriving in the big four categories: Best New Artist; Album of the Year, for Come Away With Me; and Song of the Year (given to the songwriter Jesse Harris) and Record of the Year for "Don't Know Why." Jones and her full-length debut album also received nods in the categories Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Best Pop Vocal Album, and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, while the LP's producer, Arif Mardin, scored one in the Producer of the Year, Non-Classical category to give the Norah Jones camp a whopping eight nominations combined.

Eminem, Nelly, Springsteen and Lavigne received two nods apiece for the big awards. Em's "Without Me" is up for Record of the Year, along with Nelly's "Dilemma" (which features Kelly Rowland), Nickelback's "How You Remind Me" and Vanessa Carlton's "A Thousand Miles." The Eminem Show will vie for Album of the Year honors against Come Away With Me, the Dixie Chicks' Home, Nelly's Nellyville and Bruce Springsteen's The Rising.

Springsteen was also nominated in the Song of the Year category for "The Rising." The Boss' tune, which resonated with many after the events of September 11, 2001, will face off against another song inspired by the tragedy, Alan Jackson's "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)."

The Best New Artist category finds John Mayer the sole male amidst a quartet of ladies, Ashanti, Michelle Branch, Jones and Lavigne, whose single "Complicated" is also up for Song of the Year. (Last year, Alicia Keys walked off with the prestigious honor. Who do you think should win Grammy's equivalent to Rookie of the Year? Take our poll.)

"Chauvinists unite!" Mayer joked at Madison Square Garden, in a half-hearted attempt to strum up support for his cause. "I'm just going to go to sports bars and lobby.

"It's cool," he continued sincerely. "I look at the list and say, 'It makes sense to me.' "

While Ashanti is likely to have her fingers crossed for the big Best New Artist win, she'll be doubly excited when the Best Rap/Sung Collaboration category is awarded. Besides receiving a nod for assisting Fat Joe with "What's Luv?" the songbird with the second-best-selling debut album of 2002 has increased her chances of winning with "Always on Time," her collaboration with Ja Rule. Ashanti likes both songs, but she looks to the phrase "blood is thicker than water" when deciding whom to root for.

"I don't necessarily have a preference, but it I had to choose, it would have to be my brother Ja," she said. "That's my family, Murder, Inc. Records."

Nominations for the 45th annual Grammy Awards were announced Tuesday (January 7) at a press conference held in Madison Square Garden. Among the artists on hand to read the roster of those hopeful for Grammy gold were Ashanti, country singer Kenny Chesney, '80s faceplate Cyndi Lauper, Avril Lavigne, John Mayer, Justin Timberlake, Nelly and producer Jimmy Jam, who filled in for a previously scheduled but absent Sean "P. Diddy" Combs.

The artists each took the podium in turn to announce the contestants for two of the categories, which made for some interesting pronunciations. Ashanti (pronounced a-shan-tee) became the faux-fabulous sounding "A-shan-tay" whenever most on hand mentioned her name; and Lavigne, in announcing the nominees for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance botched David Bowie's name, pronouncing it 'Bow-wee" (as in the dog sound "bow-wow"). The flub is not likely to go unnoticed among Lavigne's critics, and it just might go down in pop-star infamy, the way Britney Spears' remark that suggested Pat Benatar sang "I Love Rock 'N Roll," a song Joan Jett made famous, did in a fall 2001 interview.

Four nominations fell on the Dixie Chicks, Alan Jackson, R&B singer Remy Shand and Chad Kroeger, who scored one with his band Nickelback, and three others for his song "Hero," penned for the soundtrack to "Spider-Man."

Besides two in the big four, Vanessa Carlton's other nomination came in the Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s). While most categories in the Composing/Arranging field are often overlooked in favor of more artist-specific ones, the 21-year-old pianist doesn't consider her third nod to be any less important. In fact, considering that she's the only nominee who's also an artist in that category, she said she's perhaps most proud of that honor because it shows her as the well-rounded artist she is.

"I am most excited for that nomination because it is recognizing the process, something other than the vocal and the song itself," she explained. "It kind of acknowledges how the puzzle fits together. I think [Be Not Nobody] is a beautiful record and I'm really proud to know that people recognized that. I was totally surprised, though. I really was."

India.Arie, Erykah Badu, Johnny Cash, Elvis Costello, Dr. Dre, Randy Newman, Arif Mardin and No Doubt also nabbed three nominations each.

Touting over 100 categories, the Grammys is the most comprehensive music awards show, but even with classifications such as Best Polka Album (for which Jimmy Sturr's Top of the World looks to be the odds-on favorite) and Best Remixed Record, Non-Classical, there just aren't enough designations for some folks.

"Actually, one they didn't mention was best haircut-changing-style every year,' a near-bald Timberlake kidded. "I'm hoping I get the Victrola for that."

Maybe next year, Justin. In the meantime, the 'NSYNC star must be content with just one nomination, for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, for the Clipse-featured "Like I Love You," the first single from his solo debut, Justified.

Super production duo the Neptunes were puzzlingly absent from the Producer of the Year category, which instead found Dr. Dre, Nellee Hooper, Arif Mardin, Rick Rubin, and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis attempting to stake their claim to the title. After producing a number of Grammy-nominated tracks, including Timberlake's "Like I Love You," Nelly's "Hot in Herre" and Mystikal's "Bouncin' Back (Bumpin' Me Against the Wall)," it's a mystery why Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams didn't receive any love from the Recording Academy.

"For the second year in a row, can you imagine that?" Williams said of his Grammy dis. "All the work we've done? For whatever reason, nobody thought to put us on the ballot."

The 45th annual ceremony marks the Grammys' return to New York, after Los Angeles hosted the previous four events. The show will be broadcast live on CBS at 8 p.m. (ET/PT). Before the show, catch MTV's pre-show telecast "Backstage at the Grammys," airing at 7 p.m. ET.

MTV's parent company, Viacom, also owns CBS.

For more Grammy news, check out the MTV News Grammy Archive.

• Nelly
• Avril Lavigne
• Norah Jones
• Eminem
• Vanessa Carlton

Destiny's Child
Photo: Scott Gries/Image Direct

LOWELL, Massachusetts — A hot Destiny's Child ruled the concert stage for the first time in a year, and international pop princess Kylie Minogue debuted her live act for American fans at the Kiss 108 Jingle Ball, held Wednesday at the sold-out Tsongas Arena by WXKS-FM.

They were only two of the shiny presents unwrapped for 6,000 fans in a four-hour holiday show — Nelly (who is set to rejoin Minogue and Destiny's Child on Thursday for WHTZ-FM's Jingle Ball at Madison Square Garden in New York), Craig David, O-Town, Daniel Bedingfield and Kelly Osbourne also came out to help spread some yuletide cheer.

The slimmed-down Osbourne — who planned her next-night New York duties at Nassau Coliseum for WXRK-FM's Claus-Fest — appeared in "Santa" devil horns and candy-cane sleeves, looking lost at first with her sound monitors. However, she found the right key with a few tart howls, poured water over her dyed black hair and led her punk rock quartet through a batch of exuberant numbers capped by Madonna's "Papa Don't Preach," with six female fans providing vocal assistance.

In contrast, Craig David and New Zealand-born newcomer Daniel Bedingfield each took an over-the-top soul approach, the latter even dropping to his knees onstage. British star David sang and rapped with equal sizzle to sole accompaniment from an acoustic guitar on such favorites as "7 Days" and the playful "What's Your Flava?"

"I like kinda breaking it down," David explained backstage, "to show people that it is about the songs."

O-Town drew the loudest early response from the young crowd, however, shaking the boy-band stigma by playing guitars with grunge-like fervor, then milking their five-part harmonies on such emotive send-ups as "These Are the Days" and "Craving."

Minogue strode onstage like a holiday plaything in a white, break-away outfit that, she quipped backstage, made her feel like "Toy Story" astronaut Buzz Lightyear. "I'm really excited, but I guess I'm a little apprehensive as well," the Australian pop chanteuse said just before her set. "I'm not sure what the crowds expect."

People who have seen Minogue's videos got the expected. Yet the crowd seemed indeed more curious than excited as she cavorted with eight dancers who added to the strange Kraftwerk-goes-S&M moods of hits "Come Into My World," "Love at First Sight" and "Can't Get You Out of My Head."

Over a slow, electro-dance beat from her band, Minogue also recast her 1988 cover of "The Loco-Motion," bringing new meaning to the line in the chorus "You've got to swing your hips now" with plenty of grinding motions. To top it off, both her male and female dancers sported stilettos and hosiery.

Destiny's Child, on the other hand, proved pure dynamite with the crowd. To a round of fireworks, the R&B trio of Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams arrived via an upper hydraulic lift to snap the opening line of "Independent Women, Part I," freeze the pose for effect, then spread out with eight dancers for an aerobic workout.

Working the full stage, the group took more seductive dips into "Bootylicious" and "Say My Name" before solo turns by Rowland on a soulful "Stole" and Knowles on a soaring " '03 Bonnie & Clyde." Finally, a confetti cannon helped launch a powerhouse rendition of "Survivor."

Destiny's Child performed with instrumental and occasional vocal backing tracks, as did Nelly, whose DJ mostly pressed buttons. But the St. Louis rapper, decked out in a Boston Celtics jacket, and his three MCs from the St. Lunatics commanded with tight rhymes, bouncy beats and natural choreography on a crowd-pumping "Ride Wit Me" and "E.I."

Nelly's set peaked with "Hot in Herre" and the rapper's final "present" to the crowd, a warm duet with Rowland on their hit single, "Dilemma," that had fans waving along.

Both male and female fans gave Nelly the night's loudest kudos. "Nelly's the best: good music and a good body," said Kelly Sullivan, 15, of Bedford, New Hampshire, while offering of Minogue's set, "The dancers were really ... interesting."

Minogue fan Irina Grigoryan stood in Kylie's defense, however. "If people think she's weird, they should shut up," exclaimed the 16-year-old from Shrewsbury, Massachusetts. "She's unique."

For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.

• Destiny's Child
• Kylie Minogue
• Nelly
• Kelly Osbourne
• Craig David

Ja Rule's latest creation, The Last Temptation, tops the new release list this week. The album, hailed as Ja Rule's return to the streets, features guest spots by Bobby Brown, Ashanti, Nas, and Murder Inc. newcomer Alexi.

Audioslave, the new band featuring members of Rage Against the Machine and Soundgarden's Chris Cornell, premiere their self-titled debut album alongside another notable debut: Whip it On by upcoming "It" band the Raveonettes.

Bringing up the hip-hop underground, Talib Kweli presents Quality, Dead Prez issue Turn off the Radio and Canibus makes a come-back with Mic Check: The Curriculum.

Slicker Than Your Average, the follow-up to DJ turned singer Craig David's first album, Born to Do it, shares shelf space with country crooner Shania Twain's Up!

And if that's not enough, there's always more: Matchbox Twenty's More Than You Think You Are and Toni Braxton's More Than a Woman.

Out Tuesday, November 19:

• Antiseen - Honour Among Thieves (TKO)
• Appendix Out - The Rye Bears a Poison (Drag City)
• Arrogants - Nobody's Cool (Shelflife)
• Audioslave - Audioslave (Epic)
  Read: "Rage/Cornell Project To Release Album In November"
  Buy Now: Audioslave(Epic)
• Jello Biafra - Machine Gun in the Clown's Hand (3 CDs, Alternative Tentacles)
• Blue's Clues - Blue's Clues Boogie (Jive)
• Toni Braxton - More Than a Woman (La Face/Arista)
  Read: "Toni Braxton Working With Gotti, Neptunes, Husband On New LP"
  Buy Now: More Than a Woman (Arista)
• Canibus - Mic Club: The Curriculum (Mic Club)
• C-Bo - Desert Eagle (Warlock)
• Ch3 - Channel Three (Dr. Strange)
• Chemical Brothers - AmericanEP (Astralwerks)
• Noam Chomsky - New War on Terrorism (Alternative Tentacles)
• Cigarbox Planetarium - Cigarbox Planetarium (Oh Tonito)
• Rosemary Clooney - The Last Concert (Concord Jazz)
• Chris Cox Vs. Happy Clappers - I Believe (The Right Stuff)
• Criminal Class USA - Echoes in the Street (GMM)
• Croc Shop - World (Metropolis)
• Craig David - Slicker Than Your Average (Wildstar/Atlantic)
  
  Buy Now: Slicker Than Your Average (Atlantic)
• Dead Prez - Turn Off the Radio (Full Clip)
• Discipline - Love Thy Neighbor (GMM)
• Discipline - Saints and Sinners (GMM)
• DJ Quik - Best of (Arista)
• Hans & Candy Dulfer - Dulfer and Dulfer (Eagle/Red Ink)
• The Electronica Files TEF - Jimi Hendrix Dossier (Exile)
• Elephant Man - Higher Level (Greensleeves)
• FC Kahuna - Machine Says Yes (Nettwerk America)
• Mickey Finn - Mixer Presents (DMC)
• France & Dom - Modernism (Water Music)
• Glenn Frey - The Allnighter (reissue, MCA)
• From Quagmire - Caught in Unknowing (VHF)
• Gangsta Blac & Skinny Pimp - The Mayor and the Pimp (Rap Hustlaz)
• Geto Boys - Greatest Hits (Rap-a-Lot)
• Ghost - Under the Moonlight (Music Ambassador)
• Giddy Motors - Make it Pop (Caroline)
• A Global Threat - What the F--- Will Change? (Punkcore)
• Goads - Red Letter Day (Vital Communications)
• George Harrison - Brainwashed (Dark Horse/Capitol)
• Helms - McCarthy (Kimchee)
• His Name Is Alive - Last Night (4AD)
• Honky Tonk Hangovers - Every Little Honky Tonk (Big Bender)
• Ja Rule - The Last Temptation (Murder Inc./Def Jam)
  Read: "Ja Rule, Bobby Brown Team Up For 'Thug Lovin' "
  Buy Now: The Last Temptation (Murder Inc./Def Jam)
• Spike Jones - Clink Clink Another Drink (Fabulous)
• Killer Mike - Akshon (Sony)
• Kino - Kino (Orpheus)
• Talib Kweli - Quality (Rawkus/MCA)
  Buy Now: Quality (Rawkus)
• Led Zeppelin - Early Days & Latter Days: Volumes 1 & 2 (Atlantic)
• Loved & Hated - Hardcore Punk's Not Dead (GMM)
• Luke - Scandalous: The All-Star Compilation (Orpheus)
• Matchbox Twenty - More Than You Think You Are (Lava/Atlantic)
  Buy Now: More Than You Think You Are (Lava/Atlantic)
• Meatloaf - Welcome to the Neighborhood (reissue, MCA)
• Minus the Bear - Highly Refined Pirates (Suicide Squeeze)
• Joni Mitchell - Travelogue (2 CDs, Nonesuch)
• moe. - Season's Greetings from moe. (Fat Boy)
• Mudvayne - The End of All Things to Come (Epic)
  Read: "Mudvayne Reach The EndWith New Album"
  Buy Now: The End of All Things to Come (Epic)
• Chris Murray - Raw (Asian Man)
• Owen - No Good for No One Now (Polyvinyl)
• Parricide - Ill-Treat (World War III)
• Piano Magic - Writers Without Homes (4AD/Beggars Banquet)
• Pissing Razors - Live in the Devil's Triangle (Spitfire/ADA)
• Dan Potthast - Sweets and Meats (Asian Man)
• Project Playaz - Return (Rap-a-Lot)
• Radio Vago - Black & White Photo Enterprise (Buddyhead)
• Rainer Maria - Earrings (EP, Polyvinyl)
• The Raveonettes - Whip it On (Red Ink)
  Buy Now: Whip it On (Red Ink)
• Rocksolid - Rock Anthems (Time)
• Noel Sanger - Summerbreeze 2 (Nettwerk America)
• The Wil Seabrook Band - The Wil Seabrook Band (EP, Maverick)
• Marvin Sease - I Got Beat Out (Jive)
• Erick Sermon - React (J Records)
• Billy Joe Shaver - Freedom's Child (Compadre)
• The Skulls - Therapy for the Shy (Dr. Strange)
• Sev Statik - Speak Life (CMG)
• Michael Sterling - Right Now (Empire Musickwerks)
• Subincision - Jingo (Substandard)
• Suntan - Suntan (EP, Kimchee)
• Sybarite - Nonument (4AD/Beggars Banquet)
• Taking Pictures - Friends Are Ghosts (My Pal God)
• T-Bone - Gospelalphamegafunkyboogiediscomusic (CMG)
• Susan Tedeschi - Wait for Me (Tone-Cool/Artemis)
• This Is the Army - Call Me Mister (Jasmine)
• Toadies - Best of: Live from Paradise (Orpheus)
• Too Bad Eugene - Moonlighting (Tooth & Nail)
• Torrez - The Evening Drag (Kimchee)
• The Tramps - The Tramps (Broken Rekids)
• Shania Twain - Up! (Mercury Nashville)
  Buy Now: Up! (Mercury Nashville)
• UB40 - The Fathers of Reggae (Virgin)
• Universal Honey - Invincible (Forty-One)
• Vassago - Knights from Hell (World War III)
• The Volta Sound - Fast Light with Radio Signal (EP, Elephant Stone)
• Youngsbower - Relayer (Shelflife)
• Thalia Zedek - You're a Big Girl Now (EP, Kimchee)
• Howard Zinn - Artists in a Time of War (Alternative Tentacles)
• Various artists – "8 Crazy Nights" soundtrack (Columbia)
• Various artists - Black and Blue 2002 (Master)
• Various artists - Cash Money Records Platinum Hits (Universal)
• Various artists - Composed on Bicycles: Holiday Matinee Compilation Vol. 3 (Second Nature)
• Various artists - Fat Music Vol. VI: Uncontrollable Fatulence (Fat Wreck Chords)
• Various artists - "Friday After Next" soundtrack (Hollywood)
• Various artists - Gay Classics Vol. 2.0: Outstanding (Empire Musickwerks)
• Various artists - Ministry of Sound: The Annual 2003 (2 CDs, Ministry of Sound)
• Various artists - Now That's What I Call Music! Vol. 11 (UTV)
• Various artists - "Treasure Planet" soundtrack (Walt Disney)
• Various artists - Voices of Hope: Sabera Foundation (Ark 21)
• Various artists – "When in Rome" soundtrack (Trauma)

November 26:

• Baby - The Birdman (Cash Money)
  
• DJ Envy - Block Party (Epic)
• Jennifer Lopez - This Is Me ... Then (Epic)
  Read: "J. Lo Sets Release Date For LP After Song Leaks Out"
  Buy Now: This Is Me ... Then (Epic)
• Sum 41 - Does This Look Infected? (Island)
  Read: "Sum 41 Ask, Does This Look Infected?"
  Buy Now: Does This Look Infected? (Island)
• Various artists - "Chicago" soundtrack (Epic)
  Read: "Janet Jackson To Appear On LP With Mya ... And Richard Gere"
• Various artists - "Paid in Full" soundtrack (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)

December 3:

• Charli Baltimore - The Diary (You Think You Know) (Murder Inc./Def Jam)
  
• Mariah Carey - Charmbracelet (MonarC/Island/Def Jam)
  Read: "Mariah Carey Insists She Just Needed Sleep, Taps Family History For New Clip"
  Buy Now: Charmbracelet (MonarC/Island/Def Jam)

December 17:

• Dashboard Confessional - Unplugged 2.0 (Vagrant)
  Buy Now: Unplugged 2.0 (Vagrant)
• Nas - God's Son (Columbia)
  

• Ja Rule
• Audioslave
• Craig David
• Matchbox Twenty

Craig David
Photo: Atlantic

Oompa loompa doompa dee do, Craig David has a sweet new video for you.

Britain's "it" R&B singer is playing Willy Wonka in the clip for "What's Your Flava?," the first single from his upcoming second album, Slicker Than Your Average.

Directed by Little X (Usher, Alicia Keys) and shot in Prague, Czech Republic, the video follows four contest winners into a magical factory. Unlike "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory," however, David's is a music factory, and the rooms have cages full of cash and girls in white cat suits, rather than chocolate rivers and Oompa Loompa people.

David co-wrote "What's Your Flava?," which was produced by newcomers Marshall and Trell, otherwise known as the remix team the Ignorants. The song is scheduled to hit radio airwaves on October 7, according to the singer's Atlantic Records spokesperson.

Slicker Than Your Average, the follow-up to the platinum Born to Do It, is due November 19.

The album finds David blending the U.K.'s two-step sound with various elements of hip-hop, pop and rock. It features longtime collaborator and Artful Dodger mastermind Mark Hill, along with Soulshock (Destiny's Child, Mary J. Blige) and Karlin (Whitney Houston, Monica), as producers.

Sting provides vocals on one track, "Rise and Fall," a cautionary tale about the pitfalls of stardom.

Slicker Than Your Average track list, according to Atlantic:

• "Slicker Than Your Average"

• "What's Your Flava?"

• "Fast Cars"

• "Hidden Agenda"

• "Eenie Meenie"

• "You Don't Miss Your Water ('Til the Well Runs Dry)"

• "Rise and Fall"

• "Personal"

• "Hands up in the Air"

• "2 Steps Back"

• "What's Changed?"

• "World Filled With Love"

• Craig David

Alicia Keys
Photo: Frank Micelotta/ImageDirect

In recent years the radio station-sponsored concert has become as much a holiday tradition as chestnuts roasting on an open fire or children lined up at the mall to sit on Santa's lap.

Whether it's the Deck the Hall Ball in Seattle, the Mistletoe Jam in Denver or the many Not So Silent Nights or Jingle Balls around the country, holiday shows are growing in quantity and quality every year.

Chart-topping acts in rock (Staind, Linkin Park), hip-hop (Ja Rule, Jay-Z) and R&B (Alicia Keys, Craig David) are taking part in this year's events, which begin next week and last until mid-December.

"We initially started doing Jingle Bashes to give our audience a chance to see the artists that we play, because in 1993, many didn't tour," explained Erik Bradley, music director at WBBN, whose show stars Keys this year. "Now, of course, that has all changed, but the audience still enjoys coming out for a big party with artists and our station jocks."

Some station's holiday concerts, like KROQ's Almost Acoustic Christmas in Los Angeles (which has not been announced yet) or WHTZ's Jingle Ball in New York (which features Enrique Iglesias, Alicia Keys, Pink and others) have become some of the most anticipated shows of the year.

Here is a "wrap-up" of most of this year's holiday festivals:

• WBCN X-Mas Rave Blink-182 and Lit @ Orpheum; 311, Tantric and Flickerstick @ Avalon; Adema and Reveille @ Axis; Pete Yorn and Remy Zero @ Paradise Rock Club; November 27 Boston, MA

• WBRU Birthday Bash 311, Lit, Tantric and Adema @ Lupo's; Coldplay, Remy Zero, and Delta Clutch @ Veterans Memorial Auditorium November 28 Providence, RI

• WJBX 99X Fest 5 Sum41, Disturbed, Alien Ant Farm, Lit and Tantric @ Lee County Sports Complex November 30 Fort Myers, FL
   
• WTMX Miracle on State Street Melissa Etheridge, Blues Traveler, Five for Fighting and the Verve Pipe's Brian Vander Ark @ Chicago Theater December 1 Chicago, IL

• WDRQ Electric Kringle Jingle Jay-Z, Craig David, Jessica Simpson, 112, LFO, City High, Willa Ford, Jamie-Lynn Sigler and Pink, Enrique Iglesias and O-Town via satellite @ Palace of Auburn Hills

  December 1 Auburn Hills, MI  

• WHFS HFSmas Nutcracker Blink-182, System of a Down, Puddle of Mudd, Coldplay, Pete Yorn and the Crystal Method @ Patriot Center December 1 Washington, D.C.

• WPBZ Buzz Bake Sale Staind, Alien Ant Farm, Sum41, Drowning Pool, Jimmy Eat World, Disturbed, Static-X, Adema, Tantric, Dave Navarro, Handsome Devil, Stroke 9, Sugarcult, Reveille, Cave and New Found Glory @ Mars Music Amphitheatre December 1 West Palm Beach, FL

• WSUN Next Big Thing Sum41, Disturbed, Alien Ant Farm, New Found Glory, Dave Navarro, Jimmy Eat World, Adema, Flickerstick, Lucky Boys Confusion, Stroke 9, Sugarcult, Abandoned Pools, Soulsystem and Crizzly and the Punx @ Coachman Park     December 2 Clearwater, FL

• KKND The Low Dough Mistletoe Show Lit and others @ State Palace Theater December 4 New Orleans, LA
   
• KRBE Jingle Jam 2001 City High, Craig David, Michelle Branch, LFO and Lifehouse @ Compaq Center December 5 Houston, TX
   
• KNDD Deck the Hall Ball "Electric" with Blink-182, Linkin Park, System of a Down and Staind on December 6; "Acoustic" with Staind, Coldplay and Travis on December 7 @ Paramount Theatre Seattle, WA

• WRZX X-Mas Concert Fuel, Sevendust, Lit and Adema @ Pepsi Coliseum December 6 Indianapolis, IN

• KITS Not So Silent Night Linkin Park, P.O.D., Puddle of Mudd, System of a Down, Alien Ant Farm, Sum41 and AFI @ Compaq Center December 7 San Jose, CA

• WNOU Radio Now Santa Slam 2K1 Craig David, Lifehouse, Blu Cantrell, Evan and Jaron and the Calling @ Murat Theatre December 8 Indianapolis, IN

• KDWB Jingle Ball Alicia Keys, Craig David, Christina Millian and Toya @ Quest December 9 Minneapolis, MN

• WSTR Not So Silent Night Smash Mouth, Train and Natalie Merchant @ Atlanta Civic Center December 10 Atlanta, GA

• KBPI Mistletoe Jam System of a Down, Sevendust, Alien Ant Farm and Hoobastank @ The Fillmore December 11 Denver, CO

• WXDX Kiss Ass Christmas The Crystal Method, Flickerstick, Pete Yorn, Remy Zero and Buzz Poets @ Rosebud December 11 Pittsburgh, PA

• WPLY Feastival Blink-182, Bush, Sum41, Lit and Nickelback @ First Union Center December 12 Philadelphia, PA

• WKQX Twisted 8 Blink-182, 311, Bush, Alien Ant Farm, Sum41 and Pete Yorn @ United Center December 13 Chicago, IL

• WHTZ Jingle Ball Enrique Iglesias, Alicia Keys, Sugar Ray, O-Town, Pink, Craig David, Jewel, Lifehouse and Five for Fighting @ Madison Square Garden December 13 New York, NY
   
• WIOQ Jingle Ball Enrique Iglesias, Alicia Keys, O-Town, Jay-Z, Craig David, Michelle Branch, Lifehouse and Toya @ Tweeter Center December 14 Camden, NJ

• KPNT Ho Ho Show Bush, Alien Ant Farm, Puddle of Mudd, the Crystal Method and Boy Hits Car @ The Pageant December 14 St. Louis, MO

• WBBM Jingle Bash Alicia Keys @ Arie Crown Theatre December 15 Chicago, IL
   
• WENZ Jingle Ball 2001 Sugar Ray, Shaggy, Lifehouse, Michelle Branch, Blu Cantrell, Craig David and American Hi-Fi @ Arco Arena December 15 Sacramento, CA

• CIMX The Night 89X Stole Christmas Blink-182, 311 and the Crystal Method @ Cobo Arena December 15 Detroit, MI

• KKBT Holiday Cooldown Jill Scott, Alicia Keys, Faith Evans and Ginuwine @ Wiltern Theatre December 16 Los Angeles, CA

• KBKS Jingle Bell Bash Barenaked Ladies, Jessica Simpson, American Hi-Fi, Michelle Branch, Lifehouse, Blu Cantrell, Train and Craig David @ Stadium Exhibition Center December 17 Seattle, WA

• WKST KissMas Concert Ja Rule, Alicia Keys, City High, Toya and Dante Thomas @ A.J. Palumbo Center December 17 Pittsburgh, PA
   
• KIIS Jingle Ball Alicia Keys, Shakira, Sugar Ray, Lifehouse, Five for Fighting, LFO, Michelle Branch and Craig David @ Staples Center December 19 Los Angeles, CA

• KGLL KissMas Freedom Bash Barenaked Ladies, Jessica Simpson, Jewel and Nikka Costa @ Pepsi Center December 20 Denver, CO

• Alicia Keys
• Ja Rule
• P!nk
• Staind
• Craig David

Fred Durst accepts the Best Album award at the 2001 MTV Europe Music Awards  
Photo: MTV Europe

Fred Durst was the undisputed star of Thursday's MTV Europe Music Awards ceremony, accepting three awards and performing with Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page.

Limp Bizkit won Best Group, Best Rock Act and the Web Award, besting nominee leaders Gorillaz, who won only two of the six awards they were up for — Best Dance Act and Best Song for "Clint Eastwood."

Durst, Page and Puddle of Mudd's Wes Scantlin played the Zeppelin song "Thank You," nearly stealing the show from such fellow performers as Mary J. Blige and Jay-Z, who performed "Girls, Girls, Girls" with 300 German women joining him onstage.

Craig David, who like Bizkit was nominated in four categories (see "Gorillaz, Bizkit, U2 Nab Most Noms For MTV Europe Music Awards"), was the evening's only other multiple winner, taking home the prizes for Best R&B Act and Best UK Act.

David, whose performance of "Walking Away" included a section from U2's "One," was the butt of a few jokes from host Ali G, who attributed the two-step star's soulful voice with helping millions of men lose their virginity. "Hopefully one day you'll be next," he told David.

Dido, who beat out Gorillaz, David and Nelly Furtado for Best New Act, also faced Ali G's jabs when he introduced her to perform "Hunter." The British comedian, who wore a zebra print suit, said the singer was named after "the world's greatest invention," announcing, "Give it up for Dildo."

Thursday's awards show at the Festhalle in Frankfurt, Germany, included several surprises. U2, who were nominated in the same four categories as Limp Bizkit, went unrecognized.

Meanwhile, Australian dance outfit the Avalanches' "Since I Left You" won Best Video, beating out more popular songs from Outkast and Fatboy Slim. Best Video is the only award decided by MTV Europe. The others are determined by online voting.

Other winners Thursday included Robbie Williams (Best Male Act), Jennifer Lopez (Best Female Act), Eminem (Best Hip-Hop Act), Blink-182 (Best Rock Act) and Anastacia (Best Pop Act).

The tone of the ceremony was kept mostly light, in large part thanks to Ali G, whose nod to September 11 was a call for "world pees."

Blur guitarist and Gorillaz co-founder Damon Albarn approached the subject quite the opposite, pointing to a peace symbol on his T-shirt during his acceptance speech and saying, "F--- war. Bombing one of the world's poorest countries is wrong."

Like the MTV Video Music Awards in America (see "King Of Dirty Pop? Michael Jackson Joins 'NSYNC At VMAs"), the European ceremony was as much about the performances as the awards. Other artists to take the stage included Kylie Minogue, Basement Jaxx, Rammstein, Travis and Depeche Mode.

• Limp Bizkit
• Gorillaz
• Craig David
• Dido
• Jennifer Lopez

Mary J. Blige
Photo: MCA

"No More Drama" queen Mary J. Blige, Jay-Z and Scottish rockers Travis have signed on to perform at next month's MTV Europe Music Awards.

They join previously announced performers Basement Jaxx, Blink-182, Craig David, Depeche Mode, Dido, Kylie Minogue, Rammstein and R.E.M.

Confirmed presenters include Nelly Furtado, the Corrs' Andrea Corr, Kelis, Alicia Keys, Samantha Mumba, Pink, Christina Ricci, Bush's Gavin Rossdale, Shaggy and Ben Stiller.

Gorillaz, Limp Bizkit, U2 and Craig David lead the list of nominees (see "Gorillaz, Bizkit, U2 Nab Most Noms For MTV Europe Music Awards").

The show will air live on MTV from Frankfurt, Germany, on November 8.

• Mary J. Blige
• Jay-Z
• Travis
• Basement Jaxx
• blink-182

Elton John
Photo: VH1

Elton John will headline "The Concert — 20 Years of AIDS," an all-star benefit show for AIDS Project Los Angeles and the singer's own AIDS foundation.

The event, scheduled for December 12 at the Universal Amphitheatre, will feature performances by Sting, Bon Jovi, Matchbox Twenty, Alicia Keys, Craig David, LeAnn Rimes, Pete Yorn and Rufus Wainwright, according to John's spokesperson. Other acts may be added.

John has hosted a benefit concert for the Elton John AIDS Foundation during Grammy week for several years (see "Sting, Mary J., Moby, Sheryl Crow Show Love For Elton"), but this is his first time organizing a concert with AIDS Project Los Angeles.

Song From the West Coast, John's latest album, debuted earlier this month at #15 on the Billboard 200 albums chart.

For a feature interview with Elton John, check out "Elton John: California Love".

• Elton John
• Sting
• Bon Jovi
• Alicia Keys
• Matchbox Twenty

Live 8 Around The World: Good Charlotte, Bjork, Green Day and More

• Audioslave
• Shakira
• Good Charlotte
• Björk
• Green Day

Craig David Photos

• Craig David

• Craig David

Mariah Hosts Jay-Z, O-Town, Iglesias, Missy At NY Jingle Ball

• P!nk
• Craig David
• Missy Elliott
• Alicia Keys
• O-Town

Craig David Photos

• Craig David