Michael Jackson
Photo: Epic

Michael Jackson will perform past hits with new-school pop stars Britney Spears and 'NSYNC at his upcoming 30th-anniversary gala.

Jackson and pop princess Spears will duet on "The Way You Make Me Feel," Jackson's #1 single from 1987's Bad, at the first of two shows dubbed "Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration, The Solo Years," the event's publicist said Monday (August 13). The new information sheds light on a pair of concerts whose content has remained obscure to date.

The Jackson 5, performing together for the first time in 11 years (see "Jermaine Jackson To Reunite With His Brothers Onstage After All"), and 'NSYNC will team up for "Dancing Machine" during the same September 7 show at Madison Square Garden.

Jackson's September 10 "Celebration" will include other superstar performances. Latin singer Ricky Martin will perform "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough," Jackson's first post-Jackson 5 solo track to reach #1 (in 1979), Martin's spokesperson said.

On September 10, Missy Elliott and Nelly Furtado are expected to perform their remix of Elliott's "Get Ur Freak On" (see "Missy Elliott, Nelly Furtado Get Freaky").

Another Latin heartthrob, Marc Anthony, will tackle Jackson's 1980 ballad "She's Out of My Life" during the first show, Anthony's spokesperson said. Although he has been announced for September 10 as well, his spokesperson said Anthony is still negotiating the later appearance. If he performs both nights, he may sing his upcoming Rob Thomas-penned single, "Tragedy."

Lil' Kim, Deborah Cox, Mya and Tamia will collaborate on "Heal the World" during at least one of the shows, according to a source close to the production. Organizers have advertised Cox and Mya as performing both nights.

Although Jackson friend and seasoned entertainer Liza Minelli's September 7 selection remains unannounced, she will sing the 1995 Jackson single "You Are Not Alone" with a 300-member gospel choir on September 10.

Whitney Houston will sing a ballad, and teen country star Billy Gilman will cover 1972's "Ben" (Jackson's first #1 solo single) on the celebration's first night, according to the event's publicist.

Several other artists — including Shaggy, Jill Scott, Monica and Luther Vandross — have yet to decide what they will perform, according to their respective publicists.

Diana Ross, who was at one time announced as a performer, is off the schedule, according to the celebration's organizers.

Jackson and his brothers convened in Los Angeles on Friday to rehearse for the shows.

• Michael Jackson
• Britney Spears
• *NSYNC
• Marc Anthony
• Ricky Martin

Kirk Franklin
Photo: Universal

Gospel star Kirk Franklin said the all-star lineup he assembled for the "Kingdom Come" soundtrack — which includes Carl Thomas, Jill Scott and Deborah Cox — was a dream come true.

"I had a wish list of gospel and R&B performers, and it gave me the chance to match all these voices with the movie's visuals," Franklin said. With the soundtrack at #1 on the Billboard gospel albums chart and #26 on the magazine's R&B/hip-hop album chart after two weeks, it's clear audiences are loving the combination, too (the movie itself stars Whoopi Goldberg, Toni Braxton and LL Cool J).

The soundtrack finds R&B stars such as Thomas and Scott alongside contemporary gospel luminaries Mary Mary, Natalie Wilson and Franklin himself. And while the names are among the biggest he's worked with, it's just another in a long line of projects for which Franklin has assembled talented crews of singers and dancers to work his gospel-crossover magic.

Franklin's platinum-selling 1993 debut, Kirk Franklin and the Family, spent 100 weeks atop the Billboard gospel albums chart. His success has continued through 2000's Kirk Franklin Presents 1NC, which cracked the top 30 on both Billboard's gospel and R&B charts.

Kingdom Come's first single finds gravel-voiced Franklin teaming up with Mary Mary on the uptempo "Thank You," while Thomas joins Wilson on "Daddy," a yearning ballad about an errant father. Boyz II Men's Shawn Stockman, Tamar Braxton and Trin-I-Tee 5:7 also appear on the album.

Franklin said the best thing about working with R&B stars was discovering how many of them were deeply into gospel music. "Carl Thomas came into the studio and talked about gospel songs and producers from the 1970s I'd never even heard of," Franklin recalled. "It goes to show how much people who don't necessarily record gospel music know about gospel." For all his crossover success, Franklin said it's important to maintain the distinction between the secular and the sacred. "Just because a song like R. Kelly's 'I Believe I Can Fly' is uplifting and spiritual doesn't make it a gospel song," Franklin said. "You can be a great motivational speaker but that doesn't make you a preacher." Despite his popularity outside the gospel realm, Franklin said he remains frustrated that explicit gospel music still has a hard time finding radio and video play. "Let somebody talk about being a Christian, or about Jesus, and it's automatic exclusion," he said. "But this music is very contemporary, very on point with what's happening musically."

• Kirk Franklin
• Jill Scott
• Mary Mary
• Deborah Cox

Michael Jackson
Photo: Sony

Long-quiet pop superstar Michael Jackson will return to the spotlight in September with a massive concert tribute to his own career that will include a reunion with the Jackson 5 and collaborations with 'NSYNC, Britney Spears and Whitney Houston.

The September 7 event at New York's Madison Square Garden will reunite Jackson and his brothers for the first time since the '80s, with the Jacksons teaming with 'NSYNC on at least one song, according to Jackson's publicists.

Jackson will duet with both Spears and Houston, as well as debut a new single from his upcoming album during the show, billed as Michael Jackson: The Solo Years 30th Anniversary Celebration.

The show will also include performances from Marc Anthony, Shaggy, Jill Scott, Mya, Tamia and Deborah Cox.

"I am very excited to celebrate my 30th anniversary as a solo artist with such a distinguished array of talent, friends and fans," Jackson said in a statement. "I look forward to performing live and reuniting with my brothers on this special night." According to a press release from Jackson's publicists, the show's lavish production will include a 300-member gospel choir, a 200-member children's choir, a 48-piece orchestra, 40 dancers and 12 background singers. The show will climax with "40 pop, R&B and country legends singing together" in tribute to Jackson, the press release said.

The show will be taped for a two-hour television special.

Jackson, who was inducted last month into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (see "Aerosmith Thrilled, Steely Dan Unimpressed At Rock Hall Ceremony"), has not released a full-length album of new music since 1991's Dangerous, and has not toured the United States since the '80s.

• Michael Jackson
• *NSYNC
• Britney Spears
• Whitney Houston
• Marc Anthony

Jill Scott
Photo: Sony

Jill Scott, Carl Thomas and Deborah Cox will show their gospel side on the Kirk Franklin-produced soundtrack to "Kingdom Come," which stars LL Cool J, Toni Braxton and Jada Pinkett Smith.

Mary Mary, who won a Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album Grammy this year for their Thankful, team with Franklin on the first single from the soundtrack, "Thank You," which will be released to radio on Monday. The video for the song recently was shot in Los Angeles, according to the album's publicist.

Scott joins Franklin on the title track, while Thomas duets with gospel star Natalie Wilson on "Daddy's Song." Cox delivers "Thy Will Be Done," and gospel trio Trin-I-Tee 5:7 perform "It's Alright." Franklin wrote every track on the album, due Tuesday.

Cedric the Entertainer and Whoopi Goldberg also star in "Kingdom Come," which will be released April 11.

• Jill Scott
• Carl Thomas
• Deborah Cox
• LL Cool J
• Toni Braxton

Deborah Cox, who scored her first platinum album with 1998's "One Wish," is about to accomplish another career first, as the Canadian-born singer will make her U.S. acting debut on CBS-TV's "Nash Bridges" on Friday night.

• Deborah Cox

Deborah Cox, Toni Braxton, Sarah McLachlan and Whitney Houston are among the artists who appear on "First Ladies Of Song," a limited edition CD that is available exclusively at Ann Taylor and Ann Taylor Loft stores across the country.

• "A Rose Is Still A Rose" - Aretha Franklin
• "Possession" - Sarah McLachlan
• "Nobody's Supposed To Be Here" - Deborah Cox
• "Precious" - Annie Lennox
• "As Time Goes By" - Carly Simon
• "Sweetest Decline" - Beth Orton
• "Déjà vu" - Dionne Warwick
• "You Mean The World To Me" - Toni Braxton
• "Here With Me" - Dido
• "The Real Thing" - Lisa Stansfield
• "Step By Step" - Whitney Houston

• Toni Braxton
• Deborah Cox
• Whitney Houston
• Sarah McLachlan

R&B chanteuse and native Canadian Deborah Cox, who struck gold with her second solo album, "One Wish," helped the Lilith Fair wrap up its third and final outing by performing at the tour finale in Edmonton, Alberta on Tuesday.