R. Kelly performs in New York on Friday
Photo: Michael N. Todaro/Getty Images

NEW YORK — The magic is back. R. Kelly still has it. Friday night at Wamu Theater at Madison Square Garden, the once legal-trouble-ridden singer showed why he's one of music's all-time greats, keeping the audience on its feet for almost all 90 minutes of his performance.

The Ladies Make Some Noise Tour gives R. a chance to dig through one of the deepest catalogs of classics of any current viable act. Surprisingly, almost halfway through the show, he spoke about his legal battle and victory.

"This is the first tour since my court case," said Kells, who was found not guilty on 14 counts of child pornography last year. "I'm still here. I'm still here!" he said with palpable sincerity, garnering applause. Then he started singing, "Thank you, Jesus."

"When I was walking outta court, I was singing to myself, 'Heaven, I need a hug/ Is there anybody out there ready to embrace a thug?' " he added.

Friday night's R. Kelly concert once again showed that the singer has mastered every area of live performance. Some women were literally climbing over barricades to dance in the aisle as Kelly closed with two of his signature records, "Step in the Name of Love" and "Happy People."

But Kelly could have closed with any of the many timeless hits that he's put out during the past 15 years. Much like Jay-Z or Mary J. Blige, Kells performs to audiences that obviously have their own personal relationships with the records and the music forever stamped in their hearts.

The concert started off with a red carpet being rolled out and female audience members standing onstage behind a velvet rope, making the scene look like the entrance to a hot club or a major industry party.

Kelly came out in sunglasses, jeans, a black T-shirt and a sport coat. He went from his "Flashing Lights" freestyle to a frenzy-causing medley of celebrated tunes: "That's That Sh--" went into "Wonderful," which went into "We Thuggin'," which went into "Thoia Thoing," which went into "I'mma Flirt."

It seemed like he could toss out records forever. Then he stopped and spoke — or rather sang a melody to a stagehand.

"Can you move that carpet, please?/ 'Cause I almost tripped three goddamn times." He repeated this impromptu, sing-songy request a few times before talking to the crowd: "Y'all know I make a song outta everything. Y'all laughing, but that sh-- be on the radio."

Kelly then paraded out even more classics, including "It Seems Like You're Ready" and "Bump N' Grind," before adding some new lyrics to the show. He made up a song about women with no junk in the trunk.

"Little-bootie girls, would you stand and turn around/ Slap it and ask the big-bootie girls, 'How you like me now?' "

This transitioned into "Feelin' on Yo Booty."

Kelly's covers added another dimension to the show. He impersonated Ron Isley when singing the song he wrote and produced for the legend, "Contagious." The crowd took over the duty of singing Kelly's part on Mr. Biggs' record.

During a break, Kelly saluted Michael Jackson. He played a videotaped message of himself in his studio surrounded by plaques he received from working with the King of Pop. He then showed footage of MJ dancing in a car to "Ignition (Remix)" while director Brett Ratner drove.

Kelly's last tribute of the night was one he said his mother would definitely enjoy if she were still living. That was to Sam Cooke. Dressed in a tuxedo and red bow tie, the R. returned to the stage for rousing renditions of "Bring It on Home to Me" and "A Change Is Gonna Come."

• R. Kelly

R. Kelly at his home in Chicago on Monday
Photo: MTV News

CHICAGO — That's not a wall, that's a television! R. Kelly's crib is that huge. On Monday night, the singer opened his doors to MTV News, friends and a few other media outlets to unveil Untitled. The LP is now scheduled for an October 13 release, and his Ladies Make Some Noise tour begins on October 8.

Kelly welcomed everyone into his living room, which is the size of your average lounge. It has a log-cabin theme with a movie-screen-size television that rises from the ground, a stage (Kelly gives private concerts there for friends and families sometimes) and shelves full of trophies from the Grammys, Billboard, BMI, Source, Soul Train and others.

The most telling pieces in the legendary singer's living room are the most human, two pictures of him and his three daughters. "Love those around you," reads the words on one of the pic's frames.

"I did my homework or else I wouldn't have invited all these important mutha-----s in my home," the Pied Piper said with a smile as he moved from table to table, greeting guests.

He started the night with food and drinks. Bartenders served a concoction Kelly came up and named after one of his popular ditties, "Sex in the Kitchen."

Before the music, Kells stood on one of the wooden end-tables and led a toast, "May the best of past, be the worst of our future.

"By the grace of God, I'm still here doing it big," he added. "I'm trying to get back on top of that mountain and roar like the Lion King."

Before playing the album, he debuted the video for his new single, "Number One," with Keri Hilson, which he calls an "R. Keri" production. The performance video starts with Kelly at the V-103 radio station in Atlanta and Hilson at WGCI in Chicago.

Kelly's album was mostly devised in Atlanta. He and his manager went down South and met with dozens of producers, from the big names to unknowns. The beatmakers brought tracks, and R chose the guys that were most consistent with their heat to work him.

"I said, 'I want him, him and him,' " Kelly said as the music began playing.

One of the singer's favorites is "Exit," which he co-produced with Jazze Pha. "I can't leave this club without you girl, you deserve an encore," he sings, accompanied by a piano. At times he incorporates a do-re-mi-type flow.

"I wanna rub, wanna touch every inch of your frame/... I got a big house in the mountains let's go/ I even got a stripper pole."

Another Kelly favorite is "Echo," in which he actually yodels.

"Yo-de-lay, yo-de-lay, yo-de-lay hoo-hoo," is what he promises his woman will scream in ecstasy. "I got you sounding like you're screaming from a mountain peak."

Later, as the album progressed, he yelled for the song "Elsewhere" to be stopped and restarted. "I got my baby back with this one," Kelly said. He said he played the break-up/make-up ballad for his woman over the phone at a time when they were having turmoil, and she came right home.

Untitled contains no references to Kelly's past legal problems, nor does it have any messages for some of the younger R&B artists, such as Trey Songz, who are going for his throne.

"It's like Ali: When you get to a certain status, you never have to throw a punch," he explained.

As "Fallin' From the Sky," another one of the album's ballads, began, Kelly revealed, "This one I originally wrote for Chris Brown.

"I wrote 'Happy People' for Stevie Wonder," Kelly added, regretting that he's yet to work with the legend in the studio. "He would have sounded great on that one."

Speaking of which, Kelly escorted his crowd down to the basement to his lab later in the night. There's no vocal booth — he records everything right at his keyboard, he said, the way Marvin Gaye did. There's a note on the wall that reminds him he has to finish the five songs he worked on with Michael Jackson before his death. Another note says that Good News is the name of Kelly's upcoming stepping album.

When asked why he has a big mirror right beside his keyboard, he explained that sometimes he has to change outfits when making music to get his swagger right. "I look and see Kells," he laughed, "not Robert the momma's boy."

• R. Kelly

R. Kelly
Photo: Michelly Rall/ Getty Images

Man — 2009 is halfway over already? The years go by so quick. As always, though, we're here to document everything. All this week, in addition to our regular coverage, we're going to be highlighting all the impact players in the mixtape circuit so far this year. Who had the biggest mixtape? What MC was the most consistent? What albums have we kept in rotation? Rappers, DJs, producers, shows — we've got the best of the best of this year thus far. Stay with us all week.

Mid-Season Salute: R. Kelly's The Demo Tape

R. Kelly did what he's never done before in 2009: dropped a mixtape. Along with DJs Skee and Drama, Kells dropped gems to the street like "Club 2 a Bedroom," "Bangin the Headboard" and "Disrespect My Shorty."

"I been in the stands watching the music scene for a minute, just chillin'," Kelly explained about the title of his mixtape. "I said, 'If I'm gonna do a mixtape, I feel like I'm starting over in a way.' I said, 'I'm gonna act like this is my first time as an artist. I'mma do a demo and hope the world sign me.' "

Kelly's Untitled LP is due later this year.

Joints To Check For

» "Birthday Sex" remix. "It felt like something Kells not only should do, but it felt like something Kells already done," R. Kelly said. "Not saying that my man stole [from] me or anything; he did his damn thing on it. I actually loved his version more than I did mine. But everybody is like, 'Yeah, man, I like your version, what you put down on that.' But I actually love his version more than mine. I just wanted to be a part of that song, because everybody was asking me, 'Did you do this song for him?' I hadn't heard it. Then when I heard it, I was like, 'Oh, man, no wonder they're asking. This sounds like something Kells should get on.' I had to go for mine."

» "Every Girl" remix. "First of all, I did Lil Wayne, Young Money 'Every Girl.' When I heard that track, I was like, 'Ah, man, this is what I'm up against when I come back out? I gotta conquer this first. I gotta conquer this before I put out my album.' This is like my homework before I can go out and play. So when I heard 'Every Girl,' I'mma keep it real just like them: When I heard the verses and the hooks, I was like, 'This is so crazy.' I wanted to put my two cents in."

The Streets Is Talking: News & Notes From The Underground

OJ Da Juiceman says his swag is on microwave — that means he's burning hot in the clubs. His Otis Williams Jr. Story was supposed to drop at the beginning of this month, but he delayed the project so it can be perfect.

"We gonna get it right, we gonna push it back a little bit," he told us recently in Atlanta.

Although the album has no official due date yet, OJ says it's already loaded. "I got seven or eight singles," he added. "Just straight-up singles. I know I can do videos for each of them. I just been working. I did one with R. Kelly. Big up to R. Kelly for the 'Superman High.' He returned the favor and gave me a hit single. Big up to Chi-Town."

Fat Boy and Zaytoven are going to be producing.

"Zay just got that chemistry — Funky Fingers Zay," OJ said about Mr. 'Toven. "Then when me and Gucci rap on it, it's like buying a hot dog out a convenient store — you're not gonna leave without getting that ketchup and mustard on it. It's just like that. You go to Zay, and you're gonna come out of there with a hit. Zay, Fat Boy, we go in. I'm working, enjoying the blessings, and we just networking." ...

Finally, we'll have a more expanded story on Trey Songz on Tuesday, but for today, we had to bring the origins on his now-signature "Yuuuggghhh!" ad lib. You've heard it on his songs and you've heard it on records he's not even on, like Drake's "Best I Ever Had." Where did it come from?

"It just came about," he said recently in his new hometown of Atlanta. "I'm a fool, really, in the studio. I said it on one record. I don't remember what record it was on first. Then I started going places and people would do it. That's when I knew it was something that was catching on. Now I gotta do it on every song."

For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines.

• Mixtape Daily: 50 Cent, Drake, Gucci Mane

• R. Kelly
• Lil Wayne

R. Kelly
Photo: MTV News

If you buy an album, you can call it whatever you want — at least R. Kelly thinks so. In February, Kelly partied in Atlanta club the Velvet Room with Jazze Pha, DJ Infamous and others and told the crowd that his new album didn't have a name.

"ATL, what's up? I got my little brother right here, Jazze Pha," he said, standing in the VIP balcony. "I'm out here working on the mutha----in' album. I'm working on a new album, and I'm calling that mutha----a Untitled. Y'all call it what y'all want."

On Monday, the Pied Piper of R&B told MTV News why he decided to go the Nas route when titling his LP.

"I've been in the biz 17 years, so everyone is used to me naming my records," he said. "So I wanted to mix it up a little. I want whoever listens to the record to call it what they want, name it themselves based on what they feel listening to the music."

This week, Kelly drops his first-ever mixtape, The Demo Tape. "I took it all the way back to when I first started; all I had was my demo," he said of the street project. "It's a way to start fresh, be humble. It's like being a new artist. This is my demo tape for my fans."

Kelly worked with DJ Drama and DJ Skee on the project, which combines Kelly's remixes, previously unreleased joints and new cuts from the forthcoming album.

"He had reached out awhile ago for the mixtape," Drama said of Kelly's tape. "So I know it's been on his mind. I think it finally just came together for him. It's a song on there called 'Bangin' the Head Board.' Problem! He redid Dream's 'Kelly's 12 Play.' Ridiculous. He gave some exclusives from the album — it's some heat on there. Somebody that big doing a mixtape is dope. It's keeping the game alive. It's necessary."

Drama said he expects Kells to shoot videos for at least a couple of the tracks on the mixtape. "We're trying to go all the way," the man behind the Gangsta Grillz mixtape series revealed. "It would be better to take advantage of all forums at the moment."

• R. Kelly Gets 'Closer To The Streets' With Mixtape

• R. Kelly

R. Kelly
Photo: Jive

The fellas know we're repping for them, and the ladies love us like a Tory Burch sample sale — Mixtape Daily is still here, still strong. Today is bugged out, because the focus is on a few people who aren't exactly synonymous with the mixtape game. First, R. Kelly's been adding his legendary vocal ability to unofficial remixes of records such as Drake's "Best I Ever Had" and Jeremih's "Birthday Sex." Well, he has a whole tape of those kinds of records and some original joints as well.

Then, the homie JD obviously has been putting out his own mixtapes for years, but he's coming at a new angle this time. Jermaine Dupri wrangled his guys Tyrone Davis (JD's personal assistant), Usher, Johnta Austin, Bryan-Michael Cox, Nelly and Trey Songz to comprise a clique of distinguished gentlemen called Ocean's 7. Besides letting Bow Wow officially join the crew if he adheres to the crew's dress code of suits and such, JD has grand schemes to make the project a whole movement, with a film and official album.

We can't be mad at that. You can catch JD's exploits at his new Web site Global14.com, and as always, keep checking for us at MTVNews.com Monday through Friday and our brand-new URL: Mixtape.MTV.com.

Don't Sleep: Necessary Notables

Mixtape: The Demo Tape

Headliner: R. Kelly

Co-Starring: DJ Drama and DJ Skee

Key Cameos: "Super Man High" (featuring OJ Da Juiceman), "Playaz in Da Club" (featuring Plies)

Essential Info: R. Kelly has pretty much been on the low since his troubles with the law ended last year. That 12 Play: Fourth Quarter album that was slated for the end of 2008 never surfaced, and besides showing up at the Velvet Room with Jazze Pha and DJ Infamous a few months ago, we haven't really heard a peep from the Pied Piper.

Well, we hear Kells is almost done with the new album but decided not to just jump out there with a single and video. He wanted to reintroduce himself with his first-ever mixtape.

"He's never done a mixtape before, and it's like his demo for the new album," DJ Skee said of The Demo Tape. "He's coming back with a new generation of the music business, a new generation of music. All these kids coming up are up on other stuff. He wanted to come back out and get everyone familiar on who he is."

"I wanted to do something different," Kelly said. "I wanted to get closer to the streets. It's the first time an R&B artist has done a mixtape on this level. It's a way to start over and give my fans something new and fresh again. I think it's great for music!"

Kelly teamed up with Skee and DJ Drama and made the mixtape by exchanging e-mails. Kelly would make the music in Chicago and send it out to the two DJs; Skee and Dram would then add their touches.

"He was originally gonna call it The Remix Killa," Skee said. "He has a lot of what he calls his 'remix killa sh--.' That's kinda his mantra. But we have some original records on there — some stuff that's not gonna be on his album and some stuff that's he had in the vault. It's a combination of a little bit of both.

"He remixed Dream's sh--," Skee said. " 'Superman High' with OJ Da Juiceman. He remixed 'Every Girl' by Lil Wayne and Young Money. The Keri Hilson 'Turning Me On.' He's got some sh--. It's Kells. He's got this one with Akon on there, a couple of original ones. There's a record called 'Club to the Bedroom' that leaked, so we got the mastered, real version on there. Then just a couple of other Kells R&B ballads on there."

R. Kelly told us late Monday that his album doesn't have a title, and, as of now, he's not naming it. He's letting the fans call it whatever they want. Come back to MTVNews.com this week for more from the Pied Piper.

Mixtape: 3009 Sh--

Headliners: Ocean's 7

Key Collaborations: The whole damn mixtape — they're a supergroup

Essential Info: They're inspired by the Rat Pack, but Ocean's 7 are more like a wolf pack with savoir-faire. When JD says his crew is in the house, expect a bunch of them (if not all) to be present.

"It's hard to be all together," Dupri told us while in Las Vegas, splitting time between partying and working on albums for Usher and Nelly. "But it's mentally made in the same fashion of the Rat Pack. The Rat Pack used to do little shows out here, and if Dean Martin was performing, they would say [on the billboards] in parentheses 'Maybe Sammy Davis Jr.' or 'Maybe Frank Sinatra.' Dean Martin would have a show at the Sands, and they knew if Sammy Davis or Frank Sinatra was in town, they were definitely getting onstage. That's the same mentality we have with this.

"You don't never know who you gonna get," he added. "When we say Ocean's 7, you know you gonna at least get four of us. But you don't know what other members you gonna catch."

If case you didn't read that snazzy intro at the beginning of this piece, the group is comprised of Dupri, his personal assistant Tyrone Davis, Nelly, So So Def artist and writer extraordinaire Johnta Austin, another writer and producer extraordinaire Bryan-Michael Cox, Nelly and Trey Songz. Austin is executive-producing Trey's new album, and JD produced a few tracks for the project.

"I tell a story at the beginning of the mixtape of how the whole thing happened," JD said. "We was in Vegas working, and it was a thought process. Usher was like, 'Let's go out and eat and be around Vegas and let Vegas know we here.' For the longest time, I been hearing Vegas was dying to have new energy. They try to bring younger people to Vegas, so it don't have that stigma of that old sh-- they used to have. We did all new material, we started form scratch and made brand-new records. With the mixtape, I sampled music from 'Ocean's Eleven.' All the music is sampled from there, with the exception of the 'Ain't I' freestyle and the remix of the Jay-Z song ['Heart of the City']. That was the mentality to really play up on it and make sure we give the city a soundtrack again, but in a younger format. They needed that breath of fresh air, and we trying to be that voice for them. Plus, we love being out here."

So how did Dupri pull it off when we've waited for years for other supergroup projects that never seem to happen? "You gotta be focused, and you gotta have somebody like myself that has a CEO mentality over being an artist," he said.

You can cop the Ocean's mixtape for free at JD's new site, Global14.com.

"That's not what's going on right now," Jermaine said about opting to give the tape away instead of selling it. "As a person that tries to stay in the forefront of what's going on and where we headed in the music and everything ... you can sell if you want to, and you fall victim to this low-sales [wave] that's going on. Not to say that we wouldn't sell a lot of records, but nobody's selling a lot of records. Eminem sold 500,000 less than he's ever sold first week."

Trust, one of the industry's all-time hustling greats is thinking about a way to make money out of all this and entertain at the same time. "We're talking about shooting a movie, and the soundtrack to the first movie would be the Ocean's 7 album."

There's also talk about a Vegas show and/or a tour with all the parties involved. We'll have much more on JD's new movement this week on MTVNews.com.

Other Heat This Week

» Biggy Jiggy Mixtapes - Exclusive Tunes 86
» DJ Soul - Big L 5/30 Tribute
» DJ Whiteowl - Whiteowl Drop That 69
» Evil Empire - Interstate Trafficking 8
» Kovas - The Stimulus Package
» Mike Love - The Best of Bad Boy Radio Freestyles (1997- 2007)
» Square Off and Cory Gunz - Youngest in Charge
» Tapemasters Inc - Air Yeezy » Young Jeezy and DJ Folk - Trappin' Ain't Dead

For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines.

• Mixtape Daily Video: Jay-Z, Cam'ron, Drake, Jadakiss & More

• Mixtape Daily: Other Notables, Eminem, Jadakiss, Kanye West And More

• Drake
• R. Kelly
• Lil Wayne
• The-Dream

The-Dream
Photo: MTV News

As a songwriter, The-Dream has crafted most of his hits for women, including Beyoncé ("Single Ladies [Put a Ring on It]"), Rihanna ("Umbrella") and Mariah Carey ("Touch My Body").

But the Atlanta native also knows how to stay in touch with his masculine side when it comes to penning hits. The-Dream's latest album, Love vs. Money, features a couple of songs that the Pied Piper R&B, R. Kelly, would sound more appropriate belting out.

"Sweat It Out," with lyrics like "Girl, call up Tisha, your beautician/ 'Cause your hair is gon' need fixin'," echoes the Chicago singer's sound, from topic to style. But that's exactly the point, according to The-Dream. He even specifically sang the track like R. Kelly would, he said.

"I know that 'Sweat It Out' sounds like Kelly," he told MTV News. "I knew it as soon as I started to write it. I was like, 'Hmm, this is a song that R. Kelly would probably write. And it's about something that he would probably write about. I'm gonna sing it kinda close to how he would sing it.' It's no different than if you were taking a song from the '60s and re-enacting it today. I'm gonna sing this record that Sam Cooke did called 'Chain Gang.' How are you gonna sing it, like Dream or like Sam Cooke? You're probably gonna sing it like how Sam Cooke would sing it. ... [R. Kelly] is a generation right before me, so he's definitely a major influence on my music."

The Def Jam crooner also has another song on his album that pays homage to that influence. "Kelly's 12 Play," which was produced by Dream's musical partner Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, features the singer wooing a lady with R. Kelly's seminal solo album 12 Play. The-Dream sprinkles some familiar Kelly ad-libs throughout the song and in the end, gives a shout-out to the controversial star.

"She like, 'Thank you, Dream'/ I'm like, 'No, thank you, Kells,' " he sings.

"I talk a lot about branding and what artists' brands are," The-Dream said. "What we forget is that we actually are just a soundtrack of everyone else's life. So sometimes you need to go to those certain places to do those certain songs for the people that are listening."

• The-Dream
• R. Kelly

R. Kelly
Photo: Evan Agostini/Getty Images

The fourth quarter came and went, and apparently so did R. Kelly's intended title for his next album. Last year it was announced the singer planned on calling his forthcoming LP 12 Play: Fourth Quarter. Well, now that the music biz is officially in quarter one and Kells has yet to put out the album, he's decided to go a different route.

Kelly was in Atlanta's Velvet Room on Sunday night, partying while many of his peers were at the Grammy Awards. The singer got on the mic at the club and announced the news.

"ATL, what's up? I got my little brother right here, Jazze Pha," he said, standing in the VIP balcony. "I'm out here working on the mutha----in' album. I'm working on a new album and I'm calling that mutha----a Untitled. Y'all call it what y'all want.

"I came to have fun with y'all," Kelly continued. The Chicago legend also gave the clubgoers an impromptu mini-concert.

"My mind is telling me nooooooo!" he sang, sans the "Bump n' Grind" instrumental. "But my body is telling me yes/ I don't wanna hurt nobody, but there's something I must confess to you."

"When R. Kelly walked into the VIP section, the ladies went crazy!" DJ Infamous said. "All you heard was ladies screamin' in the club and cameras going off. I immediately stopped the music and announced he was in the building."

Besides a controversial BET interview, Kelly has kept a very low profile since he was cleared of child-pornography charges in June.

A spokesperson for Kelly's label, Jive, was unable to be reached.

• R. Kelly

Sean Garrett
Photo: MTV News

Add Sean Garrett to the growing list of songwriters and producers set to work on Whitney Houston's comeback album.

The Beyoncé collaborator told MTV News last week that he's scheduled to record two songs with Houston shortly. Garrett said he recently met with Clive Davis to discuss material for her album. Davis, currently the chief creative director of Sony Music Worldwide, originally signed Houston and has been instrumental in her career ever since.

"She's sounding great," Garrett said of Houston. "I met with Clive yesterday in New York. She's gonna hear the records that I did for her this week, and we'll be getting in the studio cutting them. The records that she has are great. She's sounding great. She's definitely gonna be back."

A Houston track leaked onto the Web a few months ago. The midtempo song, called "Like I Never Left," was produced by Akon. There's no word whether the track will appear on her album, which is currently untitled and tentatively set for release this year.

In late 2007, Akon talked to us about working with Houston. He said the singer has a range of emotions she would be diving into on her project. "Her voice is strong enough to deliver any message she wants to sing to the world," he explained. "It's outta here."

Ne-Yo also said he would be working with Houston, as did John Legend, who said the process would be memorable regardless if the songs make the final project.

Garrett echoed Legend's sentiments. The songwriter, who has worked with Ciara and Usher, called the chance to work with Houston "the highlight of my career." He said the songs that he's heard so far, including numbers by R. Kelly, are excellent.

"Everybody is excited to be working on her album," Garrett said. "The camaraderie is great."

Houston is looking to move music to the forefront of her life again. In March 2005, the singer checked herself into rehab for a second time to deal with an unspecified abuse. Her ex-husband, singer Bobby Brown, whom she divorced in April 2007, claimed in his biography that his ex-wife introduced him to drug use.

• Sean Garrett
• Whitney Houston
• Clive Davis
• Beyoncé
• R. Kelly

R. Kelly
Photo: Evan Agostini/ Getty Images

After separating in 2005, R. Kelly and his now-ex-wife Andrea finalized their divorce on Thursday, according to UsMagazine.com.

The couple, who had been married for 11 years, have two daughters and a son together. "The parties have reached an amicable resolution concerning all issues related to their marriage, and will share joint custody of their three children," their Chicago-based lawyers said in a joint statement. "The details of this agreement will remain confidential and the family requests that their privacy be respected during this time."

Despite this "amicable" split, in the fall of 2005, Andrea Kelly, a former backup dancer for the Chicago-based R&B star, went to court to obtain an emergency restraining order against the singer, claiming physical abuse, harassment, stalking and interfering with her personal liberty. She wrote in her petition that she didn't want any contact with Kelly "at all, by any means." At the time, Andrea had moved out of the home the couple shared, and R. Kelly released a statement saying, "My wife and I had a heated argument, and we are now in the process of working it out." The protection order was later rescinded.

The initial split came less than a year after Kelly saw charges dropped against him in Florida for having sex with an underage girl, but amid a long-running court case in Chicago in which Kelly was accused of child pornography based on a widely-distributed videotapethat allegedly showed the singer having sex with an under age girl. He was acquitted of those charges last year.

Kelly was also briefly married to then 15-year-old singer Aaliyah for five months, but that marriage was reportedly annulled in February 1995.

• How Will R. Kelly Be Remembered?

• R. Kelly

Dr. Dre
Photo: Denise Truscello/WireImage

To say Dr. Dre is far from pleased that his music has been leaked would be an understatement. On Wednesday, a song labeled "Could Have Been You" from the Detox recording sessions appeared on the Internet. The record features R. Kelly, 50 Cent and Dre's upcoming Aftermath artist Bishop Lamont — each man tells the tale of a girl who they had designs on, but underestimated their ability to make her happy. Eventually, the men move on to bigger and better things.

Bishop scoffs, "Think about the games you played, the lies you told when you asking me how I could be so cold?/ And I'm wondering how you could be so bold?"

Kelly's disposition doesn't soften any on the chorus. He sings, "The reason why you didn't get picked, 'cause you got your nose up your a-- smelling your sh--/ But tonight you met your match, 'cause I be smelling my sh-- too/ Now how you like that?"

50 Cent rhymes about a woman from his early days who shunned him because she didn't believe he would make a great life for them.

"You supposed to be sure, baby, you was confused/ I had a thang for ya, had a ring for ya/ A house, car, kids and a pet name for ya."

Dr. Dre's label Interscope has yet to issue a comment, however a source close to Dre's camp tells us the legendary producer was expecting the song to be on Detox and is furious with the tune being leaked so early, especially since it wasn't mixed and mastered. Several of the Web sites that posted the song Wednesday have since taken it down — according to another source, they caught serious heat from Dre's camp.

On Monday, a Dr. Dre, 50 Cent and Eminem track called "Crack a Bottle" also leaked. There still has not been a clear statement issued on where that song will officially land.

• Dr. Dre
• 50 Cent
• R. Kelly
• Bishop Lamont

MTV News' Year In Photos: Britney, Heath, Twilight, More

• Beyoncé
• Jay-Z
• Mariah Carey
• Nick Cannon
• David Archuleta

R. Kelly, Ne-Yo, More Perform For 'Double Up' Tour In Atlanta

• R. Kelly
• Ne-Yo
• J. Holiday

The Week In Pictures For January 26, 2007

• Timbaland
• Rage Against the Machine
• Gwen Stefani
• Daughtry
• Fall Out Boy

R. Kelly's Light It Up Tour Gets Sexy In New York

• R. Kelly

MTV News: Photos

• Jadakiss
• Hilary Duff
• Jay-Z
• R. Kelly
• Coldplay

Usher, Mary J., Diddy, Snoop, More At 25 Strong: The BET Silver Anniversary Celebration

• Usher
• Diddy
• Mary J. Blige
• R. Kelly
• Snoop Dogg

Lindsay, Usher, Snoop, Game, Gwen And More Hit The 2005 VMAs White Carpet

• Fall Out Boy
• The Bravery
• Nick Cannon
• David Banner
• Rihanna

The 2005 MTV Video Music Awards Presenters And Performers

• Kanye West
• Kelly Clarkson
• Green Day
• The Killers
• Mariah Carey

"Best of Both Worlds" Tour 09.30.2004

• Jay-Z
• R. Kelly
• Memphis Bleek

Miami After Hours: Kanye, Paris, Juvenile, Lil Jon, Jada, More

• Lil' Kim
• Kanye West
• Diddy
• Lil Jon
• Petey Pablo