C-Murder
Photo: Soul Brother/FilmMagic

Master P's brother, rapper C-Murder, plead no contest on Wednesday (May 27) to multiple counts of attempted second-degree murder charges stemming from a 2001 incident in a Baton Rouge nightclub, according to a local ABC news affiliate.

WBRZ in Louisiana reported that prosecutors will recommend a 10-year sentence for Miller, who is also facing an unrelated, separate murder charge elsewhere in his home state.

The artist, who later changed his name to C-Miller and was born Corey Miller, was scheduled to go to court for the Baton Rouge case this week. But attorneys representing Miller announced the no contest plea in court today. The rapper will be sentenced to jail in 90 days.

According to police reports, Miller allegedly pulled a gun out on a bouncer and the owner of Club Raggs, a north Baton Rouge establishment. Police said Miller pulled the gun and attempted to shoot the owner, Norman Sparrow, but his weapon jammed. Miller then fled the scene before later being arrested.

According to the New Orleans Time-Picayune, Miller is still slated to face trial for a 2002 incident in Jefferson Parrish where the rapper is accused of killing a 16-year-old boy.

Miller has served time in home confinement for the same case after being convicted in 2003. The Lousiana Supreme Court, however, ordered a new trial after agreeing with a lower court that said the jury in Miller's case should have been made aware of the background of witnesses who testified against the rapper.

Miller's retrial is scheduled to begin August 3 in the Jefferson Parish case and he is set to be sentenced August 25 in the Baton Rogue case. He will remain jailed until his next trial.

MTV News' requests for comment by Master P by MTV News has not been returned as of press time.

• C-Murder
• Master P

Mariah Carey
Photo: Mariah Carey/Getty Images

Mariah Carey got a win in court last week when a federal judge decided that a copyright-infringement case against her had no merit. Singer Rachele Chafir had sued Carey in April 2006, claiming that Carey's hit "It's Like That" was copied from her song "Sexy" and lifted key pieces, including the music, for the chorus. Chafir, who copyrighted the song in 2004, claimed Carey had access to "Sexy" since it was available on a Web site, but U.S. District Court Judge Kimba Wood decided that wasn't proof Carey or her collaborators had gone to the Web site or lifted the material, which wasn't "strikingly similar" enough to be considered infringement. With "no genuine issues of material fact," Wood closed the case. "It was the right decision," Carey's lawyer Ilene Farkas told MTV News. "The record was clear in this case." Meanwhile, Carey is moving on with her yet-untitled follow-up to The Emancipation of Mimi, which her record label confirmed is now due December 4. ...

Going, going ... to Cooperstown. And with an asterisk on it. Baseball star Barry Bonds' record-breaking home-run ball, which was purchased two weeks ago in an online auction by hip-hop fashion mogul Marc Ecko, will be heading to the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum after all. Ecko bought the ball and launched a Web site giving fans the chance to vote on the ball's final destination: outer space or to Cooperstown, with or without an asterisk signifying Bonds' alleged steroid use in helping him become the all-time home-run king. The announcement was made Wednesday morning (September 26) on the "Today" show after a week of voting. According to Vote756.com, over 10 million votes were cast, of which 47 percent chose to send the tagged ball to the famed baseball museum. ...

The twisted saga of the investigation into the unsolved 1997 murder of the Notorious B.I.G. took another turn this week when Waymond Anderson, an inmate serving life for murder, recanted testimony in which he had implicated the Los Angeles Police Department in the rapper's murder. The Los Angeles Times reports that Anderson said in a recent deposition that he lied about LAPD involvement as part of a "scam" cooked up with two other convicts to get a big monetary settlement from the city of Los Angeles. Most shockingly, Anderson accused the rapper's family — which has filed a wrongful-death suit seeking damages from the city — and its lawyer of taking part in the scheme and offering to pay him a percentage of the settlement for false testimony against the LAPD. In the August 20 testimony, Anderson said he had never met the officers he implicated, despite earlier statements in which he described conversations with the two disgraced ex-LAPD cops. A lawyer for Biggie's family, Perry Sanders, called Anderson's allegations "100 percent, demonstrably false," adding yet another twist to the already-knotted-up story by saying that Anderson appeared to be changing his story at the behest of Chuck Philips, a Times reporter who has written extensively about the murder investigation and has questioned the theory of LAPD involvement. Phillips and the Times dismissed the allegations. ...

In other Biggie news, the recently released documentary "The Notorious B.I.G.: Bigger Than Life" follows the rapper's life from his early days to his death with interviews from many of the behind-the-scenes music-industry figures and friends who watched the rapper rise from a street-corner hustler to one of the biggest rap stars in the world. The film also features several minutes of previously unreleased footage shot by a bystander of the scene on the night Biggie was gunned down. The fan's video — which director Peter Spirer ("Beef," "Tupac Shakur: Thug Angel") said has been reviewed by authorities — doesn't capture the moment Biggie's car was shot at, but it does have audio of the shots and shaky footage of the chaotic aftermath. ...

Embattled football player Michael Vick is facing stricter release conditions after testing positive for marijuana earlier this month, The Associated Press reports. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson imposed the new conditions, which include restricting Vick to his home between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. with electronic monitoring and making him submit to random drug tests. He was ordered to continue participating in substance-abuse and mental-health counseling. Vick was put under pretrial release supervision in July, and the restrictions included refraining from the use of narcotic drugs or other controlled substances. The Atlanta Falcons quarterback, who pleaded guilty in August to federal dogfighting charges, is awaiting sentencing December 10 — and Vick's violation of the conditions of his release could be taken into consideration by the judge. He faces up to five years in prison for the federal charges, and has been indicted on additional state charges in Virginia as well. ...

A second woman has filed a lawsuit against Lil Wayne over a melee that broke out during one of his shows at Morgan State University in Baltimore in October. According to an AP story, Carlisa Dixon said she was impaled on a metal pole after the crowd surged to snatch up money that was being tossed from the stage. Dixon is seeking $1 million from Wayne's record label and touring companies, and another $1 million from the university, claiming she underwent surgery for a puncture wound as a result of the crowd surge. A lawsuit was filed in August by another woman who claimed she was trampled in the same money-throwing incident. A spokesperson for Wayne could not be reached for comment at press time. ...

A man died at a Smashing Pumpkins concert in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Monday night in what police think may have been a crowd-surfing or moshing accident. The Canadian Press reports that Vancouver police say the man was unconscious when he was dragged out of the crowd at the Pacific National Exhibition Forum during the show and worked on by first-aid personnel on site before being transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Police have ruled out foul play. ... The Voodoo Music Experience is shifting locations, but just slightly. The fest, to take place October 26-28, has a new site in New Orleans City Park to accommodate ongoing restoration and improvement of the park. The shift brings the fest closer to Tad Gormley Stadium, where Voodoo was first held in 1999. ...

Do you march to Nelly's beat? The rapper is cobbling together a marching band for his performance at the BET Hip-Hop Awards on October 13. Auditions will be held Sunday starting at 11 a.m. in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, New Orleans and St. Louis, and Nelly is looking for girls who can play drums, tri-toms, bass drum, tuba or trumpet. Prospective players need to know how to perform his song "Grillz" and move to the beat of the song while playing their instruments. Final auditions will be held October 8 in Atlanta, and those who can't make the auditions in person can post a one-minute video clip on Nelly's drum-line-audition site. ... If you've been doubting Swizz Beatz's fashion sense, think again — Gap has tapped the hugely popular producer for its spring ad campaign. ...

VH1 Rock Docs picked up its first Emmy win on Monday as "DMC: My Adoption Journey" earned the award for News & Documentary Emmy for Outstanding Arts & Culture Programming. The program, which revolves around the Run-DMC member's search for his birth mother, premiered in February 2006 and will re-air on VH1 on Saturday at 10 p.m. ... Have you already imported Babyface's Playlist into your own playlist? Then mark you calendar — the singer is putting together a tour in support of his recently released LP. Babyface will play a gig in the Philippines on October 13, followed by a stretch in Japan; after that he'll hit Oakland, California, on November 23, and Sparks, Nevada, the following day. ...

During a recent visit to "The Howard Stern Show," Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx spoke out about drummer Tommy Lee and his apparent departure from the band. He told Stern that Lee quit, and Sixx blamed the current legal problems the band is having with one of its former managers for the turmoil. Sixx said that, since Lee isn't the Crüe's frontman or chief songwriter, the band should be fine without him. He added that he harbors no ill will toward Lee. ... Snow Patrol keyboardist Tom Simpson was expected to appear in court in Glasgow, Scotland, on Tuesday to answer to drug-possession charges filed against him this summer. While the charges weren't dropped, the prosecution doesn't intend on taking "further action," meaning the charges will either have to be re-raised again or dropped altogether. ...

Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard's side project Brad are getting back together for a one-night-only show on October 17 at New York's Webster Hall. The benefit event will also feature Billy Bragg and be hosted by Tim Robbins. It is being held to support Woody and Marjorie Guthrie, and the 40th anniversary of the Huntington's Disease Society of America, which was founded by Marjorie. ... Puddle of Mudd aren't ones for Southern hospitality, apparently. Frontman Wesley Scantlin has been banned from Memphis' Graceland after hopping in the pool in Elvis Presley's mansion during a tour on Monday. ...

The Eagles will perform on an awards show for the first time when they take the stage at the Country Music Awards, which will air November 7 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS. Carrie Underwood is also slated to perform. ... The Rolling Stones' recent tour didn't just carry the band to the top of Forbes' list of biggest-earning music acts — it landed them in the Guinness World Records, according to Reuters. The classic-rockers' A Bigger Bang tour took $437 million dollars to give them a new record, for the world's most successful music tour. ...

Killswitch Engage and Lamb of God will be teaming up for a late-fall co-headlining tour, which is set to kick off November 28 in Lowell, Massachusetts, with dates booked through December 17 in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. DevilDriver and Soilwork will open on all dates. ... Chris Cornell has added another round of dates to his North American tour, which began in the spring. He has booked another 28 gigs, meaning the trek will continue through November 23, when he's expected to perform at the Pearl Concert Theater at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. ...

A photo from Elton John's collection has been pulled from a British gallery where it was to be displayed over concerns by police that it might be child pornography. The photo — which was taken by award-winning American photographer Nan Goldin — shows two young girls, one with her legs spread apart, and was to be displayed at the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in northern England before it was seized by police, according to London's Times Online. John released a statement, explaining, "The photograph entitled 'Klara and Edda belly-dancing' (1998) is one of 149 images comprising the 'Thanksgiving' installation by renowned U.S. photographer Nan Goldin ... The photograph exists as part of the installation as a whole and has been widely published and exhibited throughout the world [and] has been offered for sale at Sotheby's New York in 2002 and 2004, and has previously been exhibited in Houston, London, Madrid [Spain], New York, Portugal, Warsaw [Poland] and Zürich [Switzerland] without any objections of which we are aware."

09.25.07

While her fellow Black Eyed Pea Will.I.Am is hyping his new project, Songs About Girls, Fergie isn't slowing down with her own solo affair, last year's The Dutchess. The singer just shot a clip for the song "Clumsy" with directors Marc Webb (Diddy, the Pussycat Dolls) and Rich Lee (Chamillionaire, Dashboard Confessional). The surreal, humorous clip features Fergie falling head over heels — get it? — for love in various scenarios. ...

A House panel cast a congressional light on hip-hop lyrics on Tuesday (September 25), with David Banner and Master P giving sharply different views. The Associated Press reports that the latter rapper (real name: Percy Miller) told the Energy and Commerce subcommittee that he is determined to create clean lyrics. "I want to apologize to all the women out there. I was honestly wrong," he said of his prior material. Banner (real name: Levell Crump), on the other hand, defended his profane lyrics, saying, "Change the situation in my neighborhood, and maybe I'll get better." But while P and Banner didn't see eye to eye in terms of who is responsible for derogatory language in hip-hop, they agreed that the government shouldn't censor lyrics. "If by some stroke of the pen hip-hop was silenced, the issues would still be present in our communities. Drugs, violence, sexism and the criminal element were around long before hip-hop existed," Banner said. According to AP, the hearing was similar to the 1985 event in which late rocker Frank Zappa made a feisty appearance also railing against censorship. ...

Like the sound of the "Rocawear Arena" instead of the "Continental Airlines Arena"? Yeah, so does Jay-Z. The ambitious hip-hop mogul is bidding for the arena's naming rights, according to New Jersey's Star-Ledger. Although he is the co-owner of the New Jersey Nets and his Rocawar is a sponsor of the NBA team — which currently plays at Continental — sportswear maker Southpole has made the highest bid so far, $2 million. But there's a catch: The reason the name is up for grabs is because Continental is backing out of its deal with the arena, and both the Nets and hockey team the New Jersey Devils are planning to move to other venues. ...

Life isn't getting any easier for Britney Spears. Kim Robard-Rifkin, the reported woman whose car the singer hit in August — for which she was charged with two misdemeanors on Friday — has spoken out to CelebTV.com. "I was not surprised with the criminal charges — this is what happens when somebody hits your car and runs — especially when it is all caught on video," she said in a statement. Spears' former bodyguard Tony Barretto also spoke out on Monday, telling "Today" show host Matt Lauer that he had witnessed her using drugs on two occasions. While Barretto did not specify which drugs he supposedly saw her taking, he said both incidents occurred at a nightclub in Los Angeles, one at the table she was sitting at and the other in a private restroom. When Lauer asked him about a third incident in which he alleges to have seen her strung out in a Los Angeles hotel room, Barretto replied, "I did." ...

Sarah Silverman was surprised by the reaction that met her controversial VMA monologue, in which she flung derogatory insults at Britney Spears, among others, she told Us Weekly. Regarding one of her saltiest remarks — that Spears' kids "are the most adorable mistakes you will ever see" — Silverman replied, "The joke that everyone was upset about ... was the most innocuous joke. It never occurred to me that [it] would be deemed hurtful or over the line." She also told the magazine for its new issue, which streets Friday, "I don't want to get into feuds with girls half my age. I'm in it to be funny and not for the drama. It's embarrassing." ...

Look, up in the sky, it's a new Gnarls Barkley album! And as Cee-Lo recently told MTV News of the follow-up to St. Elsewhere, "It sounds otherwordly. ... It sounds like an original, if I do say so myself. The theme is progression and how there's a first time for everything. You just have to go for it." Beyond that, though, Cee-Lo didn't want to give up too much. Asked about collaborators, he demurred: "Danger Mouse is my special guest. He's my counterpart in the enigma of Gnarls Barkley." No duh — we meant, anyone else? "Let me continue to surprise you," Cee-Lo smiled. For those who caught Cee-Lo's take on Prince's "Darling Nikki" with the Foo Fighters at the VMAs, he wants fans to know that his performance at the show was supposed to be a surprise appearance with Amy Winehouse, "believe it or not." But since she had to bail from the show, he's saving that collaboration for a future appearance. ...

The Sex Pistols — who just tacked two more gigs onto their upcoming November reunion in London, according to BBC News — have another trick up their collective sleeve: A newly recorded rendition of their punk staple, "Anarchy in the U.K." The band entered the studio for the first time in 30 years to record the track, which will surface on "Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock." ... As I Lay Dying clearly have more than a few gasps left — the metal band edged out Switchfoot, Jason Mraz and others to win the San Diego Music Award for Artist of the Year. AILD nabbed the same honor in 2005. ... Canadian singer/songwriter Patrick Watson and his band have pulled off an arguably more impressive feat: The Montreal quartet have nudged by Arcade Fire and Feist to land the Polaris Music Prize for Best Album. ...

Despite the recent head injuries sustained by guitarist Brent Hinds, Mastodon have booked a gig, opening for the Queens of the Stone Age on October 29 in Los Angeles. The band is also scheduled to appear at the Vegoose festival on October 27 in Las Vegas, where Hinds was jumped following Mastodon's performance at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards. Police claim Hinds was attacked outside the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on September 10 during an encounter with System of a Down bassist Shavo Odadjian and his friend William Hudson. According to police, Hudson assaulted Hinds, and Odadjian witnessed the incident. ... While at the VMAs, Mastodon told MTV News that they wrote their best song ever — even though it's not quite finished yet — while on the way to the big show. "It's pretty much the best record we've yet to write," guitarist Bill Kelliher said before singing a couple of the riffs with Hinds. "That's how it goes — du-duh-du-duh na-nah-nah. We wrote it in the car on the way over here, at least the intro of it. Part one. We're at the really beginning stages. It's going to be awesome, though. Everything we do is amazing." ...

The Game entered his expected not-guilty plea on Tuesday to three felony counts stemming from a pickup basketball game in Los Angeles in February. The rapper (real name: Jayceon Taylor) is free on $50,000 bail and has a pretrial hearing set for October 30. ... Jack Bauer might not be such a hero after all: Kiefer Sutherland was arrested early Tuesday morning for drunken driving in Hollywood, Reuters reports. The actor was pulled over after making an illegal U-turn and blew more than the .08 legal limit upon taking a breathalyzer test. He posted $25,000 bail at a Hollywood police station and is due in court on October 16. ...

The Phil Spector murder trial is in the hands of the jury now, but that hasn't stopped more bizarre developments from emerging in the case. According to AP, over the weekend, a threatening post appeared on a MySpace page possibly belonging to the music producer's wife, Rachelle. "I love Phil Spector!!! The Evil Judge Should Die!!!! Xoxo Chelle," read the post, a police spokesperson told the news outlet. The page, which features an image of Rachelle wearing a "Team Spector" tee, was referred to a sheriff's department unit that investigates such threats. The post has since been removed. ...

Amazon's new digital-music store is up and running, with songs going for 89 to 99 cents and albums selling for around $6-$10. The songs, which don't have copyright protections, can be burned onto CDs and copied to multiple computers. Record-label giants Universal and EMI, in addition to a flood of indie labels, are selling their songs through the site. ... A former trustee in James Brown's estate might have misappropriated up to $7 million of the late music legend's money, special administrators told a South Carolina judge on Monday. State Circuit Judge Jack Early told David Cannon, the former co-executor of Brown's will, to pay $400,000 and produce additional documents. Early also said Brown's family could pursue the claims. ...

The Cult will headline the fall installment of the Jägermeister Music Tour, which is set to launch October 17 in Pala, California, and run through mid-December, with the full list of dates coming soon. Rounding out the bill will be Vietnam, the Cliks and Action Action. ... Former L7 leader Donita Sparks is going out on her own with her debut solo effort, Transmiticate, due January 22. The effort, which will feature her new backing band, the Stellar Moments, shifts away from the grunge and metal sounds that defined L7 and tinkers with more pop and dance elements. ...

Fans of Los Angeles ska act Hepcat are mourning the passing of bassist Dave Fuentes, 36. While details are scarce, the band did issue a statement, saying, "We are sad to announce that our brother, beloved bandmate and amazing friend, David Fuentes, is no longer with us. He will be missed by everyone but especially everyone in the Hepcat family." He leaves a wife, Yohanna, and two sons, Andrew, 7, and Darren, 3. A memorial fund has been established to help his family. ... A special-effects technician working on the set of the Batman sequel "The Dark Knight" was killed when a truck carrying a camera platform rammed into a tree on Monday in London, AP reports. Filming was not taking place at the time of the accident, which is under investigation.

• Mariah Carey
• Notorious B.I.G.
• Lil Wayne
• The Smashing Pumpkins
• Killswitch Engage

Kanye West and 50 Cent at the 2007 VMAs
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

Kanye West's Graduation is proving to be quite the bear. The album leads with 781,000 copies sold over the 603,000 moved by 50 Cent's Curtis according to projections, Billboard reports. "It's just a few days out," Fiddy told the news outlet, qualifying the numbers. He said the music industry "would consider me to be a hip-hop favorite because of my sales history, and people like to root for the underdog." He also took some time Thursday to sound off about Sunday's VMAs on New York's Hot 97, saying he was shorted compared to 'Ye — even though West has also been complaining he didn't get enough airtime during the show. Fif also managed to take a swipe at his record label, Interscope, during the VMA rant: "As far as the VMAs were concerned, Kanye received the upper hand. I ain't going to front. He had four looks — his song 'Stronger,' his new record 'Good Life,' he had a performance with Soulja Boy, 'Crank [That],' and then he came out with me. So I feel like Def Jam is doing a better job of promoting the CD than Interscope. Interscope is just relying on my base and the actual music. I was on the VMAs for one minute and 20 seconds. I should've just stayed home." ...

Last weekend, Britney Spears had the VMAs to worry about — this weekend, it's her kids. On Friday (September 14), a Los Angeles Superior Court judge postponed making a ruling on whether court documents relating to the singer's divorce and custody case with ex-husband Kevin Federline should be sealed or open to the public. "Access Hollywood" and People magazine were among the media outlets representing the public's interests. Outside the courtroom, Spears' divorce attorney Laura Wasser spoke to reporters, telling them this is a frustrating time for the singer. "I think she just wants to be a mom," Wasser told reporters, "and both of her kids' birthdays are this week, and I think she would've liked to celebrate with them without having to worry about the entire nation — the entire world — being concerned about what's going on with her personally and her custody battle with Mr. Federline." On Monday, the judge will hear Federline's order to show cause for primary physical custody of the couple's two children: Sean Preston, who turned 2 on Friday; and Jayden James, who turned 1 on Wednesday. ...

Earlier this week, the "American Idol" judges had at Britney Spears' VMA performance — now "Dancing With the Stars" judge Carrie Ann Inaba is following suit. "When I watched it, I think they gave her a great place to make a comeback," she told Newsweek. "It was more mature than we've seen in the past. The thing that was unfortunate is that the center of the performance was Britney, and she was only giving about 30 percent. That's why it fell short. The backup dancers focused all the energy right to Britney, and she was the weakest link. ... I think fear got the best of her." ... Jamie Foxx got a place on Hollywood's Walk of Fame on Friday, and when he chatted with reporters at the induction ceremony, he inevitably gave his two cents on Spears' performance. "I think Britney's gonna be fine," he said. "I think that she was courageous to get up there and do her thing. I wish her well for that." ...

Common and Q-Tip will co-headline this year's 2K Sports Bounce Tour, which will kick off September 22 in Milwaukee and conclude October 14 in Los Angeles, according to Filter magazine. Q-Tip is featured in "NBA 2K8" as a playable character and is on the video game's soundtrack as well. ... Mark Ronson — who manned the ones and twos inside the Palms' Pearl Theatre during last weekend's Vegas VMAs — has slapped two U.S. tour dates onto his itinerary: October 3 (Los Angeles) and October 5 (New York). ...

A fire broke out at the Austin City Limits Music Festival on Friday afternoon, injuring four people, according to Austin360.com. The flames erupted inside a trailer located behind the beverage-vendor tents between two of the festival stages, and Pete Yorn's set was stopped as the fire was extinguished. All four people were transported to Brackenridge Hospital, and two are in critical condition. ...

Madonna, Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher attended a Kabbalah conference in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Friday to celebrate the Jewish New Year, according to The Associated Press. She reportedly didn't speak with the media, and the conference was closed to TV cameras. ... Master P visited Monroe Middle School in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Thursday and spoke to roughly 800 students about the importance of education, good financial management and a vision for success, AP reports. The rapper was approached by math teacher Bonnie Mwanda, who reportedly heard he would be in town and thought his success might be an inspiration for her students, many of whom come from similar backgrounds as the hip-hop mogul. "If the principal tells me y'all have a good year, I'm going to bring Romeo back to do a concert," he told the students, according to AP. ...

Fred Durst has been keeping a relatively low profile these days, but the Limp Bizkit frontman was given a 120-day suspended jail sentence after pleading no contest to seven misdemeanors way back on August 16, AP reports. He was also ordered to perform 20 hours of community service and fined $1,500 for assault, battery and reckless driving, for deliberately hitting two people with his car in Los Angeles in October 2006. Moreover, Durst was hit with a restraining order, is not allowed within 100 yards of the two victims — whose names have not been revealed — and cannot possess a firearm. ...

Elton John made a surprise appearance onstage during a Prince concert at London's O2 arena Thursday night. BBC News reports that John joined Prince for a cover of the Beatles' "The Long and Winding Road." After the two-hour-plus show, Prince ducked into the O2's smaller theater and played another two-hour gig, which included covers of Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" and another Beatles song, "Come Together." ... Led Zeppelin fans are getting more time for a chance at tickets to see the band perform a one-off reunion gig November 26 at London's O2 arena. Organizers behind the concert — a tribute to late music icon Ahmet Ertegun — are extending the lottery-application process to Wednesday, Billboard reports. The Web site set up to handle registrations received 89.5 million attempts in a 12-hour period on Thursday, according to the news outlet. ...

Members of underground-rock heroes Shudder to Think will reconvene for a one-off gig at New York's Mercury Lounge on Monday, Pitchfork reports. Frontman Craig Wedren and guitarist Nathan Larson — whose conflicts were part of the reason the band broke up in the late '90s — will get together with drummer Kevin March for the gig, although bassist Stuart Hill will not be accompanying them. ... Glassjaw have booked three California dates for next month. The reunited band will play October 28 in Hollywood; October 29 in San Diego; and October 30 in Pomona, California. ... Iconic punk band Operation Ivy's 1991 self-titled compilation LP will be reissued on November 6 on Hellcat. The classic release has been remastered and will also be available for download for the first time. ... PJ Harvey's White Chalk album has shifted from a September 25 release date to October 2. ...

AT&T's Blue Room, the site where political comments made by Pearl Jam during Lollapalooza were censored a month ago, has announced a new policy to avoid repeating that controversial practice during its webcast of this weekend's Austin City Limits Music Festival. According to AT&T spokesperson Steven Schwadron, "AT&T has developed an AT&T Blue Room policy to maintain integrity of the live performances featured on the site. AT&T will not edit any audio during the live webcast, of performances. We may edit visual content — either through camera angle changes or video blackouts — if there is strong sexual content. Also, we are going to have a clear viewer-discretion messaging both before and during the webcasts. The terms and conditions of the site, which users accept when they choose to view the webcast, requires users to be at least 13 years of age." ...

It's been 42 years since Johnny Cash's arrest in Starkville, Mississippi, for picking flowers from a resident's garden. But a judge who is reviewing the matter could potentially pardon the late musician, according to BBC News, and the city plans to instead honor him with the Johnny Cash Pickin' Festival from November 2-4. Cash wrote the track "Starkville City Jail" — which he performed at his legendary live At San Quentin prison LP — after spending a night in the city's prison.

09.13.07

50 Cent, Common, Nicole Scherzinger and others have all had their say about Britney Spears' VMA performance — now the "American Idol" judges are having at her. "We've decided that we're all going to collectively manage Britney," Simon Cowell remarked at a press conference earlier this week, according to "Access Hollywood." "We're going to manage Britney, take her career over," Randy Jackson added. Cowell snickered that he would "keep her away from the stupid friends, buy her some underwear," while Paula Abdul — as always — tried to put a positive spin on her VMA performance: "I never count her out." Spears' fellow former teen icon Joey Fatone has also chimed in on the performance, telling "Extra," "I felt bad but didn't. It looked like she was really lost. A lot of people ... really want her to seek help ... there's something not right here, something needs to obviously be done before anything tragic happens. She's a great girl ... I've known her for many years." ...

In other Brit news, she attended an unscheduled meeting with Kevin Federline and his attorney on Wednesday — five days before they were due to meet before a family court judge. The meeting was reportedly held at the Century City, California, offices of Spears attorney Laura Wasser. Federline has been trying to seek full custody of the former spouses' two sons, Jayden James and Sean Preston. ...

Lil' Kim — who took a swipe at 50 Cent on her 2005 LP, The Naked Truth — is finding herself right alongside him in a new lawsuit filed by a record producer, The Associated Press reports. Carlos Evans claims in papers recently filed in a New York court that he was contracted to produce, engineer and mix Kim's "Magic Stick" (featuring 50 Cent), a song that sold 2 million copies, but that he wasn't paid the royalties he was promised. He adds that while he was paid the $7,500 advance he was guaranteed for the song, his requests for a royalties audit have been ignored. His suit seeks $1 million in compensatory damages and $1 million in punitive damages. Theodore Sedlmayr, a lawyer for Rotten Apple Records — which is also named in the suit — told AP the late-royalty problems stem from the fact that Evans put a lengthy sample, which had to be licensed and paid for, in the song. "Atlantic is trying to get it straightened out. If after the accounting Mr. Evans is entitled to anything, he'll get it then," Sedlmayr told the news service. ....

Snoop Dogg, Talib Kweli, Mobb Deep, DMC and others will come together November 29 at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York for the J.A.M. Awards, a Jam Master Jay- and Run-DMC-inspired event intended to reflect the positive aspects of rap. The event — being put on by Hot 97, the Jam Master Jay Foundation for Music and other organizations — will be co-hosted by DMC, who said in a statement that it "is not designed merely for music fans, but also for people who want to see hip-hop answer its critics with a resounding voice of hope and inspiration." Eminem has also donated money for the cause, and the shindig will also feature Raekwon, Papoose and other to-be-named artists. ...

Beyoncé, Gwen Stefani and Jennifer Lopez are this year's best-dressed women, according to People. Kirsten Dunst and Janet Jackson aren't so lucky, though — they're cited for wearing the worst red-carpet dresses of the year in the magazine's "Best & Worst Dressed" issue, out Friday. Angelina Jolie, Jessica Biel, Cameron Diaz, Avril Lavigne, Lily Allen and Reese Witherspoon are also noted in the issue, as are a handful of men: Terrence Howard, Johnny Depp, Brad Pitt and George Clooney among them. ... Shakira, teacher's pet? Perhaps: PeopleEnEspanol.com reports that the singer has been taking Western-civ classes at the University of California, Los Angeles, over the course of the summer. ...

The White Stripes, who announced earlier this week that their U.S. tour would be scrapped due to Meg White's acute anxiety, have tabled their U.K. tour as well, BBC News reports. The band's eight-date arena tour, which was slated for October 24-November 2, would have been its largest U.K. trek to date. ... Foo Fighters have drummed up four shows in addition to their scheduled Saturday performance at Southern California radio station KROQ's LA Invasion. The band — which drops its Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace on September 25 — will grace New York (September 20); New Orleans (October 2); Atlanta (October 4); and Atlantic City, New Jersey (October 6). The rock act will also tape a performance for the "Nissan Live Sets on Yahoo! Music" series on Tuesday and be the featured musical guest on "Saturday Night Live" on October 13. ...

Queens of the Stone Age — who performed with the Foos during the VMAs — apparently have an unlikely fan in "chef-at-large" Anthony Bourdain. They stopped by his "No Reservations" Travel Channel show last week to shoot an appearance for the program. In the episode, Bourdain is cooking a holiday meal in his Connecticut home while the band is performing in the basement. QOTSA emerge wearing cheesy Christmas sweaters, dine with Bourdain and perform the holiday jingle "Silver Bells," retitled "Turkey Bells." The ep also allegedly features karaoke, Christmas carols and a Japanese businessman, so stay tuned. ... System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian — who also performed with the Foos — has announced a bunch of tour dates in support of his solo debut, Elect the Dead, which hits stores October 23. His North American tour kicks off October 12 at the Vic Theatre in Chicago and will make stops in Toronto, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Dallas, Las Vegas and Los Angeles, before concluding October 28 in San Francisco. ...

Led Zeppelin are getting a whole lotta love from fans after announcing a one-off reunion gig on Wednesday. More than 20 million fans have attempted to get tickets for the November 26 concert at the O2 arena in London in honor of late music icon Ahmet Ertegun, according to Agence France Presse. The venue can hold up to 20,000 people, and a lottery is being held in which tickets will be drawn at random. ...

Prince is planning to sue eBay, YouTube and other Web sites as part of an effort to "reclaim the Internet," according to the MediaGuardian.co.uk. Lawsuits pertaining to his material will be launched in the U.S. and U.K. through the anti-piracy firm Web Sheriff, which represents Prince. Over the course of the past two weeks, the artist's legal reps have asked for the removal of more than 2,000 videos that are alleged to have been uploaded illegally online. Web Sheriff Managing Director John Giacobbi said Prince "wants to create a template for other artists" but that he "doesn't really want to go around suing people — he'd much rather people just respected his rights. He will be victorious." ...

A security guard who worked a Guns N' Roses concert nearly 11 years ago is suing Axl Rose for battery and negligence, according to court documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in late August and obtained by TMZ.com. Gary Armijo claims that he was positioned at the front of the stage at the GN'R show in Universal City, California, on December 20, 1996, and that the singer came to the front of the stage and intentionally kicked the guard in the head, causing injuries. Armijo says he has experienced pain and suffering, sleeplessness, headaches and loss of earnings, and has incurred medical expenses as well. ...

The Cure have rescheduled for next year 18 of the 19 gigs they had intended to play in North America this year. The band's 4Tour North America run will now take them from May 9 in Washington, D.C., through June 20 in New York. In between will be an additional performance at the Sasquatch! Music Festival in George, Washington, on May 25 — the band has been promised a show-closing 150-minute slot for the fest. Those who want refunds on their 2007 tickets can do so at the original point of purchase until November 1. ... "Spawn" creator and toy magnate Todd McFarlane told Reuters he's spawning plans to direct a feature flick. He said he's eyeing low-budget concepts: "You're going to have some young kid do those anyway, so let me have a crack at it." McFarlane was at the annual GameStop convention, showcasing a new lineup of toys based on "Halo 3." ...

Bobby Byrd, James Brown's longtime sideman and co-singer, died of cancer on Wednesday, according to The Augusta Chronicle of Georgia. Byrd sung the classic "get on up" refrain in "Get Up I Feel Like Being a Sex Machine." He was also the co-founder of the Famous Flames, which became Brown's first backing band.

• Travis Barker, 50 Cent, Common On Britney's VMA Performance
• 2007 VMA: The Entire 2007 MTV Video Music Awards On-Demand
• Kanye Lectures On The Importance Of Graduation

• Shooting Stars: A Celeb's Eye View Of The VMAs
• 50 Cent's 5 Borough Tour Hits Manhattan
• Paris Hilton, Diddy, Timbaland, Janet Jackson, More Hit The Vegas Party Scene
• Britney's VMA Weekend: From Los Angeles To Las Vegas

• 50 Cent
• Kanye West
• Britney Spears
• Madonna
• Master P

Kanye West
Photo: Vince Bucci/ Getty Images

With summer wide open for rappers now that 50 Cent has pushed his album back to September, Kanye West is looking to capitalize. Def Jam confirmed that the release date for West's forthcoming Graduation has been pushed up to a late August release from its original September date. No specific date has been announced yet, but in true Kanye fashion, the rapper broke the news of the switch himself, on his latest mixtape Can't Tell Me Nothing — which shares its title with Graduation's first single, co-produced by West and DJ Toomp. ...

50 Cent will preview tracks from Curtis at a one-off show at London's Hammersmith Palais on July 2, MTV UK reported Thursday (May 31). Tickets for the concert, presented by MTV Base, go on sale Friday. ...

Jessica Alba, Alicia Keys, Liv Tyler, Elton John and others have signed a petition urging G8 leaders to keep their word to impoverished countries. Many poverty experts say promises that were made in 2005, including increasing aid levels, supporting the Global Fund and addressing the shortage of health-care workers in Africa and elsewhere, have not been met. The petition, which can be found here, is open for signature until Tuesday — the day before President Bush and other world leaders descend on Germany for a G8 summit. ...

Nicole Richie is "nervous" she might be punished with jail time, like her friend Paris Hilton, she told Ryan Seacrest on his "On Air With Ryan Seacrest" radio show Wednesday morning. Richie, who was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs in February, said she knows she has to "take responsibility" and "deal with whatever consequences" come her way. She also said she's been out of the limelight lately because she's been touring with boyfriend Joel Madden of Good Charlotte — and that she hasn't been in rehab recently, as some have speculated. ... Lindsay Lohan's lawyer has told "Best Week Ever" that the singer/actress' 21st birthday party is still on track for July 2 at Las Vegas' Pure nightclub. ... A Los Angeles County judge has issued a bench warrant for Tom Sizemore, TMZ.com reports. Last week, the actor pleaded not guilty to five felony drug counts, including transportation and possession of crystal crystal methamphetamine. ... The Jackson family memorabilia auction being held Thursday and Friday in Las Vegas drew roughly $500,000 its first day, The Associated Press reports. A set of gold and platinum albums presented to the family for sales of "We Are the World" sold for $20,000, while a military-style shirt worn by Michael Jackson went for $24,000. ...

The "Shrek" series will conclude in 2012 with a final fifth volume, to follow a fourth, origin-story installment in 2010, DreamWorks chief Jeffrey Katzenberg told Australia's The Age newspaper. "It's a finite story, has been from the beginning, and I think that's part of its integrity, part of its strength, that we're not thinking this up as we go," he said. "Ultimately, we will come back to understand how Shrek arrived in that swamp. We will reveal his story." ... Hogwarts will soon have a campus in Orlando, Florida. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a theme park within a theme park, is expected to open in late 2009 at Universal's Islands of Adventure at the Universal Orlando Resort. The park will feature rides and other interactive experiences as well as shops and restaurants, and will be "faithful to the visual landscapes of the films," including re-creations of Hogsmeade and the Forbidden Forest. "The plans I've seen look incredibly exciting, and I don't think fans of the books or films will be disappointed," J.K. Rowling said in a statement. (See sketches of the park, including Hosgmeade Square and Hogwarts, right here.) ...

Dr. Louis Pena, the coroner who testified Tuesday that actress Lana Clarkson's death was a homicide, acknowledged Thursday that crime-lab mistakes were made while collecting evidence at Phil Spector's mansion, AP reports. Pena said Clarkson's body was mistakenly moved, compromising at least one item from the crime scene in the process, and also said the medical findings could not establish who held the gun that fired the bullet that killed Clarkson. Pena said the actress had gunshot residue on her hands but that it doesn't necessarily mean she fired the gun. In a hearing the jury did not witness, lawyers argued over whether jurors should hear about a diary Clarkson kept. After Pena testified that he had not considered doing a "psychological autopsy" on Clarkson, since he had determined her death was not a suicide but a homicide, a Spector defense attorney asked him if he considered documents found in her computer. That includes "The Story of My Life," a composition in which she discussed having drug problems and talked about a seeing visions of a dead actress who committed suicide. The prosecution said the writings had not been authenticated and therefore could not be relied upon. "If you have the words of a deceased ... how do you keep that away from the jury and away from an expert who could have considered it," Superior Court Judge Larry Paul Fidler said. ...

Master P and Romeo's father-son collaboration Hip-Hop History is due September 4 — the same day that 50 Cent's Curtis is scheduled to hit stores. "The date was not chosen to compete with Curtis Jackson's delayed release, but rather to create balance in the marketplace and give kids a freedom of choice," according to a statement posted on P's MySpace page, which also states that proceeds from the album will fund scholarship programs. Master P and 50 have recently clashed over P's announcement that he would not use profanity in his lyrics. ... "American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks will join finalists Blake Lewis and Melinda Doolittle for a performance on NBC's "Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular," airing July 4 at 9 p.m. They will join their seven fellow finalists to kick off the Idols Live tour July 6 in Sunrise, Florida. ... The stars have been shining bright lately for Bright Eyes. The band, which is amid a seven-week residency at New York's Town Hall, has been joined in recent nights by Norah Jones, Lou Reed, Ben Kweller, Death Cab for Cutie's Ben Gibbard, Rilo Kiley's Jenny Lewis, ex-Sleater-Kinney drummer Janet Weiss, Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner and Gillian Welch. ...

Jermaine Dupri has signed Harlem sensation Jason Fox — responsible for the street hit "Aunt Jackie," a tune that complements the flamboyant New York City dance of the same name — to Island Urban Music. The dance has been an online smash, with kids appropriating the moves in homemade video clips. "I think we're seeing the life of hip-hop coming back with songs like 'Aunt Jackie,' " Dupri said in a statement. "It's the kids acting like kids used to act when I was growing up, and I love it because, to me, hip-hop has been too-cool-for-school lately. It's time for a change." ... Shop Boyz popped into Canal Room in Manhattan, New York, Wednesday night for a surprise performance of their hit "Party Like a Rockstar" during the MixtapeKings.com relaunch party; Disturbing Tha Peace rapper Serius Jones also performed and Kool DJ Herc manned the boards. ... Bo Bice has pulled the plug on the end of his acoustic tour and is returning to the studio in order to get his second album in stores by mid-September. Bice's shows scheduled for Tucson, Arizona (June 3); Odessa, Texas (June 7); and Dallas (June 9) have been canceled.

05.30.2007

Fat Joe is wanted for questioning by police in Miami Beach, Florida, as a witness to a double murder that occurred outside a restaurant in South Beach over the Memorial Day weekend. The police report states that the Terror Squad leader allegedly was in the company of Lessli Paz of New York and Joey Navarro of Florida in a Cadillac Escalade truck when Jermaine "Wufgang" Chamberline approached the vehicle and fired a weapon on the two men, killing them both. However, Jeffrey Lichtman, Fat Joe's attorney, told MTV News: "The cops never contacted Joe directly. I called the cops, I told them he is out of the country on music business, but if they want to speak to him, we will. The police then told me they already apprehended the [alleged perpetrator,] but they may take us up on the offer. And we have not heard back from them since." ...

Harry Potter fans have two fewer days to scratch off on their calendars. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" will be hitting theaters Wednesday, July 11, instead of on July 13, Warner Bros. confirmed to MTV News on Wednesday (May 30). ...

Busta Rhymes, Young Jeezy, Lil Wayne, Eve, Rick Ross and Rich Boy are on the lineup for Boost Mobile's RockCorps concert in Atlanta, scheduled for June 9. Volunteers have until the day of the show to fulfill the commitment required to get into the event, which serves as a thank you to young people making a difference in their communities. Taking Back Sunday will be headlining upcoming events in Portland, Oregon; Houston; Philadelphia; and Chicago. Check out the RockCorps site for volunteer opportunities. ...

Would you share your dreams with Jeezy? What if he could make them come true? The rapper is inviting fans to e-mail their wish (100 words or less) to dreams@corportatethugzent.com. Young Jeezy will review each dream and choose one to fulfill. "If it wasn't for certain people supporting me, I don't think I'd be able to accomplish what I have," Jeezy said in a statement announcing the contest. "That's why I'm doing this for my fans. ... I wanted to show them how thankful I am that they're helping me realize my dreams. For me, this whole contest, and even my career, will make me feel like I've accomplished a lot if I can help someone else realize their dreams too." Submissions will be accepted until June 21, and the winner will be announced July 23. ...

Paula Abdul found her purpose in life on "American Idol," she said in an interview featured in the new issue of OK! magazine. "Being a judge on 'American Idol' overshadows being a Grammy Award winner and selling millions of records," she said. "My purpose is bringing out everybody's best and being that cheerleader to other people's success." Abdul also responded to claims about her sometimes strange behavior on TV, saying, "I'm sick of it. I've never been drunk. I don't do recreational drugs. It's defamation of character." ...

Harry Potter isn't getting expelled from school — school libraries in Gwinnett County, Georgia, that is. The Associated Press reports that a judge on Tuesday upheld a previous decision against Laura Mallory, who had argued that the fiction series is trying to indoctrinate kids into witchcraft. The mother of four, who was not represented by an attorney at the hearing, said she still wants the volumes removed and might take the case to federal court. ...

Rihanna has been added to the Live Earth concert lineup in Tokyo, which will also feature Linkin Park, as previously reported. ... The fallout from Brandy's deadly December 30 car crash continues. In papers filed last Wednesday, the 28-year-old singer sued Mallory Ham — who was cited in a previous suit for alleged reckless and careless driving — contending that Ham caused the accident that resulted in the death of a woman. According to AP, Brandy's suit denies allegations made against her in a previous lawsuit, requests a jury trial and asserts her Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination. Ham filed a countersuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday claiming that Brandy "recklessly, wantonly, unlawfully and maliciously" operated her car. Ham seeks compensation for unspecified medical bills, pain and suffering, legal costs and punitive damages.

Ozzy Osbourne will own #3 on the next Billboard albums chart with his Black Rain — and tells Details that he knows he's fortunate to be around to enjoy the success. "I've been terribly lucky," Osbourne said in the June/July issue. "When I had my ATV accident, I was going not more than three or four miles an hour, and I ended up in a coma for eight days. My heart stopped twice. I don't remember any of it. I went back to the hospital after the accident and the doctors were telling me, 'Your left lung was completely full of blood. You broke your rib, your collarbone, your neck — you're lucky to be alive' " — and for more than just the most obvious reason, the singer explained. "If I had been going 120 miles an hour it would have been a cool way to go — but four miles an hour? Ozzy Osbourne?!' " ...

Pixies frontman Frank Black — or, should we say, Black Francis — will return September 11 with a new album, Bluefinger. The record, which Black will release under his decades-old Francis moniker, features 11 tracks and was recorded when the singer was, as he puts it, "gripped" by the spirit of late Dutch musician and painter Herman Brood. "Thank you Herman. You were at the distant edge of my vision for years when suddenly I was under your influence like a cloud of opium, like the scent of the house of the rising son," Black said in a statement. "Herman Brood did turn me back into Black Francis. Funny how things work out. You just never know." You totally don't, dude. ... iTunes started selling thousands of songs without copyright protection on Wednesday, including tracks by EMI artists Coldplay, Pink Floyd and Norah Jones, AP reports. The iTunes Plus songs do not feature digital-rights management, have a higher sound quality and are priced 30 cents more than typical 99-cent songs. The unrestricted content will allow some iTunes tracks to work on Microsoft's Zune and other portable players. ...

Sorta crunchy/ sorta Christian Philly rockers Mewithoutyou would like to have dinner with you — and 200-300 of your closest friends. On their current headlining tour, which runs until June 29, Mewithoutyou are inviting fans to join them in pre-show potluck dinners — where "two hours before doors [open] fans are invited to the venue to eat and drink and talk and sing and get to know each other." In addition to the food, MWY are encouraging fans to bring "a board game, horseshoes, piñata, song, dance, prayer, juggling pins, unicycle, etc." to the festivities, and want you to know that "they are open to presentation and lesson ideas as well." But the good vibes don't end with the pre-show potlucks: any and all fans "skilled at non-guitar instruments" are invited to join the band onstage during their live set. For more information, check out the band's MySpace page.

05.30.2007

Fat Joe is wanted for questioning by police in Miami Beach, Florida, as a witness to a double murder that occurred outside a restaurant in South Beach over the Memorial Day weekend. The police report states that the Terror Squad leader allegedly was in the company of Lessli Paz of New York and Joey Navarro of Florida in a Cadillac Escalade truck when Jermaine "Wufgang" Chamberline approached the vehicle and fired a weapon on the two men, killing them both. However, Jeffrey Lichtman, Fat Joe's attorney, told MTV News: "The cops never contacted Joe directly. I called the cops, I told them he is out of the country on music business, but if they want to speak to him, we will. The police then told me they already apprehended the [alleged perpetrator,] but they may take us up on the offer. And we have not heard back from them since." ...

Harry Potter fans have two fewer days to scratch off on their calendars. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" will be hitting theaters Wednesday, July 11, instead of on July 13, Warner Bros. confirmed to MTV News on Wednesday (May 30). ...

Busta Rhymes, Young Jeezy, Lil Wayne, Eve, Rick Ross and Rich Boy are on the lineup for Boost Mobile's RockCorps concert in Atlanta, scheduled for June 9. Volunteers have until the day of the show to fulfill the commitment required to get into the event, which serves as a thank you to young people making a difference in their communities. Taking Back Sunday will be headlining upcoming events in Portland, Oregon; Houston; Philadelphia; and Chicago. Check out the RockCorps site for volunteer opportunities. ...

Would you share your dreams with Jeezy? What if he could make them come true? The rapper is inviting fans to e-mail their wish (100 words or less) to dreams@corportatethugzent.com. Young Jeezy will review each dream and choose one to fulfill. "If it wasn't for certain people supporting me, I don't think I'd be able to accomplish what I have," Jeezy said in a statement announcing the contest. "That's why I'm doing this for my fans. ... I wanted to show them how thankful I am that they're helping me realize my dreams. For me, this whole contest, and even my career, will make me feel like I've accomplished a lot if I can help someone else realize their dreams too." Submissions will be accepted until June 21, and the winner will be announced July 23. ...

Paula Abdul found her purpose in life on "American Idol," she said in an interview featured in the new issue of OK! magazine. "Being a judge on 'American Idol' overshadows being a Grammy Award winner and selling millions of records," she said. "My purpose is bringing out everybody's best and being that cheerleader to other people's success." Abdul also responded to claims about her sometimes strange behavior on TV, saying, "I'm sick of it. I've never been drunk. I don't do recreational drugs. It's defamation of character." ...

Harry Potter isn't getting expelled from school — school libraries in Gwinnett County, Georgia, that is. The Associated Press reports that a judge on Tuesday upheld a previous decision against Laura Mallory, who had argued that the fiction series is trying to indoctrinate kids into witchcraft. The mother of four, who was not represented by an attorney at the hearing, said she still wants the volumes removed and might take the case to federal court. ...

Rihanna has been added to the Live Earth concert lineup in Tokyo, which will also feature Linkin Park, as previously reported. ... The fallout from Brandy's deadly December 30 car crash continues. In papers filed last Wednesday, the 28-year-old singer sued Mallory Ham — who was cited in a previous suit for alleged reckless and careless driving — contending that Ham caused the accident that resulted in the death of a woman. According to AP, Brandy's suit denies allegations made against her in a previous lawsuit, requests a jury trial and asserts her Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination. Ham filed a countersuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday claiming that Brandy "recklessly, wantonly, unlawfully and maliciously" operated her car. Ham seeks compensation for unspecified medical bills, pain and suffering, legal costs and punitive damages.

Ozzy Osbourne will own #3 on the next Billboard albums chart with his Black Rain — and tells Details that he knows he's fortunate to be around to enjoy the success. "I've been terribly lucky," Osbourne said in the June/July issue. "When I had my ATV accident, I was going not more than three or four miles an hour, and I ended up in a coma for eight days. My heart stopped twice. I don't remember any of it. I went back to the hospital after the accident and the doctors were telling me, 'Your left lung was completely full of blood. You broke your rib, your collarbone, your neck — you're lucky to be alive' " — and for more than just the most obvious reason, the singer explained. "If I had been going 120 miles an hour it would have been a cool way to go — but four miles an hour? Ozzy Osbourne?!' " ...

Pixies frontman Frank Black — or, should we say, Black Francis — will return September 11 with a new album, Bluefinger. The record, which Black will release under his decades-old Francis moniker, features 11 tracks and was recorded when the singer was, as he puts it, "gripped" by the spirit of late Dutch musician and painter Herman Brood. "Thank you Herman. You were at the distant edge of my vision for years when suddenly I was under your influence like a cloud of opium, like the scent of the house of the rising son," Black said in a statement. "Herman Brood did turn me back into Black Francis. Funny how things work out. You just never know." You totally don't, dude. ... iTunes started selling thousands of songs without copyright protection on Wednesday, including tracks by EMI artists Coldplay, Pink Floyd and Norah Jones, AP reports. The iTunes Plus songs do not feature digital-rights management, have a higher sound quality and are priced 30 cents more than typical 99-cent songs. The unrestricted content will allow some iTunes tracks to work on Microsoft's Zune and other portable players. ...

Sorta crunchy/ sorta Christian Philly rockers Mewithoutyou would like to have dinner with you — and 200-300 of your closest friends. On their current headlining tour, which runs until June 29, Mewithoutyou are inviting fans to join them in pre-show potluck dinners — where "two hours before doors [open] fans are invited to the venue to eat and drink and talk and sing and get to know each other." In addition to the food, MWY are encouraging fans to bring "a board game, horseshoes, piñata, song, dance, prayer, juggling pins, unicycle, etc." to the festivities, and want you to know that "they are open to presentation and lesson ideas as well." But the good vibes don't end with the pre-show potlucks: any and all fans "skilled at non-guitar instruments" are invited to join the band onstage during their live set. For more information, check out the band's MySpace page.

• Sketches Of The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter Theme Park
• "Shrek The Third"

• Kanye West
• 50 Cent
• Master P

Lindsay Lohan
Photo: Evan Agostini/ Getty Images

The news happens all the time, even while you're catching up on beauty sleep. Check out this brief rundown to bring you up to speed this morning — a quick heads up from your friends at MTV News.

Here's what we've got:

There's a lesson to be learned from the Best Fight nominees for the MTV Movie Awards, and if you think it's "violence doesn't solve anything," think again. We asked two battle experts — WWE wrestler Carlito and World Extreme Cagefighting featherweight champion Urijah Faber — to analyze the nominees and they agreed on one piece of advice: Never grapple with a naked Borat. ...

"Lip Gloss" rapper Lil Mama tells us that a remix of Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend" was a good opportunity for to reach a new audience, but she was careful to stay true to the song's theme. "[Avril's] like, 'I don't like your girlfriend.' I'm saying the same thing from a rapper's point of view. ... [I'm] introducing who Lil Mama is, but I'm also sticking to the topic so it makes sense." ...

And a fleet of assistants and top-secret private numbers can't keep celebrities safe from Ralphige, the crank-calling mystery man who has tricked everyone from Paris Hilton to Jay-Z. And while he's careful to protect his own identity, Ralphige tells us that he enjoys revealing the real stuff behind the stars. "When I call them, they don't know that it's being recorded; they're being themselves, and it's not what people would expect to hear from them. I do get a pleasure in exposing the real them." ...

Quote of the Day: "I love Mel Gibson. Sometimes I feel a little like Mel Gibson." — Kanye West

Here's what everyone else is talking about:

Lindsay Lohan is keeping her job, but not her secrets. "Poor Things" producers Shirley MacLaine and Rob Hickman issued a statement on Wednesday saying that they are rearranging the shooting schedule so that Lindsay can film her scenes when she's done with her treatment. Reuters reports. "We wish her love and the blending of mind, body and spirit," the statement read, in true MacLaine style. Meanwhile, Lohan's father told E! News that Lindsay is battling addictions to OxyContin and alcohol, and a source tells People that Lindsay is "happy" in rehab. ...

Master P and Lil' Romeo are going up against 50 Cent with a father-son disc that's due the same day as Curtis, AllHipHop.com reports. Proceeds from the Millers' Hip-Hop History will fund scholarship programs. ...

Paris Hilton's cellmate has already been picked, TMZ.com reports. Officials have chosen a woman serving time for reckless driving — one "they believe will not try to cash in on Hilton's stay," to room with Hilton. The jail's staff has been warned that taking photos of Paris is prohibited. Hilton's 23-day term is set to begin Tuesday. ...

Kevin Federline got a little Internet attention yesterday, showing up on TMZ.com (via video of his weekend "freestylin' " — does "I wanna hear all the ladies in the ... house scream for me one time" really qualify? — with Wilmer Valderrama) and Hollywood.com (citing an In Touch print report that he's been cast in "Night Watch" with Forest Whitaker and Keanu Reeves. ...

Lil Wayne, UGK, David Banner and Baby will perform June 30 in Houston at a concert designed to raise HIV awareness. The Hip-Hop 4 HIV: Know Your Status show will be held at the Reliant Arena. Tickets are free — and exclusive to those who attend an HIV seminar. Local hip-hop station KBXX has more details on free HIV testing events in the Houston area. ...

Fans willing to pony up $250 (plus taxes and service fees) will get the Ultimate Prince Xperience on July 7. 3121.com has details on the package, which includes entry to two 7/7/07 shows — an exclusive 3121 fragrance-launching performance at Minneapolis' Macy's and lower-level seats at a full-scale concert at St. Paul's Target Center — a bottle of the 3121 perfume before its released and a T-shirt. Xperience tickets go on sale Friday at Macy's in Minneapolis. ...

"300" proved that big battles in sandals are hot, so "Hercules" is about to get a new chance to shine on the big screen, Variety reports. "Halloween: Resurrection" screenwriter Sean Hood has a script ready for the Millennium Films project, but details are being kept under wraps. There is no director or star attached yet. ...

And Bill Gates and Steve Jobs made a rare joint appearance on Wednesday as part of the Wall Street Journal's D: All Things Digital conference, where the computer rivals were friendlier than the PC and Mac featured in Apple TV ads. "Bill focused on software before anyone," Jobs noted. "What Steve has done is quite phenomenal," Gates said, adding, "It's been fun to work together."

• Lil Mama Has Big Buzz

• Lindsay Lohan
• Master P
• 50 Cent
• Paris Hilton
• Kevin Federline

Ne-Yo
Photo: Peter Kramer/ Getty Images

Ne-Yo's publicist is flatly denying claims that the singer will announce that he's gay during a New York press conference this week and in an upcoming issue of Essence magazine. An e-mail purportedly including quotes from the interview and attributed to a woman named Barbra Stradoff at Essence has also been circulating. "It's completely false," a Def Jam representative said. "There's isn't a staff member by that name at Essence, nor is Ne-Yo going to be featured in the October issue of the magazine."...

After lining up a series of media appearances promoting her new album, A Public Affair, Jessica Simpson has canceled nearly all the scheduled stops — but she did appear on "TRL" Tuesday (August 29) after all. The singer has lost her voice and will not join "Today" on Tuesday or "The Late Show With David Letterman" on Wednesday, while what was set to be a performance on "TRL" was scaled back to just an appearance and autograph signing. "Her voice capabilities are at a minimum," her label rep said. Simpson won't be canceling all her plans while she's in New York — her roller-skating record-release party set for Tuesday night at the Roxy is still a go. ...

William Smith, the music producer Taylor Hicks filed suit against on August 22 after he made three of the singer's pre-"Idol" recordings available on iTunes, told MTV News Tuesday afternoon that the proceedings have been killed. Smith said the two sides reached a settlement before the matter made its way into the halls of Alabama's U.S. District Court, but he would not discuss the specifics of the agreement — a court order prevents him from detailing the terms. Still, Smith did say, "Taylor has thanked me for helping his career," and called the settlement "amiable." ...

Beyoncé will perform in New York's Times Square on September 8 as part of her appearance on "Good Morning America" that morning. The show airs at 7 a.m. ET on ABC. ... Even though his platinum tank has run out of steam, No Limit founder Master P continues to motor forward with business ventures. According to representatives for the rapper, the New Orleans native has launched a hip-hop inspired play based on the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Written and produced by P, the touring drama is also set to feature his son Lil Romeo and brother Silkk the Shocker. Uncle Willy, which stars Terry Miles, revolves around a Vietnam veteran regrouping his family after his home, possessions and city are all destroyed by the catastrophe. The project will be the first in a series of upcoming gospel plays by Master P. Uncle Willy begins September 7 in Meridian, Mississippi. ...

Tanya Stephens, the woman suing Lil' Kim for copyright infringement over the song "Durty," has issued a statement defending the lawsuit — which Kim's lawyer characterized as a "money and media play" — as an attempt to get some credit. "If she had bothered to give props where due even once, I would have said, 'Let it go,' " Stephens said. "That isn't even one of my better works. Really, if she had linked me, I would've written her a much better song for free." ... "The Cheetah Girls 2" was the most watched program on TV all day Friday, with the Disney Channel original movie even scoring higher ratings than the wildly successful "High School Musical," according to The Hollywood Reporter. The original cable musical, which stars Raven-Symone and members of 3LW, attracted 7.8 million total viewers and a whopping 61 share in the girls 9-11 demo. ...

Linkin Park have finally made their catalog available on iTunes. All three of the band's albums will also feature two bonus tracks and an iTunes exclusive apiece. "We were really excited when iTunes told us that we were one of their most requested acts," Mike Shinoda said in a statement. "We will never ignore our fans and the timing seemed right to make our music available, with some special additions." ... Six-String Masterpieces: The Dimebag Darrell Art Tribute — featuring Dean ML guitars designed by the likes of Metallica's James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett, "Rock Star: Supernova" host Dave Navarro, Kiss' Ace Frehley, Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl, Marilyn Manson, Slayer's Kerry King, Rob Zombie, Korn and even Kelly Clarkson — will be traveling with the Family Values Tour beginning Friday with a stop in Holmdel, New Jersey, through the September 20 show in West Palm Beach, Florida. ...

Beck will curate this year's Wired Next Music series. Artists slated for the event, set for September 26 at New York's Irving Plaza, include Jamie Lidell and Of Montreal. Last year's bill was curated by Wilco's Jeff Tweedy and included Joanna Newsom and the Handsome Family. ... Speaking of Tweedy, the Wilco frontman will release "Sunken Treasure," a DVD documenting his 2006 solo tour. Due October 24, the disc will include 17 tracks from his stints in Wilco, Uncle Tupelo and Loose Fur. ... SpiralFrog announced Tuesday that it had signed a deal with the world's leading record label, the Universal Music Group, to make UMG's music and video catalogs available for legal download in the U.S. and Canada. The catch? The digital-rights-managed downloads are free and legal. The site, supported by ad revenue, said it aims to launch later this year. ...

Tom Cruise has made a deal with a group that will finance the overhead costs of his film-production company, the Los Angeles Times reports. Daniel M. Snyder, owner of the Washington Redskins, is one of the investors behind the two-year deal, which amounts to less than $3 million. Cruise and his producing partner Paula Wagner had been receiving about $10 million annually from Paramount Pictures (owned by Viacom, which also owns MTV) to cover their overhead under the previous deal. ... The Black Crowes announced Monday that longtime keyboardist Eddie Hawrysch — who has played with the group since 1991 — has been "released from the band due to personal issues." The group did not specify what the issues were. Hawrysch will be replaced by Rob Clores on the group's fall tour. In other Crowes news, a manufacturing error is keeping the band's two-disc Lost Crowes collection, originally due Tuesday, off store shelves until September 26. ...

The typically private Bruce Springsteen took to his Web site this week to refute rumors that his marriage to E Street Band backup singer Patti Scialfa is on the rocks. "I hesitate to use this Web site for anything personal believing it should remain a place where fans of my music can come free of the distractions that occasionally arise with the rest of my job," Springsteen wrote. "However, due to the unfounded and ugly rumors that have appeared in the papers over the last few days, I felt they shouldn't pass without comment. Patti and I have been together for 18 years — the best 18 years of my life. We have built a beautiful family we love and want to protect and our commitment to one another remains as strong as the day we were married." The move was prompted by a tabloid report last week that claimed Springsteen's marriage was shaky due to an alleged relationship with a September 11 widow he'd met while organizing a charity event.

08.28.2006

Lil' Kim's legal problems aren't over yet — though the rapper is out of jail after serving 10 months on perjury charges, she's now facing a copyright-infringement lawsuit. The suit, which also names Kim's record label Atlantic and was filed last week in a New York federal court, claims that Kim stole her song "Durty" nearly word for word from a 1997 track by Jamaican reggae singer Tanya Stephens called "Mi and Mi God." In response, Kim's lawyer L. Londell McMillan claims the song wasn't stolen, but interpolated, "which happens all the time in hip-hop." Stephens claims in her suit that she was shocked to hear her words in Lil' Kim's song — even though Kim had flown her out to New York in 1999, asked her to sing on one of her albums, and sang "Mi and Mi God" to Stephens to demonstrate how much she liked her music. Kim counters, however, that Stephens never objected to the use of her song until after she failed to get more money for it being licensed. "This matter should have been resolved, but it appears to be another money and media play at Lil' Kim's expense," her lawyer said. Stephens claims she should receive all past and future royalties on the song. ...

Foxy Brown (real name Inga Marchand) pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault charges Monday (August 28), but then quickly tried to retract her plea, The Associated Press reports. The charges stemmed from her notorious nail-salon fight in 2004, and the plea deal will result in three years of probation and anger-management classes — but no jail time, according to a Manhattan, New York, district attorney spokesperson. She is due to be sentenced October 23. Brown's plea has wavered since the incident: In April 2005, she pleaded not guilty to the charges, but was then expected to make a deal in December. On Monday, after entering her guilty plea, she returned to the courtroom claiming she had been rushed into the decision. "The plea stands," the judge told her. ...

Protests have prompted concert promoters in Moscow to change the venue for Madonna's long-awaited concert there on September 12, AP reports. City officials feared police would not be able to monitor the originally scheduled venue in Vorobyovye Gory, and now it will be taking place at Luzhniki Stadium instead. ... The All-American Rejects have no intentions of returning home anytime soon. In late October, the band will launch its Tour-Nado run with openers the Gym Class Heroes, Starting Line and the Format on the first half of the tour, with the latter two bands plus Motion City Soundtrack warming up the audience on the second half. The trek kicks off in Poughkeepsie, New York, on October 27, with 26 dates scheduled through December 19 in Chicago. ...

When he's done working on new music with Britney Spears and Jennifer Lopez, Swizz Beatz plans to move on to the next Usher album — which the singer can't really record until he finishes up his current Broadway stint in "Chicago" on October 1. "He's a music man, so he's probably studying his lines and coming up with hooks at the same time, multitasking," Swizz said. "I've been in the background working on the album, so when he spins the wheel and it stops on me, I deliver." Don't worry, Swizz — Usher promises he's thinking ahead: "You got to stay tuned," he teased. That's good news for label head Clive Davis, who Usher claimed disrupted his Broadway debut with his Cassie ringtone (Clive swears it wasn't him). "Get off your cell phone and make a great album 10 weeks from now," Davis teased. "That's an order!" ...

Now that he's showed off his rhyming skills, Kevin Federline is setting out for triple-threat territory. The singer/dancer is scheduled to appear on an episode of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" on CBS this fall. The 28-year-old — whose previous TV series experience came with the widely panned reality show "Britney & Kevin: Chaotic" — started shooting his part in Los Angeles on Thursday night. He plays a menacing, arrogant teen who harasses two investigators on the show. The episode is tentatively scheduled to air in October. ...

John Mayer will also appear on "CSI," but he's sticking with what he does best. Mayer will have a cameo on the series' two-part season premiere (airing September 21 and 28 on CBS) in a scene set in a Las Vegas club. He'll perform the tracks "Waiting on the World to Change" and "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" from his latest album, Continuum, due September 12. In other John Mayer news, the singer missed a concert in Hartford, Connecticut, on Saturday due to "sudden onset" of laryngitis, according to a press release. The show went on with co-headliner Sheryl Crow and opening act Mat Kearney. Ticket holders who did not enter the gates are eligible for a refund. ...

Teddy Geiger is playing a benefit show at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center in New York on Wednesday. The concert will help support the Stella Maris Regional School Music in Education program, which provides keyboards, guitars and music lessons to students. For more information on the show, visit WHBPAC.org. ... Guitarist Jesse Pintado, a founding member of grindcore/ death-metal specialists Terrorizer and the man who replaced Bill Steer in Napalm Death back in 1990, died over the weekend in a hospital in Holland, a spokesperson for his label has confirmed. The pioneering metal guitarist left Napalm Death in 2004 to revive Terrorizer. Century Media Records will be releasing further details on Pintado's passing later this week. ...

A Broadway-style musical based on Michael Jackson's biggest hits, "Thriller Live," made its debut in London's West End theater district on Sunday, according to BBC News. The show features more than 80 performers singing and dancing along to the '80s pop star's most memorable tunes — from the early Motown years as part of the Jackson Five, to his success with Thriller and other solo albums — alongside a gospel choir and a children's ballet troupe. While Jackson was not involved with the production, he has given it his blessing, according to the show's producer. ... And it may no longer be his home, but Jackson was likely watching intently on Friday as a wildfire came within a quarter-mile of his Neverland Ranch in California, scorching more than 40 acres but not harming any of his zoo animals or amusement park rides, The Associated Press reported. The cause of the blaze is being investigated. ...

"High School Musical" took two of the six Emmys it was nominated for — scoring Choreography and Children's Program honors at last week's presentation of Creative Arts awards — while "American Idol" was shut out after receiving seven nominations. The winners of the big prizes at Sunday night's 58th annual Primetime Emmy Awards were "24" and "The Office," while "The Daily Show" took two trophies. (Click to see red-carpet shots of Eva Longoria, Randy Jackson, Stephen Colbert and more.) ... When they're not using their MySpace page to post diatribes against Paris Hilton or Danger Mouse, long-idle British trip-hoppers Portishead are posting material from their much-anticipated third album on the site. They've just posted two selections that are really just beats — an ominous, jittery number called "Greek Jam," and a chiming piece called "Key Bored 299 03," reminiscent of a Boards of Canada tune. There is still no title or release date for the band's new album, their first since 1997's Portishead.

• Ne-Yo
• Jessica Simpson
• Beyoncé
• Master P

Lil' Romeo and Master P
Photo: Matthew Simmons/ Getty Images

LOS ANGELES — Eight years ago this week, Master P was taking a break from running his No Limit empire to rehearse for his Video Music Awards performance.

Oh, how times have changed.

No Limit is no more, and P would be lucky to get an invite to a VMA afterparty. Still — and give the guy some credit — he's optimistic. Especially about his new boss.

"I'm working for him now," P said recently, nodding to his son and protégé, Lil' Romeo. "He's the youngest president in the game right now."

Romeo — or Cookie Monster Jr., as he sometimes goes by these days (dad would be Cookie Monster Sr.) — is the CEO of Guttar Music, home to more than 15 rappers.

"I'm gonna do just like my dad did back in the day with No Limit, just bring a lot of artists out," Romeo said. "We gonna try to drop albums every month. That's my goal."

The label is also setting out to be a trailblazer in technology, releasing DVDs along with all its albums. "Me and Romeo are preparing for the future," P said. "We just been making a lot of great music and making movies [to go along with it]."

Both Master P and Silkk the Shocker are on the label, as well as newcomers like T-Bo and Cognito. "They're from New Orleans, and they're all Hurricane Katrina victims," P said.

Guttar Music's first release will be "God's Gift," a Romeo movie with an accompanying soundtrack featuring his latest tracks. It's due November 14.

"I feel I just matured so much in these new songs," Romeo said.

"He's [17]. He's so old now," P interrupted, joking.

This fall, Romeo plans to enroll in college and play basketball.

• Lil' Romeo
• Master P

Master P
Photo: Frank Micelotta/Getty Images

Master P and younger brother Silkk the Shocker have struck a plea deal with prosecutors, resolving the felony gun charges stemming from their arrests more than a year ago at the University of California at Los Angeles, according to Reuters. On Monday (March 13) they were each sentenced to 40 hours of community service and ordered to pay a $700 fine as part of the deal. P (real name Percy Miller) pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of carrying a loaded and unregistered weapon while Silkk (real name Vyshonne Miller) pleaded guilty to a felony charge of carrying an unregistered and loaded firearm. Silkk was also sentenced to three years of supervised probation. ...

Maybe Natalie Portman really is as straight-laced as she seems. In the April issue of Vanity Fair, on newsstands Tuesday, the 24-year-old "V for Vendetta" star admits she prefers reading to partying, Converse to Manolos and a style that's classily demure to scantily clad — but that doesn't stop the starlet from letting loose once in a while. "Granted, I'm not super scandalous, but I've had drunken nights out, you know?" Portman admitted to the mag. She also reveals she still remains very close with her folks, who haven't hesitated to speak their minds on her roles. "[During 'The Professional'] my dad had stipulations on how many drags on a cigarette I could take, how many times I could curse," she recalled of her 1994 breakthrough role. "I wasn't actually allowed to inhale. My dad would have people standing behind me, blowing the smoke out." ...

Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne appeared Friday on "The Howard Stern Show" to discuss Black Sabbath's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Sharon also addressed the egging incident targeting Iron Maiden that took place back during the band's final performance on last summer's Ozzfest. Sharon admitted that she orchestrated the fiasco, paying "200 Hispanic kids" to carry out the attack. She also commented that Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson's performance was diminished because of the "eggshells in his mouth." ... Phil Anselmo, former Pantera frontman and current Superjoint Ritual singer, joined the reunited Alice in Chains Friday night for the taping of VH1 Classic's "Decades Rock Live!" tribute to Heart. At the concert, which took place at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Anselmo actually took the microphone for two Alice tracks, "Them Bones" and "Would?" ...

Tool's forthcoming 10,000 Days will hit stores May 2. The LP will feature 11 tracks, including "Vicarious," "Lipan Conjuring" and "Viginti Tres." ... Those adorable faux new-wave moppets Devo 2.0 will take their show on the road later this month to support their debut CD/DVD, which will be released Tuesday. The tweens, who play their own instruments, will perform their peppy covers of Devo songs during an 11-date tour of U.S. junior high and high schools that kicks off March 27 in Boston. The tour — which will hit schools in New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago and Minneapolis — will help raise support and awareness of music education in schools. ...

Nine Inch Nails will release a single for "Every Day Is Exactly the Same" April 4. The track, taken from the Nails' latest disc, With Teeth, will be accompanied by remixes, including a Sam Fog and Carlos D (Interpol) take on the title track, two reworkings of "The Hand That Feeds" (one provided by Death From Above 1979) and a couple of new interpretations of the song "Only." ... Due that same day is Thrice's Red Sky EP, which will feature four live tracks and two previously unreleased B-sides: "Flags of Dawn" and "Weight of Glory." ... One more April 4 treat for good measure: the Goo Goo Dolls' ninth studio album, Let Love In. The record will include the hit single "Better Days," but according to singer Johnny Rzeznik, that's the only ballad on the disc. ...

Sonic Youth may be without fifth member Jim O'Rourke for their newest outing, but the band is apparently still buff — their newest album will be titled Rather Ripped. Due June 13 and produced by the band, SY's 20th effort was recorded at Sear Sound in New York, where they tracked Sister and Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star. Songs on Rather Ripped include "Pink Steam," "Incinerate," "Rapture" and "The Neutral." A summer tour is being planned, as is a stop at this summer's Lollapalooza. ... Offspring singer Dexter Holland is set to run the Los Angeles Marathon on March 19 to raise money for the Innocence Project, a nonprofit legal clinic that handles cases where post-conviction DNA testing of evidence can yield conclusive proof of innocence. "All I want to do is beat Oprah," the singer said in a statement. Oprah's previous marathon time is 4 hours, 29 minutes and 30 seconds. ...

Adema have found a frontman in Bobby Reeves, formerly of Los Angeles rockers Level. According to an online post from bassist Dave DeRoo, Reeves possesses "the attitude, the voice and the vocal range to bust out anything from our catalog, and we've never sounded better." He replaces Luke Caraccioli, who left the band last fall. ... Emo rockers Emanuel were involved in a car accident in San Antonio, Texas, over the weekend. No one in the band was seriously injured, but the group's van, trailer and equipment weren't as fortunate. With their mode of transportation and instruments mangled, Emanuel have been forced to drop off their current tour with 30 Seconds to Mars and Aiden. The trek was scheduled to run through the end of the month.

03.10.2006

Kristin Cavallari, who will guest star on UPN's "Veronica Mars" Wednesday (her own series, "Get This Party Started," is currently on hiatus), admits in Blender magazine's April issue that she has it bad for Johnny Depp. "Maybe I'll go stalk him in Paris," she said. "He's an amazing actor and that's really sexy." Who else does the "Laguna Beach" bad girl find sexy? Musicians. "I've never been attracted to jocks," she explained. "Musicians are more down-to-earth. They just have more to talk about." And if "Laguna" left you thinking Cavallari was all body and no brains, think again. "I did, like, really well in high school. I got a 3.6 GPA." ...

Ashanti, Fabolous and Ice Cube were among the celebrities who attended a party Wednesday to celebrate the launch of Nelly, Daddy Yankee, Mike Jones and Lupe Fiasco's respective shoe lines with Reebok. Nick Cannon, Diana DeGarmo and Mario were also on hand to hear DJ Whoo Kid spin. ... Kelis has set a June 13 release date for her fourth album, which she recently retitled Kelis Was Here (originally it was The Puppeteer). Husband Nas and Too Short guest on the album, and Will.I.Am, Linda Perry, Scott Storch, Raphael Saadiq and Max Martin lend a hand in production. ...

My Chemical Romance and recently reformed New Jersey screamo legends Lifetime will play a free concert for the Shirts for a Cure Project at next week's South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas. At the show — scheduled for March 17 at Emo's — three very limited T-shirts will be on sale, with all proceeds going to Shirts for a Cure, which provides support to underprivileged women battling breast cancer. Other acts on the bill include Head Automatica and the Loved Ones. ... Everyone's favorite wizard Harry Potter has apparently cast a spell on consumers, with "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" having racked up the highest first-day sales total so far for the series — 5 million — when the DVD hit stores Tuesday. So far "Goblet" has pulled in more than $288 million in U.S. box-office sales and more than $600 million internationally since it was released in November. ...

While Three 6 Mafia were busy celebrating their history-making honor Sunday night for taking home the best-song Oscar for "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp," their former comrade Robert Cooper (a.k.a. Koopsta Knicca) found himself behind bars at a Memphis, Tennessee, jail, according to The Commercial Appeal, a newspaper based out of the Southern hip-hoppers' hometown. The rapper, who left Mafia in 2000 and has had his share of legal troubles over the years, was slated to appear in court Thursday on charges of aggravated robbery and aggravated assault, stemming from a recent incident where he allegedly broke into a home and robbed three people at gunpoint of more than $7,000 and other personal belongings. ... On Thursday the Recording Industry Association of America announced the grand-jury indictments of two men on charges of violating copyright laws by posting songs from the Ryan Adams & the Cardinals album Jacksonville City Nights to a Web site before the album's official release. The men, from Milwaukee and — coincidentally enough — Jacksonville, Florida, were busted under a provision of the copyright law passed as part of the Family Entertainment Copyright Act in April 2005 intended to prosecute pre-release music piracy. The indictments are believed to be the first under the pre-release provision of the act, and if convicted on all counts, each faces up to 11 years in prison. ...

Staind will be back on the road in late April, with support acts Three Days Grace and Hurt in tow. Just 11 dates have been finalized for the trek so far — the first, April 20 in McAllen, Texas, and the last, May 6 in Jackson, Mississippi. ... Before entering the studio to record the forthcoming IV, Godsmack came up with around 40 fresh tunes, 18 of which were put to tape. When the album hits stores April 25, it'll contain between 11 and 13 tracks. So what will happen to that leftover material? Some of the unrecorded tunes will surface in time — but won't feature singer Sully Erna's pipes. Godsmack drummer Shannon Larkin, bassist Robbie Merrill and guitarist Tony Rombola have formed a side project called Another Animal, through which the cuts will live. And they've recruited Ugly Kid Joe frontman Whitfield Crane to front the act. Another Animal plan to record the songs later this year. ...

Sparta will enter a Los Angeles recording studio March 21 with producer Dave Bassett (Lisa Loeb, the Troys) to begin tracking their forthcoming, yet-untitled third album. It'll be the band's first studio offering with new guitarist Keeley Davis, formerly of Engine Down. "After one meeting with Dave, we knew we had found our guy," said drummer Tony Hajjar. "Dave wants to approach this record by concentrating on every aspect, from every drum hit to every word, to make each song stand on its own. That is exactly what we wanted to do with this record. We've written 27 songs and can't wait to get started." The disc is slated for a September 26 release. ... On March 21 the Black Crowes will release their first-ever concert DVD, "Freak 'N' Roll ... Into the Fog: The Black Crowes All Join Hands - The Fillmore, San Francisco" which was filmed over the course of the band's five-night stand at the historic venue in August. The DVD features 19 tracks plus behind-the-scenes footage ...

New York dance-punk rockers the Rapture are midway through recording their yet-untitled sophomore album. The quartet has already roped in Bloc Party collaborator Paul Epworth and Chemical Brothers producer Ewan Pearson to produce tracks. The band is also heading out to L.A. in April to work with Gorillaz producer Danger Mouse, according to management. The first single is expected in August, with the album to follow. ... Regina Spektor will hit the road April 8 in Montreal to hype her upcoming album, Begins to Hope. The jaunt winds down May 16 in Los Angeles, and the album is due June 13.

• Natalie Portman In The April 2006 Issue Of 'Vanity Fair'

• Master P
• Nine Inch Nails
• Tool

Master P
Photo: Frank Micelotta/Getty Images

On Sunday, Master P appeared on the season finale of "Dancing With the Stars" to witness fellow contestant Drew Lachey — erstwhile 98 Degrees singer and Nick's little brother — waltz off with the contest's trophy. The following afternoon, the No Limit Records mogul appeared in a Los Angeles court, where a judge ordered him to stand trial on weapons charges along with younger brother Silkk the Shocker.

The charges against the 38-year-old P (real name Percy Miller), and 30-year-old Vyshonne King Miller — better known by his professional moniker, Silkk the Shocker — stem from their arrests more than a year ago by campus police at the University of California at Los Angeles (see "Master P, Silkk The Shocker Charged With Gun Possession"). The police stopped Master P's car on January 27, 2005, after noticing the rapper's vehicle was missing both its license plates. UCLA police say they subsequently spotted a gun peeking out from under the driver's seat and a subsequent search of the car turned up another gun under the front passenger seat.

Master P and Silkk each face one felony count of carrying an unregistered and loaded gun. On Monday, Superior Court Judge Joseph Biderman determined that there was enough evidence against both men to move forward with a formal criminal trial. Currently free on bail, each faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison if convicted, according to Reuters. They are scheduled to return to court March 13.

Another of P's brothers, Corey Miller — who formerly went by the stage name C-Murder — filed a motion last week with the Louisiana Supreme Court seeking a reversal of his second-degree murder conviction. Corey Miller was convicted of second-degree homicide in 2003 for shooting a 16-year-old boy at a New Orleans nightclub. His conviction was first overturned by a judge in 2004 but was later reinstated by a state appeals court last March (see "C-Murder Loses Latest Legal Battle, Faces Life Sentence").

C-Murder's defense attorney argues that evidence related to the criminal backgrounds of the state's three eyewitnesses was not turned over, reports The Associated Press. There's no word on when the high court with rule on the motion.

• Master P
• Silkk the Shocker

R. Kelly
Photo: Getty Images

R. Kelly appeared in a Chicago court Friday (December 16) to once again try to get the child-pornography charges against him dismissed. His attorneys argued that the prosecutors' phrasing that the singer "knew or should have known" that the girl was underage was contradictory, vague and unconstitutional. They'll get to make the argument about the wording, which, the state attorney's office said, is used in "all kinds of statutes," during a hearing scheduled for February 10. ...

With barely enough time to recover after being voted world's worst dog owner by readers of New York Dog and Hollywood Dog magazines, Paris Hilton has topped PETA's worst-dressed list, thanks to her fondness for wearing fur. "Now we know what happens to all of Paris Hilton's cast-off pets," PETA writes. Also on the animal-rights activists' list are Kimberly Stewart, Victoria Gotti, Lisa Gastineau and Tara Reid, who are all castigated ("Gotti's fur coats make her an accessory to murder, and it's a look that goes well with cement shoes") for their furry wardrobes ... Talk about father of the year. Master P has agreed to fill in for his son, Romeo, in the upcoming second season of the hit reality show "Dancing With the Stars." With Romeo reportedly sidelined by a basketball injury, P will team up with professional dancer Ashly DelGrosso, the bubbly stepper who paired with ex-New Kids on the Block member Joey McIntyre last season. P will be battling against actresses Tia Carrere, Tatum O'Neal and Lisa Rinna, journalist Giselle Fernandez, actor George Hamilton, WWE personality Stacy Keibler, ex-98 Degrees member Drew Lachey, ESPN host Kenny Mayne and legendary wide receiver Jerry Rice. ...

A whole mess of A-listers are featured in David LaChapelle's forthcoming photo book "Artists and Prostitutes" — from Madonna (as a Hindu goddess), Paris Hilton (wearing a bikini reading "Eat the Rich") and Diddy (about to lick a gold-painted woman) to Jennifer Lopez (in a "Flashdance" pose), Alicia Keys (with piano aflame), Pink (setting her bedroom on fire with a flame thrower), Eminem (with a stick of dynamite strategically placed) and Outkast (climbing through a window into a room with naked women on all fours). The limited-edition book, due in March, also includes iconic shots of Britney Spears, Cameron Diaz, Sarah Jessica Parker and others. ... Mya, Jill Scott and Stevie Wonder are on the lineup to pay tribute to Dionne Warwick for her 45th anniversary show, to be held at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles on January 26. Also on the bill are Gloria Estefan, Olivia Newton-John, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson, Angie Stone and Nancy Wilson, among others. Warwick will perform for the first time with all of her composers, including Burt Bacharach and Isaac Hayes. The gala will be taped for a broadcast to be announced at a later date. ...

Former "American Idol" contestant Julia DeMato, 26, appeared in Connecticut's Danbury Superior Court on Friday morning and pleaded not guilty to drug-possession charges stemming from an incident on December 4. The singer, who was arrested in the parking lot of Brookfield, Connecticut's Pancho and Gringos and charged with possession of narcotics, two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of less than four ounces of marijuana, is due back in court on January 12. ... Before Story of the Year join the Deftones, Thrice and As I Lay Dying on the Taste of Chaos Tour in mid-February, they'll be taking Every Time I Die and From First to Last on the road with them for a 15-date run that'll kick off in Salt Lake City on January 5. The tour will traverse the Midwest, dart over to the East Coast for two dates, and then make two stops in Canada before winding down on January 31 in Columbia, Missouri. ...

Rilo Kiley's Jenny Lewis is stepping out in February with her first solo shows in support of her forthcoming album, Rabbit Fur Coat. She'll perform with the Watson Twins February 2 in Los Angeles, February 3 in San Francisco and February 5 in New York. ...Metric have announced dates for the second leg of their tour in support of Live It Out: The 20-date trek will kick off March 7 in Boston and end five weeks later in Detroit. The Toronto synth-rockers have also scored an opening slot for the Rolling Stones, on January 18 and 20 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Meanwhile, their single "Monster Hospital" was recently remixed by MSTRKRFT, a Death From Above 1979 side project. ... Bombastic Scottish noisemakers Mogwai will release their new album, Mr. Beast, in March, according to Matador Records. The band will launch a U.S. tour in support of the LP in early 2006. ...

12.15.2005

Britney Spears, who was upended last year by "American Idol," has reclaimed her top spot on Yahoo's annual list of the most-searched-for terms on the Internet (the singer placed #1 for three of the last four years). Also making the top 10 are 50 Cent, Cartoon Network, Mariah Carey, Green Day, Jessica Simpson, Paris Hilton, Eminem, Ciara and Lindsay Lohan. Simpson, Hilton, Spears and Lohan, along with Angelina Jolie, are also the most-searched-for photos on the Internet. ...

Lindsay Lohan got a little flustered and giggly on Ellen DeGeneres' talk show on Wednesday when the comedian insinuated that Lindsay's repeated "no"s actually meant "yes." Did Lohan protest too much when DeGeneres asked, "So you're in New York a lot because you're dating somebody we should know about?" Lohan said "no" at least nine times before DeGeneres cut her off with, "That means yes. I'm good at body language, tone." "No, I'm truly not, no," Lohan said one last time before DeGeneres concluded, "Then you are." ... Madonna's reteaming with her longtime choreographer, Jamie King, to direct her next video, "Sorry," which she'll shoot in January most likely in London, according to her rep. King co-conceptualized her videos for "Human Nature" and "Don't Tell Me," and directed her Drowned World and Reinvention tours. ...

Tim Jordan, the former touring keyboard player for the All-American Rejects, committed suicide on Wednesday in Little Rock, Arkansas, according to the band's label, Interscope Records. Jordan played keyboards in Wisconsin emo-act Number One Fan and had joined the Rejects this past summer on their tour in support of their album Move Along. He was 24. ... Fantasia, who was selected to serve on a jury in a motor-vehicle negligence case in Charlotte, North Carolina, this week, was dismissed Thursday to attend a benefit concert in New York, according to the Mecklenburg County Superior Court. Testimony on Wednesday took less than one day but the jury needed to continue deliberating into Thursday. ...

Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes and Usher stepped out Wednesday night to host a fundraiser for the New York Rescue Workers Detoxification Project, an organization Cruise founded in the wake of September 11 to help firefighters, police officers, and EMTs who were exposed to hazardous materials circulating in the air following the collapse of the World Trade Center. "I started this project out of the great respect I have for the courage and service of the rescue workers," Cruise told the crowd. "When I started this project, it was because I was in a position where I knew that I could help. It wasn't just about wanting to, but knowing I could, so I knew I had to do it." The controversial "detoxification" is based on Scientology principles, not scientific ones, and the method of flushing poisons from the rescue workers' bodies involves an intense regimen of jogging, sauna and ingesting oils and high doses of niacin. Cruise has raised $1.6 million for the detox program, and city officials have kicked in additional funds. ...

Dashboard Confessional, Echo & the Bunnymen, Saves the Day, Peaches and Belle & Sebastian are among the artists playing next year's South by Southwest festival. Also performing at the annual music conference, to be held March 15-19 in Austin, Texas, are Annie, Neko Case, Cat Power, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Jamie Cullum, Flogging Molly, Beth Orton and the Secret Machines. ... Underoath have been added to the growing list of performers who'll be taking the stage at this summer's Warped Tour. Motion City Soundtrack, Thursday, From First to Last, Rise Against, Anti-Flag and NOFX are also on the bill. ...

On Monday, eMusic will release a live version of the Pixies' "Here Comes Your Man" from their upcoming live album, Hey, as the digital music service's millionth track. Frank Black's "All My Ghosts" and "King and Queen of Siam" were eMusic's first two MP3s and the first ever sold legally on the Internet. ... "Veronica Mars" has been pretty indie-friendly of late, recently featuring the Dandy Warhols' Courtney Taylor singing karaoke (the group's "We Used to Be Friends" is the show's theme song). With Spoon frontman Britt Daniel set to perform a cover of Elvis Costello's "Veronica" during an upcoming episode, the karaoke bar in the show is quickly becoming the heir apparent to "The O.C."'s Bait Shop. ...

Ben Folds, the Eels and Matisyahu are among the 20 artists paying tribute to the music of Joni Mitchell at a concert to be held February 1 at New York's Carnegie Hall. The concert will benefit the Music for Youth Foundation, a nonprofit that champions musical education in schools. ... A shakeup in the ranks of American Head Charge may provide a golden opportunity for a bassist looking for a gig. Following the recent departure of guitarist Karma Cheema — which resulted in the cancellation of three weeks of dates — the band's bassist, Chad Hanks, has switched to guitar, leaving an opening that needs filling. Qualified candidates should e-mail Mr_Banks_III@hotmail.com. But hurry, because the band is scheduled to launch a European tour with Soil and Panic Cell at the end of February. ...

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