Lou Pearlman (file)
Photo: AP Photo/ John Raoux

After nearly six months off the radar, former boy band mogul Lou Pearlman was arrested in Indonesia on Thursday, where FBI officials took him into custody.

Authorities have been seeking Pearlman in the midst of an investigation into allegations that he was behind a bogus investment scheme that defrauded investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars and banks out of an additional $150 million. According to the Orlando Sentinel, authorities in Indonesia expelled Pearlman and then turned him over to U.S. authorities.

"We are aware that he is in the custody of the FBI, I can't comment beyond that," Steve Cole, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tampa, told the paper.

The arrest comes just days after thousands of items from Pearlman's Trans Continental empire were auctioned in Florida to help raise money to pay back some of the allegedly defrauded investors (see "'NSYNC, Backstreet Boys Relics To Be Sold In Lou Pearlman Auction"); only $200,000 from the sale of boy-band memorabilia, office furniture and plane parts was rung up at the auction.

Pearlman, who once managed the Backstreet Boys and 'NSYNC (see "Backstreet Boys Sue Former Manager — Again"), was being flown to the U.S. territory of Guam at press time to make his initial appearance before a judge, the Sentinel reported.

Pearlman has been out of the country since January, when he left Orlando to reportedly accompany his latest boy band, US5, to Europe for a tour just as his once-massive empire was falling apart amid the bank-fraud allegations. While he was out of the U.S., involuntary bankruptcy proceedings against him and his dozens of companies went forward, as did a federal criminal probe and a number of lawsuits from the more than 1,000 investors who were allegedly cheated.

The paper reported that Pearlman mailed a letter to an Orlando attorney in early February that had a return address in Indonesia.

• Backstreet Boys, 'NSYNC And More On The Auction Block

• *NSYNC
• Backstreet Boys
• O-Town
• LFO

Backstreet Boys' platinum record "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)," one of the items offered at the Lou Pearlman auction
Photo: Bidspotter

Everything must go! One day only! If you're in the market for some 'NSYNC gold records, a couple of Sea Doos, 10,000 jewel cases or a LFO signed poster, then you should get down to Orlando, Florida, before the end of the day. Those items are among the thousands up for auction Tuesday (June 12) that used to belong to disgraced boy-band mogul Lou Pearlman.

(See pictures of some of the items up for sale here.)

The items are part of a liquidation of the remaining assets of Pearlman's once-billion-dollar Trans Continental empire — which included a jet service and management of 'NSYNC and Backstreet Boys (see "Backstreet Boys Sue Former Manager — Again") — that has crumbled to the ground amid charges that Pearlman defrauded investors out of more than $300 million in too-good-to-be-true investment schemes and owes banks another $130 million in loans.

As the 1,400 angry investors await word on what happened to their money and who is going to be held accountable, Pearlman is missing. According to reports, the man who practically invented the modern boy-band phenomenon in the 1990s has been in Europe since January as authorities worked to secure all his assets.

"We consider every little bit important," Soneet Kapila, the bankruptcy trustee who is selling Pearlman's assets to raise money for creditors, told the Orlando Sentinel. Given the astronomical claims and depending on who shows up to bid, Kapila's lawyer said, it's unlikely the proceeds will make much of a dent. The list of items on the block ranges from the mundane to the bizarre (hundreds of pieces of office furniture; electronics; airplane parts; lava lamps; 80,000 microphones; gold and platinum records from 'NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, O-Town, LFO, Aaron Carter and Take 5; a key to the city of Orlando; a ping-pong table; an oxygen tank; and signed basketballs from 2000's "Longshot," the flop movie co-written by Pearlman starring Paul Sorvino and Antonio Sabato Jr.).

In what investigators call a classic pyramid scheme, Pearlman and his associates are alleged to have sold potential investors — many of them elderly citizens who ponied up their retirement funds — on a plan to buy what turned out to be phony securities in what Pearlman called his "employee investment savings account" through Trans Continental Airlines Inc.

TransCon promised investors that their money was insured, and some early investors were paid quarterly using money from new investors. Now, with dozens of allegedly cheated investors lining up to sue Pearlman for fraud, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation wants to talk to Pearlman but hasn't been able to track him down since he left the country in January.

While his exact whereabouts are unknown, Pearlman has been spotted overseas. He was filmed in Berlin in February watching as his latest boy band, the German group US5, took home an award for Best International Band at the Goldene Kamera Pop awards. A short time later, TransCon's remaining assets were put in receivership and the FBI and IRS stormed the company's Orlando offices and carted away reams of evidence.

A TransCon spokesperson could not be reached for comment at press time.

• Backstreet Boys, 'NSYNC And More On The Auction Block

• *NSYNC
• Backstreet Boys
• O-Town
• LFO

Ashley Parker Angel
Photo: MTV News

TARZANA, California — After the made-for-TV boy band O-Town disbanded in 2003, blond pretty-boy Ashley Parker Angel cashed his profits and immediately moved to Los Angeles to launch a solo career.

Eighteen months later he was broke, living on his girlfriend's mother's couch.

"One of the downsides of being in O-Town was that we had to sign very binding contracts," Angel explained recently. "Everybody around us was taking a piece of the pie so that when it came down to the guys in the group, there was almost nothing left. I wanna be really clear: I didn't frivolously spend the money I made. I made good money for my age and I was really smart with it, but it really only allowed me to live a year and a half in L.A. before I had to go, 'All right, what am I gonna do, because I've got rent to pay.' "

Even more frustrating for Angel was that he was feeling artistically broke as well.

"I came away from O-Town feeling like I had a lot to prove still because of the way that we came together, it was extremely contrived ... it was a total media creation and we really didn't gain a lot of respect or credibility," he confessed. "I grew up in a very musical environment. My mom was a piano teacher, so I started learning how to play piano like almost as soon as I started talking. And my dad was a drummer in a band and he encouraged me to start learning guitar when I was 13. And I always had a knack for songwriting that I really felt I didn't get a chance to showcase being part of O-Town."

So as Angel went around Hollywood from meeting to meeting, he brought a guitar with him, playing his own tunes for executives.

"There is a certain impression and a certain stereotype that comes from being in a boy band," he said. "It was a challenge for me to get in the room with these people and really convey to them that I was so much more than that spiky blond-haired guy that they probably remembered me as."

Angel, who now sports Kurt Cobain-esque hair, eventually found a taker in Blackground Records, Aaliyah's former label and home of JoJo and Toni Braxton. Around that same time last year, MTV also tracked Angel down and, compelled by his riches-to-rags story, began following him with cameras.

The result is "There and Back," a reality series debuting Monday that follows Angel's continued struggle to reinvent himself.

"My only reservation at first was like I'm coming from a reality TV show and I don't want to be looked at as a one-trick pony," Angel said. "I want people to know that I'm the real deal and I was able to go out and get a solo record deal without the power of a television show ... and one of the things that [the show's executive producer, Rod Aissa] said that really made sense to me and is, 'What better way to show people how much you've grown and how different you are now as an artist and personally than to do a show like this?' And ultimately I completely agreed with him."

Like the first season of that other Ashlee's reality show on MTV, "There and Back" chronicles the making of Angel's first album (see "O-Town's Angel Ready To Spread His Wings With Solo LP"). He co-wrote all the tracks, working alongside top producers like Clif Magness, Soulshock & Karlin, Max Martin and the Matrix.

"We took a meeting with Ashley and at the meeting he picked up a guitar and played and sung and it was all there," the Matrix's Graham Edwards said. "I loved it because it was a little bit Oasis and a little bit Coldplay, even though he is an American artist, and I love those bands. It smacked of that for me and I got really excited."

"I think it's been surprising for producers to hear my sound," Angel added. "That was one of the things MTV said when I initially met with them was like, 'We expected the guy from O-Town to sound a certain way. Don't take that offensively, but your music is really a complete departure.' "

Along with following Angel from studio to studio, "There and Back" goes home with the singer, getting up close and personal with his pregnant girlfriend, Tiffany.

"One of the things I learned about doing reality TV is that the times when you don't want to the cameras to be there, the like most private, embarrassing moments, that's the times when they gotta be there. 'Cause that's you, and if you try to hide from the cameras or you try to censor yourself, ultimately you get this very wishy-washy kind of version of who you are and I didn't want that to happen," Angel said.

"I won't lie: When I found out I was gonna be a dad I was so scared," he added. "It was at a time when there was like so many unknowns ... but I embraced it and I'm so glad that I did because it's a miracle. And everyone says that, but people will get a chance to see on 'There and Back' my baby be born. We were open and honest. We let the cameras into every aspect of our lives. They're in the delivery room with us. And I'm pretty sure this is the very first baby actually born on MTV."

• O-Town

Photo: MTV News

• Good Charlotte
• Sum 41
• blink-182
• Jesse McCartney
• The Used

Ashley Angel
Photo: MTV News

LOS ANGELES — O-Town broke up in November not only because some members wanted to go solo, but because they needed to — at least if they wanted to make money.

"Unfortunately, as O-Town, we had to sign a lot of contracts that weren't in our best interest as artists, coming together the way we did on a TV show," Ashley Parker Angel revealed recently. "There just came a time where we knew it was that time to step off and pursue those individual goals, and that's where we're at right now, but we remain the best of friends ... and it was the best launching pad any of us could have ever wished for."

Ashley is one of the singers going solo, along with Erik-Michael Estrada, and he said he's looking forward to breaking through the boundaries he felt constrained by in O-Town.

"I play guitar and I grew up playing the piano as well," he explained. "I didn't get to do that a lot before in O-Town — it was a lot more singing and dancing — so I'm really excited to primarily be onstage with a guitar and a piano and being able to have a hand in the writing of every song on the album."

Angel is writing his album now and plans to record it in the spring for release later in the year. "A lot of things happened in the last few years that I'm really excited to write about," he said. "It's given me tons of inspiration."

Clif Magness, who has worked with Avril Lavigne, Kelly Clarkson and Clay Aiken, as well as on O-Town's O2 (see "O2 Gives O-Town Members Room To Breathe, Write"), is producing Angel's album.

"He works a lot more on the alternative rock end of the music industry, and I'm really excited to get together and just vibe with him," Ashley said. "I wrote a few songs with him before on the last album, but it's a complete departure really ... so we'll see as it starts to evolve and it starts to take on its own shape."

In the meantime, Angel has kept busy watching his favorite MTV show.

"I've got to be a fan of 'Making the Band 2,' I had to watch it, of course. I mean, that's where I came from. And P. Diddy stepped in and he changed it up, which was very interesting to watch. That's one of the reality TV shows I did watch. Other than that, I can't quite watch those shows anymore."

• O-Town

Disturbed bassist Fuzz has left the band, according to a post on the group's official Web site. Disturbed have not yet started looking for a replacement, and do not wish to discuss what motivated Fuzz's departure or whether he voluntarily left. "I hope everyone can appreciate that all four parties involved would like to keep that information confidential," the band said. Disturbed are currently in the studio writing songs for their third record, which they hope to have in stores by spring 2005. ...

After much speculation, it's official — O-Town are O-Ver. According to a statement they sent to fan site Insideotown.com, the group will not continue on, but will remain "best friends." The decision was mutual, and each member has moved on to other projects: Jacob is working as a volunteer firefighter in San Diego, Dan is writing and producing, Trevor is studying acting, Ashley is recording a solo album and Erik-Michael is going solo and exploring acting. ... A gutsy promoter has booked Guns N' Roses as a headlining act for the Rock in Rio-Lisbon festival, which begins May 29 and runs for five nights in Lisbon, Portugal. If they actually appear, GN'R will be playing the second night of the event. It will be the first time the band would take the stage since its tour last year was canceled after the group failed to show up to gigs in Vancouver and Philadelphia, sparking riots in both cities. ...

Two arrest warrants have been issued for Eminem's ex-wife, Kim Mathers, after she skipped out on two separate hearings this week. On Thursday, Mathers failed to show up for arraignment charges of running a drug house in Warren, Michigan, stemming from a hotel party on September 29. On Tuesday, Mathers was to attend a hearing for violating the conditions of a bond in a previous drug case in St. Claire, Michigan. Her attorney told local papers that nobody has seen or heard from Mathers in a week. ... Although most of "Punk Rock Holocaust" was shot during this summer's Vans Warped Tour, the killing spree isn't over. Additional bands will be hacked, maimed, impaled and disemboweled for the slasher flick while on tour through the rest of the year. Captured so far on film are pro skaters Jon Comer and Tony Alexander, Simple Plan's Chuck Comeau, Mest's Tony Lovato and Nick Gigler, the Used's Bert McCracken, Andrew W.K. and Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman. ...

Madonna's children's books, "Mr. Peabody's Apples" and "The English Roses," read by the Maternal Girl herself, will be available for download through Apple's iTunes Music Store on Monday. The print version of "Apples," which is about the importance of teachers, will hit bookstores the same day. ... Chic and Power Station drummer Tony Thompson has renal-cell cancer. Contributions to help with his medical expenses, since he has minimal insurance, or well-wishes to keep his spirits up can be made at www.tonythompsonfund.com. Thompson has also contributed to records for Madonna and David Bowie. ...

Drive-Thru Records will release its second compilation DVD, simply titled "Drive-Thru Records Presents Version 2.0," on December 9. The disc features music videos, live performances and home videos from New Found Glory, Finch, Something Corporate, the Starting Line, Home Grown and Rx Bandits, among others. ... The only thing surprising about Kiss-opoly is that it's taken long-tongued bassist/merchandising maven Gene Simmons so long to unleash it on the public. Following in the footsteps of versions of the classic board game Monopoly based on colleges (Rutgers-opoly, Harvard-opoly) and cities (New York-opoly, Phoenix-opoly), as well as the offensively stereotyping Ghetto-opoly, the Kiss version will be available for the holidays. ...   Hawaii native Jack Johnson will host the inaugural Kokua Festival, a benefit for the Kokua Hawaii Foundation, which supports environmental education and community programs in Hawaii. DJ Logic and Michael Franti and Spearhead will join Johnson at the January 3 concert at Kualoa Ranch in Windward, Oahu. ... Nick Carter's family has yet another legal woe — the Backstreet Boy's sister Bobbie Jean was arrested late Wednesday on a DUI charge by the Florida Highway Patrol. She was also cited for following too closely and for failure to carry registration and insurance. ...

11.06.2003

Justin Timberlake has been appointed a musical ambassador by Memphis Mayor Willie W. Herenton to help the city organize the 50th anniversary of rock and roll. Events are being planned throughout 2004, including on July 5, exactly 50 years after Elvis Presley recorded Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup's "That's All Right," which Memphis considers the first rock and roll song. B.B. King, Isaac Hayes and former Presley sideman Scotty Moore will join Memphis native Timberlake as ambassadors. "The many sounds of Memphis shaped my early musical career and continue to be an inspiration to this day," Timberlake said in a statement. ...

Just in case you didn't get enough of Jessica Simpson's advice from her previous how-to book, "I Do: Achieving Your Dream Wedding," the singer wants to do a follow-up, now that she's had her first anniversary with her husband, Nick Lachey. "How to Survive the First Year of Marriage" would be written by both Simpson and Lachey as part of a three-book deal her agent is currently shopping to New York publishers. While part of the proposed deal would be to take over distribution of the existing Simpson wedding book, the other tome would be called "Jessica's Rules," and would be a compendium of her "wisdom." ... After announcing the return of Body Count earlier this year, Ice-T continues to record with the collective — which now has a title for its forthcoming album: Murder for Hire. The rapper, who said the group's first album in seven years should be ready for release by 2004, held court Wednesday night with Iggy Pop at the rocker's record-release party at New York's Trust Lounge. Also in attendance were actress Shannen Doherty, members of Sum 41, Bright Eyes' Conor Oberst, Minutemen/ Firehose bassist Mike Watt and "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" food-and-wine connoisseur Ted Allen. ...

Early '90s hip-hop heroes Arrested Development, who recently reconvened to record their first album in 10 years, have filed a trademark-infringement suit against the creators of the FOX sitcom "Arrested Development." The suit alleges the show dilutes the meaning of the band's name, according to Reuters. ... Androgynous British '90s rockers the London Suede are going on an indefinite hiatus. On Wednesday they issued a statement saying that the bandmembers plan to work on individual projects starting next year, and there are no immediate plans to continue as a group. "There will not be a new studio album until the band feels the moment is artistically right to make one," they said. The last London Suede album was released in Europe last year. There is no U.S. release date for the record. ...

A free screening of the Pearl Jam DVD "Live at the Garden" will take place Tuesday in Seattle at the JBL Theatre inside the Experience Music Project. The DVD, which comes out November 18, will also be screened at various college campus theaters. ... A Black Rebel Motorcycle Club show in Leeds, England, was cut short on Wednesday night when a crack appeared in the floor of the Town Hall stage. After the promoter determined the situation presented a safety hazard, the audience was told a fire alarm went off and they needed to evacuate the building. ...

Foo Fighters have set a November 25 release date for the live DVD "Everywhere But Home." Meanwhile, Dave Grohl is filming the first video for his Probot side project, "Shake Your Blood," November 15 and 16 in Los Angeles. ... Johnny Cash won Album of the Year for American IV: The Man Comes Around and Single and Video of the Year for "Hurt" at Wednesday's Country Music Association Awards, which also featured a tribute to the Man in Black. Alan Jackson was the other big winner at the Nashville ceremony, taking home Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year and Vocal Event of the Year for his duet with Jimmy Buffett, "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere." ...

The Beta Band and producer Nigel Godrich are nearly finished recording the band's third full-length album. The LP is due in February and will be accompanied by a DVD, according to a note on the group's Web site. ...

• Disturbed
• O-Town
• Guns N' Roses
• Madonna
• Simple Plan

Destiny's Child
Photo: Scott Gries/Image Direct

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

After months of buildup, Jay-Z's The Blueprint 2: The Gift and the Curse finally hits stores this week. The 110-minute double-disc album features a ton of collaborations, including Beyoncé Knowles, Outkast's Big Boi and Lenny Kravitz.

TLC's fourth album, 3D, recorded in part before Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes' death in April, features all three members on, among other tracks, the single "Girl Talk," while Fat Joe shows off his Loyalty, the follow-up to last year's breakthrough Jealous Ones Still Envy.

Pearl Jam's Riot Act, the group's first studio album in two years, hits shelves alongside the "Die Another Day" soundtrack, which features Madonna's electro-tinged title track.

For fans interested in seeing what Sean Paul's got besides "Gimme the Light," the full album Dutty Rock drops Tuesday, and just in time for the "Making the Band 2" gang to gaze into the crystal ball, it's O-Town's second LP, O2.

Finally, Missy Elliott's Under Construction finds the rapper putting her thing down, flipping it and reversing it. .tuo ti kcehC

Out Tuesday, November 12:

• 3 Doors Down - Away From the Sun (Universal)
  Read: "Navy Plays Role In 3 Doors Down's Operation Shoot Video"
  Buy Now: Away From the Sun (Universal)
• 5 Cent Deposit - We Have Your Daughter (Radical)
• All Night - All Night (Tee Pee)
• Bloodbath - Resurrection Through Carnage (Century Media)
• Phil Collins - Testify (Atlantic)
• Carl Cox - Mixed Live, 2nd Session: Area2 Detroit (Moonshine)
• Crazy Town - Darkhorse (Columbia)
  Read: "Crazy Town Take On All Comers With Darkhorse"
  Buy Now: Darkhorse (Columbia)
• Darlington - Louder than Morrissey (The Orchard)
• Devin the Dude - Chopped Up (Jam Tight)
• DFI - DFI (Honey Bear)
• Missy Elliott - Under Construction (Elektra)
  Read: "T-Boz, Chilli Pay Tribute To Left Eye On Missy Elliott LP"
  Buy Now: Under Construction (Elektra)
• Earl Goes to the Races - Earl Goes to the Races (Laughing Hyena)
• Elephant Man - Higher Level (Greensleeves)
• Enya - Only Time: The Collection (box set, Warner Bros.)
• Ethan - Entropy Boy (Distillery Music)
• Fat Joe - Loyalty (Atlantic)
  Read: "Fat Joe Won't Dance With Ginuwine, But Records With R. Kelly"
  Buy Now: Loyalty (Atlantic)
• Flip Tops - All Worked Up (Rip Off)
• Fragile State - Facts and the Dreams (Bar De Lune)
• Vivian Green - A Love Story (Columbia)
• Grief - Turbulent Times (Southern Lord)
• Grip Grand - Welcome to Broakland (Bomb Hip Hop)
• Hammerfall - Crimson Thunder (Nuclear Blast)
• Hunches - Yes No Shut It (In the Red)
• Iced Earth - Tribute to the Gods (Century Media)
• Ikara Colt - Chat and Business (Epitaph)
• Jay-Z - The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)
  Read: "Jay-Z Album Preview: Hova Ups The Ante With Blueprint 2"
  Buy Now: The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse (Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam)
• Elton John - Greatest Hits 1970-2002 (Universal)
• David Knopfler -Wishbones (Koch)
• Koma - Criminal (Locomotive)
• Law-N-Orda - Ground Zero (Outlawz)
• Liars - Fins to Make Us More Fish-Like (EP, Mute)
• Lolo - Bad Idea (Underground Inc.)
• Cheb Mami - Lazrag Saani (Ark 21)
• Barry Manilow - A Christmas Gift of Love (Columbia)
• Manitoba - Start Breaking My Heart (Domino)
• Gary Meek - Step 7 (A440)
• MF Doom - Special Herbs 1&2 (High Times)
• Neon Hearts - Popular Music (Overground)
• O-Town - O2 (J)
  Read: "O2 Gives Members Of O-Town Room To Breathe, Write"
  Buy Now: O2 (J)
• Opeth - Deliverance (Koch)
• Paradise Lost - Symbol of Life (Koch)
• Pearl Jam - Riot Act (Epic)
  Read: "Pearl Jam Get Their Act Together"
  Buy Now: Riot Act (Epic)
• Houston Person - Sentimental Journey (High Note)
• Piranhas - Erotic Grit Movies (In the Red)
• Pretenders - Loose Screw (Artemis)
• Radar - Nothing Is Real (Bar de Lune)
• Ruins - Tzomborgha (Ipecac)
• Saliva - Back Into Your System (Island)
  Read: "Saliva Shoot Down Domestic Abuse On New Single 'Always' "
• Sean Paul - Dutty Rock (Atlantic)
  Read: "Jamaican Dancehall DJ Sean Paul Lighting Up In U.S."
• Silex - Alphabet (EFA-Caroline)
• Siouxie and the Banshees - Best Of (Interscope)
• Swollen Members - Monsters in the Closet (Battle Axe)
• TLC - 3D (Arista)
  Read: "TLC Album Preview: 3D Tributes Left Eye With Sass, Spunk, Silence"
  Buy Now: 3D (Arista)
• Justin Trevino - The Scene of the Crying (Texas Music Group)
• Tummler - Early Man (Small Stone)
• Vi3 - So Tight (MCA)
• Warlocks - Phoenix Album (Birdman)
• WC - Ghetto Heisman (Def Jam) Read: "WC Goes For The Ghetto Heisman With Help From Scarface, Cube, Snoop"
• Lizzie West - Lizzie West (EP, Warner Bros.)
• Wild Bunch - Original Underground Massive Attack (Strut)
• Various artists - Calypso: Vintage Songs From the Caribbean (Putumayo)
• Various artists - "Die Another Day" soundtrack (Warner Bros.)
  Read: Madonna Escapes Electric Chair, Engages In Deadly Duel"
• Various artists - Electro Nouveau (two discs, Moonshine)
• Various artists - Future Groove (Mute)
• Various artists - "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" soundtrack (Warner Sunset/Nonesuch/Atlantic)
• Various artists - Midnight Lounge (Varese)

November 19:

• Audioslave - Audioslave (Epic)
  Read: "Rage/Cornell Project To Release Album In November"
  Buy Now: Audioslave (Epic)
• Toni Braxton - More Than a Woman (Arista)
  Read: "Toni Braxton Working With Gotti, Neptunes, Husband On New LP"
  Buy Now: More Than a Woman (Arista)
• Foxy Brown - Ill Na Na 2: The Fever (Def Jam)
  Read: "P. Diddy In Director's Chair For Ill Na Na 2"
• Craig David - Slicker Than Your Average (Atlantic)
  Read: "Craig David Plays Willy Wonka In 'Flava' Video"
  Buy Now: Slicker Than Your Average (Atlantic)
• George Harrison - Brainwashed (Dark Horse/Capitol)
• Ja Rule - The Last Temptation (Murder Inc./Def Jam)
  Read: Ja Rule, Bobby Brown Team Up For 'Thug Lovin' "
  Buy Now: The Last Temptation (Murder Inc./Def Jam)
• Matchbox Twenty - More Than You Think You Are (Atlantic)
  Buy Now: More Than You Think You Are (Atlantic)
• Mudvayne - The End of All Things to Come (Epic)
  Read: "Mudvayne Reach The End With New Album"

November 26:

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

December 3:

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

December 17:

• Dashboard Confessional - Unplugged 2.0 (Vagrant)
• Nas - God's Son (Columbia)
  Read: "Nas Sets Release For God's Son, Pooh-Poohs Jay-Z's Challenge"

• Jay-Z
• TLC
• Fat Joe
• Pearl Jam
• Missy Elliott

Lock your wives and daughters back up, because Creed have just announced they're hitting the road again in November, this time with Default and 12 Stones. The nine dates announced so far kick off November 6 in Birmingham, Alabama, and run through November 27 in Atlanta. ... Usher, Aaron Carter, Mya, Paula Abdul and Westlife will perform alongside KC & the Sunshine Band, the Trammps, the Weather Girls and other disco groups at the Disco Ball — A 30th Anniversary Celebration, a benefit concert on October 13 at Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium. Profits from the disco tribute show will go to AIDS Project Los Angeles. ... O2, O-Town's second album, is now due November 12. The album's first single, "These Are the Days," will hit radio airwaves beginning Monday (September 30). ... The (International) Noise Conspiracy have completed work on Bigger Cages, Longer Chains for Burning Heart Records, according to the group's Web site. The six-song EP will include the title track, "Beautiful So Alone," "Waiting for Salvation," "A Textbook Example," "When Words Are Not Working" and a cover of N.E.R.D's "Baby Doll," which the band has been playing live. ...

Papa Roach bassist Tobin Esperance tied the knot with his girlfriend last week in Carmel, California. The band was home for a few weeks before heading out for a world tour, which begins Tuesday (October 1) in Osaka, Japan. ... Road warrior John Mayer will promote his breakthrough Room for Squares and the just released EP Inside Wants Out with a November tour. The outing kicks off November 7 in Pompano Beach, Florida, and wraps up November 30 in Wallingford, Connecticut. ... Now that bassist Dusty Hill has recovered from a bout of hepatitis C, ZZ Top will make up the European dates they canceled when he fell ill in 2000. Dates run from October 1 in Helsinki, Finland, through November 1 in London, then the band will return home and play Houston on March 4. ... The Disco Biscuits have embarked on a seven-week North American tour in support of their fourth album, Señor Boombox, which was released September 17. The trek wraps up November 10 in St. Louis, Missouri. ...

Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland will take the stage at the third-annual MAP Awards, set for November 7 at the House of Blues in West Hollywood, California. Hosted by Robert Downey Jr., the event, an offshoot of the Musician's Assistance Program, an organization that helps members of the music industry overcome addiction, will recognize contributions made by Ivan Neville, former Thelonious Monster frontman Bob Forrest and RIAA Chairman and CEO Hilary Rosen. The Neville Brothers, Forrest, Jimmie Vaughan, Dr. John, Gary Le Mel, Daniel Lanois, Billy Childes and Martin LeNoble will also perform. ... A replacement has been chosen for Michael Greene, the head of the National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences, who resigned suddenly in April with three years left on his contract. Neil Portnow, current Senior Vice President of West Coast Operations for the Zomba Group and former Vice President of A&R at EMI and Vice President/General Manager West Coast at Arista Records, was named the new President of the Recording Academy on Monday. ...

09.27.02

The Rage Against the Machine-meets-Chris Cornell project, Audioslave, took the stage in Los Angeles Wednesday and Thursday to film their first video, "Cochise." The song will officially hit radio airwaves next week, with the video to follow in late October. ... Mariah Carey will film the video for "Through the Rain" — the first single from her still-untitled new album, which is due December 10 on her Island/Def Jam imprint MonarC Music — in New York on Sunday with director David Meyers (Pink, Jay-Z). Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis produced the ballad, which began streaming on MTV.com, VH1.com and BET.com Thursday and arrives at radio outlets on Friday (September 27). ...

Eddie Vedder joined Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band onstage Wednesday at the United Center in Chicago during the Boss' "My Hometown." The Pearl Jam singer, who was in his native Chicago to perform with the Who earlier in the week, sang the verses on the tune, changing the lyrics "this is your hometown" to "this was my hometown." ... Nickelback will release "Live at Home" on DVD on October 29. The disc will feature a sold-out 14-song concert from Edmonton, Alberta, as well as videos for "How You Remind Me," "Leader of Men" and "Too Bad," along with the obligatory behind-the-scenes and making-the-video segments. ...

Usher has dubbed himself "Mr. Entertainment" and is putting out a new DVD, "Usher: Evolution 8701 - Live in Concert," to go with his new moniker. Shot on July 11 in Orlando, Florida, the DVD, due November 12, will showcase Usher performing his hits in front of fans in concert and a bonus of the singer crooning "U Don't Have to Call" in an empty venue. ... As winter approaches and beach blowouts become faded memories, it's a good time to pop in Fatboy Slim's "Big Beach Boutique II" DVD, which comes out October 7. The disc features footage from Slim's DJ bash held July 13 in Brighton Beach. ... Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and Canadian singer/songwriter Ron Sexsmith teamed up to record "Gold in Them Hills" at London's Electric Earth East Studios. The track will appear as a bonus on Sexsmith's fifth album, Cobblestone Runway, which comes out October 8. ...

Norah Jones, Zero 7, Beth Orton, Aimee Mann and Kinky will perform at influential Los Angeles public radio station KCRW's second annual A Sounds Eclectic Evening on November 23 at the Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, California. DJ Shadow and Thievery Corporation will DJ the afterparty on a Universal lot. ... Missy Elliott, Eve, Tweet, Vanessa Carlton and Howie Day will headline a benefit at New York's Irving Plaza on October 22 for Step Up Women's Network, a nonprofit organization for women's health issues. Lucinda Williams, Neil Finn, Mann, Joe Henry, John Doe and Rosey will play a Los Angeles benefit for the same organization on November 5 at the Wiltern Theater.

• Creed
• Usher
• Papa Roach
• O-Town
• Mya

O-Town
Photo: J Records

O-Town promise that their second effort, O2, will once and for all separate the men from the boy bands.

The group expects the album — due October 1, according to their publicist — will prove that O-Town aren't 'NSYNC wannabes, but a real group with divergent personalities and musical tastes.

"Our new album is a lot more us — it's more of us individually," explained Trevor Penick. "We had a lot more say in it, and we've written a lot more on this album. And the fans that know us, those who hang out [after the shows] won't be very surprised. They'll be very happy that it's more us and it's more guitar-driven and goes a lot deeper into hip-hop."

While Penick claims those influences abound on O2, O-Town haven't completely abandoned their dance-pop affinity. In fact, it's "Girl Like That," a song he co-wrote with his fellow O-Town group member Dan Miller, that carries his personal stamp of distinction.

"It's got a club vibe to it. It's about hangin' out, chillin' at the club," he said. "Drinkin', kickin' it with the ladies. ... So that kind of has me coming out on it."

Of the roughly eight songs completed, Penick and Miller aren't the only ones taking songwriting credits. Ashley Angel, the rocker of the group, penned two tunes: "Suddenly," which he co-wrote with former Lyte Funky One Rich Cronin, and the dark-themed "From the Damage," described as very Goo Goo Dolls- or Third Eye Blind-sounding by Penick.

Though the music has "a good rock feel to it," Angel explained, "Everything we do is in the pop vein. It's pop music, but we've been fortunate that, having a lot of different personalities and coming from diverse backgrounds, we can pull off a lot of different stuff. That's been the challenge of the second album, to find the middle ground between changing the sound and keeping elements of the old. But I think people will be pleasantly surprised."

Other songs on O2 include "Favorite Girl," a track produced and co-written by Nelly (see "New O-Town Album To Include Track From Nelly"), and "I Showed Her," a tune Penick likened to "All or Nothing" from the group's 2001 self-titled debut.

Since the release date of O2 has been moved several times from its initial early July street date, O-Town fans aren't the only ones eagerly awaiting the LP's arrival.

"We're just as excited as everybody else," Miller said. "We're kind of getting tired of the old songs too."

"In the beginning, to be honest, when we kept pushing the album back, it was little nerve-wracking," Penick added. "We were worried about being out of the public eye too long. Now, knowing the material we're going to drop when it comes out, it's very soothing. I'm not nervous anymore."

O-Town spoke about their impending release at a press conference in New York on Thursday to announce their participation in the Hard Rock Academy, a music-industry school that provides education and instruction to young people hoping to break into the business, not just as performers but in behind-the-scenes capacities such as producers and songwriters. Sessions began July 3 in Orlando, Florida, and run through the end of August.

Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons joined O-Town on the academy's Celebrity Advisory Council, which will periodically visit the school to offer advice. As Simmons explained from the podium, the academy strives to provide more than just instruction on the fundamentals by emphasizing perseverance and determination.

"Everyone, your friends and family, encourages you at first. Then after awhile, they're like, 'Damn, why don't you quit that sh--?' or 'Why don't you take that job at McDonald's?' There's only so much gas the outside world can give you. You have to keep up your motivation yourself."

• O-Town

Kid Rock, Missy Elliott, Clay Aiken, More At 2003 AMAs

• Ruben Studdard
• Clay Aiken
• Kid Rock
• Sean Paul
• Missy Elliott

• O-Town

Spankin' New TRL Photos

• Jay-Z
• Beyoncé
• TLC
• Christina Aguilera
• Will Smith

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

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

• O-Town

O-Town Flipbook

• O-Town