Linda Stein
Photo: Peter Kramer/ Getty Images

A former personal assistant to Linda Stein has been charged with second-degree murder in the alleged beating death of the ex-Ramones manager in her apartment on October 30, The New York Times reports. Natavia Lowery reportedly admitted to police detectives that she hit Stein six or seven times in the back of the head with what she referred to as a yoga stick after Stein allegedly made a racially demeaning remark.

Lowery, who police had interviewed multiple times in recent days, said Stein treated her poorly, "just kept yelling at her" and made her sick by blowing pot smoke in her face, officials said, according to the Times. New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said at a Friday news conference that Lowery had been Stein's assistant for about four months and that she claimed her boss had verbally abused her.

Lowery was arrested Friday morning, less than two weeks after the alleged murder took place at Stein's Fifth Avenue apartment. During an arraignment held Friday night, Lowery's lawyer said he had not been present when she was questioned. Gilbert Parris said that was "clearly a breach of my representation of her" and, outside the courtroom, said he would challenge the admissibility of Lowery's statement, which was videotaped, the Times reports.

According to the paper, some of Stein's friends said they did not know Lowery. Her aunt, Julia Carrow Lowery, told the Times that her niece wasn't capable of killing anyone and even liked working for Stein, who was also known as a real-estate agent to the stars, finding spots in New York for Sting, Billy Joel, Steven Spielberg, Calvin Klein and Bruce Willis.

The NYPD's chief spokesman, Paul J. Browne, told the Times that investigators had been searching the apartment for physical evidence while simultaneously conducting interviews with Lowery and other people who knew Stein.

An unnamed official told the Times that, according to Lowery's account, "It was that Linda just kept yelling at her, over everything. ... They fought. It was like a continuous thing, like a buildup."

Authorities reportedly said Lowery claimed Stein blew marijuana smoke in her face — a family lawyer confirmed to the Times that Stein used the drug occasionally to alleviate pain stemming from her bouts with cancer. Stein also allegedly told Lowery she was one of only a few black people who could save money. After that, Stein allegedly swore and waved the piece of exercise equipment at her, and Lowery grabbed it from Stein and hit her with it. The murder weapon has not been located by police.

Lowery left Stein's home after the incident, which reportedly took place between 12:15 and 1 p.m., and allegedly used Stein's ATM card to withdraw $800.

Stein may have met Lowery when the assistant was working as a secretary at publicity firm Rogers & Cowan's offices in Manhattan, The Daily News reports. According to the paper, Lowery had been arrested previously — in December, on misdemeanor charges of identity theft and petty larceny — but that Stein was not aware of the arrest. The charges, which pertained to accusations that Lowery had stolen a friend's identity and used it to open accounts to make purchases, were later dropped and the case was sealed, the Daily News reports.

According to the Times, Elton John is planning a memorial concert for Stein.

[This story was originally published at 1:51 p.m. ET on 11.09.2007]

• The Ramones

Amy Winehouse at the 2007 MTV Europe Music Awards on Thursday
Photo: Dave Hogan/ Getty Images

Amy Winehouse stumbled through her performance at the MTV Europe Music Awards on Thursday (November 1) shortly after giving a very brief acceptance speech when she won the Artists' Choice honor. The singer — who was announced as a last-minute addition to the show when she canceled her planned performance at the mtvU Woodie Awards on November 8 — gave a brief "thanks" when she accepted the award, and later appeared to have difficulty remembering the words to her own song and danced unsteadily as she performed. And while this year's MTV Video Music Awards belonged to Justin Timberlake (and Rihanna), JT wasn't able to replicate his success abroad at the EMAs. While he was the most nominated artist, he left with no awards — and maybe even more stunningly, he was outdone by Avril Lavigne, who nabbed Most Addictive Track ("Girlfriend") and Solo Artist of 2007. Other winners included Nelly Furtado (Album of the Year), Linkin Park (Band of 2007) and 30 Seconds to Mars (Rock Out). Justice won the Video Star prize, which they also took home last year. ...

Britney Spears is being sued for $15,000 by a former manager who says she didn't keep up on her payments to him of commissions on her royalties for her first four albums — including on her $7 million advance in 2002 — movies, tours, books, etc. Johnny Wright, who was her manager through February 2003, filed a breach-of-contract suit in Orange County, Florida, claiming Spears didn't provide proper accounting of all her gross receipts. He is seeking compensatory damages, consequential damages, pre- and post-judgment interest and attorney's fees. ...

Like Britney before her, Lindsay Lohan is trying to make sure that her upcoming deposition — pertaining to a lawsuit filed over her 2005 car accident in West Hollywood, California — won't be videotaped, according to the Los Angeles Daily News. Her lawyers are reportedly requesting that the deposition — which Lohan is scheduled to give December 3 — be sealed instead if their request is denied. "The court should act to prevent such an unwarranted invasion of [Lohan's] privacy, especially where the nature of the allegations ... are so inflammatory," her court papers state, according to Daily News. Her lawyers are also requesting that deposition testimony and written responses from other witnesses be made unavailable to the public. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael L. Stern denied a motion by her attorneys on Friday for an immediate ruling on whether the deposition will be videotaped, saying he will consider it November 28 instead. ...

Don Imus' radio comeback is now set in stone: The controversial shock jock will be back on the airwaves after a nine-month hiatus on December 3. Imus will return to New York's WABC-AM, which is home to another inflammatory jock, Rush Limbaugh. The Rev. Al Sharpton, a vocal Imus critic, issued a statement on the development through his National Action Network, saying they've "always maintained that wherever Don Imus goes back to work, the company should clearly outline to advertisers and trade organizations like the National Association of Black Journalists how they intend to safeguard against Mr. Imus returning to his former vile and biased behavior. One would think if they were sincere about his apologies and his new commitment they would enthusiastically meet with advertisers and the NABJ to voice these assurances. If they do not, then we exercise the right in the next 30 days to visit advertisers to ask what has changed since they withdrew their support to Mr. Imus's show six months ago. If there are no guarantees that the same conduct they withdrew support from will be duplicated upon his return, we will certainly act accordingly. Mr. Imus has the right to make a living, but we have the right to make sure he does not come back to disrupt our living. Particularly since these are the commitments he made personally." ...

Vanessa Hudgens isn't all smiles these days — the "High School Musical" star is battling with one of her managers over money she allegedly owes him, according to TMZ.com. Brian Schall claims Hudgens owes him $150,000 after he helped her earn more than $5 million by advancing the starlet's funds for her recording and songwriting career. But Hudgens argues that she was too young to sign her contract — when she did so in October 2005, she was 16 years old — and she subsequently disaffirmed it on October 9 of this year, according to the site. Papers filed in court by her lawyer say California's Family Code "provides that the contract of a minor is voidable and may be disaffirmed before (age 18) or within a reasonable time afterward." ... In related news, Aaron Carter has extricated himself from a contract he signed with Lou Pearlman, according to TMZ. The singer's attorney filed suit against the disgraced boy-band mogul in May 2006, requesting that Carter he released from the contract, which he signed as a minor. A bankruptcy judge ruled in Carter's favor and ordered that the contract with Pearlman and his label, the bankrupt TransContinental Records, is no longer in effect — but it's not yet known who orders Carter's recordings with the label. Carter is also seeking an accounting of royalties. ...

What do Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, Prince, Genesis, Kenny Chesney, Maná and the Police have in common? Well, in case you're not on the concert-revenue tip, they've been drawing fleets of fans to their shows, making them finalists for the 2007 Billboard Touring Awards. JT and the Police are among the nominees for Top Tour and Top Draw, while Timberlake has also been noticed in the Breakthrough Artist category. Aguilera has a nod in the Top Package category for her tour with Pussycat Dolls and Danity Kane, and she's up for Breakthrough Artist as well. Prince's stretch of 21 shows at London's O2 arena earned him a spot in the Top Boxscore category, along with Bonnaroo and the U.K.'s Download Festival. The awards — based on the artists' box-office performance from January 1 through September 30, as reported by Billboard's Boxscore chart — will be presented 5 in New York as part of the 2007 Billboard Touring Conference. ...

Lance Bass' publicist is denying that the 'NSYNC star was ever married, despite what E! Online reports Bass said in a recent interview, according to The Associated Press. "People do stupid things in the heat of the moment," he had said, referring to a trip to Vegas he supposedly made with an ex-girlfriend. "I've been in Vegas where I've gotten married for, like, five minutes ... it was one of those crazy moments where you're with a friend and you're like, 'Hey, wouldn't it be fun if we did this?' And that's all that happened. It's the Vegas thing to do ... the only reason we did it is because we wanted to get free drinks all night. And we didn't get one. We're like, 'We just got married!' They're like, 'Ah. Whatever.' " But Bass' publicist Ken Sunshine subsequently told AP that, "He never really got married. That's why there's no record of it. ... By saying he was married in Vegas, it was a way to get free drinks." A clerk at the Clark County marriage license bureau said no license under Bass' name could be found in a search of records dating back more than 30 years, according to AP. Bass has been making the rounds to promote his new memoir, "Out of Sync" — which reveals why he kept his homosexuality hidden for as long as he did. ...

The Emmy Award-winning television program "Biography" will air a program on Guns N' Roses on November 29. The show will be part of a string of music documentaries that is also set to include Jennifer Lopez and Fleetwood Mac. ... Try this marketing scheme on for size: The Jonas Brothers are partnering with Gibson Guitars to record their next album while aboard one of the company's tour buses as they trek along the West Coast on the Miley Cyrus/ Hannah Montana Best of Both Worlds Tour. The group will also be playing additional gigs on the tour, and at special shows in Nashville and Memphis, Tennessee, fans will be able to enter a contest for a private meet-and-greet at Gibson Guitar Showrooms. ... Joel Madden has dismissed rumors of tension between he and girlfriend Nicole Richie, while the pregnant socialite has also denied a report that she has been smoking, according to People. "Having a baby is the most exciting thing that's ever happened to me, and to us," Madden said. His band Good Charlotte recently toured Australia, after which he and Richie spent "a great little getaway" in Thailand. "Now we're just getting home, getting settled in L.A. and getting ready," he said. Their baby is reportedly due in January. ...

Da Brat was reportedly involved in a serious physical altercation early Thursday morning at Jermaine Dupri's Atlanta nightclub, Studio 72. According to WSB-TV in Atlanta, police arrested Da Brat (real name: Shawntae Harris) on felony aggravated-assault charges after she got into a heated confrontation with a waitress. Da Brat is said to have struck the waitress in the face with a bottle of rum, causing cuts on her face. The waitress was taken to a local hospital for treatment; Da Brat is being held at DeKalb County jail, according to WSB. Spokespeople for Da Brat and her longtime mentor Dupri had not responded to MTV News' requests for comment at press time. ...

Jonathan Davis fans will be in for a surprise when they check out the Korn frontman's upcoming solo tour: He'll already have a concert CD/DVD package available for purchase, if everything goes according to plan. Billboard.com reports that Davis will film a small show for friends, family and the press on November 8 — the day before the tour kicks off in Hartford, Connecticut — and transform it into a limited-edition package that will be available, at least initially, only on his tour. The DVD will chronicle bandmember tryouts, rehearsals leading up to the recording and more. ... The Smashing Pumpkins have rescheduled five gigs they had been forced to postpone after Jimmy Chamberlin experienced chest pains, sending the drummer to the hospital. The Pumpkins will now play the Nashville gig on November 11 and the one in Austin, Texas, two days later, after which they'll hit Atlanta for a pair of shows November 15-16 and play the rescheduled Dallas show two days after that. Chamberlin was released from the hospital Wednesday after an angiogram revealed that he had a partially blocked artery. ...

Guess who was an OiNK user? None other than Nine Inch Nails boss Trent Reznor. In an interview with New York magazine about the new Saul Williams album, Reznor said, "I'll admit I had an account there and frequented it quite often," of the now-shuttered file-sharing site. "At the end of the day, what made OiNK a great place was that it was like the world's greatest record store. Pretty much anything you could ever imagine, it was there, and it was there in the format you wanted. If OiNK cost anything, I would certainly have paid, but there isn't the equivalent of that in the retail space right now. iTunes kind of feels like Sam Goody to me. I don't feel cool when I go there. I'm tired of seeing John Mayer's face pop up. I feel like I'm being hustled when I visit there, and I don't think their product is that great. DRM, low bit rate, etc. Amazon has potential, but none of them get around the issue of pre-release leaks. And that's what's such a difficult puzzle at the moment. If your favorite band in the world has a leaked record out, do you listen to it or do you not listen to it? People on those boards, they're grateful for the person that uploaded it — they're the hero. They're not stealing it because they're going to make money off of it; they're stealing it because they love the band. I'm not saying that I think OiNK is morally correct, but I do know that it existed because it filled a void of what people want." ...

Jacob "The Jeweler" Arabov pleaded guilty on Wednesday to falsifying records and giving false statements to investigators looking into a multistate drug ring, The Associated Press reports. Arabov, 42, the "King of Bling," who has made custom jewelry for everyone from Kanye West to Bono, agreed to a plea deal that will have him serve up to 46 months in prison and pay a $2 million penalty in exchange for prosecutors dropping money-laundering charges against him. Arabov was arrested at his New York jewelry store in June 2006 and accused of being part of a conspiracy to launder about $270 million in drug profits for the Black Mafia Family, a crime ring that operated out of the Detroit area beginning in the early 1990s. ... Linda Stein, 62, former co-manager of the Ramones and ex-wife of Sire Records founder Seymour Stein, was found dead on Monday in her apartment on New York's Upper East Side; she was killed by blunt-impact trauma to the head, police told New York's WCBS. Stein was also known as a real-estate agent to the stars, finding spots in New York for Sting, Billy Joel, Steven Spielberg, Calvin Klein and Bruce Willis. Police are treating the death as a homicide. ...

Black Lips — who took Brooklyn, New York, by storm with a circus parade in September — are bringing their maniacal ways to the big screen. The group will transform itself into a fictional late-'80s underground punk band for "Let It Be," a feature film due to begin production in May. The film will be directed by newcomer Roger Rawlings ("Neurotica"), and produced by Andrew Meyer ("The Breakfast Club") and Winn Coslick ("The Bottom"), and feature both original Lips music and key songs from the era. ... Swedish indie-rockers Peter Bjorn and John will try to make sure they're remembered as one of the year's most buzzed-about bands with an extra handful of 2007 U.S. shows. The "Young Folks" squad will play Houston (November 23); Dallas (November 24); Indianapolis (November 27); Cleveland (November 29); Louisville, Kentucky (November 30); Cincinnati (December 2); and Millvale, Pennsylvania (December 3). ... Touch and Go Records celebrated its 25th anniversary with a three-day bash last summer — now another prominent Chicago indie-rock label, Thrill Jockey, is getting ready to blow out 15 candles with a two-day shindig of its own. The Fiery Furnaces, the Sea and Cake, Eleventh Dream Day and many more artists who contributed to the label over the years will convene at the city's Logan Square Auditorium for the event, which will include two stages and be held December 14-15. ...

Talks between Hollywood screenwriters and studios hit an impasse on Wednesday, and with mere hours to go before their contract was set to expire, the writers were on the verge of the first major strike against the film and TV industry in 20 years. Reuters reports that talks broke off when the deadlock could not be broken between the writers and studios over writers' demands that they get an increased share of DVD revenues and Internet downloads of their work. Leaders of the Writers Guild of America ruled out declaring an immediate walkout when their contract, which covers 12,000 members, expired at 12:01 a.m. (3:01 a.m. EDT) on Thursday. According to the AP, the union instead said it would brief its rank and file at a meeting in Los Angeles on Thursday night. In the meantime, WGA members may continue to work under terms of the old three-year labor pact, though a spokesperson said, "They will technically be working without a contract." No further talks were scheduled, but an industry spokesperson said after Wednesday's eight-hour session that union negotiators had told studio officials they would contact them on Friday. If a walkout does take place, studios and TV networks have stockpiled scripts that could last into next year. ...

Believe it, "X Files" fans: A film sequel will start production in Vancouver, British Columbia, in December, according to Entertainment Weekly. Creator Chris Carter is slated to direct, and TV series stalwarts David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson will revive their respective roles for the project, which has been in the works since the release of "The X Files: Fight the Future" in 1998. "If we didn't do it now and the [writers'] strike was protracted, it would force the movie to come out several years from now," Carter told the magazine. "And that was too late. It was either now or never." ... The woman who was ordered to pay more than $220,000 in the first verdict in a music-downloading trial, Jammie Thomas, has raised more than $16,000 so far in donations on FreeJammie.com. Now she's begun offering a whole range of gear to help raise more for her defense fund, including "Free Jammie" dog T-shirts ($17.49), white thong underwear ($9.99) and women's tracksuits ($49.99), as well as mugs, beer steins, teddy bears, kid's clothes, hoodies and boxer shorts.

10.31.07

Lil Wayne made a brief appearance in an Atlanta courtroom on Wednesday (October 31) for an arraignment in connection with the year-old drug-possession charge that recently landed him in an Idaho jail on a fugitive warrant. According to Wayne's lawyer, William Head, the rapper was only in court for about 20 minutes during the nearly three-hour preliminary hearing and will return on November 20, when a judge could rule on defense motions questioning whether the hotel search that originally resulted in Wayne's arrest on drug charges was legal. The defense also filed a motion requesting to examine the evidence in the case in order to have a fingerprint analysis done on the objects, which Head said were found in a room that the rapper was not staying in. ...

Cynthia Reed, mother of the 14-year-old son of Game manager Jimmy "Henchman" Rosemond, spoke out Tuesday about Tony Yayo's pending trial, in which he is accused of having roughed up the boy. "I am looking forward to a trial, and it is important that justice be done," she said in a statement. "Trials bring out facts, and I know the facts will expose the cowardly act of G-Unit's member Yayo of assaulting my 14-year-old son." Leemon responded to Reed's statement by saying, "At trial, I am confident the evidence will show that Tony Yayo did not hit anyone. These baseless allegations against Yayo are nothing more than an attempt by a bitter business rival to disparage and embarrass him. Our investigation has uncovered more than one witness to the incident who will testify that Yayo did not hit 'Lil Henchmen.' This is nothing more than an attempt at legal extortion." The trial begins January 10. ...

In yet more legal-oriented rap news, Game went to court Wednesday for a brief pre-trial hearing, according to TMZ. The hearing pertained to allegations that the rapper (real name: Jayceon Taylor) threatened a person with a gun during a pickup basketball game at a park in Los Angeles earlier this year. Game's spirits were high, according to a TMZ video in which he rants about everything from dressing up like 50 Cent for Halloween to helping out Britney Spears — "I'll shampoo your hair, rub your feet, watch your kids and be your bodyguard," he said. He's due back in court November 14. ...

Britney Spears hasn't had much to say to the media lately — save some choice words for the paparazzi, that is — but she broke the brief silence by going on Ryan Seacrest's radio show Wednesday morning. When asked about the recent media coverage of her child-custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline, Spears replied, "People say what they want and do what they do. It's sad how people ... how cruel our world can be. But at the end of the day, you gotta know in your heart that you are doing the best that you can." When Seacrest asked Spears if she is in fact doing the best she can with her kids, she reassured him: "Oh God, yeah, yeah." Spears also talked about the Tuesday release of her new Blackout LP, saying she spent the day watching movies. Seacrest also asked her about her rumored romance with Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. Spears, who was on a speakerphone with Alli Sims and Sam Lufti, replied, "Who?" ...

Ashley Tisdale, Good Charlotte, Jordin Sparks, Corbin Bleu, the Jonas Brothers and more will hop aboard the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade when it snakes its way through the streets of New York on November 22. Catch the show from 9 a.m. to noon in all time zones on NBC. ... The American Music Awards are shaping up to be a night for the ladies — Alicia Keys, Avril Lavigne and Nicole Scherzinger have joined previously announced performers Fergie, Rihanna, Celine Dion (and Daughtry) for the ceremony, which will air live November 18 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. ...

The new season of "American Idol" is still a few months away, but that's not stopping the juggernaut's presence on TV. Former contestants Clay Aiken and Kellie Pickler will be celebrity contestants on "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" on Thursday and November 15, respectively, while judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul will crop up in animated form in the November 11 "Family Guy" episode, in which Stewie auditions for the judges. And in yet more TV news, the "Simpsons" episode featuring Jack Black — who voices the owner of a new comic book store — will air November 18. ...

The ink has dried on Radiohead's deal to distribute its In Rainbows album — well, outside North America, at least. Billboard.com reports that the band has finalized a deal with XL Recordings — which released Thom Yorke's solo album, The Eraser, last year — that would entail the international distribution of the album but allow the band to cut a different deal in North America. The New York Times previously reported that the band had been planning to sign with Coran Capshaw's Side One Recordings to distribute Rainbows domestically, although Radiohead's U.S. publicist, Steve Martin, later told MTV News he could "neither confirm nor deny" the story. The album doesn't have an international release date yet, but according to Billboard.com, it will likely coincide with the Radiohead.com deluxe Discbox release on December 3. Sales figures for the album — for which the band allowed fans to name their own price — have not been released, but Radiohead manager Bryce Edge recently said reports of 1.2 million being sold were "exaggerated," according to Billboard. ... Lupe Fiasco and industry heavyweight Steve Stoute were on hand at the Bowery Hotel in New York on Tuesday night as Bitter: Sweet performed as part of a T-Mobile Shadow launch party. ...

A Maryland couple have dropped their lawsuit alleging Wal-Mart deceived customers by selling copies of Evanescence's Anywhere but Home LP containing explicit lyrics without parental-advisory labels. Trevin and Melanie Skeens had sued the department-store chain back in 2004 after they purchased the album for their daughter's 13th birthday. The news comes nearly 22 months after a judge refused to certify the complaint as a class action, which would have allowed anyone who bought the record in Maryland to hop onboard and collect compensation. ... Van Halen have booked their first gig of 2008, which could be an indication of a second leg being added to the band's current reunion run. The only show that's confirmed for next year so far will go down March 30 in St. Louis. ...

Coldplay have been teasing fans in recent months with updates on their next studio album, and now, in a new post on their site, they say they're almost done with the effort. The band revealed that two new songs, "Famous Old Painters" and "Glass of Water," have come into play for the album, which was already poised to include "Cemeteries of London," "Poppy Fields," "42," "Yes!," "Lost," "Violet Hill," "Rainy Day" and "Leftrightleftrightleft." "It feels like a very dense record," read the post. "There are so many melodies and colors packed into a relatively short space (42 minutes)." Regarding the album's producer, the post continued: "As you'd expect with Brian Eno, there's experimentation and exploration. But the music still has integrity. It's real and honest. There's no posturing or bombast. When the deadline comes and the work is done, this will be the album I always dreamed we'd make." Coldplay were more specific about the yet-untitled 2008 album in a previous post, saying the effort would have a "Hispanic theme." ...

Want to party with Ozzy Osbourne? Want to get arrested? Approximately 40 of his fans in Fargo, North Dakota, got a very unpleasant surprise on Monday when they received invitations to a supposed pre-gig bash that turned out to be a police sting operation, according to The Associated Press. Fans — who happened to have outstanding warrants — were reportedly told about a party to be held at the Venue at Playmakers before the metal legend's show with Rob Zombie at the Fargodome. The bash was sponsored by PDL Productions, a fake company made by Cass County Sherriff Paul D. Laney as part of an effort to crack down on scofflaws who had ignored court summons and failed to pay fines. "It was more of a warrant party," Laney told AP. "Some actually thought it was pretty funny. I think they were upset with themselves for being had." The security staff, which wore PDL Productions shirts, turned out to be deputy sheriffs, North Dakota probation and parole agents, and members of the local drug-enforcement task force. Laney got even more creative with the sting by adding a subtle clue into the mix — each "security" T-shirt also featured a festive Halloween skull, and the image of a sheriff's-badge star could be seen in its right eye socket. ...

Lordi's manager was shot at following their Friday gig in Louisville, Kentucky, according to EscToday.com, Web site for Eurovision. (The monster-themed Finnish metal outfit created a stir when it won the broadcasting group's famed Eurovision Song Contest in 2006.) Rikk Scholvinck was reportedly with his bodyguard at the time of the incident, and although neither was struck by gunfire, one of the band's fans was robbed at gunpoint. According to Scholvinck, after the gig, a van appeared next to Lordi's bus, and four or five teens jumped out. "One of the men with a gun took a fan, a girl, put the gun to her head and forced her to lie down on the ground," said band frontman Mr. Lordi (real name: Tomi Putaansuu), according to the site. "Also, one of the boys froze on the spot while the others fled away, including Rikk and the bodyguard, while another man started shooting at them. Luckily, he missed and no one was hurt. Rikk ran to the bar and called the police, who arrived soon. In a moment we were surrounded by like five police cars, but the guys managed to escape. They were a group of drug addicts that had stolen the [van] earlier that night, and police were already looking for them but have still not managed to catch them." Lordi handed the assaulted fan a lifetime all-access pass to their shows worldwide. ...

Iron Maiden have announced a pair of shows in the U.S. as part of their Somewhere Back in Time world tour. The metal gods will play at the Forum in Los Angeles on February 19 and at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on March 14. ... Speaking of Iron, Iron and Wine only played four shows in the U.S. after releasing their latest album, The Shepherd's Dog, in late September — but thirsty fans shouldn't worry, as more Stateside gigs are on the way. After finishing a two-week run of shows in the U.K. on Sunday, the band will return to America, rest a little, and then head out for another string starting November 27 in Tucson, Arizona. That tour will end December 11 in Austin, Texas, and will be followed by another European trek starting January 14. ...

According to a statement from Earache Records, two members of Polish death-metal band Decapitated were seriously injured in a car accident involving their tour bus and a truck carrying wood in Gomel — which is on the Russian-Belarus border. Frontman Adrian "Covan" Kowanek and drummer Witold "Vitek" Kieltyka sustained serious head injuries as a result of the accident and were taken to a hospital in Moscow for treatment. No additional information on the accident has been made public. ...

The Mars Volta-affiliated indie punk label Gold Standard Laboratories shut down this month, according to a letter founder Sonny Kay posted on the GSL site. Over its 14-year span, GSL released material by the Rapture, !!!, the Locust, Melt-Banana, the Faint and Mars Volta guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, who co-owned the label. The post reads: "We've experienced the onset of factors that have seriously limited our ability to maintain what we feel is the essence of the label; the experimental attitude and artistic freewheeling of times past are simply no longer sustainable. Rather than compromise our goals and beliefs, or allow our course to be charted by financial constraint and an industry in flux, we've decided the time has come for GSL to cease releasing new music, and to close this chapter of our story."

• 2007 MTV Europe Music Awards Performances
• 2007 MTV Europe Music Awards: Show Highlights

• Amy Winehouse
• Lindsay Lohan
• Vanessa Hudgens
• Justin Timberlake
• Da Brat

Hilly Kristal
Photo: Scott Gries/ Getty Images

Hilly Kristal, the founder of legendary New York punk-rock venue CBGB, died Tuesday from complications from lung cancer at age 75.

Kristal, who opened the now-defunct venue in 1973 in the then-gritty Bowery neighborhood in Manhattan, is credited with helping to launch the mid-'70s punk revolution with his championing of bands such as the Ramones, Blondie, Talking Heads, Television and Patti Smith. Following a final show in October 2006, Kristal had discussed plans to take the venue to Las Vegas (see "CBGB Owner Relocating Club — Urinals Included — To Vegas This Spring").

"I am very sorry that Hilly is gone," Blondie singer Deborah Harry said in a statement released to MTV News. "He was a big help to Blondie and to the New York music scene for many years. His club CBGB has become a part of New York lore and rock and roll history."

"Hilly was an integral part of the punk scene from 1974 until his death," said former Ramones drummer Mark Bell, a.k.a Marky Ramone. "He was always supportive of the genre and of bands like the Ramones, Blondie, Talking Heads, and Richard Hell and the Voidoids, and will hold a prominent place in music history. We are all grateful to him and will miss him."

CBGB, which opened in December 1973, was officially called CBGB & OMFUG, which stood for "Country, Bluegrass, Blues and Other Music for Uplifting Gormandizers." But it was the decision by the gruff, bespectacled and bearded Kristal to offer a residency to a then-obscure rock band called Television in March 1974 that helped kick open the door for a raft of bands that would spark the punk-rock movement across the globe.

Intent on showcasing bands playing original music, Kristal offered his stage to thousands upon thousands of young acts over its three-decade-long run. A fixture at the ramshackle club's front door, Kristal ran the club for all 33 years, overseeing its growth from punk's incubator to a tourist attraction — albeit one with legendarily putrid bathrooms and poster-caked walls — whose iconic logo can be seen on T-shirts all over the world.

According to his son, Mark Dana Kristal, Hilly "was suffering" a great deal during the final weeks of his life. "I think he thought he was going to get better, but he didn't. I just wanted him to be in less pain," he said.

As for his father's legacy, "He already has recognition for helping people with music," Mark said.

At a time when many experimental New York musicians didn't have a club to call their own, Kristal provided a kind of incubator that helped the bands find their sound, according to Patti Smith guitarist Lenny Kaye, a longtime friend of Kristal's who used to live across the street from the club.

"He provided this place to play for a lot of disaffected musicians, and he did that by having an open-door policy," Kaye told MTV News. "The only real thing that was important for CBGB was that you played original music. If you did, he was willing to give everyone the benefit of the doubt and the time to figure out what the music was."

Kaye experienced that policy firsthand as a member of Smith's group, which played a seven-week, two-show-a-night residency at the club in spring 1975. Kaye said the residency was key in helping the band to "settle into" its musical style. "It's the kind of environment that musicians need, like [New York's] Greenwich Village folk scene in the 1960s, or 52nd Street in the 1940s when bebop was taking shape. Those times had venues where people could see who they are."

Even after the golden era of punk had faded, Kaye praised Kristal for keeping that open-door policy over the next 30-plus years, inviting a variety of acts to play and asking them back if they could draw a crowd. "I saw such varieties of music in that club," Kaye recalled of the long, dimly lit room where curious masses shuffled past Kristal's desk beside the front door toward the low, cramped stage in the back. There fans would find acts that hoped the club would become part of their legend — or at least add them to its storied history.

"Hilly always gave Sonic Youth a break, from the moment I walked in there looking for a gig," Sonic Youth guitarist Thurston Moore told MTV News. "He knew I had been going there every night since 1977. I think we made $8 on a Tuesday night in front of hardly anyone [on that first gig], but Hilly was there, listening, and he told me that we could next play a Thursday night. He was fatherly in the truest sense, always having the time to talk with you without any condescension. Amid the chaos of Bleecker & Bowery, he was a figure of decency."

After the heyday of New York punk passed, the club continued its streak of booking bands that would go on to bigger and better things, as well as those who just wanted to get a taste of its storied past. That includes Living Colour, Guns N' Roses, Pavement, Elvis Costello, PJ Harvey, AC/DC, the Beastie Boys, the Cars, the Pixies, Soundgarden, the Police, Yo La Tengo, Sleater-Kinney and Sonic Youth — who launched their summer 2006 tour at the club and filmed the video for "Do You Believe in Rapture?" there as an homage to the venue.

The club began to lose out on bookings by the mid-1990s to the raft of other venues in the city, and turned its attention to lesser-known punk and hardcore acts. But it still had an allure for newer groups that were aware of its history (or that wanted to celebrate its status), attracting acts such as Green Day, Good Charlotte, 30 Seconds to Mars, Blink-182, Hawthorne Heights, Devendra Banhart, Smashing Pumpkins, Korn, NOFX, Pearl Jam, Rancid, Linkin Park, Coheed and Cambria, the Dave Matthews Band and the Strokes. During the 1980s, it also expanded into a space next door, opening a gallery/shop that featured acoustic music and an underground "CB's Lounge" that also hosted shows.

"Sometimes you forget, in terms of the mythology, how great a place it was to see music," Kaye continued. "It had a great stage, a great sound system ... and [Kristal] was always there, at the front desk, seven days a week, rain or shine, watching the [crowds] come in. He was a great New York character. He was family."

Though the venue was shuttered last year after a bitter, protracted battle with the owner of the building that housed the club (see "CBGB Owner, Landlord Reach Accord: Club To Close On Halloween '06"), it closed with a flurry of farewell gigs (see "Flea Jams With Patti Smith, Punks Weep At CBGB's Last-Ever Show"). Kristal's daughter, Lisa Kristal Burgman, told MTV News she will continue her dad's work, as he directed, by working to revive the CBGB name. "There will be clubs, more than one," she said, adding that they may or may not be in New York.

Kristal Burgman, who was 18 when CBGB opened, said people might not realize that her dad was also a musician and songwriter. "He sang at Radio City Music Hall when he was very young in the men's chorus," she said. "He could hit a bass C and he had perfect pitch. He loved music and his whole life was about music. My favorite memories of him was when he'd play guitar and sing at my birthday parties. But what made CBGB unique was that it was not about a man starting a business to make money, it was about a man starting a business to give artists a chance to be heard and play their music."

CBGB attendees would often see Kristal sitting at his desk, strumming an acoustic guitar and humming or singing in his deep voice, no matter how loud the noise emanting from the stage.

Kristal exhaustively documented the club's layout before its closing, with an eye toward reopening it — the club's bar, stage and other fixtures were put into storage (see "CBGB's Last Hours"). "I have to fight [to keep the club open]," he told MTV News in 2006. "We should be right here. New York is a wonderful city in a lot of ways, and we're part of it. Not because of me. It's only because of what these musicians who played here say.

"I didn't make this reputation, they did," he continued. "I cannot let this thing down. I can't give up if I think we're right in being here."

A private memorial service is planned, with a public memorial to be held at a later date.

On Wednesday, outside the now-vacant 315 Bowery, where CBGB once stood, fans had erected a makeshift memorial. The wicks of a dozen or so candles flickered in the breeze caused by delivery trucks speeding past the intersection of Bleecker Street. Few signs of CBGB remain, except for some band stickers plastered across nearby lampposts, messages fans from around the world have etched into the building's metal shutters — and, of course, the street sign that says "Joey Ramone Place" (the official second name of that block of East 2nd Street). One of the notes scrawled on the shutters reads, "R.I.P. Hilly, we'll miss you." A handful of bouquets were strewn along the sidewalk, one atop an orange-and-purple baseball bat — perhaps a nod to the Ramones' "Beat on the Brat"?

One passerby, who stopped to snap photos of the shrine with his cellphone camera, said, "This is now a punk rock chapel."

[This story was originally published at 10:50 a.m. ET on 08.29.2007]

• Remembering CBGB

• The Ramones
• Blondie
• Talking Heads
• Patti Smith

Johnny Depp
Photo: Peter Kramer/ Getty Images

A popular T-shirt proclaims, "Music is what feelings sound like." But if you really want to know what feelings sound like, you may be just as well off asking an actor, not a musician.

After the monumental successes of "Walk the Line" and "Ray," stars from Johnny Depp to Mike Myers are lining up for roles in musical biopics. For actors, starring in one of these films is like a four-part symphony: part critical acclaim, part instant credibility, part box-office bang and part awards-season appeal. The chance for an Oscar winner and a #1 film all in one is music to Hollywood's ears, so it comes as no surprise that we're in for a lot more musical biopics.

Crank your stereo and sing your favorite tune — films based on the lives of these legendary singers are coming your way:

Freddie Mercury
"Pirates of the Caribbean" star Johnny Depp is in early talks to play the late Queen frontman in a biopic being produced by Robert De Niro's Tribeca Productions. He is the "perfect choice," said Jeffrey Shapiro, drummer for Queen tribute band Under Pressure.

"I always had [in mind] somebody with a theatrical background. Not just to wear the costumes, but to wear the actual vibe of Freddie Mercury," Shapiro said. "Depp's such a likable guy. The fact that he used Keith Richards [as inspiration] for 'Pirates' — you can't go wrong."

Shapiro believes Depp and Mercury have a lot in common. "They are unique in a way. They carry themselves regally but always deliver," he said. "A bit foppish at times, but you never have any question that they are good."

Joey Ramone
Variety has reported that "I Slept With Joey Ramone," an authorized biography of the late Ramones frontman written by his brother, Mickey Leigh, was recently optioned by Rory Rosegarten, a producer best known for his work on "Everybody Loves Raymond." The option gives Rosegarten complete access to the singer's estate and to the band's punk-rock catalog.

Celebrated as one of the greatest rock bands of all time (in a recent Rolling Stone poll they came in second only to the Beatles), the Ramones' popularity has continued to grow in recent years, a fact that Lauren Faccidomo of the all-girl tribute band the Ramonas attributes to their universal appeal. "They weren't bigger than life, they were average guys from New York," said the Los Angeles musician. "Their music was so catchy and simple and fun — it really crossed genres."

Life imitated art imitating life for Adrian Grenier when a ploy by his "Entourage" character, Vincent Chase, to star in a Joey Ramone biopic led to rumors that the actor was being considered for an actual film biography of the seminal rocker. While no one would confirm or deny Grenier's involvement, Faccidomo thinks Hollywood should look elsewhere.

"People know Joey by the way he looks. He's a weird-looking guy," she laughed. "Honestly, in body type and looks, Howard Stern is hands down Joey Ramone."

Keith Moon
Mike Myers hasn't starred in a live-action movie since 2003's "The Cat in the Hat," but the "Austin Powers" comic has three slated for 2008, including a Donald Margulies-scripted biopic of Who drummer Keith Moon, produced by Moon's bandmate Roger Daltrey. "Roger's dream has always been to have Mike do the role," Nigel Sinclair, co-producer of the flick, told The New York Times. "He saw Mike as the creative force for pulling the project together, with help from us."

Janis Joplin
Director Penelope Spheeris and star Zooey Deschanel will bring the tragic story of the famous rock chanteuse to the big screen in 2008 with The film was originally slated to star Pink and come out in 2005, to coincide with the 35th anniversary of Joplin's death (see "Both Janis Joplin Biopics Still In The Works — Sorta").

Lauren Bernal, lead singer of the tribute band the Kozmic Blues Band, says she hopes filmmakers portray all sides of the singer's life. "They need to do the whole story, not just all the negative stuff," Bernal said, referencing Joplin's infamous battle with heroin addiction. "She wanted a family life, the white picket fence, the kids. Things didn't go well, and she [eventually] said to hell with it."

In a further challenge to the filmmakers, Bernal argued that you can't act your way to being Janis. "It takes a lot out of you — doing Janis is high-energy," she said. "It's all about who you are. That voice of hers, that raspiness — it's natural. There's nothing fake about it."

Dusty Springfield
Broadway star Kristin Chenoweth, best known for her portrayal of Glinda the Good Witch in the Tony Award-winning "Wicked," will star as Dusty Springfield in a biopic currently in development for Universal Pictures. The film is being scripted and helmed by Jessica Sharzer, a director whose work includes episodes of "The L Word." Springfield's career spanned four decades and peaked with 1969's "Son of a Preacher Man." The British soul singer succumbed to cancer in 1999, 10 days before she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Bob Dylan
The times, they are a-changin' — but not as quickly as the actors. The Weinstein Company recently announced that it has acquired the rights to Todd Haynes' "I'm Not There," a Bob Dylan biopic in which six different actors — including Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Richard Gere and Cate Blanchett — portray the legendary singer.

"[It] has been an extraordinary opportunity, bringing Bob Dylan's life and work to the screen," Haynes said. "It has attracted the best talent in film and music."

Haynes isn't kidding. Other actors in the movie include Julianne Moore, David Cross and Michelle Williams. The film also boasts an eagerly awaited soundtrack, which will include more than 40 cover versions of Dylan's most famous work.

"Bob Dylan has lived an unbelievable and at times elusive life," Company Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein said. "He has countless fans who will now be able to really gain insight into his fascinating life."

The Parody
With so many musical biopics in the pipeline, it shouldn't surprise anyone that a spoof is on the way. The salvos, however, are coming not from the usual suspects but from "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" director Judd Apatow and John C. Reilly. Directed by Jake Kasdan, "Walk Hard" follows Dewey Cox, a character Reilly describes as "an amalgamation of Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison and Waylon Jennings." "[The film is a] goof on movies like 'Beyond the Sea,' 'Walk the Line,' 'Ray,' 'The Commitments' and 'Great Balls of Fire,' the actor said. "We're having some fun with the musical biopics. We've been recording music for it, and it's quite an ambitious, crazy project."

Visit Movies on MTV.com for more from Hollywood, including news, reviews, interviews and more.

Want trailers? Visit the Trailer Park for the newest, scariest and funniest coming attractions anywhere.

• Flick'd: Pitch-Perfect Movie Music

• Queen
• The Who
• Bob Dylan
• Janis Joplin
• The Ramones

Lindsay Lohan
Photo: Peter Kramer/Getty Images for CFDA

Lindsay Lohan teamed up with Karl Lagerfeld; Jessica Simpson stole Diddy's thunder; and Janet Jackson, Terrence Howard and Mrs. Marilyn Manson, Dita Von Teese, filled out the audience at Monday night's Council of Fashion Designers of America Fashion Awards, ELLE.com reports. Diddy's late arrival was trumped by Simpson's — although the two did pose together on the green carpet. Lohan reminisced about the many bags she's bought before presenting the Accessory Designer of the Year honors to Tom Binns. And Scarlett Johansson handed the Womenswear Designer of the Year prize to Calvin Klein's Francisco Costa at the fashion industry's big night, which took place at the New York Public Library's Celeste Bartos Forum. (Check out shots of Rihanna, Amanda Bynes, Heidi Klum and more decked out in their fashion-awards best.) ...

Ever since Billy Corgan announced last summer that he was resurrecting the Smashing Pumpkins, fans have been wondering just who will be joining the revival. So far, we know Corgan's longtime right-hand man, sinewy drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, is on board. But could Eric Avery, the erstwhile bassist for Jane's Addiction, be interested in the slot left vacant by Melissa Auf Der Maur and original bassist D'Arcy Wretzky before her? Perhaps. According to a spokesperson for the Pumpkins' management, Avery "has been rehearsing with [the band] in their pre-production of the new record, but nothing [has been] confirmed in regards to [Avery joining the Pumpkins]." There's no word on whether Corgan has reached out to either original guitarist James Iha or Wretzky to return to the fold, but Auf Der Maur has expressed interest in playing a role in the Pumpkins' return. ...

People magazine has won the bidding war over the exclusive photos of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's new daughter, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt. The magazine will feature the pics in its next issue, which hits newsstands Friday. Jolie and Pitt have yet to announce the charity or charities that will receive the money raised from the sale. ... Dr. Dre, Bow Wow, Natalie Cole and Platinum Weird (Kara DioGuardi and Dave Stewart's new band) have been added to the Los Angeles chapter of the Recording Academy's Honors ceremony, which will recognize Snoop Dogg and MySpace.com co-founders Tom Anderson and Chris DeWolfe. Nate Dogg and Warren G are also expected to attend the event Thursday in Hollywood. ...

Britney Spears might not be able to make Kevin Federline clean up, but put the man on a magazine cover and he'll cut his hair, shave off his stubble and actually wear a suit, as he does in the new issue of Item magazine, on newsstands Thursday (Click to see photos of Kevin Federline's new look). K-Fed tells the mag that he just can't win: "If I stay home and take care of my wife and my kids, then I am a loafer, not a good father. If I try to have a career, nobody thinks I am caring for my family. ... I should just put a bull's-eye on my back." Federline said that while people may think that he's a freeloader, he's going to make sure his kids appreciate hard work and the value of money. "It's completely unfair when a child is brought into this world and now he's already looked at like a prince. My kids are going to have to learn what a real job is, what life is. You don't have it easy with me. Period. ... My kids are going to work at Taco Bell, dammit!" ...

Mariah Carey is expecting a "whole slew" of featured guests on her upcoming tour, to help re-create her classic collabos, but the guest she's most looking forward to seeing is Jermaine Dupri. "I would hope Jermaine is going to make it to a couple of shows," she said. "I love everybody I work with, but Jermaine is my favorite person to collaborate with because he is a great artist as well as producer as well as collaborator. We work together. A lot of times, I will just work on a melody and lyrics by myself and get a beat from somebody or tell them, 'Here's what I'm feeling,' and they'll play it on the piano. But Jermaine and I can sit there, work together, and really collaborate and have fun." ... Lady Sovereign, Badly Drawn Boy, Zero 7, Rogue Wave and the Veronicas are among the new additions to Seattle's Bumbershoot fest, scheduled for September 2-4. They join Kanye West, AFI and Yellowcard, among others. ...

To commemorate punk rock's 30th birthday, Sanctuary Records will release U.S. Vs. U.K. Punk, a 16-track collection featuring selections from several pioneering British and American — well, New York and Los Angeles — punk acts, including the Sex Pistols, the Ramones and the Damned, but not the Clash. The disc will boast a demo version of the Pistols' "Anarchy in the U.K.," along with live and rare cuts from the Buzzcocks, Generation X, Sham 69, the New York Dolls, Dead Boys, Black Flag and Suicidal Tendencies. ... Slipknot and Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor has teamed with Iowa-based metallers Facecage to launch a new record label. Called Great Big Mouth Records, the label will issue Facecage's forthcoming album, Facecage III, on July 15. Taylor, who produced the Facecage LP, has no plans at this time to add to the label's roster. ...

Monday night's 65th annual Peabody Awards ceremony was full of comedy and tragedy thanks to host Jon Stewart and statues for everything from Hurricane Katrina coverage to poop jokes on "South Park." According to The Hollywood Reporter, Stewart opened with his typical deadpan humor, saying, "Here at the Peabodys, I'm a satirist ... It's very important, what I do, and you're lucky to have me." The awards, presented by the University of Georgia, honor "distinguished achievement and meritorious service" by radio and television networks, which explains why the biggest cheers were reserved for "South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone for their 10 years of satirical cartoon mayhem. Awards also went to director Martin Scorsese for his PBS "American Masters" documentary "Bob Dylan: No Direction Home" and four TV news teams for their Katrina coverage. ...

Meat Loaf is suing longtime collaborator, songwriter Jim Steinman, for $50 million and the use of the phrase "Bat Out of Hell." In a lawsuit filed May 26, the singer claims that Steinman and former manager David Sonenberg have tried to block the October release of Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose. Meat Loaf's suit alleges that Steinman — who wrote Meat Loaf's 1977 album Bat Out of Hell and the 1993 follow-up Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell — wrongly claimed exclusive use of the phrase in a 1995 patent application. Steinman wrote six songs for Bat Out of Hell III, which was produced by Desmond Child and features Mötley Crüe's Nikki Sixx and Marilyn Manson's Jon 5. "Meat Loaf will not be bullied by anyone," attorney Skip Miller said in a statement. "He will continue to use the title 'Bat Out of Hell' in any way he wants."

06.05.2006

DMX is back behind the wheel — and back in trouble with police. The rapper was pulled over in White Plains, New York, on Friday and charged with numerous traffic infractions, according to The Associated Press. DMX (born Earl Simmons) was stopped while driving his 2001 Chevy Suburban at unreasonable speeds and was also cited for changing lanes in an unsafe manner. To boot, police claim he wasn't wearing a seat belt and did not have a driver's license on him. X was given a summons and will appear before a traffic-court judge June 16. Last year, DMX served a 30-day jail sentence after pleading guilty to violating the terms of his conditional release. The charge stemmed from a June 2004 incident at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport during which X allegedly claimed to be a federal agent and tried to steal a car. ...

Lindsay Lohan's ears must have been burning before she walked down the red carpet Sunday night for the New York premiere of "A Prairie Home Companion," since her castmates — including Meryl Streep, Lily Tomlin, Kevin Kline and Virginia Madsen — were singing her praises before the actress was even in sight. Streep, who plays Lohan's mother in the movie, called the young actress "simply wonderful," while Tomlin, who plays Lohan's aunt, said one of the threesome's most emotional scenes together hinged on Lohan's performance. "Lindsay has this scene where ['APHC' host] Garrison Keillor says, 'I don't do eulogies,' and she gets really tearful," Tomlin said. "She's just overwrought. We did about five or six takes on that one, and the burden was really on Lindsay, and she was awfully good." Also at the premiere were James Franco, Jena Malone, Kurt Vonnegut, Lauren Bacall and "Grey's Anatomy" star T.R. Knight. ...

50 Cent is joining Rihanna, Beenie Man, Bounty Killa and Elephant Man on the bill of the Red Stripe Reggae Sumfest, set for July 16-22 in Montego Bay, Jamaica. One artist on the lineup has yet to be revealed, and the Sumfest Web site describes the mystery addition as having a "honey dipped voice and a face that has young ladies across the world weak." ...

Sometimes the Europeans simply have it better than we do. Over the weekend, Metallica performed their 1986 masterpiece, Master of Puppets, in its entirety not once but twice. They played it through on Saturday during the Rock Am Ring festival in Nürburgring, Germany, and then again on Sunday at the Rock Im Park festival in Nürnberg. The band performed the album's eight tracks — "Battery," "Master of Puppets," "The Thing That Should Not Be," "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)," "Disposable Heroes," "Leper Messiah," "Orion" and "Damage, Inc." — in the middle of each night's set. ...

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have found a way to show off their new baby while raking in big bucks for charity. The couple announced that exclusive images of their newborn daughter, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, will be licensed to media outlets via Getty Images. The photo service will not profit from the sale of the shots, which will instead go to charitable organizations. "While we celebrate the joy of the birth of our daughter, we recognize that two million babies born every year in the developing world die on the first day of their lives," Jolie and Pitt said in a statement. "These children can be saved, but only if governments around the world make it a priority." ...

Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody's throat is so damaged that the band was forced to postpone dates in New York, Philadelphia, Montreal and Toronto. But fear not, fans: the Patrol have already scheduled make-up dates for the postponed shows. They'll play Toronto on June 25, Philly on the 26th and NYC the following night. Their Boston show has been rescheduled for August 15, and they promise to hit Montreal when they return to North America in October. "The elite triumvirate of our agent (Marty Diamond), our manager (Jazz Summers) and our tour manager (Neil Mather) sprang into action like some magical, yet functionary, ballet to reschedule the dates," Lightbody wrote on SnowPatrol.com. "For the most part, they will be added to the end of this U.S. tour in and around the last week of June. I hope that you can all make these new dates, and I'm sorry again for hassle." ...

Sleepy Brown, the Outkast protégé who appears on "The Way You Move," will release his debut album, Mr. Brown, September 26. The first single, "Margarita," features Pharrell and Big Boi. ... Shakira and Wyclef Jean made beautiful music together with "Hips Don't Lie" and now the track has made history. According to Nielsen data, the song was played 9,657 times on the radio last week, becoming the most-played song in pop radio history. Gwen Stefani's "Hollaback Girl" held the previous record, with 9,582 spins during the week ending June 5, 2005. ...

LL Cool J joins Diddy, Stevie Wonder and Tom Petty in the ranks of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers' Golden Note Award winners. LL's award will be presented June 26, when ASCAP will also honor R&B singer Bill Withers with a Rhythm & Soul Award during a ceremony held at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. ... Master P and Lil' Romeo are joining country-music star Lee Ann Womack to perform for U.S. troops at the Homefront Celebration in Vicenza, Italy, on June 14. This is the second USO tour for Master P and Romeo, who performed at an event for soldiers stationed in Germany in March. ...

Avenged Sevenfold have posted their cover of Pantera's "Walk," which is featured on Kerrang! magazine's High Voltage compilation, on their MySpace page. ... Scissor Sisters fans can start counting down the days: The band's second album, Ta-Dah, has been fit with a September 26 due date. The release will be preceded by the disc's first single, "I Don't Feel Like Dancin'." ...

It's official: Fuel need to keep looking for a new singer. Former "American Idol" contestant Chris Daughtry confirmed that he's going to go it alone. While in Greensboro, North Carolina, for a homecoming celebration Saturday, Daughtry told The Charlotte Observer, "I'm going to be doing my own thing." The contest's favorite rocker, who was asked to front Fuel following his elimination from "Idol" last month, said he expects to announce his career plans after he finishes touring with the "Idol" top 10. The American Idols Live Tour kicks off July 5 in New Hampshire and wraps up September 24 in Pennsylvania. ... First Bun B revealed that he was escorting boxer Bernard Hopkins to the ring for Saturday's light heavyweight bout in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and now Nick Lachey, "Entourage" star Jeremy Piven and fighter Oscar de la Hoya are getting in on the action. Piven and de la Hoya will get the weekend's festivities rolling with a pre-fight party at the Borgata Hotel Casino's Mixx nightclub on Friday, while Lachey will hold court at Mixx the next night as host of the bout's afterparty. ...

Vince Welnick, 55, former keyboard player for the Grateful Dead, died Friday in what the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department termed a suicide, according to the San Jose Mercury News. Welnick, who also played with the Tubes and the Missing Man Formation, was the last in a line of Grateful Dead keyboard players who met tragic early deaths that sparked word of a curse, from original keyboardist Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, who died at age 27 in 1973, to Keith Godchaux, who was killed in a 1980 car crash after leaving the band and Brent Mydland, who died of a drug overdose in 1990. Welnick played with the Dead until the 1995 death of leader Jerry Garcia ended the band's four-decade run. ... Carlos Santana and his wife are hitting Macy's Herald Square in New York on Monday to unveil a product that will satisfy those who have always wanted to smell like the guitar icon — or his songs. The Santanas will sign bottles of Carlos Santana, a men's fragrance that promises to be "a rich scent inspired by the music of Santana" at the event.

[This story was originally published at 1:01 pm E.T. on 06.06.2006]

• The CFDA Awards Green-Carpet

• Lindsay Lohan
• Jessica Simpson
• Diddy
• Kevin Federline
• Britney Spears

Outkast's Andre 3000
Photo: LaFace

It seems like forever (forever, ever, ever, ever) since Outkast's Andre 3000 and Big Boi signed on for the HBO film they initially dubbed "My Life in Idlewild." The flick — a musical set in the 1930s, which is at the moment untitled — has been filmed and sitting in the can. On Friday (September 9), the project got a shot in the arm as Universal Pictures announced that it would pick up the movie for distribution, according to The Hollywood Reporter. It's slated to be released in 2006. ...

It's been more than two years in the making, but Green Day leader Billie Joe Armstrong's big-screen debut is finally slated for release. Armstrong stars in "Live Freaky! Die Freaky!," a stop-motion animated musical inspired by the Charles Manson family murders. The "American Idiot" singer portrays a young man who adopts a book about the killings as his bible and preaches about a better world through "music, murder and mayhem." The film also features the voice of Rancid/Transplants member Tim Armstrong, as well as fellow members of Green Day, Rancid and the Transplants; actress Asia Argento; and members of the bands X, Good Charlotte, Blink-182 and AFI. The flick will be released in early 2006, according to The Hollywood Reporter. ... Benji and Joel Madden's production team, the Dead Executives, are going from recording tracks with Hilary Duff to punk band the Bottom Line. "[Our] band always comes first, though," Joel said. "Right now we're exclusively working on Good Charlotte." ...

Rapper-turned-producer Kwamé, coming off Lloyd Banks' "On Fire" and Will Smith's "Switch," is in the studio with Janet Jackson, Chingy and Christina Aguilera. "[Christina and I] just did a song called 'Understanding,' " he said. "It's very different, very avant-garde. It reminds you of old blues. It's more or less a ballad, live strings, live band." ... Cool & Dre, the Miami producers behind Terror Squad's "Lean Back" and the Game's "Hate It or Love It," are currently working on tracks with Snoop Dogg, Christina Milian, Mya, Shakira, Joe, Fabolous and Tyrese. Cool is also nearly finished with his solo album and has Hype Williams lined up to direct the first video. ...

Dashboard Confessional have booked three charity gigs, the ticket and merchandise proceeds from which will be donated to various relief organizations working to assist the thousands of people who've been displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Those concerts have been scheduled for September 18 at the Phoenix in Toronto, September 19 at Chicago's House of Blues, and September 28 at the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey. ... After finding them wandering the streets, Houston rapper Lil' Troy has taken 10 Hurricane Katrina evacuees into his home, providing them with food and clothing, according to his spokesperson. Troy has also teamed with the nonprofit Black Heritage Society in asking for people to donate clothes, canned goods, toys, books and magazines for those affected by the disaster. You can send donations to: Black Heritage Society, 2900 Woodridge, Suite 311, Houston, TX 77087, or go to blackheritagesociety.org for more information. ...

It looks like an alien pet and works like a freaky speaker. The new animatronic DJ toy from Zizzle called iZ will be unveiled at a nightclub-themed party for kids at the Toys "R" Us store in New York's Times Square on September 29, with live performances by Rihanna, Lifehouse and DJ AM. iZ users can mix and scratch their own beats, change up rhythms or use it as a dancing speaker for their iPods. ... A museum dedicated to the Ramones will open in Berlin on September 16. It will boast more than 300 original memorabilia items, collected between the band's earliest stages all the way up through the final Ramones concert nine years ago. Along with hundreds of press clippings and gig flyers, the museum features one of the first Ramones concert T-shirts, a pair of Johnny Ramone's jeans, sneakers and drumsticks used by Marky, and Joey's old stage glove. There's even a leather jacket along with the Ramones' debut on vinyl — both signed by all four members of the groundbreaking punk act. ...

Veronica Mars is doing a crossover of sorts, with one of the bands on the show's soundtrack. The Faders, an all-girl poppy rock band that's already got a buzz in the U.K., shot the video for their single off the soundtrack, "No Sleep Tonight"; several castmembers are featured in the clip, which was shot Thursday in San Diego. In return, the band makes an appearance on the fifth episode of the series' new season, which shoots Friday, to air October 26. Also on the soundtrack, due September 27, are the Dandy Warhols, Spoon, Tegan and Sara, Mike Doughty, Stereophonics and Ivy. Season two of the UPN show premieres September 28 at 9 p.m. ET. ...

09.08.2005

Along with co-hosting Wednesday's 2005 Lady of Soul Awards in Pasadena, California, Ciara also took home two awards, tying no-shows Mariah Carey and Destiny's Child. Alicia Keys and Missy Elliott were also not present to collect their trophies or watch Aretha Franklin perform after accepting the Lena Horne Award for outstanding career achievements. The show will be syndicated for broadcast later this month. ...

The Game just shot a video in Los Angeles for the final single from The Documentary, "Put You on the Game." Timbaland, who produced the track, guests in the clip. "All we needed was me and Timbaland, a couple ladies and some nice cars," the rapper said of the video. ... At Switchfoot's free concert Saturday at the Santa Monica Pier, the San Diego rockers' nonprofit organization, Lowercase People, will be collecting donations on behalf of the Salvation Army to support the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Switchfoot kick off their fall tour October 17 in Ventura, California. ... Cedric the Entertainer has been tapped to host the 33rd annual American Music Awards on November 22 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The show will air live at 8 p.m. on ABC on the East Coast, and delayed on the West Coast.

You might think Wind-Up Records isn't too happy about its business arrangement with Creed, since the label filed a lawsuit against former Creed members Mark Tremonti, Scott Phillips and Scott Stapp seeking "discharge of any liability to pay them royalties." But Wind-Up says the suit isn't representative of any animosity, but rather seeks clarification for just how and to whom those royalties should be paid. The label said it received "inconsistent directives from certain members of Creed," and to avoid making any improper payments, Wind-Up filed what's known as an "interpleader action," which gets the court to determine to whom payments should go. ... Depeche Mode have announced a North American arena tour kicking off November 2 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and running through December 9 in Washington, D.C., in support of their album Playing the Angel, due October 18. The Bravery and the Raveonettes will alternate opening duties. ...

Prog-rockers Coheed and Cambria have rolled out a bunch of fresh tour dates for their upcoming trek with the Blood Brothers, Dredg and MeWithoutYou. The itinerary includes stops between October 17 and November 12 in cities such as Las Vegas, Dallas and Washington, D.C., as well as two shows at the new Nokia Live Theatre in New York's Times Square on November 16 and 17. ... Shortlist Prize winners TV on the Radio have released a new song on their record label's Web site (www.TGRec.com) called "Dry Drunk Emperor." "Did you buy the bull they sold you?/ That the bullets and the bombs and all the strong arms/ Would bring home security?" vocalist Tunde Adebimpe sings on the track. TVOTR are currently working on the follow-up to their album Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes. ...

Playing among pop royalty such as Destiny's Child and Gwen Stefani, indie-rockers the Arcade Fire might appear like the anomaly of Thursday's (September 8) Fashion Rocks event in New York, but musical patron David Bowie would like to think otherwise. Bowie will perform with the Arcade Fire during their performance of "Wake Up," and the band will return the favor backing him on a cover of his classic "Five Years." Speaking of the track "Wake Up," U2 have been playing the song for months now to announce their entrance to the stage, and now the Arcade Fire have been handpicked to open for the Irish rockers for three dates in Canada, including two in their hometown of Montreal. ...

New Jersey's Senses Fail have given guitarist Dave Miller the old heave ho, replacing him with Midtown's Heath Saraceno — but just for the band's upcoming fall tour with Saves the Day. According to the group's Web site, "It was all done on good terms, and we wish Dave the best with whatever he does." The note also said a new album is in the works. ... Guitar virtuoso and human enigma Buckethead has signed a deal with Serjical Strike Records, System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian's label. The first release produced as part of this new partnership will emerge October 25 in the form of Enter the Chicken. Tankian and Death by Stereo's Efrem Schulz are among those who'll lend their pipes to the effort, because, well, Buckethead don't sing. ...

• OutKast
• Christina Aguilera
• Rihanna
• The Ramones
• Snoop Dogg

Jennifer Lopez (file)
Photo: Sony

Jennifer Lopez is getting ready to launch her fourth fragrance, an upbeat, fruity, floral perfume called Live Jennifer Lopez, due in October. Live's top notes include orange and pineapple; the heart of the scent is red currant, peony and violet; and beneath that will be caramel, vanilla and sandalwood. J. Lo claims this perfume will "reveal the core of her inner being." ...

Now that Britney Spears is entering a new phase in her life, so is her summer camp. The Britney Spears Camp for the Performing Arts is "spinning off" to become its own entity, the Summer Stars Camp for the Performing Arts. It will still be funded by the Britney Spears Foundation, the singer wrote on her Web site. The foundation will also be making new grants to City of Hope and Gida's Club Worldwide, she said, "which represents the beginning of our work on behalf of children battling cancer." ... Going to this summer's Warped Tour? If so, tour founder Kevin Lyman's got some advice for you: Don't trust scalpers. A number of fans have been punk'd by scammers trolling the areas outside the festival stops, peddling counterfeit tickets, laminated backstage passes and all-access wristbands, Lyman said Thursday. "Do not buy anything in the parking lot," Lyman cautioned, "because you will be wasting your money." Others are hawking fake goods on eBay. Some of the forged tickets are so convincing, he said, that at first glance it's almost impossible to tell that they're not Ticketmaster-issued. ...

Cam'ron might have one of the meanest rides in New York — a new Lamborghini — but it was an NYPD patrol car that upstaged him Thursday. Police pulled the Diplomats general over in Harlem for a routine traffic stop and ended up arresting him for outstanding traffic tickets, according to a source close to the case. Cam was later released. ... Whoever is chosen to be the new singer of INXS (via the band's new reality show, "Rock Star: INXS," premiering Monday on CBS at 9 p.m. ET/PT) also wins a label deal. The band has just signed with Epic Records to do a new album, their first since the death of Michael Hutchence in 1997. "We can't wait to get back into the studio to record again," INXS' Andrew Farriss said. "It's been too long." The band is also planning a tour. ... Fans of My Morning Jacket are going to have to be patient. The release date for the Southern rockers' upcoming fourth studio LP, Z, has been pushed back two weeks from September 26 to October 5, according to their publicist. ...

In a posting on the message board of Chevelle's Web site, former bassist Joe Loeffler tore his bandmate brothers a new one and refuted the group's assertion that his departure was self-imposed. According to Joe, his bros — drummer Sam and singer/guitarist Pete — gave him the boot. "This is exactly what I expected from them. Try and make it look like I didn't want to be in the band. I was fired, plain and simple; in fact, there wasn't even a discussion about it — they just dropped it on me," he wrote. "I made no decision and am not taking a break. I will be working on getting a new job immediately. A break also means there's a chance to come back, and nothing could be farther from reality. I was fired and they have not said a word to me since. I would never ask to be back in." Epic Records, the band's label, would not comment on Joe's allegation. ...

Dropsonic, the first rock band on Dallas Austin's Rowdy Records, will release their third album, Insects With Angel Wings, on August 23. The Atlanta trio have been likened to Led Zeppelin and Fugazi. ... Rhino Records will release a three-CD, single DVD box set on August 16 called Weird Tales of the Ramones. The 85-song collection includes rare, demo and album versions of cuts like "Beat on the Brat," "Judy Is a Punk," "Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment," "Do You Remember Rock & Roll Radio?," "The KKK Took My Baby Away" and, of course, "I Wanna Be Sedated." The DVD is chock-full of videos, as well as a live version of "Blitzkrieg Bop." ...

07.06.2005

Usher is hosting a black-tie fundraiser for his nonprofit New Look Foundation, which helps disadvantaged youth, Friday at New York's Capitale. The event will raise money for Camp New Look, to be held next week at Clark Atlanta University to give 150 children a chance to learn about the business side of the entertainment and sports industries. ...

Gavin Rossdale's new band, Institute, is hitting the road next month to support their upcoming debut, Distort Yourself, due September 13. The 13-date trek kicks off August 11 in San Diego and wraps August 30 in New York. The band's first single, "Bullet-Proof Skin," goes to radio August 2 and will be featured in the Jamie Foxx movie "Stealth." ... It's not quite their autobiography, but Maroon 5 are working on a book about their life on the road. The story, due from MTV Books in March, will be told mainly via never-before-seen photos, which will be fleshed out by text from the bandmembers about their experiences. ... System of a Down keep adding more dates to their upcoming North American trek with the Mars Volta. On August 27, the bands perform in Worcester, Massachusetts, followed by a string of seven new September dates that'll have the rockers visiting Vancouver, British Columbia; Calgary, Alberta; Edmonton, Alberta; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Minneapolis; Detroit; and Chicago. Three October dates have also been added: Denver on October 2, Seattle on October 5, and in Portland, Oregon, on the following night. ...

Rest easy, U2 fans: Bono's prized Stetson hat will be returned to its rightful owner in due time, the BBC reports. That's because the Irish rock stars were the victors in their legal battle with former stylist Lola Cashman, whom U2 collectively claimed stole several personal items she later attempted to sell at auction. Several of the items, including the aforementioned hat, some earrings and a pair of trousers, Bono wore during the band's Joshua Tree tour, and also appeared on the frontman in the film "Rattle and Hum." Cashman maintained the items were presented to her as gifts, but a Dublin, Ireland, judge believed Bono's side of the story instead. ... Run-DMC co-founder the Reverend Run will release his debut solo album, Distortion, on September 13. Run (born Joey Simmons), will debut his first single, "Mind on the Road," on the upcoming "Madden 2006" video game (August 9) and will star in his own MTV reality show, "Run's House," in the fall. The album will feature the songs "Boom Ditty," "I Use to Think I Was Run," "Break'em Til It's Broken," "Got a Way," "Home Sweet Home," "Distortion," "Changetime," "Beats to the Rhyme" and "High and Mighty Joe." ...

After three albums and six years, hard-charging indie-rockers the Hot Snakes have decided to throw in the towel. "It was a complete thrill to be a part of and satisfied my insatiable hunger for sinister, throbbing action," guitarist John Reis wrote on his Swami Records Web site. "Thank you to all that urged us along and leant (sic) an ear for us to abuse." Last year's Audit in Progress was the group's last, and the Snakes disband with the distinction of being the last group to record on the late John Peel's BBC show. Several farewell dates have been lined up. ... Broken Social Scene's Arts & Crafts Canadian label is branching out. The first non-Broken-related signing is Milton, Ontario, teen collective the Most Serene Republic, whose debut, Underwater Cinematographer is due July 12. Indie stalwarts the American Analog Set will release their sixth record, Set Free, on September 20, and Australian chanteuse New Buffalo will drop her North American debut August 23. Meanwhile, Broken Social Scene guitarist Jason Collett will release his sophomore disc, Idols of Exile, in early '06. ...

Celebrating its 25th year, the annual CMJ Music Marathon is getting ready to take over New York. The initial lineup for the September 14-17 event includes the Arcade Fire, the Brian Jonestown Massacre, Blackalicious, Dungen, the Wrens, !!!, Mary Timony, Annie, Funeral for a Friend, Pony Up! and Mahjongg. Hundreds of others are expected to be announced. ... The Constantines will release their third disc, Tournament of Hearts, on October 11 for Sub Pop. Meanwhile, Sub Pop labelmates Wolf Parade will release their debut, Apologies to the Queen Mary, on September 27. Produced by Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock, the Montreal art-rockers' 12-song album will be preceded by a four-track EP and an appearance on McSweeney's Believer compilation. The collection will features indie-rockers covering indie-rockers. Wolf Parade will tackle Frog Eyes, Spoon will transform Yo La Tengo, and the Shins will put their stamp on the Postal Service. ...

Deep Dish's new album is called George Is On, but it might as well be called Stevie Is On. That's because the album, due July 12, features none other than Stevie Nicks on a remake of "Dreams." Deep Dish are currently doing DJ nights to support the release, hitting Austin's Sky on Wednesday, Boston's Axis on July 12, and Los Angeles' Avalon on July 15. ...

• Jennifer Lopez
• Britney Spears
• INXS
• My Morning Jacket
• Chevelle

Nelly (file)
Photo: Getty Images

Chart toppers Nelly and Destiny's Child will be staying up late Saturday night as they will serve as the musical guests on FOX's "Mad TV" and NBC's "Saturday Night Live," respectively. Nelly will perform "Na-Nana-Na." Meanwhile, Beyoncé, Kelly and Michelle will take the "SNL" stage for "Cater 2 U" and "Soldier," which will also feature an appearance by Lil' Wayne. ...

U2's Bono has been getting the opera bug lately. After shooting a video for the song "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own" with an opera theme, the singer collaborated with opera icon Luciano Pavarotti on a cover of "Ave Maria," which will be featured on the B-side of "Sometimes You Can't." The DVD single will feature a remix of earlier single "Vertigo" remixed by Trent Reznor. ... The frame and the famed rusted tin roof that was shouted out in the B-52's track "Love Shack" are all that is left after a recent fire. The Athens, Georgia, cabin believed to be the inspiration for the track was once inhabited by B-52's singer Kate Pierson but was unoccupied at the time of the blaze, according to The Associated Press. A local fire inspector told the AP that an electric problem or gas leak could not be blamed, as the cabin was not hooked up for utilities, adding that building supplies being used to renovate the place were stolen. ...

Montreal buzz band the Arcade Fire are taking their act Stateside for a full-scale tour. The trek begins January 12 with a three-night stand in San Francisco and winds its way through most of the West and South before wrapping up February 3 in Boston. ... Johnny Ramone's unfinished book may see the light of day. On the Ramones' Web site, Marky Ramone posted a note saying that Johnny's "writer called me for an interview about four months ago, and was very professional. I just hope that there isn't going to be someone else completing Johnny's book, it wouldn't be accurate, and we definitely don't need another book of quotes. He did tell me that he was going to make a book that included posters, backstage passes, old photos and other interesting things to look at." ...

Xbox gamers, start planning for summer. "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas," which has previously only been available for the PlayStation 2 platform, is coming to the Xbox and PCs on June 7. ... Stereolab singer Laetitia Sadier plans on dropping her second album under the Monade moniker in March. The as-yet-untitled LP follows 2003's Socialisme Ou Barbarie. ... Some Cities, the third album by ambient rock trio Doves, is set for release March 1. The disc follows up their 2002 breakthrough, The Last Broadcast. ...

12.16.2004

Ashlee Simpson has a high-profile gig lined up to help her warm up for her upcoming tour — she's going to perform at the Orange Bowl halftime show on January 4 in Miami. Her sister, Jessica, and brother-in-law, Nick Lachey, did the gig in 2004. ... Hoobastank have postponed their final shows of the year (in Florida, Minnesota and Wisconsin) to allow singer Doug Robb to recover from bronchial pneumonia. Robb was hospitalized earlier in the week and ordered to rest. ...

While she's supposed to be taking a break from her career, Britney Spears has just wrapped another video — for "Do Somethin'," one of the new songs on her greatest-hits collection. Fans might not have a chance to see the clip, though, as it's only being serviced overseas. ... The Broadcast Film Critics Association named Lindsay Lohan a Best Young Actress nominee for its Critics' Choice Awards on Wednesday, and also nominated "Metallica: Some Kind of Monster" for Best Documentary. "Sideways" earned the most nominations (eight). The winners will be announced during a January 10 ceremony at the Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles. Eric McCormack will host the show, which the WB will broadcast live. ...

Mötley Crüe frontman Vince Neil has landed in hot water again. On Wednesday, Dallas police issued a warrant for his arrest, stemming from an incident that allegedly occurred during a Neil solo show in October. Neil faces a misdemeanor assault charge for allegedly punching a soundman at the Dallas-area club Gilleys. If convicted, Neil faces up to a year in jail and a fine of $4,000. ... P. Diddy has made CNN and Time magazine's 2004 list of "Global Business Influentials." Diddy was honored for his "combined celebrity and smart branding" for his record label, restaurants and marketing company, Blue Flame. MTV Networks Chairman and CEO Judy McGrath also made the list, for her work running MTV, MTV2, VH1, CMT, Nickelodeon, TV Land and Comedy Central. ...

Christina Aguilera will be the host for the 2005 MTV Asia Awards, to be held in early February in Bangkok, Thailand. Maroon 5 are slated to perform at the event. ... Sony's PSP is still a few months away from U.S. stores and already the handheld wars have begun. To compete with the PSP's ability to play digital music files as well as games, Nintendo announced plans for an adaptor for its Game Boy Advance SP and Nintendo Advance that allows the same multimedia feature. The Nintendo's peripheral is expected to be available in mid-February, around the same time the PSP, which is already available in Japan, drops. ...

Seminal post-punkers Gang of Four have re-formed for a few dates in the U.K., with a U.S. tour to follow. The original lineup, whose funky punk and dance-rock influence can be heard in bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Franz Ferdinand, will play their first show together since 1995 on January 23 in Manchester, England. ... Fatboy Slim, Beth Orton, Billy Idol and Aimee Mann are among the first performers announced for South by Southwest 2005 in Austin, Texas, from March 11-20. Mavis Staples and Erykah Badu will speak at the conference, joining keynote speaker Robert Plant. ...

British DJ Paul Oakenfold has relocated to Los Angeles to focus more on scoring movies. The DJ, who has written music for "Swordfish," "Collateral" and other flicks, is currently working on "The Pink Panther." ... These are good times for Ludacris. His new album, The Red Light District, just made its debut atop the Billboard albums chart, and now Cris has signed an exclusive worldwide publishing deal with Universal Music Publishing Group. He was previously signed to EMI Music. ...

CiWYW, a star-studded album Los Angeles hip-hop group L.A. Symphony recorded in 2001 but were never able to release due to the folding of their record label, is finally available on the group's Web site (www.lasymphony.com), through December 31. Black Eyed Peas and Pharcyde's Fat Lip contributed raps, while Will.I.Am, Prince Paul and Mario C (of Beastie Boys fame) co-produced. ... Bombastic '70s/'80s rockers Journey will be given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on January 21. The band, which has sold 75 million albums since 1973, will perform that night at the House of Blues in West Hollywood. Tickets for the show go on sale December 18. ...

• Nelly
• Destiny's Child
• U2
• The B-52's
• Arcade Fire

Marky Ramone (file)

It isn't easy being a Ramone.

With three of the bandmembers dead (Joey, Dee Dee and now Johnny), the remaining members are left to carry on a legacy that doesn't completely include them, since only one (drummer Tommy) was an original member. Still, Marky Ramone, who took over on drums after Tommy's departure and played with the band longer than any other non-original member, is doing his best to carry on for the band — mainly with a DVD he's put together about the group, called "Raw." And it couldn't have come out at a better time, Marky said. "Raw" is the happier-days antidote to all the obituaries of the last three years — and to the recent rumors about how the bandmembers actually hated one another.

"Contrary to what a lot of people thought, it wasn't just infighting. There were good times too," said Marky (real name Marc Bell). "And I'm grateful to have been in a band like that."

During the last eight or nine years he spent touring with the Ramones, Marky carried a Hi-8 camera with him everywhere he went, and he shot a ton of behind-the-scenes footage. He said that at the time, he hadn't been thinking about releasing it one day — it just seemed like a natural and non-intrusive way to document the band. "They weren't playing up to the camera or anything," Marky said. "And I had no commercial thoughts at all. I just thought I might give [the footage] to them as gifts one day. It just seemed like a good idea."

In all, Marky shot around 200 two-hour tapes. Eventually, over the course of nine months, he and director John Cafiero whittled the footage down to five hours. Then, in May, Marky brought Johnny Ramone in to work on the commentary track.

"He went to the studio, he watched it and then he made his comments," Marky said. "It was very simple. He didn't want to watch all the footage before the finished version. He wanted his reaction to be fresh on the first viewing. And he'd get so focused, going over those memories. I think he really enjoyed it."

Johnny's prostate cancer was taking a heavy toll on him by that time (see "Ramones Guitarist Johnny Ramone Dies At Age 55"). "I'm amazed he had the energy to do this," Marky said. "And I'm grateful that he did this. I'm also grateful that I was able to give him something back, that it gave him a chance to relive those memories. And he gave us a huge compliment. He said this was exactly the way he remembered it, too."

Once Marky saw the condition Johnny was in, he decided that if anyone asked him about the guitarist's health, he would tell them the truth — that he thought Johnny was dying. That decision didn't make Marky very popular in the Ramones' circles, and it made Johnny's wife, Linda, very angry at the time (see "Johnny Ramone Is Not Dying, His Doctor Says" ).

"I got some flak for it," Marky said. "But it was the truth, and I felt a responsibility to say something. I wasn't being vicious. I was just trying to set the record straight. Some people were happy I told the truth. Johnny was OK with it, but his wife was a little upset. But it came from a positive place on my end, and we all made amends."

Marky says that "Raw" — as opposed to another Ramones doc called "End of the Century" — is (inevitably) from a more positive place (see " 'End Of The Century': The Ramones' Long, Sad Trip, By Kurt Loder"). "End of the Century" directors Michael Gramaglia and Jim Fields focused on the dysfunction within the band, most memorably with a harsh scene in which Johnny explains why he never contacted Joey after the band's 1996 breakup — even when the singer was on his deathbed ("If I didn't like someone, I wouldn't want them calling me up if I was dying," he said). In addition, Marky said, "End of the Century" doesn't really capture the band the way the members remembered it themselves — or at least the way Marky does.

"It's good," he allowed. "It's a decent job, and everyone should go see it. But it's a straight-up documentary. 'Raw' is also true-life events, but it's more [our] experience of them. You're witnessing it with us versus looking at it after the fact. It's the closest to us that you can get."

• The Ramones
• Marky Ramone
• Joey Ramone
• Dee Dee Ramone

The Strokes' Julian Casablancas (file)
Photo: Getty

The Strokes, Sonic Youth, Blondie, Andrew W.K. and Sean Lennon are among the artists on board for a benefit concert in memory of the late Johnny and Joey Ramone.

"Be Well: Ramones Beat on Cancer" will be held on October 8 — which would have been Johnny's 56th birthday — at the New York club Spirit. All proceeds from the event will go to the Cedars-Sinai Cancer Research Center and the Lymphoma Research Foundation. Johnny lost his five-year battle with prostate cancer last week, (see "Ramones Guitarist Johnny Ramone Dies At Age 55") while frontman Joey died after a lengthy battle with lymphoma in 2001 (see "Punk Pioneer Joey Ramone Dead At 49").

The concert — organized by Johnny Ramone (before his death) with longtime Ramones creative director Arturo Vega — will also feature an exhibition of band memorabilia, personal items and photographs. Original Ramones drummer Tommy Erdelyi, the lone surviving member of the band's first lineup, will make an appearance, and New York Dolls frontman David Johansen, Ramones producer Daniel Rey and former Ramones bassist C.J. Ramone are also scheduled to perform.

"It was Johnny's idea, and we were aware that Johnny was in risk of dying. I just wanted to make sure he wanted us to continue in the event of his death," Vega said. "I asked him over and over if he wanted to continue planning, and said he didn't want to let down the fans and the people involved."

"It's sad, because they had been planning on doing this since May. It wasn't something that we just put together," added Strokes manager Ryan Gentles. "It came from Johnny and Arturo. They had it planned for so long, and he just passed away the other day, so it's really sad. There was a chance he was going to be there."

Tickets for the event are $50 and can be purchased via Ticketmaster, Wanttickets.com or at the club's box office.

• The Ramones
• The Strokes
• Blondie
• Sonic Youth
• Andrew W.K.

Ramones Tribute Concert 9/12/2004

• The Ramones