The Black Eyed Peas' will.i.am, Fergie and Taboo perform at the Outside Lands Music & Art Festival in San Francisco on Saturday
Photo: Tim Mosenfelder/ Getty Images

SAN FRANCISCO — San Franciscans surprised by the honest-to-goodness summer weather that showed up this weekend finally had a chance to zip up their hoodies on the second night of the Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival. But headliner Dave Matthews gave the crowd plenty of reasons to wiggle the chills away during his two-and-a-half-hour set.

Matthews and his eponymous band played with the precision that comes from knowing how their bandmates work, which produced some impressive jams and awe-inspiring solos. Matthews provided a dose of early-millennial nostalgia with a set that focused heavily on favorites like "Jimi Thing" and "Ants Marching." Along the way, Fergie and Apl.de.Ap from the Black Eyed Peas showed up to inspire Matthews to take his goofy dancing to another level. Then, pedal-steel specialist Robert Randolph slipped in during the encore to end the set with two covers Matthews always keeps in his back pocket: Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower" and Sly and the Family Stone's "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)," the latter of which featured singing and beat-boxing by Randolph.

	Inside The Outside Lands Music Festval

But back at the top of the afternoon, on the Twin Peaks stage at the opposite end of the festival grounds, Street Sweeper Social Club brought an entirely different brand of grooviness and some of the weekend's few true aggro moments. Conceived by Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello and fronted by the Coup's Boots Riley (who continuously reminded the crowd that Street Sweeper Social Club is "more than a band, we're a social club"), the group played songs from its self-titled debut plus well-received covers of M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes" and LL Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out," both of which kept the pit churning.

On the way back to the main stage, the Barbary — which took place inside a tent filled with oak-framed mirrors and stained glass — offered some mid-afternoon comedy from past and present locals Sherry Sirof, Brent Weinbach and Kevin Camia, all of whom managed to offend all of the people some of the time and some of the people all of the time with tales of anatomy, sexual preference and 99-cent stores.

Raphael Saadiq didn't drop any comedy into his funky set, though he did go into a long monologue about growing up in nearby Oakland and listening to Al Green for inspiration. Saadiq and his band wore matching black suits as though they were going to hit the blackjack tables immediately following the show, and he treated the afternoon like a hot '60s R&B revue. Working the stage like a deranged bandleader, Saadiq called upon the early afternoon crowd to sway and bounce along with his old-school soul jams.

It wasn't all about the love, though, as he detoured into a cover of the Stooges "Search and Destroy," lending Iggy Pop's snarl a bit of gospel heft. He closed out the show by bringing on his first-ever choir director, who inspired him to sing as a child. With a scratchy, bluesy delivery, he backed up what Tom Jones had established on Friday night: Sometimes a little experience goes a long way.

As the middle player on Saturday's main stage, Jason Mraz was reminiscent of Jimmy Buffett as he took his hour-long set right down the middle, playing laid-back pop, reggae, disco-funk and everything else that makes sense on a warm afternoon in the park. It certainly didn't have much in common with the otherworldly weirdness going on at the nearby Sutro Stage, where the re-formed Os Mutantes played to a noticeably sparse audience. Apparently the Brazilian psych-rock pioneers — who got back together a few years ago after splitting in the late '70s — didn't get the memo about what the Hacky Sack crowd would be interested in hearing. But like many of the weekend's stalwarts, Os Mutantes stuck to their guns and played their hearts out, which paid off in the end, when leader Sérgio Dias blurted out, "That was amazing!" at his own band's performance.

Sporting a beard that complements the music he's making these days, Conor Oberst and his Mystic Valley Band closed down the Sutro Stage with songs that are more down-home than downtrodden. One highlight of the set was when he brought out Jenny Lewis to perform Rilo Kiley's "Portions for Foxes," though Oberst outdid himself in the end with a beautiful rendition of the sparse and gorgeous "Milk Thistle."

Back on the main stage, the Black Eyed Peas provided the day's first real communal moment with their truckload of radio hits, and calling San Francisco their "home away from home" earned the band even more points with the local crowd (though Fergie should know better than to call it "Frisco"). The world didn't become a better place during the hour-long show, though it came closer than usual. There's something about "I Gotta Feeling" that makes the promise that "Tonight's gonna be a good night" easy to believe, and the band wisely closed their set with it. That gave way for Matthews, giving the 50,000 strong in Golden Gate Park a jubilant one-two punch that sent them home euphoric.

• Inside San Fran's Outside Lands Festival

• Black Eyed Peas
• Dave Matthews
• Jason Mraz
• Raphael Saadiq
• Rage Against the Machine

Snoop Dogg
Photo: MTV News

LOS ANGELES — Could Snoop Dogg's smile get any wider? Definitely not. The legendary rapper just got the stamp of approval from one of the world's greatest and best-known athletes: David Beckham.

Yep, their friendship isn't something made up just for the Dogg's E! reality program, "Father Hood."

"I have all of Snoop's albums, and that's definitely one of his best ones," one of Beckham's associates enthusiastically said to Snoop's business partner, Ted Chung, as he stepped outside of the control room where the new LP, Ego Trippin', was playing. Beckham, Arch Bishop Don "Magic" Juan, Snoop and a host of the Dogg's friends were still vibing inside.

"I ain't no groupie or nothing, but that n---a there is the biggest thing to hit L.A. since Shaq," one of Snoop's homies said of the soccer superstar minutes later, leaving to get his digital camera. No way this moment wasn't going to be captured.

After a round of photos Beckham and company left.

"I'll see y'all later, Church!" Beckam said to Snoop.

Ego Trippin' comes out next month, and indeed, Beckham's friend's summation that it will be a gem in Snoop's legendary catalog didn't seem off. The Long Beach, California, rapper turned the album in to his record label Friday and still couldn't get enough of it that night. He gave it one more spin as his friends DJ Quik and Teddy Riley arrived.

"We're known as QDT," Snoop later told MTV News, sitting next to Quik and Teddy. "Compton's finest, if you ask me. ... We've always played for the same team, we just never wore the same uniform.

"Before I was making records, I was buying [Riley's] records," Snoop said. "I was inspired by the whole movement that he had with the New Jack Swing and the R&B records from Al B.Sure, and Keith Sweat ... He's a guy that you sit back and wait for his records to come out, so you can see what you're going to do next."

The three legends have officially forged a musical friendship, kinship and business partnership. QDT want to work together the way Timbaland and Justin Timberlake make albums together and have gone to write, produce and cameo on records for other artists.

Their first project is Ego Trippin'. It started out simply enough: Snoop called in DJ Quik — who has some of the best ears in the business — to mix for the album's early recording sessions. Meanwhile, Riley — who'd been on a year-long sabbatical — met Dogg at the VH1 Hip Hop Honors, where Snoop asked Riley for some beats. He went home and started making a myriad of tracks. Snoop loved the three he heard, and everything blossomed from there.

Riley was given the task of coming up with Ego Trippin's second single, a follow-up to the monster track "Sensual Seduction."

"We redid Morris Day and the Time's 'Cool,' " Snoop said with a smile. "People are gonna trip when they hear how I'm singing on there. Teddy had me sing the whole thing by myself."

"Coooool. Ain't nobody bad like me," Doggy sings on the track. "I got diamonds on my fingers and a couple on my toes. ... I'm just cool. So cool. Ain't nobody bad like me."

Elsewhere, on what will probably be another single, tentatively titled "I'm Alright," the vocal duties are shifted to Raphael Saadiq. (It seems Snoop went back on last year's promise that he'd have no guests on this album.)

"I'm alright, I'm alright, we allllright./ ... Waste of time, go your way, and I'll go mine." The record is about Snoop 86ing a girl.

In the studio, Dogg started dancing, rhyming and sliding on the floor to the sounds of his own music. Don Juan got up and joined in with his own moves. Out of nowhere, Ray J popped up. But that's far from random: Snoop has more famous friends than a dog has fleas, and everybody's welcome to join him.

They just might serve as a muse to one of his rhymes.

"Me and Leonardo DiCaprio," he raps on a song called "Hollywood Nights." "He keep a bad ho. I keep a bad ho."

Pharrell Williams and Too Short also contribute to the LP. This time around, not only did Snoop get people like Shawty Red to write his song lyrics, he brought in a team of aspiring MCs to pen his rap lyrics too.

"I'm into giving people chances," he explained. "They wrote what they thought Snoop Dogg should be saying. It turned out wonderful."

Maybe he should have named the project I'm Not Ego Trippin'.

• The 2008 Grammy Gift Bag And Gift Lounge
• Rihanna, Miley Cyrus, More At The In Style And Grammy Salute To Fashion
• 2008 Grammy Parties
• 2008 Grammy Awards Performers And Presenters
• 2008 Grammy Award Nominees: Akon, Fergie, T.I., More

• Snoop Dogg
• DJ Quik
• Teddy Riley
• Pharrell Williams
• Raphael Saadiq

Hilary Duff (file)
Photo: Hollywood Records

Hilary Duff will perform at President Bush's inauguration ceremony on January 20, according to a spokesperson for the Presidential Inaugural Committee. JoJo is also on the bill. ...

On Friday, Jay-Z walked through the doors of his 40/40 club in New York like it was any other night with his friend Just Blaze when the beatmaker was greeted with a roar of "Surprise!" When invites to the "Star Wars"-themed birthday party went out early last week, guests were told to wear all black and that they were going to be given Darth Vader masks to put on at the club. ... An online petition has been created to get shoemaking giant Adidas to manufacture the "Zissou" sneaker worn by Bill Murray and crew in Wes Anderson's "The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou." The kicks were custom-made just for the flick and, according to an Adidas spokesperson, there are no plans to manufacture the yellow-and-blue shoes at all. Another site, though, shows how you can make your own "Zissou" sneaker, based on the rare 1960 Adidas "ROM" shoe, from reissued "ROM Classics." ...

Pixies frontman Frank Black has become a father for the first time. On January 7, Black welcomed 7-pound, 9-ounce Jack Errol Thompson into the world. For a man who has switched his own name from Black Francis to Frank Black and was born with the handle Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV, Black's choice of a name for little Jack was kind of a letdown. Perhaps "Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson V" seemed a bit too haughty. And "Black Jack Errol Thompson" does kind of sound like a pirate name. ... A former girlfriend of Kiss' Gene Simmons has sued the long-tongued rocker for slander, claiming he made her appear to be a "sex-addicted nymphomaniac" in a VH1 rockumentary, "When Kiss Ruled the World." According to The Associated Press, Georgeann Walsh Ward, 53, says that her picture appeared 11 times during the 2004 special in which Simmons claimed that he bedded more than 4,600 women. Walsh dated Simmons for three years pre-Kiss, when he was a college student and sixth-grade teacher, and she claims the show portrayed her as "wild" and "unchaste," with the implication that she was "a prostitute and/or solicited prostitutes." ...

Carmen Electra will host Spike TV's AutoRox, the first-ever nationally televised auto awards show. Kid Rock will perform at the 90-minute ceremony, which will be taped January 22 at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California, and broadcast January 25 at 9 p.m. ET. ... Like his wife, Gwen Stefani, who made a brief appearance in "The Aviator," Gavin Rossdale is making his film debut. The singer plays a character named Balthazar in the upcoming Keanu Reeves film "Constantine." ...

Raphael Saadiq has announced plans to compile the best unused tracks from his recording sessions as a producer into an album for release this summer. Some of the artists he hopes to include on the compilation are TLC, Mos Def, Angie Stone, Ginuwine, Erykah Badu and Kelis. ... The title of the Geto Boys reunion album, due out January 25, has been changed from War & Peace to The Foundation. ... A Tribe Called Quest frontman Q-Tip has signed with Universal/ Motown. He is currently in the studio working on his new solo album. ...

In sad news for record-store clerks the world over, this weekend brought news of not one, but two indie-rock breakups. Management for Montreal's bizarro-pop trio the Unicorns confirmed that the group has called it quits after almost two years of constant touring in support of its album, Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone? And Andy Falkous, frontman for ragged Welsh rockers Mclusky, has confirmed rumors that his band has split. In a statement, Falkous writes, "The three-piece rock band known as Mclusky have disbanded. The reason for this parting is private, though probably not as entertaining as you'd imagine." The band's final album, The Difference Between Me and You Is That I'm Not on Fire, was released last year. ...

The first batch of dates on Papa Roach's February headlining tour has been announced. P-Roach have proclaimed that the goal of this trip is to play "smaller venues," hence the first date, February 17 at Seattle's Showbox Theatre. The other confirmed dates are February 21 in Portland, Oregon; February 22 in Eugene, Oregon; February 24 in Bakersfield, California; February 25 in San Luis Obispo, California; and February 26 in Reno, Nevada. The F-ups and Skindred will open the shows. ... The Music will kick off a monthlong club tour February 17 in New York, wrapping up March 17 in Dallas. The U.K. foursome are touring on the strength of their second album, Welcome to the North, released in mid-October. ...

01.07.2005

After seven years together, including four and a half years of marriage, Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston are separating. "For those who follow these sorts of things, we would like to explain that our separation is not the result of any of the speculation reported by the tabloid media," Pitt and Aniston said in a joint statement published on People magazine's Web site Friday (January 7). "This decision is a result of much thoughtful consideration. We happily remain committed and caring friends with great love and admiration for one another. We ask in advance for your kindness and sensitivity in the coming months." ... Smells like twin spirit — Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are launching two fragrances, Coast to Coast NY (which will have a citrus scent) and Coast to Coast LA (which will have a more floral, tropical scent). The perfumes will be sold in mass-market drug chains, department stores and Wal-Mart starting in March. ...

Nelly recently donated $50,000 to the Martin Luther King Memorial Project Foundation. According to The St. Louis American, the donation will help build a memorial on the mall in Washington, D.C., in honor of Dr. King. "I think anytime you can be in conjunction with a great man such as Dr. King, it's only right," Nelly told the paper. The memorial will cost almost $100 million to build and maintain, and organizers say they have already raised $65 million. The foundation has until 2006 to collect the additional money. ...

On March 5, Usher will stage a 90-minute live show filmed in HDTV called "One Night One Star Usher Live" from San Juan's Coliseo de Puerto Rico. The concert will air on Showtime, smack in the middle of the channel's free-preview weekend, at 9 p.m. ET/PT. ... This year's Grammy nominees will not only find themselves sweating it out together at the actual ceremony, but they'll also be grouped on a CD compilation. The 21-track Grammy Nominees 2005, due in stores February 1, includes songs by Usher, U2, Alicia Keys, Beastie Boys, Prince, Green Day, Black Eyed Peas, Kanye West and Evanescence, and will benefit music-related charities such as the recording academy's MusiCares Foundation and the Grammy Foundation. ...

Cuban Link's upcoming Chain Reaction, due March 8, will feature appearances from Jadakiss, the Game and Peedi Crakk. Mya sings on the former Terror Squad rapper's first single, "Sugardaddy." ... Dirtbag Clothing has announced it will move forward with plans to launch Dimebag Hardware, the clothing line inspired by the late "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott. The Dimebag Hardware line will consist of T-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, shorts and work shirts with "a metal edge," according to a statement released Friday by the company. The line will debut at the NAMM music convention in Anaheim, California, on January 20, and will be available online at dimebaghardware.com and dirtbagclothing.com, as well as at guitar shops and boutiques across the U.S. and Europe. ...

Norah Jones will headline the Air J Jazz and Blues Festival, scheduled for January 27-29 in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Other artists on the bill include Dionne Warwick, Roberta Flack and Jimmy Cliff. ... Danny Sugerman, former manager of the Doors and co-author of "No One Here Gets Out Alive," the definitive bio of the Jim Morrison-led band, died in Los Angeles on Thursday from lung cancer. Sugarman, 50, started as an assistant to the band when he was 14 and went on to become their manager following Morrison's 1971 death. He also acted as a consultant on Oliver Stone's 1991 movie "The Doors." ...

Five months after "Peace Train" singer Cat Stevens (now known as Yusuf Islam) was detained and deported by U.S. authorities, who said he was on a no-fly list, the singer is still barred from entering the country. Homeland Security chief Tom Ridge said Thursday that the singer remains on the list because "the reasons we rejected him several months ago still exist in my mind." Peace activist Islam was barred from the U.S. at the time because of what the government said were his alleged ties to terrorist organizations, a claim the singer has denied. ... Paul McCartney, Sting and the surviving members of Queen are among the artists collaborating on 46664: 1 Year On, an EP to raise money for Nelson Mandela's 46664 organization, which combats the spread of HIV and AIDS in Africa (46664 was Mandela's prisoner number when he was incarcerated on South Africa's Robben Island). The EP, which is available for download from the iTunes music store, features collaborations from McCartney and Eurythmics' David A. Stewart, Sting and Jimmy Cliff, and Queen and Mandela himself. ...

Swedish psychedelic garage rockers The Soundtrack of Our Lives will follow up their 2002 album, Behind the Music, with Origin Vol. 1, due March 15. The group will kick off a brief club tour January 15 in Boston that ends January 26 in Los Angeles, and will appear at Austin, Texas' South by Southwest Music Conference in March. ... The Slamdance Film Festival, the annual, unofficial fest that coincides with the Sundance Film Festival, will feature performances from former Soul Coughing singer Mike Doughty, producer/rapper Prince Paul and Parliament/ Funkadelic keyboardist Bernie Worrell. Also playing at the fest in Park City, Utah — taking place January 21-28 — will be Apex Theory, guitarist Elliott Sharp and Spearhead frontman Michael Franti, whose documentary about his search for humanity in war zones in Iraq and Israel, "I Know I Am Not Alone," will close the event. ...

Thomas Slattery digs iTunes, he just doesn't like the fact that the only device the site works with is Apple's own iPod. So he sued the company in U.S. District Court in San Jose, California, on Monday, alleging that the company broke antitrust laws by shutting out its competitors. An Apple spokesperson did not return a call seeking comment. ...

• Hilary Duff
• Jay-Z
• Frank Black
• Kid Rock
• Raphael Saadiq

One hundred signed copies of Jay-Z's The Black Album, which dropped Friday, are being auctioned off on eBay. In one of the copies will be tickets to Jay's November 25 benefit concert in New York. ...

Though Scott Weiland was due to have his arraignment on a DUI charge on Monday (November 17), the case was continued until December 3. The former Stone Temple Pilots frontman/current Velvet Revolver singer is completing his court-ordered stay at a residential rehab facility, and will not have to appear at the next court hearing, as his lawyer can enter a plea for him since it's a misdemeanor charge. Meanwhile, Weiland's former STP bandmates confirmed in an interview with Guitar One that the band is officially over. Lead guitarist Dean DeLeo told the magazine, "Along with the beauty of STP there was a dark trail that went right along with it ... There's not much I can look back on and say I really enjoyed, without wondering if the floor was going to drop from under us." The DeLeo brothers, having just produced Alien Ant Farm, are now focusing on producing the new band Monterey. ...

Ashanti will join country star Kenny Chesney, soul singer Joss Stone and operatic soprano Renée Fleming for "Christmas in Washington," a TNT television special scheduled to air December 14 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. President Bush and the first lady are expected to be among the guests for the holiday concert, now in its 22nd year. ... Stacie Orrico will perform her song "(There's Gotta Be) More to Life" at this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on November 27, which will also feature appearances by Clay Aiken, Aaron Carter, Hilary Duff and Ruben Studdard. Then on December 3, Orrico will continue to spread holiday cheer through New York by helping to light the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center. ...

Archetype, Fear Factory's follow-up to 2001's Digimortal, will feature a cover of Nirvana's "School," off their 1989 album, Bleach, as a bonus track. Archetype is due in April. ... New York public-school students will get first crack at the final cinematic chapter in the "Lord of the Rings" saga. Contest winners from 17 participating schools who penned 200-word essays on the theme of the wizard Gandalf's quote, "All you have to do is decide what to do with the time that is given to you," get to attend advance screenings of "The Return of the King" on December 1. Meanwhile, New Line is donating a grant to be divided amongst the participating schools, to be applied to the purchase of new books for the schools' libraries. ...

It may not be the Blues Brothers, but Dan Aykroyd is working on a blues album. The "Saturday Night Live" vet showed up at New York's La Rambla to pay his respects — and talk up his new musical venture — at the "SNL" afterparty on Saturday. He was joined by the likes of show host Alec Baldwin, conservative pundit Ann Coulter, Coulter's political nemesis Al Franken, and current "SNL" players Tina Fey and Will Forte. ... Joseph "Amp" Fiddler, keyboardist in '70s funk-rock outfit Funkadelic, is in the final stages of recording a new solo album, to be released in January. Waltz of the Ghetto Fly features songs written with Raphael Saddiq, Jay Dee and former bandmate George Clinton. ...

Two major manufacturing sites for CD bootlegs were busted last week after a year-and-a-half-long investigation by the RIAA and the New York Police Department. Nearly 56,100 counterfeit CDs were taken from one location in midtown Manhattan and one in the Bronx, where 34 CD-R burners and 20 DVD burners were also discovered. ... SoundScan isn't just for record stores anymore — the sales tracking system, which added iTunes and other digital-download services this summer, has expanded to include Napster, BuyMusic, Musicmatch and Musicnow. Last week, SoundScan reported more than 1 million tracks downloaded for the first time since it began tracking downloads in June. The main authority for retail music-sales information, SoundScan's data provides the basis of the weekly Billboard music charts. …

11.14.03

Britney Spears is often accused of lip-synching, but for her performance at this weekend's American Music Awards, she's planning to prove everyone wrong — by singing live. "I think the reason why people say that [I lip-synch] is because I am dancing a lot," the singer said in a phone press conference on Wednesday. "Janet [Jackson], when she does her shows, she dances a lot. And you know, there's parts where the background vocals and the chorus has definitely come up, but that doesn't mean I'm not singing." The American Music Awards air live from Los Angeles on ABC Sunday at 8 p.m. ET ...

Maureen Marder, the former welder/dancer whose life was the inspiration for "Flashdance," is suing Jennifer Lopez for copyright infringement over her "I'm Glad" video, which pays homage to the 1983 movie. The lawsuit, filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, alleges Lopez needed Marder's permission to make the video because she refused to grant sequel rights or to permit any further use of her story after "Flashdance" was released. ... Clive Davis threw a party in honor of Alicia Keys Thursday night at New York's Industria to kick off the festivities in promotion of her upcoming self-titled album. Pink and Tommy Lee were among the celebs who showed up. ...

Courtney Love did not appear in a Los Angeles court on Friday (November 14) but entered a plea of not guilty via her attorney in her misdemeanor drug case. Whereas Wednesday's arraignment was for possession during her overdose on October 2, Friday's arraignment was for being under the influence of opiates and/or cocaine during her arrest earlier that night. Love is due back in court December 12. ...

On November 23 soccer fans can get their kicks watching Michelle Branch performing live during the halftime ceremonies of the 2003 Major League Soccer Cup. The singer/songwriter's performance in Carson, California, will be broadcast on ABC. ... The Donnas confirmed that they will not be appearing on Australia's Big Day Out festival in January, due to the wrist injury suffered by Torry Castellano (Donna C.). On the bright side, the drummer is recovering nicely after surgery and will hopefully soon join her bandmates in rehearsals as they begin work on the follow-up to last year's major-label debut, Spend the Night. ...

Ozzy Osbourne has rescheduled three of the European tour dates that were postponed last month due to his treatment for the body tremors that have plagued him for years. The heavy metal godfather will perform in London on February 22 and two shows in Birmingham on February 24 and 26. ... Believe it or not, British Prime Minister Tony Blair is a fan of over-the-top glam-metallers the Darkness. Besides the big-haired, spandex-sporting rockers, Blair also favors U2 and Foo Fighters. ... Indiana University students taking Professor Glenn Gass' rock music history class got a surprise when John Mellencamp showed up as a guest lecturer Tuesday. The rocker offered inspiration and his views on topics ranging from politics to MTV. ...

• Jay-Z
• Stone Temple Pilots
• Ashanti
• Stacie Orrico
• Fear Factory

The third studio outing is typically difficult for established artists who often struggle between maintaining their fanbase and displaying artistic growth. Instead of penning a new batch of originals, Mandy Moore accomplishes both goals with Coverage, an album of cover songs. But don't expect a karaoke-friendly collection of instantly recognizable pop hits. In an effort to break out of her teen-pop mold, Moore has recorded songs that will be more familiar to viewers of VH1 than MTV. Tracks include Cat Stevens' "Moonshadow," Todd Rundgren's "Can We Still Be Friends?," and Joe Jackson's "Breaking Us in Two." The album also features passionate renditions of songs by Joan Armatrading, Elton John, XTC and the Waterboys.

The second album by Dead Prez, Get Free or Die Tryin,' is a not-so-subtle reference to 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin' and it illustrates where the Florida rap duo's priorities lie. Like Public Enemy, D.P. are as political as they are musical, and express their inflammatory views in songs like "F--- the Law," "Scared to Die," and "Last Day Reloaded," which features the rap crew Onyx.

Until now, Loon has been best known for backing P. Diddy, Usher, 3LW and Foxy Brown. This week, the rapper releases his full-length, self-titled debut. The album features guest performances by Diddy, Missy Elliott and Carl Thomas, which could help turn the suave rapper from an in-demand backing musician into a full-fledged star.

Where were their heads at when Basement Jaxx recruited 'NSYNC's JC Chasez to guest on Kish Kash? Clearly, they wanted to do something different, and that desire shines through on the disc, which is less dance-house than their previous efforts and more based in a percussive funk that owes heavily to Prince. Other guests include Siouxsie Sioux and Dizzee Rascal.

Several hot indie rock bands are dropping noteworthy albums this week. The act with the highest profile is the Rapture, whose second full album, Echoes, is a feast of crashing rhythms, dirty disco beats, engaging electronic melodies and vocals reminiscent of the Cure's Robert Smith. The debut album by the Canadian band the Stills, Logic Will Break Your Heart, is equally affecting, combining the emotional resonance of the Smiths with the pop songcraft of Echo & the Bunnymen. And the second disc by Albuquerque's the Shins, Chutes Too Narrow, is a sunnier offering that blends winsome pop guitars with plaintive vocals.

For those who like much, much more technical proficiency, veteran Canadian power trio Rush will release their fourth live album, Rush in Rio, in the form of a triple-CD set that captures the final night of the band's Vapor Trails tour before a crowd of 40,000.

Here's what else you have to choose from.

Out Tuesday, October 21:

• Josh Abrams - Cipher (Delmark)
• Active Ingredients - Titration (Delmark)
• All Out War - Condemned to Suffer (Victory)
• Anadivine - Anadivine (EP) (SideCho)
• Fred Anderson - Back at the Velvet Lounge (Delmark)
• Anti-Flag - The Terror State (Fat Wreck Chords)
• April Sixth - Mariposa Avenue (EP) (Elektra)
• Ascii Disko - Ascii Disko (Metropolis)
• Badlands - Hands of Time (Rebellion)
• Bobby Bare, Jr. - OK, I'm Sorry (Bloodshot)
• Barenaked Ladies - Everything to Everyone (Reprise)
  Buy Now: Everything to Everyone (Reprise)
  
• Basement Jaxx - Kish Kash (Astralwerks)
  Buy Now: Kish Kash (Astralwerks)
  
• Between the Buried and Me - The Silent Circus (Victory)
• Big Noyd - Only the Strong (LSR/In the Paint)
• Bleach - Astronomy (Tooth & Nail)
• Blow - The Concussive Caress (K)
• Jimmy Buffett - Live in Irvine, CA 9.27.03 (Mailboat)
• Jimmy Buffett - Live in Mountainview, CA 9.25.03 (Mailboat)
• The Buffseeds - Sparkle Me (EP) (Sanctuary/Fantastic Planet)
• Paul Burch - Fool for Love (Bloodshot)
• Nick Cannon - Nick Cannon (Nick/Jive)
  Read: "B2K, Nick Cannon 'Feelin' Freaky' On Collabo"
  Buy Now: Nick Cannon (Nick/Jive)
  
• Carbondale - 'Cause 7 Ate 9 (Little Pond)
• Clearlake - Cedars (Domino)
• The Creatures - Hai! (Instinct)
• Enrico Crivellaro - Key to My Kingdom (Electro-Fi)
• The Crown - Possessed 13 (Metal Blade)
• The Cruxshadows - Ethernaut (Dancing Ferret)
• Danú - The Road Less Traveled (Shanachie)
• Moot Davis - Moot Davis (Little Dog)
• Death Machine - Death Machine (Sensory)
• Destruction - Metal Discharge (Nuclear Blast)
• Kevin Devine - Make the Clocks Move (TCR/Razor & Tie)
• Dew-Scented - Impact (Nuclear Blast)
• DJ Wally - Nothing Stays the Same (Thirsty Ear)
• Dope - Group Therapy (Recon/Artemis)
• Dose Hermanos - Bright Shadows (Gaff)
• Drag-On - Hell and Back (Virgin)
• Dream Theater - Train of Thought (Elektra)
• The Durutti Column - Someone Else's Party (Psychobaby)
• Esham - Repentance (Psychopathic)
• Charles Feelgood - House Music (Topaz)
• Fighting Jacks - The Dying Art of Life (Tooth & Nail)
• Firewater - Songs We Should Have Written (Jetset)
• The Format - Interventions and Lullabies (Elektra)
• Funeral for a Friend - Seven Ways to Scream Your Name (Ferret)
• Grandpaboy - Dead Man Shake (Fat Possum)
• Great Jones - Seven Days from Saturday (Cheapshot)
• Hamsa Lila - Gathering One (BRG/In the Pocket)
• Beth Hart - Leave the Light On (Koch)
• Her Space Holiday - The Young Machines (Mush)
• Gary Hoey - Wake Up Call (Surfdog)
• Vijay Iyer and Mike Ladd - In What Language? (Pi)
• J Street Jumpers - Good for Stompin' (Severn)
• Fruteland - Jackson Blues 2.0 (Electro-Fi)
• Jennyanykind - Peas and Collards (MoRisen)
• The Jessica Fletchers - What Ever Happened to? (Rainbow Quartz)
• Joe - And Then ... (Jive)
• Montell Jordan - Life After Def (Kela/Koch)
  Buy Now: Life After Def (Kela/Koch)
  
• Joy Electric - The Magic of Christmas (Tooth & Nail)
• Khanate - Things Viral (Southern Lord)
• King Diamond - The Puppet Master (Metal Blade)
• Libby Kirkpatrick - Goodnight Venus (Heart Music)
• Christine Lavin & the Mistletones - The Runaway Christmas Tree (Appleseed)
• Lexicon - Youth Is Yours (Spy Tech)
• The Limit - The Limit (HMG)
• Loon - Loon (Bad Boy)
  Read: "Loon Prepares To (Finally) Drop Debut, Rap And 'Ball' On Broadway"
  Buy Now: Loon (Bad Boy)
  
• The Lovethugs - Playground Instructors (Rainbow Quartz)
• Lucky Boys - Confusion Commitment (Elektra)
• Gene Ludwig - Hands On (Blues Leaf)
• Carmen Lundy - Something to Believe In (Justin Time)
• Peter Malick - Chance and Circumstance (Koch)
• Malow Mac - Second Look (Thump)
• Man with No Name - Interstate Highway (Dragonfly)
• Delbert McClinton - Live (New West)
• Moonspell - The Antidote (Century Media)
• Mandy Moore - Coverage (Sony)
  Read: "Mandy Moore Digs Up Pop Obscurities For Coverage"
  Buy Now: Coverage (Sony)
  
• Van Morrison - What's Wrong with This Picture? (Blue Note)
• My Ruin - The Horror of Beauty (Century Media)
• Mylene - Mylene (Fast Horse)
• The Nadas - Transceiver (Authentic)
• Neurosis & Jarboe - Neurosis & Jarboe (Neurot Recordings)
• Salim Nourallah - The In-Crowd (EP) (Paisley Pop)
• Operatica and Maureen O'Flynn - Christmas Classics (E-Magine)
• Parsley Sound - Parsley Sounds (Mo Wax)
• Parts and Labor/Tyondai Braxton - Rise, Rise, Rise (Narnack)
• D. Alex Paterson - Journey Into Paradise (Topaz)
• Pigeon - John Is Dating Your Sister (Basement)
• Sarah - Pillow Remixes (Buckyball)
• Pinhead Gunpowder - Compulsive Disclosure (Lookout!)
• Plastikman - Closer (novamute)
• Project Pat - Mix Tape: The Appeal (Hypnotize Minds)
• Snooky Pryor - Mojo Ramble: Live in Concert with Mel Brown and the Homewreckers (Electro-Fi)
• The Rhinos - The Year of The Rhinos (Rainbow Quartz)
• Jason Ringenberg - A Day at the Farm with Farmer Jason (Yep Roc)
• Roc Raida - Champion Sounds (DMC/Razor & Tie)
• Rope - Widow's First Dawn (Family Vineyard)
• Josh Roseman - Unit Treats for the Nightwalker (Enja/Justin Time) Robb Roy - Days of Pride and Hunger (Pure Recordings)
• Raphael Saadiq - I>All Hits at the House of Blues (Pookie)
• Ryuichi Sakamoto - Mototronic (Sony Classical)
• Scraps and Heart Attacks - 8 Million Stories (Triple Crown)
• Brian Setzer Orchestra - I>Boogie Woogie Christmas and Nitro Burnin' Funny Daddy (Surfdog)
• Slipstream - Transcendental (Hidden Agenda)
• Solas - Another Day (Shanachie)
• Something Corporate - North (Geffen)
  Buy Now: North (Geffen)
  
• Space Cadet - Greatest Hits (Satellite/Trauma)
• James Lee Stanley - Traces of the Old Road (Beachwood)
• Rod Stewart - The Great American Songbook: Vol. II (J)
• Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros - Streetcore (Hellcat)
• Suicide Commando - Axis of Evil (Metropolis)
• Switchhitter - Fer-de-Lance (54º40' or Fight!)
• The Tannahill Weavers - Arnish Light (Green Linnet)
• Malachi Thompson and African Brass - Blue Jazz (Delmark)
• Tidfall - Nucleus (Nuclear Blast)
• Too Short - Married to the Game (Jive)
• Tragedy - Still Reporting (Solid)
• Turk - Raw and Uncut (Koch/In the Paint)
• Ulu - Nerve (Harmonized)
• Universal Honey - Can't Stop Thinking About Christmas (41 Records)
• Chucho Valdes - New Conceptions (Blue Note)
• Kristine W. - Fly Again (Tommy Boy)
• Josh Wink - 20 to 20 (EP) (System)
• Yo La Tengo - Today Is the Day (EP) (Matador)
• Zebrahead - MFZH (Egg/Columbia)
• John Zorn, Bill Laswell and Tatsuya Nakamura - Buck Jam Tonic (Ion)
• Various Artists - Back to the Future '80s, Volume 2 (Topaz)
• Various Artists - Beachwood Christmas (Beachwood)
• Various Artists - Bird Up: The Charlie Parker Remix Project (Savoy Jazz)
• Various Artists - Brother Bear soundtrack (Walt Disney)
• Various Artists - Buddyhead Presents: Gimme Skelter (Buddyhead/Nettwerk)
• Various Artists - Dragonfly Classix II (Dragonfly)
• Various Artists - Eye of the Beholder, Vol. 3 (Tract)
• Various Artists - Mystic River soundtrack (Malpaso/Warner Bros.)
• Various Artists - Punk Goes Acoustic (Fearless)
• Various Artists - Radio soundtrack (Hip-O/UME)
• Various Artists - Taken soundtrack (DreamWorks Nashville)
• Various Artists - Tropical Hot Dog Night (Myutopia)
• Various Artists - Very Special Acoustic Christmas (Lost Highway)
• Various Artists - Warren Haynes Presents ... (Sanctuary)
• Various Artists - Wig in a Box - Songs from Hedwig & the Angry Inch (Off)
• DVD: "The Journey" (Aspyr)
• DVD: "Live from Bonnaroo 2003" (Sanctuary)
• DVD: "Steve Earle - Just an American Boy" (Artemis)
• DVD: "The Loud Family - Live 2000" (125)
• DVD: "Millencolin - ... And the Hi-8 Adventures" (Burning Heart)
• DVD: "Rush In Rio - (Anthem/Coming Home/Zoë)
• DVD: "The String Cheese Incident" - Live at the Fillmore (Sanctuary)
• DVD: Audio: Sammy Hagar and the Wabos" - Hallelujah (Silverline)
• DVD: Audio: Widespread Panic - Ball (Silverline)
• SACD: Vijay Iyer - Blood Sutra (Artists House)
• SACD: Ludacris - Chicken & Beer (Def Jam)

October 28:

• R.E.M - In Time: The Best of R.E.M 1998 — 2003 (Warner Bros.)
• The Strokes - Room on Fire (RCA)
  Read: "Strokes Album Preview: Gideon Yago Tours Their Room On Fire"
  Buy Now: Room on Fire (RCA)
  
• Triumph the Insult Comic Dog - Come Poop With Me (Warner Bros.)

November 4:

• Wyclef Jean - The Preacher's Son (J Records)
  Read: "Wyclef Jean Nabs 'All-Ghetto Cast' — Including Tom Jones — For Album"
  
• Stone Temple Pilots - Thank You (Atlantic)
• P.O.D. - Payable on Death (Atlantic)
  Read: "P.O.D. Sound So Alive With New Guitarist, New Single"

• Pink - Try This (Arista)
  Read: "Pink Didn't Have To Try Too Hard To Make Try This"
  Buy Now: Try This (Arista)
  
• Ruben Studdard - Soulful (J Records)
  Read: "R. Kelly, Missy Elliott Working On Ruben Studdard's Soulful Debut"

• Blink-182 - Blink-182 (Universal)
  Read: "Blink-182 Tone Down Pranks, Get Down To Real 'Action' On Next LP"

• Jay-Z - The Black Album (Roc-a-Fella)
  Read: "Jay-Z Strays From His Blueprint For Black Album"

• Mandy Moore
• Nick Cannon
• Loon
• Dead Prez
• Raphael Saadiq

The second album by enigmatic alt-metal supergroup A Perfect Circle is tentatively scheduled for release September 30. The disc will be the first to feature ex-Marilyn Manson bassist Jeordie White (a.k.a. Twiggy Ramirez), who replaced Paz Lenchantin in February. The band's 2000 debut, Mer De Noms, went platinum. ...

Backstreet Boy A.J. McLean's mother Denise — who acted as the band's publicist and fan-club coordinator during its beginning stages — is putting out a book this December about her experiences with her son's group. It's called "Backstreet Mom: A Mother's Tale of Backstreet Boy A.J. McLean's Rise to Fame, Struggle With Addiction and Ultimate Triumph," and Denise told MTV News that the book will also contain several previously unpublished pictures. She plans to do a book tour in November. ... For those who can't get enough of "Times Like These," three different videos for the Foo Fighters single will be available on the "Low" DVD/EP, due July 1. The clip for the title track, which was directed by Jesse Peretz and features Jack Black, will be available exclusively on the disc. ...

The U.S. finals of the Air Guitar Championship are taking place Saturday at the Roxy in Los Angeles, and what better way to tune up your imaginary axe than with The World's Greatest Air Guitar Album, a double-disc set that hits stores Tuesday (June 24). Queen guitarist Brian May served as the album's music director, overseeing the inclusion of such riff-riddled tunes as Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water," Joe Walsh's "Rocky Mountain Way," Motörhead's "Ace of Spades" and Blur's "Song 2." ... Barenaked Ladies are in the finishing stages of prepping their follow-up to 2000's Maroon. Frontman Steven Page mastered the disc, titled Everything to Everyone, in New York on Monday, and the band is trying to decide which of its 16 to 17 new songs should ultimately make the record. Song titles include "War on Drugs," "Chimpanzees," "Aluminum," "Celebrity," "Shopping" and "Maybe Katie." ...

Sonic Youth canceled two of their concerts with Wilco this week — in Boston on Monday and Wallingford, Connecticut, on Tuesday — due to a family illness. Though their remaining shows this week and next in New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., were in limbo for a while as well, the band now says that the gigs will go on as planned. "We're sorry for any confusion or disappointment this whole situation has caused," guitarist Lee Ranaldo wrote on the group's Web site. "It obviously couldn't be helped." Mission of Burma substituted for Sonic Youth in Boston. ... Our Lady Peace and 3 Doors Down will join forces for a summer tour beginning July 5 in Muskegon, Michigan, and ending September 18 in Spring, Texas. OLP are promoting Live, a collection of favorites recorded in January and February at various Canadian shows and due July 1. ...

Travis Meeks, the 24-year-old leader of the Kentucky band Days of the New, has spent the last few weeks in a rehab program battling addiction to crystal meth and other substances, his manager said. With roughly a month clean and sober under his belt, Meeks will be released from treatment July 1 and plans to perform at the SouthGate House in Newport, Kentucky, on the Fourth of July. ... The Flaming Lips and the Roots are among those slated for the sixth annual Berkshire Music Festival, taking place August 15-17 in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Medeski Martin & Wood, the Greyboy Allstars and Particle are also on the bill. ...

Three of Raphael Saadiq's performances, (July 2-4), each with a 12-piece band, will be preserved for posterity on a live album and DVD. The live LP is slated for October, while the DVD is expected next year. In February, Saadiq will follow up last year's Instant Vintage studio album. ... Natural Selection, Fuel's first LP in three years, is slated for a September 23 release. The 11-track follow-up to Something Like Human was co-produced by Michael Beinhorn (Korn, Marilyn Manson) and will be prefaced by the single "Fall on Me." A fall tour is in the works. ...

Spiritualized's Amazing Grace will finally materialize September 9 on frontman Jason Pierce's Spaceman Records, distributed by Sanctuary Records. The 11-track follow-up to 2001's Let It Come Down had been finished for some time, though getting a distributor for the project proved difficult after ties were severed with Arista Records. ...

06.23.03

Mary J. Blige and Usher have been added to the list of presenters for Tuesday's BET Awards, airing live at 8 p.m. ET from Hollywood's Kodak Theatre. Mo'Nique, star of the UPN comedy "The Parkers," is hosting the show, which will include performances by 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Nelly and others. On the eve of the BET Awards, Da Brat will headline a party for Smooth magazine at Hollywood hotspot Club A.D. ...

Ruben Studdard, who will also appear at the BET Awards, and Clay Aiken are now set to release their debut albums on the same date: August 19. Aiken's single outsold Studdard's when they were released simultaneously last week. ... And in other "American Idol" news, creator Simon Fuller is planning to make "World Idol," which will feature winners from different "Idol" shows from around the globe competing against each other for the "World Idol" title. ...

Wes Borland is recording four songs with frequent Nine Inch Nails collaborator Danny Lohner for the forthcoming Kate Beckinsale vampires-versus-werewolves movie, "Underworld," and is also working with the Crystal Method and Filter's Richard Patrick on material that may turn up elsewhere. The former Limp Bizkit axeman recently returned from London, where he met with several potential vocalists for the still singer-less Eat the Day. "We have it narrowed down to a short list of U.K. vocalists," Borland wrote on the band's Web site, "and we'll be flying them out one a time over the next few weeks." ...

A fetish for fashion inspired Eve to found a clothing company. Fetish by Eve, a clothing line for juniors and women, is expected to launch in select stores this fall. ... Actress and Janis Joplin fan Renée Zellweger has been tapped to portray the late rock singer in the biopic "Piece of My Heart." Filming is scheduled to begin early next year after Zellweger, who will also co-produce the flick, wraps the sequel to "Bridget Jones's Diary." Others who were reportedly contending for the part include Brittany Murphy and Melissa Etheridge. ...

Michelle Branch covers "Strange" and Norah Jones offers a rendition of "Why Can't He Be You" for Remembering Patsy Cline, an 11-track tribute to the country legend due September 9. Others paying homage to the singer, who died in a plane crash 40 years ago, include Amy Grant, k.d. lang and Diana Krall, who covers Cline's most well-known song, "Crazy," which was written by Willie Nelson. ... Dido has set a September 9 release date for her second album, Life for Rent. "White Flag" is the first single. ...

SWV's Tamara "Taj" Johnson and Tennessee Titans running back Eddie George have announced that they will be married in the summer of 2004. ...

The Mars Volta will embark on a U.S. headlining tour starting at the Henry Fonda Theater in Los Angeles on July 1 in support of their Rick Rubin-produced full-length debut, De-Loused in the Comatorium, which features contributions from Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea. The band, which includes former At the Drive-In members Omar Rodriquez and Cedric Bixler, previously pulled out of a tour with the Chili Peppers and Snoop Dogg following the death of friend, frequent collaborator and former De Facto member, Jeremy Ward. ... The debut album by Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan's side project To My Surprise is slated for an October release on Roadrunner Records. Produced by Rick Rubin, the LP was recorded in Los Angeles earlier this year. ...

The Rolling Stones will headline a free outdoor concert July 30 in Toronto aimed at repairing the city's economy in the wake of a SARS outbreak there earlier in the year. The show will be held in the docklands area of the city and will feature several opening acts. ... Politically conscious melodic hardcore band Boy Sets Fire have parted ways with bassist Rob Avery, replacing him with former guitar tech/ My Hero Died Today member Robert Ehrenbrand. The long-running Delaware group will resume touring in support of Tomorrow Come Today, their first album for the Wind-Up label, later this month. ...

• A Perfect Circle
• Backstreet Boys
• Foo Fighters
• Sonic Youth
• Days of the New

Raphael Saadiq
Photo: Universal

The Grammys are still more than a month away, but Raphael Saadiq says he already feels like he's won.

"Selling only 168,000 copies without a push from a record company, to be nominated five times, that was winning to me," the singer said Tuesday.

Saadiq got nods for his solo album, Instant Vintage (Best R&B Album), the single "Be Here" (Best R&B Song and Best Urban/Alternative Performance), and his writing and production on Erykah Badu's "Love of My Life (An Ode To Hip Hop)" (Best R&B Song and Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media). (Click here for the list of nominees and for photos of this year's Grammy nominees and performers.)

"Just the Erykah [song] shooting up the charts is like, 'Wow,' " he said. "We did it in a couple of days and she did some production on it too. It was just a cool collabo. Everything happened in the right pattern. It's amazing how everything could fall into place. She had some ideas she wanted to use. We came up with some chords, beats. I played the little funky bassline on it.

"She was like, 'I want to hear one of your flutes,' " he continued. "She took it to Dallas and put flutes on it. The lyrics, that was actually her too. You can never tell what's on Erykah's mind. With somebody like Erykah, you want to set a foundation for them, you don't want to paint a picture for them. I think it's better to collaborate."

Raph, who just parted ways with Universal Records, has been so busy writing and producing for other artists, he said he hasn't had time to secure another record deal, let alone begin work on his next album. He's planning to begin working on LPs by T-Boz and Erykah Badu in the next few months and has already been held up in the studio with Nappy Roots, Jaguar Wright and D'Angelo.

"We're like brothers," he said of D'Angelo, who also sings on "Be Here." "It's every day getting up and hanging. For somebody else it might be work, but me and him have been working together since [D'Angelo's 1995 LP,] Brown Sugar. It's like a day of playing ball for me."

He describes his fellow soul man's new album as "real meaty, real phat. A real nice piece. Everything he sings just sounds good. We're like kindred spirits. It sounds like D., classic D."

"I want to work with the Dres of the world — Dr. Dre and Outkast['s Dre]," he continued. "Mary J. and Stevie Wonder, that's just somebody you have to touch, even if it never comes out. I just got to hear it."

Although Saadiq said he'll always work with Joi, he ruled out reforming Lucy Pearl or Tony, Toni, Toné, but he promised that the public will be hearing him in another trio.

"I like groups," he explained. "It's fun to get people in a room and just create. It would be a whole new thing. It will probably be me, Mos Def and somebody else."

For more Grammy news, check out the MTV News Grammy Archive.

• Raphael Saadiq

Avril Lavigne, John Mayer, and Nelly announce 2003 Grammy nominations
Photo: MTV News

When nominations for the 45th annual Grammy Awards were announced Tuesday morning, reactions ranged from sincere congratulations to "What were they thinking?" (Click here for the list of nominees.)

Few readers writing to MTVNews.com's You Tell Us forum had sour sentiments about demure Norah Jones, the jazz-influenced singer/pianist who's got a chance to sweep the four biggest categories — Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year and Best New Artist (see "Eminem, Avril Lavigne, Nelly, Norah Jones Nab Most Grammy Noms"). Jones is also among the eight artists who garnered five nominations. (Click for photos of this year's Grammy nominees.)

"I'm sooo happy for [Norah Jones]," wrote 18-year-old Lexi, from Seattle. "I know many people haven't heard her music, but those who have know how great it is. Big ups to the critics for giving this girl the credit she deserves."

Jones' Come Away With Me faces stiff competition from The Rising, Bruce Springsteen's return to form, and, to a lesser extent, The Eminem Show. Although the mainstream seems to have embraced the volatile rapper, with hardly a protest over his third major-label album or his fictionalized biopic "8 Mile," the Grammys might not be ready to bestow such a prestigious honor to a man who had a hit with a song that talks about killing the mother of his child and stuffing her in a trunk.

Then again, Eminem already has five golden gramophones in his trophy case (though none in the big four categories), and the Recording Academy did grant an Album of the Year Grammy to Steely Dan in 2001, for Two Against Nature, which featured the song "Cousin Dupree," about incest. But old guards like Donald Fagen and Walter Becker have always had Grammy odds in their favor, which is why Springsteen stands such a good shot. And even if The Eminem Show doesn't win for Album of the Year and "Without Me" doesn't lay claim to Record of the Year, Eminem is likely to make good on at least one of his other three nominations.

While Jones stands as the artist with the smallest presence at radio compared with fellow new-artist nominees R&B songbird Ashanti, singer/songwriter Michelle Branch, sensitive guy John Mayer and pop-rocker Avril Lavigne, most of you think the latter stands as her fiercest competition.

"I think Avril Lavigne definitely deserves Best New Artist," wrote 14-year-old Ashley of Thief River Falls, Minnesota. "She's worked so hard and accomplished so much this year."

"There is no doubt that Avril Lavigne should win Best New Artist," echoed 14-year-old Danielle, from Somerset, New Jersey. "She writes her own music, had three top 40 songs in 2002, sold over 4 million copies of her debut, Let Go, and hates Britney Spears. What more could you want in a Best New Artist?"

While statistics may garner gold records, they don't necessarily translate to a Grammy. Awards are (theoretically) doled out to those who demonstrate genuine artistry in their work. And that's Avril Lavigne, isn't it?

"Avril has no business being nominated for as much as she was," disagreed 19-year-old Andrea. "As far as music and creativity go, Britney is more creative — and you know that's a stretch, especially since Britney is nothing but manufactured bubble gum. Avril may have had something going with her and her ties but let's face it, MTV, that's all she has had."

After yesterday's announcement of the nominations, Lavigne has a lot more attached to her, namely a monumental mistake when she mispronounced David Bowie's last name. When reading the list of artists up for the Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, she mispronounced Bowie as "bow-wie" (rhymes with oh, wowee!). An unnerving hush immediately enveloped Madison Square Garden.

"Am I the only person who realizes what a poser Avril Lavigne is?" queried 22-year-old Kim, from Denver. "First of all, she botched the pronunciation of David Bowie, one of the most influential musicians of our time. ... Does Avril know anything about music? ... My point is, although everyone seems to be touting Avril Lavigne as some new prodigy, the fact is that she is not a true musician or artist and is just as fake and untalented as Britney Spears."

And here we thought Avril was the anti-Britney.

While Mayer's the only guy among the gals in the Best New Artist pack, his fans warn not to count him out just because he's outnumbered.

"John Mayer deserves to win the Grammy for Best New Artist," declared 18-year-old Tiffany Johnson, from Austin, Texas. "He is just on a different level from the rest of the nominees. The guy is brilliant."

Nelly, who's up for Album of the Year, Best Male Rap Solo Performance and Best Rap Album honors, among others, is feeling the brunt of haters. For the nearly 5 million copies of Nellyville sold, the St. Louis rapper seems to have just as many, if not more, detractors.

"I want to know what the Grammy folks see in Nelly," demanded 19-year-old Jason Curtis of Seattle. "Everyone is hypnotized by his so-called 'skills,' which are by no means good. As far as I'm concerned, Nelly doesn't deserve a Grammy."

It wasn't all trash talk directed at the St. Louis rapper, however. Many have their fingers crossed that the Band-Aid bearing MC will leave with even more gold than he came in with.

"I'm really anticipating seeing Nelly take home the Grammy for best album," wrote 14-year-old Linzi, from Sandusky, Michigan. "I mean, his music is totally hot, and I'm pretty sure that I don't know anyone who isn't into Nelly."

Linzi, meet 21-year-old James, from New Haven, Connecticut.

"It is clear once again that the awards honor what is popular, not what is good," James began. "Nelly has sunk so far down in the talent pool that he's left rapping about sneakers and some sort of heat wave that has apparently swept Nellyville. Talk about meaningless music. Seriously, if it's that hot in 'herre,' then drink a glass of water. Don't make a freakin' song about it."

Fellow hip-hopper Petey Pablo, up for Best Rap Album with Diary of a Sinner: 1st Entry, faced some harsh reactions, with fellow nominee Mystikal also catching some heat.

"I am very upset to see that Pete Pablo has been nominated for Best Rap Album," expressed 25-year-old Curtis, from Tallahassee, Florida. "Also, Mystikal's Tarantula album was very disappointing. How come someone like Trick Daddy or Cee-Lo never gets nominated? He is pure trash, and I understand why people like Jay-Z protest the Grammys. If we want to make it mainstream for all these old white people, let's nominate Will Smith. Even though his album sold probably 200 copies, he does not curse."

Such outrage over those who were nominated couldn't rival the furor over those who were left out: uber-producers the Neptunes and anyone from the neo-garage school, such as the Hives, the Vines, the Strokes or the White Stripes.

"How did Dr. Dre get nominated in the Producer of the Year category, while the Neptunes were ignored?" wondered Venni, 18, from Blacksburg, Virginia. "Dre didn't do anything in 2002. Every single song on the radio was produced by the Neptunes."

OK, Venni may be exaggerating a bit, though Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo are responsible for Justin Timberlake's "Like I Love You," Nelly's "Hot in Herre" and Mystikal's "Bouncin' Back (Bumpin' Me Against the Wall)," all of which are Grammy-nominated.

"I'm surprised the new 'the' bands didn't get major nods," typed an aghast CJ, 18, from Newmarket, New Hampshire. "I'm sad that the White Stripes were shafted, when overrated Avril Lavigne gets all the credit. Well, the Grammys are pretty lame either way."

If the nominations aroused such fervent feelings in these folks, they'd better be prepared for the shock of February 23. While some surprises can be expected with the nods, utter jaw-droppers like the over-the-hill Jethro Tull winning for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance in 1988 are unmatched.

Stay tuned and stay calm.

For a look back at previous big Grammy winners, red carpet photos and much more, visit our Grammy News Archive.

• Eminem
• Norah Jones
• Nelly
• Dixie Chicks
• Bruce Springsteen

Nelly
Photo: Universal

With eight artists grabbing five nominations each, this year's Grammy Awards looks to be one of the most competitive in the ceremony's 45 years. (Click here for the list of nominees and for photos of this year's Grammy nominees and performers.)

Three relative newcomers, Ashanti, Norah Jones and Avril Lavigne, join Sheryl Crow, Eminem, Nelly, Raphael Saadiq and Bruce Springsteen as the artists with the greatest chances of leaving New York's Madison Square Garden on February 23 with the most golden gramophones in their arms.

All eyes will be on Norah Jones, who stands to reign supreme on Grammy night with four of her five nominations arriving in the big four categories: Best New Artist; Album of the Year, for Come Away With Me; and Song of the Year (given to the songwriter Jesse Harris) and Record of the Year for "Don't Know Why." Jones and her full-length debut album also received nods in the categories Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Best Pop Vocal Album, and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, while the LP's producer, Arif Mardin, scored one in the Producer of the Year, Non-Classical category to give the Norah Jones camp a whopping eight nominations combined.

Eminem, Nelly, Springsteen and Lavigne received two nods apiece for the big awards. Em's "Without Me" is up for Record of the Year, along with Nelly's "Dilemma" (which features Kelly Rowland), Nickelback's "How You Remind Me" and Vanessa Carlton's "A Thousand Miles." The Eminem Show will vie for Album of the Year honors against Come Away With Me, the Dixie Chicks' Home, Nelly's Nellyville and Bruce Springsteen's The Rising.

Springsteen was also nominated in the Song of the Year category for "The Rising." The Boss' tune, which resonated with many after the events of September 11, 2001, will face off against another song inspired by the tragedy, Alan Jackson's "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)."

The Best New Artist category finds John Mayer the sole male amidst a quartet of ladies, Ashanti, Michelle Branch, Jones and Lavigne, whose single "Complicated" is also up for Song of the Year. (Last year, Alicia Keys walked off with the prestigious honor. Who do you think should win Grammy's equivalent to Rookie of the Year? Take our poll.)

"Chauvinists unite!" Mayer joked at Madison Square Garden, in a half-hearted attempt to strum up support for his cause. "I'm just going to go to sports bars and lobby.

"It's cool," he continued sincerely. "I look at the list and say, 'It makes sense to me.' "

While Ashanti is likely to have her fingers crossed for the big Best New Artist win, she'll be doubly excited when the Best Rap/Sung Collaboration category is awarded. Besides receiving a nod for assisting Fat Joe with "What's Luv?" the songbird with the second-best-selling debut album of 2002 has increased her chances of winning with "Always on Time," her collaboration with Ja Rule. Ashanti likes both songs, but she looks to the phrase "blood is thicker than water" when deciding whom to root for.

"I don't necessarily have a preference, but it I had to choose, it would have to be my brother Ja," she said. "That's my family, Murder, Inc. Records."

Nominations for the 45th annual Grammy Awards were announced Tuesday (January 7) at a press conference held in Madison Square Garden. Among the artists on hand to read the roster of those hopeful for Grammy gold were Ashanti, country singer Kenny Chesney, '80s faceplate Cyndi Lauper, Avril Lavigne, John Mayer, Justin Timberlake, Nelly and producer Jimmy Jam, who filled in for a previously scheduled but absent Sean "P. Diddy" Combs.

The artists each took the podium in turn to announce the contestants for two of the categories, which made for some interesting pronunciations. Ashanti (pronounced a-shan-tee) became the faux-fabulous sounding "A-shan-tay" whenever most on hand mentioned her name; and Lavigne, in announcing the nominees for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance botched David Bowie's name, pronouncing it 'Bow-wee" (as in the dog sound "bow-wow"). The flub is not likely to go unnoticed among Lavigne's critics, and it just might go down in pop-star infamy, the way Britney Spears' remark that suggested Pat Benatar sang "I Love Rock 'N Roll," a song Joan Jett made famous, did in a fall 2001 interview.

Four nominations fell on the Dixie Chicks, Alan Jackson, R&B singer Remy Shand and Chad Kroeger, who scored one with his band Nickelback, and three others for his song "Hero," penned for the soundtrack to "Spider-Man."

Besides two in the big four, Vanessa Carlton's other nomination came in the Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s). While most categories in the Composing/Arranging field are often overlooked in favor of more artist-specific ones, the 21-year-old pianist doesn't consider her third nod to be any less important. In fact, considering that she's the only nominee who's also an artist in that category, she said she's perhaps most proud of that honor because it shows her as the well-rounded artist she is.

"I am most excited for that nomination because it is recognizing the process, something other than the vocal and the song itself," she explained. "It kind of acknowledges how the puzzle fits together. I think [Be Not Nobody] is a beautiful record and I'm really proud to know that people recognized that. I was totally surprised, though. I really was."

India.Arie, Erykah Badu, Johnny Cash, Elvis Costello, Dr. Dre, Randy Newman, Arif Mardin and No Doubt also nabbed three nominations each.

Touting over 100 categories, the Grammys is the most comprehensive music awards show, but even with classifications such as Best Polka Album (for which Jimmy Sturr's Top of the World looks to be the odds-on favorite) and Best Remixed Record, Non-Classical, there just aren't enough designations for some folks.

"Actually, one they didn't mention was best haircut-changing-style every year,' a near-bald Timberlake kidded. "I'm hoping I get the Victrola for that."

Maybe next year, Justin. In the meantime, the 'NSYNC star must be content with just one nomination, for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, for the Clipse-featured "Like I Love You," the first single from his solo debut, Justified.

Super production duo the Neptunes were puzzlingly absent from the Producer of the Year category, which instead found Dr. Dre, Nellee Hooper, Arif Mardin, Rick Rubin, and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis attempting to stake their claim to the title. After producing a number of Grammy-nominated tracks, including Timberlake's "Like I Love You," Nelly's "Hot in Herre" and Mystikal's "Bouncin' Back (Bumpin' Me Against the Wall)," it's a mystery why Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams didn't receive any love from the Recording Academy.

"For the second year in a row, can you imagine that?" Williams said of his Grammy dis. "All the work we've done? For whatever reason, nobody thought to put us on the ballot."

The 45th annual ceremony marks the Grammys' return to New York, after Los Angeles hosted the previous four events. The show will be broadcast live on CBS at 8 p.m. (ET/PT). Before the show, catch MTV's pre-show telecast "Backstage at the Grammys," airing at 7 p.m. ET.

MTV's parent company, Viacom, also owns CBS.

For more Grammy news, check out the MTV News Grammy Archive.

• Nelly
• Avril Lavigne
• Norah Jones
• Eminem
• Vanessa Carlton

Korn's Jonathan Davis
Photo: Epic

Perhaps Eminem should have given his latest album a hands-off title like Untouchables, considering that a first-week showing by the mighty Korn could not lay a finger on the rapper's four-week hold upon the top of the Billboard 200 albums chart.

The Eminem Show bested Korn's fifth album by nearly 100,000 copies, according to SoundScan figures released Wednesday (June 19), keeping Slim Shady in the #1 slot on next week's chart. Em's follow-up to 2000's The Marshall Mathers LP posts sales above the half-million mark for the third week in a row, following an abbreviated first week due to an early release (see "Eminem Does What Diddy Does ... And In A Lot Less Time"), ending the week with a tally of more than 529,000.

The figures for Korn's new opus are hardly paltry, however. Untouchables scored the second-highest opening week for the nü-metal quintet; its more than 434,000 total placing behind 1999's Issues (575,000) and above 1998's Follow the Leader (268,000).

Sticks and Stones may break their bones, but it's also shattering records for pop-punks New Found Glory. The Floridian five-piece's third album lands at #4 with more than 91,000 copies sold.

Featuring Kelly Osbourne's singing debut, a cover of Madonna's "Papa Don't Preach," the 13-track various artists LP The Osbourne Family Album will place at #13 after its first week in stores. And the latest release from chameleon of rock David Bowie, Heathen, will make an impressive inaugural showing at #14 to round out next week's top 20 chart debuts.

Further down the chart, new albums by former Tony! Toni! Tone!/Lucy Pearl member Raphael Saadiq (Instant Vintage) and Brooklyn-born rapper AZ (Aziatic) will place at #25 and #29, respectively, while the Who's most recent best-of set, the double album Ultimate Collection, finds a home at #31.

Thanks to "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" being featured on cable TV, coupled with bluegrass crooner Ralph Stanley's appearance on "The Tonight Show" and anticipation for the second go-round of the Down From the Mountain Tour, the film's soundtrack will re-enter the top 10 at #7, up from #19 and increasing its weekly total by 30,000 copies. After 77 weeks on the chart, the LP has sold more than 5.4 million copies.

The hip-hop/R&B compilation Totally Hits 2, P. Diddy & Bad Boy Records' We Invented the Remix and Ashanti's eponymous debut will each slide a step to #3, #5 and #6, respectively; while Kenny Chesney's No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems and tough girl Avril Lavigne's Let Go will take two steps back to #8 and #10. Donell Jones' Life Goes On will slip six spots to #9 to round out next week's top 10.

While 12-spot leaps come from the "O Brother" soundtrack and Alan Jackson's Drive, which moves from #24 to #12, the flipside finds Dirty Vegas' self-titled debut diving a dozen places to #19 after its second week on sale.

"O Brother" and Drive would have staked claim to the biggest top-40 chart bumps, if it weren't for those meddling kids. After a couple of weeks, the soundtrack to last weekend's #1 box office ticket, "Scooby-Doo," will jump 20 places, from #58 to #38.

Other notable chart debuts include the "Lilo & Stitch" soundtrack at #57; Widespread Panic's Live in the Classic City at #99; the "Mr. Deeds" soundtrack at #133; Daz Dillinger's This Is the Life I Lead at #134; Atmosphere's God Loves Ugly at #139; the Clarks' Another Happy Ending at #143; and the Tragically Hip's In Violet Light at #169.

For full-length features on Eminem and Korn, check out "Eminem: The Gift And The Curse" and "Korn: The Untouchables."

• Korn
• Eminem
• New Found Glory
• Kelly Osbourne
• Ozzy Osbourne

45th Annual Grammy Award Nominees, Presenters, And Performers

• Ashanti
• Norah Jones
• Avril Lavigne
• John Mayer
• Nelly