La película Snappers es una comedia romántica donde Joss Stone es la protagonista: interpreta a una actriz inglesa lesbiana, pero además compone la música para la banda de sonido. Esta cinta se estrenará en Inglaterra en septiembre y es la segunda película de Joss, quien ya había actuado en la épica Eragon, estrenada en el 2006.

Además, la cantante hará de la cuarta esposa del monarca británico Eduardo XVIII, en la popular serie de la televisión estadounidense The Tudors.

• Joss Stone

Zac Efron
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

Zac Efron is doing fine after having his appendix removed Tuesday (January 15), according to People.com. The star — who recently signed on for "High School Musical 3" — was rushed to Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after suffering from appendicitis, TMZ.com reports. "Zac had his appendix removed and is recuperating," the actor's representative, who was not named, reportedly said in a statement. ...

A very revealing photo of Heidi Montag graces the new cover of Maxim, and for the accompanying interview, she also revealed to the mag that she wants to be the next Madonna. "But it's not like with most pop artists, where they have a song sent to them that has nothing to do with their emotions or lives," she insisted about her yet-untitled, in-the-works LP. "It's all about me and my life. I'm taking my time to make sure it's a classic. I don't want to be the next pop person who's in or out. I want to be like Michael Jackson, Madonna, Stevie Wonder — all the greats." Montag also dished on new parents Nicole Richie and Joel Madden recalling that one time they "came up to [Montag's fiance,] Spencer [Pratt,] and me at the Beverly Hills Hotel [in California] and started yelling something Spencer said about Nicole in an interview, like, two years ago. ... Joel was yelling, 'You've been talking sh-- about my girl!' " ...

Madden has blogged on the Web site for his clothing company, DCMA, about arriving home with his and Richie's daughter, who was born on Friday. "Well I am finally home with my beautiful girlfriend and our brand new little daughter," the Good Charlotte frontman wrote. "Harlow Winter Kate Madden was born on January 11th 2008 at 3:13 p.m. She weighed in at 6 pounds and 7 ounces. She is 19 inches long and growing everyday already! She really is a wonderful addition to the GC/DCMA/DEADEXEC family. We are so blessed to have this beautiful little baby in our lives. I want to thank everyone for all the love and kind words they've sent our way. We apologize we weren't accepting gifts/cards/calls at the hospital, but if you'd like to send something, we'd rather you make a donation to the Richie-Madden Foundation, which we started in Harlow Winter's honor. She looks so much like her mom it's crazy! She eats like a little maniac and she's really sweet. She barely ever cries, even when daddy is changing her diaper, and believe me I suck when it comes to diapers, but I'm learning! I can't wait to show off some pictures, until then, THANKS!! and GOD BLESS... Joel." ...

From an "Umbrella" to a handbag: Rihanna has made a match with Marc Jacobs as she and the fashion designer have partnered to produce a new pair of purses named after the leggy singer. The two models are available as a part of Jacobs' spring line. ... Missy Elliott has stepped up with two new tunes for the February 5 soundtrack to "Step Up 2 the Streets." The MC's "Ching-A-Ling" — which is already sizzling in the streets — and "Shake Your Pom Pom" will appear on the soundtrack, and might resurface on her yet-untitled new LP, due in May. The soundtrack also features Cassie, who stars in "Step Up 2 the Streets," as well as T-Pain, Flo Rida, Trey Songz, Plies and Scarface. ...

Twista has inked a deal with Koch to release a project with his longtime group, the Speedknot Mobstaz. The Mobstaz's forthcoming sophomore album, Mobstability II: Nation Bizness, is set to feature Jim Jones and production by Cuzzo and China White Productions. ... The Grammys will not be getting a free pass from the Writers Guild of America. The Los Angeles Times reports that the Grammys have not asked for a special waiver to allow striking Guild employees to work on the show, but even if they did request one, it would not likely be granted. In addition, a number of top musicians who also have Screen Actors Guild cards, including Justin Timberlake and Queen Latifah, are being lobbied by the WGA not to attend the February 10 show, according to AdAge.com. ...

In a $35 million lawsuit filed on Monday, Victory Records claimed that Virgin/EMI "improperly induced" Hawthorne Heights to disregard their contract with the independent Chicago label. In a news release on the suit, Victory also claimed that Virgin/EMI paid $55,000 to the band, which used the money to fund the initial phase of a 2006 lawsuit against Victory, and helped the bandmembers search for a music-industry lawyer to help them with their legal action. "The facts alleged in this case demonstrate classic interference with contractual and business relations," Victory lawyer Robert Meloni said. "They did more than merely offer a carrot to the band, but also saddled the horse, paid for a rider to take the reins, and led it out of the barn." The suit seeks $10 million in compensation and $25 million in punitive damages for Virgin/EMI's "willful, wanton and deliberate conduct." Victory maintains that HH owe the label two more albums, but the band, which lost guitarist Casey Calvert in November after a fatal drug interaction, has vowed not to record for Victory again. ...

Rancid fans, time to grow those Mohawks back — the band started recording new material in a California studio on Monday. The punks' yet-unnamed follow-up to 2003's Indestructible is due later this year, on guitarist Brett Gurewitz's Epitaph/Hellcat label, of course. ... Tiger Army have welcomed an old comrade back into their ranks. Stand-up-bass player Geoff Kresge, who toured with the psychobilly band from 1999-2004 — and who also has a stint with AFI on his résumé — replaces Jeff Roffredo, who "left the band on good terms to pursue other interests," according to a press release from the band's publicist. Tiger Army hit the road earlier this week and have a heap of shows planned for throughout the year. ...

Now that Marilyn Manson and Twiggy Ramirez have reconciled, what better way to celebrate than with some concerts? Manson has tacked on a few more to his upcoming trek, which starts Saturday in Orlando, Florida. The newly added gigs will be staged in Phoenix (February 27); Dallas (February 29); Austin, Texas (March 1); and Houston (March 2). Veteran rock act Ours will be the opening act on the tour, according to Pollstar.com. ... Here's a novel idea: Yellowcard are giving fans who buy the rockers' Live From Las Vegas at the Palms release an early chance at getting tix to one of their upcoming shows. The iTunes exclusive will be available starting January 22, and fans who snatch it up before January 29 will get a Ticketmaster code allowing them to nab up to four tickets for the band's trek, which starts March 7 in Salt Lake City and ends April 12 in Los Angeles. From Las Vegas at the Palms immortalizes Yellowcard's show at the Palms Casino Resort's Pearl venue in October. ...

EMI — home to Coldplay, the Rolling Stones and other acts — will slash a third of its work force, or 1,500-2,000 jobs, over the course of the next months, multiple outlets reported Tuesday. According to the Web site for England's Telegraph, the reunited Verve could be the next major group to withhold its upcoming album in light of the major-label shake-up. The paper reports that the Verve may join Robbie Williams and Coldplay in threatening to hold onto their next albums unless they receive assurances about the company's financial health and how their albums will be marketed. The company's new boss, Guy Hands, was reportedly to be grilled by the managers of some of the label's top acts on Tuesday as he revealed plans for streamlining the company. ...

"American Idol" judge Randy Jackson is known for name-dropping, but his new album, Music Club Vol. 1, might finally back up some of his boasting. Jackson's upcoming solo album, due March 11, will feature pals ranging from Mariah Carey and Joss Stone to Jason Mraz, former "Idol" contestants Elliott Yamin and Katharine McPhee and country star Travis Tritt. Fellow judge Paula Abdul will be featured on "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow," her first new recording in more than a decade. Last week, TVGuide.com reported that Jackson and Abdul had been rehearsing a video for the single, and that she was in talks to perform it at the Super Bowl on February 3. Also included on the album are Van Hunt, Three 6 Mafia, Angie Stone, Richie Sambora and Keb' Mo'. ...

My Morning Jacket are going big time: The longhaired Kentucky rockers will headline a show at New York's Radio City Music Hall on June 20. The band's yet-untitled album will drop 10 days earlier. ... Noise Pop just got a bit noisier. The Walkmen, the Dodos, MSTRKRFT, Stellastarr and the Helio Sequence have climbed onto the roster for the San Francisco fest, which is happening February 26-March 2. Jamie Kennedy's comedic documentary "Heckler" — which features George Lucas, Rob Zombie, David Cross and others — will open the Film Festival portion of the event. ... Carla Bruni has been making headlines lately amid her high-profile romance with French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Now the chanteuse can parlay that attention into promotion for the wide release of No Promises, an album that is currently only available Stateside on iTunes and at Barnes & Noble stores. The disc — which is being issued through Downtown Records, home to Gnarls Barkley and Spank Rock, and pays tribute to English-language literary legends — will hit retail stores nationwide February 19.

1.14.08

Nearly six years after the alleged sex tape first surfaced, the court proceedings in the R. Kelly case continue to move at a snail's pace. The prosecutors originally sought to have testimony from one expert witness, Dr. Sharon Cooper, cover several different areas — the age of the girl on the tape based on forensic pediatrics, the identification of the man on the tape based on the vein pattern on his hands, and the behavior profile of the girl based on the psychology of child sex-abuse victims. Judge Vincent Gaughan had previously ruled that Dr. Cooper could testify about the victim's age, but not the behavior profile, so prosecutors had asked him to reconsider. At a hearing on Monday (January 14), Gaughan ruled once again that Dr. Cooper would not be able to testify about why the girl in the case would deny that she was a victim, or how common denial is in sex-abuse cases. Kelly is due back in court March 12 for another pre-trial hearing, while the trial itself is slated to start on May 9. ...

And the Wu-Tang Clan infighting goes on. U-God — who complained about RZA being callous toward him in the studio nearly four years ago — is now suing Wu's label, alleging that he is owed $170,000, according to TMZ.com. U-God (born Lamont Hawkins) reportedly filed papers in a New York district court, alleging that Wu Music owes him money for services rendered dating back to March of last year. Wu Music is licensed to Universal Music. ...

Paula Abdul doesn't just have the seventh season of "American Idol" on her mind these days. "I want kids!" the singer recently told Ladies' Home Journal for its February issue. "If it doesn't happen naturally, I can always adopt." The 45-year-old Abdul opened up even more about her personal life, saying of 32-year-old boyfriend J.T. Torregiani, "I've experienced real loneliness, so I love knowing there's someone I can share the good and the not-so-good with." ... Everyone's wondering how the seventh season of "Idol" is going to fare in light of some retooling and the writers' strike, but if you ask Chris Daughtry, the show is "in a state of decline." The Daughtry frontman recently spoke with RollingStone.com about the show, adding that if it doesn't right itself, "it's probably not gonna last too much longer. I'm sure that'll be used against me, but that's the truth, you know?" He also said the show is "definitely lacking some credibility at this point." ...

White Stripes, Foo Fighters, Kings of Leon, Mark Ronson, Klaxons, Arctic Monkeys, Kaiser Cheifs and recent MTV Artist of the Week Kate Nash have all landed Brit Award nominations, although Leona Lewis, Mika and Take That have scored the most, with four apiece. Rihanna, Ronson, Kaiser Chiefs, Kylie Minogue and Paul McCartney are slated to perform at the February 20 ceremony. ... R.E.M. have pulled the curtains back on a new Web site surrounding the April 1 release of their 14th studio album, Accelerate. Their NinetyNights.com Web site has daily high-definition-video snippets shot by Arcade Fire collaborator Vincent Moon ...

Björk attacked a newspaper photographer who was attempting to take her picture at the Auckland International Airport on Sunday, according to reports in the New Zealand press. The singer, who was flying in to perform at the Big Day Out concert on Friday, reportedly ripped New Zealand Herald photographer Glenn Jeffrey's shirt after he snapped a photo of her. Jeffrey told the New Zealand Press Association that he was warned by a man traveling with Björk not to take her picture, and once he did, the singer came up behind him, grabbed the back of his shirt and tore it before tumbling to the ground. In 1996, Björk attacked a reporter in an airport in Bangkok, Thailand, after she objected to being photographed. ... The Walkmen and White Rabbits will hop along the U.S. this month for nine shows. On the itinerary are Pittsburgh (Wednesday); Detroit (Thursday); Milwaukee (Friday); Madison, Wisconsin (Saturday); Chicago (Sunday); St. Louis (January 21); Columbus, Ohio (January 22); Philadelphia (January 23); and Baltimore (January 24). ...

For the first time in 25 years, former Clash members Mick Jones and Topper Headon reportedly shared the same stage at a gig by Jones' new band, Carbon/Silicon. The duo performed "Train in Vain" and "Should I Stay or Should I Go?" during the set. ... Megadeth have recruited Chris Broderick (Nevermore, Jag Panzer) to be their newest guitarist, following the recent departure of Glen Drover. Broderick will make his live debut with the band on February 4, at a gig in Finland. ...

Quiet Riot drummer Frankie Banali said the band will not be revived following the late November death of frontman Kevin DuBrow. In an online statement, Banali claims he had been "approached to see if I would be interested in contacting Rudy Sarzo and Carlos Cavazo and to audition singers for Quiet Riot." He said that he's even fielded an offer to re-form "the version of Quiet Riot that included Paul Shortino, Carlos Cavazo and Sean McNabb." But Banali rejected any suggestions of the band performing live. "My friendship, love and respect for Kevin DuBrow, as well as my personal love and affection for Kevin's mother and his family, makes it inconceivable for me to ever entertain any ovation to re-form or to continue Quiet Riot," he wrote. "It would also be a disrespect to the fans who have supported [the band] for nearly 25 years." ...

Roger Avary, the Oscar-winning co-writer of "Pulp Fiction," was arrested on Sunday after a fatal single-car crash in Ojai, California. According to a Reuters report, Avary, 42, was charged with vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence, and was released from jail after posting $50,000 bail. Andreas Zedini, a 34-year-old passenger in the car, died of his injuries at a local hospital. Avary's wife, Gretchen, 40, was taken to a local hospital with serious injuries after being thrown from the car.

• Heidi Montag Poses For Maxim

• Good Charlotte
• Justin Timberlake
• Queen Latifah
• Hawthorne Heights
• The Verve

Sean Penn
Photo: Philip Cheung/ Getty Images

The raging Southern California wildfires that intensified over the weekend are threatening the homes of a number of stars who reside in Malibu. Mel Gibson, Jennifer Aniston, Tom Hanks, Courteney Cox and David Arquette, James Cameron, Sean Penn and Robin Wright Penn, Rob Reiner, David Geffen, David Duchovny, Mark Hamill, Olivia Newton-John and Bill Murray are among the stars who have been evacuated or whose homes are potentially in jeopardy. ...

Fall Out Boy have "an album's worth of material" good to go but aren't ready to put out their fifth LP just quite yet, frontman Patrick Stump told Billboard.com. "There's always something that hits me, like a sense of urgency — now is the time for an album — and we're not there yet," he said. "I just get this kind of wanderlust of some kind to go back into a studio. It's always a very defined point." Stump added that the band's Infinity on High, which came out in February, hasn't worn out its welcome yet. "I don't really feel like we're done with this one yet," he said. "I feel like it's still in its cycle. There's a lot of songs on it I'm really proud of." Meanwhile, in regards to the new material, Stump said there are "lots of bizarre ideas" in the mix, "everything from folk to ... actually, I was experimenting with piano phases, like Steve Reich, the composer. There'll be some weird stuff, but at the end of the day, it's probably just gonna be a pop record." Stump also said he recently filmed a guest spot for an episode of "Law & Order" that will air in February. ...

Beyoncé's tour comes to a close November 12 in Taiwan — so, fittingly, she's decided to put out a concert DVD eight days later. "The Beyoncé Experience Live!," recorded at Los Angeles' Staples Center on September 2, features her performances of "Survivor" with the reunited Destiny's Child and "Upgrade U" with beau Jay-Z. It has more than two hours' worth of content in total. ... Tool's long-promised "Vicarious" DVD will be in stores December 18 and include an extended cut of the video for the title track, bonus material and special packaging. ...

The jury trial of Vincent "Don Vito" Margera — Bam Margera's uncle — on two counts of sexual assault on a child is slated to begin Tuesday. Margera is on trial for allegedly groping three underage girls at an autograph signing in August 2006 in Colorado. The jury in the trial was slated to be seated on Monday (October 22), according to a court spokesperson. ...

Ozzy Osbourne has heart — he's donating all his net profits from his November 30 show at Los Angeles' Staples Center, including ticket sales and merch, to the Sharon Osbourne Colon Cancer Program run by his wife. ... Korn frontman Jonathan Davis has beefed up his upcoming solo tour with additional dates — the trek will get under way November 9 in Hartford, Connecticut, and run through December 11 in Las Vegas. In related news, ex-Sevendust guitarist Clint Lowery is now an ex-Korn guitarist too. He has been replaced by Shane Gibson after being forced to leave the band's current "B---h We Have a Problem" run due to a family emergency. ...

Want to get your hands on some Gorillaz stickers, badges and a "Choose Pazuzu" patch? Then make sure to pick up the special-edition version of their upcoming D-Sides collection, which has bumped from a November 6 release date November 20. The special set will also come in a glossy box and have two exclusive prints by Gorillaz co-creator Jamie Hewlett. ... The ever-outlandish Mars Volta fans are going to be required to wear costumes to the one-off show they'll play at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco on New Year's Eve. The band's next album, The Bedlam in Goliath, drops January 29. ...

The hip-hop promoter who was allegedly attacked by three of Diddy's bodyguards reportedly served the hip-hop mogul on Friday with papers over the rough-up, although they were reportedly having none of it. According to TMZ, James Waldon tried to hand Diddy papers at his Sean Jean store in New York, but his bodyguards apparently smacked them to the ground before eventually retrieving them. They reportedly chased away Waldon, who alleges in his $5 million suit that three of Diddy's bodyguards attacked him after he chatted with the Bad Boy boss at the Box nightclub in New York. ... Relient K have parted ways with drummer Dave Douglas, who will bolt after the group's tour winds down in late December, it was revealed in a Friday post on the band's Web site. No explanation has been given for the departure of Douglas, who had been in Relient K for seven years. Douglas was quoted in the post as saying he will be devoting most of his time to his Gypsy Parade project. ...

Seems there's trouble in the world of CKY. Apparently a physical altercation recently broke out between various members of the group, and they've taken to MySpace to air their dirty laundry. In a post from guitarist Chad Ginsburg, he claims he broke his foot at a gig in St. Louis, and that frontman Deron Miller "has quit CKY to pursue his own band." He added that he, along with drummer Jess Margera, will carry on as CKY. Of course, Miller has a different side to the story. He claims he didn't quit the band, but, "after the San Diego show, I started getting really depressed and couldn't eat or sleep, so of course, I started drinking more and more moderately." According to Miller, he overheard several of his bandmates talking smack about him in St. Louis, and heard some "extremely personal, painful things that were mostly untrue and stupid." Miller said he confronted the rest of the band, after which "a fight broke out. I slapped Jess' hat off of his head and [Miller was jumped] after I put on my backpack to leave the bus." He said he left the band's tour to "detox" and is considering returning to the fold "if I can get and return some apologies, because let's face it, CKY [carrying on] would both be laughable and illegal." Miller also warned that if any of the songs he wrote for the band's forthcoming album end up on the LP, he'd take legal action. ...

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie can't get enough of each other — the couple are putting together a series for HBO, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The two are creating their first production project, a drama that will chronicle workers in an international aid organization who are assigned to dangerous areas. The series doesn't have a name yet, but it will be written by Scott Burns, who produced Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" and co-wrote "The Bourne Ultimatum." ...

Cake are hitting the road for the latest edition of their Unlimited Sunshine Tour series in support of their recently released B-Sides and Rarities compilation. The tour, which kicks off November 28 with a show in Anaheim, California, will also feature performances by Brazilian Girls, Detroit Cobras, Oakley Hall, King City and Agent Ribbons. ...

Kate Hudson and Chris Robinson's divorce is almost officially over — the ex-couple have filed their divorce papers in Los Angeles County Superior Court, according to TMZ. A judge might sign off on the papers later Monday. Robinson filed for divorce in November, and he will share joint custody with Hudson of their only child, son Ryder. ... Lance Hahn, the J Church bassist who also originally fronted the San Francisco punk band, died Sunday from complications arising from kidney disease, according to Austin360.com. He was 40. In July, a tribute album called Let's Do It for Lance! was released to help raise money so Hahn, who had no health insurance, could pay his medical bills. ...

It was a scary moment for punk godmother Patti Smith during a show at Shepherd's Bush Empire in London on Sunday, when the 60-year-old singer took a fall and almost hit the edge of the stage during a show, according to a report. During an encore of her signature tune "Rock N Roll N-----," England's NME reports that Smith tripped on a speaker and fell on her face, cutting her elbow and laying on the ground for a few "agonizing" seconds. Smith allegedly joked about the fall, saying, "I'm not even f---ing embarrassed because I've done far worse," perhaps alluding to the scary fall she took in 1977 in Tampa, Florida, when she tripped off a stage and broke two vertebrae in her neck. ...

Country legend Porter Wagoner has been diagnosed with lung cancer and has been hospitalized in serious condition in Nashville, according to The Associated Press. Wagoner, 80, known for his rhinestone-dripping stage outfits and blond pompadour, is a Country Music Hall of Famer whose hits include "Misery Loves Company," "Green, Green Grass of Home" and "Skid Row Joe." He helped launch the career of Dolly Parton when he hired her as a duet partner in 1967, and Parton has said she wrote the smash hit "I Will Always Love You" (famously covered by Whitney Houston) in Wagoner's honor. ...

Police in Johannesburg, South Africa, have arrested five people in connection with the murder of reggae singer Lucky Dube, who was shot and killed during an attempted carjacking on Thursday. Reuters reports that the men were arrested in an early morning raid on Sunday, during which stolen goods were found in the house in which they were captured.

10.19.07

If you thought Jay-Z was a little premature in announcing his "retirement" four years ago, you're not alone. The hip-hop mogul admits in a new interview with XXL that he "pulled the retirement ripcord too many times." He added, "I want to never say that again. ... People looking at me like, 'Please shut up.' I was looking at [my retirement movie] 'Fade to Black' the other day. I was embarrassed. I couldn't watch. I'm not playing with you. I had to turn it off. I was cringing." On November 6, Jay-Z will issue American Gangster LP — the second album he has put out since making the "retirement" announcement in 2003. ...

Prosecutors in Philadelphia have withdrawn charges against Beanie Sigel after the rapper resolved a dispute over a rental car he had kept long past its return date, The Associated Press reports. Sigel (born Dwight Grant) had rented a 2007 Nissan Altima from Payless Car Rental in July but didn't return the vehicle by its August 13 due date. He also failed to contact the rental company. The car was reported stolen September 6 and was later returned October 5, just as detectives headed to Sigel's home to inquire about the car. Sigel has accumulated $5,000 in late fees, but he has since paid them, which caused prosecutors to withdraw the charges. ...

A Kurt Cobain biopic based on "Heavier Than Heaven," the widely praised 2001 biography of the late Nirvana singer written by Seattle journalist Charles Cross, will be executive produced by Cobain's widow, Courtney Love, according to Variety. The script for the yet-untitled film is slated to be written by "Kite Runner" screenwriter David Benioff, and Universal Pictures is funding the film. The producers have not addressed whether they have the rights to Nirvana's music for the film or which parts of Cobain's life it will cover. ...

Naomi Watts has officially pecked her way into the "Birds" remake, Variety reports. The actress is the first castmember to be announced for the new take on the Alfred Hitchcock classic, while "Casino Royale" director Martin Campbell is reportedly in talks to helm the flick, which will be produced by Michael Bay and is eyeing a 2009 theatrical release. Watts will play Melanie Daniels, a role originally taken on by Tippi Hedren, who recently sounded off to MTV about her distaste for the controversial project. ... What would Fashion Week in Southern California be like without Paris Hilton? The heiress helped close out Petro Zillia's closing show, dubbed "So L.A.," Thursday night in Culver City — although she apparently missed her sister Nicky's spring Chick collection earlier in the week. ...

Bruce Springsteen, Joss Stone, KT Tunstall, Bob Dylan and others are featured on Serve2, a recently released Hard Rock International compilation disc that benefits the Artists Against Hunger & Poverty arm of the World Hunger Year project. Unreleased tracks by those artists — plus Mat Kearney, O.A.R., the Hold Steady and more — will be featured on the set, which is available at Hard Rock Cafes. ... In addition to reuniting for some upcoming shows in November, it appears the Verve have been busy cooking up some new tunes, with the possibility of a new album in 2008. Bassist Simon Jones wrote in his blog that among the band's first new tracks in a decade are the songs "Sit and Wonder," "Judas," "Appalachian Springs," "Mona Lisa" and "Rather Be." ... U.K. shoegazers Swervedriver are also re-forming, bringing their 10-year hiatus to a close. The group is planning a worldwide tour for early next year. ... American Music Club will deliver The Golden Age — their second post-reunion effort, in fact — February 5. The track list hasn't been revealed yet. ...

Hellyeah have set November 13 as the release date for "Below the Belt," their new live DVD. The set will feature footage from the day the hard-rockers got together for the first time, along with performance footage from the making of their album, their first studio sessions and live clips from their world tour. The DVD will also boast personal interviews, as well as a few surprises. ... Irate Aerosmith fans are filing a lawsuit against the band for nixing its September 26 concert on the Hawaiian island of Maui last month, according to The Honolulu Advertiser. The class-action suit claims the band bailed from the sold-out show so it could play a bigger one in Chicago instead; that the late cancellation was unnecessary; and that it caused many fans to lose money they spent — somewhere between $500,000 and $3 million in total — on plane tickets, car rentals and hotels. The suit was filed on behalf of all ticket holders, and, under state law, plaintiffs could be eligible for triple their losses in damages and up to $5,000 if age 62 or over. ...

Stone Roses mastermind Ian Brown is giving his music a classical makeover by enlisting an orchestra to rework his hits. The singer's fifth solo release, The World Is Yours, was released last month, and Brown plans to play a set of classical concerts to put an interesting twist on his famous works. More details will be revealed in the coming weeks. ... Eels are putting out a 10th anniversary best-of set and a collection of rarities, both of which will feature a DVD and land in stores January 15. The sets will be called Meet the Eels: Essential Eels Vol. 1, 1996-2006 and Eels Useless Trinkets: B-Sides, Soundtracks, Rarities and Unreleased 1996-2006. ...

South African reggae star Lucky Dube was shot and killed in an apparent carjacking attempt on Thursday in Johannesburg, South Africa. AP reports that Dube, 43, died when he tried to drive away during the incident and crashed into a tree after being shot twice by two unknown male assailants. Dube's son had reportedly gotten out of the car shortly before the singer was shot.

[This story was originally published at 11:26 am E.T. on 10.22.2007]

• Fall Out Boy
• Beyoncé
• Tool
• Black Sabbath
• Ozzy Osbourne

Photo: Gareth Cattermole/ Getty Images

Justin Timberlake has added an Emmy to that "Box" — the singer and "Saturday Night Live" actor Andy Samberg took home the award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics for "Di-- in a Box," the pair's wildly popular song about surprise packages, on Sunday (September 9). Timberlake wasn't at the ceremony to accept the award, as he's been in Vegas for the VMAs, but Samberg told People, "We'll definitely give him a call and let him know." ...

Nas joined forces with John Mayer, Phil Vassar and the Dave Mathews Band on Thursday night to bring "A Concert for Virginia Tech" to the college's Blacksburg campus. According to The Richmond Times-Dispatch, the rapper cheekily dedicated the last song of his set, "Hate Me Now," to TV pundit Bill O'Reilly, who had previously said it was an "abomination" and "atrocity" that Nas was going to perform at the free concert. "For those who don't understand what Nas is about, like that chump Bill O'Reilly, I got a song for you," he said before breaking into the tune. More than 45,000 people reportedly attended the concert. ...

Paris Hilton is suing Hallmark for a half-million dollars for using her photo and "That's hot!" catchphrase on one of its cards, Agence-France Presse reports. The heiress filed a lawsuit against the company on Thursday in Los Angeles, accusing Hallmark of misappropriating her image and invading her privacy by putting the card on sale earlier this year. It features Hilton's face superimposed on a cartoon body, along with the message, "First day as a waitress." ...

Led Zeppelin fans are holding their collective breath once again amid reports that a press conference pertaining to the band will take place in London on Wednesday, according to Billboard.com. The development comes shortly after "11.13.07" mysteriously appeared along with the band's commonly used symbols on LedZeppelin.com. The news outlet reported in July that the band might reassemble for a potential tribute to Atlantic Records co-founder Ahmet Ertegun, who died last year. According to Billboard.com, the band was spotted touring London's O2 arena during Prince's 10-night stand at the venue. However, standing offers have been on the table for a Zep tour for decades, and November 13 is also the release date of the group's upcoming greatest-hits compilation, Mothership. ...

Nick Bollea, who is being investigated for a crash last week that left his friend critically injured, was warned and ticketed by police last year for driving at high speeds on a Florida highway, according to an interview he gave Rides magazine before the crash. Authorities told AP that Bollea, the son of Hulk Hogan, was stopped twice on September 17, 2006 — he was first warned for going 100 mph in a 70-mph zone, then pulled over a second time for driving 115 mph. He received a $305.50 ticket for the latter offense. Bollea's passenger, John Graziano, remains in critical condition at a Florida hospital. ... Phil Spector lawyer Linda Kenney-Baden finished her closing statement on Friday, urging jurors not to become "vigilantes" and find the music producer innocent in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson. "We don't convict people in this country because we don't like them, because we don't like their hair or their clothes," she said. "Your job is not to make good copy or good ratings. Your job is to find the truth." The case will be turned over to the jurors after a planned rebuttal by the prosecution. ...

Joss Stone is helping launch the Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network, a Hip-Hop Summit Action Network program that is setting out to deal with the portrayal of women of color in entertainment — specifically hip-hop. Baby Phat designer Kimora Lee Simmons will act as the national spokeswoman for WEEN, which will be formally christened with a pink-carpet event September 19 at Bo Concept, a furniture in Manhattan, New York. ... The Spice Girls reunion tour will be directed by Christina Aguilera and Madonna collaborator Jamie King. "Everyone has the same vision for this show," the group's manger, Simon Fuller, said in a press statement. "It will be a roller coaster of fun reflecting all the things that made the Spice Girls such a huge global pop group." ...

Radiohead have put the finishing touches on their next album, guitarist Jonny Greenwood told Paste magazine. The band, which fulfilled its six-album EMI contract with 2003's Hail to the Thief, is currently unsigned. "We're very relieved to have finished recording, now we have to decide what we should do with it," he said. ... Tobey Maguire is shifting from a movie adaptation of a comic book to ... a movie adaptation of an anime series. According to The Hollywood Reporter, he will produce the sci-fi classic "Robotech" — and might even play a lead role in the flick. "We are very excited to bring 'Robotech' to the big screen," he said. "There is a rich mythology that will be a great foundation for a sophisticated, smart and entertaining film." ...

By now, you've likely heard the acoustic cover of Rihanna's "Umbrella" by Internet phenomenon Marié Digby, whose unique style won her a contract with Hollywood Records. More than 2.3 million people have checked out the 24-year-old's unplugged take on the jam of the summer. But, according to The Wall Street Journal, the alleged viral-video discovery was actually signed to Hollywood 18 months before becoming an online phenom. The article also claims Hollywood helped devise her Internet strategy and distributed a high-quality studio recording of "Umbrella" to radio stations and iTunes as a way to build hype for Digby's upcoming major-label debut. ...

Apparently, the Magic Kingdom has hung a "Machine Head Not Welcome" sign up at the gates. According to a spokesperson for the group, Walt Disney Properties pressured Live Nation to cancel the metal band's show at the House of Blues in Anaheim, California, on Friday (which was to take place on Disneyland property) citing, according to a press release from the band's publicist, violent imagery, undesirable fans and inflammatory lyrics. In an e-mail, the group said it got less than 48 hours' notice of the scotched gig, which was to be the kickoff of their Black Tyranny tour with Arch Enemy, Throwdown and Sanctity. Live Nation rescheduled the tour kickoff for the Glass House in nearby Pomona. A Disney spokesperson could not be reached for comment.

09.06.07

Kanye West is planning to have children, he divulged to Blender for its October cover story. "Yes, I'm engaged. Yes, I plan to have kids," he said. After that, 'Ye quipped, "But I'm not gonna base the night that I conceive a child off of what I tell Blender magazine." In the interview, he also highlighted some recent faves — the Killers, Keane, Modest Mouse — and also admitted that, despite his unforgettable remark about President Bush two years ago, "I'm not very tuned into politics. I apologize to people who expect me to act like I work at CNN." And, of course, what would a West interview be like these days without a few choice comments about his Tuesday rival, 50 Cent? "I pulled the trigger on that date," he revealed, saying it was his idea for the rappers' albums to go head to head. "I got on the phone with Def Jam like, 'Yo, I want to do this.' ... There were people that weren't ready for that fight. And I was like, 'Man, this is what I do!' " Still, he did have some kind words to say about Fif: "Turn this up, please," he said when 50's "I Get Money" reportedly started playing on the radio during the interview. "50 is popping on this. ... I hear 50 drop a number, like, 'I spent this much,' and I'm like, 'Damn! 50 is so much richer than me!' " The MCs are slated to appear on BET's "106 & Park" on Tuesday. The network is planning to treat the event like a boxing match, recruiting ESPN's Stuart Scott to give a statistical breakdown of the MCs. ...

Lindsay Lohan is meeting with her father, Michael Lohan, at the Cirque Lodge treatment center in Utah, according to People. The magazine says the news was confirmed by the troubled starlet's mother, Dina Lohan, who added, "She needed to do this for herself. It's still her father, no matter how you slice it. ... It's part of the healing process." "Access Hollywood" claims the meeting is the first time Lindsay had seen her dad since he was released from prison in March. ...

Tony Yayo (real name: Marvin Bernard) was in court Thursday (September 6) to hear motions in the case in which he is alleged to have roughed up the 14-year-old son of Game manager Jimmy "Henchman" Rosemond in March. According to Yayo's lawyer, Scott Leemon, the judge denied his request to obtain e-mails from Rosemond's Czar Entertainment connected to the case. But in a significant development, Leemon said he revealed in court that he provided the district attorney's office with an affidavit three weeks ago from a witness who knows the 14-year-old and Yayo, witnessed the incident and said Yayo did not slap the boy. "That person has already signed the affidavit saying Yayo was not the person who slapped the boy," Leemon told MTV News. "The judge instructed the DA to send an investigator and investigate it because nothing has been done in three weeks." Yayo is due back in court October 30. A spokesperson for the DA's office did not return calls for comment at press time. ...

Gwen Stefani, Dave Grohl, Ozzy Osbourne and other icons are helping the BBC's Radio 1 throw down for its 40th b-day by taking over the airwaves on September 30. Ten "Radio 1 Legends" will present shows with songs of their own choosing. ... Jennifer Lopez is still shaking off negative reviews about "El Cantante," her flick with hubby Marc Anthony — maybe a new DVD of "Selena," for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe, will help. Piled onto the two-disc "Selena: 10th Anniversary Special Edition," due September 18, is an unreleased extended version of the flick, new interviews with Lopez and Selena's family, deleted scenes, a making-of featurette and more. ...

Try this example of life imitating art on for size: One of the actual high schools where "High School Musical" was shot is putting together its own stage version of the production, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. More than 200 students are getting involved in the fall show at the city's East High School, where parts of the first and second flicks were filmed. ... Madonna was paid a visit by Malawi's chief social-welfare official in London as part of a delayed assessment into whether she can adopt David Banda, The Associated Press reports. Simon Chisale is making the assessment instead of Penston Kilembe, a child-welfare-services director who was removed from the case in light of allegations he took money from the singer to fly to London. ...

A new compilation of performances from "Saturday Night Live" will be available exclusively at Target stores beginning Sunday. Live From SNL! Music Performances From Saturday Night Live, the first live album from the show in almost a decade, will feature performances from the past four years by the likes of Avril Lavigne, Kelly Clarkson, Pink, Maroon 5, Foo Fighters, Beck, Arctic Monkeys, Dave Matthews, the Shins, the Strokes and Franz Ferdinand. ... If you thought Ozzfest would wear out Ozzy Osbourne for a while, think again: He will support his recently released album, Black Rain, with an extensive trek also set to feature Rob Zombie. The metal vets will take to the road October 18 in Seattle and return home after a January 24 gig in Cleveland. ...

Phil Spector attorney Linda Kenney-Baden said during closing arguments Thursday that prosecutors were trying to get "the first celebrity notch in the government's gun belt," AP reports. The prosecution has offered only "accusations and demonizations rather than showing you what evidence they have that proves their case beyond a reasonable doubt. ... The government has again given you stories, rather than science," she said. Kenney-Baden, a forensics specialist, also outlined scientific evidence she claimed exonerates Spector of murder. The Los Angeles Times reports that jurors might not begin deliberating until Monday — not Friday, as previously expected. ...

Chill out, Van Halen fans: The band has tapped a laid-back opener for its upcoming reunion trek. Bob Marley's son Ky-Mani — whose 2001 album, Many More Roads, was nominated for a Grammy — will get the honor to play prior to the hard-rockers. ... Iron Maiden are getting ready to "Dance With Death" again — the metal gods are pulling together another larger-than-life world tour. The band's Somewhere Back in Time trek will hit Australia — for Maiden's first shows there in 15 years — as well as five additional continents, from February through August. The guys are expected to log 100,000 miles on the tour. ...

Opera legend Luciano Pavarotti died Thursday in his hometown of Modena, Italy, of pancreatic cancer at age 71, according to a Reuters report. The hefty bearded tenor was famed for having brought opera to the masses during a nearly 50-year career during which he rang up huge album sales with his 1990 performance of classic aria "Nessun Dorma" from Puccini's "Turandot," and he performed alongside such pop stars as Bono, Sting and the Spice Girls. "Some can sing opera; Luciano Pavarotti was an opera," Bono wrote on U2's Web site. "No one could inhabit those acrobatic melodies and words like him ... I spoke to him last week ... the voice that was louder than any rock band was a whisper." ...

Congress is scheduled to take up topics including misogyny in hip-hop lyrics on September 25 during a hearing titled "From Imus to Industry: The Business of Stereotypes and Degradation." Variety reports that Representative Bobby Rush, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection, said, "I want to look at not only the problem caused by misogynistic content in some hip-hop music but also some of the pain that emanates from this degradation." He's proposing voluntary solutions to what he sees as the problem of misogyny in the entertainment industry. Among the witnesses scheduled to appear are Universal Music Group Chairman and CEO Doug Morris, Warner Music Group Chairman and CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr., and, so far, only one artist: rapper Master P.

[This story was originally published at 8:53 pm E.T. on 09.07.2007]

• MTV Live Backstage: Nas

• Nas
• Joss Stone
• John Mayer
• Dave Matthews
• Dave Matthews Band

Kanye West at his 30th birthday party
Photo: Brad Barket/ Getty Images

Kanye West celebrated his 30th birthday in style Thursday night with a huge bash at the Louis Vuitton store in New York that brought out a bevy of big-time guests including Jay-Z, Diddy and Mariah Carey — who all holed up by the first floor entrance with the birthday boy — as well as Common, Rihanna, Fall Out Boy, Ashlee Simpson, Travis Barker, Fabolous, Ashanti and Jermaine Dupri (after his early morning car accident). Pharrell Williams, the Clipse, John Legend and West all took the stage to perform throughout the night, while Q-Tip served as DJ. (Check out pictures from the party here.) Kanye's birthday cake featured his signature College Dropout bear, and dancers dressed in Vuitton bathing suits and sandals performed in the store's display cases. The night wrapped up at nightclub Tenjune where attendees including Usher and Gabrielle Union enjoyed an afterparty. ...

Andre 3000 is expected to play Sammy Davis Jr. in a new flick to be helmed by video director Earle Sebastian (Mary J. Blige, Madonna), according to The New York Times. "Sammy and Kim" will retell Davis' romance with blond actress Kim Novak, which was such a scandal that then-Columbia Pictures President Harry Cohn ordered an end to the relationship. ...

The deluxe-edition artwork for "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" has been released by Scholastic, and the wraparound cover features a Mary GranPré illustration of Harry, Hermione and Ron hanging on to a flying dragon above a village at sunset. (Click here to see the "Deathly Hallows" artwork.) The deluxe edition, limited to 100,000 copies and priced at $65, will also include full-color frontispiece art on special paper, an "Illustration Showcase" insert with reproductions of GrandPré's chapter openers and a bonus black-and-white illustration. ... "Shrek" producer Jeffrey Katzenberg said at a press conference in Berlin on Friday (June 8) that a half-hour animated holiday TV special called "Shrek the Halls" is in the works. ...

U2 have been hard at work on new material, according to a post on the band's Web site. Producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois have been collaborating with the band on the songwriting effort. "We have no plans for the music yet," Bono said in a post on U2.com. "We're just going to make it until we can't not put it out." ... Bono also spoke out Friday in response to the G8's pledge of $60 billion to fight AIDS. "I am exasperated," he said in an interview with Reuters. "We are looking for accountable language and numbers. ... They say they will keep their pledges on Africa but it is remarkable. In a 25-page document we can't see any evidence of how they are going to get to those. It is a maze." ...

Maroon 5's Adam Levine admits that he's the band's spotlight hog — but he says the rest of the guys just aren't interested in the post. "Every band has to have a strong center, a personality, an attention whore," he told Entertainment Weekly in an interview published in its current issue. "I'm in the foreground, but I also have to do things [that are] extra. It's fine with me. I don't mind the work." But Levine doesn't want you to mistake his willingness to stand center stage with a desire to be a solo star. "We want people to remember that we're a band, and I'm not a celebrity, Levine told EW. "That's gotten skewed over the past couple of years, so we want to correct things." ...

British newspaper The Independent interviewed Blur drummer David Rowntree about the band's plans to get back to work. "We will spend one week recording and see what happens," Rowntree told the paper. "We're dipping our toes in the water. We have not made any decision but we'll see how we feel and if the spark is there." Though Blur's last album, Think Tank, was released in 2003 and guitarist Graham Coxon left the fold in 2002, Rowntree stressed that the band had "never split up." ... The heads will soon be banging on the Sounds of the Underground Tour, but before the mayhem begins, Hot Topic will issue an exclusive package hyping the ferocious fest. Toxic tracks by Shadows Fall, Every Time I Die, Gwar and Poison the Well will contaminate the set, which contains two CDs and a DVD, is made available June 19 and will be limited to 10,000 copies. ... Looks like "Laguna Beach" and "The Hills" bad boy Jason Wahler won't be following in Paris Hilton's footsteps. Prosecutors claimed Wahler's arrest earlier this year for criminal trespassing and assault in Seattle violated his probation from a September battery arrest, but a judge didn't send the reality-TV star to jail during a Friday probation hearing, according to TMZ.com. Instead, the 20-year-old must attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and anger-management classes, and he'll continue with intensive rehab counseling at least four days a week. ...

Joss Stone has joined the lineup for NBC's "Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular." "American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks and finalists Blake Lewis and Melinda Doolittle will also perform on the show. ... Bon Jovi will open Newark's Prudential Center in their home state of New Jersey with a series of shows beginning October 25. In an album-release first, a code that unlocks a digital download of the band's new LP Lost Highway will be packaged with each ticket purchased by American Express cardholders through an exclusive online presale Ticketmaster will launch Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET. Fans who have already preordered the album will get a code allowing them to buy a presale ticket independent of their previous order. General-public tickets for the October 25 show go on sale June 23 at 10 a.m. ... George Michael must serve 100 hours of community service and is barred from driving for two years after pleading guilty to driving while unfit. Michael was sentenced in a London court Friday for the October 1 offense. "I have been sentenced today on the basis of unfit driving through tiredness and prescription medicines which I fully accept responsibility for," the singer told the press outside court. "I am glad to put this behind me and I am now off to do the biggest show of my life," he said. Michael has Saturday and Sunday shows scheduled at London's rebuilt Wembley Stadium.

06.07.2007

The Game pleaded not guilty Thursday (June 7) to three felony counts stemming from a pickup basketball game in Los Angeles in February, The Associated Press reports. He is charged with three counts of making a criminal threat, possession of a firearm in a school zone and exhibiting a firearm in the presence of an officer. The Game, who is free on $50,000 bail, faces more than five years in state prison if convicted. ...

Hilary Duff is heading back to school. The singer/actress will pay a visit to Normandie Elementary School in Los Angeles on June 14 to celebrate the success of USA Harvest's "Blessings in a Backpack" program, which she financed. By the end of the month, the 12-week program will have provided more than 72,000 meals to the roughly 1,000 students who attend the school. ...

50 Cent is a boss above all, and he talks G-Unit business in the July issue of Vibe, making it clear that some members of the crew should keep their résumés current. "I'll fire everybody," he said. "I don't give a f---. They're capable of all of their responsibilities, but when they start slacking, they gotta get the f--- outta here." Young Buck gets a good performance review — "He is the clean-up man because he's actually selling" — with one caveat: "Sometimes he says things without being totally conscious of what he's saying, so he's gonna make mistakes." And Tony Yayo, well, he's set for life. "Yayo can't be dropped, period," 50 explained. "He doesn't even need to sell records. As long as I'm breathing, he's gonna be good. And if I'm not breathing, then he's gonna be real good." That's right, 50 confirmed: Yayo's in the will. For more on 50's future plans — including his thoughts on retirement — check out the MTV News RAW interview. ...

Jermaine Dupri was in a minor car collision around midnight Thursday in New York after a woman allegedly ran a red light and totaled his Escalade, his representative confirmed to MTV News. The megaproducer wasn't injured, although his bodyguard did suffer a broken arm. ... Richie Sambora checked into an undisclosed treatment facility on Wednesday, Reuters reports. No additional information has been made available regarding the Bon Jovi guitarist, who broke up recently with girlfriend Denise Richards, lost his father and finalized his divorce with Heather Locklear. ...

Linkin Park's Music for Relief is partnering with Habitat for Humanity and American Forests for philanthropic projects, including the construction of houses for low-income families on the Gulf Coast. Music for Relief is donating $1 from every ticket purchased to the band's Projekt Revolution tour with My Chemical Romance and Taking Back Sunday to American Forests — enabling a tree to be planted for each person who goes. ... Benji Madden and Mandy Moore are among the unlikely guests Aussie indie-pop artist — and former Claire Danes fling — Ben Lee is welcoming on his new album. Rooney, Rachael Yamagata, Tom Petty collaborator Benmont Tench, Charlotte Martin and Nickel Creek's Sara Watkins fill out the colorful cast contributing to Ripe, due September 4. ...

"American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks will perform the national anthem on Thursday night at the NBA Finals' game-one matchup of the Cleveland Cavaliers and San Antonio Spurs. LeAnn Rimes is scheduled to sing the anthem before the game-two tipoff on Sunday. ... Q-Tip is set to preview the first single from his long-delayed, yet-untitled third album, according to an announcement the rapper made on his MySpace page Wednesday. "Listen!!! It's finally coming," the post read. "It's been a minute but it's finally here. The first song that I'm gonna post is the snippet from my new single called 'Work It Out.' ... Just in time for the summer. It will be up by Monday at the latest." ...

Yellowcard will open 15 Blue October shows after trekking with the Vans Warped Tour this summer. Yellowcard and Blue October embark on their tour September 20 in Atlanta and wrap it up with a November 10 gig in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. ... The Nightwatchman — a.k.a. Tom Morello — performed at the Move Against G8 protest and rally in Germany over the weekend. His U.S. tour kicks off in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Thursday night. ...

Another day, another "Borat" lawsuit. This time, according to TheSmokingGun.com, New York businessman Jeffrey Lemerond, 31, who is chased on the street by Sacha Baron Cohen in the movie, claims in a lawsuit that his civil rights were violated by the bit, that he has suffered public humiliation and ridicule as a result and that movie studio 20th Century Fox has unjustly enriched itself through the unauthorized use of his image. Lemerond says the comedy depicts him as "fleeing in apparent terror" from Borat and screaming "go away," as Cohen sought a hug from him. Lemerond is listed as "John Doe" in the federal lawsuit, though he used his real name in a nearly identical state court lawsuit that was filed — and quickly withdrawn — in January. Lemerond's face was obscured in a trailer for the film, but was not pixilated in the film itself. ...

Franz Ferdinand will be playing a one-off intimate show at New York's Bowery Ballroom on Wednesday. Tickets went on sale at noon ET and were gone within five minutes. The Bowery set will serve as a warm-up for the band's slot at this year's Bonnaroo festival in Manchester, Tennessee, June 15. ... The Black Crowes will perform and Billy Bob Thornton will appear at Guitar Center's "King of the Blues" finals at Hollywood's Music Box @ Fonda on June 16. Kenny Wayne Shepherd will also play and Cheech Marin will host. ... Grinderman, Nick Cave's hard-rock project with some of his Bad Seeds, will open for the White Stripes when they play New York's Madison Square Garden on July 24. ...

Slipknot and Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor has confirmed that he'll be working with Anthrax on material for their upcoming, yet-untitled studio album. In an interview with Germany's Rock Hard magazine, Taylor said he may become the band's next singer. "It's been bandied about," he was quoted as saying. "I'm not saying anything right now because all it's been is just talked about. Obviously, I'm really good friends with those guys. It kind of started as a joke. And then the more we talked about it, the more serious it got. I'm [going to] at least help them out. It's kind of a dream come true — Anthrax is one of my favorite bands." ... Bright Eyes mainman Conor Oberst will be teaming up with the Los Angeles Philharmonic for a gig set for September 29 at the Hollywood Bowl. The concert will showcase tracks from Bright Eyes' latest release, Cassadaga.

• "Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows" Cover Art
• Kanye, Rihanna, Pete Wentz, More Celebrate Kanye West's 30th Birthday In New York City

• Kanye West
• Jay-Z
• Fall Out Boy
• U2
• Maroon 5

Modest Mouse's <i>We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank</i>
Photo: Sony Music

It was a tight race for the #1 spot on Billboard's next albums chart, one that pitted enigmatic indie rock outfit Modest Mouse against soulful British songstress Joss Stone. And no matter how it all played out, someone was going to score the first chart-topping debut of their career.

While Stone was a solid contender for the top spot, Modest Mouse take the crown on next week's chart by a margin of 10,000 scans with their latest offering, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, selling nearly 129,000 copies. But Modest Mouse's conquest was perhaps more significant because of the band's newest member.

It took 25 years, but at long last, Johnny Marr — the iconic guitarist behind the music of influential alternative rockers the Smiths, a band that released four studio albums and a pile of singles before calling it a day back in 1987 — has himself a #1 album. Marr entered the Mouse fold last year, and We Were Dead — the follow-up to the band's breakout Good News for People Who Love Bad News, which opened at #19 with 68,000 sold back in 2004 — marks his first collaboration with the group.

Stone's hunt for #1 isn't yet over, but the singer can take solace in the fact that she's scored the highest-charting debut of her career with Introducing Joss Stone, her third studio LP. The disc sold 118,000 units to finish at #2, according to the latest SoundScan tallies. Following closely behind at #3 is the self-titled debut from Elliott Yamin, the third-place finalist on the fifth season of "American Idol." Yamin's album sold more than 90,000 copies its first week in stores, edging out the inaugural eponymous effort from the rock act fronted by fellow "Idol" hopeful Chris Daughtry. Daughtry racked up another 76,000 sales for #4 and an overall total that tops 2 million units.

Another new release lays claim to the chart's #5 slot with R&B heartthrob Marques Houston's third LP, Veteran, netting nearly 69,000 scans during its first week in stores. Akon's Konvicted drops one spot to #6, with nearly 69,000 sold, while Lloyd's Street Love sinks five to #7, scanning more than 55,000 copies.

The previous chart champ, Musiq Soulchild's Luvanmusiq, drops to #8 with 54,000 sold. Down six to #9 is Rich Boy's self-titled effort, which racked up sales of 49,000 in its second week in stores. Amy Winehouse slips three to #10, selling close to 48,000 copies of her debut, Back to Black.

A total of 23 new releases enter Billboard's top 200, including the Insane Clown Posse's latest, Tempest, which claims the #20 spot with 33,000 sold. New Orleans rapper Baby Boy Da Prince debuts in the #26 position, having sold nearly 26,000 copies of his LP, Across the Water, while Devin the Dude's Waitin' to Inhale bows at #30 with close to 25,000 scans. Crunk specialists Crime Mob open at #31, scanning more than 22,000 copies of their latest, Hated on Mostly, while Stephen Marley's Mind Control debuts at #35 with nearly 20,000 discs sold.

LCD Soundsystem's Sound of Silver pops up at #46, with 15,000 copies sold, while Squirrel Nut Zippers' Andrew Bird follows at #76 with Armchair Apocrypha moving 11,000 units. El-P's I'll Sleep When You're Dead claims the #78 opening with 11,000 sales, with Haste the Day's Pressure the Hinges finishing at #89 with nearly 10,000 scans. Ted Leo and the Pharmacists' Living With the Living debuts at #109 with sales just shy of 8,000 copies, while J Dilla's posthumous Ruff Draft follows at #112 with 7,700 scans.

Coming in at #156 with 5,500 copies sold is Maylene and the Sons of Disaster's latest, II, while Everything But the Girl's Tracey Thorn takes the #172 spot with her Out of the Woods generating 4,800 scans. Rapper Haystak's new one, Crackavelli, follows at #186, with 4,400 sales, while Low's Drums and Guns makes the cut at #196 with 4,000 copies sold.

• Modest Mouse
• Joss Stone
• Daughtry
• Marques Houston

Modest Mouse's <i>We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank</i>
Photo: Sony Music

It's been a slow year for new releases so far, but worry not, all ye muzos — with the first quarter coming to a close, the dams are starting to break wide open. In fact, so many new albums are seeping out this week that we have one for every letter of the alphabet. Well, just about.

· A Northern Chorus' The Millions Too Many: The Canadian shoegazers grow into a six-piece on their fourth effort, welcoming violinist Erin Aurich back to the fold and enlisting drummer Craig Halliday and horn player Ben Bowen while they're at it. Expect plenty of lush, expansive soundscapes to fall asleep to.

· The Bled's Pass the Flask: The Arizona hard rockers' obscure first album is back again, with 11 extra cuts that previously appeared on early EPs or haven't been out yet at all. That includes "My Cyanide Catharsis," featuring Arizona peer Emily Long; "OK, but Here's How It Really Happened"; and the original recording of "Hotel Coral Essex."

· C-Murder's Screamin' 4 Vengeance: A judge recently lifted a gag order against the former inmate, allowing him to publicize his new LP. The peeps at Priority Records must have been just as happy to hear that news — the label that is relaunching with this release. Snoop Dogg helps C-Murder cut the proverbial ribbon by appearing on the lead single, "Posted on Tha Block." Chamillionaire, Slim Thug, LeToya and others also help the rapper howl.

· Devin the Dude's Waiting to Inhale: Houston's underground Dude has a few pals lending him support on his fourth outing, getting some choice verses from Lil Wayne and Bun B on the album's first single, "Little Girl Gone." In the meantime, Devin's Odd Squad collective gets together for another track, "She Want That Money."

· El-P's I'll Sleep When You're Dead: Dig deeper underground and you'll find New York's El-P, who has been hammering away at this opus for four years. The Definitive Jux co-founder's hard work is reflected in the album's breathtaking, indie-rocker-heavy guest list: He roused Trent Reznor, the Mars Volta, Aesop Rock, Cat Power, Yo La Tengo's James McNew and many more for the affair.

· The Funeral Pyre's The Nature of Betrayal reissue: Equal parts death and black metal, the Los Angelinos' second album is being brought back as a straight reissue to coincide with a seven-gig run that begins March 30. Look for "Plague That Leads to Extinction," "Stealing the Air of Life" and "Here the Sun Never Shines."

· Robert Gomez's Brand New Towns: The brokenhearted singer/songwriter from Denton, Texas, studied Cuban guitar under Marc Anthony collaborator Nelson Gonzales and counts Norah Jones among his fans. His 12-track Bella Union debut encompasses "The Same Sad Song," "The Coming," "The Leaving" and more.

· Haste the Day's Pressure the Hinges: The Christian metalcore band from Indianapolis ganged up with producer GGGarth (Rage Against the Machine, Atreyu) for their third album. The standard edition has 13 tracks but the deluxe one comes with three bonuses — the album version of "In Memory" and demos of "Sea of Apathy" and "Chorus of Angels" — plus a DVD.

· I'm From Barcelona's Let Me Introduce My Friends: The Swedish collective don't really need to be more social when they count 29 members among their ranks (and you thought the Book of Knots had a massive combined résumé). The unwaveringly optimistic band — be prepared to participate if you catch 'em live — factor kazoos, banjos and much more into their second LP.

· J Dilla's Ruff Draft: The legendary unsung hip-hop producer passed away last year but left this document behind, with the following message: "Let me explain it. It's Ruff Draft. For my real n---az only. DJs that play that real live shit. You wanna bounce in your whip, sound like it's straight from the mother------' cassette! Ruff Draft. ... Let's do it." The deluxe set features 14 cuts on disc one and 10 instrumentals on the second CD.

· R. Kelly's "Live: The Light It Up Tour" DVD: The singer's first concert video finds him courting a crowd at Oakland, California's Paramount Theatre. If you're looking for hits, you've come to the right place: "Wonderful," "Ignition," "Fiesta" and "I Believe I Can Fly" are featured on the 110-minute DVD, as are the first three "Trapped in the Closet" chapters.

· The Locust's New Erections: The inaccessible art/noise band holed up with producer Alex Newport (Melvins, the Mars Volta) for their third undertaking. But breaking with their own tradition of breaking tradition, the San Diego spazz-outs made longer songs this time — that's right, don't expect "One Manometer Away From Mutually Assured Relocation" or "God Wants Us All to Work in Factories" to last less than a minute.

· Modest Mouse's We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank: The indie rockers are dishing up their fifth effort this week, but it's more like a sophomore LP in a sense, since they just landed their first verified hit, "Float On," the last time around. With Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr supporting them throughout and Shins singer James Mercer piping up on "Florida," the returns could be even sweeter this time around.

· Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds' The Abbatoir Blues Tour: This is more like a box set, really: The two CDs cull live tracks from various venues on the group's Abattoir Blues tour in 2004, while the two DVDs mine the three sold-out Brixton Academy London shows from said trek. The videos also compile material from a 2003 gig, music videos, behind-the-scenes footage and more.

· Otep's The Ascension: The Los Angeles band has been around for five years, but even veteran acts need help sometimes: Otep tapped Mudvayne's Greg Tribbett to cowrite three songs on their new LP. Recorded last year in New Orleans, it includes a cover of Nirvana's "Breed" (take that, "MLB2K7" TV ad!)

· Daniel Powter's Daniel Powter: The Canadian troubadour milked his debut for three singles, including the ubiquitous "Bad Day," so what better reason to spruce up the LP and milk it again for a re-release? This special edition, which comes with a DVD, encompasses the album's B-sides and videos; a live performance; and a new cut, "Love You Lately."

· Marques Houston's Veteran: Yeah, we had to cheat a little here, but since Omarion's step-brother is one of the few with a Q in his name, he'll have to suffice. The self-described vet — this is only his third release — turned to Yung Joc for some extra verses on "Like This," and Mya and Shawnna to chime in on "Hold N' Back."

· Robert Plant reissues: Rhino is breaking open the mammoth Nine Lives box set it put out last year and releasing some of the discs individually. This week, look for expanded versions of Fate of Nations, Manic Nirvana, Pictures at Eleven, Shaken 'N' Stirred and Mighty Rearranger, the latter with the Strange Sensation.

· Joss Stone's Introducing Joss Stone: No, you're not wrong — the British singer does indeed have two previous full-lengths under her belt. For her new one, she's hoping to reinvent herself with help from producer Raphael Saadiq (Macy Gray, the Roots), as well as Common ("Tell Me What We're Going to Do") and Lauryn Hill ("Music").

· Ted Leo and the Pharmacists' Living With the Living: The animated political rocker called on Fugazi's Brendan Canty to craft his fifth release and first for Touch and Go, which features "Bomb. Repeat. Bomb.," "A Bottle of Buckle" and "Fourth World War." Early-bird alert: Initial copies come with a CD containing five additional new songs.

· Unknown Instructors' The Master's Voice: Mike Watt is plenty busy with the Stooges these days, but another one of the punk bassist's many projects steps up with its second disc this week. The garage band features another Minuteman, George Hurley, and for this release the Instructors also roped in David Thomas of Pere Ubu and Raymond Pettibon, the dude who came up with Black Flag's four bars logo.

· Various artists' "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" soundtrack: Where's Shifty Shellshock when you need him? Oh well — while the Crazy Town singer is in absentia, Gym Class Heroes, Jet and Cobra Starship fill in to roll out the red carpet for everyone's favorite shelled crime-fighters. P.O.D., Meg & Dia and Cute It What We Aim For also help do the honors.

· Clay Walker's Greatest Hits: Rhino cobbles together 14 essential tracks by the longtime country-music singer from Beaumont, Texas. Look for "You're Beginning to Get Over Me," "Only on Days That End in 'Y' " and "Dreaming With My Eyes Open."

· RTX's Western Xterminator: (Two X's, close enough!) Royal Trux's Jennifer Herrema, reborn as RTX (get it?), alternates between butt-rock anthems and lo-fi bedroom recordings on the band's second album, which features "Money Will Roll Right In," "Knightmare & Mane" and "Balls to Pass." The resplendent artwork is worth a look alone.

· Elliott Yamin's Elliott Yamin: The former "American Idol" finalist hopes to follow in the steps of Taylor, Ruben and the gang with his first album, which was partially produced by Limp Bizkit co-conspirator DJ Lethal. The bluesy ballad "Take My Breath Away" was written by John Mayer guitarist David Ryan Harris, while "A Song for You" was previously recorded by Yamin's idol, Donny Hathaway.

· Willowz's Chautauqua: OK, we cheated one more time, but flipping around the Anaheim, California, punks' name works. With a tighter approach than on their previous two albums, the Michel Gondry collaborators — their songs were featured in "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" and "The Science of Sleep" — crank out "Big Knob," "Lonesome Gods" and "Siren Song."

Song Title of the Week:

"Good to Be Bad" from Lordi's Arockalypse

New Releases:

· A Northern Chorus - The Millions Too Many (Sonic Unyon)
· Adult - Why Bother (Thrill Jockey) [Buy Now]
· Alesana - On Frail Wings of Vanity and Wax (enhanced; Fearless)[Buy Now]
· Assemblage 23 - Binary (EP; Metropolis)
· Baby Boy Da Prince - Across the Water (Republic)
· BeatleJazz - All You Need (Lightyear) [Buy Now]
· Benea Reach - Monument Bineothan (Candlelight)
· Big D and the Kids Table - Strictly Rude (Side One Dummy)
· Andrew Bird - Armchair Apocrypha (Fat Possum)
· Bobby Broom - Song and Dance (Origin)
· Jonathan Byrd - This Is the New That (Waterbug)
· The Chinese Stars - Listen to Your Left Brain (Three.One.G)
· Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers - No More Beautiful World (with DVD; Emmajava)
· C-Murder - Screamin' 4 Vengeance (Capitol) [Buy Now]
· Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - The Abbatoir Blues Tour (two CDs and two DVDs; Mute)
· Crime Mob - Hated on Mostly (Reprise)
· Devin the Dude - Waiting to Inhale (Rap-a-Lot)
· Arthur Dodge - The Perfect Face (Remedy) [Buy Now]
· Drawing Voices - Drawing Voices (Hydra Head)
· Earth - Hibernaculum (with DVD; Southern Lord) [Buy Now]
· El-P - I'll Sleep When You're Dead (Definitive Jux)
· Evidence - The Weatherman LP (Abb) [Buy Now]
· Foreign Islands - Restart Now (digipak; Deaf, Dumb & Blind)
· Robert Glasper - In My Element (Blue Note)
· Robert Gomez - Brand New Towns (Bella Union)
· Groove Junkies - Late Night With Groove Junkies (Swank)
· David Guetta - Guetta Blaster (Ultra)
· Gwendolyn and the Good Time Gang - Get Up and Dance (Whispersquish)
· Hail Social - Modern Love & Death (Polyvinyl)
· Haste the Day - Pressure the Hinges (special edition comes with DVD; Tooth & Nail)
· Marques Houston - Veteran (Universal)
· I'm From Barcelona - Let Me Introduce My Friends (Mute)
· In This Moment - Beautiful Tragedy (enhanced; Century Media) [Buy Now]
· Joseph Israel - Gone Are the Days (New Door)
· J-Direct - Live & J-Direct (RhymeCity)
· Mary Karlzen - The Wanderlust Diaries (Dualtone)
· Land of Talk - Applause Cheer Boo Hiss (digipak; Rebel Group)
· LCD Soundsystem - Sound of Silver (Capitol) [Buy Now]
· Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Living With the Living (initial copies come with bonus CD; Touch and Go)
· Ligion - External Affairs (Maple Jam) [Buy Now]
· The Little Heroes - Cinematic Americana (Wednesday)
· The Locust - New Erections (Anti)
· Lordi - Arockalypse (special edition with DVD; the End) [Buy Now]
· Lost Eden - Cycle Repeats (Candlelight)
· Lost in the Trees - Time Taunts Me (digipak; Trekky)
· Low - Drums and Guns (Sub Pop) [Buy Now]
· Jesse Malin - Glitter in the Gutter (Adeline)
· Stephen Marley - Mind Control (enhanced; Republic)
· Willy Mason - If the Ocean Gets Rough (Astralwerks)
· Masterplan - MKII (Candlelight) [Buy Now]
· Maylene and the Sons of Disaster - II (Ferret)
· Jimmy McIntosh - Orleans to London (Arizona Cub)
· Miguel Migs - Those Things (Om)
· Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank (Epic) [Buy Now]
· Willie Nelson/ Merle Haggard/ Ray Price - Last of the Breed (two CDs; Lost Highway)
· Otep - The Ascension (Capitol)
· Other Men - Wake Up Swimming (Robcore)
· Palomar - All Things, Forests (Misra)
· Panda Bear - Person Pitch (Paw Tracks)
· The Pierces - Thirteen Tales of Love and Revenge (digipak; Lizard King)
· The Poison Arrows - Straight Into the Drift (File 13)
· The Ponys - Turn the Lights Out (digipak; Matador) [Buy Now]
· (((Powerhouse Sound))) - Oslo/Chicago: Breaks (Atavistic)
· Tad Robinson - New Point of View (Severn)
· Radical Face - Ghost (digipak; Morr)
· RTX - Western Xterminator (Drag City)
· Nate Sallie - Ruined for Ordinary (Curb)
· Secretary Bird - Secretary Bird (In De Goot)
· The Snake the Cross the Crown - Cotton Teeth (Equal Vision)
· Ricky Skaggs & Bruce Hornsby - Ricky Skaggs & Bruce Hornsby (Legacy)
· Sterling - Cursed (File 13)
· Joss Stone - Introducing Joss Stone (Virgin) [Buy Now]
Read: "Joss Stone Has Lauryn Hill's Mom To Thank For Third Album"
· Tommie Sunshine - Ultra Rock Remixed (Ultra)
· Swallow the Sun - Hope (Candlelight)
· Tracey Thorn - Out of the Woods (Astralwerks)
· The Tossers - Agony (Victory)
· The Turbo A.C.'s - Live to Win (Acetate)
· Unknown Instructors - The Master's Voice (Smog Veil)
· Willowz - Chautauqua (Dim Mak)
· Elliott Yamin - Elliott Yamin (Hickory)
Read: "Idols Now: Elliott Yamin 'Movin' On' With Limp Bizkit's DJ Lethal"
· Various artists - Dlife Presents: Extreme Soca Volume 1 (with DVD; Penalty)
· Various artists - "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" soundtrack (Atlantic)

Notable Reissues and Archival Material:

· John Anderson - Greatest Hits (Rhino)
· The Bled - Pass the Flask (Vagrant) [Buy Now]
· Colin Blunstone - One Year (Water)
· Cibo Matto - Pom Pom: The Essential Cibo Matto (Rhino)
· Depeche Mode - Black Celebration and Construction Time Again (digipaks; with DVD; Rhino) [Buy Now]
· J Dilla - Ruff Draft (two-CD deluxe set; Stones Throw)
· Electric Light Orchestra -- Balance of Power (Epic/Legacy) [Buy Now]
· Béla Fleck and the Flecktones - Greatest Hits of the 20th Century (Rhino)
· The Funeral Pyre - The Nature of Betrayal (Prosthetic)
· Genesis - Turn It on Again: The Hits (Rhino) [Buy Now]
· Alan Lomax - The Alan Lomax Collection: The Spanish Recordings - Mallorca, The Balearic Islands (Rounder)
· The Alan Parsons Project - Eye in the Sky and I Robot (Arista/Legacy)
· Lee "Scratch" Perry - The Upsetter Selection: A Lee Perry Jukebox (two CDs; Trojan)
· Robert Plant - Fate of Nations, Manic Nirvana, Pictures at Eleven and Shaken 'N' Stirred (Rhino) [Buy Now]
· Robert Plant and the Strange Sensation - Mighty Rearranger (Rhino)
· Daniel Powter - Daniel Powter (special edition with DVD; Warner Bros.)
· Kenny Rogers - 20 Great Years (Reprise) [Buy Now]
· Little Texas - Greatest Hits (Rhino)
· Nitty Gritty Dirt Band - Twenty Years of Dirt: Greatest Hits (Rhino)
· They Might Be Giants - A User's Guide to They Might Be Giants (Rhino) [Buy Now]
· Carla Thomas - The Queen Alone (Stax)
· Randy Travis - Greatest #1 Hits (Rhino)
· Violent Femmes - Permanent Record: The Very Best of Violent Femmes (Rhino)
· Clay Walker - Greatest Hits (Rhino)
· Mary Lou Williams - The Circle Recordings (Progressive)
· Various artists - Deep and Sexy 4: Compiled and Mixed by King Britt (Wave Music)

Music DVDs: · Dierks Bentley - "Live & Loud at the Fillmore" (Capitol)
· The Decemberists - "A Practical Handbook" DVD (Kill Rock Stars) [Buy Now]
· R. Kelly - "Live: The Light It Up Tour" (Image) [Buy Now]
· Yes - "Live at Montreux 2003" (Eagle Vision)

Coming Attractions:

March 27: · Good Charlotte - Good Morning Revival (Epic) [Preorder]
Read: "Good Charlotte Don Their Dance Shoes For Feel-Good Revival"
· Jennifer Lopez - Como Ama Una Mujer (Epic) [Preorder]
Read: "Jennifer Lopez Says New Single Came From Marc Anthony's Dream"
· Tha Dogg Pound - Dogg Ch-- (Koch)
· Young Buck - Buck the World (Interscope) [Preorder]

April 3: · The Academy Is ... - Santi (Atlantic) [Preorder]
Read: "The Academy Is ... Say New Album Sounds Nothing Like Fall Out Boy"
· Beyoncé - B-Day - Deluxe Edition (with bonus CD; Columbia)[Preorder]
Read: "Beyonce Turns Heads With Sports Illustrated Cover, Shakira Duet"
· Hilary Duff - Dignity (Hollywood) [Preorder]
· Paul Wall - Get Money - Stay True (Atlantic) [Preorder]
Read: " 'Mature' Paul Wall Still Raps About Girls, Grills With Mariah, T.I."
· Shadows Fall - Threads of Life (Atlantic) [Preorder]
Read: "Dave Grohl's Party Calls Can't Distract Shadows Fall From Recording LP"

April 10: · Bright Eyes - Cassadaga (Saddle Creek) [Preorder]
Read: "Bright Eyes Slim Down With Single LP, Fatten Up With Loads Of Collabos"
· Hellyeah - Hellyeah (Epic) [Preorder]
Read: "Vinnie Paul Returns To Make 'Hellacious' Magic With Hellyeah"
· Various artists - Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters Colon the Soundtrack (William Street)

• Modest Mouse
• R. Kelly
• Joss Stone
• C-Murder
• El-P

Joss Stone
Photo: Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images

When British R&B songstress Joss Stone started writing material for her forthcoming third album, Introducing Joss Stone, she decided she wanted the disc to feature a couple of collaborations. More than anything, though, Stone wanted to work with one of her favorite artists, the Fugees' Lauryn Hill. In her mind, the musical pairing just had to happen. So for months the 19-year-old tried to secure a commitment from the seven-time Grammy Award-winning artist, but to no avail.

Rather than stalk Hill's management or record-label heads, Stone turned to a more intimate source to make the magic happen.

"I called her mum every day for like a month and a half," Stone explained. "I couldn't get a hold of [Lauryn], and there was no answer from [her camp] — I couldn't get a yes or a no. So I just kept calling her mother."

And Stone's persistence eventually paid off, with Hill hopping on board to contribute to the track "Music," which Joss described as her love letter to song.

"I wrote it based off of the Fugees track 'The Mask' [from 1996's The Score], but now the track has changed drastically — but the bass line's similar," Stone said. "I really think that everybody goes through life looking for love in all the wrong places — in human beings. Unconditional love is impossible to get from a human being, but it's not impossible to get from music. And Lauryn, I've wanted to work with her since the first time I heard her voice. It's a dream come true for me — a goal I can mark off my list. I love her so much, and she's just so talented. She's just a poet."

When Introducing Joss Stone — which she co-produced with Raphael Saadiq (Mos Def, the Roots) — is released in March, fans will also find a "wicked" collaboration with Common, another of Stone's favorite performers, on the cut "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now."

"With rappers it's difficult, because sometimes you can get all that gangsta rap, which means nothing," she explained. "Sometimes it's good to listen to, in certain situations, but there's no substance to it. With people like Common or Lauryn or Nas [who she did not work with on the album], they're real poets. They're really saying something, and that's why I needed them on the record. ... I wanted artists who had something to say."

Stone began writing the follow-up to 2004's Mind, Body & Soul back in April and brought about 60 songs with her into a studio in Barbados in September. When it's finished, Introducing will boast a dozen tracks, including "Girls, They Won't Believe It," "Tell Me 'Bout It" (the first single) and "I Wish," which she said is a "calm 'F--- you' that just needed to be done. I had to get that one out of me, and it was inspired by that feeling of, 'I wish I never met you, because then, I wouldn't feel anything at all.' When you come out of a bad relationship, you just kind of wish it never happened in the first place, because you would never have to feel that aftermath."

Stone, who recently made her film debut in the fantasy epic "Eragon" (see "Joss Stone Gets In Touch With Witchy Side For Film Debut In 'Eragon' "), titled the album Introducing Joss Stone because, for the first time in her relatively young career, "I feel like it's really my album — like, I made it. I decided who to work with, and what songs to put on there. I wrote the songs. This is what I want to hear when I hear my album."

She's a bit less enthusiastic about her first two records, Mind, Body & Soul and 2003's The Soul Sessions, which goes a long way toward explaining her new LP title. "There were songs [on the earlier albums] there I didn't want on there and vocal performances I didn't feel were good enough," she explained. "I cannot tour for two years singing songs that I really don't feel. I want to be able to say, 'This is my song that I love, that I wrote, and it means this and that.' I want to go on TV and be able to say, 'Yes,' when they ask me if I like it. Before I couldn't say that. I can't lie. I just wanted to love my music. That's the reason why we live — to be happy."

And working with Saadiq did just that.

"He just gets me, and musically, everything came together when he came along," she said. "For years, since I was 14, I've been trying to tell people what I want to hear. One, they didn't listen to me because I was too young; and two, they didn't know how to listen to me, because they really weren't in the same headspace as me. But he just gets it. Finally someone understands. That's how I feel with him. He wanted to make me happy, and he gave me everything I asked for — and more."

Ultimately, Introducing is an album Stone said she can be proud of, and one that truly represents her as an artist.

"This is the first album I did by myself, and I felt I had to prove myself with it," she said. "I think this is one of those albums that, when it ends, just leaves you wanting more."

• "Eragon"

• Joss Stone
• Lauryn Hill

Joss Stone in "Eragon"
Photo: David Appleby

NEW YORK — Joss Stone had her coming-out party at the tender age of 14, unleashing her massive, soulful voice on British television. It seems only appropriate, then, that she'd kick off her movie career with "Eragon," a fantasy epic adapted from a book written by Christopher Paolini when he was just 15. Cast as the quirky witch Angela (a character based on Paolini's younger sister) opposite newcomer Edward Speleers' Eragon, Stone makes an unusual Yoda to Speleers' Luke, offering valuable advice during his quest to defend his homeland.

In real life, the 19-year-old is similarly wise beyond her years, as she showed when we caught up with her between recording sessions for Introducing Joss Stone, due in March. She told us about her desire to chill with Tom Cruise, her struggles with dyslexia and the spells she'd cast if she had witchy ways.

MTV: I always wonder how a musician gets into acting. Do you put out the word that you want a movie, or do they come to you?

Joss Stone: I know! It is really strange. I was like, "Why do you want me? I'm a singer, for Christ's sake." I don't know why ["Eragon" director Stefen Fangmeier] wanted me, but he did. I'm always getting approached for films — maybe they see me onstage and see the way I get all emotional. But I was like, "Hey, let's do it." I never really take anything seriously until I have to, and acting is fun. I never thought I'd do it, but hey, why not, man?

MTV: Tell us about the first day you walked on set as a big-time actress.

Stone: It was very scary. [Speleers] was really sweet; he's such a nice boy. He's one year younger than me, and I felt like I had to talk his face off to warn him about what was going to happen to him — he's gonna become humongous in five seconds [after this comes out]. I was actually quite sick, and I was so tired when I did it, but that didn't matter because my character is quite weird anyway, so that played into it.

MTV: I know that you're dyslexic — did that make it hard to read your lines?

Stone: Yes, it was really difficult for me to learn the script. I applaud the people who can be leads in a movie. To remember all those lines! Remembering them is one thing, but then performing them and really feeling them, you have to know it like the back of your hand. I can read just fine, but it takes me a little time and sometimes I'll get distracted and read backwards.

MTV: Does the dyslexia ever threaten your musical work?

Stone: With singing, I always forget the lyrics to my songs, even ones that I've written myself. My memory is bad, but it's easier when there is a melody to sing to. I have to have that melody which will remind me, and then I get into it, and then I'm not even thinking about it anymore.

MTV: Do you officially have the acting bug at this point? Can we expect to see you in more movies?

Stone: If one comes to me, and it's meant to be, sure. I just want to have fun. I'm not stressing about it, and I'm not like, "I've got to be an actress!" I want to do many different things, and I never want to limit myself. To me, music and film and paintings and creating anything is art. And if someone wants me to be part of their art, that's nice.

MTV: What kind of movies would you like to do?

Stone: I like weird movies. Have you seen "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" or "Vanilla Sky"? I'd love to be a part of those kinds of movies. Those stories have you thinking, and then the imagery — especially in "Vanilla Sky" — is just beautiful, absolutely stunning. I love these funny chick flicks, too. I'm always up for watching them. But I don't like horror movies. I don't like to watch someone be killed — it just doesn't do it for me. I'll probably never be part of something like that.

MTV: Lots of young actors are dying to work with De Niro or Streep, but are you more eager to work with quirky co-stars?

Stone: I would like to work with Quentin Tarantino, and, if I could, I'd like to work with Vinnie Jones. I love him; he's wicked. I'd also love to work with John Cusack. There's something about him — he seems so intelligent, and I just think he's adorable. And Tom Cruise. I could get along with him. He's funny — I could just chill with him.

MTV: "Eragon" is the first book of the "Inheritance" trilogy, whose second installment was published last year. Will there be additional movies, and would you want to be in them?

Stone: Sure. If they want me, I'm there.

MTV: What does Angela do in the next couple of books?

Stone: I don't know. I didn't read any of the books because I thought it might alter my performance. I'll find out eventually — I don't want to ruin it for myself. I want to be able to go see the movie and be like, "Wicked, man! Wicked!"

MTV: If you were a witch in real life, what spell would you cast?

Stone: How powerful a witch would I be?

MTV: All-powerful, definitely.

Stone: That's a hard question. I would make someone fall in love with me, but that's a bad thing to do because they're not really in love with you, and then you'll be really depressed because you'll know it wasn't for real.

MTV: Very true.

Stone: OK, then I would steal Aretha Franklin's voice! Or if that's too mean, maybe I'd just cast a spell to lure her in to sing on my record.

Check out everything we've got on "Eragon."

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• 'Eragon': Enter The Dragon

• "Eragon"

• Joss Stone

Britney Spears' <i>B In the Mix, The Remixes</i>
Photo: Jive

Sure, Mix a Lot: If you're getting all your Britney news from her Web site, you're probably in the dark about her undercover B in the Mix, the Remixes disc, which has 11 tracks retouched by Junkie XL, Justice and other mixmasters. But oddly enough, indie rock has the most club-ready action this week. Death From Above 1979's Black Sabbath-sounding Romance Bloody Romance is also doctored by Justice, plus Josh Homme, whose Queens of the Stone Age have a CD+DVD concert compendium out this week (Over the Years and Through the Woods). Also, Interpol take matters into their own hands with a four-track EP, although it also came with Antics: The Special Edition. (A snazzy vinyl version of Interpol Remix is due December 6).

All Systems Go: Bookending a year that included a #1 album (Mezmerize) and a mind-bending tour with the Mars Volta, System of a Down continue their spiral-twisting ways with Hypnotize, the Ashley to Mezmerize's Mary-Kate. The new album's packaging interlocks with that of its predecessor, bringing the artwork of Vartan Malakian — father of guitarist Daron — to full splendor. There's also a DualDisc run with enhanced-stereo tracks and a film by Armenian auteur Gariné Torossian.

Mayer vs. Metal: John Mayer loves playing with the grown-ups, and he's giving you a taste of what it sounds like with Try! John Mayer Trio Live in Concert, also featuring veteran bassist Pino Palladino (the Who) and drummer Steve Jordan (Bruce Springsteen). At a theoretical festival, though, those smooth sounds would be out-blasted by the likes of Cradle of Filth, Papa Roach and the this summer's Ozzfest lineup — all of whom have live DVDs of their own this week.

Minor Adjustments: Mike Shinoda's Fort Minor project only has one album so far — The Rising Tied — so, to keep things interesting, he's putting out three versions of it. The standard clean pressing has 16 slices; an enhanced-'n'-explicit edition boasts three bonuses ("Be Somebody," "There They Go" and "Hard Way") and a third, limited version houses those extras plus a DVD and alternate artwork. Juelz Santana, in the meantime, is doing his limited What the Game's Been Missing bonus DVD up right with an interview, two making-of clips, a pair of videos (one featuring Young Jeezy) and more.

Southern Comfort: Big Boi answers his own question with Big Boi Presents ... Got Purp? Vol. II, and, in the process, tides fans over in the wake of Outkast's "Idlewild" film and soundtrack postponements. The usual Southern suspects — Cee-Lo, Goodie Mob, Killer Mike and Bubba Sparxxx — aid and abet Big Boi over the course of 23 tracks, including a "Dungeon Family Dedication" and a provocatively titled interlude, "Mayonnaise Mouth." In the meantime, Nelly reps St. Louis with Sweatsuit, which combines the highlights from Sweat and Suit along with three new tracks.

DualDiscs, Coast to Coast: Death Row's looked back on its watershed moments — Dr. Dre's The Chronic, Snoop's Doggystyle and The Very Best of Death Row — and decided they need some sprucing up, digipak-DualDisc style. But rival label Koch isn't backing down from the competition: They're also putting video content on the flipside of one of 2Pac's two All Eyez on Me CDs.

Sweet Relief: Just in time for FEMA's cutbacks, more artists are stepping up to the plate with hurricane benefit releases. And it's no coincidence that most of them spring from what is arguably the city's greatest cultural contribution: jazz. Jazz at the Lincoln Center Presents: Higher Ground - Hurricane Relief Benefit Concert lines up Norah Jones, Diana Krall, Art and Aaron Neville, and the red-hot Dianne Reeves, although the two-CD Hurricane Relief: Come Together Now outdoes that roster with Kanye West, Coldplay, R. Kelly, Dave Matthews Band and tons more. All of Come Together Now's proceeds go toward hurricane relief, as do those from Dr. John's (admittedly more modest) Sippiana Hericane EP. (A "Come Together Now" charity single featuring Game, members of the Backstreet Boys, Ruben Studdard, Jesse McCartney and Wyclef Jean drops next week.) Speaking of being modest, archival releases Essential Louisiana Rhythm and Blues and The Greatest Mardi Gras Concert Ever! are also coming out this week, but only $1 from each copy sold goes to the American Red Cross' Katrina relief fund.

Song Title of the Week:
"30,000,000,000,000,000 People" (Part Chimp's I Am Come)


New Releases:

• Alex Is on Fire/ Moneen - Split EP (Vagrant)
• Bouncing Souls - Bouncing Souls Live (Chunksaah)
  Buy Now: Bouncing Souls Live (Chunksaah)
  
• Michael Bublé - Caught in the Act (live; Reprise)
• Chamillionaire - The Sound of Revenge (limited edition with bonus disc also available; Universal)
• Sylvain Chauveau & Ensemble Nocturne - Down to the Bone: An Acoustic Tribute to Depeche Mode (DSA)
• Cruna - A Hustler's Love Story (Warner Bros.)
• Dave's True Story - Simple Twist of Fate - DTS Does Dylan (Bepop)
• Ray Davies - Thanksgiving Day (EP, V2)
• Death From Above 1979 - Romance Bloody Romance (remix album; Vice)
  Buy Now: Romance Bloody Romance (remix album; Vice)
  Read: "Death From Above 1979 Draw More Crowd-Surfers Than NIN, Write Four-Hour Album"
• DJ Morpheus - I Can't Live Without My Radio (Tigersushi)
• Dr. John - Sippiana Hericane (EP, Blue Note)
• Enya - Amarantine (Reprise)
  Buy Now: Amarantine (Reprise)
• Fort Minor - The Rising Tied (limited-edition and enhanced versions also available; Warner Bros.)
  
  Read: "Linkin Park MC Gets Director With Flair For Video With Flares"
• Fra Lippo Lippi - Songs (Rune Arkiv Norway)
• Fully Down - Don't Get Lost in a Movement (Fearless)
• Interpol - Interpol Remix (EP, Matador)
• Seu Jorge - The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions (Hollywood)
• Talib Kweli - Right About Now: The Official Sucka Free Mix CD (Koch)
• Jens Lekman - Oh You're So Silent Jens (Secretly Canadian)
• Lil' Tweety - Confessing a Feeling (enhanced version also available; Thump)
  Buy Now: Confessing a Feeling (enhanced version also available; Thump)
  
• Samara Lubelski - Spectacular of Passages (The Social Registry)
• John Mayer Trio - Try! John Mayer Trio Live in Concert (Columbia)
  Buy Now: Try! John Mayer Trio Live in Concert (Columbia)
  Read: "John Mayer Trio Geek Out With Live Album, Rolling Stones Jokes"
• Reba McEntire - #1's (MCA Nashville)
• The Mendoza Line - Full of Light and Full of Fire (Misra)
• The Never Enders - Air Raid Romance (Indianola)
  
  
• Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy Appendix (EP, Jagjaguwar)
  Buy Now: Black Sheep Boy Appendix (EP, Jagjaguwar)
• Part Chimp - I Am Come (Monitor)
• Paulson - All at Once (One Day Savior)
  Buy Now: All at Once (One Day Savior)
• Queens of the Stone Age - Over the Years and Through the Woods (live, with DVD; Interscope)
  Buy Now: Over the Years and Through the Woods (live, with DVD; Interscope)
  
• Rich Boyz - Young Ballers: The Hood Been Good to Us (Gutter)
• Juelz Santana - What the Game's Been Missing! (Def Jam)
  Buy Now: What the Game's Been Missing! (Def Jam)
  Read: "Dip Set Poised To Conquer: New LPs From Cam'ron, Jim Jones, Juelz Santana On Tap"
• Ray Scott - My Kind of Music (Warner Bros.)
  Buy Now: My Kind of Music (Warner Bros.)
• Britney Spears - B in the Mix, the Remixes (Jive)
  Buy Now: B in the Mix, the Remixes (Jive)
  Read: "Surprise: Britney's Releasing An Album In Just Two Weeks"
• Rebecca St. James - If I Had One Chance to Tell You Something (Forefront)
  
• Scott Stapp - The Great Divide (Wind-Up)
  Buy Now: The Great Divide (Wind-Up)
  Read: "Scott Stapp Admits To Drastic Failings, Looks To The Past For Solo LP"
• Static - Re: Talking About Memories (City Centre Offices)
• System of a Down - Hypnotize (DualDisc also available; Columbia)
  Buy Now: Hypnotize (DualDisc also available; Columbia)
  Read: "System Of A Down Album Preview: Hypnotize Even Wilder Than Mezmerize"
• Tarantella - Tarantella de la Morte (Alternative Tentacles)
• Tristeza - A Colores (Better Looking)
• Warmachine - The Beginning of the End (Nightmare)
• Mike West - A Westside Story, Chapter 1 (Integrated Label Group)
• Various artists - Big Boi Presents ... Got Purp? Vol. II (Virgin)
  Read: "Big Boi Busts Out New Label, Divulges Details About Outkast Film"
• Various artists - Jazz at the Lincoln Center Presents: Higher Ground - Hurricane Relief Benefit Concert (Blue Note)
• Various artists - Hurricane Relief: Come Together Now (two CDs; Concord)
• Various artists - Just Like Paradise: A Tribute to Diamond David Lee Roth (Versailles)
• Various artists - Yo Gotti Presents: The Blackout Squad, Volume 2 (Inevitable)
• Various artists - "Four Dead Batteries" soundtrack (Hightone)
• Various artists - "In the Mix" soundtrack (J)
• Various artists - "Memoirs of a Geisha" soundtrack (Sony Classical)
• Various artists - "The Producers" soundtrack (Sony Classical)
• Various artists - "Stargate: Atlantis" soundtrack (Varèse)

Reissues and Archival Material:

• 16 Horsepower - Hoarse and Olden (Alternative Tentacles)
• 2Pac - All Eyez on Me (two CDs, including one DualDisc; Koch)
  Buy Now: All Eyez on Me (two CDs, including one DualDisc; Koch)
• Akon - Trouble (with bonus CD; Universal)
  Buy Now: Trouble (with bonus CD; Universal)
• Bee Gees - Love Songs (Polydor/UME)
• Cocteau Twins - Lullabies to Violaine: Singles and Extended Plays (limited-edition box set; 4AD)
• Dr. Dre - The Chronic (enhanced DualDisc; Death Row)
  Buy Now: The Chronic (enhanced DualDisc; Death Row)
• Billy Joel - My Lives (box set with four CDs and one DVD; Columbia/Legacy)
• Patti LaBelle - Gold (Universal)
• John Lennon - Walls and Bridges and Sometime in New York City/ Live Jam (with bonus tracks; Capitol)
• Nelly - Sweatsuit (Universal)
  Buy Now: Sweatsuit (Universal)
• The Neville Brothers - Gold (two CDs; Hip-O)
• Nightranger - Hits, Acoustic & Rarities (IRock Entertainment)
• Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine (Rykodisc)
  Buy Now: Pretty Hate Machine (Rykodisc)
  
• Queen - A Night at the Opera (30th anniversary collector's edition with DVD; Hollywood)
• The Rolling Stones - A Bigger Bang - Special Edition (with bonus tracks) and Rarities 1971-2003 (Virgin)
• Frank Sinatra - Duets and Duets II - 90th Birthday Limited Collector's Edition (Capitol)
• Snoop Doggy Dogg - Doggystyle (enhanced DualDisc; Death Row)
  Buy Now: Doggystyle (enhanced DualDisc; Death Row)
  
• Joss Stone - Mind, Body & Soul - Special Edition (with three new songs and a bonus DVD; S-Curve)
  Buy Now: Mind, Body & Soul - Special Edition (with three new songs and a bonus DVD; S-Curve)
  
• Speedy West - Guitar Spectacular (Sundazed)
• Rob Zombie - Hellbilly Deluxe (with DVD; Geffen)
  Buy Now: Hellbilly Deluxe (with DVD; Geffen)
• Various artists - Drive-Thru Records Greatest Hits (Drive-Thru)
• Various artists - Essential Louisiana Rhythm and Blues (Fuel 2000)
• Various artists - The Greatest Mardi Gras Concert Ever! (Fuel 2000)
• Various artists - The Very Best of Death Row (enhanced DualDisc; Death Row)
• Various artists - "The Muppet Christmas Carol: Special Anniversary Edition" soundtrack (Disney)

DVDs:

• Harry Chapin - "Remember When: The Anthology" (MPI)
• Harry Connick Jr. & Branford Marsalis - "A Duo Occasion" (Universal)
• Fates Warning - "Live in Athens" (SPV)
• Cradle of Filth - "Peace Through Superior Firepower" (Roadrunner)
• Peter Gabriel - "Still Growing Up: Live & Unwrapped" (two DVDs; Rhino)
• Hellogoodbye- "OMG HGB DVD ROTFL" (Drive-Thru)
• The Hives - "Tussles in Brussels" (Island)
  Read: "Hives Weren't Rash When Assembling First DVD"
• Jack Johnson - "A Weekend at the Greek/ Live in Japan" (two DVDs; Brushfire)
• Keane - "Strangers" (two DVDs; Interscope)
• Killswitch Engage - "(Set This) World Ablaze" (Roadrunner)
• Lifehouse - "Everything" (Geffen)
• Nailbomb - "Live at Dynamo" (Roadrunner)
• Papa Roach - "Live and Murderous in Chicago" (Geffen)
• Radiohead - "The Astoria London Live" (Capitol)
• Rush - "R30: 30th Anniversary World Tour" (also available as deluxe edition with CD; Rounder)
• Carly Simon - "A Moonight Serenade on the Queen Mary 2" (Columbia)
• Barbra Streisand - "The Television Specials" (five DVDs; Rhino)
• Tanya Tucker - "Live at Billy Bob's Texas" (Image)
• Various artists - "The Best of 'American Idol' Seasons 1-4," "The Worst of 'American Idol' Seasons 1-4" and "The Best & Worst of 'American Idol' Seasons 1-4: Limited Collector's Edition" (RCA)
• Various artists - "Drive Thru and Rushmore Records, Vol. 3" (Drive-Thru)
• Various artists - "Ozzfest 10th Anniversary" (with CD; Clear Channel Entertainment)

Coming Attractions:

November 29:

• Master P - Living Legend: Certified D-Boy (Gutter)
• Dave Matthews Band - Weekend on the Rocks (two CDs with DVD; RCA)
• Shakira - Oral Fixation, Vol. 2 (Columbia)

• Eminem - Curtain Call: The Hits (Aftermath)
  Read: "Slim Shady's Phattest, Brightest Compiled For Eminem Hits LP"
• Korn - See You on the Other Side (Virgin)
  Read: "Korn On New LP: 'Sadness,' 'Anger,' 'Darkness' ... 'Kind Of Perverted' "
• Lindsay Lohan - A Little More Personal (Raw) (Casablanca)
  Read: "Lindsay Lohan Album Preview: It Really Is More Personal"

• Beck - Guerolito (remix album; Interscope)
  Read: "Beastie Boys, Dust Brothers Get Their Hands On Beck's Guero"
• Bo Bice - Real Thing (DualDisc; RCA)
  Read: "Bo Bice Working With Ben Moody, Members Of Nickelback, Bon Jovi, Skynyrd For LP"
• Pharrell - In My Mind (Interscope)
  Read: "Pharrell Had To Be Sneaky To Record His Solo Album"

• Britney Spears
• System of a Down
• John Mayer
• Fort Minor
• Juelz Santana

2009 Inauguration Week Events Celebrating Barack Obama

• Diddy
• Mary J. Blige
• Queen Latifah
• Wyclef Jean
• Ne-Yo

Tyra Banks, Ashley Olsen, Mandy Moore, More At New York Fashion Week

• Kat DeLuna
• Mandy Moore
• Christina Milian
• Joss Stone
• Damon Dash

2007 MTV Europe Music Awards: Red Carpet Couture

• Joss Stone
• Avril Lavigne
• Nicole Scherzinger
• Will.I.Am
• Tokio Hotel

Adrian Grenier, Nelly, Shia LaBeouf, Britney And More Stars Spotted In Vegas

• Jay-Z
• Beyoncé
• Britney Spears
• Boys Like Girls
• Common

Paris Hilton, Diddy, Timbaland, Janet Jackson, More Hit The Vegas Party Scene

• Britney Spears
• Justin Timberlake
• Timbaland
• Nick Cannon
• Lil Jon

MTV Unplugged: Joss Stone

• Joss Stone

Mandy Moore, Justin Timberlake, Gwyneth Paltrow, More At Sundance 2007

• Nick Cannon
• Diddy
• The All-American Rejects
• 30 Seconds To Mars
• Lance Bass

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

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

The 2005 MTV Video Music Awards Presenters And Performers

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

Madonna, Snoop, U2, Coldplay, Mariah, Velvet Revolver: Live 8 London

• U2
• Coldplay
• Paul McCartney
• Elton John
• Stereophonics