Juicy J in "Shake My"
Photo: Columbia Records

There's one thing about Three 6 Mafia that doesn't change: DJ Paul and Juicy J like to party.

The Memphis twosome throw down in their new clip "Shake My," from their forthcoming album Laws of Power, due November 24.

Directed by Bobby Yan, the video features Three 6 Mafia raving in a basement-like setting while Dirty Money's Kaleena croons over the Rodney Jerkins beat.

The track comes from the Oscar-winning group's first project since 2008's Last 2 Walk, and finds Paul and Juice continuing to move forward as a duo — Crunchy Black left Three 6 Mafia just before the release of that album.

Laws of Power features the Jerkins-produced single along with collaborations with Flo Rida, Gucci Mane and Keri Hilson, among others.

Since winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" in 2006, Paul and Juice have enjoyed a higher profile. Moving to Los Angeles to film the MTV series "Adventures in Hollyhood," Juicy joked that after taking home the little gold man, getting in to swanky spots is no longer a problem for the group.

"I couldn't get in a club, so I pulled out the Oscar and they let me right in," he told MTV News. "When I got back to Memphis, I put the Oscar in a fireproof safe. So if you try to burn the house down, you can't burn the Oscar."

• On The Set Of Three 6 Mafia's 'Shake My'

• Three 6 Mafia

Peter Bjorn and John's <i>Re-Living Thing</i>
Photo: EMI

It's an unlikely love affair, but quite a few hip-hop heads have really been feeling Swedish indie-rock trio Peter, Bjorn and John lately. From Kanye West, who sampled the group's breakthrough hit "Young Folks" for his Can't Tell Me Nothing mixtape, to Drake, who worked with them on So Far Gone's "Let's Call It Off."

That sonic bromance is going major August 27, thanks to producer Mick Boogie, the man behind last year's lauded Jay-Z/Coldplay mash-up mixtape, Viva la Hova. Boogie was recently handed the master to PB&J's most recent album, Living Thing, and he's done it again, overseeing a full-album remix dubbed Re-Living Thing that the acclaimed mixtape kid said is one of his finest efforts to date. The best part? It's all legit.

The results feature an impressive roster of guest spots from the likes of Wu-Tang Clan's GZA, Kardinal Offishall, Wale, Young Chris & Rhymefest, Bun B, Talib Kweli, Three 6 Mafia with Trouble Andrew, Amanda Blank, 88-Keys and Big Sean with Black Milk. Boogie said he spent time with PB&J and was blown away by what hip-hop heads the soft-spoken Swedes are.

"Because of the success of that Jay-Z thing, great things have been happening," said Boogie, who warmed up for the PB&J gig by reworking Adele's Grammy-winning debut, 19, on the mashup album 1988. "This time the idea was not just remixing, but adding some vocals and getting two to three incredible, known blog-worthy MCs and putting them on every song." As usual, Boogie's job was more like a museum curator, gathering the MCs and a handful of up-and-coming producers and parceling out the songs after sitting down with the band and talking about what they had in mind.

"We talked music and production and artists and it showed me what a global phenomenon hip-hop is, because these guys who grew up in Sweden were quoting Wu-Tang lyrics — and they knew all the underground stuff, too, like Amanda Blank and Kidz in the Hall," he said. Boogie gave the group — Peter Moren, Björn Yttling and John Eriksson — a list of rappers and producers he thought would work, they gave him their list and, in the end, Boogie said they got about three-quarters of the names they were looking for.

"I listened to the album over and over again and I learned it and loved it, and I thought about all the people I wanted to work with and who fit what and then ... I would pick a producer for each song," Boogie said. "After we got the beats back, I would listen to them again and see if the vibe changed and then figure out which artist was good for which track."

 The results will be unveiled as a free online mixtape next week, available, according to Boogie, "on all your favorite blogs." Though there are still some guest spots that are in process and could be added up until the full tape drops, Boogie said he's very happy with the results, which he said might prove to be a template for his future work. Along with legends such as Jazzy Jeff, Boogie tapped such newer producers as nVMe, a Brooklyn crew he said did an amazing job on "Just the Past" with Kanye West protégé Big Sean and Slum Village associate Black Milk.

With two songs on the album, Boogie's former Ohio homeboys in the Kickdrums bring an aggressive sound to "Nothing to Worry About" with Wale, Young Chris & Rhymefest; and "Lay It Down," which mixes the Three 6 Mafia's thugged out Southern sound with Trouble Andrew's more punk-rock-skater-MC vibe.

"I think this is a great model of how to do out-of-the-box stuff," Boogie said.

The tentative track listing for the album, with more to be added later:

» J. Cole & GZA - "The Feeling" (remixed by Marco Polo)
» Kardinal Offishall, Donnis & Heno - "It Just Don't Move Me" (remixed by Jet Audio)
» Big Sean & Black Milk - "Just The Past" (remixed by nVMe)
» Wale, Young Chris & Rhymefest - "Nothing To Worry About" (remixed by The Kickdrums)
» Bun B - "Losing My Mind" (remixed by 6th Sense)
» Freebass 808 & Amanda Blank - "Living Thing" (remixed by Apple Juice Kid)
» Talib Kweli - "I Want You" (remixed by William Russell / Good Life Mike)
» Three Six Mafia and Trouble Andrew - "Lay It Down" (remixed by The Kickdrums)
» Big Pooh, Chaundon and Phil Nash - "Stay This Way" (remixed by Jazzy Jeff)
» Naledge & Mickey Factz - "Blue Period Picasso" (remixed by nVMe)
» 88 Keys, Outasight & 6th Sense - "4 Out Of 5" (remixed by 6th Sense)
» U-N-I - "Last Night" (remixed by Remot)

• Peter Bjorn and John
• Bun B
• GZA
• Three 6 Mafia
• Talib Kweli

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

Lindsay Lohan
Photo: Michael Buckner/ Getty Images

Lindsay Lohan, who has caught a lot of flak for her alleged partying ways, has been going to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings of her own volition, her publicist told The Associated Press Friday (December 1). "She started attending some, and I think it's a positive thing," Leslie Sloane told AP. "My biggest fear is who's the big idiot to out which [chapter] she goes to. It's no place to go and feel safe. No one judges her, and it's going to be a slow process. But, to me, the fact that she's seeing that there's something not right makes her smarter than the next person." ...

"American Idol" runner-up Katharine McPhee will appear at the 118th Tournament of Roses Parade, airing January 1 at 11 a.m. ET on NBC. George Lucas is the Pasadena, California, event's grand marshal. ... Jay-Z is a very interesting man — just ask Barbara Walters. The rapper joins actor Patrick Dempsey, retired tennis pro Andre Agassi and Vogue Editor in Chief Anna Wintour among those profiled by the reporter in her interview special, "Barbara Walters Presents the 10 Most Fascinating People of 2006." It will air December 12 on ABC. ...

Three 6 Mafia have settled a lawsuit filed by a Pittsburgh teenager who claimed he was severely beaten during an August 2003 concert by the group. In the suit, Ramone Williams said he suffered a fractured jaw after he was thrown to the floor, hit with a chair and kicked in the face while Three 6 performed their song "Let's Start a Riot." The settlement was reached last month, and details were not released. ... Fall Out Boy are calling on their fans to help design the cover for the iTunes pre-order version of their upcoming Infinity on High album. Amateur artists can submit their potential covers through the band's site, FallOutBoyRock.com, and FOB will choose their favorite. Submissions are being taken until December 31, and the winner will be revealed when the album becomes available for pre-order on iTunes on January 16. ...

Nirvana's MTV Video Music Award for Best Alternative Video — for "Heart Shaped Box" in 1994 — will be up for bid beginning Tuesday on ItsOnlyRockNRoll.com. The Moonman is expected to fetch $5,000. A signed Beatles album from the collection of George Harrison's sister; Bob Dylan recordings from 1961; and a hat belonging to Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger will also go up on the block. The auction ends December 16. ... With the Eagles of Death Metal out, Guns N' Roses have called on Helmet to open for them for the remainder of the Axl Rose-fronted band's current tour, which rolls into Ames, Iowa, on Friday. The trek runs through December 20 in Universal City, California; Sebastian Bach and the Suicide Girls are also on the bill. ... Beyoncé will be up and at 'em early on Monday, performing at New York's Rockefeller Plaza as part of NBC's live "Today" broadcast. Her performance is scheduled to air between 8 and 9 a.m. ET. ...

Joining the Killers and others, the Arcade Fire are becoming the latest band to give music for Bono's [RED] charity campaign. The anti-corporate indie-rock group is donating "Rebellion (Lies)" for a (Product) [RED] ad campaign that is tied to companies like Motorola, Converse and the Gap. "To some people this seems crass and capitalistic," frontman Win Butler wrote in a post on the band's site, "and I sympathize with that position, but in the first week of the campaign, they have raised enough money for 10,000 women to have antiretroviral drugs for a year ... money and medication which wouldn't have been there without a program like this." Bono's [RED] campaign aims to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in Africa through the sale of branded merchandise. ... Kevin Lyman's Taste of Chaos Tour — which some like to call "The Winter Warped Tour" — will hit the road for a total of 39 dates this winter, it was recently announced. The trek — which starts February 15 in Seattle and wraps April 8 in Vancouver, British Columbia — will feature 30 Seconds To Mars, the Used and more. For the full list of dates, check out TasteOfChaos.com ...

Want to hang out with Metallica? Now you've got a shot. To celebrate Tuesday's release of their DVD "The Videos 1989-2004," Metallica are giving fans a chance to win a two-night stay (including hotel and travel expenses) in San Francisco, where a lucky fan will meet the band and tour their headquarters. Ten others will win a copy of the DVD. The contest ends December 31. Visit Metallica.com for additional details. ... An auction featuring the paintings and personal effects of late Pink Floyd founder Syd Barrett raised more than $230,000 for children's educational programs. Items under the gavel at the U.K. auction included 10 paintings by the reclusive musician, a pair of his bicycles, a leather armchair and his artificial Christmas tree. Barrett, who all but disappeared from public life after parting ways with Pink Floyd in 1968, died in July at his home in Cambridge, England, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. ...

Starsailor lead singer James Walsh is doing a week of solo acoustic shows beginning Thursday in Seattle. The trek will also hit San Francisco; Los Angeles; Portland, Oregon; and Austin, Texas. ... Brian McKnight's 10th album, aptly titled 10, is due Tuesday and will feature collaborations with Jill Scott and country group Rascal Flatts. "We're friends, so we got together to see what we'd come up with and we came up with a pretty good tune," he said of the latter act. ...

Celebrity photo agency X17 filed a copyright-infringement suit against Mario Lavandeira — better known as Perez Hilton — in federal court Thursday, accusing the blogger of using images owned by X17 without permission. A statement issued by the photo agency claims that the success of PerezHilton.com is "due in large part to the quality and quantity of celebrity images he posts on the site, many of which are owned by X17." Lavandeira, who has not commented on the claims, told gossip site TMZ.com that he has not been served with the suit. "My lawyers and I will address the situation when we have the opportunity to review the materials." A group of seven additional photo agencies — including Splash News and World Entertainment News Network — sent the blogger a cease-and-desist notice earlier this week, urging him to stop posting photos without permission and to pay a licensing fee for prior use to avoid further legal action.

11.30.2006

Fall Out Boy will launch their new tour, dubbed Friends or Enemies, January 4 in San Francisco, the band told MTV News Thursday (November 30). They're taking New Found Glory, the Early November and Permanent Me with them. The trek, which will hit small venues, is scheduled to wrap January 20, with additional dates to be announced in the coming weeks. FOB's Infinity on High hits stores February 6. ...

Beyoncé will headline the 2007 Essence Music Festival, which returns to New Orleans for three days, from July 5-7. The singer, who performed at the 2005 event with Destiny's Child, will take the stage July 6. "I am so honored to perform at the Essence Festival as a solo act upon its return to New Orleans, post-Katrina," Beyoncé said in a statement. "My family's roots are deep in this area so this will be a wonderful reunion for us as well." ...

T.I., Mary J. Blige, Nickelback and Rascal Flatts lead the contenders for the Billboard Music Awards, each ranking as finalists in five categories. Jamie Foxx, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Beyoncé, Ne-Yo and Dem Franchize Boyz are also finalists in multiple categories, with the winner determined by performance on Billboard charts. The show, featuring performances by Gwen Stefani, the Killers and Ludacris featuring Pharrell and Young Jeezy, will air Monday on Fox. ... Justin Timberlake returns to "Saturday Night Live" on December 16, doing double duty as host and musical guest on the comedy show; he last took on both roles in October 2003. "SNL" has two new shows scheduled before JT takes over, with Tenacious D serving as musical guest on Saturday's broadcast (hosted by "Lost" star Matthew Fox) and Gwen Stefani performing on the December 9 show, with guest host Annette Bening. ...

Madonna has accepted a Malawian court ruling that will allow human-rights groups to monitor her as she tries to adopt David Banda, The Associated Press reports. On Wednesday, High Court Justice Andrew Nyirenda said the Human Rights Consultative Committee and state-run Malawi Human Rights Commission can participate in the adoption process. ... In other Madonna news, a black bustier the singer wore during her Who's That Girl Tour was one of many memorabilia items that fetched a pretty penny at London's It's More Than Rock 'N' Roll Auction. That garment went for the U.S. equivalent of about $10,000, while the original Rolling Stones tongue artwork went for about a half-million dollars and a Jimi Hendrix Fender Stratocaster sold for about $120,000. ... "Desperate Housewives" star Eva Longoria and San Antonio Spurs point guard Tony Parker are engaged. The couple, who have been dating for two years, are planning to read their vows in France in the summer. ...

Ludacris met with Senator Barack Obama in Chicago on Wednesday to discuss "empowering the youth," the rapper told AP. Ludacris, who was in town to promote the YouthAIDS Kick Me campaign at Northwestern University in nearby Evanston, Illinois, said his time speaking with the potential presidential hopeful was like talking with a relative. ... Nicole Kidman tops the list of the highest-paid actresses, commanding up to $17 million a film, according to a list published in The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100 issue. Reigning Best Actress Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon, Renée Zellweger, Drew Barrymore and Cameron Diaz round out the top five, each earning $15 million per film. Last year's #1, Julia Roberts, spent most of 2006 off the big screen and didn't make the top 10 this time around. ...

OK Go and DJ Franki Chan will perform at Stuff magazine's Toys for Bigger Boys party Tuesday at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom. The event will feature a silent auction of Stuff's gift-guide selections with proceeds benefiting the HIV/AIDS charity Keep a Child Alive. In addition to goodies featured on ToysForBiggerBoys.org, attendees can bid on a lunch with Ivanka Trump and a behind-the-scenes experience at a Stuff photo shoot. ... Mark Lanegan has ganged up once again with Greg Dulli and his Twilight Singers for A Stitch in Time, a five-track EP that's available now at most digital stores. The effort, also featuring Joseph Arthur and Dulli's former Afghan Whigs bandmate Rick McCollum, is also available in CD form through the One Little Indian Web site, and that physical version will hit retail stores on January 23. For the first time since parting ways in 2001, Dulli got together with McCollum and ex-Whigs John Curley and Michael Horrigan to record new song for Unbreakable, an in-the-works Whigs retrospective. ...

Former Phish frontman Trey Anastasio probably wouldn't make a list of artists likely to go into the jewelry game, but the singer is auctioning off bracelets to benefit his Seven Below Arts Initiative, supporting arts education in Vermont. From every stop on his tour, Anastasio is donating a set of guitar strings, which are then crafted into bracelets and put on the block at RelixBand.com. Anastasio's tour hits Eureka, California, on Wednesday and wraps up New Year's Eve in Atlantic City, New Jersey. ... Jam-band faves Widespread Panic will stage their second Tunes for Tots charity hoedown December 28 at the Roxy in Atlanta. The concert will again raise money to directly support music education in Georgia schools. The band raised $100,000 last year, and schools used the money to purchase new equipment and more. ...

Director Sofia Coppola and Phoenix frontman Thomas Mars welcomed their first child on Tuesday, AP reports. The couple named their daughter Romy. ... New Yorkers will have a chance to meet Santa Claus and an "American Idol" wannabe in the same place on Friday. Season two finalist Josh Strickland, currently starring in "Tarzan" on Broadway, will kick off the Starbucks/ Book for Kids Foundation Holiday Book Drive at the coffee chain's 29th Street and Park Avenue location at 10:30 a.m. New York metro area Starbucks will accept donations of new, unwrapped books — which will be distributed to local schools and libraries — through December 25.

• Lindsay Lohan
• Jay-Z
• Alicia Keys
• Young Jeezy
• Fall Out Boy

Hilary Duff on the cover of "Jane" magazine
Photo: Carter Smith

Hilary Duff is onto the paparazzi's moves, and she's got a surefire trick to throw them off. The singer/actress said in an interview featured in the December/January issue of Jane that she has a tactic to duck photographers trying to capture her in a tough moment with her boyfriend, Good Charlotte's Joel Madden: "If we're out someplace, we could totally be fighting, but we'll be looking at each other like this," Duff explained, reportedly flashing a big smile, "because there's a camera right there. Then we end up forgetting we're in a fight, because we're laughing since it's not a real thing to do, and we're both such real people." Real people who listen to music you may not expect, Duff insisted. "I love the Faint. If they would do a song for me, I would blow a fuse." ...

Reprise Records will re-release early Green Day material December 19. The band's 1,039/ Smoothed Out Slappy Hours and Kerplunk! were originally issued on Lookout! Records, and then reissued by that same label in 2004, but Green Day removed the LPs from the Lookout catalog last year after allegations that the band was owed royalties. ... AFI, Trent Reznor, Rise Against and Hellogoodbye have been named winners of the Libby Awards, a new honor put on by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. ("Libby" is short for "liberation.") AFI won Best Vegetarian Band, Rise Against's "Ready to Fall" earned them Best Animal Rights Song of 2006 and Nine Inch Nails frontman Reznor was honored as the Best New Fur Foe. Runners-up included Silverstein, Motion City Soundtrack and NOFX. ...

We're just months away from seeing exactly how "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" translates from book to the big screen (Feast your eyes on the film trailer right here), and now the young wizard's fifth adventure is about to go interactive. The "Order of the Phoenix" video game, scheduled for a July release, will allow players to explore Hogwarts and control multiple characters, including Harry, Sirius Black and Dumbledore. The game is currently being developed by Electronic Arts and will be released for the Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 2 and 3, Xbox 360 and Windows PC. ...

Capitol/Priority is commemorating the 20th anniversary of hip-hop pioneers N.W.A, with The Best of N.W.A: The Strength of Street Knowledge, due December 26. A deluxe version of the 17-song retrospective CD comes with a bonus DVD featuring previously unreleased interviews with Ice Cube, Dr. Dre and Eazy-E. In other N.W.A news, nine songs by the act will debut as ringtones on December 12. ... Lil Scrappy's "G's Up TV," a weekly show recounting the rapper's journey to music from the streets, launched Tuesday at GsUpTV.com. In addition to Scrappy's firsthand accounts of his life and career, the series features skits — including a cognac tasting with Lil Jon — and celebrity guests such as Three 6 Mafia, Young Buck and Jamie Kennedy. The series will run through December 5 release, when his debut LP, Bred 2 Die, Born 2 Live, drops. ...

Angelina Jolie made an unannounced visit to Cambodia on Wednesday (November 22), The Associated Press reports. The actress, who adopted her son Maddox from the country, spoke with government officials about the $1.3 million nature-conservation project she is funding there. ... The advice may be too late for Britney Spears and Jessica Simpson, but Will Smith is sharing his secret to keeping a celebrity marriage alive: "Divorce cannot be an option," he revealed in the current issue of Reader's Digest. Smith explained that he quit his marriage to first wife, Sheree Smith, when he "could have fixed it" — and he said he won't make that mistake again with Jada Pinkett Smith. "With Jada, I stood up in front of God and my family and friends and said, 'Till death do us part.' So there are two possible outcomes: We are going to be together till death or I am dead." ...

After separate jaunts opening for Killswitch Engage and Dragonforce, piping-hot Massachusetts metallers All That Remains will head out for their first headlining track in support of this year's The Fall of Ideals. The band is hoping to have a permanent drummer by the time it kicks off the North American trek, slated for late January. ... Bayside — the New York band that lost a drummer in a van accident while on tour with Hawthorne Heights earlier this year — have assembled a short December trek with Junior Varsity and others called the Holiday Havoc Tour. The outing begins December 3 in New Haven, Connecticut, and winds down December 11 in New York. Bayside's junior album is due February 6. ... Pop punks Cartel will hit the road next year with Cobra Starship, Boys Like Girls, Permanent Me and Quietdrive. The 19-date trek kicks off February 7 in Carrboro, New York, and makes stops in Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Dallas, San Diego, Las Vegas and Seattle before winding down March 9 in Milwaukee. ...

This Christmas, Pink Floyd's David Gilmour will release three live tracks that he's dedicated to former bandmember and friend, the late Syd Barrett — who died this summer of pancreatic cancer. An acoustic cover of Barrett's "Dark Globe" and two new versions of Floyd's "Arnold Layne" will be available for download through Gilmour's Web site beginning December 25. ... Reunited New Jersey hardcore pioneers Lifetime will release their first studio album in more than 10 years on February 26 through Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz's Decaydance/ Fueled by Ramen label. The self-titled outing will boast 11 tracks in all, but no song titles have been revealed yet. Lifetime plan to spend much of next year on the road touring in support of the disc. ... Influential Delta blues musician Robert Lockwood Jr. died Tuesday of respiratory failure in Cleveland. The Grammy-nominated singer/guitarist and W.C. Handy Award winner was 91.

11.21.2006

Although he bombed at the World Music Awards last week, Michael Jackson is going to give another celebration a try. The singer will go to Japan for a December 19 Christmas celebration that is also commemorating the upcoming 25th anniversary of the release of Thriller. "I look forward to visiting Japan again, and greeting my fans and friends," Jackson said in a statement. ...

Jay-Z recently joined forces with another New York heavyweight — New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez — for a celebrity-poker tournament that benefited their respective charities, the A-Rod Family Foundation and Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation. The tourney, which raised a half-million dollars, was held at Jay's 40/40 Club in Manhattan and also counted Nelly, Cedric the Entertainer and baseball vets Cal Ripken, Gary Sheffield and Mariano Rivera among the players. ...

Alicia Keys' new Web site launched Tuesday (November 21), and one of the features on the way is a book club. "I always loved the way Oprah did that," she told MTV News. "To do that with my style and the books I like to read would be really fly." Keys plans to start the group with "The Temple of My Familiar," a novel by Alice Walker. "She is insane, in the best way, when it comes to writing. There's something about a book that engages you, when you become enraptured in the whole thing like it's your life and you're yelling at the book." Keys also plans to recommend the W.E.B. DuBois novel "The Souls of Black Folk," which she just finished recently. "I love to read. It makes you write better, and I just want to open that conversation up, to talk about many things, many styles." ...

Green Day have teamed up with the Natural Resources Defense Council for the Move America Beyond Oil campaign. "People are sick of our oil addiction and feel like nobody is doing anything about it," frontman Billie Joe Armstrong said in a statement. "Our message is that it's OK, and very rebellious, to take on that responsibility." Visitors to GreenDayNRDC.com can access a tool to send text messages directly to lawmakers and corporate leaders to demand change. ... Rock the Bells is about to get a little bit louder. The hip-hop festival's first world tour will now include Ghostface Killah, Pharoahe Monch and EPMD, in addition to previously announced acts Redman and Raekwon. The jaunt begins Tuesday in Washington, D.C. ...

Smashing Pumpkins drummer Jimmy Chamberlin has updated fans of the reunited rockers on the progress of their comeback album in a post on the Pumpkins' MySpace page. "We are moving along nicely in the studio," the drummer wrote. "[Frontman Billy Corgan] pulled off a magnificent guitar symphony last night and it is still ringing in my ears this morning. Eight guitars resonating in one big harmonic handshake. ... Today we will be working on vocals and solos. Tomorrow, who knows?" The Pumpkins' forthcoming LP, which is being produced by Roy Thomas Baker (Queen, the Cars), is slated for release next year. While Corgan and Chamberlin are back on board, it remains unclear who else will be in the resuscitated band. ... Come 2007, the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival will be a year older and a day longer. The now-three-day fest will take place April 27-29 in Indio, California. ...

It's a good thing the "Borat" movie is making so much cash, because the lawsuits just keep coming. The latest is from two residents of Glod, Romania, who claim they were tricked into participating in the movie and were depicted as thieves, racists and "simpletons," according to a $30 million suit against 20th Century Fox and the filmmakers that alleges fraud and civil-rights violations. The Los Angeles Times reports that the suit, filed in New York federal district court by Nicolae Todorache and Spridom Ciorebea, claims the pair fall into a group protected by the laws of the U.S. and the United Nations and that, unlike the others depicted in the satirical film, they don't speak or read English. Also Monday, Fox hit back at a pair of fraternity members who sued over their depiction in the movie, calling the lawsuit a "fatuous" attempt to thwart free speech, according to The Hollywood Reporter. "Plaintiffs may claim that they were tricked 'into making fools out of themselves' and becoming 'unsuspecting players' in the movie 'Borat,' " the studio said. "They never contend ... that bigoted and misogynistic statements were put into their mouths." A temporary restraining order against the film's continued distribution was denied November 9 and a hearing is set for December 7 to take up the students' subsequent request for a preliminary injunction. ...

Three fresh tunes from the revived Blind Melon have been posted online at the band's Web site. The cuts, called "Make a Difference," "For My Friends" and "Harmful Belly," are the first new songs the group has written since the death of frontman Shannon Hoon more than a decade ago. They're also the first ones Blind Melon have worked on with new singer Travis Warren, formerly of Rain Fur Rent. ... Hopesfall have entered Vu Du Studios in Freeport, New York, with producer Mike Watts (As Cities Burn, As Tall as Lions) to start tracking the follow-up to 2004's A Types. The band has been writing material for about a year and say there's been a serious progression in its sound. ...

Bloggers across the country were popping corks on Monday after a California Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Internet users and providers can't be held liable for posting defamatory material written by someone else. "The prospect of blanket immunity for those who intentionally redistribute defamatory statements on the Internet has disturbing implications," wrote Justice Carol Corrigan, adding that immunity, however, "serves to protect online freedom of expression and to encourage self-regulation." The ruling, supported by such heavy hitters as Google and Yahoo!, upholds the Internet's status as a forum for free speech. "The reason the Internet is such a tremendous forum for free speech is it provides the opportunity to exchange and debate ideas and to pass along what someone else had to say," Ann Brick, an American Civil Liberties Union lawyer who took part in the case, told the San Francisco Chronicle. "That would all stop if the liability rules were different."

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• Hilary Duff
• Good Charlotte
• Britney Spears
• Jessica Simpson
• Will Smith

Paris Hilton
Photo: Brad Barket/ Getty Images

Plenty of artists release special editions of their new CDs with bonus tracks a few months after the discs hit stores. But a few weeks? Paris Hilton didn't authorize an early update of her disc, but British graffiti artist Banksy has placed 500 doctored copies of the heiress' debut CD in 48 U.K. record stores, replacing Hilton's album with 40 minutes of remixes and altering the cover to advertise titles including "Why Am I Famous?" and "What Am I For?," according to BBC News. The guerrilla artist also changed pictures of Hilton on the CD sleeve to show her topless and with a dog's head, but kept the original barcode intact — which means that some may buy the LP thinking it is the real thing. A representative for record chain HMV told BBC News that it has recovered seven altered copies from stores but no customers have returned a tampered version of the disc. The altered copies also include a Hilton remix CD credited to "DM," which Danger Mouse's management confirmed is him. "It's hard to improve on perfection, but we had to try," the Gnarls Barkley mastermind said in a statement. Danger Mouse and Banksy are believed to have met while shopping for costumes in SoHo, New York. ...

In other Paris news, the actress/singer is getting ready to shed her babe-on-the-beach image from her "Stars Are Blind" video for something a little more wholesome. Well, just a little. For her next video, "Nothing in This World," Hilton's playing a girl-next-door role, and she promises the clip will be hot. "It's going to be really sexy," she said. Though Hilton was originally considering pairing up once again with Chris Applebaum or David LaChapelle for the clip, instead, she's picked director Scott Speer (Teddy Geiger, Switchfoot). "He's a hot new director," she said. "I'm very excited." Also raising the temperature is Elisha Cuthbert, who is making a cameo in the clip. ...

The Arctic Monkeys beat out Thom Yorke and the Editors on Tuesday (September 12) to win the coveted Mercury Prize for the best British album of the year. While most past Mercury winners were not big sellers, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I Am Not smashed the British record for the fastest-selling debut album, with 363,700 copies sold in its first week. ... "American Idol" season one finalist Tamyra Gray married producer and former Color Me Badd singer Sam Watters in Capri, Italy, on Saturday, according to People. Gray and Watters, who met when he was hired to produce her last album, were wed on a cliff overlooking the ocean. ...

First Young Jeezy wanted you to get your mind right — now he wants you to get your money right too. The trap star will join Russell Simmons and his Hip-Hop Summit Action Network on September 16 for the group's financial-empowerment tour, "Get Your Money Right," at Atlanta's Morris Brown University. Jeezy and a host of rappers, executives and financial consultants will discuss credit history, home ownership and other related money matters. "Joining with Jermaine Dupri and Ludacris to host the Atlanta Hip-Hop Summit is a special blessing," Simmons said in a statement. "This city is known for its great contributions to hip-hop, as well as being a center for social change in our nation and world." Get Your Money Right will make three additional stops on September 30 (Los Angeles), October 14 (Dallas) and October 28 (Toronto). ...

Guess will celebrate its 25th anniversary at New York's Capitale on Tuesday night with performances by K.T. Tunstall and Natasha Bedingfield. It is the first of many Fashion Week kickoff parties, which runs Friday through September 15. Black-and-white photos from Guess ads will be set up in an art-gallery setting, and models will be re-creating them in a live vignette. Expected guests include Dean Winters, Famke Janssen, Kristin Cavallari, Taryn Manning, Zoe Saldana and Nelly Furtado. ... It's a glamour-ific world: Former MAC Viva Glam spokesperson Pamela Anderson is handing over the reigns to Debbie Harry, Eve, Lisa Marie Presley and Dita Von Teese, who have been appointed the new spokespeople for the MAC Viva Glam VI campaign, which is helping fund the fight against HIV/AIDS. Christina Aguilera and Missy Elliott are also former Viva Glam spokesmodels. ...

A judge sentenced R&B singer Ronald Isley, 65, to three years and one month in prison for tax evasion on Friday. The Isley Brother was also ordered to pay $3.1 million in back taxes to the Internal Revenue Service, The Associated Press reports. Isley was convicted last year of five counts of tax evasion and one count of willful failure to file a tax return. The singer's lawyer argued for probation because of Isley's recent health problems and his attempts to pay down the IRS debt, but the judge in the case refused, saying, "the term 'serial tax avoider' has been used. I think that's appropriate." ...

An attorney for Academy Award-winning rappers Three 6 Mafia filed a motion last week in a Pennsylvania court asking for the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by a fan who claimed he was severely beaten at one of their shows. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Ramone Williams, who was 19 at the time, said he became concerned when the group started performing the song "Let's Start a Riot" at the August 26, 2003, show at a now-defunct Pittsburgh nightclub. By the time "Riot" ended, Williams claimed, he was thrown to the floor, hit with a chair, stomped on and kicked in the face, suffering injuries including a fractured jaw. The group's attorney asked for the dismissal based in part on First Amendment protections for the lyrics. ...

Jury selection is scheduled to begin Tuesday in the trial for one of the owners of the Station nightclub in Warwick, Rhode Island, where a pyrotechnics stunt gone awry during a Great White show in 2003 killed 100 concertgoers. Michael Derderian's trial on 200 counts of involuntary manslaughter is expected to last several months and will be followed by a trial for his brother, Jeffrey, according to AP. ... Pete Doherty appeared before a London court Monday to face sentencing for drug violations, but a judge instead ordered him to continue his drug rehabilitation, AP reports. District Judge Jane McIvor deferred the sentencing to December 4 and explained to the Babyshambles singer — who has passed recently administered drug tests — that he could avoid jail if he sticks with his rehab program and commits no other offenses. The judge also said that the Babyshambles track "The Blinding" is a "good tune." ...

Expect to see Thrice walking in the Orange County Race for a Cure benefit in Newport Beach, California, on September 24. Proceeds from the 5K fundraiser go toward the Syrentha Savio Endowment and the Shirts for a Cure Project. Thrice are promising an exclusive "special thank you" the night of the event for those who join them in the walk. ... "Crocodile Hunter" host Steve Irwin was killed Monday in the waters off Australia's Great Barrier Reef when a stingray's barb stabbed him through the heart while he was snorkeling, AP reports. Irwin, who came under fire in 2004 for holding his infant son while feeding a crocodile, hosted several Animal Planet series, starred in the 2002 film "The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course" and was filming a new program titled "Ocean's Deadliest" before the accident. He is survived by his wife, Terri, and their two children.

09.01.2006

Ashlee may be keeping mum, but Jessica Simpson has 'fessed up to having some work done. In the October issue of Glamour, the singer admitted that, as speculated in some tabloids, she plumped up her lips. "I had that Restylane stuff," she told the magazine, referring to the protein-based, collagen-like gel. "But it fades — it went away in like four months. My lips are back to what they were. Thank God! It looked fake to me. I didn't like that." Asked about whether she has had any cosmetic surgery, Simpson quipped, "The only thing I've ever wanted is a boob reduction! I have to wear two sport bras when I jog. I create a 'uniboob.' " ...

Simpson also opened up about her loneliness. "There are moments when I would love to fall asleep with my head on somebody's shoulder," she said, "just because I was so used to that for so long. I miss that." Unlike ex Nick Lachey, though, Simpson said she'd rather not talk about her divorce, calling it a "sacred" subject that she discusses only with her friends, family and God. Asked for her reaction to Lachey's candid interview with Rolling Stone magazine earlier this year, Simpson said, "people kept that away from me." The singer also vowed to never invite cameras into her private life again. ...

In yet more Jessica news, she finally sang again on Friday (September 1) after injuring her throat a week ago — even if she could barely make it through one song. Simpson sang "I Belong to Me" on the "Today" show, although toward the end, she admitted, "All right, I tried that one," according to The Associated Press. She said she had "busted a blood vessel in my vocal cord" and was nursing a remedy that co-host Matt Lauer called "gnarly looking." ...

Good Charlotte, Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics and producer Glen Ballard (P.O.D., Alanis Morissette) are collaborating on a song to celebrate the 35th anniversary of environmental organization Greenpeace. The song, which will feature additional yet-unannounced singers, will be recorded September 9 at SIR in Hollywood. ... Some choose Christie's. Others go with Sotheby's. Self-described "Internet junkie" Christina Milian, however, knew exactly where to go when it came time to get rid of some of her clothes — she went to eBay. Going by the Internet handle "beatdownprincess," Milian put 13 items up for sale on the online auction house, including a tight black dress worn on "TRL" and a pair of boots from Lil' Romeo's "It's All Gravy" music video. According to Milian, money from the sale of the items will go to various charities. ...

J Records honcho Clive Davis promises that a new album from Whitney Houston is in the works, explaining that they're currently working on songs together and have already picked out six that she'll record. But don't expect Whitney to change the way she works or her creative style for her comeback album — she won't be writing, and she won't be doing anything that her producers say could be musically groundbreaking. "Whitney doesn't write," Davis said. "It's a gift — you either got it or you don't. I've seen more artists lose a career over trying to do that. Ella Fitzgerald didn't write. Lena Horne didn't write. Whitney is Whitney, and there ain't nobody like her. It'll be Whitney. It won't be somebody reaching for a current trend, that's for sure." Davis said they'll be heading to the studio in a few weeks. ...

He's done reality TV, so now "Rock Star" host Dave Navarro is going the fictional route. The Panic Channel guitarist has teamed with "Entourage" writer Cliff Dorfman and writer Neil Strauss — who co-wrote Navarro's biography, "Don't Try This at Home" — to write the pilot for a one-hour drama for FX called "The Product," which chronicles the backstage life of the dysfunctional rock band Load, according to Variety magazine. The show will follow the band as it records its new album, following a three-year hiatus in which the members haven't spoken to one another. ... Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler is getting in a little TV time of his own. He'll guest on the September 25 episode of "Two and a Half Men," playing a rock-star neighbor who clashes with Charlie Sheen's character. Tyler previously did a voiceover on the show in 2003. ...

New York rockers Revelation Theory will be touring this fall with Evanescence. The group will be the support act on the Amy Lee-led band's North American tour, which kicks off in Toronto on October 5. Revelation Theory's debut LP, Truth Is Currency, is in stores now. ... Le Tigre's Johanna Fateman, a devout feminist, is the new co-owner of Seagull, a salon in New York's West Village that became the city's first unisex barbershop when it opened in 1971. Fateman and longtime friend/ hair stylist Shaun Cottle have remodeled shop as a beauty parlor and recruited in-demand stylists, with Fateman occasionally playing the role of receptionist. ... Rapper Jin has created the first webcam-based battle rap Web site, dubbed Spitcam. Jin moderates the competition and hosts Web chats. ...

A beach party honoring late Queen frontman Freddie Mercury planned for Saturday in Zanzibar, Tanzania, has been criticized by a local Muslim leader. Azan Kalid of Zanzibar's Association for Islamic Mobilation and Propagation said the singer, who died of AIDS in 1991, violated Islam and that the party should be canceled. Simai Mohammed, manager of the Mercury restaurant hosting the party — and named for the singer — said the event will go on as planned. "Our main idea is to promote tourism, and Freddie Mercury was from Zanzibar," Mohammed said. "It's part of our history. We are all Muslims and it's not our intention to offend any religion." Mercury would have been 60 on September 5.

• Paris Hilton
• Young Jeezy
• Three 6 Mafia

• 50 Cent
• Omarion
• Eminem
• Justin Timberlake
• Akon

Justin Timberlake and Three 6 Mafia perform at the Roseland Ballroom on Thursday night
Photo: WireImage/ Larry Busacca

NEW YORK — "Did you guys watch the VMAs?" Justin Timberlake asked the crowd at the Roseland Ballroom early Friday morning (September 1). "It was cool. It ain't as hot as this, though."

Of all the post-VMA afterparties and events, JT's club gig just might have been the place to be. After all, the running theme at the awards show was about bringing sexy back — and Justin brought enough to spare, even while wearing a vest, hat and tie.

(Check out photos from Justin's performance at Roseland.)

"We're partying now!" he rallied the audience, which included Diddy with his full entourage, all four Black Eyed Peas and a lost Mario Vazquez, who was trying to find the VIP section. And the celebs weren't only in the crowd — they were also jumping up onstage, helping Timberlake re-create many cuts from his forthcoming FutureSex/LoveSounds album as well as jamming on a few of their own.

After warming up Roseland — also the site of Justin's post-VMA gig three years earlier — with a rock-opera-like version of "Cry Me a River" and a heavier take on "Señorita," he announced that he had handpicked a few new tracks that he "thought New York would like," starting with "Damn Girl." Halfway through the song, Will.I.Am jumped out to rap the middle section, to cheers and applause. Proud of the reception, Justin said, "Nobody does it better than New York, and that's honest, because I'm from the South. I like it Southern."

As if to prove his point, Timberlake's next guest came from the ATL — T.I., like Will.I.Am, came out mid-song, while Justin beatboxed to his raps on a quirky, funky version of "My Love." "I told you that I had some surprises," Timberlake said, as he slid behind the keyboards to play backup to one of T.I.'s own songs.

Playing guitar was next. "Let's see if you can spot this one," he teased as he turned "Like I Love You" into more of a '70s soul song, before reverting to its Justified arrangement and, later, into the riff from Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit." "I'm just getting warmed up!" he laughed.

But since the new songs were the order of the night, he promptly reverted back to the FutureSex playlist, with a slow jam of "Until the End of Time" and an extended version of "LoveStoned/ I Think She Knows." While "LoveStoned" started as a club song — with Timberlake inserting the lyric "She's got the New York ass" to get the crowd cheering — it morphed into emo prom night, with the instruments fading out to one guitar strumming and Justin's delivery evolving from cocksure lower registers to yearning falsetto, so much so that one drunken couple cleared part of the floor to dance so tenderly that it seemed like a movie moment.

The spell was broken for a moment when the crowd started shouting so boisterously that Justin said, "I can't hear a f---ing thing you're saying, but I love you, too." But he quickly returned to the romance by playing the bittersweet "What Goes Around Comes Around."

"I've never done this before, but I'm going to do it right now," he then announced, as his former 'NSYNC bandmate JC Chasez walked out onstage. He said they've been working in the studio together were about to share one of the songs-in-progress (see "Justin Opens Up About Britney, Lance, JC And The Media"). "Let's just do it." As Justin played keyboards and then danced, JC sang a song that exhorted, "If you play with fire, you get burned." The two hugged before JC exited the stage.

Next up were DJ Paul and Juicy J from Three 6 Mafia to join Justin on "Chop Me Up" — they rapped, he beatboxed and then Timbaland jumped onstage, teasing the crowd, "You are not loud enough!" As Three 6 Mafia left, Justin and Tim played a bit of Nelly Furtado's "Promiscuous," with Nelly's parts represented by a track vocal, though Justin and the girls in the crowd helped flesh it out. As Justin beatboxed the breakdown, they slipped into a little bit of the Black Eyed Peas' "My Humps."

"I think we're done," Timberlake said, as the clock struck 3 a.m.

"Hell, no!" Timbaland contradicted. "This is New York! We can't be done."

And so they continued on — morphing Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams" into a version of "SexyBack" done in a go-go version (a percussive '80s style that centered on Washington, D.C., if anyone remembers E.U.'s #1 hit "Da Butt") that slowed the song down to a sluggish, sleepy level.

Yep, sexy had turned to sleepy, but they'll bring it back another night.

The show might be over but the action isn't! Check out all the backstage, uncensored action right here.

Check out all the latest news and pictures from the big show, and reports from previous VMAs, at our VMA news archive.