Ruben Studdard (file)
Photo: MTV News

LOS ANGELES — The breakneck pace at which contestants learn new songs on "American Idol" has stayed with Ruben Studdard.

Less than two years after winning the second season, the Birmingham, Alabama, singer is already midway through his third album.

"I just left New York the other day working with Mario Winans, so you know it's gonna be a big record," Studdard said of his collaboration with the Bad Boy singer and producer, whose credits include Destiny's Child and Mary J. Blige.

While Studdard followed up his Soulful debut with the straight-gospel I Need an Angel (see "Ruben Studdard Decides Christmas Just Isn't Spiritual Enough"), he's returning to his roots for number three.

"This is going to be another R&B album," he said. "We're just looking for the best songs, and everybody's really working really hard to make it a great album."

Studdard wouldn't reveal other collaborators but did let it slip that he's in the running for a role in an upcoming movie. He caught the acting bug after playing himself in last year's "Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed" and has been searching for the right role since. Ideally, it's a comedy.

"I'm all about the laughs," he said. "I'll do Jim Carrey-style for you if you want me to."

Ruben got a quick comedy fix recently when he appeared in the second episode of the new FOX sitcom "Life on a Stick."

"I loved it," he said. "But it was a lot of hurry up and wait."

• Ruben Studdard
• Mario Winans

Mario Winans performs at the VMA Kickoff Jam in Miami on Saturday (Aug 21)
Photo: MTV News

MIAMI — What better way to show that the MTV Video Music Awards are in town than to have the Moonman reimagined, Miami-style?

Guests at the VMA Kickoff Jam, a free outdoor concert at Margaret Pace Park featuring co-headliners Carl Thomas and Mario Winans, were greeted by a 30-foot-tall astronaut made, in honor of Miami's reputation for cars with boomin' sound systems, out of car parts.

Local artist Robert Chambers fashioned the sides of the space helmet out of car rims (embellished with cutouts of dollar signs and hundred-dollar bills), while the front was made out of a car's back windshield, complete with a wiper, that opened and closed. The gloves and boots of the space suit were illuminated by brake lights, and the body of the suit had two pink, neon-outlined "buttons" made out of stereo speakers; below it was a hatch that opened to reveal a complete sound system. The Moonman had a belt made out of a car's grill that was decorated with mufflers, and a tailpipe that stretched up his back and blew out smoke. And even though it strayed from the car theme, the Moonman's MTV flag was pure MIA: neon-pink and blue.

Quduus from "TRL" introduced Carl Thomas and Mario Winans, who performed short four-song sets.

Thomas came dressed for the occasion in a cream suit with an unbuttoned pink-and-purple-striped shirt underneath. He opened with "Emotional," took quick a breather to dedicate the next song to the ladies, and then launched into "Make it Alright."

Before he performed "Summer Rain," Thomas said that his next number was his mother's favorite song, so it means a lot to him as well. Then, he opened up a bit: "I'm usually not the type of person to air insecurity," he said. "I'm more guarded with matters of the heart, but the one time I had a chance to [share my feelings], I wrote a song." And just before he performed his hit "I Wish," he said with a laugh, "I've been surprised at how many people have been in love with someone trifling before."

Then Mario Winans took the stage, dressed casually in jeans, a black short-sleeved shirt, sunglasses and a big cross necklace. He opened with a solo version of "I Need a Girl (Part 2)" and then moved into "This Is the Thanks I Get" before announcing that his next song, "Never Really Was," would be his new single. Finally, Winans asked, "How many of y'all just don't really want to know?" as the opening bars of "I Don't Wanna Know" played behind him.

Besides the performances, there were plenty of other attractions to keep the crowd occupied, like free sno-cones, cotton candy and Burger King's Whopper Mountain, an inflated, climbable hamburger.

Lining the perimeter of the park were tricked-out cars designed by Ludacris, Chingy, Good Charlotte, Bam Margera, G-Unit and Xzibit.

They were all Saturns — either Vues or Ions — and, in addition to the customization, all were decorated with Moonmen. The cars also boasted 15-inch flip-down LCD screens and, with the exception of Ludacris', two others in the headrests of the front seats. (Cris' only had one because the passenger seat of the car was removed, but more on that in a minute.)

Ludacris' ride came with an Xbox, a public-address system, a neon-orange dashboard, back seats and floor mats covered with what was called "polar-bear fur" (it was actually faux), and, as mentioned above, the front seat removed to make room for a cooler.

Chingy's car had yellow-and-red flames along the sides and his name in "Superfly" script. Inside, there was a yellow shag carpet, satellite radio, a PlayStation 2 and 12-inch subwoofers.

Bam Margera's Viva La Bam-mobile was a silver Ion with hot-pink accents like a skateboard spoiler and a symbol that combined a heart with a pentacle on the hood. Inside, there was satellite radio, a stick-shift handle made out of skateboard wheels, and, more esoterically, a fake bat (hanging upside-down) connected to a strobe light.

G-Unit's ride was the most pared-down of the lot. The black Vue was hooked up with both an XBox and PlayStation 2, while the same car interpreted by Xzibit had a big silver "X" on the side, crocodile-print leather seats and four 12-inch speakers.

Finally, Good Charlotte's silver Vue had bright-green accents, the group's brass-knuckles insignia on the side of the car and the title of their forthcoming album, "The Chronicles of Life and Death," painted on the back window. The interior was outfitted with an XBox, an additional LCD screen in the dashboard and a complete digital mobile recording studio.

Other acts at the jam were Missy Elliott's protégé Lil' Briana, decked from head to toe in Chanel (white logo pants, a black harness, white-fishnet fingerless gloves and goggles on her head). She also sported a big, bedazzled belt that read CandyGirl, after her collaboration with Trina, "Kandi."

Also on hand were Spanish rock band Clave, a Spanish-speaking reggaeton group 90 Millas, salsa ensemble Sonora Carruseles, reggae band Morgan Heritage and reggae singer Tanya Stephens, who offered the most thought-provoking advice of the night: "Girls, if you cheat on your man, make sure to cheat on him with a guy that looks like your man, so if you get pregnant, at least your child can have a comfortable life."

• 2004 VMA Kickoff Jam In Miami, 8.22.2004
• VMA '04 Red Carpet Fashion
• VMA '04 Backstage: Usher, Kanye, Jay And More
• VMA '04 Onstage: Usher, Jessica, Shaq, Christina, Nelly, Fat Joe, Alicia, Stevie, Outkast, More
• VMA '04 Behind The Scenes

• Mario Winans
• Carl Thomas
• Ludacris
• Good Charlotte
• G-Unit

The special edition DVD of Disney's "Aladdin," due October 5, will feature Clay Aiken singing "Proud of Your Boy," a ballad written for the 1992 animated classic that was cut from the final movie and soundtrack. The song, written by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken (who also wrote songs for "Beauty and the Beast" and "The Little Mermaid"), is about a child's desire to make his mother proud and provides greater insight into Aladdin's character. ... In other "American Idol" news, Kelly Clarkson will perform a solo version of "Beautiful Disaster" on this season's finale, scheduled for May 26. Aiken will likely also perform, although it is not yet confirmed. ...

Outkast's Andre 3000 has always been animated on record and stage — and now he's hoping to be animated on television as well. The Cartoon Network is in talks with Andre to develop a half-hour animated television show as part of its "Adult Swim" program. The cartoon would revolve around one of Andre's alter-egos from his "Hey Ya! video, Johnny Vulture. ... Victoria Beckham is splitting up with her famous partner. Not soccer-star husband David Beckham, but her record producer, Damon Dash. The Roc-A-Fella magnate has ended the hyped-up pop collaboration with the erstwhile Posh Spice and will use the beats with another artist instead, according to a source close to Dash. The pairing was initiated when Dash approached Posh to promote his Roc-A-Wear line in Europe. Two songs the pair created had made their way onto mixtapes, including a collaboration between Beckham and rap group M.O.P. ...

Michael Jackson has dropped his appeal of a judgment against him, which would have required him to pay concert promoter Marcel Avram $5.3 million for canceling two New Year's Eve shows in 2000. Avram originally filed a $21 million suit against the singer, because Jackson allegedly backed out of millennium shows in Sydney, Australia, and Honolulu, Hawaii. Jackson has reportedly settled the matter for $7 million — the original judgment the jury awarded Avram, plus interest — and now won't have to open up his financial matters in court. ... First comes Love, then comes marriages — at least according to the gospel of Courtney Love, who married 20 couples at a Nevada casino on Saturday. As a mail-order minister, Love presided over the ceremonies for radio contest winners, who also had a justice of the peace on hand. The singer arrived an hour and a half late for the proceedings, during which she chain-smoked, sipped beer in a glass and read the vows from a piece of paper she sometimes gave to the couples to read themselves. ...

Phil Spector shocked reporters covering a hearing for his upcoming murder trial Friday in Los Angeles when he loudly insulted a district attorney as he left the courtroom, suggesting to his lawyer Leslie Abramson that the prosecutor proved you could reproduce through unconventional means. Abramson responded, "Phil, I get to be nasty, you don't." She later told Spector not to speak as she conducted a press conference, but the producer interjected several times, describing his arrest with details: "Broken nose, two black eyes and 50,000 volts shot through me [with a Taser gun] after I invited the police into my home." Abramson said the limousine driver who told investigators that Spector said, "I think I shot someone," is a native of Brazil with a limited command of English who was being given immunity from deportation by prosecutors in exchange for his testimony. "He is an illegal alien," Spector added. No trial date was set. ...

Bad Boy Records will host the next bimonthly concert in the Hearts & Voices series benefiting LIFEbeat the Music Industry Fights AIDS and the E.A.R.S. Foundation, a nonprofit providing employment opportunities for urban youth in the music and entertainment industry. Mario Winans, Carl Thomas, Loon and 8Ball and MJG will perform at the May 25 event at the Babalu Theatre in New York, and P. Diddy will appear in a taped message. Roc-A-Fella hosted the March concert with performances by Kanye West, the Young Gunz and others. ... Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis, who was twice named the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year (2000, 2003), will appear on the cover of "Madden NFL 2005" to emphasize the game's focus on defensive innovations. "Madden NFL 2004," which featured Atlanta Falcons QB Michael Vick on its cover, sold more than 5 million copies. ...

Blaming a combination of managers, lawyers, record companies and his own waning enthusiasm for the project, Trent Reznor has finally killed off his Tapeworm. The demise of the long-discussed side project, which also featured Maynard James Keenan of Tool and A Perfect Circle, Danny Lohner and Atticus Ross, doesn't mean that a Reznor/ Keenan collaboration is completely out of the realm of future possibilities, Reznor said. ... The Beastie Boys are set to headline San Francisco alternative rock station Live 105's annual summer concert, the BFD. Also on the bill are the Strokes, the Violent Femmes, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, New Found Glory and Yellowcard. The BFD takes place June 11 at the Shoreline Amphitheatre. ...

A hip-hop remake of the 1973 film "The Harder They Come" is scheduled to begin production this fall. Where the original focused on Ivan Martin, a rural Jamaican musician played by reggae artist Jimmy Cliff, the remake will center on an aspiring performer who attempts to break into the New York rap scene. The original film and Cliff's performance of its title track helped introduce reggae to mainstream America. ... Two sneak peeks at the thrash-metal documentary "Get Thrashed" have been posted on the flick's official site, www.getthrashed.com. The first features an array of artists weighing in on their favorite thrash albums of all time, while the second finds Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett (formerly of Exodus) discussing Metallica's influence on the thrash canon. The film is currently being edited and is expected to surface this summer or fall. ...

Velvet Revolver played an invite-only show Sunday night at the Roxy in West Hollywood, California. The nearly two-hour set featured material from the band's upcoming album and covers of songs by the bandmembers' former outfits. Singer Scott Weiland crooned mightily on "Crackerman" and "Sex Type Thing" by his old band Stone Temple Pilots, and the Revolver blasted through the Guns N' Roses numbers "Mr. Brownstone," "Used to Love Her" and "It's So Easy." The group closed with a version of Nirvana's "Negative Creep." The band will launch a tour May 13 in St. Louis. ... Smile Empty Soul are the latest band caught in the web of the "Spider-Man 2" soundtrack. The Florida trio join a lineup that includes Train ("Ordinary") and Dashboard Confessional ("Vindicated"). The "Spider-Man 2" soundtrack is due out June 22. ...

Judas Priest have announced another non-Ozzfest date during the summer festival. The band will play with Slayer and Hatebreed on July 30 in Marysville, California. The three acts will also perform together on July 26 in Nampa, Idaho; August 4 in El Paso, Texas; and August 18 in Toronto. ... Both Hatebreed and Brides of Destruction were recently turned away at the Canadian border and had to cancel shows. Hatebreed missed their gig in Vancouver on Saturday because a border patrolwoman wouldn't allow a vehicle carrying the band's merchandise guy and stage manager/guitar tech to enter. "The woman threw a fit when one of us answered one of her questions with a head nod," frontman Jamey Jasta wrote on the band's Web site. "It's a shame that people like this get put into positions of power. She told us she could refuse anyone for any reason at all and that it was all at her discretion." In a separate incident, Brides of Destruction had to reschedule a Toronto show. "We can't play due to past felonies in our camp," bassist Nikki Sixx said on the band's Web site. "The promoter usually has these matters covered and worked out, but he dropped the ball and we've been denied entry to Canada." ...

5.7.2004

Oakland, California, Mayor Jerry Brown, an avid "American Idol" fan, proclaimed last Tuesday La Toya London Day. "Ms. London is known in this community as a star and has inspired Oaklanders everywhere,'' Brown said at a "vote La Toya" party. ... In other "Idol" news, executive producer Ken Warwick has revealed that Bob Dylan's representatives have contacted the show about the legendary singer/songwriter being a guest judge next season. Producers have also been talking with another music icon, Paul McCartney. ...

Garbage Pail Kids, the tasteless trading-card series from the '80s, are back, and some pop stars are in their satirical crosshairs. When the second generation launched in the fall, it featured a character by the name of Brittney Spews. A second series that came out in March included Scuzzy Ozzy and Justin Timberleg. And in September, we'll meet Christina Ugliera. ... Flamboyant British hard rockers the Darkness will work with Def Leppard and AC/DC producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange on their next album. The band will begin work on the LP later this year. ...

Jay-Z is set to headline the Prince's Trust concert in London this weekend, and on Friday (May 7), he met Prince Charles himself. The annual benefit concert also features Jay's girlfriend, Beyoncé, on the bill. ... N.E.R.D. recently finished one tour, and in July they'll embark on another one. The group will headline a brief trek starting July 19 in Toronto and running through the Rolling Rock Town Fair near Latrobe, Pennsylvania, on July 31, with High Speed Scene opening. Pharrell and company will also be playing five dates with the Dave Matthews Band: Hartford, Connecticut (July 16-17), Camden, New Jersey (July 20-21), and their hometown of Virginia Beach, Virginia (July 23). ...

Ryan Adams has temporarily shut down his Web site to grieve the death of the TV show "Friends." The site is currently decorated with a dark graveyard and a single lit tombstone that reads "R.I.P. Friends." There's also a message in medieval lettering that states, "Out of respect for Joey, Chandler, Monica, Ross, Rachel and Phoebe ryan-adams.com will be temporarily closed until further notice." ... There will be 12 second-stage acts performing during the two-day stints at this year's Lollapalooza festival. The first day will feature Broken Social Scene, the Walkmen, Wolf Eyes, Danger Mouse, the Datsuns and Sparta. The Thrills, the Fire Theft, the Coup, Sound Tribe Sector 9, Elbow and Wheat will play the second day. DJ Peretz, an alter-ego name for festival organizer and Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell, will spin both days. ...

David Bowie was forced to abruptly cancel his concert Thursday in Miami after a stagehand suffered a fatal fall before showtime. Police are investigating the incident. ... The Massachusetts Fire Preventions Regulations Board voted on Thursday to permanently ban the indoor use of pyrotechnics in clubs, a reaction to the Station Fire in Rhode Island that killed 100. In January, the board banned club pyro on an emergency basis, and now it's decided to make the move permanent. Larger venues equipped with sprinklers will still be allowed to use pyro pending approval in advance by the building owner. ...

Stevie Wonder has set a June 8 release date for A Time 2 Love, his first studio album in nine years. To promote the release, the soul legend will perform on "Good Morning America" and have an episode of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" devoted to him. ... "The Parkers" star Mo'Nique, who also joins Snoop Dogg and Method Man in the upcoming flick "Soul Plane," will host the 2004 BET Awards. The Isley Brothers will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award and actor Danny Glover will be honored for his humanitarian efforts, while the other nominees will be announced Wednesday. ...

Kool Keith, Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, Motion Man and Cannibal Ox's Vast Aire are among the guest MCs on the debut album from Dopestyle 1231, titled KutMasta Kurt Presents Dopestyle 1231. Keith described the music as having "a vintage feel of the critical '88 days updated." ... More than 130 performers including the Pixies, Sheryl Crow, Trey Anastasio, Dashboard Confessional and Ben Harper have been tapped for the annual Austin City Limits festival from September 17 to 19. The Zilker Park event will also feature Jack Johnson, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Modest Mouse, Franz Ferdinand and the Beta Band. ...

Ozomatli, Galactic and Karl Denson's Tiny Universe are among the bands lined up for Jam Cruise 3, a Carnival Cruiselines four-day event leaving Jacksonville, Florida, on January 6, 2005. Sound Tribe Sector 9, Col. Bruce Hampton and the Aquarium Rescue Unit and the North Mississippi Allstars will also perform on the cruise, which will stop in the Bahamas. ... Marilyn Manson has a cameo role in the upcoming flick "The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things," starring Asia Argento ("XXX"). The film will premiere at the Cannes Film Festival later this month. ...

• Clay Aiken
• Kelly Clarkson
• Courtney Love
• Mario Winans
• Hatebreed

Prince (file)
Photo: Columbia Records

Neither rock royalty nor a crooner rooted in the Lord could dethrone Usher from the top of the Billboard albums chart.

The R&B singer's Confessions extends its #1 streak to five weeks after selling more than 252,000 copies last week, according to SoundScan figures released Wednesday (April 28). Although his sales have been dropping slightly from week to week, the tremendous weekly tallies have already pushed the LP over the 2.6 million mark.

Propelled by the single "I Don't Wanna Know," Hurt No More by Mario Winans (of the celebrated gospel family) trails Mr. Entertainment by 30,000 copies, at #2.

Musicology, Prince's first major-label-distributed album in five years, sold more than 191,000 copies in its first week, bowing at #3 amid a U.S. tour and a blizzard of media coverage. In 1999 Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic debuted at #18 with more than 83,000 copies sold.

Prince's high numbers come with a hitch: Concertgoers who attended his shows received a copy of Musicology. The cost of the CD was included in the ticket price, which ranges from $47 to $75, and SoundScan is counting those tickets toward weekly album sales. However, although the tour kicked off March 29, only the four shows that have taken place since the album's April 20 release have been counted. Still, with an average of 15,000 people attending each concert, that amounts to an extra 60,000 copies. But even with that number subtracted from the total, Musicology would still be the third-best-selling album, since weekly sales of the #4 album, Now That's What I Call Music! 15, stand at 98,000.

Wu-Tang member Ghostface rounds out the top-10 debuts with his fourth solo LP, The Pretty Toney Album, at #6. Driven by the radio hit "Push" featuring Missy Elliott and the street single "Run" featuring Jadakiss, that album moved more than 68,000 copies.

Next week's top 10 will also finds Hoobastank's The Reason dropping two places to #5 (selling more than 72,000 copies); Jessica Simpson's In This Skin maintaining its grip on #7 (63,000); Guns N' Roses' Greatest Hits dropping three to #8 (59,000); Evanescence's Fallen taking a step back to #9 (58,000); and Kanye West's The College Dropout hanging in at #10 (58,000).

With a new singer in tow and a single on the soundtrack to "The Punisher," Drowning Pool's second album, Desensitized, enters at #17.

Former MMMBoppers Hanson's first new album in four years, Underneath, lands at #25 on the back of the single "Penny & Me." The boys have a ways to go before rivaling sales of 1997's Middle of Nowhere, which has sold more than 4 million copies. Their mostly forgettable last album, This Time Around, debuted five places higher than their new one, with nearly twice as much sales action.

Other notable debuts include Fear Factory's sixth album, Archetype, at #30; Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society's Hangover Music Vol. VI at #40; stoner rappers the Kottonmouth Kings' Fire It Up at #42; the compilation Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1, featuring tracks from Sum 41, Alkaline Trio, the Ataris and the Get Up Kids, at #54; the soundtrack to "13 Going on 30," with contributions from Rick Springfield, Whitney Houston, and Liz Phair at #65; and the belated domestic release of Machine Head's Through the Ashes of Empires at #88.

• Prince
• Mario Winans
• Usher

After serving 10 months on a parole violation, Suge Knight is getting out of prison this week. The rap mogul served the bulk of his time at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, California, after a parole board determined that his punching a parking valet was a violation of the terms of his 2001 parole. Knight had already served time at Mule Creek for committing a 1996 assault in a Las Vegas casino, itself a violation of probation for sentences on assault and gun charges. ...

Prince taped a private performance for MTV on Tuesday night in New York that was open to local members of his NPG Music fan club. He played songs from his new album, Musicology, with his New Power Generation band, plus a solo acoustic set (on a purple guitar) that included "Cream," "I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man" and "Sometimes It Snows in April." Later, he celebrated the release of Musicology with a party that attracted the likes of Stevie Wonder, Maxwell and the Roots' ?uestlove. ... Just as Prince is undergoing a revival, his old mate Morris Day of the Time is prepping the release of a new album, It's About Time, due June 22. The record contains old live recordings of classic hits from the Time and Day's solo career, plus four new songs written by Day and original members Jerome Benton, Jellybean Johnson and Monte Moir. ...

Mario Winans had an album-release party Tuesday night at New York's Lot 61. Foxy Brown, Carl Thomas, the Isley Brothers and members of Bad Boy's Da Band showed up to give Yellow Man his props. ... The compilation LP Totally Hits 2004 will feature the previously unreleased Justin Timberlake song "I'm Lovin' It," which was recorded during the sessions for Justified but left off the record. The disc, which comes out May 4, will also include singles by Alicia Keys, Sean Paul, Kelis, Maroon 5, J-Kwon, R. Kelly and others. ...

Is Clear Channel Communications the evil empire? A U.S. district court judge in Denver is letting a jury decide. Judge Edward W. Nottingham concluded that there was sufficient evidence to suggest that the world's largest concert promoter reduced airplay on its radio stations for artists who used the company's competition. Denver-based Nobody in Particular Presents accused Clear Channel of engaging in illegal monopolistic practices in a complaint filed in August 2001 and will have their day in court August 2. ... To christen the takeoff of a new partnership between Sony Connect and United Airlines, Sheryl Crow will perform a 40-minute acoustic set in an airplane flying between Chicago and Los Angeles on May 4. Upon landing, Crow will play a party celebrating the arrival of a new Sony digital Walkman. Soon after, fans can purchase the performances on mileageplusmusic.com. Sony Connect is Sony Music's digital online music service, offering songs for 99 cents a pop, and now that they've teamed with United Airlines, travelers can trade in frequent-flyer points for songs at Connect.com. ...

To celebrate their 35th anniversary, ZZ Top will launch a North American tour on June 25 in Wichita Falls, Texas. Dates run through September 25 in Las Vegas. In addition, ZZ Top will play the Crossroads Guitar Festival at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on June 6 with Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, B.B. King and Buddy Guy. ... Following the conclusion of the Headbangers Ball 2 Tour May 7 in Portland, Oregon, Damageplan and Drowning Pool will extend their road relationship another two weeks. The two bands have lined up a string of dates, beginning May 8 in Seattle through May 17 in Boulder, Colorado. ...

The as-yet-untitled new album from the Cure is scheduled for a June 22 release. The U.K. band's first album since 2000's Bloodflowers was recorded in London with producer Ross Robinson, best known for his work with nü-metal bands Korn, Slipknot and Soulfly. ... The first DVD to collect the videos of morose crooner Nick Cave is set to drop May 4. The 20-track "Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - The Videos" features "Into My Arms," "Red Right Hand," "Deanna" and "Where the Wild Roses Grow," Cave's collaboration with Kylie Minogue. ...

New York publishers are involved in a bidding war for an ambitious and massive new proposal by cultural historian and recognized Beatles authority Mark Lewisohn, in which he would write a three-volume biography about the band to be published over the next decade. The project is expected to sell for at least seven figures. ... Shane MacGowan, ex-singer for the Irish folk-rock band the Pogues, suffered a fractured cheekbone after being attacked in a London pub on Monday, the Evening Standard reported. MacGowan was assaulted by two men, who kicked him, punched him and struck him with a metal bar. The singer was taken to St. Thomas' Hospital but left before being treated. A 20-year-old and a 21-year-old were arrested and released on bail. ...

04.20.2004

And you thought Ashton Kutcher was merciless. For her brother Bryan's birthday on Monday, Britney Spears had him "arrested" by undercover cops and FBI agents in Beverly Hills, California. Bryan, who works with his sister's management company, was handcuffed and taken into custody, while Britney acted shocked and horrified. But the phony police actually took him to his own birthday party, where all was revealed. ...

The 16-year-old who carjacked Eminem's mom early this year has been sentenced to at least four years and three months behind bars. The incident occurred January 22 when James Antonio Knott dragged Debbie Nelson from her car on Detroit's 8 Mile and stole her vehicle. Nelson suffered bruises and a broken foot. Knott, who didn't realize he was assaulting Eminem's mother, was also fined $3,473. ... Nas' trial on a second-degree assault charge has been set for April 30. The charge stems from an incident at a nightclub in New York's West Village in December 2003, in which Nas allegedly struck a man with a bottle. ...

An electric guitar owned by Kurt Cobain from 1990-92 sold for $117,500 at an auction held in Dallas last weekend. The guitar was the first of the Nirvana frontman's instruments to go on sale since his death a decade ago. ... The recording industry unceremoniously canceled its "Clean Slate" amnesty program for illegal file-sharers earlier this month. On Friday, lawyers for the RIAA asked a judge to dismiss a complaint filed by a California man claiming fraudulent business practices, because the Clean Slate program, which stipulated that file-sharers who admitted their guilt in writing and deleted the infringing files would be protected from the costly copyright-infringement lawsuits, was no longer in effect. Critics of the program had argued since its inception in September that a trade organization could not legally offer protection from lawsuits filed by the copyright-holding record labels. ...

Suge Knight is working with various rappers and record labels to put together a hip-hop compilation benefiting the financially troubled families of U.S. soldiers fighting in Iraq. "I'm not taking any kind of political stance on the war, however, with so many soldiers now in Iraq for more than a year, I'm concerned about the families they've left behind," Knight said in a statement. The album will be released before Christmas, he added. Meanwhile, the mogul's next project, Kurupt's Against the Grain, is due June 29. ... Sevendust had to cancel a show in McAllen, Texas, on Sunday after their tour bus caught fire on the way. A store clerk helped extinguish the flames and no one was injured. The Atlanta rockers are touring in support of the CD/DVD package Southside Double-Wide Acoustic Live, which drops May 4. The set was recorded in Athens, Georgia, in September. ...

The Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins checked out the Darkness' brand of spandex-clad rock Sunday in Los Angeles, along with the Eagles' Timothy B. Schmit. The next day, the U.K. phenoms made perhaps the shortest appearance ever on the syndicated radio show "Loveline," when they abandoned ship after roughly 20 minutes. Apparently the callers' questions about STDs, masturbation and other sexual topics made the band "uncomfortable." Now in England, the Darkness are writing for the follow-up to Permission to Land before taking on the European festival circuit in July. ... Japanese beatboxer Dokaka has lent her percussive vocal talents to Björk's untitled next album. The LP, expected to drop later this year, follows 2001's Vespertine. ...

Members of the Ramones, Dictators, Television and Dead Boys will play Ramones songs to celebrate the band's late frontman, Joey Ramone, who died of lymphatic cancer in 2001. The fourth annual Life's a Gas - The Annual Joey Ramone Birthday Bash will take place May 19 in New York. Ramone would have been 53 on May 19. Also on the bill that night are Alkaline Trio, the Dickies, Supersuckers and Bebe Buell. ... Danger Mouse has teamed up with indie rapper Murs to record a remix of the song "To a Black Boy," from the '60s group the Free Design. The track is dedicated to Marcus Dixon, an 18-year-old black scholar and high school athlete who was sentenced to 10 years in prison in Georgia for having sex with his 15-year-old high school girlfriend, who is white. The song will appear on the compilation Free Designed Redesigned Volume 2, which also features remixes by Belle & Sebastian and Madlib. ...

Busta Rhymes will release a DVD titled "Everything Remains Raw" on May 18. The DVD features live footage from several performances over the last year. ... Three months after reducing its suggested retail price for CDs from $18.98 to $12.98, the Universal Music Group has bumped the cost to $13.98. Attempting to stimulate a business that had been down for three years, Universal expected merchants would pass the discounts on to consumers and other labels would follow suit. Neither has happened, according to the conglomerate. ... Broken Sounds, the label founded by New Found Glory's Chad Gilbert and Ian Grushka, dropped its maiden releases Tuesday: Memories of Better Days, from melodic punk rockers Breakdance Vietnam, and Only Time Will Tell, from hardcore quintet Suffocate Faster. Both bands will play select dates on this summer's Vans Warped Tour. ...

• Justin Timberlake
• Prince
• Mario Winans
• Foxy Brown
• Morris Day

Prince in the "Musicology" video (file)
Photo: Columbia Records

After being relegated to the bottom of the new releases list week after week, the "various artists" finally got a chance to shine up top this week.

The soundtrack to Jennifer Garner's "13 Going on 30" features throwback hits like "Jessie's Girl" by Rick Springfield, "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)" by Whitney Houston, "Head Over Heels" by the Go-Go's, "Crazy for You" by Madonna, "Love Is a Battlefield" by Pat Benatar, "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice, and a cover of "What I Like About You" by Lillix.

The punk-political throwdown Rock Against Bush features previously unreleased tracks by Sum 41, Alkaline Trio, Offspring, Get Up Kids, Jello Biafra, the Ataris, New Found Glory, NOFX and songs by Social Distortion and Pennywise. There are also videos included on the CD.

The Hip Hop Box is a four-CD set featuring classic tracks by Run-DMC, Kurtis Blow, Roxanne Shanté, Salt-N-Pepa, Kool Moe Dee, Too Short, Boogie Down Productions, Public Enemy, Biz Markie, A Tribe Called Quest, the Wu-Tang Clan, Busta Rhymes, Gangstarr, the Pharcyde, U.T.F.O., Naughty by Nature, and Afrika Bambaataa and the SoulSonic Force. The set, which commemorates the 25th anniversary of hip-hop, includes songs from 1979 to 2003 and a booklet with a forward written by Chuck D.

Meanwhile, Prince presents Musicology, while the kinder, gentler, non-Killah Ghostface releases The Pretty Toney Album alongside Hanson's Underneath, Drowning Pool's Desensitized, Afroman's Afroholic: The Even Better Times and Mario Winans' Hurt No More.

Chris Vrenna, a founding member of Nine Inch Nails and now the man behind Tweaker, releases his second album, 2 a.m. Wakeup Call. Guests on the album include the Cure's Robert Smith on "Truth Is."

Finally, the Veils celebrate The Runaway Found, and Bright Eyes and Neva Dinova supply One Jug of Wine, Two Vessels.

Out Tuesday, April 20:

• Afroman - Afroholic the Even Better Times (Hungry Hustler)
• The Alarm - In the Poppy Fields (Snapper)
• Alien Crime Syndicate - Ten Songs in the Key of Betrayal (The Control Group)
• Alkaline Trio/One Man Army - Split Series, Vol. 5 (BYO)
• Theresa Andersson - Shine (Basin Street)
• Atombombpocketknife - Lack and Pattern (File 13)
• Automato - Automato (Coup de Grace)
• Azita - Life on the Fly (Drag City)
• Bad Acid Trip - Lynch the Weirdo (Serjical Strike/Columbia)
• Beyond Surface - Destination's End (Sanctuary/Noise)
• Black Label Society - Hangover Music, Vol. VI (Spitfire)
• Norman & Nancy Blake - The Morning Glory Ramblers (DualTone)
• Brazil - A Hostage and the Meaning of Life (Fearless)
• Kevin-John Breit and the Sisters - John and the Sisters (NorthernBlues)
• Bright Eyes/Neva Dinova - One Jug of Wine, Two Vessels (Crank!)
• George Calle - Dark Beats NYC, Vol. 2 (Oh Music)
• Cesium_137 - Elemental (Metropolis)
• Jon Cleary - Pin Your Spin (Basin Street)
• Debase - Unleashed (Sanctuary/Noise)
• Demolition Doll Rods - On (Swami)
• DJ Icey - For the Love of the Beat (System Recordings)
• Drowning Pool - Desensitized (Wind-Up)
  Read: "New Drowning Pool Singer Says He Had A Vision Before Tryout"
  Buy Now: Desensitized (Wind-Up)
  
• Dyecrest - The Way of Pain (Sanctuary/Noise)
• Echobrain - Glean (Chophouse/Surfdog)
• Ektomorf - Destroy (Nuclear Blast)
• Fear Factory - Archetype (Liquid 8)
• Flight Recorder - From Pinkerton's Assorted Colours to the Flying Machine (Sanctuary/Castle)
• Jerry Garcia - All Good Things: Jerry Garcia Studio Sessions (box set, Rhino)
• Ghostface - The Pretty Toney Album (Def Jam)
• The Glasspack - Bridgeburner (Small Stone)
• Go Betty Go - Worst Enemy (EP, SideOneDummy)
• Patty Griffin - Impossible Dream (ATO)
• Hangmen - Loteria (Acetate)
• Hanson - Underneath (Three Car Garage)
• Daniel G. Harmann - The Lake Effect (Post436)
• Stefon Harris and Blackout - Evolution (Blue Note)
• Sophie B. Hawkins - Wilderness (Trumpet Swan)
• Rob Ickes with Blue Highway - Big Time (Rounder)
• King Wilkie - Broke (Rebel)
• Kottonmouth Kings - Fire It Up (Suburban Noize)
• Lach - Today (Fortified)
• Jon Langford - All the Fame of Lofty Deeds (Bloodshot)
• LMNO - Economic Food Chain Music (Up Above)
• Lords - The House That Lords Built (Initial)
• Martyr A.D. - On Earth as It Is in Hell (Victory)
• Matt Mau - Lifted: Live in Buenos Aires (Journees)
• Vinny Miller - On the Block (4AD/Beggars Banquet)
• Millie - Time Will Tell (Sanctuary/Trojan)
• John Michael Montgomery - Letters From Home (Warner Bros.)
• Gurf Morlix - Cut 'n Shoot (Catamount)
• Norselaw - Sweet Home Scandanavia (Direct Music Group)
• Persuader - Evolution Purgatory (Sanctuary/Noise)
• Prince - Musicology (NPG/Columbia)
  Buy Now: Musicology (NPG/Columbia)
  
• Lali Puna - Faking the Books (Morr)
• Ratatat - Ratatat (XL/Beggars Banquet)
• The Reputation - To Force a Fate (Lookout!)
• Retisonic - Return to Me (Silverthree Sound)
• Smokey Robinson - Food for the Spirit (Liquid 8)
• Keaton Simons - Currently (EP, Maverick)
• Single Frame - Wetheads Come Running (Volcom)
• Skalpel - Skalpel (Ninja Tune)
• Lt. Stitchie - Kingdom Ambassador (Ejaness Reggae)
• Subdudes - Miracle Mule (Back Porch/EMI)
• Craig Taborn - Junk Magic (Thirsty Ear)
• The Talk - It's Like Magic in Reverse (MoRisen)
• Thelonious Monster - California Clam Chowder (Lakeshore)
• Time Machine - Reviviscence (Sensory)
• Tweaker - 2 a.m. Wakeup Call (iMUSIC/Waxploitation)
• Veils - The Runaway Found (Sanctuary/Rough Trade)
• Vomitory - Primal Massacre (Metal Blade)
• W.A.S.P. - Neon God Pt. 1 (Sanctuary/Metal-Is)
• A Wilhelm Scream - Mute Print (Nitro/Mute Print)
• Alyson Williams - It's About Time (Three Keys)
• Mario Winans - Hurt No More (Bad Boy)
  Read: "Love, Hurt, Betrayal: These Are A Few Of Mario Winans' Favorite Things"
  
• Wolf - Evil Star (Prosthetic)
• Various artists - "13 Going on 30" soundtrack (Hollywood)
• Various artists - Blue Note Revisited (Blue Note)
• Various artists - Hi Power 2004 (Thump)
• Various artists - The Hip Hop Box (Hip-O)
• Various artists - Location Is Everything, Vol. 2 (Jade Tree)
• Various artists - Pickin' on LeAnn Rimes (CMH)
• Various artists - Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1 (Fat Wreck Chords/Punkover)
• Various artists - "Step Into Liquid" soundtrack (Surfdog)
• Various artists - The String Quartet Tribute to Faith Hill (Vitamin)
• Various artists - The String Quartet Tribute to Alicia Keys (Vitamin)
• Various artists - The String Quartet Tribute to Kiss (Vitamin)
• Various artists - Underground Chicano Rap Soundtrack (Thump)

April 27:

• Diana Krall - The Girl in the Other Room (Verve)
• Joey McIntyre - 8:09 (Artemis)
• Patti Smith - Trampin' (Sony)
• Various artists - "American Idol" Season 3: Greatest Soul Classics (RCA)

May 4:

• Buckethead - Population Override (Ion)
• Kimberley Locke - One Love (Curb)
  Read:
• Petey Pablo - Still Writing in My Diary: 2nd Entry (Jive)
• Various artists - "The L Word" soundtrack (Tommy Boy)

May 18:

• Alanis Morissette - So Called Chaos (Maverick)
• Morrissey - You Are the Quarry (Sanctuary)

May 25:

• Avril Lavigne - Under My Skin (Arista)
  Read: "Avril Lavigne Album Preview: Rock Rules On Under My Skin"
  Buy Now: Under My Skin (Arista)

• Prince
• Mario Winans
• Afroman
• Drowning Pool
• Hanson

Mario Winans (file)
Photo: Bad Boy

From Biggie to Mase to Loon, P. Diddy's Bad Boys almost always portray themselves as heartbreaking playboys. But Mario "Yellow Man" Winans intends to break the mold and show that guys can get their feelings trampled as well.

"Men got hearts too," Winans said from Florida last week. "I just wanna speak for all of them. I understand men make mistakes and mess up, but it doesn't mean we're not human. We've been dogged for the longest. We've been hurt too."

Winans said we'll hear a slew of stories about his relationship calamities on Hurt No More, due April 20.

"You'll find a lot of stories about love and betrayal on my new album," he explained. "Hurt and pain. A lot of stories about how I feel about a woman and the emotions a woman can bring from me. A lot of true experiences God has blessed me to write about."

The title may suggest that Yellow Man has risen from the depths of despair, but you wouldn't know it from his new single and video, "I Don't Wanna Know." The dude is hurt and refuses to come to grips with reality. In fact, Mario is so gone over his girl that he takes a bath and forgets to disrobe.

"I come home with pictures of my girl, knowing she done kissed another guy," Winans explained of the video. "I'm going through all these emotions of not really wanting to know, not wanting to face it. It's to the point where I get in the tub with all my clothes on. It's tearing me up inside."

"I Don't Wanna Know," featuring P. Diddy, took on a life of its own. It wasn't the obvious choice for the album's first single, but radio programmers and DJs gravitated toward it when it appeared on mixtapes, so Bad Boy had no choice but to release it officially.

"I was so excited about that. It was definitely one of my favorite songs on the album," Winans said of the track, which samples Enya's "Boadicea." The Fugees flipped the same beat a few years ago for their classic "Ready or Not."

"I first heard 'Boadicea' at the end of the movie 'Sleepwalkers' about five or six years ago. It's something I always wanted to produce. Then when the Fugees did it, oh my God, I loved it."

Several "remix" versions of "I Don't Wanna Know" have popped up on mixtapes. MCs like J. Hood have rhymed on the song, either adding verses to P.D.'s rap or replacing him altogether. Winans said none of them is sanctioned by Bad Boy and that his own down-South-flavored remix is coming soon.

Winans has also recorded with Kelis and Slim of 112. The latter ditty, "You Knew," was recorded in Diddy's hotel room in Australia during a Bad Boy tour.

• Mario Winans

Farrah Franklin
Photo: Sony

QUEENS, New York — Mr. Cheeks was so excited to be shooting a music video in his old Southside Jamaica neighborhood with director Zodiac Fishgrease that he mimicked the trademark yell of wrestling legend "Nature Boy" Ric Flair.

"Woooooo!" Cheeks exclaimed Wednesday in his trailer, in between explaining the concept of the song and video for "Crush on You" and deciding which shoes to wear in the next scene.

"This is like taking it back to my sensitivity," Cheeks said, standing up and barely able to move in the overloaded space, which was filled with his crew, including the song's producer and guest star, Mario Winans. "That's how we do. All of us got a little shorty we see in the 'hood. Maybe you don't think you are her type, but you holla at her and let her know you got a crush on her."

"We got together in Miami, I worked on the beat, by the time I was finished with the beat, he was finished with the rhyme," Winans added about the collaboration. "He kicked it to me and really inspired me and I came up with the hook. It's a real passionate joint for the ladies."

Earlier in the day, Cheeks and the Yellowman shot performance scenes in front of an 8-foot sculpture that spelled out the word "Crush," and at night it was time to begin filming the more dramatic scenes with the video's leading lady, former Destiny's Child member Farrah Franklin (see "Destiny's Child Talks Split With Farrah").

"Basically I'm playing the chick he has a crush on," Franklin said while sitting in a trailer next to Cheeks'. "I just got called for it two days ago. I helped [Cheeks] pick out this song for his single, so that's why he called me. Him and my manager are good friends. I loved the song when I heard it and was like, 'That would be a hot video to do.' Cheeks is crazy and I'm feeding off his energy.

"He's gonna be in the car with his boys, I'm gonna be walking and his boys are gonna be like, 'Yo, that's the shorty with the fatty that you like,' " she continued. "Then it's a grocery store scene, so I guess he's gonna be trying to get at me when I'm shopping. I'm dressed like I'm going to a club and I'm shopping. I'm kinda fabulous in this video."

From being fab, to hanging out with Fab — Franklin also disclosed that she'll finally be ready to release her debut solo LP this year, which will come out on Street Family Entertainment, a label started by slick-mouthed MC Fabolous and his managers.

"I'll probably be on some other projects before my album comes out," Franklin explained. "We're talking about [putting out] a single now with me and Fab. It's not named yet. We just did it a week ago. It's a club joint.

"Basically [it's about] a girl going to the club and she sees somebody and so I say, 'So it looks like I'm going to be leaving with you tonight/ It feels so right/ I'm thinking me and you could fall in love,' " she continued. "He's telling me 'Yo ma, I didn't come to the club for that, I'm chilling.' So I'm saying, 'What you come to the club for? You didn't come to dance, you're standing on the wall, so you came to look at the scenery.' "

Franklin, who also has a TV pilot in the works with Miguel A. Nunez called "America's Most Talented," and who is being wooed by DMX to star in his film "Never Die Alone," isn't Cheeks' only co-star keeping busy with a gaggle of projects.

Winans, who just came back from Miami, said P. Diddy had him and the Bad Boy family locked down there in the studio for two months. 

"We was down there making nothing but hits," Winans said. "We was real focused, finishing the Mary [J. Blige] album. You know how it is when Puff and Mary get together, he makes that magic for her. We was working on New Edition, Loon, then I was working on Ginuwine, 702, Tamia. I was doing Queen Latifah stuff, Brian McKnight, Method Man, we got a lot of stuff coming."

One thing Mr. Cheeks does not have coming to him is a lawsuit courtesy of Fox Sports. Cheeks originally wanted to name his April release The Best Damn Rap Album Period, which was derived from the network's "Best Damn Sports Show Period," but decided the wiser (see "Mr. Cheeks Promises The Best Damn Rap Album Period").

"Fox called me and said, 'Chill, we're gonna have some beef if you do that, Cheeks," the Lost Boyz frontman laughed. "I said all right. I don't need no beef with Fox Sports, so I named it Back Again.

M.O.P., Alexander O'Neal, Glenn Lewis, Floetry, Joe, Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth all appear on the LP, as does Tweet, who sings on the title track.

"We used the original [beat from] 'Car Wash,' " Cheeks said of the song. "She's doing her flow, but we took it back to the '70s for them. I'm a '70s child, so it's only right to get that involved. I always loved the movie 'Car Wash.' I'm back again, woooo!"

• Mr. Cheeks
• Destiny's Child
• Mary J. Blige
• Diddy
• Ginuwine

DMX and Jet Li in "Cradle 2 the Grave"
Photo: Claudette Barius/Warner Brothers

While DMX is in the studio finishing his fifth solo LP, It's Not a Game, the soundtrack to his "Cradle 2 the Grave" is moving closer to completion.

The soundtrack's first single, "X Gon' Give It to Ya," produced by newcomer Shatek, has already hit mixtapes, and the barking MC plans to shoot a video soon. Besides "X Gon' Give It to Ya," the rhyming canine also contributed the title track and a song called "Right or Wrong" to the project.

According to a spokesperson for DMX, the Clipse, Big Tymers, Fat Joe, Puffy and Mario Winans, Carl Thomas, Bazarre Royale, and 50 Cent and his G-Unit crew appear on the album as well.

50 is also among the guests appearing on It's Not a Game along with the likes of Cam'ron, who features X on the Diplomats' mixtape missile "What's Really Good." PK, Kanye West, No ID, DJ Envy and Dame Grease are among the producers X enlisted to provide beats for It's Not a Game, the first release on his Bloodline imprint.

The movie "Cradle 2 the Grave," which stars DMX and Jet Li, hits theaters on February 28, preceded by the soundtrack on February 11. It's Not a Game still doesn't have a firm release date, but a rep for the Yonkers native said checking for it sometime this spring would be a safe bet.

• DMX
• Clipse
• The Big Tymers
• Fat Joe
• Diddy

3LW
Photo: Epic

With the first offering off of their upcoming A Girl Can Mack LP, teen trio 3LW plan to show that they can hang with grown folk.

In the video for "I Do (Wanna Get Close to You)," the little women hit the club in search of good times, according to a spokesperson for the group. But the party isn't in any ordinary spot in the Chris Applebaum-directed vid: The songbirds get things jumped off in a futuristic pod-like venue in the middle of the ocean where they come across Loon — who raps on the track — Naughty by Nature and Nick Cannon.

"[The song] is a lot of fun," the group's oldest member, Adrienne, said last month of the P. Diddy/Mario Winans-produced cut. "We wanted to come out with a song that was going to make people happy."

The girls said they have a couple of melancholy love offerings on the LP as well. "There is a joint on our album called 'Crazy,' " Adrienne disclosed. "It's about a girl who's falling in love with a guy that's taken. But not only is he taken, she's taken. They both got people in their lives and she's saying, 'Just this once, I hope two wrongs can make a right.' It's a sad song, the melody is beautiful. It will touch a lot of people that fall in love with people that are taken. Trust me, it happens a lot."

Adrienne and her group members Kiely and Naturi said they've pretty much wrapped up production on their second album (see "3LW Dis Lil' Bow Wow, Leave Club With a Taller Baller" ), but are still in the lab working on a few more cuts.

"Another one of our favorite songs — we haven't really recorded that [yet] — is called 'Ex-Love of My Life,' " Kiely interjected. "It's this girl saying, 'You used to be my love but now you're the ex-love of my life.' I love the beat, that's the best part of the song. It starts off really sad and slow and she's like, 'I have to take this song and flip it.' So she just flips into this really hard beat."

"Goodbye!" Adrienne chimed in. "It's empowering. You know why? 'Cause a girl can mack!"

"Ya heard!" Kiely jumped back in. "Nothing helps a broken heart more than the next two boyfriends. Just keeping it real."

Kiely also keeps it real when talking about 3LW's lyric-penning. She said that they're constantly working on songs but aren't ready to share them with the world yet, especially on the new album.

"We didn't want to make the sophomore mistake," she said. "A lot of times it's a perception that you have a successful first album and you go into your second album and you're like, 'I'mma do it all. I know exactly what I'm doing.'

"We did really good on our first album collaborating," she added. "We're still teenagers. We don't have it all together. But we still have our ideas. That's what's fun about working with all our producers. They let us be us. It was really cool, we didn't want to veer so much, we didn't want to change directions. We just wanted to take it to the next level, hone our craft, keep writing amongst ourselves. Maybe the third or fourth album we'll be writing and producing."

"It takes a while to get it all down pat," said Naturi, building on her partner's thoughts. "That's the mistake a lot of people make."

3LW's rep said the video for "I Do (Wanna Get Close to You)" is in post-production and should be ready in July. A Girl Can Mack is slated for an October release.

• 3LW
• Diddy
• Naughty By Nature
• Mario Winans

John Mayer, Black Eyed Peas, More At Grammy Style Studio 02.09.2005

• John Mayer
• Jesse McCartney
• Black Eyed Peas
• Backstreet Boys
• Paula Abdul

2004 VMA Kickoff Jam In Miami, 8.22.2004

• Carl Thomas
• Mario Winans
• Ludacris
• Chingy
• G-Unit

Direct Effect Presents: Straight Up Hip-Hop All Week Portraits

• J-Kwon
• Twista
• Cassidy
• Miri Ben-Ari
• D12

MTV.com Exclusive: Mario Winans Photos

• Mario Winans