Britney Spears will be honored with the Children's Choice Award at the Neil Bogart Memorial Fund's annual Bogart Tour for a Cure on November 4 in Los Angeles. The pop princess has established both a namesake foundation and a performing arts camp to benefit sick and disadvantaged children and raised $1 million during her Dream Within a Dream Tour for children affected by the September 11 attacks. ... Ever since 'NSYNC's Joey Fatone joined the cast for "Rent" last month, ticket sales have doubled, to the tune of $100,000 more a week. Of course, that pales in comparison to the millions raked in by new entry "Hairspray" — this year's "The Producers" — but for a long-running production ("Rent" is in its seventh year), the box office rebound is setting Broadway records, "Rent" reps say. ... A pre-trial hearing of second-degree assault charges brought against R&B singer Keke Wyatt for allegedly stabbing her husband took place Tuesday (September 24) in Kentucky's Shelbyville County Circuit Court. Attorneys were given 20 days to file motions and 30 days thereafter for responses, before the judge determines whether the case goes to trial. ...

Backstreet Boy Brian Littrell and wife Leighanne are crossing over, and we're not talking about transcending radio formats. The couple will be featured on Thursday's episode of psychic TV show "Crossing Over With John Edward," during which Edward will connect Littrell with a late childhood friend with whom he once shared a hospital room (check local listings for airtimes). ... The "Crossing Over" episode was filmed in the home of Littrell's groupmate A.J. McLean, who will appear in a future episode of the series. ... Meanwhile, fellow BSBer Howie Dorough and his sister Pollyanna will co-host and perform at the United Catholic Music and Video Association's third annual Unity Awards, taking place October 26 on the campus of Washington, D.C.'s Catholic University. In addition to performing "Fly to Heaven" with his sister, Dorough and his family will be honored with the Inspiration Award for the Dorough Lupus Foundation. ...

Def Jam impresario Russell Simmons celebrated the 10th anniversary of his hip-hop fashion brand Phat Farm with a runway show Sunday at New York's Bryant Park. The spring 2003 lines of Phat Farm and its Baby Phat women's apparel brand were examined by fashion insiders as well as music celebrities like Mya, Tweety from Next, Queen Latifah, Damon Dash and Mario. ... Guitarist Trey Anastasio and bassist Mike Gordon performed publicly for the first time since Phish went on hiatus during an impromptu jam session Monday at the Woodstock Film Festival at a party for the Allen Woody documentary "Rising Low," which Gordon directed. Gov't Mule (Woody's band) drummer Matt Abts, Widespread Panic bassist Dave Schools, Deep Banana Blackout guitarist Fuzz and DJ Logic also sat in. ...

"Who's the Boss" star Tony Danza has released his first album, The House I Live In, named after the title track, a remake of Frank Sinatra's 1949 hit. The album also includes the actor's rendition of "God Bless America." ... Alanis Morissette has contributed a new song, "Offer," to a benefit album for the Sabera Foundation for abandoned girls in Calcutta organized by actresses Melanie Griffith and Penelope Cruz, according to the Los Angeles Times. Ricky Martin, Elton John, Bob Dylan and Sting are donating previously released tracks — some with a chorus made up of girls receiving health care and education from the foundation added to them — to the project, due November 19. ... Badly Drawn Boy (a.k.a. Damon Gough) has pushed back the release date of his third album, Have You Fed the Fish?, from October 22 to November 5. His tour kicks off on October 17 at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. and, after winding through New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Detroit, Chicago and Portland, winds up at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles on November 8. ...

The now-defunct Toadies will release the live album Best of Toadies - Live From Paradise on November 19. The 18-track collection, recorded before the band broke up in May 2001 at Boston's Paradise club, features a cover of the Pixies' "Where Is My Mind." ... A cover of Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" and "Fred Jones Part 2" featuring Cake's John McCrea are among the gems on the final track list for Ben Folds Live, due October 8. Folds will promote the album, the first 100,000 copies of which will include a bonus DVD with 35 minutes of live footage, with a tour beginning October 10 in Englewood, New Jersey and ending November 3 in Walla Walla, Washington. ... SR-71 have signed on for a residency at Los Angeles' famed Viper Room for three consecutive Wednesdays beginning October 2. The group are promoting their new album, Tomorrow, due October 22. ...

09.23.02

Red Hot Chili Peppers filmed an "experimental and psychedelic" video for their next single, "The Zephyr Song," in Los Angeles last week with frequent collaborators Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, according to Flea. "I don't know if people are going to like it," warned the bassist, who will tour the states with his band in March or April. ... Backstreet Boy A.J. McLean performed onstage at the Mint in Los Angeles on Saturday with his fiancée, Sarah Martin. The couple plan to wed next year. ... Tom Petty, Elvis Costello and Brian Setzer will join Lenny Kravitz, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards as guest voices on the season premiere of "The Simpsons," airing November 10. In the episode, "How I Spent My Strummer Vacation," Marge sends Homer to a rock and roll fantasy camp. ...

Country singer Reba McEntire made a guest appearance on "American Idol in Las Vegas," which will air Monday night (September 23) on Fox. According to a rep from the show, American Idol Kelly Clarkson performed a duet with McEntire, singing the country legend's Grammy-winning song, "Does He Love You?" during the September 18 taping of the show. ... Now that they're legal, you can hear the Donnas hawking Budweiser beer in an upcoming ad campaign that uses snippets of "Take It Off," the first single from their major-label debut, Spend the Night, which is due on October 22. Other songs on the 13-track LP include "It's On the Rocks," "Who Invited You," "All Messed Up," "Dirty Denim," "You Wanna Get Me High," "I Don't Care (So There)," "Too Bad About Your Girl" and "Take Me to the Backseat." ...

Onetime Mötley Crüe vocalist John Corabi (who replaced original and current singer Vince Neil for one album) has rejoined former bandmate Nikki Sixx as rhythm guitarist for Cockstar, a new band that also features Tracii Gunns (L.A. Guns) and a vocalist named London. "I feel the same kind of magic I felt when Mötley first rehearsed in 1981," Sixx posted in his online diary, while clarifying that his main band has not broken up. ... Green Day bassist Mike Dirnt is recovering from surgery on his left wrist to treat carpal tunnel syndrome, according to an audio message on GreenDay.com. Dirnt is excepted to recover in six to eight weeks. ...

Oil: Chicago Punk Refined, due February 10 from Chicago's Thick Records, features 19 bands recorded over 16 days at an old oil-blending factory on the city's South Side. Among the artists on the album are Alkaline Trio, Detachment Kit, Local H, the Reputation, the Dishes, the Ghost, Rise Against, Lawrence Arms, the Tossers, Haymarket Riot and the Owls. ... Sweden's the Division of Laura Lee will embark on their first full-fledged tour of the U.S. beginning October 1 in Atlanta. The punk-partial foursome, touting their latest, Black City, have a month of roadwork scheduled, alternately teaming with Manchester's Haven and countrymen the (International) Noise Conspiracy, that culminates in a CMJ New Music Seminar showcase November 2 in New York. ...

Twisted pop artistes the Apples in Stereo are about to launch their tour to support Velocity of Sound, due October 8. The month-long, 19-date swing will hit the legendary 40 Watt Club in Athens, Georgia, on Tuesday (September 24) before moving on to Atlanta, New Orleans, Houston, Los Angeles, Seattle, Detroit and winding up at Irving Plaza in New York on October 19; 16 of the dates will also feature English oddball rockers Clinic. ... Eric Clapton is spearheading a tribute concert to mark the first anniversary of George Harrison's death November 29 at London's Royal Albert Hall. Surviving Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are slated to perform, as are Harrison's Traveling Wilburys bandmates Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne, former Squeeze pianist Jools Holland, conductor Michael Kamen, Monty Python members Michael Palin and Eric Idle and sitar legend Ravi Shankar.

• Britney Spears
• *NSYNC
• Backstreet Boys
• Phish
• Keke Wyatt

Brian McKnight and Ashanti are slated to appear at the 2002 WNBA All-Star Game on Monday (July 15) at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C. McKnight will sing "The Star-Spangled Banner" and Ashanti will perform her new single, "Happy," during halftime. ... "Ozzfest 2002: The Live Album" will be released on August 27 and feature live performances by acts performing on the current tour. ... A Shelbyville County Circuit Court judge scheduled a conference between prosecution and the attorney for R&B singer Keke Wyatt following a motions hearing Wednesday. The call will determine a trial date on which Wyatt will face charges of second-degree assault for allegedly stabbing her husband last Christmas day. ...

The Offspring, TSOL and the Line will perform a concert on behalf of the non-profit organizations They Will Surf Again and Life Rolls On to help people with spinal cord injuries and fund research into diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. The concert will be held July 31 at the House of Blues in Anaheim, California, and tickets go on sale at noon local time on Saturday (July 13) for $25.00. ... American Head Charge have dropped out of the Dark Days 2002 Tour with Coal Chamber, Lollipop Lust Kill and Medication following Thursday night's performance in St. Cloud, Minnesota, in order to start working on their next record. ... "It would seem that his addiction got the best of him," reads a statement on the Fat Wreck Chords Web site regarding Jim Cherry, bassist/vocalist for Zero Down and a former member of Strung Out and Pulley, who passed away on July 7 from an accidental overdose of the prescription muscle relaxer Soma. "Although Jim had been clean in recent months, he battled addiction with prescription drugs for a couple of years," the statement said. ...

07.11.02

Jay-Z started work on his next album, The Blueprint 2: The Gift and the Curse, before he left for a vacation in the south of France. Jigga recorded seven songs and hopes to finish up when he returns at the end of July. ... Chicago rapper Common, of "The Light" fame, is currently wrapping up production of his fifth album, Electric Circus. The MC recently mixed what is expected to be the first single, "Close to You," which features a guest appearance by Mary J. Blige and was produced by the Neptunes. ... Dave Matthews Band will reach new heights on July 15 when they perform their new single, "Where Are You Going," 140 feet above Manhattan on the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theater for "The Late Show with David Letterman." The program will be taped between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. and broadcast at 11:35 p.m. on CBS. ...

Due to a scheduling conflict, the motions hearing in C-Murder's upcoming second-degree murder trial did not take place on Thursday (July 11). The hearing has been postponed until July 19. ... Metallica are auctioning off the opportunity to spend a day with them and producer Bob Rock in their private studio in San Francisco, with proceeds going to the T.J. Martell Foundation for Leukemia, Cancer and AIDS Research. Fans can place bids on eBay until July 19 to win two roundtrip tickets to San Francisco, a two-night hotel stay, a three-day car rental and dinner with the band. ... 311 will embark on a brief club tour beginning August 10 at the Rainbow Ballroom in Fresno, California, and ending at the Promowest Pavilion in Columbus, Ohio, on August 18. The band will then jump right into the Sprite Liquid Mix Tour on August 20 at the Jones Beach Amphitheater in New York with Jay-Z, Hoobastank, N.E.R.D. and others. ...

Jimmy Eat World will headline the second Plea for Peace/Take Action Tour beginning September 13 in Worcester, Massachusetts and running through October 28. Other confirmed participants are the (International) Noise Conspiracy, Common Rider, Le Tigre, Thursday, the Promise Ring, Anti-Flag, the Bouncing Souls, Lawrence Arms, Cave In, Poison the Well and Cursive. ... JEW will also join Filter, Default, the Pharcyde, the Kickovers and Pennywise, among others, to perform on various dates of the fourth annual Molson Snow Jam tour. The music and extreme sports outing, which intends to truck in more than 100 tons of snow at each venue, will make two-day stops in nine North American cities, kicking off July 19 at the HSBC Arena in Buffalo, New York, and ending September 28 at the Bayside Expo Center in Boston. ...

Due on September 24 through Small Stone Records, the double-CD compilation Sucking the '70s will feature covers of '70s tracks by the likes of Fireball Ministry, Halfway to Gone, Unida and Puny Human, featuring our very own Iann Robinson. ... Boston's Milligram found a replacement guitarist in Mario Travers (ex-OHM). The band is rehearsing right now and has no word on how permanent the appointment will be. ...Carlos Santana, Elton John, Dennis Miller and Martina McBride, among others, will perform at the Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation's sixth annual Grand Slam for Children benefit September 28 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Last year the event raised more than $4.2 million for underprivileged, abused and at-risk children in the Las Vegas community.

• Ashanti
• Ozzy Osbourne
• Keke Wyatt
• The Offspring
• Brian McKnight

Ozzy Osbourne and his reality-TV-star family have signed a $3 million publishing deal with Pocket Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, for the world rights to two tomes. The first, a paperback tie-in to "The Osbournes," will be published in November, followed by a hardcover family memoir due in the spring (MTV's parent company, Viacom, also owns Simon & Schuster). ... Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett and drummer Lars Ulrich hopped onstage with Sammy Hagar and Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony on Tuesday at San Francisco club the Fillmore. They bashed out four songs from Hagar's first band, Montrose: "Rock the Nation," "Space Station #5," "Rock Candy" and "Bad Motor Scooter." ... R&B singer Keke Wyatt went before a judge Thursday (May 9) for an arraignment hearing in Shelbyville, Kentucky, where she's facing a second-degree assault charge for allegedly stabbing her husband on Christmas Day. A not guilty plea was entered, and if a settlement with the prosecution isn't reached by July 11, motions from both sides will be heard and a trial scheduled. ...

Biohazard and Xzibit will stand in for Linkin Park's DJ Joseph Hahn and Mike Shinoda when the X-ecutioners perform "It's Goin' Down" on "The Late Show with David Letterman" on May 16. Static-X and Xzibit performed the song with the turntablists at last month's ESPN Action Sports and Music Awards. ... Naughty By Nature brought close to 80 of their friends to their album release party at Jimmy's Uptown Café Wednesday night in Harlem. Fittingly, they performed "Uptown Anthem," as well as some of their other hits for the crowd, which included members of St. Lunatics and 3LW, who joined them onstage for "Feels Good (Don't Worry About a Thing)." ... Donell Jones also showcased tunes from his new album, Life Goes On, Wednesday night in New York City at Club Coda. On the guest list to check out D.J. sing his current single, "You Know That I Love You," and more were controversy-stirring radio personality Wendy Williams, newcomer rapper Lady May and fellow lover-man vocalist Keith Sweat. ...

O-Town's second album, O2, has been pushed back to a July 23 release, with a single to surface early next month. The guys are currently showing off their wares on their Sneak Preview Tour, which promises to give fans a taste of new tracks such as the Nelly-produced "Favorite Girl." ... While Jill Scott is taking the summer off from recording and touring, her spokesperson said she will stay close to music as a journalist. Scott just completed a cover story for Russell Simmons' Oneworld magazine on Common. ... Alien Ant Farm recently performed acoustic versions of "Movies" and "Attitude" for an episode of "Last Call With Carson Daly" that will air May 14. ... Built to Spill bassist Brett Nelson's side project, the Suffocation Keep, will release their debut album, John Hughes Was Never So Wrong, on May 28. A spokesperson for the group described the music as " '80s-influenced pop." ...

New songs from Lauryn Hill ("Selah"), Bob Dylan ("Waitin' For You") and Macy Gray (a cover of Billie Holiday's "I Want to Be Your Mother's Son-In-Law") will be featured on the soundtrack to "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood," due May 28. The soundtrack is executive producer T-Bone Burnett's first since the Grammy-winning "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack. ... In other Dylan news, the legendary rocker will return to North America in August after a summer tour of Europe to continue promoting last year's Love and Theft. Dylan's latest dates begin August 2 in Worcester, Massachusetts, and end September 1 in Aspen, Colorado. ... Out to prove they're no flavor of the week, American Hi-Fi are working on the tentatively titled Beautiful Disaster, the follow-up to their debut, with producer Nick Launay (Midnight Oil, Silverchair), which is expected to drop this fall. In the meantime, the group has the honor of opening the first six dates of Elvis Costello's tour, which kicks off May 18 in Portland. ...

05.08.02

Linkin Park will give new life to their Hybrid Theory, which has sold nearly 7 million copies to date, when their remix LP, Reanimation, drops July 30. Although it's not known which interpretations of the debut's 12 tracks will make the final cut, Staind's Aaron Lewis sings on a remixed "Crawling," while Orgy's Jay Gordon, Tricky and Marilyn Manson have tinkered with other songs. ... Ja Rule, Ashanti and Bow Wow will announce the nominees for the second annual BET Awards at a press conference Tuesday at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Also present will be comedians Steve Harvey and Cedric the Entertainer, who will host the show for the second year in a row on May 25. ...

Rumors of a collaboration between Lil' Kim and Foxy Brown are false, the Notorious K.I.M. told New York radio station Power 105.1 (WWPR-FM) on Wednesday (May 8). ... Although his spokesperson offered few details, Trent Reznor is busy recording the next Nine Inch Nails album. ... There's a new member of Bon Jovi — the family, not the band. Jacob Hurley Bon Jovi, born May 7 in New Jersey, joins papa Jon and mama Dorothea's other children, Stephanie Rose, 9, and Jesse James, 7. ... Custom will drop a Bentley, a Camaro and other cars from a crane in Brooklyn, New York, on Friday on the set of the video for his second single, "Beat Me." Kevin Kerslake (Smashing Pumpkins, R.E.M.) is directing the video, which will follow Custom's "Hey Mister" clip. ...

Madonna will put the recording of her next album on hold while she makes her London theater debut in "Up for Grabs" this summer, her spokesperson said. She will return to the studio in August. ... Celebrity makeup artist Kevyn Aucoin, whose long list of A-list clients includes Britney Spears, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Lil' Kim, Julia Roberts and Gwyneth Paltrow, died Tuesday from complications of a metabolic disorder, according to the Associated Press. Aucoin, who was 40, had been treated for a pituitary brain tumor in the past year, and before his death also worked as a columnist for Allure, authored several best-selling style books and was a frequent guest on MTV's "House of Style" and other programming. ...

Singer/songwriter Stew, formerly of the Negro Problem, will warm up for a summer tour with a show May 16 at the Knitting Factory in Los Angeles, the same place he recorded his April release Naked Dutch Painter during a residency last summer. Stew was also plucked by David Bowie to perform at his Meltdown festival in June in the U.K. ... MC5 co-founder and punk icon Wayne Kramer will release Adult World, his first studio album since 1997's Citizen Wayne, July 16 on his own MuscleTone Records. Kramer will promote the album with a club tour that kicks off June 25 in Los Angeles and wraps up July 24 in San Diego.

• Ozzy Osbourne
• Keke Wyatt
• Metallica
• Jill Scott
• O-Town

B2K
Photo: Sony

The folks responsible for the Now That's What I Call Music! series are taking their next compilation LP to the street.

Off the Hook, a hip-hop/R&B version of Now, is scheduled for release May 21, according to a Columbia Records spokesperson. Like the Now series, the LP is a collaborative effort between Sony Music, Universal Music Group, EMI and Jive Records.

The album's 20 previously released tracks feature the smooth R&B of B2K, the soaring sultriness of Aaliyah and the aggressive bounce of Mystikal. The newest cut on the LP, "Feels Good" by Naughty By Nature featuring 3LW, comes from the rappers' next album, Iicons, due May 7 (see "Naughty By Nature, 3LW Save The Day In 'Feels Good' Video").

Off the Hook track list, according to Columbia Records:

• Jermaine Dupri featuring Ludacris - "Welcome to Atlanta"
• B2K - "Uh Huh"
• Jagged Edge featuring Nas - "I Got It 2"
• Lil' Bow Wow - "Take Ya Home"
• Aaliyah - "More Than a Woman"
• Mystikal - "Bouncin' Back (Bumpin' Me Against the Wall)"
• Joe - "Let's Stay Home Tonight"
• Jennifer Lopez featuring Ja Rule - "I'm Real (Murder Remix)"
• Nas - "One Mic"
• Glenn Lewis - "Don't You Forget It"
• Ruff Endz - "Someone to Love You"
• Keke Wyatt featuring Avant - "Nothing in This World"
• City High - "City High Anthem"
• India.Arie - "Video"
• Angie Stone - "Wish I Didn't Miss You"
• Janet Jackson featuring Missy Elliott - "Son of a Gun"
• N.E.R.D. featuring Lee Harvey and Vita - "Lapdance"
• Mr. Cheeks - "Lights, Camera, Action"
• Petey Pablo - "Raise Up"
• Naughty By Nature featuring 3LW - "Feels Good"

• Jermaine Dupri
• B2K
• Aaliyah
• Mystikal
• Jennifer Lopez

Keke Wyatt
Photo: MCA

R&B singer Keke Wyatt is facing up to 20 years in jail for allegedly stabbing her husband on Christmas Day.

Wyatt, who's enjoying radio prominence with her Avant-assisted single, "Nothing in This World," was indicted on one count of second-degree assault by a Shelby County Grand Jury in Shelbyville, Kentucky, on March 25, according to a circuit court spokesperson.

The charge stems from Wyatt's arrest, which occurred when police responded to a domestic violence call on December 25 and found Rahmat Morton with stab wounds on his chest, arms and hands. Doctors at the University of Louisville Hospital removed part of a steak knife from his back.

Police pressed charges against Wyatt, whose given name is Ketara. Morton, who is also Wyatt's manager, did not.

Though it may be a coincidence, sales of Wyatt's debut album, Soul Sista, increased after the singer's arrest. The LP, released November 13, first entered the Billboard albums chart at #60, dropped more than 40 places in its second week and plummeted to #190 the week before the alleged knifing occurred. The week after her arrest, the album bounced back by nearly 50 places and went on to peak at #33 by the end of February, with nearly 340,000 copies sold, according to SoundScan. Although the album has slipped in recent weeks — currently #90, with more than 412,000 copies sold — news of her indictment could resuscitate the LP's chart life, if history repeats itself.

"Nothing in This World" follows Soul Sista's first single, "Used to Love."

A criminal indictment is not a determination of guilt, only that there is enough evidence to go to trial. Wyatt's next legal step is the arraignment — a formal presentation of the charges to the defendant, who may then offer a plea — which is scheduled for May 9.

Wyatt's attorney had no comment on the case. Her spokesperson at MCA Records did not respond to calls by press time.

• Keke Wyatt