Lots of artists said they supported our troops in Iraq. Godsmack have proven their devotion by offering tickets to soldiers for $10 a pop. Military men and women have already taken advantage of the discounts for shows in Jacksonville, Florida, Boston and Kalamazoo, Michigan. Godsmack plan to offer the deal to armed forces members at additional shows on their Faceless tour, which ends June 23 in Anchorage, Alaska. ...

Along with working on Janet Jackson's next album, recording his own debut and developing new artists for his label, producer 7 Aurelius (Ashanti) has written a movie he plans to film this year. "It's like 'Purple Rain' of our time," he said. "I'm acting in it, along with Tyrin Turner from 'Menace II Society.' And it's going to have a lot of fresh music." As for Jackson's record, "I can't really give too much out," Aurelius said, "but it's going to be a really fresh outing and she is going to bring some fresh collabos to the table." ...

Jewel's upcoming album, 0304, has a bonus for fans who purchase it its first week in stores (June 3-9). Two previously unreleased live tracks, "The New Wild West" and "Life Uncommon," are included in the first run of the album, via a limited-edition download card with a PIN number that will allow access to an exclusive Jewel site where the tracks will be downloadable. The site will also feature content such as in-studio footage and live performance videos of "Standing Still" and "Near You Always." ... Tenacious D and Fieldy's Dreams will headline the first NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) benefit concert in 10 years Wednesday at the Hollywood Palace Theatre. Bill Maher is hosting the event, which will also include appearances by Pauly Shore and Cypress Hill's B-Real and performances from Particle, Dubcat and Whitestarr. ...

Trick Daddy married his girlfriend, Amane Burnett, on Saturday at Hialeah Park in Dade County, Florida. Before the nuptials, the rapper's friend and frequent collaborator Trina threw Burnett a bachelorette party. ... Thalia, the Mexican star who has sold more than 7 million albums worldwide, will release her first English-language album on July 8. The self-titled release includes production by Rick Wake (Jennifer Lopez), Cory Rooney (Destiny's Child) and Steve Morales (Christina Aguilera), along with an appearance from Fat Joe on the first single, "I Want You." ...

While some performers cancel shows when they catch a cold, not even broken bones can stop Liza Minnelli. The singer busted a kneecap when she tripped on a step at her hotel in Bologna, Italy, but she still performed at a benefit concert with Luciano Pavarotti on Tuesday (May 27). Other artists who performed at the annual charity concert in Modena included U2 singer Bono, Ricky Martin, Lionel Richie, Eric Clapton, Queen and Deep Purple. ... MC Lyte, who is promoting her self-released seventh album, Da Undaground Heat Vol. 1, on a tour with Cee-Lo, has recorded guest vocals for the Black Eyed Peas' upcoming LP, Elephunk. After her recent guest turn in "Platinum," the female MC is also reading scripts for movies. "Queen Latifah, along with Will [Smith] and LL [Cool J], coming on the scene as rappers and making the segue into television and then into film, it's just a great pathway that they've created for me to hop on," she said. ...

This summer the bombastic German rock band Rammstein will release a DVD of their videos and concert footage. Included on the disc will be "Links 2-3-4," "Du Hast," "Ich Will," "Feuer Frei" from the "XXX" soundtrack, their cover of Depeche Mode's "Stripped" and "Rammstein" from the "Lost Highway" soundtrack. ... When Ministry vocalist Al Jourgensen and Skinny Puppy frontman Nivek Ogre worked together in the late '80s, they were both battling drug addiction. Now they're clean and ready to hit the road together. In late July Ministry and Ogre's new band, Ogre, will tour with Ministry side project the Revolting Cocks and possibly Jello Biafra (ex-Dead Kennedys), who played with Jourgensen in the thunderous side project Lard. Dates will continue through September. ...

5.23.03

Nelly, R. Kelly and the Murder Inc. family (including Ja Rule, Ashanti and Irv Gotti) are among the performers set to play in The Source magazine and Bulletproof Management's third annual Memorial Day Weekend Celebrity Basketball Game on Saturday. Cam'ron and the Diplomats, Fat Joe and the Terror Squad, Benzino, Jadakiss, Boo and Gotti, boxing champion Roy Jones Jr., Tampa Bay Buccaneer Warren Sapp, Minnesota Viking Randy Moss and San Francisco 49er Terrell Owens will also hit the Miami Arena court to raise funds for inner-city charities. ...

New York radio station Hot 97 has booked Eminem to headline its Summer Jam X. 50 Cent, Nelly, Nas, Busta Rhymes, Sean Paul, Lil' Kim, the Clipse and Fabolous will also perform at the June 3 festival at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. ... Russell Simmons and a large group of his friends will converge on New York's City Hall to either praise or put pressure on Gov. George Pataki on June 4 at 2 p.m. That's the deadline Simmons has given Pataki to make changes to New York's strict Rockefeller drug laws. Run-DMC, P. Diddy, Dame Dash, Mariah Carey, Nas, 50 Cent, DMX, Eve, Cam'ron and the Diplomats, Ghostface Killah, Method Man and Carly Simon are some of the celebs who will be on hand at the rally. ...

Big D.S., an original member of the rap group Onyx, died from cancer

on Thursday. In 1989, before Sticky Fingaz was even part of the

group, Big D.S. teamed up with Fredro Starr and Sonee Seeza to record the group's first single, "Ah and We Do It Like This." ... Actress Rosario Dawson hooked up with Andre 3000 of Outkast earlier this week to sing and speak on a track for the Love Below portion of the group's upcoming split album, Speakerbox/The Love Below. The song, called "She's in My Lap," is about a man who keeps his girlfriend at arm's length and her desire for him to step up his love. Dawson will also appear in the video for the

song. ...

Verna Griffin, better known as Dr. Dre's mom, was arrested Tuesday for assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly firing on a male friend the night before. When officers from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department arrived at her home, which is owned by Dre, Griffin was gone. Her car, containing a handgun, was found at a nearby gas station, and she was arrested the following morning. Griffin was released on bail three hours later. ... The rapper who once battled LL Cool J and, upon the release of his 1998 major-label debut, Can-I-Bus, was heralded as hip-hop's next big thing, could soon be battling terrorists and rapping about camouflage. Canibus, whose fifth album, Rip the Jacker, hits stores July 22, graduated from Ft. Knox, Tennessee's U.S. Military Academy on May 1 and is now on active duty as a certified cavalry scout/ reconnaissance specialist in the U.S. Army. ...

Dismal ratings of "America's Most Talented Kid," which featured Lance Bass as a judge, have not deterred fellow 'NSYNCer Joey Fatone. The "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" actor has signed on to host "Fame," another NBC talent-search series and "American Idol" knockoff, which premieres Wednesday. ... Music memorabilia of all shapes and sizes are heading to the virtual auction block. The third annual Swag auction is taking place on ebay.ca/swag through June 1. The fund-raiser to benefit the Canadian Music Therapy Trust Fund will feature keepsakes from Canadian artists, such as an autographed necktie from Avril Lavigne and one of the dolls used in Sum 41's "Hell Song" video, signed by the band. ... Among the items up for bid in the Songs of Hope 2 auction, which begins Monday and runs through June 4 on eBay and benefits the City of Hope, are sheet music and other memorabilia autographed by 'NSYNC, U2, Eminem, Norah Jones and others. ...

Audioslave, Queens of the Stone Age and System of a Down are up for the Best Hard Rock/Metal prize at the LA Weekly Music Awards, taking place June 26. Other notable nominees include Moving Units for Best New Artists, Rooney for Best Pop/Rock Band, the Distillers for Best Punk/Hardcore Band and Earlimart for Best Rock Band. ... Julian Casablancas and Albert Hammond Jr. of the Strokes were enjoying a Moldy Peach Thursday at Joe's Pub in New York, when friend and fellow Big Apple hipster Adam Green performed songs off his second solo album, Friends of Mine, due July 22. To cap off the show, Ben Kweller joined Green onstage for a peculiar cover of the Beach Boys' corny 1988 comeback hit, "Kokomo." ...

Having been cleared of child pornography charges earlier this month, Pete Townshend is moving ahead with his autobiography. In an e-mail to Rolling Stone, the Who's guitarist said that he hopes to finish writing by the end of the year so that the book will be released in 2004. ...