Ozzy Osbourne, who on Sunday told the crowd assembled at the Nissan Pavilion in Bristow, Virginia, for Ozzfest that he was battling a cold, has fallen ill, according to a festival spokesperson. That means Black Sabbath have dropped off of the Ozzfest bill for Wednesday night's (July 27) show in Holmdel, New Jersey. Instead, Iron Maiden will take over as the mainstage headliners. Once Ozzy's back on his feet, he'll be returning to Ozzfest -- and if you've got $1,000 to spare, you might actually be able to meet the heavy metal legend. Ozzfest fans can swing by the tour's virtual home at Ozzfest.com for more information, but here's the long and short of it: Ten fans will be able to purchase a package that includes some face time with Oz, a special Ozzfest crew member T-shirt signed by Ozzy, primo seats next to the main stage, and the chance to dine with Ozzfest emcee Big Dave at a special crew dinner. The $1,000 fee will be donated to Sharon Osbourne's Colon Cancer Program. ...

Last week, it looked like R. Kelly's child-pornography trial was finally on the horizon, with the judge in the case promising to make a decision on matters that would allow a trial date to finally be set. But on Wednesday, the R&B singer got yet another break -- the judge delayed making a decision once again, since the defense wanted more time to locate witnesses. The case, which has been in the pretrial process for over three years now, will next be heard on September 2. ... Paris Hilton, who's no stranger to guest lists, has lined up a long list of her own for her forthcoming debut album (which so far ranges from Lil Jon to the Go-Go's' Jane Wiedlin). Now Paris has a new name to add to the list: producer extraordinaire Scott Storch. Still, despite this development, it's too soon to say when the album will come out, according to her label rep. ...

Hilary Duff won't use confetti at her concerts anymore, because she learned during her environmental science class on Harvard online that the excess paper is bad for the environment. "It's so weird now how much I conserve," she said. "I turn the lights out, and no more confetti, because that's not recyclable. I did the math for the amount we used, multiplied by 36 shows? We don't need it." Duff said that taking the class is really hard with her schedule, since she has to read 50 pages three times a week, but she loves what she's learned "about the ozone layer, about waste management." "It's so fun!" she said. ... Ryan Seacrest, who brought the T-shirt-under-sport-coat look to the masses on the last season of "American Idol," has launched his own clothing line, the R Line, specializing, of course, in T-shirts. The line, for men and women and created with Jem Sportswear and Awake, is available now at specialty stores like Fred Segal and M. Fredric and will hit Marshall Field's and Bloomingdale's later in the summer. "I've always loved fashion, including T-shirts that are smart and stylish," Seacrest said in a statement. ...

Fall Out Boy, the Starting Line and Motion City Soundtrack are among the acts tapped for the third annual Nintendo Fusion Tour, which launches September 28 in Detroit. The trek will hit 30 other cities, and each stop will be outfitted with a whole bunch of video game stations, so when fans aren't emoting or cinching up their studded belts, they can check out brand new Nintendo games. ... The Foo Fighters have been added to the lineup for this year's Voodoo Music Experience, set to take over New Orleans on October 29 and 30. Other acts slated to perform include Nine Inch Nails, the Bravery, My Chemical Romance, Queens of the Stone Age and the Flaming Lips. ...

If you want to know what is going to be next in hip-hop, you absolutely have to be there. The eighth annual Mixshow Power Summit has been scheduled to take place in Lucaya, Bahamas, September 28-October 1. No participants have been announced as of yet, but in past years every big-name mixshow and mixtape DJ has been present, along with virtually every MC, from Jay-Z to 50 Cent to Eminem. ... William Orbit will finally release the follow-up to his 2000 album, Pieces in a Modern Style. The as-yet-untitled album is due September 20. ...

Ray Charles will soon have a Los Angeles post office named in his honor, according to a bill President Bush signed into law earlier this month. An official naming ceremony at the building located at 4960 W. Washington Boulevard, near the site of Charles' original studio, will take place on August 24, Congresswoman Diane Watson announced Wednesday. Watson authored the federal legislation designating the facility as the Ray Charles Post Office Building. Meanwhile, the Smithsonian Institute in Washington will induct Charles artifacts into its permanent collection on September 22, while an exhibit of Charles memorabilia will move to Nashville for a yearlong exhibit at the Country Music Fall of Fame, starting in March 2006. ... The Rolling Stones want to come out with a bang -- A Bigger Bang. That's the name of their first new studio album in eight years, due September 6. Among the album's 16 tracks are two sung by Keith Richards ("This Place Is Empty," "Infamy") as well as "Rough Justice," "Back of My Hand," "Laugh, I Nearly Died" and the first single, "Streets of Love." ...

7.26.2005

Madonna has revealed the name of the first single from her new all-dance album, Confessions on a Dancefloor, due in November. According to a post on her Web site, the song is called "Hung Up" and was produced by Stuart Price (a.k.a. Jacques Lu Cont), her musical director on the Reinvention Tour who also popped up on American Life by co-writing "X-Static Process." ...

Kelly Clarkson has signed up with retailer Meijer for a back-to-school sweepstakes in which students can win a week on tour with her next year, as well as a $500 shopping spree, $500 in spending money and concert tickets. The singer will tout the Midwest chain's selection of fashion and school supplies in a radio commercial as well. The contest runs through September 3. ... Fefe Dobson channels rock chicks like Joan Jett, Debbie Harry, Courtney Love, Shirley Manson and Karen O for her next video, "Don't Let It Go to Your Head," which is supposed to emulate album covers come to life, according to the treatment from director Diane Martel. Meanwhile, she's set a September 20 release date for her second album, Sunday Love, which she recorded with a variety of producers and songwriters, including former Veruca Salt singer Nina Gordon, ex-Letters to Cleo singer Kay Hanley and former Marilyn Manson guitarist John5. ...

Nelly Furtado, who's been recording her new album in Toronto, Los Angeles, Miami and London, has finally decided on a title for the project. She's going to call her third album Loose, she posted online. "It's getting closer to being finished every single day," she wrote. "Let's just say it's a whole lot of fun. It's a whole other side of me." ... Sarah McLachlan will release her second remix album, Sarah McLachlan in Bloom, on September 6. The disc will feature 10 previously unreleased remixes of songs such as "Fallen," "World on Fire," "Dirty Little Secret," "Ice (Dusted Mix)," "Fumbling Towards Ecstasy (Junior Boys Mix)" and the previously released collaboration with Run-DMC's DMC on "Just Like Me," remixed by the Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am. Other remixers include the Thievery Corporation, Rollo (Faithless), Hyper & Ronnie, Junkie XL, Sly & Robbie and Talvin Singh. ...

The August series of benefit shows to try and save legendary New York punk club CBGB has been expanded to include gigs by the Vandals, Kid Dynamite, the Misfits, Bush Tetras, Chevelle, Raw Power, Youth Brigade and a reunion of the classic punk act Flipper. Rare and autographed items have been donated for auction by Sting, Social Distortion, Motörhead, Anti-Flag, GBH, Elvis Costello, the Tragically Hip and Norah Jones. For the full show lineup and to sign a petition in support of the club, visit www.savecbgb.com. ... Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine has filed a lawsuit against the band's erstwhile bass player David Ellefson on Monday, claiming the musician used the Megadeth name unlawfully in print advertisements that ran in Bass Player magazine. Mustaine's suit claims the two former metal cohorts entered a settlement early this year, restricting the bassist's use of the band name, according to The Associated Press. Mustaine, understandably, was none too happy when he spotted Ellefson in the magazine holding a pedal next to a list of the bands he's been involved with. The suit seeks unspecified damages. ...

On August 17 Nine Inch Nails fans will have an opportunity to score the ultimate collector's item -- the ownership rights to Trent Reznor's groundbreaking debut, Pretty Hate Machine. Yes, kids -- you could own tracks like "Down in It," "Something I Can Never Have" and, of course, "Head Like a Hole," but it's going to cost you millions. The disc is one of several TVT Records titles on the auction block, compliments of Prudential Securities Financial Services. Pretty Hate Machine and numerous other recordings from the likes of KMFDM, Sister Machine Gun and Gravity Kills were presented as collateral in 1999 against a $32 million loan the label was approved for. TVT managed to pay back $10 million of that amount, but Prudential took the label to court three years ago, claiming the current home of the Ying Yang Twins defaulted on the loan. Pretty Hate Machine is part of an overall biddable package that also includes the rights to the Television's Greatest Hits compilations and the "Mortal Kombat" movie soundtracks. In addition, the highest bidder will be able to collect a percentage on future sales of Nine Inch Nails' other TVT-related releases, including Broken, Fixed, The Downward Spiral and Further Down the Spiral. ...

Power-pop rockers Big Star are gearing up to release their first record in 27 years. Founding members Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens were augmented in the studio by the Posies' Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer. The latter duo have been part of the touring band since 1993, but In Space, due September 26, will be the band's first proper record since 1978's Third/ Sister Lovers -- itself somewhat of a posthumous record. ...