Diddy goes to great lengths to preserve his sexy, but he told MTV Europe recently that he isn't concerned that Justin Timberlake is moving in on his territory with "SexyBack." "I'm a big fan of Justin's and he's allowed to use my catchphrase 'sexy' and run with it," Diddy said. "I mean, I got it from somebody else, so it's all good." It may be all good, but it's not all equal. "I am the king of the sexy, Justin," Diddy noted. "Let's not get it twisted." ... Diddy and Cassie will be among the artists helping to kick off the 2006-07 NFL season in a two-city celebration as the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers face off against the Miami Dolphins at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field on September 5. Martina McBride and Rascal Flatts will perform in Pittsburgh, while Diddy and Cassie will take the stage in Miami. The 30-minute pre-game show will air September 5 at 8 p.m. on NBC. ...

Ozone Magazine's years of having a heavy buzz in streets of the South culminated Sunday night at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Center in Orlando, Florida, when the publication held its first-ever Ozone Awards. Among the big winners were Lil Wayne, who won Lyricist of the Year; DJ Drama, who took the Mixtape DJ of the Year honor; and UGK, who won a Legends Award. Bun B and Pimp C also made history by performing together for the first time since Pimp C was released from prison several months ago. Another highlight was an all-Miami set during which Rick Ross performed "Hustlin' " and "Chevy Ridin' High" with Dre of Cool & Dre fame. The finale featured Ross, Trick Daddy and Pitbull performing "The Future of Dade" from DJ Khaled's Listennn: The Album. Trick ended by saying that he ran the state of Florida and everyone else is his protégé. Other performers included Shawnna, Ludacris, T-Pain and headliner Lil Wayne. David Banner co-hosted the show alongside Trina. "I'm proud that we were all able to come together this weekend without any major drama or violence and everybody just had a good time," Ozone Publisher Julia Beverly told MTV News. ...

Kid Rock, Eric Clapton and Mick Jagger are among the superstars who duet with Jerry Lee Lewis on the rock and roll trailblazer's new album, Last Man Standing, due September 26. Others lending their voices to the classic songs include Jimmy Page ("Rock and Roll"), Bruce Springsteen ("Pink Cadillac"), Neil Young ("You Don't Have to Go") Don Henley ("That's What Makes the Irish Heart Beat") and Little Richard ("I Saw Her Standing There"). ...

JoJo, Ashley Parker Angel and Lucas Grabeel from "High School Musical" will perform at Miss Teen USA 2006, which NBC will air at 8 p.m. ET on August 15. Damien Fahey from "TRL" and Shaun Robinson from "Access Hollywood" will host the event live from Palm Springs, Florida. ...

Jennifer Lopez is adding a new scent to her fragrance collection. Live Luxe, described as a "multifaceted concoction" that celebrates J.Lo's passion for dance, combines fruit notes (including peach and pear), a floral base (freesia, muguet and honeysuckle) and a musk/vanilla/sandalwood finish. The fragrance will be available in stores in the U.S., Puerto Rico, the U.K. and Spain this month and goes worldwide in September. ... Although they keep on rocking -- and marrying -- Kid Rock and Pamela Anderson have set aside their Mr. and Mrs. Rock titles to go by Mr. and Mrs. Richie. The couple recently celebrated the second of their four planned weddings with a courthouse ceremony in Detroit. "It's official," Anderson posted -- alongside the Detroit Tigers logo -- Saturday on her Web site. "Just left the courthouse! Mr. and Mrs. Ritchie have left the building. ... Off to honeymoon in Detroit! Go Tigers!" ...

A Raleigh, North Carolina, woman who penned an unauthorized book about "American Idol" runner-up Clay Aiken has filed a lawsuit against the singer, claiming he slandered her and tried to cripple sales of her book. According to The Associated Press, 50-year-old Jeannie Holleman claims she's a lifelong friend and neighbor of a Raleigh family who took Aiken and his mother, Faye Parker, in when Parker left her abusive husband. For Holleman's book, "Out of the Blue: 'Clay' It Forward," the author combined interviews from the family, along with her own recollections and stories from Aiken's fans. The suit, filed Friday, claims that Aiken, his mother and others tried to stymie the book's sales by denying they knew her and calling her stories lies. The filing further alleged that one of Aiken's bodyguards manhandled Holleman during a fundraiser in Hawaii. The suit seeks $260,000 in damages, and seeks a court order that would require Aiken to retract his statements about the book or endorse it on his Web site. Holleman also wants Aiken to pen an introduction to "Out of the Blue" and offer it for sale at his concerts. "As a so-called 'celebrity,' I have become used to scurrilous allegations and untruths being made about me and my work," Aiken said in a statement Monday (August 7). "I have always taken the path of not reacting to these matters and have accepted them as, somehow, coming with the 'job.' However, I cannot, and will not, stand by when these attacks are made on my family and my charity. So, I have instructed my attorneys to not only vigorously dispute the claims that have been made but to also pursue all possible remedies against those involved in the perpetration of these untruths." ...

Jack's Mannequin singer and cancer survivor Andrew McMahon is launching a fall tour to benefit his Dear Jack Foundation, which funds cancer research. Copeland, Daphne Loves Derby and the Hush Sound will join Jack's on the 17-city Tour for the Cure, which kicks off September 6 Tucson, Arizona, and wraps up October 12 in Sacramento, California. ... Zach Braff has directed the video for singer/songwriter Joshua Radin's "Closer," which he shot at the Hollywood Bowl. The song is featured on the soundtrack to Braff's new movie, "The Last Kiss." ... Following a solo acoustic tour this month that includes several opening dates for the Foo Fighters, Frank Black will take a band out on a full tour to promote his double album, Fast Man Raider Man. The trek begins October 1 in Tempe, Arizona (after September 29 and 30 dates opening for Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers) and ends November 19 in Anaheim, California. ...

A biopic about late INXS frontman Michael Hutchence is in the works, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Music-video director Nick Egan (Kylie Minogue, Sonic Youth) has been working with writers Chester Hastings and Dean McCreary on the film, titled "Slide Away." Hutchence, who died in 1997, was friends with Egan, who directed several INXS videos. There's no word yet on when the film will surface. ... Duran Duran are creating their own "virtual universe" within the online game "Second Life." The five bandmembers have commissioned custom avatars that will live on a luxury island featuring in-world concerts. Keyboardist Nick Rhodes called the game a "new frontier where dreams have become reality" in a statement, and compared this move to Duran Duran's embracing of music videos in the medium's early days. " 'Second Life' is the future right now, offering endless possibilities for artists," Rhodes explained. The project launches in September and the band says fans can expect a "Second Life" concert in the coming months.

08.04.2006

She'd spent a year as the winner of "American Idol" and was about to receive a college degree from Northeastern State University, but May was a month of dread for Carrie Underwood, who was certain her big graduation day would be a disaster. "I was like, 'People are going to boo me,' " the singer told Teen People in the magazine's September -- and final -- issue. Underwood, who said a story in a student newspaper claimed she was getting too much attention, got through the ceremony to receive her degree without a boo -- "I was just another graduate." And while the triple-platinum country singer says she'd enjoy working in small-town broadcast journalism, a shorter career jump to a more pop sound is not in her future. "What could I bring to that market? I don't dance. I'm not a tummy show-er. ... I felt I fit in the country world, where I don't have to change." Teen People's final issue, which also features the new cast of "Laguna Beach," is on newsstands Friday (August 4). ...

Jennifer Lopez will not be appearing in the forthcoming Hollywood remake of the TV soap "Dallas," her spokesperson confirmed. J. Lo had signed on for the role of booze-swigging Sue Ellen Ewing opposite John Travolta, who will play conniving oil tycoon J.R. Ewing. ... Nelly Furtado has picked her next U.S. single. "Maneater" will be the second track from Loose to hit the airwaves. ... Only four dancers are left standing in Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance" competition -- two were eliminated this week following a performance by Omarion -- and next week, a winner will be crowned. Ciara and Fergie will appear on Thursday's finale, performing "Step Up" and "London Bridge," respectively. Tickets for the "So You Think You Can Dance Tour," which kicks off September 12 in Seattle, go on sale August 12. ...

The video for "Lose Control" is set in a nightclub, so rather than deck out a soundstage, Kevin Federline went straight to the real thing when it came time to shoot the clip. Federline took over the Pure nightclub at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on July 29 for a 15-hour shoot, reports In Touch magazine, which has a behind-the-scenes look at the production in its August 14 issue. After the work was done, Pure's late-night crowd was treated to a preview of "Lose Control" -- which the DJ played three times as Federline sang along. "The single is really high energy," he told the magazine. "It's a great song to perform." ...

A release date has been set for Rob Zombie's remake of the horror classic "Halloween," but fans of the rocker's flicks will need to wait awhile before the film hits the screen. Zombie's "Halloween" is scheduled to open October 19, 2007. ... Ohio punk foursome Dead Poetic's forthcoming album, Vices, will feature a very special guest on the track "Paralytic" -- Deftones frontman Chino Moreno, who also co-produced two songs for the effort. Vices will be in stores October 31. ... Actress Monica Keena has been missing from "Entourage" this season, but she has a new hot chick to play. Keena will voice a character in "The Sopranos" video game, due in November. ...

It's been known for some time that Modest Mouse were working on their new album with former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr, but what's news to us is the fact that Marr is now apparently a full-fledged member of the band. A spokesperson for the band's label, Epic Records, confirmed that Marr had joined Modest Mouse and will tour with them in support of their upcoming album, tentatively titled We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank. The band (including Marr) recorded the new album at Sweet Tea studios in Mississippi, the same place the group recorded its breakout 2004 album, Good News for People Who Love Bad News. The new Modest Mouse LP is tentatively due this fall. ... Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars" was featured on the season finale of "Grey's Anatomy" in May -- with the line "Would you lie with me and just forget the world?" pointedly playing as a surgeon lies in a hospital bed alongside the dead body of a beloved patient -- and the song quickly became a hit on iTunes. Now there's a mash-up of sorts posted on ABC's Web site, pairing the track with scenes from the series. The free video will be posted at ABC.com through August 14. ...

The Clash bassist Paul Simonon has confirmed that he'll be collaborating with Blur/ Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn, former Verve guitarist Simon Tong, and Fela Kuti drummer Tony Allen in a new band that has yet to be named. According to BBC News, the group will be releasing an album, called The Good, the Bad and the Queen, January 2007; Gnarls Barkley's Danger Mouse -- who is also Albarn's partner in Gorillaz -- is producing the disc, which has been in the works for the last two years. ... On August 15, the Sex Pistols will reissue Spunk, which originally came out as a bootleg in 1977. The disc features the original demos recorded with bassist Glen Matlock, who was fired and replaced by Sid Vicious before the band recorded Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. ...

Sorta-industrial Canadian grinders Death From Above 1979 have called it a day. Bassist/keyboardist Jesse Keeler broke the news via a post on the band's official Web site, writing, "I'm sure most of you assume the band isn't happening anymore, since there are no shows, no work on a new album, etc. I wanted to let you know that your assumptions are correct. We decided to stop doing the band." Keeler goes on to say that he and drummer/vocalist Sebastien Grainger actually decided to split about a year ago, but they opted to finish their busy tour schedule -- which included a slot opening for Nine Inch Nails and the Queens of the Stone Age -- and then break up. "We started as a punk band with pop aspirations and we met every goal we set for ourselves," Keeler wrote. "A few weeks ago, the album [their 2004 debut, the thundering You're a Woman, I'm a Machine] finally went gold in Canada and that was the final mark I really wanted to reach." ...

Unlike most best-of collections, Unwritten Law's forthcoming retrospective will feature fresh new takes on some old songs. The band re-recorded 17 tracks for the disc, The Hit List, which is set for release September 26. The collection will also feature some unheard, unreleased studio cuts. ... Melissa Etheridge and her band will be auctioning off autographed instruments used during their summer 2006 tour to benefit the Breast Cancer Care and Research Fund. The auction, hosted by GivingWorks.eBay.com, kicks off Friday with a new instrument added each week this month. ... Doug Fieger, lead singer of the Knack, underwent successful surgery to remove two brain tumors Thursday, The Associated Press reports. He is expected to have a full recovery. The Knack's upcoming tour -- which included an August 11 stop at the Corbin Music Festival in Corbin, Kentucky -- has been postponed.