What's in a name? An awful lot, apparently. After agreeing to surrender his Diddy alias in the U.K. in September as part of a legal settlement with Richard "Diddy" Dearlove, who sued Sean Combs over use of the name, the rap mogul is facing a new complaint from the London music producer. According to Reuters, Dearlove claims Diddy has breached the settlement by using his nickname on MySpace and YouTube -- sites that can be viewed internationally. "We want him either to use a neutral name like 'P. Diddy' or [stop using MySpace and YouTube]," Dearlove's lawyer, Iain Purvis, told London's High Court on Thursday (February 1). In the meantime, Diddy has other things to worry about: He and his company, Sean John, previewed their new eyewear collection for several members of the media and fashion world Wednesday night at their Broadway offices in New York. ...

50 Cent made the most of his time with radio personality Angie Martinez on New York's Hot 97 Thursday afternoon. After addressing his problems with the LOX, Styles P called up and the two discussed a few things, one of which was a possible joint business venture. Styles said he wants to meet Fif in the 'hood, though, not the boardroom. Later, after 50 said he has the ability to influence album releases at Koch Records, a miffed Cam'ron called in and got into a brief verbal confrontation with 50. ...

The temporary order granting Britney Spears and Kevin Federline joint custody of their two children through January will remain in effect, with Federline continuing to have access to sons Sean Preston and Jayden James on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, his lawyer confirmed. ... Chris Brown broke his ankle while playing basketball recently, but that isn't stopping him from filming his new movie, "This Christmas." He says the injury won't prevent him from attending the Grammys on February 11 either. "I'm still gonna get through it," he told MTV News. "I have to do it for my fans." ...

Whitney Houston wants to get her divorce proceedings with husband Bobby Brown done with as quickly as possible. The Associated Press reports that the singer is looking to fast-track the divorce -- the papers to which she filed December 28 -- and that she has indicated in the filed documents that there are "no issues of division of community property." Houston has requested custody of 13-year-old daughter Bobbi Kristina and that Brown be allowed visitation rights. ...

The complications over James Brown's estate continue to mount, AP reports. On Thursday, the deceased music icon's fourth wife, Tomi Rae Hynie, filed a petition in a South Carolina court requesting half the singer's estate and permission to re-enter the Brown-owned Beech Island home she was barred from following his death. Hynie claims she is Brown's surviving spouse and therefore entitled to part of his estate, and is asking permission to enter the South Carolina home to retrieve "personal possessions." Buddy Dallas, Brown's attorney and trustee, said Hynie had not previously requested personal items from the home. ...

Beyoncé has been named the #1 "fantasy girlfriend" in an online poll ranking the 99 Most Desirable Women by readers of AskMen.com. Users of the site were asked to rate women according to characteristics they value in a mate -- not just beauty, but also intelligence, humor, charisma and ambition. Despite the focus on the inside, beautiful girls still finished first, with runner-up Scarlett Johansson and Jessica Alba -- last year's #1 -- rounding out the top three. Shakira, Jessica Biel, Angelina Jolie and Elisha Cuthbert also made the list's top 10. ... Fergie will perform at the Ocean Drive Super Bowl pre-party in Miami on Saturday, joining already-announced performers Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony and DJ AM. ...

Linkin Park have started mixing their forthcoming album, which they hope to release in late spring, with the disc's first single hitting rock radio in March. "We have put more into the new album than anything we have ever done before," the band said in a post on its MySpace page. "After over a year of writing, recording and setting unrealistic finish dates for the record, we are in the home stretch. The new album is very exciting for the six of us, and we can't wait until everyone can hear it." ... The papers are in, and the marriage of Kid Rock and Pamela Anderson will officially be history on May 28. According to the divorce filing, Pam and Kid avoided a big money battle by maintaining "income and assets separate and apart from the income and assets of the other party," and agreeing to split any joint accounts down the middle. ...

Sienna Miller says she "can't wait" to have children in the upcoming issue of Life magazine. "If I have a child ... life, I think, will suddenly make sense," the actress stated. ... After slipping out their iTunes Session EP in December, Goldfrapp have another short-player on the way. The enhanced Ride a White Horse EP will feature the single version of the title track, four additional versions, the video for the song and a live-performance clip of it. Oddly, the disc is hitting brick-and-mortar stores before it goes digital: It'll reach record stores Tuesday and enter the online sphere February 13. ... The Pogues will return to the U.S. in March for a brief headlining run that includes a St. Patrick's Day gig in New York. The trek kicks off with two shows in Chicago (March 5 and 6), followed by a pair of concerts in Boston (March 10 and 11). The band hits New York on March 14, Philadelphia on March 16, and will return to the Big Apple to perform on March 17. ...

A 16-year-old from New York is fighting back against an online piracy suit filed by the Recording Industry Association of America. AP reports that Robert Santangelo, who has been sued by five record companies alleging copyright infringement that occurred when he was as young as 11, denies distributing music online. In his countersuit, Santangelo accuses the recording industry of violating antitrust laws, conspiring to defraud the courts and making extortionate threats. If Santangelo's name sounds familiar, it's because he's the son of Patti Santangelo, the 42-year-old suburban mother of five who famously refused to settle with the RIAA when she was sued in 2005. While the RIAA dropped its suit against Patti in December, the group then sued Robert and his sister Michelle (now 20). Robert's countersuit includes claims that he never sent copyrighted music to others, that recording companies promoted file sharing before turning against it and that all the music claimed to have been downloaded was actually owned by his sister on store-bought CDs. ...

Former Vice President Al Gore has been nominated for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to draw the world's attention to the dangers of global warming, AP reports. "A prerequisite for winning the Nobel Peace Prize is making a difference, and Al Gore has made a difference," said Bøerge Brende, a member of Norway's parliament who nominated Gore. During his eight years as VP, Gore pushed for climate measures, and has since taken his documentary on climate change -- the Oscar-nominated "An Inconvenient Truth" -- on a world tour. The winner of the Nobel Peace Prize will be announced in mid-October.

01.31.2007

Fergie will be pushing Candie's in an advertising campaign for the fashion brand that kicks off with February TV spots and March magazine ads. The singer puts on a show for a peeping Tom spying on her home life in the TV commercial, which will feature her song "Glamorous." ...

The Game appeared in a New York court on Tuesday to plead not guilty to a charge of criminal impersonation of a public servant stemming from a November arrest. The rapper had been busted for allegedly telling a taxi driver that he was an undercover police officer and ordering him to race through the streets of Manhattan, New York. Game's next court appearance is scheduled for March 29. Jeffrey Lichtman, the rapper's lawyer, told The New York Post that he expects prosecutors to dismiss the case. ...

Could Courtney Love be the new Paula Abdul? It's very unlikely. While Us Weekly reported that Love has been approached by "Idol" producer Nigel Lythgoe to consider a judging spot on the televised talent competition, Lythgoe refuted the claim. "I did not call Courtney Love and am afraid someone may have misrepresented me," he told MTV News. "Courtney Love is a very talented artist, but the judges for 'American Idol' are Paula, Randy and Simon. We have no plans to add to or replace any of them." ... February is a short month, but it's a busy one, what with Groundhog Day, the Super Bowl, the Grammys, Valentine's Day, the Oscars -- and a whole lot of unexpected TV guest stars thanks to ratings sweeps. Nelly Furtado pops up on the CBS drama "CSI: NY" on February 7; Mary J. Blige guests on that network's "The Ghost Whisperer" on February 9; Fab Five Freddy and Sticky Fingaz will be featured on the February 13 episode of NBC's "Law & Order: Criminal Intent"; Stephen Colletti of "Laguna Beach" does a two-episode run on the CW's "One Tree Hill" on February 7 and 14; and Three 6 Mafia join gossip blogger Perez Hilton in NBC's "1 Vs. 100" mob on February 23. ...

AFI have tacked two additional shows onto their upcoming West Coast tour: March 1 at the University of California, Davis; and March 3 in San Bernardino, California. ... Alex Kapranos wants to take you out -- well, he wants to tell you where to eat, at least. Tuesday night at New York's Tribeca Cinemas, the Franz Ferdinand frontman (and former chef) threw a book bash for "Sound Bites" -- his first publication highlighting his fave foods and flavors and funny gastro encounters while touring with his band. (His adventures include eating potentially fatal blowfish in Japan. Mmm ... yummy.) Also on hand was bassist Bob Hardy and a bevy of delectable dishes and desserts from Kapranos' favorite Big Apple eateries, Les Halles and the Peter Pan Donut Shop. ... Nickelback aren't putting all the profits from their next single into the piggy bank. Instead, the hard-rockers are donating the proceeds from digital sales of their "If Everyone Cared" song and video to Amnesty International and the International Children's Awareness Canada. ...

The Clipse are hitting the road, kicking off a U.S. tour February 27 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Malice/ Pusha T duo will perform in cities including Chicago, Seattle and Los Angeles on the 21-date trek, which wraps up March 29 in Carrboro, North Carolina. ... Silversun Pickups have been added to the first day of Coachella, set for April 27. The smokin'-hot indie-rockers -- whose "Lazy Eye" clip is making waves on MTV -- will also appear on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" on February 19. ... Kings of Leon have set April 3 as the release date for their third album. Because of the Times -- the title to which refers to a preachers' conference some of the bandmembers attended in their youth -- was partially produced by Ethan Johns, who has worked with the Tennessee band throughout its career. The first single is "On Call." ...

The never-ending legal battle between Beach Boys singer Mike Love and former bandmate Al Jardine has taken a new turn, AP reports. On Tuesday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge James R. Dunn rejected Love's motion to rule in favor of the lawsuit Love filed against Jardine way back in 2003. Dunn instead ruled that, in light of sufficient evidence, the case should go to trial, although he did not set a date. Love's '03 suit was submitted after Jardine filed a $4 million action against the singer in '01, claiming that Love excluded his former bandmate from concerts that year. Dunn tossed out part of Love's suit in September 2006 but let him continue to pursue $2 million in court costs and $1 million in earnings that Love claimed Jardine was wrongly paid for using the Beach Boys' name. ...

Sony BMG announced Tuesday that it had reached a proposed settlement with the Federal Trade Commission that would allow consumers to trade in CDs with its controversial "rootkit" anti-piracy software through June 30. The company has also agreed to pay up to $150 to repair any damage to computers caused by users trying to remove the stealth digital-rights-management software, which was revealed to cause serious security risks. The proposed settlement also prohibits Sony BMG from collecting user information for marketing purposes and from installing software without users' consent. Sony is also required to provide a way for users to easily uninstall the rootkit software. A final decision on the settlement will occur after public hearings wrap up on March 1. ... After a nearly 30-year gap, the Eagles are apparently finishing their first new album since the Carter administration. Singer/drummer Don Henley told an audience at a private concert on Saturday that the band was close to finishing the untitled album. "It's coming out in 60 to 90 days, if we don't kill each other first," he said, according to a report in the Las Vegas Journal-Review. The band's representatives did not comment on the report. The album would be the group's first studio effort since 1979's The Long Run.