Singers Montell Jordan

and Kelly Price will host

the ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Awards on Wednesday (June 7).

The awards show, held at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New

York, will honor urban music writers, publishers and

performers. ...

R&B artist Prince has

posted 18 song clips in RealAudio format in The Vault section

of his www.npgonlineltd.com Web site. Clips include a four-

minute live clip of "I Could Never Take the Place of Your

Man," as well as snippets of the studio recordings

"Cybersingle" and "Splash." ...

The four-CD Doo Wop Box III, featuring tracks by the

Dominoes,

COLOR="#003163">Drifters and

COLOR="#003163">Spaniels, will be released Aug. 1.

The tracks on the set were chosen by artists who grew up

listening to doo-wop, including

COLOR="#003163">Robert Plant and

COLOR="#003163">Keith Richards. ...

Singer Kevon Edmonds will

perform on a June 19 episode of the soap opera "All My

Children." Edmonds' single "No Love (I'm Not Used To)" is at

#32 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop singles chart. ...

Soul singer Tyrese will

perform at the first Watts Day festival in Los Angeles on

July 2. The family festival will feature amusement rides and

games in addition to musical performances. ...

Singer Janet Jackson's

husband and sometime songwriting partner

COLOR="#003163">Rene Elizondo has filed for

divorce. Elizondo's lawyer told Reuters he would seek

a settlement based on his client's "instrumental" role in

Jackson's career. ...

Gospel singer Fred

Hammond will perform at Detroit's McDonald's

GospelFest. The free festival, in Hammond's hometown, takes

place Friday through Sunday (June 9–11) at Detroit's

Hart Plaza. ...

Soul songstress N'Dambi

will serenade jazz vocalist Nina

Simone at the International Association for

African-American Music's Diamond Awards Friday (June 9). Also

appearing at the show will be Boyz

II Men, Angie

Stone and Eve.

...

"Pass You By," a ballad from Boyz II

Men's upcoming album, Nathan Michael Shawn

Wanya, is the group's first single since 1998's "I Will

Get There." ...

R&B singer Dwayne Wiggins

and hip-hop act the Roots

are set to perform at "Bringing Mumia Home," a benefit

Saturday (June 10) at the Berkeley (Calif.) Community Theater

for Mumia Abu-Jamal's legal defense fund. Abu-Jamal was

convicted of murdering a Philadelphia police officer 18 years

ago. ...

R&B singer Kelly Price is

donating the profits of her latest single, "Love Will Set You

Free," to the T.J. Martell Foundation, a music industry

organization supporting cancer, leukemia and AIDS research.

In 1999, Price's mother was found to have breast cancer, and

her mother-in-law died from the disease. ...

Rappers Talib Kweli,

De la Soul and

COLOR="#003163">Spooks will join

COLOR="#003163">Dwayne Wiggins,

COLOR="#003163">Mary Mary and fellow R&B singer

Sean Paul at the Fourth

Annual Urban Focus Music Conference from June 24–25 at

the University of Southern California.

COLOR="#003163">Avant,

COLOR="#003163">Ametria and

COLOR="#003163">Boom Shaka also will perform at

the outdoor concert. ...

— sonicnet.com staff report