Should Justin Timberlake ever hang up the mic, he won't need to wonder about his next move. The singer's been charging ahead to carve out an alternate career as a sports correspondent, and can now add ABC Sports to his resumé. Timberlake, who signed on earlier this year as a special correspondent to cover sports for both TNT and TBS, moves over to the Disney-owned channel to join the executive producer who signed him to his prior sports deal back in May. His assignments as an ABC Sports correspondent remain to be determined. He is slated, however, to write the signature theme music for ABC's NBA coverage and will star in the network's NBA promotional "Can't Get Enough" campaign. ...

Britney Spears will preview several songs from her upcoming album, In the Zone, on her hour-long concert special, "Britney Spears: In the Zone," to air November 17 at 8 p.m. on ABC. Up until now, the singer's previewed only a few songs live, including her first single, "Me Against the Music," and the ballad "Everytime." Both of those songs will be in the ABC set, which will also highlight her next single, "(I've Got That) Boom Boom," featuring the Ying Yang Twins. Britney will be accompanied by her team of dancers, a full band and even a string quartet for one number, according to ABC. Britney's upcoming tour, in the meantime, is getting firmed up, with a launch date set at March 3, according to Billboard. She'll play 56 dates through April, and will embark on a separate outdoor amphitheater tour in July. ... Courtney Love got a breather in her misdemeanor drug case on Friday (October 31). A Los Angeles Superior Court judge gave her a continuance until November 14 for her arraignment, so that Love's lawyer would have more time to discuss the charges with her, despite "vehement objection" from the city attorney. Love will not have to appear to enter a plea; her lawyer plans to enter one for her. ...

Busta Rhymes was on New York radio station Hot 97's morning show with Sway on Thursday dismissing the idea that his scathing freestyle on the latest DJ Kay Slay mixtape was aimed at Jay-Z. On the song "What More Can I Say," from his upcoming The Black Album, Jay-Z calls Busta Rhymes "animated," and some interpreted this as a dis. Kay Slay fanned the flames by telling Sway earlier that Busta's track was indeed aimed at Jigga in response. ... Damon Dash denies that Roc-A-Wear uses a factory in Honduras that the watchdog group National Labor Committee cited as having sweatshop conditions. On Tuesday, the NLC's Charles Kernaghan said that 80 percent of the output of the Southeast Textiles factory was for P. Diddy's Sean John clothing line and the other 20 percent was for Roc-A-Wear, which is owned by Dash and Jay-Z. In a statement, Dash said that the factory was used only once by a sub-contractor without his knowledge and that his company only works with factories that comply with labor regulations. "It is important to us that every member of our staff is treated with dignity and respect, both here and abroad," the statement said. ...

Scott Weiland was a little late for his court-ordered detox Thursday night, since he stopped in to sing two songs at a quick gig to open Velvet Revolver bandmate Duff McKagan's wife's fashion show. Originally, Weiland and McKagan were slated to play only one song — an acoustic cover of the Rolling Stones' "Angie" — at Susan Holmes' presentation of her spring 2004 swimwear line at SmashBox in Culver City, California. But the rest of the band joined them — including sometime member Izzy Stradlin and engineer Douglas Grean on keyboards — for not only the RS cover, but also a new original song called "You Got No Right." ... Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder, R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe, sensitive techno guy Moby and Tenacious D's Jack Black are some of the artists who will judge a contest of the best 30 seconds of original video to criticize the policies of President Bush. The competition has been organized by the political action group MoveOn.org. Interested participants should create an informative, memorable and creative spot about a current administration issue that should be addressed, re-examined or changed. Entries should be submitted to www.bushin30seconds.org between November 24 and December 5. The winning ad will be aired as part of a MoveOn.org TV campaign. ...

Police in Des Moines, Iowa, have agreed to drop their case against Slipknot bassist Paul Gray after he pleaded guilty to driving while under the influence of drugs, the Des Moines Register reported. Last week, Gray admitted that he was stoned when he had a minor traffic accident June 1, so prosecutors dropped charges that he was carrying marijuana, cocaine and syringes at the time. He was ordered to make a $500 contribution to the American Red Cross and sent on his way. ... R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills, the Coup rapper Boots Riley and singer Jill Sobule will play select dates on the Tell Us the Truth Tour, which also features Audioslave's Tom Morello (a.k.a. The Nightwatchman), Steve Earle, Billy Bragg and Lester Chambers. The first date of the tour is November 7 in Madison, Wisconsin, and the final show is November 24 in Washington, D.C. ...

West Coast mixtape DJ Vlad had his voice and appearance captured for Rockstar Games' upcoming "Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne." Vlad portrays a Russian mobster/ Max confidant in the game. ... Before running the New York City Marathon on Sunday, P. Diddy can take in a brief set from Stacie Orrico. The singer will be performing "(There's Gotta Be) More to Life" and "Stuck" at 9 a.m. on a stage located at the race's starting line in Staten Island. ...

Wu-Tang Clan mastermind RZA is launching a 28-city solo tour Sunday in Chicago to promote his latest release, Birth of a Prince. Das EFX are also on the outing, which wraps December 8 in Burlington, Vermont. ... Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler and guitarist Joe Perry will debut their cover of Hank Williams Jr.'s "Are You Ready for Some Football?" on November 4 during "Monday Night Football." The recording was taped in Los Angeles earlier this month. ...

Here's to going after your target audience. UC3, an up-and-coming female R&B trio from Tampa Bay, Florida, have signed a sponsorship deal with the restaurant chain Hooters, which will host events for the group, such a showcase November 18 at its New York restaurant. The group features former Epic Records artist Tracy Williams, who has toured with Destiny's Child and 'NSYNC. ...

10.30.2003

P. Diddy was acting straight "foolie" and putting some of your favorite celebs "on blast" during his radio-a-thon on New York's Hot 97 on Wednesday. The Mohawk-sporting mogul was on the station trying to raise funds for his children's charity efforts. Among those calling in to donate money to PD's cause was Jennifer Lopez, who, along with her fiancé, Ben Affleck, donated a combined $78,000. R. Kelly, who was in New York, also phoned in and pledged 20,000 big ones. Other big spenders were Jay-Z and Dame Dash, Eminem and Paul Rosenberg, and Busta Rhymes. In total, Diddy is said to have raised more than $250,000. ...

Alien Ant Farm and founding guitarist Terry Corso have parted ways, citing the divorce staple "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the split. The band's first show with temporary replacement Victor Camacho took place Wednesday in Birmingham, Alabama. ... Due to the California fires, Michelle Branch and Monica did not participate in this week's Monday Night at the Mic, the "battle of the bands"-style competition on ABC's "Monday Night Football." The game between the Chargers and Dolphins, set to take place in San Diego, was moved to Phoenix, and the segment was postponed until Monday, November 3. During the game between the Patriots and Broncos, Branch and Tennessee Titans running back Eddie George will take on Monica and Atlanta Falcons cornerback Bryan Scott. ...

Queens of the Stone Age singer Mark Lanegan will release the odds- and-ends EP Here Comes That Weird Chill (Methamphetamine Blues, Extras and Oddities) on December 9. A full album, Bubblegum, will follow in early spring. Lanegan will play a short West Coast tour in December, starting in Vancouver on December 11 and running through December 17 in Los Angeles. ... Meanwhile, Queens of the Stone Age guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen is getting in on the side-project action on which his bandmates thrive. At the end of November, Van Leeuwen will release a disc by his band Enemy, Hooray for Dark Matter, which will be available for purchase on www.enemyonline.com. Enemy will support Mark Lanegan on a number of dates throughout Europe and the U.S. ...

The Recording Industry Association of America announced on Wednesday it will ask online music companies to implement parental-control filters on downloads, much in the same way that CDs have "Parental Advisory" stickers. The trade group is currently providing companies with guidelines for how to label downloads. ... Alt-country roots rocker Steve Earle will duke it out with conservative newsman Bill O'Reilly on Monday on "The O'Reilly Factor," which airs at 8 and 11 p.m. ET. Earle will also speak his mind on the road during the Tell Us the Truth Tour, which also features Tom Morello and Billy Bragg. Earle will join the outing on November 11 in Royal Oak, Michigan. And on November 7, an Earle concert documentary will premiere in New York and Nashville. The film will screen nationwide in the weeks that follow. ...

After opening for Dashboard Confessional and other bands, Vendetta Red will finally headline their own tour. The outing, with S.T.U.N. and Armor for Sleep supporting, kicks off November 10 and wraps up December 12 in their hometown of Seattle. Vendetta Red just released "Seconds Away" as the follow-up single to "Shatterday." ... The second major-label Blindside album, About a Burning Fire, will be released on February 24. The album was produced by Howard Benson and features Billy Corgan on the first single, "Hurray." Other track titles include "Follow You Down," "All of Us," "Swallow" and "Eye of the Storm." ...   British indie legends the Mekons have returned to their raging roots for Punk Rock, which comes out January 20. The album features re-recorded versions of some of the first tracks they ever wrote. The band was inspired to rediscover the past after last year's career retrospective 25th anniversary tour. The Mekons will tour North America again in March. ... Irish rockers Ash have begun recording their fifth album in Los Angeles. Nick Raskulinecz, who worked behind the boards on the Foo Fighters' One by One, is producing the record, due in the spring. ...