Usher might want to brush up on his etiquette and refresh his memory on "How to Serve Humans" when he makes an appearance on UPN's "The Twilight Zone." Filmed last week and scheduled to air November 6, the episode finds the R&B hottie as a cop intent on protecting a young prostitute from murder. ... N.E.R.D., Cee-Lo and DJ Shadow will perform at the second annual Shortlist Concert and Award Ceremony October 29 at the recently restored Henry Fonda Theatre in Hollywood. The three performing acts, along with Aphex Twin, the Avalanches, Björk, the Doves, the Flaming Lips, the Hives and Zero 7, are vying for the Shortlist Prize for Artistic Achievement in Music. ...

Stone Sour drummer Joel Ekman fractured his wrist in a fall last week during a show in Toledo, Ohio. The sticksmith with be replaced by ex-Megadeth member Jimmy DeGrasso for shows over the next two or three weeks. ... Reel Big Fish escaped a burning tour bus unharmed on Saturday morning thanks to their driver, who alerted the sleeping group and crew members that the bus was on fire while they were parked at a truck stop in Missouri. The cause of the fire remains unknown, and the band will continue the tour to promote their album, Cheer Up. ...

The release date for Rob Zombie's long-delayed feature film debut, "House of 1,000 Corpses," has been pushed back yet again. The low-budget horror flick is now scheduled for a March release. ... Meanwhile, the persistent pushing-back of Zombie's We're a Happy Family can't be making too many Ramones fans cheery. The tribute album, with contributions from Eddie Vedder, Rancid and Metallica, is now also expected to drop in March, following previously scheduled release dates in December, November, and August. ...

Toad the Wet Sprocket will fire up their engines again on December 10 when the beloved Santa Barbara, California, band opens a show for the Counting Crows at the Universal Amphitheatre in Universal City, California. The group, which broke up in 1998, has also signed up for a five-show opening stint at the Warfield in San Francisco (December 16, 17, 20, 21 and 22) and, according to their manager, a 20-city headlining reunion tour is in the works for February. ... NBA star Walt Williams will release his first album, The Insight of a Wizzard, Tuesday on his new label, Big Wad Entertainment. The record will feature Big Wad's roster of producers and rappers, including J Stretch, Beware and Hydro Hassan. ...

Korn's show earlier this year at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom, which was broadcast live in theaters across the country, is now coming to the small screen on DVD. "Korn Live," due November 19, will feature all 16 tracks performed at the show, including "Got the Life" and "Here to Stay." ... Also due on November 19 is "The Best of Bowie DVD," a two-disc collection with more than 45 videos from pioneering rocker David Bowie. Along with such classic clips as "Space Oddity," "Let's Dance," "China Girl," "Modern Love," "Blue Jean" and "Ziggy Stardust" are rare live and television performances of "Queen Bitch," "Five Years," "Starman," "Rebel Rebel" and "Young Americans." ...

Grammy Award-winning composer, arranger and bandleader Ray Conniff, 85, died Saturday at Palomar Medical Center in Escondido, California, after falling and hitting his head, according to the Associated Press. Conniff, who created easy-listening classics such as "Somewhere My Love," is survived by his wife and daughter. ... Radio legend Horace Logan, 86, died Sunday of complications from pancreatitis and acute respiratory distress syndrome, his wife told the Associated Press. Logan coined the catchphrase "Elvis has left the building" and started the country music program "Louisiana Hayride'' at KWKH-AM in Shreveport, Louisiana, when he was 16. ...

10.11.02

Good Charlotte will drag their young and hopeless selves onto the road beginning October 15 with a gig at the Showplace in Buffalo, New York. The month-long, 24-date headlining tour is scheduled to wrap up at Tabu in Orlando, Florida, on November 15. ... "American Idol" finalist Tamyra Gray will make her acting debut with in a four-episode arc on Fox's "Boston Public" during the February sweeps period. Gray will portray a student at the fictional Winslow High School, and it was not announced whether she will sing on any of the episodes. ... The White Stripes will bring some family values to "Saturday Night Live" on October 19. The Detroit duo are scheduled to be the musical guests on the show, which will be hosted by Sen. John McCain, according to a spokesperson for the group. ...

Justin Timberlake, Ja Rule, Mariah Carey, India.Arie, Jill Scott, Elton John and others will honor Stevie Wonder at BET's eight annual Walk of Fame induction ceremony, which is taping October 19 in Washington, D.C. and airing October 29. Jamie Foxx is hosting the event, which has recognized Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston and Boyz II Men in past years. ... Jackson, meanwhile, has invited more than 200 Air Force members and their families to spend Saturday (October 12) at his Neverland Ranch in California. The King of Pop wanted to thank the soldiers for serving overseas as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. ...

Master P won the rights to TheNewNoLimitRecords.com in a cybersquatting arbitration against Divine Mafa (doing business as The New No Limit Records Inc.). The ruling said that Mafa, who allegedly tried to sell the name to P, registered the Web address in bad faith. There was no finding of bad faith with regard to the domain PMillerCollection.com. Click here to see the National Arbitration Forum's decision. ...

Erykah Badu and Common will join the D.O.C. and Russell Simmons at the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network's latest gathering on Friday (October 11) and Saturday in Dallas. Past summits have been held in New York and Los Angeles. ... A DVD filmed at last year's Farm Aid just days after September 11 will be released November 19. "A Concert for America" features performances from Dave Matthews, John Mellencamp, Neil Young and others. ... Dreamstreet's Chris Trousdale and Myra and a host of young television stars have recorded holiday classics for School's Out! Christmas, due October 29. Evan Rachel Wood ("Once and Again") and Ashlee Simpson ("7th Heaven") are among the thespians showing off their vocal skills on the disc. ...

Rocket Man Elton John will send out a time capsule of his tops of the pops, from "Your Song" to "This Train Don't Stop There Anymore," on the two-disc set Greatest Hits 1970 - 2002, due November 12. Among the other tracks slated for the collection are "Daniel," "Tiny Dancer," "Candle in the Wind," "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" and "Nikita." ... Due the same day is Travelogue - Blues Traveler Classics, a collection of favorites such as "Gina," "But Anyway," "Run-Around" and "Carolina Blues." ... Just in time for the giving of the thanks, Funked Up: The Very Best of Parliament spans George Clinton & Co.'s Chocolate City/Casablanca years with classics such as "Bop Gun," "Flash Light," "All Your Goodies Are Gone," "Give Up the Funk" and "Aqua Boogie." The disc is due November 5. ...

The Strokes and former Pavement bassist Mark Ibold came out to show support for Australian quartet You Am I at New York's Mercury Lounge Tuesday on the second date of the 13-year-old band's seven-date U.S. tour (four shows find them opening for the Strokes), its first in four years. While the band is looking to secure a major-label deal for a new album, SpinART is in negotiations to domestically release their latest, Deliverance, which dropped in Australia last week. ... NYC anti-folk duo the Moldy Peaches are releasing individual solo albums. Kimya Dawson's I'm Sorry That Sometimes I'm Mean is set for release November 5, while Adam Green's Garfield is slated for October 22. Green kicks off a tour October 17, opening for Badly Drawn Boy until November 8, and the Strokes from Nov 9-17. ...

Bob Dylan, Billy Joel and James Taylor filed a lawsuit against Vivendi Universal-owned MP3.com Inc. for copyright infringement. Although MP3.com has settled suits with the five major label groups by May 2000, the artists can still sue over previous cases of infringement to the tune of $150,000 per instance. ... If you've always yearned for a refrigerator personalized by '80s rocker Billy Idol, you'd better hurry up and get over to eBay and bid on one in the "Art of the Appliance" auction. Idol, along with BMXer Mat "The Condor" Hoffman and racing legend Mario Andretti, have customized refrigerators for a charity auction ending Saturday (October 12), with Idol's benefiting the Muscular Dystrophy Association and bearing a caricature of the singer with the words "rock and roll" substituted for his signature spiky hair. ...

Can they make up their minds already? Practically moments after settling first on Cockstar and then on Motordog, the new band featuring Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx, L.A. Guns guitarist Tracii Guns, Adema drummer Kris Kohls, former Mötley Crüe vocalist John Corabi and a frontman named London have changed their name again, this time to Brides of Destruction. ... Taking a page from the Phish career guide, funk jam act Deep Banana Blackout have announced that they are going on an "extended hiatus." The eight-person collective, formed in 1995, still has more than a dozen dates left on its End of Party outing and will cease touring for an indefinite period after that. ...

Unwritten Law have severed ties with Interscope Records and are currently searching for a new label. ... Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony again joined former VH frontman Sammy Hagar and his band the Waboritas onstage earlier this week, according to his Web site. Anthony and the band ran through several Hagar-era Van Halen hits, including "Best of Both Worlds," "When It's Love," "Right Now" and "Dreams" at the Cabo Wabo Cantina in Mexico. ... Following in the footsteps of Tommy Lee, Nelly and Disturbed's David Draiman, Korn singer Jonathan Davis recently became a Playboy "celebrity photographer," shooting pictures of his fiancée, former porn star Deven. "There's nothing better than shooting your chick naked," Davis told Playboy.com.