YOUR FAVORITE MTV SHOWS ARE ON PARAMOUNT+

For The Record: Quick News On Avril Lavigne, A Perfect Circle, Kylie Minogue, Beenie Man, Chingy & More

Avril Lavigne's second album, the follow-up to 2002's Let Go, is slated for a May 25 release. The skater girl's collaborators on the untitled effort include former Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody and Our Lady Peace's Raine Maida. ...

A Perfect Circle have added eight shows to their North American spring tour. The new dates begin April 17 in Indianapolis and run through May 1 in Holmdel, New Jersey. ... Kylie Minogue will appear on the first episode of the new season of "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy," which airs February 17. Minogue's new album, Body Language, comes out the same day. The first U.S. single from the LP is "Slow." ...

Following a car accident last month, Beenie Man is out of the hospital and recovering in his home in Kingston, Jamaica. He won't be able to participate in a Bob Marley festival in Long Beach, California, on February 14, though his spokesperson said he will be well enough to make the quick hop to Miami for a show the day before. ... Godfather of Soul James Brown has filed papers to seek an annulment from his 33-year-old wife, Tommie Rae, who had Brown arrested last week for domestic violence. Brown is looking for an end to the relationship, insisting she is still legally married to another man, The Augusta Chronicle reported. ...

Will Smith will make another guest appearance on UPN's "All of Us." In the special one-hour episode set for broadcast February 17, Smith plays Robert's college buddy Johnny, who rekindles the flames with Neesee. ... On reggae pioneers Toots & the Maytals' new album, True Love, the man who coined the term "reggae" (though he spelled it "reggay") gets much love from some friends. No Doubt, Willie Nelson, Ryan Adams, Phish's Trey Anastasio, the Roots, Bootsy Collins, Shaggy, and Keith Richards all appear on the LP, due April 6. ...

David Bowie is launching a second leg of his U.S. tour. The singer's next Stateside visit -- with the Polyphonic Spree, Stereophonics and a to-be-announced guest switching off on opening duties -- starts in Philadelphia on March 29 and concludes with two New York area shows June 4 and 5. ... Rapper Suga Free hit the jackpot by having Chingy and Morris Day, among other guests, on his second album, The New Testament (The Truth), due March 2. The LP follows Suga's 1997 debut, Street Gospel. ...

Jane's Addiction's Perry Farrell and Blondie's Deborah Harry are scheduled to shoot a video on February 11 and 12 in Los Angeles' Griffith Park for "Patience Bossa," their duet which appears on the children's album A World of Happiness. Due March 9, the album features a host of stars, including Gary Oldman, Magic Johnson and Samuel L. Jackson. ... Monster Magnet's ninth album, Monolithic Baby, will be released in North America in March. The disc was produced by Scott Humphrey and features new members Jim Baglino (bass) and Bob Pantella (drums). Tracks include "Slut Machine" and "Supercruel." ...

Los Angeles alternapunks the Muffs are preparing to drop their first album in five years. The as-yet-untitled effort, which follows 1999's Hamburger, is in the mixing stage and tentatively scheduled for release this month. ... Barry Manilow is home recovering after a 24-hour stay in Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, California. The singer was admitted to the hospital after complaining of chest pains on Saturday. ...

02.02.04

The Grammys just got regal with the addition of Prince and the princess of pop, Britney Spears, to the show's lineup. Spears, along with Keith Urban, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and Joshua Bell, will present awards, while the purple one and Beyoncé are slated to perform. Tributes honoring the 40th anniversary of the Beatles' historic performance on "The Ed Sullivan Show," featuring Sting, Dave Matthews and Pharrell Williams; and the legacy of the late Warren Zevon, with Jackson Browne, Emmylou Harris and others, have also been added. ...

Reports that 50 Cent had an arrest warrant issued for him on Saturday in New York are false, according to a spokesperson for the New York City Police Department. 50 was involved in an incident in the St. Albans section of Queens in which the rapper drove up to the set of a local hip-hop video shoot, got out of his car and feigned the firing of a gun. Police say the matter was investigated but quickly closed. ... A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed against Snoop Dogg that accuses the rapper of including an answering machine message in a song without permission. The suit was filed last March by a man who wished to keep his identity secret out of safety concerns. He sought financial compensation for the use of the one-minute message on a song from Snoop's 2002 album, Paid Tha Cost to Be Da Boss, expressing support for Snoop in his rivalry with record exec Suge Knight. ...

Seen recently at the Sundance Film Festival, Outkast's Andre 3000 is slowly making his way from the pop charts to the big screen. He's been cast in "Be Cool," the sequel to "Get Shorty," both of which are based on books by Elmore Leonard. Andre plays the leader of a rap group named the Dub MDs. The film also stars John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Harvey Keitel and Cedric "The Entertainer." ... Wilco have joined the lineup for the fifth Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Also expected to be added are the Flaming Lips, who are dedicating the first half of 2004 to completing their consummate work-in-progress, the film "Christmas on Mars." They're hoping to be finished by spring, at which time they'll begin work on the follow-up to 2002's Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots with producer Dave Fridmann. ...

"Billy S." singer Skye Sweetnam is checking into the Onyx Hotel. The 15-year-old Canadian will open for Britney Spears on her upcoming tour, which also features Kelis. The outing begins March 2 in San Diego. ... Fefe Dobson will begin a new tour on February 18 in Cleveland. Dates run through March 3 in Boston. Toby Lightman will join the trek starting February 19 in Pittsburgh. ...

Rapper Turk remains in Shelby County Jail in Tennessee on $750,000 bond following his arrest for first-degree attempted murder last week. Meanwhile, police have acknowledged that one of the two officers shot in the drug raid in which Turk is alleged to have been involved was actually injured by friendly fire. Earlier, the county sheriff's office said none of the 12 police officers in the raid had returned fire, but it now says ballistic tests show SWAT officer Jason Pagenkopf was hit in the neck with a bullet used by sheriff's deputies. ... Last November's AIDS benefit concert in Cape Town, South Africa, which featured Beyoncé, U2, Peter Gabriel, Jimmy Cliff, Bob Geldof and Paul Oakenfold, was recorded for a three-CD, two-DVD set, due April 5. The show, dubbed "The 46664 AIDS Benefit Concert" after the identification number former South African President Nelson Mandela wore during his imprisonment, was organized by Eurythmics' Dave Stewart. ...

Soft-rock crooner Barry Manilow was hospitalized with chest pains due to stress on Saturday. The 57-year old singer had just returned to his Palm Springs, California, home after a trip to New York. ... The White Stripes are the first band slated to play this summer's Reading and Leeds Festivals in England. The duo were scheduled to perform last year, but the fractured hand Jack White sustained in a car accident in July prevented the band from playing. ...

Mike Patton's left-field supergroup the Fantômas will embark on a monthlong jaunt beginning March 25, though an itinerary has yet to be confirmed. Following a European trek thereafter, drummer Dave Lombardo will get back to work on the next Slayer record. Lombardo's other project, Grip Inc., will release their fourth album on March 16. ... Taproot will head to Chicago in two weeks to record a collaboration with former Smashing Pumpkins/ Zwan frontman Billy Corgan. The band also recently worked with Deftones guitarist Stephen Carpenter. Both tracks are slated for the next Taproot album, due later this year. ...

A Station fire benefit concert that raised $6,000 is now at the center of a battle over who should receive the money. The band that headlined the show, Draw the Line, wants to distribute the cash to all Massachusetts residents affected by the Rhode Island blaze. However, 22-year-old pianist Arthur Conway, who suffered lung damage and burns in the fire, has sued, claiming the March 8 show was scheduled strictly to help him pay his medical bills. The cash is currently in escrow in Boston while the Massachusetts attorney general's office reviews Conway's lawsuit. ... Former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic will perform a free concert in Longview, Washington, on Friday to encourage young people to register to vote. The show is part of Music for America, a series of shows and voter-registration drives to be held across the country. ...

Alien Ant Farm will start a 14-date North American tour Thursday in Sacramento, California. Dates run through February 21 in College Station, Texas, after which the band will head overseas. ... Björk has plans to release a complete box set of all her singles in April, according to her Web site (www.bjork.com). The box will include every single, remix and white label ever issued in her name, including those tracks and mixes released in other countries. Last spring, the singer released a box set of live recordings and accompanying DVDs. ... Atmospheric rockers Broken Social Scene won't be relaxing anytime soon. February 10 will see the release of the Valley of the Giants' debut, which features members of BSS, Godspeed You Black Emperor! and Do Make Say Think. Then on March 23, Broken Social Scene will release Bee Hives, a collection of B-sides and outtakes. ...

Latest News