A New York Supreme Court judge said "no, no, no" to Beyoncé this week. The Destiny's Child singer was ordered to pay the Wilhelmina modeling agency a hefty sum after the judge ruled that she had failed to honor her contract with the company when she didn't pay them a commission and service fee for setting up a deal with L'Oreal in 2001. Wilhelmina's president, Sean Patterson, said the singer "just got some bad advice" from her lawyers. A spokesperson for Beyoncé could not be reached for comment at press time. The judgment is still being calculated, but Patterson estimated that it would be between $1 million and $1.8 million. ...

The 48th annual Grammy Awards will be held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on February 8, organizers announced on Wednesday (June 8). The CBS-broadcasted show returns to its traditional Wednesday slot after airing on a Sunday the last three years. Nominations will be announced on December 7. ... Hilary Duff has been tapped to be the face of Candie's fall ad campaign. The teen queen will be promoting the launch of the company's new junior division clothing line, which will be sold exclusively in Kohl's department stores. "I am so excited to be the new Candie's girl! There have been so many cool people that have done [their] ads in the past, and I feel like I am in good company with a lot of really cool people," said the singer/actress, who will be joining the ranks of former Candie's spokespeople Kelly Clarkson, Dixie Chicks and Destiny's Child. ...

The cancellation of the Zooma Tour left artists like Ben Harper with wide-open schedules. Rather than spend his summer in the backyard barbecuing, though, he's going to embark on a U.S. and Canadian tour. Harper's trek kicks off on July 12 in Vancouver, British Columbia, and hits 15 cities before wrapping up on August 1 in Atlanta. After the outing, Harper will head into the studio to work on his next album. ...

It's not impossible to imagine the Flaming Lips as the house band at, say, a cantina on Mars. But on a Carnival Cruise Line ship? Well, starting this October, that's just what they'll be, serving as the headlining act on the inaugural Xingolati Groove Cruise. The event, aboard the Carnival Paradise liner, is a four-day jaunt from Los Angeles to Ensenada, Mexico, where the ship will be transformed into a floating music festival. The Lips will perform a set in the ship's main auditorium, screen their recent career-spanning DVD, "The Fearless Freaks," and host the first-ever "Pacific Ocean Zaireeka Party," a playing of their obscure, 1997 four-disc album that requires four boom boxes to play. Other acts along for the trip include G. Love and Special Sauce and Medeski, Martin & Wood. The cruise sets sail on October 14. ... In support of their just-released album, Man-Made, Scottish rockers Teenage Fanclub are planning their first Stateside trip in four years. The group, which in its 16-year career has only ever made a handful of U.S. appearances, will kick off a 14-date tour on July 18 in Carrboro, North Carolina, and will finish up August 8 in San Diego. ...

Lit's A. Jay and Jeremy Popoff suffered a tragic loss this weekend when their parents were involved in a fatal motorcycle accident. Their mother, Sheri Suglia, and their stepfather, Kerry Suglia, were cruising down the Ortega Highway in Lake Elsinore, California, after a visit with the brothers when their motorcycle was struck by a drunk driver in an SUV. Kerry was killed on impact, while Sheri is in critical condition after suffering multiple injuries. A memorial fund has been established in their stepfather's name, and you can leave messages of support for A. Jay and Jeremy and their family on the band's Web site, litlounge.com. ...

David Coverdale is joining Whitesnake on the road this summer for a world tour. "I'm back with a mission," Coverdale said. "It's an appropriate time to reintroduce good, uplifting, positive rock and roll." The U.S. leg of the tour -- which will feature such Whitesnake hits such as "Here I Go Again" and "Is This Love" as well as early material from Coverdale's other band, Deep Purple -- kicks off June 22 in Seattle and wraps July 30 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The tour coincides with a new live DVD out in early July, "Whitesnake: The Rock & Roll, Rhythm & Blues Show," recorded in October at London's Hammersmith Apollo. ... Taproot have set an August 16 release date for their next album, Blue Sky Research. Toby Wright (Korn) produced the LP, and Billy Corgan and Gratitude's Jonah Matranga contributed lyrics. ...

06.07.2005

In this week's episode of "Britney and Kevin: Chaotic," not only will we see Britney Spears bouncing around and acting goofy in some strange house and Kevin Federline smoking more cigarettes, but we'll also get a window into K-Fed's mind. In one of the show's segments, Federline reveals to the world that he refused to tell his wife he loved her until he was sure the feeling was mutual. "I wasn't going to tell her I loved her until I knew for sure that she really felt that way about me," he says. "So, I kept my mouf shut. Maybe not my emotions, but my mouf. After that, we both kinda opened up to each other." Spears also explains that she, too, has torn down her defenses since meeting Federline. "I think that's what love does," she says. "You can't put up any more walls and all that stuff." ... ([article id="1501842"]Click for photos from the show[/article].)

Stevie Wonder, Will Smith, Kelly Clarkson and Alanis Morissette have all signed on to headline pregame performances during this year's NBA Finals. Smith will kick off the series prior to game 1 on Thursday, performing his single "Switch," while Morissette will deliver her rendition of the national anthem. Clarkson will take over anthem duties for game 2 on Sunday, via satellite from the Persian Gulf, where she is on a USO tour with several NBA legends. Finally, on June 14, Wonder will take the stage, performing "The Star-Spangled Banner" as well as his new single, "So What the Fuss," from his forthcoming album, A Time to Love. ... Attention, gamers: Get those controllers ready, because you're about to get your chance to go head-to-head with the Mouth of the South. Ludacris has signed up for Xbox Live's Game With Fame event, where the rapper will challenge fans from across the globe in "Forza Motorsport," a driving simulator game. "When Xbox came to me with this opportunity, I jumped at it," Luda said. "There's nothing like kicking back, relaxing and playing some Xbox [with] my fans all over the world." All gamers have to do is look for the MC's gamer tag "ludacrisgwf" from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET on Friday. ...

P. Diddy has been tapped to serve as the master of ceremonies for the inaugural Vibe MusicFest, which kicks off Friday at Atlanta's Georgia Dome. The hip-hop mogul will open the three-day event, which is being held in celebration of Black Music Month. Damian and Stephen Marley, sons of reggae icon Bob Marley, have also been added to the star-studded lineup, along with Lyfe, who is currently opening for John Legend on tour. Kanye West, Amerie, Tommy Davidson, 112, Lyfe and Legend will hit the stage Friday night, while Lauryn Hill, Outkast's Big Boi, Ludacris, Faith Evans, T.I. and the Marleys will wrap up the festivities on Saturday. Seminars will also be held throughout the weekend and will include appearances by Public Enemy's Chuck D, TLC's T-Boz, "American Idol" 's LaToya London and others. ...

Four days after the five global Live 8 concerts, organizers are planning a sixth show on the doorstep of the G8 summit conference to turn up the heat on the world's richest nations to forgive African debt. The July 6 show at Edinburgh, Scotland's Murrayfield Stadium will come the day the G8 summit begins one hour up the road at the Gleneagles resort, and will feature sets from Annie Lennox, Dido, Travis, organizer Bob Geldof, Texas, the Proclaimers, Embrace, Youssou N'Dour, Natasha Bedingfield, Zutons, Damon Albarn, Snow Patrol and Wet Wet Wet. The show will also coincide with the Long Walk to Justice Rally, which Geldof hopes will result in 1 million people descending on Edinburgh to rally for debt relief on the 6th. ... A contest to give away more than 150,000 tickets to the London Live 8 show on July 2 drew more than 1.5 million entries in its first few hours. The text-messaging contest that launched Sunday gives fans a chance to win a pair of tickets to the show by answering a trivia question. The contest ends Sunday, when a computer will randomly distribute the 72,500 pairs of tickets to see Coldplay, Elton John, U2, R.E.M. and the Cure, among others. ...

Model/actor Tyson Beckford was injured in a car accident early Monday in Secaucus, New Jersey, when his Dodge Ram truck crashed into a utility pole and burst into flames, The Associated Press reports. The 34-year-old was able to escape from the wreckage before the vehicle became fully engulfed in the blaze. Beckford was taken to Jersey City Medical Center, where he was treated for head trauma and minor cuts. ... After more than 10 years away from the music scene, jazzy rap trio Digable Planets are returning to the spotlight with a 25-gig North American trek. All three original members (Butterfly, Doodlebug and Ladybug) will be taking part in the reunion tour, which kicked off Monday in Ottawa, Ontario, and wraps July 9 in New Haven, Connecticut. The trio split in 1994 due to creative differences, but reunited in the fall of 2004. ...

Beck, Stereolab, the Eels, Irving and the Apples in Stereo are among a slew of artists who will be covering the tunes of electronic-music pioneers Bruce Haack and Esther Nelson as part of the forthcoming LP Dimension Mix. Haack and Nelson founded the Dimension 5 record label, which has released several children's records and influenced the field of electronic music. Produced by Rich Harris and set for release by Eenie Meenie Records, a portion of the album's sales will go toward the charitable organization Cure Autism Now. Look for the disc to hit stores August 23. ... The Mars Volta have been tapped to curate All Tomorrow's Parties Nightmare Before Christmas show (December 2-4) at the Camber Sands Holiday Center outside London. The prog-heavy list of acts includes the Kills, Diamanda Galas, Cinematic Orchestra, Blonde Redhead, High on Fire, the F---ing Champs and others. ...

Death Cab for Cutie's Chris Walla, a vegetarian since age 13, has shot a PSA for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' youth movement, Peta2. Sitting against a white backdrop dressed in a white shirt and tie, Walla espouses the benefits of a colorful plate of veggies as he discusses his love for animals and environmental concerns. ... Alterna-rockers Nada Surf -- perhaps best known for 1996's summer radio hit "Popular" -- will release their fourth studio LP, The Weight Is a Gift, on September 20. The album was produced by Death Cab's Walla, who also performs on the disc, which features the songs "Do It Again," "All Is a Game" and "Imaginary Friends." ...