The news happens all the time, even while you're catching up on your beauty sleep. Check out this brief rundown to bring you up to speed this morning -- a quick heads up from your friends at MTV News.

Here's what we've got:

People may want Britney Spears to sing a song or two about her split with Kevin Federline, "but not a whole album of that," Ne-Yo told us. That's why [article id="1559021"]he'll be sticking with what he calls "regular, quality songs" if he gets down to business with Brit[/article]. "My whole thing is to stay away from the drama they been through," he explained. "Nobody wants to continue to hear [he sings]: 'I been through the rain and I'm still strong and I'm still here.' " ...

Justin Timberlake [article id="1558873"]told us that he's exploring his country side[/article] with Reba McEntire ("I'm making my grandfather very proud") and his secretive superstar side with Madonna ("I don't want to tell you [more], because she'll either kill me or she'll have me kill you"), so does a song with 50 Cent have JT getting in touch with his inner tough guy? "We met somewhere in the middle," he laughed. "It was somewhere like a bulletproof designer necktie." ...

And Zach Braff has a sitcom ("Scrubs"), an active movie career ("The Ex" is out Friday) and time to goof around online. [article id="1559022"]"I love MySpace," he told us[/article]. "I think it's really cool that someone who's in the public eye can have a direct relationship with his fans." If you hit Braff up on his page and get a response, it's really coming from him. "Nobody touches it but me. I write all the blogs, I write all the posts." ...

Quote of the Day: "For my whole life, I was spoon-fed what a great country this is, and I just didn't get that feeling from that trip [to New Orleans]." [article id="1558873"]Linkin Park's Chester Bennington[/article]

Here's what everyone else is talking about:

Paris Hilton won't be speaking for herself after all. Longtime Hilton rep Elliot Mintz said early Tuesday (May 8) that he was back on her team -- after confirming over the weekend that he'd been let go. "I represent Paris and I'm proud to," Mintz told Reuters. Hilton's attorneys appealed her 45-day sentence on Monday, the same day that a post on "the official Paris Hilton MySpace page" urged fans to "sihn" a petition asking California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for a pardon. ...

The New York Post's "Page Six" reported Tuesday that Nick Cannon planned to propose to his girlfriend, Victoria's Secret model Selita Ebanks, Monday night, right in the middle of New York's Times Square. Sounds like his plot worked -- Cannon's publicist tells us that Selita said yes. ...

It's even bigger than we thought. The final "Spider-Man 3" weekend numbers were calculated Monday night, and the film pulled in $151.1 million, The Associated Press reports -- a significant jump from its $148 million estimate. ... In other blockbuster movie news, your waiting time for "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" is now a little bit shorter. The film, which was previously scheduled to premiere Friday, May 25, is now scheduled to debut with 8 p.m. screenings on May 24, Variety reports. ...

A July 24 release date for Kelly Clarkson's My December was confirmed Monday, and Yahoo!'s Buzz Log reports that interest in the first "Idol" winner is already up. Queries on Clarkson jumped 43 percent on Monday, landing her in the top 100 search terms. ... Clarkson's "Idol" competitor Tamyra Gray is joining the cast of "Rent" on May 29, The Associated Press reports. ... MSNBC's "The Scoop" reports that Russell Simmons is backing away from the "Hillary or Barack?" debate by backing presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich. ...

The Killers' Brandon Flowers is expecting his first child with wife Tana, People reports. The baby is due in July. ... Live Earth organizers announced the lineup for the Sydney, Australia, show early Tuesday. The reunited Crowded House will lead the bill for the July 7 show at Aussie Stadium, which will also feature Jack Johnson, Wolfmother, John Butler Trio and Toni Collette & the Finish (yes, that's the actress). ...

And George Michael pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of drugs on Tuesday, BBC News reports. The singer, who had been ordered to stand trial for the October arrest, admitted the offense, blaming "tiredness and prescribed drugs." A date for his sentencing has not been revealed.