T.I.'s lawyers gave a hint of how they plan to defend their client through motions filed in court on Monday seeking to suppress evidence seized from the rapper's vehicle during his October 13 arrest on federal weapons charges. The motions claim that the evidence against him and statements he made to authorities were illegally obtained. The Associated Press reports that attorneys for the rapper (born Clifford Harris) claim his car was searched without a warrant, consent or probable cause. They also claim that his detention might not have been appropriate, that statements he made to authorities might not have been voluntary and that agents may have failed to honor his rights. The motions don't go into details on the basis for the legal challenges, but state that more information will be filled in later. A judge had not made a ruling on the challenges at press time. ...

A judge suspended the driver's license of wrestler Hulk Hogan's son, Nick Bollea, for one year on Tuesday, in the wake of the 17-year-old's August crash that left his friend in critical condition, according to the AP. Bollea was arrested on November 7 on charges of reckless driving involving serious bodily injury, and the Tampa Tribune reported that the teen received a letter on Monday informing him of the suspension, as well as a letter ordering him to pay a fine for driving 106 mph before the crash, to avoid having his license suspended indefinitely. "We have the ability to suspend someone's license if we believe what they could be convicted of is a potential danger should this person remain on the road," said Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles spokeswoman Ann Nucatola. "We've deemed him dangerous to the general public on the road." ...

Despite their differences, the Wu-Tang Clan will be touring in support of their forthcoming album, The 8 Diagrams. The trek begins on December 15 in Chicago, and runs through January 26 in St. Petersburg, Florida. ... According to Bruce Springsteen's Web site, keyboard player Danny Federici, an original member of the E Street Band, has decided to take a leave of absence from Springsteen's current tour to undergo treatment for melanoma. Charles Giordano, who played with Bruce as a member of the Sessions band, will temporarily fill in for Federici until he's able to return. ... As I Lay Dying, August Burns Red, Evergreen Terrace and Still Remains are planning to hit the road together in January. The trek commences January 8 in San Luis Obispo, California, and runs through February 1 in Omaha, Nebraska. More dates are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. ...

The Cure's Robert Smith addressed rumors about him working with Ashlee Simpson in V magazine. "First of all, I was mostly shocked by how fantastically widespread that rumor was ... and by how quickly it spread," he said. "I know that people were really upset by the idea that I would do that and I suppose I can understand why, but it still seems so ridiculous to me. I took my nieces to see her perform in 'Chicago' on the West End and afterward they wanted to meet her, so we went backstage and said hello. I didn't understand what the big deal was. You can say what you want about her, but she can sing. Whether or not we'd actually do anything together, I don't know. I didn't see any reason to deny the rumor as I thought it was amusing and I never deny rumors anyway. There are a handful of singers that I'd rather pull my own fingernails out than be stuck in the same room with, but she isn't really one of them. We have no plans to collaborate, though. Believe it or not, she and I don't really run into each other. [He laughed.] Now, wait a second ... Ashlee is calling on my other line and I should probably take it." ...

The track list for Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo's forthcoming solo album, Alone -- The Home Records of Rivers Cuomo, has been revealed. The album, due out December 18, will boast 17 tracks, including an early version of the band's 1995 hit "Buddy Holly," as well as the songs "Who You Callin' B---h?," "Dude We're Finally Landing," and "I Wish You Had an Axe Guitar." In related news, Weezer have titled their forthcoming album Tout Ensemble, according to the band's Web site. ...

Don Imus has certainly been called a lot of things in 2007 -- racist, sexist, fired, you name it. King magazine, however, has another name for him: Man of the Year. Imus was given the mag's yearly big-dog award in the new issue. Huh? Editor-in-chief Jermaine Hall said Imus was honored for being a lighting rod in the urban community. ... Former New Kid on the Block Joey McIntyre and his wife, Barrett, welcomed a baby boy on Tuesday, People magazine reports. "The family is happy and healthy," a rep for McIntyre told the magazine. "Everyone's doing well and they're excited he made it here in time for Thanksgiving." McIntyre, 34, and his wife, 29, have not yet picked a name for the child. ...

According to the Florida Times-Union, former Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Artimus Pyle was arrested in St. John's County, Florida, on Monday, charged with failure to properly register as a sex offender. The 59-year-old, whose real name is Thomas Delmer Pyle, lives in Asheville, North Carolina. He was released from police custody Tuesday on $10,000 bail. Pyle pleaded guilty in 1993 to charges of attempted capital sexual battery by an adult on a victim younger than 12 and principal to lewd and lascivious on a child younger than 16. He was sentenced to eight years of probation and designated as a sex offender. His latest arrest stems from his recent attempt to renew his driver's license in Florida. Police claim he failed to register as a sex offender in Florida, which state law mandates, and detectives claim he has not lived at the address provided on his license renewal application for many years.

11.20.2007

Britney Spears is tired of being the only one under the microscope -- so she hired a private investigator to pass some of the scrutiny on to ex-husband Kevin Federline, according to TMZ. But Federline's lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan, doesn't seem to be worried about Brit's new hire. "I think that if that is what they need to do, or have to do, to have at it," Kaplan told UsMagazine.com. "I don't think it will, in any way, be a good expenditure of funds. But I can't stop that from happening." Kaplan also told the site that he doesn't think a P.I. would have much success following K-Fed around. "I don't think he would be concerned about it, and I don't think he has to change anything he is doing in order to address that," Kaplan said. ...

Kanye West got some cheery news from GQ magazine, which has named him one of the magazine's honorees for Men of the Year. West graces one of three separate covers for the mag, which also selected a former president (Bill Clinton) and James Bond himself (Daniel Craig) to keep the rapper company -- not that he needs it. "I'm the number-one artist in the world right now. I'm the number-one human being in music," Kanye tells the mag. "That means any person who's living or breathing is number two. You are in the presence of a champion." Kanye also admits in his cover story that his feud with 50 Cent was his idea and a "complete publicity stunt." Also joining West, Clinton and Craig as honorees for the magazine's 12th annual list, which hits newsstands November 27 and can be found at the magazine's Web site, are Casey Affleck, Judd Apatow (along with his "comedy mafia" of Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Jonah Hill and Michael Cera), Simon Cowell, Daft Punk, Tom Hanks, Emile Hirsch, Lil Wayne, Robin Thicke and Rihanna. ([article id="1574723"]Check out pictures from the magazine here.[/article]) ...

Timbaland and his fiancee, Monique Idlett, have given birth to a baby girl named Reign, a source close to the couple confirms to MTV News. Reign was born a few days ago, weighing in at nine pounds. ... Amy Winehouse talked to V magazine for the new issue, addressing everything from her embattled husband ("I love Blake so much -- I'm a very lucky girl") to her beehive ("I haven't seen one person with one"). She also got back to the music, insisting that album number three won't be about the pressures of fame: "Who wants to listen to an album about having the [tabloids] camped outside your house?" ... Jessica Sierra, a 2005 "American Idol" finalist, pleaded no contest to felony charges of battery and cocaine possession in Tampa, Florida, according to People. She was sentenced to 12 months of probation. The 22-year-old was arrested April 29 after throwing a cocktail glass at a bar patron's head and was taken to jail, where cocaine was found in her purse. She has been undergoing drug and alcohol rehabilitation in California as part of a VH1 celebrity rehab reality show set to air next year. ...

Hey, guess who else didn't pay a dime for the new Radiohead album? Frontman Thom Yorke admitted to paying nothing for a download of In Rainbows during an interview with BBC 6. "There wasn't any point," he explained. "I just move some money from one pocket to the other." The release of the album online was a hard secret to keep, according to guitarist Ed O'Brien. "We had to literally tell no one," he said on BBC 6. "I didn't tell my wife we were going to release it like this." Yorke added that to avoid any early leaks, no one in the band or their camp was allowed to have a master recording of the album. ... The twisty saga of the wrongful-death lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department by the family of the Notorious B.I.G. has taken yet another turn. A judge ruled Friday that the lawsuit can add several new defendants because of newly discovered evidence, The Associated Press reports. Among the potential new defendants are former Death Row Records boss Marion "Suge" Knight, former police officer Rafael Perez and some other current and former LAPD officers. ...

On Tuesday (November 20), Nine Inch Nails released their Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D set, the last NIN album released by Interscope Records (fulfilling the band's contractual commitments to the label). In conjunction with the release, Trent Reznor was to launch the Web site Remix.NIN.com so fans could use the DVD-ROM contained within the LP -- boasting all the source material in multi-track format -- to do their own remixes of the songs, with Reznor's blessing. But when visitors reach the site, they'll find an image of an old man wearing glasses with $20 bills tucked behind each lens. In an essay on the site titled "Copyright Fun," Reznor explains the situation. He claims he was contacted over the weekend by Interscope, which owns the band's master files, and told the site wouldn't be happening. "Universal feels that if they host our remix site, they will be opening themselves up to the accusation that they are sponsoring the same technical violation of copyright they are suing companies [like YouTube and MySpace] for. Their premise is that if any fan decides to remix one of my masters with material Universal doesn't own -- a 'mash-up,' a sample, whatever -- and upload it to the site, they will be doing exactly what MySpace and YouTube are doing." The label said it would not host the remix site, insisting that the band host it, shifting the liability to Reznor. "We are challenged at the last second to find a way of bringing this idea to life without getting splashed by the urine as these media companies piss all over each other's feet," Reznor wrote. "We have a cool and innovative site ready to launch but we're currently scratching our heads as to how to proceed." ...

Fergie explains her infamous onstage pants-wetting episode in the December issue of Allure: She didn't want to disappoint her fans by being late. "I just did not stop on the way to go to the bathroom," she tells the mag, on newsstands November 27. "But yeah, I won't live that down. It won't happen again, though. Peeing is one of my rituals before going onstage." Fergie also tells the magazine that she's concerned about certain starlets' privacy when they're trying to kick a habit. "The thing that appalls me is that when you get these stories from inside rehab. That's supposed to be your sanctuary," said the singer, who fought a crystal meth addiction herself. "I know we live in a voyeuristic world right now, but how are you supposed to get better when people are constantly leaking stories about you when you're in rehab? It's not conducive to healing." ...

Mary J. Blige is the latest music superstar to get Apple's silhouette treatment in the latest iPod + iTunes commercial, featured on the iTunes product page. ... In other Apple news, in what may be proof that that the iTunes/Beatles embargo is finally ending, the first-ever Apple-sponsored Beatles podcast has launched on iTunes. The podcast, called "Help! Is on the Way," is a retrospective of the music from the film "Help!" ... Carrie Underwood, Ashley Tisdale, Natasha Bedingfield, Celine Dion, Sean Kingston and more artists will help light the tree during NBC's 10th annual "Christmas in Rockefeller Center" on November 28 at 8 p.m. ET. ...

Ozzy Osbourne's San Diego gig this evening has been postponed, due to a stomach virus -- whose virus, it wasn't made clear. The concert will be rescheduled for December 2 and tickets for the original show will be honored. ... Though Tommy Lee isn't on the list, the lineup for the upcoming celebrity edition of "The Apprentice" is a motley crew indeed. The stars on tap are: "Sopranos" actor Vincent Pastore, former "Apprentice" castmember Omarosa, Kiss bassist Gene Simmons, actor Stephen Baldwin, "Taxi" star Marilu Henner, boxer Lennox Lewis, '80s supermodel Carol Alt, country singer Trace Adkins, gymnast Nadia Comaneci, a former Playboy Playmate, a former Olympic women's softball pitcher and UFC champ Tito Ortiz. The "celebrities" will not be competing for a job with Trump but to raise money for their favorite charities. ...

Former Iced Earth guitarist Ernie Carletti was convicted Monday of kidnapping and rape, stemming from his abduction of a University of Delaware student back in 2003. According to AP, a Superior Court jury in Wilmington, Delaware, found the 32-year-old musician guilty on two counts of first-degree rape and one count of first-degree kidnapping; he was acquitted on a related weapons charge. Carletti admitted to abducting the student, shackling her arms and legs, and then hog-tying her at his Maryland home until she began crying. During the trial, he testified that he did not have a gun and did not rape the woman. "Maybe I wasn't thinking clearly," he said. "It was just part of the effect. I didn't say she wanted it, but she did not deny it." The victim testified last week that she was waiting for a ride in nearby Newark, Delaware, when a stranger forced her into his car at gunpoint. She was handcuffed, shackled and blindfolded, then was driven to the man's home. After she was raped, she was driven back to Newark and left tied and blindfolded on West Main Street. Carletti's fingerprints were discovered on duct tape used to bind the woman; he faces separate charges in an alleged sexual assault that occurred while he was in high school. He faces up to two life prison terms. His sentencing date has not been announced.