Ashlee Simpson will begin rehearsing on Tuesday for her first-ever tour, which launches next month. Mariah Carey is shooting the video for her new single, "It's Like That," this week with director Brett Ratner ("Rush Hour," "Red Dragon"). "I don't want to give it away yet," Carey told MTV Radio recently, "because you know how things change, but it's a Las Vegas casino scene. Brett is great at giving things a cinematic feel. We did the 'Heartbreaker' video together, and it had such a sense of humor to it, that I hope to have that for this video." Clay Aiken is bringing his squeaky-clean image to "Scrubs," for an episode that was taped in front of a live audience. "Scrubs" usually shoots on a closed set, but Aiken's episode, which airs February 15 at 9 p.m. ET on NBC, makes fun of the laugh tracks associated with traditional sitcoms. Jack Russell, lead singer of Great White, said he will not respond to allegations in eight civil suits filed against him by families of the victims of the 2003 nightclub fire that started as a result of his band's onstage pyrotechnics, according to The Associated Press. The singer's lawyer said Russell could face criminal prosecution for his role in the West Warwick, Rhode Island, fire, and is therefore not willing to address the charges. Lil' Kim's manager Damion Butler pleaded guilty in a New York court on Friday to participating in a shooting and conspiring to obtain/traveling with a false passport, according to New York Newsday. Butler, who is currently incarcerated on an unrelated charge, could face up to 71 months in prison. The case stems from a 2001 shootout outside a New York radio station between Kim's camp and that of Capone (of rap duo Capone-N-Noreaga). Kim is scheduled to stand trial on February 28 on charges of conspiracy, obstruction and perjury.
The Neptunes, Jermaine Dupri and Mario Winans are among the producers who contributed to Faith Evans' fourth album, The First Lady, due March 29. Chris Robinson, who directed the clip for Evans and Twista's current hit, "Hope," is helming the video for the first single, "Again." Janet Jackson and her beau, Jermaine Dupri, are co-hosting a pre-Super Bowl party designed to raise money for scholarships. The Willie Gary Celebrity Scholarship Party — to which Magic Johnson, Bow Wow, Evander Holyfield, Oscar De La Hoya, and others have been invited — will be held Saturday at the Aetna Building in Jacksonville, Florida. |
