DMX Hospitalized For Four-Wheeler Accident

This is the second time this year X has been in the hospital -- he dealt with a bout of food poisoning back in January. more on this story

Jennifer Lopez Quits American Idol

(popmusiclife) Just a day after Aerosmith's Steven Tyler announced his departure from American Idol, Jennifer Lopez has confirmed that she's leaving the reality show, as well.

"I honestly feel like the time has come that I get back to doing the other things that I do," Lopez told Idol host Ryan Seacrest on his national radio show Friday morning. "We had an amazing run."

"It's just been a really long, tough process," continued J. Lo. "Ryan, you know more than anybody, I've been telling the truth. I really have been torn. When I signed on to 'Idol,' I signed on to do one year. I ended up doing two years because I just fell so in love with the show. You know that. I never felt so much part of a family of something working on it as I did with 'Idol.' I didn't know I'd be so moved emotionally. It was just such a lovely surprise in my life to do it. But even last year, when I had to make the decision [to come back for a second season], it was super tough to decide. I have my movies and my music and my this and my that. It all kind of worked together for a while. But it gets complicated." more on this story

Sylvester Stallone Reacts To Media Coverage Of Son Sage's Death

(TMZ) Sylvester Stallone tells TMZ he is devastated by the death of his son Sage Stallone and wants "the speculation and questionable reporting" to stop.

Stallone -- who gave us this picture of him with Sage taken in 1991 by famed photog Bruce Weber -- says, "When a parent loses a child there is no greater pain. Therefore I am imploring people to respect my talented son's memory and feel compassion for his loving mother Sasha."

Sly goes on to say, "This agonizing loss will be felt for the rest of our lives," adding, "Sage was our first child and the center of our universe and I am humbly begging for all to have my son's memory in full left in peace." more on this story

Michael Clarke Duncan Suffers Cardiac Arrest

(TMZ) Michael Clarke Duncan was in the intensive care unit at an L.A. hospital after going into cardiac arrest Friday morning ... and might have died if not for the swift action of his girlfriend Omarosa Stallworth.

TMZ has learned ... Omarosa discovered the "Green Mile" actor in a state of cardiac arrest just before 2:00 AM.

We're told Omarosa performed CPR and was able to resuscitate the 54-year-old. MCD was transported to a nearby hospital where he was immediately admitted to the ICU.

Sources tell us ... Duncan's heart rate is now stable and Omarosa is by his side. Doctors are performing tests to figure out why the actor's heart stopped in the first place. more on this story

Michael Jackson's Debt Nearly Paid Off By Estate

(TMZ) Michael Jackson's estate has made a fortune since the singer's death -- so much in fact ... it's nearly paid off $500 million in debt the King of Pop left behind when he died.

Executors for the Estate filed legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- which show the Estate has generated gross earnings exceeding $475 million as of the end of May.

According to the docs, all of MJ's debts have been paid, with the exception of a BIG debt involving Michael's publishing catalog ... and executors expect that will be fully paid off by the end of the year.

It's not only good news for the Estate ... it's great news for the small army of lawyers who have been handling all the legal and business affairs. Their fees -- from May, 2010 through November, 2011 -- exceeded $13.6 MILLION!

Two other things ... Katherine is asking for an additional $34,700 a month to pay for lawyers and accountants, and another $205,041 to cover lawyer and accountant fees from 2011.

Final thing --There are still some unresolved creditors' claims and several lawsuits to clear up.

All in all ... not a bad turnaround. more on this story

Usher Accused of Song Theft

(TMZ) A DJ in Florida says Usher hijacked one of his tunes, laid down some lyrics, and put it on his album ... all without his permission, this according to a new lawsuit.

Aubrey Davis -- known as DJ Mixx -- filed a federal lawsuit in FL this week, claiming back in 2008 he created a musical composition titled "Let's Go."

DJ Mixx says he shopped the tune around looking for songwriters to add lyrics to the track, but nothing really panned out.

Here's the rub -- DJ Mixx claims one of the people he showed the song to passed it on to Usher somehow and the track ended up on Usher's album "Raymond v. Raymond" as the song "Hey Daddy." Mixx claims it was then copyrighted by the singer and his crew as their own work.

Now Mixx is angry ... saying he never gave them permission to use the track and has received ZILCH in royalties. He and his legal team -- Singh, Singh & Trauben -- are suing for an unspecified amount and asking a judge to stop Usher from using the song ever again.

Calls to Usher's rep have not been returned. more on this story

Nick Cannon Says American Idol Will Have To Pay Big For Mariah Carey

(TMZ) If "American Idol" wants Mariah Carey to be one of their new judges, they are going to have to break the bank ... this according to Mr. Carey himself, Nick Cannon.

Mariah is one of the big names that has surfaced since Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler announced they were coming back to "Idol" next season.

Cannon told our photog yesterday that it's going to take a HUGE payday to get Mimi to fill Lopez's vacant seat. He told us, "I don't know if they can afford Mariah Carey. That's a lot of money. If they gave JLo $20 million, they might have to double that!"

Money seems to be an ongoing theme when it comes to divas and singing shows. As TMZ previously reported, Britney Spears based her "X Factor" salary on what JLo made on "Idol" (which we hear is less than the $20 mil Cannon seems to think).

Your move, "Idol." more on this story

Pink Previews Another New Song

(popmusiclife) Pink recently released her new single, "Blow Me (One Last Kiss)." The tune is the lead track from her forthcoming album, "The Truth About Love," which is due September 18.

Now, a preview of a second new Pink song has surfaced online. A 30-second sample of "The King Is Dead But The Queen Is Alive" is making the rounds.

The high-energy song features Pink's customary sassiness, including the lines "You were just blah blah blah / I was Oh my God / And unlike you're anatomy / I'm glad I've got it in me." Check it out here.

Behind The Scenes of Nelly Furtado's Spirit Indestructible Video

(popmusiclife) Nelly Furtado is taking fans behind the scenes of the video shoot for her new song, "Spirit Indestructible." The tune is the title track to her forthcoming album "The Spirit Indestructible," which is due for release on September 18.

"This song means a lot of things to me," explains Furtado on location in Vancouver, "because it does have a lot of spirit to it and a lot of positivity to it. It's meant to be empowering. It's meant to be a tribute to all of us: we all have an indestructible spirit."

"It's got an elemental theme," continues Nelly. "I love nature. My first video ever was in nature, 'I'm Like a Bird.' So I do see this new album as sort of a coming home into the original reason why I make music in the first place, with is to have fun and rejoice." Watch the video here.

Florence + The Machine Score Their First No 1

(popmusiclife) Florence + The Machine have reason to celebrate as the band scores their first-ever UK #1 single.

A new remix of "Spectrum (Say My Name)" by Calvin Harris tops the UK chart this week, according to the Official Charts Company.

The group have enjoyed two Number 1 albums - 2009's "Lungs" and last year's "Ceremonials" - but have previously only landed a single as high as #5; that was 2009's "You've Got The Love." more on this story

Dierks Bentley Previews New Weeds Theme

Dierks Bentley has recorded the track "Little Boxes" for the eighth and final season of Showtime's Weeds and is offering a preview of the track online.

Bentley's rendition of the 1962 folk song will open an episode later this season and has also been recorded over the show's run by artists including Elvis Costello, Regina Specktor, Death Cab for Cutie, Ben Folds, Steve Martin, the Shins and the Decemberists.

"When they approached me about recording the theme song for 'Weeds,' I jumped at the chance…I'm a fan of the show and thought the guys in my band could put a cool country spin on it," said Bentley. "I think the only other country singer to try this was Willie Nelson…of course."

Preview Bentley's version of "Little Boxes," here.

Kottonmouth Kings Reunite With Saint Dog

Kottonmouth Kings have reunited with Saint Dog for their new studio album, Mile High, which will be released on August 14th. We were sent these details:

Saint Dog, the original emcee who appeared on the group's debut album and spit his lispy rhymes on classic songs such as "Suburban Life" and "Bump."

Saint Dog recorded the new track "Judgment Day," which sees him ripping it up with the Kings for the first time since 1998's Royal Highness. more on this story

Nicki Minaj Appears on Leno

(popmusiclife) Nicki Minaj appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Friday. The star joined Leno for a chat before a performance of "Pound The Alarm."

Minaj is currently touring in support of her successful sophomore release, "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded."

It's her first headlining tour, after she used to be the opening act for Britney Spears and Lil Wayne. "It's always really nerve wracking, because you never know if people are going to be like, 'OK, get off the stage, psycho person that I don't know,'" said Minaj. "So I was always in a rush to get off stage." Watch the Leno footage here.

No Doubt Go Behind The Scenes of New Video

(popmusiclife) No Doubt's new single, "Settle Down," arrives today. The song is the lead track from the band's forthcoming album, "Push And Shove," which is due September 25.

No Doubt are now sharing some behind the scenes footage of the video shoot for the song, which was directed by Sophie Muller.

No Doubt will perform the live debut of "Settle Down" on July 22 at Nickelodeon's Teen Choice Awards, which will be the band's first official performance since their reunion tour back in '09. Watch the behind the scenes footage here.

Lindsay Lohan Failed Porsche Brakes Story Questioned

(TMZ) Lindsay Lohan's brakes couldn't have failed last month -- moments before she slammed her Porsche into an 18-wheeler -- because sources tell TMZ, Porsche itself tested the car after the crash ... and the brakes passed with flying colors.

TMZ broke the story ... Lindsay blamed faulty brakes for the accident.-- telling friends she slammed on the brakes when the truck allegedly cut her off ... and nothing happened.

As it happens, we're told Porsche caught wind of Lindsay's excuse and contacted the company that rented Lindsay the vehicle -- asking if it could formally test the car.

According to sources, the rental company obliged -- and Porsche ran its tests, finding the brakes that had been installed on the car were A-OK, and showed no evidence of malfunction ... which blows Lindsay's bum brakes excuse out of the water.

A rep for the Santa Monica PD had no comment. A rep for Porsche also had no comment -- but did say they're cooperating with authorities. Calls to Lindsay were not returned. more on this story

B2K Singer On Long Road To Recovery From Hand Injury

(TMZ) B2K singer Raz B is healing nicely from the gruesome hand injury he suffered in China this week, but he tells TMZ it's going to be AT LEAST three months until his hand is functional again.

As TMZ first reported, Raz B accidentally fell through a glass door in his hotel room in Shanghai, slicing his wrist wide open and losing a scary amount of blood.

Raz B tells TMZ he lost count of how many stitches it took to sew him up ... but says doctors will remove his patch work sometime next week.

Raz says he's still experiencing numbness in his fingers ... and doctors have told him it could take at least three months until he regains full functionality.

Once he recovers, Raz tells us he wants to get back to his tour as soon as possible. more on this story

Piers Morgan's Show Mistakes Drag Queen For Whitney Houston

(TMZ) Whitney Houston is a 5'9" German dude ... at least, if you believe Piers Morgan. Allow us to explain -- Morgan was talking to LL Cool J about Whitney's life during the July 6th episode of his CNN show and aired some generic footage of the singer to accompany the interview.

Problem is, the woman in the footage isn't Whitney ... and isn't even a woman -- it's a celebrity drag queen named Ikenna Beney Amaechi.

We spoke with Ikenna ... a charming fellow from Berlin ... who tells us, "I was just sitting at home and at first I didn't realize it, but then it hit me like BOOM! It wasn't Whitney … It was me!"

Ikenna tells us he's been "playing" Whitney for 21 years and the picture used by CNN is from the 2008 Reel Awards Show in Las Vegas -- an event dedicated to celebrity impersonators.

Ikenna adds, "I feel very honored that I was mistaken for the real Whitney Houston on CNN … is there EVEN a bigger compliment for a tribute artist?!" more on this story

Police Report Hints At Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds Marriage

(TMZ) The greatest secret in Hollywood may have been exposed by a police officer in the sleepy town of Bedford Hills, NY ... when in his police report, he referred Blake Lively as the wife of Ryan Reynolds!!!!!

Or he just made an assumption, we'll explain ... Reynolds filed a police report on July 8 after he claimed he was being followed by a photographer. An officer came out to investigate and he described the encounter by saying:

The name of the woman allegedly married to Reynolds was redacted from the report, but several photos of Reynolds and Lively were taken the week of the incident.

We called the Bedford PD to check with the officer about what made him think the couple -- who has been dating since last October -- was actually married. Cops wouldn't talk.

Sources close to Blake tell TMZ the report is a mistake and the two are NOT married. more on this story

Coolio's Son To Slide, Slide, Slippity Sliding To Prison

(TMZ) Coolio's son is about to go on the exact opposite of a fantastic voyage -- he's headed to prison for at least 3.5 years ... TMZ has learned.

As we first reported, 22-year-old Grtis Ivey was arrested on November 14, 2011 for allegedly busting into a Las Vegas apartment with a gun and forcing the tenant into the bathroom while his female prostitute friend ransacked the place.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ that Ivey agreed to a deal earlier this week in which he agreed to plead guilty to a felony robbery charge ... and in exchange, prosecutors would drop the remaining four felony charges.

Under the plea agreement, Ivey will serve a minimum of 3.5 years in prison (and a max of 10 years depending on how much time the judge believes he deserves).

A judge will formally sentence Ivey on September 12. more on this story

Real Housewife Star Get Mansion in Divorce

(TMZ) "Real Housewives of O.C." star Vicki Gunvalson just scored a multi-million-dollar haul in her drawn-out divorce -- TMZ has learned, she's walking away with the ex-couple's gorgeous mansion.

Vicki and her husband Donn have been hammering out the details of their divorce since Vicki filed back in 2010 -- and now, TMZ has obtained legal docs which show Vicki was granted sole ownership over the ex-couple's 5,400 square foot Coto de Caza home.

It's GIANT ... and it sits on a one-acre plot of land, featuring a ridiculous pool with a waterfall.

As we reported, the Gunvalsons attempted to sell the house last year for $2.695 million -- but clearly, the house didn't budge. So now, they've decided it's all Vicki's problem. more on this story