Oprah: I've got no problem with hip-hop

Despite recent suggestions by the likes of 50 Cent, Ice Cube, and Ludacris, Oprah Winfrey says she's got no beef with hip-hop. "I'm not opposed to rap," Oprah said on the red carpet at the birthday party for Island Def Jam CEO Antonio "LA" Reid Saturday in Manhattan.

The issue had received increased attention in recent months after comments by Ludacris about Oprah's treatment of him during his appearance with the cast of Crash, the Oscar-winning film in which he costarred. Those comments were preceded by 50 Cent's claim that Oprah doesn't care about hip-hop fans, as well as Ice Cube's charge that Oprah invited several members of his film Barbershop to appear on her show several years ago but excluded him.

"I don't have an opinion, because I am my own person," Oprah said Saturday. "I respect other people's rights to do whatever they want to do in music and art and whatever. So I am my own person, they are their own people. I respect their rights. I feel rap is a form of expression, as is jazz. I'm not opposed to rap. I'm opposed to being marginalized as a woman."(3:30 p.m.)

Bob Dylan to take on Modern Times with album

Although he's been busy sharing his own favorite music with XM Radio listeners, Bob Dylan has apparently found enough time to make some new music of his own.

Details about Dylan's first studio album in nearly five years have emerged from NME.com. Citing sources within Dylan's label Sony BMG, the record will be called Modern Times and will hit stores on August 28.

The report said that the album was played for a select number of music journalists over the weekend in New York who were made to sign legal papers promising not to reveal details of the album.(2:00 p.m.)

Korn singer Davis hospitalized in London

Instead of performing with his band Korn at Ireland's Download Festival on Sunday, singer Jonathan Davis was having one of "the scariest days of my life" in a London hospital. The rap-rock band frontman was rushed to the hospital to be treated for a blood disorder called immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP).

In a post on his band's Web site, Davis wrote that "I started getting these weird bruises all over my body about two weeks ago. I was getting very weak after the shows, so I saw a doctor in London Friday. He took some blood tests, and when the results came in, they rushed me to the hospital. It turned out that I have ITP...a blood infection where, because of an allergic reaction I had to some medication, my blood platelets were really low. If I continued to headbang onstage, I could have had a brain hemorrhage and dropped dead on the spot."

The band was forced to cancel a European festival gig, and several guest vocalists, including Avenged Sevenfold's M. Shadows and Slipknot's Corey Taylor, stood in for Davis during an abbreviated Korn set at the UK Download Festival. Davis wrote that his health is improving, and that he will likely be able to resume touring in a few weeks. Korn is still expected to headline the Family Values Tour, which kicks off July 27 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. (2:30 p.m.)

Queen Latifah hints at a political career

Does the US Senate have room for a queen? During a Capitol Hill appearance to endorse a National Women's Confidence Day last week, rapper and actress Queen Latifah said she is considering turning to politics and running for office.

Latifah--real name Dana Owens--said that she was living proof that confidence was the key to achieving any goal.

"You know, maybe I'll run for Senate," she said.

Several actors, including Girlfriends star Tracee Ellis Ross and The Wire costar Wendell Pierce, have signed on to join Latifah in the upcoming HBO movie Life Support, which centers on an HIV-positive woman (Latifah) who has beaten her drug addiction and counsels others in her community. (12:10 p.m.)

Daddy Yankee justifies music piracy for poor

In an appearance Saturday in the Peruvian capital of Lima to promote his Barrio Fino en Directo album, Daddy Yankee said piracy was unstoppable and justified in many cases. The Puerto Rican reggaeton star said that although he wants fans who can afford his albums to buy them, he certainly understands those who can't afford his music and thus buy pirated copies or illegal downloads.

"You can't control [piracy]," he said. "They gonna keep on doing it. Sometimes, economically speaking, in different countries...it's hard for a kid to buy your record. Nothing matters because the kid is poor." (11:30 p.m.)

Strokes cover Marvin Gaye with Vedder, Homme

In what could either be an inspired selection or a recipe for disaster, The Strokes have recorded a cover of Marvin Gaye's "Mercy Mercy Me" with Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder and Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme, according to a report from Billboard.com. The track is slated as the B-side for the "You Only Live Once" single and should hit stores by mid-July. Vedder, who teamed with the Strokes for a rendition of the NY rockers' "Juicebox" at Rolling Stone's 1,000th issue party in New York last month, joins Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas on vocals, while Homme sits in on drums.(10:00 p.m.)

iPod chip maker lays off 45

After word spread that Apple wouldn't be using its chips any longer in its iPods, shares in PortalPlayer plunged more than 45 percent. It was only a matter of time before the other shoe dropped, as the company said late Friday that it has cut 45 jobs, or about 14 percent of its workforce. The bulk of the cuts were in the company's US operations. "In light of the product-transition setback...we have reorganized our operations to focus on our key initiatives." (10:00 a.m.)