Kanye West's mom passes away

Dr. Donda West, the mother of Kanye West and an accomplished scholar in her own right, died Saturday in Los Angeles "as the result of complications from a cosmetic surgical procedure," West's publicist told BBC News. The publicist has since declined to say whether the surgery was cosmetic in nature. Donda West was 58.

Officials at Centinela Freeman Regional Medical Center told the Associated Press that West died from "complications of surgery." An autopsy was expected to be conducted by Wednesday.

West, who managed her son's businesses and educational foundation and was the subject of his song "Hey Mama," published the book, Raising Kanye: Life Lessons from the Mother of a Hip-Hop Star, in May. She was previously the chairwoman of Chicago State University's English department.

Ringo raises Beatles flag in LA

The signature tower on the landmark Capitol Records building in Los Angeles will have an extra decoration until Friday. Ringo Starr hoisted a Beatles flag to the top of the building during a ceremony to mark the release of the limited edition Help! DVD boxed set.

The flag, which bears the artwork of The Beatles' 1965 movie, will then be sold to the highest bidder at an upcoming eBay.com auction, which will benefit The Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Foundation. The winner of the auction will get a trip for two to London and a deluxe, limited edition Help! DVD boxed set. Bids can be placed here.

Lopez finally confirms pregnancy rumors

Jennifer Lopez has confirmed what has become increasingly obvious: She's pregnant. Lopez, who is touring with her husband Marc Anthony, made the announcement to South Florida concertgoers last week.

"Marc and I are expecting," the 39-year-old singer told the crowd in Miami. Lopez didn't say when she is due to give birth.

After Lopez' announcement, Anthony kissed his wife's belly. "I didn't know she was going to talk," he said. Lopez and Anthony, 38, were married in 2004. Lopez's pregnancy has been one of the worst-kept secrets in music in recent months, with Us magazine going so far as putting the story on its cover without a confirmation from the star.

Diddy loses appeal, finds assistant via YouTube

Diddy has lost an appeal in a court case in which he was ordered to pay more than $500,000 for sampling an Ohio Players song on Ready to Die, the debut album from the late Notorious B.I.G.

The lawsuit, which was filed in Nashville federal court in 2005 by Bridgeport Music Inc and its sister company Westbound Records, accuses Diddy--real name Sean Combs--and his Bad Boy Records of using a sample from the song "Singing in the Morning" without permission.

In 2006, a jury awarded $733,878 in damages to Bridgeport Music Inc. and punitive damages to Westbound of $3.5 million. The award was eventually reduced to $517,000, and Diddy appealed to have the cased overturned.

In other Diddy news, the Bad Boy mogul held a publicity stunt last week by attempting to find a new assistant via YouTube. Diddy held the YouTube contest and announced the winner, Heather Thompson, on Oprah. Diddy also said he's looking for three more assistants. Submissions can be posted on his YouTube channel.

Winehouse's husband in hot water

Amy Winehouse has long claimed that her husband Blake Fielder-Civil has been instrumental in helping her get through her bout with drugs and tabloid rumors over the past year. Now Fielder-Civil is in the midst of a heap of trouble all his own. Following a raid on his and Winehouse's London home and a subsequent arrest late last week, Fielder-Civil has been formally charged with one count of obstruction of justice over an incident in which he allegedly tried to bribe a bartender $400,000 to change his testimony in an assault case.

The 25-year-old Fielder-Civil is accused of trying to halt a trial in which he and a friend, Michael Brown, 39, are accused of assaulting a bartender on June 20 and causing grievous bodily harm with intent. The alleged victim, James King, reportedly turned down the $400,000 offer and called police.

Mitch Winehouse, Amy's father, told UK newspaper The Daily Mirror, "If Blake were to go to jail for [grievous bodily injury], it would be the best thing that could happen for Amy. We could get her into rehab."

Lily Allen gets BBC TV show

After a year that has seen her rise from MySpace unknown to household name, Lily Allen is getting her own TV show. Lily Allen and Friends will air next year on BBC3 and will center on the virtual universe from which Allen arose. The audience will consist entirely of Allen's online friends, who will also have exclusive access to behind-the-scenes footage of the show and will be able to sign up to have highlights sent directly to their mobile phones.

The show will feature celebrity guests, topical people from the online world, and bands and unsigned acts chosen by members of the Allen network. The show's Web site will let members create a profile from which they can access and comment on the show, and it will also follow the progress of the new music acts showcased on the program.

"I'm so excited that BBC3 are giving me this chance," Allen said in a statement. "It's something I intend to have lots of fun with and I have some great ideas for the show."

Woman claims she married James Brown

Although the steady stream of people claiming to be the offspring of James Brown appears to have died down, his lists of spouses seems to be growing. A Georgia woman who claims to have married the late Godfather of Soul in 1953 says in court papers they were never divorced and she wants to be part of his estate.

Velma Warren Brown, 73, filed a sworn statement in Aiken County court last week claiming she was never served with divorce papers and didn't sign any agreement severing her marriage to the late soul singer. But attorneys involved in the ongoing dispute over Brown's estate discounted her claims, saying that if she did not think she was divorced, she committed bigamy when she remarried.

The Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle also reported Thursday on its Web site that it had obtained court documents that show that a judge had granted a divorce in 1969. James Brown died on Christmas Day at age 73.