Beyonce wades in swamp, sued for contract breach

The former Destiny Child star recently took over a swamp in Louisiana, awash in humidity, critters, and 100-plus temperatures--all for the R&B star's latest music video, "Deja Vu."

"I decided to go to Louisiana because it has a soul that a studio can't give you," Beyonce said. "We were in the swamps. Literally, there were alligators, snakes, bees, wasps. It was 105 degrees. All of that sweat [in the video] is real. That's not some spritzer. That's real."

No word on whether Knowles--who was recently ambushed by PETA activists for using fur in her House of Dereon clothing line--has received any flak for her trudging through the southern state's wildlife. But in other news relating to her clothing business, Beyonce has been sued for $1.5 million by a former business associate. The lawsuit--issued by Greg Walker, a businessman who said he introduced the singer to executives at Wear Me Apparel--claims Beyonce did not fairly compensate him for the introduction.

Coldplay frontman disses first album, promotes fair trade

Coldplay singer Chris Martin, on a stop in Hong Kong during the band's brief stint in Japan, used a news conference to extol the virtues of free trade--while taking a jab at the band's debut 2000 album, Parachutes.

"We know that's terrible music, and we always try to think about what we can do next," said Martin, who added the UK group's next record will not be released in 2006.

Martin, known for his advocacy for free trade, also said he is a great supporter of Oxfam, a British lobbying organization that attempts to thwart trade policies it believes hurt poor, developing countries.

"We don't want to be preachy," Martin said. "We just say those words ['fair trade'], and make sure people look it up themselves."

In other Coldplay news, an upcoming documentary on the band's latest world tour has been put on hold, due to the frontman's busy schedule. But so much footage has been shot--more than 600 hours--that postproduction will require a dizzying amount of work.

"Chris is very hands-on with Coldplay and wanted to check everything himself," an anonymous source told the Daily Star. "The footage that's been viewed so far is cracking, so it's a shame the project might not see the light of day."

Coldplay will wrap up its tour in promotion of last year's X&Y in Tokyo on July 19.

Bruce Springsteen's son rescued after boating accident

Fifteen-year-old Evan Springsteen--the son of "Born to Run" rocker Bruce and wife Patti Scialfa--was rescued by forest rangers after his kayak overturned a couple of weekends ago. During a kayaking trip July 2 with friends in upstate New York, the teenaged Springsteen tipped his kayak before patrolling rangers observed the overturned boat, said authorities at the New York Department of Environmental Conservation. The boy was not hurt in the accident.

Rolling Stones kick off European tour in Italy

The Rolling Stones' European tour, put on hold due to a stint in rehab by Ronnie Wood and a tree-falling accident by Keith Richards, started up in Italy on Tuesday. Two World Cup-winning Italian soccer stars, Alessandro Del Piero and Marco Materazzi, attended the concert, which was held at the San Siro soccer stadium in Milan.

The Rolling Stone guitarist--set to play the father of Johhny Depp in the final Pirates of the Caribbean film in 2007--recently had brain surgery, but that didn't stop frontman Mick Jagger from making jokes. "Materazzi and Richards have something in common tonight--they both recently had head-related problems," Reuters quoted the singer as saying. Materazzi was infamously head-butted in the chest by French captain Zinedine Zidane during the World Cup Final match last Sunday.

Former Idol contestant indicted on porn charges

Daniel James "DJ" Boyd, who competed two years ago on the hit Fox television show, was indicted by a federal grand jury, according to the Deseret (Utah) Morning News. He is accused of having sex with two underage girls and videotaping the acts, which also produced charges for possession of child pornography. If convicted, Boyd could see up to 40 years in a federal prison.