Big Boi talks OutKast plans in '08

After costarring in the 2006 movie Idlewild and releasing an accompanying soundtrack to the film, Big Boi and Andre 3000 largely laid low in 2007. But in an interview with Vibe magazine over the weekend, Big Boi promised big things in 2008.

At an Atlanta fashion event at which he was honored, the rapper told the mag that his solo album--technically his solo debut because 2003's Speakerboxx was one-half of a two-CD OutKast set--will be released in early 2008. The album will be called Sir Luscious Left Foot.

"I'm very excited about it, and we just putting it together right now," Big Boi said of the album. "I plan on releasing a single on December 31 at midnight going into the New Year, cause I want all the stuff to be '08, everything to be brand new. It's going to be a lot of surprises. We just really trying to bring that [good] music back.

The album will be released separately from Andre 3000's solo album. "Then we're going to put the OutKast record out after that," he said. As for movie work, the Who's Your Caddy star said the new album and the writer's strike in Hollywood has him focusing on music for now.

Elton John receives Maori honor

Elton John has received a specially made bird-feather cloak for his many visits to Maori communities. "It's the Maori equivalent to an Academy Award" and means the 60-year-old British singer is an honored member of the Ngati Te Whiti subtribe, group chairman Peter Love said Friday in a statement.

The cloak was "gifted as recognition of the enjoyment Sir Elton John's music has given to Maori over the years and his loyal continuance to return to Aotearoa to entertain," he said. Aotearoa is the Maori name for New Zealand.

John was given the Korowai cloak at a concert Thursday night. He played before 15,000 people in the regional city of New Plymouth, the traditional home of the Ngati Te Whiti, said Love. The cloak's presentation "is significant as it's rarely given," said Love.

Reports: Cops probe Fabolous' crew

More than a year ago, Fabolous was shot in the leg during a bizarre parking-garage encounter that reportedly occurred just minutes after the Brooklyn rapper's crew was alleged to have snatched a chain off the neck of NBA player and New York native Sebastian Telfair.

Police allegedly have surveillance footage that captured members of Fabolous' entourage snatching a $50,000 chain off of Telfair's neck outside of Sean "Diddy" Combs' now-defunct Justin's Restaurant in Manhattan, shortly before the rapper was shot in the leg. However, the connections between the two incidents didn't materialize at the time because Telfair failed to identify Fabolous or three other suspects in a police lineup.

But now the New York Post reports that New York Police Department investigators are probing members of Fabolous' Street Family Entertainment as an alleged gang of thieves that are responsible for a string of robberies of famous athletes. Police reportedly have linked Fabolous' crew to the robbery of New York Giants ex-cornerback Frank Walker, as well as boxing champion Zab Judah, who the gang allegedly robbed twice.

The probe also links the robberies to the death of the rapper's childhood friend Shamel McKinney, and the shooting of the rapper's brother Paul Cain. Police believe that the gang has about 20 members who are former drug dealers that hail from the Brevoort Houses in Brooklyn, where Fabolous was raised.

Fabolous--real name John Jackson--has denied that members of his Street Family Entertainment are engaged in criminal activities. "I would like my fans and supporters worldwide to know how disappointed I am in some of the media for the misrepresentation and abuse of my name," Fabolous told AllHipHop.com in a statement. "I do not want the young people who listen to my music and watch my videos to believe that I am engaged in any illegal activities that would discredit my character."

Abba museum to open in 2009

They have sold countless records, put Scandinavia on the pop-music map, and inspired the musical Mamma Mia!. Now Abba is the subject of a new museum, set to open in their hometown of Stockholm, Sweden in June 2009.

The three-story waterfront museum will include an area where fans can make their own recordings of Abba, as well as a disco dance floor room where fans can dance to Abba hits. The facility will also feature a wardrobe room dedicated to the band's fashion choices and costumes.

The band has donated clothing, musical instruments, and other memorabilia to the museum. Museum organizers hope to attract 500,000 visitors a year to the complex, which is being built at a cost of 200 million Swedish krona ($31 million).

DuBrow's death ruled accidental overdose

In the days after the sudden death of Quiet Riot singer Kevin DuBrow last month, Quiet Riot bassist Kelly Garni asked fans not to rush to judgment.

Two weeks after news of his death first made headlines, the autopsy results confirmed the fears of many in ruling that the 52-year-old DuBrow died of an accidental cocaine overdose at his home in Las Vegas.

Clark County coroner spokeswoman Samantha Charles confirmed the cause of death following the receipt of toxicology results. The Las Vegas police department said there were no signs of forced entry at the home, and police have not suspected foul play.

German composer Stockhausen dies

German composer Karlheinz Stockhausen, one of the world's most influential 20th-century composers and a pioneer of electronic music, died last Wednesday at his home near Cologne in western Germany, according to Reuters. He was 79.

Stockhausen was best known for experiments with electronic music in the 1960s and '70s, and composed more than 300 individual works. The Beatles paid tribute to Stockhausen by putting him along with other icons on the cover of Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Miles Davis, Kraftwerk, and Björk have cited him as a musical influence.

"Any sound can become music if it is related to other sounds...every sound is precious and can become beautiful if I put it at the right place, at the right moment," he once said in an interview. He also said he loved silence.