Lil' Kim to get early exit from prison

Lil' Kim is getting her get-out-of-jail card two months early. The diminutive doll-like rapper will be released from a federal detention center in Philadelphia Monday, two months shy of serving her full sentence. The rapper, real name Kimberly Jones, was sentenced to one year and one day September 19 after being convicted of lying to a federal grand jury about a shooting outside New York radio station WQHT. Kim will transition into a 30-day house-arrest sentence after her release. "I am thrilled to be coming home," she said in a statement. "I thank all my fans for all their letters, as well as my family and friends for all their support throughout the past 10 months." During the February 2001 WQHT incident, gunfire broke out when Lil' Kim's entourage encountered rap act Capone-N-Noreaga outside the station. Kim testified she didn't notice two of her close friends were at the scene but was discredited by a video showing them together at the scene. The men subsequently pleaded guilty to gun charges.

Report says Jessica and Nick are nearing divorce

One of the more highly publicized celebrity divorces in recent memory is almost official, according to celebrity news site TMZ.com. The site said it has obtained legal documents that indicate that former Newlyweds Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey are about to become legally single again. The report said the former couple asked the LA County Superior Court to bifurcate the proceeding, allowing the divorce to proceed separately from the pair's potentially messy negotiations over who gets what financially. The site said that Jessica and Nick are worlds apart on how their property will be divided, with Simpson offering Lachey a $1.5 million buyout and the former 98 Degrees crooner hoping for a lot more than that.

Bush, Koizumi visit Graceland

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, a noted Elvis Presley fanatic, got quite a thrill today in a visit to Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee with President Bush. The pair listened to Presley's greatest hits and watched some of his movies on Air Force One on the way from DC to Memphis, and they ate Presley's favored grilled, fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches. White House press secretary Tony Snow sported gold-rimmed plastic sunglasses on the flight to Memphis.

Lil' Flip leaves Sony Music

Houston rapper Lil' Flip said this week that he is no longer with Sony Music group and has inked a new record deal with Asylum Records/Warner Music Group. Flip's manager Sandy Lal told AllHipHop.com that the rapper will leave Sony with the rights to the master recording of his new album, I Need Mine. The move is the culmination of months of bitterness between Lil' Flip and his former label. I Need Mine is expected to hit stores later this year.

Dido recruits Brion to produce album

Having worked his production magic for the likes of Kanye West and Fiona Apple, producer/songwriter Jon Brion has been tapped by Dido to produce her upcoming third solo album. Brion told Billboard.com that Dido is looking to move away from the mainstream sound that has come to define her music and is currently recording music in Los Angeles. "We've written a bunch of stuff together, and we've been recording," he said. "I don't think people who know either of us would think it's the thing to do, and yet it's making total sense. She wants something less glossy and further left," Brion reveals. "I think people have disregarded the emotional aspects of her writing, because the way the records have been presented make the music seem a little flat. But in terms of her singing, she's just an absolutely unbelievable, naturally great singer, in truth one of the greatest I've ever worked with."