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NEWS
March
2002
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3
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Backstreet Boys Sued By Former Keyboardist
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Source: Launch.com
By: Jason Gelman, New York
Former Backstreet Boys keyboardist-songwriter Tommy Smith filed a lawsuit against the group, the members' individually owned and operated personal music-publishing companies, and Zomba Enterprises, Inc. in the United States District Court Central District Of California on Friday (March 15).
The lawsuit stems from an ongoing dispute between Smith and the Backstreet Boys about credit for songs Smith claims that he co-wrote for the group's last Jive Records album, Black & Blue (released November 21, 2000). The songs in question are "The Answer To Our Life" and "Time," according to the court papers.
In the suit, Smith claims that he wrote and composed "The Answer To Our Life" with Backstreet Boy Nick Carter, and that he should be the owner of 50 percent of all rights, title, and interest for the track, including its copyright. Smith also claims a 33.33 percent stake in "Time," which he says he penned with Guy Walker and Backstreet Boy Brian Littrell.
Smith also asserts that the members of the Backstreet Boys have not credited him as a co-writer or joint copyright owner, and he has received no monies for the worldwide "use, performance, broadcast, and other exploitation of the compositions." In addition, Smith is asking the court for unspecified damages as well as attorney's fees.
Smith first began playing keyboards in the Backstreet Boys backing band in October of 1996 and he remained the band's keyboard player until late 2000. He left the Backstreet Boys for his present job as keyboardist for J Records recording group O-Town.
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Backstreet Boys: Copyright Suit And New Album
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Source: Billboard
By: Erik Gruenwedel and Melinda Newman, L.A
A former keyboard player with the Backstreet Boys has filed a copyright suit claiming co-ownership of two songs on the group's Jive album "Black & Blue," Billboard Bulletin reports. The suit -- filed Friday by Tommy Smith in U.S District Court for the Central District in Los Angeles --names group members Nick Carter, Brian Littrell, A.J. McLean, Howard Dorough, and Kevin Richardson. Also named is Zomba Enterprises, the publishing arm of the Zomba Group, which has an undisclosed stake in the songs.
Smith claims he co-wrote the songs "The Answer to Our Life" and "Time" with Carter, Littrell, and another party. Smith says he was orally promised ownership stakes in the songs of 50% and 33%, respectively. Smith's lawyer, Gerald Weiner, says damages "should be well over $1 million." "Black & Blue" hit No. 1 on The Billboard 200 in November 2000 and has been certified for U.S. shipments of 8 million copies by the Recording Industry Association of America.
A lawyer for the Backstreet Boys says he is investigating the claim and "will be responding fairly." A Zomba spokesperson had no comment.
Meanwhile, despite widespread speculation that the group may be splitting, Dorough says the Backstreet Boys are at work on a new studio album. "We're in the early stages," he told Billboard. "I've been out [in Los Angeles] this last month doing a lot of writing, as have Kevin [Richardson] and A.J. [McLean]. We'll get together and probably work with Jermaine Dupri, we're going to do some writing with Glen Ballard as well and just experiment." The set could hit stores as early as this fall.
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Timebeat4teens announces Spring Break Madness with the
BSB back
up
Source: Timebeat.com
Timebeat.com Enterprises Inc. announced today it will launch a Spring Break Madness promotion featuring the BackStreet Boys on April 1st, and is in negotiations with Zernon Corporation to participate in the innovative television show ``InMotion'' hosted by Dan Marino, the former star quarterback of the Miami Dolphins. The company is also pursuing other related opportunities including having Dan Marino become the spokesperson for the Company's Classified fragrance line.
The Spring Break Madness event will be centered around a Backstreet Boys promotion on the Timebeat4teens.com website. As part of the promotion, Timebeat4teens will be giving away two t-shirts and three copies of the BackStreet Boys hit CD Chapter 1 - Greatest hits. Both the t-shirts and the CDs will be autographed by a member of the BackStreet Boys group. The prizes will be awarded May 1st, 2002.
Timebeat is also pleased to announce that further to the Company's press release of March 15, 2002 where the Company announced it had reached an agreement for the distribution of 250,000 bottles of the company's Dance fragrance (which represents a sale of approximately $10,000,000), several top media companies have contacted the company. These inquiries included CBS seeking interviews regarding Dance as part of a special CBS will be airing on fragrances in the coming months. Other inquires are celebrity sponsorship proposals.
In a related matter, Timebeat has initiated discussions with Zernon Corporation, an international state-of-the-art multi-media producer. Zernon produces ``InMotion'' a television show hosted by Dan Marino that showcases industry specific trends and the latest innovative products and services available worldwide. Zernon describes InMotion as being ``More than an innovative television show. It is an exceptional marketing opportunity reaching more then 200 million viewers.'' Recognizing the importance of prominent exposure for the company's products and the importance of celebrity spokespersons, management of Timebeat, finds the proposal put forward by InMotion attractive and expects to pursue it further. Successful completion of the negotiations would lead to Dan Marino becoming a spokesperson for the Classified line of products and print coverage of the products in the December 2002 version of the InMotion magazine and other publications.
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Howie Donates Watch To Charity Auction
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Source: Time For Children
A Time for Children Celebrity Watch Auction
Presented by: The British Columbia Lions Society for Children with Disabilities,
The Easter Seal House Society, and
The CH.I.L.D foundation.
"A Time for Children" is a time sensitive auction of celebrity watches and watches of fine distinction, with proceeds benefiting the work of the Lions Society's Easter Seal operations and medical research work of the CH.I.L.D. Foundation.
Celebrities of all walks of life will be asked to donate their watches for auction. Each watch will be displayed in its own presentation box, along with a certificate of authenticity signed by its celebrity donor.
The watches will be auctioned at a special celebration dinner and gala on daylight savings weekend, Sunday, April 7, 2002, under the watchful eye of Maynards, a well known auction house. The gala will be hosted by Henry Birks & Sons Ltd., world famous jewelers, at their beautiful downtown Vancouver store.
While guests will be invited to the gala to bid in person, telephone and on-line bidding will also be encouraged, ensuring "A Time for Children" reaches the broadest possible international audience.
Please join us in celebrating life and helping to give children abilities.
Time Pieces For Auction [Complete list can be found here]:
Howie D
The Backstreet Boys won 4 awards at the 2000 World Music Awards in Monaco, and the "Favourite Band" award at the 2000 American Music Awards. Howie D has his own foundation to support Lupus research. Comes with a signed Certificate of Authenticity.
Donated by: Howie D
Procured by: Brad Josling
More information about the auction can be found at http://timeforchildren.ca/
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Backstreet Boy Cleans Up
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Source: Warner Brothers Extra TV
The video for this segment is available here.
Backstreet Boy A.J. McLean is having things his way. The bands former "bad boy" has cleaned up his act in a big way. When we caught up with A.J. at VH1's charity golf tournament in Miami, the sexy singer was extremely candid about being sober for the last eight months.
He says, "I got a clear mind, got a clear head, got a great family, and great future wife."
McLean's lucky bride-to-be is Sarah Martin, an up-and-coming young singer who also quit drinking when A.J. checked himself into rehab last year for alcohol abuse, anxiety, and depression. He says, “She was more of a social drinker, but she just stopped everything when I went in. She's very supportive."
So are A.J.'s fans and fellow band members like Brian Lattrell. They have understood how the pressures of being a pop star made him lose control. A.J. says, “Instead of people being upset that the tour was going down, they were more concerned about my health and my safety."
A.J. made a big move from Florida out west for rehab. It was a move many questioned at first, but A.J. says, “It's actually a lot easier because there's places that you can go to hide and be away from all that."
A.J. says he's gained a few pounds since he quit drinking, but he wouldn’t trade sobriety for anything. A.J. is back and with a renewed passion for love, life, and music, he's better than ever!
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