Touring It Up: Bruno Mars Releases ‘Doo Wops & Hooligans’ and Announces Tour Dates

Bruno Mars has announced his first-ever North American headline tour, which will kick off November 16th in San Francisco at Slims and will continue through to a November 30th date at Boston’s famed Paradise Rock Club (see itinerary below). Tickets for the “The Doo-Wops & Hooligans Tour” are now available to the public and shows are selling out quickly. Special guests, as well as a slate of additional tour dates, will be announced shortly.

Bruno Mars has also officially released his new album, ‘Doo-Wops & Hooligans,’ as of Tuesday, October 5, 2010. Which will follow with his biggest U.S. tour schedule to date, supporting Maroon 5 & One Republic on the last three dates of the fall leg of their 2010 “Hands All Over Tour”.

From there, Mars will cross the Atlantic for an eagerly awaited European tour alongside Decaydance/Fueled By Ramen recording artist Travie McCoy, due to hit England, Scotland, Germany, Denmark, France, Sweden, and The Netherlands with dates running from mid-October through early November. The joint tour follows Mars and McCoy‘s recent series of high-profile TV performances of their collaborative Top 3 hit, “Billionaire,” including appearances on ABC’s The View, NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, VH1’s “Do Something Awards,” TBS’ Lopez Tonight, and Fox’s 2010 Teen Choice Awards.

Below is the schedule for his current tour dates:

October 14th – 16th Supporting Maroon 5 & One Republic
October 18th – November 3rd Supporting Travie McCoy
November 16th – 30th “THE DOO-WOPS & HOOLIGANS TOUR”

OCTOBER
14 Fresno, CA Save Mart Center
15 Sacramento, CA ARCO Arena
16 San Diego, CA Viejas Arena
18 Birmingham, England Academy 2
21 Oxford, England Academy 2
22 Manchester, England Academy 3
23 Glasgow, Scotland G2
25 London, England KCLSU
26 Cologne, Germany Gebaude 9
27 Berlin, Germany Magnet
28 Amsterdam, Netherlands Melkweg
29 Copenhagen, Denmark Rust
30 Stockholm, Sweden Göta Källar

NOVEMBER
1 Hamburg, Germany Beatlemania
2 Stuttgart, Germany Kellerclub
3 Paris, France Nouveau Casino
16 San Francisco, CA Slims
20 Phoenix, AZ Martini Ranch
23 Dallas, TX The Loft
24 Houston, TX Warehouse Live
26 Sauget, IL Pops
27 Chicago, IL Bottom Lounge SOLD OUT!
28 Cleveland, OH Grog Shop
30 Boston, MA Paradise Rock Club

Additional Headline Dates To Be Announced Soon….

For more information, please visit www.brunomars.com, www.myspace.com/brunomars, or www.elektra.com.

Hip-Hop News: Tupac’s story subject of legal battle

Morgan Creek alleging estate has backed out of agreement…

Morgan Creek is in a legal turf war with the estate of Tupac Shakur.

The Rick Nicita production banner has sued Amaru Entertainment, the company run by Afeni Shakur, the late rapper’s mother and executor, alleging in a Los Angeles Superior Court filing that the company has backed out of an agreement to sell his life rights for a film adaptation.

Negotiations between Morgan Creek and Amaru began in November, about the time former CAA partner Nicita joined the banner, for life rights that would form the basis of the untitled project.

According to the complaint, a written contract was in place for life rights, with Morgan Creek claiming that Amaru is “refus(ing) to honor and perform a contract of a production of the film based on the life of Tupac Shakur.” The company seeks damages and other relief.

But late Wednesday, Amaru‘s lawyers denied the existence of a deal.

“There is no agreement with Morgan Creek, there never was, and there never will be,” said Amaru attorney Skip Miller, adding that the court filing is an attempt to force his client’s hand.

Miller said negotiations for a biopic on the controversial rapper were under way at several studios and that Morgan Creek attempted to sabotage those talks with threats of litigation. “They have scared away Paramount, Fox and others, and we are going to sue them and recover millions (in damages),” Miller said.

Morgan Creek and lawyer Patricia Glaser declined comment.

The timeline laid out in the company’s complaint presents a complicated series of events, but the key moment came in December, when Morgan Creek said it requested a term sheet from Amaru and was given a counterproposal that “set forth, in meticulous detail, the precise comprehensive terms, including material terms, that (Amaru) required to enter into a contract for the project.”

Those familiar with the case said that negotiations broke down in January, after Fox Searchlight released “Notorious,” a biopic about Shakur rival Biggie Smalls. The movie underperformed at the boxoffice, and a rift between the parties developed shortly after.

Shakur, who has sold more albums worldwide than any other hip-hop artist, led a colorful, made-for-Hollywood life. The New York-born, Oakland-raised rapper was a prolific artist at the dawn of the gangsta-rap era and was charged with and incarcerated for a number of crimes. He also sold millions of records based partly on his experiences, including chart-toppers “Me Against the World” and “All Eyez on Me” and several posthumously released albums.

Shakur died after a 1996 shooting that likely was the result of an East Coast-West Coast rap feud.

The hyphenate acted in a number of Hollywood roles, including the romantic drama “Poetic Justice” and the basketball drama “Above the Rim.” His music has appeared in countless pics, including “8 Mile,” “Friday After Next” and “Blood Diamond.”

Over the years a number of scripts have gone into development on the rapper’s life, with none gaining traction. A documentary, “Tupac: Resurrection,” made $8 million for Paramount in 2003, and Sylvester Stallone was at one point developing a project about Shakur‘s death and the subsequent killing of Smalls, aka the Notorious B.I.G.

Other hip-hop tales in development include “Tougher Than Leather,” the story of ’80s hip-hop pioneers Run-D.M.C., which “Notorious” scribe Cheo Hodari Coker is attached to write for Davis Entertainment.

Life rights and collaboration with an executor are not always necessary with a public figure like Shakur, though they would be essential if the filmmakers hope to include music, as they would in this case.

♦ Read the complaint

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Tune In: Chris Brown, Rihanna in running for Image Awards

Despite his recently tarnished image, crooner Chris Brown may win an NAACP Image Award.

The 19-year-old singer, who’s accused in a domestic dispute that reportedly involves pop superstar Rihanna, is in the running for outstanding male artist at the 40th annual awards. The awards are being presented tonight at the Shrine Auditorium and airing on Fox @ 8pm.

Brown won the outstanding male artist trophy last year.

Rihanna, his longtime girlfriend, is up for outstanding female artist.

It’s unclear if either Brown or Rihanna will attend. Both canceled their appearances and performances at the Grammy Awards on Sunday night.

Other nominees for outstanding male artist are Common, Jamie Foxx, John Legend and will.i.am. Alicia Keys, Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson and Mariah Carey are also nominated for outstanding female artist.

Over 30 awards honoring television, film, music and literature are to be handed out in categories such as outstanding reality series, literary work, jazz artist, music video and documentary.

Television shows including “The Game,” “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne,” “Ugly Betty,” “Everybody Hates Chris” and “Grey’s Anatomy” are nominated for multiple awards. “Cadillac Records,” “Miracle at St. Anna,” “The Secret Life of Bees,” “Seven Pounds” and “The Family That Preys” are nominated for outstanding motion picture.

The 40th annual Image Awards coincide with the 100th anniversary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and will kick off a yearlong centennial celebration.

For More check out NAACP Image Awards.