MUSIC
Songwriter-producer and R&B chart-topper Ne-Yo will soon head into the
studio with Marilyn Manson. How did this — oh, let's just say
it — completely and utterly bizarre coupling come about? ''In a few
interviews, I talked about taking pride in my diversity — being able to
work with a Mary J. Blige, then a Michael Bolton, and then a Marilyn
Manson,'' Ne-Yo told EW on the red carpet at the American Music Awards.
''[Manson's] people were like, 'Put your money where your mouth is,' so
now we're in the process of getting those sessions together.''... Elsewhere
on the collaboration front, Mariah Carey says having husband Nick Cannon direct the video for her latest, ''I Stay in Love,'' made the
shoot her easiest ever. ''I was actually under budget and on time, which
are two rarities for me,'' Carey said backstage at the AMAs. ''We saw it
through from conception to completion, but something about the way Nick
organized the video just worked much better.''... All the single ladies
were also bonding at the AMAs. Following her moving duet with Pink on
the song ''Angel,'' Sarah McLachlan noted that the two are ''both freshly
single!'' Perhaps there's a future studio pairing in store? ''If the song
is right, I'm game,'' said McLachlan. ''I don't know why more people don't
ask me, because I'm a total whore in that way — I'll sing with anybody as
long as it feels good.''... Paris Hilton may not be feeling good since
breaking up with rocker Benji Madden, but that's fine: She has music on
her mind. The celebutante says she's finished her second album,
featuring production by Mike Green (Paramore, the Matches), and is
deciding what to do next now that she's no longer at Warner Bros.
Records. ''I wrote all the songs,'' Hilton beamed. ''It's very dance, like
Kylie Minogue.'' — Shirley Halperin
MOVIES
Pouf up your pompadours and put on your dancing shoes: Last year's
musical hit Hairspray is one bop closer toward a sequel. ''We just got an
outline and some ideas from John Waters, and now we're going out to
writers,'' director Adam Shankman tells EW. The story will follow Tracy
Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) and her pals as they navigate the ''next
era of music,'' the late '60s. ''That period was superpolitical,'' Shankman
adds. ''It was a time of serious change.'' No kidding: According to the
filmmaker, heartthrob Link (Zac Efron) will channel his inner Austin
Powers and become steeped in the British Invasion. ''We're trying to
track, in a comedic way, the historical elements.'' — Lindsay Soll
TV
Forget all the mystery surrounding Barack Obama's potential Cabinet
picks. Are daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, going to make a
cameo on Hannah Montana or what? ''The word is they're going to come on
the show and do some stuff,'' Hannah star Mitchell Musso, who plays
Oliver, tells EW exclusively. ''But I don't really want to spoil
anything.'' (A Disney Channel spokeswoman maintains that there's still no
word on whether the girls will accept Billy Ray and Miley Cyrus' offer
made earlier this month on Access Hollywood.)...Party of Five's Neve
Campbell is in talks to join the cast of The Philanthropist, NBC's
midseason drama that stars James Purefoy (Rome) as a renegade
bazillionaire who goes all Robin Hood with his money. For her first
regular starring television role in almost a decade, Campbell will need
her passport: The series, to be executive-produced by David Eick
(Battlestar Galactica), will shoot on location in London. — Lynette Rice with additional reporting by Shirley Halperin
