News; Jane Russell, Episcopals, Scott Heim, Heathrow, Paul Burrell

Iran's 'cure' for homosexuality: financial assistance for a sex change operation. Cleric: "Islam has a cure for people suffering from this problem. If they want to change their gender, the path is open."

Jane Russell shows Hollywood how a real movie star works Oscar's red carpet.

Singer-songwriter Ne-Yo may not be gay, but he is fast.

Elton John talks to CBS about his AIDS Foundation and recent reports that cases among young gay men are on the rise: "We are facing an uphill battle again in countries that you thought you'd crossed, you'd done that, you've covered that territory. Because people think, 'Well, you know, even if I do get HIV, I'm going to be OK.' They don't realize the toxicity of the drugs they have to take. And I just think it's so reprehensible, with the information available to them. But they do it and so we have to help them."

Da-Tah: a Scissor Sisters mash-up album, free for download. (via arjan writes)

Gay couple told to cool the PDA at swank New York restaurant Cipriani? "A gay editor was dining with another young man recently when a Cipriani staffer asked the duo to turn and face the bar. The waiter conveyed to them that Cipriani is a 'family restaurant' and they might offend other diners. The restaurant contends their actions were less gay bashing and more preserving the sanctity of fine dining from what one witness called 'blatant crotch-grabbing.' 'There was an unfortunate incident a few weeks ago where two individuals were acting inappropriately in a sexual manner at the bar of an upscale restaurant. It should go without saying that this behavior is completely unacceptable for anyone, regardless of sexual orientation,' a spokesman for the restaurant asserts."

That other awards show, The Independent Spirit Awards, was a touch less formal than the Oscars.

The Miami Herald talks to Gay American Heroes project founder Scott Hall.

Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams backing secret plans to create "parallel" church for American conservatives defecting over the church's gay policy: "According to insiders, Dr Williams has given his blessing to the plans to create an enclave for up to 20 conservative American bishops that would insulate them from their liberal colleagues. The scheme would allow them to remain technically within the Episcopal Church but under the care of like-minded archbishops from abroad. The Primate of the West Indies, Archbishop Drexel Gomez, a moderate conservative, has agreed to participate, and other primates could be recruited. However, the initiative is likely to infuriate liberal leaders of the Episcopal Church, who will see it as an attempt to undermine their authority and interfere in their affairs."

Pastor Ken Hutcherson's hate sermon: "If I was in a drugstore and some guy opened the door for me, I’d rip his arm off and beat him with the wet end."

Wolverine shows off his washboard abs.

AfterElton talks to Michael K. Williams about Omar and the developments surrounding his character on last night's episode of The Wire [SPOILERS].

Novelist Scott Heim talks to the Boston Globe about his new book We Disappear and his escape from crystal meth addiction: "The drug didn't do anything for me anymore. It was just keeping me alive. It wasn't about pleasure; it was just obliterating the sadness. You don't write when you're on drugs because the last thing you want is to be alone. Crystal meth was erasing me, and the deeper I got I saw only three outcomes: death, prison, or recovery."

First look inside London Heathrow Airport's new Terminal 5.

Brit tabloid News of the World charges Diana butler Paul Burrell of leading 'secret gay life': "Paul IS a greedy liar, a devious snake. He's also ruthless and selfish. He's always made out that he's this happily-married family man when in reality he's gay and only interested in sex with men. He told me he hadn't slept with Maria for years. He's constantly on the lookout for gay pick-ups all over the world. And he shamelessly uses his back catalogue of Diana stories to hook his targets. He tells them all sorts about her to get them in the sack. His taste is for pretty, younger guys. He'll brag about his wealth and royal connections. There are plenty out there who fall for it."

Sphere: Related Content

Ne-Yo's Mom Will Kick Your Ass for Calling Him Gay

R&B singer/songwriter Ne-Yo has now denied being gay for a third time, in an interview this month in Essence Magazine. Ne-Yo, who has written songs for Beyoncé, Britney Spears, and Rihanna, says that just because he can "respect a woman's shoe game" doesn't make him gay.

Essence.com: Fortunately, your mom encouraged you to get a blood test done. You’ve said that your mom always looks out and was even ready to knuckle up when rumors first surfaced about you being gay.

N.Y.: (Laughs) Yeah, my mom is my dawg. When she heard the rumors that I was gay she was like, ‘Who do I have to pay a visit? Who’s a-- do I have to kick?’

Essence.com: And your initial reaction to folks questioning your sexuality?

N.Y.: Honestly, when I first heard that there were rumors out there about me being gay I thought, Wow someone must really hate me. There’s nothing wrong with being gay, but I just couldn’t understand why someone would make up lies like that. I remember speaking to Jay-Z about it and he was like, ‘Look, man you haven’t made it until someone says you’re gay.”

Essence.com: And what about now?

N.Y.: Nah, I don’t even think about that mess anymore. Once it’s said, it ain’t nothing you can do but ignore it.

Essence.com: Once you addressed the rumor that you and Hayden Panettiere (the cheerleader from Heroes) were dating and offered an explanation as to why there were photos of the two of you hand-in-hand—you were helping her out of her car so she wouldn’t mess up her shoes—they really continued with the gay comments.

N.Y.: (Laughs) Okay, so because I can respect a woman’s shoe game, and not to mention that I’ve bought a few pairs of shoes in the past for the women in my life, that makes me gay? That’s hilarious.

Previously
Kanye West and Ne-Yo: We're Not Gay! [tr]
Looks Like He's "Made It": Ne-Yo Not Gay [tr]
Ne-Yo Won't Announce He's Gay [tr]

Sphere: Related Content

Music News: Amazon Goes Digital, Plus Duran Duran, Kurt Cobain, Madonna Rihanna, Ne-Yo

Please welcome Robbie Daw, who will be penning occasional music posts for us here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own pop music site called Chart Rigger.

Venison, artichoke tapenade and Doritos? I guess at this point we shouldn't be surprised Amazon.com's got these items for sale. And starting today, one-stop shopping at the online store could be fully realized with the launch of Amazon MP3 Beta, a service offering MP3 files compatible with iTunes and Windows Media Player, free of Digital Rights Management restrictions (meaning you can play the tracks on iPods or any MP3 player, use them on multiple computers and burn them onto CDs as many times as you like). Amazon is offering up a library of more than 2 million songs, with their Top 100 downloads priced at 89 cents, while most others are 99 cents. The Top 100 albums are $8.99, while other albums range from $5.99 to $9.99.

Not all artists and labels are on board, though...especially not ones still requiring the DRM restrictions. A search for Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears, for instance, prompts a disclaimer noting that while Amazon doesn't offer these catalogs as MP3s, "more titles are being added daily". You're then presented with the offer to go back into the ol'-fashioned Amazon music store, where your Justin or Britney tunes are sure enough available on trusty CD. Just don't forget to throw the Doritos in your shopping cart.

Duran Duran's new single "Falling Down," featuring and produced by Justin Timberlake, is available as of today from the U.S. iTunes store. The press release for DD's forthcoming Red Carpet Massacre album is up now on the band's official site, which reveals the writing and production credits for each track.

Kurt Cobain: About A Son, a documentary focusing on the late Nirvana frontman (pictured left), will see its U.S. premiere at the Los Angeles AFI Film Festival in early November. A year before his death in 1994, Cobain was featured in a cover story for The Advocate. Though he often had a penchant for exaggerating and twisting the truth in interviews, he did reveal the following: "I used to pretend I was gay just to fuck with people. I've had the reputation of being a homosexual every since I was 14. It was really cool, because I found a couple of gay friends in Aberdeen [Washington] - which is almost impossible. How I could ever come across a gay person in Aberdeen is amazing! But I had some really good friends that way. I got beat up a lot, of course, because of my association with them."

The New York Post is claiming that Madonna just might embark on a world tour starting late next summer, to coincide with her 50th birthday. This rumor wouldn't be too much of a stretch, given that she'll have no doubt released a new studio album long before that.

Ne-Yo has written songs for some of today's young crop of twentysomething divas: Beyonce, Britney Spears, himself. Below is the classy video for his duet with Rihanna, "Hate That I Love You," in which she flounces about half-naked on a bed and he strolls around town decked out like Cary Grant.

TODAY'S NEW RELEASES:

Foo Fighters' Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, produced by Gil Norton, who worked with the band on their 1997 album, The Colour And The Shape.

Songs About Girls, the first solo album from Black Eyed Pea Will.i.am.

Melissa Etheridge's The Awakening, her ninth studio album, and first post-breast cancer.

Sub Pop act Iron And Wine's The Shepherd's Dog.

"Gimme More," Britney Spears' new single. Originally to be released next week , perhaps Jive thought they'd better capitalize on the wave of publicity -- albeit negative -- while they can.

"Tattoo," the first single from American Idol winner Jordin Sparks' upcoming November release.

Sphere: Related Content

Kanye West and Ne-Yo: We're Not Gay!

In a recent issue of Straight magazine (not kidding, though it's a Vancouver-based magazine playing off the Strait of Georgia between Vancouver island and the Pacific coast), R&B singer-songwriter Ne-Yo decided to tell the world he's straight again:

"In not ever having to deal with anything like this before (gay rumors), I got mad. But then Jay-Z broke it down for me, like, 'This is the music business. You gotta take the bad with the good. If you're doing something right, haters are going to come around, and they're not going to go anywhere. You gotta learn how to let that roll off your back.' Anybody that knows me, knows I'm not gay. If you wanna know, I've been an open book since day one. All you've got to do is ask, and I'll tell you: I love women."

Ne-Yo wrote Beyoncé's hit "Irreplaceable" as well as several Rihanna singles including "Good Girl Gone Bad" and "Unfaithful".

Meanwhile, on SMACK DVD, Kanye West responds to Beanie Sigel's accusations that he's gay (video below):

"I'm just saying...@#$%*%, I'm not gay. @#$%*%, don't come at me on none of that @#$%. Don't @#$ing disrespect me. I respect where he coming from. I respect Beans' gangsta, I'm not gangsta, but I'm not gay either. Don't disrespect me as a @#$%ing man. That's all I'm saying. That's it."

Ne-Yo: Ready for Love [straight]

You may have missed...
Kanye West Revisits Homophobia [tr]
Thank You, Kanye West [tr]

Sphere: Related Content

Looks Like He's "Made It": Ne-Yo Not Gay

Last August, rumors that R&B singer Ne-Yo was going to come out of the closet in an issue of Essence magazine were quashed by both the singer's publicist and reps from Def-Jam records.

Now, Ne-Yo slams the rumors himself to the Albany Times-Union:

"Anybody who knows me, knows I'm not gay. I'm blessed to have very, very, very real people in my corner. Some managers will not tell the artist certain things because they don't want to stress them out. My managers are like, 'Yo, it's a dirty game.' I respect them for that. I look at that as I've officially made it. If my name is in your mouth, that means I'm on your mind. I take it all in stride."

The Times-Union does, however, make note of key tracks on the singer's new release Because of You: "'Go on Girl' is the album's undeniable highlight."

Sphere: Related Content

Ne-Yo Won't Announce He's Gay

At least not in the upcoming issue of Essence magazine.

The R&B singer's publicist just issued a statement intended to squelch rumors that Ne-Yo, aka Shaffer Chimere Smith, was about to pull a Lance Bass. The statement came after emails began circulating on the internet featuring quotes from the purported Barbra Stradoff-penned article.

Said a Def Jam rep: "There's isn't a staff member by that name at Essence, nor is Ne-Yo going to be featured in the October issue of the magazine."

Sphere: Related Content