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Two nights before his sudden and tragic death, here is a final dress rehearsal at the Staples Center...

For what it's worth, and who knows if we will ever truly know, here is an article by Ian Halperin in England's Mail:

'I'm better off dead. I'm done': Michael Jackson's fateful prediction just a week before his death.

Whatever  the final autopsy results reveal, it was greed that killed Michael Jackson. Had he not been driven – by a cabal of bankers, agents, doctors and advisers – to commit to the gruelling 50 concerts in London’s O2 Arena, I believe he would still be alive today.

During the last weeks and months of his life, Jackson made desperate attempts to prepare for the concert series scheduled for next month – a series that would have earned millions for the singer and his entourage, but which he could never have completed, not mentally, and not physically.

Ailing: Michael Jackson may have worn a mask in public to protect his diseased lungs

Michael knew it and his advisers knew it. Anyone who caught even a fleeting glimpse of the frail old man hiding beneath the costumes and cosmetics would have understood that the London tour was madness. For Michael Jackson, it was fatal.

I had more than a glimpse of the real Michael; as an award-winning freelance journalist and film-maker, I spent more than five years inside his ‘camp’.

Many in his entourage spoke frankly to me – and that made it possible for me to write authoritatively last December that Michael had six months to live, a claim that, at the time, his official spokesman, Dr Tohme Tohme, called a ‘complete fabrication’. The singer, he told the world, was in ‘fine health’. Six months and one day later, Jackson was dead.

Some liked to snigger at his public image, and it is true that flamboyant clothes and bizarre make-up made for a comic grotesque; yet without them, his appearance was distressing; with skin blemishes, thinning hair and discoloured fingernails.

I had established beyond doubt, for example, that Jackson relied on an extensive collection of wigs to hide his greying hair. Shorn of their luxuriance, the Peter Pan of Neverland cut a skeletal figure.

Wow, yesterday it was news of Ed McMahon and now today two more stars pass - Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson.

It's sad that such a talent has moved on to the other side with so many unanswered questions. My thoughts go out to his three children and family. What an amazing entertainer, he will be missed!

Michael Jackson, the show-stopping singer whose best-selling albums -- including "Off the Wall," "Thriller" and "Bad" -- and electrifying stage presence made him one of the most popular artists of all time, died Thursday, CNN has confirmed.

Unfortunately for Phil Spector, wigs are not something you can have in jail!

Phil Spector (born December 26, 1939) is an American record producer and songwriter whose fame reached its height in the early 1960s.

The originator of the "Wall of Sound" production technique, Spector was a pioneer of the 1960s girl group sound and clocked in over twenty-five Top 40 hits between 1960 and 1965. In later years he worked with such artists as Ike and Tina Turner, John Lennon, George Harrison and the Ramones with similar success, including production work on the Academy Award winning Let It Be and Grammy Award winning Concert for Bangladesh soundtracks. In 1989, Spector was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer.

The 1965 song "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'", produced and co-written by Spector for the The Righteous Brothers, is listed by BMI as the song with the most U.S. air play in the 20th century.
The 2003 shooting death of actress Lana Clarkson in his Alhambra, California home led to his being charged with murder in the second degree. After a 2007 mistrial, he was convicted in 2009 and sentenced to a prison term of 19 years to life.

His 28 year old wife, who married him during these past two trials, claims her husband is being treated unfairly and that she does not receive any financial help from his estate... right! It's all yours now honey... meal ticket is in prison!

She is sultry, seductive, alluring, amazing and inspiring. Her voice has sold millions of albums and her dance moves are mesmerizing.

The last time I saw her was the Lovers Rock tour. This is a must-see DVD.  I still to this day can say it was the best live show I have ever seen. The lighting, the dance moves, the multi-talented band - everything came together to create the exotic mood and transfer the audience to another place.

Billboard magazine broke the news this morning. I can't wait!

P.S. Also the video for King of Sorrow is another all time favorite of mine.

Former 80's pop star Boy George, real name George O'Dowd, is getting out of prison next week - after serving just a quarter of his jail sentence. The former Culture Club singer will be freed just four months into his 15-month term for chaining a male escort to a hook in his bedroom.

Some are claiming special treatment.

One inmate griped: "George is getting out of here in the shortest possible time. He's been a good prisoner like a lot of us, but he does seem to have been treated with kid gloves and it's caused jealousy."

George will have an ankle tag and curfew when he leaves the supposedly cushy Edmunds Hill jail in Suffolk where he did most of his time after being transferred from London's tough Pentonville Prison before being moved to Category C Edmunds Hill. While in the clink, he has been employed as £15-a-week pot washer.

The "Karma Chameleon" singer was jailed in January for falsely imprisoning a Norwegian male prostitute named Audun Carlsen back in 2007 at his East London home. Boy George met the boy toy online and they agreed to meet in person for a pornographic photo shoot, according to reports.

"I absolutely admit I had him in the handcuffs, so he wouldn't go anywhere while I checked the computer. I certainly wasn't going to kill him, that's hardly going to do my career any good is it," said Boy George on the tape.

The false imprisonment apparently happened at their second meeting when the former Culture Club front man became suspicious that the paid date was hacking into his computer and stealing the photos. George not only chained him up, said the escort, but he also beat him with a chain.

To that Boy George says on the tape, "You can't spank anyone if they don't want you to. Those are serious handcuffs, there was no reason to beat him up when I'd put him in those. I was just so angry. It wasn't about me doing anything, I just wanted to make sure he did not leave my house."

In case you are wondering, the boy hooker escaped by unscrewing the hook he was handcuffed to. Crazy shiz...

Britney Spears' first tour of Europe in five years begins in London June 3 and ends in Helsinki July 16.

"The Circus starring Britney Spears" tour began March 3 in New Orleans with 39 concerts in the US and Canada until May 5, to be followed by eight in London between June 3 and 14 and one in Manchester on June 17.

Next, stops will take the 27-year-old pop star to Dublin on June 19 and 20, Paris on July 5 and 6, Antwerp on July 9, Copenhagen on July 11, Stockholm on July 13 and Helsinki on July 16, the French organisers Nous Productions said. Then it's off to Russia and a possible Down Under leg.

The Circus show features a cast of 50 dancers, magicians, clowns and acrobats and costs $50 million to produce. It also boasts 60 tons of equipment in 34 trucks and a traveling staff of over 200.

To date, the Circus 2009 tour is the highest grossing in North America.

Another pop sensation of the moment and hopefully one who will continue to shine is Lady Gaga. I fell in love with Just Dance and Poker Face, two fun dance songs that get my blood pumping, just as she was breaking a little over a year ago. She is everywhere these days - from trekking a tour across the US to her numerous live show appearances throughout Europe. I strongly suggest you check her out here or on youtube.

Her costumes, dance moves and look is constantly changing and she is making quite the name for herself. She has even re-arranged several songs on occasion and rocked out some softer versions lately. She also has written songs for Britney Spears albums. Various blogs have re-named Britney the Dutchess of Pop and Lady Gaga the new Princess... the reigning Queen still being the one and only Madonna who started it all.

So I came across this great footage of Olympic ice skater Johnny Weir at the "Festa On Ice 2009" which was held in KINTEX in Goyang City, Korea from April 24 to 26 this past weekend, dancing to the crowd pleasing pulse of Poker Face. I love ice skating and I think some of these moves are just incredible.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I did, this guy can spin!

OK, I know, I'm 47 years old, but I have to admit I love Britney Spears. What it is exactly I can not pinpoint. The music, the image, the dancing, the expert packaging, the possibility of a Stage 4 choo-choo train wreck always around the next corner? One can only listen to the voice - low, throaty and sexy, so many times, but I am always drawn to an underdog who perseveres.

As of late, I am happy her life seems to be getting back on track and her current tour, which at first seemed like a bit much to take on considering her past and very public melt-downs, divorce and subsequent court ordered custody loss of her kids to her ex Kevin Federline (no great role model there either, but at the time a more sane parent), has been going along smoothly.

I mean how does someone of her status go from this to this?

Is it the constant pressure to be "on" or is it drugs and too much partying? The rebelliousness of someone who has too many yes people around and wants to shock and break free?

This brings me to the fact that last Sunday my friend Erin and I made the trek to Anaheim and saw the Circus tour come to town. Back when I was working at an ad agency here in San Diego we always chatted it up in the mornings before the rest of the crew arrived. We said that if she ever got her stuff together enough to go back out and tour, we would go, as each of us had never seen her live.

Well as I have seen in countless videos and MTV show openers and closers, Britney delivered the goods and is one extremely talented entertainer. The show started off with the Pussycat Dolls, whom did nothing more than bounce around in scantily clad sequined undies and work their individual stripper poles, while lead singer Nicole Scherzinger kept to distancing herself from the rest of the girls and making sure everyone knew she was the star.  Their last two singles have been released as "The Pussycat Dolls featuring Nicole Scherzinger." Now that's enough to cause some tension for sure.

Back to Britney, whose team created an atmosphere of a 3 ring circus at the concert: she brought the action to the ring in the middle of the Pond, and the audience’s seats surrounded it. It was the idea of a traditional 'big-top circus' with a Britney Spears twist. This circus was unlike anything Ive ever seen before. It was sexy, fun, explosive, and full of surprises… mainly all the pre-show and in between costume change acts. While avoiding the traditional circus elements as live animals, they created something innovative and exciting using contortionists, acrobats, magicians, dancers, lighting, fire, and other special effects. It was sensory overload and I had a blast.

I recently heard of the possibility of her taking the show Down Under, but today read of an extension to Russia. She will be going to St.Petersburg for her first concert in Russia. PMI, the organizers of the concert, say the venue is still being discussed. However, according to the official booking operator, the concert will take place at the ice hockey arena. The date is July 19, and tickets are already available for preliminary booking.

The performance in St.Petersburg will be part of Britney’s global tour “The Circus Starring: Britney Spears” launched in support of her latest sixth studio album, “Circus.”