‘The Hughleys’ Child Actor Charged With Murder

According to San Joaquin County Jail records, Dorjan Lyndell Daniels, who played Michael Hughley on the sitcom The Hughleys, has

Dorjan Lyndell Daniels Mugshot

been charged with one count of  attempted murder, premeditated murder and two counts of street terrorism.

E! News reports that he was arrested in California on possession of marijuana and gang activity charges in connection with a fatal stabbing.

Daniels was allegedly one of three men who supposedly stabbed John Joseph, a 26-year-old man, to death outside of a club in Stockton, California, August 2011, E! says.

The act has been attributed to gang violence between the Crips and Bloods.

Daniels, who just turned 24 on October 17th, is reputedly a Blood.

He has also appeared on Cold Case, The Bernie Mac Show,  ER and Family Matters.

Oprah Winfrey and Arianna Huffington Launch ‘HuffPost OWN’

Media moguls Oprah Winfrey and Arianna Huffington have joined forces to create HuffPost OWN, a niche section of the Huffington Post launched Thursday.  The section will feature material from both the Oprah Winfrey Network and Oprah.com, which includes lifestyle advice and personal inspiration that Oprah fans have grown to love.

“Thank you, Arianna, for allowing us to extend ‘the conversation’ about empowerment and how we can grow and evolve ourselves to the truest expression of who we each are meant to be. This is my calling, my heart’s deepest desire: to fulfill my highest potential and to share what I know to help you do the same,” wrote Oprah in an introductory on the site, which already features content.

NEW MUSIC: LL COOL J FEAT. JOE -- "TAKE IT"

LL Cool J gets sensual on his new bed rockin' song, "Take It." "Take a ride, look down in my eyes... I can drown in your thighs," the rapper-slash-actor sings.

"Take It" was played on some radio stations this week and is reportedly off his next album, dubbed Authentic Hip-Hop. R&B veteran Joe jumps on the track to help with the smooth refrain, while production duo The Trackmasters deliver token LL Cool J chimes and 808s. (Think "I Need Love" on Pro Tools.)

The song is a turn for the sentimental LL Cool J following his poorly-received, lady-dissing track "Ratchet" released last month. With two new tracks out within the past month alone, it can only mean that LL has been hitting the studio hard and is getting closer to the release of his thirteenth studio LP and first since 2008's Exit 13. Authentic Hip-Hop is scheduled to drop sometime in 2013.

Listen to "Take It" below.

NBC's Hurricane Sandy Benefit Raises $23 Million for the American Red Cross

Some of music and television's biggest names joined forces for a very important cause Friday evening, and their teamwork paid off -- big time.

On Saturday, NBCUniversal and the American Red Cross announced that their Hurricane Sandy benefit had raised almost $23 million for victims of the superstorm that caused billions of dollars of damage across the Northeast and left more than 100 people dead.

PHOTOS: Celebs who give back

"We are incredibly grateful and humbled by this outpouring of support for those who are suffering," the Red Cross' Chief Marketing Officer Peggy Dyer said in a statement. "Our preliminary results of nearly $23 million raised are an extraordinary example of how the American people pull together in times of disaster."

Added Dyer, "Their generous donations will go directly to those in need and we urge the public to continue to give. We also thank the dedicated and talented team at NBCUniversal for the millions of people they have helped through this telethon."

PHOTOS: Charitable celebs

Hosted by TODAY show anchor Matt Lauer, celebrities like Jimmy Fallon, Kevin Bacon, Tina Fey, Whoopi Goldberg, Jon Stewart and Brian Williams all stopped by to show their support.

Music superstars Steven Tyler, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi, Mary J. Blige,Sting and Christina Aguilera were on hand to perform moving musical tributes to those affected by the devastating storm system.

This article originally appeared on Usmagazine.com: NBC's Hurricane Sandy Benefit Raises $23 Million for the American Red Cross

Denzel Washington says he gave up booze while filming ‘Flight’

While filming his starring role in the new movie "Flight," which opens November 2, actor Denzel Washington plays a pilot who's lauded for landing a crashing flight, but then comes under fire when it's discovered that he had alcohol in his system at the time of the incident. His character, Whip Whitaker, is considered by many to be an alcoholic. So this would've been the perfect opportunity for Washington, who revealed in a 1986 interview with Essence that he was giving up alcohol, to hit the bottle hard — but that's not what happened. Instead, Washington, who now says he only "semi-quit" alcohol back in the ‘80s, gave up booze for all 45 days of filming.

"We've all tied one on,” the 57-year-old says in a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “But if I had been drinking while I was shooting, it’d be harder to stay disciplined, just to get up in the morning. You are a little more hung over, grouchier. I knew this was an excellent opportunity, and a really good story. So it was something I wanted to do right." Still, Washington is quick to note that his teetotaling policy wasn't permanent. "But I haven't given it up forever."

Washington, who reveals he packed on 20 pounds for his role in “Flight,” is incredibly disciplined any time he's on a set. He even occasionally takes a method approach to his acting. "In [2012 hit] 'Safe House,' I played what I thought was a sociopath, and I wasn't in a chitchatting mood unless I could manipulate you, unless I could win. That’s what a sociopath is," says Washington, who's been married to Pauletta since 1983. "It just goes back to the way I've worked for a very long time: stay with what I am doing. Nobody goes, 'Man, he sucked in that picture, but I bet he was nice to everybody!’"

By now, after hits like "Philadelphia," "Fallen," "Remember the Titans," and "Training Day," Washington can do just about any project he wants in Hollywood. But he's very aware of the fact that many other black actors, particularly women, have a tough time in Hollywood. "And the darker the woman, definitely," he notes. "But then it's all relative: The 40-year-old whatever-color woman says, 'Well, you know, the 30-year-old is getting all the jobs.'"

Someone Washington has chosen to work with on five films, including 1995's "Crimson Tide" and 2004's "Man on Fire," is the late director and producer Tony Scott. So when Scott committed suicide by jumping off an L.A. bridge on August 19, Washington was left reeling. The two didn't talk regularly, Washington says, but they obviously respected one another. "I was shocked by his death. I'm still shocked. If you had given me a list of 25 people, I don’t think I’d have picked him," Washington says. "You don’t know. You just don't know. You don’t know what's inside a man's head."

KURUPT PAYING FOR NATINA REED'S FUNERAL AND SERVICES

The funeral for the late Natina Reed will be held on Saturday, Nov. 3 in the singer's Lithonia, Ga. hometown and her baby daddy Kurupt is footing the costs.

The Blaque member was tragically killed on Oct. 26, two days before her 33rd birthday, in a hit-and-run accident that took place near Atlanta. The protégé of TLC's Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, who died in a car accident in 2002, had appeared in the film Bring It On and released three albums with her R&B pop group during the Aughties. She is survived by her 10-year-old son, Tren Brown, who she fathered with "We Can Freak It" rapper Kurupt.

While Kurupt has had custody of Tren for the past four years, TMZ has learned that the rapper will handle the funds for Reed's funeral service and wake, and that he hopes his son maintains a close relationship with his late mother's family.

"Myself and Tren, would like to thank everyone for their love and support during this tragic time," Kurupt tweeted earlier in the week. "This is a tremendous loss to our family."

Reed's former Blaque members, TLC's Chilli and T-Boz, Big Boi, Daz and Snoop Dogg are all expected to be in attendance at the funeral today. No arrests have been made in the incident, yet.

Hurricane Sandy's Impact on the Music Business

 

Below is a special report from the new issue of Billboard on Hurricane Sandy's enormous economic impact on the music business. You can buy this issue -- which also features a cover story on Alicia Keys, lyric videos as a revenue stream, Taylor Swift's big sales for her "Red" LP and more -- right here or a yearly Billboard subscription here. 

Hurricane Sandy slammed the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, affecting the entire music industry--just like every other business in the region--as it tore through one of the most important music centers in the world, spreading its tentacles all the way out to other music hot spots in Los Angeles, Nashville, London and beyond.

The after-effect of the hurricane has been felt by every part of the music business, like small indie labels, distributors and retailers in the downtown New York area that still didn't have power four days after the storm hit. But it also extended out to artists and executives from other parts of the country unable to leave or visit New York or New Jersey.

Hurricane Sandy Relief: How You Can Donate

For the live sector alone the loss is significant-likely tens of millions of dollars-in terms of property damage to venues like the flooded Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre in Wantagh, N.Y.; marketing and promotions costs that cannot be recouped; lost or delayed profits (and agency/management commissions) from canceled or postponed dates; and the considerable manpower involved in rerouting, rebooking or flat-out losing shows. 

Still, the live industry is in some ways counting its blessings that Sandy came as the bulk of touring activity slows toward the least active period in the year.

Live Nation Entertainment lost "less than a handful" of shows, according to CEO Michael Rapino, who added that most of those would be rescheduled. "Thankfully, it was a Monday, Tuesday in the fall, the slowest time of the year for live shows," Rapino wrote in an email.

Still, many dates were lost, and more than a few won't be rescheduled. For Live Nation, that includes Journey at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn and Pretty Lights at Bryce Jordan Center at Penn State University on Oct. 30.

AEG Live, the second-largest promoter in the world, has an active schedule in the area most affected by the storm. "[Sandy] will have an impact on our budgets and earnings, if even in the short term, since we average a couple of hundred shows a week in those markets that have had to hunker down while the storm passes through," AEG CEO Randy Phillips says.

AEG Live's busy New York office, run by senior VP Debra Rathwell, closed on Oct. 29 and remained so as Billboard went to press. "The city is trying to fight its way back and get some events under way," Rathwell wrote in an email.

PURCHASE THIS WEEK'S BILLBOARD MAGAZINE HERE

AEG's Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, N.J., was damaged, and three shows at the Best Buy Theater in Manhattan were postponed (at press time, the Best Buy venue was set to reopen). AEG Live Northeast VP Mark Shulman says that AEG and others presenting entertainment in Manhattan were in contact with the New York Police Department regarding when it would be safe for employees and fans to ramp back up-and at press time, that moment hadn't yet arrived.

One single cancellation is a nightmare for booking agents, who spend hours routing tours strategically and efficiently and coordinating marketing with promoters and venues. Now they're faced with myriad routing issues as they effectively do the same work twice, in many cases.

And remember that image of the crane suspended 87 stories above Manhattan? "It's hovering over our building on West 57th, so we can't even open," Agency Group managing director Neil Warnock says. "We're running our administration for New York out of Los Angeles and London. We're just making sure we have solutions and not problems, making sure we're on top of accounting, finalizations of everybody's accounts as they're playing shows, getting contracts out and going forward."

When ticket prices, talent costs and marketing expenses are taken into consideration, $10 million-$20 million isn't a hard number to reach in terms of assessing damages, and the financial hit is probably much bigger. So who gets hurt? "Everyone's going to take a hit, but it's part of the business," says Paul Bassman, president of Dallas-based entertainment insurance firm Doodson Insurance Brokerage. "That's why we're here."

Perhaps the biggest impact comes in the transportation area, as travel in the region became a nightmare, affecting acts that weren't scheduled to play in the stormstruck areas or perhaps not even on tour. Acts that might have intended to fly are turning to the touring industry staple: the tour bus.

"We have heard from several of our clients who are not currently on tours, and were scheduled to fly into the Northeast within the next 48 hours," says Trent Hemphill, president/CEO of Hemphill Bros. Coach in Nashville. "With so many flights canceling, they have requested transportation from us for personal travel. We have also heard from a Broadway tour that was scheduled to fly, but have now reached out to us and scheduled a bus as an alternative."    

Besides property damages, which are typically covered by property insurance, promoters and venues are looking at the prospect of millions of dollars in lost marketing and promotion expenses in some of the most expensive media markets in the country. For them, and artists, profits could also slip away, or at least be deferred until a later date. Most venues don't carry insurance for loss of revenue due to a weather cancellation, Bassman says, though policies differ widely. "Some venues may carry 'loss of utilities' coverage. However, there are so many different kinds of insurance coverage. It just depends on what they carry," he says.

Force majeure, or "act of God," clauses in contracts cover stakeholders on both sides of the talent buyer-entertainer equation. "Depending on how it's worded, something like this would typically invoke the force majeure clause, and the [promoter] would not have to pay the guarantee to the artist," Bassman says. "But [the promoter] would still be out all kinds of money for marketing and promotion, not to mention lose out on the profit potential for that show."

A touring artist may carry tour cancellation insurance, so if the show were canceled due to a weather situation, the losses would most likely be covered, Bassman says, depending on how the act is insured. "If the show cancels in a force majeure situation such as [Sandy], the artist won't keep the deposit, they would have to give that back to the promoter," Bassman says. "But the insurance policy would pay the artist in full. If the promoter has insurance, they're covered. However, most promoters in the U.S. don't carry that kind of blanket coverage for all of their shows. Many U.S. promoters are willing to take a chance: 'If we lose a show or two, it's not a big deal. It happens.'"

Phillips says tours carry cancellation insurance based on weighing the cost of maintaining that type of insurance versus "'self-insuring' by rescheduling or postponing performances to mitigate the financial impact of the initial cancellation," he says. "Generally, we all carry some type of 'catastrophic event' insurance, since it is more cost-effective and more difficult to invoke."

AEG Live doesn't carry "a broad omnibus policy that covers every show we promote in every venue," Phillips says. "My business affairs department has been working on exactly what the potential insurance claim would be over the weekend on a show-by-show basis. The nature of our business makes it difficult to maintain a one-size-fits-all insurance policy."

Still, big companies like Live Nation (which carries a global policy for all shows and more for specific tours and events, according to the company), AEG Live and Bowery Presents, the three most active in the New York/New Jersey area, are "well-insulated" from devastating weather events, Bassman says. "It's the one-time promoter that's going to get crushed."

Bassman is scheduled to be a speaker at the Billboard Touring Conference Nov. 7-8 in New York, which is teed up for a record run. Though "conference insurance is relatively inexpensive," Bassman says, the confab isn't expected to be affected by Sandy. While the news reports look bad, the region and the industry is sturdy, and Bassman isn't ready to predict a Katrina-level event. In fact, the benefit concerts and events that are sure to follow in some ways provide a boon to the live business starting with NBC's concert featuring Jersey natives Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi and Long Island's Billy Joel.