50 Cent Gets Down To Business With MTV

50 Cent has a new show on MTV, where business-savvy contestants compete for a shot at fame and a huge cash prize. But the rapper says he’s not following the path of that other famous reality show hosted by Donald Trump.

“Immediately when you say a reality show that has a business spin to it, they think ‘The Apprentice,’ and the difference is these people don’t actually want to work for me,” the 32-year-old said in a recent interview. “They have their own business ideas that they created and they’re competing for $100,000 in seed money.”

“50 Cent: The Money and the Power” debuts tomorrow (Nov. 6). It features 14 contestants competing to show that they are the best entrepreneurs. 50 Cent will chop down the number of contestants until the winner is crowned.

The rapper and mogul said the show is like a visual companion to his upcoming book, “The 50th Law,” with Robert Greene, who wrote “The 48 Laws of Power.”

“Ahead of my actual music taking off, I would have wanted to be on the show,” he said. “$100,000 would have been great, and the MTV exposure.”

Alan Jackson Not Rushing Next Album

With his 15th studio album, “Good Time,” still spewing out hits — the latest is the top 20 “Country Boy” — Alan Jackson says he’s not necessarily in a hurry to start working on the next one.

“I usually record in the winter time, but this winter might be a little early to start putting stuff down,” Jackson tells Billboard.com. “I don’t like to (work ahead) because things change and sometimes your whole perspective changes before you get to the finish line. So I like to wait.”

When he does hunker down, however, Jackson says he’s already got a good start from the sessions for “Good Time.”

“I had so much material; I cut 25 things for this album that I’d written, and we only used 17, so I’ve got eight things in the can that I thought I’d save for the next album,” he explains. “But then I’ve written a couple of new things and we’ll start looking for outside material before long, just to get it going.”

“Good Time” marked Jackson’s return to mainstream country after his bluegrass-styled 2006 collaboration with Alison Krauss, “Like Red on a Rose,” and the same year’s gospel set, “Precious Memories.” It debuted at No. 1 on the Top Country Albums chart, meaning Jackson’s audience stayed intact while he was experimenting.

“I don’t know that I worried about it too much,” he says of his audience’s loyalty. “I think it worked out pretty good. I’ve always had an album a year for nearly 20 years, just bam, bam, bam. So maybe it was a good time to take a little break and give us a chance to come up with all this material and make a good album.”

“Country Boy” is the third single drawn from “Good Time,” and Jackson thinks Arista Nashville might try to “squeeze out five singles” before the cycle is done.

Meanwhile, Jackson is prepping for this year’s Country Music Association Award show, where he’ll perform and is nominated in four categories, including male Vocalist and album of the year. Nevertheless, he predicts — with a laugh — that, “I’ll lose everything.”

“I told ‘em two years ago when they were still giving me awards that, ‘Man, y’all need to start voting for some of these younger guys. We gotta keep the industry going,’” says Jackson, who has 16 CMA Awards. “I’ve always felt if you have some real exceptional song or something, it’s nice to get recognized. As far as the award for male vocalist or something, I’ve already won that. But it’s always nice to win, too.”

Report: New Bruce Springsteen Album Due In January

Bruce Springsteen’s next album is expected for release around the time of Barack Obama’s January inauguration as the 44th president of the United States next January, according to Backstreets.com.

The follow-up to 2007’s “Magic” will likely contain the song “Workin’ on a Dream,” which Springsteen debuted last weekend at an Obama rally in Cleveland.

No other information is known about the project, and a rep for the artist was unavailable for comment. Springsteen is known to have had a wealth of material left over from “Magic” sessions with producer Brendan O’Brien, but it’s unknown whether any of those songs will make the cut.

The artist campaigned tirelessly for Obama during the homestretch of the election, playing fundraisers and rallies across the country. Tonight, he will perform at New York’s Town Hall as part of the Stand Up for Heroes benefit, alongside his wife Patti Scialfa and comedians Whoopi Goldberg and Ricky Gervais.

Hinder - Take It To The Limit

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Hinder - Take It To The Limit

“Hinder achieved multiplatinum success with 2006 debut “Extreme Behavior,” thanks to the pop-metal hit “Lips of an Angel,” and follow-up “Take It to the Limit” still rocks like it’s 1988. Overdosing on huge hooks, raucous harmonies and proficient fretwork, alpha-male rockers like “Use Me” or “Heaven Sent” would make Ratt or Poison proud, while the rowdy “Up All Night” updates Def Leppard’s anthem “Pour Some Sugar on Me.” Having mastered every Jack Daniels-fueled riff in the book, Hinder explores the dark side of fame on “Loaded and Alone,” while the slick “Without You,” one of several sincere power ballads, comes with a twist (girl leaves guy, guy feels great). Deliciously decadent, “Take It to the Limit” has even more melodic power than its predecessor, delivering tons of guilty pleasures that sound fresh and familiar and strangely exciting. —Sven Philipp”

Brad Paisley - Play

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Brad Paisley - Play

“Brad Paisley’s mostly instrumental new set, which chronicles his self-described “love affair with the guitar,” is both outstanding and diverse. The first single, “Start a Band,” with Keith Urban is catchy but just scratches the surface of the project, which includes appearances by the late Buck Owens, B.B. King, Steve Wariner, Vince Gill and Albert Lee. While songs like “Let the Good Times Roll” (with King) and “Playing With Fire” transport listeners to a smoky bar, the nostalgic “Turf’s Up” is an impressive tribute to the surf instrumentals of early rock’n'roll. “Come On In,” a duet with Owens, is a pleasant find and fitting tribute. Based on a demo Owens recorded before his death, Paisley’s song brings an old friend back to life with the utmost respect. —Ken Tucker”

Pink - Funhouse

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Pink - Funhouse

“Producers, songwriters, collaborators: A big-name artist always involves a lot of cooks in the musical kitchen—and the more pop you listen to, the more obvious their individual ingredients become. But the beauty of Pink—and the reason why she might very well be the world’s most real-deal pop star—is that her own broth is strong enough to overwhelm all other seasoning. On her confident fifth album, the multiplatinum hitmaker attacks her recent divorce in all styles: as a punk-rock kiss-off (”So What”), a country-rock anthem (”Mean”) and a bleeding-heart plea in “Please Don’t Leave Me,” her prettiest song to date. There’s also a companion piece to 2001 mega-hit “Get the Party Started” (”Bad Influence”) and a collaboration with No Doubt’s Tony Kanal (”Funhouse”) that pairs rough subject matter with his boogie-oogie bass. —Kerri Mason”

Calle 13 - Los De Atras Vienen Conmigo

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Calle 13 - Los De Atras Vienen Conmigo

“On its sophomore album “Residente o Visitante,” Puerto Rican rap duo Calle 13 veered from sophomoric humor to outright perversion, an explosive combination that raised more than one eyebrow. On its follow-up, the jokes remain, but they are paired with—gasp!—uplifting messages like that of the first single, “No Hay Nadie Como Tu,” featuring Café Tacvba. The wickedness is tempered with more humor than morbidity, as with opener “Que Lloren,” which hilariously mocks sell-out reggaetón acts and other hypocrites. Calle 13 also made a conscious effort to expand its musical boundaries, experimenting with candombe, banda (at times reminiscent of Akwid) and tropical beats that add a touch of world music to the mix. But the lyrics —irreverent, incisive and unfailingly intelligent—remain the core of an act that has set a high bar for what Latin rap can aspire to. —Leila Cobo”

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