NEWS: 10-3-07 :: Pras inks new deal:: Gwen Tours Oz :: Flex flexes car muscle

Pras Michel has inked a deal with Artists International Management and will release and executive produce several upcoming projects, including a new album. Pras will also star in a new film titled Standing Down. The movie is based on a screenplay written by Ron Zimmerman (The Best Man, 7th Heaven) that tells the story of a career soldier who is coping with life outside the U.S. Army.

Ice Cube has inked a deal with A&E to produce a pilot for an hour-long reality series called Good In The Hood. According to Variety, the proposed show deals with reform and redemption where the rapper would introduce each show about a reformed gang member, drug dealer or robber who agrees to help people in similar circumstances - whether it be a relative, friend or a total stranger - turn their lives around.

Funk Master Flex's popular Custom Car and Bike Show Tour has returned and is slated to feature some of the hottest artists in music alongside custom cars and bikes from around the world. The tour will also feature expositions from the International Sneaker Battle, showcasing the collections of sneaker enthusiasts and the work of those who customize sneakers. Flex will be present at all nine stops on the North American tour, and will be backed by appearances and performances from The Game, Cam'ron, Nas, Ghostface, Fat Joe, Xzibit and more.

Quik (formerly known as DJ Quik) and AMG recently debuted material from their new group, The Fixxers. The Fixxers performed material from their upcoming debut album, The Midnight Life during a performance at the House of Blues in Hollywood. The performance was one in a series of West coast dates that Quik has embarked upon since being released from prison.

Gwen Stefani will tour Australia, in support of her Platinum album The Sweet Escape. Gwen brings The Sweet Escape Tour to Australia this July and August. The tour starts in Brisbane on July 28, plays Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and finishes in Perth on August 7.

The Game has launched the Black Wall Street Australia division to add to his already established Black Wall Street East and Black Wall Street Europe. The BWS is interested in the primary social development and economic advancement of the Hip Hop (urban) community, by providing cultural enlightenment via the Art and Entertainment division: Fashion (Apparel) and Music Division (Record Label), and by providing Gang Intervention (Non Profit organization). BWS Australia is a joint venture with Australia's Youngline Records and will oversee the release of BWS Australia mixtapes in the future.

Mims' This Is Why I'm Hot begins a second week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, a week after rocketing 32-1 on the chart. The song also inches up 4-3 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, which is ruled for a fourth week by Robin Thicke's Lost Without U. Mims' Capitol debut, Music Is My Savior, arrives March 27.

You've heard R. Kelly recently on collaborations with Young Jeezy, Snoop Dogg, Ludacris and more but now it's time to Double Up! R. Kelly's own brand new album Double Up is set to hit stores this May including the sexy first single, I'm a Flirt featuring T-Pain and TI.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five have finally been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. As Hip-Hop pioneers, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were one of the first Hip-Hop groups to incorporate deejaying and emceeing in a group.

Rah Digga has officially departed from Busta Rhymes' Flipmode Squad to pursue other business ventures. The former first lady of Flipmode, Rah Digga first signed with Flipmode a decade ago and has only released one solo album since. Her debut album, Dirty Harriet, was released in 2000 and was followed by several mixtape appearances, but another album never materialized.

Wyclef testified before Congress recently in hopes that he could urge the Bush administration to export more from his native country of Haiti. He asked lawmakers to quickly enact the Hope Act, a law that allows Haiti to export more to the United States. Although it passed Congress last year, it still has hurdles to leap before being put into action. This, he said, was "a signal" that investors needed to spend more money in Haiti.

Virgin Records Toronto-based, Trinidad-born, alternative breakthrough artist k-os will launch a comprehensive, coast-to-coast U.S. tour in early 2007. Running from mid-February all the way into early April, the tour will find k-os sharing the stage with Gym Class Heroes, RX Bandits, and P.O.S (tour dates follow below). The tour supports the U.S. release of his bracingly eclectic album ATLANTIS - Hymns for Disco on February 20, 2007, and the multi-format lead-off single Sunday Morning, k-os' unpredictable, uplifting and irresistibly melodic ode to downtime, recharging and togetherness.

3/15 - Chicago, IL - House of Blues
3/16 - Sauget, IL - Pop's
3/17 - Lawrence, KS - Granada
3/18 - Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
3/20 - Denver, CO - Gothic Theater
3/21 - Salt Lake City, UT - Avalon Theater
3/23 - Seattle, WA - El Corazon
3/24 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theater
3/25 - Orangevale, CA - The Boardwalk
3/26 - West Hollywood, CA - House of Blues
3/27 - San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
3/28 - San Diego, CA - Soma
3/29 - Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
3/30 - Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre
3/31 - Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theatre
4/1 - Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater
4/3 - Dallas, TX - Gypsy Ballroom
4/4 - San Antonio, TX - White Rabbit
4/5 - Houston, TX - Meridian
4/6 - New Orleans, LA - House of Blues