Today we consider Jermaine Dupri, the Atlanta-based label head, producer, rapper and songwriter who has found himself in the news recently. Dupri will soon take the stand as a witness in the trial of Arvin Edwards, the gunman involved in the infamous Adam "Pacman" Jones "Make it rain" incident at a strip club in Las Vegas. Durpi recently defended his actions, which were made public in a video of the incident that recently hit the Internet. "You're not supposed to get your money until the dance is finished," explained Dupri. "I'm from Atlanta — we do this every day." Many people in the media have also brought up the fact that Dupri, who has been in a relationship with Janet Jackson since 2002, has been absent from any of the memorials for Michael Jackson (with multiple sources reporting that their relationship has ended).

But there was a time when being Jermaine Dupri was simpler — when it was all about hanging out with Jay-Z, producing Da Brat albums and developing the careers of pre-teen rap stars (see Kris Kross and Bow Wow). Dupri's first album as a rapper, titled (quizzically) Life in 1472: The Original Soundtrack, came out this day in 1998 and contained the hit Jigga collaboration "Money Ain't a Thang" (which contains one of Jay's all-time greatest lines: "Said she loved my necklace/ Started relaxin'/ Now that's what the f--- I call a chain reaction"). If "money ain't a thang," then why did Dupri get so upset at the strippers who were grabbing money before the song ended? A lot can change in 11 years, apparently.

As part of Major League Baseball's All-Star game, last night not only saw the annual Home Run Derby but also the Celebrity Softball Game. The contest pit two teams of famous folk (including Olympian Shawn Johnson, Mad Men's Jon Hamm and Billy Bob Thornton) each other, with guidance from a group of baseball legends. But the two great performances came from the music world, with the Backstreet Boys' Brian Littrell hustling after fly balls and St. Louis rapper Nelly delivering huge with a two-run home run that he drove 375 feet (not as impressive as Prince Fielder's 500 foot drive, but one is a professional and the other isn't).

· Get ready for the return of the Osbournes. No, the former first family of reality TV is not moving back into their Hollywood mansion. Instead, they're ganging up to star in an upcoming hour-long variety show for Fox that producers are likening to such 1970s cheesefests as "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour" and "Donny and Marie."

· Just to prove he's not mad at his old hometown, White Stripes/Raconteurs frontman Jack White has written a poem about Detroit. In the poem, "Courageous Dream's Concern," the now Nashville resident writes, "Detroit, you hold what one's been seeking/ Holding off the coward-armies weakling/ Always rising from the ashes/ Not returning to the earth."

· In other Motor City news, a Detroit resident filed suit against Eminem, seeking $25,000 in damages over claims that Em punched him while the pair were in the bathroom of the Eight Mile Road strip club Cheetah's on the Strip in July of 2006.

· Duuuuuude! It totally, almost, nearly happened! Phish fans who attended the inaugural Rothbury Festival in Michigan over the weekend got an unexpected treat. Trey Anastasio, Mike Gordon and Jon Fishman — three out of the four members of the band that may or may not be reuniting — got together onstage to cover the Beatles' "She Said, She Said."

· Sheryl Crow, Nelly, 3 Doors Down, Colbie Caillat, Army of Me, Clique Girlz and Kate Voegele are among the acts who will record exclusive songs for an AT&T-sponsored Olympics-themed album called Team USA.

It's cool if you want to get Weezy, Snoop, Akon, T.I., Fergie or Bun B to guest on your album. But for his upcoming album, Brass Knuckles, Nelly was holding out for The Boss (um, and not Rick Ross). Nelly ">was seeking out Bruce Springsteen to collaborate on a song for his new album but the two artists couldn't make their schedules work (we hate it when that happens). Nelly, apparently, thinks the plan could still take flight at some point in the future, telling the AP, "We might repackage (the collaboration) for the holidays."