Free Republic

There's nothing better than experiencing music live. In fact, some of the best versions of classic songs are live versions.

New York radio got the first look at its new ratings system Wednesday, creating smiles at mainstream pop and rock stations and causing at least one urban station to say it reads like a death warrant. "These numbers could put us out of business," said Vinny Brown, program director of WBLS. "And it's not just us. Listeners need to know this could threaten the future of black and Hispanic radio across the board." Overall, the October Arbitron ratings put WLTW (106.7 FM) back at No. 1. WHTZ (100.3 FM) was a close second and WCBS-FM (101.1) a strong third, ahead...

Here's one Matrix Laurence Fishburne wished he never entered. The erstwhile Morpheus has been slapped with a lawsuit by a former assistant who claims she was fired after she told him she was pregnant. The suit, filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court by Kristel Crews, says she was hired by the Oscar-nominated actor in 1999 to take care of all of his "personal and business needs." According to the complaint (a copy is online at TMZ.com), when Crews informed Fishburne in June 2004 that she was expecting, the 44-year-old actor told her he did not believe "in women having...

Madonna is a worldwide pop icon, once notorious for her desire to shock. But as she nears 50, she has become a puritanical parent who is a disciplinarian with her children, nine-year-old Lola and Rocco, four. Madonna, married to film director Guy Ritchie, says she has banned television and punishes her daughter's messiness by confiscating her clothes. "I'm a disciplinarian. Guy's the spoiler," she says in an interview with Harpers & Queen magazine. "When Daddy gets home, they're going to get chocolate. I'm more practical; I worry about their teeth and make sure they're getting their schoolwork done. I'm very...