Sabatino's suit claims that Combs incorporated the exclusive rap recordings into Bad Boy's hit 1999 release "Born Again" and the film footage into a music video called "Dead Wrong" to promote the CD, which sold several million copies. Sabatino's suit says he will provide documentation to show that Combs put $2,000 into his prison account in 1999 and that Combs' sister, Keisha, visited him in jail and sent letters promising payment, the suit says. ...

"Nuisance lawsuits against celebrities are at an all-time high and the two filed this week are just additional examples of how people try to shake down Mr. Combs," a spokesman for Combs said Thursday. "The fact that one was filed by someone in jail, about things that supposedly happened 14 years ago, shows just how ridiculous it has gotten." ...

"Mr. Combs has successfully fought these lawsuits in the past and expects to do the same with these," the spokesman said.

Sean “Puffy” Combs:
The “Roc Boys” is crazy. It’s one of them urgent tracks. We all love the tracks that Hov does that are urgent. That really as soon as the needle hits it it just takes you on a journey. As soon as the needle hits it, it just feels like you just driving non-stop. The way these horns is playing it’s just… It’s also a different sounding joint for Jay. But it’s not too much of a departure where you can’t recognize the flavor it.

"I must say these songs are well produced because it's different things happening throughout the whole song," he explained. "The beat changes with [Jay's] emotion. I'm not just saying that because we produced them."

[Jay-Z] got to work right away, and although Diddy and his producers weren't in the studio while he was laying his vocals and making hooks, the songs were definitely collaborations.

"As soon as I would finish a record, it seemed like Puff was here in minutes," Jay laughed.

"Jay would have the beats," LV elaborated. "He'd do the record, and he'd send it back to us. We'd fill in the blanks as far as making them full records. From having live horns, live strings, live drummers. This percussion dude, he was coming in with bottles, banging on bottles, just sprinkles of sh--. We went all out. We brought in musicians to bring it out. Jay probably just heard a sample and some drums. Once we got the vocals back, we brought in all the extra candy.

"The first record [we got back] was the record called 'Sweet,' ... When I heard it with Jay's rhymes, I was just like, 'Jesus Christ!' ... Puff was hyped. He'd come in the studio and start bugging out, getting everybody hyped. This is still going on right now. We're mixing records. Sometimes it'll take us three days to mix one record."

Asian American Arts Alliance (Alliance), a non-profit organization based in New York City will celebrate its 25th Anniversary on Tuesday, October 16, 2007 with a gala entitled "GALAXXY" at the TriBeCa Rooftop. This silver anniversary marks a quarter century of commitment to helping hundreds of local Asian American artists and arts groups in the performing and visual arts to access more funding and visibility for their work. In commemorating this milestone year, the Alliance will honor three outstanding industry leaders who have made strides for Asian Americans in their respective fields.

"I'm honored to be recognized by the Alliance at their 25th anniversary event," says honoree Kal Penn. "Opportunities for artists are rare in any walk of life, so it's particularly encouraging to see the growth of the organization over the years, and their service to the community. Thank you for all of the support and for creating even more opportunities in the arts." Kal Penn is the most visible Asian American actor in Hollywood today with roles in The Namesake, Superman Returns, and the upcoming sequel to Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. The Alliance is also honoring: Eric Wong, Chief Marketing Officer of Bad Boy Entertainment and Senior Vice President of Marketing for Atlantic Records, who has promoted top artists such as P. Diddy, Bon Jovi, and Mariah Carey; and Willa Kim, a world renowned costume designer for ballet, theatre, opera and television who has won numerous honors including Emmy, Tony, and Obie awards.

Chronologically, ... Diddy ... was the second star to fall into alignment for Jay-Z. Now, things musically began to take shape in Daddy’s House...

Jay-Z explains, “When I saw the movie, I was thinking, ‘Maybe I should do it, maybe I should do it.’ Puff had called me and he’s always like, ‘Let me do an album, like executive produce the album.’ And I’m like, ‘I’m an executive my damn self. Stop talking to me like that.’” The room giggles again.

“I believe in Karma and all that ‘everything happens for a reason [stuff],’” he continues. “So, he called me like, ‘You gotta come to the studio. I never call you to come to the studio. You gotta come to the studio.’”

After finally meeting with Diddy, Jay-Z said he was also introduced to a cornucopia of beats that his Uptown counterpart and his former production team The Hit Men had crafted years ago. Oddly, Diddy didn’t even know that Jay-Z was contemplating an album, nor did he realize that he was about to lay the foundation for American Gangster’s rich 70’s soundscape.

“I go to the studio and he’s playing all these tracks. And it hit, the [70’s] time period. But, he didn’t know about it [the album]. I’m like, ‘What are you doing with all these tracks?’ He’s like, ‘I just don’t have anybody to give them to.’ I was like, ‘Let me get those and it really set the [tone for the album],’” Jay admits.

Diddy and friends would go on to produce “Roc Boys,” “Pray,” “No Hook,” among other joints. With a solid groundwork, both sonically and thematically, Jay quickly pulled in others.

“[Diddy’s tracks] pretty much set the foundation and [other producers] had to produce into the sound that was already there,” he said. ...