The Grand Ole Opry will return to its former home at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium during January and February.

From the New York Observer's article on Peter Frankel, attorney for Wu-Tang Clan [ tickets ]:

But defending rap artists isn�t an easy job. Much of Mr. Frankel�s time is consumed by trying to cut through negative stereotypes to convince people that his clients are not such a bad group of guys. That�s often a burdensome task. Some hip-hop performers will cultivate an outlaw image to help sell records and, to the outsider, the line between that image and reality can appear blurred. Explained Mr. Frankel: "When you have an individual who is arrested for a crime and has a reputation, for example, for singing about guns and violence and things of that nature--which really doesn�t have anything to do with who they are and what they believe in--it just makes it very difficult."

Then again, he said, hip-hop performers do have their fans in law enforcement. "I can�t tell you how many times I have gone down to a precinct and found my client being photographed with members of the department and signing autographs," Mr. Frankel said.

According to the Cleveland Free Times, the Cleveland Odeon is hosting the fifth annual Mountain Dew High School Rock Off, in which 18 finalists will receive recording time at a Cleveland studio and appear on the event's CD, which will be sold local Best Buy stores.

Pop-rock act Deathray [ tickets ] has been released from its contract with Capricorn Records, frontman Dana Gumbiner wrote in a letter published by the Sacramento News and Review. The band says it has been given the rights to its self-titled debut album, which was released in May.

From an MP3 press release, an example of hype in the Internet economy (the New Hype, we call it, and MP3 is certainly not alone in this):

MP3.com, Inc. ... today announced the debut of its Music InterOperating System (IOS) designed to connect various segments of the music industry for the first time. ...

"We believe that our Music IOS can bring different segments of the music business together in entirely new ways,'' said Michael Robertson, chairman and chief executive officer of MP3.com (www.mp3.com). "For example, today the act of buying a CD, playing it on a stereo, and then putting that music in an online locker consists of three separate transactions. We expect to change that process by connecting a music retailer with a device manufacturer and an online locker service in a way that will make it one transaction. ...

"We believe that Music IOS will mobilize music beyond traditional boundaries," said Shawn Conahan, vice president and head of MP3 Mobile. "We are dedicated to providing partners, developers, artists, labels and music fans with access to the technology that is driving the future of the music business." ...

Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical are forward-looking statements ... These statements involve a high degree of risk and uncertainty, are only predictions, and actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements.

"Are we going to beat State?"

"MAYBE!"

"Are we going to go all the way to the playoffs?"

"WE HOPE TO!"

"Are we going to be the roughest, toughest football team this school has ever seen?"

"PERHAPS! IT'S TOO SOON TO SAY, REALLY!"

From staff reports, compiled by James Woster.