[Afrochic]

4-1-1 ENTERTAINMENT FOR THE WEEK OF OCTOBER 27TH, 2003

Singer Chico Debarge is doing better and is back with the Tyler Perry production "Why Did I Get Married?" Chico was stabbed in the back by an alleged mob figure at club in the city. Chico was held overnight for observation and he quickly rejoined his cast mates. Chico was in Philly starring in the production with singer Kelly Price. I had a chance to talk to playwright Tyler Perry about the incident and he was not pleased. Tyler feels Chico could have been killed and he has warned him to stay out of clubs while he is on the road. Details are still sketchy but according to police reports a fight broke out between two girls and somehow Chico got involved and he was stabbed by the mob figure.

What's going on with actress/singer Jasmine Guy? Remember when Jasmine played "Whitley Gilbert" on the TV show A Different World? Jasmine has been doing a lot of theatre work. She did a successful stint in the musical Chicago and she was recently on Broadway in the play The Violet Hour. During a performance last week Jasmine forgot her lines and she appeared vacant and listless. Sources say she was acting very bizarre. There would be long stretches of silence as she searched for her lines. A lot of people walked out but those who stayed booed her on stage. Is she suffering from a mysterious illness? Jasmine is no longer with the show. Her spokesperson says she left for medical reasons.

Basketball legend Dr. J, Julius Erving is going to have to watch where he parties. The "Good Doctor" was photographed at a party with a pair of women's panties on his head. There were a lot of young girls at this party. These girls were young enough to be his daughter. Dr. J was having a good time, and at one point, according to published reports, took time to behave wildly with the girls. I'm sure he had no idea these photos would become public. The basketball great has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons during the past few years. He and his wife Turquoise are divorcing after years of what she called "serial cheating." During their marriage he had children by other women. What is going on with Dr. J? Is he going through a midlife crisis?

A Miami music producer, Terrance Robinson, is suing Destiny's Child for $200,000. Terrance claims the group stole his music for the hit song "Survivor." He says he produced an earlier version of the song called "Glorious." Now speaking of Destiny's Child, Beyonce will be performing for a huge concert benefiting The African AIDS Crisis in Capetown, South Africa. The concert will air on MTV December 1st, during World AIDS Day.

Usher celebrated his 25th birthday with on again/off again girlfriend Chili by his side. Chili got Usher three strippers for his birthday. Usher had a 1978 "Pimp Daddy" party. Some of the guests included Janet Jackson and Jermain Dupri. They are back together but Janet refused to let anyone take photos of her. At one point she was seen running from a television crew from the show Access Hollywood. Janet has gained weight again and she is keeping a low profile. Janet's divorce from Rene Elizondo was finalized last week and now Jermaine is working overtime trying to get Janet to marry him. Will and Jada, Magic Johnson and his wife Cookie and Eddie Murphy and his wife also attended Ushers party. Actor Duane Martin (All of Us, UPN) is married to Actress Tisha Martin Campbell (My Wife and Kids, ABC). He was at the party without his wife and he was having a good time with the ladies. Jamie Foxx was also in the house. Ushers new album Confessions arrives in stores in February.

Congratulations to Flex Alexander (One on One, UPN) and his wife, singer Shanice. They are expecting baby number two in March.

Get ready for a new version of "We Are The World". "We Are The World" 2005 will be produced by Timbaland to mark the 20th anniversary of the Quincy Jones produced classic. "We Are The World" featured the biggest music stars of the 80's gathering to record an anthem to raise money for hungry children in Africa. Some of the artists included: Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Bruce Springstein, Bono, Willie Nelson, Dionne Warwick and Stevie Wonder to name a few.

Earth Wind and Fire is hard at work on a new album and this time they will be teaming up with some of the hot artists out today. The group will be working with Musiq, D'Angelo and Raphael Sadiqq. The album is due out next year.

Yolanda Adams, Kirk Franklin and Donnie McClurken will be hosting the 19th Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards. The awards take place on January 10th, and Shirley Caesar will be the recipient of the "James Cleveland Award."

A family in Harlem, New York is suing singer Roberta Flack. The family is claiming their son was injured in a building she owns that is dangerous, decayed and defective. The building has been the subject of various building code violations including poor lighting and boiler problems. Roberta says this is not her fault.

Did Re-Run leave a will? Actor Fred Berry died last week at the age of 52 from natural causes. Earlier this year he had suffered a stroke and he was in declining health. Fred played the popular character "Re-Run" on the TV show What's Happening. Fred was in Philly a couple of years ago with the Universoul Circus and he starred on an episode of Star Dates, a popular dating show on the E Channel. Fred was married six times and had numerous children and now the exes and the kids are wondering what did he leave behind? During his life he squandered millions of dollars on drugs, alcohol and reckless spending. Is there anything left for his exes and his kids?