The offices of James Brown Enterprises have had a rough few weeks. First there was the office fire that destroyed irreplaceable memorabilia. Then the revelation that arsonist Richard Glenn was not just a JBE employee, but also the Godfather of Soul's cousin. Now a former JBE employee has filed a $1 million suit against the singer and his company accusing Brown of sexual harassment, discrimination and wrongful termination, among a multitude of other charges. Lisa Ross Agbalaya began working for the singer's company in 1993 and became president of JBE's West Coast operations. She claimed in the suit, filed May 19 in a California Superior Court in Los Angeles, that Brown made numerous advances on her, including requesting that she wear a pair of zebra-print underwear and give him a massage. Calls to Brown's camp were unreturned at press time . . .
What better place to kick off summer than Florida? Bobby Brown doesn't have much say in the matter after Judge Leonard Feiner of Fort Lauderdale denied bond to the singer after he was arrested for violating his probation. Brown will stay on ice until June 19 for charges dating back to last June when he tested positive for cocaine, violating his probation stemming from a 1996 drunk driving charge. Despite his courtroom claim that "It's not fair, man, it's not fair," Brown is currently being held at the Broward County Jail . . .
The longest running bluegrass festival in the world is back for yet another round with the thirty-fourth offering of Bill Monroe's Bean Blossom Bluegrass Festival. The six-day event (June 13-18) is a bluegrass coming-together without peer. Living legends will be out en masse, including Ralph Stanley and His Climch Mountain Boys, Jimmy Martin and the Sunny Mountain Boys, Jim and Jesse and reclusive songwriting legend Tom T. Hall. The festival also offers up younger BG stars at the Bill Monroe Memorial Music Park and Campground. Ticket information is available through www.ticketweb.com or by calling (800) 414-4677 . . .
Icelandic pop princess Bjork is having the last laugh with the director of her upcoming feature film, Lars Von Trier. As Dancer in the Dark was about to debut at the Cannes Film Festival, Von Trier was quoted as saying that Bjork, "is not an actor, which was a surprise for me because she seems so professional and really she is not." Since when does professionalism win awards anyway? Bjork picked up the best actress award at Cannes for her role, while the film picked up the festival's grand prize, the Palme d'Or. Starring opposite Catherine Deneuve, Bjork plays a Czech immigrant and single mother working in an American factory who re-imagines her bleak setting into Hollywood musical numbers starring herself and co-workers. The soundtrack for the film, which was scored by Bjork and features a duet with Radiohead's Thom Yorke, is due September 25 . . .
Despite Fatboy Slim's claims he and wife Zoe Ball "haven't had time" to start a family in his recent interview with RollingStone.com, Slim has proved that only once is needed. He and wife, a former Radio One Breakfast Show host, are expecting a child on Christmas Eve. Christmas is also when Fatboy expects his follow-up to You've Come a Long Way, Baby to be due. The album will feature Macy Gray, among other guest vocalists . . .
Speaking of the stork, with a new song on the charts and a major summer tour on the horizon, life just got even better for Metallica frontman James Hetfield. The singer/guitarist and his wife Francesca welcomed a new baby boy into their family late last week. Castor Virgil Hetfield arrived at 3:23 p.m. on Thursday, May 18 and weighed in at nine pounds, six ounces. The child is the second for the couple, who gave birth to a daughter, Cali Tee, in 1998 . . .
After completing a court-ordered drug prevention program, former SmashingPumpkins bassist D'Arcy Wretzky had drug possession charges against her dropped on May 19. The charges stem from a January 25 arrest for possession of crack cocaine. Wretzky and a companion were stopped for driving without headlights and making illegal U-turns when the drugs were found. At a court date last February, Wretzky, who has maintained her innocence all along, was ordered to complete ten hours of drug education classes by a deadline of May 19. Wretzky, who reportedly vacated her Pumpkins gig to pursue an acting career, is currently at work with co-star Mickey Rourke on the film Peaces of Ronnie . . .
ANDREW DANSBY, CHRISTINA SARACENO
(May 24, 2000)