The Day in Pop Digest for 2/17/11: (Billboard) According to a representative in the Madonna camp, the singer never sent an email to Lady Gaga giving her blessing on "Born This Way," despite reports to the contrary from Gaga herself. more(BBC) Aretha Franklin announces she is to return to the stage in May, months after being admitted to hospital for an undisclosed illness. more
(BBC) Bruno Mars has pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine but has avoided a jail sentence in the US. He was given 12 months probation, a $2,000 (£1,241) fine, 200 hours community service and ordered to attend drug counseling. more
(Billboard) With six debuts on the Hot 100 to be released tomorrow (Feb. 17) on Billboard.com, the "Glee" cast has placed 113 songs on the chart, besting Elvis Presley's 108 chart entries logged between the survey's inception in 1958 and 2003. more
(BBC) Len Lesser, best known for his role as Uncle Leo on comedy sitcom Seinfeld, dies aged 88 from cancer-related pneumonia more
(Jam) A spokesperson for Pharrell Williams has fired back at reports suggesting the hip-hop star performed an offensive Nazi salute during a recent concert in Las Vegas, insisting the allegations are "downright silly". more
(Billboard) Phoenix has begun recording a follow-up to 2009's breakout album, "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix." In a video interview with Pedestrian.TV, frontman Thomas Mars called the new effort "futuristic," "experimental" and "minimal." more
(FMQB) Lady Gaga makes history this week, as her new single "Born This Way" becomes the 1000th #1 single in Billboard's Hot 100 history. Gaga also breaks Britney Spears' recent record for the largest debut digital sales week by a female artist. more
(Billboard) Lady Gaga's upcoming Madison Square Garden concerts will be broadcast by HBO, the station announced yesterday. more
(Billboard) Paris Hilton says her new album will be released "in the next few months." more
(BBC) The biopic of slain rapper Tupac is back on. The task of casting Shakur would begin immediately, with a shoot planned for late spring and Universal handling the film's release. more
(FMQB) Kelly Clarkson took to her Facebook on Monday to tell fans that she's one track away from completing her fifth studio album. more
(Gibson) On this day in 2003, Lou Pearlman, the man behind the Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC was being investigated over complaints that aspiring stars paid $1,500 to be featured on his website. Pearlman was accused by Florida authorities of getting young actors and models to pay upfront to appear on his Trans Continental companys website by saying he also would help them to find work.
On this day in 2008, British soul singer Duffy started a five-week run at #1 on the U.K. singles chart with Mercy, from the Welsh singers debut album Rockferry. Mercy was the U.K.s best-selling single of 2008, and won Duffy a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Find out what else happened on this date in music history here
