Lionel Richie named his new album "Tuskegee" for his Alabama hometown, a subtle reference to his southern roots. By remaking his hits with such country stars as Tim McGraw, Willie Nelson, and Shania Twain, he makes those ties explicit.
"Tuskegee" may play on a well-worn concept — a legendary singer pairing with younger artists on classic tunes. But, with few exceptions, these recordings come off as carefully considered, with fresh arrangements that highlight the strengths of the material and the talents involved.

Kensington Palace, the former home of Princess Diana and the future abode of her son Prince William and his wife Catherine, reopened to the public on Monday after two years of renovation.
Officials said new exhibitions, including a display of the late Diana's dresses, had seen ticket sales far exceed those expected on opening day at the 407-year-old red-brick palace.

A woman will appear in court on Monday charged with breaking into the London home of British music mogul Simon Cowell.
Cowell, who owns the Syco label and judges British and U.S. television talent shows such as "The X Factor" and "Britain's Got Talent", found a brick-wielding woman in his mansion on Saturday night, his spokesman said.

Chechnya's first lady, Medni Kadyrova, has displayed her Islamic fashion collection to a captivated audience in Dubai, faithful to the politics of her husband who has sought to impose Islamic dress codes in the Caucasus republic.
More than 20 veiled Chechen models paced the catwalk in a Dubai palace on Saturday evening, clad in silk and carefully embroidered muslin dresses that covered them from head to toe but also managed to outline their figures.

With a flamboyant wardrobe and a diva's voice, she's seen as Myanmar's Lady Gaga -- a rare pop star in a country where years of isolation have left musicians reliant on borrowed foreign tunes.
Singing Burmese translations of international hits like Bon Jovi's "You Give Love A Bad Name", Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein is famed for her feathered masquerade masks, rhinestone glamour and dramatic ball gowns.

"Titanic" director James Cameron has safely returned to the ocean surface after a solo submarine dive to the deepest part of the Pacific Ocean, expedition organizers said Monday.
"Jim Cameron has surfaced! Congrats to him on his historic solo dive to the ocean's deepest point," said a Twitter message from Deep Sea Challenge, which organized the dive.

Four women stride towards the camera with heads held high, liberated beauties on the march, completely naked save for their high heels and trim 1980s hairdos: welcome to Helmut Newton's world.
Titled "Sie Kommen" (They're Coming), the giant print, which comes in two versions, one nude and one power-dressed, is part of a major Paris retrospective of the photographer's provocative, erotic body of work, the first since he died in 2004.

The publisher of respected Hollywood daily Variety said Friday it is selling the top entertainment industry title, as part of its move out of the U.S. business magazine sector.
Mark Kelsey, chief executive of Reed Business Information (RBI) -- a unit of Reed Elsevier Group PLC -- said the group has been divesting itself of its other US business magazines over the past three years.

The traditionally modest and freedom-inhibiting kimono is getting a new lease on life at Japan Fashion Week, with an edge of defiance and seductiveness.
Historically a garment whose multiple layers and tight wrapping have been viewed by some as restricting a woman's mobility and keeping her subservient to men, Jotaro Saito's kimono collection betrays expectations.

Haunted highways, an oil-smeared ghoul prowling villages for virgins, vampiress spirits thirsting for blood: Malaysia has an obsession with the supernatural rooted in age-old legends.
Now that obsession is being increasingly projected upon the nation's cinema screens, as horror movies have quickly emerged as a force in a booming domestic film industry.
