"AMERICAN IDOL"

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- "American Idol" looked more like an episode of "House" last night. There was plenty of vomiting but little singing. A stomach bug spread quickly, as the would-be Idols tried to get ready for Group Day. There was a bit good health news, from Symone Black. She was the girl who fainted and fell off the stage. The docs cleared her to return, saying she was suffering from dehydration. Next week, the Idol judges will start listening to the groups.

VIOLA DAVIS: DECIDING ON "THE HELP"

NEW YORK (AP) -- Oscar nominee Viola Davis says at first she didn't want to take on the role of Aibileen, a '60s-era maid in "The Help." She tells "The View" that she was afraid of the stigma and worried that some African-Americans would think she was playing a mammy. But Davis says once she read the book, she found the character had a "quiet strength." Davis says sometimes "you get to play ordinary people with great stories." She's up for a lead actress Oscar for the role.

GRAMMYS SUNDAY

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Kanye West heads into Sunday's Grammy Awards seven nominations, the most this year. Adele will perform for the first time since her vocal cord surgery. Her "21" album is considered a favorite to win album of the year, and she's up for five other awards. The other album of the year nominees are "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga, "Loud" by Rihanna, "Wasting Light" by the Foo Fighters, and "Doo-Wops and Hooligans" by Bruno Mars. The Grammys air live on CBS.

50 CENT: SOMALIA

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- The World Food Program says 50 Cent will provide 1 billion meals for people in Somalia and Kenya. The group also says the rapper, who flew to Somalia this week, will donate 10 cents from every sale of a new energy drink called Street King that he is promoting.

The U.N. last week declared an end to Somalia's six-month famine, although it said tens of thousands of people still need food aid to survive. The British government estimates that between 50,000 and 100,000 people died from the famine's effects.

AL GREEN/ARETHA/JENNIFER HUDSON: PRESIDENTIAL PLAYLIST

CHICAGO (AP) -- President Barack Obama's re-election people are out with a playlist of 29 songs crowds will be hearing at public events, rallies and ropelines. Making the cut: Al Green's "Let's Stay Together," Aretha Franklin doing "The Weight," "Love You I Do" by Jennifer Hudson and "Keep Marchin"' by Raphael Saadiq. Also on the list are Earth, Wind & Fire, Booker T & The MG's and The Impressions. The Obama camp says it's paying to use the music.

SIMMONS: MILK

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- Music mogul Russell Simmons wants New York's governor to pull the plug on milk from cows. He's written a letter to Andrew Cuomo asking that milk no longer be the state's official beverage. Simmons is a vegan who has taken on several animal rights causes with PETA. He says milk from cows is less healthy than milk from rice, almonds or soy.

J COLE/MAC MILLER: WOODIE AWARDS

NEW YORK (AP) -- Rapper J. Cole and singer Frank Ocean are up for Woodie of the Year at this year's mtvU wards. They're nominated along with Skrillex, The Black Keys and Foster the People. The awards show is March 15 at the South By South West Music Festival in Austin, Texas. Fans can watch performances live online and a show with the day's best performances will be broadcast March 18. MTV and mtvU will offer special programming all week.

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Online:

http://www.woodies.mtvu.com

SUGE KNIGHT: ARREST

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Rap music mogul Suge Knight has a date with a Las Vegas judge next month, after his arrest on traffic warrant and misdemeanor drug charges. Police say the former Death Row Records executive was stopped driving a black Bentley with California plates on a street just west of the Las Vegas Strip on Wednesday. Knight was accused of making an unsafe lane change and possession of less than one ounce of a controlled substance and released from jail without bail. TMZ is reporting Knight had marijuana with him when he was stopped.

BLACK FRATERNITIES: MENTORING

ATLANTA (AP) -- Big Brothers Big Sisters of America holds a summit in Atlanta today with members from three black fraternities to engage more black men in mentoring boys. The fraternities joined forces with the Philadelphia-based nonprofit in 2009 to help woo more black men into the national mentoring program. Officials with Big Brothers Big Sisters say they're struggling to attract black men to pair with a growing list of black youths from mostly single-parent homes who are signing up in droves. The event will feature nationally syndicated urban radio host Michael Baisden. Fraternities taking part are: Alpha Phi Alpha, Kappa Alpha Psi and Omega Psi Phi.

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Online:

http://www.MentoringBrothers.org

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: FOSTER KIDS

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) -- Florida child welfare officials are featuring a different black foster child who is available for adoption every day during black history month. The program is part of the Explore Adoption campaign and focuses on teens, sibling groups and children with special needs. The Department of Children and Families will introduce the foster youths through videos, photos and biographies on www.adoptflorida.org. These children are among the 800 children in foster care in Florida who are currently available for adoption. The website also showcases several African-American foster and adoptive families in the "Family Stories" gallery.

DR. DRE: LOOKING BACK

UNDATED (AP) -- On this date in 1995, rapper Dr. Dre was sentenced to five months probation. The offense: drunk driving.

PAULA ABDUL: LOOKING BACK

UNDATED (AP) -- On this date in 1990, Paula Abdul's album "Forever Your Girl" produced its fifth number-one single. The single that accomplished the feat was "Opposites Attract." The other chart toppers from the album were "Straight Up," "Forever Your Girl," "Cold Hearted" and "(It's Just) The Way That You Love Me."

MICHAEL JACKSON: LOOKING BACK

UNDATED (AP) -- On this date in 1993, Michael Jackson told us our eyes weren't deceiving us when we noticed his skin looked lighter than it was when he was younger. In a live T-V interview with Oprah Winfrey, Jackson said he had the inherited disorder called vitiligo, which caused his skin color to fade. He denied having extensive plastic surgery to change his face, but did 'fess up to what he called "minor" cosmetic surgery. It was Jackson's first solo interview in nearly a decade. As a result, sales of his "Dangerous" C-D, which had been released 14 months earlier, skyrocketed.

Jackson died in June, 2009 at age 50.

ALEX HALEY: LOOKING BACK

UNDATED (AP) -- On this date in 1992, Alex Haley died in Seattle. The author of "Roots" was 70 years old.

LEONTYNE PRICE: BIRTHDAY

UNDATED (AP) -- A birthday for opera star Leontyne Price. She turns 85 today.

ROBERTA FLACK: BIRTHDAY

UNDATED (AP) -- It's birthday number 75 for singer Roberta Flack. Born in Asheville, North Carolina, she taught high school music before teaching us that she knew her way around a recording studio. She had a-half dozen hits during the 1970's, including three number-one tunes. They were: "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," "Feel Like Makin' Love" and "Killing Me Softly With His Song." That song became a hit again when it was covered by The Fugees. Flack returned to the top ten in 1991 with "Set the Night to Music," a duet with Maxi Priest.

JIMMY MERCHANT: BIRTHDAY

UNDATED (AP) -- It's a birthday for a member of the group Frankie Lymon and the Teen-agers. Jimmy Merchant turns 72. The group's biggest hit was "Why Do Fools Fall In Love," which spent five weeks at the top of the R&B singles chart back in 1962.

Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.