Tim McGraw giving houses to military vets during tour

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Here's a celebrity who's walking the walk this Memorial Day weekend: country star Tim McGraw is launching HomeFront, a national program that will award mortgage-free homes to wounded military vets in the 25 cities on McGraw's summer tour. Partnering with Chase and Operation Homefront, McGraw will give away one house to a military family in need in each of the stops on his tour, beginning with Tampa on June 2. ...

"Godfather of Go-Go"' Chuck Brown dies at 75

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Chuck Brown, known as the "Godfather of Go-Go" for the subgenre of funk music he helped create, died on Wednesday at the Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore after being admitted earlier this month suffering from pneumonia. A spokeswoman for the hospital confirmed the death but could not provide a cause, and Brown's manager, Tom Goldfogle, was not immediately available to comment. Goldfogle told the Washington Post Brown died of complications from sepsis. Brown, a singer/songwriter and guitarist had been a key personality in the Washington, D.C. ...

Power ballad Sanchez vs. "genius" Phillips on "Idol"

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Jessica Sanchez, the teen with the big voice, chose power ballads while Phillip Phillips went with an indie vibe as the two diverse "American Idol" finalists sang on Tuesday for the hearts and votes of America. Sanchez, 16, bidding to become the youngest ever winner of America's most-watched TV show, was deemed ahead after performing songs made famous by Whitney Houston and Celine Dion. But it was acoustic guitar-playing Phillips who brought all three judges to their feet at the end of the performance finale. ...

Adam Lambert boots Underwood from Billboard No. 1

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Former "American Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert pushed his fellow "Idol" alum off the top spot of the Billboard 200 chart on Wednesday to score his first No. 1 album with "Trespassing." Lambert's second studio album sold 77,000 copies in its first week, a significantly lower debut than Underwood's "Blown Away" debut two weeks ago, which sold 267,000 copies to score the top spot on the chart. "Blown Away" fell to No. 3 this week, behind Adele's juggernaut "21," which added a further 63,000 copies to its phenomenal sales record this week. ...