Briefly News and Comment: DMX, Snoopstar

plus: Rainforest Alliance. Puffy. Janet Jackson.

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Rapper DMX--who turned himself in over two weeks late to New York officials on Monday (2/26) to begin serving a 15-day jail term--has been slapped with a contempt of court charge for failing to begin his sentence on time, MTV.com reported. The rapper had been a fugitive since he reportedly blew off the Feb. 9 jail date in order to promote his upcoming film, "Exit Wounds."

DMX--a.k.a. Earl Simmons--is expected to receive an early release from his current jail term, which stems from a traffic violation he pled guilty to last year. Bail in the contempt case has been set at $250,000, and a preliminary court date is set for March 14, according to the MTV News report.

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BMG Music parent company Bertelsmann--which last year entered into a strategic alliance with Napster to help the controversial company develop a secure, subscription-based model for its file-trading service--has been revealed as the secret source behind a Napster-like system called Snoopstar, Inside.com reported. Beta-testing of the service was conducted earlier this month, and the plug has since been pulled on the operation, the report said.

Napster CEO Hank Barry reportedly responded to the news by telling German trade publication Net Business: "There is a great chance that Napster will just be shut down, so I don't have a great problem with Bertelsmann ... pursuing a file sharing arrangement.''

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Keith Richards (Rolling Stones), Levon Helm (The Band), Dr. John, Keb' Mo', Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, BR5-49, Kim Wilson (Fabulous Thunderbirds) and other special guests are scheduled to perform at the Rainforest Alliance's Smart Sounds: Music for the Planet IV event at New York's Beacon Theater on March 6, according to a press release. Ticket information is available at the Rainforest Alliance's official website.

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Sean "Puffy" Combs and his "spiritual advisor" Hezekiah Walker have produced a gospel CD titled "Thank You" that is set for a June 5 release, according to Combs' Bad Boy Records. The 15-track disc will feature a collection of contemporary gospel songs performed by a number of Bad Boy/Arista recording artists that includes Faith Evans, Carl Thomas, 112, Mario Winans, Thelma Guyton, Asia & Ashley, Tammy Ruggeri and Cheri Dennis.

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"All for You," the first single from Janet Jackson's forthcoming album, will hit radio stations on March 6, MTV News reported. The as-yet-unnamed disc is due in stores on April 24.