HP will be a launching a series of TV spots during the Grammy Awards this Sunday. The first TV spot will feature Alicia Keys. Check out a sneak peek of the campaign below.

Twelve-time Grammy Award winner Alicia Keys and esteemed entertainer and social activist Harry Belafonte are slated to visit Toronto in May for a benefit for the Stephen Lewis Foundation. Keys will headline a concert called Hope Rising at the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts on May 3. Performers Angelique Kidjo, Holly Cole and Gloria Reuben will also take to the stage.

Before the concert, Belafonte will participate in a dinner and discussion about the impact of philanthropy on the frontlines of the AIDS pandemic. Stephen Lewis, former UN Special Envoy for AIDS in Africa, is among the other luminaries who will also be part of the chat with Belafonte.

Tickets go on sale on Saturday via Ticketmaster or in person at the Sony Centre box office. The Stephen Lewis Foundation supports community-level organizations that provide care and support to those affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa.

For EMI Music Publishing executive “Big” Jon Platt, his most special #1 record started with an empty stomach. “I happened to be at the right place at the right time and wanted some good barbecue,” Platt told MTV News, laughing.

The music-industry vet is largely responsible for helping Jay-Z notch his first career solo #1 with “Empire State of Mind.” The track is also up for Record of the Year at this year’s Grammys.

Platt, a Denver native and Los Angeles resident, was in New York two years ago to see Beyoncé kick off the North American leg of her tour. The show was scheduled for Sunday night, but Platt arrived the day before, against his better judgment. (Read more… )

Alicia and Swizz Beatz were spotted yesterday at New York Knicks vs Miami Heat game at Madison Square Garden. Alicia was all smiling looking extremely cute in glasses. Check out the gallery for more images.

Jungle City Studios, a new recording studio perched above the High Line in Chelsea, seems to be a vision out of New York’s glorious musical past. Packed with the kind of gear that makes sound engineers salivate, like an extremely rare 1960s recording console by EMI side-by-side with the latest gleaming digital equipment, it is not the kind of place you would expect for an era of pirated music and GarageBand. And that’s before you notice the Louis Vuitton-patterned fabric on the walls.

“I compare a studio to a hotel, and I want this to be a seven-star studio,” said Ann Mincieli, Jungle City’s founder, who is also Alicia Keys’s longtime engineer and studio right hand.

Designed by John Storyk of the Walters-Storyk Design Group, who got his start working on Jimi Hendrix’s Electric Lady Studios in 1969, Jungle City is described by record executives and other engineers as one of the most impressive new studios in New York in years. It has three recording rooms on the top two floors of an 11-story commercial building, with novel details like speakers floating within the control-room glass. And while most studios tend to be windowless subterranean caves, Jungle City has wide skyline views. (Read more… )

Alicia recently shot a commercial for HP Beats. Check out a photo from the set. The commercial will premiere in March.

Yesterday, Alicia was a presenter at the Golden Globe Awards. She presented the movie Black Swan which was up for Best Picture – Drama. Check out the video of her presenting here.

Congratulations Alicia on being nominated for 2 NAACP Image Awards in the categories:

1. Outstanding Music Video – Unthinkable (I’m Ready)
2. Outstanding Song – Unthinkable (I’m Ready)