Jason Toney

Tomorrow night, Avalon Hollywood in conjunction with Will.I.Am of the Black Eyed Peas is hosting a Tsunami Benefit. All of the proceeds of the show, which features Justin Timberlake, James Brown, Carlos Santana, John Legend, Macy Gray, Herbie Hancock, Earth, Wind & Fire and more, are going towards UNICEF's Tsunami Relief efforts. We're not quite sure of all the details yet but we will update this as soon as we do. A week from...

We're all cops all the time this morning as the shooting of 13-year-old Devin Brown continues to be the main focus of the city. Both The Daily News and the Los Angeles Times (and a host of other news outlets) cover the press conference from yesterday that gave the LAPD's detailed version of events. Troy Anderson of The Daily News focuses on the FBI joining the case (while burying the fact that the FBI...

Heather at Dancing Brave thinks the Oscars are going ghetto. We think they are going interesting. First, a confession: we're not a fan of awards shows. We find them boring so the idea of Chris Rock harassing stuffy Hollywood types who are believing their own hype at the Academy Awards is amusing to us. We're pretty sure that there's only so far you can go with sanitizing Chris Rock at a live event with...

Happy Chinese New Year! The Year of the Rooster begins today and we encourage you to follow the traditions that will ensure your prosperity for the next 12 years. Being poor and destitute in Los Angeles because you didn't honor the proud male chicken just doesn't seem like a good plan. Thankfully, because we just started the South Beach Diet, the most important practice of the day is easy. LAist will not be eating...

Local gang activity doesn't make the papers much anymore but the Crips and Bloods are still here. Maybe we've just grown accustomed to gang warfare as a part of our daily lives. Maybe we've just gotten good at hiding the problem. Maybe it's now just a part of our culture. That doesn't stop us from wondering about what Laura Bush is going to do as our newly appointed gang czar to deal with the...

We're not quite sure how to define the new breed of Country music influenced singer-songwriters on the airwaves lately. We're even more confused when they are local (by way of Nashville, Tennessee) artists like Casey Black. Do we call him alt-country or something else. Nothing quite seems to fit right. Ever since we picked up his album last year and saw him at an awkward solo performance at the Santa Monica Apple Store we...

We're not sure if The Daily News is just being sarcastic or out and out lying when the opening line of their lede story today calls President Bush's $2.37 trillion dollar budget proposal "lean". As Janet Hook explains in The Los Angeles Times, this budget "would be more than a third bigger than the 2001 budget he inherited four years ago". The Daily News does note that the budget plan heavily increases military funding...

Left, Right and Center has had a lot of trouble with their "right" chair of late and it appears the problem will continue. Tony Blankley is the new conservative voice on KCRW's political commentary program and not very many people are happy about it. Online progressive research site (and media accuracy group) Media Matters for America is so unhappy with the decision that President and CEO David Brock drafted a letter to the station...

We spent all week waiting with bated breath for the eventual battle royale to occur when MediaBistro.com's Fishbowl LA launched last week. We were hopeful we'd get to cover all the catty comments between the new site and its local competitors as it tried to make a name for itself just like our big sister site was able to do on the other side of the country. Too bad not much happened. Defamer.com, LA.comfidential...

Laurie over at LA.Comfidential informs us that yesterday was "That 70s Show" star Ashton Kutcher 27th birthday. One of the things Young Mr. Kutcher's received as a gift was Complex Magazine naming him #1 Hollywood "Maverick, Free Spirit...Superstar and Vice Enabler" in their Burn Hollywood Burn issue. #1? Really? LAist is sure there are other high profile movers and shakers in Hollywood that are deserving of that maverick label than Ashton. What about director...