As T.I. moped around his jail cell Friday (I imagine), American Gangster, which he costarred in, premiered at Harlem’s famous Apollo Theater.

And who needed TI? The rappers were out in full force, from (a hatless) Common and RZA, who appeared in the movie, to Method Man, who I guess was the RZA’s date, to Jay-Z, who used the movie as an excuse to come out of retirement once again, to Diddy, who is, uh, from Harlem. More pics after the jump.

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Between the PR-disaster that was her almost year-old fatal car accident and her complete embarrassment-to-the family brother, Ray J, Brandy is in desperate need of some good news. Will it come in the form of her new album?

“I’ve just got to get that album out,” the pop star tells PEOPLE. “I have to get it out, if it’s the last thing I do.”

Brandy’s album, which does not currently have a title, would be her fifth studio album, and the first since 2004’s critically well-received Afrodisiac.

“I’ve been gone for a long time,” says the 28-year-old R&B singer-actress, who spoke to PEOPLE at the recent Christian Audigier fashion show at L.A. Fashion Week. “I really want to give the fans something that they deserve to have. So, I’m working really hard on this. I really want to make it the best work I’ve done so far.”

It probably needs to be the best work she’s done so far, if she really wants a comeback. Or she could just make a sex tape — that seems to work nicely at getting one’s name out there.

[People]

• Beanie Sigel has gotten out of criminal charges associated with his apparent reluctance to return or pay for a rented Nissan Altima. Phew! I was worried for a second, there. [AHH]

• A teacher in the UK investigates a four-year-old boy for racism. He’s embittered and filled with hate because the black kids get special treatment during nap time. [Telegraph]

• And while we’re discussing the UK, the head of Britain’s black policeman’s association is encouraging more racial profiling of black youth. []

• The struggle over skin tone among blacks rages on. But we’re black, so we knew that already. [CS-T]

• Barack Obama has former gay supporters hopping mad over his association with homosexuality foe and “reformed” gay Donnie McClurkin. [QT]

Technically, a conversation of this sort between the sexes should really end with, “I got a man.” But if that had happened, we would not have this song, Positive K’s “I Got A Man,” or the video, which — and it might be the neon, early 90s fashions — has really brightened my Monday morning.

• Talking: so easy, a could do it.

• Superbugs are invading America’s schools! What should we do!?! Just practice simple , apparently.

• African American caregivers are less healthy than white caregivers. Huh?

• Blacks…HIV…renal failure…all bad…

• In case you’ve been living under a rock, white people are smarter than blacks. Don’t shoot the messenger! It’s a fact.

Dear T.I.,

So jail, huh? Not to rub salt in, but I guess you’re sort of used to it by now. But that’s where I’m confused. Considering your history with the penal system, I would think that you would be a little more careful about actions that might get you thrown back into it. Like, maybe you could have had someone else pick up the guns you had your bodyguard illegally procure. Or maybe you could have just not bought them at all, particularly if, as some claim, your interest in machine guns with silencers (”no flash, no bang,” right?) was purely from a “collector’s” standpoint. You don’t sound like a gun collector in this verse from your song, “Live in the Sky.”

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• Jermaine Dupri was named after Jermaine Jackson. That’s just weird. [People]

• Chaka Khan doesn’t seem like the nervous type, but she’s shaking in her boots over her upcoming debut on Broadway in The Color Purple. [SP]

• More senseless racism. More Al Sharpton. [SIA]

• The Apprentice made Omarosa a “celebrity,” and now she’s going to be on Celebrity Apprentice! She’s come so, so far. [Jossip]

• Michael Vick lost his house. Bummer? [EUR]

T.I., who pleaded not guilty (ha) in court today, might be free to walk out of jail next week. Well, that’s only if “free” equals house arrest and millions in (cash) bail money. The gun-happy rapper had his star-studded bond hearing today, and pending a judge’s approval of the bond conditions at a second hearing next week, he might be able to spend his time waiting for the trial at his Atlanta home. After authorities sweep it for contraband, of course.

The rapper - who was dressed in all black and bound in ankle shackles - had a team of high-powered attorneys backing him in court. Legal bigwigs Ed Garland along with long-time partner Don Samuel joined Steve Sadow and Dwight Thomas in defending the self-proclaimed King of the South.

And today, artists, industry heads, family and friends packed the courtroom in support of the king, including Young Jeezy

T.I.’s legal team offered $2.2 million in cash, plus $1.5 million in equity in property that he owns. In addition, Kevin Lyles, president of Warner Bros. Music Group and Lyor Cohen, president of Atlantic Records each offered up $100,000 of their own money.

Apparently, the courthouse was looking more like the TRL studio than a government building today. Oh, to be a rich and famous criminal!

[SOHH]

Bobby Brown and Sisqo have officially hit rock bottom. Actually, they both probably did that long ago, but stick with me. They will both be appearing on a CMT (that’s Country Music Television) show called Gone Country, on which they, along with five other “celebrities” will be “guided through” the country music industry.

The celebrities will live in a Nashville mansion for two weeks where they will be paired with songwriters in an attempt to prepare them for a career in country music. In each episode, the cast competes against one another in challenges that will test them musically and physically to adapt to a country music lifestyle both on- and offstage. At the end of the two weeks, Rich will select one winner, who will record and release a song.

My money’s on Sisqo for this one, but only because of his voice. Other than that, I can’t really imagine someone with Sisqo’s, uh, fabulousness appealing to the CMT crowd.

[]

Quote of the Week

Mario on feeling like he’s enabling his heroin-addicted mom, Shawn:

“By doing this type of thing, I feel like I’m saying to her, ‘It’s OK, what you’re doing is OK,’ ” the Baltimore native explains in a scene in which he takes Shawn shopping. “In the back of my mind, it would feel better if I knew I was doing this for my mother [when she were] well. I felt like after I left [the store], maybe I should have said, ‘No. Until you get better, I’m not doing anything for you.’ But sometimes it’s hard to face reality.”