» With a reluctant "hello" to its customers--and a "Fuck you" to Apple--Warner has announced that it will begin to sell its music without DRM on... Amazon. Ars Technica reminds us that this leaves only one of the big four to cave in and actually sell (as opposed to rent out, roughly) its merchandise: Sony.

» Readme: Mexican musicians are now afraid to play live for fear of their lives. The WaPo reports a string of musician murders, all of which are by members of Mexican drug cartels. Another scary reminder that the violence that drug prohibition creates is very real.

» NME reports that Lily Allen told them that she will not "be launching a junior maternity range." The Bri'ish translated: Lily Allen has turned down offers to start a line of maternity clothes for minors. Allen, currently 22, feels like showing off and marketing her preggitude (hers and Chemical Brother Ed Simons') to her generally young audience isn't a particularly good idea. Coherent thought in someone that young, famous and pregnant? Impossible!

» "And after man makes everything he can/ man makes money": Pretty close to a year after his death, James Brown's children are battling for more of their father's finances in an argument about what they say is a bogus will--Bogus, according to their accusations, because advisers outstepped their bounds and had the soul singer set up trust funds and the like that would benefit the advisers. AP via Yahoo!: "The children were largely left out of the financial portion of the will, which leaves the bulk of the soul singer's money to trusts set up to educate Brown's grandchildren and needy kids." Only grandchildren under 35, of course; The article makes it feel like Brown had enough grandchildren to merit and entire charity devoted to their education. He would, that sex machine. Oh, there is also such a thing as "the James Brown "I Feel Good" Trust for the education of needy children." Hints of Zoolander.

» Radiohead, in short: Radiohead tapes an hour-long live version of In Rainbows for New Year's Eve; Fortune calls the In Rainbows approach dumb (the 59th dumbest business-related thing in '07, actually), but everyone wants to follow, apparently; Funny business about previous supposed claims that Yorke & co. wanted a bunch of cash from EMI; Radiohead's response to charges that tickets to their upcoming tour are too expensive.

» Adios 2007, Hola 2008!, in short: Grammy nominations released, stuck in really obnoxious flash site; People no longer buying coal? 20 per cent decrease this Christmas season in record sales; The Police bring in the most tour-cash 2007; 2008 may welcome better digital packaging;

» The Rest, in short: Chuck D wants to Replace Jay-Z (who recently stepped down) as the president of deaf jam because he knows tech, knows sports, and is kind of incoherent; The RIAA reportedly started suing about copies of legally purchased CD's, but it turns out that the reporting was a little fuzzy and, well, wrong; Weezer's Rivers Cuomo looks to release archive CD's; Madonna's movie, "Filth and Wisdom" to be premiered at the Berlin Film Festival; M.I.A. will be hosting a TV documentary about children's rights in Liberia; Ms. Minogue becomes Officer Kylie in England, thanks to Queen; Rolling Stone looks at the semi-recent trend of compressing the shit outta everything; Midnight Oil's Peter Garrett becomes Enviro-min of Australia;

» Obits, in short: Former Rogue Wave multi-instrumentalist Evan Farrell, 33 (injuries from apartment fire); BBC Radio 1 morning DJ Kevin Greening, 44; Joe Dolan, 68 (brain hemorrhage); Kenyan musician Mighty King Kong, 33.