THE FOUR TOPS: Levi Stubbs works up a sweat on live French TV, belting out a supercharged "I'll Be There."

NELLIE McKAY plays the Mountain Stage.

DOROTHY stops by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

THE CACTUS FLOWERS also stop by The Current.

TEENAGE FANCLUB shares “Everything Is Falling Apart.”

BOB MOULD talks to Stereogum about his '00s DJ stint, writing the theme for The Daily Show, his friendship with Dave Grohl, Sunshine Rock, and more.

BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD's  misunderstood-but-understood "For What It's Worth" gets an American Anthem essay.

NIRVANA: Kurt Cobain would have turned 52 this week. Brooklyn Vegan has 15 great covers of Nirvana songs and their 15 best non album songs. 

THE NUMBER ONES looks at Nilsson's grand, theatrical power ballad "Without You".

JUSSIE SMOLLETT is now officially classified as a suspect in a criminal investigation by the Chicago Police Dept. for filing a false police report... and as of this writing he's reportedly been charged with felony disorderly conduct. Local media obtained exclusive video of two men linked to the attack on the Empire actor Jussie Smollett buying a red hat and ski masks from a store the day before the assault.

KYLIE JENNER is having enormous trouble processing the revelation her best friend was involved in a cheating scandal with her sister's baby daddy.

GWYNETH PALTROW files a counter-suit alleging she was the real victim of a skiing accident.

CHRIS HEMSWORTH s set to portray wrestling superstar Hulk Hogan in a biopic.

GHOSTBUSTERS: Jason Reitman promises the reboot reboot that will “go back to original technique and hand the movie back to the fans.” Which will be interpreted as slightiing the 2016 film.

CAPTAIN MARVEL is getting good early buzz on social media.

RUSHMORE took the movie soundtrack back to school 20 years ago.

CHARO talks about her husband's suicide.

PUFFERFISH: Dolphins purposely inflate them to get high and pass them around to their dolphin friends.

A DOG lost in the California wildfire is reunited with his family 101 days later.

THE BERLIN ZOO's POLAR CUB is "a perky, strong girl."

TUDDER: Tinder for cows.

RAY CHARLES plays "What'd I Say" live; he recorded it on Feb. 18, 1959.

SUNFLOWER BEAN stops by The Current for a chat and miniset.

AIDA VICTORIA plays the World Cafe from Nashville.

ALL SONGS CONSIDERED features Palehound, Molly Sarlé, Sego and more.

THE DREAM SYNDICATE shares "Black Light."

THE BROTHER BROTHERS share a "Siren Song."

STRAND OF OAKS shares "Ruby."

THE PAISLEY UNDERGROUND: The Dream Syndicate's Steve Wynn, The 3 O'Clock's Danny Benair and The Bangles' Vicki Peterson visit World Cafe to discuss their bands' new joint album.

RYAN ADAMS guitarist Todd Wisenbaker has condemned the singer-songwriter’s alleged history of abuse, calling Adams a “monster.”

THE GENIUS OF NILSSON, told through eight memorable covers.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at Al Green's transcendent soul classic "Let's Stay Together."

JUSSIE SMOLLETT is under investigation by the FBI and the US Postal Inspection Service. His role on Empire is being slashed.

ARMIE HAMMER denies rumors he will be the next Batman.

LADY GAGA & CHRISTIAN CARINO ended their engagement.

KHLOE KARDSAHIAN & TRISTAN THOMPSON have called it quits 10 months after his cheating scandal.

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: Amazon Prime hints at how far back the series will go.

THE 50 BEST MOVIE SOUNDTRACKS, according to Pitchfork.

EMMA THOMPSON, who had  begun recording one of the voice roles in the upcoming animated feature Luck, has quietly left the project because of concerns about working with John Lasseter.

KITBULL: A Pixar short dropped online.

KARL LAGERFELD, the most prolific designer of the 20th and 21st centuries and a man whose career formed the prototype of the modern luxury fashion industry, died on Tuesday in Paris. He was 85.

BRUNO GANZ, a Swiss-born actor who was best known for playing Adolf Hitler cooped up in his Berlin bunker in the highly-memed 2004 film Downfall and for portraying an angel in Wim Wenders’s Wings of Desire in 1987, died Feb. 16 at his home in Zurich. He was 77.

A DOG joins in petting a cat.

BIG JUMP for a small dog.

INSECTS will not disappear over the next century, but there's more to the story.

JUSTICE the eagle is missing, and his partner, Liberty, had to spend her Valentine's Day fending off homewrecker Aaron Burrd.

I WANT CANDY from The Strangeloves and a super-charged Bow Wow Wow for Twofer Tuesday.

THE ELVIS '58 COMEBACK SPECIAL got an all-star anniversary tribute on NBC. The Current notes how it set the template for decades of music specials.

HAND HABITS: Meg Duffy covers Fleetwood Mac, A.A. Bondy, and Simon and Garfunkel for a Lagniappe Session.

MACY GRAY stops by the World Cafe.

CAR SEAT HEADREST unveiled a new song, “Can’t Cool Me Down.”

PAVEMENT gets about two and a half hours of discussion and analysis on the latest Political Beats podcast, with guest Jeff Pojanowski, professor at Notre Dame Law School.

BLOODSHOT RECORDS co-owner Nan Warshaw has “stepped away” from the label after Lydia Loveless alleged years of misconduct by Warshaw's partner.

MANDY MOORE, on her ex-husband Ryan Adams.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at Don McLean's sprawling classic-rock lost-innocence portrait "American Pie."

JUSSIE SMOLLETT, upset after a racist letter sent to the show’s studio didn’t get a “bigger reaction,” is suspected of paying two men to attack him a week later, according to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the investigation.

R. KELLY: A grand jury is empaneled in the wake of new allegations against the singer.

THE PUNISHER and JESSICA JONES are canceled as Netflix completes its Marvel purge.

RACHEL WEISZ “has helped save my life in a number of ways,” writes Hilton Als.

PRINCES HARRY & WILLIAM prepare to divide their joint royal household.

OFFICE SPACE Turns 20: How Mike Judge brought flair, assclowns and red staplers to the world.

GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS drops a new TV spot.

CATS are among the smartest creatures in the animal kingdom. Then there's Gary.

THOSE TWO BOILED EGGS: Have you seen them?

BIG TIBERIAN MASTIFF is Big.

THE TIGER discovered this week in the garage of an abandoned Texas home by someone who'd gone to smoke weed has been moved to its new home.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: Alita: Battle Angel tops the chart with 27.8MM (and 36.5MM since opening), which is both better than some projections and yet not good against a 170MM production budget. It's doing considerably better overseas though (almost 100MM), and has yet to open in Japan or China.  The LEGO Movie 2 places with 21.2MM on a 38 percent drop; it may make 100MM domestic, whereas the first one made more than 250MM.  Isn't It Romantic shows with 14.2MM (and 20MM since opening) ans will quickly recoup its 31MM production budget.  What Men Want also took advantage of Valentine's Day and scored another 14.2MM on a 40 percent drop; it's doing fine against a 20MM budget.  Happy Death Day 2 U, which many thought might top the chart, rounds out the Top Five with 9.8MM (and 13.5MM since opening) against a 9MM budget; the original had a 26MM debut.

JUSSIE SMOLLETT may have paid two men to orchestrate the assault on him, sources tell CNN. Two suspects in the case were released by the police.

50 CENT may have been threatened by an NYPD commander (who denies it).

BECK has filed for divorce from his wife of nearly 15 years, Marissa Ribisi.

ORLANDO BLOOM and KATY PERRY are engaged.

MIRANDA LAMBERT secretly tied the knot with Brendan Mcloughlin.

DARREN CRISS married longtime love Mia Swier on Saturday.

THE OSCARS: After days of protest and backlash, the Academy has reversed its initial decision to air four categories during commercial breaks. ALSO: 20 Oscar Voters Spill Their Secrets.

THE WGA AWARDS went to these folks. Congrats!

LOKI: Marvel's streaming show has picked up Michael Waldron (Rick and Morty) as a showrunner. Sources say the show will follow Loki as the trickster and shape-shifter pops up throughout human history as an unlikely influencer on historical events.

MEG RYAN, on romantic comedies, celebrity and leaving it all behind: ‘The feeling with Hollywood was mutual.'

More tommorow, I hope.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with ARETHA FRANKLIN, Live in Stockholm, 1968! The "Lady Soul" concert was broadcast on Swedish TV, including: "There's No Business Like Show Business," "Come Back To Me," "Satisfaction," "Don't Let Me Lose This Dream," "Soul Serenade," "Night Life," "Baby I Love You," "Groovin,'" "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman," "Come Back Baby," "Dr Feelgood (Love Is A Serious Business)," "Since You've Been Gone (Sweet Sweet Baby)" "I  Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)," "Chain Of Fools," and "Respect."

RAY CHARLES: Advance stream the reissue of Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, Vols. 1 and 2.

JULIA JACKLIN advance streams Crushing.

OUR NATIVE DAUGHTERS advance streams Songs of Our Native Daughters.

BENNY SINGS advance streams City Pop.

YOLA advance streams Walk Through Fire.

ADIA VICTORIA advance streams Silences.

JENNY LEWIS shares “Heads Gonna Roll.” And it's an all-star band, starting with Ringo.

BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE shares "Boyfriends."

WILLIAM SHATNER, BEN FOLDS & JOE JACKSON: Just some "Common People."

RYAN ADAMS further responds to claims of sexual manipulation via Twitter.  Liz Phair weighs in. ALSO: Indie rock may be rife with beta male misogyny. 

PAVEMENT: The Infinite Radness of Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain.

HENRY ROLLINS reviews the soundtrack of his life.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at Sly & The Family Stone's sweaty, hopeless funk jam "Family Affair" and Melanie's frisky novelty smash "Brand New Key."

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases are Alita: Battle Angel, scoring 59 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; Isn't It Romantic, which is scoring 66 percent; and Happy Death Day 2U, scoring 65 percent.

KANYE WEST got KIM KARSDASHIAN a private Kenny G concert for Valentine's Day.

R. KELLY may face indictment after prosecutors review an explosive new videotape that reportedly shows Kelly sexually assaulting an underage girl.

JUSSIE SMOLLETTmay have staged the attack against him, according to Chicago media reports.The CPD disputes these reports.

ARIANA GRANDE recorded an alternate version of "Thank U Next" in case she married Pete Davidson.

BILL COSBY issues a statement from prison saying he has 'no remorse' and is a 'political prisoner' like MLK, Gandhi and Mandela.

ELIZA DUSHKU is expecting her first child with her husband, Peter Palandjian.

WILL SMITH explains why he turned down The Matrix.

JEFF BEZOS discussed buying AMI to find out source of the leak of his risque photos.

JASON MOMOA is in negotiations to join the ever-growing cast of Dune.

SPONGEBOB spinoffs may be coming to Nicolodeon.

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: The reboot stalls as Deadpool's screenwriters depart.

30 COMEDIC PERFORMANCES Worthy of Oscars Nominations, compiled by Vulture.

A BEAGLE MAMA is raising a baby possum after losing her pups.

THE CELEBRITY TORTOISE BREAKUP That Rocked the World.

METAPHOR ALERT: A bald eagle named Justice is missing in D.C.

A CHOPPER carefully shepherded a group of elephants back into Amboseli National Park after they wandered out of the protected area and onto community land.