NEW CANDIDS: NE-YO LUNCHING WITH NICOLE SCHERZINGER AT THE IVY IN WEST HOLLYWOOD.

R&B singer/songwriter Ne-Yo was spotted lunching with former Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger at the Ivy restaurant in West Hollywood on Tuesday (5.6.2008) afternoon before being swarmed by paparazzi upon their exit from the eatery. Check out the photos below.

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CHRIS BROWN & RIHANNA ON THEIR RELATIONSHIP: HER: 'WE'RE VERY CLOSE NOW.' HIM: 'I TRY TO STAY AWAY FROM HAVING A GIRLFRIEND.'

Rihanna has moved a step closer to confirming her relationship with R&B singer Chris Brown, by admitting they are "very close". The pair have frustrated fans and the press by refusing to speak out about their relationship - despite being inseparable for months, and even holidaying together in the Caribbean. Speaking to Elle magazine, Rihanna, 20, stops short of confessing her love for 19-year-old Brown - but she admits they are more than just friends. The Barbados beauty says, "We've always been friends. But we're very close now."

However, as far as his relationship with Rihanna is concerned, 19-year-old Brown, who makes no apologies for being grown and sexy, tells Ebony magazine (June 2008 issue) he tries to stay away from having a girlfriend because his female fans want him to remain attainable. “I date sometimes. If I ever had a girlfriend, it’d always be a problem. I go on dates, talk to a couple chicks on the phone.” Brown and Rihanna have been the subject of dating rumors for sometime now however, Brown also insists they are just friends.
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TYLER PERRY SNAGS A SPOT ON TIME MAGAZINE'S 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE LIST; SALLI RICHARDSON & JUDGE MABLEAN EPHRIAM CAST IN 'MADEA GOES TO JAIL.'

Last month, I told you all Tyler Perry had been nominated to appear on Time magazine's list of the world's 100 most influential people. Well, with your votes, Perry made the list along with Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and singer Mariah Carey. Announced Thursday, the final cut includes nearly 30 celebrities whose appearance was based on votes at the magazine's Web site. Winfrey was cited alongside fellow "influential" entertainers Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt and Mia Farrow as “heroes and pioneers” for global goodwill.

In other Perry news, former Divorce Court Judge Mablean Ephriam and actresses Salli Richardson and Viola Davis have been added to Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail cast. Already cast in the film are Tyler Perry, Keisha Knight Pulliam, Derek Luke and David and Tamela Mann. The Lionsgate comedy centers on Madea (Perry), whose penchant for trouble-making lands her behind bars. She comes to the rescue of Candy (Pulliam), a fellow inmate preyed upon by a large woman named Big Sal. Luke is on track to play Joshua, an attorney who has a past with Candy. Viola plays Ellen, a social worker who helps Keisha's character, Candy. Richardson plays the DA of Atlanta and a friend of Derek Lukes'character. Judge Mablean, who made a short appearance in Tyler Perry's Diary of a Mad Black Woman as well as in Madea's Family Reunion, will be reprising her role as a judge in the film.

Filming is set to begin in mid-May in Atlanta, with a tentative early 2009 release planned

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