Taking Names

Ashanti the ingrate?

R&B singer Ashanti was accused in a Manhattan civil court of abandoning her first music producer when he asked for money after she became commercially successful, a claim she denied on the witness stand, Associated Press reports.

Genard Parker was an established music producer when Ashanti, then 16, approached him in 1996 for help, his lawyer, Jasmine Khalili, said.

She said Mr. Parker helped Ashanti in his Bronx home-based studio for eight months when she was “just another teenage girl with a nice voice.”

Ashanti, who then lived in Glen Cove on Long Island, eventually signed with a record company, and Mr. Parker released her from his contract with the understanding that he could produce two songs on her first album and receive a $50,000 advance plus royalties, Miss Khalili said.

Two successful albums that sold more than 6 million copies mean Ashanti owes Mr. Parker millions of dollars in royalties, the lawyer said.

“She has never paid him, and, just as importantly, she has never thanked him,” Miss Khalili said.

Now it’s official

Marin Alsop was appointed music director of the Baltimore Symphony yesterday, overcoming vigorous dissent by its musicians and becoming the first woman to head a major American orchestra.

The appointment was made at a meeting of the board of directors. Financial terms weren’t announced. After the meeting, board members declined to comment.

Miss Alsop, a 48-year-old American who is principal conductor at the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra in Britain, will succeed Yuri Temirkanov, who is stepping down at the end of next season.

On Friday, Miss Alsop said she expected the board to approve her appointment, but orchestra musicians issued a strongly worded statement that said a “vast majority” believed the selection was premature.

Jane Marvine, an English horn player, said the seven musicians on the 21-member search committee “were unanimous that the search process should continue.”

Change of heart, mouth

After publicly berating Madonna, Victoria Beckham (aka Posh Spice) and George Michael — accusing the lot of everything from lip-syncing to emotional disturbance — Elton John has vowed to zip his lip.

London’s Sun newspaper quotes Mr. John as saying he and Madonna are still not on speaking terms: “I haven’t spoken to her. She’s been in Kaballah meetings ever since.

“I don’t think I will ever be forgiven for that one. I had a hell of a time last year, and this is the end of it,” he said.

“I will keep my mouth shut now,” he added.

Uncle Sam’s revenge

Papa was a rolling stone, and now he’s under house arrest.

Motown Records producer Norman Whitfield, who co-wrote R&B classics such as “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and “Papa Was a Rolling Stone,” was sentenced this week to six months of home detention for failure to file U.S. income tax returns, Reuters News Agency reports.

Mr. Whitfield, 65, admitted in a guilty plea in January that he had deliberately neglected to report to the Internal Revenue Service more than $4 million in songwriting royalties he earned from 1995 through 1999. He originally was charged with five counts of willful failure to file an income tax return, a misdemeanor that carries up to a year in prison.

However, Mr. Whitfield pleaded guilty to a single count under an agreement with federal prosecutors and made restitution on the $956,000 in taxes he owed the government, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Kwan.

U.S. District Judge Stephen Wilson agreed to allow Mr. Whitfield to serve his six months at home, rather than in prison, after doctors confirmed that Mr. Whitfield suffered from a kidney ailment and other health problems, Mr. Kwan said.

Compiled by Scott Galupo from Web and wire reports.