As previously reported, Jam Master Jay, a founding member of the pioneering rap trio Run-D.M.C., was shot and killed last night (Oct. 30) at his recording studio in the Jamaica section of Queens, near the New York neighborhood where he grew up. Two men were buzzed into the second-floor studio shortly before shots were fired at 7:30 p.m., police said. As of early this morning, no arrests had yet been made.

The 37-year-old disc jockey, whose real name was Jason Mizell, was shot once in the head in the studio’s lounge and died at the scene, said Detective Robert Price, a police spokesperson. Urieco Rincon, 25, who is not a member of Run-D.M.C., was shot in the leg, police said. About five other people in the studio at the time were not hurt. “Rest In Peace Jam Master,” Run-D.M.C.’s official Web site reads, underneath a picture of Mizell. The site also features a tribute page for fans to post their thoughts in the wake of the tragedy.

Mizell served as the platinum-selling group’s DJ, providing background for singers Joseph Simmons, better known as Run, and Darryl McDaniels, better known as D.M.C. The group is widely credited with helping bring hip-hop into the mainstream, thanks to a smash collaboration with Aerosmith on the 1980s standard “Walk This Way,” and earlier hits “My Adidas” and “It’s Tricky.”

Mizell’s friends and fans gathered near the studio, located above a restaurant and a check-cashing business. The crowd included many people from the Hollis section of Queens, where the members of Run DMC grew up. “They’re the best. They’re the pioneers in hip-hop,” said Arlene Clark, 39, who grew up in the same neighborhood. “They took it to the highest level it could go.”

Chuck D, the founder of the hip-hop group Public Enemy, blamed record companies and the advertising industry for perpetuating “a climate of violence” in the rap industry. “When it comes to us, we’re disposable commodities,” he said. Doctor Dre, a New York radio station DJ who had been friends with Mizell since the mid-1980s, said, “This is not a person who went out looking for trouble… He’s known as a person that builds, that creates and is trying to make the right things happen.”

Leslie Bell, 33, said the band members often let local musicians record for free at the studio, and had remained in Queens to give back to the community. “He is one great man,” said Bell. “As they say, the good always die young.”

A spokesperson said Mizell and McDaniels had planned to perform in Washington, D.C., tonight at a Washington Wizards basketball game. Mizell had performed on Tuesday in Alabama, she said. Mizell was married and had three children, according to the spokesperson.

Earlier this year, Run-D.M.C. released its “Greatest Hits” album via Arista. The set debuted at No. 56 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Last year, the act produced “Crown Royal,” breaking an eight-year studio silence. That set debuted at No. 22 on the tally.

An eleventh hour reprieve from the recording industry’s royalty collection agency has given new life to “smaller” Internet broadcasters facing an October 20 deadline for the payment of the controversial CARP rate structure.

SoundExchange, the RIAA agency mandated to recoup royalty payments from Web broadcasts, granted the last-minute reprieve to the those webcasters that qualified for the ‘Small Webcaster Amendments Act of 2002,’ which narrowly missed a Senate vote late last week. SoundExchange posted a temporary payment plan on its Web site Monday which sets the rate for eligible webcasters at the $500 minimum annual fee proposed in HR 5469, the measure that was put before Congress.

The reprieve means small Webcasters would now pay a flat rate of $500 for every year they have been in business since 1998, or a maximum of $2,500. The SoundExchange reprieve does not extend to larger commercial webcasters like Yahoo! (Quote, Company Info), America Online (Quote, Company Info) or Microsoft’s (Quote, Company Info) MSN Network.

Executive Director of SoundExchange John Simson said the reprieve would remain in effect “until this Congress has had the opportunity to act on the pending legislation.”

“Given the unfortunate fact that a lone Senator apparently held up the small webcasters’ bill, we felt it appropriate to offer this proposal. We hope that this unexpected development will be soon resolved by the Senate. From the beginning, we have wanted to work with webcasters, and this temporary payment policy is an another example of our commitment to the webcasting industry,” Simson said.

The RIAA/SoundExchange move comes after a flurry of activity at the Congressional level to pass new laws that would have fixed the royalty rate at a percentage of revenues but the Bill never reached the Senate floor for a vote.

Paul Maloney, who has been tracking the royalty payment issue for the RAIN newsletter, applauded the SoundExchange reprieve, noting that it “allows for further negotiations for a more reasonable deal that can benefit webcasters, labels, artists, and listeners alike.”

“In fact, it is very nearly what we had hoped for upon learning that the (HR 5469) bill would not pass the Senate in this session,” Maloney said.

“It’s not clear how long this temporary measure is to stay in effect, but SoundExchange’s site refers to legislation in “this Congress,” which ends on the last day of this year,” Maloney added. “The SoundExchange board is made up of representatives of both camps, so perhaps the measure truly represents the desires of those who stand to collect the fees. That, in and of itself, represents a great step forward,” he said.

Separately, the U.S Copyright Office has ruled against a motion from webcaster Live365.com seeking a stay on the decision by the Library of Congress on royalties. The Live365 motion had argued that the royalty fee structure was frustrating “the Congressional intent in creating the compulsory license, and infringed upon the First Amendment rights of smaller webcasters.”

Vinyl Single Covers Archive - details a collection of vinyl single covers from the 50’s to the 90’s

LONDON - Pop star Robbie Williams said he has signed a new deal with record label EMI that makes him “rich beyond my wildest dreams.” Williams would not comment on a report in Britain’s Sun tabloid that the multialbum contract was worth $125 million. The 28-year-old performer said Wednesday that: “My mom said it would be really uncouth of me to talk about money – but I’m rich beyond my wildest dreams.” EMI spokeswoman Cathy Cremer said the reported figure was “complete and total speculation.” Asked by reporters what he planned to do with the cash, Williams replied, “I’m going to count it all.” Williams, at the offices of his management company, was joined by Tony Wadsworth, head of EMI in Britain.

“We have heard the new album Escapology and it is undoubtedly his best album yet,” Wadsworth said.

Williams, who first found fame with boy band Take That, has sold nearly 10 million albums in Britain and has had a series of No.1 hits, including “Millennium,” “She’s the One” and “Rock DJ.” He has won 13 Brit Awards, including nine as a solo artist, but has yet to make much impact in the United States.

A previous EMI big-money deal proved costly. EMI signed Mariah Carey to its Virgin label in 2001 in a much-hyped deal reported to be worth as much as US$100 million. The company dropped her in January, with a US$28-million payout, after her first disc for the label Glitter suffered embarrassing sales. AP