Kanye West isn't the only rap mogul vying for street cred with indie kids by name-dropping blog-o-bands. In fact, Sean "Diddy" Combs upped the ante by signing Arctic Monkeys to his Bad Boy label. "I am probably the biggest Arctic Monkeys fan," insists Diddy.

"I was smelling my breath one day and I was like, 'This would make a great fragrance.'" --Diddy

The mogul revealed the inspiration behind his new fragrance, I Am King. He clarified that he was chewing Blackberry Bubble Yum at the time, but still.

To hype his first book, '21 Nights,' which is expected this fall, Prince gave a private concert for booksellers and personal friends last Friday night. Held in the backyard of his L.A. area home, the gig -- attended by P. Diddy, Dr. Phil, Sylvester Stallone and Olivia Newton-John -- was held in tandem with BookExpo, an annual publishing industry convention.

Free to those with invitations, Prince took the stage adjacent to his swimming pool at 1:45 a.m. Saturday morning, performing covers by the likes of the Beatles, Sly and the Family Stone and Tommy James and the Shondells. The guitar-slinging Purple One reportedly warmed his hands under a heat lamp.

The book -- slated to retail for $50 -- will drop via Atria in September. A pictorial story of the performer's 21 consecutive sold-out 2007 London gigs, the project promises onstage and backstage photos, poetry and lyrics by Prince, plus a CD of after-show jam sessions called 'Indigo Nights'.

"I'm gonna go down in history as being one of the best music men and businessmen in entertainment ... The people that I'm going to be greater than are Steven Spielberg, David Geffen and Clive Davis."
-- Diddy

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• Kanye West announced that he's hitting the road with Lupe Fiasco, N.E.R.D. and Rihanna on the 'Glow in the Dark' tour. The rapper has also previewed what's to come from N.E.R.D. -- Neptunes' producer Pharrell Williams side project -- with a recent post featuring new music from the outfit.
  

• Madonna has topped Forbes.com's list of the top 20 'Cash Queens of Music,' having earned $72 million between June 2006 and June 2007. Barbra Streisand lands at No. 2 with $60 million, and Celine Dion ranks third with $45 million.
  

• Neil Diamond will play this year's Glastonbury Festival, which is set to take place June 27-29. The veteran singer-songwriter will take the stage on the Sunday, the 29th, at Worthy Farm.

• Diddy has named a former intern the president of his record company, Bad Boy. Harve Pierre started his career at the label in 1993. "Harve's promotion to president is well-deserved," Diddy said. "He has been with Bad Boy since the beginning and has worked hard to learn all aspects of the business." (Courtesy of WENN)
  

• Beyonce, Rihanna, Mary J. Blige, Foo Fighters and Carrie Underwood are among the acts slated to perform at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards, which will be held at Los Angeles' Staples Center on February 10.

• Diddy has denied reports that he's changing his name (again) to Sean John -- the name of his clothing and cologne line. "Recent reports of a name change are totally false, he is still Diddy," his representative told MTV.com. "He is currently in 'Sean John' mode as the upcoming Sean John fashion show is scheduled for February 8 in New York." (Courtesy of WENN)
  

• El Perro Del Mar will release a new album, 'From the Valley to the Stars,' on April 22. The effort is the follow-up to her critically-acclaimed self-titled debut.

• St. Vincent will kick off a U.S. tour in support of her debut album, 'Marry Me,' on February 15 in Los Angeles. The brief jaunt, which will feature her full band, is set to wrap in Boston on March 1.

• Super Furry Animals are allowing fans to vote for their favorite songs and decide the band's setlist for the rockers' upcoming tour in support of their latest album, 'Hey Venus.' Fans can cast their votes at www.superfurry.com. (Courtesy of WENN)
  

For the next 39-ish weeks, we at Spinner will be following this year's presidential race with one question in mind: Who's manning up in music? They have the power to make thousands sport ridiculous haircuts and disconcertingly tight trousers, so who's going to use that power to influence the political landscape?

2004 saw increased involvement from the music community when Diddy (We're sorry. We mean, Sean John) and countless others implored America's youth to Vote or Die. And the indie rock contingent showed promise when Conor Oberst hit the road with Bruce Springsteen and R.E.M. as part of MoveOn.org's Vote for a Change initiative.

So, who's going to bat in '08? We'll answer this burning question each week with a quick roundup of rock politics in the Campaignwatch.