Eminem CD out Dec. 21

Music

Whitney Houston was under water and apparently unconscious when she was found in a hotel bathtub, Beverly Hills police said Monday.Monday

Noted, but not awarded

Since its beginnings in the 1970s, rap music has transformed from an underground, street-based sound to a definitive part of pop culture, transcending race and becoming one of the strongest – and most prolific – voices of today’s generation.Sunday

Freshcut

‘Old Ideas’ Leonard CohenThroughout his 45-year career, Leonard Cohen has walked a fine line between love, sex and religion, often embodying the trinity in the same song.Sunday

Eminem is rebooting plans for the successor to his first studio album in five years, “Relapse,” which took the Detroit rapper to the top of the sales chart in May.

He had announced his intention to release “Relapse 2” in December, but now comes word that on Dec. 21, he and label Interscope Records are putting out “Relapse: Refill,” an expanded version of “Relapse” that will include seven bonus tracks.

“Relapse 2” will drop in 2010 instead, The Associated Press said.

Eminem said on his Web site: “I got back in (the studio) with Dre and then a few more producers, including Just Blaze, and went in a completely different direction which made me start from scratch. The new tracks started to sound very different than the tracks I originally intended to be on ‘Relapse 2,’ but I still want the other stuff to be heard.”