Laurence Fishburne returns to television. Laurence Fishburne is set to make his first return to the cast of a TV series since the late-1980s when he played Cowboy Curtis on the children’s show “Pee Wee’s Playhouse.” Fishburne will portray a forensic scientist on “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.” Calling the new gig a “wonderful collaboration,” Fishburne is set to appear in the show’s 10th season that begins in October. Show executive producers Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar said in a joint statement: “Without hesitation, we said (to CBS bosses) ‘Laurence Fishburne.’ He is a powerful and intense actor, with an incredible range.” Fishburne is best known for his film roles as Morpheus in The Matrix and Furious Styles from Boyz N the Hood.

Battery Records has urban focus. A new Sony music company will revive the practice of artist development, AllHipHop.com reports. Battery Records is to oversee early development among performers on the rosters of RCA and Zomba. “We started operation back in mid-June, so it’s a brand new division,” head man Neil Levine tells All Hip Hop. “It’s really an incubator imprint label. Our main focus is really taking developing artists that are signed to our frontline labels.” Artist development has been used throughout the recording industry to groom new label recruits in career longevity and preparation.

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