The Sunday-best hat that has been Photoshopped off of a singer’s head and onto such a wide variety of images as O.J. Simpson and even the plane that recently landed in the Hudson River could become an American artifact. Aretha Franklin’s gray lid with the enormous bow, which she wore while singing at President Barack Obama’s inauguration, may be donated to the Smithsonian Institute museum. Franklin, who had the hat custom-made, says it would be hard to part with the hat, but she’s considering Smithsonian’s request that she give it up.

 Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) who worked feverishly to help get Barack Obama elected, collapsed Tuesday during the inauguration lunch in Washington, D.C. Authorities at the Washington Hospital Center said in a statement that the senator had suffered from fatigue but was recovering. “After testing, we believe the incident was brought on by simple fatigue,” Dr. Edward Aulisi. “Sen. Kennedy is awake, talking with family and friends, and feeling well.” President Obama expressed concern over Kennedy, who was diagnosed last year with a cancerous brain tumor. Kennedy was carried away in a stretcher after experiencing convulsions, according to a congressional aide. The president went over immediately. The lights went down, just to reduce the heat, I think,” said Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.V.). During the lunch, Obama described Kennedyas “a warrior for justice,” adding, “I would be lying to you if I did not say that right now a part of me is with him, and I think that’s true for all of us.”

Hundreds of thousands of people from every corner of the United States crammed onto the grounds of the National Mall Sunday, getting the opportunity to take in a concert of historic proportions. On hand to offer up songs of hope and encouragement to President-elect Barack Obama and his family were the biggest names in music – Beyoncé, Bono, Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen and Shakira, to name a few. There were mass choirs, and instrumentalists and inspirational speeches to mark the opening inauguration ceremonies of America’s 44th president, the nation’s first African-American commander in chief. “What gives me the greatest hope of all is not the stone and marble that surrounds us today, but what fills the spaces in between,” Obama said. “It is you, Americans of every race and region and station who came here because you believe in what this country can be and because you want to help us get there. . . . And as I prepare to assume the presidency, yours are the voices I will take with me every day I walk into that Oval Office.” Although U.S. Park Police and the National Park Service have shunned giving estimates about crowd size – since they were blasted for what appeared to be a major undercount at the Million Man March in 1995 – a senior security official told CNN that there were at least 300,000 people.

 Resonates in Motherland
On Election Day, thousands of miles away in Kenya, a group of international visitors vacationing at a coastal resort put their holiday plans on hold to watch and wait for election results.  The same may happen on Tuesday when President-elect Barack Obama is sworn in as the 44th president.

Obama Says the Color of Money is Green
President-elect Barack Obama, still glowing from the vote of confidence he got from Congress on Thursday, made it clear that he’d be working overtime to get America’s feeble economy back on the right track.

Prez-elect’s train leaves station this morning. The road to the White House for Barack Obama is actually a commuter train rail that he’s riding today from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C. The specially reserved Amtrak car will carry America’s incoming 44^th president, the vice president and 40 everyday citizens for the 135-mile stretch across three states, stopping in Wilmington and Baltimore along the way. Obama’s guests aboard the train include social workers, an Iraq war vet and a factory worker who once took her sex discrimination suit to the Supreme Court, saying she wasn’t paid the same as men. While the trip is Obama’s last junket to mingle with the public discussing the nation’s challenges before he takes office, some suggest he may be tempting fate. The slow-moving train and its publicized route make Obama an easy target, say critics of the tour. But Secret Service officials counter that appropriate measures, such as preventing ships from traveling rivers the train will pass, were taken. In fact, ground, air and water security is all in place, they say. Following the Philadelphia departure, Obama’s train heads to a public event at the Wilmington train station, and then to a 1 p.m. rally at Baltimore’s War Memorial Plaza. Once in Washington, Obama will move into the Blair House, a quarters for incoming presidents and dignitaries, where he’ll await inauguration next week.

Aretha Franklin helps choir reach D.C. A choir whose performance impressed President-elect Barack Obama during his campaign has begun the journey to his inauguration. Students at Southfield High School will send their voices soaring at the nation’s capital after soul legend Aretha Franklin and the Detroit restaurant Seldom Blues chipped in so the youth could board a D.C.-bound bus. Obama heard the Southfield High choir and invited them to perform for him, but the students initially had trouble raising cash to cover the trip. After receiving the Queen of Soul’s support, the youth boarded the bus and left Michigan early Friday morning.

Court: Prince Stole His Hit
An Italian court has ruled that Prince stole his 1994 hit, “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World,” from two Italian writers. The Roman Court of Appeals agreed that Prince borrowed heavily from “Takin’ Me to Paradise,” which was written by Bruno Bergonzi and Michele Vicino, Billboard reports.  The court ruled that Prince can no longer distribute the song in Italy. In addition, he may have to pay royalties to Bergonzi and Vicino and their publishers that he has collected to date. That will be determined later, if another hearing confirms the song was plagiarized. “Our song was first released in 1983, at the height of the Italian dance boom and it appeared on assorted compilations that were distributed internationally,” Bergonzi told Billboard.com. “When we first heard Prince’s song we immediately took action, but this case has been dragging on for 15 years and it isn’t over yet, such is the slowness of the Italian legal system. We only decided to go public with our story now.”   

  
Inauguration List is Indeed A-List
The performance list for President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration has blown up to include an eclectic mix of mega-stars – from the biggest names in hip hop to legends of bebop. Among those participating in the official kickoff at the Lincoln Memorial on Jan. 18 are R&B stars Beyoncé, John Legend, Mary J. Blige and Usher; jazz legend Herbie Hancock; soul-stirrer Stevie Wonder; and hip-hopper will.i.am; rocker Bruce Springsteen; and country-western crooner Garth Brooks. Read more here.

Hudson Won’t Sing at Obama Bash, Rep Says
It looks like the Grammy-Award-winning singer and actress Jennifer Hudson won’t be singing the National Anthem after all at the presidential inauguration later this month.  Read more.

Oakland Leaders Ain’t Digging the Hughes Bros.
Oakland City officials aren’t too happy with the Hughes Brothers and their latest project, “Gentlemen of Leisure,” which they say not only glorifies the life of a pimp but casts their city in a negative light. The new HBO drama is to be shot in the California Bay-Area community, but the Oakland City Council is debating whether it should approve a permit for the production, The San Francisco Chronicle reports. Written by Evan Reilly, the series puts a spotlight on hustlers, pimps, violence and drug culture. It’s exactly the type of image that runs counter to the one being pushed by Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums, a former longtime member of Congress. But the Hughes Brothers contend that folks have the wrong idea about his film. It could actually benefit the city, they say, pointing to “The Wire” and what they believe that series had done to paint an honest portrait of Baltimore. “It’s The Wire meets The Sopranos set in Oakland in a crime element never used before,” Allen Hughes told The San Francisco Chronicle. “It’s not just about pimps and prostitutes, but also about the history of a city that never got its due. Like Detroit or Miami and a lot of other cities, Oakland is steeped in heavy street industry, in rackets. I’m just going to say it: Oakland is a pimpin’ town. It’s flourished there. And whenever and wherever street life is celebrated, the city gets a shout out.”

Jay-Z Announces Inauguration Concert
Jay-Z will be performing on January 19th at The Warner Theater in Washington D.C. to help usher in Barack Obama as president of the United States. Read on.

NYE With Jay-Z & Beyoncé
Celebrities gather at the New Year Eve celebration in St. Barts. Can you spot the superstars?

As security officials work overtime to get the nation’s capital ready for the biggest inauguration bash in U.S. history, they say that the most daunting challenge is preparing for the unexpected. Of course the Secret Service, which is steering the security plan – with the involvement of Park Police, National Guardsmen and a humongous force of 57 federal and local agencies – is focusing on such issues as bomb threats, civil disturbances, safe airspace, and the likelihood of foreign terrorism and local loonies not too pleased with the thought of an African-American president. Read what else officials had to say here.