Taco Bell calls 50 Cent lawsuit publicity stunt. The Taco Bell restaurant chain says rapper 50 Cent’s $4 million trademark infringement lawsuit is just Fiddy’s attempt to draw attention to himself. And while it’s true that Fiddy’s known for drawing attention to himself, the company’s recent court filing would have a judge believe the rapper’s music, not his claim against them, should be the issue. Taco Bell’s lawyers say 50’s work “falls in the subgenre of hip hop music known as ‘gangsta rap,’ a style associated with urban street gangs and characterized by violent, tough-talking braggadocio.” The rapper objected to a campaign the restaurant launched this summer, linking him to a promo that asked him to change his name to the restaurant prices of 79, 89 or 99 Cent. Taco Bell lawyers argue that Fif took them to court only to “burnish his gangsta rapper persona.” Guess nothing says “gangsta” like a civil action.

Singer to defend himself against lawsuit. Having previously said he’s too ill to travel, Michael Jackson reportedly plans to testify in a London courtroom Monday. The singer faces a $7 million lawsuit from a Middle Eastern sheikh who says Jackson backed out of a music and book deal. Among the sheikh’s claims are that Jackson never showed for a recording session on a song that was intended to raise cash for New Orleans hurricane survivors in 2005. Jackson’s last high-profile court appearance was during his criminal child sexual abuse trial, where he was acquitted.