U2 has offically hosted the most successful tour in music history, with its "360" show expected to gross more than $700 million by the time the tour ends on July 30 in New Brunswick, Canada, Billboard.com reported.

On Sunday, the sold-out show at Morumbi Stadium in Sao Paulo inched past the previous record holder – the Rolling Stones' two-year Bigger Bang tour, which grossed about $550 million from 2005 to 2007.

"These numbers are staggering, a fantastic result," tour producer Arthur Fogel told the website. "U2 has invented a new style of rock show and they continue to deliver their fans the best possible live experience."

U2 manager Paul McGuinness said the group was very proud to add this milestone to its long list of achievements. "To set it with a further 20-plus shows to go on the tour is kind of mind-blowing," he told Spinner.com. "It means that it's a record that will probably never be outstripped."

McGuinness also revealed to the website that the group and particularly Bono - who he described as a "closet General Patton" – mapped out a military-style approach to their worldwide travels. "We would talk about territories and conquering them," he said. "So for us, this is a real victory."

A number of top performing artists have been named as contenders for the judging spots on the upcoming music competition show, The X Factor.

Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie is the latest name to surface in a field that includes Gloria Estefan, Jessica Simpson and Mariah Carey for a judge's seat on the American Idol-style program, Reuters reports.
 

The TV talent show, which is the latest venture of music producer Simon Cowell, is scheduled to debut this fall on the Fox network. Cowell's former cast mate from American Idol, Paula Abdul, has also been named as a potential judge.

"We are still having nightly arguments with everyone, trying to get everyone to agree. If you asked everyone involved on this show who they would like on the panel, you would have 25 different opinions," Cowell told Reuters.

To date, only one judge - record executive Antonio "L.A." Reid, formerly the chairman of the Island Def Jam Music Group - has been signed for the three-person panel. Cowell may also become a judge, according to Entertainment Weekly.

The X Factor is modeled after its namesake and predecessor in the UK, which began in 2004. Contestants in the U.S. will be vying for a $5 million prize and a record contract.
 

Hip hop artist Nicki Minaj will be named the Breakthrough Artist of the Year when the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM) meets for its annual convention in May, according to Billboard.biz.

NARM, the trade association for professionals in all areas of the music industry, will meet in Los Angeles from May 10 to May 12. In addition to its awards dinner, the three-day event will feature an entertainment and technology law conference and a town hall meeting for talent managers.

Minaj will join a list of honorees that includes former Beach Boy Brian Wilson, accepting the Chairman's Award; songwriters Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, who are being given the Outstanding Achievement Award for Musical Collaboration; and recording artist Annie Lennox, who will be honored for her social activism with the Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award. The TV series American Idol will also be given an Outstanding Achievement Award for reaching its 10th season milestone, the website reports.

This year's music executive honorees will be John Marmaduke, president of Hastings Entertainment, who will be handed the Presidential Award for Sustained Executive Achievement, as well as Rachelle and Joe Friedman, founders of the New York superstore J&R Music & Computer World, who will be given the Independent Spirit Award.

Young rapper Jaden Smith is continuing to follow in his father's footsteps by co-starring for the second time with Will Smith in an upcoming movie, the Associated Press reports.

The film reunion will take place in a science fiction adventure directed and co-written by M. Night Shyamalan. The project, as yet untitled, will focus on the two struggling to survive when they crash on an uninhabited Earth 1,000 years in the future.

Will Smith, who began as a rapper before gaining wide recognition on the hit TV series The Prince of Bel-Aire, last starred opposite his son in The Pursuit of Happyness, a 2006 melodrama. Among his film hits was the blockbuster Independence Day.

As they did on their son's 2010 hit, "The Karate Kid," Will and Jada Pinkett Smith will be producers on the new movie.

According to MovieFone.com, which called the Smiths "box office royalty," Jaden Smith's 2010 remake of The Karate Kid earned $350 million worldwide. His father and mother, actress Jada Pinkett Smith, produced that film and will produce the new flick as well for Sony Pictures.

Country stars Miranda Lambert and Lady Antebellum were big winners at Sunday's Academy of Country Music (ACM) Awards, but it was Taylor Swift who won the fans' hearts.

Reuters reported that Swift took home the sought-after Entertainer of the Year award, which is determined by a vote of the public. It was an emotional victory for Swift, who had been nominated for a total of four awards, but didn't win in other categories.

"This is the first time that I've ever won this and I'm just losing my mind," said the young singer tearfully, the news services reported.

Miranda Lambert, who went into the show with seven nominations - more than any other artist - had been viewed as a favorite to win the entertainer of the year award. Instead, she won four awards for top female vocalist, as well as best single, song and video for The House That Built Me.

Best album and vocal group of the year went to country trio Lady Antebellum. For the fifth year in a row, Brad Paisley was named top male vocalist. Besides Swift, CBS News reported that The Band Perry was also a surprise winner for the new artist award.

Country singer Miranda Lambert decided 10 years ago that she wanted to be nominated for entertainer of the year by the Academy of Country Music, and she's met that goal.

Fans will find out if she takes it a step further and wins the trophy when the ACM awards show is broadcast at 8 p.m. Sunday on CBS. Lambert, whose been nominated for seven awards in all, will also perform on the show, Billboard.com reports.

"It's a little bit surreal because it's one of the things that I set as a goal for myself and here it is. I'm not sure I deserve to win this year, but I'm definitely glad to be in the category," she told the Hollywood Reporter.

Some of the milestones that Lambert reached recently include being named female vocalist of the year at last year's Country Music Association Awards and winning her first Grammy for best female country vocal performance for The House That Built Me.

Lambert's fiance Blake Shelton will co-host the 46th annual ACM awards with country legend Reba McEntire. "We always hope that one of us will get to hand the other one an award, which would be amazing," said Lambert.
 

Phish has confirmed it plans to host Super Ball IX in July, making it the ninth music fest the band has produced since it pioneered the trend of artist-staged festivals. The group's first gathering was the Clifford Ball in 1996 in Plattsburgh, New York.

"Sensational. Mind-blowing. Fantabulous. These are all words with the same amount of letters as Super Ball IX," states the band's website. "Super Ball IX will mark Phish's first-ever festival performance over July 4 weekend, and the first major music festival held at Watkins Glen [International] since 1973's legendary Summer Jam."

  The shows from July 1 to July 3 will mark the end of the band's summer tour, which starts Memorial Day weekend at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Bethel, New York.

Billboard.com reports that tickets for the three-day event go on sale on April 4. The $200 price includes admission and onsite camping.

"Like previous Phish festivals, the Super Ball IX will include numerous ancillary attractions and activities in addition to performances by the band," the website states.

Phish will hardly be alone on the band-sponsored festival schedule this year. Zac Brown, the Dave Matthews Band, the Roots and the Disco Biscuits' Camp Bisco all plan events this spring and summer.
 

Justin Bieber may have a chance to show film audiences he can do more than pack the seats for a concert film.

The tween star is in talks for a role in comic actor Ashton Kutcher's next film, What Would Kenny Do? Kutcher is playing the adult version of Bieber's 17-year-old character.

"It's a bit more than an 'eyeing' situation for the Biebs - the project has been developed for months with Bieber both in mind and on board," according to the Los Angeles Times. "Originally the goal was to shoot this year, but [Bieber's] touring obligations could push it to 2012."

Originally fashioned as an R-rated comedy, the film has had a number of writers on board and is now awaiting a new writer and director, the newspaper reports. The R-rated components have reportedly been toned down and the current script has changed Kutcher from a hologram version of older Kenny to one who goes back in time to help Bieber's awkward, younger self through the angst of teen dilemmas.

The film is a Sony project being produced by Kutcher's Katalyst Entertainment and Will Smith’s Overbrook Entertainment, the Times reported.

For the first time in more than six years, an album has yielded four number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Billboard.com reported that Katy Perry's Teenage Dream collection has earned the distinction with her latest song, E.T., featuring Kanye West. Previously, Perry's hits - California Gurls with Snoop Dogg, Firework and Teenage Dream - all made it to the top of the chart.

The last time so many hits came from one album was in 2004 when Usher released Confessions.
 

"Teenage Dream is just the ninth album to produce four number ones in the Hot 100's 52-year history," the website reported. "It's the first by a solo female since Mariah Carey's eponymous debut set in 1990-91."

The E.T. video is expected to premiere today on MTV.com and VEVO.

"I am so thrilled that E.T. has landed at number one, Perry told Billboard. "I want to thank all the fans who contributed to this amazing feat and radio, which has been an essential part of my continued existence. I truly appreciate all the support of my creative twists and turns."
 

Ryan Seacrest's syndicated radio show on Wednesday offered Jennifer Lopez fans a snippet of her new single, I'm Into You, that features a surprise collaboration with rapper Lil Wayne.

According to Billboard.com, Lopez's turn as Seacrest's guest revealed that the latest single from her upcoming album Love? will be "unlocked" in its entirety once enough fans hit the "like" button on Lopez's Facebook page. Apple's iTunes expects to release the track on Tuesday.

"Lopez collaborated with Pitbull for her comeback dance anthem On the Floor and her follow-up single will continue a trend of linking up with chart-topping MCs," stated MTV.com. The collection's first single, On the Floor, is still holding its own on Billboard's Hot 100.

Lil Wayne - aka Weezy - opens the new track with a brief verse over a mid-tempo beat. "Weezy kicks off the song with off-the-cuff lines like 'You're way too fly, I could be your jet fuel,' in a verse that's more sedated than Pitbull's guest spot on On the Floor," Billboard.com reported.

Other songs scheduled for release from the album are Papi on April 13 and Love? on April 20. Lopez is also gearing up for a performance on American Idol on May 5, followed by KIIS-FM's annual Wango Tango show on May 14.