Chris Brown and Jill Scott will take the stage at this month’s BET Awards, while R&B icon Patti LaBelle is up for the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award. Chris and Jill join the previously announced Alicia Keys as performers for this year’s BET Awards show in Los Angeles, show organizers said Tuesday. Brown leads the field with nominations in six categories. Scott, an R&B superstar, poet, and actress, is set to release her fifth studio album Light of the Sun later this month.

The 2011 BET Awards, hosted by comedian Kevin Hart, will air live from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on June 26.

Has a feud between neo-soul superstars Maxwell, Jill Scott, and Erykah Badu put the kibosh on the remainder of the crooner’s North American tour?

Word on the Curb has it that Maxwell has scrapped the rest of his concerts over a feud with tour mates Jill and Erykah, who have both consistently run overtime in their opening sets for the “Pretty Wings” star. Celebrity snitches tell FreddyO.com that all of Maxwell’s concerts after the NYC stop on June 26 have been postponed or cancelled.

We’ll keep you posted….

“My new friend is handsome, African-American, intelligent and seemingly wealthy. He is an athlete, loves his momma, and is happily married to a White woman. I admit when I saw his wedding ring, I privately hoped. But something in me just knew he didn’t marry a sister. Although my guess hit the mark, when my friend told me his wife was indeed Caucasian, I felt my spirit…wince….” Jill writes in an essay featured in the new issue of Essence Magazine.

Obviously, that didn’t go over so well with some folks, while others seemed to be in complete agreement:

-“Ok, how does she feel about black men and ASIAN women? No history there to rationalize. Is that relationship OK with Ms. Scott? This interview made me lose all respect for her,” Essence reader Edna writes.

-“Black women who hate on black men for dating outside their race are just projecting their own insecurities onto others. I’m a white woman in a long-term relationship with a black man. We get hated on all the time by black women. It used to bother me, but I can’t go through life being bothered by insecure people anymore. My boyfriend and I love each other very deeply and look forward to having children together. I’m looking forward to raising beautiful children with him and teaching them to love themselves. I’m positive I’ll also have to teach them to not let darker-skinned black women get to them……because we all know that black women don’t just have a problem with white women…they have a problem with anyone lighter than them…..” another poster writes.

-“When I hear the phrase beige is the new black I wince….” says another

-“I can admit that I prefer not to see black men with white women, whether they are successful or not. As black women, we have had to endure criticism and swallow to much of our pride in comparison to white women. I have seen some handsome white men, but there is nothing better than that sexy black men – attitude, strength, and personality. Furthermore, I think black men should consider some of the things Jill Scott mentioned; all that black women have been through, makes it easier for us to relate and understand each other– a feeling I believe the white woman will never experience…..” LineofColor adds.

-“The funniest thing about this is that you are all judging white women with broad overgeneralizations that would be considered ‘racist’ when applied to you. Want to know why so many educated ‘in order’ black men go to white women? Because those decent black men remember growing up being viewed as ‘scrubs’ or ‘lames’ by black women, who dont give you the time of day unless you are ghetto rich or play the role of some ignorant thug….” Cotton says.

-“I just don’t understand why people are trying to act like Jill Scott is racist. As stated, she said what people have been thinking for quite sometime. Black men don’t understand the plight of the Black woman, and go out with whomever they please. If it were that easy for us, some may be doing the same thing. From my experience, our men go out and get other women once they’ve attained their success but forget about the Black women who were there with them through their struggles….”

In an effort to decry allegations of racism now being hurled at her, the Why Did I Get Married Too star appeared on CNN on Friday to explain that she has no “problem” with interracial dating, but noted that the history of America conditions Black women to feel “left alone” when Brothas chose to “date outside.” Jill hopes that her essay will help spark a healthy debate about interracial dating in the Black community.

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Quinton Aaron — who portrayed Baltimore Ravens rookie offensive lineman Michael Oher in the family-friendly blockbuster The Blind Side — will join Grammy winner Jill Scott on an upcoming episode of Law & Order: SVU. On the episode, which is scheduled to air March 24, Scott portrays a woman in charge of caring for her niece, a former singer stricken with MS who is a victim of rape. Quinton appears as Jill’s onscreen son. This will be Quinton’s third appearance in the long-running L&O franchise. In 2007, he appeared in two separate Law & Order episodes, playing a bouncer and a bodyguard. The gigs were the first TV roles of his career.

“Hidden Beach is shocked by her decision not only because Scott has apparently chosen to leave the Hidden Beach family, but also because Scott is contractually required to deliver three more albums to Hidden Beach,” the complaint reads.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday, claims Hidden Beach and its founder, Steve McKeever, helped launch Jill’s career, turning her from a spoken word poet into a Grammy-winning singer-songwriter before the star ended their decade-long partnership in August.

The singer-turned-screen star will make her first foray into the world of animation in the collaboration between Marvel and BET.

Scott will lend her voice to Storm – a role portrayed by Halle Berry in Hollywood’s X-Men trilogy – starring alongside.

Black Panther — featuring Djimon Hounsou, Kerry Washington and Alfre Woodard — will debut later this year.

“It’s a blessing for African Americans and minorities to have a Super Hero they can identify with,” said Hounsou. “While the Black Panther is a powerful force for good, he is also a respected world leader who takes pride in his African heritage. He embodies the past and future of his culture, demonstrating the endless possibilities of an Africa that is truly free.”

Jill Scott is officially a single mom.

The award-winning neo-soul queen -who is up for Best Actress Emmy for her role as Precious in HBO’s critically acclaimed series, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency — has revealed that she has separated from her musician fiance Lil John Roberts, just two months after the birth of their son.

In an interview with Essence Magazine, Jill opens up about raising the couple’s 2-month-old son, Jett Hamilton, while juggling a career in film and television.

“….John and I are no longer together. When you have a baby you’re dealing with a lot of emotions and I don’t know how much of it had to do with us breaking up, but it happens,” Jill explains. “We definitely love our son and we are co-parenting and working on being friends. It is what it is. I have a lot of support, so I want for nothing as far as that’s concerned. I know some might criticize me or the fact that my son is being raised in a single-parent home, but I wasn’t raised in a two-parent home and I had a good relationship with my dad. I have hopes for him and I’m sure his father will do his part as well.”

She added, “My heart and prayers go out to all single moms because it’s tough, and I can’t imagine any teenager dealing with a baby and all those hormones raging. I can afford to have this child at 37 because I have a support system and I can talk to my girls, Mo’Nique and Erykah [Badu], but I don’t understand how any mother does it alone. I don’t believe I suffered from postpartum because I didn’t feel depressed, but it was jarring and I can understand now how some mothers lose it. What he’s taught me is that I thought I was grown and patient but I was neither until now. Even when I hold him and dance with him to his favorite song, Marvin Gaye’s “Come Live With Me,” and he holds me tighter and then relaxes, I realize that I never knew unconditional love like this before, and I’m looking forward to watching and helping him grow.”

Jill Scott is celebrating the arrival of motherhood.

The Grammy-winning neo-soul songstress and her fiance, drummer Lil’ John Roberts, welcomed a baby boy this week.

The star of HBO’s new drama, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, gave birth to Jett Hamilton Roberts –who weighed in at 7 lbs, 8 oz–at 4:20 p.m. on April 20, according to People.com.

Both mom and baby are doing fine.

Congrats to Jill!

Jill Scott and her drummer fiance, Lil’ John Roberts, are expecting their her first child.

The three-time Grammy Award-winning R&B singer and actress revealed the news to reporters while promoting her new HBO series The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency at the Television Critics Association conference in Los Angeles on Friday.

Jill says she discovered that she was pregnant just before leaving for Botswana where she filmed the show.

She is due April 25.

“The first trimester I spent in Botswana. That was one of the biggest challenges of my life. First trimester! You’re sick every morning. It was seven hours time difference, the heat, the bugs, the 14 hour days.”

“My doctors gave me a clean bill of health and said you can do this, so I did it.”