19 Entertainment/Jive Records artist, Jordin Sparks, who recently performed the national anthem to an audience of nearly 100 million viewers at Super Bowl XLII, announces that she will be the opening act on the upcoming and highly anticipated Alicia Keys "As I Am" tour. The 18-year old star, who just won the Outstanding New Artist award at the 39th NAACP Image Awards, will help kick-off the tour on April 19th in Hampton, VA.

Since the release of her critically-acclaimed eponymous debut, Jordin's
first single, "Tattoo," shot up the charts and has resided in the Top 10 of Billboard's Pop 100 Airplay singles chart for close to two months; currently the single is holding on to the #7 slot for it's second week in a row. Her second single "No Air" a smash duet with label mate Chris Brown is getting major radio support across the country and is already in the Top 20 on Billboard's Pop 100, Pop 100 Airplay and Hot Digital singles charts. The video for "No Air" recently wrapped and was shot by famed director Chris Robinson.

In support of her self-titled debut Jordin will open for Alicia Keys through-out the entire 30-date tour, which is scheduled to wrap in New York on June 18th.

On-sale dates will be announced locally in each market.

Currently, Jordin Sparks is scheduled to perform at the upcoming NBA All-Star Game on February 15th.

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Some of New Orleans' most famed musicians -- Harry Connick Jr., Branford Marsalis, Allen Toussaint Dr. John and Art Neville -- are slated to perform at this weekend's NBA All-Star game.

The game is being held Sunday at the New Orleans Arena, but special events -- such as performances by pianist Dr. John and Cajun fiddler Amanda Shaw -- will be held in the two days leading up to the game. Shaw performs Friday, and Dr. John on Saturday.

Dr. John will also perform Sunday during the All-Star game halftime show with Connick, Toussaint, Neville and others. Marsalis is slated to perform in a pre-game show with Rebirth Brass Band.

"American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks, who performed the national anthem at this year's Super Bowl, will sing the title track "Tattoo" from her self-titled debut album during halftime of an NBA rookie game Friday.

The performances are scheduled to air nightly Friday through Sunday on TNT at 7 p.m.

Other New Orleans musicians slated to perform over the weekend include Ivan Neville, Ellis Marsalis, Kermit Ruffins, Trombone Shorty, Jonathan Baptiste, Davell Crawford, Stephanie Jordan, and Christian Scott.

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Jordin Sparks didn't just get designer clothes when she went to the Grammys' official gifting suite - she also found a musical partner.

The "American Idol" champ performed an impromptu duet with Grammy-nominated R&B singer Tank on Friday while the pair took a break from selecting potential outfits at the Grammy Style Studio.

"He's so amazing!" the 18-year-old singer gushed as she saw Tank playing a melody on a piano in the room. Moments later, he coaxed Sparks to join him in a performance. They put their heads together for a moment, then improvised to come up with a song with the chorus "I don't ever want to lose you." They sang it for a couple of minutes as a crowd gathered and broke out into applause.

"We just made it up," said Tank, who is nominated for best R&B album for his disc "Sex, Pain and Love" and best R&B male performance for the hit "Don't Go."

Even though the collaboration was brief, it was successful: Tank said Sparks would now be on his upcoming album.

"She's been recruited," he said with a smile.

The Grammy Style Studio was available to celebrities who wanted to get designer jewelry and clothes for Sunday's Grammy awards. While some items were free, and makeup and hair stylists are available to tend to the stars, many of the expensive items were available for loan only. Singer T-Pain and rapper Lupe Fiasco strolled through, and Paula Abdul tried on jackets while an assistant followed with a Chihuahua in tow.

Sparks said she didn't have her Grammy outfit yet, but was admiring a purple beaded gown and some other glamorous dresses.

"I'm kind of going for very pretty dresses, nice dresses that are cut very well and stuff that sort of flatters the figure - you gotta flatter it," Sparks said. "(But) I could always use new clothes!"

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Radical Re-Interpretations is a unique tribute series that recreates a selection of the year’s biggest chart hits in a variety of eclectic styles. From Bossa Nova to Bluegrass to Dance, songs as diverse as Ingrid Michaelson’s “The Way I Am,” Alicia Keys’ “No One” and Fergie’s “Clumsy” are transformed into remarkable new versions to captivate the listener.

Songs:

1. Love Like This (The Reggae Tribute to Natasha Bedingfield featuring Sean Kingston)

2. The Way I Am (The Bossa Nova Tribute to Ingrid Michaelson)

3. Gimme More (The Dance Mix Tribute to Britney Spears)

4. Into the Night (The String Quartet Tribute to Santana featuring Chad Kroeger)

5. No One (The String Quartet Tribute to Alicia Keys)

6. Tattoo (The String Quartet Tribute to Jordin Sparks)

7. I’ll Believe You When (The Bluegrass Tribute to Matchbox Twenty)

8. Wake Up Call (The Bossa Nova Tribute to Maroon 5)

9. Clumsy (The Dance Mix Tribute to Fergie)

10. Until the End of Time (The Dance Mix Tribute to Justin Timberlake featuring Beyonce)