NEWS ROUND UP: USHER IS NOW A MARRIED MAN, EDDIE MURPHY RELEASES STATEMENT ....

How long could Eddie Murphy go without "defending" himself whilst Spice Girl Mel B made a media spectacle out of him this week? The press conferences, the tough lawyer, the dinner with his ex-wife Nicole, the Essence interview, need I go on? I guess Eddie thought that Mel really WAS making a dog's dinner out of him and felt the need to do some, er, damage control. Not that anyone cares about what the Beverley Hills C*ck had to say but for those interested, here is his official statement: "Eddie Murphy always has and will continue to honor his responsibilities as a father. Mr. Murphy and Ms. Brown dated very briefly and never made any plans of ANY sort. He acknowledges paternity of the child Angel, and has paid child support to Ms. Brown as well as covering the expenses of her pregnancy. Mr. Murphy views this as a private matter and as such, will not be making any further comments about it."

That last sentence is just laughable. Private matter my ass. Did he dump her privately? Did he deny his child privately? He did BOTH in a very public way by dumping her AND denying his child ON TELEVISION. Humiliatingly, Mel found out she was dumped the SAME TIME as the rest of the world. What a way to get dumped. Mel (who I sincerely believe, says the baby was in deed planned and that they planned to get married) but yet Eddie's statement says they didn't make any plans of ANY sort. WTF. Didn't Eddie publicly admit that he PLANNED to marry Mel just before her pregnancy was announced? In the statement, it also reveals that Eddie acknowledges paternity of the child. Acknowledging the child was something he didn't do (and STILL isn't doing). Mel had to FORCE his ass to court just to take the test after he publicly stated not accepting the child until a DNA test is done. He requested the DNA test but when push came to shove, she had to FORCE him to take it (all because he KNEW the child was his). And acknowledging the child is showing that you want to bond with your child so that your child can get to know you, not just paying child maintenance through the legal system and not having any physical contact with your child whatsoever. This statement is full of holes and such pleasure it was to rip it apart. And this is the type of man Tracey Edmonds wants to marry.

But anyway, more bizarrely, Usher and Maneka Foster FINALLY tied the knot. According to sources, the woman, a decade older than her groom and expecting their first child in November got married during a private ceremony in his lawyer's office in Atlanta on Friday. Usher's mama Jonetta was there as well. The two don't see eye to eye and it's widely believed that Maneka is the reason why Usher sacked his mama as her role in being his manager.

Well, what else can I say? After all the warnings and problems this woman has caused, Usher still goes ahead and marries his darling Maneka. I guess the voodoo has been working in full effect.