The opening dates of Madonna [ tickets ]’s first world tour in eight years--which were to have taken place June 5 and 6 in Cologne, Germany--have been canceled “due to technical problems,” the Associated Press reported. The tour will instead open in Barcelona on June 9.

An hour-long CBS-TV Backstreet Boys [ tickets ] special will air on May 30. The show will feature “never-before-seen footage from their round-the-world launch of ‘Black and Blue’ and concert performances of ‘The Call,’ ‘More Than That,’ and ‘Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely,” according to an announcement.

AC/DC has rescheduled some shows that were posponed because of Brian Johnson's vocal problems. A Madison, Wis., date has been moved to May 11, and a Detroit show will take place on May 12. Meanwhile, an Albany, N.Y., show has been moved from May 7 to May 9.

Half of the available tickets for Barenaked Ladies [ tickets ] upcoming U.S. tour will be offered through an Internet pre-sale that begins on May 10. Click here for more details.

Jazz drummer Billy Higgins, perhaps best known for his work with Ornette Coleman’s Quartet, died on Thursday (5/3) at a hospital in Inglewood, Calif. According to his publicist, Higgins was admitted to the hospital last month suffering from pneumonia.

New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial told the press this week that New Orleans International Airport may be renamed the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in time for the late jazz legend’s 100th birthday.

A new Nine Inch Nails [ tickets ] song titled “Deep,” the second single from the “Tomb Raider” soundtrack, can be heard at the nin.com website.