GREAT WHITE HYPE Federline

Kevin Federline, the untalented-but-trying counterpart to Britney Spears, is quickly becoming the Snakes on a Plane of D-grade pop rap—all hype and no product.

Turns out, though, that he's pretty good at the hype. In a volley of TV spots and public appearances, timed in advance of his eternally forthcoming album, Playing With Fire, K-Fed has transformed himself from the lazy-everyday tabloid whipping boy to a troubled teenager on CSI, a handjivin' studio rat, a discount Andy Kaufman impersonator, and recipient of a body slam by wrestler/rapper/Marine John Cena on WWE. MTV's so-called Luckiest Man Alive has even pondered a penniless existence, a promotion not only for himself but for Virgin Mobile's one-cent text-messaging plan.

K-Fed's publicists, no doubt students of a certain serpentine cinema phenomenon, seem finally to be realizing they'll get far more mileage out of the K-Fed hype than the still-coming-soon K-Fed album.

One recent release touts:

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• Media News and Notes from All Over

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