Morale booster for troops

Fort Sam Houston, Texas – Willie Nelson warmed up for a concert by playing a long freebie gig for soldiers injured in Iraq.

For the second straight year, Nelson squeezed in a show at Brooke Army Medical Center on Friday while he and his band were in San Antonio to play at the city’s annual rodeo.

“I have a lot of respect for the military,” said Nelson, 72, an Air Force veteran. “I like to show them that I support them every chance I get. … We get as much out of it as (the soldiers).”

A year ago, the singer wore out his voice singing 11 songs at the Army hospital and had to cancel his performance at the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo.

Hundreds of patients, family members and hospital staff clapped and cheered Friday as Nelson walked into the hospital’s atrium.

He opened, as usual, with “Whiskey River.” After more than an hour and 22 numbers – including standbys like “On the Road Again” and “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys” – he finally set down his well-worn acoustic guitar and was mobbed by fans.

Sgt. 1st Class Alan Hornaday, badly wounded in a suicide car bombing in Baghdad in 2004, had a front-row seat for the concert.

“This is really cool, him being able to come out and visit soldiers and entertain them,” said Hornaday, a National Guardsman from Fordyce, Ark., who also saw Nelson here last year. “It picks everybody’s spirits up. … It means a lot.”

Mardi Gras monarch

New Orleans – Actor Steven Seagal will reign as this year’s celebrity monarch for the Krewe of Orpheus, the lavish parade group started by musician and New Orleans native Harry Connick Jr.

Seagal will be celebrity spokesman for Rebuilding Together, the nation’s largest volunteer home rehabilitation group, which has partnered with the Mardi Gras krewe to publicize the group’s efforts to rebuild 1,000 homes damaged in the Gulf Coast area by Hurricane Katrina.

Seagal will lead the 27-float parade on Feb. 27, or Lundi Gras. Mardi Gras – Fat Tuesday – is Feb. 28.

Divorce proceedings

Los Angeles – Nick Lachey wants what’s his, and maybe what’s Jessica Simpson’s.

In court papers filed Friday in response to Simpson’s Dec. 16 divorce filing, Lachey said he was reserving the right to seek spousal support, even though she has asked the court not to give him any.

The singing couple, who starred in their own MTV reality show, “Newlyweds: Nick & Jessica,” had no prenuptial agreement.

He cited irreconcilable differences for the dissolution of the three-year marriage.

The 32-year-old Lachey also asked the court to confirm that “miscellaneous jewelry and other personal effects” are separate property, as well as his earnings from after the date of separation and other unspecified assets.

He said they separated Dec. 13, although she claims it was Nov. 23.

Lachey, who gained fame as a member of the boy band 98 Degrees, had more earning power when the couple wed in October 2002.

However, Simpson’s fame skyrocketed during the marriage. The 25-year-old singer-actress reportedly earned more than $30 million last year, including earnings from her big-screen debut playing Daisy Duke in “The Dukes of Hazzard” movie.

Legend’s fab abs

New York – Since he made his debut over a year ago, John Legend has become more confident on stage – not in his singing but his sex appeal.

“Now I’ll take my top shirt off and have a tank top on at the show, so I’m definitely playing the sex angle up a little bit,” the Grammy winner said in a recent interview with The Associated Press.

Legend’s newfound desire to show a little skin comes after he decided to dedicate himself to working out. Though he was hardly out of shape when his “Get Lifted” album debuted in December 2004, he wasn’t that comfortable showing off his frame in concert.

Then he hit the gym and that all changed.

“I wasn’t trying to get skinny, I was trying to get in shape, which is a different thing. I was trying to build muscle in a lean way, and just feel more fit and feel more sexy,” he said.

And now his fans will get the benefit, as he’s more likely to showcase his abs, toned arms and pecs.

“I have a lot of female fans, I’ve gotta give them what they want,” he said with a smile.

Braxton on comeback track

New York – Except for Broadway musicals and a few select appearances, Toni Braxton hasn’t done many live performances in the past decade. But that’s about to change.

The R&B diva is embarking on her first tour in 10 years to support her latest album, “Libra.” The tour will kick off March 10 in Atlantic City, N.J., and end July 3 in Houston at the Essence Music Festival.

“I’m thrilled to be going out on the road again,” Braxton said Friday in a statement to The Associated Press. “I can’t wait to bring not only the hits that people know and love but to share the new music from ‘Libra’ with the audience.”

Braxton, who is best known for hits such as “Breathe Again,” “You’re Makin’ Me High” and “Love Shoulda Brought You Home,” has starred on Broadway in “Aida” and “Beauty and the Beast.”