Destiny's Child plan to take a time out

SOUND BITES The members of Destiny’s Child say they’ve been so busy, they need a vacation — from each other. Beyoncé Knowles tells E!, ”Well, Destiny’s Child put out four albums in four years, which is unbelievable.” (In that time, they’ve also gone through three lineups and bounced three members.) ”That doesn’t happen a lot. We’ve been working, Kelly [Rowland] and I, since we were 9, nonstop. So I think Destiny’s Child is gonna take a little break.” It’s not clear when this break will occur — probably after the trio’s European tour, which they postponed until May because of post-Sept. 11 security fears — or when the band would regroup. Says Kelly Rowland, ”You know how the Beatles broke off, they all did their solo projects and they came back together and they were even stronger.” (Um, not exactly). ”I think the great thing about us doing this is we will all have to develop individually,” Knowles says. ”You’re in a group and it’s kind of like your girls are like your security blanket. Even doing interviews is real scary. But hopefully we’ll [each] be able to do a tour and do our own songs and Destiny’s Child songs.”…

Even performing for the troops at a one-hour USO concert in Kosovo yesterday, Mariah Carey managed to change costumes three times. Fittingly, she wore a red dress, a white dress, and a blue dress, though none of them contained enough material to sew a flag. She also wore camouflage fatigues, unzipped to the navel, when she autographed photos for soldiers at three bases earlier in the day. ”We want to give these people a little glamour,” she said.

Carey, who’s coming off a disastrous year (the breakdown for ”exhaustion,” the twin flops of her ”Glitter” film and CD), appeared to be in high spirits, claiming that her goodwill tour had boosted her own morale. ”Traveling and beingaround my different fans around the world is what keeps me going,” she said. ”I have a different philosophy to a lot of people.” Calling it ”an honor and a privilege” to entertain the troops, Carey said she’d even consider visiting soldiers in Afghanistan. Actually, that’s a good idea; if the Taliban get upset when women show an inch of skin, they’ll all have heart attacks when they see how little Carey wears….

After spending more than four months in rehab to treat his alcoholism and other addictions, Metallica frontman James Hetfield has checked out and says his recovery is going ”exceedingly well,” thanks in part to his fans. ”My rough road has become smoother reading the show of support from the friends I’ve met through Metallica,” he said in a message posted on the band’s website. ”My music and lyrics have always been therapy for me. Without this God-given gift I don’t know where I’d be.” It’s not clear when Metallica will resume recording their next album, which they postponed during Hetfield’s treatment.

TROPHY TIME R. Kelly was the biggest winner at last night’s Billboard Music Awards, hauling off six prizes, including R&B/hip-hop artist of the year and R&B/hip-hop album of the year (”TP-2.com”). Destiny’s Child were close behind with five wins, including artist of the year (the evening’s top honor), duo/group of the year, and Hot 100 Singles artist of the year. Tim McGraw also won five awards, including country artist and country album of the year (for ”Greatest Hits”). Top male artist was Shaggy, and top female artist was Alicia Keys. Shaggy and Keys took home two prizes each, as did Lil’ Romeo, Creed, and Lifehouse. George Harrison was remembered with a video tribute and honored with a posthumous award when The Beatles‘ ”1” was named album of the year. The awards, based on chart data compiled by Billboard magazine, were handed out at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, with the ceremony televised on Fox. A full list of winners is available at Billboard’s website.