Kid Rock and Pamela Anderson played coy when asked if they’re back together.
“What? I’m shocked,” Anderson said, smiling. “I could have met him on the corner of Hollywood and Vine.”
Since calling off their engagement, the 36-year-old actress has been seen with ex-husband Tommy Lee, with whom she has two young sons. Kid Rock, 32, performed on Sunday night’s American Music Awards.
Holding a lit cigarette and a beverage in a plastic cup, Kid Rock said he and Anderson were having a post-show bash.
“Good company makes a good party,” he said, nodding toward Anderson.
Daryl Hall and John Oates returned to the American Music Awards as presenters as a favor to old friend and show producer Dick Clark.
The duo won the pop-rock band, duo or group award from 1983-85, but they don’t remember much about the decade that included their hits “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do),” and “Kiss on My List.”
“Everything in the ’80s was sort of a blur,” Hall said.
“I’m a lot more aware now than I was then,” Oates added.
Glen Campbell, who won two awards in the mid-’70s, also made the red carpet scene. Another veteran act, Fleetwood Mac, won a trophy for pop-rock band, duo or group.
Ashanti was on the minds of teenage rapper-turned-actor Bow Wow and “American Idol” winner Ruben Studdard.
“I’m looking forward to seeing Ashanti and that’s it,” Bow Wow said. “I want to see what she’s wearing.”
She didn’t disappoint, performing “Rain On Me” in a super-short V-neck pink dress that was soaked by special effects rain.
Studdard was followed by “Idol” runner-up Clay Aiken on the red carpet. Aiken sang his single “Invisible” and Studdard performed “Superstar” before they teamed on “Jesus is Love” with a choir.
“This is my first awards show and I’m pumped about that,” Aiken said. “I don’t have musical idols. I wasn’t going to be a singer. I was going to be a teacher.”
R&B singer Heather Headley was still aglow about her wedding.
Headley, who won a Tony Award for her role in the Broadway musical “Aida,” married former New York Jets player Brian Musso in September.
“I didn’t know it was going to be this good,” she said backstage. “He’s a great guy. When I’m not here being cute, I’m at the grocery store trying to figure out the best deals.”
She is starting work on her second album, a follow-up to “This Is Who I Am.”
“Since the wedding, I’m a little too happy,” she said. “I got to go back and find some heartbreaking stories.”
Husband-and-wife singers Faith Hill and Tim McGraw each took home a trophy. In McGraw’s case, it was his second win in the same category this year.
McGraw also earned country male artist honors at the AMAs in January. The show was moved to November to avoid the crush of awards shows early in 2004.
“I’ll put the two trophies together,” he said backstage. “They’ll make nice bookends.”
The couple also won individual trophies in 2001 and 2002.
“It never gets old to be recognized and it’s certainly a surprise, especially when it comes from the fans,” Hill said.
“I’m never blase about it,” McGraw said. “I feel like I still got a lot more ahead of me than I do behind me.”
Rapper Missy Elliott is putting her fondness for designer duds in the closet.
She showed up wearing black Harley-Davidson pants, jacket and cap instead of her usual rhinestones, which are being retired.
“I’m putting them in the back of the closet,” she said. “They’re resting until the next decade.”
Singer-songwriter Macy Gray, known for her funky style, is going upscale with a new clothing line debuting in 2004 that includes her real first name, Natalie.
“It’s all glamour, like Halston, Jackie O kind of stuff,” she said.
Gray’s third album, “The Trouble With Being Myself,” came out last summer, but has yet to match the success of her smash debut in 2000. Her second album, “The Id,” was considered a flop with barely 500,000 copies sold.
“I’m just doing my thing. The industry doesn’t let you do your thing if you want to go off and make a crazy album,” she said. “If you do that and it doesn’t work out, it’s like a failure. As an artist, you want to try different things.”
