As most of you know, the Super Bowl will be in Phoenix this year, and it brings more than a hundred high-profile parties with it. Over the course of the weekend, everybody from 50 Cent and Paris Hilton to John Travolta and Hugh Heffner will be in town, and I for one will be getting almost no sleep. Starting Thursday, I’ll be hitting the hottest hip-hop parties in town – a merriment marathon that’ll kick my happy ass until Sunday afternoon. I’ll be covering performances by Diddy, Snoop Dogg, and Ludacris for the Phoenix New Times Super Bowl blog, and I’m thrilled to be teaming up with Jody Gnant on Thursday night for “Super Thursday” at Axis/Radius.

Diddy, we're doin' your party.

The two blocks surrounding the Scottsdale venue will be closed for outdoor music performances. Diddy will be there, performing for an hour and a half. Next and Valley rapper Pokafase will also be performing. Inside the club, Nick Lachey and NASCAR driver Jimmie Johnson will be hosting the Super Skins Celebrity Golf Classic Tournament. Confirmed guests include Michael Jordan, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Charles Barkley, Justin Timberlake, Carson Daly, Jerry Rice, Carmen Electra, Lance Armstrong, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

And Jody and I will be there – on the red carpet, up near the front of the stage, in the VIP area. And she’s going to be recording and co-hosting video clips of the event on her Ustream for use in the Phoenix New Times Super Bowl blog. You never know who we’ll run into. Super Thursday is January 31. Be sure to hit up www.jodygnant.tv and www.phoenixnewtimes.com/superbowl for the scoop.

Gutterkitty and Gnant on the red carpet? Now, that’s entertainment.

(You can also follow Super Bowl party coverage on Twitter: www.twitter.com/phxnewtimes_sb)