Usher: music superstar, actor -- comedian? The 26-year-old R&B sensation showed he had pretty good comedy game, too, at a press tour session earlier this week.

The soft-spoken Tennessee-native, who swept the Billboard Music Awards and earned eight Grammy nominations in 2004, was asked if he would be springing any new "body moves" on his upcoming, Puerto Rico-based concert special One Night One Star Usher Live (airing on Showtime March 5; Canadian network to be announced).

"I don't have a boob to pull out, if that's what you're asking," he replied.

Usher didn't have to pull out anything to grab music headlines in 2004. His Cd Confessions held the No. 1 spot on the charts for more than half a year.

Aside from the glistening diamond chain around his neck, there were few signs that all this stardom had already gone to his head. "To cope with it man, just take one day at a time," he said, adding that he's just trying to remember to "be nice, brush my teeth and smile for the camera."

He has a playful side, teasing critics with "Vote for Pedro" quotes from the odd indie flick Napoleon Dynamite.

Usher said his musical heroes were everyone from James Brown to Miles Davis, Michael Jackson, Prince and Stevie Wonder. "The list goes on and on," he said. "If I could do anything, it would be to pass on the greatest spirit that found and made great music."

He gets just as big a thrill out of meeting celebrities as fans get from meeting him. Who rocked his world so far? "Well, there are many things and people that I was very excited to meet, like Pamela Anderson's breasts -- I really enjoyed meeting those."

A distant second was meeting Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones and Bono.

Like many of today's singers, he's branching out into film. He's currently shooting the romantic comedy Dying For Dolly and has other roles lined up in 2005. He'd love to someday play Marvin Gaye, Jackie Wilson or Sam Cooke in a bio-pic. "I'm spreading myself out in the right areas looking for the right roles in drama and action, suspense, all of the above."

Insiders at Fox are already hyping next week's American Idol premiere as the search for the next Usher. What did he think of that?

"You can't handle the truth," he blurted. It's not so far-fetched; he himself was once a Star Search contestant.

He credits his mother, who is also his manager, for jump-starting his success. "My mother saw a light in me. She saw that I had a talent and that I was determined. She had to make many, many sacrifices to make it happen, and I'm very grateful.

"Furthermore, she does an amazing job," he added. "There's nothing better than having a bully as a mom, you know what Imean?"