An Aerosmith rift? Dream on.

What's up with Aerosmith? A day after the New York Post reported that Steven Tyler may be leaving the band, the rocker's publicist was mostly mum. The Post, citing an unidentified source, said Tyler's leggy daughter, actress Liv Tyler, has been telling friends that her old man is upset with the way his Aerosmith amigos, Joe Perry, Joey Kramer, Brad Whitford, and Tom Hamilton, are treating him and may quit. "She said they don't appreciate him," the tipster told the tabloid. If false, you'd think the band's flack, Mitch Schneider, would rush to set the record straight, especially since the band's on its first European tour in eight years. But instead of denying the report, Schneider merely referred us to Liv's publicist, Stephen Huvane, who told us his client never made the remarks. Hmmm. Likewise, Hamilton's wife, Terry, had only this yesterday: "I'd really rather not comment." Friends of the band pooh-poohed the Post item yesterday, but acknowledged that playing live may not be fun for Tyler, who'll be 60 next year and has a new girlfriend, Erin Brady, on his arm. "Look, they're not making money selling records, so they're grinding it out on the road," said one insider. "Steven's just in a bad mood maybe." And maybe not.

Hip-hop expert returning to Harvard

Suddenly, Harvard's all about hip-hop. The Crimson is reporting that Marcyliena Morgan, the hip-hop expert who was denied tenure three years ago during the reign of Larry Summers, has been offered a tenured professorship at the World's Greatest University. (She's currently the executive director of Stanford's Hiphop Archive.) It's possible, according to the campus paper, that Morgan's husband, Lawrence Bobo, will also be rehired. Bobo was sociology prof at Harvard before heading west with his wife. Due to the late date, Morgan likely wouldn't take up residence in the red brick enclave until the fall of '08.

NBC’s Williams enjoys Monster view

NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams, in town to visit colleagues at WHDH-TV, did his broadcast yesterday from the roof deck of Boston University's School of Management, a spot with a clear view of the BU Bridge on one side and Fenway Park on the other. "I can't believe we can see the Monster from here," Williams quipped. "Coming from New York, it makes my palms itch." Williams's father hails from Framingham; he was raised in a Red Sox household. But his 16-year-old son is a Yankees fan, and Williams made it clear where his loyalties now lie. "The Yankees choose to be 13 1/2 out," Williams said. "It's the rope-a-dope. They're holding back." We'll see about that, anchorman.

How much does Matt Damon dig being a dad? While plugging his latest picture at the Cannes Film Festival, the Cambridge-bred actor seemed preoccupied with the pleasures of playing with his 11-month-old daughter, Isabella. In addition to his wife, Luciana Barroso, the actor's entourage includes Barroso's 8-year-old daughter, Alexia; a nanny; a tutor; an assistant; and the assistant's baby. "We roll like J. Lo," cracked Matt, referring to his buddy Ben Affleck's former fiancee and her prodigious posse. . . . Newton filmmaker Eli Roth's new movie opens the same day as "Ocean ' s Thirteen," but he isn't worried. "Ocean's Twelve' was [expletive ] terrible," Roth rants in the new issue of Boston magazine. "I feel like the whole point of that movie was to pay for [George ] Clooney's villa in Tuscany. The only heist in 'Ocean's Twelve' was them taking our money." Hey Eli, isn't "Hostel: Part II" a sequel, too? . . . Grace Blazer is coming on board as program director for Boston chat station WTKK-FM (96.9) , replacing Paula O'Connor, who was fired last week. Blazer arrives at the Greater Media station from No. 1 ranked WPHT-AM in Philadelphia, where she worked for 11 years. . . . It's appropriate that a book called "Groundswell," about how consumers drive the marketplace, would generate a lot of interest from would-be publishers. But Harvard Business School Press nabbed the project by Forrester Research analysts Josh Bernoff and Charlene Li. Boston's uberagent John Taylor "Ike" Williams negotiated the deal. . . . Actor Campbell Scott will return to the Huntington Theatre Company stages in September with Boston playwright Ronan Noone's one-man show "The Atheist."

Globe staffer Joanna Weiss contributed. Names can be reached at names@globe.com or at 617-929-8253.