Jay Leno: Will he capitalize on the Kanye West controversy?

When the guests were booked for the first episode of "The Jay Leno Show," no one could have known that one of them, Kanye West, would become the center of a firestorm of controversy a mere 24 hours before the premiere was scheduled to air. Sure, Kanye has a history of pulling dumb, grandiose stunts at award shows -- remember when he stormed out of the American Music Awards when he didn't win the Best New Artist trophy? But when he hijacked the stage after Taylor Swift's Best Female Video win, the booing audience showed him no mercy, and West suddenly became one of the most talked-about (and Twittered-about) men in America.

Kanye is due to perform on "Leno" with Jay-Z, who is promoting his The Blueprint 3 album, and Rihanna. The trio's song "Run This Town" has been a huge hit. However, considering West's well-publicized move, one has to wonder: will Jay try to corral the rapper and interview him about the Swift situation? (It seems inevitable that Leno will at least have a joke or two about the incident in his monologue.) Or will West, who has since apologized for his rude behavior, back out of the appearance, leaving Jay-Z to perform a different song from his album? (Incidentally, Jay-Z's spouse, Beyonce, is the artist whom Kanye loudly proclaimed should have won the award instead of country-pop crooner Swift.)

Whatever happens, a lot of people will undoubtedly be curious enough to tune in -- and Leno's first-night ratings may get a boost as a result.