Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Links for 2008-03-21 [del.icio.us]

  • Chloe Marshall Sweet 16 headed to Miss England 2008
    Chloe Marshall of the UK has just won the Miss Surrey 2008 beauty pageant. She is now advancing towards the Miss England contest, which is opened to females ages 17-24. If Chloe Marshall can win the Miss England 2008 pageant, she will advance to the Miss

Leelee Sobieski Leighton Meester Leila Arcieri Lena Headey

Monday, July 4, 2011

Beyonc� - Ego

Ego

Kristin Cavallari Kristin Kreuk Kristy Swanson Kylie Bax

Usher Gets Sick, Walks Offstage Mid-Show In Berlin

Singer cancels kick off date of European leg of his OMG Tour due to illness.
By Gil Kaufman


Usher (file)
Photo: Michael Caulfield/ WireImage

Usher was forced to delay the kick off of his European OMG Tour on Wednesday night in Berlin because of illness. In a statement released to fans, the singer apologized for the last-minute scratch, saying he felt he was suffering from a "sinus complication." Although the gig was rescheduled for Thursday night at the O2 World arena in Berlin, his German fans apparently weren't appeased by his effort.

"I am truly sorry to all my fans in Berlin who were inconvenienced by tonight's postponement of the show," the singer said in a statement about Wednesday's aborted concert. "I was ill and felt that I would not have been able to give them the show that they properly deserve. ... I am looking forward to performing tomorrow and giving Berliners a great show."

According to the statement, the singer received treatment from doctors for a sinus issue that affected his balance, but a visibly still-ailing Usher was unable to finish the Thursday make-up show, reportedly abandoning the stage after just five songs.

On Friday (January 14), a follow-up statement from his spokesperson confirmed that he was too ill to play Thursday night's Berlin date and has been forced to reschedule the next three dates on the tour as well. The Rotterdam show originally scheduled for this week has been moved to March 1 and a show in Antwerp, also slated for this week, has been bumped to March 7.

The statement also updated the singer's condition: "Usher is suffering from upper respiratory illness, which is currently preventing him from performing a proper show. After consultation with doctors, he has been advised to reschedule the upcoming dates in order to get the rest he needs to ensure a complete recovery."

Footage posted on YouTube that was purportedly taken at the make-up performance in Berlin shows Usher standing silently at the microphone seemingly unable to sing, with fans booing him at first and then chanting, "Usher, Usher," as he approaches the microphone and apologizes to them for his struggles. "I appreciate your support," he told the fans wearily.

"I have been very excited about my European Tour and I deeply regret having to reschedule the shows," the singer said in the new statement. "I am truly sorry for any inconvenience I have caused my fans. My fans are the best in the world and I am looking forward to getting better so that I can give them the show they deserve."

Usher wrapped up the North American leg of his tour in December and his overseas dates are slated to last through the spring.

What do you think of the fans' reaction to Usher's walking offstage mid-show? Tell us in the comments.

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Photos | Ke$ha Exclusive Photos | MTV Style

Ke$ha Exclusive Photos | MTV Style

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Photos | 2011 Pre-Grammy Celebrations

2011 Pre-Grammy Celebrations

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Common Reveals Warner Bros. CEO Invited Him To Label

Lyor Cohen approached rapper, who departed Universal Music in 2009.
By Alvin Blanco


Common
Photo: Chris Weeks/ Getty Images

Last week, Chicago rapper Common revealed that he is taking his rhyme talents to Warner Bros. Records. Surprisingly, the "Universal Mind Control" rapper tells MTV News that he had been a free agent since December 2009, when he departed from his longtime Universal Music recording home.

The rapper and actor, currently shooting an AMC television series called "Hell on Wheels" that will premiere in the fall, released his last album, Universal Mind Control, in December 2008. The album was met with mixed reviews and didn't reach the same gold sales of his previous two projects, the critically acclaimed Be and Finding Forever.

But a certain record executive didn't lose faith in the veteran rap lyricist. "Point blank, I got a call from [Warner CEO] Lyor Cohen," Common told MTV News. "He was like, 'Look, man, I know who you are. I always told you, you was one of my favorite MCs, and I really meant that.'

"I felt the sincerity in what he was saying. He didn't tell me, 'We're going to do this, do that.' He was more like, 'I know how we can do your record, and I want to work this. I want this to be on my roster.' "

The Warner music chairman knows a thing or two about talent. Through the years, "the check writer" has had a hand in the careers of star MCs such as Run-DMC, LL Cool J and Jay-Z. Before getting the call from Cohen, Common had been toying with the idea of going the indie-label route to release his music.

"I felt like, man, it would be good because it's so much ... we do have a lot going on," Common explained. "I am doing these acting projects. I do have my foundation. I do have a daughter and a life, too. So it's all these things I want to take care of, I felt like I didn't want to have an independent label that I felt like you gotta be there for everything, every decision. I'd rather have a team that's already in place that's really confident in what I'm doing."

Although G.O.O.D. Music recently inked a worldwide label agreement with Island Def Jam Music Group, Common is still affiliated with Kanye West's label. "It's still G.O.O.D. Music all day and night," he said.

Common's ninth album, The Dreamer, The Believer, is due out in November.

What do you think of Common's decision to sign with Warner Bros. Records? Sound off below!

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Les News, 070211

Harry Potter goes South Park. Deltra Goodrem cheers on solo Nick Jonas. Boba Fett in Mordor. THIS is the scariest thing ever created by human beings. So wait … you’re telling me Michael Bay is a hack who reuses the same scenes in different movies? The devil, you say! Cheryl Cole tries a new look. [...]

Marley Shelton Mary Elizabeth Winstead Megan Ewing Megan Fox

Beyonc� - Ego (Remix)

Ego (Remix)

  • Artist: Beyoncé
  • Label: Columbia, Music World Music
  • Director: Beyonce, Frank Gatson

Summer Altice Summer Glau Sunny Mabrey Susan Ward

Sunday, July 3, 2011

'Australian Idol' Judge Jay Dee Springbett Found Dead

Sony exec's cause of death has not yet been established.
By Jocelyn Vena


Jay Dee Springbett
Photo: Brendon Thorne/ Getty Images

"Australian Idol" judge Jay Dee Springbett was found dead at his home in Sydney on Thursday. He was 36.

He was discovered after friends called authorities when they couldn't contact the former "Idol" judge. He was already dead when authorities arrived at his Woolloomooloo apartment, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. As of press time, nothing else was known about the cause of death, although authorities believe nothing suspicious happened.

The U.K. native moved to Australia in 2004. He worked for Sony Music and joined "Idol" down under during the show's final season in 2009, replacing Kyle Sandilands. He was known as the show's resident "nice guy" judge. That year, Stan Walker was crowned the champ and later went on to become a successful artist in Australia and New Zealand.

The show aired on Network Ten in Australia, and a spokesperson for the network released this statement: "Our heartfelt condolences go out to Jay Dee's family at this very difficult time. Jay Dee was an asset to the final season of 'Australian Idol,' [and] we feel honored to have worked with him."

As a record executive, Springbett helped shape the careers of artists including Guy Sebastian, Human Nature, Rogue Traders and Natalie Bassingthwaighte. "Jay Dee was so very enthusiastic and passionate about his family, his music projects and his plans for the future," Sony Music Entertainment Australian and New Zealand CEO Denis Handlin said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter. "[He] was a great friend and larger-than-life charismatic character who will be missed enormously."

Fremantle, which produces the "Idol" shows, also expressed condolences in a statement. "The 'Australian Idol' family is deeply saddened by the passing of Jay Dee," the statement reads. "Our thoughts are with his family and all at Sony Music."

Emma Heming Emma Stone Emma Watson Emmanuelle Chriqui

Spotted: Jennifer Garner and Seraphina Get Stripey

Seraphina Affleck, 2�, grabs a snack while visiting the farmer's market with mom Jennifer Garner on Sunday afternoon.

Lisa Marie Lisa Snowdon Liz Phair Lokelani McMichael

Usher - Spotlight

Spotlight

Leslie Bibb Lil Kim Lily Allen Lindsay Lohan

Ke$ha - Blow

Blow

  • Artist: Ke$ha
  • Label: RCA
  • Director: Chris Maars

Kate Bosworth Kate Groombridge Kate Hudson Kate Mara

Ke$ha Touched By Fan's Tattoo

Singer tells MTV News about gay fan inspired by her song 'Animal.'
By Gil Kaufman


Ke$ha
Photo: MTV News

Ke$ha knows all about the perks of being a headliner. On her Get $leazy Tour, the singer gets to call all the shots, blast her fans in the face with tons of glitter and handpick which dudes she wants to party and share the stage with.

But it's not all backstage shenanigans and groupie love. When MTV News sat down with the "Blow" singer in New York earlier this week before her gig at Roseland Ballroom, Ke$ha said that amid the nightly onstage parties there have also been some poignant moments on her first headlining outing.

"Best moment? There are so many. Every night's amazing. I have kids outside right now chanting my name and it's awesome," she said of the first leg of the tour. "There was one night a fan came onstage, I invited him onstage, and he had a tattoo of the dollar sign. I was like, 'Oh, that's awesome! Badass. You're part of the cult, man.' "

And then, she said, he began to cry and explained that he was able to come out of the closet to his friends and family thanks to her song "Animal."

"And I'm standing onstage about to sing a song about growing back a pair of testicles ["Grow a Pear"] and I had tears rolling down my face and chills all over my body," she said. "Because that's really the reason I do music, to inspire people to be themselves."

Ke$ha has been a vocal supporter of the "It Gets Better" video project, which aims to help gay, bisexual and transgender youth find hope in the face of teasing and bullying.

The "Get $leazy" juggernaut continues on Saturday night with a show at Clarion University in Clarion, Pennsylvania.

Are you planning to see Ke$ha on her Get $leazy Tour? Tell us in the comments.

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What's Your Number? Website

The website for WHAT'S YOUR NUMBER? is finally up!

http://www.whatsyournumbermovie.com/

And the official Facebook page!

http://www.facebook.com/whatsyournumbermovie

And the official YouTube channel!

http://www.youtube.com/user/OfficialNumberMovie

Also, here's the trailer!


Denise Richards Desiree Dymond Diane Kruger Dido

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Britney Spears - Womanizer

Womanizer

Samantha Mumba Sanaa Lathan Sara Foster Sara Spraker

Lexi St. George the Next Rebecca Black?

Lexi St. George the Next Rebecca Black?

The creators of Rebecca Black's so-bad-it's-good hit song "Friday" have done it again!

Ark Music Factory, the company behind the 13-year-old's annoyingly catchy video (which created a firestorm of controversy), unveiled their latest creation on Good Morning America this week. In the "Dancing to the Rhythm (With Me)" video, 14-year-old Lexi St. George belts out lyrical gems such as, "Gonna press send...and text all my friends." But despite the obvious similarities, CEO Patrice Wilson says they weren't hoping to create another Black -- though George does remind us of a younger Emma Watson.

"I don't want people comparing and saying she's the next Rebecca Black," he told Gawker. "With this project, it's a bit of a different thing. We wanted to make something everybody could like, whether the older or younger generation… I don't anticipate that people are going to dislike this video. I hope people give her a chance and not say I don't like Ark Music Factory so I don't like this song."

With its middle-school themes and abundance of glitter, we're not sure anyone over the age of 14 will genuinely like the video -- but that's not to say it won't become an ironic hit like "Friday." Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon -- we're ready for your version!

Watch for yourself below and let us know what you think!

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Beyonce Responds To 4 Album Leak

'While this is not how I wanted to present my new songs, I appreciate the positive response,' she tells MTV News in a statement.
By Gil Kaufman


Beyonce's <i>4</i>
Photo: Columbia

Beyoncé is taking a glass-half-full approach to the leak of her entire 4 album three weeks before its June 28 release date.

In a statement released to MTV News on Wednesday (June 8), Beyoncé lamented the early arrival but said she's making the most of the eagerness of her fans to get their hands on her first new batch of songs since 2008's double-disc I Am ... Sasha Fierce.

"My music was leaked and while this is not how I wanted to present my new songs, I appreciate the positive response from my fans," the singer wrote. "When I record music I always think about my fans singing every note and dancing to every beat. I make music to make people happy and I appreciate that everyone has been so anxious to hear my new songs."

Beyoncé fans were psyched Tuesday when her collabo with Andre 3000, "Party," leaked weeks before the new album was due. It was one of several leaks the album has faced over the past week. A short time after the Kanye West and Consequence-produced "Party" slipped out, another song, "Countdown," which samples the Boyz II Men tune "Uhh Ahh," also surfaced, followed by the entire album.

While B's team scrambles to take down the offending links that have popped up all over the Web, some online rogues have taken to Twitter to put up links, making it harder for the label to track down the music. Fans have already gotten a number of listens to tunes from the disc, including the uptempo dancehall first single "Run the World (Girls)," the lush ballad "1+1" and the second official single "Best Thing I Never Had." Another tune, "End of Time," which samples late Afrobeat superstar Fela Kuti, has also leaked online.

Have you heard any of the leaked album, or are you waiting for the official release? Let us know in the comments.

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Family Photo: The Alba-Warrens ? Brunch Bunch

Cash Warren, an expectant Jessica Alba and their daughter Honor Marie stepped out after dining at A Votre Sante in Brentwood.

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'Twilight' Meets 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo'

Anita Lindblom, prepare to get the "Twilight" treatment under the hands of "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo."
Director Catherine Hardwicke will direct Noomi Rapace's as-yet-untitled biopic of '60s Swedish pop culture icon Anita Lindblom. To make things even more interesting, Rapace's real-life husband, Ola Rapace, will play boxing champion Bosse Hogberg who ends up marrying [...]

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Friday, July 1, 2011

Lady Gaga's 'Edge Of Glory' Video: Glory Days

E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons appears in the video pre-stroke.
By James Montgomery


Lady Gaga
Photo: Getty Images

Remember, for a while there, when everyone was complaining that Lady Gaga's videos had, perhaps, gotten too big, too arty, too obtuse? That maybe the hype surrounding each clip's premiere overshadowed the clip itself? Well, for the foreseeable future, those criticisms can be put to rest.

Because on Thursday (June 16), Gaga premiered her brand-new video for "The Edge of Glory," a piece that's a little bit Madonna's "Papa Don't Preach," a little bit Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" and a whole lot of " '80s videos where someone dances on a fire escape while smoke pours from a well-lit window."

There is no hyperkinetic, women-in-prison kink, no odes to Weimar Germany and no birthing of a machine gun. Shoot, there's not even a single Christian allegory to be seen (OK, maybe one, when Gaga strikes a Christ-like pose on the concrete).

Instead, "Edge" is little more than five-and-a-half minutes of classic pop, brimming with imagery, style (and moves) that could've been lifted from millions of videos in the pop heyday of the 1980s. It is Gaga's free-spirited youth in New York's East Village, only reimagined on a Hollywood level (in another nod to the videos of yesteryear, it makes no attempt to hide the fact that it was clearly shot on a "New York"-styled backlot): She sashays and struts on a fire escape, descends to the perfectly foggy, still-wet streets of the city, and poses on the front steps of her apartment building, while none other than Clarence Clemons hits a note-perfect saxophone solo. It is a fantasy in every conceivable way, and if it reminds you of something you've seen before, well, that's because you probably did — not just in '80s vids, but in films like "Fame" and Broadway hits like "Rent," too — and chances are you loved it.

And while all the feel-good nostalgia is dampened a bit by the very of the moment drama surrounding the video (Clemons is currently recovering from a stroke he suffered over the weekend), "Edge of Glory" still manages to shine, mostly because of its simplicity. You wanted a straightforward, dance-till-you-drop, unabashedly-indebted video from Lady Gaga? Well, now you've got one. It's not a stretch to call it a classic, mostly because, well, it is — at least in its inspirations. And its aspirations too.

What did you think of the video? Let us know in the comments!

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