MTV News |
| Jay-Z Taking His Time With <i>Blueprint 3</i> To Make It 'Beyond And Above' Posted: 22 Jan 2009 05:00 AM PST 'If I had restrictions, I would have done it in three weeks,' MC says of the no-limits album.
Jay-Z's been busy lately, recording verses for DJ Khaled, the "Notorious" soundtrack and Young Jeezy's "My President" remix. But that doesn't mean the Brooklyn wordsmith is ready to release The Blueprint 3 just yet. Typically, when Jay has a project in the works, it only takes him a few weeks to wrap it up. This time, though, there's been no rush.
"For me, the process of making an album is difficult with so many things going on," Jay told MTV News backstage at his "Eve of Change" show. "And me, I wanna make it beyond and above. I'm gonna take my time with it. I don't have any quotas, and that's a good thing. It may be too freeing. It's a good thing and a bad thing. You know, I think I need some restrictions. 'Cause if I had restrictions, I would have done it in three weeks. I would have made what I believe to be a great piece of art." According to Kanye West, the album's rumored sole producer, the music recorded so far for BP3 is "phenomenal." West spoke with MTV Base in November and reiterated Jay's claim that the album could have been released. But after the positive feedback for "Jockin' Jay-Z" and T.I.'s "Swagger Like Us," Hov decided to keep cooking up tracks. "We went in, and we [did] the whole album," West explained. "He wanted to do a few more joints, so he kinda pushed it back. Now we're gonna go in and just work on some more records. So I got some more stuff to kill it with! I think [Jay pushed the album back because] 'Swagger' just did so incredible. We wanted to go up [and make sure] everything was on that level." In addition to "Jockin' Jay-Z" and "Swagger Like Us," the Jigga Man said his "Notorious" track, "Brooklyn Go Hard," is also slated for the album. "I actually recorded a lot of records already," Jay said. "You know, all those records that leaked [online] were on The Blueprint 3." The Blueprint 3 is believed to be Jay-Z's last contractual album due to Def Jam, his current recording home. The rapper, who served a three-year term as the label's president, signed a new $150 million contract with Live Nation over 10 years. It remains unclear, though, which company will distribute albums for Jay-Z under the Live Nation deal. Related Videos Related Artists |
| 50 Cent Says Eminem's <i>Relapse</i> Is 'Almost Done' Posted: 22 Jan 2009 05:00 AM PST Fif is planning to be 'all over' Em's first album in nearly five years.
Dr. Dre, Eminem and 50 Cent — dubbed "the three-headed monster" by the G-Unit star — are all set to put out albums within weeks of one another this year. And, according to 50, the rollout plan should be starting very soon. Fif told HollyScoop.com that Em's album is "almost done." "[He's] currently mixing his album right now," Fif said. "So it won't be more than maybe two weeks before [the label] starts figuring out the scheduling of the release of his actual project." Eminem's upcoming album, Relapse, will feature the single "Crack a Bottle." The song, previously labeled "Number One," leaked on numerous mixtapes and then popped up again online earlier this month with Dre and 50 contributing to the number. Dre spit the already-existing second verse, and Fif landed cleanup duty. 50 said he's planning to be "all over" Relapse. "You don't think I'll take advantage of that opportunity for everybody to look at me and listen to me?" he asked. "Yes, I will." The Queens rapper is also putting the finishing touches on his next album, Before I Self Destruct. 50 just put out the single "I Get It In," produced by Dr. Dre. The song follows his underground track "Play This on the Radio," on which the bullish star takes shots at Lil Wayne. Dre's long-awaited Detox album is also slated to be released soon. The super-producer has broken plenty of promises about the album and at one point said he was shelving it completely. But at the 2007 Video Music Awards, the West Coast hip-hop architect proclaimed Detox would, in fact, finally see the light of day. All three LPs were among our most-anticipated albums of 2009. Related Artists |
| Are We Ready For Barack Obama's Emo America? Posted: 21 Jan 2009 02:53 AM PST New president wants to transform the country from a dumb rock star to a gentle indie folkie, in Bigger Than the Sound.
"America!" Trey Parker once bellowed with the force of a thousand Chevy truck ads, "F--- yeah!" It wasn't meant to be a celebratory statement, rather, an indictment on the way the U.S. was viewed by the rest of the world: as egomaniacal cowboys, big, dumb illiterate broad-necks obsessed with fake boobs and huge explosions. Our foreign policy did little to prove this stereotype wrong. Neither, really, did anything else. For something like 60 years now, we've been the Ted Nugents of geopolitics. We've acted with a sense of entitlement and a misguided purpose that was befitting of only the hugest, dumbest of rock stars. We've taken what wasn't ours and trashed everything that lay in our path and treated the planet like it was little more than a day-shift stripper in Wisconsin. We are the double-necked guitar, the ham-fisted power ballad and the never-ending drum solo of the world. The cover of Pantera's Vulgar Display of Power. We are Hinder, KISS, Survivor, WASP and Mötley Crüe, all rolled up into one. There's little doubt why the rest of the planet hates us. Barack Obama wants to change all that. In his inaugural address Tuesday, he mentioned sacrifice and humility, spoke of the suffering of our ancestors and the challenges that lay before us. He used words like "dignity" and "peace" and even "fear," extended olive branches and promised unity. It was sensitive and pragmatic and downright emo at times. And also extremely un-American. I say this because rock stars are none of those things. Has David Lee Roth ever been sensitive? Do Nickelback ever weep? Has Axl Rose ever been pragmatic? Of course not. And they probably never will. The Eye of the Tiger does not blink (or change its spots, whatever that means). And that's why I have my doubts that Obama can transform America from the hulking, preening, groupie-hording, coke-snorting, arena-destroying rock star that it is into, say, a gentle indie folkie. America will never be Sufjan Stevens, no matter how hard Mr. Obama wants it to be. And this is sort of a bummer; living in the U.S.S. (the United States of Sufjan) would be great. We would all wear sweaters and rejoice and be seen as the weird, asexual cousins of the world. We would be sensitive and join hands and sing songs like "The Black Hawk War, or, How to Demolish an Entire Civilization and Still Feel Good About Yourself in the Morning, or, We Apologize for the Inconvenience but You're Going to Have to Leave Now, or, 'I Have Fought the Big Knives and Will Continue to Fight Them Until They Are Off Our Lands!'" in warbling, threadbare falsettos. Some of us would wear angel wings and play ukuleles. America would certainly be a kinder, gentler place. And that would definitely be a step in the right direction. Then again, that's probably never going to happen. Because despite the fact that — perhaps more than ever — this country needs to get in touch with our inner indie troubadours, I just don't think we have it in us to change. Rock radio is just as terrible as ever, if not more so. People keep buying Nickelback records. We are continually enthralled by the moronic antics of artists who need not be named, yet dumbfounded by (or petrified of, or allergic to) the music of Robyn or — to a lesser extent — Kanye West's new album. Life in the USA is still very much like professional wrestling or a stop on Ozzy's Bark at the Moon Tour: big and dumb and loud and unapologetically so. This will not change, because we like it this way. Which is why, despite Obama espousing the values of emo or the merits of living life like Sufjan and Conor Oberst, I have my doubts. This is not the folk-singer's America. We're going to need wholesale changes, and they're not going to be easy. We're going to have to learn that it's OK to share and talk and maybe even trade Belle & Sebastian 7-inches with our foes. We need to be OK with no longer being #1, or at least thinking we're #1, and we need to ask how our neighbors are feeling too (perhaps "America ... we're good! How are you?" would be an appropriate slogan). Some will have to put some clothes on, some need to stop posturing, some need to stop writing songs about strippers putting "something" in their mouths. And then, maybe, we can inch closer to Barack Obama's vision for America. An indie-fied, cardigan-clad tapestry of democracy. An emo nation. I, for one, am willing to answer the call, even if it means having to put up with Will.I.Am for another four years, because I love this country enough to realize that I hate this country and that we need to change. Are you willing to do the same? Will you throw your hands in the air, toss your head towards the heavens and shout, "America! F--- yeah!" in the most sensitive way possible? Can we talk about it? Questions? Concerns? Hit me up at BTTS@MTVStaff.com. |
| Kanye West Felt 'So Good' To Perform For President Obama Posted: 20 Jan 2009 10:19 PM PST During inaugural Youth Ball performance, West changed some lyrics to honor the new president.
Kanye West was clearly feeling the historical magnitude of President Obama's inauguration when he took the stage at the "Be the Change" Youth Ball on Tuesday (January 20), and he decided to tell the crowd about it. After all, it's in his blood. "It feels so good to be standing here ... My mom would be so proud right now, to see her baby boy performing the #1 song in the country for our new African-American president," he said during an instrumental break in "Heartless," the latest single from his 808s & Heartbreak album. "Being that she got arrested for being involved in the sit-ins at age 6, and my grandfather drove the first car in the marches out of Oklahoma, to see this day ..." He trailed off from there, then began singing a slightly changed version of the "Heartless" chorus, one that paid tribute not just to the civil-rights struggle, but to our new commander in chief.
"In the night I hear them talk/ The greatest story ever told," he sang. "Somewhere far along this road, a new soul: Obama ..." West's mother, Donda, was active in the civil-rights movement in the 1960s, and served as the chairwoman of Chicago State University's English department until 2004. She passed due to complications from surgery in 2007. It was a rare moment of gravitas in what was a decidedly celebratory set. Decked out in wraparound shades, a tuxedo and pocket square, West performed a medley of hits that included "Touch the Sky" — which Obama singled out as a favorite in an interview with Blender magazine last year — "Stronger" (on which he ordered the crowd to "put your hands up for Obama!") and a verse of Estelle's hit "American Boy," calling Obama "the real American boy," a shout-out to his newly minted status as the face of 21st century America. Watch "Be the Change: Live From the Inaugural" online now, and come back Thursday for the full performances from Kanye West, Kid Rock and Fall Out Boy. Stick with us for wall-to-wall coverage of the inauguration and of the scenes in Washington, D.C., New Orleans and Kenya. Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists |
| 50 Cent Explains Why He Skipped Obama Inauguration Posted: 21 Jan 2009 12:13 AM PST 'If Obama didn't invite you, you really shouldn't be there,' MC says.
50 Cent hopped on the "Change" train a bit late. The G-Unit rapper initially backed now-presumptive Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over President Barack Obama during the Democratic primaries, before changing his allegiance to Obama and finally saying he didn't know. While he says he's pleased with Obama's victory, 50 said he never thought to attend the festivities, unlike Diddy, Jay-Z, Nas, Young Jeezy and others. He even poked fun at Obama-mania, saying that since the president didn't invite him to party, he'd stay home. "I [might have] watched it from a really nice hotel room in D.C.," the rapper told HollyScoop.com at the Sundance festival before Tuesday's inauguration. "Because there's gonna be a whole lot of people out there, for no reason, doing different things. If Obama didn't invite you, you really shouldn't be there. You really shouldn't. That's the way I feel about it. Because when I go places that people didn't invite me [to], they look at me crazy, like, 'Why is he out there?' " Fif wasn't all jokes, however. He soberly admitted the difficulties the new president faces and the challenges that lie before him. "I think he's inheriting the country in a difficult state," 50 said. "Actually the worst [state], right? So I think it will take time. I hope, for all of our sakes, that whatever his plans are work for us. "People watch [Obama on] the monitor like God is speaking, like, 'I hope he can get me a job,' " Fif added. Watch "Be the Change: Live From the Inaugural" online now, and come back Thursday for the full performances from Kanye West, Kid Rock and Fall Out Boy. Stick with us for wall-to-wall coverage of the inauguration and of the scenes in Washington, D.C., New Orleans and Kenya. Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists |
| Beyonce Brought To Tears After Singing 'At Last' For Obamas Posted: 21 Jan 2009 07:54 AM PST 'It's probably the most important day of my life, and I'm so grateful,' B tells ABC.
Beyoncé may have been able to fight back the tears onstage while singing "At Last" for Michelle and Barack Obama's first dance at the Neighborhood Ball. But afterwards, when she described how amazing it was to be a part of this historic occasion, she couldn't contain her emotions for very long. "I can't even describe to you how I felt," she told "Good Morning America" correspondent Robin Roberts after her performance. "I'm actually right now fighting back tears because it's just so emotional. I'm just so proud of my country. There are just certain people in the world that God touches, and this man was born for this. And he was born to lead us, and I just feel so inspired and so proud."
She also explained what she was thinking about as she sang the Etta James classic for the first couple. "I was thinking [about] all of the sacrifices Obama and his wife and his children have made, and at last he's here," she said, her voice wavering. "I'm sorry, I'm so embarrassed. I'm just so lucky to be a part of this history. It's probably the most important day of my life, and I'm so grateful." Beyoncé told Roberts that Obama's victory has changed her. "He makes me want to be smarter; he makes me want to bee more involved," she said. "Honestly, of course, I've voted before, but I've never really watched the ceremonies. This is my first time being a part of it, and I'm here, and I'm singing! ... I'm so overwhelmed, you know. I have chills!" Watch "Be the Change: Live From the Inaugural" online now, and come back Thursday for the full performances from Kanye West, Kid Rock and Fall Out Boy. Stick with us for wall-to-wall coverage of the inauguration and of the scenes in Washington, D.C., New Orleans and Kenya. Related Photos Related Artists |
| No Doubt Announce Summer Tour With Paramore Posted: 21 Jan 2009 12:35 AM PST 'It feels good to be all together again,' frontwoman Gwen Stefani says
Mark your calendars: No Doubt will be hitting the road with Paramore this summer, the band announced on its Web site on Wednesday (January 21). "The whole reason for going on this tour was to have fun, try on all our favorite songs again and to get inspired to make new music," Gwen Stefani said. "It feels good to be all together again." "Get there early," bassist Tony Kanal added. "This is going to be a great night from the moment the lights go down." "What a dream tour! We couldn't be more excited to kick off 2009 by touring with a band like No Doubt," Paramore singer Hayley Williams said in the statement on No Doubt's Web site. The band also confirmed that a second opening-act slot will be shared by the Sounds, Janelle Monae and Bedouin Soundclash. Although dates and venues have yet to be announced, according to No Doubt's Web site, they will kick off the tour in May and will play outdoor amphitheaters and arenas throughout the summer. No Doubt, along with Fall Out Boy, will also play New Jersey's Bamboozle Festival in May. "Now that five years have passed, the excitement level for us is extremely high," drummer Adrian Young said; the last time the band toured was in 2004 along with Blink-182. "We are so fresh and ready! I feel like a kid again when rehearsing these songs." Young previously revealed that the band has been working on new music but has no plans to release a record in 2009, despite the fact that seven years have passed since the band's last release. "We've been working on a new record off and on now for a bit of time, and we're going to continue to work on a new record," he told MTV News. "We're going to start touring in the spring of '09 through the summer, and we're going to continue to work on music while we're traveling. [We'll have] a mobile studio on the bus and eventually get to a new No Doubt record." Related Artists |
| Katy Perry Takes A Vow Of Celibacy Posted: 21 Jan 2009 01:48 AM PST 'No kissing anyone,' singer reportedly tells TV Guide.
After Katy Perry's much-publicized breakup with Gym Class Heroes frontman Travis McCoy, the "I Kissed a Girl" singer has decided that these days, she's not going to be kissing anybody — well, with one notable exception. "I've actually taken a vow of celibacy this year," the Grammy nominee told the new issue of TV Guide, according to Us Weekly. "No kissing anyone. Just my cat: Kitty Purry." This intimate revelation comes just a week after Perry blogged that she doesn't "give statements about my personal life" after reports surfaced that she was sharing intimate details about her broken heart to a crowd at a show in Los Angeles. "When you break up with someone, you move on," she said at the concert. "You don't really want to move on ... but you have to because they don't give you any choice," she added before declaring, "But I'm over it!" In response to those reports, she blogged that since splitting with McCoy, people are finding new reasons to comment on things she claims she says all the time in concert. "I have made many of the same introductions before ... just lately everyone's dissecting my every word. Understandable," she blogged. "When I wanna share something with the world, the world will know ... otherwise, stop looking for a story, or an explanation." Before that blog post, Perry evaded MTV News' questions about the breakup, instead plugging her tour. "Well, it's a new year, and I'm very focused," she said when asked about the Gym Class Heroes frontman. "I have a tour coming up on January 23 called the Hello Katy Tour, and I'm putting all my energy and efforts into that." Related Artists |
| Rich Cronin, Ex-LFO Frontman, Slams Former Manager Lou Pearlman Posted: 21 Jan 2009 03:03 AM PST 'He's really a creepy guy,' Cronin says of imprisoned ex-manager.
Former LFO frontman Rich Cronin opened up about his onetime manager, Lou Pearlman, who helped make the trio famous in the late '90s thanks to their hit "Summer Girls," but Cronin admits that the fame came with a price. "He wanted to [seduce] everyone. He wanted to [seduce] everyone there ... he's disgusting," Cronin told Howard Stern on his radio show on Wednesday (January 21), when he stopped by to promote his new album, Billion Dollar Sound. "He needed you to sing a little bit, but really he just wanted you to be good-looking." He also revealed that despite the band selling "4 or 5 million records," he never really saw much in terms of money. "I should've made, like, at least 2 or 3 million dollars," adding that his former manager even sold the publishing rights to the songs he wrote from underneath him. "I've had to go to therapy ... he's really a creepy guy," Cronin said after describing Pearlman's "wonderland for guys" mansion, which was full of Star Wars memorabilia. He added that Pearlman's attention was invasive to say the least. "He goes, 'You could be a star ... take off your shirt.' Then he's like, 'Turn around,' " Cronin recalled. "He's massaging my shoulders and he's like, 'You wanna watch "Top Gun"?' " Cronin also revealed that some guys allowed Pearlman to use his power to take advantage of them, because it would mean they would have better career opportunities. "Eventually he did [try and touch me sexually] ... some other dudes went for it. And if you did, he took care of you. He'd buy 'em cars." Rich jokingly added that one of the guys is now very famous because of it. Pearlman wasn't the only hot topic that Cronin touched on — he also talked a bit about his former relationship with actress Jennifer Love Hewitt. "I decided to talk to her and she kept talking to me and talking to me," he explained. She also gave him a ring and, according to Cronin, "She said, 'Listen, I wanna marry you. We're gonna be together forever.' " He later found out that Hewitt used that line on other guys. Related Artists |
| Obama's Inauguration Inspires Celebrity-Filled Afterparties Posted: 21 Jan 2009 08:20 AM PST Usher, Pete Wentz, Spike Lee, Jay-Z and other stars partied into the morning.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Party over here, love and respect to you over there. The vibe in Washington, D.C., after President Barack Obama's inauguration was, "We did it." It felt like being part of a struggling franchise sports team for years, then finally winning a championship, with your hometown's locals celebrating you at every turn. Multiply that feeling by 100. In Washington, nobody wanted to go home. Well after MTV's "Be the Change" Youth Ball went off the air, Usher was still there, just hanging out with his wife. Pete Wentz even got on the mic and spoke about the importance of Obama taking office. While across town people like LL Cool J and Kim Kardashian were advertised as hosting parties, Spike Lee helmed his own shindig at Josephine's. Lee's fiesta had the energy of something out of "School Daze." Everyone was dancing. Everyone. Certain records that we've heard countless times before felt like they had just been made to articulate our feelings about Obama officially becoming president. There was extra energy in Ashford & Simpson's "Solid as a Rock," because that's how many feel about the country's leadership now. "We built it up and built it up, and now we're sollllllllll-id!" Jadakiss and Styles P's "We Gonna Make It" suddenly felt brand-new. Their back-and-forth was simple in its delivery but powerful in its message: "We. Gon'. Make. It." You could hear people screaming as Lee danced in a tux and top hat, sandwiched between actors from "The Wire" and actress Lynn Whitfield. The only discord came when the house lights went on and the DJ announced the last song, Jamie Foxx's "Blame It." Outside, well past 4 a.m., you could still see revelers in the street. Nobody wanted to go home. A member of Jay-Z's security team stood outside Park nightclub as his entourage packed into an SUV. Meanwhile, stars like Rosario Dawson stood outside chatting, oblivious to the cold. If there were ever a night when D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty could have gotten away with keeping nightspots open later than their already extended 4 a.m. closing time, it was this morning. Watch "Be the Change: Live From the Inaugural" online now, and come back Thursday for the full performances from Kanye West, Kid Rock and Fall Out Boy. Stick with us for wall-to-wall coverage of the inauguration and of the scenes in Washington, D.C., New Orleans and Kenya. Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists |
| You are subscribed to email updates from MTV News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
Inbox too full?  Subscribe to the feed version of MTV News in a feed reader. | |
| If you prefer to unsubscribe via postal mail, write to: MTV News, c/o Google, 20 W Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar