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| Will Lil Wayne Clean Up At The Grammys? Posted: 05 Feb 2009 04:56 AM PST Weezy is nominated eight times — and Album of the Year could be the only trophy out of his reach.
Lil Wayne has racked up a ton of accolades in the past 12 months, including being the top-selling artist of 2008, winning Best Hip-Hop Video at the VMAs and playing guitar alongside Kid Rock at the Country Music Awards. (That last one seemed crazy to us, too, but it's just been that kind of year for him.) Next up for the Cash Money star? According to most music experts, Wayne will be walking away with the Best Rap Album award at the 2009 Grammy ceremony next week. "Wayne might have the easiest victory throughout the entire Grammys," XXL magazine's Bonsu Thompson told MTV News last week. "Whether it's in the recording booth or onstage, there's no competition. He sold a million copies in one week." He's nominated in seven hip-hop categories overall, including Best Rap Song, Best Rap Solo Performance and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. "It's a sure thing he'll take all the rap awards he's nominated for this year," Entertainment Weekly music critic Leah Greenblatt said. But the New Orleans lyricist's eighth nomination is the most impressive: Album of the Year. Lauryn Hill and Outkast are the only hip-hop artists to take home the Album of the Year trophy at past Grammy ceremonies. Wayne will be going up against critical darlings like Coldplay and Radiohead, but some of the producers who worked on Tha Carter III think Wayne has as good a shot at winning as any other artist. "Anyone that can get nominated for eight Grammys is absolutely amazing," StreetRunner, who produced "Playin' With Fire," told MTV News on Wednesday. "Especially to do it as a rapper. He's blessed. I hope he takes all of them. 'Cause anyone that works as hard as he does deserves to get rewarded. "I don't care if he's going against the biggest pop act in the world or the biggest rock act in the world, because he deserves to be there right with them at the end of the day," the producer continued. "He managed to sell a million records in one week. If that many people wanna buy your album in a week, you did something right, you did something important. And I'm pretty sure in that Album of the Year category, no one else did that. So that's what it is. Numbers don't lie." Other Carter III contributors said they were honored to have their work nominated for a Grammy, but they expected it because of the rapper's immense talent. "There were rumors floating around that he would be nominated for Album of the Year, and I kind of expected it," said Infamous, who produced the Jay-Z-assisted "Mr. Carter." "It wasn't your average hip-hop album, where you just make a bunch of smash records. He touched on a lot of things. There's some artistic songs. It's not just a Southern record; it's a record that fans in New York could listen to. To me, that's what a hip-hop record is, but it's bigger because of everything he's talking about." Ultimately, though, whether Wayne wins Best Rap Album or Album of the Year — or both — the buzz surrounding the project might matter more than a Grammy. Drew Correa, who produced songs with Infamous, said Wayne records so much music that the nervousness of waiting for his final track list to be confirmed far outweighs what he imagines it will be like waiting for presenters to open envelopes at the Grammy Awards. "The anticipation for the release for Tha Carter III was a lot crazier than finding out about the Grammys," Correa said. "Even though winning a Grammy would be a dream come true. [Laughs.] I'm still gonna be pulling my hair at the awards, though. I'm not gonna lie." "Anyone who made Tha Carter III, it was literally like 16 lottery winners," StreetRunner said. "Because there were hundreds of records that could have made it." Will Lil Wayne grab all the gramophones? Is Katy Perry going to tell her girl rivals to kiss off? Can Coldplay march off with a win? MTV News is all over the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, so stay tuned for interviews, analysis and more before, during and after the big night, Sunday, February 8. Related Videos Related Artists |
| 'American Idol' Hollywood Week Rolls On -- Check Out Our Live Blog! Posted: 04 Feb 2009 05:10 AM PST Check out 'Idol' expert Jim Cantiello's minute-by-minute recap of the show.
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| Rick Ross Tells 50 Cent: 'I'm Not Excited, But I Will Be' Posted: 03 Feb 2009 10:19 PM PST 'This is what separates boys and champions,' Ross says in recent video clip apparently aimed at 50.
So far 50 Cent's been looking like the bully who takes your lunch money everyday when it comes to his beef with Rick Ross. First, he responded to the Miami rapper's dig on "Mafia Music" with a track of his own, "Officer Ricky (Go 'Head, Try Me)." Then he posted a video blog on YouTube, issuing Ross a career-ending threat. Later that same day an animated clip of 50 and his newest target appeared on his Web site, ThisIs50.com, followed by Monday's video of the G-Unit star interviewing one of Ross' ex-girlfriends. Ross' only response so far has been an interview on Sirius Radio's Shade 45 program the Angela Yee Morning Show. He told Yee last Friday he wasn't impressed with 50's song. "We gonna give him 48 hours," Ross said in the interview. "Time to come up with another [track]!" Wednesday morning (February 4), Ross retaliated again, albeit subtly. The rapper's camp released a video to accompany "Mafia Music," the track where Ross first fired lyrical shots in the brewing battle. "I love to pay ya bills, can't wait to pay ya rent/ Curtis Jackson baby mama, I ain't looking for a cent/ Burn the house down," Ross raps, referring to the "suspicious" fire at a home owned by 50 (in which his son and ex-girlfriend lived) last year. "You gotta buy another/ Don't forget the gas can, jealous, stupid mutha-----r." The video doesn't directly address 50 Cent — instead the Boss opted for a performance clip from what looks to be his Florida home. But following the clip, a scene from "The Godfather" plays where Sonny, Don Vito's son, is gunned down in an ambush by a rival gang. "This is what separates boys and champions," Ross cryptically says in voice-over. "I'm not even excited, but I will be, 'cause I'm going to Venezuela. Monkey, monkey, monkey." The latter part of Ross' comment refers to an earlier video posted by 50 Cent where he told viewers he was flying to Venezuela for a show date. Following the gig, 50 began his tirade against the Def Jam rapper. Ross is rumored to be calling into Hot 97 later this week to speak to Funkmaster Flex. Earlier in the week, both rappers tossed barbs at each other over the New York radio station's airwaves. Related Artists |
| Disney Star Selena Gomez Looks Forward To More 'Challenging' Work Posted: 05 Feb 2009 05:00 AM PST 'Wizards of Waverly Place' actress cites Kate Winslet as inspiration.
Selena Gomez doesn't want to bite the hand that feeds her, but she also doesn't want to be a tween Disney star forever. She has plans to do more "challenging" work someday. "I love the Disney Channel, and I always want to keep that relationship because they gave me my start," she told Us Weekly. "But I'd love to someday make a transition and do roles that are really challenging for me. I'd like to do comedy, romance, anything."
The 16-year-old cited Kate Winslet's Golden Globe-winning role in "Revolutionary Road," revealing that it's her top contender for the Oscars. "That is the movie I want to take all the awards. I can't even get over it." But for now, Gomez is perfectly happy starring on "Wizards of Waverly Place" and working on her yet-untitled debut album. "Hopefully I'll finish up in April and debut my album in July," she said. "I'm really excited that people will see a whole other side of me." Gomez plans to tour in support of the album, and she already knows who she'd like to take on the road with her: her BFF, "Camp Rock" star Demi Lovato. "I'm so happy to be with her," she said. "We're going to have sleepovers on the bus, and we'll never actually get any sleep!" Related Artists |
| Why Is 'American Idol' Rewarding Joke Contestants Like Bikini Girl? Posted: 04 Feb 2009 12:13 AM PST Somehow, Katrina Darrell and Nick 'Norman Gentle' Mitchell make it through first round of Hollywood Week.
Winning "American Idol" feels great. But as any contestant will tell you, being on "Idol," especially during the soul-crushing Hollywood Week, does not. For the most part in the past, "Idol" hopefuls who make it to Hollywood are serious singers who really think they have a shot at winning, with the costume-wearing, prop-toting jokers mostly weeded out during the audition weeks or not given screen time on the big stage in Los Angeles. But a pair of singers — swimsuit model Katrina "Bikini Girl" Darrell and stand-up comedian Nick "Norman Gentle" Mitchell — who made it through the first round of Hollywood Week on Tuesday night's show called into question whether that maxim is still true and whether prime-time minutes are being squandered on joke acts who have no intention of really winning the competition at the expense of more focused singers. "As an 'Idol' fan, I was more angry about those two fools hogging more screen time, when contestants I actually cared about were cut," said resident MTV News "Idol" expert Jim Cantiello. "Hollywood Week is supposed to be 'Idol' fans' gift, after a month of shticky auditions. We watch the audition episodes for the comedy. We watch Hollywood Week for the nail-biting, hair-pulling drama. It's disappointing that producers got it wrong this year." A spokesperson for "Idol" could not be reached for comment at press time. Darrell has been controversial since the moment she stepped in to audition in Phoenix. Female judges Paula Abdul and Kara DioGuardi were not impressed with her bikini-and-heels getup, with DioGuardi actually singing down Darrell and calling her a bi---. The male judges, however, fawned over the model and seemingly put her through on looks alone. Darrell was back in Hollywood, still kissing Ryan Seacrest on the mouth more than the show's host seemed comfortable with, but wearing a short dress and, again, not impressing the female judges. The tension in the room was palpable, as both Abdul and DioGuardi said they initially liked Darrell's take on Faith Hill's "Breathe," but that, in the end, it just wasn't good enough. After calling DioGuardi "rude" and claiming the new judge was "insecure" in a taped segment before taking the stage, the best Darrell, 20, could get from the professional songwriter was the snide quip "You're a beautiful girl." But, DioGuardi added, "When you started the song, you were better than the last audition. ... You had me there for a moment thinking maybe I was wrong. But actually, I think I was right." Simon Cowell, normally the stern, all-business judge, was mocked by his female cohorts (who advised the acerbic judge and pal Randy Jackson to bring their stripper poles to the Kodak Theatre for the next round) and made farting noises with his mouth during Abdul's comments. Both men, seemingly crazy for Darrell for more than her just-OK singing, enthusiastically waved her through. It was one of the first instances when Cowell — who is often seen looking away from contestants so as to focus on their vocals only — has so blatantly appeared to judge with his eyes more than his ears. When Darrell complained that her singing would have been better with musical accompaniment — which no one gets in the Hollywood rounds — Cowell agreed and smirked, "Absolutely right. ... I don't think you've had particularly fair criticism from these girls. I think there is obviously a problem here." "The show this year is going for entertainment value over actual sing, which is fine with me, because that's what I like to watch," said Dave Della Terza, creator of the "Idol"-baiting site Vote for the Worst, which leaked what it purported was the top 36 last week. "I always said this is a reality show and not a singing competition. With Bikini Girl, maybe the producers think that's good drama, and they want her to stick around so the judges can fight it out. They know she's not going to be the next Idol and she's not going to make it past Hollywood if they're really looking for the next person who will be a star, because she's annoying." And while 43 hopefuls saw their dreams blown up Tuesday night, doughy funnyman Mitchell, 27, who promised to leave the comedy shtick behind, again brought his second-rate Jack Black thunder to the stage. Wearing his signature shiny shirt, shorts and red bandana, Mitchell, who appears to possess a decent voice, hammed it up again with a warbling, frantic performance of the "Dreamgirls" showstopper "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" that Jackson dubbed "hilarious" and "banoodles." Using a prop pitch pipe, throwing in shout-outs to the balcony and Seacrest, and clearly not trying very hard, Mitchell still got mostly positive remarks, with Jackson saying, "You can actually sing," and a seemingly perplexed Cowell admitting, "I genuinely don't know what to make of you, because without the glasses and silly headband, you're just a boring person. When you put the stupid outfit on, you become a joke. It's just ridiculous." "It's weird that the judges put these 'characters' through to round two, particularly Simon, who is usually the one who keeps the show on task," Cantiello said. "He's notoriously anti-shtick. But at the very least, he acknowledged that Norman was a joke. It's inexcusable, however, that Simon and Randy acted like Bikini Girl was a good singer when really all they were rewarding was her physical appearance. Her audition was flat and nasal. I pity the singers who are going to get paired with these goofballs in the group numbers, but I hope that the judges have the good sense to give their partners a pass if the group numbers end up to be disasters because of clowns." Della Terza had a much less harsh assessment: "I liked the episode, because it seemed like they were putting through tons of people Vote for the Worst can support." Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. Related Photos |
| DJ Dan Suh Responds To Joaquin Phoenix Dis Posted: 04 Feb 2009 02:11 AM PST 'It's time to start some beef,' former Fall Out Boy tour manager says of actor-turned-rapper.
It didn't have to come to this. When MTV News published former Fall Out Boy tour-manager-turned-celebrity DJ Dan Suh's open letter to rapper/actor Joaquin Phoenix on Tuesday, we were just hoping to make some dreams come true. See, all Suh wanted was to be Phoenix's DJ. All he got was dissed. The dissing went down Tuesday, too, when we caught up with Phoenix during a junket for his upcoming film "Two Lovers," which — if hype is to be believed — will be the actor's final film before he dives headlong into his burgeoning rap career. Hoping to facilitate a meeting between the actor and the DJ, we showed Phoenix a copy of Suh's letter, and rather than find it amusing or endearing, he found it quite insulting, declaring that he "doesn't need a DJ" before crumpling up the letter and tossing it over his shoulder. And with that slight, the beef was on. We spoke to Suh early Wednesday morning (February 4) from his celebrity pool house in Southern California, and rather than letting the whole thing pass, Suh came out firing, taking a page from 50 Cent's playbook and going after Phoenix's law-enforcement past, "Officer Ricky"-style. "I think it's time to start some beef. Rick Ross apparently used to be a parole officer, and 50's been on him for that," Suh said. "Joaquin Phoenix played a firefighter in [the 2004 film] 'Ladder 49,' and that's law enforcement as far as I'm concerned. I don't know how he keeps his hip-hop cred after something like that." Suh has more to say, but he's deciding to hold back until he hears a response from Phoenix. "I got a crack team of DJ assistants to dig up the dirt," he laughed. Though he's heard that the actor/rapper has gone a bit haywire of late, he says he's not afraid of any retaliation. In fact, he says he welcomes it. "He knows where to find me. I'm still by the pool house," Suh said. "I don't know how hard he's gonna come back at me, but if he wants to, I'm ready. If he wants to meet me on Twitter, we'll have it out — 140 characters at a time." Related Artists |
| Cramps Singer Lux Interior Dead At 62 Posted: 04 Feb 2009 04:59 AM PST Singer died early Wednesday of an existing heart condition.
Lux Interior, lead singer of influential garage-punk act the Cramps, died Wednesday morning (February 4) due to an existing heart condition, according to a statement from the band's publicist. He was 62. Born Erick Lee Purkhiser, Interior started the Cramps in 1972 with guitarist Poison Ivy (born Kristy Wallace, later his wife) — whom, as legend has it, he picked up as a hitchhiker in California. By 1975, they had moved to New York, where they became an integral part of the burgeoning punk scene surrounding CBGBs. Their music differed from most of the scene's other acts in that it was heavily steeped in camp, with Interior's lyrics frequently drawing from schlocky B-movies, sexual kink and deceptively clever puns. (J.H. Sasfy's liner notes to their debut EP memorably noted: "The Cramps don't pummel and you won't pogo. They ooze; you'll throb.") Sonically, the band drew from blues and rockabilly, and a key element of their sound was the trashy, dueling guitars of Poison Ivy and Bryan Gregory (and later Kid Congo Powers), played with maximal scuzz and minimal drumming. Because of that — not to mention Interior's deranged, Iggy Pop-inspired onstage antics and deep, sexualized singing voice (which one reviewer described as "the psychosexual werewolf/ Elvis hybrid from hell") — the Cramps are often cited as pioneers of "psychobilly" and "horror rock," and can count bands like the Black Lips, the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, the Reverend Horton Heat, the Horrors and even the White Stripes as their musical progeny. Over the course of more than 30 years, the Interior and Ivy surrounded themselves with an ever-changing lineup of drummers, guitarists and bassists, and released 13 studio albums (the last being 2003's Fiends of Dope Island). They also famously performed a concert for patients at the Napa State Mental Hospital in 1978 (which was recorded on grainy VHS and has since become a cult classic) and appeared on a Halloween episode of "Beverly Hills, 90210." Their video for the song "Bikini Girls With Machine Guns" also drew rave reviews from Beavis and Butt-head on a memorable episode of the show. Despite the band's long history, fans generally agree that the group's peak was in the early '80s, with the albums Songs the Lord Taught Us and Psychedelic Jungle. Many clips of the Cramps' chaotic live shows from the era can be found online; look for their version of "Tear It Up" from the 1980 film "URGH! A Music War." One memorable (and typical) show in Boston in 1986 found Interior, clad only in leopard-skin briefs, drinking red wine from an audience member's shoe, and ended with him French-kissing a woman (who wasn't his wife) for 10 full minutes with his microphone in their mouths. Due to their imagery, obsession with kitsch and dogged dedication to touring — they wrapped up their latest jaunt across Europe and the U.S. this past November — the Cramps commanded a loyal fanbase, and even earned a spot in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in the form of a shattered bass drum that Interior had shoved his head through. |
| Lady Gaga Promises 'Life-Changing Experience' With Fame Ball Tour Posted: 04 Feb 2009 12:43 AM PST 'It's not really a tour, it's more of a traveling party,' says the singer.
Lady Gaga isn't your typical pop tart. The style, the songs, the swagger ... it's clear that she's got a higher purpose than just, you know, pointing out how some chiseled cad is a "womanizer" (over and over again). So, naturally, when it came time for her to launch her first-ever headlining jaunt — a 26-date run through the U.S. she's dubbed the "Fame Ball," which kicks off March 12 in San Diego — she decided to swing for the fences, going out-of-pocket to bring her fans what she describes as "the greatest, most life-changing experience." Which means that whatever you do, don't call it a "tour." "It's not really a tour, it's more of a traveling party. I want it to be an entire experience from [the] minute you walk in [the] front door to [the] minute I begin to sing. And when it's all over, everyone's going to press rewind and relive it again," Gaga told MTV News on Tuesday (February 3), where she was ducking paparazzi in a Belfast, Ireland, nail salon (for real). "It's going to be as if you're walking into New York circa 1974: There's an art installation in the lobby, a DJ spinning your favorite records in the main room, and then the most haunting performance that you've ever seen on the stage." And while she wouldn't get into any further specifics ("I don't want to ruin the surprise!" she laughed), Gaga did say that planning the Ball has become a full-time job. Which not only makes her current gig — opening up for the Pussycat Dolls on their European tour — difficult, but it's driving her tour manager completely crazy. "I'm on the phone every minute of every day, talking to people, being creative, planning this Ball, and my tour manager is constantly saying, 'Come on, we have to go, we've got to go right now,' " she said. "But to me, the Ball is so important. I want so much to make every depression dollar that everyone spends on my show worth it. And, yeah, I'm paying a lot for it — out of my own pocket. But that's OK. I just don't care about money." We told you she wasn't your typical pop tart. And to further illustrate that point, we decided to ask Gaga about her plans for this Sunday's Grammy Awards, where her song "Just Dance" is up for Best Dance Recording. Turns out, she's not going to go — she's busy working — but she is expecting to pick up the award, and she's not afraid to admit it. "A year ago at this time, I was gluing sequins on $4 bras," she laughed. "So that should tell you how far I've come. Yeah, I feel like I've got a pretty good shot at winning." Will Lil Wayne grab all the gramophones? Is Katy Perry going to tell her girl rivals to kiss off? Can Coldplay march off with a win? MTV News is all over the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, so stay tuned for interviews, analysis and more before, during and after the big night, Sunday, February 8. Related Artists |
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