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| Did Rick Ross' <i>Deeper Than Rap</i> Flop? 50 Cent Doesn't Think So Posted: 30 Apr 2009 05:09 AM PDT 'You can't call a #1 [album] a 'flop' under any circumstances,' 50 says.
While Rick Ross' Deeper Than Rap did hit #1 on the Billboard Top 200, some say the numbers were weak. "150,000 is not a lot of copies sold on a major [label]," MTV.com reader Eagles36 wrote in. "Fifty did 691,000 his first week. Rick Ross is a joke." Meanwhile, Ross advocate DCollins4444 said to naysayers, "Haters, haters, haters. Stand up ... it's a good album. This album would have sold [a million] six years ago in its first week."
For the record, Deeper Than Rap's first-week numbers aren't far off from his first two LPs, both of which went in at #1. Last year's Trilla pushed 198,000 copies in its first week, while his 2006 effort Port of Miami sold 187,000 out of the gate. "It's interesting, because it's so many different factors working against the music industry right now," veteran journalist, music blogger and Hot 97 radio personality Miss Info said about the Ross debate. "You look at digital downloading and compound it with the state of the economy. You just feel like a lot of times the creative products are the first to be put on the back burner. ... In a lot of ways, I think record-label people are looking at gold as the new platinum. Literally. Someone told me they are making gold plaques again. At this point in time, you could have a lot of build-up on an artist and they're hitting 50,000 first week." When asked about the first-week sales of Deeper Than Rap, Ross' biggest detractor in the music biz, 50 Cent, wondered if the numbers were somehow flubbed by the record company. "I didn't get an opportunity to hear his record, but a lot of freak [SoundScan] numbers come out of the Def Jam system," 50 said with a grin. Def Jam couldn't be reached for comment as of press time. But even Fif didn't agree with some of his fans that the Ross record was a flop. "I think it can be a disappointment to the system, based on how much of an effort and money they spent marketing," 50 explained. "But you can't call a #1 [album] a 'flop' under any circumstances. It's still #1." Related Videos Related Artists |
| Kelis Files For Divorce From Nas Posted: 30 Apr 2009 06:10 AM PDT Singer is seven months' pregnant with couple's first child.
One of hip-hop's premiere couples is reportedly splitting: Kelis has filed for divorce from Nas, according to Vibe.com. She is seven months' pregnant with the couple's first child. "I can confirm that she has filed for divorce," a spokesperson for Kelis reportedly told the site on Thursday (April 30). "We request the media to respect her privacy during this very difficult time." On Thursday afternoon, attorney Laura Wasser (who has also represented Britney Spears) filed a divorce petition on behalf of Kelis, citing irreconciable differences. Vibe.com posted the petition on its site. The news comes mere weeks after Nas spoke excitedly with MTV News about the baby. When asked earlier this month how Kelis was doing, he said, "She's great, man. She's doing good. [We are deciding between] a few baby names. It's kinda hard. I've been thinking about kinda putting something online: 'Choose his name.' You get a couple stacks for that. We take care of you for that. You win something real. But we're thinking now." Nas and Kelis first met in 2002 at an MTV Video Music Awards afterparty thrown by Sean "Diddy" Combs. The couple dated for two years and were married in Atlanta in January 2005. While rumors about the couple splitting have been circulating for some time, and RapRadar.com reported that a split was imminent earlier on Thursday, the news still took many by surprise. Reps for both artists had not granted MTV News' requests for comment at press time. Related Artists |
| Matt Giraud Says 'American Idol' Is 'More Popularity Than Talent' Posted: 30 Apr 2009 12:07 AM PDT 'I never came in wanting to be the American Idol,' singer admits.
"American Idol" castoff Matt Giraud was, as he dubbed himself Wednesday night, "the cat with nine lives." From being chosen as a wild-card contestant early in the season to being saved by the judges two weeks ago, it seemed like the soulful singer from Kalamazoo, Michigan, was in it for the long haul. But after a mostly well-received performance of "My Funny Valentine" on Rat Pack night, Giraud's second chances ran out and he was sent home. We caught up with the 23-year-old dueling-piano player to talk about Wednesday's surprising bottom three, Simon Cowell's high praise and much more. Q: You had kind of an unusual response from the judges this week, with Simon praising you and Kara and Randy giving you a hard time. What were you thinking when that happened? A: Yeah, Kara's usually on my side. It was a great way to go out. Going out with Simon calling you brilliant and comparing you to Nat King Cole was pretty much the best way I could go. It's better than going out with "That's the worst you've ever done. Have a good day." [Laughs.] Q: Did this week's bottom three surprise you? A: I was definitely surprised that Adam was down there with me. It's kind of a cruel twist to have him pick who he thought were the lowest vote-getters. We kind of played with him backstage, saying, "Why didn't you pick us to be the highest vote-getters?" [Laughs.] It felt kind of uncomfortable, but I've been there before, so I can deal with it. Q: If you were put in Adam's position and asked to choose a side during the results show, what would you have done? A: I would have pulled an Archuleta and just sat down. [Laughs.] Q: How did it feel to be the first person in "Idol" history to be saved by the judges? A: I can't wait to see my name on a trivia card. [Laughs.] I feel blessed, honored, and you know what? Being saved, I've never felt so much love in a room before. It was a really cool feeling, and it was probably one of the coolest moments of my life. It made me feel real special, and I hope that people think it was worth it. Q: Do you think you could have done anything differently this week to save yourself? A: I still think it wasn't my week. I picked a song that I loved, and I listened back to it, and I wouldn't really change a thing, and that's probably the first time I'd really ever say that. I could have probably picked a bigger song. Maybe I could've shown off a little more and riffed all over the place, but I just wanted to do something simple. I'm proud of what I did. I'm glad I went out on that note. Q: What do you think the voters are looking for at this point in the competition? A: At this point, it's more popularity than talent. We all know that. Everyone in the top five is talented, though, but someone's gotta go home every week. It's just whoever can rub America the right way, I guess. Q: How important do you think it is to win? A: I never came in wanting to be the American Idol. My dream was to play that piano on that stage. My dream was to play jazz on that stage. My dream was to meet the mentors. That was a dream come true for me. I wasn't like, "Man, I hope I win." Yeah, there's definitely a lot of perks, and I'd like it, and I was fighting for it. But that wasn't the goal. I'm not kicking myself because I'm not winning. Obviously, we've seen past Idols who go home fourth, fifth place do even better than the Idol, so all hope is not lost. Q: The judges put a lot of emphasis on song arrangement this year. What's the process for that? A: People don't really know, but a lot of these arrangements have been done before. They're just not really well-known. Sometimes a lot of people on the show get a lot of credit for those. [Laughs.] Q: Who do you think will take home the "Idol" crown this season? A: I always joke around and say I think they're gonna bring me back. [Laughs.] I have no idea, and I endorse all of them. I'd be happy if any of them win. Q: How did you decide when to bring out the piano and when to leave it backstage? A: It kind of might seem like it was some strategy, but it was more just kind of on a whim. I planned on playing this next week if I made it through. I just didn't want to overdo it. It seemed like the piano doesn't really help you on the show. It's more like a prop, I think. I love the piano. I'd love to play it every time, but I just can't. Q: Did you already know what you would be performing for next week's rock theme? A: I actually thought about doing "Simple Man" by Lynyrd Skynyrd on the keys and making it a bluesy version. Q: We've heard a few different musical styles from you on the show, but what kind of album are you planning to put out? A: I'd actually like to get more into rock, or maybe soulful rock with a twist of blues on it. I'd love to see myself as a lead man with a piano and a band around me, touring and doing good music, maybe [like] Gavin DeGraw and the Fray. Q: The judges gave you a hard time when you sang rock songs. Did that affect the way you chose your songs each week? A: It did a little bit, but not that much. I still picked the songs even if they were more rocky. I still picked them if they moved me and I loved singing them. At the end of the day, I'm not gonna change what I like. I'm still gonna keep doing the same kind of stuff. I got tons of e-mails and comments about those songs from fans that they loved them, so it kind of reassured me a little bit. Q: Who were your favorite guest mentors to work with? A: Jamie Foxx was one of the most helpful mentors, by insisting that I change the key and kind of showing me how to perform it. But one of the most influential ones was definitely Smokey Robinson. Just a legend. To sit there and sing a song for him on the piano and have him tell me that Marvin Gaye would have been proud to hear my version — you don't get told that every day as a musician. Q: What did you think about people comparing you to Justin Timberlake? A: It's a little annoying, but I respect him a lot. I really appreciate what he does. I knew that people were going to compare me. You know, a white guy with soul — it's just how it works. I love it. I was waiting for that to come. But I think I'm a lot different. I love his type of music, I can pull it off, but it's not really where I'd want to go musically. I'd rather be rocking out with some kind of piano band, like the Fray or Gavin DeGraw. Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. Related Videos Related Photos |
| Trailer For Eminem's Homicidal '3 A.M.' Video Hits The Internet Posted: 29 Apr 2009 10:42 PM PDT The clip features images of blood-splattered walls and the MC running frantically through the woods.
Eminem just needs some time to think ... alone ... and apparently without clothes on. The trailer for his new "3 A.M." video hit the Net Thursday, and the Detroit rapper plays a psychotic, homicidal wild man on the loose. As the trailer begins, we see a shot of a man that looks to be Em, sitting naked on a chair in an empty room. From there, we see images of a dead body on the floor and Em lying in a bed in a room with blood-splattered walls. Shortly after, we see a nurse walking down a hallway and flashes of chaotic scenes, such as a very in-shape Em running through the woods with a confused look on his face, neck covered in blood. The images in the video were obviously inspired by the maniacal lyrics of the song, in which Slim Shady raps about everything from Kim Kardashian and Miley Cyrus to drinking blood. "Wake up naked in McDonald's with/ Blood all over me /Dead bodies behind the counter, sh--/ Guess I must have blacked-out again/ Not again ... I wonder what's on the tube/ Maybe they'll show some boobs/ Surfing every channel/ Until I find "Hannah Montana"/ Then I reach for the aloe and lanolin." "3 A.M." was directed by Syndrome and will debut on Cinemax on Saturday, May 2, at 10 p.m. right before the film, "The Strangers." "3 A.M." is the second release off of Relapse, in stores May 19. Related Artists |
| Steve-O Worried Life Would Be 'All Downhill' After 'Jackass' Posted: 01 May 2009 03:51 AM PDT 'Steve-O: Demise and Rise' premieres Sunday at 10 p.m. ET on MTV.
Steve-O made a career out of never saying no. Snort a blob of super-spicy wasabi? Sure! Let a lobster clamp down on his tongue? Bring it on! His life as an over-the-top yes man, however, brought with it much darker results than singed nasal passages or a bloodied mouth. Last year, Steve-O found himself overpowered by an out-of-control addiction to drugs and alcohol and having hallucinatory conversations with imaginary people.
With the help of his "Jackass" pals, the 34-year-old got sober and now, as his addiction-and-recovery documentary "Steve-O: Demise and Rise" premieres Sunday at 10 p.m. ET on MTV, Steve-O is looking forward to a time when he won't feel pressure to say yes to everything that comes his way. Part of his problem, he explained in a recent interview with MTV News, was his constant need to stay in the public eye and continue to be successful. When "Jackass Number Two" came out in 2006 and grossed more than $70 million at the box office, Steve-O panicked as he looked at his future prospects. "No matter what, it was going to be something that wasn't as big of a deal," he said. "It was all downhill. And I lost my mind. I had never considered what life would be like after my career." Yet "Demise and Rise" comes at a point when Steve-O's career prospects are looking stronger than ever. With his appearance on "Dancing With the Stars" earlier this month, he's been in the process of cultivating a more mainstream image, one not so closely connected to the shenanigans that made him a fixture in gossip magazines and on Web sites. "Going from ['DWTS'] and now coming out with this documentary is kind of like to say, 'By the way, here's the guy you were actually watching the whole time,' " he laughed. "The timing of this is all pretty weird." Whatever happens in the months and years to come, Steve-O will continue to work on taking things one day — and one career decision — at a time. "There's going to come a point where there's just nothing next," he said. "I want that to be OK when that happens." Related Videos |
| Aubrey O'Day Says 'Making The Band' Finale Offered 'Closure' Posted: 30 Apr 2009 12:12 AM PDT 'Making the Band: The Rise and Fall of Danity Kane' airs tonight at 9 p.m. ET on MTV.
When Aubrey O'Day reunited with most of the members of Danity Kane at last Thursday's season-three "Making the Band 4" finale, she only touched on the fact that she was partly blamed for the band's dissolution. A week later, O'Day tells MTV News she has no hard feelings for the other girls, Diddy or the people who may have placed blame on her for Danity Kane's breakup. "I felt like it was a little bit of closure," she said about the finale. "Not fully, but I've been away from the situation for so long. I got fired last year, so I've been removed from it but still have to hear about the different things I was accused of. ... It was a little bit of closure." She also can't find fault with any of the other girls in the group. She knows that, just like her, they've all been trying to keep their post-Danity Kane lives and careers afloat. "Everyone's been struggling to survive," she said. "Everyone goes about it in different ways, and you can't hate other people's fight to survive." O'Day, who is looking forward to having her own reality show, says that as more time passes, she'll be more comfortable with the end of Danity Kane. "I respect and appreciate that situation that we were in," she added. "I have more than respect and appreciation for what I experienced with Danity Kane. Not everyone has been away from it for a long time. Time heals most wounds, and I think that that was nice." A new special airing Thursday night (April 30) at 9 p.m. ET, "Making the Band: The Rise and Fall of Danity Kane," aims to put into perspective the ups and downs the band went through. "It's hidden scenes and new information revealed of the backstage struggles of Danity Kane," Perry Dance, a producer on the show, told MTV News. "The new scenes in it allow you to better see how things were happening within the group. ... Now that you know where they ended up, you can find clues and secrets." Related Videos |
| Green Day Say Being A Punk Band Is 'Ground Zero For Us' Posted: 30 Apr 2009 12:47 AM PDT 'It's about being creative,' frontman Billie Joe Armstrong says about the group's punk roots.
The early word on Green Day's 21st Century Breakdown (ours included) is that the album somehow marks a seismic shift for the band, away from their punk-rock roots and into the arena-filling world of classic rock. And with its windmilled guitars, chiming, climbing musical interludes and piano-driven ballads, it's not difficult to see why. But what's Green Day's take on it? Are they — after moving millions of units and uniting the globe with 2005's American Idiot — still a punk band?
"Oh yeah, that's ground zero for us," frontman Billie Joe Armstrong smiled. "Coming from Gilman Street, we saw the most creative people I've ever seen in my life. There was a band called Schlong, and they did 'West Side Story,' and they called it 'Punk Side Story.' And then there's bands like NoMeansNo, [who made] a record like Wrong that's completely insane. None of those are conventional — what we call 'punk-rock bands' — but they are, in their own right, the most creative, the most punk. It's about being creative. Anytime we write something that's kind of scary and we feel a bit vulnerable, we always just say, 'Just go there.' " And Green Day most certainly went there on Breakdown, a manic, far-reaching epic of an album that tells the story of a young couple meandering their way through this hectic decade. It's a bipolar voyage, to be sure, full of soaring highs and plummeting lows, one meant to be experienced and felt more than actually, you know, followed. "I think the music is very linear and it takes you on a ride ... but it all connects. I've always said if you're going to write a political song, it's gotta come from the same places that you'd write a love song," Armstrong said. "But I think the record has these ebbs and flows and it has these dynamics to it. You go from a song like 'Christian's Inferno,' which is the most hateful song I've ever written — the most diabolic. And then there's a song like 'Last Night on Earth,' which is like that soul-crushing sort of love moment and, you know, one right after the other, so I think that kind of represents what the record is about in a lot of ways." At the center of the maelstrom are Christian and Gloria, a pair of protagonists who represent not just the ideological divide of the 21st century, but the id and ego of Armstrong's personality. "Gloria is sort of this torch-bearer. She's the person who's trying to hold on to her beliefs. Christian is sort of this nihilist. He wants to burn everything down," he explained. "Fire gets brought up a lot in the record. And, like, in one aspect, it can be very purifying, and the other it can be reckless and damaging. And I think that's what they represent. I don't think there's a story, per se, between them on the record — it's what they represent on the record. It's like giving your emotions flesh and blood." But just because Breakdown takes the emotional and the ideological, wraps it up in a big bundle of studio bombast and presents it in three neatly constructed acts, doesn't mean that Green Day have become buttoned-up artistes. In fact, that's the trick of the album — there's a punk-rock heart beating beneath it all. Case in point: The first single, "Know Your Enemy," which, according to Armstrong, has its roots in a very punk place. "We recorded 'Know Your Enemy' during the Republican convention," he laughed. "That was an accident ..." Related Artists |
| Lloyd Banks Responds To Rick Ross' Eminem Dis Posted: 30 Apr 2009 03:48 AM PDT 'He's been in out of pocket too many times,' Banks says of Ross' slurs and insults.
G-Unit's Lloyd Banks has been at odds with Rick Ross since the Miami MC And now that Ross has been hinting at battling Eminem, Banks says that Ross has gone too far. "As far as calling out Eminem, c'mon man. That's just gonna make me spank on you even harder," Banks said Thursday (April 30), before revealing that he has another diss record coming for Ross, who he slammed with his recent "Officer Down" track. "I got 'Officer Down, Part II' coming. He'll have to deal with that," Banks added. To backtrack, on Thursday Rick Ross released a video from St. Maarten, where he is vacationing after his Deeper Than Rap LP debuted at #1 on the Billboard albums chart this week. He then turned his attention to the G-Unit/ Shady camp, who recently put out a video by Banks and DJ Whoo Kid promoting their new 4-30-09: Happy Birthday, Vol. 4 mixtape. In it, Whoo Kid admonished Ross for calling the Unit "monkeys." "You know now they saying 'monkey' could be [a] black-on-black racial [situation]," Ross says to his friend Gunplay in the video. "Cut it out, that's racial. You can't call other black people monkeys," Whoo Kid said. In Thursday's video, Ross took the slur to Eminem. "The only way I could fix that — Eminem you're a monkey," Ross said in his video. "He's really a honky [pronounced to rhyme with 'monkey'], but that's racial. You n---as monkeys. The world knows you're monkeys." Banks didn't take kindly to the Em insults. "As far as calling out Eminem, you're not in the top 10 lyricists nowhere," Banks said. "So just sit down, man. We seen what Em can do. Em's in a whole 'nother lane. How do you go from praising somebody in one interview to calling him a 'monkey' in the next? He's been in out of pocket too many times. We'll see where his future goes. It doesn't look too bright, if you ask me." Banks also said that Ross has nothing to be proud of as far as Deeper Than Rap's first-week sales go. "First of all, his first week [sales] was 150 thousand and change," Banks said. "That was with two or three months of promotion, beefing with the most popular rapper there is right now outside of Eminem. There is no bigger promotion than that. "He reminds me of 12 or 13 year old," Banks added. "You know he's always lying. He said he spoke to [G-Unit employee] Nelson [allegedly about offering Ross money to end the beef], and it already was put out there you didn't speak to him. Then you say, 'I took the [prison-guard] position because my boss asked' him to. They didn't need you to go to the penitentiary to make a buck. C'mon." Despite his response to Ross, Banks was actually in a great mood: It's his 27th birthday, he just released the Happy Birthday mixtape, and "Officer Down" has been a stronger seller on iTunes. "If [Ross] responds, it benefits me," Banks said. "It goes straight to iTunes. I found a way to make money off a beef." Related Artists |
| No Doubt Hope To Reach A 'Fresh Batch' Of Fans On Tour Posted: 30 Apr 2009 04:37 AM PDT Gwen Stefani is even working on son Kingston — 'if I can get him to stop listening to Miley.'
On Saturday, No Doubt will return to the stage, after an almost five-year hiatus, at the Borgata Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. But who will be in the audience? Die-hard ND fans? Squealing tweenie-boppers weaned on Gwen Stefani's solo albums? No one seems to be sure — not even No Doubt themselves. Then again, things have always been that way for them.
"I think there will be a lot of new people, and that's exciting. That's what makes this fresh and new, is the fact that the dynamic has changed," guitarist Tom Dumont said. "A lot of bands put out record after record after record, and I think having a break makes it more fresh and exciting. It's a fresh batch of people coming, plus the old fans. It's perfect." "But that's nothing new for us, because even the first nine years, before we even had a record, we always had different audiences that followed us as we changed," Stefani added. "Certain people were into what we were doing at the time, and we were always changing and evolving, and we never had any limits on what kind of music we would write. We'd gain some and lose some, and that's happened through the entire time we've been together. "It's always exciting to get in front of new audiences. I got to experience — on my tour — some of the young girls that were there. ... That was the most rewarding thing for me," she continued. "Just seeing them out there, because they're so young, it's their first concert, they have their makeup on, even though they're really not supposed to be wearing it. I hope they show up again this time out. I loved it." The landscape has shifted since the last time No Doubt toured — back in 2004, on a double-bill with Blink-182. And while that might pose a concern for concert promoters, ND aren't worried about filling the seats this summer. "It's all about music. ... At the end of the day, you put music in people's ears, they hear recordings, they come to the shows," Dumont said. "Technology may change, and pop culture may change, but music doesn't. Everybody loves it." And besides, there's more pressing matters to worry about — like getting the Stefani clan up to date on the No Doubt back catalog before the tour starts. "I'm trying to get [2-year-old son] Kingston to listen to the No Doubt records. ... He didn't know the No Doubt records, so now I'm forcing him to listen to them, and I think he's going to get into it," Stefani laughed. "If I can get him to stop listening to Miley. He's listening to the Disney Channel a lot. ... But I think [9-month-old son] Zuma is more of a No Doubt fan than King is." Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists |
| Ashanti Studying Diana Ross' Performance To Prepare For 'The Wiz' Posted: 30 Apr 2009 02:23 AM PDT 'I watched the DVD twice already,' she says of getting ready for New York City Center production.
Ashanti knows a thing or two about visiting Oz. Not only has she played Dorothy in the Muppets version of "The Wizard of Oz," but she also played the Wicked Witch of the West for a charity production of "Wicked." So this summer, when she reprises her role as Dorothy in the NY City Center Encores! Summer Stars production of "The Wiz," a role made famous by Diana Ross in the 1978 movie version, the singer will spend a lot of time in front of her TV to do some research. "I'm excited. I watched the DVD twice already," she told MTV News. "I'm definitely going to have it on repeat." Ashanti is using her nerves to prepare for the part. "I think it's definitely going to be pressure, but in a good way. Broadway is so prestigious, and just getting that experience and getting to work with more seasoned actors is exciting," she said. "Broadway, it's a horse of a different color." Although she's had some experience in the role of Dorothy, the last time around she was acting alongside Muppets. She said she would jump at the chance to get Diana Ross' advice. "I actually saw her," Ashanti recalled. "I did a Cartier event last year, and she performed, and I was like, 'Oh, my God!' She was so sweet and so down to earth." Ashanti said that she doesn't know who else will be in the production, which will run from June 12 through July 5 at the New York City Center, but she did have a suggestion for the role of Toto. "What's so funny is that I have my own teacup Yorkie named Mimi," she said. "And I'm like, 'Can they just let me use Mimi?' " Related Artists |
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