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| Green Day Meet The Masses At Raucous NYC Album Signing Posted: 15 May 2009 05:40 AM PDT 'It's great to see people excited about an album coming out,' frontman Billie Joe Armstrong tells MTV News.
NEW YORK — You can forgive some of the Green Day fans packed inside a Manhattan Best Buy if they got a little bit pushy. After all, some of them had been waiting in line for nearly 30 hours for this moment. On Friday night (May 15), 500 lucky GD fanatics — who had spent the night camping out on the sidewalk, including an MTV News intern — finally got a chance to meet their idols, at a raucous meet-and-greet filled with tears, screams and lots of hugs. There were autographs signed, pictures snapped and terrified-looking Best Buy employees trying their very, uh, best to keep order. And smack dab in the middle of all that screaming and flashing, seated at a card table with a bowl of candy and a pile of Sharpies, flanked by a massive display of their just-released 21st Century Breakdown album, were Green Day themselves. But rather than panic, they kept cool. After all, this is a fairly big deal for them too.
"It's great, you know, this is how it's supposed to be. That's the way we listened to music a long time ago, where like a record [by] Hüsker Dü would come out, and I would run to the store and buy it as fast as I could," frontman Billie Joe Armstrong told MTV News. "And I don't know if that comes from a punk-rock ethic or just the way rock music should be looked at, but, I don't know, it's great to see people excited about an album coming out." "It's pretty incredible. Growing up, my favorite bands, I probably would've done the same thing, had I had the chance," bassist Mike Dirnt added. "It's really nice that people feel such a kinship with our music. It's really great." So they signed copies of their album. And hugged red-faced fans. And posed for pictures. The line snaked around the Best Buy, past the towers of DVDs and the many copies of Breakdown, but through it all, Armstrong, Dirnt and drummer Tré Cool kept smiles on their faces. In fact, though they might have sore wrists tomorrow, it looked like they were having an absolute ball. "We're up for this," Dirnt said. "It's about memories, and this band is about creating memories for ourselves and for everybody else ... whether it's a live show or an album or signing someone's forehead and getting it tattooed on there." "And, to be honest, I'm just excited that this freakin' record is out," Armstrong added. "We put a lot of work into it, so we're very, very, very happy. And lots of bottles of bubbly things have been opened. It's been great." Related Artists |
| Eminem Album Preview: <i>Relapse</i> Is Scary, Funny And Personal Posted: 15 May 2009 02:22 AM PDT On his first album in almost five years, the rapper reflects on his darkest period, but the jokester still comes out.
No surprise, Eminem's Relapse album leaked online early (and is now streaming on his MySpace page). He's seen it before, even having to bump album-release dates up to a Friday instead of a Tuesday in an effort to not lose sales. Relapse — due Tuesday, alongside DJ Drama's second Gangsta Grillz LP and Busta Rhymes' Back on My B.S. — is projected to come out on top — and some say it could stay there for up to three weeks. It's an Eminem album in every sense. No other rap superstar could make a record like this, in which he cries that he needs therapy and outright scares some folks.
Just look at some of the first singles. On "3 A.M.," he talks about channel-surfing in between a murder spree and relaxing while watching Miley Cyrus, lotion in hand. Slim Shady will amaze fans by making them bob their heads while listening to the most uncomfortable of narratives, like his accounts of being molested as a child by his stepdad and his mother feeding him "paint thinner" and more drugs than you can find at Walgreens. "I was born with a di-- in my brain, yeah f---ed in the head/ My stepdad said I sucked in the bed," he raps on "Insane." And that's just how the record starts. The second verse is masterfully woven with a choppy, old-school flow over the psychopathic G-funk of Dr. Dre. Em raps from the perspective of his stepfather talking to his mom about young Marshall's superhuman feats: "He took the chainsaw, bit the f---ing blades off/ ... Took his eye out, picked it up and played pingpong." "My Mom" is another in a long line of unflattering records about Em's mother. Shady raps in such a whimsical way that you don't know where the truth ends and poetic license begins. "My mom loved Valium and lots of drugs," he sings on the chorus. "That's why I am how I am/ 'Cause I'm like her." On the skit "Dr. West," Em's doc from the fictional rehab center Popsomp Hills encourages the use of drugs. And on "Bagpipes From Baghdad," Em threatens Nick Cannon because he wants to rekindle a romance with the actor's wife of just over a year, Mariah Carey. "Nick Cannon better back the f--- up," Mathers raps over a beat he labels "Egyptian" and "funk." "I'm not playing, I want her back, you punk." The album isn't all gags, though. On "Déjà Vu," Em recounts his descent into drug dependency. Over a sparse track, he raps about slowly spiraling out of control to the point where his daughter becomes scared of her father's behavior. The song opens with the sound of an ambulance siren blaring and a paramedic reporting a possible overdose of a man that fits the description of Marshall Mathers. "I seem to gravitate to the bottle of NyQuil, then I salivate," Em raps on the first verse. "Start off with the NyQuil, like, 'I think I'll just have a taste'/ Couple of sips of that, then I gradually graduate/ To the harder prescript drug called Valium, like, 'Yeah, that's great.' " Eminem rhymes that coping with Proof's death was one of the factors that led to the dark period in his life over the past four years, mentioning the D12 member by his birth name, DeShaun, in the song. The chorus then speaks to Em's ongoing battle with addiction: "Sometimes I feel so alone, I just don't know/ It feels like I've gone down this road before." The outpouring of emotion continues on "Beautiful," a six-minute opus and the only song Eminem produced on Relapse. He speaks about depression and losing his motivation to rap. The song is an earnest account of what his life could have become if he walked away from the mic. In his recent Vibe interview, Em said "Beautiful" was the only song he recorded before his sobriety that was good enough for him to put on this project. The album ends with a lyrical fury on "Underground," a throwback to the early days of Slim Shady, before Em's alter ego was a celebrity-bashing pop icon. Eminem raps some of his most outlandish, rewind-worthy lines on the track since The Marshall Mathers LP. "Straightjacket with 108 brackets/ And a strap that wraps twice around my back, then they latch it," Em spits. "Cut your f---in' head off and ask where you headed off to?/ Get it? Headed off to?" In the Relapse liner notes, Em shouts out his fallen friend Proof. "Proof, no matter how much time passes, not a day goes by that I don't think of you," he wrote. "If it weren't for you, I would not be where I am today, and we both know it. I tried to write a song for you, but nothing was good enough, so I'm dedicating them all to you — and you'd be happy to know that I spazzed out on 'em again! I know you wouldn't have it any other way! F--- 'em all — let's get 'em!" Shady is definitely back. Related Videos Related Artists |
| Blink-182 Talk Reunion, First Tour In More Than Four Years Posted: 15 May 2009 01:27 AM PDT 'I think it's gonna be amazing,' Tom DeLonge says of the jaunt, which will include Weezer, Fall Out Boy and other acts.
On Thursday night in Hollywood, Blink-182 ended a four-and-a-half-year hiatus with a surprise performance at a T-Mobile party at Paramount Studios. And now that they're officially, 100 percent back, how would they rate the reunion so far? "Awkward, weird ... a little standoffish. Me and Travis are on one side [of the studio], behind a brick wall, and Tom is outside the wall knocking," Blink's Mark Hoppus told MTV News at the event. "You ever seen that episode of 'The Odd Couple' where they drew the line down the middle of the room? Yeah, it's kind of like that."
"And there's a couple holes where we stick various parts of our bodies through," Tom DeLonge added. "It's really super strange and weird. But it rocks." And judging by what we heard onstage Thursday night, it does, indeed, rock. So now that they've got one performance under the belt, what about Blink's much-hyped summer tour with Weezer, Fall Out Boy and a rotating list of huge acts (Taking Back Sunday, All-American Rejects, Panic at the Disco, Asher Roth and Chester French)? What can fans expect to see out on the road? Well, lots and lots of lasers, apparently. "I think it's gonna be amazing. There are amazing bands, they're all big. When we started talking about doing the tour again ... we had all these options start popping up. It was really amazing to be able to end up on the bands we had," DeLonge said. "Usually when you go out on tour, there's a lot of negotiations as far as time and who can do what and when they can do it, or whatever ... I'm gonna be honest right now. The tour is gonna be good. Mark, after f---ing 17 years, might let me have lasers!" "It's true," Hoppus laughed. "[Lasers] broke up our band at one point, and now it's lasers that are bringing us back together." Related Videos Related Artists |
| T.I. To Report To Arkansas Prison On May 26 Posted: 15 May 2009 03:24 AM PDT Rapper sentenced to spend a year and a day behind bars at the low-security facility.
T.I. will report to an Arkansas federal prison on May 26 to begin his one-year-and-one-day jail sentence for felony weapons charges, it was revealed Friday (May 15). According to The Associated Press, paperwork filed in court shows that the rapper has until noon that day to report to the Forrest City low-security federal prison. T.I.'s lawyers had attempted to place their client in a location closer to his Atlanta home, to no avail.
In May, T.I. was sentenced to prison by a judge after his plea deal was accepted. As part of the plea, T.I. had to complete 1,000 hours of community service before sentencing, pay a $100,000 fine and agree to complete another 500 hours of community service after his time behind bars. His sentence is the result of his October 2007 arrest for illegally attempting to purchase firearms. T.I. is a convicted felon and it is not permissible by law for him to own any guns. Following his sentencing in March, Tip said he's happy to be moving on and taking the steps to reach the next chapter in his life. "Although I am not thrilled about my next year and a day, I am pleased that I am beginning the process of putting this all behind me," he said during a press conference inside the courthouse. "Thank you and I apologize to my family, to the young men, young women that I mentor. I hope that I can keep at least one, if not a million or more, from going down a similar path. I just want to say thank you." T.I.'s label, Atlantic Records, had no comment at press time. Related Videos Related Artists |
| Kristin Cavallari Talks About Heading For 'The Hills' Posted: 15 May 2009 09:06 AM PDT 'I thought with Lauren leaving, it's kind of the perfect time,' Cavallari tells MTV News.
When "Hills" fans learned that Lauren Conrad would be leaving the show at the end of this season, speculation immediately began that Lauren's "Laguna Beach" frenemy Kristin Cavallari would be joining the show after she made an unexpected appearance at Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag's wedding last month. On Thursday, it was confirmed that Cavallari will in fact be joining Speidi, Lo, Stephanie and Audrina on the next season of "The Hills." And fans will get an early taste of what the "Hills" will look like with Cavallari when she makes her first appearance during the Speidi wedding episode later this season.
"So my first episode is the wedding," Cavallari told MTV News. "And then I'm doing the 10 episodes, which I think will air in September." Cavallari, who has never appeared on "The Hills" before, said she felt that now was as good a time as any to do the it right. "Well, I'm coming back for a few reasons," she explained. "One is they've been asking me to do 'The Hills' for a while now, and I just thought, what was the point of going on 'The Hills' when it was Lauren's show and all it would really do is relive high school drama, which was 'Laguna Beach.' " She added that with Lauren's departure, she thought it was perfect timing for the resident bad girl of "Laguna" to spice up life on "The Hills." "So I thought with Lauren leaving, it's kind of the perfect time, and I have two movies coming out this summer, so it's great way for my fans to get excited about me again and reconnect with my fans." Related Videos |
| Mary J. Blige, Clay Aiken Loved Singing For '30 Rock' Posted: 15 May 2009 02:37 AM PDT Singers had a blast participating in season finale's 'Kidney Now!' benefit show.
Learning that Clay Aiken is the cousin of NBC's most cheerful employee, Kenneth Parcell (Jack McBrayer), was almost as shocking as seeing the rest of the star-studded crowd Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) could coerce into participating in his "Kidney Now!" benefit concert on the season finale of "30 Rock." In the episode, Aiken and a slew of famous faces, like Mary J. Blige, Sheryl Crow, Elvis Costello and Cyndi Lauper, joined in Jack's effort to find a kidney donor for Milton Greene (Alan Alda), the man who may or may not be his father. Aiken says it was an honor to be involved. " '30 Rock' is not only the funniest show on TV now; it's also the smartest," Aiken told MTV News in a statement. "Things that you see or hear on that show start popping up in everyday life all of the time. I don't think any show since 'Seinfeld' has been able to do that." Like "Seinfeld," these days Liz Lemon and her motley crew leave the "American Idol" alum in stitches every week. " 'Seinfeld' had 'yada, yada, yada' and 'master of your domain.' '30 Rock' has "That's a deal-breaker, ladies' and many more. I find myself saying 'What the what?' all of the time. They've really broken into the zeitgeist like no other show has." Given the subtle reveal of Aiken's newfound "cousin," it sounds like the "Spamalot" star might have an opening to return for another stint. Blige also loved the experience of guest-starring on the show. "I had so much fun!" she told MTV News. "Everyone was so nice and respectful of each other, and it felt like family. I couldn't stop laughing in-between takes. I was sad when I left; I wanted to come back the next day." In case you missed it, the episode's "We Are the World"-style benefit show also included Adam Levine, Beastie Boys Mike D and Ad-Rock, Michael McDonald, Sara Bareilles, Wyclef Jean, Norah Jones, Talib Kweli, Rhett Miller, Moby, Robert Randolph, Steve Earle and Rachael Yamagata. And it turns out their efforts weren't just for laughs. In real life, proceeds from iTunes purchases of the song will help benefit the National Kidney Foundation. Related Artists |
| Jadakiss Wants Kanye West, Cam'ron On 'Who's Fake' Remix Posted: 15 May 2009 12:52 AM PDT MC already has producers and a title in mind for next album, which he'd like to drop at the end of the year.
NEW YORK — Jadakiss is putting his calls out. 'Kiss wants Kanye West and Cam'ron on the remix of his current single, "Who's Fake," and he already knows what producers' beats he needs for his next album. "I'm definitely going back in," the Yonkers native said. "The D-Block album is wrapped up. I'mma make sure we finish this LOX album, and I'm coming right back at the end of the year. I think I'm gonna call it Top Five, Dead or Alive. I'm only gonna work with Primo [DJ Premier], Alchemist, Swizz Beatz, Dame Grease, sh-- like that. Have a couple of South [producers], and that's it. Wham!"
The Black Babe Ruth's Last Kiss is far from over, though. He just shot a video for "Who's Real" in Harlem last week, with OJ Da Juiceman and Swizz. T.I., Ja Rule, the Clipse, Grafh and Black Hand Entertainment were among the friends who came down for cameo appearances. After that, 'Kiss is going with the single "Smoking Gun" — featuring Jazmine Sullivan — to close out the album. A video is in the works. "Jazmine is gonna clean me up real good," he said. "I already got sh-- lined up in 'Essence' and 'Sister 2 Sister' — that's a big joint. In Texas and out West, they spinning it real heavy. We gonna be all right with that one." Aside from music, 'Kiss is hoping to get in contact with DMX, who was just released from jail in Arizona. "That's my big homie," Jada said of X. "I just wanna give him a hug, sit down and kick it with him." Jadakiss and Cam'ron's Big Bosses Tour starts in the next few weeks. The two are working on a few new records to perform on the road. Related Artists |
| Eminem's 'Wake Up Show' Start: Sway And King Tech Look Back Posted: 15 May 2009 01:13 AM PDT 'I think those sessions were like his training,' Sway says of Em's time on the radio show.
Eminem's heart might lie in battle rapping, but one of his earliest breaks came courtesy of a Slim Shady-based freestyle he did on MTV News reporter Sway's radio show with King Tech. The Detroit native flew to Los Angeles in 1997 to participate in the Rap Olympics. The event proved to be successful, but it didn't get as much attention as the promoter, Wendy Day, had hoped. According to Tech, Day asked if she could bring over the standout competitors to rap live on "The Wake Up Show." Sway and Tech obliged, and Eminem, who finished second in the competition, decided he would come out on top during the cypher.
"Em tried to do the battle-rap thing, and honestly, it wasn't too hot, so nobody was paying attention to him," Tech told MTV News of the rap circle that took place that day on the show. "It went to Juice [after Eminem], and he murdered it, looking straight at Craig G. Craig G went next, didn't look at Juice at all, so everyone was excited for it to go back around again to them dudes, and maybe it could be a battle. And then Em just went into the Em that he became — the battle-rap thing wasn't really jumping off in the room for him, because of the competitive energy between everyone — so he went into 'I'm doing drive-bys on Vietnam vets/ In tinted Corvettes' and would raise the pitch in his voice. Everyone in the room started smiling and saying, 'That was tight.' It lightened the mood of the whole room. It just became more exciting coming back to Em. It became the Eminem room." Em did what he had to do to stand out. "He injected humor into everything, and after that, we loved him," Tech said. Em's manager, Paul Rosenberg, asked Sway and Tech if his client could have a weekly slot on the show to rap. (Check out vintage video of Eminem rapping on Sway and King Tech's "Wake Up Show.") "I think those sessions were like his training, and he eventually found his voice and who he would become as an artist," Sway said, recalling the time. "After two to three months, he really became a regular staple of the show." Eventually, his rhymes caught the attention of Dr. Dre, and Em inked a deal with Aftermath. Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists |
| Carrie Underwood To Perform On 'American Idol' Finale Posted: 15 May 2009 06:22 AM PDT 'Idol' alum will sing this season's farewell ballad, 'Home Sweet Home.'
Former "American Idol" winner and country star Carrie Underwood will come back home for a second time this season on Tuesday, when she performs as part of the show's two-night finale. A spokesperson for Underwood confirmed that the four-time Grammy winner will appear on "Idol" on to sing this year's farewell song, her countrified cover of Mötley Crüe's iconic 1985 metal ballad, "Home Sweet Home." The season-four winner's performance will come on the night the show's two remaining contestants, Kris Allen and Adam Lambert, will face off one more time in a bid to win the season-eight crown.
The farewell song is traditionally performed during finals week. Last year, season-two winner Ruben Studdard returned to sing his cover of Kenny Loggins' "Celebrate Me Home," and the year before Chris Daughtry performed the season-six send-off, "Home." Underwood appeared on "Idol" in March, performing a duet with her country idol, Randy Travis, on his song "I Told You So." A portion of the sales proceeds of the "Home Sweet Home" digital single will be donated by Underwood, her record company and iTunes to the Humane Society of the United States, earmarked for programs that help companion animals, puppy-mill rescues and spaying and neutering services. The Wednesday-night finale is expected to feature other musical guests, but at press time, a spokesperson for "Idol" had not returned requests for comment on who those performers might be. 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 Related Artists |
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