MTV News |
- Akon, Lil Wayne And Others Introduce Miami's New Class Of MCs
- Jay-Z Blames Wendy's Commercial -- Partially -- For His 'Death Of Auto-Tune'
- Rihanna Subpoenaed To Testify In Chris Brown Case
- Kanye West To Tour With Lady Gaga
- Adam Lambert Struggled With Coming Out: 'I Didn't Want The Clay Aiken Thing'
- Britney Spears Announces New North American <i>Circus</i> Tour Dates
- Adam Lambert Didn't Surprise 'American Idol' Fans By Coming Out
- Cool & Dre Give Us A Tour Of Their Miami Digs
- Chris Brown's Bid To Delay Hearing Rejected
| Akon, Lil Wayne And Others Introduce Miami's New Class Of MCs Posted: 11 Jun 2009 03:51 AM PDT Gunplay, Brisco, Ball Greezy, Billy Blue and Ice Berg are getting co-signs from some of hip-hop's biggest names, in Mixtape Daily.
Let's do it bigger than we ever have this time, shall we? Since we're knee-deep in our five-day celebration of Miami, we decided to make Fire Starter extra-special this week and give you five MCs from the city to look out for. Everybody promises they're hot, and unlike some cities, these cats aren't hating on one another; they're showing unity. "It's well-strategized and well-planed," Cash Money's Brisco explained. "We watched a lot of cats get up and make a lot of money. We're happy to get our time to shine. It feels good to have cats at that high caliber we can rhyme and spar with and take this music to a whole 'nother level from the 305." Fire Starter: Bound To Blow Gunplay is a "goon with an attitude," his homie Rick Ross said. "That's self-explanatory," the Carol City, Florida, native said of his moniker. "I'm just loose with it, man. I'm just trying to calm down thanks to the music industry. It saved me. It's the old ways, but new money. That's what I'm about: new money." The pursuit of that green has made Gunplay see he can't always be physical to solve problems, especially when you're dealing with executives in the music industry. "I know how to get business done," he promised. "At the same time, I know how to be me, which is street. I have to turn that on and off now, dealing with this industry, when I wanna get a check. I separate both worlds and try to get money." As a youngster, Gun's mother moved the family to Miramar, which is one county up from Carol City, but all of 'Play's friends, including Rick Ross, were in the two C's. "I bumped into Ross. We were doing the little rap stuff. We was taking it serious, we were hustling. But after time, people started going to prison, we just said to ourselves, 'We're gonna take music serious,' and we did. We're here now." OK, maybe Gun didn't take it as serious as Ross — you know, there's that line in "Magnificent": "I always had a vision, I would always tell my n---as, but ain't nobody listen." Trust, once Ross' "Hustlin' " hit, he was a believer. Gun got his bars up and definitely surprised many with his appearance on Deeper Than Rap's "Gunplay." "I had a lot of built-up tension," he said of his aggression on the track. "I tried to let it out in 16 [bars]. I was just letting you know what it really is. I didn't even know I was rhyming. It came out in my heart. It's for the streets. The street felt it. They wanna hear that from Gunplay. That's what I'm gonna give you." Gun's next step is alongside Ross for a full-length album: the Carol City Cartel LP. Then he has solo aspirations. "I'm emulating the great," Gun said. "I'm watching all his moves. I took notes. Three years in this game now, I'm seeing exactly how to be a boss from behind the scenes. Naturally, that's just gonna be what I' gonna be. It's gonna come natural." A Few Others You Should Definitely Be Aware Of Moniker: Brisco Nicknames: Mr. Grammy Nominated and the Opa-Locka Goon Affiliation: Poe Boy Entertainment (management) and Cash Money Records (recording home) Big Things Promised: Brisco started out hustling, and before he gets to balling too hard, he's trying to be a hip-hop household name like his homies Lil Wayne and the Birdman. "I been around the world and ran through two passports," he told us. His favorite trip has to be to this past year's Grammy Awards. Featured on Lil Wayne's "La La," he got a nod for Weezy's Carter III. "I'm sharp and I'm ready," he promised. "The caliber of music we're doing is speaking for itself." Brisc's debut is called Street Medicine, and he's proud of his versatility. "I'm portraying something I really lived." Moniker: Ball Greezy Nicknames: Mr. Shone (as in act-shone!) and the Baby Mama's Favorite Affiliation: Ball is currently unsigned, but he's been getting big co-signs from Flo Rida, as well as Rick Ross, with whom he has several collaborations. Big Things Promised: Ball grew up being called "Ball Grim," but the homies gave him the name "Greezy" because he's "swift with everything." True to his name, his rise in the streets this past year has been moving pretty quickly. First came the banger "Shone," then he hit the circuit with "I'm the Sh--," featuring Brisco." "Juk Wit Me" followed, and now the clubs are eating up "Where They Do That At." BG believes teamwork makes the dream work. "Everybody got their own circle, the big dogs," Ball said of his city's established stars and the new generation of MCs. "But down here, we got our own circle too. You're standing with the best. Dade County. We're beating down the streets. If you ain't hearing Brisc, you hearing [Ice Billion] Berg. If you ain't hearing Berg, you hearing [Billy] Blue. If you ain't hearing Blue, you hearing Ball. You hearing somebody. We're doing it." Moniker: Billy Blue Nickname: Mr. 36 Reasons Affiliation: Poe Boy Entertainment (management) and a joint production venture with Timbaland and Akon, through Interscope Records Big Things Promised: "It's about being you. Spitting what you lived," Blue said of his debut, which will be helmed by Timbo and 'Kon. "Telling people, 'I'm just like you. I'm an ordinary n---a. Had a 9-to-5. I sold drugs, went to jail, been on parole, [have] f---ed up baby mamas. I been through it like everybody in the world been through it. This world is ours. Let's make it happen.' " Billy is eager to have his fellow up-and-comers get shine as well. "We're the young generation bringing you what you ain't heard," he promised. "We're the kids of the streets. We were birthed on this concrete. ... We're the young generation that came out the crevice of the concrete. When you 'hood, you good. You know that." Moniker: Ice Berg Nickname: Billion Berg Affiliation: Trick Daddy's Dunk Ryders Big Things Promised: Berg got his first real taste of glory rapping on Trick's "F--- the Other Side." But, when you roll with an O.G., you have to come correct. "With him, it's pressure," Berg admitted. "That's the big homie. He's gonna put a lot of pressure on you, whether you're in the studio or not. I love him to death, though. I been around him three or four years now. You still get the heebie-jeebies working with him, but that's him. He's the legend." Look for Berg to drop after Trick releases his Finally Famous in the next couple of months. Until then, Billion has a string of mixtapes circulating through the underground. For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines. Related Videos | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jay-Z Blames Wendy's Commercial -- Partially -- For His 'Death Of Auto-Tune' Posted: 10 Jun 2009 02:44 AM PDT Hov also reveals that Timbaland worked on forthcoming Blueprint 3 LP.
We can thank Wendy's "Frosty Posse" for Jay-Z's "D.O.A." (a.k.a. "Death of Auto-Tune") song. Well, maybe they're not 100 percent responsible, but the Jiggaman said that hearing the use of Auto-Tune in a commercial for the fast-food chain is one of the things that inspired him to bring forth the song. "I just think in hip-hop, when a trend becomes a gimmick, it's time to move on," Jay said in an interview with Chicago radio station WGCI on Tuesday. "I saw a Wendy's commercial and they're using Auto-Tune. They're joking on it. It's like, OK, enough of that ... It was a trend, it was cool in the beginning. Some people made great music with it, now it's time to move on."
A few rap artists have taken exception to "D.O.A." DJ Webstar Tweeted that Jay was old and out of touch. He elaborated on the issue on the RealTalkNY Web site. "Jay-Z, he has a lot of fans, he's done a lot for hip-hop. Just because you're rich and you have more money than a lot of new artists coming up, such as myself, doesn't mean everything you say is right," he told the site. "I'm a fan of Jay-Z. I was shocked when he did that. Mary J. [Blige] and Drake just did a song with Auto-Tune. Drake and the whole Young Money [crew] just did Auto-Tune. If you take every song off the radio, what would you have? I was listening to the radio and Jay said the people don't wanna hear Auto-Tune no more. The biggest records of the year all had Auto-Tune — who are you to say people don't wanna hear it?" Webstar said he felt Jay was calling him out. "It's only about five people that do the Auto-Tune. It's me, Ron Browz, T-Pain, Kanye and Lil Wayne." In the interview with WGCI, Jay said he wasn't paying attention to the criticism. "He's a young guy," Hov countered. "So he doesn't have a full understanding of what I'm saying. Maybe he'll understand one day, but right now, he's a young guy, he don't know no better." "D.O.A." is just a taste of what we're getting from Jay's forthcoming Blueprint 3 LP which is due on September 11. Jay described it as timeless opus. "New classic," he said of the album before revealing a producer in addition to Kanye West was working on the album as well. "Kanye is doing a bulk of the production. [Longtime Jay-Z collaborator Timbaland] got some incredible records on there. I'm still working on it because I got a little time and it can only get better." Hov explained that his goal is to further push the boundaries of his culture. "The challenge of how far hip-hop can go," he said of his inspiration. "When I walk in the room, I represent hip-hop. ... All the things I can do when representing hip-hop, that's what moves me." Related Photos Related Artists | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rihanna Subpoenaed To Testify In Chris Brown Case Posted: 10 Jun 2009 05:15 AM PDT Singer was reportedly served with a subpoena for the June 22 preliminary hearing Tuesday.
Rihanna has been subpoenaed to testify at a June 22 preliminary hearing in the assault case against Chris Brown, her lawyer told People. Attorney Donald Etra confirmed to the magazine that the singer was served with the subpoena in person on Tuesday in Los Angeles. "Rihanna was served at my office by L.A. DA investigators," Etra said. "If the preliminary hearing indeed goes forward, she is now legally required to be there, she will be there, and will answer all questions truthfully." Chris Brown lost a bid Wednesday (June 10) to delay that preliminary hearing. His attorney, Mark Geragos, had argued that the hearing should wait for a related California Supreme Court decision. Brown is facing felony assault charges after allegedly assaulting Rihanna in February. Brown has pleaded not guilty to the charges. A judge had previously nixed a bid by Geragos to obtain access to police records that the attorney argued were crucial to the hearing. In his appeal, Geragos said a state Supreme Court case currently under consideration could affect Brown's access to the records. Legal expert Peter T. Haven told MTV News last month that the preliminary hearing will determine whether there is sufficient evidence for the case to go to trial. "During the preliminary, which is significant, the prosecution puts the case in front of the judge to convince the judge that they have sufficient evidence to go forward with a criminal prosecution," Haven told MTV News. "The defense then tries to kill the case. [But] if there's enough evidence, the prosecution could then get a trial date." Haven said once a ruling is made in the preliminary hearing, a trial date would be expected to begin in 30 to 90 days. Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kanye West To Tour With Lady Gaga Posted: 10 Jun 2009 09:58 AM PDT MC announces co-headlining tour on 'The View,' also talks 'American Idol.'
Kanye West appeared on ABC's "The View" Wednesday (June 10) and took the opportunity to announce his forthcoming co-headlining tour with disco queen Lady Gaga. Although he kept the details of the tour light, he spoke excitedly about it. He has said he's a Gaga fan and recently reworked her hit "Poker Face" into "I Make Her Say," a collaboration with up-and-coming MC Kid Cudi.
"She's talented and so incredible that she's not an opening act," he said of the tour. "We're doing it together, with no opening act." A rep for West had not provided further details to MTV News at press time, but more information is expected soon. On the show, West also talked about Kris Allen's unexpected cover of Kanye's "Heartless" on "American Idol" earlier this year. West confessed that other artists sing the song better than he does. "Everybody who sings the song, sings better than me," he joked to the hosts of "The View." "The Fray are one of my favorite rock bands, they covered it [too] and that song got played on 'American Idol' twice." West credits his ability to write strong melodies as the reason artists like Allen and the Fray are able to make his songs work for them. "I always felt like I made melodies that were [like] country or Broadway melodies." Related Videos Related Artists | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Adam Lambert Struggled With Coming Out: 'I Didn't Want The Clay Aiken Thing' Posted: 10 Jun 2009 09:46 AM PDT 'American Idol' runner-up tells Rolling Stone that castmates knew he was gay.
Everyone on "American Idol" knew Adam Lambert was gay. The "Idol" runner-up tells Rolling Stone in the magazine's upcoming cover story that despite his openness behind the scenes, he struggled with coming out to the show's audience. "Right after the finale, I almost started talking about it to the reporters, but I thought, 'I'm going to wait for Rolling Stone, that will be cooler,' " he told the magazine. "I didn't want the Clay Aiken thing and celebrity-magazine bullsh--. I need to be able to explain myself in context ... I find it very important to be in control of this situation. I feel like everyone has an opinion of me, and I want a chance to say, 'Well, do you want to hear how I really feel about this?' "
(A rep for Aiken, who had slammed Lambert on his blog before removing the post and apologizing, told MTV News the singer was not available for comment.) In addition to talking about how he initially had a bit of a crush on "Idol" winner and show roommate Kris Allen, and his years of struggle on the Hollywood scene, Lambert reveals that while he was open about his sexuality with the "Idol" cast and crew, he also unintentionally spilled the beans to America before he was ready for the big reveal. According to the story, in March, pictures of Lambert dressed in drag and kissing an ex-boyfriend hit the Internet, a slip Lambert blames himself for. Before appearing on the show, he took down his MySpace and Facebook pages, but forgot to remove the photo from his profile on the Burning Man social-networking site Tribe.net; Lambert said he'd experimented with "certain funguses" while attending the hedonistic annual festival. "I thought, 'F---, I'm screwed, possibly,' " Lambert told the magazine about his fears concerning the potential reaction from his new fans. "Going into 'Idol,' I assumed, 'OK, people are going to talk.' I mean, I've been living in Los Angeles for eight years as a gay man, I've been at clubs, drunk, making out with somebody in the corner. But photographic evidence? ... Didn't count on that. Wasn't ready for that." The drag shots in particular worried him, because, he said, he's only ever dressed in women's clothing three or four times and while he professes that he looked "amazing," he didn't want that to be the lasting image of him. "I don't tuck and wear breasts," he says. "That's not me. Sucking my boy's face? Yes, that I will own." He said the decision was made to just stay quiet about the controversy, which was easy since the top 13 are in a press blackout until they're ejected. "The head of 'Idol' public relations asked me what I wanted to do about it," he said. "They were completely supportive of any decision I made." He says he considered coming out in the press at that point, but worried that audiences would focus on his sexuality more than his singing. "I was worried that [coming out] would be so sensationalized that it would overshadow what I was there to do, which was sing," he says. "I'm an entertainer, and who I am and what I do in my personal life is a separate thing. It shouldn't matter." Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. Related Photos | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Britney Spears Announces New North American <i>Circus</i> Tour Dates Posted: 10 Jun 2009 08:34 AM PDT Second round of stops begin August 20 and include New York, Boston and Miami.
Britney Spears' Circus tour is already the top-grossing jaunt of 2009, so you can't blame her for bringing the big top back for another round of dates. On Wednesday (June 10), Britney announced on her official site that Circus will return to North America this fall, hitting 20 cities in the U.S. and Canada.
The new round of dates kicks off August 20 in Hamilton, Ontario, and makes stops in cities like New York (two nights at Madison Square Garden), Philadelphia, Boston, Miami and Des Moines, Iowa, before coming to a close on September 27 with a pair of shows at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Tickets for the new dates go on sale beginning Friday, June 19. Fans can find tour and ticketing information through BritneySpears.com. Brit kicked off the Circus tour back in March, with a hometown extravaganza at the New Orleans Arena, and she's currently in the midst of an eight-night run at London's O2 Arena. From there, she'll play arenas across Europe. On Tuesday, she announced her first-ever concerts in Australia, scheduled for November. In a statement posted on her site, Spears said that she's worked some new wrinkles into her Circus act, and she can't wait for her fans to check them out. "I'm so excited to bring the Circus back to North America. I've made some really cool changes to the show that I think my fans are really going to love," the statement reads. "I also get to bring the show to some new cities we missed the first time around." Get ready, Des Moines! The new dates for Britney's Circus tour: »8/20 - Hamilton, ON @ Copps Coliseum | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Adam Lambert Didn't Surprise 'American Idol' Fans By Coming Out Posted: 10 Jun 2009 12:49 AM PDT 'I like that he's so open about who he is,' one supporter says of 'Idol' runner-up.
NEW YORK — Three weeks after the "American Idol" finale, and after months of speculation stretching back to his January audition, Adam Lambert officially announced he is gay. "I don't think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear that I'm gay," Lambert declared in the upcoming issue of Rolling Stone.
We wanted to know what you had to say about the development, so MTV News hit the streets of Times Square to find out if Lambert's announcement surprised you and whether the revelation would have hurt his chances to make it to the "Idol" finals. The unambiguous consensus among the folks we talked to was that Lambert's disclosure was not surprising in the least. "I think the eyeliner gave it away!" Allison Baldowski said. "And the platform boots." Now that he has come out, some fans are looking to Lambert as a positive role model. "I like that he's so open about who he is, and I'm glad that he's not afraid to say what he wants," Katie Stoppiello said. "I love that about him. He doesn't really have a filter. I read some of the quotes from the magazine already, and I'm glad that he's just able to say who he is. I think that's really inspirational. I think he's a good role model to kids that are maybe kind of different and what to be more open about themselves." But did the 27-year-old singer make the right decision to wait until after the competition to reveal the truth about his sexuality? Gina Gandt said Lambert made the right call. "I think he was correct in waiting, because I think there are too many people out there that aren't willing to accept that yet," she said. Most others, however, believed the timing of his announcement would not have made a difference. "I really don't think whether he came out before or after the show would have mattered," Coleen Healy said. "I think it was a competition for singing. He was there for one thing: He was there to sing, and I think that's what he did." According to Michael Giannone, the topic of Lambert's sexuality should have never been up for discussion. "That's totally his business," he said. "He didn't have to tell everyone that he was going to come out of the closet. ... In these United States of America, you can do whatever you want, and that's what's great about his country." Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cool & Dre Give Us A Tour Of Their Miami Digs Posted: 10 Jun 2009 02:01 AM PDT 'It's just a great place for us to make music,' Dre says of the duo's spread.
MIAMI — Recording artists have the Cool & Dre guarantee when journeying to Miami to visit their Lake Oasis facility. "Everything is happening," Cool said. "People leave the studio with a smile on their face." Not only are you going to get some hot beats, but you'll enjoy all of the amenities the Miami duo are building right now. They call it a studio, but Lake Oasis is more of a combination of a recording lair/ hangout spot/ home/ aquatic fun house.
"We do a lot of cooking because Cool is a chef," said Dre, standing next to his partner of the better part of the last two decades. "When we decided to take a studio, we wanted it to be real unique. So we got Lake Oasis — it's on 1.5 acres. One of our good friends found this spot for us. The kitchen is phenomenal, we have a lake in the back. We got a couple of jet-skis, 23-footer boat — something real simple to provide the vibes for the studio." "We're still in construction mode, but you see the spot coming together like a movie," Cool explained.
Cool & Dre's game plan is simple: make the flyest studio possible so their latest clientele such as Young Jeezy, Lloyd and possibly Kanye West can just enjoy their surroundings while creating — especially once the sunroof, pool house with accompanying pool and sun deck are completed. "Two cabanas, TVs, couches — you'll be able to hear your music up there," Cool said, pointing to a roof area where the deck is going to be. "Write your music up there. Where you're standing is going to be the future pool." "It's just a great place for us to make music," Dre added. "Friends come through here, from Jeezy to Amerie to DJ Khaled, the Birdman, Lil Wayne. People we make music with. Me and Cool like to define ourselves as producers. We tell people we make music with our friends. It's coming together. Next door, our neighbor has a plane hangar — he flies a plane out of his yard. "This is home — we could be in here 12, 14 hours a day," he continued. "We made sure we built the studio so we could have a view of the lake — that way we keep the vibes right. When they come in and work, we say we could make hit records all day or we could do something important. Like that Coldplay [Viva la Vida] record is important — 2008, when the market crashed and everything went to hell ... we went through a huge generational shift. I was hearing Coldplay on 'Hardball,' on 'Morning Joe' ... it was an important record. "That's what we wanna do," he said. "We wanna entertain as well." "These times are so important," Cool added. "You gotta make the sound bed for it. Down the line, it's just gonna repeat itself. Look at Jeezy's 'Circulate.' People say, 'My favorite record is "Circulate." Jeezy got a singer to sound like an old-school guy.' I said, 'No, that's Billy Paul, that's a sample [of "Let The Dollar Circulate"].' He's just singing what they was going through in the '70s and it matched perfectly what was happening now. Billy Paul played his position for what was going on back then. Me and Dre are trying to do that now." All this week, MTV News will be celebrating Miami's legends, superstars and upstarts. Keep checking back with us for more from the evolving city. Related Videos | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chris Brown's Bid To Delay Hearing Rejected Posted: 10 Jun 2009 02:03 AM PDT Preliminary hearing, at which Rihanna is expected to appear, remains scheduled for June 22.
Chris Brown lost a bid on Wednesday (June 10) to delay a preliminary hearing in his assault case, according to The Associated Press. His attorney had argued that the hearing should wait for a related California Supreme Court decision. The attorney, Mark Geragos, filed an appeal earlier this month attempting to delay the preliminary hearing, which is scheduled for June 22. Court records show the appeal was rejected Tuesday, according to the AP; no reason was provided. Rihanna, who is the alleged victim in the case, is likely to appear at the hearing on the 22nd. Brown is facing felony assault charges after allegedly assaulting Rihanna in February. Brown has pleaded not guilty to the charges. A judge had previously nixed a bid by Geragos to obtain access to police records that the attorney argued were crucial to the hearing, according to the AP. In his appeal, Geragos said that a state Supreme Court case currently under consideration could affect Brown's access to the records. Legal expert Peter T. Haven told MTV News last month that the preliminary hearing will determine whether there is sufficient evidence for the case to go to trial. "During the preliminary, which is significant, the prosecution puts the case in front of the judge to convince the judge that they have sufficient evidence to go forward with a criminal prosecution," Haven told MTV News. "The defense then tries to kill the case. [But] if there's enough evidence, the prosecution could then get a trial date." In Brown's case, there is a lengthy police report, the leaked photo of a battered Rihanna and a willing district attorney. Haven also suggested that both parties involved — Brown and Rihanna — might ultimately push for a plea deal in the interest of discretion. Should the preliminary hearing proceed, additional details from the night in question might arise that could reveal damaging information. Rihanna's attorney, Donald Etra, said last month that his client is expected to be subpoenaed to testify next month. He also said Rihanna will be subject to cross-examination if she takes the stand. Geragos has not offered any comments on the matter. Should the case reach the preliminary hearing, Haven said once a ruling is made, a trial date would be expected to begin in 30 to 90 days. Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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