MTV News |
- Drake Talks About The Evolution Of Mixtapes
- Trey Songz Flirts, Cries, Covers Kings of Leon On 'MTV Unplugged'
- 'Hills' Buzz Moment #4: Heidi Moves Out ... And On
- Bret Michaels Still In ICU, Doctors Seek 'Source Of Bleeding'
- Gabourey Sidibe Proves She's Not Precious, MGMT Rock Out On 'SNL'
- Conan O'Brien Brings Out Jim Carrey, More Celeb Pals At L.A. Show
| Drake Talks About The Evolution Of Mixtapes Posted: 26 Apr 2010 03:51 AM PDT 'A mixtape can't be the songs that don't make your album,' he tells Mixtape Daily.
State of the Streets: Drake Talks Mixtapes On Mondays, we usually bring you our main pick, but we had to start this week by saluting mixtapes. We're proud that so many MCs are stepping their mixtape game up. The mixtape world is strong, potent and competitive right now. This year alone, we've seen Fabolous, Wiz Khalifa, Jim Jones and Asher Roth drop product off in the streets and the Internet. The next few weeks are going to be flooded with ferocity, with Young Jeezy, the Game, T.I. and Rick Ross, just to name a few, dropping soon. Long live the underground!
We asked Drake — the guy with the biggest mixtape of the past few years, So Far Gone — what he thought about the state of mixtapes right now. He said everyone has to come with their best. "I think that when creating a mixtape, you have to approach it with a selfless mind-set," Drake told us. "A mixtape can't be the songs that don't make your album, or songs that aren't good enough to make your album make your mixtape — unless you're that good. There aren't that many people that are that good. I'm not that good. That mixtape [So Far Gone] is me working my hardest. It wasn't 'Oh, here are the songs I'm gonna give away to you 'cause I have better songs coming.' A mixtape has become an album. "Before, I remember people used to be in the studio cutting songs, and they would be like, 'Oh, that song is OK. I'll just put it on my mixtape,' " he added. "Now a mixtape is an actual tool. It's a format you need. You don't necessarily need it, but it can be useful. Like with Fab and the other guys, I know they do a lot of rapping on other guys' beats. It's hard to tour like that, as incredible as it may be. Now Wayne, when the No Ceilings set comes on, it's ridiculous. It's hard to rap over other people's songs and have it be timeless. With So Far Gone, when I did flip other people's songs, half the time people didn't know what song it was. I tried to pick stuff that was new or rare or just like an album cut. But yeah, man, if I use somebody else's beat, I try to make a song out of it." For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines or follow the Mixtape Daily team on Twitter: @shaheemreid and @mongosladenyc. Related Artists |
| Trey Songz Flirts, Cries, Covers Kings of Leon On 'MTV Unplugged' Posted: 26 Apr 2010 03:51 AM PDT It was a chance 'to be vulnerable,' the 'I Invented Sex' singer tells MTV News.
NEW YORK — Trey Songz was fun, flirty and fearless during his "MTV Unplugged" performance, which premiered Monday (April 26) on MTV.com. The Grammy-nominated singer recorded the material earlier this month, at Manhattan's NEP Studio 33, before an intimate audience of (surprise!) mostly women. "Shout-out to the guys with their girls," a cheeky Trey said, before chuckling as he pointed at a man in the crowd: "He like, 'Yeah, what up.' "
The Virginia native showcased a number of the hits from his latest album, Ready, including a mash-up of "I Invented Sex" and Marvin Gaye's classic "Let's Get It On." "You don't believe me?" he teased a fan during a brief pause after "I Invented Sex." "I got the blueprint at the crib. "Lemme tell you what I been trying to do, though," he continued, transitioning into the opening line of the Gaye track. "I been really trying, baby." Songz, clad in a white T-shirt, dark jeans and a fitted leather jacket, was charismatic throughout his set. At ease onstage, the singer frequently interacted with his eight-piece band, inviting his guitarist and bassist to join him during a performance of Ready's "Black Roses." And for a cover of Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody," Songz brought up an overwhelmed admirer from the audience. "A funny thing, I actually forgot a part of the song because I was making sure she was OK," Trey told MTV News afterward, laughing about the moment. "I said, 'Are you OK, baby?' Those are moments that I'll never forget." Songz's onstage guest was all aflutter as he pulled her close, crooning the lyrics directly to her. "I could use somebody," he sang as he circled her, suggestively. "Someone like you." Other covers included Jimmy Cliff's "Many Rivers to Cross" and Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come." During the latter, and after running through numbers like his own "Say Aah" and "I Need a Girl," a somber Songz took his jacket off and opened up about his recent good fortune. Taking a seat, he talked about his visit to the White House with Jay-Z and Beyoncé in March. The singer grew more emotional as he discussed the trip, recalling words his grandmother had spoken to him. He eventually became completely overwhelmed, tearing up and describing the chance to perform on "Unplugged" as "monumental." "At this point in my career, with all the opportunity arising, this is definitely a major highlight within those opportunities," he said afterward. "It's a chance to highlight artists, a chance for them to be vulnerable, a chance for them to contort their music and give it to people a different way, to show that I'm truly an artist and that I love to do what I do: making music. To do it on that platform, the same one as so many artists before me, is just really amazing." Now that Trey has joined the ranks of "Unplugged" alumni like Nirvana and Jodeci, who would you like to see next? Let us know in the comments! Related Videos Related Photos |
| 'Hills' Buzz Moment #4: Heidi Moves Out ... And On Posted: 26 Apr 2010 03:51 AM PDT When Heidi moved in with Spencer, her friendship with LC forever changed.
Over the course of the five seasons Lauren Conrad was on "The Hills," there was no shortage of drama between LC and onetime pal Heidi Montag. Back in the day, these two girls weren't just best friends, they were also roommates. With the show's final season kicking off Tuesday, there was one moment that became the turning point in their friendship — and it comes in at #4 on our list of the most buzzed-about "Hills" moments.
In the first episode of season one, fans could see that LC and Heidi were two very different girls, but it was also evident that they had each other's backs. Over time, the two ladies' opinions would really differ when it came to a guy named Spencer Pratt. "He's not a good person," LC told Montag about her now-husband. "I'm telling you that because I'm your friend." It wasn't until Heidi decided to move in with Spencer that things really started to heat up. Even though her friendship with Lauren was already on the brink, Heidi was convinced they could make it work. LC realized at the time that Heidi's exit would be the end of their friendship, but like any good pal, she told her, "You know you can always come back." In the end, LC was right. Heidi drove off in a moving truck, leaving Lauren and their friendship behind. And even though LC would make a cameo at Speidi's wedding, the friendship between the two girls never really had the magic it once did. What was Spencer's take on the whole thing? "You won't regret this, I promise you," he told Heidi as they drove off into their future together. What are some of your favorite "Hills" moments? Let us know in the comments below! "The Hills: Final Season" premieres Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET/PT followed by "The City" at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT on MTV. Related Videos Related Photos |
| Bret Michaels Still In ICU, Doctors Seek 'Source Of Bleeding' Posted: 25 Apr 2010 12:34 AM PDT Facebook post says doctors are hopeful singer's 'slurred speech, blurred vision and dizziness' will be eliminated soon.
According to an update posted Sunday (April 25) on Bret Michaels' website and Facebook page, the singer/ reality-TV star remains in intensive care after suffering a brain hemorrhage late Thursday. "Everyone at Michaels Entertainment would like to thank all fans and friends for their continued thoughts and prayers through this difficult time," the post reads. "At this point Bret remains in ICU in critical condition. He is under 24-hour doctors' care and supervision. We are hopeful that further tests will locate the source of the bleeding, which has still not been located. As we all know Bret is a fighter and we are hopeful that once all is complete the slurred speech, blurred vision and dizziness, etc. will be eliminated and all functions will return to normal.
"More information will be posted as it becomes available," the post concludes. Despite reports late Friday that Michaels' condition had "stabilized," his website was updated Saturday, noting that he remained in critical condition. "There are several incorrect reports on Bret's condition," the post reads. "Bret remains in critical condition at an undisclosed location. Further tests are being ran and information will be updated in the coming days." TMZ reported late Friday that Michaels was "awake, in good spirits and talking" citing Ambre Lake, the season-two winner of Michaels' "Rock of Love" reality show. The site reported that Lake has spoken with people close to Michaels who said he was "stabilized and conscious." Lake's status update on the 47-year-old singer was said to coincide with another unidentified "Rock of Love" contestant who is in touch with the other members of Poison. Michaels was rushed to the hospital late Thursday evening, where doctors discovered he had suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage, or bleeding at the base of his brain stem, a rep for the singer confirmed to MTV News. "After several CAT scans, MRIs and an angiogram, [doctors] decided to keep Michaels in the ICU and are running several tests to determine the cause [of the hemorrhage]," a source told People magazine, in a report that Michaels' rep said was accurate. "[It] will be touch and go for the next few days while he is under intense observation." Related Videos Related Artists |
| Gabourey Sidibe Proves She's Not Precious, MGMT Rock Out On 'SNL' Posted: 25 Apr 2010 07:22 AM PDT 'Movies are not real life,' actress sang in monologue, spoofing confusion between her and 'Precious' character.
"I love being happy. I'm not Precious," actress Gabourey Sidibe crooned cheekily during her monologue as host of this week's "Saturday Night Live," featuring musical guest MGMT. The Academy Award-nominated star of "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" took to the Studio 8H stage to perform a doo-wop-style opening number, making light of the confusion between her and the downtrodden character she portrays in the film. "Movies are not real life. That's something you should know," she sang, adding, "Mariah Carey doesn't have a mustache."
The 26-year-old then sped through a hodgepodge of largely loud-mouthed and irritated characters. She donned dreadlocks to play a Jamaican nurse hawking a heal-thyself manual opposite Kristen Wiig's Suze Orman. She yelled at kids on her front stoop as an elderly, know-it-all neighbor whose daddy used to sell "Wikipedias." And she competed at the "2010 Public Employee of the Year Awards" as a surly St. Louis DMV worker. Sidibe also teamed up with Andy Samberg, with whom she appeared in promos earlier in the week, for the Digital Short "Cherry Battle." The pair, clad in Obi-Wan Kenobi-style getups, spit cherries at each other in slow motion. Brooklyn-based MGMT performed two songs off their recently released sophomore album, Congratulations. First up was "Flash Delirium," a tune the band released digitally March 9 to tease the new album. They followed that up with "Brian Eno," an ode to the British musician and producer. "It's kind of a vampire-punk-rock song about finding Brian Eno in like a cathedral in Transylvania," singer Andrew VanWyngarden told New York magazine last year. "He's like a dark wizard. We originally asked him to produce the track, but he hadn't heard of us." The band is currently on tour and will play at May's Sasquatch festival and August's Lollapalooza. The next new episode of "SNL" airs May 8 with host Betty White and musical guest Jay-Z. The "Golden Girls" star landed her hosting gig thanks to a fervent Facebook campaign launched earlier this year encouraging producer Lorne Michaels to have White on the show. Related Artists |
| Conan O'Brien Brings Out Jim Carrey, More Celeb Pals At L.A. Show Posted: 25 Apr 2010 08:56 AM PDT Aziz Ansari, Jonah Hill and Jon Hamm also join Team Coco for the Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television Tour.
UNIVERSAL CITY, California — For seven short months, Conan O'Brien hosted "The Tonight Show" on the Universal Studios back lot. In a full-circle moment on Saturday night, the comedian brought his Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television Tour to Universal Studios' Gibson Amphitheatre, a mere 400 yards from his old stage. "This is my first time back at Universal Studios since I lost my job," O'Brien announced to the sold-out crowd, causing the Conan-crazy fans to boo his former employer, NBC. "Don't boo too loudly. If you listen very carefully, you can hear bad ideas being green-lit." Aside from occasional jabs at O'Brien's old network, the traveling variety show was nothing but a lovefest between TBS' newest late-night host and his devoted fanbase. O'Brien even brought a few extra-special treats to L.A. (since his celeb pals didn't have to travel too far to join him onstage), including appearances by Jonah Hill, 2010 MTV Movie Awards host Aziz Ansari and Jim Carrey as Superman.
After lamenting how tough it is to be Conan O'Brien, the funnyman launched into Five for Fighting's "Superman (It's Not Easy)" only to be joined in the second verse by Carrey, who emerged from the crowd in red-and-blue tights. The pair hammed it up during the duet, trading over-the-top vocal runs and awkward dance moves. The real guest-star cavalcade came during the "Walker, Texas Ranger" Lever, a staple from Conan's late-night shows that (for legal reasons) will now be known as the Chuck Norris Rural Policeman Handle. Ansari, Hill, "Mad Men" star Jon Hamm and "30 Rock" page Jack MacBrayer all took turns pulling the handle to activate ridiculous (and completely real) "Walker" scenes. "I'm just glad I'm not one of the guys who works for NBC pulling the handle," Hamm quipped, pointing out Ansari's and MacBrayer's day jobs on Peacock comedies. Conan bestie Andy Richter, former "Tonight Show" writer Deon Cole and Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog also got in on the action with bits throughout the two-hour show. Comedian Reggie Watts kick-started the night with 20 ridiculous minutes of accents, beatboxing and unintelligible lyrics. O'Brien will be back on the Gibson stage Sunday night (April 25) before heading to San Diego on Thursday. Are you planning to see Conan's tour? Are you looking forward to his TBS show? Let us know in the comments below! Related Photos |
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