Minggu, 24 April 2011

MTV News

MTV News


Diddy-Dirty Money Stage New York Takeover On Coming Home Tour

Posted: 23 Apr 2011 08:32 AM PDT

Ja Rule, Ashanti also surprise fans before Diddy pays homage to B.I.G. with Bad Boy alums Faith Evans, Black Rob and more at Hammerstein Ballroom.
By Rebecca Thomas


Diddy performs at the Diddy-Dirty Money Coming Home Tour in New York City Friday
Photo: Getty Images

NEW YORK -- It was the homecoming leg on his Coming Home Tour, so it was only fitting that Harlem-born Diddy threw a Ciroc-soaked "white party" on Friday as Diddy-Dirty Money hit New York's Hammerstein Ballroom. The trio worked the dance hits from their Last Train to Paris, but this was a show in three acts, with the mogul/MC reaching back to the dawn of Bad Boy to pay an expansive tribute to "Brooklyn's Finest" MC, the Notorious B.I.G., and bringing concertgoers along on a visual/sonic journey that spanned his unstoppable career.

Diddy-Dirty Money divas Dawn Richard and Kalenna Harper preceded Diddy to the stage in looks that seemed to channel Grace Jones: Dawn in a thigh-baring cutout dress and Kalenna in a glittery romper, both sharing the creamy palette with Diddy, who was dressed in a sporty, all-white ensemble. The ladies kicked things off with "Yeah, Yeah You Would" (which features Jones), before an energetic Diddy emerged for the dance-floor banger "Ass on the Floor," with Swizz Beatz delivering the hook via a pre-taped clip that was mounted on enormous projectors -- an artfully executed stand-in used throughout the night for other LTP features like Rick Ross and Lil Wayne.

"Ain't no place like home!" Sean Combs told the excited crowd, touching on his Mt. Vernon, New York, upbringing and breaking down why no other city can match New York's swag.

An emotional undercurrent coursed through the entire show, and the series of delays that plagued Last Train to Paris, 41-year-old Combs' risk-taking concept album, seemed to be a particularly poignant theme on Friday night. Mr. "Can't Stop, Won't Stop" danced with abandon, his son Justin briefly joining him onstage with some sharp moves of his own. But Justin was only the first of a string of cameos, many from artists who'd once batted on Bad Boy's chart-busting lineup.

After performing "Loving You No More," "Yesterday" and a moody Sade medley from Dawn and K that seemed to slow things down too much for the club-like atmosphere they'd created, a B.I.G. video montage set the tone for the show's second act. Memorable images of the young Bedford Stuyvesant MC and budding mogul Puff Daddy flashed across the screen, following a linear "This Is Your Life"- style narrative.

Dawn and Kalenna ceded the stage to Diddy entirely as he launched into Bad Boy Records' shiny-suit era smashes, from "All About the Benjamins" to "Mo Money, Mo Problems." The New York audience lost it for the familiar classics, but went 'ham for the familiar faces. Formerly incarcerated Black Rob, in requisite black hoodie, turned up for "Whoa"; newly raven-haired Faith Evans sang a silky version of her "Love Like This"; and Junior M.A.F.I.A.'s Lil' Cease made a cameo.

"I was looking for inspiration before Last Train to Paris, and I was walking in Central Park one day and I heard this song," Diddy recalled, introducing A Tribe Called Quest MC and longtime Diddy pal Q-Tip. The duo treated fans to a spirited dance-off as they ticked off Tribe standards like "Check the Rhime" and Tip's "Vivrant Thing."

But the presence of the late Christopher Wallace hovered over the proceedings. Diddy, now rocking a vintage Versace shirt, profusely thanked his fallen brother as more B.I.G. videos played on an overhead screen to cheers and shouts. The standing-room crowd, waving hands and phones in the air, was fired up for the nostalgic trip. Things drew to an end with the other two thirds of DDM taking their places onstage again for the triumphant, introspective "Coming Home," followed by closer "Hello, Good Morning."

Opening act Lloyd had a few special guests of his own, bringing out his onetime Murder Inc. labelmates Ashanti and Ja Rule, who's several weeks away from a two-year jail sentence on gun charges. The gruff-voiced Ja showed little signs of rust on his Ashanti-featuring "Always on Time," the infectious chart-topping single that ruled the summer a decade ago. Lloyd's Young Money brethren and fellow opener Tyga hopped back onstage to drop his "BedRock" verse. And a go-go breakdown of "Lay Your Head" accompanied Wale's appearance with the crooner.

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Jermaine Dupri Joins O Music Awards Roundtable!

Posted: 23 Apr 2011 07:29 AM PDT

Video director Wayne Isham will also be in on Most Innovative Video debate, which streams live Monday on OMusicAwards.com and MTV.com.
By MTV News staff


Jermaine Dupri
Photo: Getty Images

For weeks, fans have been voting for their favorite boundary-pushing, genre-expanding clip for the O Music Awards' Most Innovative Music Video prize. Come Monday (at 4 p.m. ET on OMusicAwards.com and MTV.com), they can watch as a winner is crowned — after some spirited debate from acclaimed video director Wayne Isham, Mashable's Brenna Ehrlich, MTV News' James Montgomery and, a new addition to the panel, producer/ Global14.com founder and creator Jermaine Dupri.

Given Dupri's involvement in some of the most groundbreaking videos ever, and the development of his new social-networking site Global14, he has established himself as one of the most innovative artists in the business.

The Black Eyed Peas, Ke$ha, My Chemical Romance and more will also take part in the discussion about just what makes a video truly innovative, and the folks who are nominated for the award — a list that includes Arcade Fire, Robyn, OK Go and Andy Grammer — will also Skype in to make the case for why their video deserves to be named Most Innovative.

On Monday morning, the original list of 10 nominees will be whittled down to the top five vote-getters, and then, during the debate, our roundtable and the Internet audience will cut that list down to the final three. At the very end, we'll announce the winner of the very first O Music Award for Most Innovative Video. The O Music Awards debate for the Most Innovative Music Video, presented by Fuze, will stream live on OMusicAwards.com and MTV.com at 4 p.m. ET on Monday.

The inaugural O Music Awards will stream live from Las Vegas at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT on OMusicAwards.com. Tune in to see who will reign supreme in categories like Most Viral Dance, Funniest Music Short and NSFW Music Video!

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