Nicki Minaj Was Once ‘Afraid’ To Release Pink Friday

Her debut, Pink Friday, is one of the year’s most anticipated releases, so it’s hard to believe there was a time when Nicki Minaj was actually afraid to drop the album. But in an interview with YRB magazine, the Young Money darling opens up about her early fears for the LP’s release.

“I was so afraid to put out an album for fear of failure,” Minaj tells the magazine. “I wanted to put my album out on Valentine’s Day of 2011. And my label was like, ‘Are you f—ing crazy?’ ”

Despite early jitters, Minaj explained that the final product erased any hesitation. “I know that Pink Friday is a classic album. I have never been this proud of anything in my life,” Minaj said. “I just think that it’s such a dynamic body of work. I’m no longer afraid to drop it. Now, I know it’s time.”

Known for her features on other hit songs, the Harajuku Barbie has a string of contributors lined up for the LP, including Rihanna, Drake, Kanye West and Eminem. And the lyricist says that the leaked Eminem duet, “Roman’s Revenge,” had the duo clashing, in a good way.

“We both have our own world, and we’re just colliding. … I want a piece of that Slim Shady world because I feel like it may have subconsciously influenced me.”

In addition to sharing her thoughts on Pink Friday, which comes out on November 22, Minaj also gave her two cents on her female peers, possibly referencing Lil’ Kim.

“These girls aren’t mad at me. They’re mad at themselves,” Nicki said. “[It's] jealousy, insecurity and being broke. When you haven’t capitalized and you see I’m about to capitalize on this sh– like it’s never been done before, then you’re mad at yourself.”

Read More

Rihanna Confirms Collabo With Katy Perry, Just Not On Loud

Fans went a bit bonkers when they heard that besties Katy Perry and Rihanna might be collaborating for the latter’s forthcoming new album, Loud. Rihanna confirmed that the pair have hit the studio to team up on some dazzling music but noted that it won’t appear on her next album, due November 10.

“No, but we’re actually working on some music together … hell yeah,” she told MTV News, adding that she’d also love to team up with the California Gurl on the road. “I would love to tour with Katy. She’s a rock star. And when I see her live, she just brings such a fun [vibe], like a colorful rock star. She has all these [props]. She has candy and fruit and a blown-up ChapStick onstage, but then she’s rocking out with a guitar and banging her head and swinging onstage and crowd-surfing. That’s the sh– that just makes you excited when you see her perform. She’s beautiful, but then she rocks out.”

Two other big-name acts do appear on Loud. Rihanna picked up where she and Eminem left off on “Love the Way You Lie” with a sequel to the hit song, and she and Drake trade flirty lines on “What’s My Name?”

As for the Eminem collaboration, Rihanna admitted she was initially wary about trying to re-create the magic from the duo’s first song together. “When I first heard the idea about doing a part two, I was just completely against it,” she said. “I just felt like you couldn’t beat the original. There’s no way you can outdo that, so why compete with it?”

Read More

Britney Spears Producer Dr. Luke Calls Singer ‘An Amazing Vehicle’

While “Glee” was spot-on in its tribute to Britney Spears in September, it’s safe to say her fans are ready for the real deal. The pop princess, who has remained relatively low-key since wrapping up her Circus Tour, is currently working on her new album with a few familiar faces, including producers Dr. Luke and Max Martin.

“She’s such an icon, I don’t want to let anyone down,” Dr. Luke said last week at the Hollywood Reporter/ Billboard Film & TV Music Conference. “But most importantly, I want to make good music.”

Luke said that he is anticipating that Britney’s album will see an early 2011 release, and a source told THR it would hit stores before March 31.

In addition to Dr. Luke (”Circus”) and Martin (”… Baby One More Time”), Darkchild and newcomer Billboard are also said to be working with Spears.

When asked if there were anything else he could reveal about the heavily guarded project, Luke wouldn’t say much. “Just that I’m excited to be co-executive producing with Max Martin, the person who kind of invented Britney, and to make good music,” he said. “And she’s such an amazing vehicle to getting that music out to a lot of people in every country.”

With Luke and Martin helming the project, fans may expect to hear Spears sounding like the producers’ frequent collaborators Katy Perry and Ke$ha. But there have also been indications that Brit will take a fresher approach. Last month, Spears’ manager Adam Leber spoke to Entertainment Weekly about her next album, promising that it will introduce a “progressive” sound from the pop star.

”It’ll be a departure from what you’ve heard,” he added.

Read More

Lily Allen Suffers Miscarriage

British songstress Lily Allen has suffered a miscarriage. The singer confirmed the news through a statement made by her publicist.

“It is with great sadness that we have to confirm that Lily Allen and Sam Cooper have lost their baby,” her rep Murray Chalmers said, according to People.com. “The couple ask that their privacy be respected and that they be left alone at this deeply distressing time. No further comment will be made.”

Allen, 25, announced she was pregnant back in August and just weeks ago announced that she and 32-year-old Cooper, an upmarket decorator and owner of a building company, were expecting a boy this January. Allen revealed the pregnancy after receiving a scan at the end of her first trimester. Allen and Cooper began dating in July 2009.

“It goes without saying we are both absolutely delighted,” she said at the time. “Sam treats me differently. He’s told me he’ll look after me forever. That’s what I’ve always wanted — someone to look after me. We’ve never had one argument and there’s absolutely nothing about him that annoys me. He’s not impressed by what I do.”

E! reports that Allen was set to perform at Elton John’s AIDS fundraiser in London a few days ago but didn’t. She said she was suffering from a viral infection and had to remain on bed rest.

In December 2007, Allen and former boyfriend Ed Simmons of the Chemical Brothers announced that they were expecting a child together. She suffered a miscarriage one month later.

Read More

Fergie Named One Of Glamour’s Women Of The Year

On their new single, “The Time (the Dirty Bit),” the Black Eyed Peas rejoice in having the time of their life. And that’s exactly what the group’s frontwoman, Fergie, is doing as she’s been named one of Glamour magazine’s 2010 Women of the Year. In an interview for Glamour’s December issue conducted by former winner Katie Couric, the 35-year-old songstress opened up about her band’s recent success and her marriage to Josh Duhamel, while also giving advice to young women.

“For some lucky reason or gift from God, I’ve known what I wanted to do since I was a little girl,” Fergie told Couric. “And even through disappointments and rejection, there was something inside of me that wouldn’t give up. I’m a survivor, and I’m very driven.”

Admitting that she hasn’t always had the time to reflect on her success, Fergie revealed to the magazine that she doesn’t even have her awards out on display. “My mom and dad and stepdad ordered display cases for Josh and me to put our awards in,” the singer said. “They haven’t arrived yet, but it’s nice to think about getting my awards out of the safe and putting them in one by one. Because when you’re in the middle of it, you don’t just sit there and give yourself gold stars all the time.”

In addition to Fergie’s numerous accolades, the pop star also dished about her actor husband. “Well, I knew, getting into a relationship with him, that girls were very attracted to him,” she said of Duhamel’s flock of female admirers. “He was filming a show called ‘Las Vegas’ and was constantly around half-naked women. It was just the premise of the show. For me, I’m not a jealous person. That’s just not my thing. You have to have trust in your relationship.”

Asked what her advice is for the number of women out there who are not satisfied with how they look, Fergie replied, “It’s become actually the norm, I feel. And it’s really sad. The thing that I can say is, you’re not alone. [And if] you start making the right choices for yourself, all of a sudden you start feeling better and better … You’d be surprised how addicting high self-esteem is.”

As for whether the singer has any plans to have babies, Fergie revealed that it’s on her list of goals, but added that “a girl’s gotta keep something private.”

Meanwhile, the Black Eyed Peas are gearing up to release their brand-new album, The Beginning (due out on November 30), featuring the aforementioned “The Time (the Dirty Bit)” as its lead single. The tune samples the “Dirty Dancing” theme song “(I’ve Had) the Time of My Life.”

Read More

Katy Perry’s ‘Firework’ Director Hopes Video Shows ‘Substance’

When Dave Meyers sat down to write his treatment for Katy Perry’s “Firework” video, he says he wanted to “play with [her] image a bit … sort of demystify the candy-colored pop icon that she’s become.”

So you can imagine his disappointment when, as soon as he finished his first draft, the director caught the premiere of Perry’s “Teenage Dream” clip, which stripped KP of her “California Gurls” candy coating and, in the process, sent him back to the drawing board.

“I had written the treatment already with the idea of deconstructing her a little bit, and then ‘Teenage Dream’ came out and deconstructed her all the way,” Meyers said, laughing. “So I had to switch gears a little bit. But really, it was easy, because I connected with the song. I felt ‘Firework’ was very personal, and I was very drawn to that. … We wanted to articulate the meaning of that song: what it means to be an underdog and have the courage, if you’re on the outskirts of society, to be your own person.”

With that goal in mind, Meyers headed to Hungary (Budapest, to be exact) to shoot “Firework,” his first-ever collaboration with Perry. From the very beginning, both he and KP were on the same page about one thing: They wanted the video to be totally, 100 percent real.

“We were both very into the idea of getting away from Hollywood and featuring real people in the video,” Meyers said. “So we featured real people; they weren’t actors. Finding two gay guys in Budapest was a challenge, because it’s not as accepted there as it is in West Hollywood. I found an actual, real couple.

“The girl in the video isn’t actually a sick girl, but we got her to shave her head, and, if you’re an 11-year-old, that’s a massive commitment. The people’s commitment to it was really beautiful,” he continued. “And then in the last scene, that wasn’t 250 extras, that was 250 hardcore Katy Perry fans. Those people were jumping because they were loving life.”

Those 250 fans were winners of a contest sponsored by Deutsch Telekom (which followed them on the journey from their homes across Europe to the set of the “Firework” video), and when they were finally brought face-to-face with their heroine, much like the video itself, the reaction was very real.

“Katy was brought to tears when she met the extras,” Meyers said. “And, really, that’s her. She looks like a pinup, but she’s got a lot of substance and a lot to say, and hopefully this video represents that.”

But for all the talk of keeping it real, there is one aspect of “Firework” that isn’t: the eye-catching shower of sparks that emits from the bodies of Perry and various characters throughout the clip. Turns out, they’re mostly special effects. Though, in keeping with the spirit of the entire production, Meyers tried his hardest to figure out some way of using actual fireworks. Sadly, it didn’t work out.

“I tried to figure out a way to actually rig real fireworks to real people,” he said, laughing, “but it ended up being a hazard. Nobody wanted me to get close to Katy with them.”

Read More

Lady Gaga Now Subject Of College Course

Fame is so hard to define these days. How does a star know when she’s truly made it? Is it when the hosts of “Today” dress up as you for Halloween? When you reach 1 billion views on YouTube? Are multiplatinum album sales and sold-out tours still a good barometer?

Or does one only reach true icon status when a college professor decides that person is important enough to base a university-level course around?

If so, welcome to the club, Lady Gaga!

According to the New York Times, University of South Carolina sociology professor Mathieu Deflem is planning to offer a course next semester entitled “Lady Gaga and the Sociology of Fame.”

Deflem plans to delve into what makes a person famous and what it means to be famous in today’s society. “The central objective is to unravel some of the sociologically relevant dimensions of the fame of Lady Gaga,” Deflem states in the course description for the class, which he says is the first of its kind in the nation.

Deflem said that after being smitten with Gaga during a “Tonight” appearance last January, he attended a concert of hers in Atlanta and went on to catch 28 Gaga shows all over the globe. He’s since become a superfan, collecting more than 300 CDs and records and launching the fan site gagafrontrow.net.

He’s also met Mother Monster five times. Does that mean she’ll swing by for a lecture sometime? “I will get the word out to her that I’m doing the course,” he said when asked if he’d like her to drop in. “But it might be logistically too difficult for her to come because she will be on tour for most of the spring semester.”

Gaga joins a venerable list of courses that will likely elicit a call from parents asking just what their money is going toward, including Georgetown University’s “Philosophy and Star Trek,” the University of California-Irvine’s “The Science of Superheroes,” Frostburg State University’s “The Science of Harry Potter” and University of California-Berkeley’s “Simpsons and Philosophy.”

Read More

Miley Cyrus’ Movie ‘LOL’ Picked Up By Distributor

Miley Cyrus will cement her transition from kiddie TV star to teenage vixen in her upcoming movie “LOL,” which was just picked up for distribution by Lionsgate, according to Variety.

The English-language remake of the 2008 French hit reportedly includes a number of scenes that might make Cyrus’ “Hannah Montana” fans blush; her character is said to lose her virginity, smoke pot and kiss two girlfriends on the lips.

Co-star Demi Moore told MTV News in April that though Cyrus — whose parents announced their divorce this week — plays a wild child in the film, in real life she’s “incredibly grounded” and not at all like her “LOL” character.

“[Miley] is a true professional, and she truly has a wonderful family,” Moore said. “It really shows.” The veteran actress plays the overbearing, confounded mom of Cyrus’ character, who gets freaked out after accidentally reading her daughter’s journal and finding out just how out of touch they have become.

The movie, which also stars “Twilight” alum Ashley Greene, does not have a release date. Like the French original, it is written and directed by Lisa Azuelo; the cast also includes Thomas Jane (”Hung”), Gina Gershon (”Rescue Me”), Marlo Thomas (”That Girl”), Fisher Stevens (”Awake”), Adam Sevani (”Step Up 3D”), Jay Hernandez (”Takers”) and Austin Nichols (”One Tree Hill”).

Cyrus and Greene were spotted shooting scenes for the film in Detroit earlier this summer and recently moved to Paris to continue production. In photos released last month, a smiling Cyrus, embraced at the waist by co-star Douglas Booth, is standing alongside a pensive-looking Greene and other castmembers Ashley Hinshaw and Lina Esco. In other shots, Booth and Cyrus are snuggling on a double-decker bus while Greene is on another bus. Booth and Cyrus also were filmed standing on a bridge chatting.

Cyrus has said that in her post-”Hannah Montana” career, she’s looking to film more serious, mature movies, and that she intends to take a break from music to pursue her film career.

“I’m working on lots of different films: drama, action, comedy,” she said. “I like challenges, so I’m doing a little bit of everything.

“The more I make music that doesn’t truly inspire me, the more I feel like I’m blending in with everyone else,” she added. “I’m taking some time off [from music].”

Read More

Ke$ha Gets ‘Sleazy’ On New Cannibal Track

Ke$ha doesn’t need you or your brand-new Benz or your bougie friends, for that matter. She doesn’t need love looking like diamonds. Why? It’s sleazy.

At least that’s what she’s saying on her just-released track, “Sleazy,” off her November 22 release, Cannibal. Bangladesh (whose credits include Beyoncé’s “Diva” and “Video Phone,” as well as tracks by Nelly, Gucci Mane and Ludacris) produced the track, which combines Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl” swagga and J. Lo’s “Love Don’t Cost a Thing” attitude with a touch of Lil Wayne’s “Milli” thrown in for good measure.

Ke$ha likes to party, and this song fits right in with her party-anthem discography. “I don’t mean to critique on your seduction/ But your money’s not impressing me/ It’s kind of weak that you really think you’re gonna get my rocks off/ Get my tops and socks off by showing me the dollars in your drop box,” she sing-raps.

The song is three minutes and 25 seconds worth of club-banging glory thanks to a killer beat and funky sing-along lyrics (if you’re not too shy) like, “Rat tat tat on your dumb dumb drum, the beat so fat gonna make me come, um um um, over to your place.” Girl loves innuendo.

The song is the second new track from Ke$ha. Earlier this month she released “We R Who We R,” an equally danceable tune from the same girl who brought the world hits like “Tik Tok” and “Your Love Is My Drug.”

“I don’t want to go away!” she said. “I feel like I’m creating this hopefully very youthful and irreverent movement of the kids, of, like, adolescence. I feel like the parents don’t get it, but the kids get it. And they deserve to have more good, positive music. … It’s fun as sh–! So I wanted to give [my fans] that.”

Read More

Taylor Swift Turned To Songwriting Out Of Loneliness

Taylor Swift became a chart-topping singer and songwriter as a teen, and while her drive and focus likely pushed her megastardom, she said she originally began penning lyrics because she was lonely.

“I turned to songwriting because I didn’t really have anybody else to talk to,” Swift said during an interview on MTV’s “The Seven” Wednesday (October 27). “I was going through a very lonely phase at school, which a lot of kids do. It’s just when you’re going through it you feel like you’re the only one going through it.”

Channeling the pain through the pen, Swift used her loner status to launch her into superstar territory. Along the way, she’s learned that while her lyrics may be informed by new experiences, she plans to remain true to herself.

“I changed a lot over the course of my life, and having written songs since I was 12, your perspective changes,” she said. “But I think part of growing up is realizing that you’ll never change, but you’ll never stay the same either.”

One thing that doesn’t stay the same is her schedule, which picked up the pace as the starlet dropped her latest album, Speak Now.

“A typical day for me, it’s fun, because, lately, there really is no typical day. There are some things that are always gonna be the same, like my priority on family and making sure that I always remember to love this,” she explained.

Although she has to maintain the packed and sometimes punishing schedule of a global pop star, Swift says she doesn’t regret trading in dorm life for the limelight.

“I’m very conscious of the path that I chose in life and that it is a different path than what my friends chose. College and living in a dorm, that would have been my life if music hadn’t been my life,” she said, adding that she gets a taste of the campus experience through her close friends and family. “I always keep one eye on that path. I go and I visit my brother at college and I visit my best friend Abigail at college and go and I attend her journalism class. I have no regrets about the path that I took, but I still try to experience as much as I possibly can in life.”

Swift maintained that her “biggest challenge is staying closer to hope rather than being closer to fear,” but added that doing what she loves keeps her grounded.

“Loving this is a big part of my life and sometimes, if you get too tired or you’re jetlagged, you might forget,” she said. “But I always remind myself that I love this.”

Read More

Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Ke$ha To Perform At American Music Awards

The star power at the upcoming American Music Awards just got kicked up a notch — or 20. In addition to the previously announced performance from Christina Aguilera, the November 21 show at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles will feature the debut AMA appearances from three of music’s hottest young stars.

Justin Bieber, Katy Perry and Ke$ha will all perform at the show alongside a roster of veteran acts including Bon Jovi, Pink and Usher. Fittingly, all three newbies are also nominated for Artist of the Year, a category that features heavy-hitters Eminem and Lady Gaga as well. Em and Lady Antebellum lead all nominees with five apiece.

“As a small-town kid from Canada, I never imagined that I would be nominated for AMAs, let alone be performing on the show,” Bieber said, according to The Associated Press, which added that the 16-year-old professed to feel “extremely humbled and honored” by the invitation to play the show.

More presenters and performers will be announced in coming weeks.

“Justin, Katy and Ke$ha have been on the top of the charts all year long. We are happy to see each of them make their own AMA history,” AMA producer Larry Klein said in a statement announcing the additions. Bieber is nominated in four categories overall, while Ke$ha and Perry are up for three awards.

Winners will be determined by online voting at AMA.ABC.com.

Read More

Rihanna Says Photos In Her New Book ‘Say So Much’

Her fervently tracked fifth album, Loud, is just weeks from its November 16 due date, but on Wednesday (October 27), Rihanna was reflecting on her last LP, the moody Rated R. The Bajan singer turned up at a Fifth Avenue Barnes & Noble bookstore to sign copies of her new book.

Her self-titled tome is a photographic document of the year that followed the release of that dark disc and her triumphant Last Girl on Earth Tour. The widely photographed star told MTV News that her Rihanna Navy will get an intimate peek — unlike the relentless paparazzi pics that paper the blogs — at her life with this book, shot by creative director Simon Henwood.



“I think it was really special to have behind-the-scenes photos, you know, pictures that the fans haven’t seen before, all together of a very specific moment of my life, an album of my life,” Rihanna told us.

From stage lights to street lights, the 22-year-old stunner shines in front of the camera and perhaps never more so than in the images that capture Rihanna in the moments between show times: Admirers will swoon over a picture of the singer clutching her hoodie on a Paris rooftop with the Eiffel Tower visible in the distance or another rather decadent snap that shows her feasting on room service with just a table napkin and black suspenders doubling as a shirt.

“They just get to see all the things that they hadn’t seen that were going on behind the scenes; really cool stuff, not typical,” Rihanna, draped in a calf-length floral frock, explained. “They’re really fun photos. And even for me, when I look at them, they say so much. Photos really tell a thousand words.”

The “Only Girl (In the World)” singer had her own favorite, though, and she thumbed through the oversize collection to show us a green-tinged photo of her onstage in an elaborate headdress that calls to mind Venetian blinds. (”I call it the ‘Disturbia’ one … I love that one.”)

So what essential items does a globe-trotting songstress making her debut headlining tour pack when your concert schedule takes you as far as the Belgian city of Antwerp?

“Essential?” she thought for a moment. “Comfortable, warm clothes for the bus — the bus is always freezing! And you always want to be comfortable on the bus. Not much heels. You’re pretty much going from the bus to the stage, back to the studio … back to the stage. So it’s not a lot of clothes to pack: sneakers, sweats, pajamas, stuff like that,” she smiled.

Read More

Justin Bieber’s ‘Never Say Never’ Trailer Sends Inspiring Message

In what was already a night full of surprises, Justin Bieber upped the ante at his Los Angeles tour stop by surprising the capacity crowd with the premiere of the trailer for his upcoming 3-D film, “Never Say Never.”

After guest appearances by Usher and Sean Kingston, Bieber took time halfway into the show to make an announcement at the Staples Center.

“I don’t know if I’m getting enough love tonight; it’s gotta be louder — come on, guys!” The entire arena answered his call with a thunderous eruption of screams.

Satisfied with the reaction, the 16-year-old pop star continued by recalling the doubters in his life, those who said he’d never win a VMA or that he’d never get his own movie.

“I might get in trouble for this, L.A.,” he said. “I got a special treat for you guys!” Then Bieber announced that he was going to debut the trailer as a thank-you to his fans.

With the lights dim, three large screens above the stage began playing the trailer, which first shows Justin as a toddler, banging an elaborate drum beat on a kitchen chair. A series of home movie clips chronicle his rise to fame — singing, playing keyboard, and strumming an acoustic guitar. Just 30 seconds in, it was almost impossible to hear the trailer over the fans’ loud screams.

The preview follows with an explosion of eye-popping visuals from various concerts — sweeping camera moves that create an epic feeling. But what the trailer shows is that “Never Say Never” is more than a concert film. It takes you beyond the stage and shows his everyday life, and the famous people who helped him along the way. Most of all, the focus seems to be on the fans. There are chants of “Justin” in the background and firsthand accounts of the fans’ devotion.

The trailer ends with Bieber giving words of encouragement to an audience.

“There’s gonna be times where people tell you that you can’t live your dreams,” Bieber says. “This is what I tell them: Never say never!”

“Every step, everyone’s always said, ‘No, no, no, no,’ ” director Jon Chu told MTV News last week. “And he’s always said, ‘Yes, yes, yes.’ And that sort of ‘never say never’ idea is conveyed in the trailer.”

As loud as the Staples Center was at the beginning of the trailer, they raised the volume even more as it finished. Immediately following, Bieber broke into the film’s title song, “Never Say Never,” with the help of Jaden Smith.

And while the L.A. crowd only experienced the trailer in 2-D, you can experience the film in all its 3-D greatness when it opens Valentine’s weekend, February 2011.

Read More

Justin Bieber’s Unofficial Hip-Hop Coach, Tory Lanez, Speaks

Recently, Justin Bieber introduced Shawty Mane, his rap alias, to the world, and MTV News has found his hip-hop coach.

Following Bieber’s freestyle over Vado and Cam’ron’s “Speaking in Tungs,” many on the web accused the singer of sampling lines from another Canadian, a rapper named Tory Lanez.

“I heard [the song] on Worldstar, and I have such a fanbase in Canada that people were hitting me and asking ‘Did you know that Justin Bieber took your line?’ ” Lanez recalled. “I kinda laughed and smirked at it. It’s funny to hear someone else using my lyrics, but I didn’t think it was crooked or anything.”

Lanez rhymes over Lloyd Banks’ “Beamer, Benz or Bentley,” which was uploaded to YouTube in March 2010, and spits “Getting hella dome, put Lady Gaga on my telephone/ Hella gone and your girl beat no metronome/ My new b—-, she a yellowbone/ I buy her yellow stones because I like it when she got that yellow on.”

On the “Speaking in Tungs” remix, which hit the Web earlier this month, Bieber rhymes: “Call up Lady Gaga … on my … on my telephone/ Hella dome … yeah … my girl beats, no metronome/ My new chick, she a yellowbone/ I buy her yellow stones, ’cause I like it when she got that yellow on.”

Lanez says he shot the video for his “Beamer, Benz or Bentley” freestyle the same day he wrote the song: “I was like, ‘I have to shoot the video right now’ after I recorded it, and we shot it on the same day, March 16.”

Born Daystar Peterson, the 18-year-old was the son of a traveling preacher who shuttled his family to Florida, Georgia and Montreal, Canada. The rapper says he met Bieber, who he calls “a big fan of mine,” in Canada when he performed for him and garnered a favorable response from the teen pop star. Now the MC, who began rapping after writing a diss rant against his cousin for beating him in a video game, calls Los Angeles home and is enjoying the attention from Bieber’s borrowing.

“There’s a lot of things going on in Los Angeles,” Lanez said. “I don’t want to say too much, but there are a lot of things in the works.”

So will Bieber and Lanez ever work together officially?

“Hopefully in the future,” Lanez said. “He’s probably a fan of me as much as I’m a fan of his music. He’s still my friend. And anyone that wants to bash on him for the song should stop. For me, personally, I’m happy.”

Lanez has released two mixtapes, including 2009’s “T.L. to T.O.” and this month’s “One Verse One Hearse,” and he has a new project called “Playing for Keeps” on the way.

Read More

Taylor Swift’s Speak Now Live Stream Attracts Fans Worldwide

Taylor Swift celebrated the arrival of Speak Now with a fan-filled album-release party at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Manhattan on Monday (October 25). The party not only included an amped-up performance by Swift, but also fans from around the world, who dined on sushi, mac and cheese and lobster.

Swift hung out with partygoers during her meet-and-greet and seemed genuinely excited by the chance to catch up with fans on the day of her release. She hugged and took pictures with every one of them. Wearing a yellow satin dress with maroon patent heels, she not only met with her fans, but also took questions from them during the nearly hour-long live stream on MTV.com, VH1.com and CMT.com.

Fans asked about everything: What inspired the album? “For me, Speak Now was inspired by the last two years of my life … that’s why I write songs,” she said before joking about whether there was anything she wouldn’t write about. “Well, I thought so before this album,” she laughed. “There’s a little more speculation now than when I was 12.”

Swift sang three tracks from the new album, displaying sass and confidence during the performance of the album’s title track as fans sang along to every word. She then curtsied as her fans cheered her.

“This album took two years to write, two years to make … and these are songs about stories and lessons and things that I’ve learned — the right way, the wrong and, in the case of this song, it’s about learning a lesson a little too late,” she said before kicking into one of the most buzzed-about tracks on the album, “Back to December,” which is reportedly an apology to Taylor Lautner.

Saying she went through “obsessive editing” while making the album, she shared, “I ended up writing this song — actually every song — alone, and that happened by circumstance. … I’ve never written an entire album on my own before, so songwriting is my favorite thing. It’s all what makes life make more sense to me.”

Playing a bedazzled acoustic guitar, Swift then went into “Mine,” the first single from Speak Now. Swift took in fans’ cheers as she wrapped up the song.

Before the night was over, Swift announced the final winner, Savannah, who would be joining her as she flew to L.A. from NYC on Wednesday evening. “I’ve had such an amazing experience,” Swift said to close out the night.

Read More

Lindsay Lohan’s ‘Inferno’ Director Stands By Actress

Lindsay Lohan may be in rehab until early 2011, but that doesn’t mean that her “Inferno” director, Matthew Wilder, plans to replace the troubled starlet as the film’s lead. In a statement released in response to her latest woes, the director said that he will stand by Lohan.

“We’re not replacing her with another person,” Wilder told the New York Daily News. “She’s good and productive and thinking about life beyond [rehab]. I think she feels a little cooped up there, but she’s OK.”

The film was scheduled to begin production in November, but Lohan was ordered to remain in rehab until January 3, 2011, by Judge Elden Fox last Friday. Lohan voluntarily checked herself in to the Betty Ford Center last month after failing court-mandated drug tests.

During the course of Lohan’s ongoing legal woes, Wilder has remained steadfast that he wants Lohan in the biopic about 1970s porn star Linda Lovelace. “We love her. We want her to do well,” Wilder wrote in a statement e-mailed to MTV News in September. “We will make the picture shortly.”

Also in September, Wilder said that the film will now shoot in Los Angeles instead of Louisiana, as was originally planned. No word on what those plans are now that she won’t be out of rehab until January. “I think [it] will make things easier on the Lindsay front,” he said. “I understand people’s exasperation,” Wilder admitted, referring to the former Disney darling’s string of questionable life choices over the last fe

Read More

Kanye West Jokes About Devil Worship, Illuminati Rumors

Kanye West’s latest artistic endeavor, the musically-driven, short film “Runaway,” has been a hot topic among his fans, with #runaway and #askkanye becoming Twitter trending topics after the film’s Saturday night premiere on MTV. Apparently, some viewers felt the project invoked symbolism of the Illuminati, an ancient secret society that has been linked to contemporary conspiracy theories suggesting an elite group of leaders control the world unbeknownst to the general public.

On Sunday (October 24), ‘Ye took to his Twitter page to humorously address rumors that he’s a member of the purported society and worships the devil. Apparently, Yeezy has no clue what the society even is.



“I’ve got question about “the illuminati” … what is it exactly ??? … and why do people think pop stars have a membership???!!! LOL,” he tweeted. “Is illuminati and devil worshipping like the same thing … do they have a social network that celebs can sign up for?”

The MC also joked about which new tech gadgets and social media outlets would work for his so-called satanic lifestyle.

“Question… can you devil worship on the new iphone??? LOL!!!” he typed. “What’s better for devil worshipping Iphone or the Droid… Does lucifer return text… is he or she on Skype? Don’t wanna be sexist.”

‘Ye even took a crack at sparking a devil-friendly trending topic.

“#DoyouthinkLucifer uses in in ear monitors or signature Beats by Dre headphones???!!!” Yeezy wrote.

The MC did say he was cool with legendary hip-hop spinner and producer DJ Clue, who’s known for lacing many of his projects with a chant that sounds similar to Illuminati.

“I am down with Cluemanotti though,” he wrote. “That’s my boy.”

Yeezy joked about claims that he’s down with the devil on Twitter, but he has also recently addressed one of his lyrics that may have riled up fans. In a sit-down with MTV News after the premiere of “Runaway,” broke down the meaning of a rhyme from a freestyle he kicked last year that lit up the blogosphere.

“There’s this line where I say, ‘I sold my soul to the devil, that’s a crappy deal,’ and all these people said, ‘What you mean you sold your soul to the devil?’ But when I say it, I’m saying, when I allow other people’s ideals to interfere with what I know is true to myself, that’s the devil,” West explained. “So, it’s like, people talking mess on the blogs is the devil or …trying to call me names, that’s what the devil is. And me thinking twice about what it is that’s really in my heart because of what people’s reaction would be is me selling my soul to the devil.”

The lyricist maintained that he will no longer let others’ opinions stifle his creative expression.

“You’re on earth for only 80, 90 a hundred years,” he said. “I have to create from my dreams, from the dreams I had as a 5-year-old, and use everything — all the greatest people and all the tools I have around me — and ask as many questions as I can to help facilitate and bring this out. And this [film] is one of the first examples of a dream coming true.”

Yeezy isn’t the only hip-hop star to catch heat about a visual supposedly packed with satanic imagery. Jay-Z and Swizz Beatz batted away rumors, earlier this year, that the slick video for their collabo “On to the Next One” was riddled with demonic references.

Read More

Katy Perry And Russell Brand Get Married In India

Katy Perry and Russell Brand have officially tied the knot, getting married in India on Saturday night (October 23).

“Russell Brand and Katy Perry are overjoyed to confirm that they were pronounced Mr. and Mrs. Brand on Saturday, October 23,” the couple said in a statement sent to MTV News. “The very private and spiritual ceremony, attended by the couples’ closest family and friends, was performed by a Christian minister and longtime friend of the Hudson Family [Katy's maiden name]. The backdrop was the inspirational and majestic countryside of Northern India.”

The singer and the comedian married in a ceremony attended by their friends and family, who had been spotted landing in India with the pair earlier in the week. According to The Associated Press, the ceremony began at 5 p.m. Local time when workers at the wildlife sanctuary near Ranthambore were asked to leave the venue and clear the fields. One worker told People, “I hadn’t even finished the lighting I had been told to do. They just told us to get out fast.”

The magazine reported that traditional Indian instruments were played and Rajasthani folk musicians sang at the Aman-i-Khas resort. Additionally, sacred Vedic chanting was heard as well as the sound of applause and cheering from the wedding guests.

The wedding ceremony wrapped up days of celebrations. On Friday night, the couple and their guests celebrated with a Bollywood-themed bash.

Perry and Brand were engaged last New Year’s Eve in India. Just last week, Brand sat down with MTV’s “The Seven,” where he joked that the wedding would take place in the “distant past” — in Victorian London — before noting that the big day “will be quite soon.” And while the two had yet to officially say their “I do’s,” Brand insisted, “Marriage takes place in the heart. So in that sense, we are already married.”

Read More

Lindsay Lohan Avoids Jail, Ordered Back to Rehab

Despite facing the prospect of being sent back to jail again following a probation violation, troubled actress Lindsay Lohan was given a break Friday (October 22) by a Los Angeles judge. Lohan, who voluntarily checked herself into the Betty Ford Center last month after failing court-mandated drug tests, was ordered by Judge Elden Fox to remain in rehab until January 3, 2011, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“I’m serious about that [date]. You’re staying there past the new year, and there’s a reason for that,” Fox told a tearful Lohan. “I’m not going to be manipulated.”

The district attorney in the case had recommended that Lohan serve 180 days in county jail for her violation, but the judge preferred that she receive treatment until the end of the year and then be subject to drug testing between her release and her next court date on February 25.

“You are an addict,” Fox said to Lohan during the brief hearing. “I hope you understand that,” to which Lohan reportedly nodded her head. “I don’t want another train wreck.”

If, however, Lohan violates the terms of her probation from a pair of 2007 DUIs again, Fox said he would follow the prosecutor’s recommendations and lock the “Mean Girls” star up for six months.

The paper reported that Lohan’s time at the Ford clinic appeared to have made an impression on Fox, as did reports from rehab and probation officials and a letter from the actress. Fox praised the 24-year-old for her efforts to get clean and said that another jail term — which would have been her fourth — could set back her recovery.

Read More

Justin Bieber Announces Acoustic Album Release Date

Justin Bieber fans are just a month away from checking out a new acoustic album from the teen sensation.

Last week, the Canadian pop phenomenon tweeted about releasing a collection of acoustic tracks in time for the holidays, and on Saturday he announced the record will hit shelves in November.

“On November 23rd the Unplugged Acoustic album comes out!” Bieber tweeted. “Taking it back to how we started. Spread the word.”

The megastar crooner has previously hinted that the record will include toned-down versions of album cuts from My World and My World 2.0, as well as a freshly recorded track Bieber knocked out in Hawaii. The singer’s musical director and guitarist, Dan Kanter, has mentioned the album has a global feel. “Loving the percussion… Cajones and congas!” Kanter tweeted. “Definitely an influence from our travels around the world!”

In addition to releasing a suite of mellowed-out tracks, Bieber also dished in September that he’s working on a follow-up to My World 2.0 slated to drop near the end of next year. The untitled album will also include a contribution from fellow Canadian hitmaker, Drake.

“[It'll] probably [come out] fourth quarter next year,” Bieber said while working the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards red carpet. “Drake is gonna be on that album; I’m not sure [who else]. I’m gonna ask him if he can get [Lil] Wayne on there.”

2011 is shaping up to busy year for the Biebs. While he’s aiming to drop more new music next fall, his 3-D movie, “Never Say Never,” will hit theaters in February. “Never” director Jon Chu explained to MTV News in August that the flick is “gonna tell the underdog story of where he came from.”

“It’s a really fascinating story and it has a lot to do with our sort of digital lifestyle now,” Chu said of the film’s arc. “He was able to do what corporations try to do now when they use YouTube and they don’t even know what to do with it yet. It’s a pretty cool story for our time.”

Read More