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Lady Gaga Describes ‘Marry The Night’ Breakdown As ‘Honest Moment’

‘It is my personal way of seeing things. I am the artist of my own life,’ Gaga says of her self-directed video. By Jocelyn Vena Lady Gaga in her “Marry the Night” music video Photo: Interscope/ VEVO Lady Gaga exorcises her demons in her nearly 14-minute-long clip for “Marry the Night,” which premiered Thursday night. Depicting Gaga’s journey from an early career trauma to her reinvention as a successful pop star, she intended for art to imitate life in the clip. For those wondering what left Gaga so traumatized, she explained it all to E! News preceding the video’s premiere. The video is a metaphor for how she felt when she was dropped from her first record label, Island Def Jam, before landing at her current home at Interscope. “It was one of the worst days of my life and it happened quite quickly. But in my mind, when I think back on that period of my life, it all happened very slow,” she explained. “It is my personal way of seeing things. I am the artist of my own life. I choose to tell you what happened,” she continued. “If you give up after something like that, you were never destined to be an entertainer.” In the video , after hearing from her ballet director that she should quit, she restructures her goal and plots her rise to pop stardom. “In order to be great writing music or at fishing or at being a mechanic or designing buildings, you have to acknowledge what is wrong with your work, or what is dishonest about it,” she said. “What have I not been really great at?” Those obstacles, she says, are a big part of what makes her who she is now. “I love the obstacles,” she said. “To marry your obstacles means I, the artist, wholeheartedly accept everything you throw at me. I am destined to struggle, I am destined to write music about the struggle and I accept it willingly.” There are several scenes where Gaga is naked and experiencing a mental breakdown in her apartment. “Well, I was naked in real life when it happened,” she said, referring to the moment she found out she’d been dropped. “That’s probably the most honest moment in that video of everything I’ve ever done. My directorial decision was for them to just f—ing roll the cameras, because I couldn’t go in and out of the moment. I wonder if I will actually release that scene in its entirety — it’s about 30 minutes long.” “It was intensely important to me that it was not too beautiful,” she added. “It was an incredible experience. It was amazing. It was absolutely amazing.” This marks the first time that Gaga has directed a video all on her own. She recently split from her longtime creative director Laurieann Gibson , however, she clarified how the Haus works during the interview. “I have always been the creative director, and the Haus of Gaga has always been the creative force behind what we’ve done. There really aren’t many tremendous changes. “I know it’s my directorial debut, but I’ve really created everything I’ve ever done in my career,” she continued. “I really didn’t do anything differently on this video that I didn’t do on the ‘Telephone’ video or the ‘Paparazzi’ video or the ‘Bad Romance’ video. I hope my fans will take from this the progression that you have to trust yourself to make mistakes.” While the subject matter of the video is dark, there are also some tongue-in-cheek moments. “I always believe that you walk the line of humor if you’re being so incredibly serious,” she explained. “There’s something quite comical about the opening of the video, even though it’s quite sinister and dark,” she said. “It’s meant to be comical.” So, how would Gaga sum it all up? “In essence, it’s insight into my entire creative process and the way that I view things,” she said. Related Artists Lady Gaga

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Lady Gaga Describes ‘Marry The Night’ Breakdown As ‘Honest Moment’

Kanye West Blames Himself For Album Of The Year Snub

‘That’s my fault for dropping Watch the Throne and Dark Fantasy the same year,’ Yeezy tells fans about coveted Grammy nom. By Rob Markman Kanye West Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/ Getty Images Everyone knows that Kanye West takes his awards very seriously, but those who were excepting a Yeezy meltdown for his Grammy Album of the Year snub will be disappointed. On Thursday during the Chicago stop of ‘Ye and Hov’s Watch the Throne Tour , the hometown MC, who is leading the 2012 nominees with seven Grammy nods , addressed the crowd. ‘Something I figured out earlier today, because you know everybody came to me last night like, ‘Congratulations,’ because you know I’m leading — I have the most Grammy nominations once again, like we always do at this time,” Kanye said, drawing thunderous applause from the United Center crowd. “But, you know, people focus, they say, ‘You ain’t have Album of the Year or Record of the Year,’ ” he continued as the fan cheers quickly turned to disapproving boos. Then the outspoken rap star did the unexpected. Instead of sending shots toward the Grammy committee, Kanye blamed himself: “I figured it out though. That’s my fault for dropping Watch the Throne and Dark Fantasy the same year. I should’ve just spaced it out, just a little bit more.” In November 2010, ‘Ye released his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, . The platinum LP was both critically acclaimed and a commercial success thanks to surefire singles like the rambunctious “Power,” the reflective sing-along “Runaway” and “All of the Lights,” which is nominated for Song of the Year and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Nine months after MBDTF, in August 2011, the Louis Vuitton Don hooked up with Jay-Z to release their tag-team album Watch the Throne . Both Yeezy LPs are nominated in the Best Rap Album category, but neither is in contention for the coveted Album of the Year Award. Instead Adele, the Foo Fighters, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars and Rihanna will duke it out for the golden gramophone. Surprisingly Kanye West isn’t sweating it, though. “Don’t worry because me and Hov are gonna keep on making sh–,” he said to the crowd. Does this mean we can expect a Watch the Throne sequel? Guess we’ll have to wait till next year to see. What do you think of Kanye’s reaction? Should he have spazzed? Tell us in the comments! Related Photos Artists Shine At ‘Grammy Nominations Concert Live!!’ 2012 Grammy Nominees Related Artists Kanye West

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Kanye West Blames Himself For Album Of The Year Snub

Red Cafe: “I Think Motherf****s Need To Grow Up” [EXCLUSIVE]

“Shakedown!!!” can be heard in the background of numerous rap records. It is Red Cafe ‘s way of branding not only himself but his debut album. He has done an admirable job thus far, especially being that he has had some discrepancies with major labels. Though he was content with being an Independent artist, a deal with Bad Boy Records was just too good to pass up. Why put out one last mixtape before the album? I personally feel that I’m supposed make the people be positive that I’m a brand that they can trust. The only way you can do that is to give them music to make it “Bible.” I want them to wake up and feel like it is necessary to listen to Red Cafe to get their day started. I think that you have to give to get, you have to give a couple of records away to build their confidence. I want to prove myself to people time and time again. What can we expect from Shakedown ? You should expect honesty from the album. A record you can listen to 5-10 years from today. The most important thing about me and my music is that I don’t compromise who I am. You’ll be able to party to it and feel sexy to it. Get your champagne flukes, I think I’ll have a record for every purpose. Do you feel a lot of artists aren’t being themselves in Hip Hop right now? It’s entertainment. There are a lot of people out there who put on a mask and they become the person they feel is interesting for the people to see. I’m just not that person. I want to be able to be proud of my music, years from today. How did the deal with Diddy come about? I definitely went through a journey with record companies and it being unsuccessful and them not knowing what to do with me or me just getting in at bad timing. A lot of the record companies end up folding. I was passed the record company signing situation, I was just I’m going to be an Independent artist and control the wheel and do my own thing. That showed me success I had great records out that people were responding to. I just felt like I was doing  good job on my own. Finally Puff, Jimmy Ivine and the Interscope staff liked what I was doing and they just wanted to be apart of the movement. They wanted to be a support system to help me get the level they felt I was supposed to be on. They reached out to me and it made sense. Were you ever fearful of signing with Bad Boy given their history with artists? Not at all. Whatever deal I wanted to sign with Diddy is what we talked about. Before I signed any papers I made sure we came to the terms I was comfortable with and that’s the most important thing. If you have an attorney that represents you, you negotiate a deal, if you sign the deal you can’t get upset about it. You signed it, nobody held a gun to your head. I also feel like I’m my own person I control the wheel for my destiny. I don’t have to wait on Puff to do anything for me and that’s probably the problem with the other artists. After he made them platinum artists it was their job to take the wheel and start doing their own thing and start building their own business structure themselves instead of waiting on him to hold their hand. I think that’s where the disconnect happens. I think motherf****rs need to grow up! Do you think that was the issue with a lot of the artists on Bad Boy that have been dropped? Definitely, artists get caught up in his lifestyle, trying to live in his lifestyle and not focusing on themselves. I think that was the disconnect and they just expected Puff to just continue to do everything for them. Even when you are on a regular record label you have that initial interest with the person who signs you–they hold you down they help you go platinum or gold…then they move on to the next artist. You have to take the initiative and take control over your situation. How has it been working with Diddy? He’s really motivating to me, he’s an inspiration. He constantly challenges me. He went from being an intern, working hard to become the man he is today. He came from having nothing to making it work. He works like his bank account says zero. Favorite artist right now? I like how consistent Lil Wayne is. He’s putting out great records, he’s really focused on him and his brand and making them really special in the game. I appreciate what he is doing. Thoughts on the state of Hip Hop? People are making great records, there’s not a bunch of bad records out there getting attention. You got Drake, who is making great records with a lot of reality behind it and he’s making a record out of it which is dope creatively and for music. You got Watch The Throne, which is very special-it showed a lot of integrity. I think Hip Hop is going in a great place. Red Café featuring Diddy – “Let it Go” Tour Video Red Cafe Ft. Ryan Leslie & Rick Ross “Fly Together” “You Be Killin’ Em’:” 10 Great Rap Lines From Fabolous The Future Of Bad Boy Records [NEW MUSIC]

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Red Cafe: “I Think Motherf****s Need To Grow Up” [EXCLUSIVE]

Miguel Responds To Grammy Award Snub!

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R&B/soul crooner Miguel is highly upset with the Grammy Award nominations being that he did not receive a nomination for his album All I Want Is You or single “Sure Thing.” “I’m F*****g Pissed Yo. I don’t think I’m Gods gift to music but I know the Album or at LEAST ‘Sure Thing’ should have been Nominated” tweeted Miguel. Prior to that message he congratulated all the nominees. Wale Ft. Miguel “Lotus Flower Bomb” [NEW VIDEO] Miguel’s “Sure Thing” Reaches Number One On Billboard Charts Miguel Falls Off Stage At Houston Show [VIDEO]

Miguel Responds To Grammy Award Snub!

Miguel Responds To Grammy Award Snub!

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R&B/soul crooner Miguel is highly upset with the Grammy Award nominations being that he did not receive a nomination for his album All I Want Is You or single “Sure Thing.” “I’m F*****g Pissed Yo. I don’t think I’m Gods gift to music but I know the Album or at LEAST ‘Sure Thing’ should have been Nominated” tweeted Miguel. Prior to that message he congratulated all the nominees. Wale Ft. Miguel “Lotus Flower Bomb” [NEW VIDEO] Miguel’s “Sure Thing” Reaches Number One On Billboard Charts Miguel Falls Off Stage At Houston Show [VIDEO]

Miguel Responds To Grammy Award Snub!

Grammy Nominations: The Biggest Shocks And Snubs

We take a look at the surprises — and outright outrages — of the Grammy nominations, in Bigger Than the Sound. By James Montgomery Lady Gaga Photo: Leon Neal/AFP Here’s about all you need to know about the nominations for the 54th Grammy Awards , which were announced Wednesday night in Los Angeles: Bon Iver got more of them (4) than Lady Gaga did (3). So did Mumford & Sons, Radiohead and Skrillex. Call it the residual effects of Arcade Fire’s Album of the Year triumph at the previous Grammys or perhaps the first creaks of a seismic shift in voter tastes, but there’s definitely something going on with this year’s field of nominees … it’s just difficult to say exactly what. Because, sure Gaga got shunted. But Kanye didn’t. In fact, he’s this year’s most-nominated artist, collecting seven of them (though his My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, by all accounts a commercial and critical success, failed to pick up an Album of the Year nod) in a move by the Grammy voters that certainly poked a lot of holes in what everyone believed would be the story line of these awards: Namely, that women would dominate, since, you know, they’ve basically done that on the charts all year long. Adele, who you’ve probably heard of (and whose 21 album you probably own), ended up snagging six nods, including Album, Record and Song of the Year. But most expected her to get more, or at least be the most-nominated act. Instead, she’s tied with a bunch of dudes ( Bruno Mars and those old Grammy faves the Foo Fighters) in second. Nicki Minaj ended up with five noms, while Rihanna — who is usually the one left out at these kinds of shows — got four. And then the drop off begins. Taylor Swift, who won Album of the Year not too long ago, and whose Speak Now sold a million copies in a week, was shut out of the so-called “Big Four” categories and ended up with just three nominations total, all of which came in the country categories. Katy Perry, who has three #1 singles to her name this year, earned two noms. So did Beyonc

Young Jeezy Refused To ‘Rush Greatness’ Making TM 103

‘I just wanted to deliver something that was worth the wait, and that’s what I feel like I done,’ Jeezy tells ‘Rapfix Live’ about upcoming release. By Rob Markman, with reporting by Sway Calloway Young Jeezy Photo: Getty Images It’s not that Young Jeezy pulled a disappearing act since his 2008 LP The Recession . The Snowman has dropped a number of singles and mixtapes since then, but those releases haven’t satisfied the thirst for his upcoming TM 103: Hustlerz Ambition . Jeezy’s long-awaited album has been three years in the making, but the ATL trap star promises it will be worth the wait. “I ain’t the one for making excuses. I was always taught as a youngin by the OGs that you can’t take your problems and make them somebody else’s if you promised them something,” Jeezy said about his album delay on Wednesday’s “RapFix Live.” “I went through a lot of trials and tribs and different things, but I gotta take that and endure that.” Jeezy didn’t clarify what those problems were, but he told MTV News’ Sway Calloway that he had some real distractions that could’ve cost him everything. Still, the Snowman made no excuses — after all, he considers himself a mascot for the streets and one of the hood’s chief motivators. “I was dedicated every day. I put out a few mixtapes because I wanted them to know that I wasn’t being lax, or I wasn’t comfortable,” he said. ” The Real is Back 1 and 2, Trap or Die 2: By Any Means Necessary , The Last Laugh , all of that was an effort to show them that I’m really working, and I was working on the album as well.” In addition to all the free music he delivered his fans since 2008’s Recession , Jeezy also joined Lil Wayne on his America’s Most Wanted Tour and Jay-Z on his Blueprint 3 Tour. Ultimately, the “Put On” rapper just wanted to make TM 103 a quality album. “I just wanted to deliver something that was worth the wait, and that’s what I feel like I’ve done,” he said. The album is due out December 20, but a number of tracks already have been released, including the rambunctious “Lose My Mind” featuring Plies and the soul-bearing “F.A.M.E.” with T.I. Last month, Jeezy leaked “I Do,” a metaphoric song featuring Jay-Z and Andre 3000 that talks about hustling in the streets and marriage in the same breath. Then Thursday (December 1), the Snowman leaked another track, the Eminem- and Freddie Gibbs-featuring “Talk to Me.” The slow-rolling jam finds Jeezy rapping about his inner-most feelings, while Em eerily sings, “Somebody better explain why my ears are ringing so loud/ If someone’s got something to say, grow some balls and say it to my face,” on the song’s hook. It might have taken a few years to finish the album, but Young Jeezy said that doesn’t matter. “I feel like it wasn’t time. I felt like I was being rushed, and one thing I was taught is you don’t rush greatness,” he said. “I don’t care about no radio or no label or no date or no deadlines or no quotas — this is for my people.” Are you awaiting TM 103: Hustlerz Ambition ? Tell us in the comments below! Related Videos ‘RapFix Live’ With Young Jeezy And Big K.R.I.T. Related Artists Young Jeezy

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Young Jeezy Refused To ‘Rush Greatness’ Making TM 103

Rihanna’s ‘Cockiness’ Is Perfect For Her, Producer Says

Talk That Talk track is ‘Rihanna all day,’ Bangladesh tells MTV News. By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by James “FLX” Smith Rihanna Photo: itv Many of the tracks on Rihanna ‘s Talk That Talk certainly touch on some very sexy subjects, using some very saucy language. But none are quite as blush-inducing as “Cockiness (Love It),” a sexed-up, genre-busting anthem on which Rihanna’s not shy about liking the way her man loves her. The Bangladesh-produced song is raunchy and over-the-top, and, according to the man himself, was already cooking up long before Rihanna came calling. ” ‘Cockiness,’ it’s layers of things I had sampled for a long time, never really messed with it too much,” he told MTV News. “I was in L.A., and I had just pulled it out, chopped it up, made it a beat. My artist Candice Pillay, my other writers, Dem Jointz, they wrote the song.” Before appearing on Talk That Talk , the song was merely an idea that needed a bit of fine-tuning before heading Ri’s way. “It wasn’t ‘Cockiness’ at first, it was something else. They had the ‘I love it’ part. … [They] came up with that part first, and that wasn’t even on that track: It was just an idea. I was going to make a whole new beat out of it, what they wrote to it that day, it wasn’t really all the way done. A couple days later, they revisited it and came up with the ‘Cockiness.’ ” After some work, the final product was all ready for just the right artist. Given its sexual innuendo and tomboy swagger, there really was only one person to record the track. “I was like, ‘That’s dope. That’s Rihanna all day,’ ” Bangladesh said. “They sent the song back, and I finished producing it. I put the ‘I love it’ on it that they had already had. … She loved it, and that’s what it was.” Bangladesh joins a who’s who of A-list producers on the album, including vocal producer Kuk Harrell , The-Dream, StarGate, Calvin Harris and Dr. Luke, who produced the album’s second single, “You Da One.” The singer revealed on Twitter that she’s already hard at work on the video for “You Da One.” She tweeted that when she hit up the set over the weekend, no farmers were harmed during the making of the clip. “Shooting another vid in Ireland today! No farm this time,” she joked, a reference to the controversy about the making of her “We Found Love” video , during which a local farmer complained Rihanna’s outfit was “inappropriate.” Which Talk That Talk track would you like to see Rihanna make a video for? Share your pick below!

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Rihanna’s ‘Cockiness’ Is Perfect For Her, Producer Says

Justin Bieber Graduates To ‘Adult Game’ On New Album

‘We’ve seen him [with] ‘Baby,’ now we’re watching him grow up,’ producer Kuk Harrell tells MTV News. By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Vanessa White Wolf Justin Bieber Photo: Getty Images Justin Bieber has said that he wants to pull a Justin Timberlake on his next album. So what exactly does that mean? His longtime vocal producer, Kuk Harrell, spoke to MTV News about the early stages of Bieber’s next release. “The only conversation we’ve had about Justin’s album that we’re about to do is it’s really important that it’s the proper transition because we’ve seen him [with] ‘Baby,’ now we’re watching him grow up,” said Harrell, who has also worked with Rihanna on her Talk That Talk record. “And we can’t just throw him into the adult game right away. It has to be the proper transition. There’s a record in between.” With further details on this next album being kept under wraps, Bieber is busy celebrating the holidays. He’s slated to release his video for “All I Want for Christmas,” co-starring Mariah Carey, on Wednesday. Harrell worked with Bieber on his Under the Mistletoe LP and says agreeing to do a Christmas album with the teen phenomenon was an easy yes. “That’s why I think this Christmas album was really important because it gave everybody the opportunity to hear him, see him and get used to his voice changing,” he said. “That was a huge thing going into this album. We were able to get a running start on where he’s at vocally ’cause it’s a natural thing. When his proper album comes out, everybody’s going to really be looking at that.” What will be noticeably different on this next album, which was teased on his holiday album, is that Bieber’s voice will be much deeper. So does Harrell think it’ll be changing a lot more for this next record? “I think he’s pretty good right now,” he said. “It’s just a matter of him settling [into] where he is.” Regardless of what magic does end up making the final cut on this album, which Bieber has said may include work from Drake and Kanye West , Harrell notes that the 17-year-old is “always willing to bring a new fire.” Related Artists Justin Bieber

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Justin Bieber Graduates To ‘Adult Game’ On New Album

Mary J Blige Talks “My Life II” On Chelsea Lately

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Mary J Blige stopped by Chelsea Lately where she chatted with the comedic host about her new album My Life II . She also dished on her current single “Mr. Wrong” featuring Drake. Mary J. Blige “My Life II” Album Sampler [FIRST LISTEN] Mary J Blige “25/8″ [NEW VIDEO] “Drake always looks me out. I appreciate him for that” said the “25/8″ singer!

Mary J Blige Talks “My Life II” On Chelsea Lately