The top five chart debuts of 2011 so far, including Beyonce, Adele, each used a different approach. By Gil Kaufman Lil Wayne Photo: C. Flanigan/ WireImage We expect certain things from our pop superstars: amazing, outrageous outfits and rides, spectacular stage shows and gaudy first-week sales. So far this year, some of our brightest have not disappointed, with Lady Gaga , Lil Wayne , Adele , Beyonc
Singer jokes that a ‘freestyle battle’ with Eminem landed him on Bad Meets Evil track. By Jocelyn Vena Bruno Mars Photo: Shirlaine Forrest/ Getty Images Over on the MTV Newsroom blog , it was a heated battle for 2011’s Song of the Summer . Would it be Lady Gaga , Britney Spears , Katy Perry or LMFAO ? Or would Bad Meets Evil (Eminem and Royce Da 5’9”) bring home the title for hip-hop heads everywhere? Well, on Wednesday (September 7), the world spoke, and the summer jam that reigned supreme was Bad Meets Evil’s feel-good anthem “Lighters,” featuring Bruno Mars . Earlier this summer, MTV News caught up with Mars , and he revealed just how he ended up on the track. “It was a freestyle battle,” he joked. “I said, ‘Yo, Em, if I beat you, you’re gonna have to do a song with me!’ I shut him down right then and there.” What’s no joke is the way fans have been connecting with the track, which proudly declares, “This one’s for you and me living out our dreams/ We’re all right where we should be/ With my arms out wide I open my eyes/ And now all I wanna see is a sky full of lighters.” Now that Mars and his crew are the ruling Kings of Summer, he is planning his next big move, which includes a top-secret new track. “I’m definitely thinking about what’s next,” he said. “I’ve got a song that I just wrote that I’m extremely proud of and I worked really hard on, and it’s gonna come out soon.” While he wouldn’t say much else, he teased that the song was for Michael Bolton before admitting, “No, it’s for me.” In addition to working on more tracks for his own bustling career, he shared that he’d love to get into the studio with Cee Lo Green again, and even Lil Wayne. “But this is just the very beginning and there’s a lot more to come.” What are you expecting next from Bruno Mars? Let us know in the comments! Related Videos 2011 Song Of Summer Battle Related Artists Eminem Bruno Mars
Band promises churning new track will be available online ‘soon,’ at 15th anniversary concert in NYC. By James Montgomery Paramore’s Hayley Williams performs at the Fueled by Ramen 15th anniversary concert Photo: MTV During Wednesday night’s Fueled by Ramen 15th anniversary concert, Paramore pulled the curtain back on a brand-new song, “Renegade,” and promised that fans will be able to hear a full studio version very soon. The new song — recorded along with their roaring single “Monster” back in March with producer Rob Cavallo — is a churning, spiky thing, full of roiling bass and guitars, and seems to bridge the gap between the band’s punky Riot! past and the more plaintive expanses of 2009’s Brand New Eyes. Paramore have been using a recorded version of the brand-new track as their intro music during their recent run of Warped Tour dates. Now, as frontwoman Hayley Williams promised the crowd at New York’s Terminal 5, fans will be able to get their hands on it in the very near future. “This song, we will be putting online for you to have as soon as possible, we’re working on it!” she shouted. Of course, it’s not clear when (or even where ) “Renegade” will be made available. A spokesperson for the band’s label told MTV News that the release date “has yet to be confirmed.” Paramore didn’t just use the FBR anniversary show as a platform to premiere new songs, though. They also worked a classic into another new track, spinning a few refrains of Fleetwood Mac’s stirring “Landslide” into their sonorous acoustic track “In the Mourning,” and the crowd definitely appreciated the move, singing along to the iconic verses and cheering wildly. And Williams responded , telling fans that they’ll be able to own that track too. After all, she’s been promising new material in 2011, and she did it again on Wednesday night. “Thank you so much, goodness!” she said. “Well, if you like that, we’re going to release it later this year for you guys to have … hey, we promised we’d put some new songs out for you. You guys sounded amazing on that, thanks for singing along.” Are you excited for new music from Paramore? Tell us in the comments! Related Videos Fueled By Ramen 15th Anniversary Concert: Paramore Live Related Photos Fueled By Ramen 15th Anniversary Concert: Paramore Live Photos Related Artists Paramore
Series-closing MCs tell MTV News the Vitamin Water project a great look for underground artists. By Steven Roberts CyHi The Prynce (file) NEW YORK — Vitamin Water hosted the last show in its “Uncapped Live” concert series at the Hudson Hotel on Wednesday night, and Freddie Gibbs , Big K.R.I.T. , CyHi the Prynce and Rye Rye came through to rock the New York City crowd. Over the last few months, the “Uncapped Live” series has partnered with up-and-coming acts to help expose them to bigger audiences. MTV News caught up with K.R.I.T. and CyHi before the show to talk about what the opportunity means to them. “They’re actually helping artists such as myself, Big K.R.I.T., Pill [and] other up-and-coming hip-hop artists that’s looking to stand on the forefront of hip-hop and the game,” CyHi told us. “We’re coming from the underground and we’re doing it organically, so they’re a big help to up-and-coming artists such as myself.” The G.O.O.D Music MC opened the show, casually walking onstage in a black tee and his signature Jesus piece; the crowd actually didn’t notice him at first. Cy went on to perform songs from his Royal Flush mixtape series and various features. But he really got the crowd rocking when he did his verse from Kanye West’s “So Appalled.” The ATLien said he loved performing in New York, because New Yorkers are typically harder to impress. “They’re the originators, and I guess you have to pay homage to the originators, and at the same time I remember me and K.R.I.T. was on the same show and I got booed. Ever since then, every time I come back it’s like pandemonium. That’s just the war wounds or the process you have to go through to become a stronger artist. A lot of crowds may not perceive you as well as other crowds may and you may think that they’re supposed to.” Big Krit — whose Live From the Underground drops September 27 — was grateful for the platform the “Uncapped” tour provided newer artists. The Mississippi MC said he loved the opportunity to perform in front of an audience that may not know have been familiar with his music, jaded New Yorkers or not. “Anywhere where you are performing in front of people who might not know who you are, it can be intimidating. But I’ve been doing this so long and I’ve been in front of crowds who knew who I was that didn’t bob their heads or really didn’t care that I was onstage. So to have the opportunity to be in front — far from where I’m from and performing my music and people are listening — it’s dope all the same, whether you get booed or don’t get booed.” Related Videos ‘RapFix Live’ With CyHi The Prynce Related Artists Prynce Cy Hi Big K.R.I.T.
‘It’s just everything that I go through, everything that I see, everything that’s in my heart, so that was heartfelt for real,’ he tells Mixtape Daily. By Rob Markman Trouble Photo: MTV News Fire Starter: Trouble For Duct Tape Entertainment’s Trouble, December 17 was both the best and worst day of his life. In 2008, the Atlanta MC was jailed on aggravated assault; two years later, on December 17, he was released. So when it came time to name his debut mixtape, Trouble mixed the good with the bad and dubbed it December 17th. Before jail, the Zone 6 rep only rapped as a hobby — something he picked up on his block at age 15 — but upon his release, he opted to do things legitimately. By April, he dropped his tape. The slow-rolling “World Goes ‘Round” was a definite standout. On the heartfelt track, Trouble raps about his grandmother, who is confined to a wheelchair. “My grandma bust her ass and she still ain’t got no Medicare/ A car crash, she need money from everywhere/ Just to pay off all these high-ass bills/ I’m tryna put her in a high-ass crib, sittin’ on the hills.” “I actually wrote ‘World Goes ‘Round’ while I was doin’ my bid, when I sat down,” Trouble told Mixtape Daily. “It’s just everything that I go through, everything that I see, everything that’s in my heart, so that was heartfelt for real.” In the song’s video the emotive trap rapper visits a cemetery; it was more than just a glorified scene. “When you see me at my cousin’s grave, that’s my real cousin,” he revealed. “That’s everything that’s been going on in my life from the beginning on up to this point. So I’m allowing people to go inside of me and understand where I’m coming from.” The rest of December 17th ranges from the hard-knocking “Yeen Heard?” to the bouncy “I Don’t Wanna Be Wrong.” On “Geek’ed Outta My Mind,” Trouble links with MTV Jams’ 2011 Fab 5 inductee Future and throws it up for Alley Boy and the rest of his Duct Tape family when he spits, “I’m just a thug who popped out the department of corrections/ A lot of n—as only f— with Duct Tape ’cause they need protection.” But it isn’t just thugging for the sake of thugging; on “Fake Industry,” Trouble goes out of his way to differentiate himself from rappers who haven’t been through the harsh realities he’s endured. “Everything that you hear from me is a life experience,” he said. For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines .
MTV parent company Viacom recruits Gaga, DJ Pauly D, Nas and others to answer ‘What will you do to remember?’ By Jocelyn Vena, with additional reporting by Christina Garibaldi Lady Gaga Photo: MTV News As many Americans reflect on the events of September 11, with the upcoming the 10th anniversary of the terror attacks, MTV parent company Viacom has teamed with artists including Lady Gaga , Nas , DJ Pauly D, Julianne Hough and Drake Bell to launch a national day of service campaign that asks, “What will you do to remember?” Gaga, a native New Yorker, recently remembered where she was and what she was doing when it all happened. “On September 11, I was at school with my girlfriends,” she recalled of the day that forever changed her home city. “I just remember that the history teachers had us all piled into one room and had a television on and none of us believed it was happening,” she continued. “So we didn’t believe it, so we ran up to the roof and I just remember we got up to the roof, and one tower had already fallen and we all watched the second tower fall all together.” While Gaga was not anywhere near the actual site of the attack in downtown Manhattan, her mother was near it. “I don’t know; you really can’t describe something like that,” she said. “It’s too horrific. We were in disbelief. I still think sometimes I’m in disbelief. “My dad picked us up, we couldn’t reach my mom for a long time because she worked right across the street,” she continued. “We were really nervous and I just remember all we saw were these young men, really young. You could tell they worked on the floor at the stock and they were in their jackets and they were just covered in ashes and all you could see was the lines from the tears on their face. [My school] was miles and miles away, but the sky that hovered above us was jet black.” Through Sunday, Viacom’s networks will air specially produced “I Will” public service announcements featuring artists and actors, including Gaga, Fran Drescher, Pauly D, Nas, Hough and Bell, along with Viacom employees. The multiplatform public service campaign is designed to inspire Americans to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the attacks by committing to good deeds, charity or volunteer service. Working with MyGoodDeed and HandsOn Network, organizers of this year’s September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance, the “I Will” campaign asks participants, “Ten years later, what will you do to remember?” “Every year on September 11 with my family, we take a moment together and acknowledge a tremendous loss in our city and in the world,” Gaga said. “I remember so many friends that lost family and so many people that lives were changed forever. “It’s a moment to honor New York,” she continued. “It’s a moment to come together and realize that New York really is forever changed and will always now be a family.” What will you do to remember 9/11? Share your thoughts below, and visit 911day.org to upload your video response. Related Artists Lady Gaga Nas
‘He could beat me up, so I can’t say anything,’ Cobra drummer Nate Novarro says of Bieber hopping on his kit before VMAs. By James Montgomery Justin Bieber (file) Photo: Getty Images Anyone who was inside the J.W. Marriott in downtown Los Angeles during rehearsals for the 2011 Video Music Awards pre-show can surely attest to two things: the catchiness of Cobra Starship’s “You Make Me Feel …” (especially since they sound-checked it roughly 52 dozen times) and the fact that, during a quick break from all that sound-checking, Justin Bieber totally snuck behind the band’s drum kit and let it rip. Bieber, of course, was there to support his girlfriend, Selena Gomez , who was serving as MTV News’ special pre-show correspondent, and he’s definitely no stranger to the occasional drum solo , so the whole thing sort of made sense (though, to be fair, pretty much everyone who saw it go down couldn’t believe their eyes). But, when we caught up with Cobra Starship backstage at the Fueled by Ramen 15th anniversary show in New York on Wednesday, we had to ask them: Were they aware of Bieber’s impromptu drum performance? And, more importantly, did they take umbrage to it? “I heard about that, that Justin Bieber was playing our kit,” Cobra bassist Alex Suarez laughed. “It’s a rental,” drummer Nate Novarro added. Of course, you’ll notice that Novarro didn’t say whether Bieber’s actions angered him. Is the drum kit, much like the pitcher’s mound , a sacred space in which only a select few dare tread? “Kind of, but [Bieber] could beat me up, so I can’t approach him and say anything,” Novarro said. It should be noted, however, that this is not the first time Bieber has hijacked Cobra Starship’s kit . At the 2009 Jingle Ball in Sacramento, California, he took the stage during the band’s set after frontman Gabe Saporta challenged him to a dance-off, but, since JB was still recovering from a broken foot , all he could do was sit down behind the drums and bang out a searing solo. And that, Novarro believes, set the precedent for the VMA pre-show incident. “He showed me what he could do, and it was good, so I was like, ‘You can come back and do it whenever you want,’ ” he said. “I think he just took full advantage of that.” And it was at that exact minute that Cobra guitarist Ryland Blackinton — perhaps wanting to quash any beef with the Biebs (especially since the two are set to tour Mexico and South America next month) — stepped in to diffuse the situation and let it be known that they were cool with any and all Bieber-related drum performances. “He didn’t overstep any boundaries,” Blackinton said. Phew. Related Artists Justin Bieber Cobra Starship
‘The purpose of that record was solely to deliver a message,’ Drake tells MTV News of first single ‘Headlines.’ By Rob Markman Drake Photo: MTV News Maybe “Headlines” wasn’t the radio smash that fans were expecting from Drake, but the OVOXO star says that it was the perfect single to set off his upcoming Take Care. “I think it’s great; the purpose of that record was solely to deliver a message,” Drizzy told MTV News last month on the BMI Urban Awards red carpet. “I could’ve gone with the record that was sort of super radio-friendly, but I really just wanted to talk to the people with the first record.” Rather than an emotional ballad or party record, Drake’s “Headlines” details the MC’s frame of mind going into his second album. Despite his success, he raps from an underdog’s perspective. “I had someone tell me I fell off, ooh I needed that/ And they wanna see me pick back up, well, where’d I leave it at?” Not your standard pop fare, but Drake, who has crafted hits like “Best I Ever Had,” “Find Your Love” and “Successful,” said that Take Care will have Billboard -caliber tracks as well. “I’ve got a lot of records that I think will live on radio for a while,” he said. “I’m excited about everything that’s happened thus far.” Although “Headlines” is the album’s first official single, there have been other leaks like “Marvins Room” and “Dreams Money Can Buy,” two songs Drake described on his October’s Very Own blog as pieces of a bigger story. So what story is the Young Money soldier trying to tell on Take Care ? “It’ll let you know exactly what’s goin’ on in my life because unlike a lot of other artists, I don’t take to social media outlets to tell you what’s goin’ on in my life,” he replied. “I don’t sit there and complain about stuff all day long, I don’t lash out, I just sort of save it for the album, so I think if you want to know what’s going on with me at all, you’ll just listen to Take Care and it’ll answer all of your questions.” Share your thoughts on Drizzy’s Take Care singles so far in the comments below! Related Photos Drake And Lil Wayne: A Look Back In Photos Related Artists Drake
Joe Jonas, of course, infamously dumped Taylor Swift via a 27-second phone call in 2008, which led to back-and-forth barbs by the artists in multiple singles. With a new album on the way, Joe Jonas is about to embark on a solo career. But an insider tells Us Weekly the singer wants to make sweet music again with another famous artist: ex-girlfriend Taylor Swift! “He wants her back,” the tabloid claims. “He wants to show her he#39;s a changed man and would love to see what#39;s possible betwee
‘What G.O.O.D. Music stands for is just that quality,’ Sean tells MTV News of Hype Williams-directed clip. By Rob Markman Kanye West and Big Sean Photo: Johnny Nunez/ WireImage If 1970s soul and a good white wine weren’t enough, Big Sean, Kanye West and hook man Roscoe Dash recruited Hype Williams to set the mood for their just-released “Marvin & Chardonnay” video. In true Hype fashion, the clip starts with scrolling credits revealing the video’s brightly styled stars. Vibrant hues of blue, red, purple and yellow pop onscreen and set the tone for the next three minutes and 43 seconds as Big Sean and company rap amid the video’s principal vixens parading to and fro. “Me and Hype are homeys,” Sean told MTV News’ Sway on the “Marvin & Chardonnay” set back in July. “He’s a real dude, and it’s tight being around people that you consider legends and him just being so real. We came up in here and was just blasting DMX and all this different music. He gets inspired creatively from I don’t know what; he just has these crazy ideas.” Sean starts in a powder-blue blazer and matching tank top grinding on a light-skinned model in a two-piece bathing suit. In many ways, “Marvin & Chardonnay” exudes a similar vibe to the video for ‘Ye’s 2005 “Gold Digger” clip, which Williams also directed. What sets Sean’s video apart is Hype’s use of triangular shapes. At key moments, he splits the screen into three parts, leaving the Detroit rapper nestled between the symmetrically placed models. But in the end, there is no real story line or overall message — then again, that was never the point. Instead, we are left with a classic Hype Williams visual. “Colors, the visualization … what G.O.O.D. Music stands for is just that quality. Whatever we do is quality,” Sean said. “If we gonna have girls, we gonna have the best girls. If we gonna have yellow suits, it’s gonna be the best yellow suit. If we gonna have Versaces, it’s gonna be the OG Medusa-head Versace.” What do you think of Sean’s latest video? Let us know in the comments! Related Artists Big Sean Kanye West
Breaking Sports Video
