First Lady Michelle Obama and her family ventured out on safari in an open-air vehicle on Saturday to get as close as possible to lions, giraffe and other animals in South Africa. Mrs. Obama has been in Africa all week, promoting youth leadership, education, and health and wellness in South Africa and Botswana. Michelle Obama Gets Fit In Capetown [PHOTOS] Michelle Obama & Family Tour South Africa [PHOTOS] Are These BP Artists Good Enough to Get Signed? 2011 BET Award Winners & Recap FACT OF THE DAY: Foxy Brown Was Not Always Foxy FACT OF THE DAY: LL Cool J Dropped Out Of High School To Record His Debut Album
As the ‘American Idol’ runner-up prepares to tour, she recalls her own fangirl moment with Bieber. By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Matt Elias Lauren Alaina backstage with Justin Bieber at the 2011 CMT Music Awards Photo: Kevin Mazur/ WireImage As Lauren Alaina prepares to kick off the American Idols Live! tour on July 6 in Utah, it’s time for her to start imagining life as an artist beyond the confines of a TV competition. As her second-place finish on season 10 proves, she has quite a fanbase, and the tour will give them the chance to see her in person. The thought of meeting supporters had the 16-year-old recalling her own ultimate fangirl experience, meeting Justin Bieber. “Well, I was presenting Sugarland at the CMT Awards, and I found out that Justin Bieber was there,” she explained to MTV News at the “American Idol” tour press day. “And I said I that I wanted to meet him, and I guess the people that I was there with made it happen.” During some down time on the show, she was about to meet Bieber, who took home Collaborative Video of the Year with Rascal Flatts that night, but first she had to battle a fashion mishap. “I walked up to meet him and he was doing an interview, and then I was just looking at my outfit, and I realized I had a rip in the side of my dress, so I was trying to fix it real fast,” she recalled. “And then someone had told him I had gone over there to meet him, so he came up to me and was like, ‘Hey, I’m Justin.’ … It just kind of set me back. We took a picture and then it was over.” Though it was brief, Lauren wasn’t too disappointed with their encounter. “It was cool just to meet him,” she said. “Everyone wants to meet Justin Bieber and I got to do it, so it was really nice.” While in Nashville, Alaina was greeting her own fans too. “I haven’t had anything weird happen to me, it’s just people recognize me a lot more,” she said. “And I went to Nashville, and I got out on Broadway with Scotty [McCreery] and we were like swarmed in 10 seconds. We didn’t even know if people were going to realize who we were. [And] I mean immediately, as soon as we got out of the car, they recognized us, so that was really cool.” Related Artists Justin Bieber
B.H.F. (Bankhead Forever) shows ‘I’m still in the streets,’ G-Unit signee tells Mixtape Daily. By Rob Markman Shawty Lo Photo: MTV News Mixtape Daily Main Pick Mixtape : B.H.F. (Bankhead Forever) Headliner : Shawty Lo Representing : Atlanta Real Spit : Things have changed. In June 2009, Bankhead, Atlanta, rapper Shawty Lo saw his native Bowen Homes housing project torn down in a citywide effort to remove all of the city’s public housing. To pay homage to his home, the newly signed G-Unit rapper released B.H.F. (Bankhead Forever). “They changed the name of my street to Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway, and they tore my projects down, Bowen Homes, which is in Bankhead,” Shawty Lo told MTV News. “But I’m still in the streets. Even though they done did this and they done did that, it’s still B.H.F.: Bankhead Forever. B.H.F. could mean ‘Bowen Home Family,’ but it’s just letting the streets know we’ll never die.” The 18-track mixtape, hosted by DJ Greg Street, starts out with an intro by 50 Cent then goes straight into a string of trap-house anthems like “I Know,” “Heavy Weight” and “Attention” featuring Tity Boi. Lo, most known for his 2008 single “Dey Know,” has been unapologetically street throughout his entire career, and despite his new record deal with 50 Cent, it doesn’t look like he will be switching up anytime soon. For the non-believers, B.H.F. is the proof. “The streets getting the same Shawty Lo, the same street, ’cause I ain’t gonna change; it’s gonna be me,” he said. Joints to Check For
We ask ‘Platinum Hit’ judge about the less-than-stellar credits in her catalog. By Jim Cantiello Kara DioGuardi Photo: MTV News In her decade-plus career, Kara DioGuardi has helped write some of the biggest hits for artists like Kelly Clarkson, Pink, Cobra Starship, Carrie Underwood, the Pussycat Dolls and countless others. But when you’re an in-demand pop songwriter and you’re churning out tracks at a breakneck pace, they can’t all be winners. Hell, even John Lennon and Paul McCartney published a few turkeys. Lucky for fans, DioGuardi’s sense of humor is just as strong as her sense of melody. When stopping by MTV News to promote her Bravo reality competition “Platinum Hit,” the former “American Idol” judge was more than happy to dish about some of the crazier credits on her otherwise-sparkling r
As you already know, the 2011 BET Awards were last night and celebs got glam, (or at least tried) for the big event. To be honest, it was easier for me to find worst dressed of the event rather than best dressed. Check out who I thought looked good, who I thought was a hot mess and let me know what you think. Lets get started. First up is the anticipated Cee Lo Green. Cee Lo is know for dressing in outrageous outfits but come on! The wig is ridiculous and as if your over-sized body matched with your over-sized personality isn’t enough, you have to go and wear an over-sized outrageous outfit. It is evident some people appreciate this ball of fun, other wise he wouldn’t continue to have a career. I think it is clear where I stand. On to the next one.. Chris Brown used to be so good looking until he went blonde. As if that wasn’t enough, he performed last night in a suit- with big knees. Really? Are big knees the way to compensate for a smaller something else these days? I guess we’ll never know… Until a picture is leaked. Every girl has a fantasy of being a princess. Treated like a princess that is. However Shirley Ceasar took it the next step and dressed up like one for her performance. Do us a favor Shirley, and keep the fantasies inside your head, like the rest of us. Jill Scott, love you girl but you could have done better. This thirty-something year old was dressed in what looked like one of my old dance costumes from the 90′s and I was 5 so it was cute. I was waiting for Jill to break out in a tap dance routine. Although it was easier, (and more fun,) to find worst dressed, there were a few well dressed people at the event. In my opinion, the host with the most, Kevin Hart, looked fab! He is so cute and looked adorable in every outfit he wore. Definitely best dressed man of the night. It was even harder for me to find one truly best dressed woman. I love Estelle and she looked so classy and elegant when she arrived at the awards. I love her dress and her jewelry and bag to match. This is a winning look to me! Check out pics of the celebs here and tell me what you think: For other stories on the 2011 BET Awards, check out: BET Awards 2011 Performances [VIDEOS] Celebrities Arrive On The Red Carpet At 2011 BET Awards [PHOTOS] Celebs Kick Off 2011 BET Awards Weekend In LA [PHOTOS] Are These BP Artists Good Enough to Get Signed? 2011 BET Award Winners & Recap FACT OF THE DAY: Foxy Brown Was Not Always Foxy FACT OF THE DAY: LL Cool J Dropped Out Of High School To Record His Debut Album
Check out past pics of the week: Hottest Celebrity Pics Of The Week Jun 20-Jun 27, 2011 Are These BP Artists Good Enough to Get Signed? 2011 BET Award Winners & Recap FACT OF THE DAY: Foxy Brown Was Not Always Foxy FACT OF THE DAY: LL Cool J Dropped Out Of High School To Record His Debut Album
Songs in A Minor was ‘just my truth at that time,’ Keys says on 10th anniversary of album’s release. By Rebecca Thomas Alicia Keys performs onstage during the BET Awards ’11 Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images By the time 20-year-old Alicia Keys came on the scene in 2001, a 21st-century “around the way” girl from New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen, reigning rap&B princess Lauryn Hill seemed to be coming undone. Just a month after Keys’ classic Songs in A Minor was released, Hill taped an edition of MTV’s “Unplugged” during which she told the audience her “public persona had held her hostage.” Eventually, Hill gave up battling fame and retreated from the industry altogether. And it was in this landscape that Keys made her debut. For girls looking for a different voice, Keys, a corn-rowed beauty who still walked with a tomboy’s gait, proved to be that figure. When MTV News caught up with Keys last week, on the eve of the 10th anniversary re-release of the piano-driven A Minor (collector’s and deluxe editions will hit e-tailers and retailers on Tuesday), she told us why she thought fans connected so deeply to her and the Grammy-winning album she calls her “coming of age.” “I think that people related to Songs in A Minor because it was just my truth at that time,” Keys reflected of the J Records album helmed largely by her and production partner Kerry “Krucial” Brothers. “And I really wanted to just be me. I didn’t want to be anybody else, I didn’t want to be, you know, that girl with all the super fancy dresses, and all the, like, big … hair!” she said, bursting into laughter. Indeed, Keys favored midriff-baring tops, snug jeans and the (relentlessly copied) variations on zigzag spider braids, coming off as just a more polished version of the girls you bumped into riding the subway. Even now, one of the best-selling recording artists of her generation, Keys endearingly sprinkles her speech with street dialect. “I just wanted to be myself, and being myself was like being every girl I knew, you know? Being every girl in Harlem, in Brooklyn, in Queens. So I think people really could, hopefully, feel that.” Keys will make a hometown stop with her piano-only mini-tour on Thursday at New York’s Beacon Theatre, where she’ll revisit mega-singles like “Fallin’ ” and “A Woman’s Worth,” as well as her personal favorite “Troubles” and some tracks from the Songs sessions that fans will find on the new editions. What’s your favorite track from Songs in A Minor ? Tell us in the comments! Related Videos MTV News Extended Play: Alicia Keys Related Artists Alicia Keys
BET exec Stephen Hill takes full responsibility for Drake and Rihanna mistakenly being announced as Viewer’s Choice. By Rob Markman Chris Brown poses backstage at the BET Awards on Sunday Photo: Jason Merritt/ Getty Images Sunday night’s 2011 BET Awards Show was filled with amazing live performances, heartfelt acceptance speeches and that one strange moment when a trophy was mistakenly handed out to the wrong artist. When “106 & Park” hosts Terrance and Rocsi brought contest winner Tiffany Greene on stage to announce the Viewer’s Choice Award, Greene, like all the other presenters of the night, read the winner from a tablet PC, instead of doing the traditional envelope-opening. At first, she called out Chris Brown as the victor , but then she backtracked and gave the trophy to Drake for his collaboration with Rihanna, “What’s My Name.” “Well, this awkward,” said Drake to start his acceptance speech, after his and Rihanna’s name appeared on the video screen. But then it turned out that the intended recipient was Chris Brown after all, and as the show neared its end, BET cleared up the confusion and brought Breezy out to accept the award. An embarrassed Green took to Twitter and said, “Bawling backstage. They totally f—ed me up.” In a classy move, BET President of Music Programming and Specials Stephen Hill took full responsibility for the snafu. “That BET Awards Viewer’s Choice mix-up was due to human error,” he said in a tweet . “And I was the human that made that error. I apologize to ALL affected.” It was just a single blemish on an otherwise event-filled show which featured performances from Chris Brown, Lil Wayne , Mary J. Bilge, Alicia Keys and Beyonc
‘Even the strongest of love meets destruction at some point,’ the ex-porn star tells MTV News. By Rob Markman Sasha Grey on the set of Eminem’s “Space Bound” video Photo: Eric Ford/On Location News There have been quite a few takes on the meaning Eminem’s “Space Bound” video, in which we see two sides of a suicidal, love-torn rapper. Since the clip hit iTunes on Friday, fans have taken to comment sections dishing out theories about its meaning. Some have said this is another depiction of Em’s relationship with ex-wife Kim Mathers, while others likened the clip to a video game. And Eminem ‘s co-star in the video, Sasha Grey, has her own take on the video. Grey, who no longer works in porn, is now expanding her acting chops. She appeared, as did Em, on the seventh season of HBO’s hit series “Entourage,” and though the two never met on set, she got the offer to star in “Space Bound” at the request of the video’s director, Joseph Kahn. The clip features alternate versions of the Detroit MC, one agitated and cynical in the company of his girlfriend (played by Grey), the other more pensive and calm. “You can read into it a few different ways, but I imagine one character is actually him, and the other is his subconscious,” Grey said. Things begin to take a turn for the worse when the rapper discovers the love of his life is cheating on him. He later attacks her, then turns a gun on himself and commits suicide with a single shot through the head. “Space Bound,” like “Love the Way You Lie” depicts a tumultuous relationship in which domestic violence once again is a topic. “Em simply becomes company for her, and she mistakenly takes advantage of that,” Grey says of her character. “Before each take, Joseph and I would talk a lot about her motives and attitude. Her ultimate moment doesn’t come until the end, so I had plenty of time to build the fear!” Grey doesn’t have a clear-cut explanation of the video, but she ultimately sees “Space Bound” from a pessimistic view — hopeless romantics take heed. “I don’t know if it necessarily has a thorough message, but I think it shows that even the strongest of love meets destruction at some point,” the ex-porn star told MTV News. “Whether or not you come out of it together and whole is an entirely different question.” Related Photos Eminem’s ‘Space Bound’ Video Shoot Related Artists Eminem
The institution of marriage is perfect. God created it. What is not perfect are the husband and the wife. The husband and wife are not perfect because they were once boyfriend and girlfriend. Dating is ruining marriages. Shoot boyfriend/girlfriend relationships are lasting longer than marriages these days. Bad girlfriends are allowing boyfriends to extend relationships beyond the time it takes to get a college education. (Notice that I did not say bad boyfriends. He can’t be too bad if she is staying.) Remember ladies, DATE MORE & LEAVE EARLIER! Man and woman are developing bad habits during dating that they are taking into marriage. What I am finding is that men are going into marriages lacking operational principles. The three most prominent principles they are missing are leadership, financial management and communication principles. For women it is not so much the principles that are missing as it is the self respect. I am meeting too many women that would rather be married than respected by their man. (If he don’t respect you, he is not your man, he is your male and male can be delivered to any address.) MEN The single man is doing whatever he wants to do. He maybe dating a woman that he really likes but then a disagreement occurs and instead of working through that disagreement and coming up with a compromise, he just leaves. He leaves under the assumption that the woman is the one that’s crazy. Men, if your woman is crazy then you drove her to craziness! I believe a good man will resolve all of the issues of a woman. Love your woman right and I assure you that you won’t have a problem with her. Single men are not developing the skills necessary while dating to be successful at marriage. The average single man is not preparing for marriage. They are not seeking out other successfully married men for guidance and advice. They are not fully aware of the amount of love necessary to keep the wife happy. Here is a barometer fellas: 1.) God 2.) Wife 3.) Wife 4.) Open 5.) Everyone Else. Marriages would survive if men adopted a good leadership principle. PRINCIPLES My principle is, “All relationships and marriages are either successful or they fail based solely on the leadership of the man.” Men set the tone of the relationship. Men set the direction of the marriage. It starts with the man. Men are competitive in everything in life except the longevity of their marriage. I challenge all of my friends right here and right now: NO ONE WILL BE MARRIED LONGER THAN ME! And that includes death because studies show that you live longer when you are happily married. My wife and I are going to be married at least 100 years! We will be married those 105 or so years because I have adopted a leadership principle. That leadership principle is that if anything goes wrong in our marriage it is my fault. When our marriage was bad, we spent a lot of time pointing fingers at eat other. I spent too much energy trying to explain to her why I was right and she was wrong. (I was probably wrong.) I spent so much time thinking about our disagreement that it just became easier to raise my hand and say, “It is my fault honey.” Then I could apologize, make my 2-3 points, hear her piece and SQUASH IT!!!! A leader is not afraid of taking on responsibility. A man with good leadership principles is not as concerned with the problem as they are concerned with the solution. Once men tackle and beat their leadership issues next up is financial management. Financial principles are the foundational methods that a man uses to spend, save and invest money. I developed my financial principles because I have way too many conversations with men complaining about money. Here is a scenario that I had recently with a man: RelationshipBeast: If you knew that house was too much for you to be able to afford comfortably then why did you let her talk you into buying it? Dude: She really loved that house. I wanted to make her happy. RelationshipBeast: If you have financial principles it is easier to stick to a budget. Don’t come crying now about the expenses when you approved them. Since you did not have a financial principle, now you have a financial problem. Stop blaming her and blame the leadership in charge – YOU! Go figure it out! READ MORE! – Stop Telling Your Man My Business! Why Do Black Men Love White Women? – Twitter.com/StevenJDixon Facebook.com/RelationshipBeast Are These BP Artists Good Enough to Get Signed? Lil’ Kim & Nicki Minaj To Perform Together At BET Awards? Sean Kingston Released From The Hospital! DMX “I Don’t Like Drake”
