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Taylor Swift Gives Triumphant Performance But Loses Out At ACMs

Posted on April 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Out-of-place LL Cool J introduces the country star’s gospel-tinged set for Sunday’s show. By Gil Kaufman Taylor Swift performs at the 2010 Country Music Awards on Sunday Photo: Christopher Polk/ Getty Images LAS VEGAS — Taylor Swift has probably gotten used to going to awards shows and taking home at least some hardware after performing in one of her signature sparkly gowns. But even though it was a ladies’ night at Sunday’s Academy of Country Music Awards show in Las Vegas, with big wins for Academy Lady Antebellum , Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood, Swift went 0-for-5. She did, however, give a buzzy performance that paid homage to her close connection to her fans. The singer started out standing inside a round cage, which hung low over the audience at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. As she kicked into the second verse of the inspirational ballad “Change,” she rose up above the screaming masses and floated in the air across the arena, touching down in the middle of the crowd and dramatically ripping off her floor-length white dress to reveal black jeans, a black tank top and black boots as she smacked high fives and marched across the floor to the main stage. There she was joined by the Tritones, a University of California San Diego a cappella group she reportedly spotted on YouTube after the act uploaded their version of “You Belong With Me.” It was a typical move by the fan-friendly Swift, who skipped talking to the press on the orange carpet before Sunday’s show, but ran out to sign autographs, shake hands and take pictures with the fans behind the barricades outside the arena just 15 minutes before the show was to begin. The rousing, gospel-tinged performance ended with Swift holding a long note on the word “hallelujah,” spinning wildly in circles, flipping her hair side-to-side and then stage-diving into the outstretched arms of some handlers in the crowd. She was introduced by the odd-man-out at the show, rapper and “NCIS: Los Angeles” star LL Cool J, who said he was just on hand to support his country homegirl. “I got a call and they asked me if I wanted to introduce Taylor Swift, have some fun, check out a different genre,” LL explained before hitting the stage. “And I said, ‘You know what, I’ll be out of place, and it’ll be strange, but I’ve never done it before in my whole career.’ I’m a fan of some of the music. I thought would just be cool to do something different. No pressure. You know, I don’t have to pretend anything. I don’t feel funny if somebody wins, ‘It shoulda been me.’ ‘Cause it couldn’t have been me!” It’s not the first time LL hooked up with Swift, with whom he also co-hosted a Grammy nominations special in 2008. Asked if this might be his entr

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Lil Wayne Gives Tity Boi A Kanye West-Produced Track For New Tape

Posted on April 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Playaz Circle rapper calls Me Against the World 2: Codeine Withdrawal ‘conceptual,’ in Mixtape Daily. By Shaheem Reid Tity Boi Photo: Def Jam This Week’s Main Pick Street King : Tity Boi Holding It Down For : ATL, Southside Mixtape : Me Against the World 2: Codeine Withdrawal Real Spit : “Twoooooo Chains!” The name just has a ring to it. Especially when Disturbing Tha Peace member Tity Boi yells it out in the streets. He walked down the street in Times Square telling everyone to watch their step because he had swag dripping all over the place. Don’t sue if you slip, he warned. You see the two chains swinging ’round his neck! “The name of the tape is Me Against the World 2: Codeine Withdrawal, ” he said. “If anybody has been following what I have been doing on mixtapes, I’ve been following in the concept and the team of what ‘Pac was doing. Not in the music, but with his titles. I had mixtapes come out called Trapavelli then dropped a double disc called All Ice on Me. The music is pure, straight form the heart. A chance for me to get my solo outlet out. Not breaking up Playaz Circle or nothing like that. Just getting a few things off my shoulders, ya dig? “It’s conceptual. … The subtitle is Codeine Withdrawal, ” he explained. “If anybody ever been into the epic of the lean, the sizzurp era, that’s what’s going down on the south side of Atlanta right now. A lot of cats really stopped drinking liquor, and they switched to a fruitier-tasting drink over ice. This tape, being that we were going so hard drinking syrup, it’s like a drought. So I was like, ‘You know what? They have habits [and some people can’t function].’ I did my whole tape without the assistance of what I’ve been doing for a couple of years. I still smoked, but the title is Codeine Withdrawal. I’ve had a few people tell me, ‘Slow down, you moving too fast.’ I slowed down. I got a little girl. It is what it is. Full of ‘hood classics.” Tity Boi made his tape with DJ Black Bill Gates. TB also has the album Flight 360 out right now with his partner Dolla Boy. Joints to Check For 1. “Lo Boots.” ” ‘Hood classic soon as it dropped,” Tity said. “A lot of my style comes through me rapping about fashion. A lot of my stuff was ‘Gucci this, Louis that.’ What I was doing was making the bootleggers rich. ‘Cause a lot of y’all wasn’t going to Gucci like me and Dolla was doing. So I did Polo boots. ‘Lo Boots.’ Everybody got them. They like $60 or something, some are $100, but they got nice flavors. Nice brands. The name of the song is about being swagged out with the team, rocking the ‘Lo Boots.’ ” 2. “Can’t Be Broke” (featuring Trae Tha Truth and M. Beezy). “Basically, the title speaks for itself. My verse, I give a brief summary on my birth until now, with hustling. It’s always been hustling. That’s basically what this song is about.” 3. “Real as They Come” (featuring Lil Wayne, produced by Kanye West). “Wayne gave me that song. For no reason, the boy got a song produced by Kanye, with Dre from Cool & Dre on the hook,” TB said. “[Wayne’s] like, ‘Here, I got a song for you.’ It’s a banger. It’s self-explanatory, about looking in the mirror and judging yourself. ‘You’re as real as they come.’ ” For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines or follow the Mixtape Daily team on Twitter: @shaheemreid and @mongosladenyc . Related Videos Mixtape Daily: Tity Boi

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Lady Antebellum Talk Crossover Success After Five ACM Wins

Posted on April 19, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Trio wins five awards, including Song of the Year, at the Academy of Country Music Awards on Sunday night. By Gil Kaufman Lady Antebellum dominates the 2010 ACM awards Photo: Jordan Strauss/ WireImage LAS VEGAS — Country trio Lady Antebellum continued their winning ways at Sunday night’s Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas, topping all winners with five awards, including Song of the Year and Single of the Year for the crossover smash “Need You Now” (each counted for two because they wrote and produced the song) and Top Vocal Group. It was the capper to an already stellar 2010, during which their Need You Now album has been the top-seller so far this year and the single has crossed over to pop radio, landing them alongside Lady Gaga and Ke$ha on top 40 stations across the country. “We’re blown away. It’s been a pretty incredible year thus far,” said guitarist Dave Haywood on the orange carpet just hours before the group began their winning night. “You just never know when you write a song and you go into the studio and record it what it’s gonna do. And honestly this song took on a new life when we went into the studio,” explained lead vocalist Hillary Scott. “Whenever we heard that this song was getting picked up and played on pop radio, we were completely shocked, but excited because that just means more people are hearing it. We want to headline tours very soon, so the more people that hear it, the better. It’s bringing light to the country music genre, which we are so proud of.” Though they’ve had success from the very beginning of their career and picked up plenty of accolades already, including a Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals at this year’s Grammy Awards for “I Run to You,” singer Charles Kelley said “Need You Now” has taken them to a whole new level. “That song has changed our career so dramatically,” he said, noting that attendance at the group’s shows have doubled over the past three months thanks to a tune they admitted later in the night almost didn’t make it onto the album because they weren’t sure it was good enough. “They always say the power of a song … we never knew that would be the song. Out of all the songs we’ve written, we were like, ‘Oh, wow!’ I couldn’t believe that was the song.” For now, they’re the opening act for Tim McGraw, but they have plans for their own headlining tour in the fall. The big night began with a win for Song of the Year for “Need You Now,” which beat out tunes by Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift and another big winner, Miranda Lambert. The group, who led all nominees with seven, were shocked again when they won Single Record of the Year a short time later for the same song. They went acoustic during the show for their performance of the lush ballad “American Honey,” which included a shout-out “Thank you, fans!” mid-song. “When we wrote ‘Need You Now,’ I don’t think we knew what we had on our hands,” Kelley said afterwards, noting that their label bosses insisted they put it on the album after hearing it the first time. “You never know where a song can take you, and tonight is probably the pinnacle of our career.” Related Photos 2010 Academy Of Country Music Awards Orange Carpet Related Artists Lady Antebellum

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Soundgarden Reunite In Seattle For Secret Show

Posted on April 17, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

For first concert in 13 years, set list includes ‘Spoonman,’ ‘Outshined,’ other fan faves. By Tom Biro Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell performs in Seattle on Friday Photo: Tom Biro SEATTLE — On Friday night, 13 years after last taking the stage together, the members of grunge-era band Soundgarden reunited in front of about 1,000 fans at Seattle’s Showbox at the Market for a rousing performance that kicked off with fan favorite “Spoonman” and closed with a cover of the Doors’ “Waiting for the Sun.” The surprise performance comes just four months after singer Chris Cornell proclaimed that Soundgarden would return to action . Since that January announcement, the band’s inclusion in August’s Lollapalooza festival in Chicago had been made public, but no additional concert dates had been set. On Thursday afternoon, Seattle radio station 107.7 “The End” began tweeting about the possibility of a “secret” show, and news soon spread that fans on the band’s e-mail list would receive information on when and where it would take place. When word got out that a band going by the name “Nudedragons” (an anagram of Soundgarden) would be playing on Friday night, fans began stalking Twitter and Ticketmaster, awaiting the moment that tickets would go on sale. According to local news reports in Seattle, the available tickets sold out in less than 15 minutes. “That’s Kim. That’s Ben. That’s Matt.,” Cornell informed fans, pointing to his stagemates, halfway through the band’s almost two-hour set, which included a run of more than an hour of nonstop rock before a short break. “And that’s Chris,” responded drummer Matt Cameron, bringing a cheer from the hometown crowd, who appreciated the introductions, though they were hardly needed. “It’s a rehearsal, so if we f— something up, we’re probably going to go through it again,” explained Cornell, just before tearing into “Outshined,” off 1991’s Badmotorfinger. From the fans’ perspective, however, the show appeared to be a rehearsal in name only, with the crowd holding tight to every note, drumbeat and guitar riff sent their way. If the throwing of a guitar symbolizes all things rock and roll, then clearly bassist Ben Shepherd is ready to make a go of it. After tossing his bass in what many hard-core fans recognize as the “end” of the band back in February 1997, it probably won’t go unnoticed that Shepherd did the same thing to close Friday night’s show, in what could be seen as an effort to go back to the way things were — with Soundgarden as the heavy, loud powerhouse that exemplified the early-to-mid ’90s. Friday night’s set list: “Spoonman” “Gun” “Searching With My Good Eye Closed” “Rusty Cage” “Beyond the Wheel” “Flower” “Ugly Truth” “Fell on Black Days” “Hunted Down” “Nothing to Say” “Loud Love” “Blow Up the Outside World” “Pretty Noose” “Outshined” “Slaves and Bulldozers” Encore: “Get on the Snake” “Big Dumb Sex” “Waiting for the Sun” Related Photos Soundgarden In Pictures Related Artists Soundgarden

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Death Cab For Cutie’s Ben Gibbard: A History With The Seattle Mariners

Posted on April 16, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

From childhood fandom to playing at Monday’s home opener, Gibbard shares his Mariners memories. By James Montgomery Ben Gibbard Photo: Bryan Bedder/ Getty Images The tale of Death Cab for Cutie performing at the Seattle Mariners’ home opener on Monday is actually an act in three parts, starring avowed baseball nut (and DCFC frontman) Ben Gibbard. It’s a story of soaring highs and crushing lows, plus amazing feats of skill. It’s such an epic adventure that we figured it would be best if Gibbard told it himself. Here’s the first act, in which our intrepid hero embarrasses himself at a Mariners/ White Sox game in September 2008. They asked me to throw out the first pitch, and, of course, I said yes. I don’t want to toot my own horn, but I have a pretty good arm. I’m not like a 90-mph fastball kind of guy, but I can hit 70 on a radar gun. I hit 70 one time on a radar gun at one of those pitch-and-throw kind of things. … I have a pretty good arm for somebody who’s not a baseball player … so before the game, I’m down in the catacombs of Safeco Field, and they got a ball girl out there, and I’m throwing curves, I’m throwing sh–ty knucklers, I’m throwing from the full 60-feet-6 inches. … I’m just smoking it in there. So I was like, “OK, I’m not going to try and throw it as hard as I can, but I don’t want to throw one of those lollipop first pitches.” So I go out there, and I’m on a mound, and there’s like 30,000 people out there, and also, I hadn’t thrown in, like, 10 minutes. … I’m thinking, “Maybe I’ll throw a four-seamer, just throw it right in there.” And then I start second-guessing my grips. I’m thinking, “Maybe I’ll throw a two-seamer instead.” And I threw to [Mariners pitcher] Ryan Rowland-Smith, and I threw it and it was low and outside. It just went to the backstop. … I felt like such a dumbass. So after, Ryan Rowland-Smith is signing the ball for me, and he’s like, “Throwing the heat, huh?” And I was so embarrassed. And now, the second act, which also took place in 2008 and saw Gibbard redeem himself with a rather amazing act of dexterity: In the spring of 2008, I went to a Mariners game with my mom. And a foul ball comes into the stands, and I catch it with my hat. I have the video to prove it. I’m not making this up. … The ball comes into the crowd … and I’m like, “Uh-oh, look out,” and I caught it with my hat. It was amazing. You think of that moment happening every time you go to a game, ever since you were a little kid. So I had our management contact the Mariners, so they could get me the footage, because I know no one would believe me. I have it on my phone to show people, because they will never believe me. All of that led to up to last Monday, when Gibbard once again set foot on his field of dreams, to perform a medley of baseball-themed hits — John Fogerty’s “Centerfield” and a somber version of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” — joined by his Death Cab mates. We’re not going to lie to you, there was a lot riding on the performance — and Gibbard was understandably nervous. I mean, [the Mariners] had been floating this idea of us performing since last year, and I always said I would do it. I’ve loved the team since I was a little kid. I got [former Mariners slugger] Alvin Davis’ autograph when I was, like, 9, when he was on the ferry. This was ingrained in who I am. So, yeah, I was kind of nervous. But we went out there and played, and it was great, man. It was sort of like all the things I like the most, aligning into one. Since it was opening day, it was a big production. There were fireworks, and they had set up a little stage behind home plate. We played, and it was pretty amazing. I would definitely do it again. So there you go. Ultimate redemption. Dreams coming true. Who said baseball isn’t a magical game? Related Videos MTV Rough Cut: ‘Kick-Ass’ Related Artists Death Cab For Cutie

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Exclusive: Watch T.I.’s Mixtape Trailer, Hear New Song!

Posted on April 16, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Mixtape is called F— a Mixtape, song is ‘Back to the Trap.’ By Shaheem Reid T.I. Photo: Trapmuzik.com T.I. is heating up the promotion for his new street release, F— a Mixtape. The King of the South and company sent an exclusive trailer to Mixtape Daily on Friday (April 16). The trailer features quick shots of T.I. performing, then transitions into a footage of a cassette melting as we hear a brand new record from the release, “Back to the Trap.” “Welcome back to the trap, and back to the grind,” he raps on the chorus of the record. “I’m back on my hustle with an immaculate shine / Welcome back to the trap, we back to the streets/ Homie, right after I release, see me right back with the heat/ Welcome back to the trap, and back to the grind/ I’m back on my hustle with an immaculate shine/ Welcome back to the trap/ I’m back on my sh–/ This the sh– that you missin’, you’ll be right back on my d—/ Welcome back to the trap.” This week, Tip not only announced the title of his forthcoming official LP, King Uncaged (due August 24), but he also revealed his mixtape was coming soon. DJ Drama said the streets should be excited about the special edition of Gangsta Grillz. “I think this is going to be exciting for the streets — it’s a lot of sh– that is ’24s’-type Tip,” Drama said, referring to the track from T.I.’s 2003 Trap Muzik LP. “Tip is like a f—ing superstar right now. He makes a lot of big records with a lot of worldly feels — but they gonna love this in Zone One” Tip recently spoke to Rolling Stone about King Uncaged. “Some songs talk about my time in prison — how I was affected by that, the way I’ve grown from that, things I see now that I may have not seen then,” he said. “Sometimes I talk about love, some songs I talk about life, some songs I talk about me being the sh– on every level.” What do you think of T.I.’s new track? Let us know in the comments below! Related Artists T.I.

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Ke$ha Calls ‘Saturday Night Live’ Performance ‘Nerve-Racking’

Posted on April 16, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

‘The first time I stood on [the stage], I kinda felt like I was going to throw up in my mouth a little bit,’ she says. By Jocelyn Vena Ke$ha Photo: Sam Hendrick/ MTV News Ke$ha plans to storm the “Saturday Night Live” stage this weekend, and while it’s an exciting time for her, the singer has copped to feeling jittery about the high-profile performance. “It’s really nerve-racking,” she told MTV News on Thursday during a rehearsal break. “The first time I stood on [the stage], I kinda felt like I was going to throw up in my mouth a little bit, but then I didn’t, so that was awesome.” Ke$ha will sing her chart-topping “Tik Tok” and her latest single, “Your Love Is My Drug,” on “SNL.” “Just practicing a few times [now], I’m feeling a little more comfortable,” she said of the live performance. “It’s definitely an honor.” Asked whether she knew what she might wear, Ke$ha played coy. “I do know! All I have to say is that it might be really awesome,” she teased. “Actually, I’m pretty sure it is.” Ryan Phillippe, who stars in the “SNL” sketch-turned-film “MacGruber,” will handle the hosting duties the night Ke$ha performs. The singer has her fingers crossed for the chance to star with the actor in a skit. “We bonded. You can say that,” she laughed. “I mean, that would be ideal. I hope that happens.” She even had a sketch in mind. “Well, they’re top-secret, so I can’t tell you,” she said. “But one idea was someone recently told me I smell like shrimp in a diaper, so I thought I could do a perfume skit about me with my eau de perfume being a shrimp in a diaper. It’s very sensual.” Are you happy with Ke$ha’s “SNL” song choices? Let us know in the comments! Related Videos MTV News Extended Play: Ke$ha Related Photos Behind-The-Scenes: Ke$ha At ‘SNL’ Related Artists Ke$ha

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Lil Wayne’s ‘I’m Single’ Video Preview Leaves Fans ‘Hungry’ For More

Posted on April 16, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

‘This is almost tiding his fans over until he gets out,’ one fan tells MTV News. By Steven Roberts Lil Wayne Photo: Johnny Nunez/ WireImage NEW YORK — Lil Wayne ‘s newest video, for “I’m Single,” premieres Sunday at noon ET on MTV Jams and MTV2’s “Sucker Free Countdown.” The song is one of the cuts featured on Wayne’s 2009 mixtape, No Ceilings , and the clip was directed by DJ Scoob Doo. The video is one of many clips Wayne filmed before heading off to serve a one-year prison sentence at New York’s Rikers Island for weapons charges. MTV News hit the streets of Times Square to show fans a sneak peek of the video and see if Wayne’s forward thinking will keep his fans satisfied. “Even though he is incarcerated, he’s still making music, he’s still out there, he’s still got music for his fans, he’s putting it out there, and I like it,” Deanna Brown said. “I think this is something different,” she added. “Even with other incarcerated rappers, everybody’s like, ‘Wait till they get out. Wait till they get out.’ And they can’t wait for that release. This is almost tiding his fans over until he gets out. It makes you even more hungry, like, ‘Ahh, if he’s doing this while he’s incarcerated, I can’t wait to see what happens when he gets out.’ ” Other fans echoed Brown’s sentiments. Jonathan Edmonston said fans will appreciate Wayne’s dedication while he’s behind bars. “It will capture the fans’ interest,” Edmonston said. “And it will just let his fans know that he’s there for them, he loves them. I just feel he’s reaching out to them.” Are you excited to see Lil Wayne’s new video? Let us know in the comments below! Related Artists Lil Wayne

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Hanson Pay Homage To Blues Brothers In ‘Thinking ‘Bout Something’ Video

Posted on April 16, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

‘We all watched that movie over and over again as kids,’ Taylor Hanson says of the group’s inspiration for the clip. By James Montgomery Taylor Hanson in “Thinking ‘Bout Something” Photo: Cooking Vinyl Like most guys of a certain era, Taylor Hanson and his brothers grew up watching — and compulsively re-watching — “The Blues Brothers,” the 1980 cult classic featuring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as the titular brothers on a mission (from God) to save an orphanage. But unlike most guys of a certain era, they didn’t just watch it for the copious car chase sequences. “We all watched that movie over and over again as kids. I think I’ve probably seen it 1,000 times by now,” Hanson told MTV News on Friday (April 16). “And, what’s great about it is, sure, you can sit around with a bunch of guys and watch it again and again because you want to see the car chases. But that’s only part of it. We all loved it because it captures a certain renegade spirit and the kind of blind optimism that goes with making music. Being in band is reckless and kind of messy, and the film definitely captures that reckless nature.” So, in the back of their minds, Hanson had always thought about paying homage to the film — they just didn’t know when they’d get the chance to do it, until one fateful day earlier this year when the band were kicking around ideas for a video for “Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’,” the first single off their upcoming Shout It Out album. They wanted something that matched the joyous, retro-leaning feel of the tune and, all of a sudden, something clicked. “We wanted to announce that this record is sort of an unapologetic, bright, melodic thing, and so we — since we love this movie so much — we all watched one particular scene, with Ray Charles and the Blues Brothers band [ performing “Shake A Tail Feather” ] and we realized that if you played our song with the scene, it almost looks like they were playing ours,” Hanson said. “I mean, it was crazy. The tempo is perfect. It hit every music-geek button for us, and we absolutely couldn’t have predicted it. So we figured, now’s as good a time as any to make a video.” So, Hanson did just that. Working with Tulsa-based choreographer Heather Hall and director (and friend) Todd Edwards, they re-created the music-shop set from the “Blues Brothers” film (building it in the offices of their 3GC Records), recruited both fans and professional dancers and got to work. They shot the “Somethin'” video in two days, taking great pains to match the film, frame by frame, right down to the costumes and thoroughly outrageous facial hair of the Blues Brothers Band. “We put Isaac in a beard and long hair, and he looks almost exactly like [Blues Brothers’ guitarist] Steve Cropper. He was saying, ‘Is this too much? I look like Moses,’ but it was perfect,” Hanson laughed. “Honestly, it wasn’t all that tough to do. It was like when Peter Jackson directed ‘Lord of the Rings’ — he was already obsessed with it. And that’s how we were with ‘The Blues Brothers.’ ” The “Thinking ‘Bout Something'” video premiered Thursday on MySpace , and almost instantly struck a chord with audiences everywhere, including Perez Hilton, who praised the clip and singled out the cameo by “Weird” Al Yankovic, a longtime Hanson friend and collaborator who just had to make an appearance. “We’ve known him since ’98 and, small world, but he shot [the 1989 film] ‘UHF’ in Tulsa. Plus he’s sort of the king of recreating these pop-culture moments, so having him in it was almost like a blessing,” Hanson said. “He was a consummate professional. He learned all the dance moves, got the wardrobe just right. He was great.” So, really, the video is a success on many different levels: It let the band realize a long-standing dream, it has earned them all sorts of exposure and it reunited them with old friends. And while all of that is nice, Hanson says the most important thing is that the clip seems to resonate with people of all generations. “On the surface level, some people may just see it as a bunch of dancing, and that’s great. But then, as a deep cut, a lot of people instantly recognize it as being a tribute to ‘The Blues Brothers,’ ” he said. “It was very much a labor of love for us. It was a true DIY production, much like everything this band does … we’re really happy so many people like it.” Related Artists Hanson

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Rick Ross Responds To DJ Vlad Lawsuit Verdict

Posted on April 16, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Vlad awarded $250,000 in $4 million lawsuit over alleged 2008 By Shaheem Reid Rick Ross at the 2008 Ozone Awards Photo: Ben Rose/Getty Images Rick Ross may have $300,000 less in his bank account soon, but he was all smiles when he called MTV News late Thursday in New York. “I’m sitting in Barneys on 51st and Madison,” Ross said. “Had to pick me up a pair of Mason Martin Margiela [sneakers] and two pairs of Louboutins for this Diddy video we shooting this weekend.” On Thursday at the U.S. District Federal Court in New York, a jury of eight awarded DJ Vlad (real name: Vlad Lyubovni) $250,000 in punitive damages and $50,000 in compensatory damages against Ross. The four-day court proceedings stem from an August 10, 2008, incident involving Vlad and Ross’ Triple C’s group. Vlad alleged that Ross orchestrated an attack on him by the collective at an event at the 2008 Ozone Awards for posting images of Ross dressed in a correctional officer’s uniform on his Web site. In the $4 million suit, Vlad said he suffered a broken eye socket, a broken nose, nerve damage to his face, cheek, upper lip, teeth and gums, and required seven stitches under his right eye following the alleged attack. Ross has always maintained his innocence in the matter. On Thursday, Ross told MTV News that he’s putting the lawsuit behind him and focusing on the June 29 release of his LP, Teflon Don. “I’ve been fighting a $4 million lawsuit for the last two years,” Ross said. “My defense was a success. I’ve got to salute Xavier Donaldson, my attorney. Whenever an artist or anybody is put in a position such as a lawsuit in this capacity, so much evidence is represented — videotapes, what have you — to be able to walk out of a courtroom giving the plaintiff less than 10 percent of what he requested, I consider my defense a success. God bless America! The lawsuit is done. Even though I plan to appeal the decision, I thank the courts for the monetary decision that they made. They were extremely lenient, I appreciate that. It’s back to the business for the boss.” Although the amount he’s paying is nothing to sneeze at, Ross has a positive take on the verdict. “It’s a couple of papers, but it was a two-year-long case,” Ross said. “After court expenses, etc., the plaintiff may get $40 or 50K. I’m blessed to be in the situation I’m in. Four mil was at stake. It’s behind me.” For his part, Vlad tweeted “Today is a great day” on Friday morning. Vlad was not available for comment, but on Friday (April 16) his attorney, Brian D. Caplan of Caplan & Ross (no relation to Rick Ross), told MTV News of the verdict: “There is no place in civilized society for members of the media to have to fear retribution for their news coverage and commentary. The jury awarded Mr. Lyubovny $250,000 in punitive damages against Rick Ross to send a message that such conduct will not be tolerated or condoned.” Related Artists Rick Ross (Hip-Hop)

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