Raven-Symone covers the latest issue of Rolling Out magazine where, inside, she talks about her new show “The Great State Of Georgia,” what she finds sexy in a man and the difference between Raven “the brand” and Raven “the person.” Wearing sequin shorts, a hooded dress, a cropped leather jacket and striped tube top, Raven-Symone’s styling finally matches her age. She’s grown up now! See some behind-the-scenes pics here: Raven-Symone Shows Off Amazing New Body For Shoot [PHOTOS] “The Great State of Georgia” appears to be your first mature role as a television actress. What can viewers expect from the show? The show focuses on the problems you can go through when auditioning and being rejected and, sometimes, accepted. It’s a good journey that my character, Georgia, goes through with a friend and her aunt, which is played by Loretta Devine. I find it interesting that I’m doing a role that mirrored my younger life when I moved from Georgia to New York. This is more of a sophisticated comedy, but we don’t take away from the fun aspect of it. When did you realize that you were not just an actress, but that “Raven-Symoné” had become a brand? I knew that there was a business of Raven-Symoné when my father told me to “make sure that the public knows your real name and not just your character’s name.” The Disney Channel also helped to package what I wanted to do. But I know that there is more out there. Hopefully, the business aspect will be set up where I can back away and give opportunities to young men and women [to] showcase their talent when others may overlook them. What do you find attractive in a man, and what is your ideal first date? The things I find attractive are ambition, talent, teeth and a car. I don’t like to drive. It doesn’t have to be a Bentley. You can drive a Pinto, and I’ll pay for gas. But I won’t pay your insurance [laughs]. My ideal first date is no weave, no eyebrows, no makeup. I need to be in sweats, and I need him to be in sweats. We can drive around and see different houses. That’s my favorite date ever. I don’t want to go anywhere special. I just want to go for a ride. Is there a way to balance a relationship with your schedule? I was raised to be about my business. I love the people who are around, but if I get a [business] call, I have to get up and go. I’m on a path for myself. When I’m done, I’ll start that other side of life. I can’t have distractions. If you’re a distraction, you gotta go. What will be Raven-Symoné’s legacy? I want people to say, “She made me laugh and brightened my day. As a brand, she kept in mind the different flavors in the world.” And I want people to know that I was always honest and told the truth. Raven-Symone Shows Off Natural Curly ‘Fro At Vegas Soiree [PHOTOS] Raven-Symone: “My Perfect Man Would Be A Mannequin”
Former ‘Lost’ star will play new character Tauriel, the Woodland Elf, director Peter Jackson says. By Josh Wigler Evangeline Lilly Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images Evangeline Lilly already had a strong connection to Middle-earth thanks to her former relationship with “Lost” co-star Dominic Monaghan — better known to Tolkien fans as “Lord of the Rings”‘ very own Merry Brandybuck, of course — but now she’s strengthening those ties all on her own. Lilly is the latest addition to “The Hobbit,” director Peter Jackson announced on his Facebook page over the weekend. The actress, who starred on “Lost” as fugitive-turned-adoptive-mother Kate Austen throughout the show’s six-season run, will play “a new character” in the two-part “Lord of the Rings” prequel, which is slated to hit theaters in December 2012 and December 2013. “Evangeline Lilly will be playing a new character — the Woodland Elf, Tauriel,” Jackson revealed of her casting. “Her name means ‘daughter of Mirkwood’ and, beyond that, we must leave you guessing! (No, there is no romantic connection to Legolas.) What is not a secret is how talented and compelling an actress Evangeline is; we are thrilled and excited she will be the one to bring our first true Sylvan Elf to life.” Jackson also announced that Barry Humphries has joined the cast as the Goblin King. “Barry is perhaps best known for his business and social connections as the longtime manager of Dame Edna Everage,” he wrote. “He has also been an ardent supporter of the rather misunderstood and unfairly maligned Australian politician Sir Les Patterson. However, in his spare time, Barry is also a fine actor, and we’re looking forward to seeing him invest the Goblin King with the delicate sensitivity and emotional depth this character deserves.” These are just the latest developments in a string of recent casting moves on the “Hobbit” front. Last week, Jackson filled out two of the story’s most important roles, Smaug the Dragon and Bard the Bowman, with actors Benedict Cumberbatch and Luke Evans , respectively. It’s a “Sherlock Holmes” reunion for Cumberbatch, whose onscreen Watson, Martin Freeman, holds the titular role in “The Hobbit.” Check out everything we’ve got on “The Hobbit.” For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com . Related Photos Meet The Cast Of ‘The Hobbit’
‘The nerves are gone now, and I just want to own it more,’ Nervo’s Liv tells MTV News. By Jocelyn Vena Britney Spears Photo: Jeremy Cowart/ WireImage The Femme Fatale Tour kicked off Thursday night to rave reviews, with critics giving Britney Spears props for her over-the-top stage show. The show is all about the ladies, thanks to opening slots from Nervo , Jessie and the Boy Toys, as well as Nicki Minaj, with Spears acting as the show’s head mistress. MTV News caught up with Liv from the DJ act Nervo on Friday (June 17), nearly 24 hours after their first warm-up gig for Ms. Spears. “I’ve got to say, it was a real buzz for us to open the show; that’s the selfish highlight,” she told MTV News. “We were honored to be there. I thought the crowd got our house music.” Liv had the pleasure of finally seeing Spears in concert for the first time and couldn’t help but rave about her. “I thought she was brilliant. It was my first time seeing Nicki, as well, and she was brilliant,” she said. “I love ‘Slave 4 U.’ I was really happy she was playing her oldies.” When fans first heard that Spears and Minaj would be touring together, no one knew how the two would mesh. But, as it turns out, Liv said they work just perfectly. “They’re both very strong women. Britney was the same old Britney we love,” she said. “They complemented each other.” In fact, there’s a real sense of camaraderie on the road. “The nerves are gone now, and I just want to own it more,” she said. “It really does [feel like girl power]. It’s very exciting. We’re all girls. This business is crazy, and it’s fun we can all be in it together. “It really is a machine. We’ve done RV tours before with club DJs, and this is so far and beyond from the RV tours,” she said. “The catering is insane; three-course meals, three times a day. I’ve never seen what it takes to be a part of one of these pop shows, and it takes so much work. It’s full on. It’s great. It’s amazing that she can take it all in stride all these years later.” Will you be checking out Britney’s latest tour? Let us know in the comments! Related Artists Britney Spears
‘The nerves are gone now, and I just want to own it more,’ Nervo’s Liv tells MTV News. By Jocelyn Vena Britney Spears Photo: Jeremy Cowart/ WireImage The Femme Fatale Tour kicked off Thursday night to rave reviews, with critics giving Britney Spears props for her over-the-top stage show. The show is all about the ladies, thanks to opening slots from Nervo , Jessie and the Boy Toys, as well as Nicki Minaj, with Spears acting as the show’s head mistress. MTV News caught up with Liv from the DJ act Nervo on Friday (June 17), nearly 24 hours after their first warm-up gig for Ms. Spears. “I’ve got to say, it was a real buzz for us to open the show; that’s the selfish highlight,” she told MTV News. “We were honored to be there. I thought the crowd got our house music.” Liv had the pleasure of finally seeing Spears in concert for the first time and couldn’t help but rave about her. “I thought she was brilliant. It was my first time seeing Nicki, as well, and she was brilliant,” she said. “I love ‘Slave 4 U.’ I was really happy she was playing her oldies.” When fans first heard that Spears and Minaj would be touring together, no one knew how the two would mesh. But, as it turns out, Liv said they work just perfectly. “They’re both very strong women. Britney was the same old Britney we love,” she said. “They complemented each other.” In fact, there’s a real sense of camaraderie on the road. “The nerves are gone now, and I just want to own it more,” she said. “It really does [feel like girl power]. It’s very exciting. We’re all girls. This business is crazy, and it’s fun we can all be in it together. “It really is a machine. We’ve done RV tours before with club DJs, and this is so far and beyond from the RV tours,” she said. “The catering is insane; three-course meals, three times a day. I’ve never seen what it takes to be a part of one of these pop shows, and it takes so much work. It’s full on. It’s great. It’s amazing that she can take it all in stride all these years later.” Will you be checking out Britney’s latest tour? Let us know in the comments! Related Artists Britney Spears
SMH… just because a white guy gets nominated for an NAACP award, quotes Bill Withers, rocks cornrows and blazes trees doesn’t mean — nevermind. So Playboy had an extensive interview with Justin Timberlake and he managed not to pull a John Mayer . Read the interview to find out how JT answers the “Black” question, and a lot of other ones. Check out the interview below: PLAYBOY: Let’s start with sex. Your new movie, Friends With Benefits, has lots of it. What was it like letting it all hang out? TIMBERLAKE: I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t completely awkward. I couldn’t tell you the number of people in the crew watching me and my bare ass, but it was a lot. The producers and I agreed we would shoot a big chunk of the movie before we got down to the sex scenes, which was a good idea. That allowed Mila and me time to get comfortable. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to go all out for this. In fact, when they first gave me the script, this was a PG-13 movie. I didn’t think it was funny enough. I said I didn’t know how you could have a movie called Friends With Benefits without embracing the “benefits” part. PLAYBOY: You and Mila certainly look as though you’re enjoying each other’s company. TIMBERLAKE: You have to, and we did. We just wanted it to be funny, but we wanted it to look real, too. Most of the sex scenes are actually played for laughs, and she’s such a gifted comedian. There’s a whole scene in which I have to pee during sex, and it gets into how tough that is and how women just don’t understand the completely different parts men have. That was a lot of fun to shoot, but a lot of the time it was just me making a fool of myself. You can’t be shy with comedy even when you’re standing there naked. PLAYBOY: Was there a penis sock involved? TIMBERLAKE: You wear the proper ornaments, yeah. But I’m used to it. I shot a pretty explicit sex scene with Christina Ricci in Black Snake Moan. It’s totally weird, but you just jump in and do these things. You rock out. PLAYBOY: The big question Friends With Benefits raises is whether men and women can have sex without getting emotionally involved. Is that possible? TIMBERLAKE: God, I’m the worst person to ask about that. I don’t know. I don’t think I’ve ever had that type of relationship. I get hooked on every level when I get close to someone. If you build enough chemistry to want to be intimate like that, someone’s going to catch feelings, and usually it happens quickly. PLAYBOY: Your other big summer movie, Bad Teacher, co-stars your ex-girlfriend Cameron Diaz. What were the feelings there? TIMBERLAKE: It sounds complicated to everybody else, but it wasn’t to us. Honestly, the only thing I was worried about before I said yes to that movie was being asked that question. I knew at some point we’d have to promote the film and people would say, “Oh my God, that’s so weird that you two dated for four years.” I don’t know what else to say except the truth, which is that we’re friends. We don’t talk to each other all the time, but we respect each other, and on some level we’ll always love each other—but in our new capacity as friends . I think the world of her. We did have one very funny scene in Bad Teacher. If you haven’t seen it, I won’t say too much about it. I’ll go out on a limb and say it is the most unique dry humping you’ll ever see in a film. PLAYBOY: If you do a quick Google search on the women in your life, you come upon a litany of grand theories. A fling with Johansson was supposedly the reason you broke up with Cameron Diaz. Mila Kunis was supposedly the reason you broke up with Jessica Biel. Others insist it was Olivia Wilde. Care to set the record straight? TIMBERLAKE: None of it’s true, so I shouldn’t even dignify it with an answer. The thing is, I’m not going to sacrifice my friendships with people who are my co-stars I meet in the business. I’m not going to avoid spending time with people because someone who doesn’t know me makes assumptions about what’s going on. That’s bullsh*t. I don’t know who sits around behind a computer screen making the shit up, but at a certain point you just have to shut it off. I can’t look at the stuff anymore. My life is not on the internet. My life is right here, right now. PLAYBOY: But it’s no secret you’ve had a string of high-profile relationships. Wouldn’t it just be easier sometimes to have a relationship with, like, the girl from the dry cleaners or something? TIMBERLAKE: Technically, I guess. But you can’t help who you have feelings for. If you turn it off because someone is famous, then you’re being unfair to yourself. You could walk down each of those roads and find pros and cons. The girl from the dry cleaners is not going to understand how I feel about the work schedule and pressures I have. You probably gravitate toward people who understand your scenario. At the end of the day you just want someone who gets you, who can be a friend. That’s kind of the point of Friends With Benefits. As corny as it sounds, the “friends” part counts just as much as the “benefits” part, if not more. PLAYBOY: By the way, how many sit-ups does a guy have to do a day to look like you do in those Friends With Benefits nude scenes? TIMBERLAKE: I did go on a diet for that movie, which mostly came down to not drinking as much beer. And you know, beer is good, so that was hard. I’m pretty thin anyway, but I didn’t want to look like a meathead. I was like, I’m about to be 30, and I’m going to be naked on camera. If I’m going to do this, I’m going to train pretty hard. In the end, I just did more cardio, and I pumped up the stuff I already do throughout the year, such as playing sports. I like basketball and golf and snowboarding, and I do them pretty fu*king intensely. Keep reading for Justin on music, movies, N’Sync and why he relates to Bill Withers…
: ‘We can confirm that we submitted a Take Down Notice to YouTube,’ singer’s rep confirms to TMZ. By Rob Markman Rebecca Black Photo: Getty/ Jason LaVeris While 9-to-5ers everywhere are shouting TGIF!, YouTube sensation Rebecca Black is crying foul. After rising to notoriety off the back of her oft-viewed-yet-constantly criticized “Friday” music video, Black went on to surpass the likes of Lady Gaga in YouTube views. Now, the 13-year-old has pulled her video from the site that made her so famous. The dispute is actually with the teen’s label, Ark Music. “We can confirm that we submitted a Take Down Notice to YouTube as a result of the dispute we have with Ark Music regarding the ‘Friday’ video,” Black’s rep told TMZ . Earlier this week, Ark, which produced and wrote “Friday,” charged fans $2.99 to watch the clip on YouTube. But the move didn’t go over well with the polarizing pop star. Team Black has threatened legal action against the label, claiming that the company is exploiting RB’s image and her viral hit. This week hasn’t been all bad for Black, however. On Monday, she scored a cameo role in Katy Perry’s clip for “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)” . In the vid, the youngster gives a nerdy-looking Perry a makeover, creating the look that she needs to be able to kick it with the cool kids. When Rebecca Black sat down with MTV News in March, she was still getting used to being a celeb. “I still question myself: ‘Is this real? When am I gonna wake up?’ ” Black said. Now, she not only has to get used to the stardom but the business end as well. Maybe it can wait till Monday. Related Videos MTV News Extended Play: Rebecca Black Related Artists Rebecca Black
‘I’m good now, thank you. I’m so much better,’ she says on radio show in Texas. By Jocelyn Vena Selena Gomez Photo: Toby Canham/ Getty Images Selena Gomez is doing much better after her health scare last week. She appeared on the Kidd Kraddick in the Morning radio show on Thursday (June 16), days after performing in Santa Monica , appearing healthy and in good spirits and updating fans on how she’s feeling. “I’m good now, thank you. I’m so much better,” she told Kraddick in her home state of Texas. “I do eat. The problem is I don’t eat right. I love everything that’s possibly not good for me.” The singer was treated at the hospital on June 9 for food poisoning and exhaustion after becoming ill following her appearance on “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno.” Gomez said she’s trying to get her diet back on track and has a special someone — her mother — helping her out. “She’s definitely shoving vitamins down my throat and following me around,” she explained about the steps her “supermom” is taking to get her healthy again. “But at the same time, I was a stubborn kid, so I got to eat whatever I wanted. I have to have creamed spinach or cheese on my broccoli. I have to have something that makes it not healthy.” So, what else does she love to eat? “I love M&M’s, Kit Kats, Snickers and Goobers at the movies,” she admitted. Although fans showed support for Gomez when they found out she was ill, she confessed that sometimes it’s hard to be famous. But she’s not letting it stop her from living her life. “It’s a very hard thing because for me, it’s not about being public about anything, but I don’t want to live my life being afraid of what people are going to say about me,” she said of dating and living life in the public eye. “I lived that way for the first four years I was in the business and I was very unhappy.” Related Photos Selena Gomez Performs At The Santa Monica Mall
Like baby, baby, baby, can I borrow some money? Justin Bieber is the youngest star on the Forbes Best Paid Celebrities Under 30 list. Coming in at No. 2 according to the business magazine's ranking, the 17-year-old … Read more: Justin Bieber Rises To The Top of Forbes' Best Paid Celebs Chart …
Shaquille O’ Neal just retired from basketball after 19 seasons, but the famous center isn’t out the “game” yet. Shaq is allegedly involved in “a criminal case in which 7 gang members allegedly kidnapped, beat up and robbed a man who claimed to have a tape showing Shaq having sex with other women while he was married to Shaunie.” A member of the Main Street Mafia Crip gang tells TMZ.com that Shaq and a band of six entered a man’s home to search for the tape allegedly owned by Robert Ross. TMZ.com reports: Once there, Rowles allegedly pistol whipped Ross and demanded that he turn over the sex tape. Ross said he would get the tape and bring it back to them. The seven men then allegedly took Ross’ Rolex, diamond chain and earrings, along with $15,000 in cash — then let Ross go. The seven men have been arrested and charged with robbery, kidnapping and other crimes. They are currently in the middle of a preliminary hearing and being held in jail. We’ve learned LAPD detectives interviewed Shaq to determine what, if any, involvement he had in the alleged crimes. When the case file went to the D.A. Shaq was not listed as a suspect. Now here’s the interesting backstory. Ross has a history with Shaq. Shaq and his business manager, Mark Stevens, have a record label and allegedly told Ross they would give him a 50% cut in any artists he brought to them. Ross claims he delivered Ray J to Shaq but got cut out of the deal. Shaq & Hoopz Acting Goofy At Taylor Swift Concert [VIDEO] Shaq Anounces Retirement From Basketball After 19 Seasons Hoopz Talks About How She Rescued Shaq [VIDEO]
Fox Business host Eric Bolling is drawing fire for comments he made about President Obama on Friday. On his show “Follow The Money,” Bolling criticized Obama’s visit with Ali Bongo, the president of Gabon, by saying, “Guess who’s coming to dinner? A dictator. Mr. Obama shares a laugh with one of Africa’s kleptocrats. It’s not the first time he’s had a hoodlum in the hizzouse.” As he said “hizzouse,” a picture of rapper Common appeared on the screen. Common’s appearance at a White House poetry event drew loud complaints from conservatives. Later, Bolling made similar comments. “What’s with all the hoods in the hizzy?” he asked, saying that Bongo has been “accused of human rights violations and plundering billions of his country’s dollars.” The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg called the comments “open, and revolting, anti-Obama racism” in a blog post on Sunday. Story continues below Bolling defended himself on Twitter and Facebook, saying that he was merely criticizing the visit and linking to other outlets that had done so as well.
