Former ‘Family Matters’ star talks playing Cee Lo, supposed Drake cameo and Bobby Brown dance moves. By Gil Kaufman, with reporting by Kara Warner Cee Lo Green (file) Photo: Getty Images Cee Lo Green has definitely mined a very specific retro 1950s vibe in the videos he’s released so far from his Lady Killer album. But when it came time to work up a clip for “Cry Baby,” he picked a guest star who is best known for his work in the 1990s as the ultimate
Jessie J will serve as VMA House Artist on Sunday night. By Gil Kaufman Ne-Yo and Pitbull Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images He heated up Jennifer Lopez ‘s “On the Floor” and scored his own summertime smash with “Give Me Everything.” So it just makes sense that Pitbull would be bringing the fire to Sunday’s 2011 Video Music Awards . The Latin hip-hop sensation will join an already-stellar roster of performers on the show that includes Lady Gaga, Adele, Bruno Mars, Lil Wayne, Chris Brown and Young the Giant. The VMAs will air live from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday at 9 p.m. (live ET/tape delayed PT). Find out how to win a trip to the VMAs courtesy of Foursquare and MTV! Pit will perform his chart-topping hit “Give Me Everything” with R&B star Ne-Yo and upcoming singer Nayer, bringing a club vibe to the Nokia on a night when another club-friendly singer, British pop phenom Jessie J, will serve as the night’s house artist. The “Price Tag” singer — who will tour with Katy Perry this fall — will follow in the footsteps of such luminaries as deadmau5 , Wale , Mark Ronson and the late DJ AM , who have taken the house-band honors in the past. A number of other top names have also been added to the growing list of presenters at the show, including Nicki Minaj, Taylor Lautner, Drake, Joe Jonas, Jared Leto, Kevin Hart and comedian JB Smoove of HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” They join previously announced presenters Selena Gomez — who will also anchor our black-carpet VMA Pre-Show — Seth Rogen, Kim Kardashian, Rick Ross and Odd Future. Viewers can vote for general VMA categories, including Best New Artist, by visiting VMA.MTV.com online or m.mtv.com on their mobile phone. In addition, Best New Artist text voting is open to all wireless carrier subscribers by texting BNA to 66333. Voting continues through the show, live on Sunday. To watch video of last year’s biggest moments, get the full list of last year’s show winners and check out fashion, celebrity and music commentary from the show’s red carpet, go to VMA.MTV.com . The 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards will air live Sunday, August 28, from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles at 9 p.m. ET/PT, following the Selena Gomez-hosted pre-show at 8. See the list of nominees, revisit last year’s highlights and vote for Best New Artist by visiting VMA.MTV.com . Related Photos 2011 MTV Video Music Awards Performers Related Artists Pitbull Ne-Yo
Emma Stone, Viola Davis and company helped themselves to millions of dollars at the box office this weekend, as The Help – which is garnering significant Oscar buzz – finished atop the pack of new and old releases. The Help Trailer The film took in $20.5 million, outpacing James Franco and his planet full of apes. A look at the top five from a relatively quiet weekend: The Help : $20.5 million Rise of the Planet of the Apes : $16.3 million Spy Kids: All the Time in the World : $12 million Fright Night : $8.3 million The Smurfs : $8 million
On ‘VMAs Revealed’ MTV staffers recall the reaction backstage when Gaga unveiled her beefy couture. By Gil Kaufman Lady Gaga at the 2010 Video Music Awards Photo: Getty Images The Video Music Awards have a long history of outrageous, over-the-top and just plain bizarre fashion firsts. Artists tend to think way outside the box when it comes to dressing up for the VMAs , but perhaps no getup in show history has gotten as much attention, caused as much head scratching and turned more heads than Lady Gaga ‘s infamous meat dress. After walking the white carpet in a flowing gold and burgundy Alexander McQueen dress with a matching headdress, Mother Monster shocked the world at the 2010 awards when she slipped into her third outfit of the night: a dress made out of some choice cuts of beef. “As soon as I saw her on that white carpet I just knew that this night was gonna be Gaga insanity,” said Alycia Belle, VMA wardrobe stylist for the 2010 show, in a new “VMAs Revealed” special that premiered on Saturday (August 20). Before unwrapping the cow couture, Gaga had merely one wardrobe change during the show — a black Armani leather dress with spiked bustier. But when the time came to announce Video of the Year, the audience had no idea what was about to hit them. The folks working behind the scenes saw a suspicious number of coolers being brought into Gaga’s dressing room, so they could tell that something was up. “I’m getting calls that she needs to be in her seat, we give her kind of a two-minute head’s up, the door opens up, and I see she’s wearing a red dress,” said Ernesto Elias, Gaga’s talent escort at the show. “I start to notice people staring a little bit harder than they normally would.” And with good reason. While plenty of stars were wearing leather shoes, or even cowhide skirts, no one expected the eye-popping fashion choice that Gaga was about to unveil. “I was literally this close to her … I just remember looking at it and just wondering, ‘Is that really … ?’ remembered Sandra Piedra, talent coordinator for the 2010 VMAs. After a harder look, Elias said he realized that it was not a “normal” type of fabric. Let’s call that the understatement of the year. “People who were on the floor, who are right around her, are like, ‘It’s meat ! Meat! Like, ground chuck meat!’ ” Dave Sirulnick, executive producer of the VMAs, recalled. “I know that there is nobody who ever heard the two words ‘meat’ and ‘dress’ put together before September 12 [2010] at about 11 p.m.” And with the announcement this week that Gaga will be opening the 2011 VMAs , fans of music and fashion everywhere can’t wait to see how she’ll top herself. The 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards will air live on Sunday, August 28, from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles at 9 p.m. ET/PT. See the list of nominees, revisit last year’s highlights and vote for your favorites in the general categories by visiting VMA.MTV.com . Related Videos ‘VMAs Revealed’: Peek Behind The Scenes At Last Year’s VMAs Related Photos VMA 2010: Lady Gaga Lookbook
The season premiere of ‘When I Was 17,’ also featuring Bow Wow and Colbie Caillat, airs Saturday at 11 a.m. ET on MTV. By Nuzhat Naoreen Christopher Mintz-Plasse on “When I Was 17” Photo: MTV In the new movie “Fright Night,” Christopher Mintz-Plasse plays a character who’s hot on the heels of a predator. It’s a role in which he’s had some practice. Back when he was 17, Mintz-Plasse and his friends actually played a game called “Predator.” On the season premiere of “When I Was 17” this Saturday at 11 a.m. ET, Mintz-Plasse recounts how one particularly intense game ended with him crashing his car. “When I was 17, this is a game in the valley that you play with your friends, it’s called ‘Predator,’ ” Mintz-Plasse explains. “You start at a friend’s house, two people get in the backseat, and they get blindfolded so they don’t know where they’re going. “So, you drop them off on a corner somewhere and take the blindfolds from them. The car goes back to the house, and when that happens, that’s when the game actually starts.” The goal for his passengers was to find a way back to home base without getting tagged, but Mintz-Plasse wasn’t about to let that happen. He decided to drive especially rough to confuse his blindfolded friends before dropping them off. But, his efforts went one step too far. “I was driving, and I like to mess with my friends, so I was really trying to get in their heads,” he recalls. “And I was just jerking left and right, and then I hit the gas pedal going up a hill, and I turn the wheel, and I lost control, and the two right wheels went up. It was horrifying. It almost tipped over this way, but I grabbed the wheel and spun it back down.” While his quick thinking might have helped him avoid a major accident, he still faced some damage. “As the car slammed, it just spun up on a curb and ran into a fence,” he says. Luckily, everyone walked away without injuries, but his parents were less than pleased when they heard the news. “My parents were pissed,” he adds. Find out whether Mintz-Plasse got to keep his car keys on the season premiere of “When I Was 17” this Saturday. “When I Was 17” — this week featuring Bow Wow, Christopher Mintz-Passe and Colbie Caillat — premieres Saturday at 11 a.m. ET on MTV. Related Videos ‘When I Was 17’ Featuring Bow Wow: A Sneak Peek
‘It was cool to play something evil and dark,’ actor tells MTV News. By Terri Schwartz, with reporting by Josh Horowitz Christopher Mintz-Plasse in “Fright Night” Photo: DreamWorks The vampires in “Fright Night” might not sparkle in the sunlight, but star Christopher Mintz-Plasse still understands their appeal. “Now I get it, why people play vampires,” he told MTV News during Movie Awards Sneak Peek Week. “I’m like, there’ve been vampire movies. [But] that was really a lot of fun to do.” The crux of the issue, director Craig Gillespie explained, is that vampires are sexy. He made the argument that there are always vampire movies, but their popularity surges in waves. In the ’80s, there was “The Lost Boys,” in the ’90s there was “Interview With the Vampire” and now it’s “The Twilight Saga” keeping the vampire craze afloat. The key was finding a good vampire to sit at the flick’s center, and Gillespie said he always knew lead Colin Farrell would be good for the part. Farrell’s character, Jerry, is dark but also has a humorous aspect, and Gillespie was impressed with Farrell’s ability to walk that line. He knew it wouldn’t be a hard sell either because Hollywood celebrities tend to be drawn to vampire films. “It’s one of those things that actors love to do, because you’re getting to play sort of an iconic kind of character that has all this history with them. You get to have a lot of fun with it,” Gillespie explained. Mintz-Plasse certainly did. His character, Ed, gets ( spoiler alert! ) converted to a vampire in the movie, and Mintz-Plasse was psyched to whip out his inner bloodsucker. “It was cool to play something evil and dark,” he said. Related Videos MTV Sneak Peek Week: ‘Fright Night’
Learn how an army of Beliebers almost mauled the 2010 VMA host on ‘VMAs Revealed,’ airing Saturday at noon ET on MTV. By James Montgomery Justin Bieber at the 2010 Video Music Awards Photo: WireImage It seems that Justin Bieber can’t so much as step outside without inciting a riot of considerable magnitude, so it was to be expected that his performance at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards — supposedly a secret song-and-dance routine set outside the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles — would probably attract some attention. But VMA producers had no idea just how out-of-hand things would get — or how close VMA host Chelsea Handler would be to being mauled by Justin’s army of Beliebers as a result. It was all thanks to one harmless tweet by JB himself, as we learn in “VMAs Revealed,” a new behind-the-scenes special set to air this Saturday at noon ET on MTV. It all started before the VMAs, during Bieber’s rehearsals. Producers planned to have Handler exit the theater and take a spot at the front of the stage, holding a sign that read “Chelsea hearts Justin.” Everything was going swimmingly until an army of Bieber fanatics got wind of things. “Out on the Nokia Plaza, they were rehearsing Justin Bieber’s performance,” MTV News VP Ryan Kroft explains in “Revealed.” “[And] if you sort of stopped and paid attention, out comes Chelsea Handler in curlers.” Of course, on the night of the big show — after Bieber had tweeted about “free tickets to [his] VMA performance” — things changed. The Nokia Plaza was positively packed with screaming Bieber fans, who didn’t take kindly to Handler’s intrusion — and they let her know by crowding up against a barricade, nearly crushing her and sending all plans out the window. Producers never quite got a good shot of Handler and her sign — “I think you can see her sign bobbing around, you just can’t see her head. She should’ve worn the curlers,” Kroft said — but luckily, she escaped serious bodily harm. And the true Beliebers ended up being happy too: Not only did they get to see a once-in-a-lifetime performance from their idol, but Bieber would go on to win the VMA for Best New Artist later that night. For more backstage stories from the 2010 VMAs — like Rihanna’s wig mishap , Lady Gaga’s unforgettable meat dress and 30 Seconds to Mars’ unconventional white-carpet arrival — tune in to “VMAs Revealed” this Saturday at noon ET on MTV. The 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards will air live on Sunday, August 28, from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles at 9 p.m. ET/PT. See the list of nominees, revisit last year’s highlights and vote for your favorites in the general categories by visiting VMA.MTV.com . Related Videos ‘VMAs Revealed’ Premieres Saturday At 12 p.m.! Related Photos VMA 2011: Behind The Scenes At The Promo Shoot Related Artists Justin Bieber
Learn how an army of Beliebers almost mauled the 2010 VMA host on ‘VMAs Revealed,’ airing Saturday at noon ET on MTV. By James Montgomery Justin Bieber at the 2010 Video Music Awards Photo: WireImage It seems that Justin Bieber can’t so much as step outside without inciting a riot of considerable magnitude, so it was to be expected that his performance at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards — supposedly a secret song-and-dance routine set outside the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles — would probably attract some attention. But VMA producers had no idea just how out-of-hand things would get — or how close VMA host Chelsea Handler would be to being mauled by Justin’s army of Beliebers as a result. It was all thanks to one harmless tweet by JB himself, as we learn in “VMAs Revealed,” a new behind-the-scenes special set to air this Saturday at noon ET on MTV. It all started before the VMAs, during Bieber’s rehearsals. Producers planned to have Handler exit the theater and take a spot at the front of the stage, holding a sign that read “Chelsea hearts Justin.” Everything was going swimmingly until an army of Bieber fanatics got wind of things. “Out on the Nokia Plaza, they were rehearsing Justin Bieber’s performance,” MTV News VP Ryan Kroft explains in “Revealed.” “[And] if you sort of stopped and paid attention, out comes Chelsea Handler in curlers.” Of course, on the night of the big show — after Bieber had tweeted about “free tickets to [his] VMA performance” — things changed. The Nokia Plaza was positively packed with screaming Bieber fans, who didn’t take kindly to Handler’s intrusion — and they let her know by crowding up against a barricade, nearly crushing her and sending all plans out the window. Producers never quite got a good shot of Handler and her sign — “I think you can see her sign bobbing around, you just can’t see her head. She should’ve worn the curlers,” Kroft said — but luckily, she escaped serious bodily harm. And the true Beliebers ended up being happy too: Not only did they get to see a once-in-a-lifetime performance from their idol, but Bieber would go on to win the VMA for Best New Artist later that night. For more backstage stories from the 2010 VMAs — like Rihanna’s wig mishap , Lady Gaga’s unforgettable meat dress and 30 Seconds to Mars’ unconventional white-carpet arrival — tune in to “VMAs Revealed” this Saturday at noon ET on MTV. The 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards will air live on Sunday, August 28, from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles at 9 p.m. ET/PT. See the list of nominees, revisit last year’s highlights and vote for your favorites in the general categories by visiting VMA.MTV.com . Related Videos ‘VMAs Revealed’ Premieres Saturday At 12 p.m.! Related Photos VMA 2011: Behind The Scenes At The Promo Shoot Related Artists Justin Bieber
Learn how an army of Beliebers almost mauled the 2010 VMA host on ‘VMAs Revealed,’ airing Saturday at noon ET on MTV. By James Montgomery Justin Bieber at the 2010 Video Music Awards Photo: WireImage It seems that Justin Bieber can’t so much as step outside without inciting a riot of considerable magnitude, so it was to be expected that his performance at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards — supposedly a secret song-and-dance routine set outside the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles — would probably attract some attention. But VMA producers had no idea just how out-of-hand things would get — or how close VMA host Chelsea Handler would be to being mauled by Justin’s army of Beliebers as a result. It was all thanks to one harmless tweet by JB himself, as we learn in “VMAs Revealed,” a new behind-the-scenes special set to air this Saturday at noon ET on MTV. It all started before the VMAs, during Bieber’s rehearsals. Producers planned to have Handler exit the theater and take a spot at the front of the stage, holding a sign that read “Chelsea hearts Justin.” Everything was going swimmingly until an army of Bieber fanatics got wind of things. “Out on the Nokia Plaza, they were rehearsing Justin Bieber’s performance,” MTV News VP Ryan Kroft explains in “Revealed.” “[And] if you sort of stopped and paid attention, out comes Chelsea Handler in curlers.” Of course, on the night of the big show — after Bieber had tweeted about “free tickets to [his] VMA performance” — things changed. The Nokia Plaza was positively packed with screaming Bieber fans, who didn’t take kindly to Handler’s intrusion — and they let her know by crowding up against a barricade, nearly crushing her and sending all plans out the window. Producers never quite got a good shot of Handler and her sign — “I think you can see her sign bobbing around, you just can’t see her head. She should’ve worn the curlers,” Kroft said — but luckily, she escaped serious bodily harm. And the true Beliebers ended up being happy too: Not only did they get to see a once-in-a-lifetime performance from their idol, but Bieber would go on to win the VMA for Best New Artist later that night. For more backstage stories from the 2010 VMAs — like Rihanna’s wig mishap , Lady Gaga’s unforgettable meat dress and 30 Seconds to Mars’ unconventional white-carpet arrival — tune in to “VMAs Revealed” this Saturday at noon ET on MTV. The 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards will air live on Sunday, August 28, from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles at 9 p.m. ET/PT. See the list of nominees, revisit last year’s highlights and vote for your favorites in the general categories by visiting VMA.MTV.com . Related Videos ‘VMAs Revealed’ Premieres Saturday At 12 p.m.! Related Photos VMA 2011: Behind The Scenes At The Promo Shoot Related Artists Justin Bieber
Cobra Starship will perform during pre-show, airing 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 28. By Gil Kaufman Selena Gomez Photo: Toby Canham/ Getty Images With Lady Gaga slated to open the show and performances on tap from Lil Wayne and Adele , among others, the 2011 Video Music Awards are already mega. But things will heat up even before those stars take the stage thanks to Selena Gomez , who has been tapped to kick off the night’s festivities as the celebrity host on the pre-show black carpet. The platinum recording artist and Emmy Award-winning actress will anchor the pre-show on Sunday, August 28, starting at 8 p.m. (live Eastern Time/ tape-delayed Pacific Time), reporting on breaking news and interviewing her peers alongside MTV’s team of correspondents, including Sway Calloway, Jim Cantiello and James Montgomery. “I am very excited to be a part of the 2011 VMAs! After all of my years watching the VMAs, the pre-show has always been one of my favorite parts. It is a true honor to be hosting from the black carpet this year,” Gomez said in a statement. Gomez will get some help from Cobra Starship, who will perform their dance hit “You Make Me Feel,” featuring Sabi, live during the VMA Pre-Show, which will also include an exclusive new teaser of “Jersey Shore.” “We are so excited to be a part of the 2011 VMAs! I grew up watching them every year and it was an honor to be nominated two years ago and it is an even bigger honor to be able to play the pre-show this year,” said Cobra Starship guitarist Ryland Blackinton. “I will never forget when Pat Smear left the Foo Fighters live during the pre-show, and I’m planning on having him replace me this year.” While Gomez is meeting and greeting the celebs on the black carpet, MTV News correspondents will bring you interviews with some of today’s hottest stars. We’ll set up shop in the lobby of a downtown Los Angeles hotel that is being transformed into a musical time portal featuring a paparazzi photo arena as the centerpiece to all the pre-show madness. Who will follow Selena at the VMAs? Check out the big reveal! In between, Cantiello will keep an eye on MTV News’ Twitter Tracker, which will provide updates on the global VMA conversation on Twitter and show the volume of Twitter traffic about VMA nominees, presenters, performers and attendees. He’ll also tweet photos from the paparazzi theater and ask fans to use them to make fan art and send them back so he can display them during the broadcast while he tweets about all the black-carpet action @MTV. MTV News will also bring viewers a first look at the new Nicki Minaj video “Fly,” featuring Rihanna. The lead-in to the pre-show will be an all-new episode of “Jersey Shore” at 7 p.m. ET/PT, with the cast popping in to the live pre-show to predict who the night’s big winners will be. As previously announced, Adele and Wayne will take the stage in addition to Bruno Mars , Chris Brown and Young the Giant . Confirmed presenters include Jonah Hill, Rick Ross, Seth Rogen, Gomez, Kim Kardashian and Odd Future. MTV will announce additional performers and presenters in the coming days. Viewers can vote for all general VMA categories by visiting VMA.MTV.com online or m.mtv.com on their mobile phones through August 16. In addition, Best New Artist text voting is open to all wireless subscribers by texting BNA to 66333. Voting for this category continues through the show, which airs live Sunday, August 28. Verizon subscribers can vote on all categories via SMS by texting VMA to 66333 (standard message rates apply). The 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards will air live Sunday, August 28, from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles at 9 p.m. ET/PT, following the Selena Gomez-hosted pre-show at 8. See the list of nominees, revisit last year’s highlights and vote for your favorites in the general categories by visiting VMA.MTV.com . Related Photos 2011 MTV Video Music Awards Performers Related Artists Selena Gomez Cobra Starship
Breaking Sports Video
