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Drake And Rihanna’s ‘Take Care’ Teaser: Watch It Here!

The (musical) couple reunite in eagerly anticipated video to premiere Friday at 7:56 p.m. ET on MTV. By Rebecca Thomas Drake in his video for “Take Care” Photo: Universal The last time Drake and Rihanna got together, a quick grocery run for a carton of milk turned into a fun, romantic date over white wine in a sun-drenched Manhattan loft. The cross-genre couple is sharing the screen again, following up Rih’s “What’s My Name?” with the video for Drake’s “Take Care.” But trust us: The mood is different this time around. While you’ll have to wait until Friday at 7:56 p.m. ET for the eagerly anticipated MTV video premiere, MTV News has your exclusive preview! The black-and-white teaser opens with Drake, dressed casually in black tee and matching jeans, looking introspective as he spits the first verse of the moody title track: “I’ve asked about you and they’ve told me things/ But my mind didn’t change/ I still the feel the same, what’s/ A life with no fun, please don’t be so ashamed/ I’ve had mine, you’ve had yours, we both know.” As Drizzy raps, the (rather majestic) horns of an animal — an ox, a bull? — slide into the foreground, before Rihanna comes into the frame. Seen only in profile, the Elle magazine cover girl sports some sexy bedhead and a shoulder-baring sweater before those sweeping horns flash back once again. The 15-second preview closes with an expansive view of a snow-capped hillside, which seems to mirror what director Yoann Lemoine said fans could expect. “It pays tribute to nature,” he told MTV News in February. “When I listened to the track, I was seeing a landscape … involving animals and massive landscapes.” Lemoine added cryptically, “It’s not narrative at all, it involves animals.” Although we don’t actually see Drake and Rih together in the teaser, the director behind Katy Perry’s “Firework” said he wanted to play up the pair’s natural chemistry in the clip. “They seemed to be super close and that’s what I wanted for the video,” he explained. The title track from the Young Money star’s sophomore effort is a moody interpretation of Jamie xx’s own collaborative reimagining of the late poet Gil Scott-Heron’s incomparable “I’ll Take Care of You.” Drake’s go-to producer Noah “40” Shebib programmed the trance-like drums that kicks in after a dreamy hook from Rihanna, which is complemented by residual vocals from Scott-Heron’s track. When we asked the Toronto MC late last year what he had in mind for this video, he said only that he wanted to “make it perfect, like, the best video I’ve done to date, so just taking my time.” Sound off on the “Take Care” teaser in the comments or on our Facebook page! Related Artists Drake Rihanna

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Drake And Rihanna’s ‘Take Care’ Teaser: Watch It Here!

Rihanna Won’t Sweat ‘Ranting’ Over Her Chris Brown Reunion

‘It’s very hard for me to accept, but I get it,’ singer tells Elle in May issue of public backlash. By Rebecca Thomas Rihanna on the May 2012 cover of Elle Photo: Tom Munro / Hearst Digital Media Rihanna didn’t call her latest album Talk That Talk for nothing. The Good Girl Gone Bad regularly hits Twitter to hash it out over everything from her taste in ink to her take on fellow R&B divas . But the one subject she’d kept off her tongue was ex-boyfriend Chris Brown. So the Bajan beauty’s decision this year to very publicly reconcile with Brown, who served probation for assaulting her in 2009, by teaming up with him in February on a pair of remixes was widely met with shock and, in many circles, outrage. In the new issue of Elle, however, the blond cover girl tells the magazine she understands her decision is a hard pill for some to swallow. “The bottom line is that everyone thinks differently. It’s very hard for me to accept, but I get it,” she says. “People end up wasting their time on the blogs or whatever, ranting away, and that’s all right. Because tomorrow I’m still going to be the same person. I’m still going to do what I want to do.” Rather than view the violent end of her relationship with Brown as a brutal low to be endured as a victim, the superstar says the fallout from the headline-making assault gave her courage. “It gave me guns,” she says. “I was like, well, f—. [The public knows] more about me than I want them to know. It’s embarrassing. But that was my opening. That was my liberation … Now you know that, so you can say what you want about it. I don’t have anything to hide.” In the wake of her provocative “Birthday Cake” remix with Brown, the 24-year-old was rumored to have reunited with the “Deuces” singer both in and out of the studio. But Rih says in the May issue (out April 17) that she’s focused on changing her single status to “in a relationship,” stressing over the pervasive man shortage and her busy schedule. “I feel like it’s hard for everybody ! I don’t think it has anything to do with being famous. There’s just a major drought out there.” What do you think of Rihanna’s comments about Chris Brown? Tell us in the comments. Related Photos Rihanna And Chris Brown: A Photo Timeline Related Artists Rihanna Chris Brown

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Rihanna Won’t Sweat ‘Ranting’ Over Her Chris Brown Reunion

Whitney Houston ‘An Angel,’ Alicia Keys Sings At Funeral

Keys, who shared a mentor with Houston in Clive Davis, performs ‘Send Me an Angel’ during Saturday’s funeral in New Jersey. By Rebecca Thomas Alicia Keys, Clive Davis and Swizz Beatz attend Whitney Houston’s funeral Photo: Jason Merritt/ Getty Images After a stormy 14-year marriage to bad-boy singer Bobby Brown, Whitney Houston decided to end that chapter in 2006. Three years later, Houston had aligned again with mentor Clive Davis, the music industry impresario who first discovered a teenage Whitney belting out tunes in a nightclub and signed her to his Arista Records. Their final collaboration, I Look to You, was set to launch her on a the “comeback” trail. Live broadcasting by Ustream Like so many young singers, Alicia Keys — also a Davis acolyte — had long looked up to Houston. But the gifted songwriter cemented her connection to Houston, who was found dead at 48 a week ago, by writing the album’s hit single, “Million Dollar Bill.” On Saturday afternoon (February 18), Keys honored Houston in song once again, but instead of a dance-floor-filler, the “Unbreakable” singer took to the piano for an emotional farewell at New Jersey’s New Hope Baptist Church. Keys, dressed in a dark suit, first happily recalled Houston as a “beautiful human being, [who would] call you for no reason at all but to say, ‘Hi.’ ” Keys, who co-wrote “Bill” with husband Swizz Beatz, said Houston also made it a habit to nurture the female singers who were following in her superstar footsteps. “She reached back to so many people; she reached back to me, to Monica and Brandy … all these beautiful young artists, and just made us feel strong and capable and loved.” “So she’s an angel to us, and has been an angel to us,” Keys added before performing a moving “Send Me an Angel.” Keys wasn’t the only singer to pay soulful tribute to the “How Will I Know” star. Stevie Wonder, R. Kelly and gospel greats BeBe & CeCe Winans, Donnie McClurkin and Kim Burrell were among the performers at Houston’s Going-Home ceremony in Newark, where her “Bodyguard” co-star Kevin Costner delivered a heartbreaking eulogy. Stay with MTVNews.com all day Saturday for continuing coverage of Whitney Houston’s funeral services. Related Videos Live From Whitney Houston’s Funeral Whitney Houston: In Her Own Words Related Photos Friends, Family And Fans Show Love At Whitney Houston’s Funeral Related Artists Alicia Keys Whitney Houston

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Whitney Houston ‘An Angel,’ Alicia Keys Sings At Funeral

Meek Mill Bosses Up At #7 Spot In Hottest Debate

As part of Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group, Meek proves he’s a ‘Boss’ and makes his Hottest MCs in the Game debut. By Rob Markman Meek Mill Photo: Getty Images Album sales aren’t the only measure of a hot MC. Meek Mill doesn’t have a solo LP on the shelf, but the Philadelphia flame spitter has made his presence felt in a variety of other ways. Thanks to “Ima Boss,” his inescapable single with Maybach Music CEO Rick Ross, Meek has maintained a deafening buzz on the streets and impacted the game like no other MC in his class. Meek Milly meets all of the criteria to be considered one of the “Hottest MCs in the Game.” His in-your-face lyrical delivery and fresh-off-the-block style have all helped earn him the #7 spot on the “VII” edition of the list. Meek started off his year right, landing a spot on XXL ‘s 2011 Freshman cover before most rap fans could even pick him out of a lineup. But those unfamiliar with Milly quickly learned who he was when Ross signed him to Maybach Music Group . And then his single “Ima Boss” began to catch fire in the streets. From the song’s opening bars, Meek separated himself from other rap rookies by putting his gangsta on full display, daring his adversaries to come for him (“They say they gon’ rob me, see me never do sh–“). Want to join the debate? Just hit us on Twitter using the hashtag #HottestMC! HOT STREAK Albums: Self Made, Vol. 1 with Maybach Music Group Selected Mixtapes: Dreamchasers Singles: “Ima Boss” (featuring Rick Ross), “Tupac Back” (featuring Rick Ross) and “House Party” (featuring Young Chris) Street Bangers: “Tony Story” and “Ima Boss” remix (featuring T.I., Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Birdman, Swizz Beatz and DJ Khaled) Key Guest Appearances: Tyga’s “Rack City” remix, Maino’s “Cream” and Rick Ross’ “Last Breath” Meteoric Metrics: Along with MMG, Meek scored a #1 rap album with the label’s Self Made, Vol.1 compilation. Business Ventures: Hooked up with Ecko Unltd to start his Dreamchasers clothing line. Tours: Hit the road with Lil Wayne tourmate Rick Ross, playing select dates on Weezy’s I’m Still Music Tour Monumental Moment: A month after appearing on the 2011 XXL Freshman cover, Meek announced he had signed with Rick Ross’ Maybach Music Group. Forecast: Meek’s accomplishments are more impressive when you consider that he has yet to release his debut album. With an unspecified 2012 release date on the table, look for Meek Milly’s star to rise in the coming months. “For me, Meek is that real, real street music,” MTV News editor/writer Rebecca Thomas said. “As much as I’m a Drake fan, a [Big] Sean fan, all those people, I just think there are days you wake up and you need to hear ‘Ima Boss.’ If you didn’t feel ‘Tupac Back,’ if you didn’t feel ‘Ima Boss’ all last year, you’re dead.” It wasn’t just the fans that felt Meek either. Everyone from Fabolous to Jim Jones repurposed the “Ima Boss” beat for their own freestyle needs. The omnipresent single peaked at #17 on the Billboard Rap chart, but its run in the streets and the clubs made it seem so much bigger. Mill didn’t ride just the one single, though: On “Tupac Back,” he resurrected the spirit of the fallen rap legend, and with “House Party,” from his Dreamchasers mixtape, Meek has created quite the track record. Last year alone, Meek signed a deal with Ecko Clothing to launch his own Dreamchasers line, was named one of MTV Jams’ Fab 5 artists, won MTV2’s Sucker Free’s Who Got Next award and snagged a #1 rap album with his appearance on MMG’s Self Made, Vol.1 compilation. “You need dudes like Meek to hit the reset button every now and then on the game just to let them know like, ‘Yo, this comes from the streets,’ ” said Rahman Dukes, MTV News’ director of hip-hop news. “He’s just as responsible for building that MMG Empire as Ross is.” Tune in to MTV2 on Sunday, February 19, at 10 p.m. ET/PT to catch ” MTV2 Presents: Yo! MTV Raps Classic Cuts ,” then watch “Hottest MCs in the Game VII” immediately after at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT before capping the night off with ” Sucker Free Certified ” at 11 p.m. ET/PT. Related Videos ‘Hottest MCs In The Game VII’

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Meek Mill Bosses Up At #7 Spot In Hottest Debate

Katy Perry Debuts Light-Blue Locks In Vegas

Pop star shows off new ‘do at a Las Vegas charity event. By Rebecca Thomas Katy Perry at 1 Oak in Las Vegas on Saturday Photo: David Becker/WireImage Katy Perry is feeling a little less blue these days. The pop star began rocking an electric-blue bob not long after news broke that husband Russell Brand had filed for divorce late last year. But Perry, who stepped out in Las Vegas this weekend, appears to have dipped her locks in the dye once again. On Friday night, KP hit a charity event dressed in a beaded frock, her razor-cut ‘do colored in a rich turquoise. The party at the Vegas outpost of nightspot 1OAK was hosted by GiveLove.org , an organization devoted to improving public health in Haiti. But although newly separated Perry reportedly put on a good face, one source told amNewYork the “Waking Up in Vegas” singer seemed “subdued.” The pop star “pretty much sat in the same spot the whole night” as her friends danced, according to the source. While Katy has always been adventurous about her hair hues, post-split, she seems, anecdotally at least, to be hitting the bottle — of dye — with increasing frequency. Brand and Perry announced the end of their marriage on December 30, after 14 months together. The exes have been a keeping a rather low profile ever since. The comic is set to perform on March 4 at New York’s Radio City Music Hall as part of an Amnesty International benefit, while Perry may turn up next at the Grammy awards on February 12, where she’s up for two statues. She was spotted earlier this month shooting an Adidas ad , not long after wrapping two concert dates in Indonesia and the Philippines. Share your thoughts on Katy’s latest look on our Facebook page. Related Photos Katy Perry Returns To The Spotlight At 1Oak In Las Vegas Related Artists Katy Perry

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Katy Perry Debuts Light-Blue Locks In Vegas

Chris Brown Won’t Be Doing Interviews In 2012

‘If people are going to judge anything, judge him for his talent,’ manager tells Billboard of crafting strategy for the pop&B star. By Rebecca Thomas Chris Brown Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images There’ll be no chair-throwing in 2012. After a year in which Chris Brown ‘s applause-worthy feats — Billboard 200 chart-topper F.A.M.E. and a successful tour of the same name — at times threatened to be overshadowed by his penchant for (social) media gaffes, the singer’s team has announced they’re implementing a ban on interviews. Asked whether there was a specific strategy planned for Brown in the New Year, the 22-year-old’s manager, Tina Davis, told Billboard magazine it was to “not have him do interviews but to concentrate on performing and recording,” adding that the idea had been germinating for some time. Last May, Breezy made headlines after a “Good Morning America” interview , when he vented frustration over a line of questioning that zeroed in on ex Rihanna by hurling a chair through a backstage window afterward. The wave of bad press that ensued hit just as the Virginia-born crooner was making the rounds to promote his fourth studio effort, F.A.M.E. Now, as he preps the follow-up to that disc, Fortune, Davis seems determined to steer clear of any possible speed bumps. “We’re not trying to be rude, selfish or disrespectful to anyone in any way,” she told the mag. “If people are going to judge anything, judge him for his talent. He signed up to sing and entertain. Not to talk about his personal life.” Brown may be taking a cue from another superstar, Kanye West, whose self-imposed press-lockout has yielded some impressively expansive Twitter sprees . But it remains to be seen whether the singer will take to the social-networking site as an outlet in similar fashion. On New Year’s Eve, the “Look at Me Now” singer sent a heartfelt message to his fan faithful: “I LOVE Team Breezy unconditionally! Goodbye 2011. Let 2012 bring as much peace positivity and happiness as possible!” he wrote in a hopeful, if wistful, post. He hasn’t tweeted since. What do you think of C.Breezy giving the press the cold shoulder this year? Sound off on our Facebook page or in the comments below. Related Videos MTV News Extended Play: Chris Brown Related Artists Chris Brown

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Chris Brown Won’t Be Doing Interviews In 2012

Rihanna Wants Talk That Talk To ‘Change Music’

Calvin Harris collaborations on new album help the star to push the musical envelope, Def Jam exec tells MTV News. By Rebecca Thomas Rihanna Photo: Getty Images After the success of Grammy-nominated Loud, Rihanna and Def Jam’s VP of A&R, Bu Thiam, were faced with a dilemma. Namely, how to top that record on the pop star’s sixth go at a full-length album, Talk That Talk. To understand how passionate Thiam is about that first collabo with Ms. Fenty, know that when MTV News caught up with him last week, he half-jokingly threatened to “pull a Kanye” if the Bajan superstar doesn’t take home the coveted Album of the Year in February. The follow-up (Rih and Bu’s second walk down the studio aisle) to Loud needed to do no less than “change music.” “My job as an A&R is to always bring her different records that are hit records but doesn’t sound like anything she’s done in the past,” Thiam explained. The stylish VP (and brother of hip-hop star Akon) was sporting some extra scruff and a full head of hair thanks to coming out on the losing end of a bet with Young Jeezy, whose highly anticipated TM 103 Thiam also helped steer to its December 20 drop date. We were eager to hear about how Rih’s team strategized early on for her latest LP. The exec recalled the initial meeting he and Rihanna had when Talk That Talk was still just chatter. “Her whole thing is, ‘How can we be different? How can we change music? How can we go from having a great album like Loud and still come with a better album and keep pushing and keep hitting the bar?’ The good thing about Rihanna,” he said, “is that she doesn’t want to be in the same realm as anybody else. She wants to be in a zone where when you think of Rihanna, you think of new, you think of different.” “Different” (Thiam uses the word like a mantra) meant bringing EDM wunderkind Calvin Harris into the fold. The Scotsman happens to share a management home with Rihanna in Roc Nation , where Jay Brown made the introductions. Songwriter/producer Harris not only injected Talk That Talk with a pair of hypnotic dance numbers, “Where Have You Been” and “We Found Love,” but his latter contribution gave Rihanna the 11th #1 single of her career. Still, even as “We Found Love” tops Billboard ‘s Hot 100 for the fifth consecutive week, Thiam said it wasn’t a sure shot: a melancholy track that essentially consists of a hook looping around a single verse. “With the Calvin Harris record, it’s a different-sounding pop record … it’s not the usual dance-floor 808,” he conceded. The growing predominance of DJ culture in pop music may have helped usher Harris to the project, but the 23-year-old singer’s desire to strike her own chord was the ultimate green light. “It’s a different sound and that’s what she wanted to go with,” Bu added. “She wanted to change music. I have to salute her for taking a chance ’cause most artists wouldn’t have done that.” What’s your favorite Talk That Talk track? Tell us in the comments! Related Artists Rihanna

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Rihanna Wants Talk That Talk To ‘Change Music’

‘Dancing With The Stars’: J.R. Martinez Brings The Tears

Ricki Lake nabs the season’s highest score so far with emotional rumba. By Kelley L. Carter Karina Smirnoff and J.R. Martinez Photo: ABC Networks Monday night’s “Dancing With the Stars” evoked emotion from most of the contestants. The third round of performances challenged the celebrities to dance to a song of their choosing that reflected the most memorable year in their lives. There were many moist eyes in the audience as people heard stories of tragedy and heartbreak that were close to the hearts of this year’s cast. Former talk-show host Ricki Lake scored the night’s highest scores, once again impressing the judges with her technique and execution. Here’s how everyone fared: Rob Kardashian and Cheryl Burke The reality star danced the foxtrot to Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me to the Moon” in memory of his father, O.J. Simpson attorney Robert Kardashian Sr., and the judges found it to be very emotional. Said head judge Len Goodman: “You just put the dash into Kardashian, I’m telling you! Posture was good. Footwork was good. I hope your dad is looking down and saying, ‘Rob, you did good,’ because you did.” 24/30 Chynna Phillips and Tony Dovolani Phillips picked the moment in her life when she was sobering up and danced to “Hold On,” a song she sang with her group Wilson Phillips that she says is therapeutic for her. In her rehearsal, she cried and had a few breakdowns but said she hoped people would see in her rumba routine (and the song’s message, of course) that there was always a way out. “I knew you could do it. You are a smoldering siren. Seductive, intriguing, stylish, always so expressive. You belong in a museum to admire, my dear,” said judge Bruno Tonioli. They scored the first pair of 9’s of the season. 26/30 Chaz Bono and Lacey Schwimmer Bono was charged with dancing the rumba, and he picked a song that his dad, Sonny Bono, wrote, called “Laugh With Me.” Bono, who is the competition’s first transgender contestant, said this was his best year ever and the song meant a lot and is about being a different kind of man. The judges didn’t think Bono kept focus during the dance but praised his willingness to come back week after week in spite of being heavily criticized for his dancing skills. “Every time I watch you get out on this dance floor, I’m so impressed by your real courage,” Carrie Ann Inaba offered. “Because what you do just by showing up here takes incredible amounts of courage. I’m always touched by that. Tonight you looked really distracted. You seemed not quite focused into the dance. I felt like you didn’t dance enough in this rumba. It’s breaking my heart to say this, because I find you to be such an inspiration.” 18/30 Kristin Cavallari and Mark Ballas Not every story was forlorn. The former MTV reality-TV star picked Beyonc

Kelly Rowland ‘Excited’ To Be Beyonce Baby’s ‘Auntie’

Before her F.A.M.E. Tour stop in NYC, Kelly tells MTV News she saw B and ‘got a chance to rub her tummy.’ By Rebecca Thomas Kelly Rowland and Beyonce Photo: Kevin Mazur/ WireImage Kelly Rowland is thrilled that her sister in life and music, Beyonc

Chris Brown Fan: Keeping Rolex ‘Didn’t Cross My Mind’

‘I was afraid it was gonna get broken,’ VMA hero Alisha Borton tells MTV News of rescuing singer’s pricey watch. By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Rebecca Thomas Chris Brown tosses his Rolex into the crowd during his performance at the 2011 VMAs Photo: MTV When Chris Brown ‘s Rolex went missing during his high-flying VMA performance last month, it was a young lady in the audience who found the watch and promptly returned it to the pop star. Alisha Borton, a 24-year-old Ohio native, got tickets to the 2011 VMAs through a casting service while she was in California visiting a friend. Little did Alisha know that just by attending the show — and finding Brown’s very expensive Rollie — she would become the unofficial leader of Team Breezy. “I was actually on the stage right behind where the trampoline was,” Borton recalled to MTV News on Wednesday. “You can see me right behind the trampoline … on TV [and] you can see where he takes off his watch and throws it. I guess he did it on purpose. There’s the watch flying in the air, I just picked it up and put it on my wrist. I was afraid it was gonna get broken.” After putting on the watch for safekeeping, the dental hygiene student kept her eye out for the singer. “Whenever he came off the stage, I kind of went towards him but he didn’t see me at all,” she explained. “Then we were walking back to where we were [standing onstage]. Then there was a lady … the lady came up to me [and said], ‘I need that watch,’ and she took it.” The star’s watch is worth an estimated $22,000, and Alisha joked, “I thought it was expensive, I didn’t think it was that expensive. I had it on my wrist waiting for somebody to take it. That’s crazy,” she added about the price of the accessory. “That’s like taking a car and trying to sell it. It didn’t cross my mind that I could keep it.” For helping to make sure that watch got back in one piece, Breezy rewarded Borton with concert tickets and a special VIP meet-and-greet with him at his September 21 show in Ohio. “It’s just been so crazy. I haven’t gotten to process it yet. My friends are probably tired of me talking about it,” she laughed. Related Videos VMA 2011: Performances Related Artists Chris Brown

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Chris Brown Fan: Keeping Rolex ‘Didn’t Cross My Mind’