Elizabeth Hurley is set to walk down the aisle again. The gorgeous actress, who can be seen every Monday night these days on Gossip Girl , is engaged to Australia Shane Warne, who she started seeing soon after splitting from husband Arun Nayar in December. “Thanks for all your congratulations,” Hurley Tweeted this afternoon, confirming a rumor first published by The Daily Mirror . Warne popped the most important question of all on Friday, sources tell E! News, following a dinner at Old Course Hotel in St. Andrews, Scotland. As for the rock? “It’s the most massive thing imaginable,” an insider says . “It’s huge, a cushion-cut sapphire with two triangular diamonds on the shoulders, set in white gold or platinum.” [Photo: WENN.com]
Joan Jett, Heart, the Cure and the Spinners also among nominees. By Gil Kaufman Guns N’ Roses’ Axl Rose Photo: Jeff Kravitz/ FilmMagic.com One defined rock in the 1980s and early 1990s, and the other’s biggest hit name-calls the genre. Those might be some reasons why Guns N’ Roses and Joan Jett are among the leading nominees for this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class of 2012. In addition to the Axl Rose-led group and the woman who made “I Love Rock ‘n Roll” a rallying cry, other first-time nominees who could take the podium at the April 14, 2012, induction ceremony at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio, include legendary mope rockers the Cure, sister act Heart, hip-hop icons Eric B. & Rakim, classic vocal group the Spinners, blues giant Freddie King, soul act Rufus with Chaka Khan and 1960s rockers the Small Faces/Faces. A number of previous nominees are back again for another shot at the Hall, including the Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, War, Donovan and Laura Nyro. Acts become eligible for the Hall 25 years after the release of their first single or album, so this year’s crop all started releasing music in or before the year 1986. Jett is one of the most iconic women in rock, from her teenage jailbait tour in the all-girl group the Runaways to her tough-as-nails leather-clad days as a solo star and bandleader of the Blackhearts. With her signature low-slung guitar, spiky black hair and Elvis sneer, Jett broke out as a solo star in the early 1980s with a string of fist-pumping hits (many of which were covers of old-school rock tunes) including “I Love Rock ‘n Roll,” “Crimson and Clover,” “I Hate Myself for Loving You,” “Do You Wanna Touch Me” and “Bad Reputation.” Led by the mercurial Rose, GN’R re-invented hard rock with 1987’s Appetite for Destruction, which featured such indelible glam-punk hits as “Welcome to the Jungle,” “Paradise City,” “Sweet Child o’ Mine” and “It’s So Easy.” The band splintered a decade later amid a clash of egos, disagreement over musical direction and drug issues that resulted in Rose soldiering on alone with a parade of replacement sidemen. New York’s Eric B. & Rakim are considered one of the greatest hip-hop duos of all time, rising to prominence on 1986’s Paid in Full with a sound that mixed scratching and samples of old-school R&B with B.’s hard-hitting rhymes on tunes such as “Eric B. Is President,” “I Know You Got Soul,” the title track and “Move the Crowd.” Formed in 1976, British band the Cure have become shorthand for a certain kind of poppily depressive goth rock sound. Fronted by fright-wig-and-red-lipstick-wearing Robert Smith, the Cure are enduring college rock favorites thanks to such gloomily frothy tunes as “Friday I’m in Love,” “Just Like Heaven,” “Close to Me” and “Why Can’t I Be You?” Sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson formed Heart in 1973 in Seattle, Washington, mixing their love of hard rock and folk music on such mid-1970s radio staples as “Crazy on You,” “Magic Man” and “Barracuda.” R&B vocal group the Spinners were birthed on the fertile Detroit soul scene in 1961, hitting the charts multiple times with songs including “It’s a Shame,” “I’ll Be Around,” “Could It Be I’m Falling in Love” and “Games People Play.” Chicago blues band Rufus struck gold with lead singer Chaka Khan, who helped them score hits with “Tell Me Something Good,” “Sweet Thing” and “Ain’t Nobody.” Late Texas bluesman King (known as “The Texas Cannonball”) was often referred to as one of the “three kings” of electric blues guitar, along with Albert King and B.B. King. He was best known for the songs “Have You Ever Loved a Woman” and “Hide Away” and for being one of the first blues players to have an integrated backing band. Like the Who, English mod rockers the Small Faces were heavily influenced by American R&B, which they explored on signature songs “Itchycoo Park,” “Lazy Sunday” and “All or Nothing.” In their second phase as the Faces, members included future Rolling Stones rhythm guitarist Ronnie Wood and singer Rod Stewart. Dissension has become one of the reliable side stories of the Rock Hall ceremonies. While such notoriously splintered acts as Led Zeppelin and the Talking Heads managed to set aside differences for one night (Blondie, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Van Halen not so much), the biggest question this year is whether sole remaining Guns member Rose will make nice with his estranged former bandmates should the group make it into the Hall of Fame. Related Artists Guns N’ Roses Joan Jett
Did Lil Wayne fall off the wagon and relapse? As we previously reported, according to the terms of his probation , Lil Wayne cannot consume alcohol or drugs for three years. However, now comes word that Weezy was allegedly too intoxicated to “perform” for a groupie! The woman alleges that Wayne flew her to his Miami home for a romantic weekend but passed out in his red pajamas after drinking too much lean. She snapped photos of the rock star laid out on the couch! Click here to see them! RELATED: Jim Jones Disses Lil Wayne For Wearing Jeggings & Claiming Blood! Lil Wayne Bans Booze On Tour Lil Wayne Gets Probation In AZ Case; Must Avoid Liquor, Drugs Did Lil Wayne REALLY Sell A Milli? 16 Year Old Canadian Girl Clarifies “Sleeping With Lil Wayne” [VIDEO] Rocko Brings Out Jeezy & Jeezy Brings Out Lil Wayne [VIDEO & PHOTOS] VIDEO: What Set Is Lil Wayne Claiming?
Rihanna turned Rio out last night while performing at the Rock In Rio festival in Brazil. The Bajan beauty jammed out in red lipstick and red black and white stripes. Rihanna’s Givenchy Ankle Wrap Caged Booties Are Hot! Rihanna’s “We Found Love” [NEW MUSIC] Check out the photos below:
Mindless Behavior released their new album #1 Girl Tuesday and we hear the boys were mobbed at their New York appearances… Fire Marshalls literally shut down their signing at an NYC FYE. West Coast fans may have better luck tho cuz the guys have an appearance out there Thursday. Here are the details: WHAT: Mindless Behavior In-Store Signing & PERFORMANCE! WHEN: Thursday, September 22 7:00 PM WHERE: HARD ROCK CAFÉ / UNIVERSAL CITYWALK STAGE 100 Universal City Plaza, CA 91602 If you’re like us, and don’t know much about the guys, this video should help clue you in: So what do you think? Thumbs up… or down? We can’t quite put our finger on it, but there is something about those guys that’s sooooooooooo — familiar. Do you know what we mean?
‘We walk away with a great sense of gratitude,’ band says Wednesday, bringing to close a 30-year career. By James Montgomery R.E.M. Photo: Anton Corbijn After 30 years, 15 studio albums, dozens of iconic music videos and boundary-pushing tours (and just four core members) — not to mention a sphere of influence that extends from the nascent days of college radio to the buzzy blogosphere of today — R.E.M. are calling it quits. The band made the announcement Wednesday (September 21) on their website , posting a message that, like most things they did, was almost unyieldingly humble: “To our Fans and Friends: As R.E.M., and as lifelong friends and co-conspirators, we have decided to call it a day as a band,” their statement reads. “We walk away with a great sense of gratitude, of finality, and of astonishment at all we have accomplished. To anyone who ever felt touched by our music, our deepest thanks for listening.” The band — frontman Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry (a lineup that wouldn’t change for some 17 years) — formed in the fertile music scene surrounding Athens, Georgia, in 1980, and after spending their early days touring the Southern states, they found their first modicum of fame with 1981’s “Radio Free Europe,” which garnered them critical acclaim and a contract with indie label I.R.S. Records. In 1982, they released their debut EP, Chronic Town, quickly followed by their first full-length, 1983’s Murmur, which sold modestly but earned R.E.M. even more praise — particularly Buck’s jangly guitar tones and Stipe’s cryptic lyrics. With each subsequent release — ’84’s Reckoning, ’85’s Fables of the Reconstruction, — R.E.M.’s fanbase only grew, and they quickly became pillars of the burgeoning “college rock” scene. They’d also continue to flirt with mainstream audiences, and by the time they released the overtly political Document in 1987, they finally consummated that relationship. Spurred by radio hit “The One I Love,” it became the first R.E.M. album to go platinum. They signed with Warner Bros. soon after and finally achieved massive success with 1991’s Out of Time, a hugely influential album that featured the breakout hit (and accompanying eye-catching video) “Losing My Religion.” It earned R.E.M. seven Grammy nominations, sold more than 12 million copies worldwide and has since become a tentpole of the alt-rock heyday of the 1990s. It also made them one of the hugest rock bands on the planet. Undaunted, they followed the success of Time with the equally huge Automatic for the People (featuring hits “Everybody Hurts,” “Drive” and “Man on the Moon”) and the snarling Monster. But on tour for the latter, drummer Berry suffered an onstage aneurysm and Stipe underwent emergency surgery to repair a hernia. Still, they pressed on, re-signing with Warners (for a reported $80 million) and releasing the noticeably darker New Adventures in Hi-Fi, which didn’t meet expectations from critics or fans and marked the end of their string of huge commercial successes. Berry left the band in 1997, but the remaining members of R.E.M. pressed on as a three-piece (with a variety of drummers filling in behind the kit), releasing a string of albums —′ ’98’s Up, ’01’s Reveal, ’04’s Around the Sun — that garnered critical acclaim but sold poorly in the U.S. (though it should be noted that worldwide, the band remained a huge commercial force). They wrote the instrumental score to the Andy Kaufman biopic “Man on the Moon” and continued to record, releasing their final album, Collapse Into Now, just this year. Of course, though their commercial power faded during their later years, R.E.M. remained hugely influential throughout their entire career, thanks to their music, their activism and their unflappable, DIY ethos. They championed causes like environmentalism, voter registration, animal rights and handgun control, and everyone from Sonic Youth and the Replacements to Pavement, Radiohead and Nirvana cited them as huge inspirations. And, in 2007, when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame , it was Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder who gave their keynote speech and brought it all back to the beginning, joking that he’d listened to Murmur “1,260 times … even though you can’t understand a f—ing thing [Stipe] is saying.” Share your favorite R.E.M. memories in the comments below. Related Artists R.E.M.
Critics accuse director Cameron Crowe over fawning over the band, but fans probably won’t mind. By Eric Ditzian Eddie Vedder in “Pearl Jam Twenty” Photo: Vinyl Films In a neat bit of pop-culture convergence, the 20th-anniversary commemoration of Nirvana’s Nevermind (which MTV News has been feting all week long) is coinciding with another grunge-centric, two-decade celebration: Cameron Crowe’s documentary about the founding and globe-spanning success of Pearl Jam . “When I saw the early … edits of it, I thought it was very interesting and kind of exciting and, like I said, it runs the gamut of all those emotions,” guitarist Mike McCready told us in May. “And it actually put in some sort of musical perspective the past 20 years, like, ‘Oh yeah, we did do that, we did do this’: the Ticketmaster thing, there was Roskilde, there were all these issues, and there were these great highs and interesting beginnings. The story it tells is: Why did it work, and why does it still? It made more sense when I saw the movie.” After debuting at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month, “Pearl Jam Twenty” is set for a one-night-only premiere at theaters across the country Tuesday (September 20). The early word from critics is that while the doc gives fans unique access to the band, especially in early footage hauled out from the achieves, it suffers from director Cameron Crowe’s hagiographic treatment of his subject. But that might just be exactly what PJ devotees are looking for. The Comparison “Cameron Crowe’s feature doc … is among his most effective and deeply felt work. … Every rock act possesses a mysterious alchemy that becomes a kind of mythology; as a portrait of one of the biggest bands in the world, ‘Pearl Jam Twenty’ doesn’t so much capture that alchemy as describe it. But it does so with passion, and even the unconverted will find a convincing case for the band’s longevity, popularity and influence.” — Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter The Focus “Crowe, who does a remarkable job of collecting archival footage from the band’s earliest days (and even before that) focuses heavily on [the band’s early days]. He narrates the beginning (before getting almost totally out of the way), setting the stage for the late ’80s and early ’90s, when Seattle was the rock music capital of the world. Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell talks about how there was a wealth of bands, but unlike in New York or Los Angeles, the competition tended to be more friendly than cut throat. Even later, when the twin towers of the Seattle scene — Pearl Jam and Nirvana — seemed ready to face off after Kurt Cobain slagged Pearl Jam’s music for being too mainstream, they resolved their differences before Cobain died.” — Melinda Newman, HitFix The Fandom “The cinematic equivalent of a concert T-shirt, XXL biodocu ‘Pearl Jam Twenty’ gives another awesome souvenir to die-hard fans of the chart-topping Seattle scenesters-turned-cult faves while leaving others to wish there was a thesis in former rock-journo Cameron Crowe’s two-hour puff piece. Finding a pulse only in the band’s late-reel performance of ‘Alive,’ a lusty passage that would’ve begun a pic intent on making a case for the group’s greatness, ‘Twenty’ simply counts the years from 1991 via sludgy backstage and onstage footage whose rarity can’t forgive its inclusion. Crowe’s critic mentor, the late Lester Bangs, would cringe.” — Rob Nelson, Variety The Frontman “Before Vedder was vaguely mystical and a little inscrutable, he was boyish, smiley and uninhibited. Vedder doesn’t come through any clearer after ‘Pearl Jam Twenty,’ but the band’s journey remains a thoroughly entertaining one. Any enterprise like this is inherently self-congratulatory, but the film is best considered from Crowe’s perspective: that of a fan.” — Jake Coyle, The Associated Press The Final Word “[It] suffers from being an all-out fawnapalooza. Crowe, a former Rolling Stone reporter, wastes unprecedented access to one of modern rock’s most private, compelling and enigmatic acts to create little more than a promotional video for Pearl Jam’s non-stop tours. There’s plenty to elicit fist pumps from steadfast fans, largely because of rare archival footage. (A silly slow dance between security guard-turned-rocker Eddie Vedder and Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain is lump-in-the-throat poignant). Yet Crowe glosses over too many of Pearl Jam’s darkest days — a drummer’s mysterious firing, addiction battles, nine fans dying at a show — to keep non-Jammers from getting bored.” — Joseph Rose, The Oregonian For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com . Related Artists Pearl Jam
Singer tells MTV News her new album is about her growth as a person and an artist. By Jocelyn Vena Demi Lovato Photo: MTV News Demi Lovato proudly declares herself Unbroken on her just-released album, saying the record, especially lead single “Skyscraper,” is reflective of her need to be “honest about my journey” since leaving treatment earlier this year and heading back into the spotlight. Since Lovato announced the album’s release, the headlines have certainly shifted from the personal back to the professional as she launches this next major step in her career. The album is a mix of empowering ballads and flirty party tracks, a combination Lovato hopes will help her ease into that next phase. “I think it’s grown-up, but it’s not too grown-up,” Lovato told MTV News. “It’s not tasteless. It’s growing up with my fans. It’s [like] I’m not a kid anymore, but I’m also not a full-grown woman either. So I’m in that in-between stage, trying to figure out where that is. So I’m figuring it out, just like my fans are.” In the past, Lovato’s music touched more on rock than R&B. Thanks to production and writing credits from A-listers like Timbaland, Missy Elliott , Rock Mafia, Ryan Tedder and Toby Gad, Lovato is trying out a much more pop&B flavor that plays up her big voice, a shift she’s excited for her fans to hear. “This album is definitely more pop,” she said. “It’s definitely more R&B. It’s not so pop/rock anymore. I grew up listening to R&B, [and] I guess my rock thing was kind of like a phase.” This change in genre isn’t the end for Lovato’s evolution as an artist by any means. “I like to experiment with my music,” she said. “Someday, I joke around, but I’m actually pretty serious about coming out with a country album. I want to do everything. I love music and I love all types of music, and I love where this album went.” What do you think about Demi’s new album? Let us know in the comments! Related Photos The Evolution Of: Demi Lovato Related Artists Demi Lovato
Mobb Deep, Slaughterhouse, Erykah Badu and more revisit classic material for a day of hip-hop celebration on New York stop. By Rob Markman Nas at Rock The Bells Photo: MTV News NEW YORK — Thousands of rap fans gathered in hip-hop’s birth city for a daylong celebration of the genre’s classics. Nas , Lauryn Hill , Erykah Badu and Wu-Tang Clan’s Raekwon and Ghostface Killah all performed at the Rock the Bells 2011 festival on Governor’s Island in New York City on Saturday (September 3). The musical tour was comprised of four stages, including the main Rock the Bells stage, the Wu-inspired 36 Chambers stage and the underground-themed Paid Dues stage. More than 20 acts, including Mobb Deep, Slaughterhouse, Black Moon, Big K.R.I.T., the Immortal Technique and GZA, performed, with some dedicating their sets to their own classic albums; others devoted their shows to just a gang of fan-favorites. The festivities kicked off at approximately 2 p.m. ET, and started off slow. Wu-Tang Clan’s GZA fumbled through his 1995 sophomore album, Liquid Swords, as concertgoers ping-ponged back and forth between stages. Cypress Hill ran through selections from their Black Sunday LP. Marijuana anthems like “I Wanna Get High” and “Hits From the Bong” set the tone for a smoke-filled set that mixed equal parts rap, rock and Latin soul. Mobb Deep didn’t disappoint. Although they were advertised to perform only their 1995 breakout album, The Infamous, the Queens, New York, duo did so much more. In addition to tracks like “Shook Ones Pt. II,” “Survival of the Fittest” and “Give Up the Goods,” the Mobb dove into their catalog of street bangers, including “G.O.D. Pt. III” and “Quiet Storm,” as well. MTV Jams’ 2011 Fab 5 inductee Big K.R.I.T. found his set overlapping with that of the Mobb’s Havoc and Prodigy, but he was still able to draw a sizable crowd on the Paid Dues stage. The gatherers bounced energetically to Southern-fried selections like “Glass House” and “Country Sh–,” proving that it wasn’t just a day for rap veterans. After drawing fan criticism about her previous live shows, Lauryn Hill promised at the beginning of her set to perform the songs from her The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill album as they were recorded. Unfortunately, the plan was thrown out the window pretty quickly as she rapped to a ridiculously sped-up version of “Lost Ones.” In fact, many of Ms. Hill’s classics were performed quite differently from how fans may have remembered. Still, she did thrill audiences with almost-flawless renditions of “Doo Wop (That Thing)” and “To Zion.” There was also a Fugees reunion of sorts when Pras joined his former partner to rock “Ready or Not,” but the warring Wyclef was nowhere to be found. Before Hill could finish her set, Raekwon and Ghostface took to the 36 Chambers stage on the other side of the field. They opened with “Striving for Perfection,” the opening skit from Rae’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx … , and then tore into “Incarcerated Scarfaces,” “Criminology” and “Ice Cream.” It was a ’90s-era dream come true, but unfortunately hip-hop’s faithful were forced to choose, because halfway through Rae and Ghost’s set, the night’s headliner Nas, started his show on the main stage. At around 10:30 p.m., the crowd gathered at Nas’ stage, which was decorated with props made to mirror his native Queensbridge, New York, housing project. There was a backdrop with buildings, a real lamppost, project benches and a gate that stood as the entrance. It was 17 years ago that Nasir Jones dropped his highly regarded debut, Illmatic, and on Saturday night he maneuvered through the 10-track masterpiece starting with its opener, “Genesis.” With DJ Premier backing him, Nas rapped the words to “N.Y. State of Mind” and “It Ain’t Hard to Tell” with a ferocity that recalled the young MC in 1994. Nas did, at times, depart from the Illmatic theme, treating his day-one fans to something special. First, he brought out MC Serch to perform their 1992 underground banger “Back to the Grill.” Next up, he invited Joe Fatal, Akinyele and Large Professor to do “Live at the Barbeque,” the 1991 song that gave Nas his rap debut. From there, it was a full-on party as the Braveheart MC did his new single “Nasty,” invited Lauryn back out for their collabo “If I Ruled the World” and closed with the hyped-up “Made Ya Look.” Before he left closed out the night, Nas shouted, “I love you New York City,” and it was apparent that NYC loves him back. Did you catch the Rock the Bells tour this year? Tell us your thoughts! Related Artists Nas Wu-Tang Clan Raekwon The Fugees Lauryn Hill
