Beyond her new album, singer tells MTV News she might act next year. By Jocelyn Vena Photo: MTV News The new year might still be a few months off, but the always-ambitious Taylor Swift is already cooking up some big projects for 2012. With her new album , full of “sad” songs, already in the planning stages, Swift excitedly dished that it’s not the only big thing she has up her sleeve for next year. Her arena-filling, celeb-frequented Speak Now Tour continues chugging along through the early part of 2012, and her perfume, Wonderstruck , is now out on the market, giving fans the chance to smell like the pop star. But, Swift is also making time for some other projects she thinks will have her fans excited. The singer told MTV News she’s working on “some surprise projects that may or may not happen, and possibly some acting.” “I’ve just been so excited about what’s gonna happen in the next year,” she said. “I’m also really excited about [the next album]. I’ve been writing all the time. I’ve been writing so much for the new record. I can’t believe I’m saying that already: It comes out in a year, but I’m already excited about it.” Before we officially ring in the new year, Swift shared that she’s looking forward to the tail end of 2011, with the holidays and her 22nd birthday still to celebrate. “I’m excited about the holidays,” she said. “I love Christmas. I love the whole buildup to Christmas and the way that everything is exciting and wintergreen-ish and Christmas tree-ish.” Share your thoughts about Taylor Swift’s 2012 plans in the comments! Related Artists Taylor Swift
The Duchess is a woman of her word. Visiting London’s Royal Marsden Hospital last month, Kate Middleton met with several young cancer patients, one of whom was 9-year-old Fabian Bate. During their chat, he informed Kate that his family kept a blog, and Middleton vowed to pay it a visit and leave a message. She did, and then some. Prince William’s wife sent out a personalized and heartwarming letter to Fabian, who was diagnosed with leukemia in 2006, which he in turn posted online. “Despite the enormously demanding course of treatment, I was so touched by your strength of character, and delighted to hear the news that one of your big sisters will be able to donate bone marrow to you later this year,” she wrote. “I will keep my fingers crossed that your health goes from strength to strength over the months ahead,” continued Kate. “This must be a troubling time for you, your parents and your sisters, but I know I left The Royal Marsden assured by how incredibly talented, kind and clever the team at the hospital are.” “Combined with your belief and positive energy, you couldn’t be in better hands.” She ended the letter as such: “Keep up the good work with the blog and in the meantime I will keep you and your family in my thoughts and prayers.” The touching note was signed, simply, “Catherine.” It’s wonderful to know that Kate listens and appears to be so engaged in these public outings and that it’s not simply for the sake of positive PR. Needless to say, Fabian and his family agree. “It was a very personal letter,” his father Darrell told the Evening Standard . “It certainly didn’t look like the standard templates these official letters often use. It contained very specific information she must have remembered.” “We were very touched as she must do a lot of this stuff and to remember Fabian is very moving.” Kate Middleton has been named a patron of the Prince William and Prince Harry Foundation, but has not yet decided which causes to make the focus of her charity work. Whichever ones she does choose will be very lucky, indeed.
Protesters start to clean Zuccotti Park on Thursday in hopes of avoiding a city eviction. By James Dinh, with additional reporting by Steven Roberts Tom Morello Photo: MTV News In hopes of avoiding a city eviction from Zuccotti Park, protesters involved in the Occupy Wall Street movement began voluntary cleanup efforts Thursday afternoon (October 13). It’s an attempt urged by park occupiers themselves after Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Wednesday that protesters would have to temporarily evacuate the grounds by 7 a.m. Friday for a four-weeks-overdue mandatory cleanup. Because some viewed the city order as a means to end the protest, the Liberty Park occupiers have started to remove debris and scrub the sidewalks. MTV News caught up with Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello , who appeared at the protest Thursday and offered his support for the Occupy Wall Street movement. “Every successful, progressive and radical movement needs a soundtrack and I’m just helping to provide,” he told us. Morello was on hand to play a number of songs with his harmonica and guitar, including cuts from his World Wide Rebel Songs LP. “I played at Occupy L.A. last Saturday and Occupy Wall Street today now, and it’s a movement now that’s in 13,000 cities across the country, and it’s growing every day,” he told MTV News. “I think the sky’s the limit. There’s no telling what this is going to be, and [if] you’re watching now in your town, you can begin occupying your town today.” Morello is just one of a string of celebrity supports who have showed up to the now-dubbed Liberty Park, including Kanye West and Russell Simmons . If the city and the park’s owners, Brookfield Properties, still proceed with the protesters’ eviction and cleanup process, it will cause a bit of a dent in the protest. According to The New York Times, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly told reporters Thursday afternoon that the protesters will not be allowed to take their sleeping and camping gear back into the park after the cleanup. Zuccotti Park has had a ban on sleeping bags for weeks now as part of the grounds’ rules, but has yet to enforce the guidelines. Colin Harris-Mctigue, a volunteer organizer and coordinator of the outreach program for Occupy Wall Street, also spoke to MTV News recently about how the community formed. “The way [the outreach program] started was one day at 3 o’clock, we stood up and said, ‘Does anyone want to join an outreach committee?’ And that was the foundation. It was two people. And from there, we now have over 2,000 in our data list,” Harris-Mctigue explained. Share your thoughts on the ongoing Wall Street protests in the comments below. Related Videos Inside Occupy Wall Street Related Artists Tom Morello
Rage Against the Machine guitarist has already dropped in on the Los Angeles Occupy protest. By Gil Kaufman Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello Photo: Ethan Miller/ Getty Images Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello has protest in his blood. As part of the legendary L.A. politico-stompers and in the guise of his folk-style rebel alter ego, the Nightwatchman, he’s stood up for dozens of righteous causes of the years. So it should come as no surprise that the Nightwatchman will be paying a visit to the Occupy Wall Street gang in New York’s Liberty Plaza/ Zuccotti Park on Thursday (October 13). Morello, who has long advocated for union rights and raged against corporate greed and financial malfeasance, announced that he will play an acoustic set at noon in the park in an effort to lend his support to the hordes who’ve been occupying the Manhattan real estate for more than three weeks in their bid to speak out against economic inequality in the nation. “The Nightwatchman will Occupy Wall Street tomorrow at noon, adding one more voice to the growing chorus of millions demanding economic justice at home and around the globe,” Morello told Rolling Stone magazine on Wednesday. “And I’ll be playing some songs. Likely in the rain.” Can’t get to New York City? Take our guided tour of the Occupy Wall Street headquarters. Morello, who previously unplugged to perform a set at the Occupy L.A. protest, will join a recent string of musicians who’ve made their way down to the park to express their solidarity with the Occupy forces. Rapper Talib Kweli performed an impromptu set last week that included his new song, “Distractions,” as did reclusive Neutral Milk Hotel singer Jeff Magnum. And though he didn’t perform, Kanye West strolled down to check out the action on Monday along with Def Jam Records founder Russell Simmons. Bun B spoke to MTV News this week about his visit to Occupy Houston . Share your thoughts on the Occupy Wall Street movement in our comments section. Related Videos Inside Occupy Wall Street Related Artists Tom Morello
‘I think it’s important that Bernard Freeman be here as a citizen of the world,’ the Trill O.G. tells MTV News of lending support. By Maurice Bobb Bun B Photo: MTV News HOUSTON — Bun B assumed his role as the unofficial Mayor of Houston when he joined Occupy Houston at City Hall on Tuesday. The protest is an offshoot of the Occupy Wall Street movement that began about a month ago in New York. And as rap fans know, hip-hop has a long tradition of serving as an outlet for activism. So, like Talib Kweli and Kanye West did in NYC’s Zuccotti Park , the legendary Professor of Trill turned up in his home city to show support for the demonstrators. MTV News caught up with Bun B at the protest and he opened up about why he decided to come through. “I think it’s important that Bernard Freeman be here as a citizen of the world,” he told us, mentioning his birth name. “And I think it’s important that Bun B be here as a person of influence who has a voice that can bring attention to a cause. It’s very important that someone from the hip-hop community is out here supporting Occupy Houston , simply because of the fact of how hip-hop is represented in the world,” he added. The Trill O.G. M.C. said it was also important to show that rappers are about more than their money. “I think a lot of people look at us as being these flashy, fly types of people who are just concerned with spending money, but that’s not all of us,” he said. “That’s not what hip-hop is here to do. We have individuals that represent that, and I represented that from time to time, but that doesn’t make me who I am. I understand how real this world is and how real things can get and that’s what Occupy Houston is about. It’s not about what we do on the clock — it’s about being off the clock and supporting people who can’t even get on the clock right now.” While Houston is a long way from Wall Street, the city knows corporate corruption all too well. The Enron debacle , for example, is still a sore spot with many Houstonians. “The effects of the Enron collapse in Houston are still felt today,” Bun said. “Not everyone who had strong jobs in that sector were able to find replacements for those jobs. A lot of people had to take positions in companies to do things that they didn’t necessarily train for in order to support their families and that’s kinda what we’re standing for at Occupy Houston. “The misconception about Occupy Houston is that it’s a bunch of jobless people who don’t wanna work and just want the rich to give them their money. Well, that’s not true. The majority of these people are educated — not just high school, but they’re college graduates, they have degrees, they’ve done what it takes to get into the workforce. Unfortunately, corporate America is not affording enough opportunities for people to go out get jobs and support their families. Instead of hiring more people, they’re firing more people just to keep the numbers up. A company that makes $3 billion a year, it’s still gonna function if they only make $2.8 billion a year in order to keep a couple people employed. Bun explained that protesters’ frustration was due in large part to feeling underrepresented at the government level, where decisions affecting their lives are being made. “So that’s what we’re here fighting against, you know, corporate irresponsibility,” he continued. “The fact that we in Houston and America — even though we’re the people that vote, we’re the people that pay our taxes — we don’t have the voice that we should have in our local state and federal governments, and that’s another stance that we’re taking.” On Tuesday, demonstrators looked like most of those at Occupy rallies across the nation, brandishing homemade placards and signs with varying messages such as, “I am the 99 percent” and “Heal America, Tax Wall Street.” Bun rolled up his sleeves and pitched in with assigning posters and announcing general assembly guidelines , which included the proper way to agree (both hands held aloft), block proposals (both arms crossed like an X) and to ask a question (one fist in the air). Police were on hand, but no arrests were made on Tuesday. “Anybody that wants to understand clearly what the Occupy movement here in Houston, across the country, as well as the world, a little better can go to any of the Occupy sites and find all the real information, not the misinformation,” Bun said. Share your thoughts on the ongoing Wall Street protests in the comments below. Related Videos Inside Occupy Wall Street Related Artists Bun B
Pop siren ‘unlocked’ sultry cover images for standard and deluxe versions of November 21 LP via Facebook. By James Dinh Rihanna (file) Photo: Tabatha Fireman/ WireImage Rihanna isn’t afraid to push the envelope. Case in point: The pop star’s just-released artwork for her upcoming album Talk That Talk. On Tuesday afternoon (October 11), the singer unveiled two provocative shots for the standard and deluxe versions of the November 21 LP via her latest fan mission on Facebook . In the image for the standard edition, Esquire ‘s 2011 Sexiest Woman Alive holds her hair with one hand and stares seductively. Her now-signature “initial” font is on the top left corner of the cover, while the title appears on her arm. Rih also shows off her bad girl side on the cover of the album’s deluxe edition, with a black-and-white headshot that has the 23-year-old beauty exposing some skin and blowing smoke out of her mouth. Keeping the momentum going, Rih recently broke Madonna’s record for a solo artist achieving 20 top 10 singles in the shortest amount of time with the release of her Talk That Talk lead single “We Found Love.” In late September, the singer was spotted filming the clip for the Calvin Harris-produced dance tune in a cornfield in Northern Ireland. Rihanna took to Twitter on Monday to tease the “Love” video, writing, “BTW #RihannaNavy saw the first cut for #WFL video today! Aw man, brace ya’self! Made me tear up like a lil bitch!!!” Share your thoughts on Rihanna’s new album covers in the comments! Related Videos Rihanna’s ‘S&M’: A Closer Look Related Artists Rihanna
B in the Mix: The Remixes Vol. 2, out Tuesday, features Tiësto’s ‘timeless’ take on ‘Piece of Me.’ By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Damian Vaca Britney Spears Photo: Ethan Miller/ Getty Images On Britney Spears ‘ latest release, B in the Mix: The Remixes Vol. 2 , which dropped Tuesday (October 11), a group of dance music’s biggest names have put their stamp on some of the singer’s most-popular tunes from the past few years. Chopped, screwed and broken down, the songs reach new extremes. “It’s cool that big mainstream pop artists let their music be remixed by people in the underground, like me,” Kaskade , who contributed his version of “Gimme More,” told MTV News. “It shines a new light on the EDM scene and how far it can reach. I give Britney props for taking chances and letting dance music be heard by the masses.” Kaskade is one of many EDM artists who appear on the album. He and other DJs who contributed say it’s been a gratifying experience. “She’s been a pop icon for so long. I appreciate a lot of the values she brings to music,” Cobra Starship ‘s Alex Suarez explained. “She sings really well. I appreciate her talents. I definitely respect what she does and why she’s successful. “I’m impressed people stick by her, and when I got the opportunity, I was like, ‘Wow.’ Britney Spears is huge. She’s a huge name worldwide.’ ” Suarez remixed “Till the World Ends” and said he didn’t want to go too far off course for his take on the Femme Fatale single. “I thought the original was really good to begin with,” he explained. “I thought I wanted to make this as special as I can. I tried to stick true to the structure of the song. “Sometimes, you get remixes and they chop it up and mix it around, which is cool. The thing with a Britney Spears remix is people like to sing along.” Kaskade explained that he was “excited at the chance to get to mess with” “Gimme More,” and he wanted to make sure his remix worked with his musical style. “I wanted to make sure that it would be something that would eventually fit into my live set,” he said. “That is the true test for me: Taking a huge pop vocal and making it work with my music can be a little tricky, but I find the challenge fun. I really dig what Brit does, and this song is awesome, so I was really excited.” The album is a blend of old and new remixes: EDM superstar Ti
‘I believe she had a number of commitments and had not anticipated her special arrival,’ director Adria Petty tells MTV News. By Jocelyn Vena Beyonce Photo: Columbia In case you didn’t notice, Beyonc
Drake wanted to give his fans (and himself) a birthday present this year but his next album Take Care has been pushed to November. Drizzy made the announcement on his website today, explaining that sample clearances have prevented the album from being released on October 24, the original date. The new date for Take Care is November 15th, 2011. I managed to create this album in my hometown of Toronto and the thoughts and stories I wanted to get across just became so clear. It truly felt like when I was here 3 years ago making So Far Gone. So I have completed 19 songs (17 on physical and 2 on bonus), and have run into a roadblock of clearing 3 samples in time to make the October 24th date. My options were to take the songs off and make the birthday release happen, or to take an extra couple weeks to get the paper work right and give you the album they way I NEED you to hear it. The choice was clear as day for me. November 15th you will get Take Care the exact way I created it with no trimmings. RELATED POSTS: Drake’s “Take Care” Tracklist [Updated] Hip-Hop And R&B Album Release Dates
TeenNick award show pairs activist teens with celebs who share interest in the same causes. By Jocelyn Vena Taylor Swift at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards Photo: Isaac Brekken/ Getty Images The TeenNick HALO Awards have recruited some of the biggest names in Hollywood and the music industry to honor teens who are out there doing good in the world. It was announced that Taylor Swift , , Jessica Biel and David Beckham will be on hand to shine some light on the good deeds being done by four teens. HALO, which stands for “Helping and Leading Others,” links up teens with celebrities who share an affinity for the same causes. “We’re proud to be presenting the third annual TeenNick HALO Awards, where we celebrate amazing teens who have touched the lives of many people, including the superstars who share their philanthropic spirit,” Marjorie Cohn, President, Original Programming and Development, Nickelodeon, said about the show. “Our hope is the show will continue to inspire others to make positive changes in their communities and further foster a culture of social activism.” Swift will be paired with 19-year-old James O’Dwyer, who started the Magnolia Disaster Relief, an aid program that aims to offer relief to rural areas hit by tornadoes. Emily-Anne Rigal, 17, has been paired with Lady Gaga thanks to her work to help stop bullying. She started the WeStopHate.org website, helping to shed light on the cause. Jessica Biel is paired with Shanoah Washington, an 18-year-old who created the Sista2Sista program, which aims to motivate young women. Finally, David Beckham was paired with Kyle Weiss, 18, who started the organization FUNDaFIELD, which builds soccer fields in Africa. The show will be hosted by Nick Cannon. It all takes place at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles on October 26. The broadcast will air on November 6 on Nick at Nite, with an encore on November 7 on TeenNick. “This generation of young people gives so much and now it’s time to give back to them,” Cannon said in a statement. “These are ordinary teens doing extraordinary things and I’m so proud to honor this year’s TeenNick HALO Award honorees for their heroic efforts and unyielding commitment to helping others.” Related Artists Taylor Swift Lady Gaga
