This year’s Virgin Mobile FreeFest has a solid line-up featuring the likes of Nas and Santigold. Additional acts include Das Racist and Alabama Shakes. Tickets go “On Free” August 24th at noon and if ya haven’t heard some of the artists we just mentioned, go ahead and google them now. Ron Faris, head of brand marketing, Virgin Mobile USA said: “We’ve had a really big year at Virgin. Now it’s time to celebrate. FreeFest is back-bigger than ever. We can’t wait to share this free day of music with all our fans, especially the ones who helped us announce it.” Following last year’s success, fans will be encouraged to donate to The RE*Generation, Virgin Mobile’s campaign to end youth homelessness. Proceeds raised to date built Virgin Mobile’s new “RE*Generation House,” a homeless youth shelter developed by Sasha Bruce Youthwork. This year’s donations will open the house and provide support to a community of homeless youth. Check out the line-up and let us know if you’ve been able to check that Summer Concert off of your list! Images via Virgin Mobile/Retna
Singer talks to MTV News about the inspiration behind her hit, which is celebrating the longest streak atop the Billboard Hot 100 this year. By Jocelyn Vena Carly Rae Jepsen in “Call Me Maybe” Photo: Interscope
‘Everybody this year is really rad,’ indie-pop singer Dev tells MTV News. By Cory Midgarden Frank Ocean performs at 2012 Lollapalooza in Chicago Photo: Barry Brecheisen/ Getty Images
Most anticipated movie of the year was worth waiting for, critics say. By Kara Warner Tom Hardy and Christian Bale in “The Dark Knight Rises” Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures
Michael Jordan Responds To Kobe Bryant’s Comments On An Olympic Dream Team Showdown 2012 Olympic Dream Team front runner Kobe Bryant was in Las Vegas talkin that talk to reporters about the 1992 Dream Team which included the likes of NBA Hall of Famers Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Kobe insisted that the legendary old-heads would have been no match for Kobe and company had the two teams battled it out on the court. Of course, His Airnes s took the first opportunity he got to shut Kobe’s claims all the way down. Michael Jordan said there’s no way Kobe Bryant and this year’s USA Olympic basketball team could’ve beaten the 1992 Dream Team. ordan told the Associated Press on Thursday that he laughed — “I absolutely laughed” — when hearing Bryant’s comments that the squad training in Las Vegas could take Jordan and company. Jordan said there’s “no comparison” which team is better. “For him to compare those two teams is not one of the smarter things he ever could have done,” Jordan said prior playing in a celebrity golf tournament in Charlotte. Jordan said the 1992 team, which included 11 future Hall of Famers and won its six Olympic games by an average of more than 43 points en route to capturing the gold medal, was a better overall team largely because of the experience it put on the floor. “I heard Kobe say we were not athletic,” said a smiling Jordan as he sat in a golf cart puffing on his cigar while waiting to tee off. “But we were smart. He said we were too old, but I was 29 and in the prime of my career. Pip (Scottie Pippen) was 26 or 27, (Charles) Barkley was 29, Patrick (Ewing) was 29 and Chris Mullin was 29. Almost everybody was still in their twenties.” Jordan’s response came after Bryant told reporters in Las Vegas that this year’s team could pull out a win against the Dream Team if they faced each other in their primes. Bryant said this year’s team has a bunch of racehorses, players who are incredibly athletic while the Dream Team consisted mainly of players at the tail end of their careers. We’re gonna give Kobe a pass this time since Vanessa must be gassin his head up with all this get-back-together talk . He didn’t know any better, Mike, cut him some slack. Source
Highest Paid Actors In Hollywood It’s that time of the year again. Time for Forbes to unleash its list of the ten highest-paid actors in Hollywood. And, as usual, the list is light on men of color as expected but there are still plenty of ballers here to go around. Take a look!
Underwood wins Video of the Year for ‘Good Girl’ and Collaborative Video By Gil Kaufman Carrie Underwood at the 2012 CMT Music Awards Photo: FilmMagic “American Idol” has struggled to produce hit rock and R&B stars lately, but the show clearly has a knack for pumping out country acts. Just look at the winner’s circle for Wednesday night’s CMT Music Awards ceremony, where “Idol” winner Carrie Underwood took home two major honors and Scotty McCreery went home with some hardware as well. Underwood, who also performed on the broadcast hosted by Toby Keith and actress Kristen Bell, snagged her third Video of the Year honor for the “Good Girl” clip, and hit the podium once again for Collaborative Video of the Year for her work on the “Rescue Me” video with Brad Paisley. Underwood’s man, professional hockey player Mike Fisher, played the role of dutiful husband by giving his wife a big hug and kiss when she and Paisley won their award, then held her purse during the acceptance speech. Paisley had some fun, too, wrapping his arms around Fisher before taking the stage and giving him a long hug before thanking, “this beautiful woman for being in the video, or else it’s just a dork walking through the desert.” He concluded, “to my wife at home, there’s nothing between me and Mike,” to which Underwood added, “not yet!” Season 10 “Idol” champ McCreery continued his winning ways by scoring the USA Weekend Breakthrough Video of the Year for “The Trouble With Girls,” which he accepted just hours before his high school graduation ceremony. Other winners included Luke Bryan for Male Video of the Year for “I Don’t Want This Night To End,” Miranda Lambert for Female Video of the Year for “Over You” and Lady Antebellum for Group Video of the year for “We Owned The Night.” Bryan was clearly excited about his win, saying, “When you’re at this level of what we do as singers, and your fans vote, it speaks huge volumes and it’s crazy to be fan-voted for an award and win it … I don’t really get caught up in trying to be cool, trying to play a part. I just freaking get so excited about this stuff and I will always enjoy it.” Lambert’s acceptance speech was one of the most emotional of the night. Celebrating her third straight Female Video win for the song she co-wrote with husband Blake Shelton about the death of his brother, she thanked Shelton’s brother, “from heaven, for inspiring us to write this song.” Thompson Square accepted the Duo Video of the Year (“I Got You”) and Jason Aldean took home his first belt buckle with CMT Performance of the Year for “Tattoos On This Town.” The show opened with a bang, with a video bit pitting the hosts against each other in a battle to anchor the show alone that featured cameos from Matthew McConaughey, Jon Bon Jovi, President Obama and GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney. “This is one of the toughest decisions I’ve had to make since I’ve been in office, but I decided I want them both,” Obama said when forced to decide between the country star and the actress. Not wanting to offend any potential swing voters, Romney split the difference too, suggesting the pair work together. “See, I just put two people back to work,” he joked. The show also featured performances from Willie Nelson with Toby Keith, Jamey Johnson, Darius Rucker and Zac Brown Band, as well as Paisley with Hank Williams Jr., Lambert and Journey with Rascal Flatts. Related Artists Carrie Underwood
Lady Antebellum – Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood – accepted honors for group video of the year at Wednesday’s CMT Music Awards. It’s the third straight year they’ve come home with the top video prize. “Thank you, CMT, for really connecting the dots with these videos,” Haywood told the audience after the win for their song “We Owned the Night.” “Thank you for playing these things.” Also winning big: Miranda Lambert got her third female video of the year award, this time for “Over You,” while Luke Bryan was the man of the hour. Bryan was awarded male video of the year for his hit “I Don’t Want This Night to End,” then threw a pair of underwear into the screaming crowd. A sparkly dress-rocking Carrie Underwood won for “Remind Me,” her duet with Brad Paisley, then took home video of the year for “Good Girl.” Underwood wasn’t the only American Idol alum at the CMT Music Awards. Season 10 winner Scotty McCreery beat runner-up Lauren Alaina in the breakthrough video of the year category for his song “The Trouble with Girls.” Follow the jump for a full list of CMT Awards nominees and winners: Video of the Year Jason Aldean – “Dirt Road Anthem” Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter – “You And Tequila” Toby Keith – “Red Solo Cup” Lady Antebellum – “We Owned The Night” Miranda Lambert – “Over You” Brad Paisley with Carrie Underwood – “Remind Me” Rascal Flatts featuring Natasha Bedingfield – “Easy” Blake Shelton – “God Gave Me You” Taylor Swift featuring The Civil Wars – “Safe & Sound” Carrie Underwood – “Good Girl” – WINNER Male Video Jason Aldean – “Dirt Road Anthem” Luke Bryan – “I Don’t Want This Night To End” – WINNER Eric Church – “Drink In My Hand” Toby Keith – “Red Solo Cup” Blake Shelton – “God Gave Me You” Keith Urban – “Long Hot Summer” Female Video Sara Evans – “My Heart Can’t Tell You No” Miranda Lambert – “Over You” – WINNER Martina McBride – “I’m Gonna Love You Through It” Kellie Pickler – “Tough” Taylor Swift – “Ours” Carrie Underwood – “Good Girl” Group Video Eli Young Band – “Crazy Girl” Lady Antebellum – “We Owned The Night” – WINNERS Pistol Annies – “Hell On Heels” Rascal Flatts – “Banjo” The Band Perry – “All Your Life” Zac Brown Band – “Keep Me In Mind” Duo Video Love and Theft – “Angel Eyes” Montgomery Gentry – “Where I Come From” Sugarland – “Tonight” The Civil Wars – “Poison & Wine” Thompson Square – “Glass” Thompson Square – “I Got You” – WINNERS USA Weekend Breakthrough Video Lauren Alaina – “Georgia Peaches” Brantley Gilbert – “Country Must Be Country Wide” Hunter Hayes – Storm Warning” Scotty McCreery – “The Trouble With Girls” – WINNER Pistol Annies – “Hell On Heels” Thompson Square – “I Got You” Collaborative Video Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter – “You And Tequila” Brad Paisley with Carrie Underwood – “Remind Me” – WINNERS Rascal Flatts featuring Natasha Bedingfield – “Easy” Lionel Richie with Shania Twain – “Endless Love” Taylor Swift featuring The Civil Wars – “Safe & Sound” Zac Brown Band featuring Jimmy Buffett – “Knee Deep” CMT Performance of the Year Jason Aldean – “Tattoos On This Town” from “2011 CMT Artists of the Year” – WINNER Lady Antebellum – “Dancin’ Away With My Heart” from “2011 CMT Artists of the Year” Little Big Town – “Fix You” from “Music Builds: The CMT Disaster Relief Concert” Blake Shelton – “Footloose” from “Invitation Only: Blake Shelton” Sting and Vince Gill – “If I Ever Lose My Faith In You” from “CMT Crossroads: Sting and Vince Gill” Steven Tyler and Carrie Underwood – “Just A Dream/Dream On” from “CMT Crossroads: Steven Tyler & Carrie Underwood from the Pepsi Super Bowl Fan Jam [Photo: WENN.com]
While Rush Limbaugh mocks Barack Kardashian, the First Lady of the U.S. is staying out of the political fray and focusing on her new book about gardening. Michelle Obama, who’s been promoting her new book about the White House garden and healthy eating, appeared on the Late Show With David Letterman. Here are her “Top Ten Fun Facts About Gardening” from Tuesday … Michelle Obama Top 10 List Gardening was invented in 1822 by Albert Gardener. Plant avocados, tomatoes, onions and cilantro together and grow a guacamole tree. Eggplants were originally cultivated for use as doorstops. In his lifetime, the average American will eat half a radish. The largest zucchini ever grown contained a Starbucks. Later this year the Supreme Court will finally rule on “tomato” vs. “tomahto.” If you have an actual green thumb, it might be scurvy. Lettuce is 96 percent water and 4 percent lettuce. The White House tool shed contains shovels, trowels and Weed Whacker One. With enough care and effort you can grow your own Barack-oli. Her campaign for home-grown diets and to fight obesity has already shown progress. Earlier this year, Michelle even got Jay Leno to eat vegetables . Not a small feat.
In the wake of Minaj’s feud with Hot 97, MTV News examines what real hip-hop is and who gets to decide. By Rob Markman Nicki Minaj Photo: Ronald Martinez/ Getty Images A funny thing happened on the way to Summer Jam. All hip-hop hell broke loose after an off-the-cuff comment by a radio DJ led rap’s reigning queen to pull out of the year’s biggest rap concert. Nicki Minaj versus Hot 97 has no doubt become the biggest rap gossip of the week, but once the drama subsides, an eternal discussion will still linger: What is real hip-hop? And who gets to decide? In one corner there’s rap purist and Hot 97 radio personality Peter Rosenberg, who trashed Nicki’s RedOne-produced crossover machine “Starships” in front of concertgoers just hours before she was scheduled to take the stage. In the other corner there is Nicki Minaj , whose pop success has made her a punching bag for critics who turn their noses up at anything without a James Brown sample. Hot 97’s famous tagline is “where hip-hop lives,” and in the radio world that pretty much rings true, though underground artists like Action Bronson, Skyzoo and the Immortal Technique could make a case otherwise. Minaj is technically rapping (and singing) on the fist-pumping “Starships,” and while the Barbie has always been classified as a hip-hop artist, the song didn’t become a top five Billboard single with urban-radio spins alone. Still, Hot 97 does play the record. If it is judged solely against the boom-bap DJ Premier portion of the genre, then “Starships” isn’t really a hip-hop record, but the track’s pounding bass and electro-pop dance beat is not totally detached from rap’s early days. Afrika Bambaataa’s iconic “Planet Rock,” lifted from Kraftwerk’s “Trans-Europe Express,” was centered around dance and not dusty samples or deep and intricate lyrics. In the 1980s, the Jungle Brothers built much of their discography around house and dance music, and they were one of the most celebrated hip-hop groups of their day. Hell, you can even trace Nicki’s penchant for wearing over-the-top costumes back to Bambaataa, so to suggest that “Starships” isn’t real hip-hop is an absolute statement and isn’t entirely accurate. Now to call “Starships” “wack” is a qualitative judgment and one widely held by hard-core rap fans — so there is some basis to Rosenberg’s charge. On her latest, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, Nick essentially splits her sound down the middle. On one side, Euro-inspired dance anthems dominate, while on the other side there are hard-core rap joints. For every “Starships” there is a “Beez in the Trap” or “Roman Reloaded,” which builds its beat around nine-millimeter gunshot sound effects. Nicki recognizes that she toes hip-hop’s undefined line, but relentlessly holds on to her rap roots. “I’m still me, hip-hop culture is still in my heart,” Minaj told MTV News back in April. “That can never leave me. I know I’m always gonna be street, because I can’t pretend to be street.” When she phoned in to Power 105’s Breakfast Club morning show on Tuesday, Nicki insisted that she wasn’t planning to perform “Starships” at Summer Jam. Instead, she planned to rock more fitting tracks and parade out a who’s who of hip-hop favorites during her set. Nas, Lauryn Hill, Lil Wayne, Cam’ron, 2 Chainz and Foxy Brown were just some of the guests with whom Minaj planned to share her stage. Ironically, it could have ended up the realest hip-hop moment of the year. Tune in to “RapFix Live” on Wednesday at 4 p.m. ET on MTV.com as “Yo! MTV Raps” hosts Ed Lover and Doctor Dre weigh in on the debate. Related Artists Nicki Minaj
