Growing up, I went to the Palisades Mall in Nyack, New York, all the time with my friends. In high school, it was our hangout on Friday nights. So, as you can imagine, going back there now, all these years later, to cover an assignment following the Jonas Brothers around for MTV News — the job I told everyone in high school I would have one day — is quite mind-boggling.
First off, traveling to the Westchester airport to attend a press conference featuring the most famous group of guys in the world is pretty cool as it is, but it's not often that these types of assignments give you the opportunity to go home, even if it's only for a few hours. To say the least, it was a trip.
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By Akshay Bhansali
NEW YORK — Jesse McCartney's tour came through Times Square yesterday, so it wasn't surprising to walk into the Nokia Theater and see a room packed tighter than a "tin" of sardines (that's Brit Tim Kash wearing off on me). As the steamy sea of folks, growing impatient, began to push and pull, a tiny angelic voice soothed the crowd with her first few words, "Hey there, folks, I'm Anjulie."
Unlike many in the crowd, I had come there to see her. I first met Anjulie outside New York's S.O.B's club about two years ago. At the time, I was the news producer for MTV Desi, an MTV South Asian American experiment. She was a young acoustic singer/songwriter who had just moved from Toronto to New York to pursue a career in music, and was just handing out flyers for her MySpace page. Read more...
If a grown man who occasionally dresses up in women's clothing, complete with a blonde wig and fake boobs (purely for comedic purposes of course), and who has a very unhealthy obsession with all things pop culture ("American Idol," "The Hills," "ABDC" ... you name it, he loves it) asks you if he can borrow your beloved dog for a shoot — you probably would say, "NO!"
But not when it’s Jim Cantiello from MTV "Detox"!
I've sat next to MTV's resident pop-culture expert Jim for the last two years and from my very first day, my eyes and ears were well and truly forced open to the world of "Project Runway," "ABDC," kitsch YouTube clips, trashy blog sites and yes ... "American Idol" (thanks, Jim!).
But one thing fans of "Detox" should know about Jim is that he has an obsession greater than all the others put together: Jim Cantiello is a big animal lover. Read more...
By Nicole Tahan
Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz approves of the Obamas' first-dog choice. Portuguese water dog it is!
Jessica Simpson surprises her fans with her hot new bod while performing in Daisy Dukes but forgets her lyrics yet again! Find out what's going on with the country/pop star.
"Gossip Girl" will rock out with No Doubt. Check out the highly anticipated Gwen Stefani/ Blair Waldorf face-off, airing May 11.
If you live in Japan, "Twilight" fever is just heating up! Check out pics from the red-carpet premiere of "Twilight" in Japan.
Who's up for "Sin City 2"? Michael Clarke Duncan says he's game to come back as Manute if the movie happens.
It's no secret that many citizens of indie-dom quietly wept on December 29, when it was revealed that quirky-cute actress/singer Zooey Deschanel was officially off the market, getting engaged to Death Cab for Cutie frontman Ben Gibbard.
In the wake of the announcement, there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth ... riots broke out in cities across the country (especially in Portland). It was bad. In fact, it's gotten so ugly that it appears Zooey and Ben have finally been forced to take action. In order to escape the indie world's wrath, they're moving their wedding to the most remote spot possible: the Moon. Read more...
By Nicole Tahan
Simon Cowell's prayers for Nick Mitchell/Normund Gentle to get booted were answered Thursday night, much to our disappointment. And Megan Joy Corkrey, Jesse Langseth and Matt Brietzke also failed to make the top 12 cut. Is this the last we'll see of these Idol wannabes? Who will get the wild card? Check out our "American Idol" recap, along with Jim Cantiello's "Idol" in 60 Seconds.
Kanye West told the audience at his taping of "VH1 Storytellers" that he wants everyone to give Chris Brown "a break"! He also labeled O.J. Simpson and Michael Jackson as "amazing."
Taboo assures us that The E.N.D. is not actually the end of the Black Eyed Peas. All four members are back and excited for fans to learn what the acronym in the new album's title truly means.
After his response to Andy Samberg's "Say 'Hi' to your mother" send-up, many said Mark Wahlberg needed to chill out and laugh a little. Teaming up with Will Ferrell for "The B Team" might help out with that.
EA announced that games like "Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10" will support Wii's MotionPlus. So when will the new Wii accessory be available? Check out the update Nintendo gave us on our Multiplayer Blog!
By Kathleen Newman-Bremang and Melanie Wolfson
Most interns fetch coffee, file papers and do other mindless tasks, but here at MTV News, we have to be up for just about anything. Today, that meant dancing in front of a green screen. That's right — we were asked (read: forced) to break it down "stanky leg"-style in order to bring Dallas dance moves to the masses.
We kicked off our shoes and jumped in front of the camera as part of a video that imitates dances from the Dallas scene. We're not sure which dance was more embarrassing: the "stanky leg" or the "Ricky Bobby." Both involve moves we never thought we'd be making when we came into work today.
We thought we'd share our experience, because it was just too ridiculous to keep to ourselves. Dancing around like you're in an iPod commercial sounds like fun, right? Try terrifying. Read more...
By Matt Wenzel
Is Normund Gentle the best "American Idol" contestant ever? Sound a little far-fetched? We're not joking. OK, maybe a little bit.
Is Blink-182's Mark Hoppus sending out secret messages through his blog? We talked to Mark about his mysterious Morse code message.
Hasn't DMX ever been told not to play with his food? The jailed rapper is facing more jail time after allegedly assaulting a prison guard by throwing a lunch tray at him.
First he was a backup dancer. Then he released an album (does anyone even remember "PopoZao"?). Now, K-Fed is ... designing children's clothes?
On our Splash Page blog, graphic-novel writer Greg Rucka explains why he thinks that a shot-for-shot remake of his book "Whiteout" would not be a good movie.
By Angelique Smith
Bow Wow has never been a stranger to MTV. With more than six albums under his belt and now progressing into what he surprisingly loves the most — acting — Bow Wow has certainly grown up right before our eyes.
I was able to tag along on a shoot for the 21-year-old heartthrob to discuss his latest projects, learned lessons through past endeavors and future goals as an artist. And while one may think that this guy is still rather young and hardly matured, I was surprised by his eloquent and well-thought-out responses. (I like how being an MTV News intern offers you the chance to see that these celebrity figures are actually real people. As Bow Wow would say, "We put on our pants the same way you do.")
All in all, I was taken aback by his respectful and mature response to the Chris Brown and Rihanna domestic situation. He said that he, too, had been in a highly publicized relationship and knows how hard that can be, even without the situation CB and Rih Rih face. He wants both to recover from this downfall and get back on top of doing what he, Chris and Rihanna love to do and do best — and that's make music. He sees both of them as friends and good people, and he respects them enough to give them the proper space that is needed for this comeback to happen.
Wow, Bow-Weezy has in fact come into his own and shows it well.
By Cara Alwill
If you could imagine the most absurd career move for Britney Spears' ex-husband Kevin Federline, this might be in your top five. Since backup dancing and rapping haven't worked out, it seems he's taking a stab at dressing toddlers.
The father of four is in talks with fashion executive Gerard Guez to launch his own line of children's clothing. Yes, you read that right. According to Women's Wear Daily, the onetime rapper is interested in designing a line of clothes for kids that is affordable yet stylish. He said he's conscious of the tough economic climate and will make sure the price tag on these designer duds doesn't break the bank. Read more...
