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The World Series, Adam Lambert, Lady Gaga, Rihanna And Justin Bieber: This Week's Deep Cuts

Posted 10/30/09 6:05 pm EST by in Deep Cuts


As the week comes to a close here in the MTV Newsroom, we're left with a handful of questions before we slide out the door and into the weekend. Is it too late to start training for the New York Marathon? (Answer: Yes, as it's Sunday.) Is this weekend when we roll the clocks back? (Yes, so enjoy an extra hour of sleep before running the marathon.) What's going to be the most popular costume for Halloween? (We've already seen more Sookie Stackhouses than we care to count.) But most importantly: What might you have missed this week here on the Newsroom blog? Lucky for you,
we have whole cornucopia of answers ready and waiting for your clicking pleasure.

» The World Series kicked off this week, with the Phillies and the Yankees each taking a game in the Bronx. We still think the Yankees have the better playlist, but the Phils do have the power of AC/DC's "Thunderstruck."

» "Michael Jackson's This Is It" premiered this week, and Adam Lambert and Paula Abdul celebrated at MTV's red carpet premiere.

» Speaking of Lambert, he revealed the cover for his album For Your Entertainment this week, which caused Jim Cantiello to go a little bit insane and insert himself into some crazy "American Idol" album covers.

» The next day, the craziness continued.

» And obviously, with any good bout of madness, there are always outtakes and deleted scenes.

» Speaking of album covers, Rihanna unveiled hers as well. The people weighed in, but what do you think?

» Justin Bieber dropped a new single this week, and it really made us want to put on a sweater.
Read More...

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Drake Says He'll Hold It Down For Lil Wayne: The MTV News Quote Of The Day

Posted 10/30/09 4:48 pm EST by in Music


"He's kinda more concerned about getting as much music as he possibly can, so that when he's in there, people are still satisfied musically with Lil Wayne product. That's just the mind of a true businessman. I'll just do what I can to keep the whole Young Money/ Cash Money team going. I just want to play my part as a team member and keep the brand strong until the boss gets home."

-Rapper Drake, speaking to RapUp.com about Lil Wayne's impending stay in jail. Drake, who signed to Weezy's Young Money label over the summer, talked to the hip-hop Web site about what will become of the Young Money crew while Wayne is incarcerated. Wayne's commitment to churning out product has already begun, as he unveils the new No Ceilings mixtape this weekend. The tape will contain even more tracks than the version that leaked earlier this week, and it seems like Wayne will be banking as much music as possible between now and when he gets locked up. In the meantime, he still has his rock-oriented Rebirth album on the release docket, as well as a Young Money crew album.

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GG Allin Bobblehead ... Now With More Blood And Filth!

Posted 10/30/09 4:00 pm EST by in Music


It's kind of hard to beat a shelf that already sags under the weight of bobbleheads of Jason Vorhees, Napoleon Dynamite, Al Franken and the 40-Year-Old Virgin (complete with realistic chest hair removal patterns). But then I feasted my eyes on the piece de resistance of completely unnecessary but must-have gross-out collectibles: The GG Allin 1991 Extra Filthy Bloody Edition bobble.

Aggronautix, the same demented people who have created wobbly-necked figurines of such similarly obscure punk rock icons as Tesco Vee of the Meatmen, Milo of the Descendents and the barely-legal Dwarves, have truly gone all out for the second edition of the Allin figure, which commemorates the scat-loving punk icon in all his messy glory.

From the bloody hematoma on his forehead to the true Manchu beard-mustache combo, bloody cuts on his body and guaranteed-to-offend tattoos, this seven-inch tall likeness of the late punker best known for using the stage as a toilet, performing naked and attacking his fans is for the hardcore only. A reissue of a 1991 bobblehead, this new, 500 numbered unit version promises "copious amounts of blood and filth."

Have we mentioned that the GG figure gets a thumbs up from "The Hangover" director Todd Phillips? (Keeping in mind that his directorial debut was the Allin documentary "Hated," so maybe he’s a bit biased.)

It's never too early to start your holiday shopping, so grab one of these and cross mom off of your list!

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Who Is Your Favorite Taylor: Swift Or Lautner? The Oh Snap! Poll

Posted 10/30/09 3:20 pm EST by in Oh Snap Poll


Celebrity couples are nothing new, but some are more intriguing than others. And the romances associated with the "Twilight" movies are even more fascinating, as they draw us ever closer to that fantasy world of morphing werewolves and shimmering vampires. While the world still debates whether or not Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson are actually a couple, another "Twilight"-centric romance may be bubbling up. Taylor Lautner, the muscle-bound, oft-shirtless actor who plays Jacob in "Twilight," has been repeatedly spotted spending quality time with Kanye West's favorite interruption target Taylor Swift. The 20-year-old country superstar has denied that the two are dating (she says they're just "really close"), but rumors continue to build a case for their actual courtship.

But whether or not they're dating is hardly the issue. What's really at stake here is who the superior Taylor is. When was the last time we had two ultra-famous people named Taylor walking the Earth at the same time? Like "The Highlander," there can be only one, so we grabbed a video camera and our trusty MTV News microphone and found some people to weigh in on who their favorite Taylor is.

The spectacularly unscientific results are in, and in what might be considered an upset, Swift walked away the winner with 71 percent of the vote. In fact, it's pretty clear that even though Lautner is a heartthrob, his fame is nowhere near that of Swift's (one of the respondents who didn't know who Lautner was thought he was a woman).

What do you think? Is Swift the superior Taylor, or are you on Team Lautner? Leave your thoughts in the comments or head over to Your.MTV.com to make your voice heard!

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On The Field With Jay-Z And Alicia Keys

Posted 10/30/09 2:32 pm EST by in Music


By Jayson Rodriguez

Last night, deep inside the bowels of the new Yankee Stadium, Shaheem Reid and I found ourselves given free rein to roam pretty much anywhere we wanted to in the Bronx venue. During game two. Of the World Series.

Now, we've both been backstage at some major concerts before. Or inside recording studios when hits were being created.

But this experience was entirely different.

Two music journalists who are big (big!) sports fans with the opportunity to masquerade as baseball writers with credentials to go just about anywhere we wanted. Only the guys in the Phillies and Yankees uniforms had more access than us. (And maybe that Jay-Z fellow who performed last night before the game.)

When we walked into the stadium we were overwhelmed by the amount of people, cheers and general pandemonium that ensues during a game of this caliber.

We quickly found a staircase and traveled down to the field level and unexpectedly ran into Swizz Beatz, who told us Jay-Z and Alicia Keys were about to head onto the field. We hurried along with him and soon spotted Jay-Z's camp. The second Swizz yelled out, "There goes Jay!" it seemed like we stumbled onto the stage like Lil Mama to witness something epic.

Jay-Z was standing behind the left field wall, which slowly opened up to let him out onto the field like he was Yankees closer Mariano Rivera.

The view we had was just like the beginning shot of his performance at the VMAs last month: A panoramic shot from behind as Jay-Z walked into the stadium with 50,000 pumped-up Yankee fans going crazy.

We swung around and walked through a back door that delivered us right into the Phillies' bullpen, where we could see Pedro Martinez warming up. Soon, Shaheem, myself, and Jay's team were walking along the warning track to get a closer view of the proceedings. Read More...

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Linkin Park's Chester Bennington Books The 'Narcissism Tour'

Posted 10/30/09 1:26 pm EST by in Music


Sometimes working on side projects can pull a band apart and lead to their break-up. But there are other instances where key members taking time off from a giant act can help everybody recharge their batteries. Though Foo Fighters is Dave Grohl's main squeeze, he hasn't been hurt by dalliances with Queens of the Stone Age, Probot or Them Crooked Vultures. The members of Linkin Park also haven't had any trouble keeping their core strong while branching out into other areas of the music world. Mike Shinoda has had a successful run as part of Fort Minor, and Chester Bennington is currently enjoying success as the frontman of Dead by Sunrise.

Dead by Sunrise combines Bennington with members of arena-goth act Orgy. Interestingly, the Orgy members also have an electronic side project called Julien-K. The family tree runs so deep, in fact, that Bennington joked that they could plan an entire festival featuring only his bands and the connected side projects. "We're going to call it the Narcissism Tour," he joked to MTV News at the Ulalume Festival. "It'll be Linkin Park, Orgy, Fort Minor, Dead by Sunrise, Circuit Freaks, Julien-K and JK DJs."

"That's like a seven hour work day," added guitarist Ryan Shuck.

Be sure to check out the Ulalume Music Festival playlist, which features live performances from Dead by Sunrise, A.F.I. and Paramore. You can check out the whole show tonight (October 30) at 9 p.m. on MTV or at 11 p.m. on mtvU.

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Lil Wayne's Ice Cream Cake Job

Posted 10/30/09 12:46 pm EST by in Music


When I was a kid, my mom would make birthday cakes that looked like trains, or zoo cages. One time there was a really, really scary clown. There are psychic scars, to be sure, but they're likely nothing compared to poor Ireland Basinger-Baldwin, 14, daughter of battling ex's Kim Basinger and Alex Baldwin.

The teen — who, you might recall, was on the wrong end of a really nasty voicemail from her pops two years ago — reportedly got a frighteningly accurate specialty birthday cake last week in the shape of Lil Wayne's head, complete with licorice dreads, chocolate sunglasses and iced out icing grill. We have no idea if this story is true (since the image from Los Angeles ace cake shop Rosebud Cakes has since been removed from its Flickr account), but any way you slice it, that is the most WTF?-tastic cake we've ever seen.

Congratulations Kim and Alex, you may have outdone that dad who reportedly advertised on Craigslist for a Lil Wayne impersonator for his blind 16-year-old's birthday party. "Here is the kicker my son is blind so you do not need to look like the rapper just sound like him. I understand he grunts and mumbles a lot. I don't care if you are 67 and Jewish if you can sing the songs you're hired," the Craigslist ad read. "Money is not an issue." We can't confirm if that dad ended up getting the cake he wanted, but we hear it looked a bit like Whoopi Goldberg.

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Spotted: Kristen Stewart And Robert Pattinson Run For The Border

Posted 10/30/09 11:59 am EST by in Movies


Every day a multitude of stars wanders through the halls of MTV News to talk about their latest projects and goof around with our intrepid correspondents. But sometimes we catch stars elsewhere, and that's why we put together Spotted!, a daily compendium of stars in the wild.

The opening of "New Moon," the second installment in the "Twilight" film series, is still a few weeks away, but next year's edition has already wrapped. Principle photography has been completed on "Eclipse," the third film in the "Twilight" tetralogy. The film was shot in Vancouver, and now that the footage has all been captured, the film's two stars are headed home. Yesterday, both Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson were spotted in an airport working their way out of our neighbor to the north. They'll return to their "Twilight" home soon enough, as there is still one more movie to be shot.

The movie world was popping yesterday, as the cast of "Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day" joined other luminaries (including Guns N' Roses/Velvet Revolver guitarist Slash) on the red carpet for that film's premiere, while "Eclipse" co-star Taylor Lautner spent more time with Taylor Swift. Click here for these pictures plus the entire "Spotted!" archive, which includes over 400 candid shots of superstars like Britney Spears, Beyoncé, Madonna, Lady Gaga, the Jonas Brothers, Adam Lambert, Justin Timberlake, Whitney Houston, Katy Perry and Janet Jackson!

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Tom Hanks Sings Beyoncé's 'Single Ladies' At Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Concert

Posted 10/30/09 11:04 am EST by in Music


Last night's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th anniversary concert at Madison Square Garden (the first of a two-night celebration; tonight's lineup includes U2 and Metallica) featured a series of amazing performances: Stevie Wonder jammed with John Legend on songs by Marvin Gaye and Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen jammed with Tom Morello on a scorching electric version of "The Ghost of Tom Joad," and Smokey Robinson delivered a sweet, soulful "Tracks of my Tears." But the evening's most surprising musical moment came a few minutes before the show got started.

Before he delivered the formal introduction to the sold-out MSG crowd, Tom Hanks (who was producing the event for broadcast on HBO on November 29) stopped by the press room to answer a few questions about meeting his musical heroes and what rock and roll means to him. When asked what his favorite song of 2009 was, Hanks hesitated a bit before launching into a spastic performance of Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" that drew laughs and cheers from the normally jaded media crowd.

Clearly, Tom Hanks watched this year's Video Music Awards!

When a journalist asked him what it was that he liked about it, Hanks replied, "It's infectious! What are you, an idiot?" That drew another huge laugh. (He quickly apologized for calling the writer an idiot.) Apparently, he had a personal connection to the lyrics, too. "That's what I said when I met my wife. 'I like that — I'm gonna put a ring on it!'" Minutes later, Hanks was whisked away to open the show and introduce Jerry Lee Lewis, and the night was on. But despite the murderer's row of rockers that followed, nobody managed to match the majesty of Hanks' "Single Ladies" moment.

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Heath Ledger-Directed Hip-Hop Video Another Example Of Tragic Actor's Gift

Posted 10/30/09 10:32 am EST by in Music


There are so many reasons that Heath Ledger's death from an accidental drug overdose in 2008 at age 28 was a tragic loss for his fans. But in addition to the legendarily intense Australian star's Academy Award-winning on-screen performances, his posthumously-revealed skill as a director has provided proof that Ledger had vision beyond his thespian chops.

Minds were already blown earlier this year when Modest Mouse let loose the animated clip for "King Rat" directed and conceived by Ledger as a not-so-subtle ecological parable about our destruction of the oceans. And his posthumously-released 2007 video for the Nick Drake song "Black Eyed Dog" — a movingly dark black-and-white clip that ends with Ledger drowning himself in a bathtub — provided another dim chapter in the brooding actor's singular profile.

On Thursday, yet another Ledger-directed video, this one for his childhood friend rapper N'fa Forster-Jones, was released and it showed yet another side of the actor's multifaceted personality.

The video for the song "Cause An Effect," shot in 2006, features the Australian rapper in a kind of White Stripes-like alternate reality, wearing stark black and white and red and white face paint against zebra-striped backgrounds that create a kaleidoscopic effect and reveal Ledger's sharp eye for visual aesthetics.

In a video accompanying the clip, Forster-Jones describes how it was shot in one day the garage of Ledger's beachside apartment. "He gave me a call one morning, as he often did at crazy hours, and he's like, 'N'fa, I've got this idea for a video,'" the rapper explains. "He was basically running around directing me each shot … It was a really cool day … Every day I count my blessings that I got to have him direct this piece of art." According to the Associated Press, the video debuted earlier this month as part of a collection of Ledger's work shown at the Rome Film Festival.

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