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Ke$ha Enters The 'Drunk Tank' For 'Tik Tok'

Posted 12/28/09 5:30 pm EST by in Music


By Jo¢elyn Vena

If you're surprised that Ke$ha's "Tik Tok" has found itself at the top of the charts, then you might also be surprised to hear that Ke$ha herself can't believe that the raucous party anthem has caught on with fans. She explained that she had no idea the tune would resonate so much with music fans when she wrote it as the debut single from her upcoming full-length Animal.

"I actually I still don't believe it, but I'm kind of starting to believe it a little bit more hearing it on the radio," she told MTV News about having a hit song on her hands. "But when I wrote it I had no idea. I've written so many songs. I had no idea."

The sparkly blonde added that she thinks that song has got such a following thanks to its balls-to-the-wall attitude. "I think that people like it, I could be totally wrong, because it is just unapologetic and really fun," she said. "I think that’s what I want people to feel when they listen to it is just to have a really good time. Period. So hopefully that's why people like it."

As for the video, which shows the 20-something rebelling against her conservative family and hitting up a party or two, it suits the song just fine thanks to a location known as the "drunk tank." "The video I'm excited about because I actually got to shoot it in my old neighborhood and the guy driving my gold car is a friend of mine and then the last party scene is in this house called the drunk tank," she said. "Which is one of my friend's houses that we all go party at. So I like it cause its super-honest and genuine."

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MTV News' #MusicMonday: Rihanna, Sean Garrett And HEALTH

Posted 12/28/09 4:31 pm EST by in Music


Really, you should be listening to music every day, but thanks to Twitter, Monday has become the best day of the week to discover new songs, show some love to the tune currently dominating your iPod playlist and quietly judge the listening habits of your closest friends. Yes, it's #MusicMonday, one of Twitter's most enduring trending topic. Hence "MTV News' #MusicMonday," a weekly look at the songs we're obsessing about here in the Newsroom. Here's what's on our playlists right now.

Kyle Anderson, MTV Newsroom Blog Editor: "I didn't much like the first two singles from the Rihanna album, but 'Hard' is pretty amazing. It helps that the video is totally cuckoo-bananas, but the beat is tight, the melody is infectious and the verse by Young Jeezy is pure heat. Plus, it actually sounds hard. When Rated R first came out, I listened to it and thought, 'I don't hear a hit,' but it looks like this is another entry in the 'Kyle Was Wrong' folder."
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Lady Gaga Keeps The Poison Down: The MTV News Quote Of The Day

Posted 12/28/09 3:50 pm EST by in Music


"When I say things like, 'Do you love me? Do you want to f--- me? Come on, Hollywood, take my picture,' it's the ultimate epitome of what that fame monster is. And somehow, if you make fun of it or you make it a bit more tangible, fame is something that my fans can have for themselves. It's not quite so poisonous."

-Lady Gaga, telling MTV News' James Montgomery about the motivations behind "The Fame Monster," the alter-ego the singer inhabits during the shows on her current tour. In a conversation before her performance in San Diego last Saturday night (December 19), Gaga opened up about the narrative of the production, which is an over-the-top, sometimes inexplicable feast of sights and sounds. "I'm evolving through time. As a fashion story, the clothing begins in the sort of warbly, blue amoebic state, with lots of light, and it's kind of spacey, and then I grow bones, and then I grow hair, and then I grow horns, and then I become a sexy, full-bodied woman in a world full of war and military," she told MTV News. "And then I become myself, by the end of the show, and it's this sort of apocalyptic rebirth when I appear in the orbit and I've done it again."

Gaga's tour continues tonight in Atlanta (where she'll play a pair of shows) and continues into 2010 (she's currently booked through April, hitting the United Kingdom, Australia and Japan once she's done in this country). She'll host a high-profile event at the Fontainebleau in Miami on New Year's Eve — a ticket that is highly sought-after despite being priced between $425 and $25,000.

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The Champlain Bridge Demolition Video Is Amazing, But Requires A Soundtrack

Posted 12/28/09 3:15 pm EST by in Music


Is there anything better than video of a good controlled explosion? Especially one in the midst of a snow storm? This morning, the Lake Champlain Bridge (which links New York and Vermont over the lake of the same name on their shared border) was brought down via 800 pounds of explosives.

It's a pretty cool piece of video and reminds us of some of the great demolitions of the past, including the Kingdome in Seattle and the Alladin Hotel in Las Vegas. Unfortunately, the footage doesn't have any accompanying audio, which means that you don't get a good sense of the size of the explosion (which was probably blunted by the weather).

Luckily, there are plenty of songs about destruction that you can fire up in order to properly enjoy a good explosion video. There's P.O.D.'s "Boom," as well as the System of a Down song of the same name. Megadeth's "Crush" is also an appropriate tune, as is "Bombs Below" by the Living Things. Need something you can dance to? Punch up Rancid's "Time Bomb" or Gwen Stefani's "Crash." Fergie's "London Bridge" should also put you in the right frame of mind, and Damageplan's "Explode" also provides an excellent soundtrack to a good implosion.

But if you really want to enjoy the footage, make sure you're listening to the Hives' "Tick Tick Boom," which features a crazy guitar line, a spanking-good chorus and a blast of Swedish sass.

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Katy Perry Builds A Gingerbread House For Christmas

Posted 12/28/09 2:18 pm EST by in Music


Katy Perry spent the days leading up to Christmas hanging out with boyfriend Russell Brand in London, but she spent the holiday at home, and she kept her Twitter followers abreast of her holiday celebrations. The updates included a picture of her giant pink Christmas tree, a joyous exclamation about the carolers who visited her and a photo of a gingerbread house that she helped to construct.

"Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays everyone," she wrote early Christmas morning. "Wishing everyone health and happiness and a wonderful 2010!" A few hours later, she taunted St. Nick with a tweet. "It's 5 a.m. and still no sign of Santa," she wrote. "I have two chimneys and a cat door?! I mean ... Sorry I didn't put out milk and cookies — you were getting fat." The gingerbread house came with this accompanying tweet: "Gingerbread house. And sister and mom cleaning in kitchen. I'm not allowed in there."

Perry had plenty to celebrate this holiday season, as her album One of the Boys continued to rule the charts (mostly based on the strength of the singles "Waking Up in Vegas" and "Hot N Cold"), she taped an episode of "MTV Unplugged," recorded her new album (which should hit some time early next year), went on a huge tour and hosted the MTV Europe Music Awards. 2010 will bring more new music, singles and videos as well as a new tour and more development of her relationship with Brand. And if all else fails, perhaps she has a future in pastry design.

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Kanye West, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears And Barack Obama: 2009 In Photos

Posted 12/28/09 1:10 pm EST by in Music


There are only a few days left in 2009, a year that has been full of high drama, triumph, tragedy, trouble and humor — sometimes all at the same time. It will be a year that will go down in history as the 12 months that saw the inauguration of Barack Obama, the death of Michael Jackson, the rise of Lady Gaga, the fiasco that was "Balloon Boy" and the return of Eminem.

There was the drama that unfolded around Chris Brown and Rihanna, which began with a punch in February, lead to Brown pleading guilty to assault and both of them releasing new albums in December.

2009 also saw a renaissance of sorts for Britney Spears, who took her Circus tour on the road to sold-out arenas and received both critical acclaim and commercial success. Spears wrapped up her 2009 with The Singles Collection, a compilation of her biggest hits.

It was certainly an up-and-down year for Lil Wayne, who opened 2009 with the best-selling album of the previous year (Tha Carter III). Though Rebirth was repeatedly delayed, he did drop the well-received mixtape No Ceilings. However, his year ended on a down note, as the rapper plead guilty to criminal possession of a weapon, which will put him in jail for a year starting in February 2010.

As far as memorable images go, perhaps nothing will represent 2009 more than the scene of Kanye West crashing the stage while Taylor Swift was giving an acceptance speech at this year's Video Music Awards.

(Click here for more of the most lasting images from the past 12 months, from Bruno and the Gosselins to Tiger Woods and Octo-Mom!)

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Happy (Belated) 21st Birthday, Hayley Williams

Posted 12/28/09 12:29 pm EST by in Music


Christmas wasn't the only thing worth celebrating over the long weekend. Sunday (December 27) marked the 21st birthday of Paramore frontwoman Hayley Williams, and she celebrated with a party that included Taylor Swift and a zombie-centric cake that said "21 Years Later." According to Williams' Twitter, the surprise party went down at a roller rink and was organized by boyfriend and New Found Glory guitarist Chad Gilbert.

"Just leaving Hayley Williams' surprise b-day party," Swift wrote on her Twitter. "Roller skates were worn, Hanson was played. Party! Go Hayley!" Williams also noted Swift's dancing and roller skating skills on her Twitter. "Taylor Swift knows how to party!" she wrote. "Don't think I don't have the 'Confessions Pt. 2' dance burned into my mind for life!"

21 will no doubt hold even more greatness for Williams, as 20 was a pretty excellent year. Her band toured with No Doubt, recorded a well-received episode of "MTV Unplugged," won a pair of Teen Choice Awards, got nominated for a Grammy and dropped Brand New Eyes, one of the best albums of the year. For Williams, 2010 will bring tours of Japan and Australia, a headlining spot at the Bamboozle and more singles, videos and awards for Brand New Eyes. In honor of her belated birthday, check out the excellent video for "Brick by Boring Brick," the latest single from Brand New Eyes and the band's most forward-thinking and visually stunning video yet.

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Spotted: Sylvester Stallone Meets A Hero In Los Angeles

Posted 12/28/09 11:52 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 great thing about Christmas is that everybody has their own set of traditions. For some, the holiday is specifically reserved for family and friends. For basketball superstar Kobe Bryant, Christmas is about taking on the NBA's top competition on a high-profile stage. His Los Angeles Lakers are a staple of the Christmas Day television lineup, and this year was no different, as the Lakers welcomed LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers into the Staples Center for a highlight-filled showdown. Though Bryant nearly put up a triple-double (35 points, nine rebounds and eight assists), the Lakers fell to the Cavs 102-87. It wouldn't be a Lakers game without celebrities, and though Jack Nicholson missed this one, there was no shortage of stars in attendance, including George Lopez, Snoop Dogg, Zack de la Rocha, Sylvester Stallone and Hayden Panettiere.

They weren't the only stars out over the holiday weekend, as Korean pop singer and "Ninja Assassin" star Rain performed at a sold-out show in Las Vegas, while Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker spent some time with their twins in New York. Click here for these photos as well as the entire "Spotted!" archive, which features candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, Taylor Swift, the Jonas Brothers, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, Shakira, Jay-Z, Katy Perry, Janet Jackson, Beyoncé, Rihanna and Jessica Simpson!

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Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus And Adam Lambert: 10 In 2009

Posted 12/28/09 11:23 am EST by in Music


2009 is coming to a close, which means that it's time to check in on what the favorite albums, artists, songs and moments were among the fine folks in the MTV Newsroom. Be sure to check out James Montgomery's definitive year-end list for 2009, and enjoy the "10 In 2009" series that will be running over the next two weeks.

By A.J. Mayers

So we've reached the end of a year and a decade. It is crazy how fast 2009 went, but without a doubt this was a good year for music. My tastes are pretty diverse but most of my songs really are some of the ones that hit the charts this year. Here is my countdown with my explanation of why they are in my top 10 list.

10. Ke$ha, "Tik Tok"
A friend of mine played this song to me maybe over a month before it received such mainstream attention and radio airplay. The moment I heard it, I knew it would be a hit. It's so catchy and has a good dance beat. You also have to admit, it is pretty cool that P. Diddy laid down some vocals for this practically unknown artist for the beginning of the song.

9. 3OH!3, "Don't Trust Me"
3OH!3 have a unique kind of sound, and I still don't really know what to classify them as. It's on my list even though I still don't know what "moving your hips like Helen Keller" means!

8. Britney Spears, "3"
Britney had some pretty big songs this year, but I chose "3" because of how controversial the lyrics are. Leave it to Britney to sing a juicy and addicting song.
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Singer/Songwriter Vic Chesnutt Dies Of Drug Overdose

Posted 12/28/09 10:05 am EST by in Music


It was a sad Christmas for the friends and family of singer/songwriter Vic Chesnutt, as the artist passed away on Friday (December 25) after spending two days in a coma thanks to an overdose of muscle relaxers. Chesnutt was 45 years old. The Athens, Georgia-based Chesnutt was something of an icon in the indie rock community who wrote spare, darkly comic tunes about love and death. His famous fans included R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe (another Athens native), Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan and former Throwing Muses frontwoman Kristin Hersh.

When he was 18, Chesnutt was in a car accident that left him paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair, but he did not let his disability stop him from writing or performing. Stipe discovered him and produced his first two albums Little and West of Rome. He put out a total of 13 records over his career (including two in 2009), though he is probably best known for the 1998 compilation Sweet Relief II: The Gravity of the Situation, a benefit CD that saw artists like Garbage, Live, Soul Asylum and Madonna covering Chesnutt's tunes. The album was a benefit for the Sweet Relief Fund, which sought to provide health care to musicians who needed it (Chesnutt himself was often a recipient of such support, as his paralysis left him with soaring medical bills).

"In the few short years that we knew him personally, Vic transformed our sense of what true character, grace and determination are all about," said the founders of Constellation Records, the label that put out Chesnutt's albums. "Our grief is inexpressible and Vic's absence unfathomable."

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