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It's the end of December, which means we're knee-deep in the annual awards season. The nominations for the Golden Globe Awards came out earlier this week, and the Screen Actors' Guild Awards nominees were announced this morning. Though the Academy Award nominations won't be announced until February 2, the Oscars have sent out the list of the 63 original songs from films that will be eligible for a nomination in the Best Original Song category. There are a handful of soundtrack tunes from blockbusters (like Linkin Park's "New Divide," from "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen"), plenty of foreign fare and a ton of Miley Cyrus tracks.

But there's one song that really stands out: Lykke Li's "Possibility," which comes from the soundtrack to "The Twilight Saga: New Moon." The moody piece is one of the standouts from the excellent soundtrack (which also features Death Cab for Cutie, Thom Yorke and Muse) and could be the best shot that "New Moon" has at Oscar gold.

When Lykke Li stopped by MTV News a few months ago to discuss the "New Moon" soundtrack, she told rock editor James Montgomery that the song's melody had been living in her head for a while, but it took a screening of the movie to make it complete. "I had this hook in my mind," she said. "I was watching the movie, and I was like, 'That's the hook!'"

As soon as she decided what the song would be, she finished writing it and recorded it the next day. But what was it about "New Moon" that gave Lykke Li the songwriting spark? "It was very much a discovery inside myself," she said. "I had this song growing inside me that had to get out, and I really connected with [Edward and Bella's] tortured love story."

Tags Lykke Li, New Moon, video

"There's not a whole lot I can do about it. This is like a hand grenade got thrown into our lives and it's not Frances! I am angry at these people, not Frances. I'd just prefer she not become Jaimie [sic] L Spears. She should go be a writer or an artist, which I support 100%, but this is a circus and it pains me cos I know she hates it."

-Former Hole frontwoman Courtney Love, writing on Facebook about losing custody of her daughter. 17-year-old Frances Bean Cobain — the only child of Love and late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain — will be living with her paternal grandmother after Love lost legal custody of her earlier this week. No specific reason was given about why Love has lost her status as Frances' legal guardian. The above rant comes a day after Love wrote a lengthy diatribe on Facebook attacking her daughter. "I hate to sound cold, but any kid of mine who pulls this sh-- has lost her position," Love wrote. "The good news is now that Frances is clearly deluded that she [thinks she] can buy her grandmother a 'small house in L.A.' I'd love to see how that works. They'll incubate her until she's 18 and then have her sign all the indemnifications."

Tags Courtney-Love, Frances Bean Cobain, Quote

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 holidays can be tough for musicians, especially if they're on the road and away from their families. That's a moot point when your family is with you, and it's even better when you're in warm weather. Such is the case of Jordin Sparks, who has been on the road performing at holiday radio festivals (including last week's Z100 Jingle Ball at Madison Square Garden in New York City) and found herself hanging out with her mother Jodi at the Eden Roc Resort in Miami Beach on Wednesday. She spent time with fellow singer Steph Jones and also got a necklace from jewelry designer Rafi Anteby. Her road slate is nearly complete, as she'll play her last holiday show tonight (December 17) in Duluth, Georgia, alongside the Fray, Justin Bieber, Leona Lewis, Cobra Starship and Owl City.

Sparks isn't the only artist wrapping up a tour before the holidays. Paramore are about to wrap up a run through Europe and played what frontwoman Hayley Williams described as their biggest show ever in Manchester, U.K. on Wednesday night. Click here for these photos as well as the rest of the "Spotted!" archive, which features over 300 candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, the Jonas Brothers, Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Rihanna, Katy Perry, Adam Lambert, Beyoncé, Shakira, Jay-Z, Shakira and Madonna!

Tags jordin-sparks, Paramore, photo, Spotted!

In 1994, Lisa Loeb wanted us to "Stay," but all I could do was be jealous of her bold and oh-so-hip decision to don her now signature cat-eye glasses. I had just started wearing glasses myself at the time and Lisa was doing the work that was long overdue: Empowering the bespectacled youth of America to forgo the nerd stereotypes and embrace their inner coffee shop songwriter.

Now, 15 years, a few reality shows and a number of albums later, Lisa is finally releasing her own eyewear line. According to Entertainment Weekly, Lisa (who is as much known for wearing glasses as she is for writing catchy tunes) is teaming with Classique Eyewear to create frames similar to the ones she wore in that "Stay" music video.

The glasses will be available in black and tortoise-shell and will have rhinestones and etchings. To make matters more interesting, the frames will be named after Lisa's now classic female-friendly pop rock song titles. The big question remains: When will Rivers Cuomo launch the male line to act as a counterpart to Lisa's? Rivers, it's never too late to get in the design game. Plus, we have always wondered what we would look like wearing the "Buddy Holly" specs.

Tags Lisa Loeb

The trailer for what is sure to be one of the biggest movies of 2010 hit the Internet last night, and it's a doozy. "Iron Man 2" welcomes back Robert Downey, Jr. as the titular Marvel Comics machine-assisted superhero and welcomes Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke and Scarlett Johansson to the fold. Based on the trailer, "Iron Man 2" will bring back everything that audiences loved about the first movie: Downey's indestructible charisma, inventive effects and lots of cool things blowing up.

It also brings back some excellent music. One of the fantastic aspects about the trailer for the first "Iron Man" film was that it went ahead and used Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" as a music cue. (As everybody knows, any use of a Black Sabbath tune automatically makes anything 62 percent more badass.) The "Iron Man 2" trailer brings the Sabbath song in for a callback at the very end but is mostly buoyed by the opening sequence, which is set to AC/DC's "Shoot to Thrill." It's an excellent choice, as AC/DC also have that instant-badassifying quality that Sabbath has. Plus, they had a song on 2008's Black Ice called "War Machine," which hopefully will be used as Cheadle's entrance music in some scene in the film.

For more on everything "Iron Man 2"-related, check out Splash Page, MTV Movies' definitive source for all things comic-related (they've already got a shot-by-shot analysis of the trailer that is a must-read for fans), and if you need more AC/DC in your life (and who doesn't?), enjoy "Anything Goes."

Tags ac/dc, Black Sabbath, iron man 2

Like the drummer's chair in Spinal Tap, the guitar player position in the Red Hot Chili Peppers has always been a mysterious black hole. The band has been together since 1983 and have morphed from snot-nosed skate punks to a full-scale stadium rock monster. They've been on hiatus, but recently got back together to talk about new material. Except they are short one member, as guitarist John Frusciante announced that he has left the band. It's the second time Frusciante has left the band (the first time was in 1992 at the height of the band's Blood Sugar Sex Magik-era popularity).

All told, the Red Hot Chili Peppers have had seven total guitarists in their history. Original axeman Hillel Slovak died of an overdose in 1988 and was followed by DeWayne McKnight, Frusciante, Arik Marshall, Dave Navarro and Frusciante again. (Guitarist Jack Sherman actually recorded the parts for the band's self-titled first album because Slovak was signed to another label with another band at the time.)

They're a three-legged dog once again, but there are plenty of options available. Playing in the Chili Peppers is difficult, as you have to shift from funk to hard rock to punk on a dime, but these 10 axemen could fit the bill nicely.

Dave Navarro: He's already replaced Frusciante once and already knows a lot of the songs. Plus, the one album the band cut with Navarro (1995's One Hot Minute) is a tremendously underrated album. It's phenomenally dark and has a least two songs ("Warped" and "My Friends") that deserve to be recognized as modern classics.

Captain Kirk Douglas: He's got a sweet gig with the Roots on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," but listen to how easily he shifts from metal riffs to smooth reggae and jazz. Douglas is a remarkable player who can be everything to everyone.

Robin Finck: Since Nine Inch Nails is no longer a traveling outfit, Finck needs some work. The guy knows how to deliver big, intricate sounds and is comfortable playing in front of the massive crowds that the Chili Peppers are used to.

Vernon Reid: Living Colour only recently got back together, but Reid is probably the dream guitarist for the Peppers, as he is able to bring together metal, funk and everything in between with every strum.
Read more...

Tags Dave Navarro, john-frusciante, red-hot-chili-peppers

By Sabrina Rojas Weiss

A stunning upset by the underdog! A come-from-behind victory that changes everything we ever thought about dance, art and reality television! And a totally believable attempt by Jennifer Lopez to convince us that she wasn't lip-synching! Absolutely none of these things happened on "So You Think You Can Dance" last night. And I don't think anyone's exactly complaining.

Just about everyone with eyes could have predicted that Jakob and Russell would be the top two dancers since, oh, the first top 20 competition. OK, I predicted that Jakob would take the title in the end, but Russell's smile always held a magical power — and when he also pulled off some amazing pirouettes, a decent paso doble and showed off a bit of krumping on Tuesday night, he clinched the votes he needed. And I don't think anyone's sorry he did.

Highlights
» Jakob got a hint of what his future may be, with a number by Complexions choreographers Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson. That moment at the end when he practically flew horizontally took my breath away. I hope Jakob takes Nigel's advice and joins a company. (Maybe not the company I saw in Brooklyn last night, who did an amazing dance involving hundreds of water bottles that somehow represented the Bible, the Congo and the Mississippi. I'm not sure Jakob's jetés would mesh.)

» Ryan finally won my heart and made me regret being biased against his eyebrows all season. Seeing him do the samba, an insanely intricate robot-jazz piece and a very tender contemporary number all in one night really showed how well he combines strength and grace. He doesn't have that hard, over-cheery competition facade that Ashleigh never managed to shed. And he stood there so solidly, supporting the injured Russell and still beaming as Cat rushed through his elimination.

» Adam Lambert reminded us he could sing, despite carrying a load of elephant droppings on his shoulder. Read more...

Tags So You Think You Can Dance

The first teaser for the upcoming rock and roll biopic "The Runaways" debuted this morning on MTV's Hollywood Crush blog. The hotly-anticipated movie (which hits cinemas in March) tells the story of the Runaways, the all-girl punk band who broke out huge at the end of the '70s and made stars out of band members Joan Jett and Lita Ford. The flick is directed by music video mastermind Floria Sigismondi (Marilyn Manson's "The Beautiful People," the White Stripes' "Blue Orchid") and stars Kristen Stewart as Jett, Scout Taylor-Compton ("Halloween") as Ford and Dakota Fanning as singer Cherie Currie.

We've seen plenty of photos of Stewart with her hair and clothes looking like Jett's, but the teaser trailer provides the first real footage of Stewart in context. Based on the scenes shown in the clip, it looks like Stewart has Jett nailed perfectly. The guitarist has worked directly with the actress in preparation for the role, and Stewart has managed to pin down a lot of Jett's particular looks and expressions. Just take a look at the key frame below, where Jett is simultaneously seductive, mysterious and dangerous.

2010 could be a gigantic year for Stewart, who will not only star in "The Runaways" but will of course also lead "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" in the summer. "The Runaways" should also help to elevate the profile of the band, as well as the profiles of Jett and Ford. Between the three entities, they've churned out some impressive hits, including "Cherry Bomb" (which is featured in the teaser trailer), "I Hate Myself for Loving You," "Bad Reputation" and "Kiss Me Deadly."

Tags joan jett, kristen-stewart, photo, the runaways

There are some feats that man must accomplish in order to advance the exploration of the universe, help the race evolve or expand the limits of human understanding. That is why we go into space, dive deep into the ocean and created powerful technologies that can let us observe the world's smallest particles or re-create the Big Bang. However, some feats of human accomplishment are simply attempted because they are awesome. Such is the case of Stan Barrett, who on this day in 1979 became the first person to break the sound barrier while traveling on land.

Barrett, a race driver and Hollywood stuntman, got behind the wheel of a three-wheeled rocket powered vehicle in Rogers Dry Lake, California and climbed to a top speed of 739 miles per hour, putting him at Mach 1.01. The stunt was sponsored by Budweiser, and the car was powered by the equivalent of a Sidewinder missile. It was an impressive feat, although Barrett's record has always been called into question, as there was no third party present to record the time. Eyewitness reports also don't include a visible shockwave or a sonic boom, two things universally present when the sound barrier is broken. Still, Barrett was certainly willing to go where no man had gone before. His legacy is in tact, too: His son, Stanton Barrett, is a NASCAR driver and has coordinated stunts for some of the biggest Hollywood blockbusters of all time (including the "Spider-Man" films). Coldplay's "Speed of Sound" isn't an homage to Barrett, but it is a fitting anthem for a guy who always felt the need for speed.

Tags Coldplay, video

By Rahman Dukes

At the close of what has been arguably the most successful year of his career, Raekwon put the icing on the cake on Wednesday night (December 16) when he visited "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" in New York City's Rockefeller Center. Alongside a lineup that included Sarah Jessica Parker (who was wooed by the sounds of house band, the legendary Roots crew), Jeff Musial with a reindeer in tow (yes, a real live reindeer) and author Deepak Chopra, Rae closed out the show a killer show with great energy and toughness.

Draped in a fitted "classic" hat, jeans, sneakers and a gaudy iced-out chain, a vibrant Raekwon tore into "Catalina," the latest hit off his Only Built 4 Cuban Linx ... Pt. II album. Backed by a few guest audience members from the 187-seat theater and some assistance from Roots frontman Black Thought, Rae kept the show gritty with the Dr. Dre-produced track. There were even a handful of audience members throwing up the Wu-Tang "W" and waiving copies of his latest CD around.

But the Chef wasn't done yet. After Fallon closed out his show and thanked his guests and audience members, the production crew shut off the house lights and treated everyone to one more tune from Rae. "Now yo yo, whattup yo, time is runnin' out. It's for real though, let's connect politic, ditto! We could trade places, get lifted in the staircases. Word up, peace incarcerated scarfaces." As I rapped along in excitement with the classic "Incarcerated Scarfaces," I couldn't help but glance in pride at Rae, who was slinging his coke raps on network television in front of a mostly white audience. The kid from Stapleton Projects clearly came a long way. ODB would be proud.

Tags Jimmy Fallon, Raekwon