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David Letterman sure threw down the gauntlet last week. The 63-year-old host of "The Late Show with David Letterman" proved that he can still swing with the younger crowd, as he devoted the entire Friday night (June 25) edition of his show to a visit by Jay-Z and Eminem. Jigga sat down for a chat about LeBron James (among other things), Slim Shady read off the night's "Late Night Top 10 List" and they both adjourned to the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theater for a three-song performance that included Em's "Not Afraid," Hova's "On to the Next One" and the tag-team affair that is "Renegade." What will Letterman — and more importantly, the rest of the late night community — do for an encore?

If you're Jay Leno, you apparently take the week off. But Big Dave stays on the pulse this week with visits from indie favorites Tokyo Police Club (Monday, June 28) and New Pornographers (Wednesday, June 30). He'll also sit down with "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" stars Kristen Stewart (Monday) and Taylor Lautner (Thursday, July 1). And why not toss a visit from Dolly Parton on Tuesday, June 29?

You would think that after last week's special that Jimmy Kimmel would be sick of talking to the cast of "Eclipse," but he apparently can't get enough. The host of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" will welcome Peter Facinelli on Wednesday and Dakota Fanning on Thursday. Just for good measure, he's got musical performances from the likes of The-Dream (Tuesday), 3OH!3 (Wednesday) and a triumphantly returning Korn (Thursday).

For the after-hours types, the normally dominant Jimmy Fallon is on vacation this week, which means that the extra-late musical performances are left to the normally tin-eared "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson." But this week is different, as Ferguson will welcome Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings on Tuesday and Dr. Dog on Friday (July 2). That's a pretty strong batch of performances, though anybody looking for Aventura or Cee-Lo will have to check in with George Lopez on Monday and Wednesday, respectively. And the daytime shows remain relatively quiet, as Ellen DeGeneres is still on vacation and the cast of "Eclipse" continues to take up most of the couch time.

Tags 3OH!3, dolly-parton, kristen-stewart, Late Night, New Pornographers, Talk Shows, Taylor Lautner, Tokyo Police Club

The weekend is here once again, which means it's time to pack up your stuff and hit the street to get in line to see "Knight and Day," catch the final weekend of baseball's inter-league action or get out to the beach and enjoy the proper summer. But before you settle into your weekend routine of sleeping late, eating too much and spending late nights with friends and family, be sure to arm yourself with all of the facts and insights that you might have missed here on the MTV Newsroom Blog. If you're a fan of Eminem's new album Recovery, Justin Bieber's just-launched headlining tour or the crazy excitement surrounding the World Cup, it was quite an eventful week.

» Eminem dropped his new album Recovery this week. It's an excellent collection of tunes that rank among the best of his career, but how will it match up against Miley Cyrus' Can't Be Tamed, the other high-profile album from this week?

» Slim Shady celebrated the release of his new album with a performance on the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theater. He was accompanied by Jay-Z, 100 lucky contest winners and Diddy (who was there for moral support).

» The MTV World Cup of Rock continued this week. The headlines included surges by Germany and Japan as well as the continuous dominance of South Korea (thanks to the respective fans of Tokio Hotel, Dir En Grey and Rain). Keep voting for your favorite nations to advance into the knockout round next week!

» Former "American Idol" champion Kris Allen celebrated his birthday earlier this week, and his fans commemorated the occasion by purchasing several dozen cows in his name.
Read more...

Tags American Idol, Eminem, Hanson, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, New York Mets, World Cup

No matter where in the world Salma Hayek will be this Sunday, June 27, you can bet she won't be far from a television tuned to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The "Grown Ups" star from Mexico will be cheering on her home country squad as they take on Argentina in the first round of the knockout portion of the international soccer tournament. The Mexican team held its own during group play, kicking off the tournament with a draw against host country South Africa before knocking out the French and dropping a thrilling game against Honduras. They take on an Argentina team that steamrolled through the group games, registering dominating wins against Nigeria, South Korea and Greece in the process.

This Sunday's match isn't actually a cut-and-dried pick for Hayek, who also has allegiances to Argentina. "I'm such a huge fan of their team, and they have my favorite player in the World Cup: Lionel Messi," she told MTV News on the red carpet at the premiere of "Grown Ups" earlier this week. "I'm 100 percent for Mexico, but the Argentinians are such an extraordinary team."

Hayek recognizes that it will be a struggle for Mexico, but she believes in her home country's team. "I'm all the way for Mexico," she said. "We might need a miracle from the Virgin of Guadalupe, but I believe!" Even if Mexico doesn't advance past Argentina, Hayek can take solace in the fact that Mexico seems to be a lock to advance in the MTV World Cup of Rock.

Who do you think will win the mach between Mexico and Argentina on Sunday, June 27? Let us know in the comments!

Tags Grown Ups, mexico, Salma Hayek, World Cup

This week, Justin Bieber kicked off his first-ever headlining arena tour at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut, and he isn't going at it alone. He is taking along collaborator and R&B star Sean Kingston as well as pop newbie Jessica Jarrell. Though Jarrell and Bieber haven't known each other for that long, they clearly have already built a rapport together. When they aren't hitting the stage together night after night for their duet "Overboard," Bieber has figured out a more devious way to pass the time, and Jessica is worried she won't be able to keep up.

"He's a goofball. Like we're always pulling pranks on each other," she told MTV News on the tour bus earlier this week before the tour's big kickoff show. "Actually, I'll tell you a secret: Him and his dancers, his side of the people, they walk around with water guns and water balloons and you know we're gonna have a war. We're gonna have a water gun war, which is going to be fun."

Fun, perhaps. But Jessica might want to hit up the water gun firing range before she takes Bieber on. Apparently she's not quite a sharp shooter yet. And apparently he's kind of got good aim. "I've got my water gun! No [I'm not good]!" she laughed about her skills. "So I gotta have some people help me. I'm bad."

Would you be able to best Justin Bieber in a water gun fight? Let us know in the comments!

Tags Jessica Jarrell, Justin Bieber, video

It's MTV's World Cup of Rock! The World Cup is the greatest sporting event on the planet, a super-sized stage where legends are born with every strike of the ball, where infamy is just a moment away and where the dreams of millions live or die by the minute. That's why, in the spirit of the 2010 MTV Musical March Madness competition, we've created "The World Cup (Of Rock)," a FIFA-style tournament that takes 16 of the biggest nations — rock-wise (sorry Algeria) — and pits them against one another to determine just which is the most rockingly awesome. Heavyweights like the U.S.A., England, France and Germany are all here, but so are a handful of surprisingly strong sleeper countries. As the Cup progresses, we'll be unveiling the match-ups, and it's up to you to vote your favorites through. In the end, only one nation will be left standing: the world champion of rock.

Brazil and Portugal have moved on in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, with only Group H still up for grabs. Spain, Chile and Switzerland are all still alive, which means this afternoon's matches should be thrilling affairs. Meanwhile, the MTV World Cup of Rock marches into the weekend with an excellent head-to-head featuring two powerhouses looking to move on.

Australia vs. Italy
These two squads are more even than you think, as most of their major exports err on the side of hard rock. So let's boil this down to a one-on-one match-up. In Italy's corner, the searing savagery of Lacuna Coil. On the other side of the pitch, Australia fields king-sized heavy metal legends AC/DC. Who will be loud enough to conquer? Only you can decide!

Be sure to vote in all the games in the MTV World Cup of Rock! Which nation's stars rock the hardest and best? Only you can decide!

Tags ac/dc, Australia, Italy, Lacuna Coil, Poll, World Cup

"Go see 'Toy Story 3.' The toys are back in town. Always purchase music through authorized retailers that pay royalties to the artists. Don't get mixed up with drugs, gangs or oil executives."

-Rapper, producer and actor Eminem, doling out his "advice for the kids" on "The Late Show with David Letterman." Eminem appears on Friday night's (June 25) episode of the show, which will also feature the rooftop performance that he and Jay-Z recorded earlier this week. Though there is no word on what will actually make it to air, the pair ripped through a trio of songs (Eminem's "Not Afriad," Jay-Z's "On to the Next One" and the tag-team "Renegade" from Jigga's The Blueprint) while on top of the building that houses the Ed Sullivan Theater.

During his visit to the show, Jay-Z will also be sitting down with Letterman for a chat about basketball. "You're a guy. I'm a guy. Now, if LeBron James wants to be a guy, he will stay where he is and not cut the heart out of that city by leaving Cleveland," Letterman told Hov. "You wouldn't do that, would you? Cleveland is in desperate decline. And one of the glimmering hopes they have..."

"How's your ratings in Cleveland?" interrupted, which earned him a big laugh from the studio audience.

In addition to promoting Eminem's just-released album Recovery (which is expected to debut on top of the Billboard album chart next week), the two rappers are also plugging their upcoming "Home and Home" shows, which will see them play of concerts in each of their hometown baseball stadiums. They recently added one date each in New York and Detroit, bringing the total number of shows up to four total.

Tags david letterman, Eminem, Jay-Z, Quote

By Mawuse Ziegbe

Just when you thought the Auto-Tune craze of the last few years was finally dead (didn't Jay-Z officially kill it off last year?), you can count on an old-school game show to dig up the trend. Venerable "Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek recently tried his hand at livening up the grandma-favored trivia show with a new category called "Alex Meets Auto-Tune."

The category featured Trebek busting out some Auto-Tuned lyrics that contestants had to identify, (all while stifling their laughter, of course). But it wouldn't be "Jeopardy!" if the show didn't put its own AARP-friendly spin on things. So instead of hearing Trebek rock some blazin' hits from Kanye West or Akon, the lyrics were all from folk songs and standards like "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" and "Oh Susanna." If nothing else, these bizarre performances proved that these songs probably never needed to be Auto-Tuned in the first place.

Ever hotter than Trebek's chirpy rendition of "The Farmer in the Dell" might be the ultra-computerized beats that accompanied the lyrics, which ranged from glitchy, hyper disco to synthy muzak. Basically, beats that sound like a Casio keyboard being slammed against a wall.

But hey, maybe this is a good direction for the show. I mean, we are talking about it aren't we? And in what other world would "Jeopardy!" be newsworthy outside of your grandmother's sewing circle? Maybe Trebek should drop a mixtape. After all, Canadian MCs are all the rage nowadays.

Tags Auto-Tune, Jeopardy!

Every morning, MTV News delivers the top news stories in music, movies and pop culture hot and fresh for your reading and watching pleasure. We then bring together a trio of the biggest headlines for "Three to See," the daily digest of the top stories making noise on our site and across the Internet. This morning, stories about Michael Jackson doctor Conrad Murray's defense in court, an update on the woman who assaulted Bam Margera and Kristen Stewart's status regarding "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" lead the way.

Conrad Murray's Lawyer Says He Didn't Deliver Fatal Dose To Michael Jackson
On the one-year anniversary of Michael Jackson's death, Dr. Conrad Murray's lawyer said that there was no way his client could have delivered the dose of Propofol that killed the pop icon last June. Attorney Ed Chernoff told CNN that his client could not have delivered the dose of the surgery-grade anesthetic.

Kristen Stewart Says She Probably Won't Be In "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
On the red carpet for the Los Angeles premiere of "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse," star Kristen Stewart told MTV News that though it was unlikely she would be able to play a role in the upcoming film "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," she holds out hope for it. "I'm booked for, like, the next six months, but it's an incredible project," she said. "I hope someone really cool does it, because I can't wait to see it. But I don't know if it's going to be me."

Woman Who Assaulted Bam Margera Will Face Trial
A judge ruled that the 59-year-old woman who attacked "Jackass" star Bam Margera with a baseball bat a few weeks ago will stand trial. Elizabeth Ray will have to face a jury on counts of aggravated assault and several other related charges.

Tags Bam Margera, Conrad Murray, Eclipse, kristen-stewart, Michael Jackson, Three to See, video

In a rare occurrence, the two major films opening this weekend are both original scripts and not sequels, remakes, adaptations or comic books. The Tom Cruise action flick "Knight and Day" will hit screens across the country, as will the comedy "Grown Ups." The latter film features a veritable all-star team of comic actors, including Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade and Rob Schneider. It's the comedy film equivalent of a supergroup (they're like the Traveling Wilburys, with Sandler as Bob Dylan, Rock as George Harrison, James as Roy Orbison, Spade as Tom Petty and Schneider as Jeff Lynne). The quintet play a pack of high school friends who get back together for a reunion and attempting to recapture and understand something about their youth. It's a sweet movie with an amazing cast (the flick also stars Salma Hayek, Maria Bellow, Maya Rudolph, Steve Buscemi, Tim Meadows and Colin Quinn, among many others).

Like any good high-profile summer flick, it requires an appropriate soundtrack for preparation. That's why we put together the video playlist below, which features plenty of modern classics about the art of growing up. There's a little Chamillionaire ("Grown and Sexy"), an appearance by Tiffany Evans ("I'm Grown") and even a hello from the Pussycat Dolls ("When I Grow Up"). There are also tracks about reunions (Stars' "Reunion") and tunes about having children (MGMT's "Kids"). But the soundtrack kicks off with Bowling for Soup's "High School Never Ends," a lamentation about those golden teenage years.

Tags Bowling For Soup, garbage, Grown Ups, MGMT, Pussycat-Dolls, video

A full year has elapsed since the world lost legendary pop star Michael Jackson. His death had an immediate effect on millions of people worldwide, and not only was it a definitive pop culture moment but also a piece of hard news that most of the networks covered like a major election or a natural disaster. It required everybody here in the MTV Newsroom to be on high alert and to play their best game (which they absolutely did, from the moment the first rumors about the ambulance arriving at Jackson's house all the way up to the stories breaking today).

June 25, 2009 started off like any other Thursday, with the usual slate of news stories. The biggest thing mentioned in our morning meeting was that Farrah Fawcett had passed away, and we were trying to come up with concepts to pay tribute to her. The day wore on as usual, until a story broke late in the afternoon. The word got around the office quickly: Michael Jackson had been taken to the hospital. There was confusion, as some outlets were (correctly) reporting that he was already dead, though there were other reports that he was doing just fine. In the time it took the news team to confirm one part of the story, another part of the story would evolve. I was actually on the phone with somebody discussing the idea that Jackson might die when writer Eric Ditzian told me that his death was confirmed.

The whole energy of the day changed. It was late, and people were probably thinking about packing it in for the night. But they stuck around, frantically calling contacts as we tried to get people on the ground with cameras in Los Angeles. We went live so quickly that it seemed almost instantaneous (though it had to have taken a few hours). Everybody just kept sticking around, looking for things to do. It was mostly to serve the audience and pay respect to a definitive artist in the histories of both pop music and MTV, but there was also a sense of loss felt by everybody who was working here. For the generation of people in the employ of MTV News, Michael Jackson was a massive influence and inspiration. For many, his were the first albums we ever bought or were interested in. He was the gateway to music and pop culture for many of us, and the fact that he had died required a certain amount of processing.

There are two clear things I remember from working that night. The first was the fact that I tried to interview the guy in the Elmo costume in Times Square about his reaction to Jackson's death (he just shook his head sadly). The second (and arguably more important) thing was that everybody seemed to react genuinely at first. By the second day, many people had contextualized Jackson's death, treating it as a big cultural moment because they recognized it as such. But in those first few hours, everybody I talked to seemed to have genuine reactions. They weren't worried about feeling the correct thing in the context of history. They were just reacting to a thing that had happened. With the news cycle on a constant loop, it's hard for anybody to have an honest reaction to any given event, mostly because anything that happens is instantly evaluated, re-evaluated and compartmentalized into sound bites and easily digestible historical contexts. But the first day of Jackson's passing was different. People just listened to the music and reacted. In a brilliant move, MTV just started playing Jackson videos on a loop, which allowed the man's songs to speak for themselves and gave anybody who wanted access to his life's work.

Over time, as the narrative of his final hours unfolded, his memorial service came together and the fallout started to collect, Jackson morphed into a permanent icon, the sort of person who exists more as a concept than as an actual person. But in those first 24 hours, he was simply a brilliant artist who went before his time. MTV News was there, and I'd like to think we became a part of his legacy.

Tags Michael Jackson