One of the stranger stories to come out of last week's news cycle was the tale surrounding an episode of "Jimmy Kimmel Live," which featured guest appearances by both rapper 50 Cent and legendary basketball play-by-play man Marv Albert. There was a report last week that , who didn't recognize the hoops announcer but did think he was there to hassle the rapper. A tussle ensued, and a handful of obscenities and punches were thrown from both directions.
It's a pretty crazy story, except according to Albert, it never happened. The announcer told the Associated Press that all reports about the scuffle were false. Albert said he never came even vaguely close to 50 Cent or his crew the entire time he was at "Jimmy Kimmel Live." "I couldn't even tell you what the guy looked like or the security guard looked like," Albert told the AP on Saturday (November 21). "I'm sure this will be funny to me in a couple of days. It's not funny to me now, obviously." That's quite a relief, as it saves 50 Cent the trouble of recording an entire mixtape that disses Albert, his basketball announcing prowess and the relative skill set of Albert favorite John Starks.
By Matt Thompson
In perhaps one of the oddest moments of the week, 50 Cent's crew got tangled up with longtime basketball announcer Marv Albert backstage at "Jimmy Kimmel Live" on Wednesday (November 18). 50 and Marv both appeared on the show that night, and according to the Los Angeles Times, Albert received a chilly reception from 50's entourage when he arrived at the studio. Apparently, they didn't recognize the venerable voice of the NBA, and they were under the impression he was trying to impose on 50's interview. So when the broadcaster entered the building, what went down? Punches were thrown, obscenities were spat out and things got quite hostile.
Although the details remain unclear, the 68-year-old Albert was in the middle of it all. Even when a Kimmel staffer identified Albert, 50's entourage remained unswayed. Somehow, Albert got out of there unscathed, remarking, "Did you see that? I thought they were kidding, then I realized they weren't."
Both Albert and 50 were interviewed later and neither made any reference to the incident. In their defense, most people know Albert's voice more than his face. In fact, Albert could have probably avoided the whole incident had he simply shouted "LeBron James for three! Yes!"
Considering how many chart-topping albums he has had and the number of smash singles he has released, it's amazing to think that Jay-Z has never had a song top the Billboard Hot 100, the definitive pop songs chart. That changed this morning, as his "Empire State of Mind" took the top spot in its tenth week of release. The track, which of course features a memorable hook care of Alicia Keys, picked up a ton of radio airplay in the wake of the New York Yankees' World Series win (the team ended up adopting it as a victory anthem). Meanwhile, "Run This Town," the first single from The Blueprint 3, remains in the top 20.
While it does mark the first time Jigga has had one of his own songs at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, it's not the first time his name has been associated with the top spot. He has been a guest on three other number one tunes: Mariah Carey's "Heartbreaker," Beyoncé's "Crazy in Love" and Rihanna's "Umbrella." Keys is no stranger to the summit of the pop mountain either, as she has had two of her own songs hit the top spot ("Fallin'" and "No One") as well as another collaboration ("My Boo," with Usher).
Elsewhere on this week's Hot 100, Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" jumped seven spots up the chart to #11, which suggests that it should bust into the top 10 the same week that her The Fame Monster gets its official release. Other big gainers included 50 Cent's "Baby by Me" and the version of "Defying Gravity" as performed by Chris Colfer and Lea Michele from "Glee."
"What I realized translated most through my material is the aggression, and the people miss it because the other artists don't come from the same type of background or lifestyle. They don't want that from those artists. You know, what they would knock me for is if I sung on a record — 'Oh, 50 is singing on a record' — they get upset when I use the melody. I've been encouraged to use more melody because I'm an international touring artist and I'm watching the music break language barriers, and all they can follow is melody when you go out there at different points. So I brought it, I came back, and I did different things creatively and they kind of resent me for what they love Drake for. It's interesting."
-Rapper/mogul/cultural critic/"New Moon" fan 50 Cent, discussing the reasoning behind the harder-edged songs in his catalog, especially on the just-released Before I Self Destruct. During a long conversation with MTV News, 50 went through each of his albums one-by-one and talked about the choices he made at various points in his career. For instance, he admits that he was probably overextending himself during the creation of The Massacre. "I overwrote this album. It's 22 cuts, the maximum playing time on a single CD. Technically it's a double-disc. You know, I had so much going on creatively at that point that I also wrote the hit music that was on Game's effort, you know, doing this project." According to 50, Before I Self Destruct is the best album he's ever produced. "I finally found a balance of what I feel like a great album is — and this is representation of it."
There are a ton of new releases hitting the streets today, including albums from Kris Allen, John Mayer, Them Crooked Vultures and 50 Cent. But the one album that might be the most anticipated of any of those is the debut from Justin Bieber. My World is now available (currently on sale for $7.99 at iTunes), and it is the culmination of all of the build-up that Bieber has had in the past few months. Bieber first made a splash two months ago at the MTV Video Music Awards, where he gave a shout-out to a contest-winning fan during the red carpet show.
After that, he parlayed his many Twitter followers and Facebook friends into an aggressive onslaught that saw him drop a total of four singles (which makes up half the album), cut a pair of videos (for "One Time" and "One Less Lonely Girl") and appear on just about every talk show imaginable (including "Today," "Good Morning America" and "Ellen," where he'll be making his second appearance today).
Bieber's story is now the stuff of legend: He put footage of him singing up on YouTube just so his extended family could see him perform, and the video clips got spread around and lead to a bidding war between Justin Timberlake and Usher. The latter signed the 15-year-old Canadian, and the rest is, as they say, history.
Bieber celebrated the release of his debut last night with a dinner with his new mentor. In traditional Bieber fashion, he tweeted about the experience and posted a picture. Today, he posted a video thanking his fans for his success in celebration of the release of My World. For Bieber, it's just getting started.
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.
There might have been other cultural events happening last night, but as far as the pop universe is concerned, the only real event last night (and all week, really) was the premiere of "New Moon," the hotly-anticipated second entry in the "Twilight" film series. The film had its big red carpet event last night (check out last night's live blog over at Hollywood Crush for all the sordid details) that again brought together the series' hot trio of Taylor Lautner, Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson. The premiere was also attended by co-stars Dakota Fanning, Nikki Reed, Kellan Lutz and Ashley Greene, as well as 50 Cent, Death Cab for Cutie frontman Chris Walla, Emma Roberts, OK Go, film director Kevin Smith and, of course, hundreds of fans who gathered outside the Mann Village Theater in Los Angeles.
There were other lower-profile events happening yesterday too, as Rihanna celebrated the release of her new album Rated R at a London club and Justin Bieber hung out in Queens on the eve of his album's release. Click here for these photos as well as the entire "Spotted!" archive, which features over 350 candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, Madonna, Adam Lambert, Justin Timberlake, 50 Cent, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, the Jonas Brothers and Shakira!
Of all the artists that pass through the MTV headquarters here in New York every week, there are few that bring the same level of excitement to the building that 50 Cent does. With his fourth studio album Before I Self Destruct set to hit stores, the G-Unit General is hard at work on the promo trail talking about everything from music to his rivals. Interviewing 50 never gets old. He has as much charisma as he does bottles of Vitamin Water in his fridge, so whenever he comes in for a big sit-down interview you never know what to expect.
It's an interesting time for 50. He's nearing the end of his five album deal with Interscope, and he appears to have come full circle, as the aggression of his debut Get Rich or Die Tryin' is matched only by the new album. Despite having a reported $300 million in the bank and an empire that spans clothing, beverages, books and movies, it's refreshing to see that 50 still approaches each interview as if it was his first.
We started by breaking down the album, picking out some key songs including "Baby By Me" and his collaboration with Eminem on "Psycho." We touched upon his recent rivalry with Jay-Z and his longstanding relationship with Dr. Dre and Eminem both inside and outside of the studio. He broke down some standout lyric,s including the line on "So Disrespectful" that addresses Dre's position in 50's beef against the Game.
In the video for "Baby By Me," 50 takes on the role of a suburban father complete Kelly Rowland playing his wife and three Argyll-wearing kids. So we asked him if this could ever be a possibility for the hip-hop heavyweight or if it will have to remain a video fantasy. And somehow we got into that game you play with your friends: Halle Berry or Megan Fox? Halle or Angelina Jolie? Megan or Jessica Biel?
Yes, we went there. And he answered. Stay tuned to MTV News all week for more on 50 Cent.
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 Jonas Brothers' tour through Europe hit a bit of a hiccup last week when Nick caught an upper respiratory infection, forcing the group to cancel a concert in Zurich, Switzerland. But the trio have bounced back and continue on the road through the continent, stopping yesterday in Madrid, Spain. They paid a visit to Santiago Bernabeu, the stadium where top world soccer team Real Madrid plays its games. The brothers kicked the ball around and, after receiving customized Real Madrid shirts from the team, got their picture taken in front of international soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo's locker.
The Jonas Brothers weren't the only stars indulging in their sports fandom yesterday, as the Black Eyed Peas hung out at the launch for Jump Footwear (for which Taboo designed a custom sneaker) and Mariah Carey was spotted outside her London hotel (she wasn't doing anything sports-related, though she was once linked with New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter). Click here for these photos as well as the entire "Spotted!" archive, featuring more than 350 candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, Beyoncé, Madonna, Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry, Adam Lambert, Shakira, Rihanna and 50 Cent!
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.
Former "American Idol" contestant David Archuleta didn't win the season he competed (that honor went to erstwhile Our Lady Peace fan David Cook), but in many ways it's worked out better for Archie. He has never had to deal with the pressure or scrutiny of being the winner, but there is still plenty of enthusiasm surrounding everything he works on (including his recently-released Christmas album). Plus, he's not hounded by photographers all that often. Really, it's the best kind of fame. Still, it was nice to see him show up in the paparazzi viewfinders yesterday, as Archuleta was spotted leaving high-end Los Angeles eatery Il Pastaio with singer and songwriter Kina Grannis.
He wasn't the only star who rolled in public yesterday, as Leona Lewis paid a visit to Radio One in London and Robin Thicke dropped in on a radio station in Miami. Click here for these photos plus the entire "Spotted!" archive, which features over 350 candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, Shakira, Mariah Carey, Madonna, Lady Gaga, the Jonas Brothers, Adam Lambert, Katy Perry, Beyoncé, Jay-Z and 50 Cent!
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.
In a typical television season, there are usually only two or three decent shows mixed among a giant glut of non-starters. But this season has been different, having already delivered the sharp comedy "Modern Family," the excellent sci-fi remake "V" and the inconsistent but interesting psychodrama "Flash Forward." Of course, there is still plenty of garbage out there — just watch 30 seconds of "Accidentally on Purpose" for proof. By far this season's breakout new show is "Glee," the witty, biting comedy that skews high school life, theater geeks and pop music in a rapid-fire stew that is pretty irresistible. What's most impressive is that the show manages to juggle so many characters, each of which have a distinct personality and any of whom could become breakout stars. It helps that they've been committed to getting out and meeting fans, which they did yesterday at the ArcLight Cinemas in Los Angeles. Stars Kevin McHale, Jenna Ushkowitz and Chris Colfer showed up to get the word out about the TV season's best new show — one that will hopefully have a long, brilliant broadcast life.
In other star news yesterday, Rihanna paid a visit to the awards show and party hosted by Glamour magazine in New York, while Shakira celebrated her cover of Rolling Stone with a fete just across town. Click here for these photos as well as the entire "Spotted!" archive, which contains over 350 candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, Beyoncé, the Jonas Brothers, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Adam Lambert, 50 Cent and Mariah Carey!
