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O Music Awards Dance Record Attempt Not Weird Guinness Music Record

Posted 10/5/11 12:42 pm EST by in Eminem, Janet-Jackson, Michael Jackson, Taylor Swift

O Music Awards

If you've ever seen "Grease," you know that dance-offs were a thing back in the 1950s. But MTV's O Music Awards are updating the bop-till-you-drop tradition with an attempt to break the Guinness World record with an upcoming shot at snagging the 55-hour dance marathon title.

Some dedicated hoofers will trying to keep it poppin' right up until the second the O Music Awards kick off at 11:30 PM on October 31 in Los Angeles.

That got us thinking about other wacky music-related records tallied by Guinness and, believe it or not, trying to dance for more than two days is not close to the strangest record in the books.

Here are a few of our favorites: Read More...

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Kat Von D Joins Lindsay Lohan And Paris Hilton As Latest Non-Singer To Ink Record Deal

Posted 10/4/11 2:55 pm EST by in Music, Television

For a while there, everyone who was good at one thing thought they could act (remember all those Shaq movies?), then later, everyone who thought they were good at something else decided, hell, I can sing too.

But for every Gwyneth Paltrow and Zooey Deschanel, who can (mostly) carry a tune, there are a dozen Ethan Hawkes, Russell Crowes, Scarlett Johanssons and Steven Seagals who should have stuck to what they were best at.

Now, people who are not even necessarily good at … well, anything, are trying their hand at singing, because, why not, Paris, Leighton, Kim Kardashian, Brooke Hogan and "Real Housewives of Atlanta" star Kim Zolciak did it, right? Read More...

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Why Aren't Motley Crue, Rush And Bon Jovi In The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame?

Posted 9/27/11 4:11 pm EST by in Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

There are two arguments that always erupt every year when the nominations for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum are announced: Did this year's nominees deserve to be tapped and why the hell aren't these bands on the list!?

It's the latter that typically makes the most waves, as die-hard fans of such bands as Kiss, Rush, Journey, Chicago and the Moody Blues fire up their laptops and send out hot tweets of death to the powers-that-be over their favorite acts being passed over … again!

Some groups, like greasepaint rockers Kiss, have been overlooked for so long that not only do they not care anymore, they've come to see their exclusion as a badge of honor and have actively campaigned against induction. Other long-time shut outs, such as the Sex Pistols and Black Sabbath (class of 2006), felt the same way until they were ushered in.

Read on to see which other legendary groups have been given the cold shoulder by the Hall of Fame and vote in our poll of the most chronically overlooked bands. Read More...

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On Anniversary of Nevermind, Nirvana EMP Exhibit Hit With Fans, Grunge Icons

Posted 9/20/11 8:57 am EST by in anniversary

While Nirvana's landmark Nevermind album officially turns 20 this week, the celebration of all things Kurt and company has actually been going on in the band's adopted hometown since late April. That's when the "Nirvana: Taking Punk to the Masses" exhibit opened at Seattle's Experience Music Project.

The carefully curated compendium of all things Nirvana is a kind of holy grail for the band's biggest fans, but according to curator Jacob McMurray, it's also been a magnet for typically jaded locals who have grudgingly (or is it, sorry, grunge-ingly?) have dropped in and admitted that, yeah, it's pretty awesome.

"For me, it's been way more than I expected," McMurray said of the thousands who've wandered in to gawk at such iconic objects as the band's first recording contract and late singer Kurt Cobain's first smashed guitar. "Every time I go into the gallery, even if it's a Monday morning, it will be packed." McMurray said visitor range from die-hard Nirvanaheads to people who wander in with no knowledge of the band and leave with a desire to delve into the region's rich musical history.

At first, McMurray said he was worried about what the notoriously picky locals would make of the exhibit, which displays signposts of Nirvana's rise from obscurity amid a larger picture of the local and national music scene that helped spawn them. He knew he'd done okay when he was giving a tour to some DJ's from legendary hometown radio station KEXP and one of the jocks who was part of the scene that helped nurture the grunge explosion told him that she came in expecting to hate it and left totally digging it. "I felt like, 'my job is done,'" he said proudly.

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VMA Pre-Show: Bring On The Fog!

Posted 8/28/11 3:54 pm EST by in VMAs

LOS ANGELES — The lobby of the J.W. Marriott hotel in downtown has been miraculously transformed into a high-tech, magic black-carpet ride over the past week. Just hours from now at 8 p.m. ET/PT, artists will start making their way through the curvy, cosmic portal as they arrive for tonight's VMAs at the adjacent Nokia Theatre.

But some will arrive via a steel-belted, fogged-filled disco wonderland. Thanks to the wizards at the city's oldest and largest movie magic factory, Special Effects Unlimited, a few of the night's biggest stars will make their grand entrance enshrouded in a cloud of beautifully lit fog.

Lots of it. Like, tens of thousands of pounds. According to Mike Petrucci of SEU, he'll be pumping it out through fog machines chilled by 12 giant tanks of carbon dioxide, which run through 12 gallons of fog fluid before the night's over. "There will be plenty of it to go around," promised Petrucci.
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Why Was JLo 'American Idol' Announcement So Low-Key?

Posted 8/11/11 4:55 pm EST by in American Idol, Jennifer-Lopez

Jennifer Lopez

The last time "American Idol" had news about Jennifer Lopez, they announced it with glitter and much fanfare on the "Idol" Hollywood stage. When the singer/actress joined the cast of the show last year there was much pomp and circumstance.

But on Wednesday when "Idol" executive producer Nigel Lythgoe confirmed that JLo would be back for another season alongside fellow newbie Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler and old dawg Randy Jackson, there was no confetti.

In fact, there wasn't much fanfare at all. No press release from Lopez or the "Idol" camp, no media splash about her contract and, oddly, a "no comment" from a Fox spokesperson when MTV News asked for confirmation of the re-hire.

What gives? Read More...

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Taylor Swift Loves Playing Covers, Here Are Our Suggestions

Posted 8/11/11 3:41 pm EST by in Bruce Springsteen, Concerts, Eminem, Fall-Out-Boy, Taylor Swift

In addition to packing stadiums and arenas around the world for teenage dream-like concerts featuring her own songs and a procession of big set pieces from a wedding march to snowfall and a balcony that flies out over the audience, Taylor Swift is turning heads on her current "Speak Now" tour by performing oddball covers.

Sometimes, they're keyed to whatever city she's in, such as her choice of Fall Out Boy's "Sugar, We're Going Down" in Chicago this week. (FOB are from Chicago, BTW.) It added to a list that already included Pink's "Who Knew" (in Philadelphia), Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" and Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer" (New Jersey), Eminem's "Lose Yourself" (in Detroit), Justin Bieber's "Baby" and Alanis Morissette's "You Learn" (Toronto) and the Dixie Chicks' "Cowboy Take Me Away" (with Chicks member Martie Maguire in the house.)

So, we looked at Taylor's upcoming tour schedule and came up with a week's worth of suggestions of tunes she could take on, as well as a few that the good girl would probably shy away from: Read More...

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Lollapalooza Day Two: Skylar Grey, Patrick Stump, Ellie Goulding Mix It Up

Posted 8/7/11 1:23 pm EST by in Live Music, Lollapalooza

Chicago — The plan for a weekend of Lollapalooza shuffle firmly established, Saturday's musical Pu-Pu platter was a bit more focused on rock and its various offshoots, plus, frankly, bands I either love already or was just curious about.

First on the list was hip-hop's current go-to hook queen, Skylar Grey. In her first major appearance since blowing up thanks to her vocals on Dr Dre's "I Need a Doctor," singer/songwriter Grey is clearly read to go out on her own. (She would join pal Eminem later in the night during his headlining set.)

Check out photos from the festival!

With a haunting, gothy vibe, Grey came out wearing a ragged white hoodie that hung in shreds like a ghost shawl down to her ankles, accented by combat boots, army pants and a white sports bra that showed off her impossibly thin belly. She was all aggression and angst, at one point neck-tackling her guitarist.

Her moody rock tunes, which balanced programmed beats with live playing, combined anxiety and empowerment ("Monster," "Beautiful Nightmare"), showing off her crisp, high vocals and the plainspoken songwriting slated for her upcoming major-label debut. Part Alanis Morissette and part Dido, the songs struck a balance between vulnerability and no B.S. strength. The self-professed "f---ing weirdo" also played a snippet of Radiohead's "Creep" before busting into her own tune about being a super freak, "Weirdo."

Tweet your pics from Lollapalooza to @mtvnews and they could be featured on MTV.com!

Just as they did two years ago, British dance popsters Friendly Fires drew an early, sweaty slot on the North main stage, but made the most of it with a high-energy set that ended with the falsetto boogie anthem "Kiss of Life." It was a very different vibe just moments later on an adjacent stage when pale, puffy-eyed and sleepless-looking flower punkers the Black Lips stumbled out for one of their typically chaotic sets.
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Tinie Tempah, Skrillex And Grace Potter Cover The Bases At Lollapalooza

Posted 8/6/11 1:29 pm EST by in Live Music, Lollapalooza


CHICAGO — Who doesn't like to hit "shuffle" every once in a while? Sure, playlists are cool, but sometimes when your friends come over, it's also fun to spin the dial and see what comes up, maybe impress them with anything from Miles Davis to My Morning Jacket, Britney Spears to Bon Jovi.

Check out photos from the festival!

So I decided that my first day of Lollapalooza would be random, a musical buffet that went from hippie pop to British rap, indie rock to electro, with a few stops at everything in between. It began with England's Vaccines, who kicked off the first day of the three-day music orgy on one of the main stages with their ear candy coital anthem "Post Break-Up Sex." Fittingly, I took in their set while chatting with "120 Minutes" host Matt Pinfield, who agreed that the 'Cines sound was a perfect throwback to the good old days of Brit pop and 1980s indie rock.

Wayyyy at the other end of the spectrum (and field) was the hip-shaking boogie of Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, who were serving up a mellowed-down easy vibe with "Goodbye Kiss," a smooth slice of hippie rock that fit the mood of the hazy early afternoon. Potter, as usual, in high heels and a spangly, barely there microdress that ended around where it should have begun, wailed like a new-age Janis Joplin on "2:22" and strapped on a flying V guitar for the band's breakthrough hit "Paris (Ooh La La)," a boogie pop-blues tune that got the audience doing the scarecrow dance.

Tweet your pics from Lollapalooza to @mtvnews and they could be featured on MTV.com!

Things came down a notch when hometown indie rockers the Smith Westerns took an adjacent stage, playing a set of feathery, soothing tunes like "Fallen in Love," a far cry from the hyped-up, DJ-inspired beats served up a short while later by another Chicago act, former Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz's new band, Black Cards.
Read More...

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Death From Above 1979 Bring Lollapalooza To Life

Posted 8/5/11 12:22 pm EST by in Live Music, Lollapalooza

Credit: Gil Kaufman/ MTV News

Chicago – Some bands never live up to their legend and others have a legend but don't stay together long enough to live up to it. And then, somewhere in between there are bands like Death From Above 1979. The Canadian dance punk drum and bass/keyboard duo reunited this year after a five-year hiatus, which equaled the amount of time they were together the first go round (2001-2006).

Judging from the hour-long show they played at Chicago's Metro on Thursday night as part of a tune-up for this weekend's Lollapalooza festival, there isn't much rust on this hard-driving machine. Playing to a sold-out crow at the legendary northside nightclub in the shadow of historic Wrigley Field, bassist Jesse Keeler and drummer/singer Sebastien Grainger fell right into the pocket as if no time had passed at all.

Opening with "Turn it Out," Grainger – in all white – and Keeler – all in black – set of the first of a relentless barrage of rocket-fueled beats, with Grainger yelping urgently over his double kick-drum beats and Keeler's killer bee of doom bass. "Black History Month" slowed their roll just a hair before the whole thing collapsed into a squall of noise and feedback.

Though Lolla has expanded over the years to include much more hip-hop, techno, jam band, mainstream rock and every genre in between, DFA's screeching feedback and seasick mix of squelchy keyboards and machine gun beats was like a time machine back to the 1991 edition's version of a noise machines, Nine Inch Nails and the Butthole Surfers.

Like those bands, DFA's face-punching attack never let up, making it feel like the duo were running as fast as they could in every direction, always just a bit off balance. Around 40 minutes in Grainger addressed the audience, thanking them for coming out, admitting he can't tell the Cars from Ok Go and Weezer and launching into an extended riff on lesbians and their buzzing bedroom assistants.

Keeler promised they weren't just killing time because they only had one album's-worth of material to play, proving it with the fuzzed-out "Do It!," which, like a number of their songs, sounded a bit like the White Stripes if they were less concerned with melody and more focused on ear-blasting distortion.

The show ended with a tease of the dancey "Sexy Results," which went from club-friendly to yet another 12-car pile-up of thundering drums. The crowd, sweaty and satisfied, spilled out into the humid night charged up and seemingly fueled for three more days of musical mayhem.

Check out all of the highlights from Lollapalooza 2011, and tweet your pics from Lollapalooza to @mtvnews and they could be featured on MTV.com!

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