In honor of Britney Spears' return to the road, MTV takes you all the way back to 2004, when Brit last set out on her Onyx Hotel Tour.

The Jonas Brothers' road to pop-culture domination hit a rough patch this weekend. The boys' "3D Concert Experience" underperformed at the box office. Looks like Nick, Joe and Kevin will just have to settle for selling out arenas instead of theatres.

Paramore's leading lady is still on the market. Contrary to reports by a Canadian blogger, Hayley Williams is not engaged to Chad from New Found Glory.

Chris Brown was photographed on a jet ski just three weeks after the alleged altercation between him and Rih Rih. If this was before the domestic-violence case, no eyebrows would be raised; now, however, it creates concern and raises many questions.

Beyoncé, R&B's reigning diva, finally opens up about life with Jay-Z. While in the public eye, she is all put-together, but she reveals her messy side — a side that Jay-Z actually gets bothered by.

The Golden Globes were back this year in a big way, and some of our favorite young stars joined their elder celebrity statesmen and -women for the festivities. From the Jonas Brothers to the "High School Musical" cast, the pop stars, small-screen beauties and blockbuster sweethearts were out in full force. So how did these fresh faces fare on the red carpet? Here is our opinion. (Click on the names for photos to refresh your memory.)

Blake Lively: Thumbs down. The "Gossip Girl" star is usually a hit on the red carpet, but this one was certainly a miss. The dress itself is beautiful, but it didn't seem to fit her and the color of the dress did not match her skin tone. Also, she could have done something with her hair. It seems this is the only style she is comfortable going for. Next time, take a risk, Blake!

The Jonas Brothers: Nick Jonas: Thumbs down. Velvet jacket, no tie — you should know better. It's the Golden Globes! Kevin Jonas: Thumbs up. Never can go wrong with a classic tux. Joe Jonas: Thumbs up. The red shirt underneath his suit was a good choice.

Miley Cyrus: Thumbs down. Even though it was age-appropriate, the dress was boring. She should have worn something with a little more color.

Vanessa Hudgens: Thumbs up and down. Big thumbs up for the dress, which fit her perfectly and was a great color for her. Thumbs down on her hair, which was a little too messy for this dress. She could have glammed it up a little bit more. But in her defense, the messy hair was the trend for the night. Right, Eva Mendes and Drew Barrymore?

Zac Efron: Thumbs up! Zac clearly knows how to dress on the red carpet. A simple suit with a skinny tie always seems to work for him.

Megan Fox: Thumbs up. The gold was a nice change for Megan Fox who we usually see in a lot of bright colors. The dress fit her beautifully and I loved those earrings.

Beyoncé: Thumbs up!! Beyoncé looked positively stunning in her gown as she and Jay-Z made a rare red-carpet appearance together. Yet, I'm not sure if too many people were looking at that dress, her necklace of diamonds definitely stole the show.

Worst Dressed:
America Ferrera: It was all wrong. The dress was not flattering on her at all and not something that should be worn to the Golden Globes, or for any award show.

Best Dressed:
Hayden Panettiere: Hayden always seems to know what to wear on the red carpet. In this purple number, she was definitely my choice for best dressed of the night!

That is just my opinion. I want to know what you think. Let us know which pop star you thought looked the best and worst on this year's Golden Globes red carpet.

It was a very exciting 2008 here in the MTV Newsroom. It was a year of triumph and tragedy, a year of secret weddings and pregnancies, a year of overcoming adversity and a year of inspiration and change.

2008 brought us everything from the shocking death of Heath Ledger and the tragedy that befell Jennifer Hudson and her family, to the reinvention of Britney Spears and the successes of "The Dark Knight" and Tha Carter III. Your favorite artists and celebrities eloped (is it legal yet, Speidi?), married overseas (nice tats, Mariah and Nick) and got hitched in secret (thanks for finally admitting to that, Jay and B). They had babies and — in true Hollywood style — named them strange things (I am available to babysit when Bronx befriends Brooklyn and they have a play-date in Manhattan. Just saying.). And, Chinese Democracy actually materialized, to the delight of Dr. Pepper fans.

As 2008 reaches the finish line, we have compiled a collection of the best photos of 2008 that represent the stories that filled the pixels of our Web site all year long. We look forward to all the excitement and insanity 2009 will bring!

By Jocelyn Vena, Writer

Let's face it, 2008 was the year of the pop artist. And, since I am the resident pop expert around these parts, I decided to make my top 10 list all about the greatest pop albums to hit the charts in the last 12 months.

10. Pink, Funhouse: Her tough-girl attitude paid off with this album. She performed her single, "So What," at the VMAs and soon after, it was everywhere.

9. New Kids on the Block, The Block: They took us all back to 1988, and that time-traveling paid off. They had a hit album, some catchy singles and a successful tour.

8. Leona Lewis, Spirit: "Bleeding Love" was inescapable, because Americans love a sultry British songstress.

7. Katy Perry, One of the Boys: Love her or hate her, "I Kissed a Girl" left its mark on 2008 and she solidified herself as a kitschy pop artist.

6. Beyoncé, I Am ... Sasha Fierce: Beyoncé split her personality in an attempt to prove to everyone that she isn't boring, with pretty good results.

5. Miley Cyrus, Breakout: Miley, and her album, were more of a phenomenon than anything else.

4. Jonas Brothers, A Little Bit Longer: The Jonas Brothers showed everyone that some catchy music and skin-tight jeans will always set teen girls' hearts aflutter.

3. Demi Lovato, Don't Forget: Demi, how could we forget? This year she went from that girl in "Camp Rock" to a certifiable pop star.

2. Britney Spears, Circus: OK, so it seemed like Britney Spears should have been at the top. And, admittedly, she had an amazing comeback. She proved to everyone she's still hot and sexy and can bust out a great song or two about being all of those things.

1. Taylor Swift, Fearless: Despite (or because of?) her tendency to over-share details about her relationship with Joe Jonas (which is both annoying and amazing), she certainly ruled 2008. She was nominated for a VMA, and Fearless has sold over 1.5 million records. If that doesn't make her album the most successful pop album of 2008, I don't know what would.

What were your favorites this year? Share your lists below!

Your music is great, don't get us wrong. We can't stop bopping to "Single Ladies" here in the newsroom. But we suspect that the album-buying public can't get past the fact that you come across as, well, boring. Even though you cooked up this crazy, metal-glove-wearing alter ego Sasha Fierce, people still don't know how relate to you, and perhaps your record sales are being affected.

This isn't a problem for Taylor Swift and Britney Spears, who live their lives constantly in the media. We know everything about them. Where they shop, what kid of coffee they like (Fraps, y'all), whom they date, what happens on their dates ...

Taylor's always out there talking about how badly Joe Jonas broke her heart or her awesome (read: antiquated) rules for dating (never call a guy first, girls!). She posts MySpace blogs about her broken-heart mixtapes. Meanwhile, Britney went on the record in her documentary and talked candidly about her breakups with Kevin Federline and Justin Timberlake. This is in addition to the fact that she's popping up everywhere, trying to show the world that she is Britney the pop star again, not Britney the tabloid queen.

Taylor Swift has sold nearly 1,300,000 copies of her album Fearless since its release a month ago. And Britney claimed the top spot this week, selling over 505,000 of Circus in its first week. Then you, Beyoncé, find yourself at #3. Selling over 893,000 copies of I Am ... Sasha Fierce in three weeks is impressive, but you're still the bridesmaid and not the bride.

Speaking of weddings, you still won't really talk about your new hubby, Jay-Z. Privacy is one thing, but you guys barely even take pictures together. And maybe you do like to go out and have a good time, but how are we supposed to know this? It kind of takes away from the fun of your party anthems if we think you're actually sitting at home embroidering pillows or something.

So, here's a new game plan: Maybe the kooky wild Sasha Fierce can get out there and start gossiping about Beyoncé. Take this split-personality thing a little further and allow her to tell us a little more about you. Until she does, you'll always be a few steps behind Britney and Taylor.

"Single Ladies" has my colleagues dancing around the office, but Beyoncé's peculiar metal glove has been grinding my gears. Has this pop diva gone steampunk?

For something to be steampunk, it needs two things: gadgets and an old-school theme. Mechanical accessories will hypothetically provide their wearers with heightened strength, just like this giant steampunk arm. Does the glove mean Beyoncé is stronger now? The black-and-white aesthetic provides a vintage vibe reminiscent of cabaret and, in parts, burlesque. (You know those hips are a heartbeat away from a different kind of video.)

Not sure if Beyoncé is steampunk or not? We've got your tutorial video after the jump.

Beyoncé wears the glove throughout her music video but doesn't flaunt it heavily until the end, when she surprises us with a close-up camera shot and an intimate smile. With so much metal on her hand already, she might have to take the glove off if she wants someone to "put a ring on it." Oh wait, Beyoncé's already married!

Do you think Beyoncé went steampunk, or is this a weird coincidence?

Beyoncé couldn't be present at her album listening party on Wednesday — she was abroad, doing international press from 10 a.m. to midnight, according to her father, Mathew Knowles — so she recorded a video message to explain the split between I Am... and Sasha Fierce. Here's what she had to say for herself:

"I'm in a very good place right now. I'm very happy. I'm growing up, and I'm really comfortable with myself. I'm getting wiser and smarter. Hopefully my fans have grown with me, because some of the things that I loved, I don't love so much anymore, and I love new things. That's a part of life. I know that people see celebrities, and they seem like they're so perfect — they seem like their life is so great, and they have money and fame. But I'm a human being. I cry. I'm very passionate and sensitive. My feelings get hurt. I get scared and nervous like everyone else. And I wanted to show that about myself. It's about love. That's what this album is all about. It's about love.

"You know, I'm a woman, I'm married, and this portion of my life is all in the album. It's a lot more personal. I'm very private and I don't talk about a lot of things, but there are certain songs that are on the album that are very personal. It's my diary. It's my story.

"Young women listen to my album when they need encouragement, and when they are going through tough times, or when they need to forget about what their tough times are, and they just want to have fun and put on their sexy dresses and go dance with their friends, or when they need the strength to be out of a bad relationship, they listen to my album in the car. So I still have my album of fun songs."

Mathew Knowles said that a Spanish version of the album will be out in February along with a video anthology. Beyoncé will then launch a world tour in the last week of March. After starting with Canada, she'll hit Europe, the U.S., Mexico, South America, Las Vegas for one week, Japan, Asia and then Australia, with the tour slated to end next November.

The Gulf Coast Ike Relief Fund raises money to help residents affected by the storm in areas like Galveston, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Harris and Montgomery counties. Beyoncé started the Survivor Fund a few years back with the support of her parents as well as her sister Solange and fellow Destiny's Child member Kelly Rowland — it helps people in areas affected by disasters, and it also gives relief to children and families affected by AIDS and homelessness.

In other Beyoncé news, on Tuesday (October 14) she announced she would perform on TRL's final episode airing on November 16. "I can remember being 16 or 17 when they asked us to be on the show, and it was our big moment," she told host Damien Fahey about her first appearance on the countdown show, which first aired 10 years ago. Although she looks back on the memory fondly, she admits that seeing a teen version of herself was weird. "It's not cool to document your moments at 17," she joked.

The singer debuted two new videos for "If I Were a Boy" and "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," off her new album I Am, which drops November 18. "I recorded over 70 songs, and I took a lot of time and made sure it was something that would last forever, something that never goes out. I just wanted people to get to know me and the two extremes," she said about the album.

What do you think? Does it seem like Beyoncé's skin tone was lightened?

It's not easy being the younger sister of a mega-famous-the-world-over pop icon.

No, seriously. Just ask Solange Knowles, Beyoncé's 21-year-old kid sis. Let's face it, when your sister is so famous that she practically owns the rights to the second letter of the alphabet, it's pretty hard to convince anyone that based solely on your artistic merits, some of the biggest and most creative names in music helped out with your record. But when we sat down with her earlier this week, Solange told us that it took some pretty serious convincing (and even a little stalking) to get names like Cee-Lo, Pharrell and Mark Ronson onboard for her latest record. As she puts it, when they first heard she wanted to work with them, they had no way of knowing if she was a serious artist or "someone's little annoying sister trying to do a record."

Cee-Lo, who co-wrote three of the songs on Solange's album, didn't exactly jump all over the opportunity when Solange first came calling. Initially, she couldn't even get him on the phone, and seemingly endless "scheduling conflicts" on the part of the Gnarls Barkley vocalist kept her from meeting with him. Maybe it was just a coincidence, but as Solange told us herself, "no one can be that freakin' busy." But she wasn't about to get blown off. She decided to take matters into her own hands — by essentially stalking Cee-Lo and forcing him to listen to her album.

Solange tells us how she stalked Cee-Lo (with the help of an MTV alum) in this video.

As for the record, Sol-Angel and the Hadley Street Dreams, due out this August, anyone expecting an album sounding like a dozen Beyoncé B-sides or even a retread of Solange's 2003 debut Solo Star will undoubtedly be disappointed. It seems that B's kid sister looked to some very different inspirations for her second album. The singer tells us that she took her musical cues from her love of '60s and '70s Motown and soul icons such as the Supremes, the Marvelettes and Dusty Springfield, as well as recent electronica faves Thievery Corporation and Boards of Canada, making her sound very distinct from her big sister. Solange's inspirations are clearly heard in the Pharrell Williams-produced lead single "I Decided" as well as in "Sand Castle," co-written by Cee-Lo and featuring the voice Q-Tip, which is now up on Solange's MySpace page.

So, will Solange's artistic independence and genre-mixing pay off? Will she end up the Janet Jackson to Beyoncé's Michael? Or will she be the La Toya?