We know Zooey Deschanel can handle Christmas standards. Have you seen "Elf"? Or She & Him's performance of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" with Conan O'Brien?

Now, the duo have now decided to make it official and release a proper Christmas album this year. She made the announcement via Twitter, sharing, "Exciting news! @sheandhim will be releasing our first holiday record later this year! Been working on it a while! I'm super pumped about it!"

And now that she's announced that she (and, um, him) will release a Christmas album just in time for the holiday season, there are several Xmas-themed pop tunes we'd love to see Zooey and M.Ward put their indie stamp on. And these aren't classic in any way, shape or form!

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It may not come as a surprise to learn that Rick Ross enjoys the occasional chicken wing, so it sort of makes sense that the beefy rapper has just inked a development deal with Texas-based Wingstop to launch a series of restaurants, the first of which is slated to open in Memphis this fall.

Ross — who, of course, name-checked Wingstop's lemon-pepper wings in his hit "MC Hammer" — joins former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman as an investor in the chain (Troy is also Wingstop's "national spokesman"), and he is understandably excited about the endeavor, telling AllHipHop.com "After tasting Wingstop's signature lemon-pepper flavored wings in Miami, I knew this was a franchise I wanted to add to my investments."

Indeed. Of course, it should be noted that Ross isn't the only one excited about the news — we, too, often find ourselves "fiending lemon pepper" — and while we're not exactly sure if Wingstop's franchise charter allows owners to change the menu, we'd like to think that Ricky will add his own, uh, entrepreneurial flair to his restaurants.

So here are some Rozay-approved additions to the menu ... coming soon to a Wingstop near you.

» The "9 Piece" Meal: A family-sized order of Wingstop's signature wings, sauced and tossed to your liking. As an added bonus, can be ordered from your iPhone.

» The "Archie Bunker:" Never-breaded wings slathered in a creamy Alfredo sauce. So white we just might charge you double.

» The "Three C's Combo:" Color, cut and clarity. Or, you know, cheddar, cool-ranch, and cayenne-pepper flavored wings.

» The "B.M.F.:" A big mother-f---ing buffalo chicken sandwich, comes with Big Meech coleslaw and Larry Hoover fries.

» The "Trilla:" A classic. Heaping portion of Wingstop "boneless chicken strips," smothered in Jay-Z's tangy teriyaki sauce. R.Kelly extra.

» The "Uhhh!:" Ricky's favorite. A guttural, sweaty plate of wings, fries and strips, drizzled with garlic parmesan sauce. Comes with a side of Maybach Music honey mustard and a large soda. No substitutions, because, as the owner says, "God Forgives, I Don't."

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Sean Kingston sat down with MTV News last night and talked for the first time about the jet-ski accident that landed him in the hospital with life-threatening injuries. The singer spoke candidly with MTV News’ Sway Calloway from his house in Miami, where he revealed that he also underwent two open-heart surgeries related to a heart condition discovered just before his scheduled release from the hospital.

“A lot of people don't know it was a deeper situation. I had open heart surgery and I had two other surgeries; it was a life-or-death situation,” Kingston said. “They were gonna send me home, but then I had felt a pain in my left chest, and I told my mom. They rushed me and they did a lot of scans on me, [and] they said I couldn't leave.”

Doctors found blood in Kingston’s chest and discovered that his aorta was torn. The “Beautiful Girls” singer underwent multiple surgeries to fully repair the problem and insists "I'm 100 percent right now." "I've been in the house chilling, about to start work on my new album,” he added. “I got L.A. Reid now as my new president. I got a story to tell now.”

Read on for more of Kingston’s exclusive MTV First interview. Read More...

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Beatles

By Zachary Swickey

The 1994 film “Backbeat” – a British drama depicting the early days of The Beatles – is getting the musical treatment at London’s Duke of York Theatre this coming October.

The film starred Stephen Dorff and included several rebellious musicians (Henry Rollins, Dave Grohl, Thurston Moore) playing other “punk acts” since that’s how the Beatles were perceived at the time. It traced the bands formative years and focused on the relationship between John Lennon and original bassist Stuart Sutcliffe. Classic vintage rock songs to appear in the musical include “Twist & Shout,” “Please Mr. Postman,” “Money” and “Rock & Roll Music.”

The Glasgow Citizen’s Theatre premiered the stage version, which was co-written by the film’s director Iain Softley, last year, and five-time Tony Award nominee David Leveaux will direct the West End production, which will open October 10.

How does “Backbeat” compare to the many other rock and roll musicals that have recently swept through London and New York? Read on to find out. Read More...

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Katy Perry makes her way into the record books (again) this week, as “Last Friday Night” moves into the top spot on the Billboard Pop Songs chart. It’s the fifth single from her 2010 album Teenage Dream to land in the top spot, the most for any album in the 19-year history of the chart.

Perry is already riding high with nine MTV Video Music Award nominations, the most of any artist, and is just a few weeks away from celebrating Dream's one-year anniversary on the Billboard album chart, where it is holding tight at No. 20 in its 49th week of release.

While she can now claim the Pop Songs chart record, if “Last Friday Night” moves into the pole position on the Hot 100, Perry will tie a record set in 1988 by Michael Jackson’s Bad for the most number ones from a single album. The songbird is already the artist with the longest uninterrupted run in the Billboard top ten, having achieved 63 weeks (and counting) with Dream’s singles “California Gurls,” “Teenage Dream,” Firework,” “ET” and “Last Friday Night.”

With “Friday Night” still gaining momentum and other potential singles (“Peacock” anyone?) yet to come from Teenage Dream, we decided to see where Perry stands in relation to some other major chart record holders. She’s closer to world domination than you think! Read More...

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Kings of Leon Concert

By Matt Goodhue

Summer for a college student consists of endless work and a constant yearning for the weekend, the perfect time for the beach, parties and shows. You buy the tickets well in advance and plan the day accordingly: when to start drinking, when to stop drinking, when to find the ticket you were looking for that was in your pocket the whole time. For me, August 19 was going to be the fifth time seeing my favorite band, Kings of Leon, get onstage and rock out.

That was until the band announced the cancellation of their entire U.S. tour, after only three shows (actually, more like two and a half). The announcement didn't come as a complete shock to me, after news of singer Caleb Followill's early departure from the Dallas show surfaced due to "heat exhaustion." That was followed by his little brother/bassist Jared tweeting, "There are internal sicknesses & problems that have needed to be addressed. No words." So, is Caleb too hot to continue or should Kings' fans be worried about the band's (or its members') future?
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Kesha And Alice Cooper

Ke$ha has certainly made a name for herself singing catchy pop tunes about the glory of partying and wearing too much glitter. But her fans might be surprised to hear the "Tik Tok" singer is getting major co-signs from some major rock artists.

The roadkill-loving singer recently hit the stage with legendary rocker Alice Cooper, and she'll also appear on his next album, Welcome 2 My Nightmare.

"I think a lot of my audience is going to go, 'Ke$ha?' but she probably wrote the most wicked lyrics in the song — we had to rein her in," he explained of his collabo with the pop star. "I like people to know that just because artists are put in a pigeon hole, that doesn't mean that's what they are; give people a little room."

Ke$ha is also getting the stamp of approval from Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne, who dished that he'd love the chance to work with K-dollar sign.

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George Clinton

By Zachary Swickey

Several shots were fired during a confrontation at an outdoor music festival featuring funk act George Clinton as the headliner, leaving one person dead and wounding three others.

The fight occurred around 10PM at an intersection near Luke Easter Park in Cleveland, Ohio, where the “Unity in the Park” music festival was taking place. Authorities are on the lookout for a male suspect who pulled out a handgun and fired it into a group of people Saturday night. So far no arrests have been made.

“It was a large fight. Somebody in the crowd produced a handgun and fired several times,” Sgt. Sammy Morris told the Associated Press.

A 16-year-old boy passed away from a gunshot wound to the head, and a 20-year-old woman was critically injured with a wound to the neck. A statement from police also states a 14-year-old boy and 23-year-old man were also hospitalized, both with a gunshot wounds to their legs. All victims were taken to Cleveland’s MetroHealth Medical Center, where the neck wound victim remains in critical condition. Read More...

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Danger Mouse

By Zachary Swickey

Brian Joseph Burton, the man the music world knows and loves as Danger Mouse, turns 34 today, and his many milestones are rather mindboggling. Growing up on the music of Pink Floyd and Portishead, Burton fit right in while living in London, where he moved to make a name for himself as a trip-hop DJ but instead found himself focusing on making hip-hop beats. But it was a moment of true serendipity that led Burton to where he is today.

While cleaning around his apartment and listening to the Beatles’ White Album, Burton came across his a capella copy of Jay-Z’s The Black Album, and inspiration struck. After completing one song successfully and with surprising ease, Burton took to mashing up the entirety of both albums, creating The Grey Album. The result was clearly not exactly legal since it was the music of two separate iconic acts (Burton promptly received a cease and desist letter from EMI), but the mix became a viral sensation and has likely been downloaded millions of times. Burton quickly became a hot-commodity – GQ Magazine named him one of their Men of the Year in 2004, while Entertainment Weekly named The Grey Album their pick for album of the year.

Burton got his next big break when a well-known musician asked him to produce his new group’s follow-up to their critically acclaimed debut album, Gorillaz. We’re talking about Damon Albarn, of course, lead singer of Blur and mastermind behind many other notable projects. Burton would go on to receive a 2005 Grammy nomination for his production work on the finished product, Gorillaz’s Demon Days.

Burton then made a splash in the art world in 2006 when British graffiti artist/prankster Banksy enlisted his services for a special project. Banksy “obtained” 500 copies of socialite Paris Hilton’s debut album and altered the album artwork – including an album sticker that boasts song titles like “Why Am I Famous?” – while Burton swapped the discs with a 40-minute music mix containing various sound bites from Paris herself.

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Bigger Than The Buzz

Last week we brought you the pilot episode of “Bigger Than The Buzz” and now here’s the first official ep. Two of MTV’s foremost pop culture connoisseurs, Tamar Anitai of Buzzworthy and MTV News’ own James Montgomery, are back to let loose on the biggest stories from the week that was in pop culture.

This time around, the dynamic duo are talking up Jay-Z and Kanye West’s superstar collaboration Watch the Throne and whether there’s a bigger superstar combo out there (hint: James and Tamar think there just might be).They also address the cultural scourge that is “owling” and the unlikely stardom of VMA-nominated newcomer Kreayshawn.

Check the first official episode of “Bigger Than The Buzz” out after the jump. Read More...

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