From the first gyration of Elvis Presley's hips on "The Milton Berle Show" (way back in the summer of 1955) to the last grab of the crotch during Adam Lambert's Sunday (November 22) night performance at the American Music Awards, musicians and live television have shared a rather contentious relationship.

Throughout the years, in attempts to shock audiences, promote albums or share their political views (or, you know, just because they were inebriated), artists have given censors fits with performances that pushed the boundaries of good taste — everything from bare butts to obscenity and potshots at the Pope. Things like that are the reason they invented the seven-second delay, after all.

So now, with Lambert already feeling the heat following his racy AMA performance, we decided it was a good time to re-visit some of the most shocking musical moments from in TV history — the ones that earned public condemnations and half-hearted apologies. Censors, get your fingers on the button.

Click here for photos from the most controversial musical television moments of all time, featuring Adam Lambert, Marilyn Manson, Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake!

Sinéad O'Connor Rips The Pope On "Saturday Night Live," 1992: Sinéad O'Connor and "Saturday Night Live" already had a rather interesting relationship before she decided to rip up a photo of the Pope in her infamous 1992 performance. Back in 1990, she backed out of a scheduled appearance on the show because she didn't want to share the stage with host Andrew Dice Clay. Two years later, after performing a moody a capella version of Bob Marley's "War," she produced a photo of Pope John Paul II, tore it to shreds and shouted "Fight the real enemy!" The audience reacted with stunned silence, and the media vilified O'Connor as an enfant terrible, and while she would later apologize for the act, she remained unrepentant.

Prince Shows Off His Assets At The VMAs, 1991: The Purple One took the stage at the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards dressed in canary yellow, but it was his outfit didn't have that raised more than a few eyebrows: Read more...

Adam Lambert exploded onto the music scene at last night's American Music Awards with a rough-and-tumble performance of "For Your Entertainment." Unfortunately — and it pains me to say this — the results were mixed at best.

If Adam Lambert's goal was to simply rile America, then he succeeded. The in-your-face sexuality was bold, brave and totally groundbreaking. (Whether it was "appropriate" for a major network awards show is another discussion entirely.) I applaud Adam and his team for not pulling any punches or watering down his or his single's rawness.

The problem I had with the performance is that Adam Lambert is better than just being a lightning rod for controversy. With his Mariah-esque range, his effortless-yet-controlled wail and emotional delivery, Lambert has the potential to go down in history as one of the most technically-gifted rock vocalists of all time. Adam had a gigantic platform to show the non-"American Idol" viewing public what us Idol Freaks have known since February: He can sing his face off!

But that talent was barely on display last night. Read more...

Amid all the sexed-up drama of Adam Lambert's performance at the American Music Awards Sunday night, viewers could be excused for missing a fairly classic wipeout during "For Your Entertainment."

In the middle of the song, as he moves from one riser to another, Lambert can be seen tripping, tumbling and rolling. But to the man's credit — we guess all that music-theater training, not to mention his months on "American Idol," paid off — he barely misses a beat.

Then again, that was just one amazing moment of his performance. He also slunk along to the song's throbbing beat and dropped the line, "Don't be afraid, I'mma hurt ya real good," while walking two scantily-clad male dancers across the stage. And then, shortly after, he grabbed another male dancer's head and thrust it into his gyrating crotch as the camera quickly cut away.

After a few more tongue-wagging yelps, a half dozen more hip-level gyrations, a back-of-the-head-grabbing kiss with a male keyboard player, some fireworks and another lung busting scream, the performance finally came to a close (no doubt to the delight of more conservative viewers everywhere). Lambert promised to MTV News last week that his AMA performance would be "sexy." It was all that, and a lot more as well.

Look, we all know what you're doing this weekend. You're not preparing for Thanksgiving, raking the last of your leaves before the snow arrives or indulging in this year's batch of Beaujolais Nouveau. Rather, you're going to be at your local cinema watching Taylor Lautner's perfectly-sculpted abdominal muscles in "The Twilight Saga: New Moon." And we can't blame you — it's a heck of a roller coaster ride through teenage angst and vampire mythology. But in between screenings (because you're obviously seeing it more than once), you should catch up on everything you missed this week here on the Newsroom blog.

» Last weekend saw a couple of cool-looking flash mobs in honor of Janet Jackson's Number Ones, and we had a first-person account from one of the dancers. (Be sure to catch Janet this Sunday on the American Music Awards, where she'll open the show.)

» MTV mourned the passing of comedian, TV producer and "Remote Control" host Ken Ober with classic clips and testimonials from friends.

» Rihanna premiered the hotly-anticipated video for "Russian Roulette," which really made us think about the head wound Balthazar Getty received in a David Lynch movie.

» Are you a hardcore fan of Adam Lambert, Kris Allen or Allison Iraheta? Make sure you enter our photo contest, with the winner receiving an autographed copy of the new issue of Elle magazine, which features all three!

» There was no shortage of other "American Idol" news this week. For example, we now know why Kris Allen changed his Twitter name.
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"It's gonna be sexy, I think. The wardrobe is amazing. I'm working with 10 dancers that I'm so impressed by. I was looking for a certain sensuality — five guys, five girls and they're all incredible."

-"American Idol" runner-up and For Your Entertainment mastermind Adam Lambert, telling MTV News about his upcoming performance on this Sunday night's American Music Awards broadcast, which marks the first time he'll sing in prime time since the "American Idol" finale in the spring. It'll be a big week for Lambert, as he will perform on Sunday and then drop his debut album on Monday, challenging a number of other high-profile artists (including Rihanna, Susan Boyle, Beyonc&233;, Lady Gaga and Shakira) to a Thanksgiving-week sales war. Lambert also talked about the band he brought together (the same group he just debuted online). "I auditioned a band a couple weeks ago that I've been working with," he told MTV News' Larry Carroll. "I'm so impressed by [them] and it feels really good to be part of a team situation again. It's great because I'm back in a team environment and it reminds me of my roots in musical theater." Check out Lambert — as well as the rest of the AMA performers, like Jay-Z, Rihanna, Eminem and Janet Jackson — this Sunday at 8 p.m. on ABC.

Attention all Kradison fans! Want your favorite Season 8 "Idol" star's autograph? MTV News and Elle magazine can hook you up!

In honor of the December issue of Elle — which features a three-page spread starring Kris Allen, Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta — MTV News is holding a contest to find the #1 fan for each contestant. How can you show your level of fandom?

Easy! Pick up a copy of Elle, read Joey Zee's "A to Zee" column about each contestant's sense of style and do your best to replicate your fave's fashion in your own photo!

Are you gaga for Glambert? Flat-iron your hair, bust out the eyeliner and squeeze into your tightest leather pants. Are you a Krisbert? Rock the plaid and unbutton your shirt to dangerous depths. Or is Allison Iraheta your #1? You'll need a fiery red mane and an aura of general awesomeness.

Keep in mind we're not looking for exact copies of the photos in the Elle spread. Be creative! Whoever captures the essence of their favorite singer will be handsomely rewarded.

With what you ask? Three winners (one for each contestant) will each receive a copy of Elle signed by their favorite "Idol." The Kris fan will get a John Hancock from Kris, the Adam fan will get a signature from the Fierce One and the #1 Allison follower will get a copy signed by Her Royal Rockness.

Here's how you enter: Go to Your.MTV.com, create an account (if you haven't done so already) and then upload your photo! The deadline for submission is November 30, 2009 at Noon EST. I'll be going through the pics and selecting a winner personally, so make them fun, friends!

The contest is officially underway, so Kradison krazies, get your dress-up on now!

Dear Adam Lambert,

I am so sorry about last night. My co-worker, Larry Carroll, asked if you were ticklish on the Us Weekly "Hot Hollywood" red carpet. And then things got awkward. It's all my fault.

Here's what happened.

Yesterday afternoon, my boss emailed me to say that you and Kris Allen were scheduled to walk the Us Weekly red carpet event, and that I should send Larry some questions. Given that you and I are scheduled for a sit-down interview next week (can't wait, by the way!) I didn't want to give Larry all my questions, so I jokingly emailed, "Ask Adam if he's ticklish. I'm just kidding. Don't really ask that."

Well, Larry apparently took me seriously, because he opened his interview by saying "Jim Cantiello wants to know if you're ticklish."

"That's a little creepy, Jim," you said. "I think it's a private fantasy of his. I'm unaware of it."

If you need me, I'll be crawling into a hole and dying.

Dude, I assure you I'm not a creep. I don't have tickle fantasies.

In any case, I can't wait to talk to you about your excellent new album next week. And I promise that you will realize as soon as you meet me again that I'm not a psycho, and that this whole tickle thing was a big, silly misunderstanding.

Best of luck at the American Music Awards this Sunday. And whatever you do, do not watch this episode of "Tweet Beat."

Professionally,

Jim Cantiello
MTV News "American Idol" Expert

During his tenure on "American Idol," Adam Lambert always showed signs of a glam rocker buried deep beneath the network television-friendly exterior. Now that he is dictating his career, the floodgates have opened. Last week, we saw the first photos from the video shoot for "For Your Entertainment," which appears to be set at an S&M club in the "Mad Max" universe. Yesterday, Lambert hopped on Twitter and revealed the first photo of his band to the universe. The five person combo keeps the theme going, combining Rihanna's taste for bondage with the end-of-humanity styling in John Carpenter's "Escape from New York."

The band will be appearing in the "For Your Entertainment" video and will also perform on stage with Lambert when he plays the American Music Awards, which air live this Sunday, Novmeber 22 on ABC and will also feature Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston and Jay-Z.

One striking thing about the photo of Lambert's band: In those costumes, they sort of look like goth New Wave futurists Orgy. This is an excellent development, as Orgy were a perpetually underrated band that were strangely lumped in with nü metal (being on Korn's record label probably didn't help) but actually dealt in glammy, pulsating futurist rock that featured healthy doses of Bowie and the Cure. Of course, we already have a sense of what For Your Entertainment is going to sound like, and it's nothing like Orgy, but it's refreshing to have a group that deals in such interesting aesthetic choices. For Your Entertainment is less than a week away, and it promises to be a huge juggernaut.

If you were in Hollywood yesterday and saw more leather chaps than usual, don't panic — it was just Adam Lambert's music video shoot. No big deal.

Actually, yes big deal. Massive deal! So much so that paparazzi came out of the woodwork to snap some photos that should help shed some light on the treatment behind the clip for Lambert's first official album music video, "For Your Entertainment."

Here's what we knew before the photos leaked: the video was directed by Lady Gaga collaborator Ray Kay, and would be shot at the Alexandria Hotel in Los Angeles.

What did we learn from the photos? Adam Lambert is fully embracing the S&M lyrics featured in his single. Greased up dancers are dolled up in leather, dog collars, nipple clamps (zoinks!) and platform boots. He's not kidding when he asks in the song, "Push the limit/ Are you with it?" This video shoot looks like it's pushing boundaries well past the mountains and hurricanes Adam had to sing about on the "Idol" finale.

Hooray!

"American Idol" blogger MJ gathered a bunch of intel from eyewitnesses who claimed to have seen a "destroyed ballroom" set featuring Buddhist statues, champagne and lawn chairs. From the sound of it, it could be a genius mash-up of Nine Inch Nails "Closer" video with the slick excess of late '90s hip hop videos.

I'm downright giddy that Lambert (and his team) are fully embracing his wild side. One of the highlights of this past summer's "Idol" tour was Lambert's in-your-face sexuality and swagger. Judging from these leaked photos (which have the rocker in head-to-toe leather holding a gold cane), they're letting Lambert unleash the fierce in a bold way. In other words, those of you disappointed with the lack of makeup in the "Time for Miracles" clip should have nothing to gripe about now. He's going there. Awesome.

What do you think of these photos? How excited are you for Adam's new video? How much do you think MTV will have to edit in order to play it on the channel? And how in the world is he going to dramatize the lyric, "I'ma work ya 'til you're totally blown?" Comment away below!

In the history of rock and roll, few bands have had worse luck than Aerosmith. Throughout their nearly four decade career, they've battled drug issues, marketplace apathy, illness and in-fighting. They were forced to cancel a tour this year because of an injury to frontman Steven Tyler, who recently decided that he would leave the band behind for a while to pursue a solo career. Guitarist and longtime Tyler collaborator Joe Perry (who has a solo album of his own) took to his Twitter to announce that while the band isn't breaking up, they are searching for a new singer while Tyler is off on his own. "Aerosmith is positively looking for a new singer to work with. You just can't take 40 years of experience and throw it in the bin," Perry tweeted. "[The] band is playing hotter than ever and our songs need to be played live. Don't despair: Aerosmith is not splitting up. Promise that's the last you'll hear from me on the subject 'till we gear up again."

Perry didn't drop any hints about who might temporarily dance in Tyler's bellbottoms, but luckily, MTV News has come up with a handful of suggestions that the Aerosmith boys might want to consider. It all depends on what they're looking for. Do they want to tap into a younger market? Maybe they should try to court junior R&B star Justin Bieber. Would they prefer somebody they've worked with before? Send offers to Katy Perry or Kid Rock. But honestly, do they have any better option than to dangle the job in front of Adam Lambert?

Click here for the rest of the suggestions for Steven Tyler's replacement in Aerosmith, including Taylor Swift, Eminem and Pink!