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First Lady Michelle Obama Says The President 'Sings All The Time'

Posted 2/1/12 8:59 am EST by in Barack-Obama, Television


During a January 19 fundraiser at New York's Apollo Theater, President Barack Obama caused a sensation when he launched into a brief, spontaneous a cappella take on Al Green's classic "Let's Stay Together" that set the Internet on fire. Not only did his campaign take the clip and turn it into a ringtone, but all the attention lifted sales of the song a whopping nearly 500 percent.

Now, the First Lady is saying that the president's performance wasn't necessarily an isolated incident and he "does have a beautiful voice, and he sings to me all the time."

When pressed by Jay Leno during an appearance on "The Tonight Show," Michelle Obama told the host that the president "sings a lot of Al Green, Marvin Gaye, a little Stevie [Wonder]. He likes the classics."

Watch:

Check out President Obama's performance of Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" after the jump! Read More...

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So You Wanna Have Dinner With President Obama?

Posted 11/23/11 1:22 pm EST by in Barack-Obama


Barack Obama

By Uptin Saiidi

As Republican presidential hopefuls continue on the road to the primaries, President Barack Obama’s campaign for re-election is in full force and trying creative ways to find donors. And not just from the ultra rich.

Last month, the campaign ran a promotion that for a minimum donation of $10 you’d be entered into a lottery to have dinner with the President.

The campaign made true on its promise as four people from across the country were chosen and traveled to Washington, D.C. to dine with Mr. Obama. In a video released by the campaign, their trip is documented leading up to the dinner at a nearby DC restaurant.

One of the winners was Juanita, a teacher from Colorado who worried, "I just hope I remember the questions I’ve been wanting to ask him."

Ken, a United States army veteran from Arizona, claimed, "It’s going to be the most special moment I’ve ever had in my life."

Casey has a small software development company in Minneapolis and was just eager to hear about the day-to-day life of a President. "What does a president’s day look like?" he asked. "Dudes like me never get to hear about." Read More...

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Looking To Make A Difference? MTV And The White House Want To Know What You Are Up To!

Posted 11/3/11 9:15 am EST by in Activism, Barack-Obama, Contest!


Worldwide, the voice of young people has been impacting politics more than ever. It's a movement Barack Obama has been embracing since well before he took office as President of the United States and his commitment to the youth of our great country has not wavered. Now, Pres. Obama is challenging students across the country to share their ideas as part of the White House's Campus Champions of Change contest.

"The White House Champions of Change program highlights the stories and examples of citizens across the country that represent President Obama’s vision of out-innovating, out-educating, and out-building the rest of the world through projects and initiatives that move their communities forward," the White House said. "Many of the most innovative and effective ideas are coming from young people on college campuses across the country."

Entering the competition is easy. Full details and the entry form for the competition can be found on the program's website and for more information on the competition, visit MTV Act blog.

In early 2012, the five teams with the most public support (yeah, the public will decide which campus programs they think are best! Democracy!) will visit the White House and will collaborate with mtvU and MTV Act to create features on their projects that will air on mtvU and be featured on MTV.com. The winning team will host an episode of mtvU’s popular program, Dean's List.

If you are a socially conscious college student looking to affect change, this competition is for you!

For more, visit MTV Act.

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Jennifer Hudson Serenades President Obama On His 50th Birthday

Posted 8/4/11 1:00 pm EST by in Barack-Obama, jennifer-hudson


Jennifer Hudson, Barack Obama and Marilyn Monroe

Happy Birthday, Mr. President!

President Barack Obama turns 50 today! And he got serenaded by a movie star songbird. Wait … that part sounds familiar.

On May 19, 1962, President John F. Kennedy celebrated his 45th birthday at NYC’s Madison Square Garden with 15,000 of his closest friends. Many celebrities were in attendance at the celebration, including Marilyn Monroe, who … um … might have known the president pretty well (according to some people).

Wearing a sheer, rhinestone-studded dress (which sold at auction in 1999 for $1.26 million), Monroe’s take on “Happy Birthday” was a sultry showstopper. After the performance, President Kennedy told the crowd, “I can now retire from politics after having had Happy Birthday sung to me in such a sweet, wholesome way.”

Jennifer Hudson’s performance for Obama was markedly less scandalous. Wearing a short black dress, the Oscar-winning actress took the stage in Chicago at a fundraising event. (Wait … Obama held a fundraiser on his birthday? This guy’s all business! Someone get him a cigarette or something.) We suppose she did sex things up a little bit by standing next to fire-tempered silver fox Rahm Emanuel to lead the sing-a-long. But that’s it. Nothing crazy here. As usual, things were dignified and professional. (Boring!)

Compare Monroe’s famous serenade of Kennedy to Hudson’s group sing for Obama after the jump. Read More...

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If Lil Wayne Is Bill Clinton And Kanye West Is George Bush, Who Is Harry Truman?

Posted 11/4/10 1:30 pm EST by in Music


The relationships between rappers and presidents have always been tenuous at best. Or at least so we thought. This week, there have been two incidents that have united the worlds of hip-hop and presidential politics in ways that nobody really saw coming. Earlier this week, George W. Bush declared that the moment that Kanye West announced "George Bush doesn't care about black people" during a telethon was the lowest point of his presidency. West responded in typical fashion, saying that he related to Bush because they both have been under the same kind scrutiny.

Meanwhile, Bill Clinton tipped his hat to Lil Wayne earlier this week in anticipation of the MC's release from Rikers Island. "This guy's smart. And he's got abilities," Clinton said. "And he's got a new chance now. And what I hope is that this is not just something to brand him as a cool guy, but that it'll never happen again to him."

Since Barack Obama has been so tightly associated with Jay-Z, that means that the past three presidents all have some sort of hip-hop association. But what about the other 41? Here are the rappers best associated with each of the previous Commanders-in-Chief.

George H.W. Bush
Lifelong insider. Sort of paranoid. From Texas. It has got to be Scarface.

Ronald Reagan
Artist who switched up his career later in life. Loved candy. Past work became much greater through the prism of his later work. Meet Will Smith.

Jimmy Carter
Bleeding heart whose work became far more significant after he left office. He's the presidential Chuck D.

Gerald Ford
Unfortunate insider forced to fill in for a departed figurehead. Never really given the chance to succeed. Poor Black Rob, who was supposed to be Bad Boy's next big thing after the death of Biggie Smalls and the incarceration of Shyne.

Richard Nixon
Accomplished great things before being derailed by legal trouble. Incredibly paranoid. Good with a catch phrase. If he isn't Mystikal, then he's nobody at all.
Read More...

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President Obama Focuses On Economy During 'Daily Show' Visit

Posted 10/28/10 8:05 am EST by in Television


Wednesday night (October 27) was a historic one in the world of late night television (and politics as well) as President Barack Obama paid a visit to "The Daily Show" in preparation for this Saturday's (October 30) Stewart-hosted "Rally to Restore Sanity" in Washington, D.C. (which, it should be noted, will not feature an appearance by Obama, a moment that was used as last night's "Moment of Zen"). The President — who has not necessarily gotten a free pass on "The Daily Show" in recent months — addressed a number of issues and concerns for the duration of the show.

Following a raucous reception, Obama addressed the current state of the union related to the issues surrounding the midterm elections. Though he is proud of his accomplishments (including steps forward related to health care, personal debt and public service), he noted "Is it enough? No." Still, he asked people to vote for members of Congress who stood by their convictions and voted for things that may have been good policy but bad politics. "I hope people are rewarded for taking those tough votes," he said.

In the interview's key moment, Stewart asked Obama why there sometimes seemed to be such distance between what was promised during the campaign and what is actually being accomplished. "Legislatively, it seems timid," Stewart challenged.

"Jon, I love your show, but this is something where I have a profound disagreement with you and other pundits," Obama responded. "This health care bill is not timid. This is what most people would say is as significant a piece of legislation as we've seen in this country's history. What happens is it gets discounted because we got 90 percent of what we wanted, so we'll focus on the 10 percent we didn't get."

Obama didn't get into nearly the amount of depth he got into during MTV's "A Conversation With President Obama" a few weeks back, and the conversation rarely strayed from economic issues. But it remained informative and entertaining for its duration. "You know what might have made a difference? If you had held the 'Rally to Restore Sanity' two years ago," Obama said at the end before imploring everybody to vote.

What did you think of President Barack Obama's visit to "The Daily Show"? Let us know in the comments!

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President Obama's Visit To 'The Daily Show' Dominates This Week's 'Late Night Lineup'

Posted 10/25/10 9:30 am EST by in Television


In the late night world, sometimes one guest is all you really need to make your mark for the week. Such is that case with "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" this week, as even though some of the other shows have more consistent night-to-night collections of guests this week, Stewart is the only host who will welcome President Barack Obama to the set of his show. The Commander-In-Chief will sit down with Stewart on Wednesday (October 27) to discuss the upcoming "Rally to Restore Sanity," an event that will be going down this Saturday (October 30). It's Obama's first visit to "The Daily Show" since he was elected president, and it should be a lively discussion about the state of his term and the upcoming midterm elections.

But that's not to say you shouldn't be tuning in to the other fine offerings in the after-hours universe. "The Late Show With David Letterman" returns from vacation with a vengeance, as it will feature Charles Barkley and Kings of Leon (Monday, October 25), Taylor Swift (Tuesday, October 26) and Will Ferrell (Thursday, October 28). "The Tonight Show" will feature new friend of MTV News Martha Stewart (Monday), country music outlaw Jamey Johnson (Tuesday), international pop sensation Kylie Minogue (Wednesday) and veteran emo rockers Jimmy Eat World (Friday, October 29).

Jimmy Kimmel will welcome A Perfect Circle (Wednesday) and Mandy Moore (Thursday) to "Jimmy Kimmel Live," while "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" will feature a completely insane Tuesday night lineup (Joan Rivers, Juliette Lewis and Underworld will all be there) and an even more insane Thursday (because the musical guest is GWAR). Also, it's usually a good idea to see what Lauren Conrad is up to, and you can get that opportunity if you tune in to Tuesday night's edition of "Lopez Tonight."

And the strangest booking of the week goes to CBS' new daytime show "The Talk," which will welcome Total Nonstop Action Wrestling champion Jeff Hardy to the roundtable. What will Sara Gilbert and Leah Remini have to say to "The Charismatic Enigma"? You'll have to tune in to find out.

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MTV's 'A Conversation With President Obama'

Posted 10/14/10 3:40 pm EST by in MTV News


This afternoon, President Barack Obama sits down with MTV News' Sway, BET's April Woodard, CMT's Katie Cook, a group of young people and the entire Internet community for a conversation about whatever is on your mind. In an historic live event, MTV News and BET News present "A Conversation With President Obama," a frank town hall discussion that will allow the leader of the free world to answer questions about the issues that matter most. President Obama is expected to tackle a number of different topics, from the economy and the war in Afghanistan to the increasingly problematic epidemic of cyberbullying and the future of the "don't ask, don't tell" laws in the military. It all happens live at 4 p.m. ET, and you can see the show on MTV, BET, CMT, mtvU, Centric, Tr3s and right here live on MTV.com.

(Watch MTV's "A Conversation With President Obama" live right here!)

All week, people like you have been firing up their Twitter accounts and tweeting about their greatest concerns and their most pressing questions for the president. He'll be addressing many of those issues, and you can follow along with the Twitter Tracker to keep track of where the conversation has shifted and how people are reacting to the president's answers. Plus, you can continue to tweet your questions and insights while the special airs live.

(Watch MTV's "A Conversation With President Obama" live right here!)

In the meantime, follow along the live blog below beginning at 4 p.m. ET, and be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments and tweet them to @MTVNews to get more involved in a vital conversation at a pivotal point in the history of this country.

5:00 That ends today's conversation. Watch the entire show below, and keep the conversation going in the comments and on Twitter.

4:58 One audience member's greatest hope is that in 10 years, there will be more black men enrolled in college than incarcerated. "It starts young, and if we can make sure that young boy gets good teachers and good support, that is going to do more to decrease the incarceration rate. That's why we have to prioritize education going forward," he says.

4:54 A tweet comes in concerned about communism and his own re-election. "We're all Americans, we all want the best for this country, though we may have disagreements about how to get there," he says. He appreciates the healthy debate, but says "We've got to stop the name calling and stop focusing on the next election."

4:51 What sort of steps will the president take to address issues of environmental justice? "The issue probably has more to do with income than it does with race or ethnicity," he says. Environmentally dangerous facilities tend to end up in lower income neighborhoods.

4:46 The next question: What will the president do to get the Dream Act passed? He hopes to help the children of immigrants who have committed no crime of their own, but it's a complicated issue

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Check Out President Obama's 2010 Back To School Speech!

Posted 9/14/10 12:32 pm EST by in MTV News


With Labor Day far behind us and fall weather about to permanently set in, that can only mean one thing: It's time for the nation's students to pack up their backpacks, get their books together and head back to the classroom for a new school year. Just as he did last year, President Barack Obama will be delivering a back to school speech this afternoon, this time to a group of students at the Julia R. Masterman Laboratory and Demonstration School in Philadelphia (recently recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School for its pace-setting achievements). In addressing students across the country, President Obama will encourage students to study hard, stay in school and take responsibility for their own education.

Check out the speech below, and be sure to stay tuned to MTV News for more information about how you can get the president to speak at your commencement celebration at the end of this school year.

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The Killers Continue A Run Of Alt-Rock At The White House

Posted 7/6/10 12:30 pm EST by in Music


Even though the Killers frontman Brandon Flowers has a solo album coming out in the fall (it's called Flamingo, and it's out on September 14) and the group is officially on hiatus, they can still come together in the name of liberty. On Sunday night (July 4), the band celebrated Independence Day in style on the White House South Lawn as guests of President Barack Obama. The group played six songs ("Human," "Somebody Told Me," "Mr. Brightside," "A Dustland Fairytale," "Read My Mind" and "When You Were Young") to a crowd of military personnel as part of the second annual USO "Salute to the Military" concert alongside Brandi Carlile and Cedric the Entertainer.

"It is a monumental honour for us to be a part of this 4th of July celebration at the White House," Flowers said. "We could never repay the servicemen and women of this country for their contributions and sacrifice. To perform for them and their families on America's birthday will be our pleasure."

The Killers' visit to the White House is the latest in a long line of alternative artists who have played the unusual venue. If you recall, last summer featured Foo Fighters, another band on hiatus who were still willing to kick it around for the leader of the free world. Foo Fighters even debuted a new song ("Wheels") at the event.

Obama has also invited the likes of quirky songstress Regina Spektor and rhythmic guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela. Even if the economy never recovers and the oil spill never gets cleaned up, at least we know the iPods in the White House have excellently-curated playlists.

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