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Michael Jackson's Birthday Party In Brooklyn: The Baddest Of Them All

Posted 8/31/09 11:00 am EST by in Music


By Reneé Jackson

You can't tell me the King of Pop is dead, because I ran into him at least 15 times at the baddest birthday party in history, hosted by director and Jackson friend Spike Lee. Despite the rain, thousands of adoring fans flocked to Prospect Park in Brooklyn on Saturday (August 29) to wish Michael Jackson a happy 51st birthday.

Before making my way in, I stopped to sign the memorial wall where fans were leaving heartfelt messages for the late pop icon. I even put an MTV stamp on the wall to show our appreciation for how Jackson revolutionized music videos (after all, will anyone ever top "Thriller"?). As I made my way through the crowd, I was overwhelmed by a plethora of Michaels: Red leather jacket "Thriller" Michael, white tank top "Dirty Diana" Michael and sequined "Billie Jean" Michael, but my favorite was a six-year-old boy with his hat hung low over his eyes like "Smooth Criminal" Michael. The signature sequined glove covered the hands of thousands of fans both young and old, with most rocking MJ T-shirts, buttons and hats.

Spike opened the festivities by introducing Al Sharpton, who proclaimed "This is Brooklyn at its best ... Michael Jackson style!" Ed Lover, former host of "Yo! MTV Raps," was joined on stage by Tracey Morgan and former "106 & Park" host Free, and the group danced on stage building the momentum. Finally, it came: DJ Spinna dropped "Thriller" onto the turntables and every sequined glove went up in the air, waving in unison imitating the gothic figures from the classic video.

"P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" and "Wanna be Startin' Somethin'" followed immediately as fans wildly waved bright orange and black signs with the song's famous tag line.

Sharpton nailed the tenor of the day when he said, "We will never forget Michael Jackson. Michael, rock me one more time!"

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Girl Talk Never Stop The Dancing

Posted 8/24/09 11:33 am EST by in Concerts, Music


By Jett Wells

If you want to know how well a Girl Talk show went, you need only ask when it fell apart. Sunday's (August 23) show peaked early. By the time mash-up phenom Greg Gillis launched into his third song, the crowd had already trampled the barricade and ransacked the stage at the Williamsburg Waterfront.

From every vantage point, there were flailing body parts, sweat-drenched faces and tumbling body surfers. After hours of shoving, pushing, jumping, air-humping and fist-pumping, the crowd screamed and let out a huge breath of air and walked their limp bodies home in the rain.

Even though his live show is little more than a dude from Pittsburgh with a laptop, Gillis' intensity is undeniable. He started the concert dry-headed and wearing a sweatshirt, but by the end of the set he was half-naked and completely soaked in his own sweat. By then, Gillis was just another dude in the crowd, as the audience had long since rushed the stage to join the party next to Gillis. Halfway through the set, the music stopped suddenly because the crowd had pulled out some cords. 10 minutes later, the music stopped again because the stage was falling apart from all the weight of the dancing fans.

"You guys broke the stage!" Gillis yelled.

Perhaps the most overlooked virtue about Girl Talk concerts is that his mash-ups are always different. Most of the samples are the same, but the combination constantly changes and he's always adding new ideas. On Sunday, Gillis dipped into new hits like Drake's "Best I Ever Had" and Lady Gaga's "LoveGame."

Though the show ended with violent dancing and rain, everybody still walked away smiling. Such is Gillis' trick: He plays songs you already know in a no-frills setting, and somehow he remains transcendent.

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On 'MTV Detox': Katelynn Reveals Her Big Non-Secret On 'Real World'

Posted 2/12/09 11:29 am EST by in Detox


On the new Web show "MTV Detox," our pop-culture superfan Jim Cantiello recaps the wildest happenings from the network's prime-time programming. Stream the show on your mobile phone and on MTV.com. New episodes air Sunday-Thursday at 11 p.m. ET.

The "Real World" crew headed to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday night, where Katelynn pole-danced and then revealed that she's transgendered. Too bad everyone already knew. It was pretty anticlimactic. But Katelynn did manage to shock the group when she told them that she had already completed her gender-reassignment surgery. Inspired by the episode, viral-video sensation Debra stopped by "Detox" and revealed that she too is a man, but told Jim that it was a little easier when he underwent his gender-reassignment surgery. All he had to do was Scotch-tape his face. To find out how Real Worlder Ryan would have spent Katelynn's surgery money, check out "Detox."

And don't miss Jim's take on making the episode on the Remote Control blog.

Check out the full Detox episode after the jump! Read More...

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On 'MTV Detox,' 'Real World' Star Chet Angles For Another MTV Gig!

Posted 2/5/09 1:30 pm EST by in Detox


On the new Web show "MTV Detox," our pop-culture superfan Jim Cantiello recaps the wildest happenings from the network's prime-time programming. Stream the show on your mobile phone and on MTV.com. New episodes air Sunday-Thursday at 11 p.m. ET.

Okay sure some of you may get excited when Brangelina or the Jonas Brothers grace your presence, but for Jim and his "Detox" crew no celebrity sighting is better than when an actual MTV castmember stops by! That's why the crew was über-excited to have "Real World: Brooklyn" star Chet stop by on Wednesday night's episode. The only problem is, he tried to take Jim's job. Watch the episode and see all the awkwardness ensue!

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'Real World: Brooklyn' Gets Mixed Reviews From Murray Hill And Other Transgender Viewers

Posted 1/8/09 2:19 pm EST by in real world


By Garth Bardsley

From the moment 24-year-old Katelynn of West Palm Beach, Florida, walks into the expansive waterfront loft in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn, pushing her long bangs off her face and hugging her new roommates, she takes on the responsibility of being one of the few transgender people to be represented on broadcast television — and makes "Real World" history. 

"The Real World: Brooklyn," the 21st edition of the show that brought you Pedro Zamora and Irene McGee, threw very few curveballs in its season premiere Wednesday night: There are eight roommates instead of seven, and the producers seemed to decide to eliminate the role of the ditz this go-around. But with the casting of Katelynn, a male-to-female transgender person who had sexual reassignment surgery just a few months before taping began, the show obviously hopes to add a few sparks.

While a few transgender people have begun popping up on television, most recently Isis King from the 11th season of "America's Next Top Model," most people still don't necessarily know what it means to be transgender. Katelynn obviously hopes to change that. Read More...

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Kim Stolz's Visit To 'Real World: Brooklyn' House Gives Her Reality-Show-Related Anxiety Attack

Posted 12/8/08 3:41 pm EST by in reality tv


Kim StolzI recently visited the "Real World" house in Red Hook, Brooklyn, expecting simply to hand Real Worlder Chet the mock MTV News that he had hosted the week before. (Chet is interested in an on-air position at MTV, so we thought we'd set him up with a little test run.) But I encountered a hell of a lot more when I got there.

There's this condition called PTRSD. Don't worry — it's nothing serious. And while the numbers are growing, only a small percentage of the population is affected. It develops in the days and months (in some cases, years) after any or all of the following experiences:

1. Having zero control over your minutes, hours and days, and taking orders from people you cannot see (perhaps via telephone or message) Read More...

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Willie Mae Rock Camp Inspires Future Joan Jetts, Bjorks And Spinderellas

Posted 7/11/08 5:12 pm EST by in Concerts, Music


Yesterday, a group of us headed to Brooklyn to watch more than 80 girls wail on guitar, terrorize the drums and scream their rock-lovin' hearts out. And when I say "girls," I don't just mean "females." We're talking 8- to 18-year-olds who've spent the week at the Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls.

The camp, now in its fourth year, takes over an empty high school, fills the classrooms with instruments (drum kits, bass guitars — even turntables!) and lets its campers go wild. In addition to giving the girls the confidence needed to rock out, counselors also teach workshops like songwriting, self-defense and T-shirt silk-screening.

The girls will show off their new skills Saturday at a special concert at the Music Hall of Williamsburg. We'll show you footage from that and our rock-filled day at camp in the upcoming weeks. In the meantime, check out more photos of LOL — just one of the young bands ready to rock your face off — after the jump.

Read More...

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Janelle Monae Demonstrates The Afro-Punk Attitude -- In Formal Attire

Posted 7/7/08 6:35 pm EST by in Festivals, Janelle_Monáe


Janelle Monáe, Credit: MTV NewsBy Daniela Capistrano

It is not often enough that you see a young black woman in pristine slacks, dress shirt, bowtie, cumber bun and saddle shoes stage dive into a crowd and start a mosh pit.

This past weekend, producer Tami Katzoff and I found ourselves in the thick of Janelle Monáe's set at the fourth annual Afro-Punk Festival, where she joined other amazing musicians, graffiti muralists, BMX riders and skateboarders at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Afro-Punk, an annual event showcasing groundbreaking bands, films and artists, was created by Matthew Morgan and James Spooner, who also made the 2003 documentary "Afro-Punk," which chronicles the subculture. Despite all of the raw energy that is present at the fest, AP still manages to be a safe, family-friendly event where participants are encouraged to register to vote at one of the many community booths.

The highlight of Saturday's AP events was when Janelle closed the show by diving into the audience, crowd-surfing into the middle of everyone and then forming a mosh pit with her fans. She then ran through the crowd, climbed back onstage where she went berserk, Iggy Pop/ David Bowie-style, and slammed her mic stand on the ground, threw water at the crowd and then ran off again, leaving the crowd screaming for more. What a show-woman!

Watch space girl sensation Janelle Monáe crowd surfing in true punk rock fashion after the jump!
Read More...

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'The Real World' Brings Apocalypse to Unsuspecting Brooklyn

Posted 5/13/08 3:53 pm EST by in reality tv, Television




OK, this disturbs us.

In a press release that leads with “A tree isn’t the only thing growing in Brooklyn!,” our fine network has announced that the next season of that godfather of reality series, “The Real World,” will begin filming this summer…in Brooklyn. In Brooklyn!!

While the last season was in Hollywood, the 21st season returns to New York, where the series began -- although, you know, it technically began in Soho. Back when Soho was industrial and Chanel-free, and back when the very concept of being able to film strangers’ daily lives was mind-bending. This was also back in the days of Brenda and Brandon on “90210”…so it was a hell of a long time ago (as is painfully clear in the clip above: first episode ever!).

Now, we’re not part of the exalted team that actually decides high-power things like “programming,” but we’d place a $200 million bet that, as massive as Brooklyn is, this show’s specifically hitting the hipster haven that is Williamsburg. W’burg, the bell tolls for you! Oh, how many local indie-rock shows will be completely ruined by the filming of…twelve full-hour episodes??

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