The MTV Video Music Awards are just a few short days away, and though there is all sorts of buzz surrounding the performances, the parties and the New York-centric stunts that will be happening all this week into Sunday's broadcast, it's important to remember that the reason the biggest stars in music will gather in Radio City Music Hall is to see who wins the coveted Moonman in each of the 15 categories. We'll be taking a look at each of the top categories, continuing today with the Best Hip-Hop Video award. The nominees are Asher Roth's "I Love College," Eminem's "We Made You," Flo Rida's "Right Round," Jay-Z's "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)" and Kanye West's "Love Lockdown."

The history of the Best Hip-Hop Video category is a little unusual, as it tends to err on the side of more far-reaching, esoteric tracks rather than club bangers or Jeep tracks. Past winners include Lil Wayne ("Lollipop," 2008), Missy Elliott ("Work It," 2003; "Lose Control," 2005) and Outkast ("Ms. Jackson," 2001). This year's nominees once again show the breadth of material addressed in this category. It features two relative newcomers and a trio of veterans in what could be the most interesting race on Sunday night.

Asher Roth (and his mustache) will be competing for his first ever Moonman this year. While he's still relatively new on the scene, Flo Rida already has two nominations under his belt (he was nominated for Best Hip-Hop Video and Best Male Video last year for "Low," losing to Lil Wayne and Chris Brown).

Sadly, Roth and Flo are working uphill against the three titans also in this category. Over his career, Kanye West has become a VMA staple, closing last year's show with a stirring rendition of the song whose video is nominated at this year's show and tallying 11 total nominations since he first broke out a few years ago. West has two wins: He picked up Best Male Video for "Jesus Walks" in 2005 and his "Good Life" clip won Best Special Effects at last year's show.

Since he was first nominated for a Moonman in 1999, Jay-Z has picked up 16 nominations with an astonishing nine wins. His big year was in 2004, when "99 Problems" won four awards, and he has taken home the Best Hip-Hop Video award twice in the past. You can probably count him as a frontrunner for the 2010 awards as well, as "Run This Town" is a pretty amazing clip.

Finally, there's Eminem, who in the past decade has become a cornerstone icon at the VMAs. He's delivered some of the most memorable performances in the show's history (remember the army of Mathers' in 2000?) and has been the recipient of nine total Moonmen in his career (including two nods for Best Hip-Hop).

The general debate appears to be between Eminem and Kanye West, but at the end of the day it seems like this award is Jay-Z's to lose.

In the past few days, much has been made of the size of Madonna's biceps. Are they too big? Is that healthy? How did they get like that? No matter what the solution, one thing is for certain: Madonna could probably throw a pretty good chokehold on a would-be assailant.

But Madonna is hardly the only musician walking around with VIP tickets to the gun show. In fact, a number of rockers and rappers have committed themselves to keeping themselves jacked up — some more dramatic than others. 50 Cent kept himself ripped and his shirt off for most of his early career, making his muscles a part of his persona. But some people sneak up on you — remember when Timbaland all of a sudden got into weightlifting, or when you realized that Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails had become gigantic? Seriously, that guy could use his triceps to smash open walnuts.

Sometimes it makes sense when you consider the genre (the fact that Pete Steele of Type O Negative and Glenn Danzig are all jacked up isn't surprising considering their metal roots) and D'Angelo's muscles certainly became a part of his personality once the video for "Untitled (How Does It Feel)."

But who has the biggest arms among the muscular musicians? Click below for a sampling of buff musical bods, featuring Reznor, Akon and Busta Rhymes.

(Click here for more photos of ripped rockers, from Akon to Danzig!)

by April Richardson

Flo Rida really appreciates his fans — so much so that during a recent CNN interview, the rapper gave out his personal cell-phone number on air, inviting them to get in touch.

This was no accident. Flo looked straight into the camera and offered the number: (305) 528-2786. When the reporter asked how many phone calls and text messages he answered on average, he responded, "About 30 percent."

When we tried to call the number from our MTV Newsroom phone — I was looking forward to asking if his refrigerator was running or if Ben Dover was there — we got a message saying the mailbox was full. Bummer. Maybe Pete Burns from Dead or Alive saw the CNN interview and left a bunch of messages asking if he could join the rapper onstage during "Right Round"? He needs the work.

Anyway, we’ll try to ring him again later.

Flo Rida hit the stage at the Roxy on Sunday night with the help of some special guests, including Flavor Flav, Pleasure P and 7-year-old B-Boy prodigy, Jalen.

Flo Rida teamed up with MySpace Music to bring an unforgettable free show to the legendary west coast venue, in support of his new album R.O.O.T.S. which dropped on March 31.

The first single off of his sophomore album, "Right Round," has broken all previous digital download records, having locked in the #1 spot for 12 weeks, until last week when it was pushed to #2 by Lady GaGa's "Poker Face." Now Flo Rida is bringing that same success it to the stage, with an upcoming show in London on April 13, and more Stateside dates scheduled for later this year …

Check out photos from Flo Rida's free MySpace Music show right here!

Though touted as a fun, free party for the whole family, the second annual Rick Ross Be Out charity event in Miami Gardens, Florida, turned violent on Wednesday, when shots rang out in an adjacent park as the rapper took the stage. No one is believed to have been injured during the shooting, and the Boss was able to perform one song with Flo Rida and Brisco before police cleared the area.

Read the full story here.

Two albums, two #1 debuts. That’s just what Danity Kane can claim, now that their sophomore LP, Welcome to the Dollhouse, will enter next week’s Billboard albums chart on top. The set sold more than 236,000 copies, which is a slight improvement on sales of the band’s first, self-titled release; that record also bowed at #1, but sold 234,300 units.

But DK weren’t the chart’s sole newcomers, as 18 releases in all crack next week’s top 200. Opening at #4, with sales reported at 85,900, its Flo Rida’s debut disc, Mail on Sunday. Surprisingly, and perhaps due to the band’s bumping up the album’s release, Gnarls Barkley’s The Odd Couple debuts at #18, selling a mere 31,000 copies, while rapper Rocko’s Self-Made follows at #21, with 27,700 scans. (Must've been that successful street-marketing campaign).

Newsroom homeboy, Sheek Louch, and his Silverback Gorilla album, enters the chart at #41, with 17,500 sold, while young metallers Black Tide’s Light from Above sold 11,400 units, to bow at #73. Right behind the Tide at #75, it’s the Hush Sound’s Goodbye Blues, which sold to the tune of 11,200, and opening at #81 with 10,200 sold, is She & Him’s Volume One. The Buzzcuts’ self-titled LP sold 9,500 copies, which lands the album at #87, and Jason Mraz’s We Sing EP enters at #101 with 8,500 snatched up.

The Kills’ Midnight Boom follows at #133, selling 6,500 units (awesome record, btw), while PlayRadioPlay!’s Texas sold 5,300, for a #157 opening. New Found Glory’s Hits collection enters at #167 with 5,000 sold, and Bury Your Dead’s self-titled LP enters at #176 with sales of 4,600. The Matches’ Band In Hope debuts at #179, with 4,600 scans, and lastly, coming in at #182 with 4,500, its Addison Road’s self-titled latest.