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Best New Artist VMA Winners: Where Are They Now?

Posted 8/24/11 11:52 am EST by in VMAs


It’s one of the biggest categories of the night. Previous winners include Eminem, Lady Gaga, Alicia Keys, 50 Cent, Justin Bieber and Nirvana. We’re talking about the MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist, and as usual, this year’s nominees represent some of the hottest new acts in music.

With talent this diverse vying for the Moonman, it’s anyone’s guess who will walk away from the Aug. 28 ceremony victorious. Will voters opt for Big Sean’s smooth R&B hit “My Last” or will they lean toward the harder hip-hop of Tyler, The Creator’s “Yonkers” or Wiz Khalifa’s “Black and Yellow”? Will they prefer Kreayshawn's fun and funky “Gucci Gucci” to Foster the People’s fresh rocker “Pumped Up Kicks”?

We have not idea who’s going to take the prize, but you can cast your vote here.

What we do know is that many of the winners of this prize have gone on to enjoy enormous fame and great success on the charts. In fact, two of the biggest stars in the world right now are our two most recent winners. With the big show just a few days away, we thought we’d check in on the last five winner to see how things are going! Read More...

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Travie McCoy Did A Little Ink: 'When I Was 17' Deleted Scene

Posted 6/2/10 12:30 pm EST by in Music, Television


Before he was a "Billionaire" with a solo album dropping next week, Travie McCoy was a 17-year-old high school kid bumming around upstate New York feeding his hunger for hip-hop culture. As viewers learned on last weekend's new episode of "When I Was 17" (which also featured testimonials from "American Idol" will Kris Allen and reality TV star Kourtney Kardashian), McCoy spent his high school years looking like "a hot mess." "In my brain, I was sexy," he joked on the show.

McCoy was already experimenting with ink when he was a teen. In the exclusive deleted scene below, Travie explains that his 17-year-old self was employed by the local tattoo parlor.

He said his love for graffiti is what lead him to getting into tattoos. "I've done it on every medium — canvas, public property," he said. "I felt like skin was the next thing to do."

His work at the parlor was a true apprenticeship, because as Travie noted, you can't erase. "He would practice on grapefruits and stuff to get the feel of real skin," Gym Class Heroes drummer and high school friend Matt McGinley said. "He tattooed me, and I remember being probably the second or third person he tattooed. I knew I was in good hands, but at the same time I was like, 'This dude was working on grapefruits last week.' But it was free, so I said OK."

Though he's worked professionally as a musician since the group released their debut album in 2001, McCoy says it's a passion he has kept up with and he still tattoos to this day. "Maybe when we go platinum a few hundred times, I'll open up a chain of tattoo parlors and give all my friends jobs," he said.

"When I Was 17" airs every Saturday at 11 a.m. on MTV!

What tattoo would you want from Travie McCoy? Let us know in the comments!

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Happy Birthday, Patrick Stump!

Posted 4/27/10 11:05 am EST by in Music


Throw up a fist bump to former Fall Out Boy singer Patrick Stump today, as it's his birthday. He is only 26 years old but is already a rock veteran, having served as the voice of Fall Out Boy, one of the bands that helped define the dominant rock trend of the decade. Stump's versatile voice and killer instincts kept him at the forefront of the rock world not only as the frontman for one of the most successful rock bands of the past 10 years but also as a collaborator and producer.

Stump began his musical career as a drummer in a handful of bands in his native Chicago. In fact, he auditioned for Fall Out Boy as a drummer but graduated to the microphone somewhat reluctantly. The group picked up steam pretty quickly, as 2003's Take This to Your Grave picked up supporters in the punk universe and also got the attention of the major labels. By the time 2005's From Under the Cork Tree reached double platinum status and "Sugar, We're Goin Down" became an MTV and radio staple, the Fall Out Boy dynamic became clear: Stump's inventive, catchy music paired with bassist Pete Wentz's lyrics (delivered in Stump's joyous tenor).

The band expanded into other directions with their last two albums (2007's Infinity on High and 2008's Folie a Deux). In addition to his Fall Out Boy work and a just-blossoming solo project, Stump found other work as a guest vocalist (with Gym Class Heroes and Timbaland), songwriter (Cobra Starship, the Cab) and producer (Tyga, Lupe Fiasco). (His hip-hop work is especially spot-on — just check out Lupe Fiasco's "Little Weapon" for proof.)

As a birthday gift for Stump, we've put together a video playlist of some of his best work, from Fall Out Boy's early hit "Dead on Arrival" to the "Open Happiness" collaboration with Cee-Lo Green, Panic! at the Disco's Brendon Urie, Travis McCoy from Gym Class Heroes, Janelle Monae and producers Butch Walker and Polow Da Don. But it kicks off with the breakout hit "Sugar, We're Goin Down," which introduced the mainstream to Stump's killer voice and big-hook sensibilities.

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File Your Taxes With 50 Cent, Dire Straits And Gym Class Heroes

Posted 4/15/10 10:00 am EST by in Music


Today is Thursday, April 15, and you know what that means. In addition to celebrating Seth Rogen's birthday and commemorating Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in baseball, you also have to have your taxes filed by today. The Internal Revenue Service — the government organization in charge of collecting taxes and enforcing tax laws — is expected to collect over 170 million tax returns this year and bring in over two trillion dollars in tax revenue. Even considering that giant chunk of change, they still figure they will collect hundreds of billions of dollars less than they are actually owed because of fraud, loopholes or simple failure to pay.

So as you fill out the last of your forms (or more likely put the finishing touches on your e-file, which a full two-thirds of the country does now), you should crank up the video playlist below. It covers all the bases, from anthems about cold hard cash (Birdman's "Money to Blow," 50 Cent's "I Get Money") to laments about the government (Brother Ali's "Uncle Sam Damn") to celebrations about refund money (D. Willz' "Cashed My Check"). For those of you filling out forms by hand, there's Gym Class Heroes' "Papercuts," and for anybody who feels a bit like they are the government's personal ATM, there's Hard-Fi's "Cash Machine." There are even a few entries from artists who have had trouble with tax collectors in the past, like Method Man, Willie Nelson, the Rolling Stones and Dire Straits. And once you've done your taxes go ahead and take a "Vacation" (with Jeezy, of course).

But we begin the proceedings with Erase Errata's "Tax Dollar," a noisy little shuffle about wondering just where your money is going once it ends up in Uncle Sam's wallet.

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Pete Wentz, Gym Class Heroes Kick Off 2010 SXSW Festival

Posted 3/13/10 12:00 pm EST by in Music


By Matt Harper

The 2010 South by Southwest (SXSW) festival began Friday (March 12) with the premiere of the heavily-anticipated comic book flick "Kick-Ass," but anyone familiar with Austin's famed annual festival knows that music takes center stage during this week-and-a-half. And in keeping with that spirit, Ustream held their own kick-off party and invited Gym Class Heroes and Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz to start the week off right.

Gym Class Heroes frontman Travis McCoy took to the stage in good spirits and kept the crowd dancing to the band's own unique brand of rock-infused hip-hop (or is it the other way around?). Friend and label mate Pete Wentz stood on a couch to get a better view of the band with a coy half-smile. Wentz wasn't the only celeb in the house though, as actress Jamie-Lynn Sigler watched enthusiastically from the VIP section and legendary rapper Bun B hung out with the crowd on the floor.

During Gym Class Heroes' set, Travis took a moment to talk about his upcoming solo album and assured the crowd that the band was about half way through a new Gym Class record. His solo project is just a chance for him to explore a new sound, he told the enthusiastic crowd. Travis told the room that we can expect The Papercut Chronicles 2 some time in the first quarter of next year.

After Gym Class Heroes wrapped up their set, Pete Wentz took to the club's turntables for a quick DJ session. All in all, it was a great way to kick off SXSW in Austin, and we're hoping more great things in the next 10 days.

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Katy Perry Insists She's Not Dating Good Charlotte's Benji Madden

Posted 2/17/09 11:33 am EST by in Katy Perry


When Katy Perry and Good Charlotte rocker Benji Madden were spotted in the same place, at the same time, over Valentine's Day in Las Vegas, rumors began circulating that the pair was canoodling. However, Katy has taken to her blog to insist that's not the case.

In a blog post titled "I Wanna Be Like Grace Kelly," Perry, who broke up with Gym Class Heroes frontman Travis McCoy earlier this year, insisted that she and Madden are nothing more than friends. "Oh kittens! It's two pseudo-famous people sitting next to each other … doesn't mean we were bumping uglies!" she wrote. "You know I don't just do that with anyone! That's just how the media works, as you can tell.

"I was there celebrating a really fun show and a boozy Valentine's with all my good friends. We were like a group of 25." she continued. "Benji is a nice young fellow, but my heart really belongs to [my cat] Kitty Purry," she wrote, adding that it also belongs to her friend, actor Markus Molinari.

And in case you're wondering why Perry wants to be Grace Kelly, well perhaps her trip to Monte Carlo, where Kelly happened to be a crowned princess, has something to do with it. "Oh shayth do I have frequent flyer milez for days," she wrote. "I wonder if you can cash in frequent flyer miles for a boyfriend rather than just dinners and gift certificates for Starbucks? 'How many miles for Brad Pitt, pls?' "

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Katy Perry Retracts Her Celibacy Vow: 'I'd Rather Die'

Posted 1/22/09 7:07 pm EST by in Katy Perry


Katy PerryMaybe at this point, we should assume everything Katy Perry says about her personal life is one big joke. And maybe we should assume that if she says one thing, the next day she just might backtrack and say that she meant something else.

Basically, we need to take every word uttered by Perry with one giant grain of salt. Why? Well, in today's edition of "I didn't mean what I said," Perry insists that yesterday's celibacy vow was taken out of context and was meant to be a joke.

Here's the quote: "I've actually taken a vow of celibacy this year," the Grammy nominee told TV Guide. "No kissing anyone. Just my cat: Kitty Purry."
Read More...

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Katy Perry, Travis McCoy Split: Easy To Predict, Yet Hard To Accept

Posted 1/5/09 11:59 am EST by in Gym-Class-Heroes, Katy Perry


Travis McCoy and Katy PerryThe new year is already a bummer, and not just because I missed out on a four-team parlay by taking the Vikings yesterday. (Thanks, Tarvaris Jackson!) No, the reason 2009 is starting on such a bad note is that my favorite couple of 2008 has called it quits. That's right, Katy Perry and Gym Class Heroes frontman Travis McCoy apparently are no more.

It's difficult to say that I didn't see this one coming. After all, Perry — who first appeared as a blip on the radar with a cameo in Gym Class Heroes' "Cupid's Chokehold" video — shot to worldwide fame in '08, thanks mostly to her penchant for kissing girls (and liking it). She became a sex symbol, a lightning rod for criticism and, uh, a doll. McCoy, on the other hand, released an album that got a fairly underwhelming response. Oh, and he got tattoos of Hall and Oates on his hands. Through it all, they appeared happy, but Perry had eclipsed McCoy and become the more famous of the two. She was the one people asked about in interviews — whether it was about "I Kissed a Girl" or her face-plant into a Quinceañera cake (or sometimes, both) — and McCoy was probably getting tired of it (he sure sounded that way in this blog post). Read More...

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Katy Perry Talks Out-Singing Christina Aguilera, Working With Boyfriend Travis McCoy

Posted 10/2/08 6:42 pm EST by in Katy Perry


If Katy Perry and Christina Aguilera ever found themselves in the unlikely situation of a sing-off, Perry says that maybe — just maybe — she can use her background in gospel to take on the blond pop star on known for her strong vocal abilities.


"If Christina Aguilera wanted to have a run-off, I could maybe muster up that soul, that gospel that I grew up in," she told MTV UK. Perry, whose parents are evangelical Christian preachers, grew up in the church. But, ultimately, the "I Kissed a Girl" singer admits that even with gospel in her soul, she can't compete with Aguilera's killer pipes. "No, I can't," she admitted.
Read More...

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Mos Def, Gym Class Heroes Submit To Our Low-Tech Interviews At VH1 Hip Hop Honors

Posted 10/1/08 6:57 pm EST by in VH1 Hip Hop Honors, Video


Mos Def

By Steven Roberts

My day started off pretty great. "Steven! Go cover the VH1 Hip Hop Honors rehearsal! Bring back something good!" Yes, I thought. I'll get to produce something. I'll be able to direct a shooter, interview people I idolize and get out of the office for the day. Then I was handed a flipcam and a digital camera and told to "go have fun."

Flipcam or not, I decided I was going to get out there and bring back gold. Read More...

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