"I met [Lil Wayne] a few months ago, and he's honestly — I don't even know if he'll want people to know that he's incredibly polite and respectful. He's so talented and very funny. And really optimistic, and super supportive of me, which I've really, really appreciated so much. I sent him a couple of my songs. He's been diggin' on them for a while. Then he heard ['Make It Rain'], and he was like, 'All right, I'm gonna kill it!'"

-"Gossip Girl" star Leighton Meester, announcing that she recently collaborated with Young Money CEO Lil Wayne on a song called "Make It Rain." Before her performance at last night's event for the opening of the new American Eagle store in Times Square, Meester told MTV News that the legends about Wayne's unconventional work ethic have not been exaggerated. "It was like, literally, 4 o'clock in the morning," Meester said of one of their sessons. "He was so sick — he didn't even write anything down. He just, like, vibes to the music and dances. I don't even know how he does it; he's amazing." Meester's musical career has already gotten off to a strong start, as she has had notable, head-turning collaborations with Cobra Starship, Robin Thicke and now Weezy. Her full-length debut doesn't have a release date yet but is expected to hit the streets some time in January of 2010. In the meantime, she'll keep things feisty as Blair Waldorf on "Gossip Girl."

Back in April, Lil Wayne attempted to block the release of a documentary about him called "The Carter." The film, which features candid interviews with the rapper and followed him on the road while promoting The Carter III, contains at least one scene of Weezy mixing and sipping syrup. A judge shot down the attempt, which allowed the production company to seek distribution.

In the end, the company has chosen to distribute the DVD of "The Carter" themselves, and over the weekend a brand-new trailer premiered touting DVD pre-orders. The trailer makes "The Carter" look like an incredible piece of cinema. It catches him on stage, in the studio and behind the scenes in what looks to be a series of smoke-filled, frank conversations. In one scene, Weezy declares that he doesn't think of himself as a rock star ("I just record") and in another, he dismisses the idea of contemplating his own death.

The film's official Web site is currently taking orders for the DVD, which will ship next Tuesday, November 17. It seems like "The Carter" is part of a new wave of music documentaries that look to get beyond the glamor of the subjects and cut straight to the heart of their existential issues (both "The Story of Ozzy Osbourne: Wreckage of My Past" and "Lemmy: The Movie" both have a certain end-of-the-world quality). Wayne will begin his year-long jail sentence in February, but along with the boatload of music he will certainly leave behind, we'll have the unhinged version of Wayne in "The Carter" to keep us company.

"I don't like to do real songs on there, 'cause the producers be wanting their money. So I just do sh-- that's already out. It's easier. N---as be like, 'You killed that n---a on his own song.' That's not the intentions. No, I did not kill nobody on their song. I like the song. That's why I liked it. I didn't kill them. I ain't even rapping like them. I killed their song though."

-Mixtape mastermind Lil Wayne, talking to DJ Scoob Doo about why he doesn't use very many original productions on his tapes and instead sticks to jacked beats. For No Ceilings, his latest release that dropped over the weekend, Weezy borrows the backing tracks from such recent hits as Jay-Z's "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)," Black Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feeling," Clipse's "I'm Good" and Beyoncé's "Sweet Dreams." No Ceilings is a typical Wayne blaster, full of lateral thinking, crazy rhymes and Weezy's outer space flow. It's the first in what will likely be a torrent of material from Wayne's camp between now and February, when he must begin serving his recently-delivered jail sentence.

Back in the late 1990s (when album sales were robust and a CDs actual release date was more important than its leak date), every Tuesday in November and December was a "Super Tuesday," usually featuring a handful of big-name releases all hitting stores at the same time. Artists competed for gargantuan first-week album sales and spots on "TRL." 10 years ago, November 2 was one of those massive Tuesdays, featuring a handful of big acts putting out new, high-profile records. Foo Fighters dropped There's Nothing Left to Lose (their most successful album and the winner of the Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2000). On the same day, Mariah Carey unleashed Rainbow, lead by the smash hit "Heartbreaker" (a collaboration with Jay-Z). Counting Crows busted out their third release This Desert Life, which picked up some traction when first single "Hanginaround" became something of a graduation anthem for high school seniors. Lil Wayne put out Tha Block is Hot, his watershed solo debut on Cash Money. Elsewhere in hip-hop, Flipmode Squad's Rah Digga released her underrated solo debut Dirty Harriet, while the Roots put out their excellent live album The Roots Come Alive.

But with all those names putting out albums on November 2, 1999, who played live on "TRL" that day? Rage Against the Machine, who performed in Times Square to celebrate the release of their third album The Battle of Los Angeles, their most accomplished, complex and mature album. Lead by the single "Guerrilla Radio," the band balanced the savagery of Tom Morello's guitar assault with the funky low end and Zack De La Rocha's pointed agit-prop rapping. The band broke up soon after but reunited a few years back, though The Battle of Los Angeles was the last original album they put out. But it still holds up, and it's amazing to think that a collective could be so well versed in politics but also know how to move a crowd so well. Check out the excellent video for "Guerrilla Radio."

"He's kinda more concerned about getting as much music as he possibly can, so that when he's in there, people are still satisfied musically with Lil Wayne product. That's just the mind of a true businessman. I'll just do what I can to keep the whole Young Money/ Cash Money team going. I just want to play my part as a team member and keep the brand strong until the boss gets home."

-Rapper Drake, speaking to RapUp.com about Lil Wayne's impending stay in jail. Drake, who signed to Weezy's Young Money label over the summer, talked to the hip-hop Web site about what will become of the Young Money crew while Wayne is incarcerated. Wayne's commitment to churning out product has already begun, as he unveils the new No Ceilings mixtape this weekend. The tape will contain even more tracks than the version that leaked earlier this week, and it seems like Wayne will be banking as much music as possible between now and when he gets locked up. In the meantime, he still has his rock-oriented Rebirth album on the release docket, as well as a Young Money crew album.

When I was a kid, my mom would make birthday cakes that looked like trains, or zoo cages. One time there was a really, really scary clown. There are psychic scars, to be sure, but they're likely nothing compared to poor Ireland Basinger-Baldwin, 14, daughter of battling ex's Kim Basinger and Alex Baldwin.

The teen — who, you might recall, was on the wrong end of a really nasty voicemail from her pops two years ago — reportedly got a frighteningly accurate specialty birthday cake last week in the shape of Lil Wayne's head, complete with licorice dreads, chocolate sunglasses and iced out icing grill. We have no idea if this story is true (since the image from Los Angeles ace cake shop Rosebud Cakes has since been removed from its Flickr account), but any way you slice it, that is the most WTF?-tastic cake we've ever seen.

Congratulations Kim and Alex, you may have outdone that dad who reportedly advertised on Craigslist for a Lil Wayne impersonator for his blind 16-year-old's birthday party. "Here is the kicker my son is blind so you do not need to look like the rapper just sound like him. I understand he grunts and mumbles a lot. I don't care if you are 67 and Jewish if you can sing the songs you're hired," the Craigslist ad read. "Money is not an issue." We can't confirm if that dad ended up getting the cake he wanted, but we hear it looked a bit like Whoopi Goldberg.

This morning, Lil Wayne appeared in court in New York City to plead guilty to a weapons possession charge stemming from a 2007 arrest following his first-ever headlining concert in Manhattan. As a result, Weezy will be sentenced to a year in jail (though his formal sentencing isn't until February). Though Wayne has had a long history of legal trouble, this is the first time he will serve time in jail.

But it's not his first trip to prison. In 2004, Weezy traveled to the Ohio State Reformatory (a decommissioned prison) to film the video for "Go DJ," a single from his album Tha Carter. The clip depicts Weezy and Birdman as residents of the penitentiary who stage a breakout and generally inspire chaos.

Interestingly, the prison (which was shut down in 1990) was used as the primary location for the film "The Shawshank Redemption" as well as scenes in "Air Force One." The other thing that stands out int he "Go DJ" clip is how much Wayne has changed physically since the release of Tha Carter. He has no visible tattoos and his hair was only just beginning to grow out. (You can check out the evolution of Lil Wayne here.)

In addition to his sentencing in February, Weezy will also have to return to court for a probation hearing. Assuming good behavior, it's unlikely that he'll have to serve the full year (eight to 10 months is a better estimate), so here's hoping he doesn't copy any of the activity from the "Go DJ" video.

Birdman's new album Pricele$$ comes out at the end of October, and he's already dropped the second video from the album (the Lil Wayne team-up "Money to Blow"). It's an excellent clip, but it doesn't match the majesty of their previous collaboration "Always Strapped." The track is a rock-inflected bounce track that piles on the New Orleans swagger like the vintage Cash Money albums of yore, and since the sound is a bit of a throwback, they must have figured the video should be as well. It utilizes a classic hip-hop video style we like to call "The Arrival," wherein it seems as though the rappers are making an entrance to a club/party/barbecue/warzone for the entire length of the clip. In between, there are scenes of Weezy rapping in a parking lot, shots of stacks of cash and a cameo by Rick Ross. (Not surprisingly, it's directed by Lil X, the Hype Williams protégé who is responsible for such over-saturated epics as Usher's "Yeah!" and Redman's "I'll Bee Dat.")

But there are two key frames from the video that tell the whole story. They both come pretty early in the clip to help establish the vibe of the whole clip. The first is a cool backlit shot of Birdman slowly putting on his sunglasses while standing in a crowd of women. The shot uses that same flare effect that showed up in this summer's "Star Trek" movie, which suggests that Birdman is actually going to party somewhere on the Enterprise.

The other scene needs no introduction. Read more...

It's not enough for LeBron James to be a former NBA MVP and a five-time All-Star for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Having already gotten a lock on dominating the world of basketball (though he's still searching for that elusive championship), he has now moved onto the movie and music world. "More Than a Game," which premiered in New York last night, tells the story of James' legendary high school career and the coach who lead the squad to a national high school championship in the days before LeBron was a hoops icon. The film is accompanied by a massive soundtrack that features tunes from Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige and a quartet of performers who have created one of the most buzzed-about singles of the year. The remix of Drake's "Forever" also welcomes verses from Lil Wayne, Kanye West and Eminem. The result is a killer mix of styles, and we have James (at least in part) to thank.

The big debate in the Newsroom for the past few weeks has been about who has the sickest verse on "Forever." Did Drake steal the show from the veterans or is it Kanye's game to win? According to James, everybody delivered big, but in the end it was Slim Shady who took it home. "Eminem really finished it off," James told MTV News. "The last person on that track had to finish it off perfectly, and he did that." Never one to leave a teammate behind, James also praised West's punchlines and the work turned in by Drake and Wayne.

But for LeBron, it all comes back to Jay-Z, who James refers to as his "big brother" (he was also wearing a Roc-A-Fella chain during the interview). "Jay-Z is the best," he said. "11 number one albums, more than Elvis. Who else could beat that?"

Having spent my entire professional career interviewing famous people (save for those few months where I wrote about bespoke suits and bathtubs shaped like slingback heels), I don't really get starstruck. There are a handful of people around whom I squeal like a teenage girl (as anybody who has been in the room with me while Rob Zombie is present can attest), but I generally don't get blown away by fame.

But when it comes to raw, physical abilities, it becomes a whole different ball game. I'll start hyperventilating over even the most minor athletes. I shook late Boston Celtic Reggie Lewis' hand once and count is as one of the great moments of my life. My brother met former Boston Red Sox pitcher Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd at a bar a few years ago and I got really jealous. I once went to an industry party solely because I was told Kevin Garnett would be there. The point is, I'm blown away by sports figures, so when I was called upon today to sit down with His Royal Highness LeBron James, the King of Everything, I had to take a few deep breaths.

I sat down with King James (along with film director Kris Belman) to talk about "More Than a Game," the documentary about his high school basketball team. We also went over the movie's killer soundtrack, which features tunes from Mary J. Blige, Jay-Z and T.I., as well as the killer remix of Drake's "Forever" that features verses from Lil Wayne, Kanye West and Eminem. He also revealed who his pick is for the "Hottest MCs" list, who he thinks had the best verse on "Forever" and how he rates new teammate Shaquille O'Neal as an MC — all of which will be appearing all over MTV News over the next few days.

But stupidly, here's the first thing I thought when I shook James' hand: "Man, this guy is tall." I've been around basketball players all my life, but I've obviously never been around the best in the game. It is incredible that James is so unbelievably fast considering his size. The other thing I noticed? His tattoos are great. The dude really carries his ink well.

So the sum total of observations I was able to make during my interview? LeBron James is tall and has tattoos. Insight! But hey, at least I got a great photo (I'm on the bottom), so nobody can say I was never in the presence of royalty.