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Alex Ziabko, Rick Szapowski, Matt Howard, Matthew Federer and Preston Rahbari, five best friends from New Jersey, are screaming out their niche in the pop-punk world as Racing Kites. Their name rings true the second you hear their music. Racing. That's exactly how their music is. Racing to the finish line of every song with ADHD drumlines, lazer gun guitar licks and desperately pleading vocals. Basically they're exactly what you're looking for.

Lucky for you, it couldn't be easier to be a Racing Kites fan. Between MySpace, Facebook and hyperactive Twitter accounts (see MySpace), you can pretty much track the band's every move as the unsigned wonders march their way toward this year's Bamboozle East, and onward to megafame. That's extra lucky because the alternative would be moving to New Jersey, and nobody wants to do that (Kidding, Jerz ... really). I don't have a video to show you yet, but there's plenty waiting for you on the great and mysterious world wide web. Get to clickin'.

Tags Racing Kites, The Buzz On

+ MTV hottie Audrina Patridge dropped her top for the new Divine Rights of Denim ad campaign.  We think she's getting better with age. Or maybe it's just the lack of clothing. (Egotastic)

+ Dater/stalker of the stars Doug Reinhardt proposed to Paris Hilton last night, only to have her tell him she needed "to think about it."  Poor Dougie just can't catch a break, can he? (Pop Crunch)

+ Is there trouble in Pashleeville?? Didn't Ashlee Simpson learn anything from watching Meet the Barkers? (Page Six)

+ Well, Rihanna went and bought herself a gun. It's about damn time. (Celebitchy)

+ Janet Jackson was spotted in NYC looking "bookish." At least she's getting out of bed. (Rap-Up)

+ American Idol finalist Adam Lambert shed the nail polish and mascara to perform Smokey Robinson's "Tracks Of My Tears" to rave reviews last night.  We have to say he actually looks kind of hot! (Towleroad)

+ Madonna is brushing up on her skills to play Mrs. Hannigan from Annie, having just filed papers to adopt yetanother Malawian child. Yawn. (People)

Tags Adam Lambert, American Idol, Audrina Patridge, Doug Reinhardt, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Paris Hilton, Rihanna, U2

Weren't we just talking about Karen O? We were! But we didn't even break the surface, because not only does she appear on the N.A.S.A. album, she's got a brand-new album and video with Yeah Yeah Yeahs and, predictably, they're SO good. Like breakthrough good. Yeah Yeah Yeahs have always been on our short list, but the new record, It's Blitz, officially promotes them to astronomical new territory.

This new single, "Zero," puts Yeah Yeah Yeahs' old stuff to shame with its effortless confidence and deadly melody. I can throw every adjective I know at you, but I'd just be complicating the simple fact that this song is really, really good. Crazy catchy. You're gonna listen to it 100 times before you realize you're not breathing.

And the video is just as gripping. A surreal nighttime Tokyo -- or is it NYC? Hong Kong? Any city... The world is your stage! -- adventure, it starts with kung-fu movie overdubs and escalates through grocery cart races, street dancing and car stomping to its explosive ticker tape finish. Step past the red curtain and know that you're never coming back.

Tags Karen O, N.A.S.A., Yeah Yeah Yeahs

In case you hadn't noticed, The Lonely Island is totally Buzzworthy's boyfriend. Andy, Akiva and Jorma ... Ever since Tamar got them on The 5, we've been obsessed with them. OK, that's a lie, we were obsessed with them way before. So, you can imagine how pumped we are that The Lonely Island are MTV's newest featured artist!

In typical brilliant Lonely Island style, they've broken the mold with a series of videos that we never saw coming. Just in time for MTV's Spring Break 2009 Panama City Beach party, they've mashed up footage of MTV Spring Break '88 with hilarious new (super crappy looking -- see above!) Lonely Island sarcasm. They use some fancy editing to make it look like they're interacting with the mullet-headed, Oakley-faced meatheads that kept the beach interesting 21 springs ago, and they pull it off magically well. Oh yeah, and Andy Samberg's in a Speedo, if that's something that you care about ...

As you know, this all also coincides with the release of The Lonely Island's debut album, Incredibad. If you somehow haven't seen the insane video for "I'm On a Boat" yet, that should be high on your priority list, too. Before you get to that, though, definitely take a few minutes to watch the hilariously bad-haired Spring Beach clips below. They'll pretty much change your life.

Tags Akiva Schaffer, Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, The Lonely Island

Four years ago there was a Spike Jonze (duuude, have you seen that Where The Wild Things Are trailer yet?!?!?)-directed  Adidas commercial called "Hello, Tomorrow," that was so aimlessly, supernaturally dreamy, that it was sort of a shame when whatever show you were watching kicked back in. The clip came accompanied by an equally dreamy soundtrack -- a sleepwalker of a song, also called "Hello, Tomorrow," by Squeak E. Clean (Jonze's brother) and Karen O.  The collaboration was such a success that Squeak E. Clean (aka Sam Spiegel) went on to produce Show Your Bones, the second album from Karen's band, Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

Now Squeak E. Clean has paired up on a more permanent basis with Ze "DJ Zegon" Gonzalez, to form N.A.S.A., but the collaboration doesn't end there. N.A.S.A.'s first record is actually all collaborations. Squeak E. Clean and DJ Zegon provide ambient background for vocals from an incredibly wide range of performers, including David Byrne, RZA, Tom Waits, George Clinton, Kanye West, Karen O, Santigold, Spank Rock, John Frusciante and many more. Like, very many more.

As for this "Gifted" video, it's directed by Three Legged Legs, a group whose cartoony sci-fi style isn't so far off from Spike Jonze's new project. It's a mind-bending space adventure that perfectly matches the tone and rhythm laid down by super collab Kanye West, Lykke Li and Santigold. Watch "Gifted," right here, and keep an eye out for more brilliance from N.A.S.A.

Tags David Byrne, George Clinton, John Frusciante, Kanye West, Karen O, Lykke Li, N.A.S.A., RZA, Santigold, Spank-Rock, Tom Waits, Yeah Yeah Yeahs

(Credit: Daniel Arnold)

Today MTV converted a 24th floor conference room into the ultimate "Welcome Back From Spring Break" extravaganza, hosting a live performance by new hip-hop heavyweight, Asher Roth, and his crew! Compared to the crowd, who were fresh from their cubicles, the boys were pretty worn out. And who can blame them? They just trucked in from Panama City Beach -- what they all described as "the best Spring Break ever."

After completely taking MTV's beach party down, they hit NYC for an encore, and even though this skyscraper-flanked performance was not quite as wild as Panama City Beach, it was every bit as exciting. As always, Asher went shoeless.

The intimate insanity included balls-out renditions of "Lark on My Go Cart," "La Di Da," "Be By Myself" and "I Love College." As you can imagine, all the ladies waved their arms and said "ohhhhhhh!" Get a little taste of what the whole thang looked like, after the jump!

+ More Asher Roth photos after the jump...

Read more...

Tags Asher Roth, Spring Break

Former High School Music star Corbin Bleu stopped by MTV the other week to answer your Buzzworthy blog fan questions, and in the process proved that he's graduated from his Disney days and is all grown up. Like, very grown up. Very. Like, he's super hot. And all grown up. Get it? And seriously, was he born to wear a leather jacket? Was he born IN a leather jacket?

Anyway, get the stories behind the songs on his new album, Speed of Light -- a puppy almost shut down recording on one song, and yes "Close" is about someone real. Plus, find out what Corbin Bleu looks for in a girls other than Angelina Jolie! And thanks for sending in your Corbin questions!

Tags Corbin Bleu

+  You know it's a slow news day when we're blogging about new pics of Anna Faris. (Hollywoodtuna)

+ We don't care who this dress was designed for. All we're saying is Beyonce looks a little crazy in it. (Us Magazine)

+ Lil' Kim took a break from shakin' her tush on Dancing With The Stars to shoot a video for her T-Pain collabo 'Download.' (Rap-Up)

+ Justin Timberlake ain't losin' no sleep over no music he ain't makin'. (Entertainment Weekly)

+ Robert Pattinson stinks!  And we ain't just talkin' about his acting chops! (MTV News)

+ On the bright side, Taylor Lautner looks so squeaky clean, it hurts. (Just Jared Jr)

+ Congrats on going platinum, Brit Brit! We've come a long way from barefoot gas station stops and Cheetos binging.  RIght? (Gabby Babble)

Tags Anna Faris, Beyonce, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Lil' Kim, Robert Pattinson, T-Pain, Taylor Lautner

For the ultimate primer on aging gracefully, just take a good long look at Eddie Vedder. Over the past 18 years since Ten, Pearl Jam has weathered every fashion trend, every political climate, and every step of mainstream music's wild evolution with their heads up and their integrity completely intact. They're classy, and they are classic. And they still put out consistently interesting and entertaining albums on a fairly regular basis.

Unfortunately this is not a post announcing a new album or a new single. But they are re-releasing Ten and sweetening the deal by offering up all of the master tracks up for download at the "Rock Band" music store. We're celebrating all that big news with the launch of the Ultimate Pearl Jam Playlist. MTV has assembled 15 of Pearl Jam's finest clips into a single playlist, and it all kicks off with a never-before-aired uncensored version of "Jeremy."

Don't expect to finally get a peek at that recess lady's breast. It doesn't go that way. But the ambiguous ending that Pearl Jam left us with 18 years ago is about to be wrapped up in unblinkingly gruesome fashion. A fashion that resonates far louder today than it ever thought of doing when Pearl Jam was still just a fresh face in the Buzz bin. Here they are -- 15 videos from a band that saw the future 18 years ago and owned every day of the present, ever since. I give you Pearl Jam.

Tags Pearl Jam, Rock-Band

After all these years of looking at Homer Simpson and half the rest of the world in their "Disco Sucks" t-shirts, isn't it something to find out that they were all wrong? Or wait... is it weirder to have ever assumed that Homer Simpson was right about something? Regardless, Australian dance revolutionary Ladyhawke's got new ideas about old disco, and they certainly do not suck.

In fact, Ladyhawke's got new ideas about a lot of things. For one thing she wears men's clothes exclusively and plays her disco -- a traditionally '70s genre -- with a decidedly '80s flare. Also, take a look at this Wikipedia excerpt: "At age 10 she contracted a disease that is common in seagulls but that had not been seen in humans in New Zealand for 20 years. To this day she is terrified of beach deck chairs and has an affinity to 'fish and chip' vans."

Curious, right? Well this lady, who takes her name from the creepy '80s sci-fi film, has a curiously addictive sound to match. Her first single, "Paris Is Burning," roared an announcement of her arrival, owning dance floors internationally and earning a crucial fan in electroclash legend, Peaches. It also earned Ladyhawke a spot on tour with The Ting Tings! Now, Christina Aguilera is even covering Ladyhawke's "My Delirium" on her upcoming album. The ante just keeps rising.

Watch "Paris Is Burning," the video that set this strange rising star in motion, below, and watch "My Delirium" here.

Tags Christina Aguilera, Ladyhawke, Peaches, The Ting Tings