Obsessively blogging about pop music, pop videos, pop stars, and pop culture from inside the MTV headquarters in Times Square. We also have a slight Jonas Brothers problem. And a little fixation with Tokio Hotel.
For her edition of MTVUnplugged, Katy Perry scrubbed the glitter off her brash, brassy anthems. Taking full advantage of the intimate, candlelit setting, Perry radically reworked some of her most well-known and most-adored jams, and showcased a whole new side of herself as a performer, arranger, and songwriter. Gone are the pulsing beats, washes of synths and walls of guitar, replaced by a hushed, jazzy set-up featuring, at times, upright bass, strings and horns. But the songs remain the same: witty, vulnerable and crammed with hooks.
"I Kissed A Girl"
Katy's second single gets a cabaret jazz send up, attendant with stand-up bass and torch singer vocals.
"Lost"
Described as one of the more personal songs on her album, One Of The Boys, Katy gives a little background to the ballad "Lost," before performing a heart-rendering version of the track.
"Ur So Gay"
A sly insult to an ex-boyfriend with a flair for H&M scarves, it's the song that announced Katy Perry's arrival to the music world. "Ur So Gay" gets a a horn-heavy revamp.
+ Watch more Katy Perry Unplugged performances after the jump. Read more...
Wow, R. Kelly. To invoke a joke from 2005, why can't I quit you? Maybe it's because, despite everything (and I think we all know what that means), you keep coming up with modern art masterpieces like this... this... this ode to reproduction, "Pregnant."
So many bon mots here, it's hard to choose. Kells compares his taste in women to his taste in tequila, meets a girl with an "unbelievable booty" and decides he wants to move with her to a picket-fenced suburb with a dog. There's also a lot of talk about getting said lady pregnant, but I figured you could infer that from the song title. At this point in his career, R. Kelly isn't playing games. He just wants to go Cody Chesnutt on you.
BTW -- and this is also disturbing -- Tyrese, who has a verse of his own on the song, seems to be talking to the exact same girl (though I could be wrong). Either way, bravo, Kells. You have done it again.
Earlier this year, R&B crooning sensation Trey Songz did a remix of Jay-Z's "D.O.A." which, among other things, posited the idea that Trey Songz was just trying to be the best Trey Songz he could be, not some kind of R. Kelly re-tread (in case you thought he was). Trey Songzalso took some shots at R. Kelly, saying that he was too old to be using AutoTune. (The feud was basically like The Hills with more singing.)
Funny thing is, while Songz is hardly a re-tread of R. Kelly, he does share some qualities with he who was trapped in the closet, especially on two of the singles from his '09 platter, Ready.
On "LOL :)" (yes, that's WITH a smileyface emoticon) and "I Invented Sex," Songz comes with an irrefutably catchy melody ("LOL :))"and wanton sexual arrogance ("I Invented..."), respectively; two staples of the R. Kelly repertoire. Personally I like "LOL :)" (which you can jam to your heart's content here) the more because a) Soulja Boy and Gucci Mane are on it b) it's incredibly playful, as any song about texting should be and c) IT'S CALLED LOL SMILEY FACE.
Not that there's anything particularly wrong with "I Invented Sex," which you can watch in all its NSFW/ walked-in-on-someone's-sex-tape glory below, as well as an MTV News Trey Songz interview about the "concept" surrounding the video.
Ohhhhh Joss Stone. When you're a host of a live show or a red carpet, it's kinda your JOB to be super NICE to people. And not... you know... call them liars? Which is actually what happened when she asked Kevin Jonas if the Jonas Brothers planned on partying after the MTV Europe Music Awards in celebration of Kevin's 22nd birthday.
Kevin Jonas innocuously told Joss that no, the Jonas Brothers would NOT be poppin' bottles with models after the MTV EMAs because they're off to Italy to do a show. But Joss and MTV Germany's Joko Winterscheidt wouldn't take no for an answer, and awkward host banter ensued while the Jonas Brothers stayed diplomatic, but you could tell they were probably suppressing clenched teeth and an eye roll. Nick Jonas kinda wears an expression that sorta suggests "Is this real life?" (à la "David at the Dentist") -- the kind of expression one does when reality-meets-surreality on live international TV.
If I were the Jonas Brothers, I would've totally pulled out my Blackberry and started pretend-texting until the nails-on-a-chalkboard moment was over. (But then again, I hate confrontation.) The end of the clip is great, as Joe Jonas is kiiiiiinda-sorta like "Nah, really, I'm good."
The 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards were an epic night in Berlin, with host Katy Perry, online host Pete Wentz, live performances by Beyonce, U2, Jay-Z, Tokio Hotel, Foo Fighters, Shakira, Green Day, and Leona Lewis.
Check out the entire list of winners, and watch the entire show and red carpet interviews on demand, right now!
Kevin Jonas! He's a year older! The senior member of the Jonas Brothers singing and rocking and "Bounce"-ing ensemble has turned 22, and we're all here to say, mazel tov, homie!
Nick and Joe stay mugging for the cameras and breaking young girls' hearts and having said young girls write tunes about them (coughTaylorSwiftcough... and is that a Demi Lovato rumor we're hearing?), but Kevin Jonas will always be the big dude behind the dudes.
The 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards are just around the corner. If you haven't booked your ticket to Berlin, well, you're probably screwed. But fortunately Buzzworthy's gonna give you a first-hand look at all of the international stars, performers and performances, and fan-picked awards on Thursday, November 5.
Here's what you need to know about the 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards in Berlin.
But there's something far more urgent that needs to be discussed here: it looks like Demi's copped the super deluxe version of The Fame: Monster! No, Demi is not rocking one of Lady Gaga's blond locks (yet), but Lovato is GOING HARD in one of those sparkling hoodie things (a staple of Gaga's look). And Demi went ultra metallic at the 2009 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards and at the UK premiere of Hannah Montana: The Movie. And this past week, Demi Lovato showed up to Disney's 2nd Annual Concert For Hope in a gold-and-black metallic top that hearkened back to Lady Gaga's VMA red carpet dress. (Minus the neck brace.)
The Demi interview took place on the set of her "Remember December" video. I'll be rather curious to see if that clip features any walker and crutches-aided choreography.
UPDATE (Wednesday 10/28/2009): The Jonas Brothers themselves took to Myspace yesterday to assuage the fears of zillions of JB fans and assure everyone that Nick Jonas' solo project does not mean the end of the Jonas Brothers. I repeat, the Jonas Brothers are NOT breaking up. They're just branching out.
#2 – Nick Jonas IS working on a side project called
Nick Jonas & The Administration
#3 – This project will be released early in 2010
#4 - We are ALL excited about this project AND what we are doing TOGETHER!
#5 – We plan to make music together for as long as we can...
About 6 months ago, the three of us had a 2 week break from touring, and we all decided to go and do something that was on our hearts. Joe went on a trip to Australia and New Zealand. Kevin spent some time with his fiancé Danielle. I decided to go to Nashville, TN to make a side project (Nick Jonas & The Administration) with 4 musicians - guys that I had met and worked with before. If I was to describe the sound to someone… I would say its “heart & soul”, because the music that I make is from my heart, and the lyrics I write are from my soul.
We’ve said from the beginning of our career as the Jonas Brothers that anything we do outside of the group is a side project because you can’t break up brothers. My brothers are my biggest supporters, and were on the phone with me every day while I was in the studio asking how it was going, and telling me they couldn’t wait to hear the record.
My brothers and I couldn’t be more excited to have these amazing opportunities as a group, and as individuals. We are already planning another world tour AS THE JONAS BROTHERS next summer, and it is all thanks to our amazing fans.
