Posted 5/21/12 10:30 am EST by Jenna Rubenstein in Celebrity, Music, Videos
Brace yourselves, y'all, because we're about to discuss Justin Bieber and The Wanted at the SAME TIME! Both of these powerhouse artists performed at last night's Billboard Music Awards, and they both effing killed it. Yo Billboard, is there any way you can have the Billboard Music Awards every Sunday? It might devalue the legitimacy of the awards a bit, but these performances weren't enough! MOAR PLZ.
+ Watch Justin Bieber and The Wanted's Billboard Music Awards performances after the jump.
Posted 5/21/12 10:00 am EST by Nicole James in Celebrity, Photos
Katy Perry brings her grandma to the Billboard Music Awards, we swoon.
While some might have been expecting Katy Perry to bring her rumored new beau, Florence + The Machine guitarist Robert Ackroyd, to the Billboard Music Awards, Katy instead asked her adorable grandmother to join her. Which is just more reason to love Katy Perry -- she's always surprising us AND she loves her grandma!
It was a big night last night for Katy as she stunned the crowd with her acrobatic "Wide Awake" performance and received the Spotlight Award for tying Michael Jackson's record for most No. 1 singles off of one album. While those might have been the standout moments of the evening for Katy, we have to say our standout Katy moment was actually Grandma Perry's cane. CHECK THAT THING OUT, y'all. Sure, Katy looked gorg as usual in her striking Blumarine lilac gown, but Grandma done got her cane bedazzled. I know we're reaching the moratorium for this word, but I'm pretty sure this event calls for one final utterance: SWAG.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Posted 5/21/12 9:00 am EST by Althea Legaspi in Buzz Bites, Celebrity, Music
Taylor Swift receives Billboard's Woman Of The Year Award.
+ Last night's Billboard Music Awards were a star-studded affair. Among the winners were Taylor Swift, who received the Woman Of The Year Award. Plus, Adele won 12 awards (!!!), Katy Perry received the Spotlight Award and Justin Bieber nabbed the Top Social Artist Award. (MTV News)
+ While the Billboard Music Awards were celebratory (including an Icon Award for Stevie Wonder), Whitney Houston, Beastie Boys' Adam Yauch and Donna Summer were also remembered with songs. Houston's daughter, Bobbi Kristina, accepted her mom's Millennium Award. (MTV News)
+ Bee Gees' Robin Gibb passed away yesterday, succumbing to his long battle with cancer. He was 62 years old. (MTV News)
+ Mick Jagger's "Saturday Night Live" performances featured extra star power from the likes of Foo Fighters, Arcade Fire and Jeff Beck. Peep highlights from the show. (Billboard)
+ Regina Spektor will release her first new studio album in three years, What We Saw From The Cheap Seats. While the album drops May 29, you can stream it in advance now. (NPR)
+ So is U2's Bono the richest musician on the planet? With the ducats he and his partners in Elevation Partners earned from the Facebook IPO, it's possible. Although according to Bono, "Contrary to reports, I'm not a billionaire or going to be richer than any Beatle." (Billboard)
+ Need a soft landing for the beginning of another workweek? Chill out to the gorgeous strains of Sigur Rós' Valtari in advance of its May 29 release date. (NPR)
Photo credit: Getty Images
Posted 5/21/12 7:00 am EST by Charlie Norwood in Music, Videos
Being an unapologetic, regressive rap fan I haven't really been paying much attention to R&B newjack Bei Maejor. But after putting this Flocka-assisted banger "Lights Down Low" on repeat for half the day, I'm pretty much sold on the dude. I should mention that Bei Maejor isn't much of newbie: He's gone the somewhat traditional route, spending close to the last 10 years being a Grammy-nominated songwriter and producer for other R&B heavies like Ne-Yo and Trey Songz. But now he's signed his own artist deal and is set to be the next, well, Ne-Yo or Trey Songz.
Watch Bei Maejor and Waka Flocka Flame's "Lights Down Low" video after the jump.
Posted 5/21/12 6:00 am EST by Nicole James in Celebrity, Interviews, MTV Featured Artist, Music, PUSH, Videos
Chances are you've heard Kimbra's voice once or twice before. Actually, if you've lived on planet Earth for the past year or so, you've probably heard her guest verse in fellow PUSH alum Gotye's "Somebody That I Used To Know" at least 100 times by now. But Kimbra's been a solo musician in her native New Zealand since she was just a little girl. She debuted her first music video on the New Zealand children's TV show "What Now," and she sang the national anthem in front of 27,000 people when she was only 10 years old. In the years since (there's only been 12 of them), she signed with new management and relocated to Australia. Kimbra's first single, "Settle Down," was released in late 2010 to critical acclaim, and of course you all know the aforementioned megahit "Somebody." And here we are -- Kimbra's our PUSH artist of the week.
Get to know the girl from Down Under in our performance and interview videos. The "Warrior" singer sits down to discuss her unique take on fashion -- "It's important because it's an extension of the sonic world" -- and the intricate body paint she donned for the cover of her debut album, Vows. Speaking of body paint, Kimbra let us in on how long that Gotye "Somebody" video took to shoot, and how she's probably had enough body paint experience for a while: "Then [after the Vows cover shoot] I went on to do a 12-hour shoot for the Gotye video, so I've had a lot of experience being naked with copious amounts of paint on my body." Not sure anyone's necessarily complaining about that.
Kimbra's Vows is out now on Warner Bros.
+ Download a free copy of Kimbra's "Good Intent" off of her album Vows, watch her "Settle Down" video below, and check out more performances and interviews after the jump.
Posted 5/18/12 6:00 pm EST by Byron Flitsch in Celebrity, Photos
T. Mills chills while planning his Bamboozle domination this weekend!
We already really want to be T.Mills (we're very aware that we say that about everyone we talk about here), but seeing the MTV Push Artist chillin' like NBD before joining other acts performing at Bamboozle in New Jersey this weekend pretty much seals the deal -- bro is CON.FI.DENT! We want hang with T. so some of that tough guy ish rubs off on us. BRB, gonna draw some tattoos of his name on our face so we earn his affection.
The "Vans On" singer was snapped lounging like a boss in New Jersey likely counting down the seconds until he blows our minds during his Bamboozle performance this Sunday. Or maybe he's envisioning who'd he'd "gently like to woo" while wearing his Vans this weekend? But it's probably neither -- we bet he's thinking of all the new numbers he's gonna get after he JUMPS OUT OF AN EFFING AIRPLANE and skydives into the festival -- true story! Like we said, bro is BADASS.
Oh, and not to brag or anything, but T.'s hanging out with Buzzworthy all weekend. Not to be a tease, but more on that in the coming days...
Photo credit: @mtvbuzzworthy
Posted 5/18/12 4:50 pm EST by Nicole James in Celebrity, Music
Can we just talk about Garbage and how effing rad it is that they're back with a new album? A new album, Not Your Kind Of People, after seven years of no new tunes? Oh wait, Sam Lansky already did that for us. (See his latest Pop Think column, "Why I'm Obsessed With Garbage's New Album, 'Not Your Kind Of People,' And Why You Should Be, Too.") So instead I'll talk about MTV Hive's Garbage livestream as part of their "Live In NYC" series.
Shirley Manson & Co. will hit the stage for the first time in seven years (having lost not an ounce of their street cred) on May 22. Tune in to Hive's livestream to catch all of their new jams and hopefully some old favorites. And don't be ashamed if you pick up a box of red Feria before the show. The '90s can live on through your dye job despite what your boyfriend says!
+ Celebrate Garbage's new album and check out their "Live In NYC" livestream on May 22 at 9 p.m. ET on MTV Hive.
Posted 5/18/12 3:44 pm EST by Jenna Rubenstein in Celebrity, Music, Videos
If Justin Bieber's performance of "Boyfriend" live on the season finale of "The Voice" is any indication, then the Biebs' performance of "Boyfriend" on this Sunday's Billboard Music Awards will also be a full-on display of badassery. Next level, people.
Earlier today Justin uploaded a new video to his viddy account, and let us just warn you: OMFG, Justin Bieber's moves are completely off the chain/may cause heart palpitations. (We're not even exaggerating this time.) Along with the video, JB tweeted, "rehearsal. #FOCUSED." Yah, dawg, you're looking mad focused, having somehow upped your dance game to heights we never could have imagined. While rocking a fedora (yes, we said FEDORA), Justin and his troupe of dancers rehearse some insanely suave moves -- we see shoulder popping, hip-swaying and a healthy dose of gratuitous crotch grabbing. Justin Bieber ain't a kid anymore! He can dance provocatively if he wants to!
Who knows what Sunday's Billboard Music Awards will bring, but we can absolutely guarantee that any contribution from Justin will be totally... swaggy. Go get your dance on, bro.
+ Watch Justin Bieber rehearse for the Billboard Awards after the jump.
Posted 5/18/12 2:30 pm EST by Byron Flitsch in Celebrity, Photos
Lady Gaga poses with the Taiwanese fan that waited 7 days to see her!
With all the LOLing we often do over Lady Gaga's many craaaazy outfits, we mostly just wanna hug the ish out of her (hopefully without getting meat juice all over ourselves in the process) -- especially when she takes time out of her INSANELY busy sched to pose with a devoted fan! Mother Monster is officially the most down-to-earth pop star there is... um, you know what we mean.
The "Edge Of Glory" singer shared a photo of herself hanging with the fan on Twitter along with a caption that explains the really amazing situation: "Me and the first fan to arrive at Taiwan BTW Ball. He waited 7 days switching off w friends so he could go to school." We already know that Gaga has a heart of rainbows (she did start the Born This Way Foundation), but taking a pic with the dude was the least Gaga could do. She's been experiencing tons of unsupportive mayhem while touring on the other side of the world, but the fact that this fan waited AN ENTIRE WEEK for Gaga's arrival is like, pure devotion -- we lose our patience just having to watch those annoying 30-second commercials before a clip plays on YouTube. #FirstWorldProblems
Photo credit: @ladygaga
Posted 5/18/12 1:30 pm EST by Jenna Rubenstein in Celebrity, Music, Videos
Watch out world, Miley Cyrus is on a punking spree!
Miley Cyrus seems like such a sweet girl. That is, of course, until she starts punking practically everyone she's ever met! In the latest episode of of MTV's "Punk'd," Miley gets her prank on, first by tricking her boyfriend, Liam Hemsworth, and then by totally fooling her pal, Khloé Kardashian!
Watch Miley Cyrus "punk" her boyfriend Liam Hemsworth and Khloe Kardashian after the jump.