MTV Buzzworthy Blog › Hall & Oates

Thank GOODNESS for Will and Jada Smith. And not just because he was legendary in Six Degrees of Separation and her biceps are a constant reminder of what ours never will be. It's because they BEGAT Willow Smith who begat whipping your hair, which begat the now-legendary parrot dancing to "Whip My Hair" video, which WON the O Music Award for Best Animal Performance. I'm partial to cats and sax-playing walruses, so I'm a little bitter, but I tip my hat to that parrot who nabbed the majority of OMA votes. He whipped that ish like a pro. I guess the internet likes parrots more than cats.

And there's MORE O Music Award news! While the internet is great for watching funny animal videos and finding photos of naked people, it's also an invaluable tool for finding new music. Which is why the O Music Awards Best Music Discovery Service category featured some of our most beloved online music apps and services. But only one music discovery service could rise to the top. And that is... Pandora, which O Music Award voters voted Best Music Discover Service. Many have tried to replicate the musical treasure trove that is Pandora, but it's kinda like Mark Zuckerberg famously said: "If you had invented Pandora, you would've invented Pandora." Well, he didn't say that. (Please don't sue me!) But the point is, there's no better music discovery service or application out there.

And rounding out the trifecta of O Music Awards is the Best Performance Series, which went to "Live From Daryl's House," proving that after the cop 'staches, power mullets and sweet synthy harmonies, the future of Hall & Oates lies in Daryl Hall's living room, and the future is now.

Watch this parrot accept the award for Best Animal Performance, watch Matt Pinfield bestow the Best Music Discovery Service Award upon Pandora founder Tim Westergren, and watch MTV TJ Gabi Gregg announce Live From Daryl's House the Best Performance Series O Music Award winner. Watch the O Music Awards live at OMusicAwards.com on Thursday, April 28, at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT, and stay tuned for live updates and behind-the-scenes access on Buzzworthy, on Twitter at @MTVBuzzworthy and at Omusicawards.tumblr.com.

Tags Hall & Oates, O Music Awards, OMAs, Willow Smith

Aw, 'tis the luck of the Irish today, or whatever! When Irish eyes are smiling and Erin Go Bragh, all you leprechauns...? You get where we're going with this: Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Now we don't condone underage drinking, by any means, but we'd be naive if we didn't point out that today is the day that everyone makes an excuse to pretend they're an alcoholic. And, oh brother, the kissing! So much kissing goes on today!

"Kiss Me, I'm Irish" is apparently a rule that applies only on March 17. You must kiss every Irish person you meet today, so be on the lookout for red hair and redder cheeks.

And you can count on us to help: Turn up one or all of these 10 best kissing songs, grab the leprechaun you love and pucker up, baby. It's makeout time!

10.) "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None The Richer

The sweetest, sappiest song that went from being cute and romantic to the background of every movie trailer after 1997.

9.) "Butterfly Kisses" by Bob Carlisle

The song is an ode to a daughter giving her daddy "butterfly kisses" (the soft touch of eyelashes fluttering on a cheek). So to avoid all creepiness, save this one for immediate family only.

8.) "I Kissed A Girl" by Katy Perry

She did, she liked it, and so did we. Don't forget your cherry-flavored chapstick! (Watch the video below!)

7.) "This Kiss" by Faith Hill

The country-pop crossover provided lovebirds with even more reason to snuggle up and cherish their kissytimes with this lovely ditty.

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Tags Erykah Badu, Faith Hill, Hall & Oates, Jill Sobule, Katy Perry, Prince, Seal, U2

Say hello once again to Chromeo; the dazzling, sleek electro-pop duo of Dave1 and P-Thugg. In this episode of "The 5," Chromeo, (who've released two full-lengths and a mix compilation for the DJ Kicks series) talk about some stuff... What stuff? That's the perfect question. It would appear that their love of quasi-ironic, ZZ-Top/"Legs"-referencing cover art is only matched by their dislike of domestic animals.

Chromeo also discusses the equal importance of Hall & Oates and Steely Dan, and the sartorial sensibilities of some of their favorite rappers.

Check out the brand-new MTV interview below, watch Chromeo's "Fancy Footwork" video, and listen to their latest single, "Night By Night" now.

Tags Chromeo, Hall & Oates, Steely Dan, video, ZZ-Top

Remember how famous that Grand Theft Auto: Vice City soundtrack was a few years ago? I'm not a video game guy, but I used to play that one just to drive around and listen to the radio. Flipping between stations you could catch blips of Cutting Crew, Run DMC, Rick James, Hall & Oates, Motley Crue and A Flock Of Seagulls, all while enjoying a flamingo pink Miami sunset.

Well I got no time for video games anymore -- too busy fanning Tamar and feeding her peeled grapes -- but I just found out I can have pretty much the exact same experience, without all the hand-eye coordination, if I just throw on And Then Boom by Iglu & Hartly.

In fact, not only do these smart-assed Fracht-Rockers (that's frat + yacht) out of Los Angeles capture every bit of that Vice City sweetness, but they also cram all of it into every single song. You know that brilliant Frito~Lay product called Munchies that combines Cheetos, Doritos, Pretzels and Sun Chips? Iglu & Hartly are the musical equivalent of the cheese fix waiting in every bite of that genius snack. They've got new-wave disco synths, monster ballad bridges, rap breaks, and soul jazz smoothness bubbling up in every last jam.

Of course I realize that I've made an outrageous claim and will have to back it up. So, why don't you go ahead and stream all of And Then Boom here, download "Day Glo" and "Jump Out Of Your Car" below and see for yourself?

+ DOWNLOAD: Iglu & Hartly, "DayGlo" [mp3]
+ DOWNLOAD: Igly & Hartly, "Jump Out Of Your Car [mp3]

Tags A Flock Of Seagulls, Cutting Crew, Hall & Oates, Iglu & Hartly, Rick James, Run-DMC, The Buzz On

With Chester French, our MTV Featured Artist spots have taken a turn for the deeply weird. Aside from gracing us with the usual exclusive performance video -- the Hall & Oates-y Harvard hitmakers do "C'mon," "She Loves Everybody" and "The Jimmy Choos" live from a bumpin' garden party -- Chester French lend their preppy perfection to a series of creepy public service announcements.

As part of MTV's GYT ("Get Yourself Tested") campaign, D.A. Wallach and Max Drummey split up to lend a hand to women in need. In Wallach's PSA, he coaches a hirsute honey through the challenges of being... a little different. Drummey, meanwhile, shows an older woman how to let go of her pain by simply opening her mouth. I'd tell you more, but I don't wanna spoil the bizarre surprises waiting for you in these twisted clips.

What I will spoil for you, happily, is that Chester French's live performances give new life to their already pulsating singles. It's one thing to hear the smooth jams bump from a set of speakers, and another thing entirely to see the boys kicking them out live to the delight of undulating backyard ladies. So do go to the garden party, darlings.

Watch Chester French's MTV Featured Artist videos. But do stick around for the wacked GYT interludes. They'll mess you up. Here. I'll post one below...

Tags Chester French, GYT, Hall & Oates

When smooth-funk dispensers Tigercity write their name as a single word, they give it the connotation of a noun that means tiger-ness. Tiger-icity... As in, it was too dark to see the animal, but you could tell what it was by the tigercity of its movements. Inconsequential as that may seem, it's a fitting little quirk when you're talking about a band whose easy-riding jams feel like variations on Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger."

Tigercity is Bill Gillim (vocals) and Joel Ford (bass) -- Hampshire College alums who met playing pick-up basketball (badly) -- and their new found Brooklyn buddies Andrew Brady (guitar) and Aynsley Powell (drums). After a couple years of actively not becoming another NYC-based Velvet Underground / Television derivative, Tigercity have pushed through the noise with their compressed soul grooves.

In doing so, the self-declared unironic hipsters have played a major role in keeping the underbite alive in the Brooklyn music scene, playing unapologetically flamboyant Hall & Oates updates with their teeth clamped firmly on their bottom lips. Their van-bumpin', yacht-humpin ballads, like "Mallory" and "Fake Gold," will have you scrambling for your silk scarves, sequined pants and Sperry Top-Siders. Smooth, nasty and righteous, all at once. That's Tigercity. Listen/ love here.

Tags Hall & Oates, Survivor, Television, Tigercity, Velvet Underground

Yo, 1983! Welcome back! Again! We've been busting out our moustache combs and scratching at our leg warmers all day over here, listening to this airy New Order-meets-Hall & Oates jam, "Big Bills." The instant new-wave-yacht-rock classic is the latest from underground Chicago DJ duo Flosstradamus, with enchanting girly vocals courtesy of fellow '80s revivalist, Caroline Polachek of Chairlift (who you may remember from the dreamiest iPod commercial ever). And if Flosstradamus sounds familiar, it's probably because half of the DJ team, Josh 'J2K' Young, is Kid Sister's big brother!

Finally, maybe it's just the video's Lost In Translation-esque muted colors, breathy vocals and sleepy blur, but is anybody else picking up on a major Sofia Coppola vibe here? Not only is this new Flosstradamus clip overloaded with that moody Virgin Suicides ennui, but Caroline Polachek (good thing someone found a use for her!) is also a dead-ringer for the it-girl director. Doncha think?! Yeah you do.

Tags Chairlift, Flosstradamus, Hall & Oates, Kid Sister, New-Order

Alright, we admit it. We're still slightly obsessed with Gym Class Heroes and their heavily tattooed frontman, Travis McCoy. And not just because he's dating this summer's bicurious It-Girl, Katy Perry. Or because he's only been to rehab once. Or even because he does crazy, spontaneous, unpredictable things (like hit unruly fans with microphones! And write angry, all-caps missives on his Tumblr!) yet refuses to confirm/deny reports that he and Tyga are tangentially related.

No, our one-sided infatuation with Travis and GCH stems all the way back to last December, when we first discovered they shared our massive (equally unrequited) fascination with Hall & Oates. Since then, we've been counting down the days until September 9th, when their new album, The Quilt, would simultaneously hit stores and gain its rightful place in our Shrine To All Things Travis.

Except, turns out today's our lucky day, because the album is ALREADY AVAILABLE ONLINE. Meaning now you won't have to wait until post-VMAs to hear all those crazy compilation tracks! So head over to "The Leak" to test-drive the guys' latest set and get your Hall & Oates fix by listening to Track 10 -- "Live Forever (Fly With Me)" on permanent repeat.

Then close your eyes and try not to think mean thoughts about Katy Perry. (We're trying. It's not working, but we're trying.)

Tags Celebrity, Gym Class Heroes, Hall & Oates, Katy Perry, Music, Travis McCoy

Remember when we used to basically stalk Gym Class Heroes (who are joining Paramore and Cobra Starship on the Warped Tour, which kicks off in June) in a non-threatening blogger way? Well we did, and it's been awhile, so we figured it was time to get back at it, because as every good stalker knows, you should never give up the fight, right?

Speaking of the good fight, with Travis McCoy out of rehab, Gym Class Heroes are following up As Cool As School Children (we love that album, but we're sorta sick of looking at the cover art at this point) with their next studio album, which is set for a summer 2008 release. Entitled The Quilt: Starring Gym Class Heroes, the cinematic new album will indeed feature the legendary John Oates, in addition to Busta Rhymes, Ne-Yo and Lil Wayne (speaking of people who might definitely qualify for detox.)

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Tags Busta-Rhymes, Celebrity, Gym Class Heroes, Hall & Oates, Lil Wayne, Music, News, Pete Wentz, Travis McCoy, Tyga

What could be more "sexy sexy" than '70s/'80s soft-synth rockers Hall & Oates? Um, we can think of about a thousand things, but that didn't stop Gym Class Heroes' Travis McCoy and Matt McGinley from hitting up the Beacon Theatre in New York's Upper West Side last night to catch Daryl and John in action.

We spotted them sitting down the row from us (eeeek… we're busted too) taking in H&O's combo Christmas-Greatest Hits show. And though from where we were sitting, Hall & Oates sorta resembled the Indigo Girls, and despite the fact that the sax not only drowned out the vocals (AND the "Soul Violins") but was also cranked up to eardrum-obliterating levels, and that a long-, wavy-haired Hall sorta looked like Don Imus, and that their tedious rendition of "The Christmas Song" sounded like elevator muzak, it was worth it all to watch all the old folks (soooo many Mom Jeans) dance to "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" once the band finally got into the good ish.

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Tags Celebrity, Gym Class Heroes, Hall & Oates, Music, News, video, Videos