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The year 2011 is quickly, sadly, drawing to a close. Except it's not sad! We're moving ahead with the speed of an iPhone 4S! And before you let separation anxiety and fear of change get the best of you -- no one looks adorable pouting in a party hat -- let's take a moment to reflect on the year in pop music. Being MTV Buzzworthy, the home of all things pop, we took an exhausting, in-depth look the biggest trends in pop music in 2011. It wasn't an easy job, but... it's actually our job! So, here are the songs, sounds and stars who were all over pop music in 2011.

EPIC COVERS
+ Everyone covered and/or remixed "Marvin's Room": Drake did it first, but Chris Brown remixed it, Teyana Taylor covered it, and R&B singer Sammie covered it. Paula DeAnda put out "I Can Do Better," and even CODY SIMPSON put his spin on "Marvin's Room" with "Evenings In London." But no one did it better than JoJo. Even Drake agreed.

+ Everyone covered Lil Wayne's “How to Love”: Justin Bieber made an acoustic remix of "How To Love", Demi Lovato covered "How To Love" on VH1's Top 20 Live, pop solo singer Tinashe and R&B singer Brandon Hines (who is INCREDIBLE, btw) all covered Weezy's heartbreaker.

+ Taylor Swift covered EVERYONE: Over the course of her seemingly endless "Speak Now" tour, Taylor covered Britney, T.I.'s "Live Your Life," Eminem, Nelly, Usher, Bieber, Shawn Colvin, Jimmy Eat World, Switchfoot, Nicki Minaj, Flo Rida, Uncle Kracker (!!!) and even Bryan Adams, often bringing out artists as surprise guests.

EPIC VIDEOS
+ Pop stars put out videos like MACHINES: Beyonce put out SIX official videos this year! Eight if you count her Live At Roseland DVD performance videos. Rihanna and Pitbull put out five videos, six if you count "Fly" with Nicki Minaj. Britney put out four videos, Lady Gaga put out FOUR videos (probably five, since "Marry The Night" is due out any minute, and six if you count her "The Lady Is A Tramp" duet with Tony Bennett, Bruno Mars released four videos, and Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj put out three videos each.

+ Everyone made SUPER dramatic, cinematic videos: Katy Perry's "The One That Got Away" video featured a heartbreaking ending we didn't see coming, Dr. Dre's "I Need A Doctor" video featured a car crash, death and a return to life, Britney's "Criminal" video was shot like a modern-day Bonnie & Clyde, and Rihanna's "We Found Love" terrified us in a very Darren Aronofsky kind of way.

EPIC TOURS
+ 30 Seconds To Mars played everywhere: Seriously, these guys played 135 shows in 2011 alone. By the time December 7 rolls around, they'll set a world record for most shows played within a single album cycle. Top that.

+ Britney Spears lap-danced everyone: Every seat in the house on Britney's "Femme Fatale" tour is a good seat, but one seat in particular was the best seat in the house. The chair (actually, it's a bed?) Britney put centerstage, upon which very special guests were treated to a lap dance. Very lucky fans got a lap dance from Britney, and so did some celebrity VIPs: Britney gave Joe Jonas a lap dance, Jason Trawick got a special ride, and DJ Pauly D enjoyed a lap dance from Britney too.

EVERYTHING GOT EMO AND/OR OKAY
+ Hip-hop got introspective: For every swag-brag record there were real-talk, real-problems introspective tracks, like Jay-Z and Kanye West's “Welcome To The Jungle” (and most of Watch The Throne, for that matter), Eminem/ Bad Meets Evil's "Lighters," and Lil Wayne's "How To Love," plus sad songs by Drake (most tracks, but especially "Doing It Wrong"), Kid Cudi's 2 Be Continuum's navel-gazey "No One Believes Me," and Lupe Fiasco's conscious "Words I Never Said."

+ Pop music got introspective: I'm okay, you're okay, we're all okay, okay? was a recurrent theme in pop music, from Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" to Demi Lovato's epic "Skyscraper" to  Pink's "F****** Perfect" reminded us that we all have insecurities, and that we're all perfect the way we are.

Check out more of the biggest pop music trends of 2011 after the jump!

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Tags 30 Seconds To Mars, Adam Levine, Adele, ASAP Rocky, Best Of 2011, Beyonce, Big K.R.I.T., Blink-182, Brandon Hines, Britney Spears, Bruno Mars, Chris Brown, Chris Webby, Cody Simpson, Coldplay, Curren$y, Danny Brown, Demi Lovato, Drake, Eminem, Enrique Iglesias, Evanescence, Foo Fighters, Foster The People, Gym Class Heroes, Hot Chelle Rae, Incubus, J. Cole, JoJo, justin bieber, Katy Perry, Kreayshawn, Lady Gaga, Lana Del Ray, Lil Wayne, Lil' B, LMFAO, lou reed, Lupe Fiasco, M83, Mac Miller, Machine Gun Kelly, Macklemore, Marc Anthony, Metallica, Mike Posner, Missy Elliott, Nicki Minaj, Odd Future, Pitbull, Rebecca Black, Rick Ross, Rihanna, Scrillex, Selena Gomez, Snoop Dogg, Teyana Taylor, Theophilus London, Tony Bennett, Trey Songz, Tyler The Creator, Usher, White Gun Kelly, Will.i.Am, Wiz Khalifa

After taking over a Los Angeles storefront gallery space to create Incubus HQ, MTV Posted artist Incubus gave MTV.com a bunch of live performances from their back catalog and latest album, If Not Now, When?. We've already shown you "Promises, Promises" and "Wish You Were Here," and now we've got three new songs from the California pop group, which has turned from funk metal to adult contemporary.

If Not Now, When? is the sound of a band growing up, showcasing the group's mellower side far removed from their funk/hardcore roots. We've got "Friends and Lovers" and the title track for you, two power ballads that best exemplify the band's current sound, followed by the mid-tempo rocker "Adolescents."

If Not Now, When? is the first album released since the band took an extended hiatus after 2006's Light Grenades. Check out a lot more Incubus all this month at Posted.MTV.com.

Related Content POSTED: Watch Incubus Perform Two Songs at Incubus HQ, Follow Buzzworthy on Twitter

Tags Incubus, Posted, video

You already know about Incubus HQ, the Los Angeles storefront gallery-turned-studio that MTV Posted artist Incubus took over for performances and fan meet-and-greets, right? Hopefully you caught the live performances on MTV.com (with an assist from Livestream.com) last week. If not, we got you. Check out the videos below for two songs recorded exclusively at the studio.

First up is the live studio version of "Promises Promises," the second single off their recently released seventh album If Not Now, When?. We also have a live clip of "Wish You Were Here," the lead single off 2001's Morning View.

If Not Now, When? is the first album released since the band took an extended hiatus after 2006's Light Grenades. You can get your fill of Incubus all this month at Posted.MTV.com.

+ Watch live studio versions of Incubus' "Promises Promises" and "Wish You Were Here" below.

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To celebrate the July 12 release of their seventh studio album, If Not Now, When?, featuring the singles "Adolescents" and "Promises, Promises," Incubus is getting about as up-close-and-personal as a band can get; they're taking over a storefront gallery space in Los Angeles to create Incubus HQ, a weeklong interactive fan/band experience with performances, instructional clinics, webcasts and more. And today we're streaming Incubus HQ live on MTV.com, in partnership with Livestream.com.

See everything that happens in L.A. at Incubus HQ as it happens live: sit-down interviews with the band, rare Incubus footage and Incubus' exclusive live performance of If Not Now, When? at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, so don't go anywhere.

Watch Incubus live at Incubus HQ in L.A. now, and chat with other Incubus fans. And get more Incubus all of this month at Posted.MTV.com.

Tags Incubus, Posted, video

Incubus certainly never went away -- the multiplatinum Southern California band that ruled the end of the '90s with rhythm-and-scratch-driven modern-rock anthems like "Pardon Me" and "Drive" has sold more than 13 million albums in their five-album-, two-decade-long career. But the band did hit the pause button, so to speak, taking a detour to experience life off the road and out of the recording studio, making die-hard fans impatiently wait five years after the 2006 release of their fifth album, Light Grenades, for the follow-up. But the wait is finally over (almost), as Incubus' sixth album, aptly titled If Not Now, When? will be released July 12, featuring the singles "Adolescents" and "Promises, Promises."

To celebrate the release of their new album, Incubus is enjoying a monthlong run as MTV's Posted artist, which means they'll be sharing videos, photos and real-time updates with fans all throughout July at Posted.MTV.com. And to honor their devoted fans, they've taken over a storefront gallery space in Los Angeles and created Incubus HQ, a weeklong interactive fan/band experience with performances, instructional clinics, webcasts and more. And on Wednesday, July 6, MTV, Incubus and Livestream.com will be hosting a special livestream from Incubus HQ, with performances, special guest appearances and a few surprises.

Watch Brandon Boyd share the news in the video below, and stay tuned for more detail. And watch Incubus' new "Promises, Promises" video, and get more Incubus photos, videos and updates at Posted.mtv.com.

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The members of Incubus have no interest in scamming their fans. They love you! They're not the kind of band that re-packages the same old jams and rakes it in with nothing but new cover art. So, when the time came to put together a greatest hits retrospective, they had no interest in going the traditional route.

Instead they "took the opportunity to make it as creative as possible," says Brandon Boyd, in the video below. Incubus' upcoming Monuments & Melodies does come with a standard greatest hits collection. But it also includes a second disc of their favorite rarities, and has an exhaustive online component, which offers access to a monstrous archive of live MP3s.

To make an even bigger deal of this upcoming Incubus inundation, the band hooked up with MTV2 to distribute a series of unseen live performances of some of their biggest hits. Watch "Pardon Me," "Megalomaniac," "Love Hurts" and "Drive," all live, all right here.

Tags Incubus, video

Are you getting tired of all the music headlines going to new Brooklyn bands? I bet you the players in Los Angeles' thriving scene are way over it. Why's everybody always talking about Brooklyn when the West Coast boasts a dream team of new talent, turning out a steady stream of polished, moody rock?

Although the rap game gets L.A. plenty of love, lackadaisical, harmony-laden smog-pop hasn't had a true moment since The Beach Boys and The Mamas And Papas ruled the late '60s. But that has been changing, slowly but surely, thanks to the radio dominance of a new class of sun-bleached bands.

Get acquainted with the new L.A. sound in the video playlist below, featuring laid back, perma-tan jams from Jenny Lewis, Earlimart, Silversun Pickups, Pete Yorn, Beck, The Watson Twins, Cold War Kids, The Mars Volta, Incubus, Brett Dennen and many more. It's mellow. Whatever.

Tags Beck, Brett Dennen, Cold War Kids, Earlimart, Incubus, Jenny Lewis, Pete Yorn, Silversun Pickups, The Beach Boys, The Mamas And Papas, The Mars Volta, The Watson Twins

Incubus is growing up! Founding members (and high school classmates) Brandon Boyd, Mike Einziger and Jose Antonio Pasillas II were all only 15 when they started the band.

In June of last year -- six albums, four #1 singles, a Grammy nod, a gold record and 18 years into their careers -- the boys announced that they needed a break. And not just because they were tired. Brandon was enrolling in art school, Mike was off to Harvard music school, and Jose was having a baby.

But they couldn't stay quiet for long. Whether or not the hiatus is officially over, I can't say. But, to make sure that we have plenty to obsess over while they figure it out, the band is about to embark upon a North American tour, and they're dropping a double disc, Monuments And Melodies, on June 16.

Not only does M&M contain their 13 biggest hits, but it also packs in 11 rarities, three brand-new songs, and a code that gives you access to a vault of 500 more Incubus rarities. They're also compiling a fan-generated timeline of Incubus' defining-moments.

Today, to ease you into the onslaught of unheard Incubus material, the band gives you "Black Heart Inertia." Their first single since 2006's Light Grenades, "Inertia" introduces a somewhat mellower sound with a comical video in which Boyd plays multiple characters and does a ton of making out. Not the worst thing to miss class for, huh?

Tags Incubus

I don't wanna shatter any illusions here, but if you're looking to a professional blogger for advice on anything romantic, you have some serious thinking to do. That's why I'm handing this Valentine's Day post off to a pro. John Vesely, aka Secondhand Serenade has more magnetism in one frosted tip than the whole rest of the Internet combined. Can the Internet play piano and sing with its eyes closed? No. It doesn't even have feelings (or eyes). All it can do is make a heart out of a bracket and a three. Weak. John Vesely was born to tell you he loves you. Stick with him. Here's a special Valentine's Day message and a crazy romantic love-playlist from the man himself:

I've always been a lover, not a fighter which is why I love this time of year. And one of my true loves is obviously music. So to come up with a list of long songs/videos is no problem for a guy like me. It's the time of year where you hear songs you may have heard 100 times before, but you suddenly realize they have a special meaning or remind you of someone close to your heart. So hopefully you can take a look at the videos I decided to go with, and let it remind you of whoever may be that certain someone for you.

+ Jason Mraz, "I'm Yours" - A simple song and a simple video. Both are undeniable.
+ The Fray, "You Found Me" - The video showcases both a great band and a beautiful city.
+ Thriving Ivory, "Angels on the Moon" - These guys are good friends of mine. They went all out on this video.
+ Plain White T’s, "Hey There Deliah" - One of the biggest songs and best videos of a few years back.
+ Katy Perry, "Thinking of You" - I love her retro style, which is overly evident in this video.
+ Kanye West, "Love Lockdown" - Kanye is always evolving and this is a colorful, left-of-center display of his art.
+ Justin Nozuka, "After Tonight" - He's a great new young talent, which is clear as day in this, his first video.
+ R. Kelly, "Real Talk" - Because the video is just as real as the song.
+ We The Kings, "Secret Valentine" - Travis's hair turns me on.
+ Augustana, "Sweet and Low" - I love how the song was written it was written very personally.

Wow ... Thanks, John!!

Want more Valentine's Day playlists? OK. I got those, too. Do you love me yet? Please...?

+ V-Day Playlist: Let Me Count The Ways (Dashboard, Bright Eyes, Beyonce, etc)
+ V-Day Playlist: Love SUCKS (Alanis, Ashanti, Incubus, etc)
+ V-Day Playlist: Celebrity Wedding Songs (Lonestar, Marvin Gaye, Edwin McCain, etc)

<3<3<3

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Tags Alanis Morissette, Ashanti, Augustana, Beyonce, Bright Eyes, Dashboard Confessional, Edwin McCain, Incubus, Jason Mraz, Justin Nozuka, Katy Perry, Lonestar, Marvin Gaye, Plain White T's, R.-Kelly, Secondhand Serenade, The Fray, Thriving Ivory, We the Kings