In part two of our interview with international chart-topper Natasha Bedingfield (see part one here), we spoke to her about how her collaboration with Nicki Minaj, “Last Chance,” came about. Unbeknownst to us, it turns out that if it weren’t for her relationship with Eminem, the track might never have happened! Check out her video interview above –one in which she also charmingly chides Simon Cowell for not picking her to be a judge on X-Factor– for all this and more.
And below, we’ve got Natasha’s humdinger of a performance of her new potential summer jam, “Weightless,” live on the set of Big Morning Buzz Live!
It may seem surprising that hip-hop would dominate anything at Bonnaroo, the giant music festival (and party) that began in Tennessee a decade ago with hippie-ish jam bands and roots rock. But this is what we discovered when using Next Big Sound to gather social media stats on all 150 or so acts on the lineup. For our inaugural “Bonnaroo By the Numbers” feature, we’ve compared the top 20 acts on the lineup versus their total number of social media fans (Facebook, Twitter, LastFM, MySpace, YouTube, etc.).
While the top acts on the lineup are a solid mix of roots rock, hip-hop and indie rock, the hip-hop artists tear it up in the social space. Eminem, Lil Wayne and Wiz Khalifa would be the top three acts if Bonnaroo were to order its lineup based on which artists have the most social media fans. While Eminem tops both the bill and social media (nearly 50 million followers!), Lil Wayne is #7 on the lineup and Wiz is down at #44. Atmosphere would also be #10 on the lineup, not #39.
After the top three hip-hop acts, the next three would be a trio of indie luminaries: The Strokes, Arcade Fire and The Decemberists. It’s not too surprising that the roots rock or jam band contingents don’t register very high. To be fair, we didn’t break out the individual musicians of the reunited Buffalo Springfield — and Neil Young has more than a million Facebook followers alone. Then again, we can’t really imagine him sharing his knack for poetry on Twitter.
Moby‘s comments last week about what types of pop are and aren’t music isn’t the first time he’s taken shots at other artists. At the 2001 Grammy Awards he calledEminem ”a racist, a homophobe, and a misogynist.” But he’s not the only artist who’s feuded over art (and, implicitly, integrity). Here are the five most notable feuds of the last 20 years.
FEUD:Nirvana vs. Guns N’ Roses HOW IT STARTED: Nirvana never liked the lyrical misogyny and homophobia of Guns N’ Roses, but the feud officially got underway when Nirvana turned down an offer to open for the band on tour. KEY NIRVANA PULLQUOTE:Kurt Cobain, interviewed by Kevin Allman in the February 1992 issue of The Advocate:
I can’t even waste my time on that band, because they’re so obviously pathetic and untalented. I used to think that everything in the mainstream pop world was crap, but now that some underground bands have been signed with majors, I take Guns N’ Roses as more of an offense. I have to look into it more: They’re really talentless people, and they write crap music, and they’re the most popular rock band on the earth right now. I can’t believe it.
KEY GUNS ‘N’ ROSES PULLQUOTE:Axl Rose, on stage in Seattle: “Nirvana would rather stay home and shoot drugs with their bitch wives than tour with us.” WINNER: At the time, Nirvana by a mile, but as time has gone on and Cobain-as-icon has lost some of its political edge, it’s now closer to a draw. [click to continue…]
“Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall” has as big a hook as any Coldplay single before, but not much in the way of a chorus (much like “Clocks,” which hardly suffered for it). The Big Country-esque guitar solo and pinch of sidechain compression make it sound simultaneously retro and current, and its lyrical stabs at a communal experience of a solitary expression cast a wide net.
Earlier this week, we gave you an alphabetical list of 35 of our Top 40 Music Videos of the year and asked you to guess what artists where going to be included in our top five music videos of 2010. Well, we’ve got good news and we’ve got bad news. If you’re one of the Little Monsters or a card carrying member of Glam Nation, you’ll be happy to see that Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” and Adam Lambert’s “Whataya Want From Me” each made the Top Five. However, if you count yourself as a die-hard 30 Seconds To Mars fan, um, well, there’s always next year!
Without any further ado, here is our complete list of VH1′s Top 40 Music Videos of 2010!
No need to sign him up for Celebrity Rehab 3! He’s handling those drug problems on his own. After a four-year hiatus it was questionable if the best-selling hip hop artist of all time could still kick it, but with loads of promotional buzz leading up to the new Relapse, Eminem has proven himself once again. Leading us down a path of addiction and abuse flashbacks, the Marshall Mathers we’ve known for over a decade is as provocative as ever on the new disc.
The wacky video for debut single “We Made You” mocks celebrity and its power. Did you ever think you’d see Em as Bret? Combine that with his extremely dark clip for “3AM,” and its obvious Slim Shady hasn’t lost his flair for controversy! It pays off. He recently set the charts on with the highest debut record sales of the year so far.
Also returning from some time off is Rob Thomas, whose new solo album, Cradlesong, hits stores on June 30th! Even after taking a break, both of these guys are working to confirm they still got it, moving into the spotlight without breaking a sweat.
Our “Leading Men” playlist features Rob’s “Her Diamonds” (with a cameo from Alicia Silverstone!) alongside Em’s more scandalous vids. Check it out right now. David Cook, Kanye West and other dashing gents will also be found there! – Lacey Seidman
Eminem’s just-released video for “We Made You” points its pop-culture skewer at Rock of Love, among its targets. Spoiler: the clip suggests that underneath the finest extensions Europe has to offer, Bret is bald. How searing!
Slim Shady is now Sick Shady – the rapper landed himself in the hospital over Christmas with a serious case of pneumonia and a heart condition. Sources on the inside also report that Em’s weight has ballooned to over 200 pounds. His rep recently gave the official word: “Over the holidays, Marshall Mathers, aka Eminem, was under doctor’s care at a Detroit-area hospital for complications due to pneumonia. He has since been released and is doing well recovering at home.”
We’re glad to hear he’s healing and kinda hope maybe he’s got enough material to inspire an album. Eminem’s been in hiding for the past year or so, and told Hot 97 in September that his projects were “in limbo.” Let’s hope for a speedy recovery of both his health and his career. [MTV News.]
Colbert Can’t Run for Prez
The South Carolina democrats won’t let the state’s “favorite son” on the presidential ballot. We smell a write in! [DListed]
Eminem Busy with New Babe
So this is what the rapper’s been up to for the past few year’s – getting laid. [NYP]
Britney’s Ex-Manager Sues the Star
Who hasn’t Britney screwed over in the past couple of years? At least she already knows her way around the courthouse. [Us]
Jake and Reese Heat up Halloween
The actor took Reese’s two kids trick-or-treating dressed as a gorilla. It really is love, after all! [Us]
Arrest Expected at Oprah’s School
Let this be a lesson for her school’s students – and the world. Nobody messes with Oprah, b*tches. Nobody! [People]
Slim Shady is now Sick Shady – the rapper landed himself in the hospital over Christmas with a serious case of pneumonia and a heart condition. Sources on the inside also report that Em’s weight has ballooned to over 200 pounds. His rep recently gave the official word: “Over the holidays, Marshall Mathers, aka Eminem, was under doctor’s care at a Detroit-area hospital for complications due to pneumonia. He has since been released and is doing well recovering at home.”
Colbert Can’t Run for Prez
