LADY GAGA MAKES A SPLASH AT CES
Lady Gaga made a splash at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas yesterday, when she appeared to discuss her partnership with Polaroid as the new Creative Director for a specialty line of products. Gaga’s hair stole the show, with her blonde locks styled to resemble a wide-brim straw hat, similar to the oversize hats women wear to the Kentucky Derby. The singer spoke to the crowd at the CES Polaroid event about why she got involved with the company saying, “Well, I’m definitely a Polaroid camera girl. I really believe in the lifestyle and injecting the things that I love into [this]. … For me, what I’m really excited about is bringing back the artistry and the nature of Polaroid.” Lady Gaga was named the creative director and inventor of specialty projects at Polaroid. Her team, known as the Haus of Gaga, has been developing prototypes in the vein of fashion/technology/photography innovation, blending the iconic history of Polaroid and instant film with the digital era.
MARIAH EXPLAINS STRANGE SPEECH AT PSIFF
Mariah Carey jokingly blames her now-infamous acceptance speech at the Palm Springs International Film Festival awards on director Lee Daniels. Carey discussed her much talked-about speech backstage at the People’s Choice Awards Wednesday night after accepting the award for Favorite R&B Artist. She said, “We’d been sitting there, celebrating this whole time and having little splashes, and I hadn’t eaten.” Carey gave a long, rambling acceptance speech after being named Breakthrough Actress for her performance in Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire on Tuesday. The video of her speech is one of the most popular clips currently circling the Internet.
TAYLOR SWIFT SCORES BIGGEST ALBUM OF 2009
Taylor Swift ended 2009 with the year’s best-selling album. Her mutli-GRAMMY-nominated album Fearless sold over 3.2-million copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan figures. The album was released in late 2008 and held off a strong surge from Susan Boyle’s debut album, I Dreamed a Dream, which sold 3.1-million copies in only six weeks. Michael Jackson’s Number Ones was number three, selling over 2.3-million copies. The Fame by Lady Gaga was number four with 2.2-million copies and Andrea Bocelli’s My Christmas also sold about 2.2-million copies to come in at number five. Jackson was the year’s top-selling artist, selling 8.2-million records. Taylor Swift was the next best selling artist, shifting over 4.6-million albums in 2009.
KE$HA AND LADY GAGA TOP ITUNES DOWNLOADS
Ke$ha’s “Tik Tok” is the number one downloaded track on iTunes for the second straight week. The 22-year-old singer bests Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance,” Owl City’s “Fireflies,” “Replay” from Iyaz and “Empire State of Mind” from Jay-Z and Alicia Keys. Lady Gaga’s The Fame Monster is the top album on the site, beating out Owl City’s Ocean Eyes, the Alvin and the Chipmunks soundtrack, Taylor Swift’s Fearless and John Mayer’s Battle Studies.
JUSTIN BIEBER TO PLAY NY MIDDLE SCHOOL
Thanks to a successful canned food drive, students at a New York middle school have won a concert by Justin Bieber. According to the Associated Press, the 15-year-old Canadian singer will perform at the Long Beach Middle School in Lido Beach, New York sometime in February. The school will be locked down for the student-only concert. Back in November, police shut down an event featuring Bieber signing copies of his debut album, My World, at a Long Island mall. A crowd of over three-thousand young girls and adults began pushing and shoving, sending five people to hospitals with minor injuries. The Long Beach Middle School bested 149 other New York metropolitan area schools in a November food drive by collecting more than 27-thousand pounds of food.
KINGS OF LEON WON’T COLLABORATE WITH LEONA LEWIS
Kings of Leon will not be collaborating with Leona Lewis. On Twitter, drummer Nathan Followill squashed rumors that the group would be recording with the singer, saying the claims were not true and “no offense to her.” Kings are taking some time off the road after touring their Only By The Night album extensively last year.
MAN SEEKS MONEY FROM JACKSON ESTATE
According to the Associated Press, a man is seeking 3.3-million dollars for the city of Los Angeles from Michael Jackson’s estate to cover the cost of the King of Pop’s public memorial. Jose F. Vallejos filed a creditor’s claim for the money on Wednesday, stating he is entitled to seek reimbursement as a taxpayer. The estate declined to comment on the filing. Los Angeles paid millions of dollars for police overtime and sanitation costs for the July memorial at Staples Center, which is owned by AEG Live. City leaders have wrangled for months over how to try to recoup some of the money from AEG Live, but no resolution has been reached.
KELLY CLARKSON IS ON TWITTER!
Kelly Clarkson has finally caved and the original American Idol is now officially on Twitter! In her first post, the “Since U Been Gone” singer said that she “promised a few people” she would try out the social networking site, but made no promises that she would “say anything worth reading.” See for yourself if you like what Kelly has to say by following her at Twitter.com/Kelly_Clarkson.
MILEY EXPLAINS HER TATTOO’S
Miley Cyrus got a tattoo late last year, and in an interview with Harper’s Bazaar, the pop star explains what exactly it means to her. Her tat, which reads “Just Breathe,” is a tribute to a friend who passed away and reminds her to “not take things for granted.” Read more at HarpersBazaar.com.
LADY GAGA TALKS ABOUT HER FIFTH NUMBER ONE
Lady Gaga was just awarded her fifth number one single on the Billboard Pop chart with her song “Bad Romance,” and she talked to Billboard.com about being at the top yet again. Gaga said that the tune was “nothing but a dream, a recurring melody, a lyric hidden on a napkin in my tour bus” and then proceeded to thank her fans for all her success. Read what else the pop star had to say about the track at Billboard.com.
SEE HOW KATY AND RUSSELL GOT ENGAGED!
Wondering how the engagement between Katy Perry and Russell Brand came to be? Well People.com has put up some pictures that document the couple’s whirlwind three-month courtship. Check them out now at People.com.
JERMAINE DUPRI UPSET WITH USHER’S ALBUM LEAK
As new records continue to leak from Usher’s Raymond Vs Raymond album, producer Jermaine Dupri made it clear he’s not happy about it. The hitmaker produced the newly surfaced “Fooling Around” track and he “doesn’t condone leaking records,” especially unfinished tracks. So far, two new songs surfaced on Thursday, “Oh My Gosh” produced by will.iam and the Jim Jonsin-produced “There Goes My Baby.” Usher’s new effort drops on March 1st.
DRAKE TEAMS WITH KANYE ON THANK ME LATER
According to MTV News, Drake is hard at work on his debut album, Thank Me Later. The Toronto emcee told MTV that Kanye West will produce some of the material for the project, adding that together they’ve created “great songs.” Drizzy explained ‘Ye “brought extra brushes to the painting session. He just brought some more colors so we can complete this masterpiece.” The album is scheduled for a March release.
JAY-Z, MAXWELL LEAD NAACP MUSIC NODS
According to Billboard.com, Jay-Z and Maxwell are tied with five nominations each for the 41st Annual NAACP Image Awards. The nods include Outstanding Male Artist and Outstanding Album. Alicia Keys earned three nominations while Rihanna, Whitney Houston and Mary J. Blige received two each. To see who takes home what, tune in on Friday, February 26th at 8 PM Eastern on FOX.
J -BOOG EXPLAINS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ARREST
BallerStatus.com reports J-Boog, formerly of B2K, has issued a statement regarding his alleged domestic violence arrest earlier this week. The singer explained that he did not assault the mother of his children; he was actually booked on “outstanding traffic violations.” He has nothing but “love and respect all of the women in my life and would never harm any of them.” No charges were filed against J-Boog and he was released Tuesday evening.
NEW MUSIC FROM THE BARENAKED LADIES IS ON THE WAY
The Barenaked Ladies are coming out with some new music. According to a press release, the band will be releasing their 11th studio album on March 30th, and it’s set to be titled All In Good Time. The first single is going to be the song “You Run Away” and it’s slated to hit radio sometime this month. Learn more at BarenakedLadies.com.
MICHAEL FRANTI’S MUSIC USED IN A MOVIE
Michael Franti’s hit song “Say Hey (I Love You)” is featured in the trailer for the upcoming movie The Back-Up Plan starring Jennifer Lopez. The film hits theaters on April 16th, but you can see the trailer now at MichaelFranti.com.
JOHN MAYER IS HEADING BACK TO VEGAS
Were you not able to make it to Las Vegas on New Years Eve to see John Mayer perform? Well don’t sweat it too much because the singer-songwriter is coming back to Sin City as part of his Battle Studies tour. The show will take place on March 27th at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Learn how to get tickets at JohnMayer.com.
DAUGHTRY’S SONG GOES PLATINUM
Daughtry’s hit single “No Surprise” off of their most recent album Leave This Town, has been certified Platinum. According to Nielsen SoundScan, the tune was downloaded for the one-millionth time earlier this week. Learn more at DaughtryOfficial.com.
LIL WAYNE NOT DELAYED, UNVEILS “FIRE” VIDEO
We’ve just learned that Lil Wayne’s oft-delayed Rebirth album will not be released in June. According to Universal Motown, the project will still launch a week before Weezy begins his pending jail sentence. Fans can expect Rebirth to drop on February 2nd. Also, check out the Chris Robinson-directed video for Wayne’s new single, “On Fire,” at Rap-Up.com now.
KEYSHIA COLE READIES NEW ALBUM, MOVIE ROLE
A rep has confirmed to UsMagazine.com that in 2010, Keyshia Cole will be doing more than just coordinating her wedding plans and choosing baby names. Fans can expect the 28-year-old to release the follow-up to 2008’s A Different Me later this year. In addition, Cole is scheduled to make her official acting debut in Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married Too?, in theaters April 2nd.
UPDATE: LIL WAYNE NOT JESUS CHRIST
New details surrounding T-Pain’s Cartoon Network special, Return Of Freakniq, have emerged and we’ve learned that Lil Wayne will not be playing Jesus Christ. Executives for the show have clarified that character is named “Jesus” and not Jesus Christ, adding that the role is still evolving. The one-hour long show will air on March 21st on Adult Swim.