CEE-LO GREEN, NICKI MINAJ AND PITBULL ADDED TO BILLBOARD AWARDS
Cee-Lo Green, Nicki Minaj and Pitbull have been added as performers at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards, which will air on ABC Sunday, May 22nd from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas at 8 PM Eastern. They join previously announced performers Jennifer Lopez, Black Eyed Peas, Rihanna and Taio Cruz. Rihanna, Eminem, Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber lead the finalists for the 2011 Billboard Music Awards. The show will be hosted by The Hangover Part II star Ken Jeong.
ASCAP POP MUSIC AWARDS HANDED OUT
According to Billboard, Dr. Luke and Max Martin shared the award for Songwriter of the Year at the ASCAP Pop Music Awards on Wednesday night in Los Angeles. Dr. Luke has been a part of 20 number one songs in the past five years, while Max Martin was involved in the making of “DJ Got Us Fallin’ in Love” with Usher and Pitbull and “Whataya Want From Me” with Adam Lambert. Luke and Martin also toped five of the most-performed songs of 2010 which included Katy Perry’s hits “California Gurls” and “Teenage Dream,” as well as Taio Cruz’s “Dynamite.” Train won the ASCAP Song of the Year Award for “Hey Soul Sister,” which was written by frontman Pat Monahan.
AMERICAN IDOLS LIVE TOUR ANNOUNCED!
Its official, American Idol Season 10 is getting ready to sing for their fans this summer. American Idols Live tour will kick off on June 6th in West Valley City, Utah and wrap up on September 9th in Rochester, New York. The lineup features the top 11 finalists of season 10: Casey Abrams, Haley Reinhart, Jacob Lusk, James Durbin, Lauren Alaina, Naima Adedapo, Paul McDonald, Pia Toscano, Scotty McCreery, Stefano Langone, and Thia Megia.
KATY PERRY TOPS BILLBOARD HOT 100 CHART
Katy Perry is back on top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart with “E.T.” featuring Kanye West. Adele moves up four spots to number two with “Rolling in the Deep,” while the Black Eyed Peas hold at number three with “Just Can’t Get Enough.” Last week’s number one, Rihanna’s “S&M” featuring Britney Spears, falls to number four and Jeremih’s “Down on You” featuring 50 Cent is down one notch to number five.
TWEET! Katy Perry took to Twitter to share her excitement after kicking off her Australian tour writing, “Oy… I am so glad I kicked off my OZ tour in Melbourne… you made me feel right at home :) ? sweet dreams… And pink ice creams…”
BEYONCE DEBUTS ON HOT 100 CHART
Have you fallen in love with Beyonce’s new single? The singer’s new offering, “Run The World (Girls),” has just landed at the number 33 spot on this week’s Billboard Hot 100 chart. Even though she isn’t in the top ten, Bey’s track has been downloaded over 77-thousand times on iTunes since last week. In related news, fans can expect a Francis Lawrence-directed video for the tune to premiere in coming weeks.
KATY PERRY TOPS DIGITAL SONGS CHART
Katy Perry is back on top of the Digital Songs chart this week, after falling to number two last week, selling over 344-thousand copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Adele is up three spots to number two with “Rolling in the Deep,” Black Eyed Peas hold at number three with “Just Can’t Get Enough,” while Bruno Mars leaps five notches to number four with “Lazy Song.” Last week’s chart-topper, Rihanna’s “S&M” featuring Britney Spears, falls from the top spot to number five.
JENNIFER LOPEZ LEAKS NEW SONG
Is it just us or have all the songs Jennifer Lopez has released from her upcoming album been amazing? The American Idol judge has just leaked a new tune called “Hypnotico,” which was written by Lady Gaga. The up-tempo cut was produced by RedOne, who handled her latest hit song, “On the Floor” featuring Pitbull. Be sure to pick up her seventh album, Love?, on Tuesday.
http://soundcloud.com/hdmi44/hypnotico-jennifer-lopez
BEYONCÉ ROCKETS UP SOCIAL 50; BIEBER STILL ON TOP
Beyoncé leaps 11 spots to number 14 spots on this week’s Billboard’s Social 50 chart. The jump was spawned by attention gained from her new single, “Run the World (Girls),” the singer’s first single from her forthcoming fourth studio album. “Run the World” has earned 1.46-million YouTube views since it premiered last week. Justin Bieber holds at number one followed by Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Shakira, Eminem, Akon, Katy Perry, The Black Eyed Peas and Lil Wayne, who rounds out the top ten.
DEV & THE CATARACS ON TOUR WITH USHER
Dev and The Cataracts kicked off their tour with Usher on Wednesday night in South Florida. The two acts have collaborated on hits like Far East Movement’s “Like a G6,” as well as Dev’s “Bass Down Low” and her latest single, “In The Dark.” Dev, The Cataracs, Akon and Usher will all take the stage Sunday night in Columbia, South Carolina.
Check out Dev’s new single “In The Dark” here: http://umrg.edgeboss.net/qtime/umrg/7573-dev/token/dev-inthedark-90sec.mov
BRUNO MARS REVENGE APP
Bruno Mars has a new app for the iPhone and iPad called Bruno Mars Revenge. The program is inspired by the tracks and artwork from his platinum debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans. It features 10 tracks for players to tap along to including his hits “Grenade” and “Just The Way You Are,” and his latest single, “The Lazy Song.”
The Bruno Mars Revenge App is available for $4.99 from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at: http://bit.ly/dYjyhb.
NEVERLAND RANCH OPENING IN VEGAS?
According to Billboard.com, Cirque du Soleil wants to recreate Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch in Las Vegas. The Mandalay Bay hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip plans to open a sprawling entertainment complex that includes a Jackson-themed lounge, an interactive memorabilia museum and a theater designed to replicate the iconic refuge of the late musical legend. Cirque du Soleil’s homage to Jackson kicks off in October, with the most expensive show in the French company’s history. The 57-million dollar Michael Jackson, The Immortal World Tour will open in Montreal and hit 30 cities including New York, Miami, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. The tour’s Las Vegas stop at Mandalay Bay will kick off with a fan convention in December as a preview to the permanent Jackson attraction.
CHRIS BROWN JOINS BIEBER IN AUSTRALIA!
Fans in Australia got a special treat after rumors had spread that Justin Bieber would be cancelling his show due to a back injury. Bieber instead surprised the crowd with a guest appearance from Chris Brown and the two performed the “Up” remix, much to the delight of the nearly 16-thousand fans on hand.
TINIE TEMPHA WILL NOT BE RELEASING A NEW ALBUM THIS YEAR
Tinie Tempah is postponing his second album until next year. According to NME.com, the star wants to focus on success in the U-S before releasing a new album in his native U-K. Tempah’s single, “Written in the Stars,” is currently at number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Check out Tinie Tempah’s video for “Written in the Stars” here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgFyi74DVjc.
LADY GAGA HACKED!
An unknown person recently hacked Lady Gaga’s Twitter account. According to Contact Music, Gaga insisted that the hackers must answer to her millions of followers. Gaga tweeted “Whoever is hacking my Twitter must answer to 10-million monsters and Twitter police. Don’t make me call the Apostles.”
LADY GAGA HAS A MELTDOWN
Lady Gaga has decided to open up about her backstage meltdown at a show in New York City. The young star had a breakdown as a documentary on her was being filmed. According to Contact Music, Gaga opened up about her insecurities saying, “I still sometimes feel like a loser kid in high school. I gotta pick myself up and I have to tell myself that I’m a superstar every morning so that I can get through this day and be for my fans what they need for me to be.” Gaga made an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and explained how performing at Madison Square Garden and having five sold out nights was overwhelming. The documentary that captured the moment is a concert film called Lady Gaga Presents the Monster Ball Tour at Madison Square Garden, which will air on HBO on Saturday, May 7th at 9 PM Eastern.
http://www.hbo.com/lady-gaga-presents-the-monster-ball-tour-at-madison-square-garden.
NICOLE SCHERZINGER JOINS BONHAM FOR “BLACK DOG” NBA COVERAGE
The 2011 NBA play-offs are well underway and even if you prefer music over sports, you should still tune in to ESPN and ABC’s coverage of the games. That’s because during them, the networks are airing a video of pop singer Nicole Scherzinger and drummer Jason Bonham, son of Led Zeppelin’s John Bonham, performing the Zep classic “Black Dog.” You can see video of the song now by searching YouTube for “Special Open to the 2011 NBA Playoffs.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=TgtKrZGNlM8
JENNIFER HUDSON WANTS TO APPEAR ON X FACTOR
Just like Mariah Carey, Jennifer Hudson is interested in having a less demanding role in Simon Cowell’s new show, The X Factor. The GRAMMY Award-winning singer explained that she could never sign on to be a judge for the show because “I was once in those people’s shoes, and unlike Simon, I’d find it hard to tell people the truth!” Hudson would like to make a cameo so she could provide “some encouragement” to the contestants. Visit DigitalSpy.com for more!
CHRIS BROWN SIGNS UP FOR SKETCH COMEDY
According to SingersRoom.com, Chris Brown has signed on to appearing in a new sketch comedy show called In The Flow With Affion Crockett. Deadline.com reports the series, which is being executive-produced by Jamie Foxx, will have a one-hour premiere on Sunday, August 14th on FOX. A re-run will air on August 20th at midnight.
VIDEO SPOOF: http://youtu.be/qsm7UguBECc
U2 TALKS GLASTONBURY
U2 is going big for the Glastonbury Festival! Bassist Adam Clayton told Q magazine that their set will be epic and have a big production value. He says they’re aiming to make the experience “a little more like Glastonbury on steroids.” Check out NME.com for more. Glastonbury takes place on Friday, June 24th.
