Source: http://perezhilton.com/2011-06-30-justin-bieber-google-commercial
Lindsay Price Lisa Marie Lisa Snowdon Liz Phair Lokelani McMichael
Long-awaited album finally hit stores Tuesday.
By Jocelyn Vena
Beyoncé's <i>4</i>
Photo: Columbia
Beyoncé's 4 may have leaked weeks ago, but its official release date is finally upon us. It's been a long-churning album that touches on soul, '90s R&B, hip-hop and even '80s adult contemporary. Long before the album even dropped, B promised fans that the album would be eclectic — a promise that was certainly met.
"I have a lot of live instruments that I'm putting into the tracks to try to change the sound and make my own genre of music," she said about the album.
On it, she worked with a number of A-listers, including The-Dream, Tricky Stewart, Kanye West, Chad Hugo, Ryan Tedder and Diplo, to name a few. She had also been spotted in the studio with indie acts like Sleigh Bells, proving that she wanted to try anything and everything.
"I'm mixing every type of genre that I love and I'm inspired by every type of genre," she told MTV News late last year. "I'm not in a box. It's not R&B. It's not typically pop. It's not rock. It's just everything I love all mixed together in my own little gumbo of music."
Which track on 4 is your favorite? Tell us on our Facebook page.
By the time 2010 was nearing its midway mark, Beyoncé finally debuted "Run the World (Girls)," a girl-power pop tune that samples Major Lazer's "Pon De Floor" and is full of so much bravado that she needed wild animals in the music video.
So why did Beyoncé name the album 4? Well, aside from the fact that it's her fourth album, she explained: "We all have special numbers in our lives, and 4 is that for me. It's the day I was born. My mother's birthday and a lot of my friends' birthdays are on the fourth; April 4 is my wedding date."
In addition to "Run the World (Girls)," Queen B teased fans with songs like the album's official second single, "Best Thing I Never Had," plus the promotional track "1+1" and the leaked track "Party," featuring Andre 3000.
The songs show the many sides of Beyoncé: playful, heartfelt, flirty, sexy and, yes, sassy. In the end, B wanted fans to hear all those sides of her on the album. "I also gave myself more freedom to really belt out some songs, and bring soul singing back," she explained. "I used a lot of the brassiness and grittiness in my voice that people hear in my live performances, but not necessarily on my records."
What are your thoughts on 4? Tell us in the comments!
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'I will be donating all of my personal proceeds...to various human rights organizations,' singer says of concert linked to Libyan dictator.
By Shawn Adler
Usher (file)
Photo: Getty Images
R&B superstar Usher announced Friday (March 4) that he was donating to various charities proceeds from appearing at a private event at St. Barts linked to Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi, according to a statement made to the Associated Press.
The Grammy award winner's renouncement comes after similar announcements from singers Mariah Carey, Nelly Furtado, and Beyoncé, all of whom were revealed to have performed at private concerts linked to the Middle Eastern leader, who has faced open revolt and major political uprisings since February.
"I am sincerely troubled to learn about the circumstances surrounding the Nikki Beach St. Bart's event that took place on New Year's Eve 2009," Usher said of the concert, at which he appeared alongside Beyoncé but did not perform. "I will be donating all of my personal proceeds from that event to various human rights organizations."
Usher has already begun the process, having made a donation to Amnesty International, the AP reports. The exact size of the donation is not known.
The New Year's Eve gig was reportedly for Moammar's fourth son Muastassim, who an unnamed music industry source told MTV News has a history of throwing lavish parties "jammed" with supermodels.
Beyoncé, who sang at the event, donated all proceeds from her performance to the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund, established in the wake of the Haitian earthquake.
"All monies paid to Beyoncé for her performance at a private party at Nikki Beach St. Barts on New Year's Eve 2009, including the commissions paid to her booking agency, were donated to the earthquake relief efforts for Haiti over a year ago," the "Halo" singer's publicist said in a statement to The Huffington Post. "Once it became known that the third-party promoter was linked to the Qaddafi family, the decision was made to put that payment to a good cause."
Singer Nelly Furtado tweeted February 28 that she plans to make similar amends.
"In 2007, I received 1million$ from the Gadhafi clan to perform a 45 min. show for guests at a hotel in Italy," she tweeted. "I am going to donate the $."
The leader of Libya since a successful military coup in 1969, Gadhafi has reportedly lost control of much of his country as a result of widespread uprisings. The United Nations voted unanimously to refer the dictator to the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity.
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Source: http://perezhilton.com/2011-06-30-listen-to-this-like-crack
The 'O.M.G.' singer looks forward to sharing the stage with his protégé on Sunday night.
By James Montgomery
Usher
Photo: Amanda Edwards/ Getty Images
HOLLYWOOD — At Sunday's 53rd Grammy Awards, Usher will be pulling double duty as both a nominee and a performer. Of course, given the massive year he just completed — with the success of his smash single "O.M.G." and as a mentor to rising phenom Justin Bieber — Ush's Grammy plans seem rather fitting.
Especially since he'll be performing with Bieber (and Bieber's pal Jaden Smith), a move that's just as much about celebrating Usher's successes as it is the successes of his young protégé.
"Having been through [the Grammys] so many times, you couldn't want for anything more than for your young protégé to have the opportunity to have one, so, in support of him having his moment, I wanted to be here," Usher told MTV News on Thursday, hours before his performance at the (Belvedere) RED launch party in Hollywood. "And also to be there to perform, to kind of tell the story of how we came together. This music business has definitely been good to both of us, and this year we have a lot to be happy for."
And just how will the dynamic duo tell that story? Well, Usher wasn't about to reveal all the details, but he did say that he's hoping their performance will show another side of Bieber ... a side most tend to overlook.
"The performance will be fun," Usher explained. "We want to get up there and just do what we do. Be comfortable, and have a great time. ... This is kind of a crossover for Justin. Having performed on so many different stages, this is the way that I wanted him to be seen and an opportunity to show the industry — a lot of the industry, that didn't believe [in him] — some of his other talents. He's going to play acoustically, and also, we'll get down a little bit."
And though Ush is up for a pair of Grammy awards on Sunday — Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best Contemporary R&B Album for Raymond v. Raymond — he's most looking forward to sharing the stage with Bieber and giving fans a look at where the young artist will be heading next.
"I'm very proud, man. I definitely saw it from the beginning, but thanks to the team that we have around us, it was made to happen. And that story has only just begun," Usher said. "The story of Justin Bieber doesn't stop with screaming girls; we need screaming fans all around the world ... a cultural experience that's much more than just fanfare. And that's what this is. That's what the Grammys will be; that's what my next phase for Justin is. This is the way I found him: I found him with a guitar in his hand, so I want him to be seen that way."
Don't miss "Snooki & Sway: Live From the Grammys," a red-carpet live stream kicking off Sunday at 6 p.m. ET on MTV.com. And stick with us all Grammy night for coverage of the red carpet, the show, the afterparties and beyond!
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Singer left behind more than $400 million in debt.
Michael Jackson
Photo: Time Life Pictures/DMI/Time Life Pictures/Getty Im
Between album sales, movie profits, licensing arrangements and lucrative deals for Cirque du Soleil shows, the estate of late King of Pop Michael Jackson has raked in more than $300 million since the singer's shocking death in June 2009.
According to TMZ, legal documents released on Thursday reveal that executors of MJ's estate have managed to make a major dent in the more than $400 million in debt that Jackson owed at the time of his death.
The first accounting from the executors shows that they have already spent around $159 million paying back various debts, income taxes and other expenses, which include providing support for the pop star's mother, Katherine Jackson, as well as his three young children.
"Although there remain unresolved creditor claims, pending litigation and additional challenging business, tax and legal issues, and the estate is not yet in a condition to be closed, the executors have made substantial progress in reducing the estate's debt," the documents state, according to a Reuters report. Two of Jackson's longtime confidants, attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain, were named as administrators in a will sign by the pop icon.
In addition to paying to make "substantial improvements" to the Jackson family's Havenhurst estate in Encino, California, the executors also spent an undetermined amount of money on "last illness and funeral and memorial service expenses." Those costs included a $900,000 payment to the Forest Lawn Memorial cemetery where Jackson is buried and $35,000 on expenses described as "costume for memorial."
TMZ reported that not only did the famously cash-strapped Jackson have more than $400 million in debt, but his estate also owed more than $40 million to concert promoter AEG tied to the scuttled This Is It Tour, for which MJ was rehearsing when he died unexpectedly. They've also paid $27.2 million in taxes and $4 million in mortgage payments on Jackson's properties.
Despite the solid sales of the Michael album and millions of units of the singer's back catalog being sold, as well as the box office of the "This Is It" movie and DVD sales, the estate is not nearly out of the woods. TMZ noted that the administrators have received more than 65 creditors' claims, some of which are subject to "extremely high" interest rates, and there are several outstanding lawsuits against the estate in several countries.
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Reports indicate that the second single is a vengeful midtempo tune penned by Babyface.
By James Dinh
Beyoncé
Photo: Getty Images
Beyoncé isn't wasting any time unveiling cuts off her upcoming album 4. After releasing the project's Major Lazer-sampled lead single "Run the World (Girls)," the pop star unveiled her power ballad "1+1" on the finale of "American Idol" and is now set to release "Best Thing I Never Had" on Wednesday.
News about the tune's radio release first surfaced online late last week when Pittsburgh radio ration Kiss 96.1 reportedly received an email from B's camp. When MTV News reached out for comment, a representative for the singer confirmed the approaching radio date.
Not much is known about B's new tune, but from the looks of it, the entertainer may have already given fans a preview of the track during a recent album listening session in New York. JustJared.com reports that the second song played during the event was a midtempo tune about karma with drums similar to "Girls." Written by Babyface, the song reportedly features vengeful lines like "You showed your ass, baby, I saw the real you."
"Best Thing I Never Had" is just one of the pop star's forthcoming cuts from her 12-song album, which hits stores in less than a month. Just last week, the music sensation revealed the track list for the forthcoming LP on Facebook. In addition to "Best Thing I Never Had," 4 also includes "Party" featuring Andre 3000, "Rather Die Young" and "Start Over."
Are you excited to hear B's new single? Let us know in the comments below!
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Nicki Minaj joined the bedazzled pop star onstage at the Staples Center for 'Till the World Ends.'
By Kelley L. Carter
Britney Spears performs at the Staples Center on Monday
Photo: David Tonnessen/ PacificCoastNews/ Newscom
LOS ANGELES — Britney Spears is back. Not that she'd entirely left, mind you.
But the Spears that captivated the audience at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles on Monday night was the old, fun-loving, free-wheeling Spears — with a sexy, showgirl twist. There wasn't much pretense, though those glamazon outfits blinded in the best way possible. Instead, there was just good dance music.
Spears opened her Femme Fatale Tour last week in Sacramento, and for the most part she stuck to script. There was flash and substance, and Spears appeared as the 29-year-old version of her former self, looking amazing in bedazzled leotards, barely-there cutoffs and midriff-baring outfits.
Show openers Jessie and the Toy Boys, Nervo, and Nicki Minaj set the stage for what was to be a fast-paced night. In her own skintight outfits, Minaj did exactly what an opening act should do: whet the appetite for the main course.
Photos: Britney brings it in Los Angeles.
For Spears' part, she went through about nine songs from her most recent album, Femme Fatale, opening her set with her lusty dance track "Hold It Against Me."
She spent nearly two hours grinding her way through a series of her biggest hits including "3," "Piece of Me," "If U Seek Amy" and a remix of "Boys." A highlight of the night — though, let's face it, nearly every twist and turn she made was met with ear-piercing shrills from the Spears Faithful — was when she straddled a larger-than-life-size guitar to perform a cover of Madonna's "Burning Up." And she nearly brought the house down when she performed "Slave 4 U" with the original choreography (minus the snake).
One tweak, perhaps, from last week's shows, is that instead of having Minaj appear via video for "Till the World Ends," the rapper joined the pop singer onstage.
There were times throughout the night when it was obvious that Spears was lip-synching, but no one in the audience seemed to mind one bit. They were there to be served a shot of Spears straight-up. And they got what they came for.
Have you seen Britney on tour? Share your own show reviews in the comments!
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Album art from Pink Floyd, Blur and David Bowie also included.
By James Montgomery
Coldplay's new British stamps
Photo: Royal Mail
On Thursday (January 7), the U.K.'s Royal Mail unveiled a series of 10 new stamps, honoring the most iconic album covers of the past 40 years.
The albums featured in the new series are the Rolling Stones' Let It Bleed, Led Zeppelin's IV, David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells, The Clash's London Calling, New Order's Power, Corruption and Lies, Primal Scream's Screamadelica, Pink Floyd's The Division Bell, Blur's Parklife and — the most recent album on to make the cut — Coldplay's A Rush of Blood to the Head.
Meant to honor "the most potent graphic images of modern times, many of which have provided a visual soundtrack to people's lives," the series is the end result of a lengthy research process by the Royal Mail, who looked through thousands of album covers by British artists before deciding on the final list. And, during a Wednesday night BBC Radio broadcast, it was revealed that the queen herself actually approved each design.
Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page — who helped design the cover for IV — was on hand to celebrate the release of the stamps and recalled the mysterious nature of the album's iconic imagery.
"Almost 40 years after the album came out, nobody knows the old man who featured on the cover, nor the artist who painted him," he said. "That sort of sums up what we wanted to achieve with the album cover, which has remained both anonymous and enigmatic at the same time."
Of course, any great honor is befitting of an equally great contest, so, on the same day the stamps were made available to the general public, Coldplay decided to give one of their Rush of Blood stamps away. In a message on their official site, the band held a contest to send one lucky fan "a letter using a Coldplay stamp, postmarked with today's issue date."
"We visited our local post office earlier today and bought some of the Coldplay stamps," the message read. "Very nice they are too."
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Judge rules that camera will be allowed in the courtroom for manslaughter case.
By Gil Kaufman
Conrad Murray
Photo: AFP/ Getty Images
For what promises to be one of the most bizarre and riveting legal proceedings in years, a Los Angeles judge ruled on Monday that a television camera will be allowed in the courtroom when Michael Jackson's doctor goes on trial for involuntary manslaughter.
Reuters reported that Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor, approved the presence of a camera in the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray as long as it does not interfere with the proceedings in the closely watched case.
The judge asked for the "absolute least-intrusive placement" of a TV camera in the courtroom, but blocked cameras from documenting jury selection.
Pastor also announced that he would bump up the opening date of the trail by four days to March 24, at which point jury selection will begin. Murray, who faces up to four years in prison if convicted, has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and the trial is expected to last around six weeks.
Cardiologist Murray was hired to be Jackson's personal physician in the run-up to the King of Pop's planned 50-date comeback series of shows at London's O2 arena in the summer of 2009. The doctor told police that he provided Jackson, 50, with sedatives and the surgical anesthetic propofol in order to combat the singer's chronic insomnia. He said he did so on the morning of June 25, 2009, when Jackson died of what a coroner deemed acute propofol poisoning.
TMZ reported on Tuesday (February 8) that Murray's lawyers plan to argue that Jackson was already in weak health before he died and that it's unfair to blame propofol for his passing. Unnamed sources close to the case told the gossip site that at the time of his death, Jackson's body was already failing him in part because concert promoter AEG Live had "driven [him] over the edge" with a rigorous rehearsal schedule for the shows.
Murray's lawyers reportedly plan to call witnesses to say that Jackson was not showing up for rehearsals and when he did he showed "clear signs" of frail health. They also reportedly plan to argue that it was Jackson who administered the final, fatal dose of propofol to himself while Murray was out of the room.
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Yet-unnamed victim 'remains in serious condition but is expected to recover,' Tech's publicist tells MTV News in exclusive statement.
By Rob Markman
Tech N9ne (file)
Photo: Raymond Boyd/ Michael Ochs Archives/ Getty Images
Early Monday morning (June 27), a performer on Kansas City, Missouri, rapper Tech N9ne's All 6s and 7s Tour was shot hours after a scheduled concert at Reno, Nevada's Knitting Factory.
According to reports from local news outlet KOLO TV, the victim — who has not yet been indentified — was shot at 1:27 a.m. in an alley outside the venue where the tour buses were parked. Though the victim is still unnamed, MTV News learned through a statement issued by a Strange Music publicist that the man who was shot is not signed to the label, but is a performer for one of the tour's opening acts.
"By all reports, the victim was talking on his phone when he was approached by 6 individuals who had not been in attendance at that evening's show," the statement reads. "Shortly after, shots were fired and the victim was struck multiple times. He was rushed to a local hospital where he remains in serious condition but is expected to recover."
Initial reports stated that the shooting took place "right after" Tech's performance. The statement refutes that claim, saying the incident happened "nearly two hours after the show ended" and was "a random and senseless act of violence."
Police aren't sure of the motive and believe close to 16 rounds were fired.
Tech N9ne's latest album, All 6's and 7's, was released June 7 and debuted at #4 on the Billboard albums chart. The rapper, along with labelmates Krizz Kaliko, Kutt Calhoun, Jay Rock, MayDay and Stevie Stone, is on an 82-city tour to support the album.
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'It's very much the sort of album a pop star makes when she doesn't feel like she has anything to prove,' one critic writes.
By Jocelyn Vena
Beyonce's <i>4</i>
Photo: Columbia
Although Beyoncé's latest album, 4, was still weeks from its official release date, on Wednesday it was leaked and quickly caused a stir on the Internet, prompting fans and critics to weigh in on the singer's first new album in nearly three years.
So far, B's promo for 4 has been fueled by the release of tracks like the snarling "Run the World (Girls)", the track "Best Thing I Never Had," and the emotional "1+1." But now that all of the tracks are out there on the Net, Beyoncé's album is up for debate.
The Atlantic compares her latest to her last album: "In between, there's an unmistakable, if gradual, turn from melancholic top 40 ballads to the confrontational snap of military drums and giddy proclamations of love. Is this I Am ... Sasha Fierce part 2? Not quite. The course of 4 documents a progression, a maturation, of Beyoncé's worldview."
Rolling Stone observes, "Beyoncé's new album, 4, is a change of pace for the R&B queen ... 4 is a more relaxed, personal set that emphasizes ballads over bangers and showcases the singer's nuances; it's very much the sort of album a pop star makes when she doesn't feel like she has anything to prove."
Ology.com gives Beyoncé credit for working with so many producers on the album, but making it all sound "cohesive." "It stands quite easily as Knowles' most vibrant album; not saying it's her best (B'Day still holds that title), but it begs to be performed live in front of hundreds of thousands of screaming fans unlike anything else she's released yet."
Fans seem equally opinionated — and enthusiastic — about the album, which officially drops on June 28.
"This album is so not her, she took chances, went off in a new direction as far as sound, her vocal techniques are off the charts on this album," Lee Joseph Chaisson wrote on MTV.com. "She brought it vocally; the sounds are so uniquely different, her whole approach."
"I've heard the Album...The **** it BANGIN!" Oren Acquirestino added. "Beyonce's really really singing on this album."
B's most devoted also took to her Facebook page to put their two cents in. Tatyana Krasko wrote, "Beyonce thanks for great work...Album '4' it's amazing... I love Beyonce."
Another fan, Sunny Lochab, gave the singer props and said he was buying the album regardless of the leak. "I downloaded it. I couldn't help it - everyone was talking about it! and I completely love it - I'll be buying it too to show love! you show true growth on this album...it's ALL love."
Have you heard Beyoncé's album? Tell us in the comments!
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Director Chris Marrs Piliero talks about working with Brit and his favorite scene from the fun clip.
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Hugh Swingle
Britney Spears in her "I Wanna Go" music video
Photo: Jive
Britney Spears looks like she's having a blast in her new "I Wanna Go" video. It's full of fun pop-culture references and has Brit seeking vengeance against the paparazzi. Now, the director of the kitschy clip, Chris Marrs Piliero, has opened up about working with the pop megastar.
"Meeting Britney for the first time was really rad. She was really cool. I don't think anyone has the right to be a diva, but there are some artists out there, they've been in the game long enough [that] if any one of those artists ... might have the permission to be a diva, she definitely has earned it — and she wasn't whatsoever," he told the MTV Buzzworthy blog.
So what's Spears like? "She's super polite; she's ridiculously polite. She's soft-spoken," he said. "She's really cute. The way she talks and interacts, you want to hug her. She was super professional, super game. ... It was rad. It was awesome working with her. She's a rad chick."
Another highlight of the shoot for Piliero was working with "Weeds" star Guillermo Diaz on one of the final scenes. In the last part of the video, Spears and the actor are riding in a convertible in the desert as Brit dances around. Diaz displays his comedic chops by doing things like pouring milk all over himself.
"It was definitely a funny moment of the shoot. We let the cameras roll, and the reaction that you see from Britney is definitely a genuine reaction," the director recalled. "When I was going through the footage, I loved the way that she responded. It's so genuine and so funny. It's perfect [and] it definitely is a perfect description of how we all felt about that scene."
Let us know what you think of Britney's "I Wanna Go" video in the comments!
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'She just doesn't belong in school,' Diaz tells MTV News of her naughty character at comedy's New York premiere.
By Jocelyn Vena
Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake at the "Bad Teacher" premiere
Photo: James Devaney/ WireImage
NEW YORK — "Bad Teacher" stars Justin Timberlake, Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel came out on Monday night for the premiere of their raunchy comedy. And Diaz, who plays couldn't-care-less teacher Elizabeth Halsey, told us she why she loved the role.
"It was a lot of fun. Elizabeth was such a well-written character," she told MTV News on the Ziegfeld Theatre's black carpet. "It was easy to play her; it was easy to say the words. She was so well-defined."
For photos of the stars walking the black carpet, click here.
Cameron's character is very naughty, and her co-stars Tom Lennon and Phyllis Smith ("The Office") jokingly admitted that they might have paid more attention in school back in the day if a teacher had been as sexy as Diaz, a sentiment the A-list star completely understood.
"I think that's why people love Elizabeth," Diaz said. "It's because everyone wants to be her, even for an hour, maybe a day. If you get away with a week — oh my gosh! I got to play her for six weeks. So yeah, it was a lot of fun."
As it turns out, it isn't just Elizabeth's attitude that's fierce, but also her killer sense of style. Diaz fully embraced the teacher's fashion sense in the Jake Kasdan-directed flick. "The wardrobe is really good. Elizabeth is a working girl, if you know what I mean," she laughed. "So she has to look a certain way: She's always either coming in from the night before or going out and she never wants to be mistaken as a teacher and she wears [Christian] Louboutins every day of her life and she just doesn't belong in school."
Check out everything we've got on "Bad Teacher."
For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.
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Critics grade Cameron Diaz's irreverent flick as it enters a mixed bag of summer comedies.
By Eric Ditzian
Cameron Diaz in "Bad Teacher"
Photo: Gemma LaMana
As "Bad Teacher" opens this weekend, it joins a mixed bag of summer comedies. While we're still giggling over certain "Bridesmaids" moments and can't wait to take in a second viewing on DVD, "The Hangover Part II" left us reaching for a copy of the original film to remind us why we were so taken with that boozy cinematic bunch. But hey, the second "Hangover" has grossed almost $500 million worldwide, so what the heck do we know?
The Cameron Diaz-starring laugher, according to the critics, falls closer to the letdown that was the second "Hangover" than the revelatory "Bridesmaids." Reviewers have criticized the film for plot holes galore and poor character development, even as most have admitted it delivers a hefty helping of laughs. Read on for a deeper dive into the critics' take on "Bad Teacher."
The Story
"Director Jake Kasdan coaxes some laughs out of the film, but only Jason Segel, as a cynical gym teacher, seems like a real person instead of a caricature. Everyone else seems like they're trying just a touch too hard. Elizabeth Halsey (Diaz) gets dumped by the rich guy she was going to marry for money, forcing her to come back for another year of teaching junior-high English. But she is not without goals; her immediate one is to figure out how to get enough money to pay for breast implants, which she thinks will help her more easily land a replacement sugar daddy. The operation is tough to afford on a teacher's salary, of course. But one day handsome Scott Delacorte (Timberlake), the heir to a watch-making fortune, shows up as a substitute teacher, giving Elizabeth a suitable target." — Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic
The Performances
"The movie, of course, belongs to Diaz. She's always projected a sort of girlfriend-gone-wild sass that suggested she's a hell of a lot of fun after a couple of mango margaritas; 'Bad Teacher' is one of the few films that's allowed her to show that. And not only does she show it, she flaunts it, from a wardrobe that's tighter than next year's school budget to a vocabulary that's definitely not on any standardized test. But she's not alone. The wonderful Lucy Punch — the gold digger from 'You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger' — is a nagging toothache as a too-perfect teacher. Comic actors such as Thomas Lennon drop by for brief but marvelous scenes, and Jason Segal is a menschy gym teacher. Justin Timberlake, however, remains too cool to really commit to his oddball character, a substitute teacher that the man-hungry Diaz fixates on." — Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger
The 'Bad' Comparisons
" 'Bad Teacher' wants to be 'Bad Santa' but it's afraid to go as far as Billy Bob Thornton's gleeful middle finger to holidays and proper treatment of children. So it ends up trapped in a nowhere middle-ground, somewhere between 'Bad Santa' and the equally hilarious but family friendly Jack Black movie 'School of Rock.' Both of those movies had somewhere to go and a way to get there, but 'Bad Teacher' just goes and doesn't really seem to know where it's going. The script has its moments and the cast has a few too." — Josh Tyler, Cinema Blend
The Missteps
"The main problem with 'Bad Teacher' is that it's really just one joke, which is stretched further than the uneven script by Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg (vets of TV's 'The Office') will permit. Jake Kasdan's flat direction doesn't help. ... 'Bad Teacher' has its amusing moments, but also many where you can't help wondering about the comedic choices. If you're going to have the hung-over instructor getting her young charges to watch movies all day, aren't there funnier picks than just a succession of teacher-themed movies? And if you've already decided your film is going to get an American 'R' rating — the profanity alone guarantees that — then why not take a few more risks with your comedy?" — Peter Howell, Toronto Star
The Final Word
" 'Bad Teacher' does not always connect with every joke, and there's one character in particular that seems to have been abandoned by the screenwriters midstream, but when the film works, it contains some wicked belly laughs, and I'll give Cameron Diaz credit for this: she seems delighted to play a total a--hole." — Drew McWeeny, HitFix
Check out everything we've got on "Bad Teacher."
For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.
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LP perform 'Iridescent' from the 'Transformers: Dark of the Moon' premiere in Moscow.
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Josh Horowitz
Mike Shinoda and Chester Bennington perform at Moscow's Red Square
Photo: MTV News
Linkin Park have taken their expansive rock show to seemingly every corner of the globe, but they've never played Moscow's Red Square (to be fair, very few acts ever have). But now, thanks to the power of Michael Bay and "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," they can finally cross it off their list.
On Friday, their performance of "Iridescent" — a song from their A Thousand Suns that's since been tapped as the first single off the new "Transformers" soundtrack — was broadcast across MTV's platform of networks. It was part of the blockbuster's world premiere at the Moscow International Film Fest, but to hear Linkin Park tell it, it was also a moment they'll remember for the rest of their lives.
"To do a movie premiere is pretty cool — we've done some of them before — but to do a premiere in Moscow, and then perform in Red Square ... We were saying earlier, it's kind of one of those things where you think, 'How did they pull that off?' " LP's Chester Bennington told MTV News. "I mean, Red Square is not exactly a place they throw concerts every day. Not many bands have performed there, so ... this is really a very special and exceptional moment for us. We've had the privilege of playing a few other landmark locations that are very special, and this definitely tops that."
Of course, it was a moment that couldn't have happened without the considerable clout of "Transformers" director Michael Bay ("There's, like, nothing he can't do," Bennington joked. "He may have actually shot the [film's] moon footage on the moon"), but when Linkin Park first joined forces with the franchise back in 2007, they never dreamed the collaboration would eventually lead them to Red Square. Basically, back then, they just signed on because they were huge fans of the toys. And needless to say, things have worked out pretty well ever since.
"I have a special place in my heart for Soundwave and Starscream," Mike Shinoda laughed.
"We loved playing with the toys as kids and conceptually, the idea of Transformers — these machines that are alive — it's always been a great story," Bennington added. "But realistically, the toys were amazing. They're still the coolest toys ever."
Check out everything we've got on "Transformers: Dark of the Moon."
For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.
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Singer teases his new project by pointing to past hits like 'Yeah!' and 'OMG.'
By James Montgomery
Usher
Photo: MTV News
With the success of songs like "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love," "Hot Tottie" and "OMG," Usher had himself a fairly massive 2010. But rather than rest on his laurels, he's looking to build on his big year, not with an album, but with a "movement."
It's something he's calling "Rev Pop" — or, simply, "Rev" — and though he's already teased his idea in a video with David Guetta (Akon is also involved), he has yet to speak in full about it. So when MTV News caught up with Ush before the 53rd annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles at the (Belvedere) RED launch party, we asked him about his next musical endeavor. And though he didn't reveal much, he did let it be known that "Rev" isn't exactly something new. In fact, he's been doing it for a while now.
"I'll give it to you this way: At a later date, I'll tell you more about Rev Pop, but if I were to give you a flash: I've done it before, I did it with 'Yeah!' " he said, "taking a cultural experience, and also worldwide recognition of a feeling, and putting the soul in the middle of it. Not allowing it to shift heavily to R&B genre, or pop. I did it again with 'OMG,' once again putting the soul in the middle of it, which was an electric-pop experience, with the soul.
"It's bringing those elements together to tell a story, that was born here," he said, gesturing toward his heart, "And that's what Rev Pop is. There's more, I mean, I could really elaborate, but that's just what I'm going to tell you right now. 'Rev' is what it's called ... the movement is called Rev."
Usher wouldn't say just when his fans would be getting their first taste of Rev, but whenever they do, it sounds like they're going to be impressed ... if not a little shocked.
"Stay alive," he smiled, "Because you're definitely going to be in for a surprise."
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