'American Idol' Finalist James Durbin Dropping LP Same Day As Daughtry

Durbin's debut, Memories of a Beautiful Disaster, will hit on November 21.
By Gil Kaufman

James Durbin
Photo: FOX

Though he was most often compared to "American Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert last year during his rebel-yelling run to a #4 finish, classic rock lover James Durbin will end up being measured against another head-banging "Idol" finisher when his debut drops in November.

Durbin will release his debut, Memories of a Beautiful Disaster, on November 21 on Wind-Up Records (home to Evanescence, among others). That just happens to be the same day that season-five fourth-place finisher said he will serve up his band's third album, Break the Spell.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Durbin's debut was produced by veteran hard-rock helmer Howard Benson, who has worked with My Chemical Romance and, yes, Daughtry.

While Daughtry's sound leans toward gritty, swelling arena rock, during his time season 10 Durbin was an unabashed fan of old-school metal, a genre he vowed to revive if given a chance.

Shortly after his elimination, Durbin told MTV News that he wanted to work with Dream Theater's Mike Portnoy, reunite with guitar legend Zakk Wylde and bring out his "secret weapon," his best friend from home who is a shredding guitar player. Given the chance, he said what he wanted most was to re-create the sound of his favorite record, the 1983 debut from late Black Sabbath metal screamer and solo star Ronnie James Dio, Holy Diver.

"I'm gonna keep it real my post 'Idol' career. I'm not gonna pretend to be somebody else on the show and then do something completely different with my career," Durbin promised. "I know who I am, I know what I wanna do, and I know where my fans are. And I know what they want."

Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1671668/james-durbin-american-idol-album-lp.jhtml

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Britney Spears Responds To 'Criminal' Video Controversy

'The video is a fantasy story,' statement says after U.K. criticism that the clip glorifies violence.
By James Montgomery

Britney Spears and Jason Trawick on the set of her "Criminal" video shoot
Photo: Eagle Eyes / Splash News

When Britney Spears flew to London earlier this month to shoot her video for "Criminal," she probably didn't think the clip would generate the kind of controversy it has.

And yet, in the week since she wrapped filming, Spears has been taken to task by politicians in the U.K. for a scene in the video, in which the pop star packs a pistol as she flees a London-area building. They've claimed that the image of Brit gripping a gun glamorizes violence and, in the aftermath of the widespread riots that rattled the nation last month, the pop star should "apologize ... for the rudeness and damage that she's done to our community."

Late Monday (September 26), MTV News received a statement from Spears' camp about the "Criminal" controversy — and, from the sound of things, she's not going to be apologizing anytime soon.

"The video is a fantasy story featuring Britney's boyfriend, Jason Trawick, which literally plays out the lyrics of a song written three years before the riots ever happened," the statement read.

Criticisms of the "Criminal" video began last week, after images of Spears and Trawick making an escape from an apparent robbery (with Brit brandishing a replica revolver) began making the rounds. The scene in question was shot in the London borough of Hackney, which was hit hard by the August riots, and local politicians were upset by what they saw as an insensitive gesture by Spears.

"It is only a music video, but it's images like this, with pop stars glamorizing gangs, which means that some young people ... get drawn in," Hackney's Member of Parliament, Diane Abbott, told the ITV news program "London Tonight." "Britney should really know better."

Hackney's council members — who gave Spears' camp the OK to shoot at the nearby Stoke Newington Town Hall — also took issue with the fact that no one involved with the production of the "Criminal" video mentioned that a gun was to be used in the clip and, had they known, they would not have allowed filming in the recently restored building.

"In this case we did not agree that a replica gun could be used at Stoke Newington Town Hall and are disappointed," the council said in a statement to "London Tonight." "We will be raising this matter with the production company."

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1671542/britney-spears-criminal-video-gun-criticism-response.jhtml

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Justin Timberlake Cast In Casablanca Records Biopic

'Spinning Gold' follows life of label co-founder Neil Bogart.
By Jocelyn Vena

Justin Timberlake

He once played Napster co-founder Sean Parker in "The Social Network," and now he's getting ready to play another real-life entrepreneur. Deadline Hollywood reports that Justin Timberlake will play '70s record producer and Casablanca Records co-founder Neil Bogart in a new biopic.

"Spinning Gold" will take a close look at Bogart's career as a record executive who launched the careers of acts like KISS, Parliament, Donna Summer and the Village People. "This is saga about a young dreamer who started with nothing and came of age in the '60s and '70s, believing anything was possible and every risk was worth taking," said Tim Bogart, Neil's son and the film's writer. He said the film is "literally three decades in the making."

Bogart died of cancer in 1982, at the age of 39. Bogart added, "We needed a young actor who can carry this picture. ... When Justin walked into the room, that was the moment I had been waiting for 29 years. He has the exact same energy as my father, the same glimmer in his eye."

A director has yet to be attached to the project, which is set to shoot in 2012. Album plans are also under way.

Fans hoping Timberlake will head back to the studio to record new music will be sad to see his film roster keeps getting filled with new projects. In November, his sci-fi flick, "In Time," hits theaters.

"To be honest, my plan would have probably been to do another record, probably right about now. I never stop considering myself a musician. To me, it's my bread and butter," Timberlake said in a recent interview with Short List. "And I mean that in a personal way. I don't mean that it finances my 'acting hobbies.' I joke with my friends that I should have a business card saying, 'David Fincher put me in a movie,' because 'Bad Teacher' got a blessing due to 'The Social Network,' and then 'Friends With Benefits' came out of that.

"All the movies I've done were just opportunities that came up, but now that they're all coming out back-to-back, people think, 'Oh, he's trying to make a statement by having an acting career,' " he continued. "But it's not like that for me. I don't ever want to stop doing music."

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1671556/justin-timberlake-spinning-gold.jhtml

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Ke$ha - Tik Tok

Tik Tok

• Artist: Ke$ha
• Label: RCA
• Director: Syndrome
• Album: Animal [Clean]

Source: http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?artist=3213641&vid=445445

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Beyonc頭 Why Don't You Love Me

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?artist=1236911&vid=514842

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Blink-182's Neighborhoods Had 'Long Road' To Release

As band's first album in nearly eight years hits stores on Tuesday, Mark Hoppus tells MTV News that Blink is back from the brink.
By James Montgomery

Blink-182
Photo: Jeff Kravitz/Film Magic

It's been almost eight years since Blink-182 released their last album but, in a lot of ways, it feels much, much longer.

There's been no shortage of drama in that period, starting with the band's '05 breakup and continuing right on through the deaths of close friends Jerry Finn and Adam "DJ AM" Goldstein, and the plane crash that left drummer Travis Barker seriously injured.

There was the gradual cooling of tensions and the triumphant reunion, the raucous tour kickoff and finally, the two-year process of recording a new album.

And after all that, Blink are finally back with Neighborhoods, a record that crams all those highs and lows into just 36 minutes. It hit stores Tuesday (September 27), bringing one (very dark) chapter of the band's career to a close, while simultaneously jump-starting another. And on the day of its release, MTV News emailed Blink's Mark Hoppus to get his take on the long road he and his bandmates took, and just what lies ahead. Echoing the sentiments of many long-suffering Blink fans, he's having a hard time wrapping his head around all of this too.

"[It's been] eight years since the last Blink-182 album was released. I can't believe it. It seems like just last year, and yet so much has happened since then," he wrote to us. "And now, finally, the new album that we've been talking about and working on for the past two years is out. This is the best part, the part where it turns from ideas in our head and abstract descriptions of what it might or will sound like, into a being unto itself. A CD. An mp3. A thing ... that people can listen to for themselves."

And while Hoppus is thankful to begin moving forward, he can't help but look back too. It's sort of inevitable, given everything that's happened in the eight years between Blink albums. But, in a lot of ways, those trials and tribulations have not only made the band stronger, but helped create an album they are all endlessly proud of. And now, it's all yours.

"It has been a long trip to get here ... five years of pain and animosity, the passing of some of our dearest friends, the rebuilding of our band. And now the new album is here," Hoppus continued. "Initial reaction to the songs and record has been overwhelmingly positive, and for that I'm truly grateful and excited. Thanks to everyone who has stuck with us through thick and thin. This record is for all of you. I hope the album means as much to you as it does to us."

Share your reviews of the latest Blink album in the comments below!

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1671587/blink-182-neighborhoods-mark-hoppus.jhtml

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Justin Timberlake Cast In Casablanca Records Biopic

'Spinning Gold' follows life of label co-founder Neil Bogart.
By Jocelyn Vena

Justin Timberlake

He once played Napster co-founder Sean Parker in "The Social Network," and now he's getting ready to play another real-life entrepreneur. Deadline Hollywood reports that Justin Timberlake will play '70s record producer and Casablanca Records co-founder Neil Bogart in a new biopic.

"Spinning Gold" will take a close look at Bogart's career as a record executive who launched the careers of acts like KISS, Parliament, Donna Summer and the Village People. "This is saga about a young dreamer who started with nothing and came of age in the '60s and '70s, believing anything was possible and every risk was worth taking," said Tim Bogart, Neil's son and the film's writer. He said the film is "literally three decades in the making."

Bogart died of cancer in 1982, at the age of 39. Bogart added, "We needed a young actor who can carry this picture. ... When Justin walked into the room, that was the moment I had been waiting for 29 years. He has the exact same energy as my father, the same glimmer in his eye."

A director has yet to be attached to the project, which is set to shoot in 2012. Album plans are also under way.

Fans hoping Timberlake will head back to the studio to record new music will be sad to see his film roster keeps getting filled with new projects. In November, his sci-fi flick, "In Time," hits theaters.

"To be honest, my plan would have probably been to do another record, probably right about now. I never stop considering myself a musician. To me, it's my bread and butter," Timberlake said in a recent interview with Short List. "And I mean that in a personal way. I don't mean that it finances my 'acting hobbies.' I joke with my friends that I should have a business card saying, 'David Fincher put me in a movie,' because 'Bad Teacher' got a blessing due to 'The Social Network,' and then 'Friends With Benefits' came out of that.

"All the movies I've done were just opportunities that came up, but now that they're all coming out back-to-back, people think, 'Oh, he's trying to make a statement by having an acting career,' " he continued. "But it's not like that for me. I don't ever want to stop doing music."

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

Related Photos

• The Evolution Of: Justin Timberlake
• Acting, Log-Rolling, Quilting: Justin Timberlake Can Do It All

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• Justin Timberlake

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1671556/justin-timberlake-spinning-gold.jhtml

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