'Hold It Against Me' Lawsuit -- Case Dismissed After Country Duo Apologizes

Filed under: Britney Spears, The Bellamy Brothers, Celebrity Justice

0904_britney_spears_bellamy_brothers_getty
Sometimes saying you're sorry and admitting you were wrong really does fix everything -- because a lawsuit over the Britney Spears hit song "Hold It Against Me" was dismissed for just that very reason.

As TMZ first reported, Dr. Luke (along with fellow co-writer Max Martin) sued the Bellamy Brothers for defamation after they went around bad-mouthing the song and saying it was just a rip-off of their 1979 song, "If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body Would You Hold It Against Me?"

But according to court documents filed last week, Dr. Luke dropped his lawsuit after the Bellamy Brothers admitted the Britney song was not a copy of theirs.

Both sides agreed upon an apology, which reads in part: "The Bellamy Brothers apologize to Dr. Luke and Max Martin for the Bellamys' public statements and any false impressions suggested by the statements on their website that Dr. Luke and Max Martin copy the works of others."

No damages were awarded.

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Source: http://www.tmz.com/2011/09/04/britney-spears-dr-luke-bellamy-brothers-lawsuit-dismissed-apology/

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Cameron Diaz Arrives in the Big Apple For a Rendezvous With ARod

Cameron Diaz arrived at NYC's JFK airport this evening. The actress was fresh off a stint in Atlanta, where she's been filming What to Expect When You're Expecting. She may be meeting up with boyfriend Alex Rodriguez, who's in the Big Apple for a series with the Yankees against the Toronto Blue Jays. Alex actually sat out the last few games due to a hand injury, but he was back in play this evening to lead the Yankees to a win. He will hopefully have time to celebrate Cameron's 39th birthday. Her new costar, Cheryl Cole, shared her own wish for Cameron on Tuesday. Cheryl tweeted, "Happy birthday Cameron, you sexy beeeyyaatchh!"

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/popsugar/~3/qytMGfv6pDI/Cameron-Diaz-Pictures-Touching-Down-JFK-18959445

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Radiant Megan Fox's Labor Day Weekend Family Dinner

Out for a family dinner on the town for the second night in a row, Megan Fox joined Brian Austin Green and his son Kassius for a delectable bite to eat in Santa Monica on Sunday (September 4).

Looking stunning in a long red dress, the "Jennifer's Body" beauty gave a wave to paparazzi as she and her two main men headed inside BOA Steakhouse for the family chowdown session.

The Labor Day Weekend outing comes as Miss Fox currently covers Italian magazine Amica - in which she interviewed about topics including removing her naval ring along with her dietary situation.

As for getting rid of her belly button piercing, the 25-year-old told, ?I did it when I was 16-years-old because I was a fan of Britney Spears. The only time I tried to imitate someone else. But then I thought it was tacky and so I removed it when I turned 20,?

As for her diet, Megan dished, "For a year and a half, until about four months ago, I followed a strict vegan diet based on raw fruits and vegetables, no bread, sugar and coffee."

She added, "But I had lost too much weight. So now I eat a bit of everything. I train three times a week doing circuit training with my trainer Harvey Pasternak."

Source: http://celebrity-gossip.net/megan-fox/radiant-megan-foxs-labor-day-weekend-family-dinner-540079

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Usher Collaborator Rico Love Calls Kelly Rowland's 'Motivation' 'Truly Organic'

Lil Wayne 'jumped on it,' Raymond v. Raymond writer tells Mixtape Daily.
By Alvin Blanco, with reporting by Rob Markman


Rico Love
Photo: TTLL

Behind the Beats: Rico Love

If more people read the credits behind some of R&B's biggest hits, Rico Love should be a household name. Born Richard Preston Butler Jr., the former Florida A&M University student is now one of the music industry's most-sought-after singer/songwriters.

After writing hits for Usher ("There Goes My Baby"), Beyoncé ("Sweet Dreams") and Diddy-Dirty Money ("Hello Good Morning"), to name a few, one of Rico's biggest hits to date is Kelly Rowland's "Motivation."

"It came about in a truly organic way," Rico told Mixtape Daily of the Jim Jonsin-produced "Motivation." "We had this meeting in New York: myself and Sylvia [Rhone] and Kelly. And they just were saying, 'We need to find that single; we need that big single.' Everybody was asking for an uptempo, actually.

"I flew down to Miami the next day, and that Tuesday, we got back in the studio, and Jim started playing these chords, and then coming up with these little sounds — the signature sounds that Jim comes up with. I just told him to lay it like a skeleton idea, and I jumped in the booth, and I started with the verse, and I kind of sang my way all the way through the record."

Rowland, formerly of Destiny's Child, was in the studio while Rico was laying down the reference track and made her regard for the song known immediately. "Kelly was there and watched the whole process," Rico recalled. "As soon as I finished singing the demo, usually an artist wants to live with it or listen to it for a little while. She just said, 'I want to cut it right now.' So she jumped in the booth, and we cut the record."

"Motivation" became the lead single for Rowland's third album, Here I Am, which was released in April. The song, which peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, features a verse from Lil Wayne.

"Lil Wayne got out of jail a few days later, and as soon as he got out of jail, [Rowland] went to see him, and he jumped on it," Rico explained. "It was the most organized situation ever. It was nothing contrived about it."

There's been nothing manufactured about Rico's accomplishments either. Starting his musical career as a rapper, he has signed former Roc-a-Fella rapper Young Chris to his Universal/Motown-distributed Division 1 label.

After leaving Florida A&M to pursue music, Rico caught the attention of Usher, and penned songs for the R&B singer, including "Throwback." Other artists soon benefitted from his songwriting, including T.I., Pleasure P and Mario. Rico takes pride in being versatile with his talents, preferring not to make specific songs intended for specific artists only.

"Sometimes, when you keep an artist in mind, you'll limit yourself," Rico explained. "You won't go a place that they probably would go because you're thinking, "Nah, she wouldn't say this," or "He wouldn't do this," or "He wouldn't say this," and "This melody is out of the way for them."

"When I get a chance to just get into the studio and just write music and just produce music and sit at the piano and tell a guy where I want to hear the chords and create the progressions and just freely make music, it's a lot more fun."

Lately, Rico has been back in the studio with Usher. In 2007, he was signed to the singer's former US Records via J Records. But his debut album was never released, and he and Usher went their separate ways.

But as Rico become a songwriting force, the two eventually started working together again. The first song they recorded was the Grammy-winning "There Goes My Baby" from 2010's Raymond v. Raymond. Now, Rico is working on Usher's forthcoming album and embracing the pressure of surpassing its predecessor's platinum sales and critical success.

"I feel like this is what separates the boys from the men," Rico said of working with Usher. "This week, we been creating records together. We had two mics, two headphones set up in the booth, and we just sit there and vibe out.

"These first few days have been amazing. We got four records cut so far that sound super amazing. I'm super excited about it. I'm just anxious for the world to hear it."

For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1667790/rico-love-kelly-rowland-motivation.jhtml

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'Apollo 18': The Reviews Are In!

Critics say the 'found-footage' film requires a suspension of disbelief to truly work.
By Terri Schwartz


"Apollo 18"
Photo: Dimension Films

"Apollo 18" is not a documentary — NASA made a point of clearing that up — but that doesn't mean that a certain suspension of disbelief won't make the movie a terrifying experience.

The flick is just the latest to cash in on the found-footage premise made popular in 1999's "The Blair Witch Project," but it is the first to bring that filmmaking style to outer space. Some critics thought the premise worked in its new location, while others felt the film lost its momentum in the second hour.

The consensus is that it either will work for you or it won't; which way will you sway? Check out what the critics have to say and make your decision in theaters this weekend.

The Premise
"These days, none but the most naive, gullible and uninformed of moviegoers would ever fall for the déclassé claim that a horror film purporting to consist of found footage is, in fact, real. 1999's 'The Blair Witch Project' was one thing, since it started the trend, but that was 12 years ago and most viewers are more savvy now to the flimsy trickster ways of overzealous studios and marketing execs. The latest entry into the genre, 'Apollo 18,' is clearly fictional despite claims to the contrary, but it doesn't matter. A willing audience member's suspension of disbelief can go a long way in creating the necessary sense of reality as long as the performances are natural and the filmmaking itself free of obvious artifice." — Dustin Putman, DustinPutman.com

The Presentation
"It's easy to dismiss a bad feature film as 'something that'd play better as a short,' but such is most certainly the case where 'Apollo 18' is concerned. If it clocked in at around thirty minutes, it would still have the novelty of its premise and presentation, but it'd also be wonderfully bereft of all the dead air, aimless wandering, and redundant dialogue that all but ruin a potentially fun movie. Not helping is the fact that the 'character development' is clumsy at best and that much of the narrative is just plain, old worthless wheel-spinning. Lifelong apologist for the oft-lamented 'sci-fi horror' genre I may be, but there's virtually nothing of value to be found in 'Apollo 18.' I have no problem with gimmick movies, but the story and its presentation should always be more important than the gimmick itself. Or at least more interesting." — Scott Weinberg, FearNet

The Scares
"The best horror films are movies that play on our real fears, that speak to something universally understood or shared, and that create a situation we can imagine ourselves in. The notion of being trapped on the moon could work if they really wanted to play on the notions of isolation and dependence on technology and the onset of madness in a closed space. There are definitely fears that this film could have cranked up to have an effect, but instead, there is this cheap, false tension that all comes down to cheap jumps and moon rocks with legs." — Drew McWeeny, HitFix

The Subtext
"In fact, this is what makes 'Apollo 18' special; it is perhaps the first narrative film to address the popularity of 9/11 conspiracy documentaries. Though it never touches on the modern world, the 'lunartruth.org' title card, the large scale conspiracy elements, the closing frames of the astronauts official cause of death and the 'edited from stolen footage' conceit all heavily recall 'Loose Change,' the Abu Graib photos, Saddam's hanging video and even at hint of the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment. While most viewers will never pick up on this subtext, it will play just below the consciousness of many, adding depth and a creeping sense of malaise. Even as someone who is 100% not a 'truther' it added an extra element that I responded to emotionally." — Hunter Daniels, Collider

The Final Word
" 'Apollo 18' is innovative, intense and will make you scream like a little girl. It's not a great film by any means but it's all about the atmosphere and the world that is created by Director Gonzalo López-Gallego (his first major motion picture). Even though I knew going in that the film was fake, I still found myself suspending my disbelief. Hats off to the amazing film makers for making me feel like I was on the moon with these actors. I mean seriously, the film looked just like found footage from the 1970's. The post-production on this project must have been insane, adding in all the scratch marks, etc. The tight spaces these actors had to film in were absolutely insane. What the film does really well is use a slow-build effect for the scares which became a very important factor in keeping you entertained for ninety minutes." — Kevin McCarthy, BDKReviews

Check out everything we've got on "Apollo 18."

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

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1670214/apollo-18-reviews.jhtml

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