Ashley Tisdale: Lionsgate Lovely

Closing out another work week, Ashley Tisdale was busy tending to her always-busy entertainment efforts in Santa Monica, CA on Friday (June 24).

The former "High School Musical" star added a little color to the scenery in a bright pink top and jeans as she shuffled into visits Lionsgate studios for a business meeting.

Miss Tisdale's Linosgate visit comes after she treated herself to a night out with her loved ones the previous evening.

The 25-year-old stepped out alongside boyfriend Scott Speer and her sister for a tasty Japanese dinner at Katsuya, tweeting about the outing, "Went out with my man and his sister Julie out on the town tonight!"

Source: http://celebrity-gossip.net/ashley-tisdale/ashley-tisdale-lionsgate-lovely-517876

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Usher, Ke$ha And More Help Dance Music Go Pop In 2010

But is it here to stay? Our music-industry experts weigh in.
By Akshay Bhansali


Ke$ha
Photo: Andreas Rentz/ Getty Images

In 2010, pop princesses, R&B icons and chart-dominating newcomers all danced to the same beat. Not only did dance music go pop, but pop music caught the club-music bug.

Between Katy Perry's "Firework," Ke$ha's "We R Who We R," Rihanna's "Only Girl (In the World)," Enrique Iglesias' "I Like It," Usher's "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" and "OMG" and countless other singles, established artists definitely looked to dance beats for surefire hits. And two of this year's biggest success stories in music were Jason Derülo and Taio Cruz; could there be a soul left in this country who hasn't heard "Dynamite" or "In My Head"?

The love went both ways, with dance music's biggest stars finding mainstream success this year. Dance-music maestro deadmau5 took up house-artist duties at this year's VMAs, and Swedish House Mafia and Usher teamed up for a medley of their gems at the American Music Awards.

So how did this happen? We caught up with some music-industry experts to get their takes.

"You definitely saw tempos go up this year," Jon Caramanica of The New York Times told MTV News. "And I think what you had are a lot of producers who are really familiar with nightclub stuff. They are familiar with Europe. Things are happening on a more global scale now."

"I think everything from Europe, and sometimes even Asia, it comes to America, and we just adopt things a little bit slower," said Jared Eng of JustJared.com. "I think it was just a change. People like different types of music at different times. And dance was of this moment."

Noah Callahan of Complex magazine added: "I think 2010 saw the merging of the pop and dance genres. Pop artists realized that there were best practices that could be borrowed from dance music. And, ultimately, [all] pop music that has been made in the past 20 years had ended up being remixed for the club by dance artists. I think they basically just cut out the middleman and went straight there."

Dance music being introduced into the hip-hop and R&B realms was particularly notable this year.

"I think David Guetta kind of at the end of last year and the beginning of this year spearheaded it," said freelance writer Julianne Escobedo Shepherd. "He produced a lot of tracks. I think as trends go, people revile 'unst-unst.' But it's just coming back around. Big-room techno was a way for people to get decadent in a year that no one could get decadent."

"You have someone like will.i.am, who's like, 'Well, I spent all this time in Ibiza, and this is what they are doing,' and he wants to find a way to bring that into his music," Caramanica said of the Black Eyed Peas mastermind. "R&B especially became dance music. And especially with your Jason Derülos, Taio Cruzes. Guys like that would have literally been blocked at the border two years ago. That would not have made it through customs. And now all of a sudden they have #1 songs. I think will.i.am had a lot to do with that last year."

Elliott Wilson of RapRadar.com added: "It's actually even affected hip-hop. I was talking to Q-Tip, and his next record, I feel like that's gonna kind of go in that vein. I know that was also Jay-Z's thought process with Blueprint 3 at first, that he wanted to make a little bit more of a world music [vibe], a little more dancey. I think the kids today want to go to the clubs. They wanna have a good time. They wanna dance. So I think the artists of today are trying to kind of feed that audience."

"I think it's caught on this year because the people who've done it have been successful," offered Clover Hope of Vibe magazine. "Like 'OMG,' with usher, he didn't have success until he made a dance record. He had 'There Goes My Baby' and these really, like, adult-contemporary records that didn't really catch on. And then once you see that everybody is doing it and that people are liking it, they are like, 'OK, let me just try this out.' It's like Auto-Tune. Like, 'Let me see what I sound like on a record by David Guetta.' They end up liking it and doing more of it."

So does the club-music trend have staying power. According to our tastemakers, not so much.

"I do think it's a blip," Caramanica said. "I don't think that's gonna be something that lasts in America. I think this is gonna be a moment we'll all look back on and go, 'Wasn't that weird when Jason Derülo and Taio Cruz had #1 records?"

"At some point, these R&B artists will get kind of sick of it and be like, 'Let me go back to my soul background,' " Hope said. "When you actually have to say something, dance doesn't really lend itself to substance. And I think that R&B artists, they really want to talk about love and in a deep way, and to do that, you need to do, like, a soul or a traditional R&B record. I want to say that it's kind of a fad."

"I think music is very cyclical," Eng offered. "So I think dance music might be here for a little bit, but I'm sure it will phase out at some point."

Wilson called dance music "the sound of today. I think that people want more aggressive, faster beats, and I think that that probably has legs until at least next summer."

What do you think? Is dance music here to stay? Let us know in the comments!

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1655031/usher-keha-more-help-dance-music-go-pop-2010.jhtml

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Kourtney Kardashian & Mason At DASH

Reality star mama Kourtney Kardashian had her 1-year-old son Mason in tow as she stopped by the family store DASH in Calabasas, California today (June 23). He is getting so big!

Kourtney's very cute kid lent a hand around the shop, taking a duster to the floors and helping to sort some clothes as his mom chatted to some employees.

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Source: http://celebritybabyscoop.com/2011/06/24/kourtney-kardashian-mason-at-dash

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Ke$ha Is Channeling 'Sexiness' Of '70s Rock For New Album

Glitter-heavy pop star tells MTV News she's going for 'balls-out, irreverent rock and roll.'
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Matt Elias


Ke$ha
Photo: MTV News

Ke$ha's already got the face paint down pat, and, during recent live sets, she's even taken to guzzling blood out of a human heart, so it should come as no surprise that, on her upcoming album, the pop star is taking things back to the most theatrical era of rock: the prop-heavy, arena-spanning heyday of the 1970s.

Ke$h revealed her plans over the weekend in Los Angeles, on the red carpet of KIIS FM's annual Wango Tango concert, where she told MTV News that the follow-up to her breakout Animal album (and, we suppose, Cannibal too) would be heavy on hard riffs and light on pretty much everything else.

"The next album ... I've been working on writing on the road, but as far as a sound, I just know it's gonna be balls-out, irreverent rock and roll," she said. "I've been pretty much in this '70s rock and roll kick and I just want to capture some of the true essence of what rock and roll is, and that's just irreverence and sexiness and fun and not giving a f---, so we'll definitely put a bit of rock and roll in it."

So, does that mean that fans can expect the likes of Alice Cooper or Peter Frampton to show up on her new album? Perhaps. Because while Ke$ha's new album is still a ways off, she's already begun calling in favors, hoping to line up a killer collabo for the new disc.

"I'm trying, trust me," she laughed. "I really would love to connect with one of my idols, I mean, that's my dream. I'm working on it."

What do you think of Ke$ha going rock for her next album? Tell us in the comments!

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1663946/kesha-new-album.jhtml

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Clarence Clemons, In Memoriam: The Big Man, In More Ways Than One

The iconic sax man for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band (and Lady Gaga) towered over contemporary music for nearly five decades.
By James Montgomery


Clarence Clemons
Photo: Getty Images

Clarence Clemons was affectionately known as "The Big Man," probably because, well, he was a big man. Standing six-feet, four-inches tall -- and nearly just as wide -- he towered over Bruce Springsteen, the E Street Band, and whomever else he shared the stage with during his five-decade career, casting a shadow as formidable as it was striking (it's no wonder Bruce decided to lean on him, like some sort of lamppost, on the cover of 1975's Born To Run).

But his physical size only told part of the story. Because Clemons was also a massive talent, a saxophonist as adept at filing an arena with his booming solos as he was providing a rock-solid backbone to Springsteen's churning, yearning rock. He was the Big Man because everything ran through him, because he was capable of both taking the lead (like on "Jungleland") and laying back in the cut (like on "10th Avenue Freeze Out," where his presence definitely shapes the song, but at no point overshadows its other components), and because of the tones he charmed from his sax ... crisp and clear-eyed, grandiose yet gritty, big yet decidedly blue-collar (just like he was), no one played like Clarence did. And when he died on Saturday at the age of 69 after complications from a stroke he suffered last week, not only did we lose a mountain of a man, but an icon as well.

See photos of Clemons throughout his career.

Simply put, Clemons was the most prominent sax player in popular music. And as proof, I'll ask you to name any of his contemporaries. Chances are, you can't; not because they don't exist, but because they couldn't begin to approach his stature. He was the go-to guy when the stars needed a session hand (recording with the likes of Aretha Franklin and Twisted Sister, and performing live with everyone from the Grateful Dead to Ringo Starr,) and, more recently, Lady Gaga tapped him to perform on her Born This Way album -- he appears in her new "The Edge Of Glory" video, a move that no doubt introduced his sublime playing to a whole new generation of fans. Shoot, he even appeared on "The Simpsons," "The Wire" and "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure," where he played, fittingly enough, one of the Three Most Important People in the World.

Remember Clemons with us on Facebook.

In passing, he leaves behind a catalog that's nearly as massive as his frame: not only his notable guest appearances, but several solo albums (and records he cut with backing bands like the Temple of Soul and the Red Bank Rockers) and, of course, the myriad of albums he cut with Springsteen and the E Street Band. And it's on those recordings -- starting with 1973's Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. and continuing right on through 2009's Working on a Dream and last year's reissue The Promise -- where Clemons not only shone the brightest, but also showcased the reason why he earned his "Big Man" nickname. Sure, he burns on songs like "Badlands" and "Born To Run," but listen to his work on songs like "Prove It All Night" and "Dancing in the Dark" (to name six dozen) ... the times where he proves to be the Bigger Man, letting his fellow bandmates get their share, too.

Rarely has there been a player so soulful and selfless ... one so secure in his own status that he was willing to let others shine. It's why Clarence Clemons will forever be known as "The Big Man," and why, even in death, he still casts a formidable shadow over popular music and popular culture. He was the sax man's sax man. To paraphrase Springsteen on "Freeze Out," not only was the change was made uptown when the Big Man joined the band, but the mould was broken, too.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1666007/clarence-clemons-career-dead-dies-69.jhtml

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Chris Brown Latest Celeb To Apologize For Using Gay Slur

Cee Lo Green, Tracy Morgan and Blake Shelton have also issued mea culpas recently for seemingly homophobic comments.
By Gil Kaufman


Chris Brown
Photo: Jason Kempin/ WireImage

On Wednesday, Chris Brown became the latest celebrity to apologize to the LGBT community for using a gay slur in anger. The singer issued a Twitter mea culpa for an incident on Tuesday in which he lashed out at several photographers in Los Angeles whom he believed had tipped off parking-enforcement officers to his illegally parked car, saying, "Y'all n---as is weak. Did you call them to try and film me? Y'all n---as is gay!"

The comments came just days after comedian Tracy Morgan met with LGBT youth in New York following his anti-gay rant during a recent stand-up appearance, which earned the "30 Rock" star widespread scorn from the gay community for his seeming advocacy of violence against gay youth.

The Human Rights Campaign told TMZ that "invoking words to demean gay Americans is just plain unacceptable ... Brown should know better."

Brown, who has made outrageous digital comments before — including a homophobic attack on former B2K singer Raz B in December — only to ask forgiveness for them a short time later, issued an apology on Twitter on Wednesday night, writing, "I have total respect for Gay community and my intention was not to insult anyone in it."

A spokesperson for Brown could not be reached for comment at press time.

Herndon Graddick, senior director of programs for GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation), told MTV News that while it may seem like this kind of casual homophobia is on the rise, what we're seeing might simply be a result of the increasingly interconnected nature of our society. "People are being filmed while getting a parking ticket and commenting on Twitter and there's more opportunity for the things celebrities say to reach the public," he said. "But I think celebrities and people in the public eye are also increasingly cognizant that they have to respect all of their fans, and when things happen, they have an interest in correcting that behavior."

Brown is certainly not alone in using words that may hurt some of his fans. Two members of the celebrity judging panel on NBC's hit reality singing show "The Voice" have also issued apologies recently for using anti-gay slurs. After a performance with Rihanna in Minneapolis last week, Cee Lo Green posted a Twitter response to a negative review by critic Andrea Swensson, writing, "I respect your criticism, but be fair! People enjoyed last night! I'm guessing you're gay? And my masculinity offended you? Well f--- you!"

After the rant went viral, Green issued a public apology, telling Us Weekly, "I most certainly am not harboring any sort of negative feeling toward the gay community. I don't have an opinion on people with different religious, sexual or political preferences," said Green, who added that he assumed the critic would understand that his comments were "all in good fun" and that he didn't mean any harm. "I'm one of the most liberal artists that I think you will ever meet, and I pride myself on that. Two of the remaining members that I have on my team on 'The Voice' are proud and outspokenly gay. We just did a team performance of 'Everyday People,' and I picked that song for us to do specifically to highlight how we can get along even though we're so different."

Similarly, fellow judge Blake Shelton landed in hot water last month when he tweeted the comment, "Re-writing my fav Shania Twain song ... Any man that tries touching my behind he's gonna be a beaten, bleedin', heaving kind of guy." The original lyrics are, "Any man of mine better walk the line/ Better show me a teasin', squeezin', pleasin' kinda time." GLAAD weighed in, suggesting that Shelton's comments sounded like a threat against any man who took a pass at him and demanded an apology.

Shelton quickly recanted in a series of tweets, writing, "Hey y'all allow me to seriously apologize for the misunderstanding with the whole re-write on the Shania song last night ... It honestly wasn't even meant that way... I now know that [there] are people out there waiting to jump at everything I say on here or anywhere ... But when it comes to gay/lesbian rights or just feelings ... I love everybody. So go look for a real villain and leave me out of it!!!"

After communicating with GLAAD, Shelton posted this final tweet: "@glaad hey I want my fans and @nbcthevoice fans to know that anti-gay and lesbian violence is unacceptable!!!!! Help me!!!! And DM me.."

Graddick said that with an American public that is more supportive of gay people than ever, not to mention more aware of the impact of harmful language, for better or worse, celebrities are often looked to to set the standard for acceptable behavior. "I think that language can be homophobic and people can as well," he said. "I'm not going to judge the intent of what [Brown] was saying; he was clearly pissed about a parking ticket. But his intent is less important than the actual impact. When people hear other people use the kind of language that makes 'gay' equivalent to 'bad,' it communicates a message, and it's important that people are aware of that. I don't think every time anyone has spoken those words their personal viewpoint is homophobic, but the impact can be damaging."

The string of public anti-gay slurs has also included a number of sports figures, such as Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, who was fined $100,000 for yelling anti-gay slurs at a referee in April, and the Chicago Bulls' Joakim Noah, who was fined $50,000 in May for directing an anti-gay slur at a fan during game three of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Share your thoughts on the recent celebrity anti-gay slurs in the comments.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1666324/chris-brown-gay-slur-apology.jhtml

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