Bon Iver, J. Cole and the Band Perry also in the mix for coveted statue come Sunday.
By Gil Kaufman
Nicki Minaj
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images
Whoever ends up staying in their seat when the Best New Artist trophy is handed out at Sunday's Grammys shouldn't feel so bad: They're in pretty good company. Recent years have seen such multiplatinum stars as Justin Bieber, Drake, Lady Antebellum and Taylor Swift come out on the short end in the category.
Then again, there's a distinct possibility this year's winner could make history by becoming the first dubstep act (Skrillex) to take the prize, the first true indie rocker (Bon Iver) to snatch it or just the second female MC (Nicki Minaj) bestowed with the honor.
This could also be the year when the music industry fully embraces the fact that just putting a traditional album out is not the surest (or only) path to Grammy glory. Among those in the mix are acts like J. Cole and Minaj, who've slowly built up careers by mining the mixtape path to glory and Skrillex, who went from indie punk rock to the top of the glow-stick-waving heap by perfecting a stomach-rumbling mix of dance music, techno beats and rock energy through a series of EPs and singles in front of ever-expanding, sweaty live crowds.
Bon Iver (the nom de rock of sensitive singer Justin Vernon) brings his own unique path to the mix. On two acclaimed independently released albums of sensitive, wistful forest folk, Vernon has provided an antidote of sorts to Minaj's hyper, in-your-face rhymes with music that washes over you instead of hitting you over the head. But his commercial prospects have not dimmed at all due to his chosen path, as Bon Iver tunes have shown up in Miller Genuine Draft ads and have landed him on Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy album and, reportedly, in the studio with Alicia Keys.
With just her debut album, Pink Friday, to her credit, Minaj has gone from mixtape queen to pop/rap icon in just four years, culminating with her Super Bowl halftime appearance on Sunday alongside Madonna. Along the way, the Queens native has made spotlight-stealing cameos on songs by Kanye, Mariah Carey, Ludacris, DJ Khaled and Drake.
Like Minaj, Cole slowly bubbled up on the mixtape circuit to a deal with Jay-Z's Roc Nation label, dropping a number of impressive guest verses along the way for Jigga, Wale, B.o.B and Young Chris. By the time his major-label debut, Cole World: The Sideline Story, dropped in May, he was already being touted as one of the hottest young stars in the business.
Though they've been playing together since 2005, country trio the Band Perry didn't release their first full-length album until October. They've since recorded with Bieber for his Under the Mistletoe album, scored three American Music Awards nominations as well as a trio of hit singles.
Who is your pick to win the Best New Artist Grammy? Let us know in comments below!
MTV News is all over the Grammys! Stick with us from now through Sunday's show as we bring you everything you need to know.
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Latest preview reveals Spidey's new mask — and his attitude.
By Kevin P. Sullivan
Andrew Garfield in "The Amazing Spider-Man"
Photo: Marvel / Columbia Pictures
"Spider-Man" fans who stayed up late Monday were treated to the second trailer from the superhero's upcoming reboot. The preview for "The Amazing Spider-Man" showed off new action sequences, a transformed reptilian villain and the smart-ass attitude fans of the comics have missed in recent years.
We've watched the trailer more times than we care to mention and took the opportunity to break down our favorite moments. Here are the five key scenes from the "Amazing Spider-Man" trailer:
Mask
You'd have to think back hard, but believe it or not, the first trailer only included a glimpse at Spider-Man's mask. It may not seem like that big of a deal, but it isn't until you see the old red-and-blue for a period longer than half a second that you realized what you were missing. The new suit looks good, if slightly over-stylized, but the mask brings it home and makes it feel like a "Spider-Man" movie.
Attitude
"Spider-Man 3" may have caused you to forget that Spider-Man is actually kind of a smart-ass and not just an emo guy who dances in the street with side bangs and zero self-awareness. In "Amazing," the wisecracking Spidey returns to make a carjacker feel like a complete dumbass, as he should. Andrew Garfield's take on the hero brings back the fun, intentionally.
Mr. and Mrs. Parker
The official plot synopsis released a few weeks ago focused on Dr. Connors' connection to the flighty parents that Mr. and Mrs. Parker were. The trailer plays off that new information and shows Peter hunting down the one-armed doctor to find out what happened to the parents he barely knew. It's an element we haven't seen in the previous films and one "Amazing" wants to put front and center.
Lizard
With the extra emphasis on Curt Connors comes an extended look at his bigger, greener side. After teases with flipped cars, we get to see the Lizard fully transformed, albeit a fleeting peek. They wouldn't want to spoil it all for us, but we saw enough to confirm that the PEZ dispenser was, in fact, accurate.
The Spire
The trailer finishes with a shot from an action sequence that most likely takes place near the end of the film. Peter stands on the spire of a skyscraper, dressed in Spider-Man attire from the neck down, but he won't be standing for long. The spike begins to tumble, and Pete struggles to not fall with it. The shot brings the serious action notes the first trailer lacked and makes us question how much we haven't seen from the film.
Check out everything we've got on "The Amazing Spider-Man."
For breaking news and previews of the latest comic book movies — updated around the clock — visit SplashPage.MTV.com.
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'Smash' leading lady talks to MTV News about her 'dream-come-true job.'
By Christina Garibaldi
Megan Hilty in "Smash"
Photo: NBC
From Broadway sensation to television newcomer, Megan Hilty might just be the next "Smash" hit. The 30-year-old is taking on her first leading lady role on the small screen in the new series "Smash," where she plays the role of Ivy, a singer who competes for the role of Marilyn Monroe in a new Broadway play.
"She is a person who eats, breathes, sleeps theater and grew up doing theater, and all she ever wanted to do was be a leading lady on Broadway," Hilty told MTV News about her character. "When you meet her she's spent about ten years in the ensemble. She feels stuck and wants to make that next step to become a leading lady, and she's willing to do just about anything to make that happen."
At the age of 25, Hilty was starring on Broadway in the hit musical "Wicked," and in 2008 she joined the musical adaptation of the film, "9 to 5." With such an extensive musical background, stepping into the shoes of Ivy for "Smash" was an easy transition for Hilty.
"When I saw the script I was like, 'This is too good to be true, to do a television show about my world.' " Hilty said. "I am one of those kids that grew up eating, breathing sleeping theater, I still do it. It's literally a dream-come-true job. I do identify with her and I think a lot of people can identify with this character, regardless of what profession you're in. I think everybody knows what it feels like to feel stuck and not feel like people understand your full potential, so I think she is very identifiable."
This isn't the first time Hilty has been in front of the camera. She has made several television appearances, including small roles on "Desperate Housewives," "Ugly Betty" and the Disney series "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody." Yet, with all these guest roles, Hilty never would have imagined she would make the leap to leading lady.
"It was something that I never really thought was possible." Hilty admitted. "I always thought Broadway's the goal, and then I moved out to L.A. with "Wicked" and started doing guest-star spots and little recurring things and I was like, 'Well, this is pretty great, I'm kind of digging this.' "
So now that Hilty is on the road to stardom, she hopes to follow in the footsteps of some of her idols. "I look at the people's careers who I want to emulate, like Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth, Bernadette Peters." Hilty said. "They've all found the key to longevity in this business, and that is diversifying, doing as many things as possible to keep yourself relevant, and so hopefully I'm on the same track as all those amazing women."
What did you think of "Smash"? Let us know in the comments!
Jay performs his song to daughter Blue Ivy Carter and a host of other hits at the famed venue, with help from Alicia Keys and Nas.
By Rob Markman
Jay-Z performs at Carnegie Hall
Photo: Kevin Mazur/ WireImage
NEW YORK — From Marcy to Madison Square and now from Crooklyn to Carnegie. Jay-Z has come a long way since releasing his 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt, and the magnitude of his travels wasn't lost on the God MC when he performed at Carnegie Hall on Monday evening (February 6).
The swanky crowd filled the Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall for the first of two benefit concerts, which joined Jay's Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation with the United Way of NYC to raise money for gifted high school students who aren't financially positioned to attend college. The premium-priced charity tickets brought out the likes of Liza Minnelli and New York Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia.
With a full orchestra that included ?uestlove and Young Guru playing DJ, Hov took the stage at 8:45 p.m. ET after a dramatic string build. Emerging from the stage's side door in a white tux jacket toting a gold bottle of Ace of Spades champagne, Jigga began his evening shouting, "Allow me to reintroduce myself, my name is Hov," the iconic opening line from 2003's "Public Service Announcement."
Those who thought Jigga would conform to the stuffy artistic standard typically associated with the famed concert hall were mistaken. Jay strutted across the stage drinking from his gold bottle promising the crowd, "It's just tea."
On this night, Hov pledged to eradicate the divide that separates musical genres, only differentiating between good and bad music. "All those lines that divide us, we gonna step on 'em," he announced to the electric crowd.
As he's done most of his career, Jay continued to stomp out the misconceptions that rap can't be considered highbrow art as he tore through radio hits and street favorites like "U Don't Know" and "Where I'm From." Jay did balance things out when he invited Alicia Keys onstage for "Empire State of Mind" but got extra-gritty on the very next song, making way for Nas to perform his own "N.Y. State of Mind" from the Queensbridge MC's 1994 classic Illmatic. There was a perfect juxtaposition throughout. The biggest musical clash came when Jay performed the "Annie"-sampling "Hard Knock Life." Jigga rapped the song's verses, while the wealthy crowd song the downtrodden chorus. By the time Hova rolled into the set's next song "Izzo," a marijuana smell filled the air. That must be a first for Carnegie.
Ever the master of ceremonies, the Brooklyn rap juggernaut slowed things down properly easing into "Girls, Girls, Girls," then "Song Cry" and then "Glory," the song he released days after the birth of his and Beyoncé's first daughter, Blue Ivy Carter. "One hand in the air for Blue," he screamed before delivering his heartfelt daddy raps.
"I didn't think I was gonna make it through that one, that was tough," Jay said at the close of the number.
The veteran MC launched into the set-closing "Encore," but fans know by now that despite his exit at the end of the Kanye West-produced track, he would be back for more. During Jay's overtime session, he re-emerged onto the stage with a Yankee snapback, diamond chain and black tee. Ever the showman, Jay climbed into the balcony and performed an array of hits from his early catalog like "So Ghetto," "Ain't No N---a" and "Can't Knock the Hustle."
By the night's close, Jay-Z had kicked in another door. He wasn't the first rapper to play Carnegie Hall, but lord help the MC who has to come after him.
Share your thoughts on Jay-Z's first Carnegie Hall show in the comments!
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Judges Christina Aguilera, Blake Shelton, Adam Levine and Cee Lo Green kick off second episode with a Prince medley.
By John Mitchell
Cee Lo Green on "The Voice"
Photo: NBC
The blind auditions continued on Monday night's (February 6) two-hour episode of "The Voice," with each judge picking up two more contestants to fill out the 12-person teams they'll take to the battle phase later in the season.
The episode opened with a flashy medley of Prince hits "1999," "Little Red Corvette" and "Kiss" performed by judges Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton, before the crew got right to business with the auditions.
Team Christina
Aguilera picked up two acts, including the evening's first performers: platonic duo the Line. The pair's rendition of Tom Petty's "American Girl" got all four judges' attention, but despite much protest from Shelton, they picked Aguilera. Shelton later told the camera he thought they were "fooled by flash and boobs."
She also scored an interesting choice in chanteuse Lindsay Pavao, who got Shelton and Cee Lo to swivel their chairs too. In one of the more unique performances of the night, Pavao transformed a Trey Songz tune into a ballad that Green compared to Fiona Apple. It was that uniqueness that won Christina over, and Pavao chose to join the "Beautiful" singer's team.
Team Adam
After being denied by two different singers, the Maroon 5 frontman picked up his first team member of the night in 50-year-old Kim Yarbrough — who revealed during an interview segment that one of her many past odd jobs was working security for the Dave Matthews Band. Her soulful rendition of Rufus and Chaka Khan's "Tell Me Something Good" had all the judges dancing in their seats, but Adam won her over after asking for her name. When she said "Kim," he corrected, "No, your name is Chaka Khan, baby." Which is probably what any aspiring diva wants to hear after an audition.
Levine also added the night's final contestant, 23-year-old Angel Taylor, to his team. The Los Angeles native grew up in an abusive household and turned to music to get through the tough times. Her performance of Adele's "Someone Like You" packed an emotional punch.
Team Cee Lo
The night's two most compelling stories came from Jamar Rogers and Angie Johnson, both of whom opted for team Cee Lo. Rogers is a 29-year-old former drug addict from New York who was also featured on "American Idol" during season eight alongside his best friend and eventual finalist Danny Gokey. During his addiction, he contracted HIV. Now that he is clean and sober, Rogers volunteers for food-delivery services for the disabled in the Bronx. He also idolizes Cee Lo, so it's good that the "Forget You" Grammy winner turned his chair around for Rogers' performance of the White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army."
Cee Lo also picked up Staff Sergeant Angie Johnson, who was discovered and pushed to audition for "The Voice" after her fellow soldiers uploaded a video to YouTube of Johnson singing Adele on a military base while deployed in the Middle East. The video eventually tallied over a million views, which gave Johnson the confidence to hit the stage with a gutsy rendition of Pat Benatar's "Heartbreaker." "I love a girl with guts and confidence," Cee Lo told the singer.
Team Blake
Blake's first choice of the night fit firmly in his country wheelhouse: North Dakota native Gwen Sebastian, a musician who agreed with her drummer husband to hold off on having kids so she could take a go at being a performer. After her performance of "Stay," Shelton remarked, "You are a great country vocalist ... and I'm a country guy. I'm your man."
A more surprising choice for the country superstar came late in the show, when he promised he'd do everything he could for Jermaine Paul, a backup singer who has toured the world with Alicia Keys. Keys even sent Paul a video message wishing him good luck. He made a surprising song choice in Avril Lavigne's "Complicated," which also earned props from Cee Lo, who told Paul he could "hear the swag" in his voice. And even though it looked like Paul was favoring Cee Lo, he opted to move out of his R&B comfort zone and into Shelton's country/rock genre.
Four singers got the ax during the show when no judges swiveled around to offer a spot on their team. The judges went back and forth over country crooner Neil Middleton and pop singer Dez Durmon and ultimately regretted their decisions to pass on the singers. Durmon in particular had the judges all worked up, and when they turned around to see a handsome Yale football player standing in front of them, they practically slapped themselves across the head. "And it's a good-looking guy," Shelton sighed.
Such is the point of "The Voice," though. Durmon would have been a sure thing if the judges had gotten a look at him beforehand, but it's all about the pipes — at least for now — on NBC's reality hit, which kicked off its season to some pretty great post-Super Bowl ratings.
Who was your favorite singer on the latest "Voice" episode? Let us know in the comments!
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'He has his own paintbrush and his own colors,' Neptunes producer tells MTV News, nominating Rozay for 'Hottest MCs in the Game.'
By Rob Markman, with reporting by Ricky Louis
Rick Ross
Photo: Getty Images
When it comes to MCs, Pharrell has worked with some of the greats. Skateboard P has produced and rhymed with the likes of Jay-Z, Kanye West, T.I. and Snoop Dogg, and for this year's hottest MC in the game, P has a nomination: "Rick Ross is on his way, he's working his way. He's been doing it for a minute, and he's been really consistent," the Neptunes producer told MTV News on Friday in Miami.
The debate rages on, and Sunday, February 19, the "Hottest MCs in the Game VII" will premiere on MTV2. During the half-hour special, MTV's Hottest MCs Hip-Hop Brain Trust will gather at the roundtable and decide the top five rappers in the game. Beginning February 13, MTV will reveal MCs 10 through six online, but only one spitter can snag the #1 spot.
If Pharrell has his way, Rozay will conquer all in this highly contested debate. "That guy is an animal; he's an animal with it. Lyrically, he's crazy, and he's just got a very distinct style, it's his own," P campaigned. "There were a lot of comparisons made at the beginning of his career, but along with the test of time, he's proven that he's his own person and he has his own paintbrush and his own colors."
Skateboard might be just a bit biased as he reveals to MTV News that he and the Bawse have some very exciting things in the works — then again, Pharrell has worked with a number of MCs who could contend for the crown. "He and I have something special too. We have a special record too, but we're still working," the multiplatinum producer said. "I'm happy to be a part of it."
Tune in to MTV2 on Sunday, February 19, at 10 p.m. ET/PT to catch "MTV2 Presents: Yo! MTV Raps Classic Cuts," then watch "Hottest MCs in the Game VII" immediately after at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT before capping the night off with "Sucker Free Certified" at 11 p.m. ET/PT.
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'Lonely Boy' follow-up is light on bells and whistles, heavy on what made them the sensation they are today: killer live sets.
By James Montgomery
The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach in "Gold on the Ceiling"
Photo: Warner Bros.
There are no dancing actors/security guards, precocious street-fighting children or cameos by "Sir" Todd Bridges in the Black Keys' new "Gold on the Ceiling" video. But don't let their absences sway you — in a lot of ways, this was the video the Keys were born to make.
The clip, which premiered Monday night (February 6) on MTV, features only the Black Keys (and various members of their road team) doing what they do best: playing live, in gloriously gritty fashion. It's not only a nod to their roots — for close to a decade, they hammered out gigs (and miles) aboard a rusty van — but it's a powerful reminder to their detractors that they are, first and foremost, a positively killer live act.
Of course, it was also probably a matter of necessity. The Black Keys are rather busy these days, what with their smash album and world tour, so shooting a live video (in part during their MTV Hive-sponsored El Camino release party at New York's Webster Hall) undoubtedly made their management happy, but you get the feeling that Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney probably delighted in making a concert clip. After all, it fits rather nicely with their anachronistic ways. Of all the monster rock acts currently lumbering, the Black Keys seem the most natural fit for a live video. No bells or whistles, no special effects, just a band, a stage and some grainy footage. It's easy.
So while "Gold" may be lacking in all those things (not to mention odd, inbox-baiting cameos), it is by no means a lesser video. If anything, it represents everything that makes the Black Keys the band they are — hard-charging, unpolished and seemingly not-of-this-era, indebted to their past yet still pushing forward and always determined to do things on their own terms. Big-selling album and high-profile second single be damned, the Black Keys just want to do it live and do it loud. It's what got them here, after all.
What did you think of the Keys' latest video? Share your reviews in the comments below!
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