Swedish House Mafia Make Magic With Dance-Music Smash ‘One’

Song is fastest-ever #1 on Beatport's download charts, thanks to an early leak.
By Adam Stewart

Steve Angello
Photo: MTV News

When we last checked in with our friends Sebastian Ingrosso, Axwell and Steve Angello from Swedish House Mafia, they were hours away from unleashing a then-untitled single upon thousands and thousands of screaming fans at the Ultra Music Festival during the Winter Music Conference in Miami. Just hours after their show, a Czech house-music blog illegally posted a high-quality version of the song called "Gangster the Dog," and on Monday, SHM officially released the single under the name "One."

"I don't know where [the Czech blog] got [that name] from!" Steve Angello told MTV News on Thursday. "Sebastian's dog is called Gangster, but I don't know how they pasted his dog together with a track! It was kind of confusing, but, you know, now it's out."

Dubbed "the hottest record in the world" by BBC DJ Zane Lowe, "One" reached the top of dance-music site Beatport's downloads chart faster than any other song. Angello admitted that was at least partially due to the buzz drummed up by the leak.

"Dirty South [a close friend of SHM] was playing the record, and somebody in Montreal recorded his set without telling him," Angello said. "After that, we just had to release the record, because everyone was buzzing about it and there were all these clips on YouTube and file-sharing things. So we had to make a quick move and release the record, otherwise it would have been destroyed."

While Beatport declined to provide hard numbers, its vice president of marketing, Shawn Sabo, told MTV News the track went "straight to #1 after only four hours, largely due to the massive hype around the tune from Pete Tong and WMC."

Angello noted that "Leave the World Behind," the team's hit from last year (released under the name Axwell, Ingrosso, Angello & Laidback Luke), hit #1 on the Beatport chart "pretty quick, so when this one went straight to #1, broke the record of the quickest #1, and it's called "One" — it's perfect!"

So what's next for the gents Tiësto calls the "rock stars of house music"? Angello assured us they've got plenty in store for the fans.

"We've all reached a pretty good point in our solo careers, so I think we're all going to focus a little more on making some music and vibing together," he said. "We just get into the studio and what happens, happens. We never have a plan, it just happens; it's magic!"

What do you think of "One?" Tell us in the comments below!

Eminem’s Recovery To Include ‘Dark’ Track By Mobb Deep’s Havoc

'I try to think outside the box but not go too far with it,' Hav says of new track.
By Jayson Rodriguez

Eminem
Photo: Michael Caulfield/ WireImage

In a departure from his previous albums, the bulk of Eminem's forthcoming Recovery (due June 22) is being made by other producers. Just Blaze was announced as a major contributor last year, and in recent weeks Jim Jonsin (Beyoncé, Lil Wayne), Boi-1da (Drake), DJ Khalil (Clipse, Drake) were confirmed. Dr. Dre, of course, will handle some production duties as well.

On Thursday, Emimen revealed one more name, telling Shade 45 morning show host Angela Yee that Mobb Deep's Havoc also made the cut. The announcement was news to Hav, who was still waiting on confirmation.

"I honestly didn't think I was gonna make the project, but when I heard I did, I was definitely happy about it," Havoc told MTV News.

Eminem has been a longtime fan of Mobb Deep, and Hav has been trying to land a beat on a project with the Detroit lyricist for just as long. He told MTV News that he provided Slim Shady with a dark number featuring an interesting sample loop, which he wouldn't reveal just yet.

"When it came to him, it's like, I really didn't want to give him a track that he was already kind of familiar with rhyming to," Havoc said. "I just wanted to do me and doing me consists of doing all kinds of different styles than what they associate me with, which is dark-sounding. The track that I did for him, it's dark and at the same time it can go across the board as far as the content in the sample and what it's saying. I try to think outside the box but not go too far with it. I think I met myself somewhere in the middle, and I hit him with a track and it worked."

Since releasing last year's The Hidden Files, the New York producer is in between projects at the moment as he awaits the released of incarcerated Mobb Deep partner Prodigy.

What do you think about Eminem working with the Mobb Deep producer? Let us know in the comments!

Related Artists

• Eminem
• Mobb Deep

M.I.A. ‘Born Free’ Video Kid Says Clip ‘Shows Violence To End Violence’

Ian Hamrick adds, 'M.I.A. was a sweetheart.'
By James Montgomery

Ian Hamrick in M.I.A.'s video for "Born Free"
Photo: Interscope

Toward the end of M.I.A.'s incendiary "Born Free" video, there's a horrifying slow-motion scene in which 12-year-old Ian Hamrick — one of the redheaded "minorities" rounded up by armed police officers — is shot in the head, then collapses to the ground as blood spurts from the wound.

Not surprisingly, Hamrick's parents weren't too excited when he was first cast in the video (his dad is a retired cop), but he persisted and eventually they allowed him to take part. And for the young actor, it was actually an opportunity to make a powerful statement. Because, as he revealed to TMZ, he's pretty deep for a 12-year-old.

"I think she was trying to show violence to end violence," Hamrick told the site Thursday. "The video is definitely not for kids — I haven't even seen the full video myself — but for all the adults and people in different countries who are doing that in real life ... doing the genocides to whatever: Italians, Africans, wherever it's from, it's still genocide. So it's showing violence to end violence."

Hamrick also told TMZ that he had met with the production team behind "Born Free" before signing on for the video, and was well aware of the grisly storyline. He also wants it to be known that "M.I.A. was a sweetheart."

In the meantime, debate continues to rage over the content of the video, which, while not entirely "banned" from YouTube, has been carefully hidden by YouTube's staff after enough viewers flagged the clip for objectionable content. A report on Wired.com cites a spokesperson for the site as saying that, while YouTube didn't pull the video, it did place it behind an age-restriction click through, rendering it impossible to find unless you already know the URL.

What do you think of M.I.A.'s "Born Free" video? Be warned: it's extremely violent.

Related Artists

• M.I.A.

Justin Bieber, ‘Twilight’ Stars Dominate Young Hollywood Awards

Another bloodthirsty cast, CW's "The Vampire Diaries," also takes honors at the ceremony on May 13.
By Terri Schwartz

Justin Bieber
Photo: Chip Somodevilla/ Getty Images

There weren't many surprises when it comes to gossip blog Hollywood Life's announcement of who made the cut for their 12th annual Young Hollywood Awards. Few things are hotter right now than "Twilight," Justin Bieber, Disney stars or any combination of the three.

So it certainly wasn't a shocker to learn that Bieber — who's enjoyed an extraordinarily fast ride to fame over the past year — is the recipient of the Young Hollywood Newcomer of the Year award.

But the Canadian phenom couldn't best the competition when it came to the Artist of the Year award. That honor went to another wildly popular teen: 17-year-old JoBro Nick Jonas, who nabbed the win, thanks to his solo debut with Nick Jonas and the Administration.

Also making the list were two young "Twilight" stars — but, surprisingly, not the pair fans might have expected. KStew and RPattz took home no prizes, but Nikki Reed was named Superstar in the Making, while Ashley Greene is the Young Hollywood Style Icon. Another vampire ensemble did make the cut, though, with the cast of the popular CW series "The Vampire Diaries" being named Cast to Watch.

Miley Cyrus' boyfriend, Liam Hemsworth, got a nod on the list for Breakthrough of the Year, after co-starring with Cyrus in "The Last Song." Hemsworth has a couple of films in the pipeline, including "The Throwback" and 2011's "Arabian Nights." The rising actor also boasts the prestigious honor of being one of Hollywood Crush's Hump Day Hotties.

The show will be held on May 13 in Los Angeles. Other notable winners included Whitney Cummings (Comedian of the Year), Chad Ochocinco (Athlete of the Year), Nina Dobrev (Young Hollywood Making Their Mark) and "90210's" Jessica Stroup (Young Hollywood Sparkling Performance).

Were you surprised at any of the winners? Let us know in the comments!

Related Photos

• Justin Bieber Takes Over The Bodies Of Other Teen Idols
• "New Moon"

Related Artists

• Justin Bieber
• Jonas Brothers

Lloyd Banks Feels ‘Back In The Loop’ Headlining New York Show

The G-Unit member brings his 'Beamer, Benz or Bentley' to the Nokia for his 28th birthday.
By Shaheem Reid

Lloyd Banks performs at the Nokia Theatre in New York City on Thursday
Photo: Johnny Nunez/ WireImage

Happy birthday, Lloyd Banks. The youngest G-Unit member touches number 28 on Friday (April 30). This year, the streets have been well fed with Banks' V5 mixtape (released in December), and "Beamer, Benz or Bentley," his collaboration with Juelz Santana, is translating from the Rotten Apple to down South and across the world. Just ask any member of the Unit who just came from their international run, during which Banks' hit threatened to steal the show every night.

On Thursday night, Banks headlined a concert at New York's Nokia Theatre, where his openers were Jackie Chain, Cory Gunz and veteran champs Reflection Eternal.

"It feels good," Banks told MTV News before hitting the stage. "It brings me back to when I first came out. I been headlining. It's just now I'm back in the loop. I'm a performer. My demeanor, my character from the beginning of my career has always been laid back a lot.  I speak through my music. Tonight, I'll speak through my performance."

Banks, whose Hunger for More 2 is due out this summer &— started the lunacy reaching back to his catalog and the first HFM. "Ain't No Click" commenced the proceedings, followed by the hit "I'm So Fly." Minutes later, the high energy continued with "Warrior," "Poppin' Them Thangs" and "Stunt 101." For "Straight Outta Southside," his brother in music Tony Yayo, along with several of Lloyd's homies from Queens, came out to chime in.

Yayo took over the stage with a few of his own hits, "So Seductive" and "Pimpin."

"Ain' no place like mutha----in' home," Yayo declared.

The Unit took a break in the show to salute recently deceased rap icon Guru.

Later, Banks went from partying to riding on his enemies. He brought back the old Murder Inc. dis record "I Smell Pu---," calling out Irv Gotti and Ja Rule.

Banks then asked the crowd how they felt about boys in blue. As the crowd asserted their disdain for police, Banks yelled, "Rick Ross can't hear y'all." He then threw bars at Ross.

"50 bodied you. I just laid the chalk down," the Queens rap outlaw yelled.

After telling his DJ for the night, Whoo Kid to shut down "Put Your Hands Up," the Haitian Barry White turned up "Beamer, Benz or Bentley."

"I'm fresh, I'm fly, I'm so damn high," the crowd rapped along. "More than 500 horses when I roll by/ I'm calm I'm cool, everything brand new/ I don't handcuff/ You can get the whole damn crew."

Have you seen Lloyd Banks in concert lately? Share your reviews in the comments.

Related Artists

• Lloyd Banks
• G-Unit

Killers Singer Brandon Flowers Preps Solo Debut

Frontman's Flamingo is 'coming soon,' according to band's Web site.
By Gil Kaufman

Brandon Flowers
Photo: Tim Mosenfelder/ Getty Images

You can take the man out of Las Vegas, but you can't take Las Vegas out of the man. Leave it to Killers singer Brandon Flowers to find a way to pay homage to his sucker's-paradise hometown in the announcement of his debut solo album.

After a week of Web teases, Flowers announced that he'd be stepping out on the band with a disc called Flamingo, which the band's official Web site says is "coming soon." The announcement, in the form of a broken-down neon sign that has the singer's name and a playing-card club lit up in red, is accompanied by a spare electronic track made up of pinging synth notes and some wordless falsetto vocals. The singer has also set up a parallel site that contains the same synth loop and glowing sign and that will presumably be a source of information about the disc.

The Killers teased the news of the Flowers album on Twitter earlier this week, telling their followers to check their official site for "big updates." While on tour in Australia earlier this year, the band canceled a number of dates following the death of Flowers' mother and said they would be taking an indefinite break from touring.

A spokesperson for the group could not be reached for further details about the album's release.

It appears Flowers isn't the only Killer taking a break, as drummer Ronnie Vannucci has signed up to perform in a supergroup called Mt. Desolation, featuring members of Keane, Mumford & Sons, Noah and the Whale and the Long Winters.

Related Artists

• The Killers

Ozzfest 2010 Features Ozzy Osbourne, Motley Crue

Rob Halford, DevilDriver and Nonpoint fill out mainstage lineup.
By MTV News staff

Ozzy Osbourne
Photo: Sergio Dionisio/ Getty Images

Ozzfest will return as a touring festival this summer, it was announced on Friday (April 30), with Ozzy Osbourne and Mötley Crüe headlining, according to a statement on the festival's official site. The tour will mark the first time the two bands have toured together since 1984, during the Crüe's breakthrough appearance as Ozzy's opening act on a major U.S. tour.

Ozzfest, which took a year off in 2009 and was a one-day event headlined by Ozzy and Metallica in 2008, will kick off August 14 in San Bernardino, California (the birthplace of the first Ozzfest in 1996), and then make stops in Chicago; Hartford, Connecticut; Camden, New Jersey; Pittsburgh; and Boston. Live Nation will promote the tour nationally.

The main stage will feature full sets from Ozzy, the Crüe and Rob Halford, the latter performing songs from his solo career along with material from Judas Priest and Fight. DevilDriver and Nonpoint will fill out the main stage lineup. Second-stage headliners and six-time Ozzfest veterans Black Label Society will be joined by Drowning Pool, Kingdom of Sorrow, Goatwhore, Skeletonwitch, Saviours and Kataklysm.

Each date on the tour will include 13 bands on two stages with music beginning at 1:00 p.m., according to the statement. There will also be a "Village of the Damned," featuring interactive activities, shopping and entertainment throughout the venue concourses.

Ozzy will release a new album, Scream, on June 15.

Tickets for the shows will go on sale May 22 at OZZfest.com and LiveNation.com.

Ozzfest 2010 dates, according to the festival's website:

8/14 - San Bernardino, California @ San Manuel Amphitheater
8/17 - Chicago @ First Midwest Bank Amphitheater
8/19 - Pittsburgh @ First Niagara Pavilion
8/21 - Hartford, Connecticut @ Comcast Theater
8/22 - Camden, New Jersey @ Susquehanna Bank Center
8/24 - Boston @ Comcast Center

Related Artists

• Ozzy Osbourne
• Motley Crue

Bret Michaels’ Doctor: ‘Bret’s Will To Live Is Undeniable’

Doctor says Michaels' condition remains serious, tests will continue.
By MTV News staff

Bret Michaels
Photo: Trish Tokar/ Getty Images

According to a statement posted late Friday (April 30) on Bret Michaels' official website, the singer is receiving treatment for the brain hemorrhage he suffered last week at the Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona — one of the world's top neurological centers and is the home of the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center. The statement said Michaels' location was not previously revealed "due to the severity of his life-threatening condition, the instantaneous way in which the hemorrhage presented itself and respect for his family."

Dr. Joseph Zabramski, the neurosurgeon who is leading Michaels' treatment team, said in the statement, "There is no doubt that Mr. Michaels' condition is serious. We are treating the subarachnoid hemorrhage, which caused his severe cranial pain. Mr. Michaels will continue to undergo testing considering we have hit a few roadblocks including hyponatremia, severe cranial and back pain suffered from blood drainage, an emergency appendectomy performed a week earlier and a lifelong history of Type 1 Diabetes.

"However, Bret's sheer will to live and fully recover is undeniable," Zabramski continued. "He has an unbelievable fight in him and told me what kept him alive at the moment of the hemorrhage was that he 'did not want his family to wake up and see him lying unconscious in the middle of the floor.' It was a combination of Bret's fight to stay conscious during the hemorrhage and get to the emergency room and the immediate medical attention provided by our staff at Barrow that enabled us to stabilize his condition."

A press conference will be held at 12 p.m. local time Tuesday (May 4) at Barrow to discuss Michaels' treatment and prognosis in detail.

Michaels' sister Michelle told a Nebraska radio station on Wednesday that she'd spoken with her brother recently. "Things are definitely looking up," she said. "He sounded good — as good as you can when your brain's throbbing. He seems very coherent to me and like he knew what he was saying. ... [He] does sound like Bret. Truth be told, I think he'll outlive us all."

Related Videos

• The Poison And Bret Michaels Video Playlist

Related Photos

• Bret Michaels' Career In Photos

Related Artists

• Bret Michaels

Christina Aguilera’s ‘Not Myself Tonight’ Recalls Her ‘Dirrty’ Days

New video is filled with leather, bondage and girl-on-girl action.
By Gil Kaufman

Christina Aguilera in her "Not Myself Tonight" video
Photo: RCA Records

Christina Aguilera has been talking a lot lately about how, despite being the mother of a toddler, she's not your average soccer mom and that motherhood has made her feel even sexier. Well, if you didn't believe her before, the skintastic video for her new single, "Not Myself Tonight," is NSFW proof.

In the clip that debuted at midnight on Vevo, the singer who went demure (for her) and old school on 2006's Back to Basics is back to her dirrty self.

Among the looks Aguilera models in the video is one in which she is restrained by diamond handcuffs and a bejeweled ballgag, while sporting star-shaped oversize fake eyelashes and a giant diamond collar.

Most of the clip, in fact, unfolds as a virtual video catalog for fetishwear, including black leather undies, a chainmail bikini top and a bedazzled outfit that consists of little more than strategically placed silver chains and pasties connected to wrist and ankle manacles.

While straddling a woman in black lacy lingerie who is shackled by the wrists on a cowhide chair, Aguilera models a purple PVC bikini set and a leather choker. A number of scenes find her wearing a black leather bondage mask with white X's down the front, matched later by a black bodysuit. There are also: riding crops, a handful of F-bombs, sexy, see-through skimpy raincoats, shirtless dancing in the rain and a throwdown in a church that ends with a writhing group grope.

Another iconic scene features Christina poured into a black PVC bodysuit and spiked heels crawling around on the floor and licking black milk from a black bowl that she later pours all over her body. Aguilera also continues to toy with her sexuality in the clip, kneeling down between a woman's legs suggestively at one point, and riding on the back, and front, of a sweaty shirtless man in another, recalling scenes from her legendary "Dirrty" video.

The song is the first release from Aguilera's album Bionic, out June 8. The video was helmed by Hype Williams, who also directed Lady Gaga and Beyoncé in "Video Phone" last year. In fact, a number of the scenes immediately drew comparisons to previous clips from Gaga, with gossipmongers such as Perez Hilton further fanning the flames of an alleged feud between the two divas. Aguilera, 29, recently dismissed those claims, saying, "It just comes with the territory. That in particular, is not even worth wasting the breath to comment on. ... I've been around for over a decade and I think my work speaks for myself."

To be fair, the comparisons could extend beyond similarities to Gaga and include not-so-subtle homages to earlier videos from Madonna, Duran Duran, Britney Spears, George Michael, Marilyn Manson and Rammstein.

Related Videos

• MTV News' Three To See

Related Photos

• The Evolution Of: Christina Aguilera

Related Artists

• Christina Aguilera

Gorillaz Bring Plastic Beach To Life In London

Damon Albarn and crew bring their live show to his hometown.
By James Montgomery

Gorillaz's Damon Albarn performs at London's Roundhouse on Thursday
Photo: MTV

There was a British orchestra dressed up as Russian sailors. A New York City rapper made up to look like Abraham Lincoln. Members of the Clash wearing captain's hats. Swedish and Japanese singers performing barefoot. A high-stepping brass ensemble from Chicago. What can we say? When Gorillaz put on a show, they really put on a show.

On Friday (April 30), Damon Albarn unleashed his animated all-stars on a sold-out crowd at London's Roundhouse theater (a performance streamed live on MTV.com) and he spared no expense, filling the stage with a seven-piece string section (the Sinfonia ViVA), a blaring army of horns (Chicago's Hypnotic Brass Ensemble), a massive backing band (that included former Clash-men Mick Jones and Paul Simonon) and more than a few special guests — all gathered together to perform tracks off the Gorillaz' new Plastic Beach album.

It was a show that was equal parts fierce and fragile, nasty and pretty, boomingly loud one minute, achingly quiet the next — sort of like the album itself. Things kicked off with the hushed strings of the Sinfonia and a beamed-in appearance from Snoop Dogg, who appeared on a video screen dressed as a sea captain and strutted his way through the Beach intro "Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach."

Then the full Gorillaz ensemble launched headlong into the throbbing "Stylo," featuring vocals from Bobby Womack and the mighty Mos Def (who rapped through what appeared to be a C.B. microphone). That was followed by the dreamy "Rhinestone Eyes," which saw Albarn finally step to the front of the stage — he had spent the first portion of the show tinkering with a piano in the background — while electronics chimed and wooshed around him.

The show then segued into quieter fare — "Broken," which got a soulful boost from the Hypnotic Brass and the Sinfonia, and "Empire Ants," featuring Little Dragon frontwoman Yukimi Nagano on vocals. The Lebanese National Orchestra for Oriental Arabic Music was trotted out for an extended, intricate jam, a transcendental few minutes that crashed right into "White Flag," featuring hyped-up cameos from Brit rappers Bashy and Kano (and Albarn waving an actual white flag).

A thumping, super-electro take on "Superfast Jellyfish" was up next, with frequent Gorillaz collaborators De La Soul serving as frontmen (and Super Furry Animals' Gruff Rhys singing the hook). Then Mos Def appeared once again — decked out in a stovepipe hat that, when coupled with his chin beard, made him look a whole lot like Abraham Lincoln, even if that wasn't the intended effect — to serve as a sort of carnival barker on "Sweepstakes," backed by the powerful Hypnotic Brass.

As the crowd cheered wildly, Albarn again stepped to the front of the stage to duet with Nagano on a bittersweet "To Binge" and, after a few tender moments, Womack emerged again to perform a moody "Cloud of Unknowing," the penultimate track on Beach.

And then, it was over — a breakneck hour filled with highlights, all directed by Albarn. As the band exited the stage, he looked happy, but exhausted. And who can blame him? This, after all, was a show.

Related Artists

• Gorillaz

Next Page »