Best MTV Live Performance Of 2011: Voting Is Open!

Jay-Z and Kanye West's VMA set, 30 Seconds to Mars' 'Unplugged' and Beyoncé's big reveal made our top 16 — now you decide on the best.
By Gil Kaufman


Kanye West and Jay-Z perform at the 2011 VMAs
Photo: WireImage

When's the last time Beyoncé came to your job and revealed that she was pregnant with her first child? Or Jay-Z and Kanye West dropped by your party to perform live on TV for the first time as the Throne?

Those are just two of the 16 awesome moments compiled as part of a list of our Best MTV Live Performances of 2011. As the year draws to a close, the music experts at MTV News, MTV.com, Buzzworthy and MTV's music and talent department have narrowed down hundreds of live musical performances from 2011 to a carefully curated 16. Now, it's up to you to vote and decide on the Best MTV Live Performance of the year.

Voting is under way now and will remain open through Monday, December 12, at noon ET.

The choices are pretty amazing and they include Grammy nominee Adele's mesmerizing "Someone Like You" from the VMAs, Odd Future's mayhem-filled performance of "Sandwitches" and "Yonkers" at the 2011 mtvU Woodie Awards and Paramore's set 
at the "Fueled by Ramen 15th Anniversary Concert."

Also on the list is Mac Miller slaying the crowd during "Knock Knock" at "Mac Miller: Live in Chicago," MTV exclusives like 30 Seconds to Mars' MTV "Unplugged" show, Jack's Mannequin's rooftop take on "Release Me" and other memorable moments from Chris Brown, Pitbull, Wiz Khalifa, Lupe Fiasco, Lil Wayne, Foster the People, Robyn and Two Door Cinema Club.

Check out the nominees, watch show highlights and vote for the Best MTV Live Performance of 2011. Stay tuned for the results on Monday, December 12, at noon ET!

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'Dragon Tattoo' 'Impossible To Leave Behind,' Rooney Mara Says

'It's attached to your head and your body,' actress tells MTV News
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Josh Horowitz


Rooney Mara
Photo: MTV News

It took a lot of work for Rooney Mara to become the tattooed Lisbeth Salander. For David Fincher's big-screen adaptation of Stieg Larsson's bestselling "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," the actress didn't just have to think like the famed fictional hacker: It was a process to get into not just the mind, but also the body of the 24-year-old character — and Rooney's transformation into the broken and abused Lisbeth lingered with her long after shooting the film.

When MTV News asked if she carried herself differently while playing the character, Mara explained, "I think that I probably did. It's hard to look at yourself in that way. I think it'll be easier for me to really see that years from now. It's impossible to leave it behind whenever it's attached to your head and your body. But when you work 16 hours a day, there isn't really time to do anything else but go home and go to sleep."

Playing Lisbeth certainly comes with a unique skill set that goes far beyond just understanding her dark backstory. Given Lisbeth's penchant for computer hacking, motorcycles and physical activity, it comes as no surprise that Mara had to undergo some intense training for the physically and emotionally demanding role, one that had already been imagined once before by Noomi Rapace in a 2009 film version of the novels.

"That's my favorite thing about my job is that your education never really stops," Mara shared. "I feel like I went to school: I had motorcycle class from 9 to 11, and then I went to dialect class, and then I had skateboarding, and then I had computer training, and then I had kickboxing. I just feel like I learned so much. And that's kind of the most incredible part about my job is I got to acquire all these skills that I never really wanted or needed, but now I have them."

Whatever Mara did seems to have worked. Her performance is garnering her and the film some high critical praise. The flick opened Tuesday (December 20), and also features Daniel Craig, Stellan SkarsgÅrd, Christopher Plummer and Robin Wright.

Check out everything we've got on "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo."

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

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MUSIC FAB: Beyoncé WORKING On 5th Album?! ALL Mathew Knowles' Artists Have Been BANNED From Radio One!

Rumor has it that Beyonce is already in the studio working on album number five!  Get the deets inside and find out about Mathew Knowles' artists getting banned from Radio One by owner Cathy Hughes.

Does she ever slow down?  Apparently not since not even pregnancy has stopped Queen Bey from starting her fifth album.

The Dream, who wrote her mega hit "Single Ladies" and a few of the tracks on her 4 album, recently revealed that the two are re-teaming for her next project.

 "She's ready to work,  She's crazy! She never stops doing anything. I don't know if [pregnancy] is going to slow her down. She's just incredible with doing things, I don't know how she's going to do it, she's just a maniac... in a good way."

Good luck on the next project Bey!  I'm sure the baby will inspire some great tracks.

SIDEBAR: We all want Beyonce to be "great" but don't we also want her to take some time off and enjoy motherhood? She has accomplished way too much for homegirl to slip our minds. But do you boo!

 

And in other Knowles news....

We told you earlier that Beyonce was no longer working with Mathew Knowles.  Now Cathy Hughes and her radio/tv empire have turned their backs as well.

Cathy Hughes’ cable channel TV One is suing the BET Network, MTV and Music World Music for violating its exclusive rights to the Essence Music Festival. Mathew Knowles' Music World Music is in the mix because his company brokered the deal for the Essence Music Festival broadcast with TV One.

But now, Mathew is being accused of re-issuing the content BET, MTV and BET’s Centric Network despite TV One’s four-year exclusivity agreement. Messy......

So in response, Radio One has pulled all of Knowles’ Music World songs and artists from their radio stations nationwide.

“All Radio One personnel were told to pull all Music World artists out of rotation immediately and indefinitely! We were told that the mandate came straight from Ms. Hughes and that there would be ramifications for anyone playing or mentioning a Music World artist or song on air,” said one Radio One employee.

Damn!

And this could hurt Mathew because his company primarily focuses on gospel music as the employee added,

“Radio One owns at least 12 gospel stations across the country – that’s the majority. It’s hard for artists to sell CD’s without radio airplay! Right now Music World definitely isn’t getting any from Radio One.  Le’Andria Johnson’s song ‘Jesus” was in heavy rotation on Radio One stations one day and the next day she wasn’t getting any spins. New music by Trin-I-tee 5:7 and Micah Stampley, as well as recurring hits by Brian Courtney Wilson have been pulled as well.”

Things done in the dark....

 

Source: http://theybf.com/2011/12/20/music-fab-beyonc%C3%A9-working-on-5th-album-all-mathew-knowles-artists-have-been-banned-from-r

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Michael Jackson Doctor Conrad Murray Files Appeal

Murray will represent himself as he contests involuntary manslaughter conviction for which he faces up to four years in state prison.
By Kara Warner


Dr. Conrad Murray
Photo: Pool/ Getty Images

As expected, Michael Jackson's former doctor Conrad Murray has filed an appeal to challenge his involuntary manslaughter conviction.

According to TMZ, Murray filed the petition in pro per, which means he has decided to forego hiring legal representation and represent himself. He reportedly listed "Men's Central Jail" and his booking number in the space on the appeal document where a lawyer would normally list a firm's name or contact information.

TMZ also reported that although Murray seems to be without a lawyer, he is still in communication with Nareg Gourjian, one of the attorneys who represented him during his manslaughter trial.

"This case presents a gold mine of issues for any appellate lawyer," Gourjian told TMZ. "Dr. Murray is confident that the Court of Appeal will vindicate him."

Following the guilty verdict, Murray's lead defense lawyer Ed Chernoff told CNN, "What matters most right now is trying to keep Dr. Murray from taking up a prison cell in this community. That's what we're focusing on right now, and we'll deal with an appeal after that."

Murray was sentenced to four years in jail Tuesday, but due to overcrowding, he's unlikely to serve his full term.

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'Wrath Of The Titans' Trailer: Hell Comes To Earth

Sam Worthington, prepare to suffer the "Wrath of the Titans." The "Avatar" actor is back as Perseus in the "Titans" sequel, which he promised will be better than the first outing in the series. Today's release of the "Wrath" trailer has left us feeling confident that the sequel will live up to Worthington's hype. The film [...]

Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2011/12/19/wrath-of-the-titans-trailer/

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'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo': The Reviews Are In!

Critics are praising David Fincher's direction and Rooney Mara's performance.
By Kevin P. Sullivan


Rooney Mara in "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"
Photo: Sony Pictures

The year's most anticipated movie about ritualized serial killing, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," finally hits theaters Tuesday (December 20), and critics have applauded both director David Fincher for bringing his signature style and Rooney Mara's performance.

This is the second time we're seeing a big-screen adaptation of the über-popular Stieg Larsson novel, and opinions vary on whether the latest version brings much that's new to the battle.

Check out what the critics are saying about "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo."

The Story
"Craftily condensed into 158 minutes, the adaptation by Steven Zaillian maximizes the relationship, first as wary colleagues, then, briefly, as lovers, between Blomkvist and Salander. They go about nailing a killer of women, and solving the riddle of a teenaged girl's disappearance decades earlier. All roads, icy and grim, lead to a rich extended family led by Henrik Vanger (Christopher Plummer), whose relatives, living on the same remote island, have a tremendous amount to hide including Nazism, neo-Nazism and hideous personal peccadillos. By the end, 'Silence of the Lambs' style, we're trapped in the lair of the worst of the worst." — Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

The Direction
"Sometimes, but not often enough, American directors get European remakes right. Such is the case with 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,' in which filmmaker David Fincher revisits twisted serial-killer turf in a hypnotic land of ice and snow. Fincher's electrifying storytelling makes the most of unsettling visuals, large casts, complex plots and sharp dialogue. His fascination with dark material and masterful technical skills [serves] him well in the remake of 2009's Swedish-language 'Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,' based on the popular pulp thriller. Even though the story is familiar — the book sold 65 million copies — Fincher's take on the creepy yarn has his unmistakable stamp, starting with the opening credits." — Claudia Puig, USA Today

Comparisons to the Swedish Film
"The resulting film is neither better nor worse than the Swedish film, but it's more cinematic. The Swedish version was originally made for television and seen in installments. Fincher's movie is 158 minutes and meant to be seen in one shot — and that's precisely how those 158 minutes go by, in a shot. There is not a wasted scene or a single minute where the movie drags. 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' harmonizes the languor of television with the urgency of cinema, an achievement in itself." — Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

Rooney Mara
"As Lisbeth Salander, the sullen 24-year-old waif hacker who's the story's spectacularly outlandish heroine, Rooney Mara is a revelation. She sports the spiky black plumage of a punkette peacock, with oversize earrings tightened onto her lobes like gears, pale-gray skin set off by barely perceptible eyebrows, choppy bangs, and piercings she wears like scars. ... Mara acts with a quiet power — a rage chilled into silence — that is almost ghostly." — Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

The Final Word
"In the end, there's not much extra even David Fincher can bring to 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.' This fastidious, technically stellar Hollywood telling of one of the great literary sensations of recent times is highlighted by a bewitching performance from Rooney Mara as the punked-out computer research whiz Lisbeth Salander and remains an absorbing story, as it was on the page and in the 2009 Swedish screen version." — Todd McCarthy, The Hollywood Reporter

Check out everything we've got on "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo."

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

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Around the Web?

It’s Tuesday! Take a break this afternoon with these riveting reads: How the Duggar children are handling the loss of baby Jubilee — PEOPLE The top headlines of 2011 that changed the parenting perspective — Parents.com Parents share their children’s horrifying photo shoots with Santa — Today Moms What’s your all-time favorite baby boy name from [...]

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Ke$ha, Adam Lambert, Ne-Yo Have A Few Royal Wedding Gift Ideas

From 'guyliner' to American delicacies like Uncrustables, Kathy Griffin, Mike Posner and more tell us what they'd get Will and Kate.
By Terri Schwartz


Kate Middleton and Prince William
Photo: Ben Stansall/ Getty Images

What kind of wedding gift do you give the royal couple who has everything?

The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton is on Friday (April 29), so MTV News reached out to some of our favorite Hollywood celebrities — from Ke$ha to Adam Lambert. Fortunately, they had some solid ideas!

"I haven't met them, so it would be kind of awkward," the "Tik Tok" singer admitted to MTV News. "I might paint them something. Maybe I'll paint them a guitar."

Like Ke$ha, other celebs had suggestions that were from the heart, even if they weren't the most practical.

"I will go out on a limb and say these two individuals maybe haven't had Uncrustables before in their life. I would get them a strawberry Uncrustable," Mike Posner said about the pastry.

David Cook followed up on the all-American food idea. "I feel like they have everything except maybe they probably don't have an Applebee's gift card. I'll go [with an] Applebee's gift card," the "American Idol" alum said.

Other stars said they'd gift the British prince and soon-to-be-princess with an item they were personally best known for.

"I'd probably buy William some eyeliner," Lambert said. "He could do that, he could rock that look. I think."

Ne-Yo was more empathetic, saying he would give gifts that could help shield them from photographers and blend in with everyday people. "Three years' supply of sunglasses. Yeah, put them on. A bunch of baseball caps, throw those on, and try to move around like regular people," the singer said. "I can't imagine what it would be like having to live under that big of a magnifying glass your whole life ... and fake mustaches, that's what I'd give them."

Brooke Burke went the more traditional route, saying she would get Will and Kate a journal to record the big event. "I would ask them to really take the time to write down thoughts and phrases and wishes," Burke said. "And not really to lose sight of how they feel about each other now and to really hold on to that feeling."

Kathy Griffin had good intentions but the comedian couldn't resist a puke joke.

"If I had to get the royal couple a gift, I would get them the Royal Couple Vomit Bag, which someone sent me a photo of," Griffin told us. "So you can actually buy vomit bags with their image on it, and I think that that is an honor and I hope that they see it as such."

What would you give to William and Kate? Share your ideas in the comments section!

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Rooney Mara Talks Nipple Piercing, Eyebrow Shaving

Proving just how serious she is about her acting career, Rooney Mara willingly went to great lengths to get into character for ?The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.?

Chatting with FOX 411, the 26-year-old revealed that - for the role as Lisbeth Salander - she had to chop her hair, shave her eyebrows and pierce her nipple, nose and brow!

Divulging that it didn?t take long to get used to her new look, Mara told, ?I was fazed by the transformation. The eyebrows changed the way I looked the most, but I would say it freaked me out for maybe two minutes then I was fine."

The highly-anticipated flick, which already earned Rooney a Golden Globe nomination, hits theaters today (December 20).

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Kellan Lutz and the Hilton Sisters Party It Up in Aspen

Making for quite the winter-time soiree, Kellan Lutz joined Paris and Nicky Hilton in attending a party in Aspen, CO on Monday night (December 19).

The ?Twilight? hunk and the hotel heiresses mingled amongst the other guests at the holiday fete, which was in honor of Audi and Piaget celebrating Pathfinders.

Also in attendance at the sprawling private estate were Zachary Quinto, Lori Loughlin and Paris and Nicky?s parents, Rick and Kathy Hilton, who mingled with polo players Nacho Figueras and Nic Roldan.

Aside from sipping on drinks and engaging in conversation, guests were also doted with plenty of tasty classic holiday treats including one of the night's favorite fares, pigs in a blanket.

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