NBA fans are wondering if James will head to Jay’s New Jersey Nets when his Cleveland contract is up.
By Rahman Dukes

src="http://www.mtv.com/shared/promoimages/bands/j/jay_z/jay_lebron_051410/281x211.jpg"/>



LeBron James and Jay-Z


Photo: MTV News

Now that LeBron James has received an early exit out of the NBA playoffs for the second straight year, fans wonder: Will the 2009-10 MVP hang up his Cavs jersey for a move to Brooklyn?

It’s no mystery that King James and Jay-Z are bosom buddies and that Jay’s influence on the scoring champ could bring the kid from Akron, Ohio, to the Big Apple. Earlier this year at their “Two Kings” annual event during the NBA All-Star weekend in Dallas, Hov told a crowd of reporters that he was impressed by LeBron’s growth over the years.

“I’m inspired by LeBron James at this moment, this season that he’s having,” Jay said. “I didn’t think that he would get any better. I remember when I first met him — he told me that he played point guard and I was like, ‘You’ll never make it in the NBA.’ I didn’t think he’d make it past half-court — he’s 6-foot-8! But I didn’t know how gifted this young man would become. And he’s getting better.”

“Growing up, I had many inspirations,” James added.

Jay-Z and LeBron share many similarities, from the reigning positions in their respective careers down to the origins of their upbringing, as both superstars come from single-parent homes.

“I think our biggest inspirations were our families,” Jay continued. “We didn’t have all of this stuff coming around the neighborhood. For us, it was just our mothers, our parents — our strong mothers.”

Later in the Q&A session, a reporter asked LeBron if he ever thought about playing for the Dallas Mavericks. “Uh …” LeBron paused, looking toward Jay for an answer.

“That’s a little self-serving,” Hov shot back at the reporter.

“What about the Nets?” another reporter asked.

“Nah,” Jay calmly responded. Only time will tell if Jay is pulling our leg — he’s been known to do that.

What team would you like to see LeBron James play for? Let us know in the comments!

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View full post on MTV News

‘I definitely don’t feel that I’m the best I can be,’ MC tells XXL.
By Jayson Rodriguez

src="http://www.mtv.com/shared/promoimages/bands/d/drake/pac_quote_101409/281x211.jpg"/>



Drake


Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

Last year, Drake topped a slew of veteran MCs to earn the #3 slot on MTV News’ Hottest MCs in the Game list.

But in an interview with href="http://www.xxlmag.com/online/?p=78971"
target="_blank">XXL, the Toronto lyricist said that despite the accolades thrown his way he’s still actually “trying to become a better rapper.”

The So Far Gone star — known for his blend of singing and rapping — explained that his ultimate goal is to outdo his previous work more than to compare himself to his peers.

“As far as rappers? Um … I’m really still trying to become a better rapper, you know? And I still have idols,” Drake said. “I still have people I look up to. I definitely don’t feel that I’m the best I can be nor am I the best rapper. Like I said, I just love making the music, and I’m less concerned about where I stand in the rankings and more about just where I stand with myself, like am I getting better? You know, am I the best I can be?

“I really don’t care about like compared to Hov or compared to Wayne,” he continued. “That’s another man. I’ve never been really worried about what anybody else is doing. I just use it as reference points and as influence and inspiration, but I don’t really bother myself with thinking who’s the best. ‘Cause that doesn’t really matter. It’s just who’s got the songs that move people at the time. Like if you’ve got the title of being the best rapper but you don’t have the hottest songs out? To me, that’s what’s important is just like putting out consistently good product.”

Although Drake’s recent single, “Find Your Love,” is more R&B-tinged than hip-hop flavored, the rapper said he still wants to be considered one of the best MCs when his June
15 debut, Thank Me Later, drops.

“I definitely want to be great,” he said. “You know, I’m not saying I don’t care. I obviously care. I love being mentioned in a class of people that are incredible, but I mean, you can focus on that sh– and drive yourself crazy. … In different genres it’s way different. I think rap is probably the most competitive genre.”

What did you think about Drake compared to other MCs? Let us know in the comments!

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‘I definitely don’t feel that I’m the best I can be,’ MC tells XXL.
By Jayson Rodriguez

src="http://www.mtv.com/shared/promoimages/bands/d/drake/pac_quote_101409/281x211.jpg"/>



Drake


Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

Last year, Drake topped a slew of veteran MCs to earn the #3 slot on MTV News’ Hottest MCs in the Game list.

But in an interview with href="http://www.xxlmag.com/online/?p=78971"
target="_blank">XXL, the Toronto lyricist said that despite the accolades thrown his way he’s still actually “trying to become a better rapper.”

The So Far Gone star — known for his blend of singing and rapping — explained that his ultimate goal is to outdo his previous work more than to compare himself to his peers.

“As far as rappers? Um … I’m really still trying to become a better rapper, you know? And I still have idols,” Drake said. “I still have people I look up to. I definitely don’t feel that I’m the best I can be nor am I the best rapper. Like I said, I just love making the music, and I’m less concerned about where I stand in the rankings and more about just where I stand with myself, like am I getting better? You know, am I the best I can be?

“I really don’t care about like compared to Hov or compared to Wayne,” he continued. “That’s another man. I’ve never been really worried about what anybody else is doing. I just use it as reference points and as influence and inspiration, but I don’t really bother myself with thinking who’s the best. ‘Cause that doesn’t really matter. It’s just who’s got the songs that move people at the time. Like if you’ve got the title of being the best rapper but you don’t have the hottest songs out? To me, that’s what’s important is just like putting out consistently good product.”

Although Drake’s recent single, “Find Your Love,” is more R&B-tinged than hip-hop flavored, the rapper said he still wants to be considered one of the best MCs when his June
15 debut, Thank Me Later, drops.

“I definitely want to be great,” he said. “You know, I’m not saying I don’t care. I obviously care. I love being mentioned in a class of people that are incredible, but I mean, you can focus on that sh– and drive yourself crazy. … In different genres it’s way different. I think rap is probably the most competitive genre.”

What did you think about Drake compared to other MCs? Let us know in the comments!

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View full post on MTV News

‘I said [to the doctors] in these exact words: ‘Am I dying?’ ‘ Poison frontman tells People magazine.
By James Montgomery

src="http://www.mtv.com/shared/promoimages/bands/m/michaels_bret/sister_042910/281x211.jpg"/>



Bret Michaels


Photo: Jason LaVeris/ FilmMagic

One day after he was released from the intensive care unit of a Phoenix hospital following a massive brain hemorrhage, Bret Michaels told People magazine that he feels “lucky to be alive.”

In the new issue of the magazine — which hits newsstands Friday — Michaels recalls the harrowing moments after he was first rushed to the emergency room on April 22, following a series of “excruciating headaches,” which doctors would later discover were actually due to a subarachnoid hemorrhage.

“I said [to the doctors] in these exact words: ‘Am I dying?’ ” Michaels told the magazine. ” ‘If I’m dying, I want to see my kids. But if I have a chance, I don’t want them to see me in this condition.’ ”

Doctors were able to stabilize Michaels, but he remained in the ICU for 10 days. During that time, he underwent a battery of tests to determine the cause of his hemorrhage, which occurred at the base of his brain stem, as fans filled Facebook and Twitter with messages of support, and his friends — like “Celebrity Apprentice” co-stars Sharon Osbourne and Bill Goldberg — issued statements hoping for a full recovery. His condition slowly improved, and earlier this week, the Poison frontman was able to speak without slurring his words.

His team of doctors at Phoenix’s Barrow Neurological Institute praised Michaels’ strength and spirit, saying his “sheer will to live and fully recover is undeniable.” According to People, Michaels is currently undergoing physical therapy at an undisclosed rehabilitation facility and is expected to make a full recovery.

Share your well-wishes for Bret Michaels in the comments.

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‘I tried to slither my way on that record,’ Young Money MC tells Mixtape Daily.
By Shaheem Reid, with additional reporting by Rahman Dukes and Sway Calloway

src="http://www.mtv.com/shared/promoimages/bands/l/lil_wayne/wayne_drizzy_041410/281x211.jpg"/>



Drake and Lil Wayne


Photo: MTV News

The O.D.: A Mixtape Daily Exclusive

Holla at the champs — your boys have finally decided to get it in on Twitter, so shout us out at @shaheemreid and @mongosladenyc. Let’s have dialogue and check for exclusives. Big up to Wiz Khalifa’s army, the Taylor Gang, who have been hitting us up about the mixtape Kush and Orange Juice by @RealWizKhalifa. We got something all the Taylors will be interested in real soon.

Now, down to business — we recently brought you clarified word that Lil Wayne appears on Drake’s June 15 LP Thank Me Later via the track “Miss Me.” But there’s more Wayne and Drake in the can. Drizzy sings on a remix of Wayne’s No Ceilings jam “I’m Single.” Drake was so enamored with the record, he wanted to get on the hook. That version is nestled in the Young Money vaults.

“I love that song,” Drake told us earlier this week. “I love that song. 40 produced that record for Wayne. I did that a while ago. I love that song. It’s one of those songs I wish was my song. I tried to slither my way on that record. I called Tez like, ‘Tez, let me get on that hook.’ There’s a version with me on it. I don’t know if it’s gonna get out there. Music is someone else’s creation. Once it’s done, it’s hard to say I wanna be a part of it. But me and Wayne, I get excited when Wayne wants to be on one of my songs. Musically we share that. We like doing songs together. I don’t think it’s a bad thing when we do songs together. … So there’s definitely a version with me on it. But that song is amazing on its own.”

As for “Miss Me,” Drake said it’s “straightforward.”

“It’s a pretty straightforward [song],” Drake said. “It’s a song about being away from what you love and hoping that when you’re gone, doing you, somebody out there misses you. It goes for Wayne in his situation and it goes for me in my situation, ’cause I’m on the road for I don’t how long right now.”

The video for the version of “I”m Single” that appears on No Ceilings debuts this Sunday on MTV2′s “Sucker Free Sunday” countdown and on MTV Jams as the Jam of the Week.

“The thing with Wayne, if you don’t get a chance to see how hard he worked on the record and the wit and pizazz he had with it, he wants to give you that same feeling the first time you hear it,” said DJ Scoob Doo, who directed the video. “Which he does audio-wise, but him performing it for you in the studio is really what it’s about, as far as this video.”

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

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‘I’m really glad they’ve taken a liking to me,’ singer says of supporters like Ludacris and Lil Wayne.
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Tim Kash

src="http://www.mtv.com/shared/promoimages/bands/b/bieber_justin/interview_41110/bieber_ep/seg_7/281x211.jpg"/>



Justin Bieber


Photo: MTV News

Justin Bieber chills with Drake and Ludacris and he’s even gotten a shout-out from Lil Wayne — how does he feel about being embraced by the hip-hop community?

“I like hop-hop a lot. I’m really glad they’ve taken a liking to me,” he told MTV News recently. “Having Luda [on my song 'Baby'] and having Lil Wayne give me shout me out on UStream and, like, you know — it’s cool.”

He added that unlike many of his contemporaries, including pop stars Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers, he didn’t need the House of Mouse to get ahead in the industry. “I think it’s because I didn’t go through the Disney route,” he explained. “I didn’t go corny, but, like, at the same time I’ve been cool and collected.”

And while one of his musical icons got his start on “The Mickey Mouse Club,” Bieber still looks up to Justin Timberlake and his mentor, Usher. “Well, basically I look at people like Usher and Justin Timberlake and how they went from being a child star to blowing up and doing what they’re doing now,” he said. “I look up and see what they do and see that’s what I want to do … and things that I want to do that’s different and things that I wanna do that’s working for them.”

And although he’s working for Usher these days, he admitted he wouldn’t pass up the chance to work with Wayne. “I would love to work with him in the future, but nothing so far,” he explained, adding that despite all the hip-hop in his life he’s actually got a lot of friends who are strictly pop.

“I mean, I just hang out with whoever. I’m also friends with Selena Gomez. I hang out with everyone,” he said, adding any rumors of a swagger coach have been greatly exaggerated. “I mean, it’s just a joke. It’s just something we made up. … I don’t know; I’m just myself.”

MTV News will be rolling out highlights from our exclusive sit-down interview with Justin Bieber all week!

What do you think of Justin Bieber’s hip-hop connection? Tell us in the comments below!

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I love it when serious rock-type bands start to get a bit silly. It shows massive confidence on their part, and an understanding that the work they are engaged in, while terribly important to everyone involved, is also collossally daft. If you can maintain the feeling of importance, while tipping the wink that it’s all a bit of a lark, you’re on to something pretty special.

It’s partly why people fell so hard for the Arctic Monkeys in the first place, for all that they were steel-eyed observers of gritty northern reality, they threw in a few gags here and there, and even wrote a funny song about rubbish bands thinking they’re all that.

The Prophs, with their comedy song titles and superintense choruses, have hit that silly patch beautifully. They are now fully-fledged pun rockers.

(Here’s the video. It’s got tasty geezers in it.)

And as I say, they’ve remembered the massive anthemic chorus, which is what the bulk of their fans are after. It’s a doozy too. Ripped to the gills with ‘it’s us against the world’ paranoia-defiance and gang solidarity.

And for a song which could easily rip off the dialogue from a bunch of Guy Ritchie films and whack in a ‘crime doesn’t pay’ fadeout to make the same point, the verses aren’t exactly a Crimewatch re-enaction of ‘Parklife’. There’s real pain in here, it’s just tempered with a smidge of humour.

For example, “Mikey, oh where’d you get the Nikes” is all sorts of brilliant. It’s got the weight and rhythm of proper poetry and, it’s funny. Which is what you need if you’re going to do a song about the risky, seedy side of a life in petty crime. Too serious, and you lose everyone who ever pinched a pencil from a corner shop*, too silly, or worse, too pleased with itself and the song starts to lose its moral base.

I know! I actually used the words ‘moral’ and ‘base’ in the context of a song by Lostprophets. That’s how good this is!

Download: April 11th
www.lostprophets.com
BBC Music page

(Fraser McAlpine)

*The BBC would like me to point out that pinching pencils from corner shops is not a nice thing to do. Not even fictitiously, in blog form.

View full post on BBC Audio & Music | Radio 1 Chart Blog

In 2009, Lil Wayne brought the rookie onstage with him; this year, he’s on his own.

src="http://www.mtv.com/shared/promoimages/bands/d/drake/over_live/281x211.jpg"/>



Drake performs at mtvU’s Spring Break 2010


Photo: mtvU

It’s amazing to think that at this time last spring, Drake was a relative unknown. A year ago, Lil Wayne brought Drake and the rest of his Young Money camp onto the mtvU Spring Break stage in Panama City Beach, Florida, for a performance of “Every Girl.” That shortly after So Far Gone dropped, but shortly before the mixtape took Drake to another stratosphere.

Fast-forward to last week’s Spring Break 2010 shows in Acapulco, Mexico, and there couldn’t be a more perfect example of the line in his song “Over”: “I know way too many people here right now that I didn’t last year.” Drake performed that song — the first single off his upcoming Thank Me Later — for the first time on television in front of hundreds of excited, scantily clad partiers. This time, Drizzy was rapping by his lonesome, backed only by a live band.

Drake recently told MTV News that he wanted “Over” (produced by Boi-1da and Al Khaaliq) to prepare everyone for what’s to come from him.

“I wanted to emerge at first from this album and just let people know, ‘This is how I’m coming out in the public eye. I’m ready for anything,’ ” he said. “Then when you get the album, it’s like, ‘Oh, he’s still human. He’s still thinking the same way.’ I wanted people to understand I could have lost it. ‘Over’ could have been my entire album. Just ’cause that’s what this industry and game will do to you if you lose yourself.”

At Spring Break, Drake looked like he was composed and enjoying himself — jumping around, smiling and taking time to hit a beach ball back toward the crowd.

Drake’s fellow Young Money member Nicki Minaj also performs at the show. She joined Ludacris onstage in a white one-piece bathing suit covered by a see-through body suit and a platinum-blond wig as she spit her equally eccentric guest verse for “My Chick Bad.” Trey Songz also hit the stage to perform his cocksure, sultry single “I Invented Sex.”

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View full post on MTV News

Plus: Akon talks about his latest signing, Ya Boy, in Mixtape Daily.
By Shaheem Reid, with additional reporting by Rahman Dukes

src="http://www.mtv.com/shared/promoimages/bands/a/alley_boy/alley_boy_031210/281x211.jpg"/>



Alley Boy


Photo: Atlantic

This Week’s Main Pick

Street King: Alley Boy, DJ Holiday and the Empire

Holding It Down For: Zone Six in Atlanta

Mixtape: Definition of F— Sh–

Real Spit: “2010 is a new year,” DJ Holiday said. “I had to go get somebody more gutter, more street. I had to go to Zone Six. Have I ever let you down?”

Alley Boy gets the prize for wildest mixtape title this year (see above). The rapper said he wants to keep street rap in the spotlight. “I put that title on the mixtape because I wanted something to stand out,” Alley said. (Mission accomplished.) “Just to be different. The topics I went in on, it’s a lot of things people would call negative. My whole image, it seems it’s so negative. I went there with it. I feel that those words definitely represent my attitude. It’s so watered down in Atlanta right now. I wanted to let folks know I’m a force to be reckoned with. I wanted a strong concept and strong title.”

He also has a story behind his MC name: “I’m from Zone Six. Edgewood’s finest,” he said. “The way I came up in these hallways, these cuts, these alleys, it just fit me.” Alley has a slew of guest spots holding it down for the A as well.

“I wanted to go in with my boy [Young] Dro,” he said. “We got a song called ‘Tall.’ Yung L.A., we had some controversy goin’ on. I wanted to show I reach out. I’m about the A. Princess from Crime Mob is on there. She goes stupid hard.”

Waka Flocka Flame is also on the mixtape, as is Gucci Mane, who called in from jail on an interlude.

Joints to Check For

» “Heaven Sent.” “It’s an intro to the album,” Alley said. “I wanted to make a statement from the intro. It’s produced by the Runners. It’s one of them statement songs. It was something I wanted to go in on. Let them know dudes in the South can really spit. We’re not just out swaggin’ and dancing. I had to let them know it’s really ‘hood. But just because you’re ‘hood, doesn’t mean you’re not smart or lyrical. I wanted to go in and let them know I’m heaven-sent to the game. I mastered my craft. I’m a force to be reckoned with.”

» “Throw it Up.” “The second song I want y’all to check for is ‘Throw It Up,’ ” AB said. “It’s one of my classics. I did it for every ‘hood, every zone, every ward. It’s really a representation song. Wherever you’re from, throw it up. Whatever you represent, live for it, die for it.”

» “Shiester.” “It’s one of my favorites, because it is telling a lot of things I been through,” Alley said. “It sticks out so much. It’s really a true story I brought on wax. I’m really passionate about this song. I’m thinking about launching it out as my single.”

Streets Is Talking: News & Notes From the Underground

We told you about West Coast beat killer Ya Boy signing to Akon’s Kon Live imprint a little while back. Well, now we give you the man himself, ‘Kon, telling us why he decided to get in business with the newcomer.

“Ya Boy is one of the most versatile artists I’ve ever seen,” Akon said. “He can make music for the streets, the clubs and the ladies, which really puts him apart from every artist out there. An artist like YB has the ability to make music for the world!”

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

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View full post on MTV News

Corey Haim was in “the best frame of mind” in his life, Corey Feldman said on Larry King Live Wednesday night, adding that people shouldn’t jump to conclusions that his close friend died of a drug overdose.

Corey Haim dead at 38

Haim, who had struggled with addiction for many years, was taken to a Burbank hospital where he was pronounced dead Wednesday morning.

“They need to stop saying it’s a drug overdose,” he told Larry King…

Read More >

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• Corey Feldman
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View full post on TVGuide.com: Breaking News