Category Archives: News

Kid Cudi delays album to November 9, teases Dot Da Genius collab

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I don’t want to start counting how many times Kid Cudi’s forthcoming second studio album, Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager, has been delayed.  OK, I think it’s been three times.  And you know what?  For all we know these changes haven’t been delays, per se; everything is labeled rumor until the record label makes the official call.  Although the label didn’t make the call this time around, it is the first time Cudder acknowledged a release date.  He sounded pretty confident about a November 9 release date when he announced it during a performance at the University of Buffalo.  He explained the push to November saying that he’s being working so hard on the songs that he forgot to put much effort into the “other [important] sh-t”, like the album artwork.  He wants to “bring art on all levels…musically and visually with the packaging.”  He promises that another movie poster and DVD footage will be included with the album.  Regular and deluxe versions will be available to purchase.

Cudi continued the conversation with his fans by revealing that another album is in the works.  He will be collaborating with longtime partner Dot Da Genius (Day N Nite) and he plans on releasing it alongside MOTM2 so that we will have “a sh-t ton of Kid Cudi music to listen to” for the foreseeable future.  Right on!  Lastly he says he’s working on mastering “Dose of Dopeness“, a track that he performed for an audience back in 2008.

Look after the break to hear all this news straight outta Kid Cudi’s mouth.

[Via DatNewCudi] Continue reading Kid Cudi delays album to November 9, teases Dot Da Genius collab →

FOX picks up ‘Locke & Key’

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Well, that didn’t take too long.  About one week after it was spilled that Josh Friedman (showrunner/executive producer/writer), Steven Spielberg (executive producer), and Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman (executive producers) were going to work on an adaptation of Joe Hill’s comic book Locke & Key FOX swiftly decided to pick up the show and made a series commitment to the project.  For a show to receive a direct-to-series order says a lot about the potential for it.  Upcoming shows like The Walking Dead (AMC) and Terra Nova (FOX) follow in Locke & Key‘s footsteps; they were given a full series order without having to prove their worth by taping a pilot episode beforehand.  Heather Kadin, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank and Ted Adams join as executive producers.  20th Century Fox and DreamWorks TV are signed on to back the venture.  And according to The Hollywood Reporter, there are talks that the show will be “a potential summer project.”  Glad to hear things are full steam ahead.

Locke & Key follows three teenage brothers, Tyler, Kinsey, and Bode Locke, who move to a Massachusetts mansion where they find the mystical Ghost Door which grants them powers, including the ability to separate his spirit from body and to transport between different worlds.

[Via THR; IGN]

Kara DioGuardi exits American Idol

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Last night FOX released a press statement informing American Idol fans that judge Kara DioGuardi is leaving the show.  DioGuardi says: “I felt like I won the lottery when I joined American Idol two years ago, but I feel like now is the best time to leave Idol.  I am very proud to have been associated with American Idol — it has truly been an amazing experience.  I am grateful to FOX, FremantleMedia and 19 Entertainment, as well as the cast, crew and contestants, for all they have given to me.  I look forward to my next challenge, and want to thank everyone who has supported me.  All the best to everyone on Season 10!”  AI creator and executive producer Simon Fuller shared his sentiments on the matter: “Kara is one of the world’s best songwriters.  She has been passionate and committed to Idol over the last two seasons.  I will miss having her on the show, but I look forward to working with her in music for many years to come.”

DioGuardi is the third judge to leave the show prior to the start of the tenth season.  Simon Cowell bid farewell last season and Ellen DeGeneres departed in July.  Randy Jackson remains the last dawg standing.  The latest reports pin Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler as likely replacements.  Executive producer Nigel Lythgoe publically stated that he wishes for the show to return to a three-person judges panel.  Season 10 premieres in January 2011, so it’s just a matter of time before we are informed about the new slate of judges.

[Via EW-PopWatch]

Apple September event roundup: New iPods, iTunes 10, refreshed Apple TV, iOS4 updates

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Today Apple CEO Steve Jobs took the stage to announce a new lineup of iPods, the next version of iTunes, and a refreshed Apple TV.  He also talked about the next two iOS4 software updates.  Let’s dive right into it, shall we?

iPod shuffle: The redesigned fourth generation iPod shuffle brings back the clickable front-facing ring buttons (play/pause, previous, next, volume up, volume down) and keeps VoiceOver control (it speaks artist and song name, multiple playlists, and battery status in 25 different languages) and the back clip.  It now supports playlists and Genius Mixes.  The tiny sqaure casing includes the on/off/play in order/shuffle switch, a VoiceOver button, and a 3.5mm headphone jack for audio and USB charging.  The battery holds up to 15 hours of audio playback.  The shuffle will be available in 5 different colors (grey, blue, green, orange, and pink).  A 2GB model will start shipping in one week for $49.

iPod nano: The redesigned sixth generation iPod nano does away with the click wheel and adds a 1.54 inch (240×240) multitouch display.  It adopts the tiny iPod shuffle aesthetic; it’s even got the built-in back clip.  It is 46 percent smaller and 42 percent lighter than the previous nano model.  To navigate around the iOS-like touch interface, swipe left and right to access different pages of icons, up and down to scroll through lists, double tap to zoom in on photos (there is no pinch-to-zoom), and tap to access other areas.  Any time you want to go back to the home screen simply tap and hold anywhere on the screen (there is no home button).  You can even rotate the screen using two fingers.  You can customize the pages of icons by touching and holding an icon down until it jiggles then dragging it to the desired position.  Everything here should be very familiar to iPhone and iPod touch users; it’s all just miniturized.  The home screen gives you access to playlists, now playing, artists, and Genius Mixes.  Also available is an FM radio, Nike+, a clock, Voice Memo, and access to Photos, Podcasts, Settings, and music categorized by song, album, genre, and composer.  The small enclosure includes a sleep/wake switch and volume up and down buttons on top and the 30-pin dock connector and 3.5mm headphone jack on bottom.  It also has a built-in accelerometer and supports VoiceOver in 29 different languages.  The battery holds up to 24 hours of audio playback.  The nano will be available in 7 different colors (grey, blue, green, orange, pink, charcoal, and Product (RED)).  8GB ($149) and 16GB ($179) models will start shipping in one week.

iPod touch: The fourth generation iPod touch gets even closer in design and functionality to its iPhone cousin.  The new touch features the same 3.5 inch (960×640) Retina Display, Apple A4 processor, back camera, and  front-facing camera, and three-axis gyro sensor as the iPhone 4.  The back camera shoots HD (720p, up to 30fps) video that can be edited on the device with simple trimming (included) or with more advanced editing (the $4.99 iMovie app now supports the iPod touch); it can also shoot stills.  The front-facing camera can shoot stills and supports FaceTime chats over WiFi with other iPod touches and iPhone 4s.  The external buttons and input/output holes remain the same: sleep/wake switch, volume up and volume down, the home button, 30-pin dock connector, 3.5mm headphone jack, build-in speaker and microphone.  802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, Nike+, accelerometer, ambient light sensor are still there as well.  The battery holds up to 40 hours of audio and 7 hours of video playback.  The touch will be available in polished aluminium on black only.  8GB ($229), 32GB ($299), and 64GB ($399) will start shipping in one week.

iTunes 10, Apple TV, iOS4 after the break ::   Continue reading Apple September event roundup: New iPods, iTunes 10, refreshed Apple TV, iOS4 updates →

Conan announces the name of his new TBS show!

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Today Conan O’Brien announced the name of his new TBS show.  He pointed his followers on Twitter to his TeamCoCo website where a video (embedded above) greets his fans and reveals the “simple, pure” name of the show.  “Spoiler alert: The words “Tonight” and “Show” aren’t in it”, Conan tweeted.  On the site he says, “I was really pushing for “360 with Anderson Cooper featuring Conan O’Brien”, but no one had my back.”  I won’t spoil the announcement for you, so click play!  I cannot wait for the return of Conan.  He comes back to the air November 8 on TBS.  Look after the break for the official image of the show name.

[Via TeamCoco; Twitter] Continue reading Conan announces the name of his new TBS show! →

Darabont confirms The Walking Dead season 2 [Update: Not so fast]

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I’m sorry I can’t contain myself. YES!  *Breath* Ok, that’s better.  Now where was I?  Oh, right…

Frank Darabount, showrunner/director/producer/writer of AMC’s upcoming horror drama The Walking Dead (based on the comic book by Robert Kirkman), told Fangoria magazine that a second season of the zombie apocalypse show is official.  Fans of the most anticipated new fall show must be teeming with excitement–The Walking Dead hasn’t even aired a single episode yet and the network gave it a green light to continue producing new content!  Filming for season 2 will begin February 2011.  Ready for some more good news?  Producer Gale Anne Hurd confirms that season 2 will expand the episode count.  While the first season will carry a short 6-episode arc, season 2 will contain 13 episodes.

Darabount hinted at what to expect in the second season.  Perhaps some of the “environmental elements” from volume two of Kirkman’s comics will play a pivotal role?  “It would be great not just to get out of the heat, but to present a different idea to the audience visually and tonally by having it be winter.  There’s some really cool stuff that Kirkman did, where they find the one zombie that’s frozen to the ground.  I’d never seen that before and that’s really cool.”

Yes, yes it is.  Darabont goes on to share his excitment about how the team plans on introducing a fan favorite from the comic book series.  “Or when Michonne shows up – and boy, is she a character I can’t wait to get to – when she comes striding out of the wasteland like a Clint Eastwood f***ing spaghetti western character cross-melded with some samurai movie, like the Baby Cart character with the f***ing sword, and there’s just a little drift of snow in the air.  I would love to put that on film.”

Hyped?  Me too.  The Walking Dead premieres October 31 at 10PM on AMC; it’s a two-hour episode so set your DVRs accordingly.

Update: Numerous sources say that Darabont spoke too soon.  According to AMC reps news of a second season is pure speculation and “rumor.”  Oh well.  It will be made official soon enough.

[Via ComicBookMovie; IGN]

New Xbox 360 wireless controller features new D-pad, matte silver looks

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Today Xbox’s Major Nelson showed off a newly designed Xbox 360 wireless controller.  Right off the bat you will notice the new color scheme.  The controller is now colored matte silver and the ABXY buttons have lost their vibrant colors (green, red, blue, yellow) to match the controller body.  The two analog sticks are slightly more concave now, too.  What you might not notice instantly in the pictures but you certainly will when the controller is in your hands is the brand new D-pad.  For years Xbox gamers have complained about the lack of a raised D-pad, but now this issue can be put to rest.  Microsoft has patented a “transforming D-pad”.  In the standard configuration the D-pad is a disc (that’s what we’re sued to).  With the new controller you can now twist the D-pad to raise the plus sign about a quarter-inch making it a whole lot more usable (especially for gamers who play boxing games where D-pad use is of the utmost importance).

—–>

The new controller will be available November 9 and will only be found inside the $64.99 Play & Charge Kit.  Microsoft has not stated if/when the new controller will replace the old model outside of the P&C Kit and whether or not it will ever be bundled in the new 250GB Xbox 360 package.  Look after the break to watch Major Nelson hold up the controller in all its gray glory.

[Via MajorNelson; Engadget]

Continue reading New Xbox 360 wireless controller features new D-pad, matte silver looks →

Google introduces Priority Inbox for Gmail

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If you’re the kind of person who is constantly receiving vast amounts of email from all over the place (friends, family, special offers, subscription renewals, junk and spam) and having a hard time organizing it all, you are going to jump for joy when Priority Inbox for Gmail hits your account.  Here is the problem Google is attempting to solve with Priority Inbox.  You receive so many emails every day and sometimes it is hard to sort and find what’s important and what isn’t.  Google prides itself for doing a pretty decent job of filtering out all the junk email into the spam folder.  Priority Inbox takes things one step further:

As messages come in, Gmail automatically flags some of them as important. Gmail uses a variety of signals to predict which messages are important, including the people you email most (if you email Bob a lot, a message from Bob is probably important) and which messages you open and reply to (these are likely more important than the ones you skip over). And as you use Gmail, it will get better at categorizing messages for you. You can help it get better by clicking the (+) or (-) buttons at the top of the inbox to correctly mark a conversation as important or not important. (You can even set up filters to always mark certain things important or unimportant, or rearrange and customize the three inbox sections.)

Neat, huh?  That last part there is the most promising.  Over time Priority Inbox gets better at predicting what messages are important to you.  The new feature will automatically sort your messages into these three folders: important and unread, starred, and everything else.  You have the option to customize and rename these folders if you like.  Priority Inbox is currently in beta and is being rolled out to all Gmail users over the course of this week.  Once you see the “New! Priority Inbox” link at the top right corner of your Gmail window, click it to give it a try.  The video embedded above will help explain this new Gmail feature to you in a brief animation.

[Via GoogleBlog]

Kanye West announces Jay-Z collab EP, drops “Monster” (Featuring Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Bon Iver & Nicki Minaj) & “Runaway Love” (Remix) (Featuring Justin Bieber & Raekwon)

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Kanye West promised new music every “G.O.O.D. Friday” and so far he has not broken that promise.  On Friday August 27 Kanye released “Monster” and it features an all-star cast including Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj, and Justin Vernon of indie folk band Bon Iver.  All in all the track is tight, but you want to know who really kills it?  Nicki Minaj, that’s who.  She raps, “You could be the king, but watch the queen conquer.”  She’s quick and has tons of spunk.  Female rappers that go hard like this aren’t in abundance these days; I’m excited to see what she’s going to do next.  In fact, all of a sudden I’m anticipating her debut album to drop.  (Its expected release date is November 23, one week after Kanye’s yet-to-be-titled album hits stores.)  Kanye made sure to mention how much he appreciated Nicki’s contribution to the track.  He tweeted, “MONSTER… can we just talk about Nicki’s verse???????!!!!!!!!! I toooooooooooooooold yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaallll!!!!!!!!!!!!”  Preview and download “Monster” below.

Download: Kanye West – “Monster” (Featuring Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Bon Iver & Nicki Minaj)

[audio: Kanye West – Monster.mp3]

Speaking of Twitter… Nearly three hours before he posted the download link for “Monster” he shared this exciting news: “Me and jay bout to drop a 5 song album called ‘Watch the Throne'”.  I guess we can consider this upcoming 5 track EP a mini-prequel to his studio album.  Along with the download link he tweeted, “[This is] the second song off of me and Jay album!”  It would not be too drastic to think that the first song off the EP is the “Power” remix since that song does feature Jay-Z, but ‘Ye left this up in the air for now.

Fast forward to today and now there’s another new song from Camp Kanye.  Yeah I know, it’s not Friday just yet, so I guess we can consider this next song a special bonus.  About two weeks ago Kanye tweeted that he was listening to Justin Bieber’s “Runaway Love” song from My World 2.0.  The Bieb responded with gratitude.  Next Kanye blurted out this: “Maybe we can do something together. Me, You and Raekwon.”  Bieber’s reply?  “Me, u, and the chef 2gether on a song = EPIC. haha.”  Yeah, this collaboration actually happened.  Kanye West, Raekwon of the Wu-Tang Clan, and teen sensation Justin Bieber (who happens to be signed to Def Jam Records with Kanye) are featured on a remix of “Runaway Love”.  After listening to the track it appears that The Bieb might not have had a hand in making the mix.  Basically Kanye laid Beiber’s vocals on top of the Wu-Tang Clan’s “Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthing Ta F’ Wit” (1993) beat.  The remix includes one rather short verse from Kanye and two surprisingly explicative-free verses from Raekwon.  And you want to know what?  The song catchy, what with Bieber’s young Michael Jackson-esque sound, the Chef’s old school rhymes, and ‘Ye’s producing.  It’s a nice treat for fans of so many different generations.  Feel free to preview and download the track below.

Download: Kanye West – “Runaway Love” (Featuring Justin Bieber & Raekwon)

[audio: Kanye West – Runaway Love (Featuring Justin Bieber & Raekwon).mp3]

[Via KanyeBlog, here & here; Twitter]

So “Erase Me” is the first single off Kid Cudi’s next album

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After dropping “REVOFEV” and “Erase Me” on his blog it turns out rapper Kid Cudi has decided to make the less edgy but more rocker track the official first single off his upcoming album Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager.  “Erase Me” (Featuring Kanye West) is now available to download at iTunes.  MOTM2 is due out October 26.  (And don’t forget another track outted by Cudder called “Mojo So Dope.”)

[Via DatNewCudi]

2010 Emmys results: Modern Family, Mad Men win; Lost emerges empty-handed

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Jimmy Fallon hosted the 62nd Primetime Emmys Sunday night.  Overall the awards show proved to be underwhelming.  Fallon brought his ecclectic musical abilities to the table; the opening Glee-inspired number and the tribute to shows that ended last season (24, Lost, Law & Order) were the most entertaining parts of the show.  There was also a humorous Modern Family segment that coughed up plenty of laughs.  Despite the lack of exciting bits and jokes, 13.5 million viewers tuned into the telecast; that’s the largest audience for any non-sports telecast this year since American Idol‘s season finale in May.  The awards show also saw the highest adults 18-49 rating (4.1) for any telecast since the Glee season finale in June.

But let’s move on to the winners and losers, shall we?  Modern Family and Mad Men took home the top prizes for outstanding comedy and drama series, respectively.  It was certainly a nail-biter between Modern Family and Glee, but the voters made it known that the more grounded sitcom was worthy of the Emmy.  This is the third win in a row for Mad Men in the top category; they beat out the fantastic final season of the beloved Lost.  Speaking of Lost, the show was completely shut out.  Dexter‘s Steve Shill beat out Lost‘s Jack Bender for best directing; Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) topped Matthew Fox for best actor; Terry O’ Quinn (Lost) and Michael Emerson (Lost) likely split the vote and lost against Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad) for outstanding supporting actor; and Damon Lindelof & Carlton Cuse did not win for writing the final episode “The End”–that award went to Matthew Weiner & Erin Levy for Mad Men‘s “Shut the door. Have a Seat.”

Let’s look back at the comedy categories.  Modern Family continued to impress when Eric Stonestreet (he plays Cameron) won outstanding supporting actor against costars Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Ty Burrell.  Showrunners Steven Levitan & Christopher Lloyd won outstanding writing for the pilot episode.  Though it did not win best comedy, Glee did have its time to shine.  Jane Lynch won outstanding supporting actress for her awesome portrayal as the snarky Sue Sylvester, beating out Modern Family‘s Julie Bowen and Sofia Vergara in the process.  Glee creator Ryan Murphy won for his direction of the captivating pilot episode.  Moving on… Jim Parsons finally won best actor for playing the nerdtastic Sheldon Cooper of The Big Bang Theory and Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie) surprised us all by claiming the best actress award.

Other honorable mentions include: Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer) beat out Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife) for best actress in a drama; Archie Panjabi (The Good Wife) beat out Mad Men‘s Christina Hendricks and Elisabeth Moss for best supporting actress in a drama; the HBO movie Temple Grandin took home outstanding movie, directing for a movie, lead actress in a movie (Claire Danes), and supporting actor (David Strathairn) and actress (Julia Ormond) in a movie; another HBO movie You Don’t Know Jack won for outstanding lead actor (Al Pachino) and outstanding writing; The Pacific was crowned outstanding miniseries; Top Chef won best reality show over The Amazing Race; and finally, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart won the outstanding variety, comedy, or music series award for the seventh year in a row unfortunately beating out the favorite The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien.

That’s a wrap for this year’s Emmys.  Lost lost.  Modern Family, Mad Men, and Glee proved to be worthy contenders.  And Jimmy Fallon sang.  Look after the break for the full list of winners.

[Via EW-HollywoodInsider, here & here] Continue reading 2010 Emmys results: Modern Family, Mad Men win; Lost emerges empty-handed →

Will Forte bids SNL adieu

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“After eight great seasons, Will [Forte] has made the decision to move on from SNL to pursue new opportunities.  He is eternally grateful to [executive producer] Lorne [Michaels] and all of the incredible people he worked with over the years.”

That statement was released last Thursday when it was made official that one of Saturday Night Live‘s brightest cast members is leaving the show prior to the upcoming 36th season.  Forte is best known for his laugh-out-loud characters like MacGruber, The Falconer, Mr. Dillon (in the Gilly sketches), politician Tim Calhoun, and his collaborations with Jason Sudekis as Greg Stink (in the ESPN Classic sketches) and a member of the reverse Bon Jovi band, Jon Bovi.  He was even lucky enough to star in the very first SNL Digital Short, “Lettuce“, alongside Andy Samberg.  Out of all his fantastic performances, there are three that stick out in memory.  They are “Close Talkers” with Steve Martin and “Grapes” with Ashton Kutcher and Andy Samberg, and his rendition of George W. Bush.  They are all embedded after the break.

I am glad that Forte is leaving the show on his own terms to go out and pursue other opportunities.  We all know he star in an action-packed movie (MacGruber) and he has the comedic acting chops to continue to make us laugh no matter where he ends up.  I have no doubt he’ll make his way back to SNL in a guest spot at some point.  And if you’re a Parks and Recreation fan, you can look forward to an upcoming season 3 episode featuring Forte!  Happy trails, Will, and thanks for the laughs.

[Via MTVNews] Continue reading Will Forte bids SNL adieu →