andPOP » 2010

Something New – Warped Tour Episode

andPOP Staff — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 18:02:33 +0000

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Chelsea Handler Hosting 2010 MTV Video Music Awards

andPOP Staff — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 18:40:34 +0000

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On September 12, late night funny woman Chelsea Handler will be hosting MTV’s Video Music Awards. Chelsea made the announcement last night on her show.

“Everyone knows that when you think of rap music and hip-hop you think of ‘Chelsea Lately.’ And that’s why I will be hosting [the show].”

The last woman to host the VMAs was Roseanne Barr in 1994

2010 MTV Video Music Awards
Tags: Chelsea Handler To Host The 2010 MTV Video Music Awards, MTV

Reliving NXNE 2010

andPOP Staff — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 19:44:42 +0000

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Want to see what NXNE 2010 was like? Follow Jordan and Korey to relive this unique music festival.

MuchMusic Video Awards 2010 – We Make Justin Bieber A Fake ID!

andPOP Staff — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 18:15:35 +0000

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It’s that time of year again – the MuchMusic Video Awards! Last night andPOP was in attendance on the red carpet with a mission – to get an underage Justin Bieber into the after party. How would we do it? A fake ID.

Yes, our ingenious host Jordan Bortolotti had a mission Sunday evening, to get Justin Bieber a fake ID so he can attend the amazing after parties. But besides that, we had some great chats with Kardinal Offishall, Emily Osment, Katy Perry, Kellan Lutz, Girlicious, Steroes and more! It was an awesome night.

Also check out Twitter for some behind the scenes photos at twitter.com/andpop !

MuchMusic Video Awards 2010 Preview – Justin Bieber Is Coming!

andPOP Staff — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 12:05:16 +0000

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Every year on Father’s Day, Queen Street West in downtown Toronto becomes the World’s pop culture hub with the MuchMusic Video Awards. This year is expected to be the biggest star studded show yet with people like Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus and Drake all attending. Much VJ Tim Deegan gave us a preview of the event, along with some favorite MMVA moments.

NBC Loses $223 Million on 2010 Vancouver Olympics

andPOP Staff — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 21:41:38 +0000

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We hope the top brass at NBC aren’t planning on a bonus this year – because they sure do not deserve it. First they have Conan debacle which cost them a boat load of money. Now the VancouverOlympics have officially cost them even more money.

PerezHilton reports that the 2010 Vancouver Olympics cost NBC $800 Million in TV and Online rights. However at the end of the day they lost $223 Million on the entire deal.

You can thank extraordinary production costs and less than expected ad revenue for the loss. However ratings were up from the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.

Miley Cyrus to Co-Host 2010 MUCHMUSIC Video Awards

andPOP Staff — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:31:01 +0000

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MUCHMUSIC has just announced that pop sensation Miley Cyrus will be co-hosting the 2010 MUCHMUSIC Video Awards.

The 17 year old sensation has sold more than 15 Million albums worldwide with her fame continuing to grow.

In December 2007, Cyrus’ first trip to MuchMusic sent fans at home and in the MUCHONDEMAND audience into decibel leveling chaos, leaving them wanting more of the singer/songwriter/actress.

“I’m so excited to co-host the MuchMusic Video Awards,” said Miley Cyrus.”I can’t wait to get back to Canada and perform for all of my fans. It’s going to be an awesome night!”

The 2010 MUCHMUSIC VIDEO AWARDS airs Sunday, June 20 at 9 p.m. ET live from MuchMusic HQ in Toronto.

Junos Nomination Press Conference – 2010

andPOP Staff — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 04:43:55 +0000

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We took a visit to the Junos Nomination Press Conference earlier this month. Despite being stuck in the back corner, we got some awesome interviews with The Arkells, Stereos, Danny Fernandes and more!

The Palmerston Group Covers SXSW for andPOP – Best of Show

SXSW2010 — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 14:33:40 +0000

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Fanfarlo – A fascinating group the UK who’s live show is energetic, eclectic and wonderful all at the same time. Brilliant instrumentation. Soaring hooks that transport the audience right out of the tent. A true collective of musicians who clearly love what they do and who they are. Arguably the next Arcade Fire. Do not miss their live show.

Nneka – A truly unifying artist. Her raw talent and sheer emotion captivated skater kids and old record execs alike. You get the idea that she’s singing about what she knows… which unfortunately is a whole lot of pain. Nonetheless, it takes someone remarkably special to transform that into the beautifully instrumented gems that she belts out onstage. This year will be remembered as the year that Nneka came to town.

Warpaint – They just rock. We caught them at the surprisingly good Urban Outfitters showcase. It was almost as if the dream of the clothing chain came to life in front of our eyes…. ridiculously hot girls wearing cool clothes rocking out. This is what great power pop was meant to be.

Omodaka – Blurring the line between brilliant performance art and drug trip gone wrong, this artist comes on stage playing a variety of videogame systems and singing alongside a digitally captured loop of a traditional Japanese singer. It works. And it works well. A spectacularly interesting hour that made us rethink what was art.

Free Energy - From the moment that they took the stage, their strong stage presence was instantly apparent. Image is front and center for this band… the long hair, the funky clothing, the way that they call women in the audience “babes”. We hung around backstage with the band before their set…. Amazingly nice guys. Wonderfully appreciative of all the kind wishes.

Nas and Damian Marley - They blew the roof off the Levis Fader Fort during this surprise show. Incredibly raw. Words flowing like butter. It’s been too long. Surprised the hell out of everyone. Nas is back in a massive way.

Miike Snow – What can be said that hasn’t been said already about this group. Brilliant production. Beautiful songs. A lead singer who looks like he used to work at Medieval Times. The whole crowd was into every note from the beginning of their late night set at the KCRW showcase. These are the guys who formed the production team behind pop masterpieces from Britney Spears amongst others. They do not disappoint in the slightest. Their closing with “Animal” was absolutely classic.

Daniel Berkal leads the trendspotting team at The Palmerston Group, and will be mailing reports from Austin, Texas exclusively to andPOP throughout SXSW 2010.

The Palmerston Group Covers SXSW for andPOP Day 5

SXSW2010 — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 13:43:18 +0000

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You can tell that the festival is in full swing by the overall demeanor of the morning crowd as they gather to begin another day of rock n’ roll excess. Collective hangover and friendly audience are not two terms that usually go together well. Having the first set of the day at SXSW is often one of the most difficult gigs to pull off.

Her name is Nneka. ”Double N, E K A.” as she says from the stage. A truly gifted performer, she single handedly cured the headaches of the masses gathered at the Cedar Street Courtyard on this particular morning. Her songs are about infidelity, poverty and anger. You feel every word she sings. You can’t take your eyes off of her. An absolutely amazing way to start the day.

Accompanied by a spectacular band of the most professional of musicians, she’s played at least five shows here. Each one is more packed than the last one as the buzz spreads.

After catching the enthusiastic Japandroids set that bordered on manic, we found ourselves at the not-so-secret showcase by British theatrical rockers Muse. The band has their set down to a science…. but it sounds eerily perfect and there are more lasers on stage than the first two episodes of Star Wars combined. All in all quite worthwhile, if only to see one of the world’s biggest bands play a BBQ joint in central Texas.

From conventional to curious, we ended up catching Omodaka at the Elysium. With no idea what to expect, there was no real shock when a woman/ man/ robot came out onstage in traditional garb and started making music on an old Nintendo 8 bit Game Boy. But everything after that was relatively nuts. The moment the giant televised head started singing showtunes was the real WTF moment of the week. So far.

Daniel Berkal leads the trendspotting team at The Palmerston Group, and will be mailing reports from Austin, Texas exclusively to andPOP throughout SXSW 2010.

The Palmerston Group covers SXSW for andPOP Day 2

SXSW2010 — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:13:15 +0000

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The people at Zynga have been ruling Facebook with their ridiculously addictive Farmville and Mafia Wars games. Last night, they ruled SXSW by throwing a private party featuring exclusive performances by Atlanta’s The Constellations and indie-kid fave Metric.

By the time that Emily Haines and company took the stage a bit past 930pm, the invite-only crowd seemed to have gone through a centrifuge… separating out the Metric fanatics towards the front while those there mainly for the free Southern Comfort hung around the back. Neither group of patrons were disappointed in the slightest.

Metric were absolutely outstanding. Playing a long set full of both recent songs and fan favorites, the band has finally gelled into a collective force. Emily captivated all in attendance with her intense stage presence and spot-on vocals. It was such a pleasure to watch a group at the top-of-their game show up and give it their all.

Meanwhile, across Interstate 35… Minneapolis’s Solid Gold played a late night set to an invited audience at The Parish. After a stellar first album and a year of playing the material live, we expected them to sound considerably more polished. The mix was off, the instruments were not balanced and the band seemed to be mailing in the performance. The lack of enthusiasm was particularly disappointing, especially with such outstanding source material. An unpleasant surprise. Thankfully, we managed to catch the amazingly hilarious and funky set by The Bright Light Social Hour… where every song is “about f**king”

The night before the music festival officially begins is always full of surprises.

Even in the media overload that is Austin, everyone here seems to be talking about Broken Bells. It’s the collaboration between the Shins frontman James Mercer and Danger Mouse. Posters are everywhere. Hipsters talk about the band in the hallways of the Austin Convention Center.

Will this live up to the hype, or will it be another surprise?

Only time will tell. SXSW Music officially starts today.

Daniel Berkal leads the trendspotting team at The Palmerston Group, and will be mailing reports from Austin, Texas exclusively to andPOP throughout SXSW 2010.

The Palmerston Group Covers SXSW 2010 for andPOP

andPOP Staff — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 17:06:57 +0000

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We get in at midnight. There’s an unmistakable energy buzzing throughout Austin Bergstrom International airport on the eve of SXSW. The baggage carousels are full of guitar cases. The air smells of leather. All you see are tattoos and tambourines.

Every year dreams are made and lost here at the world’s biggest showcase for new music. Over the next five days there will be more than 1900 musical performances, featuring countless genres and boundless excitement. Every single square inch of the capital of Texas will be filled with artists with a dream, looking for their moment to shine.

It’s a land full of showcases and secret parties. It’s the kind of place where you have to be in the know, to really know what’s going on. Lineups form outside massive events thrown by Perez Hilton and Rachael Ray. Complimentary drinks flow freely at parties thrown by corporate sponsors and the music industry illuminati. Arguably some of which have outshined the official festival itself. At the annual Levis/ Fader Fort event, it’s become commonplace for big name artists to appear by surprise. Last year’s appearance and secret set by Kanye West featured Common, Eryka Badhu and made headlines around the world. The year before had Lou Reed come out onstage beside Moby. Twitter’s buzzing with the possibilities of who will appear this year. Will it be Thom Yorke? Is Lady Gaga hiding out behind the curtain? Is Die Antwoord going to make their North American debut here?

And for every band trying to reinvent itself, there are hundreds more trying to get that fifteen seconds of fame. This year’s crop of heavily hyped artists include Neon Indian, Free Energy, Broken Bells, Miike Snow, the XX and Hey Champ!. Bands like Canada’s amazing Dinosaur Bones trekking all across the continent for their moment to shine.

And we’ll be here. With our eyes and ears wide open.

It begins.

Daniel Berkal leads the trendspotting team at The Palmerston Group, and will be mailing reports from Austin, Texas exclusively to andPOP throughout SXSW 2010.

Beyonce Taking a Break

andPOP Staff — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 23:43:38 +0000

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Beyonce is taking a little break reports USA Today. After an amazing 2009 in which she performed at President Obama’s inauguration, collaborated with Alicia Keys, an amazing tour and other notable events, Beyonce has said she needs some R&R.

After she performs at the Grammy Awards on January 31, she plans to do a whole lot of nothing. “I’ve always worked hard, but I feel like I worked harder this past year than I have since I was just starting out. I just had all these great opportunities. … It’s definitely time to take a break, to recharge my batteries,” the singer told USA Today. “I’d like to take about six months and not go into the studio. I need to just live life, to be inspired by things again.”

Beyonce has been nominated for 10 Grammy Awards. We have a feeling she won’t be going home empty handed.

Silversun Pickups – Yet Another Grammy Nominee

@jordans_life — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 03:59:30 +0000

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Another andPOP video and another Grammy Nominee (and a deserving one at that). They have been on the hustle going on 7 years, and 2009 was definitely the year they broke out. Everyone at andPOP loves them and we think you should too. If you have never heard of them, prepare to be amazed!

Red Hot Chili Peppers Album In 2010

Joelle Tomlinson — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 02:50:16 +0000

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The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ hiatus will end next year, as drummer Chad Smith says the band will release a new album.

According to chartattack.com, Smith told Clash Magazine the band hope to have the follow-up to 2006′s Stadium Arcadium in stores by next October.

“We’re gonna write for a while, it usually takes us a while,” Smith told the magazine, saying he hoped the album would be out “maybe this time [next year].”

Thom Yorke recently gave bassist Flea a tape of electronic beats after the bassist played with Yorke’s live band earlier this year, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Red Hot Chili Peppers are recording an electronic album.”You never know,” Smith told the magazine. “We’ve got songs with piano on them right now, so who knows.”

Contrary to what the hiatus might suggest, the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ members haven’t been sitting around for a collaboration. The have each been working on their own projects since they’ve been on hiatus. Frontman Anthony Kiedis developed an HBO television series based on his childhood, while guitarist John Frusciante released a new solo album called The Empyrean in January.

Flea, as previously mentioned, played live earlier this year with Yorke, and Smith has been busy with Chickenfoot and his Chad Smith’s Bombastic Meatbats side project.

MTV’s ‘Over The Bolts’ Brings The Country’s Top Snowboarders Into Your Home

Ilan Mester — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 04:43:17 +0000

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If you mixed “The Hills” with TSN, you’d get “Over the Bolts,” MTV Canada’s brand new reality show that documents the country’s national snowboard team as they vie for 18 Olympic spots.

The show premieres this Sunday at 10 p.m. on MTV, but we got to see the first two episodes before its debut. And let’s just say you can already set the Tivo because “Over the Bolts” is as addictive as they come!

Michael Lambert, one of the country’s top snowboarders who stars in the show, admits there’s just something about reality TV that gets you hooked. “One of my friends was on the show ‘The City,’ Duncan Davies, so I enjoyed watching it and watching him interact with his girlfriend and stuff like that,” shares the athlete. “I think the dangerous thing about any of those TV shows is you can say ‘even though I may not watch them, every one of them is addictive.’ I could just watch two episodes and I could be hooked on any of them,” he laughs.

So when Lambert was asked to be a part of one, it was almost a no brainer. “I think right off the bat I was all over it,” he says. “As an athlete, this kind of opportunity is so rare, you know what I mean…if you’re my age or your age or in your early twenties, nothing is bigger than being part of a reality show.”

However, everything comes at a price. “I gave everything I had and that’s why it’s so hard for me to watch something like that…it takes you back to a place eight, 10 months ago, to a person that I hated and a person that didn’t have a chance at succeeding, a person that nobody respected. That’s the toughest part,” says a candid Lambert. Rest assured he has since changed.

Lambert was so open throughout our interview that he even talked about what it was like having a relationship while filming the show. “I find it really awkward,” he admits. “I think the worst part is that you’re basically asking something of somebody that doesn’t have anything to gain…it makes for something that’s very strange.”

After seeing the show, you’ll understand that Lambert and his confidence play a key part in “Over the Bolts” and making it interesting. But the confidence in the first few episodes is fake according to the alpine snowboarder. “I think that the confidence that I was displaying in the show there, I think it’s fake,” he reveals to andPOP. “I think it’s me just saying the word ‘confident’ and thinking that that’s what’s gonna get me the end result. Whereas now, it’s a completely different confidence that I have beginning in the next episodes… where I got my best results in my life,” Lambert shares. “That confidence was from me being humbled by these types of things and starting to be respectful with myself and just preparing the best that I can which is obviously the most boring athlete story ever, but unfortunately it’s actually what works.”

And for any aspiring snowboarders out there who want to practice the sport professionally, Lambert’s advice is quite simple: go out and compete. “You wanna take it, it’s not some sort of crazy dream. You just go and you do it. I think that’s my advice; compete.”

As for the 2010 Olympic games, it’ safe to say Lambert is more than excited, in fact he’s “very very excited”. “It’s something I’ve always dreamed about doing, and it sounds stupid but you know, I’ve really always wanted it and I think it’s just really really cool to be there and I want it. I’m doing everything in my power to get it this time but if I don’t, I’m going again you know what I mean? I’ve wanted that and I’m not going to die without it.”

“Over the Bolts” airs Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on MTV with encore presentations every Saturday at 5:30 p.m. ET on CTV.