Blog: Idolator

Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine is the pop star du jour to drop by Terry Richardson's studio. Unlike the photog's latest shoot with Lady Gaga , the Voice coach remained fully clothed (a pity, that). The dapper singer kept things casual in a t-shirt and jeans and didn't seem to mind all that much when Terry socked him one right in the kisser (for the sake of art, of course). Check out the Grammy nominee 's shoot, but be warned there is one pic where [...]

This week's chart upstart Lana Del Rey graces the front of model fanzine Lovecat 's Women Who Rock Issue. Ellen Von Unwerth snapped the pics, and Born To Die songstress Lana had the following to say: "My biggest indulgence is being an artist. I still think it's beautiful that I make music for a living. The music videos that I make myself are expensive and it takes money to clear all the copyrights... My second indulgence is diamonds. I have a jeweler in Brooklyn named Uri and he makes me all [...]

What good timing for The Throne to drop their visually bonkers live concert video for "Ni**as In Paris" today, as Kanye West and Jay-Z have been nominated for a Performing Woodie at the 2012 mtvU Woodie Awards. Elsewhere on the nominees list is Chris Brown and Rihanna, who compete against one another for the EDM Effect Woodie for their electro collaborations with Benny Benasi on "Beautiful People" and Calvin Harris on "We Found Love" , respectively. And it looks like college kids have got a soft spot for Lana Del Rey, as the nearly-chart-topping [...]

Just when it was looking like we'd maybe heard the last of Gorillaz for the time being, now that Damon Albarn is back in action with his old Blur bandmates , along comes news of "DoYaThing", a new track from the virtual act that Converse is offering up via it's Three Artists, One Song series. The other artists involved: Andre 3000 and James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem. A press release notes that Gorillaz co-founder Jamie Hewlett collaborated with Converse on four different designs for the shoe company's spring line, which [...]

President Obama has shared his re-election campaign playlist — the songs that the he and his team will be playing to get pumped up on the campaign trail from now til November — and there's no denying the President has eclectic tastes. Included on the list: No Doubt's "Different People", an album cut from their breakout album Tragic Kingdom ; Obama's fellow Chicago natives Jennifer Hudson, Wilco and The Impressions; and, of course, Al Green's "Let's Stay Together", a song we already knew the President was fond of . Check out all 24 songs after the jump. [...]

If you were expecting some fancy scenery from the City Of Lights to play into the video for Jay-Z and Kanye West's Watch The Throne hit "Ni**as In Paris", then you're out of luck. The clip for the often-performed song is instead comprised mostly of footage shot last December during the hip hop duo's final Staples Center gig in Los Angeles. Some headache-inducing (or, as the intro warns, epileptic fit-inducing) camera effects and a cameo by Blades Of Glory star Will Ferrell are mixed in for the heck of it. [...]

We decided to really get into the spirit of love this February 14, and helping us win your hearts is The Voice Season 1 winner Javier Colon . You could be the proud owner of an acoustic guitar — signed by Javier himself! All you have to do is pay tribute to his Valentine's Day-ready song with Natasha Bedingfield, "As Long As We Got Love" . Don't worry, you don't need to know how to play a single chord. Jump below for details on how [...]

Current chart ruler Kelly Clarkson was apparently in the mood for a little old-school Madonna recently. (Not surprising, given that the two performed at the Super Bowl on Sunday.) During a tour stop in Bossier City, Louisiana, the Stronger singer took a fan request and belted out a cover of Madge's ballad "Crazy For You". Kelly said of the audience pick, "We've been doing this on tour , because I got here from fans voting for me ten years ago. So it's still cool that you all are involved in my show." [...]

After getting snippy with Taylor Swift in a set of promo spots for this Sunday's Grammy Awards , host LL Cool J is now having a few faux-testy exchanges with Best New Artist nominee Nicki Minaj. In one clip, LL gushes that the Harajuku Barbie is an artist he loves. Much to his dissatisfaction, Minaj replies that she's been listening to him since she was "a baby." Ouch! In the second promo, the "Going Back To Cali" MC beatboxes while Nicki dances around. Finally she stops and chides, "You gotta speed [...]

Last night, Chelsea Handler couldn't help firing off a barrage of tongue-in-cheek questions at UK boy band The Wanted, who just wrapped up their inaugural US tour . "The five of you are all of age? I just want to make sure you're legal to penetrate," is how the blonde hostess started things off. Later she asked, "Were you arranged by some sort of Simon Cowell?" And then there was this one: "You guys are obviously all straight?" Oh, Chelsea. Handler asked the band about their hit single "Glad You Came" [...]

A special candy-coated edition of Katy Perry's 2010 album Teenage Dream will be released on March 27. Called Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection , the expanded set is loaded with all sorts of goodies for Katy fans. But can it earn the Grammy nominee her much-sought-after sixth #1 single from Teenage Dream on the Hot 100? And if it does, come on — will it really count, since this is technically a re-tooled version of the album? Katy's beefed up set will [...]

Some people come to Hollywood and become stars. Others get kicked to the curb. And yet some others faint and fall off stage. Before we get into the talent portion of American Idol 's Hollywood Week (Part I!), let's cut right to the shocking moment everyone will be talking about today: 16-year-old Symone Black's performance of "Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay". Everything goes fine during her a cappella audition, but during a brief chat with the judges afterwards, Symone begins to stumble, falls off the stage, and seems to be knocked unconscious. The [...]

Did You Hear? :: Many musicians are still riled up that the Recording Academy has eliminated over 30 categories (including Best Tejano Album, Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album and Best Contemporary Folk Album) for this year's Grammys. A protest committee has been formed, and will stand protest outside the Staples Center on Sunday. Fans of Latin jazz, gospel and blues music have been invited to participate as well. [ MSN ] :: The coaches for the Australian version of The Voice sure look familiar... bald, black singer, blonde female [...]

At long last, Beyonce is finally showing some love to her drumline-driven track "End Of Time" (which, if you recall, landed a spot on our Top 10 Best Non-Singles Of 2011 ). The proud mom of chart sensation Blue Ivy Carter is in a generous mood: she's offering fans a chance to win four (as in the pop star's favorite number) thousand smackers for remixing the track — which samples Major Lazer's "Pon De Floor" — with the added bonus that the winning remix may appear on an as-yet-unidentified upcoming release. Head to Beyonce's site for [...]

When we recently celebrated the 15th anniversary of the release of Daft Punk's debut album Homework , we got even more antsy than usual for new music from the French duo, who haven't dropped a studio LP in seven years. Happily, we can report that Daft Punk are currently working with producer Nile Rodgers on a new album. "We were just jamming at my house [in New York], but it's gonna be proper and real," Rodgers told music blog Faster Louder . "They came over to my today around breakfast time and it's [...]

Katy Perry is all about the latex dresses , whipped cream-blasting brassieres and confection-themed costumes for the stage and screen, but when it comes to the Grammy Awards , the Teenage Dream is all glitz and glamor. Year after year, the pop star has stepped onto the Grammy red carpet in dazzling gowns and a glowing face. But in light of the pre-Super Bowl party performer 's new blue 'do — and the absence of Russell Brand on her arm — what can we expect from the chart-topper this Sunday? (A [...]

People around the world will soon get a chance to see Lady Gaga live , but a group of lucky young women were treated to the pop star's presence just last Saturday. Gaga was the surprise guest at "It's Our Turn", a young women's conference which took place at Los Angeles' Brentwood School. During her 30-minute talk with Maria Shriver, the pop star reflected on the troubles she faced as a teen — namely, being the target of bullying and suffering from bulimia. "I started having trouble with girls in middle school," Lady Gaga [...]

Adele may still be the top diva on Billboard 's Top 200 album chart, but over on the Hot 100 she's been bumped off by Kelly Clarkson. The two Grammy nominees trade places as Adele's third 21 single "Set Fire To The Rain", which previously spent two weeks at #1, now cedes the peak position to Super Bowl singer Clarkson's "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" . This marks the American Idol winner's third chart-topper, following 2002's "A Moment Like This" and 2009's "My Life Would Suck Without You". [...]

Australian upstart Iggy Azalea returned to Hollywood for her first live performance in town since she announced plans for her major-label debut, The New Classic , due later this year. Sporting a black Tupac-emblazoned tank top and her signature flying ponytail, Iggy launched into her late-night set at Hollywood's Dim Mak Studios with "Hello", the first track off her buzzy Ignorant Art mixtape. Through a raucous 45-minute set, she managed to throw "Superior P***y" t-shirts — and cash — into the crowd, invited fans on-stage for a dance-off, and unveiled a new song, apparently called "Picture Me [...]

Last night, Ricky Martin tangoed his way onto the top of our list of favorite Glee guest stars ever, playing Spanish language teacher (and former "tooth model") Mr. Martinez. In addition to performing "Sexy And I Know It" , the Puerto Rican superstar and the show's resident Latina Naya Rivera performed a duet of Madonna's 1987 single "La Isla Bonita". Ricky and Naya are en fuego during their number, but the real draw is to watch Mr. Schuester squirm in his seat as he faces the fact that his skills as both a Spanish teacher [...]