Music News Today

The 17th Annual Webby Awards, honoring people who have made strides online, will take place on May 22.

 

Frank Ocean may need to make some room on his mantel; he's just won yet another piece of hardware. The Odd Future singer is among the winners for the 2013 Webby Awards, along with other notable stars like Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga.
The Webby Awards honor individuals and groups who have made strides online through a number of Web outlets including websites, mobile and social media.
Grammy-winner Ocean has nabbed a prize for Webby Person of the Year for his headline-making 2012 Tumblr post, titled "thank you's," where he opened up about his sexuality. In the post, Ocean candidly recalled a relationship he had with a man, writing, "He wouldn't tell me the truth about his feelings for me for another three years. I couldn't imagine keeping up my life without him."
Did Frank Ocean Pave The Way For NBA's Jason Collins To Come Out?
Meanwhile, Bieber is a Webbys winner for the social media campaign around his "Girlfriend" fragrance launch, which he released last year, around the same time he was promoting his Believe album release. He won for People's Voice Award.
As for Lady Gaga, her Gaga's Workshop won for Celebrity/Fan Social Presence Webby Award. The installation, which hit New York City's Barneys in late 2011, allowed fans to purchase products hand-picked by the singer.
Other big winners include "House of Cards" producers Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti for Webby Special Achievement for the Netflix series, Jerry Seinfeld for Outstanding Comedic Performance for his web series "Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee" as well as Grimes, who won for Webby Artist of the Year.
The 17th Annual Webby Awards — hosted by Patton Oswalt — will be held on May 22 at 9 a.m. ET, and will be available on-demand for fans to stream at watch.webbyawards.com.

After months of controversy surrounding 'Karate Chop' lyric, Weezy appears to admit line was 'inappropriate' in note posted by Miss Info blog.


Despite the months of criticism that Lil Wayne has faced in regards to his hotly contested Emmett Till lyric, the Young Money president has remained silent on the issue, until now. On Wednesday (May 1), a letter to the Till family, apparently signed by Wayne, addressed the offensive rap line.
"As a father myself, I cannot imagine the pain that your family has had to endure. I would like to take a moment to acknowledge your hurt," the rapper wrote in the note, which was posted in full on MissInfo.TV. (MTV News reached out to reps for Wayne to confirm the authenticity of the letter but had not heard back at press time.)
The lyric in question appeared on the remix of Future's "Karate Chop" single, which was released in February. On it, Wayne made a correlation between his sexual strength and the 1955 fatal assault on the civil rights figure, rhyming, "Beat the p---y up like Emmett Till."
Future's label, the Sony-distributed Epic Records, immediately pulled the lyric from the song, but the Till family, unsatisfied, continued to demand an apology from Wayne. They even threatened to go after the rapper's corporate sponsors, Mountain Dew.
Wayne has heard the message loud and clear. At the top of the letter he did message that he has an affinity for clever word play, but acknowledges that he went too far. "Moving forward, I will not use or reference Emmett Till or the Till family in my music, especially in an inappropriate manner," he wrote. "I will not be performing the lyrics that contain that reference live and have removed them from my catalogue."
To close the rapper writes on the importance of Till and says he hopes to uplift through his many business and philanthropic ventures. "I have tremendous respect for those who paved the way for the liberty and opportunities that African-Americans enjoy," he wrote, before he signed off using his birth name Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr.

'I believe that, going forward, John Williams will be doing that film,' Abrams says.

 

There are a few key building blocks you need when constructing a "Star Wars" reboot: Jedis, wookies, the Millennium Falcon and some combination of Han Solo, Darth Vader, storm troopers, Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia.
Oh, and John Williams' music. Just try watching one of the original trilogy with the score on mute, it's like eating pizza without the cheese.
That's why the collective hearts of the "Star Wars" nation probably skipped a beat on Tuesday when J.J. Abrams
 teased that the composer of the iconic score for the first six films, John Williams, is likely on board for "Star Wars: Episode VII," due out in the summer 2015.
During a press conference in Berlin for "Star Trek: Into Darkness," director Abrams made it sound like Williams might be in the fold. "Again, for 'Star Wars,' it's very early days, but I believe that, going forward, John Williams will be doing that film because he was there long before I was," Abrams said, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
There are still so many things up the air about "Episode VII," but Abrams recently said his work on the second "Star Trek" movie could help him get in fighting shape to enter the "Star Wars" universe. "We're just getting started," he said. "There are infinitely more questions than answers right now, but to me, ['Star Wars' and 'Star Trek' are] not that dissimilar. Though I came at these both from very different places, where they both meet is a place of 'Ooh, that's really exciting.' And even though I was never a 'Star Trek' fan, I felt like there was a version of it that would make me excited, that I would think 'That's cool, that feels right, I actually would want to see that.' "
The one thing
 we know for sure is: "Star Wars: Episode VII" will be released in summer 2015, "Episode VIII" will come out in summer 2017 and "Episode IX" will hit theaters in summer 2019.

The couple celebrated their five-year anniversary in Disneyland, with Dem Babies in attendance.


Five years after secretly marrying in the Bahamas, Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon pulled out all the stops for their five-year anniversary on Tuesday night by renewing their vows at Disneyland.
The pop superstar and "American Idol" judge tweeted about the lavish affair, attended the couple's twins, Moroccan and Monroe. Dolled up in a poofy white gown, Carey made her way to the ceremony in Cinderella's stagecoach, where she was greeted by her groom and their son. Later, she walked down the aisle with them, as well as their daughter.
Coincidentally, the day also is a celebration of "dem babies," who were born on April 30, two years ago. Prior to walking down the aisle, Carey wrote, "Happy 5th(!!!!!!) Anniversary to the Best Husband in All The Land & 2 years ago pon de delivery..."



She also shared some more intimate moments of her anniversary and the twins' birthday preparations. From getting her hair done, to dressing Roc and Roe, to sitting inside the stagecoach, Carey's lambs were along for the ride.
Next up for Carey, as the "Idol" season comes to a close in two weeks, is new music. Her single with Miguel, "Beautiful," is slated to drop on May 6. And while she remains the apple of Nick's eye, the "Adorn" singer recently confessed to MTV News that he has been crushing on MC for a long time now.
"I mean I fell in love with Mariah Carey when she walked out of the pool in [the 'Honey' video in 1997]. That 'Honey' video, that was it. And I've had a huge crush on her ever since. And, so, if we ever do have a chance, you know all respect to [Carey's husband] Nick [Cannon], all love. I think I have a huge crush more on her as a musician, and I think it would be really great," he revealed.

The very cool and talented Sam Sparro gave us a big treat backstage at the Lovebox Festival 2012, with an exclusive performance of his song ' I Wish I Never Met You'. Sam Sparro, the Australian singer-songwriter, made his long-awaited return to the stage on Sunday, much to the crowds enjoyment as he performed the internationally famous hit 'Black and Gold' as well as some of his newer material. With 'Black and Gold' being very tough to follow for Sparro, it is not fair to say he is a one hit wonder especially as the Lovebox crowd lapped us his return and we for sure loved his performance of 'I Wish I Never Met You'. Watch the video below and see why we hope he has a long career ahead of him still. Check out Off Guard Gigs Facebook page now for more on this year's festival news and future events: http://www.facebook.com/ukrightguard

Lil Wayne 'Didn't Rush' I Am Not A Human Being II While his original Human Being album was hurried because of his 'eight-month vacation' in prison, this time he 'didn't rush the music.' Lil Wayne made history when he released his I Am Not a Human Being LP. The Young Money cash king debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, making him the first artist since Tupac Shakur to notch a top spot while incarcerated. When Weezy drops I Am Not a Human Being II, he won't be locked down on Rikers Island, but he still has his eyes on that #1 spot.

"I Am Not A Human Being II, that's what I'm workin' on right now, actually I'm finished. The difference between [this] album and the last I Am Not a Human Being would be the music wasn't rushed," Wayne told MTV News on June 16 in Atlanta after he finished performing at Hot 107.9's Birthday Bash. "Last time the music was rushed because I had to take that eight-month vacation on that island so we had rushed the music, but this time we didn't rush the music."

The first Human Being LP was released while Wayne was locked away on Rikers Island in New York on a gun charge and yielded the single "Right Above It" with Drake. Tunechi shot a number of music videos in support of the album prior to being locked up, but he wasn't able to fully support it. Since being released, Weezy has continued to conquer the charts. His 2011 album Tha Carter IV sold nearly a million copies in its debut week and produced a number of hit singles. Now, rather than return to his Carter series, Wayne decided to tackle a Human Being sequel. The album's first single, "My Homies Still," features Big Sean. There's no release date for Weezy's LP, but when it does come, Wayne promises good music. "I paid attention to everything I did," he said. "You're getting the quality of all my albums: Tha Carter IV, Tha Carter III, the same with this I Am Not A Human Being II. Hope you like it." What are your expectations for Lil Wayne's I Am Not a Human Being II LP? Tell us in the comments!