Watch the band in the studio, recording Humanoid.By Jocelyn Vena

Tokio Hotel’s Tom Kaulitz

Photo: MTV News

Tokio Hotel are bringing their fans inside the studio once again with another exclusive, behind-the-scenes clip provided to MTV News. In the video, the pop-rockers are working on Humanoid, due October 6.

Speaking from the Los Angeles studio where they recorded the Scream follow-up, lead singer Bill Kaulitz discusses having to sing in German and English. “They have to do this super complicated thing: change the session … from German to English,” he explained. “Yes, constant switches. I believe no other singer has to remember so many different lyrics like I do. It’s only the third album, and I already have 10,000 songs.”
Meanwhile, Tom Kaulitz talks about the different dynamics he and brother Bill have in their voices, saying one thing separates them: “I have more sex in my voice,” Tom explained. “Actually, the decision [for Bill to be the lead singer] was because of the securities. The securities asked us for it, because if I sing, there would be an escalation at each show. To calm things down, we went with Bill.”
Tom also discussed how his brother has to work to remember the songs they are recording for when they hit the road. “He needs to remember everything for the tour. I actually did all of the recordings up to now,” he said. “He needs to learn everything for our tour, which is why we rented this studio. We’ll check it out, and hopefully he’ll manage the upcoming albums without me.”
He also talked about the time the guys in the band tried out different roles. “Bill was playing bass, because it’s the easiest,” Tom recalled. “He only had to play a few tones. Yes, I [played the drums. Drummer Gustav Schäfer], he sang, and [bassist] Georg [Listing] played the guitar. That was wicked. I think we performed [the Scream track] ‘Monsoon,’ didn’t we?
“[Gustav turned it into hardcore metal] to cover [the fact] that he can’t sing,” Tom continued. “I was perfect. Like a clockwork. But the others messed it up.”

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‘He gave it the edge I was looking for,’ Rivers Cuomo says of Jermaine Dupri-produced Raditude track.By James Montgomery, with reporting by Matt Elias

Rivers Cuomo

Photo: MTV News

By now, you are probably aware that on Weezer’s upcoming Raditude album (a.k.a. “the one with the dog on the cover”), frontman Rivers Cuomo has decided to shake things up, working with the All-American Rejects’ Tyson Ritter and Nick Wheeler, Butch Walker and super-producer Dr. Luke.

But the shaking didn’t stop there. Perhaps taking a cue from Girl Talk or millions of amateur mash-up auteurs out there, Cuomo has recruited none other than Lil Wayne to contribute a verse to a song on the album.
“Weezer is always trying something new,” Cuomo told MTV News. “Last year, we put out The Red Album. We loved that album, but this is 2009. It’s time to do something totally different. So I reached out to some friends of mine in different genres: Jermaine Dupri, for example, king of R&B, I wrote a song with him called ‘Can’t Stop Partying.’ It was a real challenge for me, taking his ideas, which are very slick, R&B party [ideas], and giving it some kind of edge, some darkness, making it work with rock, making it work with Weezer.
“Not only that, but we got Lil Wayne to come in and do a rap on it,” he continued. “Any other rapper would’ve just done, ‘Yay, we’re partying! Let’s drink and have fun,’ but he gave it the edge I was looking for. You can hear in his voice, it sounds so dark, like he was gonna get shot or something when he walks out of the studio. So I was real happy that everyone involved got what we were going for.”
While a Weezer/Weezy collabo does seem a bit odd, it’s keeping in theme with Raditude’s party-hearty ethos. And it’s not like Wayne is new to the rock game, either. Last year, he appeared on Fall Out Boy’s Folie à Deux, and then there’s his much-delayed “rock” album, Rebirth, which is set to be released in December.

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Singer takes to Twitter to announce that his new song is set to drop a day early.By Jayson Rodriguez

Chris Brown and Lil Wayne

Photo: Jason LaVeris/ FilmMagic/ Kevin Winter/ Getty Imag

Chris Brown’s comeback officially begins Tuesday, when the fleet-footed singer will release his new single, “Transformer,” featuring Lil Wayne.
The “Forever” superstar announced via Twitter that he was pushing the song — from his upcoming album, Graffiti — up one day from Wednesday to Tuesday.
“Change of plans,” Brown wrote. “I’m going to release my single tomorrow instead of Weds. Tell everybody. I can transform ya, I can transform ya.” (Representatives for Brown did not respond to MTV News’ inquiry at press time regarding details of the “Transformer” premiere.)
The upbeat tune will be the first sanctioned record Brown has released since his February altercation with then-girlfriend Rihanna. Brown struck a plea deal in the assault case and was sentenced to labor service, therapy sessions and five years’ probation that coincides with a stay-away order issued against him regarding contact with the “Umbrella” star. Earlier this month, Brown began serving his community service in Virginia and it was recently announced that he’d be returning to the stage next month for the first time since the incident.
During his hiatus, Brown wrote and released “Changed Man,” an apologetic ode to Rihanna. Several other tracks leaked, but his label, Jive Records, said the material was old.
In addition to featuring Wayne, “Transformer” was produced by Swizz Beatz, who recently spoke to MTV News about the track.
The super producer said Brown is finishing up his project, which doesn’t have a firm release date yet, and working through this challenging time. He said Brown seems poised to move forward with his life and put the past behind him.
“He’s got something to prove,” Swizz said. “He worked on 60, 70 songs. He’s just on fire. I told him, ‘Listen man, just stay focused on your music. They gonna throw shots at you. Time heals everything.’ He has great support; his mother is amazing. I was really scoping out the situation — it could have been something I didn’t want to be around, but I really got a great vibe. Honestly.”

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‘That’s my favorite football player ever,’ Weezy says of Favre.By Shaheem Reid

Lil Wayne

Photo: VH1

Even rap’s hardest working MC deserves a little break on his birthday, and Lil Wayne celebrated turning 27 by heading to Minnesota to seen the Vikings beat the San Francisco 49ers in a last-second nail-biter. Brett Favre threw a 32-yard touchdown pass.
Calling into DJ Drama’s radio show on Hot 107.9 in Atlanta, Weezy described the first part of his day.

“I took a plane to Minnesota to see Bret Favre play,” he said. “That’s my favorite football player ever. He won the game with like two seconds left, of course. He did that for my birthday.”
Wayne phoned in from Miami and said that he had planned on going out that night that was if “the studio don’t swallow me.”
Weezy’s next projects will be the Young Money team album, his long-delayed solo LP Rebirth (”We have a surprise for the Rebirth,” he promised, but didn’t elaborate) and a new mixtape called No Ceiling.
“I got tired of sitting back,” he said. “Everybody was making mixtapes. And I could rap too. Once I found myself jumping in my car putting on the radio instead of CDs, that’s when I know I gotta go murder their beat.”
When Drama gave Wayne props on having the hottest crew in rap right now, Weezy accepted the praise but noted his squad has love for everybody.
“I never heard a female rap like her before in my life,” Wayne said of Nicki Minaj.
As for Drake, he said, “Once I heard him, I knew the game was missing that.”
Video of some of Wayne’s birthday celebration hit the web today. He received a (reportedly) million-dollar Chopard watch and a birthday cake with diamonds wrapped around it. Stepdad Birdman was on hand and showed off his new tattoo: Wayne’s birthdate on his arm, “9-27-82.”

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‘I knew I wasn’t over,’ the Wu-Tang vet says of staying at the top after years in the game.By Shaheem Reid

Photo: Universal

Raekwon is in Paris right now, thousands of miles from the United States, so the Chef didn’t learn until later Monday (September 28) that he was voted #10 on our 2009 Hottest MCs in the Game list.
“We sitting here looking at it right here while we in the studio,” the Chef told MTV News. “We looking at the [user] comments, looking at the Roundtable. Y’all definitely getting it in. It feels good. It definitely feels good, word.”
Rae said his time with the Wu-Tang Clan has only made him appreciate Only Built 4 Cuban Linx … Pt. II’s reception even more.

“I love it,” Rae said. “I’m the Clan’s biggest fan. I know what these dudes is capable of. For me to pull this project off and not have them around me every day, I knew that it was something special that these guys have that I have to figure out to put together. It feels good to know n—as is still respected in the game as being the top MCs in the game. I don’t look at it as just me. I been a mutha—-in’ second-string n—a all my life. I never looked at the hot seat as me being there, but I believe in them n—as, and I always wanted to take my n—as to the championship. So I looked at myself as that LeBron n—a, you know?”
Besides Snoop Dogg last year, Raekwon has had the longest career of any MC to make the Hottest list. Translation: A tenured vet is still just as relevant as new cats coming into the game.
“I look at it as a blessing, man,” Rae said. “I’m just saying, [the Roundtable] is giving the veteran more medals. I paid my dues in the game. I think I was taught by the best. I was one of them dudes that take rap crazy serious — how you look, how your sneakers look. So for me, I just feel like people is placing the medals on a n—a that made it home. I made it home. Rap was supposed to be over for n—as a long time ago. They say rap, your career only goes on for five years if you ain’t really just that n—a. If you that n—a, it’s an endless career you could make. I felt like I knew I wasn’t over. I feel like respect is due. If it wasn’t me, if it was the next n—a that had a similar, same kind of track record, that’s still busting his hammer writing and going in still. I pay attention to every n—a. I still feel privileged that n—as still see what the god can do. All praises for that.”
MTV News will be unveiling the Hottest MCs in the Game all week! We’ll be announcing an MC’s rank every day this week, with the full list revealed Sunday at 10 p.m. during “P. Diddy’s Starmaker”!

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‘The streets won’t let me forget that they need me and I need them,’ MC says.By Jayson Rodriguez, with reporting by Shaheem Reid

DMX

Photo: MTV News

Is the Dog really back? That’s the word according to DMX. The booming, barking MC has made headlines for all the wrong reasons during the past few years, but after serving time in an Arizona jail, X has been nothing short of a model citizen.

But now he’s getting back to what he does best: rapping. X hopped on the Ruff Ryders remix of Jadakiss’ “Who’s Real” and recently performed at VH1’s “Hip Hop Honors,” displaying his trademark sneer during his turn in the spotlight for “Party Up.”
“I’m hungry, I’m grounded,” X told MTV News from the red carpet. “I’ve always been grounded. But I’m hungrier. There’s so much bullsh– out there. I’m not gonna get into the names. You know who you are. There’s so much bullsh– out there. The streets won’t let me forget that they need me and I need them.”
The Yonkers-bred MC said he plans to deliver two albums soon and wants them to drop on the same day. He didn’t go into detail, but the former Def Jam superstar could be reviving his plan to release a traditional rap album as well as a gospel album.
DMX’s longtime producer Swizz Beatz spoke to Mixtape Daily and said that he is getting back to form quickly. Swizz will likely serve as executive producer of the next X album. But don’t get excited just yet — Swizz said he first wants to secure the ideal situation for the only rapper to release two #1 albums in the same year.
“I wanna have the proper setup where he’s getting a fair chance and the most attention and most respect right now,” Swizz explained. “I’m not putting nothing out until we have the lineup together, which we’re close to having, and the streets are going to witness that raw uncut street element. X was doing $16 million movies and sleeping outside, just because that’s where he felt comfortable. He’s the realest in the game. He never was on no jewelry, no cars. X, he’s one artist that I truly know is a real artist. It don’t get no more real than X.”

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‘Miss Acosta is still very much single,’ her manager tells MTV News.By Jocelyn Vena

Rosa Acosta and Soulja Boy Tell’em

Photo: rosaacosta.com

On Thursday, rumors began circulating on the web that Soulja Boy Tell’em had gotten engaged to model/ video star Rosa Acosta — according to Acosta’s manager and a source in Soulja Boy’s camp, the rumors are false.
Acosta’s manager, Charles Garner, told MTV News on Friday (September 25) that the rumors began after the pair was seen hanging out together in photos on the model’s Web site. In the photos, Acosta is seen wearing what looks like an engagement ring — however, her manager said the ring wasn’t a gift from Soulja Boy, but her mother. A source in Soulja Boy’s camp also told MTV News that the rumors are untrue.
“So the story is that the proposal is false,” Garner said in an e-mail to MTV News. “Miss Acosta is still very much single. She was in L.A. filming the Chris Brown video (featuring Lil Wayne and Swizz Beatz) with several other models. Soulja Boy was in L.A. He’s been with friends with Rosa for awhile and asked if she and the other girls wanted to go to dinner.
“So he took her and four other girls to dinner, [during] which some playful pictures were taken as ‘behind the scenes’ for Miss Acosta’s Web site. The ring she has on her finger is a ring that was given to her by her mother about three or four years ago and it was not given to her by Soulja Boy. The picture that everyone has up is a harmless picture where he’s kissing her on the cheek. And there’s about four other pictures where you see him at the table with her and the other models and he’s hugging everybody.”
In response to the rumors, Soulja Boy simply tweeted “LOL.”

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See Bill Kaulitz talking about recording his vocal tracks.By James Montgomery

Tokio Hotel’s Bill Kaulitz

Photo: MTV News

Tokio Hotel’s much-anticipated Humanoid album doesn’t hit stores until October 6, and the guys know the wait is killing their fans, which is why they’ve given MTV News a bit of exclusive content to share with everyone.

We’ve already partnered with the band to preview their first single, “Automatic,” and to give fans a behind-the-scenes look at the song’s epic video too. And now, we’re taking you inside the Los Angeles studio where Tokio Hotel recorded Humanoid.
In the never-before-seen footage, frontman Bill Kaulitz shows off his vocal recording room (which is decidedly sparse) and his high-tech vocal mixer, which, as he explains “doesn’t exist in Germany … which is why we’re producing in L.A.”
He also describes his recording technique, which could be summed up in one word: “loud” (or “Spinal Tap,” but that’s two words).
“Most people use regular ‘headphone volume,’ but I can’t stand it. I need to feel like I’m onstage and I’m standing beside the other guys,” he explains, cranking the volume knob on his mixer up to 11. “I kind of need an extra amplifier, so I can listen to everything really loud. … You can do crazy things with it. You can’t get this in Germany.”
We also get to see guitarist Tom Kaulitz show off a skill most fans didn’t know he had: playing the piano. Though, of course, given that it’s Tom, while he’s tickling the ivories, his main focus has shifted elsewhere … to naked ladies.
“That’s the most exciting of all,” he tells a producer about something off-camera. “When she’s standing completely naked in front of the thing. Did you also see that?”
“You need to listen to the riff. You’re playing this love ballad,” the producer interrupts, before deciding that this ship has already sailed. “You mean the one with the sweet butt, when she’s standing in front of the mirror?”

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‘We would always come and shop here for … little photo shoots,’ frontwoman Hayley Williams says of a local thrift store during a tour of the band’s hometown.By James Montgomery

Paramore in their hometown of Franklin, Tennessee

Photo: MTV News

FRANKLIN, Tennessee — There were several moments during MTV News’ visit to Paramore’s hometown of Franklin, Tennessee, when we wanted to grab Hayley Williams & company and remind them, “You know you guys are famous, right?”

See, Paramore are so down to earth that they’re practically subterranean, which probably explains why, down in Franklin, they were willing to do anything (or go anywhere) with our crew … which led to moments like this one: the band wheeling their way through downtown Franklin, giving us a guided tour that quickly devolved into some serious Evel Knievel-esque bike stunts, bouts of frantic horn-blowing and, ultimately, a trip to their local Goodwill.
Seriously, there is no other platinum-selling rock band in the world that would do this type of stuff.
And while the impromptu cycling tour made for some pretty amazing tape, it also gave us a glimpse of the Paramore most people don’t know: the one deeply indebted to their hometown, and the one that — despite the number of albums they’ve sold — are still very much a group of kids at heart.
“I ride my bike around town, I get food and I hang out with my friends. No one stops me. Or stops any of us,” lead singer Hayley Williams explained, while piloting her bike through Franklin. “That’s just the way it is around here. It’s part of why we love it.”
Another part? The solace Franklin provides. Last year, when the band was riding out a storm of personal problems, they returned home to regroup, recharge and, ultimately, release their “That’s What You Get” video, which was filmed in and around town and served as a message to the band’s detractors: We’re not going anywhere.
And, on our way up to Goodwill, Williams stopped to point out one very key part of the whole healing process.
“This is the graveyard where we did some of our photos for ‘That’s What You Get,’ ” she said, pulling her bike off the road. “We did, like, a whole press release after our band went through that tough time, we did every bit of our press from home, and … ”
“Actually, she’s lying,” bassist Jeremy Davis interrupted. “What we really did was … when we were going through hard times, we were actually going to kill each other, and so we bought plots in there.”
And as we pulled up to the Goodwill — located outside town in a near-barren strip mall out on Hillsboro Road — Williams explained the significance of the place, which has been a constant in Paramore’s career, from their earliest days to the liner notes of their upcoming Brand New Eyes album.
“When our band first started, we would always come and shop here for random outfits, little photo shoots that we had to do. One time in particular, we were shooting a Christmas card — my mom took the photo — and we came here and got sweaters and little Christmas candles and stuff,” Williams said. “But more recently, our album artwork, we picked up the props at this Goodwill. The little angels that are on the artwork for ‘Ignorance,’ the picture frames on the back of our album … a lot of little random gadgets that you can see in our artwork — we got them all here. This place is rad.”

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We’ll reveal an MC per day next week, with the full list unveiled on Sunday, October 4!By Shaheem Reid

Hottest MCs 2009

Photo: MTV News

“Hov’s the audio equivalent of braille.” “The game needs change and I’m the muthaf—in’ cashier.” “I’m Hannibal Lecter so just in case you’re thinking of saving face/ You ain’t gonna have no face to save by the time I’m through with this place.”
So many MCs have their bars up these days — not just Jay-Z, Drake and Eminem (quoted above). The flows are precise and people are taking notice. Impact has resonated, the buzz is strong, so it’s time to go!

For the 2009 Hottest MCs in the Game, the MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trust took everything that’s going on right now into account, sat down and fought it out — and the list is done! This year’s may have been the toughest list to discuss and decide. For more than three hours, moderator Sway and the other nine members of the Brain Trust (Sway doesn’t have a vote at the table; he guides the conversation) talked about music, impact, buzz, sales, personal experiences — everything was out there on the table. Please note that the list is based on what’s going on right now, not an artist’s entire careers. (Head here for a full rundown of the criteria.) We laughed, shouted, angered each other and dropped jewels.
We also, for the first time, brought fan comments to the discussion — more than 1.2 million people voted, and the results of the readers’ poll got a seat and a vote, represented at the table by Sway. Your voices were heard!
Ultimately though, remember that this is the Brain Trust’s list: There can never be a definitive list of the Hottest MCs, because music isn’t a measurable science. We can say for certain that people will be shocked not just by some of the names who made it into the top 10 — but also those who didn’t. As always, please let us know what you think — we love your comments, whether you agree or disagree.
The 2009 Hottest MCs in the Game countdown begins on Monday, with one MC per day being revealed Monday through Friday — and the full list will be unveiled on Sunday, October 4, during “P. Diddy’s Starmaker”!
MTV News will be unveiling the Hottest MCs in the Game next week! We’ll be announcing an MC’s rank every day, with the full list revealed on Sunday at 10 p.m. during “P. Diddy’s Starmaker”!

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