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Robert Plant And Alison Krauss Win Grammy Album Of The Year

Raising Sand, from Led Zeppelin vet and bluegrass superstar, wins five Grammys on Sunday night.
By James Montgomery with MTV News staff

<P>"I'm bewildered," Robert Plant said onstage as he accepted the <MTVNLINK type="news" id="1604580">Grammy Album of the Year award</MTVNLINK> with Alison Krauss on Sunday night. "In the old days we would have called this selling out, but it's a good way to spend a Sunday."</P><P>He was probably one of the few who were surprised, because <i>Raising Sand,</i> which won five trophies at Sunday night's show, is in many ways the perfect Grammy album. It features two respected veterans, a critically lauded producer, some sandpaper-and-velvet vocals and a baker's dozen of time-tested standards.</p><div style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; float: left;"></div><p></P><P>You're probably familiar with Robert Plant from his Led Zeppelin days, and you might be aware of producer T-Bone Burnett's work on the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack (it won the Grammy for Album of the Year in 2002). And if you don't know who Alison Krauss is, she possesses a haunting set of pipes and is one of the meanest fiddle players in the world. Oh, and she's won 21 Grammys, more than any other female artist and the seventh-most in history.</P><P>Really, she's the key to <i>Sand</i>'s success, and not just because of her voice (or her fiddle playing). She and Plant first met in 2004, at a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame tribute to legendary bluesman Leadbelly, and the former Zeppelin man was amazed by her knowledge of American Roots music &#8212; so much so that they began kicking around the idea of recording an album together. Three years later, <i>Sand</i> was released.</P><P>And while Plant possesses the more famous voice, the album's finest moments radiate from Krauss. Whether she's getting bluesy on Little Milton's "Let Your Loss Be Your Lesson" or entwining with Plant's husky voice on songs like "Please Read the Letter" and Roly Salley's winsome "Killing the Blues," she more than carries her end of the bargain.</P><P>And perhaps that's also due to producer Burnett, who handpicked the 13 songs the duo cover on <i>Sand.</i> His arrangements are sparse &#8212; giving the two voices ample room to breathe &#8212; yet dense, warm and crackling at the same time. It's a testament to his work that he's often given just as much billing as Plant and Krauss on the project ... and it's certainly justified.</P><P>To date, <i>Sand</i> has sold more than 1 million copies, heaped tons of acclaim and actually earned a Grammy last year &#8212; "Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)" took home the award for Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals.</P><P>One expert was surprised not by the album's success, but by the fact that it's actually quite a good album.</P><P>"At first, the album seemed like a vanity project. ... Two names, clearly a one-off record, didn't have to be any good, you know?" <i>New York Times</i> music critic Jon Caramanica said. "Led Zeppelin fans would buy it because of Robert Plant, Alison Krauss would get a check. But it actually turned out to be a really thoughtful, really <i>good</i> record. So when you combine all that with the fact that the Grammys love to lionize one of their own, I could really see it taking home some awards." </p>

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1604582/plant-krauss-win-album-year-grammy.j...

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BET Awards Nominations: Kanye West, Beyonce Lead The Pack

Chris Brown and Nicki Minaj are confirmed to perform at the 2012 BET Awards on July 1.
By Rob Markman

<P>Expect lots of drama, plenty of laughs and possibly even a few superheroes in the building when Samuel L. Jackson hosts the 2012 BET Awards on July 1, live from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. On Tuesday (May 22), BET announced the nominees for their 2012 awards show and even confirmed performances by Chris Brown and Nicki Minaj (though there was no official word on whether the Hulk will attend).</P><P>BET president Stephen Hill held a press conference in New York City on Tuesday, and with the help of Big Sean, DJ Khaled, A$AP Rocky, Diggy, Mindless Behavior and Melanie Fiona, he spilled the beans about the big show. Samuel L. wasn't in attendance, but "The Avengers" star sent a pre-taped message promising that the show will be "too big to miss."</P><P></p><div class="player-placeholder right" title="Big Sean Got Grandma's Support For BET Awards" id="vid:771561" width="415" height="255"></div><p></P><P>Kanye West leads the nominations with seven, including two Video of the Year nods for the Throne's "N---as in Paris" and "Otis." Beyonc&#233; notched six nominations, while hubby Jay-Z earned himself five noms. Big Sean was particularly excited about his three nominations, including his look in the Best Male Hip Hop Artist category, where he will square off against Drake, J. Cole, Lil Wayne, Rick Ross and Young Jeezy.</P><P>"It's perfect. My grandma gonna be watchin', my mom, my family, the whole city," Sean told MTV News shortly after the press conference. "It's just tight that I can represent those people, everybody who had that dream, everybody who used to ride to school [listening to] their idols, now I'm with them. It's just tight that I can show people that it's possible."</P><P>Sean broke through last year when he dropped his debut LP <i>Finally Famous.</i> Next, the "Marvin &amp; Chardonnay" MC will appear on G.O.O.D Music's <i>Cruel Summer</i> compilation and then follow up with his sophomore album.</P><P>Sean isn't the only big dog being honored at the awards show. Chris Brown, Usher and Bruno Mars are among the nominees in the Best Male R&B category, while Beyonc&#233;, Mary J. Blige and Rihanna will duke it out in the Best Female category. The Throne, Diddy-Dirty Money, Maybach Music Group and Eminem's Bad Meets Evil will compete for Best Group, and Nicki Minaj looks to be the favorite for Best Female Hip Hop.</P><P>For the full list of categories and nominees, check BET.com.</P><P><center></center></p>

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1685622/bet-awards-nomination-kanye-west-bey...

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Toddler Ballerinas Brawl On Stage, Video Goes Viral

There is a video featuring two toddler ballerinas having a little brawl or cat fight on stage that has gone viral. In fact the video has the media world buzzing and if you haven?t seen it never fear you can check out the full footage below. I first saw the story on the Today show and seriously thought it was something straight out of Toddlers and Tiaras at first. But it wasn?t it was simply two little ballerinas who got into it in the middle of their recital. It all began when one of the adorable dressed girls decided to push the other one. This of course started a shoving match that also includes some hitting and slapping. Finally after what seemed like quite while the two girls mother?s each came up on stage and broke up the fight. I could explain more but you really should just watch it. In the video below you can hear the audience laughing because let?s be honest the brawl as it is being called is quite cute. I mean two toddlers in tutu?s having a fight, classic. All of that being said I kind of couldn?t believe that it took the parents so [...]

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