Music News: Bruno Mars Speaks to ELLE Magazine About His New Album & On How Kanye Stole His SNL Idea Plus More

Prior to Bruno Mars performing on Saturday Night Live, he sat down with ELLE Magazine and got into depth about his new album, what he thought about Kanye West‘s SNL Performance, and what his future plans are.

Check it out after the jump…

If you don’t recognize Bruno Mars, then just turn on the radio. He’s the R&B mastermind writer/producer behind practically every ounce of DJ-fuel: Cee Lo’s snappy Motown kiss-off “Fuck You,” B.O.B’s sultry single “Nothing On You” and Travie McCoy’s catchy ode to capitalism, “Billionaire.” On Tuesday, the 24 year-old Hawaii native released his solo debut, ‘Doo-Wops & Hooligans,’ anchored by the melodic “Just The Way You Are.” And this weekend, he’ll provide the soundtrack to Saturday Night Live.

ELLE: Even though you were behind some of the biggest songs of the summer, was going solo always your goal?
Bruno Mars: I got signed at a young age, and, it’s not like the movies—you don’t get signed and all of a sudden hit songs falling into your lap, so I had to learn and see the way things were behind the scenes. Luckily, I got a chance to sell one of my records. That helped pay rent, so I figured that I’d just start producing for other acts and then hopefully, one day labels would hear me sing these demos and take a chance.

ELLE: You famously wrote Cee Lo’s “Fuck You.” How did you two meet?
BM: We’re label mates, and I knew that he was working on his album so I just kept putting it in everyone’s ear, like, “Yo, I need to work with him. It’d be a dream come true.” We hooked up at the studio, we started working, we did a couple of records together. We did a record on Travis McCoy’s album called “Dr. Feel Good,” which he’s singing on; he’s on my album, “The Other Side,” so it’s only natural. We all got to the studio and came up with one of our favorite songs.

ELLE: Were you worried “Fuck You” wouldn’t get airplay because of the lyrics?
BM: You know sometimes, you just gotta do things that feel right. And Cee Lo’s the type of artist who’ll say whatever the hell he wants to say.

ELLE: What are you going after sound-wise on your solo album?
BM: I’ve been a songwriter and a producer for a while now and I’m always hopping around from different genre to genre, and I’m hoping “Nothin’ On You,” “Billionaire,” and “Just The Way You Are,” were a warning to people that I might not just stick to one sound. So on [Doo-Wops & Hooligans], I was just really trying to be open. I would just sit down in the studio, pick up a guitar, and write a song, whether it called for a reggae beat or whether it was a ballad. It was kind of a free fall. Let me just do what I want; let me get this out of my system. And I’m already thinking about my second album.

ELLE: You must be excited to perform on SNL this weekend.
BM: Geeze. The first time you’ll see me singing “Just The Way You Are” on TV is on that show, live.

ELLE: Will you try to weasel your way into a skit?
BM: I don’t know how those things work. I’d love to, but I’m fine with just performing.

ELLE: And you’re following the Kanye performance from last week. Did you see it?
BM: Yeah, wasn’t that incredible? That was my idea! I was gonna wear a red suit and have ballerinas dancing to “Just The Way You Are.”

ELLE: You better talk to your stylist, ASAP.
BM: No, I’m just kidding. He was amazing though, definitely, he definitely woke me up. Now you’re making me nervous. What the hell is going on? This is supposed to be a nice, sweet interview.

ELLE: Oh no, didn’t they tell you we just try freak you out here at ELLE?
BM: Right, like, “This is your first big moment. Good luck following Kanye.”

Plus check out Bruno Mars performs “Grenade” in this extended session of Billboard’s Tastemakers series LIVE at Mophonics Studios NY.

Bruno Mars – “Grenade” (Studio Session) LIVE!!!

Source: fashionelle.com, YouTube

Related Articles

• “Bruno Mars 10/9 SNL Videos” and related posts (theaudioperv.com)
• Bruno Mars Has A Piano On His Shoulder (perezhilton.com)
• Bruno Mars Says Doo-Wops Will Take Fans On ‘A Journey’ (mtv.com)
• New Bruno Mars! (perezhilton.com)
• Music Review: Bruno Mars – Doo-Wops & Hooligans (blogcritics.org)

Watch It!: Bruno Mars to perform on “Saturday Night Live”

“Saturday Night Live” will welcome for the first time, Glee’s Jane Lynch who will be hosting the show tonight (Oct 9th). I am so ready to watch this, I’m sure I will get a big laugh out of Jane‘s crazy skits.

I am definitely looking forward to seeing, Bruno Mars perform. He will be the musical guest tonight. Mars, who’s making his “SNL” debut, will finally be able fulfill his dream.

Watch It!: Make sure you tune in to watch “Saturday Night Live” @ 11:30 p.m. on NBC

Watch It!: Katy Perry to perform on “Saturday Night Live”

“Saturday Night Live” will welcome back a former cast regular as host of its season premiere and has confirmed the hiring of four new featured players in its cast.

“Parks and Recreation” star Amy Poehler will host the Sept. 25 premiere. She was a member of the cast for eight years and has made several return appearances since leaving for “Parks and Rec,” but the premiere will be her first turn as host of the show.

The musical guest will be Katy Perry, who’s making her “SNL” debut. We’re also sort of hoping her fiance, Russell Brand, might make a cameo.

NBC has also confirmed the previously reported additions of four new featured players to the cast: Vanessa Bayer, Paul Brittain, Taran Killam and Jay Pharoah. They represent the biggest infusion of new cast members to the show since 2001, when Poehler and Seth Meyers were among the newcomers.

“SNL” will also air new shows on Oct. 2 and Oct. 9. “Breaking Bad” star Bryan Cranston has said he’s hosting the Oct. 2 episode, but NBC hasn’t officially named the hosts for those weeks. There were also talks that Lindsay Lohan will host “SNL” as well.

Historically, Lohan has been on “SNL” twice before. Once in May 2004 and another in April 2006 when she also poked fun at her bad behavior in a skit.

Lohan, who will complete her rehab stint in early November if everything goes smoothly, is also being pursued by TV Shows for her first post-jail interview. NBC’s “Today” reportedly is the frontrunner although her mother Dina Lohan said that “no final decision has been made”.

“SNL” spokeswoman refused to confirm whether Lohan is a lock, saying “We never comment on upcoming hosts until they’re announced.”

“SNL” repeated the Betty White episode this weekend with musical guest Jay-Z. White won an Emmy for her splendid work on that episode.

Watch It!: Make sure you tune in to watch “Saturday Night Live” on Saturday, Sept. 25th @ 11:30 p.m. on NBC

Music News: Ke$ha Added To The Worst ‘SNL’ Performance Ever List



From the moment ‘Saturday Night Live’ first appeared back in 1975, it established itself as one of the most important musical venues in the nation. With just two short songs, up-and-coming singers and bands could create an entire career thanks to the buzz that would follow a memorable SNL debut — performances that in many cases have since become legendary. And that still holds true today: if you’re great on ‘Saturday Night Live,’ chances are you’re going to make it big.

But what if you, you know… suck?
Welcome to Ke$ha‘s world. As anyone who has been online this week knows, Ke$ha, the songstress behind the ubiquitous pop hit ‘Tik Tok,’ had her maiden SNL performance last weekend. And the result was nothing short of disastrous, as media outlets around the hemisphere raced to be the first to post their “Was Ke$ha the worst ‘SNL’ musical guest ever?” articles.

With that in mind, we thought this would be a good time to take a look back at her competition for the title, those musical guests that were memorable for all the wrong reasons. So without further ado, here’s our list of the worst ‘SNL‘ performances ever.

• Ke$ha — No doubt you’ve already seen this by now, but we thought it only fair to remind everyone just why this list is necessary. It was a toss-up just which of Ke$ha’s two performances were worse, but despite the day-glo body paint she used in ‘Your Love is My Drug,’ we ended up going with ‘Tik Tok.’ And not just because it was the worst use of space imagery in a live performance since William Shatner‘s rendition of ‘Rocket Man.’ So what was the deciding factor? Two words: Laser. Harp.

• Ashlee Simpson — As bad as Ke$ha was, she still couldn’t quite topple the undisputed queen of bad performances, Ashlee Simpson, whose 2004 lip-sync fiasco put a major dent in her career plans. She tried to excuse it away by explaining that she began losing her voice during rehearsals, but no excuse was ever offered for the totally bizarre jig she launched into as an attempt to cover up the gaffe. She then fled the stage and let the band jam without her — arguably the best musical decision of the night.

For more on the list and to check out some videos of these performances, click here.

~~I’m such a fan of Ke$ha’s and I’m so shocked to hear that her ‘SNL’ performance had gone wrong.

Source: PopEater

Celebrity Couples: Rihanna and Matt Kemp

[Rihanna joins Matt Kemp for a game]

Less than a year ago, Rihanna‘s life was turned upside down after she was assaulted by former boyfriend Chris Brown. Now the singer seems to be putting the traumatic past behind her.

On Saturday, she was spotted at the LA Clippers vs Cleveland-Cavaliers game at the Staples Center in Los Angeles with her new pal, Dodgers star Matt Kemp, wearing her hair styled in angelic golden ringlets. The pop star, who will celebrate her 22nd birthday next month, appears to have kept her famous graduated bob hairstyle, adding playful curls for her day at the game.

In addition to the new style, photographers captured the singer with a perpetual and very sincere-looking grin on her face. Last week, Rihanna opened up to W magazine about coming out of the fog of last winter: “At first I completely shut down. But now I feel like this happened to me so I could be a voice for young girls who are going through what I went through and dont know how to talk about it.”

She also revealed a desire to focus on her budding acting career, briefly cut short by all the media attention surrounding her private life last year. As everyone who watched her fall appearance on “SNL” can attest, Rihanna has comedic acting skills that rival her talent as a singer.

Take a closer look at the new style below….

[Rihanna in December 2009]

[Rihanna in January 2010]

Check out some more photos of  Rihanna & Matt Kemp at the game.

Source: OMG!

“What do you think of her new relationship with Matt Kemp? I think they look cute together.  I’m really happy for her. I hope it works out. Good luck to the both of them.”

Wire Talk: Kanye West Lip-Synching on SNL?

Kanye West was apparently lip-syncing on Saturday Night Live, few days ago. Sheila Marikar from ABC said:

“West may have “committed what many fans regard as the greatest on-stage sin of all—lip-syncing,” “Whether by fault of his own or because of his audio equipment.”

Check out the videos below:

Love Lockdown:

Heartless: