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The platinum songwriter and producer talks about his work with Kelly Rowland and Good friend Usher.
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The platinum songwriter and producer talks about his work with Kelly Rowland and Good friend Usher.
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The platinum songwriter and producer talks about his work with Kelly Rowland and Good friend Usher.
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Gaga's Jo Calderone alter ego introduced a dance tribute to Brit's best videos.
By John Mitchell
Britney Spears and Lady Gaga on stage at the 2011 VMAs
Photo: MTV
It's only fitting for one princess of pop to fete another. And that's what happened when Lady Gaga stepped out onstage at the MTV Video Music Awards to pay tribute to Britney Spears with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. Well, kind of.
Gaga took the stage to honor Spears still in character as her male alter ego Jo Calderone, which she'd taken on for her show-opening performance earlier in the night. And that made things pretty interesting. Calderone opened by calling Spears an inspiration, saying, "She taught us all how to be fearless, and the industry wouldn't be the same without her."
Calderone then went on to get a little personal about Spears. He told the audience he used to put up posters of the pop star on his bedroom wall and be inspired in non-musical ways. It was a weird moment, but Calderone is a young guy of the right generation — a generation that would indeed have posters of Britney Spears on his/her wall.
There's a reason, after all, she was being awarded the Vanguard Award. The tribute then turned into exactly what any great tribute to this particular diva should be: a dance party. Spears is known as one of the biggest dance pop artists of her generation, and accordingly, dancers wearing Britney's most famous video looks took the stage to get down to her biggest hits, from "Baby One More Time" and "Crazy" to "Toxic" and "Do Somethin'."
By the time the sequence dissolved into a full-stage dance-off to Spears' recent smash "Till The World Ends," children also wearing Spears' myriad costumes popped up onstage alongside their grown-up dancing counterparts. It was a fitting way to show the impact Spears' music has had. From kids to adults, everyone knows and loves Britney. As the performance ended, Gaga-as-Calderone again grabbed the spotlight to introduce the pop star and did so with the kind of bravado that carried him through his monologue earlier in the show. "Everybody, stand the f--- up," Calderone demanded.
Looking better than ever and glowing from all the praise, Spears then took the stage.
Calderone certainly liked what he saw, eyeing the singer before stepping forward for a semi-awkward stare-down. But Gaga, er, Calderone eventually got what he wanted: a quick kiss from the one and only Britney Spears. He wanted more, however, but alas, it just wasn't going to happen. Being a classy guy, Calderone brushed off Britney's dismissal of his advances with a cool, "I don't want Gaga to get pissed."
Spears seemed thankful for the prize but used her time to shine the spotlight on another artist: Beyoncé. Spears introduced Queen B's unstoppable performance of the amazing 4 track "Love on Top" — at the end of which Beyoncé revealed her pregnant belly.
The 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards have wrapped, but the real action is just getting started! Stick with MTV News for winners, fashion pics, video and behind-the-scenes stories about everything that went down. Visit VMA.MTV.com for the latest.
In her 'Britney Spears: I Am the Femme Fatale' special, she calls the 'OMG' singer 'really hot right now.'
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Sway Calloway
Sway Calloway and Britney Spears
Photo: MTV News & Docs
What do Britney Spears and Usher have in common? Well, they are both global superstars with a back catalogue of tunes that have kept fans dancing for a really long time and they both recently hooked up with will.i.am for tracks on their latest releases (the Black Eyed Peas mastermind worked on the pop vixen's Femme Fatale tune "Big Fat Bass"). And, if Spears has her way, she and the "OMG" singer could be hitting the road together.
When Spears sat down to talk with Sway Calloway for her "Britney Spears: I Am the Femme Fatale" special — airing Sunday (April 3) at 9 p.m. ET on MTV — the singer revealed that Usher is first on her list of artists she'd like to join her on tour.
"Oh, I'm so excited. I'm really excited about going on tour, very," she explained about her forthcoming summer trek, which happens to have a spot open on the bill now that Enrique Iglesias has pulled out of the gig. "I think Usher's really great right now. I think he's really hot right now. That would be cool [to tour with him]."
The North American road trip is expected to kick off June 17 in Sacramento, California, and will run for 26 dates, winding up on August 13 in Toronto. More details will be announced soon.
The "Britney Spears: I Am the Femme Fatale" special is a mixture of behind-the-scenes footage of the singer as she wraps up production on her album, which dropped this week, as well as an inside look at her life and fans. In addition, those who couldn't make Spears' recent nightclub show in Las Vegas will get to see her as she takes the stage in her latest pop incarnation.
Don't miss "Britney Spears: I Am the Femme Fatale," airing Sunday (April 3) at 9 p.m. ET on MTV.
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