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


Alison Krauss and Robert Plant accept the award for Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards on Sunday
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

"I'm bewildered," Robert Plant said onstage as he accepted the Grammy Album of the Year award 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."

He was probably one of the few who were surprised, because Raising Sand, 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.

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.

Really, she's the key to Sand'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 — so much so that they began kicking around the idea of recording an album together. Three years later, Sand was released.

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.

And perhaps that's also due to producer Burnett, who handpicked the 13 songs the duo cover on Sand. His arrangements are sparse — giving the two voices ample room to breathe — 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.

To date, Sand has sold more than 1 million copies, heaped tons of acclaim and actually earned a Grammy last year — "Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)" took home the award for Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals.

One expert was surprised not by the album's success, but by the fact that it's actually quite a good album.

"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?" New York Times 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 good 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."

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Lady Gaga Revives Male Alter Ego On 'You And I' Art

Singer appears as Jo Calderone in tweeted pics.
By Jocelyn Vena


Lady Gaga
Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images

Over the weekend, fans got one tweet closer to the release of Lady Gaga's video for "You And I" when she released the gender-bending artwork for her latest Born This Way single.

"You will never find what you are looking for in love, if you don't love yourself," she wrote of the song's and images' message. "#You&ISingleCover." The photos are of Gaga as her male alter ego, Jo Calderone. One shot features her/him wearing a blazer and white T-shirt, head down, smoking a cigarette. The other image is of Jo in silhouette puffing out a cloud of smoke.

This is not the first time fans have had the pleasure of meeting Jo. Gaga did an entire photo spread and interview as the fictional Italian car mechanic for Vogue Hommes Japan. In the issue, Calderone revealed some details about his relationship with the singer. "I met her at a shoot Nick Knight was doing," he said. "She's f---in' beautiful, and funny, and interesting. I was a little nervous for Nick to start shooting. She said, 'Don't be baby, you were born this way.' I took her out after. The rest is private."

Gaga promised last week that she would drop the video when she reached her one-thousandth tweet. Gaga previously teased that the video would include another one of her alter egos, that of her mermaid incarnation, Yuyi.

Gaga shot the video in Nebraska last month and explained that it is about taking a journey to win back the one you love. "And the [video is about the] idea that when you're away from someone you love, it's torture," she said. "I knew I wanted the video to be about me sprinting back and walking hundreds of thousands of miles to get him back."

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Kim Kardashian's Pre-Wedding Boot Camp Fitness

Getting into primo shape for her upcoming wedding, Kim Kardashian was spotted kicking off her day with a workout in Los Angeles this morning (August 11).

The ?Disaster Movie? dame headed off to Boot Camp at a local gym, sporting a black jacket, grey shorts, and matching sneakers.

In a recent interview, Kim described a recent trip to New York City for a wedding dress fitting session with Vera Wang.

?I took the red-eye at midnight, landed at eight in the morning in New York, ran to Vera Wang for a dress fitting at 10 a.m., and then left at noon on another flight out. So I was literally in for an hour, back out. I spent like 11 hours on a plane just to spend three hours in New York. But it was so worth it.?

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Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga Support Berry Family After Tragic Accident

Uncle of orphaned, injured Texas children calls outreach 'amazing.'
By Jocelyn Vena


Justin Bieber
Photo: Kevin Mazur/ WireImage

On July 3, the Berry family suffered an incredible tragedy. Parents Joshua and Robin Berry were killed in a car crash, while brothers Peter, 9, and Aaron, 8, were paralyzed, possibly for life, and remain hospitalized. Their younger sister, Willa, 6, was also injured, but suffered only broken bones. In the weeks since the crash in Texas, celebrities have been doing their part to help raise money for the care of the three young children.

Using the power of social media, everyone from Justin Bieber and Britney Spears to Lady Gaga and Usher have asked their fans to "Show Your Hearts" with donations at showyourhearts.org and via text message (texting BERRY to 85944 donates $10). Their call to arms has meant the world to Matt Berry, the kids' uncle.

"My wife had this family member in the Justin Bieber camp, and when the accident happened ... they reached out to us and asked how they could help," he told MTV News on Thursday. "So, it's been pretty much organic from their reaching out. Right after the accident, he was asking for their names and praying with his mom for the kids. It's not something we expected would happen, obviously.

"So, my understanding is that he wanted to do something to help, and the best way they could help was to create awareness," he continued. "They have a lot of friends and contacts. And then, of course, once their campaigns started going, it looked like a lot of people joined it because I think everyone had some sort of feeling of empathy."

The family is still mending: Peter and Aaron's "lifelong conditions" have been amplified by the loss of their parents; meanwhile Willa is still trying to come to terms with the incident.

Matt Berry said of all the public support they've received has "definitely helped." "Anything that goes to help the kids in their predicament [helps]. I don't know how long it will continue. I'm not someone who likes to be in the public eye, so it's a little bit awkward, but it's amazing.

"It's a little bit overwhelming," he added, but he said that right now, the family is taking it "day by day" as they deal with the aftermath of such a tremendously tragic turn of events.

"If it was up to us, we'd pray that they were able to stand up in a couple of weeks and walk out of the hospital, but the likelihood of that happening is low," he said, adding that the boys are readying for rehab to try to heal in any small way. "There's been a lot of people supporting us, and that's huge. The ultimate dream is if in their lifetime, there's enough momentum to figure something out and fix spinal-cord injuries. We've got two of them that need something special."

Show your support at showyourhearts.org and the Berry Children's Trust Facebook page.

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'Glee' Season Finale Exclusive: Listen To 'Yeah!' Here

An a cappella girl group covers Usher's hit for Nationals in next week's episode.
By Aly Semigran


Usher
Photo: Christopher Polk/ Getty Images

During this week's episode of "Glee", the gang from New Directions took a big risk when they decided they would compete in Nationals by singing their own original songs. Well, the stakes just got a little higher.

MTV News has an exclusive first listen to one of the rival groups who will go up against the McKinley High glee club in New York City during next Tuesday's (May 24) big season two finale. In the upcoming episode, an all-female a cappella group sings Usher's 2004 club and radio smash "Yeah!," which may have the Nationals judges saying just that.

Singers replace synthesizers for the four-note melody that repeats throughout the song, and lead vocalists RaVaughn Brown and Missi Hale match the high energy that Usher, Lil Jon and Ludacris brought to the track.

Granted, a few things have been tweaked in the version for the tween-friendly show, including the length (the original is over four minutes long, while the "Glee" version comes in at three and a half minutes) and the tune's instructions to "Take that and rewind it back ... got the rhythm make ya booty go."

Also, instead of Ludacris' verse, "We want a lady in the street/ And a freak in the bed," one girl sings, "You know you want a kiss on the lips, old red." The line, "Ludacris fill cups like double D's" has also been cut from the song.

But, it's not all PG. At one point in the girls' rendition of the track, they page homage to Lil Jon's crunk hit "Get Low," singing, "From the windows to the walls" and even Mystikal's booty-happy single "Shake Ya Ass," when they urge, "Show me whatcha' workin' with."

At the 2005 Grammy Awards, the power trio of Usher, Lil Jon and Ludacris won the Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Yeah!" But, will the song bring the same sort of fortune to this girl group at Nationals? Or will the glory all belong to New Directions this time? Gleeks will still have to wait a few more days to find out.

The "Glee" season finale airs Tuesday at 9 p.m. on Fox, while "Glee": The Music, Volume 6, including the three new original songs "Light Up the World," "Pretending" and "As Long as You're There," will be available on Monday.

What do you think of this a cappella group's version of "Yeah!"? Let us know in the comments section below!

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Scotty McCreery: "I Love You This Big" Video

Scotty McCreery: "I Love You This Big" Video

In case American Idol fans had forgotten, season 10 champion Scotty McCreery loves you this big. To prove it, the deep-voiced country crooner has released the music video for his debut single, appropriately titled "I Love You This Big." Watch it below!
 

While it lacks the over-the-top spectacle of, say, a Lady Gaga or Katy Perry video and (sorry, ladies) doesn't feature Scotty leading a bevy of scantily clad men and women in a choreographed dance, there is an undeniably appealing sweetness to "I Love You This Big." The video features 17-year-old Scotty belting out the song in a crowded park on a beautiful day, as everyone around smiles, waves, holds hands, braids hair and generally basks in the glow of the love that is all around.

It's also good to see that young McCreery hasn't let fame change him: He still rocks a big cross necklace and uses those signature mannersims -- head cocked to the side, eyes squinting, precarious grip on the microphone, arms open wide for the song's refrain -- that made him an Idol favorite.

With "I Love You This Big" sitting at No. 18 on the Billboard country music charts, there's little doubt that fans will love Scotty's new video. The only question is: How big?

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