Does Britney Spears Have 'The X Factor'?

MTV News takes a look at the pros and cons of bringing Spears onboard as a judge for the reality singing competition.
By John Mitchell

<P>The news that Britney Spears is reportedly in final negotiations to join "The X Factor" has set the MTV Newsroom on fire. Opinion on whether the pop star is a good fit for the reality singing competition has been sharply divided, so we decided to take on the topic the way we're sure Simon Cowell did before making Spears a reported $10 million offer: a good, old-fashioned pros and cons list. </P><P> </P><P> </P><P> </P><P><big><b>Pro: She'll attract viewers</b></big><br> </P><P>The debut season of "The X Factor" performed well below expectations. Its heavily hyped premiere pulled in 12.1 million total viewers and a meager 4.4/12 rating in the advertiser-coveted 18 to 49 demographic. That's about half of what the 2011 season of "American Idol" averaged ("Idol" is having its own ratings woes this season), and it didn't even win the night: Emmy-winning sitcom "Modern Family" drew 14.3 million viewers and a 6.0/15 for its season premiere. </P><P> </P><P>The poor ratings precipitated the overhaul that saw judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger and host Steve Jones fired from the show. </P><P> </P><P>There's no question that Spears would bring viewers to "The X Factor." She enjoys a large and devout fanbase who will basically follow her just about anywhere. And beyond her own fans, Spears' celebrity would also likely draw attention from the general public, who will tune in simply to see how she does. </P><P> </P><P><big><b> Con: She's become nervous on camera </b></big><br> </P><P> </P><P>Though she can still wow a crowd live in concert, as evidenced by last year's successful tour behind her hit album <i>Femme Fatale,</i> Spears has become increasingly tentative during interviews. She rarely grants on-camera sit-downs, and when she does, she seems nervous and uncomfortable. </P><P> </P><P>To be a strong judge or mentor on a reality show, you have to be <i>very</i> comfortable on camera. Part of what made Jennifer Lopez click last season on "Idol" was that she came across as confident, direct and often empathetic. She even broke down in tears after sending home contestant Chris Medina, whose fiancée suffered a severe brain injury in a car accident. The key word here is <i>after.</i> It's hard to imagine Spears being able to keep it together and deliver such difficult news in similar circumstances. </P><P>It's worth noting that a high-drama situation arose on the first season of "The X Factor" -- one that left contestant Rachel Crow sobbing onstage and Scherzinger a wreck ... a wreck who received death threats. Producers should also consider whether it's wise to send Spears, who has dealt with emotional issues in the past, into a genre that thrives when the emotional stakes are high. </P><P> </P><P><big><b>Pro: she is a contemporary artist</b></big><br> </P><P>One of the things we like most about "The Voice" is that its judges &#8212; Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton &#8212; are all active artists. They are all still hitting the studio to make hit records, and that lends a great deal of credibility to their opinions when they critique a contestant's performance. We don't mean to slight Abdul or Scherzinger, but you could argue that a legacy singer who hasn't released an album in over 17 years and a performer who has had a difficult time getting her own solo singing career off the ground aren't the best judges of who does and does not have "The X Factor." </P><P> </P><P>On the other hand, Spears may be. Last year's Femme Fatale gave Spears three top-10 singles &#8212; the most of any of her seven albums &#8212; and earned some of the best reviews of her career. While it's true that she did not write or produce much of the record, she was most certainly involved in picking her collaborators, which actually could speak well of her ability to know talent when she sees it. Spears also smartly chose red-hot rapper Nicki Minaj to open on the North American leg of her tour. </P><P> </P><P>When it comes to the contemporary pop music scene, Spears knows what works. </P><P> </P><P><big><b>Con: She's not known for her singing</b></big><br> </P><P>Unlike Aguilera, whose talent as a vocalist is indisputable, Spears is not known for her singing. By signing her to judge and mentor a singing competition, "X Factor" producers are setting themselves up for inevitable criticism. "Who is Britney Spears to judge a singing competition?" critics will scream (and they won't be wrong). </P><P> </P><P>When Aguilera critiques a performer's vocals, she speaks with authority &#8212; and her ear for singing proved to make her the most discerning judge on the "Voice" panel during the blind auditions. Spears' judging style will likely be based on liking what's already there, but she's not going to have much insight on missed notes or pitch, which will cripple her ability to further mentor her team. How can she help them improve as vocalists when it's a truth universally acknowledged that she's not really a vocalist herself? </P><P> </P><P><i>Do you think Britney Spears is a good choice for "The X Factor"? Let us know in the comments below.</i></p>

Related Videos Related Artists

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1680800/britney-spears-x-factor-judge-singin... "> http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1680800/britney-spears-x-factor-judge-singin...

Jennie Finch Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Gareis Jennifer Garner Jennifer Gimenez

'Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' Track List Revealed

First single from Trent Reznor/ Atticus Ross soundtrack is Karen O cover of Led Zeppelin song.
By Gil Kaufman

<P>You kind of can't go wrong when the soundtrack you've put together for one of the most eagerly anticipated literary adaptations in years kicks off Yeah Yeah Yeahs singer Karen O's take on Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song." </P><P> </P><P></p><div class="player-placeholder right" title="The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo" id="vid:693384" width="240" height="211"></div><p> </P><P> </P><P>Fans heard the throbbing industrial take on the rock classic cooked up by former Nine Inch Nails mastermind and O when a trailer for the David Fincher-directed "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" leaked back in May. And on Thursday, Oscar-winning industrial-rocker-turned-film composer Reznor and musical partner Atticus Ross unveiled the full track list for their "Tattoo" score album. </P><P> </P><P>The follow-up to their award-winning "The Social Network" score was a labor of love, according to a post Reznor put up on the NIN site on Thursday announcing the disc. "For the last fourteen months Atticus and I have been hard at work on David Fincher's 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo,' " he wrote about the American version of the tale of pierced and punished hacker Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara) and her muckraking journalist compatriot Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig). "We laughed, we cried, we lost our minds and in the process made some of the most beautiful and disturbing music of our careers. The result is a sprawling three-hour opus." </P><P> </P><P>The album will be released on iTunes on December 9 in two versions. Right now, you can download the Karen O song on iTunes when you pre-order the 39-track album. That download purchase will also give you a link to the eight-minute "Dragon Tattoo" trailer, for which Reznor and Ross created a unique score. </P><P> </P><P></p><div class="player-placeholder right" title="Daniel Craig Talks 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo'" id="vid:674399" width="240" height="211"></div><p> </P><P> </P><P>But, if you visit the NIN online store, Reznor is offering the soundtrack in a variety of forms, from a free six-track sampler to a deluxe 3,000-piece limited-edition signed $300 package with your choice of MP3 formats; the full album on six pieces of 180 gram vinyl; a deluxe book package with a metal cover; an exclusive custom 8 GB metal razor blade USB drive pendant containing the full album; and a fold-out poster. </P><P> </P><P>The full album score track list is as follows: <br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Immigrant Song" (Led Zeppelin cover) [ft. Karen O]<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "She Reminds Me of You"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "People Lie All the Time"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Pinned and Mounted"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Perihelion"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "What If We Could?"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "With the Flies"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Hidden in Snow"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "A Thousand Details"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "One Particular Moment"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "I Can't Take It Anymore"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "How Brittle the Bones"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Please Take Your Hand Away"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Cut Into Pieces"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "The Splinter"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "An Itch"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Hypomania"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Under the Midnight Sun"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Aphelion"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "You're Here"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "The Same as the Others"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "A Pause for Reflection"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "While Waiting"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "The Seconds Drag"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Later Into the Night"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Parallel Timeline With Alternate Outcome"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Another Way of Caring"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "A Viable Construct"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Revealed in the Thaw"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Millennia"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "We Could Wait Forever"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Oraculum"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Great Bird of Prey"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "The Heretics"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "A Pair of Doves"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Infiltrator"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "The Sound of Forgetting"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Of Secrets"<br> </P><P><b>&#187;</b> "Is Your Love Strong Enough?" (Bryan Ferry cover) </P><P> </P><P><b>Check out everything we've got on "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo." </P><P> </P><P>For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more &#8212; updated around the clock &#8212; visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.</b></p>

Related Artists

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1675322/girl-with-dragon-tattoo-soundtrack-l... "> http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1675322/girl-with-dragon-tattoo-soundtrack-l...

Angela Marcello Angelina Jolie Anna Faris Anna Friel Anna Kournikova

Beyonce Knowles: Star-Spangled Lip Syncher?

She?s well-known for her strong vocal style, but Beyonce Knowles is being accused of lip synching the ?Star Spangled Banner? during President Barack Obama?s inauguration event yesterday (January 21).

During her performance, the ?Crazy in Love? songstress opted to remove her in-ear monitor, making it basically impossible for her to hear herself and the backup band.

And according to a United States Marine Band source, Knowles didn?t really need the monitor to begin with, given that she was actually lip synching the whole gig.

?All music is pre-recorded for the ceremony because there are so many eventualities and conditions that day. We performed, live, the band. But we received last-minute word that Beyonce was going to use the pre-recorded vocal track. Those were the instructions we were given. We don?t know what the reason why.?

Source: http://celebrity-gossip.net/beyonce/beyonce-knowles-star-spangled-lip-syncher-794834

Esther Cañadas Eva Green Eva Longoria Eva Mendes Evangeline Lilly

Ke$ha Is Channeling 'Sexiness' Of '70s Rock For New Album

Glitter-heavy pop star tells MTV News she's going for 'balls-out, irreverent rock and roll.'
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Matt Elias

<P>Ke$ha's already got the face paint down pat, and, during recent live sets, she's even taken to guzzling blood out of a human heart, so it should come as no surprise that, on her upcoming album, the pop star is taking things back to the most <i>theatrical</i> era of rock: the prop-heavy, arena-spanning heyday of the 1970s. </P><P> </P><P>Ke$h revealed her plans over the weekend in Los Angeles, on the red carpet of KIIS FM's annual Wango Tango concert, where she told MTV News that the follow-up to her breakout <i>Animal</i> album (and, we suppose, Cannibal too) would be heavy on hard riffs and light on pretty much <i>everything</i> else. </P><P> </P><P></p><div class="player-placeholder right" title="Ke$ha Says New Album Will Be ' Balls-Out, Irreverent Rock'" id="vid:652875" width="240" height="211"></div><p> </P><P> </P><P>"The next album ... I've been working on writing on the road, but as far as a sound, I just know it's gonna be balls-out, irreverent rock and roll," she said. "I've been pretty much in this '70s rock and roll kick and I just want to capture some of the true essence of what rock and roll is, and that's just irreverence and sexiness and fun and not giving a f---, so we'll definitely put a bit of rock and roll in it." </P><P> </P><P>So, does that mean that fans can expect the likes of Alice Cooper or Peter Frampton to show up on her new album? Perhaps. Because while Ke$ha's new album is still a ways off, she's already begun calling in favors, hoping to line up a killer collabo for the new disc. </P><P> </P><P>"I'm trying, trust me," she laughed. "I really would love to connect with one of my idols, I mean, that's my dream. I'm working on it." </P><P> </P><P><i>What do you think of Ke$ha going rock for her next album? Tell us in the comments!</i></p>

Related Photos Related Artists

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1663946/kesha-new-album.jhtml "> http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1663946/kesha-new-album.jhtml

Brooke Burke Brooke Burns Busy Philipps Cameron Diaz Cameron Richardson

Adele?s ?21? Is 2012?s Bestselling Album? Just As It Was In 2011

Well, here?s a first?as noted by Billboard, for the first time since Nielsen SoundScan began keeping track of music sales way back in 1991, the same album remained the bestselling album in the United States for two years in a row.  That?s right, Adele?s 21 was the number one bestselling album in the United States [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/beatcrave/~3/fEq7zK8XZQ0/

Charli Baltimore Charlies Angels Charlize Theron Chelsea Handler Cheryl Burke

Catherine Zeta Jones' Stylish LAX Arrival

Arriving on the west coast, Catherine Zeta Jones landed at LAX Airport on Monday (January 21).

The "Chicago" star looked chic in a black pant suit accented with a white bowed blouse and a jaunty hat as she toted her metallic bag through the busy terminal.

The mother-of-two has been busy promoting her latest film, "Broken City," along with co-stars Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe.

Spearheaded by Allen Hughes, the crime thriller is currently showing in theaters nationwide.

Source: http://celebrity-gossip.net/catherine-zeta-jones/catherine-zeta-jones-stylish-lax-arrival-794552

Chyler Leigh Ciara Cindy Crawford Cindy Taylor Cinthia Moura