JLS have written 16 tracks for their third album

The ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ hitmakers are currently in Los Angeles working on a new record and say initial sessions have proved particularly fruitful. Band member Jonathan ‘JB’ Gill said: “It’s going really well.”

His bandmate Oritse Williams added: “It’s off to a good start. We’ve written around 16 tracks so far.” The group – which also includes Aston Merrygold and Marvin Humes – have previously told of their plans to learn instruments for their new album.

Marvin, 25, said: “We all want to play our own instruments. We want to take the band forward. “Take That inspired us. We’ve already decided what we’re playing – I’m playing drums and Oritse is on guitar.” Jonathan added: “I used to play the piano and I’m going to take it up again. I feel like I’ve lost touch with it and I want to be able to play it on stage as well as on future albums.”

The band is keen to stay together as a group and have ruled out any of them going solo at this point in their career. Aston said: “We’re new to this game as a group. It feels like we’ve been here for a little while but we’re still new.”
Jonathan added: “Before the group we were all doing solo things and that didn’t work. aWe’re strong and unified and that won’t change.”

The ‘We Belong Together’ singer – who is believed to be expecting her first child with husband Nick Cannon – has recorded her second festive LP, entitled ‘Merry Christmas II You’, and will release it on November 2.

Produced by ‘American Idol’ judge Randy Jackson, James Poyser, Jermaine Dupri and award-winning composer Marc Shaiman the LP will feature Yule-tide classics such as ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem’, ‘The First Noel’ and ‘Little Drummer Boy’, as well as four original songs composed by the pop beauty.

A new version of Mariah’s most famous seasonal track ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ – which featured on the album ‘Merry Christmas’ – will also appear on the album.

Despite having been first released in 1994, ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ continues to appear on the Billboard Hot 100 Recurrent Singles chart each Christmas, hitting the number one spot every year from 2005 to 2008.

It is still not clear whether Mariah and Nick will be preparing for the patter of tiny feet by Christmas time.

Although she is widely rumoured to be pregnant, the singer refuses to publically confirm or deny the news.

Last month, she posted on her website: “I appreciate everyone’s well wishes. But I am very superstitious. When the time is right, everyone will know.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Phoenix sipping Martinis and rocking it live! – French sensation Phoenix talk to VICE about their last album and touring, giving us a behind-the-scenes look at their creative process

The “Unfaithful” hit maker Rihanna will kick off the “Last Girl on Earth” tour on July 2 in Seattle, Washington.

The “Russian Roulette” singer, who is on “American Idol” this week, explained that performing on the FOX show was worth the trouble.

“It’s my first time performing on ‘Idol’ and it’s a little nerve-wrecking because we’re in the middle of our tour rehearsals and it’s a really time-demanding experience and we just had to fit this in there.”

ET’s Kevin Frazier joined Rihanna exclusively at “American Idol” as she rehearsed for her live performance.

She also explained the tour title to Kevin and said “We just came up with what we’re going to do right here, right now. I like to think about myself as the last girl on Earth because sometimes people make decisions based on the outlook of others and, you know, to me, my life is my life. It’s my world, and I’m going to live it the way I want to. That’s how I think about everything, that way I’m focused on me, and my work. It’s a really narrow space, a focus.”

Rihanna is very exited for her song “Rude Boy” hitting No.1, and said “I can’t believe ‘Rude Boy’ of all songs was the biggest song on this album, and that’s the one that I really wrote the most on.”

Rihanna’s Tour dates 2010:

May 23, 2010, Bangor -Wales, Vaynol Estate

May 24, 2010, Belfast – Northern Ireland, Odyssey Arena

May 26, 2010, Dublin – Ireland, The O2

May 30, 2010, Tel Aviv – Israel, Bloomfield Stadium

June 1, 2010, Athens – Greece, Karaiskakis Stadium

June 3, 2010, Istanbul – Turkey, Turkcell Kuruçeşme Arena

June 5, 2010, Madrid – Spain, Arganda del Rey

June 6, 2010, London – England, Wembley Stadium

July 2, 2010, Auburn – United States, White River Amphitheatre

July 4, 2010, Vancouver – Canada, General Motors Place

July 6, 2010, Calgary – Canada, Pengrowth Saddledome

July 9, 2010, Sacramento – USA, ARCO Arena

July 10, 2010, Mountain View – USA, Shoreline Amphitheatre

July 12, 2010, Salt Lake City – USA, NA Amphitheatre

July 14, 2010, Albuquerque – USA, The Pavilion

July 15, 2010, Greenwood Village – USA, Comfort Dental Amphitheatre

July 17, 2010, Las Vegas – USA, Mandalay Bay Events Center

July 18, 2010, Anaheim – USA, Honda Center

July 21, 2010, Los Angeles – USA, Staples Center

July 22, 2010, Phoenix -USA, Cricket Wireless Pavilion

July 24, 2010, Dallas – USA, Superpages.com Center

July 25, 2010, San Antonio – USA, AT&T Center

July 28, 2010, Atlanta – USA, Philips Arena

July 30, 2010, Tampa – USA, Ford Amphitheatre

July 31, 2010, Miami – USA, American Airlines Arena

August 3, 2010, Noblesville – USA, Verizon Wireless Music Center

August 5, 2010, Toronto – Canada, Molson Amphitheatre

August 7, 2010, Montreal – Canada, Bell Centre

August 8, 2010, Mansfield – USA, Comcast Center

August 11, 2010, Uncasville – USA, Mohegan Sun Arena

August 12, 2010, New York City – USA, Madison Square Garden

August 14, 2010, Atlantic City – USA, Borgata Events Center

August 15, 2010, Wantagh – USA, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater

August 18, 2010, Camden – USA, Susquehanna Bank Center

August 20, 2010, Bristow – USA, Jiffy Lube Live

August 21, 2010, Hershey – USA, The Star Pavilion at Hersheypark Stadium

August 22, 2010, Clarkston – USA, DTE Energy Music Theatre

August 25, 2010, Chicago – USA, United Center

August 28, 2010, Syracuse – USA, Mohegan Sun Grandstand

Katy Perry the “Waking Up in Vegas” singer is on the highlights again, on Saturday night the pop star celebrated blogger Perez Hilton’s birthday party at Paramount Studios in L.A.

In this grand event Katy made a sensational appearance on the back of an elephant singing “Happy Birthday” to her friend, while guests like Audrina Patridge and Lindsay Lohan watched.

Earlier in the evening the Pop star appeared live on Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards at L.A.’s Pauley Pavilion and was excited about unleashing her new songs, speaking to MTV News at this event she said, “It’s so exciting. It’s coming out this summer. It’s a summer record.”

While presenting the Kids Choice award for Favorite Movie Actress to Miley Cyrus, the podium blasted Perry with green slime. Tina Fey and Steve Carrell were also slimed, while winning the “slimetime achievement award.” Among the music awards, Black Eyed Peas were named Favorite Music Group, Jay-Z won for Male Singer and Taylor Swift was named Favorite Female Singer. Swift’s “You Belong With Me” was named Favorite Song. Justin Bieber and Rihanna both performed as well.

She also had her eye out for one man at the show: Justin Bieber. “Also heard Justin Biebers gonna b here 2night,” she Tweeted. “Can’t wait to tap that.” Later, Perry took to Twitter where she posted evidence that she had smooched the young singer. “Told you I would tap that,” she wrote. “Yummy.”

Lady Gaga says being gay is not a choice.

The 23-year-old singer, who has previously discussed her own bisexuality at length, believes homosexual men and women are “born” that way.

Gaga – who claims her new video ‘Telephone’ is “groundbreaking” because she showcases of different types of sexuality in the nine-minute promo – said: “There are transsexual women and transgender women and suddenly it becomes poisonous and something else because there are some people in this world that believe being gay is a choice. It’s not a choice, we’re born this way.

“That’s why for me this video is groundbreaking because it has one foot in the art community and one foot in the commercial world.”

The ‘Paparazzi’ singer stars in the video with Beyonce Knowles – who also lends her vocals to the track – and prior to recording Gaga promised Beyonce it would be a classic.

She added in an interview 2Day FM’s Kyle and Jackie O radio show: “I told Beyonce this after it aired, you’ll see this video is not just great now but six months from now what this video will mean.

“Hearing people say the video is sadomasochistic or that the video promotes murder for young people, it’s my personal belief that the video is getting so much attention, not because of those themes because I’ve done those themes before, haven’t I?

“I’ve done those themes in many of my videos but it’s because it’s with Beyonce and it’s because there are so many homosexual themes.”

In the video Gaga kisses a female prison warden, is broken out of jail by Beyonce, kills someone and makes a poisoned sandwich for a group of truckers.

In the past the eccentric pop star has admitted she could easily fall in love with a woman.

She said: “Of course. There are no rules or limits when it comes to love. But I see love as separate from sex.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The ‘Bad Boys’ singer, whose debut LP ‘Overcome’ went straight to the top of the UK charts, is determined to mimic her home country’s success in the notoriously difficult US market but is hoping record company executives won’t force her to make too many changes.

She said: “I’d love for America to go well next year. I’m working on an American version of ‘Overcome’.

“I’m writing a few things for it. Ideally I just want to lay down some ideas, present it to the label and then see what happens. I don’t think we’re going to change it that much for the American market as the videos will definitely stay the same.”

In order to boost her chances of success, Alexandra is hoping she can count on friend Beyonce Knowles for support.

The 24-year-old so said she wants to get Beyonce Knowles to help her in the US.

Alexandra and the ‘Crazy In Love’ singer became close after the pair sang together on the final of UK TV talent show ‘X Factor’ which shot the British star to fame in 2008.

She added to the Daily Star newspaper: “I’m keeping my fingers tightly crossed to see whether Beyonce will let me take up her offer of help next year.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The legendary guitarist has a host of new songs written and plans to release and tour them in the New year.

Jimmy – who played a one-off concert with Led Zeppelin at London’s O2 Arena in December 2007 – said: “We’re running up to Christmas now and next year I have every intention of playing music live and manifesting it. I’ve got the music waiting, and that’s what I’ll be doing. It’s been two years since The 02 show, so it’s time to do that.”

Jimmy, 65, insists he has never fallen out of love with the guitar and says his relationship with his instrument is like a happy marriage.

The musician – who has been married three times and is currently wed to Jimena Gomez-Paratcha, mother to three of his five children –added to Sky News: “There’s this bonding with this instrument. It’s as simple as that, they sort of speak with their own character. You can have this marvellous affair with a guitar, almost like a marriage. But at the end of the day it doesn’t ask you for alimony.”

Jimmy’s Led Zeppelin bandmates Robert Plant and John Paul Jones are both busy with their own projects.

Robert is recording another album with Alison Krauss, while John has just released an LP with his super-group Them Crooked Vultures, which also includes Foo Fighters rocker Dave Grohl and Queens of the Stone Age singer Josh Homme.

Source: BANG Showbiz

The former Sex Pistols frontman – also known as Johnny Rotten – thinks the two hugely successful bands are “pointless” and lack “heart and soul”.

He fumed to BBC radio station 6 Music: “Coldplay and Radiohead bug the hell out of me because it’s so soulless. It just seems pointless. It’s nice but it’s tosh. They don’t care about you. They care about lining their coffers.

“There’s nothing about heart and soul, they don’t know about heart and soul, they don’t know about people dying, living and aspiring.”

The punk singer’s offhand opinion may not be entirely founded, as Radiohead famously released their last album, ‘In Rainbows’, to fans on a pay-what-you –like basis – with many choosing to pay nothing.

Coldplay are currently holed up in a London church writing a “low-key” new album, as frontman Chris Martin is worried about alienating his fans with the band’s the epic sound of their last record ‘Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends’.

A source said: “Chris is determined not to be seen as a huge commercial rock juggernaut, filling stadiums and cashing in.

“The plan is to keep them as close to their fans as possible. The band is keen to make hay while the sun shines.

“They have hit a rich vein with their songwriting and feel more creative than ever.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The Girls Aloud star – who has now permanently relocated to Los Angeles following a year-long break from the band – hopes her fans like her debut LP which she plans to release in the spring.

She said: “I’ve been writing my own songs. It’s been an incredible experience, I’m hoping to release it in the spring.

“I wrote nearly all the songs myself. It’s quite embarrassing when you start songwriting because you are opening yourself up, I think people are going to like the album though.”

The 24-year-old star doesn’t care if her solo work isn’t as successful as Girls Aloud’s music.

She said in an interview with Britain’s Star magazine: “I doubt it will be as big as Girls Aloud because we had to work so long and so hard to get to that level. I’ll just be happy to get the album out there and have it in the shops. After that, who knows?”

Nadine has no plans to move back to the UK because she loves the US and her life with her American football player boyfriend Jason Bell so much.

She said: “I am an LA girl now through and through, so I won’t be moving back to London or Ireland. I love life in America too much. I have my own bar business there and I have a house on the beach. What more could a girl want?”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The ‘I Can Transform Ya’ singer – who was convicted of assaulting his then-girlfriend Rihanna in February, leaving her covered in cuts and bruises – has posted angry messages on his twitter account blasting stores who refuse to sell his LP ‘Graffiti’.

He wrote: “I’m tired of this s**t. major stores are blackballing my CD. Not stocking the shelves and lying to customers. what the f**k do I gotta do? (sic)”

He later added: “WTF… yeah I said it and I aint retracting s**t.

“I’m not biting my tongue about s**t else… The industry can kiss my a*s. (sic)”

Chris, 20, has received widespread criticism for his attack on Rihanna, 21, following a pre-Grammy Awards party.

He was found guilty of the assault and ordered to carry out 80 hours of community labour, undergo 12 months of domestic violence counselling and received five years probation for the incident. He also has to stay at least 100 yards away from Rihanna for the next five years.

Since the attack, Chris vowed to “learn from” his behaviour.

He said: “Domestic violence is totally wrong whatever the circumstances, no exceptions.

“I’m only 20. This is a bad mistake I made, but one that I’m not denying nor running away from. I don’t believe I should let it shatter my life.

“I’m owning up to the wrongs I’ve done and am working on myself. I’m trying to find the positive amid the negative. I’m urging people to learn from what I did and not take the same route. If I do that – act as an example – then I feel I have no reason to go through the rest of my life with my head hanging down.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The ‘Umbrella’ singer has pledged to offer the Girls Aloud star – who recently launched her solo career – a spot supporting her on her American tour next year.

Rihanna – who, like Cheryl has worked with Black Eyed Peas singer will.i.am on her latest album ‘Rated R’ – said: “Cheryl is cute and incredible. I think I could help break her in the US. She’d wow them – I’d love to have her on tour, in Europe or America.”

‘Fight For This Love’ singer Cheryl has crossed paths with Cheryl several times in recent weeks.

Rihanna performed on UK TV talent show ‘The X Factor’, on which Cheryl is a judge, and also appeared as guest performer on a forthcoming show dedicated to the singer entitled ‘Cheryl Cole’s Night In’.

Rihanna, 21, also revealed she would love to play next year’s Glastonbury Festival, following in the footsteps of her mentor Jay-Z who performed at the world famous music event in the summer of 2008.

She said: “My tour is going to be a huge production. I would love to play Glastonbury. Even if it’s not headlining, but my tour stars in the spring so it may clash.”

Rihanna’s ‘Rated R’ European tour will start in Belgium next April and visit the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland before she performs nine dates in the UK.

Rihanna’s ‘Rated R’ European Tour dates 2010:

Antwerps Sportpaleis, Belgium 16 April

Arnhem, Gelredome, Netherlands, 17 April

Frankfurt/Main, Festhalle, Germany, 23 April

Oberhausen, Konig Pilsener Arena, Germany, 25 April

Geneva, Arena Geneva, Switzerland, 27 April

Birmingham LG Arena, 07 May

Liverpool Echo Arena, 08 May

The O2, London, 10 May

Sheffield Arena, 13 May

Nottingham Trent FM Arena, 14 May

Manchester MEN Arena, 16 May

Newcastle Arena, 17 May

Glasgow SECC, 19 May

Dublin, The O2 Arena, Ireland, May 22

Source: BANG Showbiz

Frontman Chris Martin is said to be worried about alienating fans with their trademark stadium rock sound and hopes the legendary music producer – who helmed last LP ‘Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends’ – can help make their next LP sound more intimate.

A source told Britain’s The Sun newspaper: “Chris is determined not to be seen as a huge commercial rock juggernaut, filling stadiums and cashing in.

“This is the plan to keep them as close to their fans as possible. The band are keen to make hay while the sun shines.

“They have hit a rich vein with their songwriting and feel more creative than ever.”

The band are now hard at work in a church in London, despite only finishing their ‘Viva La Vida’ world tour in September and guitarist Jonny Buckland getting married last month.

The source added to Britain’s The Sun newspaper: “Jonny has thrown himself into the new album, as have all the boys. The results are really exciting so far.

“Chris had wanted to record while they were on the road but it was just too much. They have this work ethic while the going is good to just keep working as hard as possible.”

However, the group – which also includes Guy Berryman and Will Champion – may take a break from work this weekend when it is rumoured Chris will appear on UK TV for the final of singing talent show ‘The X Factor’.

The album could be released as early as next year.

Source: BANG Showbiz

The ‘Girlfriend’ singer almost quit the music industry when her grandmother passed away in 2006 but has learned to channel her emotions use them to create a “new sound” for her latest LP ‘The Element of Freedom’.

She explained: “I found more freedom. Before, I thought I could only show the strong side of me. Now there’s a mixture of strong and delicate. A new sound, a new emotion. That’s a lot of who I am right now.

“In the past, I was locking myself in the studio because I thought it was the only way to create music. This was a more casual way to do it.

“The tour will take me all over the world for a year and I can’t wait to play these songs.”

In 2006, the 28-year-old songstress almost suffered a breakdown after her grandmother passed away. She took a three-week holiday in Egypt to grieve for her loss before she released ‘As I Am’ a year later.

She explained to Britain’s Daily Star newspaper: “With the last album, I was really trying to find myself and I was feeling extremely overworked. I was also starting to understand that I was dealing with certain people in business that were not really for me and they all had their intentions and thoughts. I was snappy, I was nasty, I was mean, losing my grandmother during that time as well. Everything felt like it could all just tumble down at once.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The Scottish singer – who shot to fame after appearing on talent show ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ earlier this year – has broken records with her first album, ‘I Dreamed a Dream’, which shot to the top of the British album charts yesterday (29.11.09).

The record has become the fastest-selling debut album ever released in the UK after selling 411,000 copies in one week and has also sold over 2million copies worldwide – making it the fastest-selling debut album by a woman ever.

Susan, 48, said: “It’s fantastic!”

However, the singer’s success has been marred by New Zealand TV presenter, who labelled the 48-year-old singer a “retard”.

During his live breakfast show, Paul Henry criticised Susan – who suffered learning difficulties as a child after she was starved of oxygen at birth – and told viewers he had made a “revelation”.

He said: “Here’s the really interesting revelation – she is in fact retarded. And if you look at her carefully, you can make it out.”

The show was flooded with complaints from viewers and disabled charities, who blasted his unkind words.

However, Paul claims he has no regrets over his remarks.

He explained: “These were light-hearted remarks. I can’t recall a time that I’ve regretted saying anything.”

Philippa Sellens, from New Zealand disabled group the Intellectually Handicapped Charity: “Paul thought he was being very funny, but he wasn’t, it was highly offensive. Very few people would have found it funny.”

The presenter is now said to be facing the sack.

Source: BANG Showbiz

The 2003 single – which features her now husband Jay-Z – was released as the lead single from her album ‘Dangerously in Love’ and went on to massive success, reaching the top spot in the UK and US charts, as well as landing Beyonce two Grammy awards.

The former Destiny’s Child singer beat MGMT, whose 2008 song ‘Time To Pretend’ came second, to the top spot, while The Strokes’ ‘Hard To Explain’, from 2001, was third.

At number four was MIA’s 2008 track ‘Paper Planes’ and at number five was Outcast with ‘Hey Ya!’, which saw listeners told to head to the dance floor to “shake it like a Polaroid picture”.

The Klaxons, with their 2007 song ‘Golden Skans’, Blur, with their 2003 track ‘Out Of Time’, and Arctic Monkeys’ ‘A Certain Romance’ all made the top ten.
NME magazine Top 100 tracks of the decade top 20:

1. Beyonce Knowles – ‘Crazy In Love’

2. MGMT – ‘Time To Pretend’

3. The Strokes – ‘Hard To Explain’

4. MIA – ‘Paper Planes’

5. OutKast – ‘Hey Ya!’

6. The Rapture – ‘House Of Jealous Lovers’

7. Klaxons – ‘Golden Skans’

8. Blur – ‘Out Of Time’

9. Arcade Fire – ‘Rebellion (Lies)’

10. Arctic Monkeys – ‘A Certain Romance’

11. The Libertines – ‘Can’t Stand Me Now’

12. The Streets – ‘Dry Your Eyes’

13. The Walkmen – ‘The Rat’

14. The White Stripes – ‘Seven Nation Army’

15. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – ‘Bang’

16. Rihanna – ‘Umbrella’

17. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – ‘Maps’

18. OutKast – ‘Ms Jackson’

19. Radiohead – ‘Reckoner’

20. Hot Chip – ‘Over And Over’

Source: BANG Showbiz

The Irish band recently reunited for their first tour in six years and singer Dolores O’Riordan admits they are desperate to record some fresh material.

She said: “It would be nice to come up with a new record. I don’t see why not. The ideas are always there, so hopefully something will come out of it.”

If The Cranberries are going to commit to an LP – which would be their first studio release since 2001’s ‘Wake Up and Smell the Coffee’ – Dolores wants it to be as good as it can be.

The ‘Linger’ singer – who has been working on new material with guitarist Noel Hogan – added in an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper: “Noel has been sending me lots of music, and I’ve been continually writing. It’s one of those things where we have to see what happens. There’s no point in bringing out a crappy record. You want it to be good, so hopefully the creative juices are flowing.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

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The ‘She Wolf’ singer is famed for her hip-swivelling abilities and believes it isn’t something she ever had to learn, even though she did have lessons as a child.

The Columbian beauty said: “For me, it was, and is, more of a natural thing. It’s something that was practically given to me at birth, and for which I never had to train myself. These movements, they are inside me and I can call them back whenever I need them.”

Shakira realises she is a sex symbol to men all over the world but insists she is “flattered” that guys find her attractive because she has never believed she is a beautiful woman.

She added: “I must confess that I feel very flattered – because I never have felt particularly sexy. Anybody who shows me like this is promoting my feminine vanity.”

But Shakira – who appears virtually naked in the video for ‘She Wolf’ – admits it’s not easy looking as good as she does, and she has to stick to a rigorous training regime to stay slim and sexy.

She added to German magazine Fit For Fun: “I trained really hard for the ‘She Wolf’ video – almost a month. I wanted to look good and didn’t want to shame myself.

“There was no muscle in my body that did not hurt. I was in pain for days, simply because I’d gone too far.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The producer and singer said he originally offered his track – the first single from his latest album ‘Rokstarr’ – to the Girls Aloud singer, for her debut solo record, but she took too long deciding whether to record it or not.

He said: “I wrote a couple of songs sent them over to her people – one of them was ‘Break Your Heart’, the other was ‘Stand Up’.

“Her record company heard it and I guess they were dilly dallying a little bit so they came back and they were too late for ‘Break Your Heart’, so we put it out as me.”

While Cheryl included ‘Stand Up’ on her album ‘3 Words’, ‘Break Your Heart’ became Taio’s first solo number one single in the UK on September 20.

However, Taio is confident he would have gone on to similar success even if he had given away the track.

He added to BANG Showbiz: “I think I’ve got songs on my album that, fingers crossed, would have done just as well. And if not, I would have written something else.

“The song I wrote for Cheryl’s album, ‘Stand Up’, I think could be a smash.”

Cheryl’s first single, ‘Fight For This Love’, also reached number one in the UK on 25 October.

Much of her album was produced by Black Eyed Peas star will.i.am.

Source: BANG Showbiz

The American rockers’ 2001 debut LP topped a list compiled by British music magazine NME made up of votes from record producers, label bosses and musicians, including members of Radiohead and Arctic Monkeys who both rank highly.

Troubled rocker Pete Doherty saw three of his albums make the list, with his former band The Libertines coming in second place with their debut effort ‘Up The Bracket’.

The group’s second, and final, self-titled release was placed at number 24, while his other band Babyshambles saw their debut record ‘Down In Albion’ achieve 35th place.

NME Editor Krissi Murison said: “This is the definitive word on the greatest albums of the ‘00s – as voted for by everyone who helped make music brilliant this decade.”

Veteran rockers Primal Scream came in third place with ‘Xtrmntr’, while Arctic Monkeys’ debut album ‘Whatever People Say I am, That’s What I’m Not’ was fourth and ‘Fever To Tell’ by US group Yeah Yeah Yeahs came fourth.

The ‘Maps’ hitmakers were one of six acts to have two LPs make the list, with ‘Show Your Bones’ placed at 32.

In addition to Yeah Yeah Yeahs and The Libertines, Radiohead, The White Stripes, Arcade Fire and The Streets all saw two records make it into the top 50.

The best represented year of the decade was 2002, with a total of eight albums released in the year placed in the list.

NME magazine’s top 50 albums of the decade:

1. The Strokes – ‘Is This It’

2. The Libertines – ‘Up The Bracket’

3. Primal Scream – ‘Xtrmntr’

4. Arctic Monkeys – ‘Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not’

5. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – ‘Fever To Tell’

6. PJ Harvey – ‘Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea’

7. Arcade Fire – ‘Funeral’

8. Interpol – ‘Turn On The Bright Lights’

9. The Streets – ‘Original Pirate Material’

10. Radiohead – ‘In Rainbows’

11. At The Drive In – ‘Relationship Of Command’

12. LCD Soundsystem – ‘The Sound Of Silver’

13. The Shins – ‘Wincing The Night Away’

14. Radiohead – ‘Kid A’

15. Queens Of The Stone Age – ‘Songs For The Deaf’

16. The Streets – ‘A Grand Don’t Come For Free’

17. Sufjan Stevens – ‘Illinoise’

18. The White Stripes – ‘Elephant’

19. The White Stripes – ‘White Blood Cells’

20. Blur – ‘Think Tank’

21. The Coral – ‘The Coral’

22. Jay-Z – ‘The Blueprint’

23. Klaxons – ‘Myths Of The Near Future’

24. The Libertines – ‘The Libertines’

25. Rapture – ‘Echoes’

26. Dizzee Rascal – ‘Boy in Da Corner’

27. Amy Winehouse – ‘Back To Black’

28. Johnny Cash – ‘Man Comes Around’

29. Super Furry Animals – ‘Rings Around The World’

30. Elbow – ‘Asleep In The Back’

31. Bright Eyes – ‘I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning’

32. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – ‘Show Your Bones’

33. Arcade Fire – ‘Neon Bible’

34. Grandaddy – ‘The Sophtware Slump’

35. Babyshambles – ‘Down In Albion’

36. Spirtualized – ‘Let it Come Down’

37. The Knife – ‘Silent Shout’

38. Bloc Party – ‘Silent Alarm’

39. Crystal Castles – ‘Crystal Castles’

40. Ryan Adams – ‘Gold’

41. Wild Beasts – ‘Two Dancers’

42. Vampire Weekend – ‘Vampire Weekend’

43. Wilco – ‘Yankee Hotel Foxtrot’

44. Outkast – ‘Loveboxxx/The Love Below’

45. Avalanches – ‘Since I Left You’

46. Delgados – ‘The Great Eastern’

47. Brendan Benson – ‘Lapalco’

48. Walkmen – ‘Bows and Arrows’

49. Muse – ‘Absolution’

50. MIA – ‘Arular’

Source: BANG Showbiz

The hip-hop star – married to singer Beyonce Knowles – is in talks to work with the Girls Aloud beauty who last month launched her solo career.

Cheryl – whose debut album ‘3 Words’ entered the UK album chart at number one – has told pals having Jay-Z as her new mentor is “beyond her wildest dreams”.

A source told Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper: “Cheryl is the biggest fan of Jay-Z and Beyonce. To hear the feeling is mutual has totally made her year.

“She never imagined her album would have taken off like this. To get Jay-Z’s support is beyond her wildest dreams.”

The collaboration has arisen after Cheryl met Beyonce on last year’s series of UK TV talent show ‘The X Factor’, on which Cheryl is a judge.

The ‘Sweet dreams’ singer teamed up with Cheryl’s contestant Alexandra Burke for a show-stopping duet.

After the programme, the two pop stars hit it off as they hung out in the dressing rooms together.

But at the time, Cheryl was convinced she had acted like a crazed fan when she met her idol.

She said: “I turned into a fool when I saw Beyonce, I couldn’t speak to her. I really embarrassed myself.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

The singer debuted tracks from her forthcoming album ‘Rated R’, including ‘Wait Your Turn’ and ‘Hard’, and was joined on stage by rapper Jay-Z for ‘Run This Town’ and ‘Umbrella’.

The 45-minute show at the 02 Academy Brixton was attended by music industry guests and competition winners, but also broadcast live across the internet on the Nokia website.

A guest at the concert told BANG Showbiz: “She may have been away for nine months, but she has certainly not lost anything when it comes to her voice. She sounded incredible, hit every note and completely owned the stage.

“She also had two backing dancers dressed in hijabs. She pulled off some very sexy moves – she even grabbed a mannequin’s crotch at one point!”

Dressed in a provocative leotard and sporting a shock of dyed blonde hair, Rihanna was backed by a live band, showcasing a new, more rock orientated sound for her new LP.

The 21-year-old pop star recently revealed she sought solace in the recording studio following the vicious assault by Chris – which left her battered and bruised and resulted in Chris being sentenced to six months of community service, 12 months of domestic violence counselling and five years probation.

She said: “When I was given time off in March it was a little crazy. Being at home was driving me mad.

“I couldn’t go anywhere. It was, like, ‘Look at the poor victim!’ So I called my label and said, ‘I’m ready.’ ”

Footage from the show can be seen at www.nokia.com/rihanna

Source: BANG Showbiz

The Barbadian singer wrote ‘Cold Case Love’ about how she was attacked by then-boyfriend Chris Brown not long after the incident in February.

She said: “It was one of the first songs I did for the album and it is one of the most emotional.”

Rihanna, 21, has also revealed she was desperate to get back into the recording studio after the assault, so she could concentrate on her career rather than what had happened to her.

The pop beauty explained: “When I was given time off in March it was a little crazy. Being at home was driving me mad.

“I couldn’t go anywhere. It was, like, ‘Look at the poor victim!’ So I called my label and said, ‘I’m ready.’ ”

The ‘Russian Roulette’ singer also recorded some of the LP, entitled ‘Rated R’, in London and admits she loves the UK capital.

Rihanna – who releases the album on November 26 – said: “We made a lot of the album in London. We took two big trips there and spent some time just figuring out the record.

“London is one of my favourite cities, it’s where I get most of my creative energy.”

Chris attacked Rihanna in his car as they left a pre-Grammy Awards party in February, repeatedly punching her in the face and biting her arms.

He pleaded guilty to assault and in August was sentenced to six months of community service, 12 months of domestic violence counselling and five years probation.

Source: BANG Showbiz

The 19-year-old singer – who won four awards, including Best Female Vocalist and Best Album – shunned the late-night parties to spend time with her family.

She wrote on her Twitter page:  “Just wrapped up a cereal party with my mom and dad at the kitchen table. What a night.”

The blonde beauty also revealed she can’t stop hugging people because she’s so ecstatic with her haul of honours.

She added: “I have said ‘I love you’ to so many people tonight. I can’t stop hugging people. This is magical.”

Taylor – who was left mortified when Kanye West when stormed the stage when she collected an award at the MTV Video Music Awards in September – had previously said she couldn’t believe she had been given four of the top honours.

She said: “I feel like I’m walking around in a dream right now. It’s… the CMA Awards and four awards? I can’t even believe that!”

Source: BANG Showbiz