euclid latitude

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Justin Bieber: A Believe Cheat Sheet

Pop star celebrates his latest release on tonight's 'Bieber Live,' where Justin will perform and chat with Sway at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on MTV!
By Jocelyn Vena

<a href="http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/bieber_justin/artist.jhtml">Justin Bieber</a> is telling his fans to <a href="/news/articles/1687569/justin-bieber-live-evolution.jhtml">Believe</a> on his spankin' new album, out Tuesday (June 19). The release is a bona fide something-for-everyone pop album, full of fist-pumping dance tracks, sweet love ballads and swaggy-to-the-max R&B ditties.The singer began teasing the release in late 2011, and soon after, hit the studio with everyone from <a href="/news/articles/1684496/justin-bieber-kim-kardashian-kanye-west.jhtml">Kanye West</a> to <a href="/news/articles/1677263/justin-bieber-will-i-am-believe.jhtml">will.i.am</a> to <a href="/news/articles/1683050/justin-bieber-taylor-swift-collaboration.jhtml">Taylor Swift</a>, leaving fans wondering just what the album would end up sounding like. And while none of those tracks made the final cut, what did paints a complete picture of the 18-year-old's current musical motives. And they are? Well, to get you dancing to bumping beats and swooning for him while he pines over potential love on slower jams.<div class="player-placeholder right" title="Justin Bieber Live On MTV!" id="vid:791928" width="415" height="255"></div>MTV News has rounded up all the vital information to get you up to speed on today's album release. Also, be sure to tune in on tonight for MTV's <a href="/news/articles/1687565/justin-bieber-live-mtv.jhtml">"Bieber Live,"</a> where Justin will dish about his new album at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT. Here is your Believe cheat sheet:How It Came Together When his manager, Scooter Braun, stopped by the MTV News offices last week, he revealed that it was quite a lengthy process to make the album, and one that was all-hands-on-deck for the singer and his team. Over the course of making the album, Bieber cooked up hundreds of tracks over an 8-month period."He and I are both very competitive, and he'd always look at me and go, 'This is the make-it-or-break-it album, and you got to push me. You got to tell me if I'm not good enough, and I might argue' ... so I really, really pushed him, and we took this album really seriously," Braun said. "But I also had to give room to grow. Sometimes I'd put him in writing sessions for two weeks, and we'd get one song out of it, and it was just because he had to find that place for himself and that music. And as the process went on, he really started hitting his stride. ... And I think everyone has a different favorite, but the one common thread is you don't dislike any songs."<div class="player-placeholder right" title="Justin Bieber: The Evolution" id="vid:792290" width="415" height="255"></div>The Tracks With <a href="/news/articles/1686793/justin-bieber-believe-album.jhtml">13 songs on the Believe</a> standard edition and 16 on the deluxe, there was an exact science to decide what would end up making it and getting put out into the world."How do you narrow it down to pick?" Braun said. "You start to look at songs that fulfill a need, but keep an album flowing, so every song has to make sense, they have to fit well ... Sometimes there were two songs that we loved, but they fulfilled the same purpose, [so we had to say,] 'But this is the better of the two, so we're gonna choose this one.' "<a href="http://buzzworthy.mtv.com/2012/06/19/justin-bieber-gifs-swag/">Check out the swaggiest GIFs ever of Justin Bieber.</a>Braun even dissected a bit how those songs piece together to make the complete Believe puzzle. "Songs like 'Fall' and these kind of love ballads that throw back to the earlier stuff ... and then you have songs like <a href="/news/articles/1687112/justin-bieber-big-sean-as-long-as-you-love-me.jhtml">'As Long As You Love Me,'</a> they're still Justin, but it's a growth. Songs like <a href="/news/articles/1682090/justin-bieber-justin-timberlake-maturity.jhtml">'Boyfriend,'</a> that shocked a lot of people, but showed growth. And then you have songs like 'Catching Feelings,' that's really like an old-school Stevie Wonder type of throwback."The Collaborators While Bieber hit the studio with many potential collaborators, the ones that made the album really help him shine. Ludacris once again hooked up with Bieber for club banger <a href="/news/articles/1686566/justin-bieber-ludacris-all-around-the-world.jhtml">"All Around the World,"</a> a definitely more mature record than their "Baby." But, the hip-hop swag doesn't end there. He's got Big Sean on "As Long As You Love Me," Drake for the very Drake-sounding "Right Here," and finally Nicki Minaj for the four-on-the-floor party starter "Beauty and the Beat."The Producers In addition to signing up A-list collaborators to work on some of the tracks on the album, Bieber also sought out the help of some of the brightest producers in the game. His mentor, Usher, gets an executive producer credit on the album, overseeing it all. But, it's tunes that the Messengers, Max Martin, Mike Posner and Mason Levy, Rodney Jerkins, Babyface, Hit-Boy and Diplo all helped produce that truly the show the range of pop styles encapsulated on the album.The Bottom Line In the end, the album is for his fans. And the last song on the standard edition of the album, its title track, was written specifically with them in mind. "Then you have songs like 'Believe,' that's the new voice, but he's singing directly to the fans and telling him what he's been through the last couple years and how they got him through it," Braun said. "So, I think there's something for everyone. He's not defined by genre."Have you picked up Believe yet? Share your thoughts in the comments!Don't miss <a href="/news/articles/1687565/justin-bieber-live-mtv.jhtml">"Bieber Live"</a> tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on MTV.<div class="player-placeholder right" title="Scooter Braun On The Evolution Of Justin Bieber" id="vid:791929" width="415" height="255"></div>

Related Videos

MTV First: Justin Bieber

Related Artists

Justin Bieber

new years wake forest wake forest old dominion insync the duchess the duchess

HBT: Baker declines comment on Lowe feud

Dusty Baker and Derek Lowe had a war of words last week that culminated in Lowe saying ?I have zero respect for the guy? and Baker saying ?there was a good chance he was drinking at the ballpark.?

Not surprisingly last night?s rematch series between the Reds and Indians drew a ton of media coverage from reporters looking to delve back into the feud, but both Baker and Lowe took the high road by declining to comment.

And then Baker?s hitters smacked Lowe around for seven runs on 11 hits, causing his ERA to balloon to 4.30 after being 2.15 as recently as May 25. Last week?s back-and-forth all started because Lowe believes Baker instructs pitchers to plunk him, but last night?s game featured no incidents. Well, except for Reds starter Mat Latos accusing the Indians of stealing his signs.

So much drama!

green party day 26 gronkowski new hunger games trailer sasquatch david choe national wear red day

Why I Hate Helvetica [Design]

Armin Vit is the founder of Under Consideration, a design-based media group that runs a series of blogs and publishes books on the subject. Unhappy with the new Helvetica-happy logo for the University of Arts, London, Vit took to the pages of his blog, Brand New, to explain his disdain for the typeface. More »

weta rudolph the red nosed reindeer rudolph the red nosed reindeer adam carolla rick neuheisel rick neuheisel andrea bocelli

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Coitus Interruptus: Ancient Turtle Sex Fossilized

[ [ [['Connery is an experienced stuntman', 2]], 'http://yhoo.it/KeQd0p', '[Slideshow: See photos taken on the way down]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['Connery is an experienced stuntman', 7]], ' http://yhoo.it/KpUoHO', '[Slideshow: Death-defying daredevils]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['know that we have confidence in', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/LqYjAX ', '[Related: The Secret Service guide to Cartagena]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['We picked up this other dog and', 5]], 'http://yhoo.it/JUSxvi', '[Related: 8 common dog fears, how to calm them]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['accused of running a fake hepatitis B', 5]], 'http://bit.ly/JnoJYN', '[Related: Did WH share raid details with filmmakers?]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['accused of running a fake hepatitis B', 3]], 'http://bit.ly/KoKiqJ', '[Factbox: AQAP, al-Qaeda in Yemen]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have my contacts on or glasses', 3]], 'http://abcn.ws/KTE5AZ', '[Related: Should the murder charge be dropped?]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have made this nation great as Sarah Palin', 5]], 'http://yhoo.it/JD7nlD', '[Related: Bristol Palin reality show debuts June 19]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['have made this nation great as Sarah Palin', 1]], 'http://bit.ly/JRPFRO', '[Related: McCain adviser who vetted Palin weighs in on VP race]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['A JetBlue flight from New York to Las Vegas', 3]], 'http://yhoo.it/GV9zpj', '[Related: View photos of the JetBlue plane in Amarillo]', ' ', '630', ' ', ' ', ], [ [['the 28-year-old neighborhood watchman who shot and killed', 15]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/white-house-stays-out-of-teen-s-killing-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/cv/ip/ap/default/120411/martinzimmermen.jpg', '630', ' ', 'AP', ], [ [['He was in shock and still strapped to his seat', 6]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/navy-jet-crashes-in-virginia-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/cv/ip/ap/default/120406/jet_ap.jpg', '630', ' ', 'AP', ], [ [['xxxxxxxxxxxx', 11]], 'http://news.yahoo.com/photos/russian-grannies-win-bid-to-sing-at-eurovision-1331223625-slideshow/', 'Click image to see more photos', 'http://l.yimg.com/a/p/us/news/editorial/1/56/156d92f2760dcd3e75bcd649a8b85fcf.jpeg', '500', ' ', 'AP', ] ]

[ [ [['did not go as far his colleague', 8]], '29438204', '0' ], [ [[' the 28-year-old neighborhood watchman who shot and killed', 4]], '28924649', '0' ], [ [['because I know God protects me', 14], ['Brian Snow was at a nearby credit union', 5]], '28811216', '0' ], [ [['The state news agency RIA-Novosti quoted Rosaviatsiya', 6]], '28805461', '0' ], [ [['measure all but certain to fail in the face of bipartisan', 4]], '28771014', '0' ], [ [['matter what you do in this case', 5]], '28759848', '0' ], [ [['presume laws are constitutional', 7]], '28747556', '0' ], [ [['has destroyed 15 to 25 houses', 7]], '28744868', '0' ], [ [['short answer is yes', 7]], '28746030', '0' ], [ [['opportunity to tell the real story', 7]], '28731764', '0' ], [ [['entirely respectable way to put off the searing constitutional controversy', 7]], '28723797', '0' ], [ [['point of my campaign is that big ideas matter', 9]], '28712293', '0' ], [ [['As the standoff dragged into a second day', 7]], '28687424', '0' ], [ [['French police stepped up the search', 17]], '28667224', '0' ], [ [['Seeking to elevate his candidacy back to a general', 8]], '28660934', '0' ], [ [['The tragic story of Trayvon Martin', 4]], '28647343', '0' ], [ [['Karzai will get a chance soon to express', 8]], '28630306', '0' ], [ [['powerful storms stretching', 8]], '28493546', '0' ], [ [['basic norm that death is private', 6]], '28413590', '0' ], [ [['songwriter also saw a surge in sales for her debut album', 6]], '28413590', '1', 'Watch music videos from Whitney Houston ', 'on Yahoo! Music', 'http://music.yahoo.com' ], [ [['keyword', 99999999999999999999999]], 'videoID', '1', 'overwrite-pre-description', 'overwrite-link-string', 'overwrite-link-url' ] ]

spring equinox audacious pollen count mexico city first day of spring mexico earthquake aziz ansari

Monday, June 18, 2012

Justin Bieber: A 'Humble' Evolution From My World To Believe

Bieber's manager, Scooter Braun, opens up to MTV News about the singer before 'Bieber Live' airs Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on MTV.
By Jocelyn Vena

Justin Bieber
Photo: Getty Images

In the lead-up to the release of Justin Bieber's album Believe, there has been a lot of talk about how much the 18-year-old has grown up since he dropped his first EP, My World, back in 2009. Sure, he is actually older, but the conversation has also been focused on how his music sounds more mature. He no longer seems to be crafting sugary-sweet tracks like "Baby."

The pop star will celebrate his mature new album during "Bieber Live," airing Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on MTV. Bieber will join Sway and 100 lucky fans for an interview and a pair of performances.

Adding to his growth is the fact that in the two and a half years since that debut release, Bieber has quite literally done it all. He's toured the world (several times over), topped the charts, won a lot of awards, fallen in love, become a boss to his own artist, owned the box office, befriended some of the biggest MCs in the game, vowed to "Never Say Never" and, yes, became legal.

As tiring as it may sound to be Justin Bieber, his manager, Scooter Braun, notes that when the singer sat down to make the album, he didn't want to rush it or be lazy about it. He wanted it to be perfect. His experiences are not only helping shape him as an artist but also helping him mature as one.

"You know, I think a lot of times with big superstars, they don't always deliver on that big album. They don't meet the expectation ... sometimes it's because they're superstars," Braun explained to MTV News. "Maybe they think they know it all and they don't want to listen to anyone else's input, and sometimes that works and sometimes that doesn't.

"Justin was really humble about this," he continued. "He probably wrote 200 songs and we just kept working and working and narrowing it down. And there were so many records that didn't even make it that we'll save for something else. I think when it was all said and done, there wasn't one person who listened to that album all the whole way through and thought that we didn't have something special and really great and something that didn't just reach the teenagers, but everyone — without losing the teenagers."

The album certainly has been teased for quite some time. The buzz began to really pick up around the time of the release of his holiday album in 2011, when he dropped the name Justin Timberlake as his template for career evolution, setting the bar quite high. "I'm proudest of Justin with this album 'cause I think he delivered," Braun said. "For a superstar to deliver means a lot."

Others who worked with Bieber on the release told MTV News during the recording process that it was important for him to make music that would help expand his brand beyond the tween and teen market. A big part of Bieber's musical evolution, however, is about making sure no one gets alienated.

"The only conversation we've had about Justin's album that we're about to do is it's really important that it's the proper transition because we've seen him [with] 'Baby,' now we're watching him grow up," his vocal producer, Kuk Harrell, told MTV News back in November. "And we can't just throw him into the adult game right away. It has to be the proper transition. There's a record in between."

That mission to help Bieber make the right choices as an adult artist was certainly priority number one when Bieber hit the studio with Mike Posner to work on the album's lead single, "Boyfriend." "I think our goal was to make something that me and my friends could listen to in the car," Posner explained in March. "I think we've all known Justin since he was 13, and that's not the kid I was in the studio with anymore. He's an 18-year-old. He skateboards with Lil Wayne and hangs out with Lil Twist. Those are his homies. And he listens to hip-hop and he's a really cool kid. He's not like a corny guy.

"So I wanted to make something that reflected who he is now and who he is going to continue to be," Posner continued. "I think people have been waiting [for] when he's going to turn that corner, and the time is now."

Listening to his album, it's clear that Bieber is trying out new sounds, from dance to R&B and everything in between. But he also just plain sounds different. His voice is deeper than it was when he first started making music. That register change is something he commented on in a recent interview with MTV News.

"It's really deep," he joked. "The thing is, I'd always put out random songs and give it to my fans, and when my voice was changing I was doing that. So they didn't randomly just hear [it and go], 'He's got a deep voice now.' It was gradual. They didn't realize it that much. It just kind of happened. The tone is still the same. It's just deeper and sexier."

In the end, while it may seem like he's taking a cut from another pop star named Justin, Bieber is actually focused on following yet another megastar's template for success.

"He's growing and so is his music," Braun said. "And I don't think he's transitioning and losing any fans. I think he's just growing. We always study Michael Jackson and the thing I loved about his career is he never lost that 2-year-old that bounced to his music. But at the same time, you'd go to a club and there were adults bouncing also. And I think that's what we want to do with Justin."

Don't miss "Bieber Live" on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on MTV, followed by "MTV First: Katy Perry" at 7:53 p.m., when Katy will debut her "Wide Awake" music video.

Related Photos

The Evolution Of: Justin Bieber

Related Artists

Justin Bieber

shannon de lima joe torre west virginia university michele bachmann jessica biel tim howard west virginia

Ridiculous Vacuum Floormat Sucks the Dirt Right Off Your Shoes [Video]

Click here to read Ridiculous Vacuum Floormat Sucks the Dirt Right Off Your Shoes

For just $20, your run-of-the-mill floormat does a marginally good job at cleaning the bottom of your shoes. But if you're willing to spend a little more, like $6,000, you can upgrade to this vacuum-powered mat that sucks every last bit of dirt off your soles. More »