Armed with multiple dressing rooms and costume changes, Gaga makes a memorable debut.
By Mawuse Ziegbe

Lady Gaga performs at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards
Photo: Getty Images

After the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, Lady Gaga was no longer just another face in the pantheon of rising pop stars who occasionally hit the red carpet in a zany getup. She became, undeniably, a star.

In an evening packed with an all-star tribute to Michael Jackson, an elaborate Taylor Swift performance in a New York City subway station and headline-hogging stage-crashing moments, Gaga still stood out. It wasn't just her blood-smeared rendition of "Paparazzi" that scored fans' attention; it was her eye-popping, show-topping, OMG-inducing style. In the MTV special "The VMAs: Revealed - Presented by New 5 React Gum," VMA insiders broke down exactly how her inventive fashion made for one of the most legendary debuts in the show's history.

Ultimately, five game-changing Gaga looks were broadcast to viewers that evening, but the pop star and her team came ready to rock a bunch of outfits. "She showed up with racks and racks of clothes," dressing room production assistant Katie Meath said. "We had five P.A.s carry everything up and we went back for another round."

"I remember one thing. It looked like a black dominatrix outfit but there were spikes. There was a lot going on," dressing room production assistant Anthony Deleo added.

Dealing with a gaggle of style choices, Gaga didn't have the time to get tripped up by the backstage mayhem, and show organizers had to figure out a way for the star to hop in and out of her complex outfits with ease.

"The day before the show we had rehearsals. We actually had a stopwatch just timing ourselves. We really didn't have enough time to take her to her second-floor dressing room," said Ernesto Elias of MTV Music & Talent. "We created a quick-change room right off the side of the stage."

Gaga took home the Moonman for Best New Artist but by wriggling in and out of her fashion-forward costumes within minutes and hustling back to her seat in time to make a series of unforgettable cutaways, she also nabbed the honor of staging one of the most memorable VMA debuts ever.

"We've seen it all, we've done it all," VMA director Hamish Hamilton said. "There we all were ... kind of mesmerized in Gaga-dom."

The 27th annual MTV Video Music Awards will be broadcast live from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on September 12 at 9 p.m. ET. Fans can go to VMA.MTV.com (or text VMA to 97979 if they are Verizon subscribers) to vote for the winners from now through September 12.

• Revealed: MTV Video Music Awards

• VMA 2009: Performers
• VMA 2009: Full Fashion Recap
• Lady Gaga's 2009 VMA Looks

• Lady Gaga

Russ-Kat's backstage interactions are broken down in 'The VMAs: Revealed'
By Mawuse Ziegbe

Katy Perry and Russell Brand
Photo: Jeff Vespa/ Getty Images

MTV Video Music Award nominee and California Gurl Katy Perry has summed up the main reason why fans tune in to the madness every year: "The VMAs are always the best show to watch because anything can happen. And you know us musicians, we're psychos!"

They're also suckers for love. No one can deny that VMAs usually serves up plethora of onscreen antics but for Perry and comedian Russell Brand, the real can't-miss moments happened backstage. The duo are engaged and set to get hitched later this year, but it all began when they snagged each other's attention at the 2008 festivities. In the special "The VMAs: Revealed - Presented by New 5 React Gum," insiders uncover the beginning of their road to matrimony.

Many reports have pegged the start of the couple's relationship to their first encounter on the set of the comedy "Get Him to the Greek." But, more specifically, they met when "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" filmmaker Nick Stoller set up a shoot at the VMAs to score celeb cameos for his Aldous Snow spin-off.

"They wanted hot young female artists to be part of the movie," explained VMA producer Jane Mun. "So, Christina Aguilera was performing, they got her, Pink and Katy Perry." Perry and Brand filmed a lip-lock for the movie and while the scene stayed on the cutting-room floor, the chemistry between the two began to heat up.

"Katy Perry, Oh my god! I was so inspired by Katy Perry's song's message ['I Kissed a Girl'] that I'm currently going through nine Chapsticks a day and my penis has never felt more moisturized," Brand quipped after the singer performed in 2008. Perry definitely got the joke and laughed, "I love him!"

The only problem was that Perry was still entwined with Gym Class Heroes frontman Travie McCoy. But when Perry returned to the 2009 VMAs as a single lady, it was on. When it came to orchestrating a grand entrance for returning master of ceremonies Brand, VMA folks thought the pop star could play a key role.

"She's had a huge year," said show executive producer Dave Sirulnick. "So [we thought] let's ask Katy if she would sing [Queen's] 'We Will Rock You.' "

The pop diva apparently rocked more than just the stage, because after flirting their way through rehearsals, producers saw the British funnyman promising to call Perry later on.

They struck up a romance, got engaged by New Year's Eve and when Perry heard the news of her 2010 nominations, she tweeted some sage advice: "I luv the VMA's, u never know what u'll get from em! I got a hubby."

The 27th annual MTV Video Music Awards will be broadcast live from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on September 12 at 9 p.m. ET. Fans can go to VMA.MTV.com (or text VMA to 97979 if they are Verizon subscribers) to vote for the winners from now through September 12.

• Revealed: MTV Video Music Awards

• Lovebirds: Katy Perry And Russell Brand

• Katy Perry
• Russell Brand

The George Clooney thriller breaks away from the pack on the holiday weekend.
By Mawuse Ziegbe

George Clooney in "The American"
Photo: Focus Features

The Box-Office Top Five

#1 "The American" ($12.9 million)
#2 "Takers" ($11.4 million)
#3"Machete" ($11.3 million)
#4 "The Last Exorcism" ($7.5 million)
#5 "Going the Distance" ($6.9 million)

"The American" staged a last-minute takeover of the weekend box office after sliding into second place on Friday. According to The Hollywood Reporter, George Clooney's turn as a hitman dodging danger in Italy to carry out one last mission, raked in an estimated $12.9 million, besting "Machete" at the close of its first weekend in theaters.

After landing in third place on the Friday kickoff of Labor Day weekend, last week's #1 movie, "Takers" also toppled Robert Rodriguez's graphic Mexploitation pic. Featuring hip-hop and Hollywood names like Chris Brown, Hayden Christensen and T.I., the action flick about a smash-and-grab job by suave crew of thieves, snatched up $11.4 million in ticket sales for second place.

After barely edging past "The American" on Friday, "Machete" will wrap up its debut weekend right behind "Takers" with a third-place finish. Featuring Jessica Alba and Danny Trejo, and boasting a much-hyped appearance from Lindsay Lohan, the film pulled in $11.3 million.

"The Last Exorcism" held steady in the top five with $7.5 million. The fourth-place picture, which follows a film crew charged with documenting the creepy developments at a rural exorcism, has made a total of $32.3 million since hitting theaters last week.

Drew Barrymore and Justin Long's date-night pic, "Going the Distance," lagged behind stronger debuts like "The American" and "Machete." The rom-com, featuring the two real-life, off-and-on lovers playing a couple working to keep a long-distance romance afloat, rang up $6.9 million in ticket sales to land in fifth place during its opening weekend.

Check out everything we've got on "The American" and "Machete"

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

• 'Machete' Clips
• Movie Clips: The American
• Takers

'Maybe [Penn] ain't see me in Haiti because he was too busy sniffing cocaine,' 'Clef sings in concert.
By Mawuse Ziegbe

Wyclef Jean and Sean Penn
Photo: Getty Images

Wyclef Jean may not be president but he's got some high-profile critics.

When the singer and musician launched a highly-publicized bid for president of Haiti in August he had a lot of support, but also some very vocal detractors — namely actor and fellow activist Sean Penn and Jean's former Fugees bandmate Pras. Both stars publicly questioned 'Clef's political credentials and at a New York City on Friday, Jean lashed out against the critics.

"I got a message for Sean Penn: Maybe he ain't see me in Haiti because he was too busy sniffing cocaine," Jean sang at Hot 97's On The Reggae Tip concert, switching up the lyrics to his 2004 song "President." "I got a message for Praswell, even though you don't want to support me, I got love for you, even though you only kicked 8 bars in the Fugees." A few weeks after announcing his plans for the presidency, Jean was declared ineligible to run by Haitian electoral officials.

Wyclef's lyrics are the latest swipes in a series of public comments between the musician and Penn and Pras. When Jean spoke about his plans to run for Haiti's head of state on CNN, Penn, who was also a guest on the show, expressed his concerns about the singer's motivations for seeking political office.

"Right now, I worry that this is a campaign that is more about a vision of flying around the world, talking to people. It's certainly not one of the youth drafting him. I would be quite sure that this is an influence of corporations here in the United States and private individuals that may well have capitalized on his will to see himself flying around the world," Penn said. The actor also wrote in a Huffington Post column that despite Jean's public support for the island nation, the MC wasn't around during critical moments after Haiti's devastating January earthquake.

"I was there for those six months after the earthquake and so many of us on the ground wondered where he was when that kind of attention was so necessary and absent, and why he was NOT helping to keep this desperate situation in the news," he wrote. "None among us felt or expressed anger toward it, but rather a universal sadness for his silence, as he is America's most admired cultural link to Haiti."

Pras questioned 'Clef proposed strategy -- or lack thereof -- for revitalizing the country after the distaster.

"He talks about health care, he talks about education, he talks about infrastructure," Pras told MTV News last month. "But that's in any society. That's right here in America, we need that. But how are you gonna get to that point? There's a short-term goal that needs to be addressed and there's a long-term goal. To be honest with you, the short term is probably more important than the long term. And he didn't even mention the short term."

What do you think about Wyclef Jean's comments about Sean Penn and Pras? Let us know!

• Wyclef Jean
• Pras

'I'm sorry, Taylor,' West wrote on Twitter Saturday morning.
By Paul Cantor

Kanye West and Taylor Swift at the 2009 Video Music Awards
Photo: Jeff Kravitz/ FilmMagic

Kanye West took to his Twitter account Saturday morning (September 4) to readdress the 2009 Video Music Awards, when he fatefully interrupted Taylor Swift's acceptance speech.

"I'm sorry, Taylor," he wrote. "We're both artists, and the media and managers are trying to get between us. She deserves the apology more than anyone. Thank you [Twitter co-founders] Biz Stone and Evan Williams for creating a platform where we can communicate directly."

Expounding on the backlash he received, he wrote, "If you Google a--hole my face may very well pop up 2 pages into the search. ... There are people who don't dislike me ... they absolutely hate me. People tweeted that they wish I was dead ... No listen. They wanted me to die, people. I carry that."

Kanye went on to say that the media vilified him. He alluded to his claim during a 2005 NBC telethon for Hurricane Katrina that "George Bush doesn't care about black people," as a point for which the media was looking to pay him back. He noted that in the VMA aftermath, the media played the race card and turned it into an angry black man versus innocent white girl issue.

"Even though the NBC telethon was widely praised y'all didn't think they was just gone let me get away with that did y'all???!!!" he questioned, rhetorically. "The media has successfully diminished the 'receptive' audience of... KANYE WEST. ...taking a 15 second blip the media have successfully painted the image of the 'ANGRY BLACK MAN.' The King Kong theory. With the help of strong will, a lack of empathy, a lil alcohol and extremely distasteful & bad timing ... I became George Bush over night."

Kanye also said that he had a song he'd written for Taylor. Should she not be receptive to that idea, he said he'd perform it for her. "She had nothing to do with my issues with award shows," he wrote. "She had no idea what hit her. She's justa lil girl with dreams like the rest of us. Beyoncé didn't need that. MTV didn't need that and Taylor and her family friends and fans definitely didn't want or need that."

As his tweets continued, in a stream-of-consciousness manner, Kanye compared his life to that of the Wicked Witch of the West in the book and play "Wicked," which is based on the witches from "The Wizard of Oz." "The Wicked witch of the west basically is so convicted to tell her' truth," he wrote, "when she does it she is outcasted by society and turned WICKED."

Kanye said that he returned from the ego-driven fiasco with a greater sense of who he needs to be in life. "When I woke up from the crazy nightmare, I looked in the mirror and said GROW UP KANYE," he wrote. "I'm ready to get out of my own way. The ego is overdone. I take the responsibility for my actions. Yes I was that guy. A 32 year old child. With new found humility ... who am I to run on stage? I would never ever again in a million years do that. Sorry to let you down."

What do you think about Kanye West's apology to Taylor Swift? Let us know in the comments below!

• Kanye West
• Taylor Swift