Gotye Braces For Stateside Success With 'Somebody That I Used To Know'

Belgium-born singer talks about the song's growing success and stripping down for its very naked music video.
By James Montgomery


Gotye in his "Somebody That I Used to Know" music video
Photo: Eleven

You might not know who Gotye is, but you've definitely heard his song. It's a tidy little ball of emotional wreckage called "Somebody That I Used to Know," and it's currently burning up both the Billboard Hot 100 and Modern Rock radio (and it's becoming a go-to track for the CW's stable of teensploitation programming).

The thing you might not know is that the roots of the Belgium-born (Australia-raised) singer/songwriter's signature hit actually stretch back more than a year ... when he was struggling to finish his Making Mirrors album. Though now, as Gotye begins his U.S. press push, he's more than happy to tell you the backstory.

" 'Somebody That I Used to Know,' like a lot of the record, was a bit of a struggle to finish," he told MTV News. "It was written fairly quickly — I wrote it in November 2010 — but it took six months to find Kimbra [who features on the track] and really realize she was the right vocalist to make the female part come to life. There were constant hurdles."

Then again, that's been a fairly common occurrence. Because the making of each of his studio albums has been a battle, though Gotye is quick to chalk that up to the way he chooses to work. And "Somebody" is a prime example of what happens when he pushes through his struggles.

"Sometimes I'll have sections that I'm not quite sure how they fit in the puzzle of a tune, they'll get moved around; what I think was originally a verse ends up becoming the chorus, or what's an intro gets dropped as a hook, things get shifted around a lot," he explained. "That song was written in a very linear fashion; and then I hit this brick wall of not knowing where to go with this one person's story, and that prompted me to add another perspective."

And then, as his legions of female (and male) fans around the world are surely aware of, there's the matter of the "Somebody" video, which features Gotye and Kimbra sans clothing ... but loaded down with body paint. And yes, making the clip certainly presented a rather unique set of challenges.

"The shots I did by myself, I chopped up a pair of my underpants and had them sort of gaffer-taped strategically around certain areas. But at one stage it just became a bit absurd, because the gaffer tape would just keep coming off, and my friend James, who was actually filming behind the scenes on the video, he's got some pretty incriminating footage," Gotye laughed. "There was just a point where the cinematographer of the clip was a bit more vicariously embarrassed for me than I was, because the underpants would just fall open and I'd be like 'Let's just keep going, there's nothing nobody hasn't seen here before.'

"We shot it over two very full days ... I quite clearly remember driving home at 9 a.m., after shooting all day, in a bathrobe, with bodypaint all over my face, and going through McDonald's drive-thru," he continued. "I ordered a coffee to make sure I didn't crash on the way home. And the girl working there, she didn't even bat an eyelid. I guess it's a regular thing down in Hastings [Australia] McDonald's."

What do you think of Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know" video? Leave your comment below!

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1678883/gotye-somebody-that-i-used-to-know-video.jhtml

Evangeline Lilly Eve Fergie Foxy Brown Freida Pinto

Radio Tray: Tiny Web Radio Player Is Handy but Picks Up Some Static

If you spend a lot of time at your keyboard, no doubt you dabble a lot in listening to Internet radio. Radio Tray is a relatively new Linux app that can make tuning in to your favorite radio stations a new experience. Radio Tray is a streaming player for online radio that sits on the Linux desktop panel. Think of this app as a shortcut that hides the browser interface.

Source: http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/74364.html

Elisabeth Röhm Elisha Cuthbert Eliza Dushku Emilie de Ravin Emma Heming

Happy Birthday John Williams: 'Star Wars' Composer Turns 80 Years Old!

John Williams, the greatest film composer ever (and arguably the greatest living American composer, period) turns 80 years old today. There?s too much to say about Williams for this limited space, but here are a few stats... » Composed music for more than 100 films » Earned 47 Oscar nominations (including two this year for ?War Horse? [...]

Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2012/02/08/happy-birthday-john-williams-star-wars-composer-turns-80-years-old/

Cristina Dumitru Daisy Fuentes Dania Ramirez Danica Patrick Daniella Alonso

Tyga Endorses J. Cole In 'Hottest MC' Debate

Young Money's Tyga also puts new rappers Wale, Big Sean and Meek Mill on his 'Hottest MCs' list.
By Rob Markman, with reporting by Ricky Louis


Tyga
Photo: MTV News

Rap veterans Jay-Z, Kanye West, Lil Wayne and Eminem have all continued to exercise their hip-hop dominance, but over the past year, a new generation of MCs has made significant impact in the game over the past year. So when Young Money's Tyga was asked to make a pick for the "Hottest MC in the Game," he gave a nod to the new class.

Of course, the "Rack City" rapper nominated himself for the top spot in MTV's "Hottest MCs in the Game" debate, but he also opened the conversation up and included some other talented newcomers. "It's a lot of artists that I like now that are around my age and that are new, from Wale to J. Cole to Big Sean, Meek Mill," Tyga rattled off when MTV News caught up with him at a shoot for his "Rack City" remix video.

Tyga finds that he has more in common with this new crop of artist, as they share a generational bond. "A lot of those artists I can really relate to because we're close in age and a lot of the stuff they're talking about is modern day and going on right now," he said. "I salute all those dudes." Well, Tyga will have to wait until Monday, when the top 10 "Hottest" countdown begins on MTV News and then tune in to "Hottest MCs in the Game VII" half-hour television special on MTV2 on February 19 when the top five "Hottest MCs in the Game" are revealed.

Who is your pick for "Hottest MC"? Let us know in the comments!

Tune in to MTV2 on Sunday, February 19, at 10 p.m. ET/PT to catch "MTV2 Presents: Yo! MTV Raps Classic Cuts," then watch "Hottest MCs in the Game VII" immediately after at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT before capping the night off with "Sucker Free Certified" at 11 p.m. ET/PT.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1678799/tyga-j-cole-hottest-mcs-game.jhtml

Cristina Dumitru Daisy Fuentes Dania Ramirez Danica Patrick Daniella Alonso

Deal of the Day ? Clickfree 2TB C6 USB 3.0 Desktop External Hard Drive for $129.99 (Expiring)

Today’s LogicBUY Deal is the Clickfree 2TB C6 USB 3.0 desktop external hard drive (model no. CA3D20-6C) for $129.99.  This is the lowest price found by LogicBUY for this item, and this deal is expiring today. $169.99 – $40 coupon code = $129.99 with free shipping. This deal expires February 8, 2012 or sooner. Check [...]

Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/02/08/deal-of-the-day-clickfree-2tb-c6-usb-3-0-desktop-external-hard-drive-for-129-99-expiring/

Jessica Simpson Zooey Deschanel Aaliyah Abbie Cornish Adriana Lima

Can Bruno Mars' Hooligans Take Home Grammy Gold?

MTV News takes a look at the history of Album of the Year nominee Doo-Wops & Hooligans.
By Jocelyn Vena


Bruno Mars
Photo: Redferns

Bruno Mars showed he was more than just B.o.B and Travie McCoy's hook guy when he dropped Doo-Wops & Hooligans back in October 2010 — and he's got an Album of the Year nomination at Sunday's Grammys to prove it.

With an ear for vintage-sounding details and a love for a good melody, Mars unleashed an album that would spawn megahits and make the Hawaii native (and former Elvis Presley impersonator) a household name, not to mention the go-to guy for the likes of hip-hop legends Eminem and Lil Wayne.

For the smash debut, Mars hooked up with his production team, the Smeezingtons (Mars, Philip Lawrence and Ari Levine), as well as A-list talent like songwriter Claude Kelley, producer and collaborator Damian Marley and former Fall Out Boy leading man Patrick Stump. The result: an album that paid homage to Mars' love of, you guessed it, doo-wop and proved that he has a talent for crafting modern-day pop songs that could connect with a wide-ranging audience. Never forgetting his roots, he also worked with "F--- You" collaborator Cee Lo Green and brought B.o.B on the album.

"I want the world to fall in love with my music, that's what I'm doing music for. I want to be able to do shows and have people come and see me do my thing," Mars explained to MTV News back in 2010 about the album.

His wish certainly came true. When it dropped, Doo-Wops & Hooligans debuted at #3 on the Billboard albums chart and has since sold nearly 1.5 million copies. The love didn't end there: "Just the Way You Are" and "Grenade" topped the charts, and "The Lazy Song" peaked at #4.

Mars found a way to keep everyone talking, displaying his creativity not only in song, but also in videos. The clips for those tracks were almost as buzzworthy as the songs themselves. The VMA-nominated video for "Grenade" managed to capture the sadness of the song, with Mars dragging a piano through the streets of Los Angeles only to find that his lady love no longer loves him.

"It was my concept," the singer explained about the video. "I said, 'I want to drag a piano.' I got my friend Nabil to come direct it, and it was a risk, because I still hear jokes to this day like, 'What the hell you doing dragging a piano?' " he said. "But it's my art, so shut up!"

He also had everyone buzzing when he dropped his video for "The Lazy Song." Where "Grenade" relied on heart, the "Lazy" video was all about making everyone laugh. It featured dance crew Poreotics (from "America's Best Dance Crew") done up in monkey masks dancing alongside Mars. In fact, it even got a Best Choreography nod at the VMAs.

"We worked really hard on it, and we wanted to give people something to laugh at and show personality in the song and what we're talking about," he said. " 'The Lazy Song' is not necessarily the song you want to hear in the club, but we put our monkey dance to it."

Now his focus is on trying to take home a shining Grammy statue come February 12. And it's not just his album the Grammys have recognized, but also his heartbreaking ballad "Grenade," which is up for three awards at the show including Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.

"Worked extremely hard on 'Grenade.' That was the hardest song on the whole album to finish, because we knew we had something and to get all that emotion out," he explained. "I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we're really happy that that song is being recognized, because that's like our trophy song.

"Incredible. We worked really hard," he added about all the recognition the album has received. "We worked hard in the studio right down the street, actually. And it's a little tiny shack, but for the two years we were in there, we just locked ourselves in that room and came up with Doo-Wops & Hooligans."

Chaos! Profanity! Wardrobe malfunctions! Don't miss Sway and James Montgomery live from the Grammys red carpet this Sunday, February 12, for a full three hours of mayhem, starting at 5 p.m. ET on MTV.com. And the fun doesn't end Sunday: MTV News has you covered until the Grammy hangover wears off!

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1678769/grammy-awards-bruno-mars.jhtml

Cindy Taylor Cinthia Moura Claudette Ortiz Coco Lee Connie Nielsen

Google Latitude check-in deals now available across the US

Recently, Google has been busy beefing up Latitude to make it more competitive with other location apps -- and more fun to use. Location history was added recently, iOS users can post check-ins via Latitude, and now Google has begun rolling out location-based deals which are tied to the service.

If you're in the U.S., you can now score local savings at participating merchants by checking in with Latitude. Google will also be offering "status deals," which users can unlock by visiting a particular merchant on a regular basis. Mashable notes three status levels: regular, VIP, and guru -- though partners can apparently customize those titles if they choose.

Right now deals are available from merchants like American Eagle Outfitters, Arby's, Finish Line, Macy's, Quiznos, and RadioShack.

Google Latitude check-in deals now available across the US originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 08 Apr 2011 08:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/04/08/google-latitude-check-in-deals-now-available-across-the-us/

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Victoria Beckham Collection

Victoria Beckham

Victoria Beckham featured in the January 2012 issue of ELLE magazine, in which she speaks about her start in the fashion world and being immune to trends while also receiving a compliment from Hollywood gal pal Katie Holmes. Highlights from Posh's interview are as follows. For more, be sure to visit ELLE! On being embarrassed that mentor Marc Jacobs was the last to know about her fashion career plans: "We went out to dinner one night, and he said, 'I saw that you put out a collection.' I felt so embarrassed to tell Marc Jacobs that I - me, ex-Spice Girl, married to a footballer - was creating a fashion line." On being immune to trends: "I just create what I want to wear. I make what feels right." Katie Holmes on trusting Victoria's style instincts: "We go to the same events, and we'll call each other to ask, 'What color are you wearing?' I'm always interested in what she's liking for the season." On her odd pregnancy craving: "When I was pregnant, I just wanted to get lots of animals for some reason. We talked about cats, but David said absolutely not." [gallery=801]

Source: http://www.celebritygossiphollywood.com/celebrities/katie-holmes/victoria-beckham-collection/

Ananda Lewis Angela Marcello Angelina Jolie Anna Faris Anna Friel