Levi jazzed to host Spike Video Game Awards

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Zachary Levi has performed at the Oscars, and now he's hoping to pump dignity into the Spike Video Game Awards.

"As a gamer, I definitely want to bring as much legitimacy and respect to the game community as I possibly can," said the "Chuck" star, who performed a song from Disney's "Tangled" with Mandy Moore earlier this year at the Academy Awards, and is serving as the host of Saturday's ninth annual Spike Video Game Awards.

The show, which will be broadcast live from Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, will honor outstanding achievements within the gaming industry over the past year, as well as debut never-before-seen footage from such upcoming games as "Metal Gear Solid: Rising," ''Tom Clancy's Rainbow 6 Patriots" and "BioShock Infinite."

"I'm jazzed about hosting the awards," said Levi earlier this week during a break from filming on the "Chuck" set. "I'm very excited and very nervous all at the same time. I've always had so much respect for guys and girls who host awards shows."

"Portal 2," the mind-bending puzzler from Valve, leads this year's batch of nominees with 12 nods, ahead of a pair of fellow game of the year nominees: Rocksteady's superhero sequel "Batman: Arkham City," which is up for 10 awards, and Naughty Dog's globe-trotting adventure "Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception," which has nine nominations.

Other titles up for game of the year include Bethesda Softworks' role-playing epic "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim" and the latest entry in Nintendo's "Zelda" franchise, "The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword." The fantastical 25-year-old series will be honored as the show's first-ever hall of fame recipient.

"So many people appear to appreciate 'The Legend of Zelda,'" said Japanese "Zelda" creator Shigeru Miyamoto through a translator Friday. "I'm very, very thankful for all the 'Zelda' fans, especially the 'Zelda' fans in the United States."

The winners of most of the show's categories are chosen by an advisory council, while the best trailer and most anticipated game winners will be selected by viewer votes.

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AP Entertainment Writer Derrik J. Lang can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/derrikjlang . AP Entertainment Writer Ryan Pearson contributed to this report.

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Online:

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Aguilera, Bieber to play American Music Awards (AP)

LOS ANGELES – Justin Bieber, Christina Aguilera, Mary J. Blige, Kelly Clarkson and Maroon 5 are set to perform at the American Music Awards next month.

Producer Larry Klein unveiled the latest group of AMA entertainers on Monday. They join previously announced performers Katy Perry and Pitbull.

Fans can vote online for the winners of the AMAs, which will be presented Nov. 20 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles.

Klein says the host-free show will feature unusual pairings such as Aguilera performing "Moves Like Jagger" with Maroon 5.

The AMAs will air live on ABC.

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ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Co.

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MTV sets dates for Video Music and Movie Awards (AP)

NEW YORK – MTV has set the dates for next year's MTV Movie and Video Music Awards.

The MTV Movie Awards will air live from Los Angeles on June 3.

After an August date in Los Angeles this year, the VMAs will move to Sept. 9. A host city hasn't been announced. The show will also air live on the network.

The announcement was made Thursday.

This year's VMAs drew an audience of 12.44 million people, which gave MTV its biggest audience since 1993.

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Miller takes artist of year at Americana Awards (AP)

By CHRIS TALBOTT, AP Entertainment Writer Chris Talbott, Ap Entertainment Writer – Fri Oct 14, 6:48 am ET

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The members of the Americana Music Association love Buddy Miller, and they reaffirmed that again Thursday night, naming him artist of the year in something of an upset over collaborator Robert Plant.

Miller also took instrumentalist of the year, making him the night's big winner at The Ryman Auditorium.

Miller, a beloved Nashville player, beat out the Led Zeppelin frontman for the artist award after the two co-produced Plant's "Band of Joy," which won album of the year. That award goes to Plant alone despite Miller's role in the sound booth and as band leader.

"This is not right ...," Miller said after winning artist of the year.

Plant got the night's biggest cheers, but the love for Miller was there throughout and should come as no surprise. He's now won or shared with his wife, Julie Miller, 12 Americana Awards, including two artist of the year trophies, and serves as the awards show's band leader.

"I love this awards show, but I think we should change the name to The Buddys," Emmylou Harris joked.

Plant was embraced by the Americana community, a loose confederation of roots rockers, alt-country players and wayward folkies, when he won album of the year for Raising Sand" with Alison Krauss. He reaffirmed his passion for the style of music when he released "Band of Joy" last year. With Miller's help, he put together a crack team of Nashville musicians and paid homage to early rock `n' roll, blues and folk music.

Plant and Miller were the night's top nominees with Elizabeth Cook at three apiece. Along with his work with Plant, Miller also teamed with guitarists Bill Frisell, Marc Ribot and Greg Leisz to release "Majestic Silver Strings" during the qualifying period.

Plant first encountered Miller during a Harris concert in Dublin, Ireland.

"I saw the consummate player of all the licks and the beauty and soliloquy of great American music that I'd ever heard in my life, all put together in one guy with a hat on, and I was flabbergasted," Plant told the crowd.

The two met again when Miller joined the "Raising Sand" touring band. Plant enlisted his aid with "Band of Joy" when a planned second album with Krauss fell through.

"I said to the forces that be, `We can't go anywhere without Buddy Miller," Plant said, "and I don't ever want to go anywhere without Buddy Miller."

Justin Townes Earle's "Harlem River Blues" won song of the year, Mumford & Sons won new/emerging artist and The Avett Brothers won duo/group of the year for the third time.

The AMA presented lifetime achievement awards to Lucinda Williams for songwriting, Gregg Allman for performance, dobro player Jerry Douglas as instrumentalist and famed Muscle Shoals producer Rick Hall as an executive. British broadcaster Bob Harris was honored as a trailblazer.

The night included several strong performances. Harris and Krauss began with a salute to the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack's 10th anniversary. They sang "I'll Fly Away" accompanied by Miller on guitar, Douglas on dobro and Don Was on standup bass.

Cook and Hayes Carll, the other two artist of the year nominees, performed their song of the year nominations — Cook's "El Camino" and Carll's "KMAG YOYO." The Civil Wars got a standing ovation for their breakthrough "Barton Hollow," Williams sang her newest song "Blessed" and Jessica Lea Mayfield performed "For Today" with the Scott and Seth Avett, who returned to play "Once and Future Carpenter."

Allman, who received a liver transplant last year, performed "Sweet Melissa" after a nine-week break from performing.

"I've been in the hospital for awhile, but I made it," Allman told the crowd.

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Selena Gomez to host MTV Europe Music Awards 2011 (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) – U.S. teen actress and singer Selena Gomez will host this year's MTV Europe Music Awards in Belfast on November 6, the music channel said on Monday.

The 19-year-old, who is dating another teenage sensation the 17-year-old Canadian pop star Justin Bieber, will aim to find time to tweet and provide commentary for mtvema.com website as well as her regular hosting duties.

Gomez follows the likes of Justin Timberlake, Eva Longoria, Katy Perry and Snoop Dogg in hosting one of pop music's biggest nights outside the United States.

Although held in a different European city each year, the MTV EMAs tend to be dominated by U.S. acts.

This year, Lady Gaga leads the list of nominations with six, followed by two other U.S. acts -- Katy Perry and Bruno Mars. Bieber has been shortlisted in three categories.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White, editing by Paul Casciato)

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MTV doubles down on the O Music Awards (AP)

NEW YORK – MTV is bringing back the O Music Awards just months after debuting the digitally minded awards show.

In late April, the network premiered the OMAs, a fan-friendly celebration of digital music. Sharply distinct from regular award shows, it featured interactive, fan-voted awards that culminated in a live, multiplatform webcast on MTV Music Group websites.

On Tuesday, MTV will announce the O Music Awards 2, to take place Oct. 31. MTV plans for the OMAs to be so atypical that they don't adhere to the calendar, but sprout up twice or maybe even three times a year.

In noting how quickly digital music is changing, Shannon Connolly, vice president of digital music strategy for MTV, pointed to Rebecca Black, whose viral hit "Friday" now feels like a century ago.

"We're celebrating an emerging culture and we're celebrating this thing that's happening really fast," says Connolly. "It's partly debunking the award show format — once a year, sticking to all the same categories — but it's also because the space is changing so quickly."

Part of the OMA mission is to put as much attention on fans as artists. Award categories include best "fan army," "must-follow artist on Twitter" and best fan cover.

Everything is very much in flux, with MTV continually tweaking the format. On the first OMAs, which were put together in a matter of months, Connolly recalled the sudden panic when they realized they needed an actual physical award to present. A handful of them — a kind of glass cube — had to be shuttled around to winners who needed to pre-tape acceptance speeches.

This time around, MTV allowed fans to select some of the award categories, including best "Web-born artist" and best vintage viral video. The musical spectrum has been expanded to include genres beyond pop and hip-hop. The 2nd OMAs will also have more of a presence on MTV's flagship network.

Lady Gaga and Odd Future's Tyler the Creator are among the leading nominees, with two nominations each. Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, The Weeknd, Demi Lovato and Sinead O'Connor also received two nominations.

The first OMAs generated 3 million votes cast online and resulted in MTV's second-largest streaming audience ever.

"The audience is there," says Connolly. "We know we can give them something they love even more."

Voting for the OMAs 2 begins Tuesday.

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MTV is owned by Viacom Inc.

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Paltrow, Timberlake win creative arts Emmy Awards (AP)

By RYAN PEARSON, AP Entertainment Writer Ryan Pearson, Ap Entertainment Writer – Sun Sep 11, 12:59 am ET

LOS ANGELES – "Boardwalk Empire" captured a leading seven trophies at the creative arts Emmy Awards, with Gwyneth Paltrow and Justin Timberlake earning TV comedy series guest-star honors.

Paltrow, recognized for "Glee," and Timberlake, a winner for hosting "Saturday Night Live," were no-shows at Saturday's ceremony for technical and other achievements. It preceded the main Sept. 18 Emmy show.

"She couldn't be here because it's happy hour at the Starlight Room," presenter and "Community" actress Alison Brie joked about Paltrow's absence.

Timberlake received his award for hosting a "Saturday Night Live" episode and shared in another Emmy for co-writing his opening monologue, in which he crooned about not wanting to sing.

"Justin Timberlake really wanted to be here but we said no, they want to see the writers," "SNL" head writer Seth Myers told the audience.

"Boardwalk Empire," which stars Steve Buscemi as a Prohibition-era politico in Atlantic City, N.J., earned trophies for categories including art direction, picture editing and makeup.

Loretta Devine was honored as best guest actress in a drama series for "Grey's Anatomy," with Paul McCrane earning the category's best actor award for "Harry's Law."

Fired "Two and a Half Men" star Charlie Sheen, the subject of a Comedy Central "roast" taping across town Saturday, was at the ceremony in spirit as his former co-star Jon Cryer and series creator Chuck Lorre presented awards in the casting category.

Lorre said he'd been urged to share funny stories about casting, asking Cryer: "What do you think? Got any amusing anecdotes?"

"Uh, none that amuses me," Cryer replied.

"Drawing a blank," Lorre concluded.

"America's Most Wanted" host John Walsh received the Governors Award, and said backstage that he had received offers from Fox, which dropped the show, and CNN to do news commentary. He turned them down.

"I said to Fox, all I really want to do is catch bad guys and find missing children," Walsh said. "This is the only thing I know how to do on television."

He'll be hosting a new version of the show on the Lifetime network and hopes to expand internationally.

Howie Mandel teased next week's Emmy Awards, saying: "This is great. These are the creative Emmys. Unlike the Emmys next week, where there's no creativity at all."

HBO earned a leading 15 awards Saturday, followed by PBS with 10, Fox with nine, CBS with seven and NBC with five. ABC won three awards, behind the four each for Discovery Channel and History.

The creative arts ceremony will air Sept. 17 on ReelzChannel, which earned three awards for the controversial miniseries "The Kennedys." The 63rd annual prime-time Emmy ceremony, with "Glee" star Jane Lynch as host, will air live the next night on Fox.

Other winners at the creative arts Emmys included:

Host, reality or reality-competition series: Jeff Probst, "Survivor," CBS.

Voice-over performance: Maurice LaMarche, "Futurama: Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences," Fox.

Reality program: "Deadliest Catch," Discovery.

Commercial: "Born of Fire: Chrysler 200."

Animated Program: "Futurama: The Late Philip J. Fry," Comedy Central.

Nonfiction series: "American Masters," PBS.

Writing for a variety, music or comedy series: "64th Annual Tony Awards," CBS.

Music composition for a series (original dramatic score): "American Masters: John Muir In The New World," PBS.

Music composition for a miniseries, movie or special: "Mildred Pierce: Part Five," HBO.

Choreography (juried award: possibility of more than one award): Two awards, "So You Think You Can Dance," Fox.

Casting for a drama series: "Boardwalk Empire," HBO.

Casting for a miniseries, movie or a special: "Mildred Pierce," HBO.

Casting for a comedy series: "Glee," Fox.

Costumes for a miniseries, movie or a special: "Downton Abbey Part 1 (Masterpiece)," PBS.

Costumes for a variety-music program or a special (more than one award possible): "Gettysburg," History.

Costumes for a series: "The Borgias: Lucrezia's Wedding," Showtime.

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MTV Awards boost Lil Wayne, Adele on music charts (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – While satellite photos of the Apollo astronauts' footsteps on the moon have been in the news, providing a sad reminder of the diminishment of the American space program, MTV's "moon men" have proven to still be very relevant.

The highest-rated MTV Video Music Awards ever translated into a sales bonanza for some of the show's performers in the days that followed -- especially Lil Wayne, whose "Tha Carter IV" went on sale online less than an hour after the telecast's end, and Adele, whose riveting performance of her new single pushed it to the top spot on the digital songs chart.

Lil Wayne's blockbuster album moved an even-better-than expected 964,000 copies, per SoundScan. That's the second-best debut of the year, trailing only Lady Gaga's "Born This Way," which opened with 1.11 million.

Wayne's album had a more profitable debut, in any case, since more than 40 percent of Gaga's first-week tally came via Amazon loss-leader 99-cent sale, while "Tha Carter IV" entered the race without any such pricing-handicap advantage.

The 964K figure wasn't very far off Wayne's career best, which came in 2008, when "Tha Carter III" debuted with 1.01 million. Even a widely pirated leak of the album in the days before the MTV Awards didn't put much of a crimp in the rapper's "blunt blowin'" style.

Having a harder time keeping pace with past successes were the Red Hot Chili Peppers, who, possibly to their detriment, were not the lone token rock band invited to appear on the guitar-avoidant MTV Awards.

"I'm With You" debuted at No. 2 with 229,000 copies -- monumental by most standards, but only about half the 442,000 their previous effort opened with five years ago.

If this was merely an arena-sized debut, compared with the massive figures for 2006's "Stadium Arcadium," some of that could be due to fans taking a wait-and-see attitude toward the new music after the departure of the Chili Peppers' long-time guitarist, John Frusciante.

The other two top 10 entries were dance guru David Guetta's "Nothing But the Beat," in at No. 5 with 58,000, and country singer Jake Owen's "Barefoot Blue Jean Night," which sold 55,000, more than doubling his previous best.

Two returning veterans slipped into the top 30: rock revivalist Lenny Kravitz settled for No. 18, while Glen Campbell's purported final album came in at No. 24.

The already indomitable Adele got yet another leg up from her strikingly stark MTV appearance.

Already the bestselling album of the year, "21" enjoyed an 88 percent sales increase, selling 154,000 and holding steady at No. 3. Her previous release, "19," also saw a 60 percent increase and moved back up to No. 17 on sales of 20,000.

Even more significant was the boost for Adele's new single.

Some questioned her choice to do a slow ballad on the MTV Awards instead of the familiar, up-tempo "Rolling in the Deep."

But her simple performance of the searing, lovelorn "Someone Like You" quickly became one of the telecast's water-cooler moments, at least among the few viewers who still look to the MTV Awards for music -- or the greater number who are pleasantly surprised when it unexpectedly occurs.

The teary tune leapfrogged to the top of the digital songs chart by selling 275,000 downloads, a week-to-week increase of 191 percent.

On the album chart, the biggest MTV-related percentage increase belonged to the relatively unknown band Young the Giant, who, for reasons not immediately apparent, took the token rock slot on the telecast that the Chili Peppers might have enjoyed.

Their self-titled album benefited from a 189 percent uptick, although, coming from such a low position, that only amounted to 10,000 in sales.

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Lil Wayne nominated for 18 BET Hip-Hop Awards (AP)

ATLANTA – Rapper Lil Wayne easily topped the charts this week with his latest album. Now the self-proclaimed "Best Rapper Alive" has the most nominations for the BET Hip-Hop Awards.

His 18 nominations include MVP of the Year, Best Live Performer and Hustler of the Year.

Lil Wayne's album "Tha Carter IV" debuted Aug. 29 at No. 1 on Billboard's Top 200 charts, selling 964,000 for the second-best first-week sales of the year behind Lady Gaga.

The sixth annual awards ceremony will be taped at Atlanta's Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center and broadcast Oct. 11. Actor and comedian Mike Epps will host.

Kanye West and Wiz Khalifa each had nine nominations, while Miami-based rapper Rick Ross followed up with eight.

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Eddie Murphy to host Academy Awards solo (AP)

LOS ANGELES – In the tradition of Bob Hope and Johnny Carson, and later Billy Crystal, Steve Martin and Whoopi Goldberg, Oscar is going back to its comedic roots with Eddie Murphy as host.

The actor and comedian will host the 84th annual Academy Awards, producers Brett Ratner and Don Mischer said Tuesday — and even they were surprised the reclusive star agreed to the gig.

The last comic to host the show alone was Jon Stewart in 2008. A singing, dancing Hugh Jackman took over in 2009, and in recent years, pairs of actors have helmed the show.

This is Murphy's first time hosting the Academy Awards. He said in a statement that he's "enormously honored" to join the ranks of the aforementioned Oscar hosts.

Ratner and Murphy worked together on their latest film, "Tower Heist," and the director casually floated the notion of hosting the Oscars by the star.

"And Eddie said, `Wow, that would be a brilliant idea for you and me to do the Oscars together,'" Ratner recalled.

"I was like, `Are you serious?'" Ratner said in an interview. He called Mischer, his co-producer, who immediately warned him not to get his hopes up.

"I said, `Not a chance,'" the veteran TV director and producer said. "Everybody wants Eddie Murphy. He's a comedic genius, he's a brilliant impersonator. He's just the kind of guy who would make any television show wonderful. So many times through the years I've tried to get Eddie Murphy to agree to come be on a show, and generally he kind of stays to himself and has not been interested in it."

Murphy made a rare TV appearance in April on the inaugural Comedy Awards, which Mischer produced, when the 50-year-old entertainer accepted the Comedy Icon award.

By contrast, when Murphy was nominated for an Oscar for 2006's "Dreamgirls," he did very few interviews and reportedly left the ceremony as soon as his category was announced. (Alan Arkin won for "Little Miss Sunshine.")

"I think that Eddie probably gave this serious consideration because of the experience he did have with Brett (on "Tower Heist)," Mischer said. "When we did decide to ask him, I think Eddie felt secure with Brett."

Ratner called Murphy "one of the greatest and most influential live performers ever" and cited him as an inspiration for his filmmaking career.

"'Rush Hour' exists because of Eddie Murphy," Ratner said. "Chris Tucker was to 12-year-old kids when I was doing `Rush Hour' what Eddie Murphy was to me when I was 12. I have such love and idolize the guy."

Murphy's stint as Oscar host marks a return to the single-host format the show has employed most often over the past two decades. Pairs of actors hosted the two most recent Oscar shows: Anne Hathaway and James Franco helmed the 2011 telecast, and Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin hosted last year.

Mischer said having just one host will help streamline the show, which typically stretches over more than three hours.

He and Ratner were "trying to really keep the show moving briskly and keep pacing up," he said, "and you can really focus on that when you have one host. You don't have dialog with two hosts or more hosts."

The producers said Murphy will likely select a writing team and contribute his own jokes and material to the Oscar show, set for Feb. 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre.

Both "Eddie Murphy" and "Academy Awards" were trending topics on Twitter after the announcement was made, and Ratner posted his own tweet saying, "So excited to have Eddie Murphy for the (hash)oscars." But the producer said Murphy doesn't follow social media when it comes to his own projects, including the Oscar show.

"I don't want to cloud my thinking with other people's opinions," he said.

He and Mischer will get down to serious show planning in a few weeks, when Ratner finishes "Tower Heist" and Mischer clears the TV special he's doing for the 10th anniversary of 9/11. But the two producers are already fired up.

"Eddie Murphy is what makes it," Ratner said. "It's surprising even for us. We're sitting here surprised that it's actually happening, that's the exciting part. It's something we can really get excited about."

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AP entertainment writer Sandy Cohen can be reached at http:// www.twitter.com/APSandy.

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Adele looking for more success at Mercury Awards (AP)

LONDON – British soul singer Adele hopes to cap a spectacular year by winning the Mercury Award for Album of the Year — the U.K. music industry's most prestigious prize for original music.

Adele has been dominating album and single charts across the globe since the release of "21" in January. Her single "Someone Like You" has become the summer anthem of 2011.

She is one of 12 nominees, including four female singer/songwriters — fellow Brit School student Katy B, previous winner PJ Harvey and Anna Calvi, nominated for her self-titled debut album.

Other competition comes from double Brit award winner Tinie Tempah for his hit album "Disc-Overy," and previous Mercury winners Elbow, whose album, "Build A Rocket Boys!" is enjoying widespread acclaim.

London's Grosvenor Hotel hosts the awards show Tuesday night.

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Jesse J lead nominee for MOBO Awards (AP)

LONDON – Jessie J may have worked as the house artist at this week's MTV Video Music Awards, but at the upcoming MOBO Awards she is the lead nominee.

The singer is up for five awards at the urban music award show, including best U.K. act and best newcomer. Her No. 1 hit, "Do It Like a Dude," is nominated for best song and best video, while her debut album, "Who You Are," is up for best album.

British songbird Adele will battle Jessie J for the best U.K. act, album and song categories. Adele is also up for best U.K. R&B/soul act.

English rappers Wretch 32 and Tinie Tempah also received four nominations. Among the best international act nominees are Beyonce, Nicki Minaj and Bruno Mars.

The awards ceremony takes place Oct. 5 in Glasgow, Scotland. Winners will be picked based on fan voting.

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MTV music awards gets record 12.4 million viewers (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The buzz-heavy 2011 Video Music Awards scored the biggest audience in MTV's history, MTV said on Monday.

MTV, owned by Viacom, said that a record-breaking 12.4 million people watched Sunday's live performance and awards ceremony from Los Angeles, where Beyonce revealed she was pregnant with her first child, Lady Gaga appeared in drag, and the late British singer Amy Winehouse was remembered in a moving tribute.

Last year's MTV Video Music Awards ceremony -- where Gaga appeared in a dress made of raw meat -- drew 11.4 million viewers -- the biggest audience since 2002.

MTV said that 8.5 million of those watching Sunday's show were 12-34 year-olds, making it the most watched telecast of all time in that age group.

Katy Perry and Adele were the biggest winners, taking home three awards each, but it was Beyonce who was the story of the night.

"Beyonce stole everyone's thunder by revealing she was pregnant," said Billboard. Entertainment Weekly said the singer's baby bump was the "one defining moment" of the evening.

Other reviewers and online fans highlighted the salute by Bruno Mars, Tony Bennett and Russell Brand to Winehouse, 27, who died of still to be determined causes in London in July, and a simple, effects-free performance by Britain's Adele.

The Los Angeles Times said Chris Brown's "career rehab" performance -- following his 2009 conviction for assaulting his then-girlfriend Rihanna -- was also a strong moment in what was "a wildly inconsistent evening."

The VMA show was broadcast on Sunday without a traditional host linking the various acts and presentations, but few critics seemed to lament the omission.

MTV said its pre-show, featuring red carpet arrivals and celebrity interviews, also fared well with audiences, drawing 7.3 million viewers -- a 16 percent increase on last year.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Zorianna Kit)

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Beyonce shows off baby bump at MTV video awards (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – R&B singer Beyonce let pictures tell the story of a baby on the way for her and rapper husband Jay-Z at the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday.

She first appeared before photographers, telling them she had a surprise and outlining a baby bump under her long gown.

Then the singer, whose hits include "Beautiful Liar" and "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on it), appeared onstage to perform her song "Love On Top," telling the audience to stand up. "I want you to feel the love that's growing inside of me," she said.

At the end of her song, she took off her jacket, smiled broadly and rubbed her tummy. In the audience, her husband and rapper Jay-Z was congratulated by his friend and collaborator Kanye West and he gave Beyonce a big wave.

A spokeswoman for Beyonce was not immediately available for comment.

She and Jay-Z began dating in 2002 and were married in April 2008. For years, her many fans and the media have speculated about whether and when they might have a baby.

(Reporting by Sheri Linden and Bob Tourtellotte)

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List of winners of 2011 MTV Video Music Awards (AP)

Here are the winners of Sunday night's 2011 MTV Video Music Awards in Los Angeles:

Pop Music Video: Britney Spears, "Till the World Ends."

Rock video: Foo Fighters, "Walk."

Hip-hop video: Nicki Minaj, "Super Bass."

Collaboration: Katy Perry featuring Kanye West, "E.T."

Male video: Justin Bieber, "U Smile."

Female video: Lady Gaga, "Born This Way."

Video with a message: Lady Gaga, "Born This Way."

Choreography: Beyonce, "Run the World (Girls)."

Editing: Adele, "Rolling in the Deep."

Special effects: Katy Perry featuring Kanye West, "E.T."

Cinematography: Adele, "Rolling in the Deep."

Art direction: Adele, "Rolling in the Deep."

Direction: Beastie Boys, "Make Some Noise."

Best new artist: Tyler, The Creator, "Yonkers."

Video of the year: Katy Perry, "Firework."

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Winehouse tribute to highlight VMA awards (AP)

Amy Winehouse never appeared on the MTV Video Music Awards during her short but celebrated career. Still, Sunday's show will take a break from its planned circus atmosphere to pay tribute to the British singer, who died a month ago after years of substance abuse.

Tony Bennett will lead the tribute to Winehouse; her last known recording was with the 85-year-old crooner on his upcoming "Duets II" album. There is also word swirling that Winehouse's parents might show, but MTV officials could not confirm their appearance.

The tribute to Winehouse will likely be the rare moment of reverence in a show that is calculated to be as irreverent as possible. This year, the current queen of sexy daffiness, Katy Perry, is poised to be the belle of MTV's annual ball: She's up for a leading 10 moonman trophies, including video of the year for her inspirational "Firework."

Another female singer is also a top nominee: Adele, the year's best-selling artist so far with her album "21," is nominated for seven awards for "Rolling in the Deep"; Kanye West also has seven nominations.

West — always good for a colorful MTV moment (ask Taylor Swift) — is not expected to perform at the awards, which are being held at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, broadcast live on MTV from 9-11 p.m. But there are plenty of other headline-generating performers, including Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Lil Wayne, Pitbull and Chris Brown, whose star continues to brighten two years after it was tarnished by his attack on Rihanna.

And then there was the headline-generating Irene, the hurricane-tuned-tropical storm that was pummeling her way up the Eastern seaboard on Sunday. MTV President Stephen Friedman said some VMA performers from the East Coast arrived in LA early to avoid the storm and resulting airport disruptions. But he was hopeful viewer disruption would be minimal.

"Our hope is our audience is cuddled up with their family and friends and don't want to be outside and want to watch the best night in music," he said.

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Online:

http://www.mtv.com

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Nekesa Mumbi Moody is the AP's music editor. Follow her at http://www.twitter.com/nekesamumbi

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AP Writer Mesfin Fekadu (http://www.twitter.com/musicmesfin) contributed to this report.

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Oscar organizers name 9 contenders for tech awards (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – The Oscars will be here before you know it, but who will the winners be?

Micro-Voxel Volume Rendering, or the Lowry Process?

Mova CONTOUR Dense Mesh Motion Capture, ARRI Zeiss Master Primes (below) or Lyre Microphone Suspension?

Arri Master Prime lensOr all of the above?

Those tongue-twisting achievements are all in the running for the Scientific and Technical Awards, which will be presented by the Academy on February 11, 2012, two weeks prior to the Academy Awards show.

Systems and processes don't compete head-to-head at the Sci-Tech Awards -- instead, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science's Scientific and Technical Awards Committee meets in December to decide which achievements are worthy of awards, who should be honored for each of those achievements, and which of the three possible levels of award (certificate, plaque or Oscar statue) each achievement has earned.

"The list is made public," the Academy said in a press release, "to allow individuals and companies with similar devices or claims of prior art the opportunity to submit their achievements for review."

So if you think, for instance, that RealD took their Cinema System for Theatrical Projection of Stereoscopic Content from something you invented, you have until August 30 to submit your own entry to www.oscars.org.

The Academy list of scientific and technical achievements selected for further awards consideration:

- Micro-Voxel Volume Rendering (Side Effects Software, Inc.)

- Mova CONTOUR Dense Mesh Motion Capture (Mova)

- ARRI Zeiss Master Primes Lens Family (ARRI, Inc.)

- Phantom High-Speed Cameras for Motion Picture Production (Vision Research. Inc.)

- Pictorvision Eclipse (Pictorvision, Inc.)

- RealD Cinema System for Theatrical Projection of Stereoscopic Content (RealD)

- The "Lowry Process" (Reliance MediaWorks)

- FUJIFILM Black and White Recording Film ENTERNA-RDS for Archive (FUJIFILM North America Corporation)

- Lyre Microphone Suspension (Rycote Microphone Windshields, Ltd.)

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Adkins, Chenoweth to host American Country Awards (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Trace Adkins will return to host the "American Country Awards," this time joined by Kristin Chenoweth, Fox announced Friday.

The deep-voiced country star also hosted last year's inaugural awards. Chenoweth, the Tony and Emmy-winning star of ABC's upcoming "Good Christian Belles," is releasing the country album "Some Lessons Learned" on September 13. The ceremony will air live from Las Vegas on December 5 at 8 p.m.

Fox announced the hosts at the Television Critics Association summer press tour.

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"Hero dogs" get their own TV awards show (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Film star Ewan McGregor and actress and animal rights campaigner Betty White will join Whoopi Goldberg and other all-stars on a panel to judge a new heroic dog award show, the Hallmark Channel said on Wednesday.

The American Humane Association is bringing the celebrities on board for its inaugural "Hero Dog Awards," a TV contest which recognizes "thousands of specially trained dogs giving comfort to people every day," the American Humane Association said.

The winning dogs will also get to attend their own red carpet awards gala in Beverly Hills.

Canine movie star Rin Tin Tin, a dog rescued from the frontlines of World War I in France who later became an American icon and movie idol, will be given a special legacy award, presented to one of his doggie descendants.

Dogs compete in eight categories: law enforcement and arson dogs; service dogs; therapy dogs; military dogs; guide dogs; search and rescue dogs; hearing dogs, and emerging hero dogs, for "ordinary pets who do extraordinary things," according to the Hallmark Channel.

White, 89, of "The Golden Girls" TV fame, also works for several animal organizations, including the Los Angeles Zoo.

Other celebrity judges include personal trainer Jillian Michaels and "Glee" castmember and dog lover Kristin Chenoweth. The 90-minute show will be broadcast on Hallmark on November 11.

(Reporting by Mary Slosson; Editing by Jill Serjeant)

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Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood to host CMA Awards (Reuters)

NASHVILLE, Tenn (Reuters) – Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood will co-host the 45th annual Country Music Association Awards on November 9, sharing the duty for the fourth time, they said on Monday.

The two made the announcement via Facebook from the set of their new video, "Remind Me."

The CMA Awards, which annually are among the highest honors for country singers, will be handed out at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, and will be broadcast live by ABC.

"We wanted to take a minute to share some very exciting news," Underwood said in the announcement that was available on YouTube. "The CMA has asked Brad and me back to host the CMA Awards in November."

Paisley had also tweeted earlier that he and Underwood were shooting the video, and photos from both that tweet and the CMA announcement showed them on an undisclosed beach.

"Can you believe that?" asked Paisley, who won the CMA Entertainer of the Year award last year. "I can't wait to do it again."

CMA chief executive Steve Moore said both Underwood and Paisley "have the unique qualities of humor, talent, credibility and natural rapport that makes them a hit with fans and the industry audience."

The awards show honors country music's biggest stars from the previous year, with some of the genre's best-known singers handing out 12 awards including Entertainer of the Year, Male and Female Vocalist of the Year, and Album of the Year.

Other awards are Single and Song of the Year, Group of the Year, Vocal Duo, Musical Event, Musician of the Year, Music Video and New Artist of the Year.

(Reporting by Vernell Hackett; Editing by Andrew Stern and Bob Tourtellotte)

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