D.C. United waives defender Rodrigo Brasesco

D.C. United announced today the club has waived defender Rodrigo Brasesco. In his only season in Washington, the 25-year-old Uruguayan made three MLS appearances (two starts), registering 155 minutes of play. Brasesco originally signed with the Black-and-Red on January 10, 2011 on loan from Racing Club of the Uruguayan Primera Division.

?We would like to thank Rodrigo for his contributions to D.C. United and we wish him well in the future,? said United General Manager Dave Kasper.

Source: http://feeds.dcunited.com/~r/DCUnited/all/~3/mgKmyJyIQb0/dc-united-waives-defender-rodrigo-brasesco

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Clarence Clemons, Sax Player For Lady Gaga, Bruce Springsteen, Suffers Stroke

E Street Band member, 69, suffered stroke in his home in Florida.
By Jocelyn Vena


Clarence Clemons
Photo: Getty

Clarence Clemons, legendary member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, has suffered a stroke according to The Associated Press.

A source close to the saxophonist confirmed to the AP that the 69-year-old suffered the stroke in his Florida home on Sunday night; no further details about his health were currently available at press time. However, Showbiz 411 reported that the musician's condition is very serious.

Send Clarence your well wishes on Facebook!

Most recently, Clemons was featured on Lady Gaga's massive Born This Way album, appearing on two tracks and performing with her live on "American Idol" last month.

Clemons, also known as "The Big Man," began performing with the E Street Band in 1972, giving an assist on Springsteen's debut album Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J.. In addition to appearing on 20 albums with Springsteen, including the breakthrough Born to Run, he's worked with a number of other artists including Gaga, Jackson Browne and Ringo Starr. He's also appeared in films like "New York, New York"and "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure," as well as TV shows like "The Wire" and "The Simpsons."

Recently, however, he has had problems with his health, and following the Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's tour in 2009, he had to have both knees replaced and a spinal fusion surgery, according to Rolling Stone. But he vowed, "As long as my mouth, hands and brain still work I'll be out there doing it."

When MTV News caught up with Gaga's longtime collaborator, Fernando Garibay, the producer recalled how excited Gaga was to hit the studio with one of her icons for the songs "Hair" and her latest single, "Edge of Glory."

"She grew up listening to Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, and she goes, 'Can we get Clarence?' And I go, 'Of course we can get Clarence. You're Lady Gaga!' " he said. "You can see the years of influence and you can see her lighting up when he's playing [with her in the studio]."

Send your well-wishes to Clarence Clemons in the comments below.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1665626/clarence-clemons-stroke-lady-gaga-bruce-springsteen.jhtml

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Lady Gaga's Born This Way Banned In Lebanon

Officials have reportedly impounded copies of Gaga's latest disc, calling it 'offensive to Christianity.'
By Jocelyn Vena


Lady Gaga
Photo: Getty

On Monday night, Lady Gaga attended the Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards in New York City, where she accepted the Fashion Iconprize.

Donning a green wig and a black dress with mesh and spikes, the superstar opened up about her love of fashion and how it shaped her as an artist.

"All of you made me feel like a star before I was," she told the CFDA crowd at Lincoln Center, where guests included fashion luminaries like Marc Jacobs, Anna Wintour, and onetime star of MTV's "The City," Diane von Furstenberg. She continued, "As much as this award means to me personally ... I just want you to know how much this means to young Americans."

Gaga will continue to show support for her fans when she makes an appearance in Italy on Saturday at Rome's Circus Maximus to mark the close of 2011 Euro Pride.

U.S. Ambassador to Italy David Thorne said he is "very proud to have an Italian-American artist of [Gaga's] stature'' attending the Euro Pride festivities, which are held in a different European city every year. He added that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said, "Human rights are gay rights and gay rights are human rights."

It's not all love for Gaga, however. According to The Guardian, officials in Lebanon have banned Born This Way, describing it as "offensive to Christianity." The office of general security reportedly impounded copies of the chart-topping album when it arrived at the airport in Beirut. "Distributors are prohibited from circulating media that diverges from public decency and morality or is at odds with nationalistic or religious beliefs," officials told The Guardian.

Despite the report, Lebanon's information ministry insists that it "is, and always has been, against all forms of censorship." The Los Angeles Times reported that the Lebanese office of general security confirmed "[copies of the album] are still in our offices. We are still deciding what to do with them."

What do you think of Born This Way being banned overseas? Tell us in the comments.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1665288/lady-gaga-born-this-way-banned.jhtml

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Training notes: Boskovic making strides

RELIEF FROM THE HEAT

D.C. United resumed training on Tuesday morning ahead of this weekend's trip to Salt Lake City. Unlike the heat and humidity of last week, the team enjoyed the sunny 75-degree weather in Washington.

"It's a lot easier to play in this [weather] than it is the heat and humidity," said midfielder Chris Pontius.

Source: http://feeds.dcunited.com/~r/DCUnited/all/~3/qXJwST7JJGo/training-notes-boskovic-making-strides

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Lady Gaga's Born This Way Holds On To #1 Billboard Spot

BTW sales drop 84 percent, while Death Cab for Cutie debut at #3 with Codes and Keys.
By Gil Kaufman


Lady Gaga
Photo: Credit KCSPresse / Splash News

What a difference a week — and a price higher than 99 cents — makes. While Lady Gaga will hold on to the #1 spot on the Billboard 200 albums chart this week, sales for Born This Way were down a whopping 84 percent in its second go-round, according to figures provided by Nielsen SoundScan, plummeting from more than 1.1 million to just over 174,000. That put Mother Monster within sight of the 1.3 million mark, while the unstoppable Adele held the #2 spot with 21, which moved another 121,000 to push over the 2 million mark.

There are plenty of other new faces in the top 10, with Death Cab for Cutie crashing in at #3 with Codes and Keys (102,000), Eddie Vedder just behind with his sedate solo effort Ukulele Songs (71,000) and Kentucky rockers My Morning Jacket notching their highest debut yet at #5 with Circuital (55,000). The other newbie in the mix is Flogging Molly's Speed of Darkness, which lands at #9 thanks to sales of 25,000.

The rest of the top 10: Brad Paisley's This Is Country Music (#6, 53,000), NOW 38 (#7, 39,000), Jason Aldean's My Kinda Party (#8, 33,000) and "Glee": The Music, Volume 6 (#10, 25,000).

A number of hyped albums suffer double-digit dips including the self-titled boy band supergroup's NKOTBSB (down 15 spots and 63 percent, #22), the Beastie Boys' Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 (down 12 spots and 29 percent) and Lonely Island's Turtleneck & Chain (down 14 spots and 30 percent).

Gaga couldn't knock Adele off the top of the iTunes singles and albums charts, with 21 holding the top spot above Born This Way, followed by Death Cab, Vedder, My Morning Jacket, Paisley, Mumford & Sons' Sigh No More, "American Idol" champ Scotty McCreery's season 10 digital highlights album, buzz band Foster the People's Torches and Flogging Molly.

While Gaga has already released a blizzard of singles to date, Adele's first, and so far only, single, "Rolling in the Deep," continues to sit atop the iTunes singles tally, holding off Pitbull's "Give Me Everything," Gaga's "The Edge of Glory," LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem" and Lil Wayne's "How to Love." Another Young Money member, Nicki Minaj, is in the #6 slot with "Super Bass," outpacing Bruno Mars' "The Lazy Song," DJ Khaled's "I'm the One," Jennifer Lopez's "On the Floor" and Lupe Fiasco's "The Show Goes On."

Things are likely to stay static at the top next week as the major new releases include albums from Britain's Arctic Monkeys, country singer Ronnie Dunn and underground rapper Tech N9ne.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1665374/lady-gaga-born-this-way-billboard.jhtml

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United in the media ahead of San Jose match

After a successful trip to the West Coast, D.C. United is back at RFK to take on the San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday evening (7:30 p.m. E.T./CSN). Here is all the information you need to prepare for Saturday's match. 

Source: http://feeds.dcunited.com/~r/DCUnited/all/~3/TDW21QMgXxw/united-in-the-media-ahead-of-san-jose-match

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Michael Jackson's Family Upset With James Durbin Over 'American Idol' Pepsi Quip

'We were shocked to see this,' read the Jacksons' message; Durbin tweeted an apology on Thursday.
By Gil Kaufman


James Durbin performs on "American Idol" on Wednesday
Photo: Michael Becker/ Fox

Some people might argue that it's patently unfair to take rank amateurs, put them on the biggest show on TV and then expose them to potential worldwide ridicule every week. Because it's one thing to tune in to "American Idol" from your living room or play shows at the local wings joint, it's another thing entirely when you get up on that stage and open your mouth with tens of millions watching and listening.

James Durbin learned this lesson the hard way this week when he made what he thought was an innocent crack about not setting himself on fire during his pyro-tastic cover of Elton John's "Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)" on Wednesday night.

Asked by host Ryan Seacrest if he was worried about dancing around among the flames shooting up from the piano onstage, Durbin joked, "I have a lot of hairspray in my hair to keep it from jumping around — so much so, the one thing I was worried about was having a 'Pepsi moment.' "

The seemingly innocent crack was a reference to the 1984 on-set accident in which late pop icon Michael Jackson was badly burned during the shooting of a Pepsi commercial by some wayward pyro effects. The serious burns he suffered in the incident allegedly led to his longtime addiction to pain medication and prescription drugs.

The Jackson family was not amused by the quip and sent a statement to TMZ on Thursday.

"We were shocked to see this. It's nothing to make light of and everybody should be focusing on who was responsible for Michael's death," read the statement. Family patriarch Joseph Jackson also was reportedly miffed that "Idol" producers did not cut the comment from the West Coast feed of the show.

Durbin defended his slip-up in a tweet, which has since been scrubbed from the singer's official "Idol" Twitter feed, that explained, "For anyone talkin ... I said pepsi NOT MJ! I have no disrespect for Michael. I grew up singing his art. I guess youll take it how you want it." He later added, "Talkin about MJs passing is too soon. Making a reference to an incident 25 years ago..not too soon. The stab was at pepsi people."

It's worth noting that Pepsi's bitter rival, Coca-Cola, is the main "Idol" sponsor, a fact that Seacrest reminded Durbin of in an awkward moment after the comment on the show.

What did you think of James Durbin's "Pepsi" quip? Tell us in the comments.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1661097/jackson-family-james-durbin-american-idol.jhtml

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Justin Bieber Feels 'So Blessed' After Movie Awards Win

Teen sensation made a surprise appearance to accept Best Jaw Dropping Moment prize.
By Aly Semigran, with reporting by Josh Horowitz


Justin Bieber backstage at the 2011 Movie Awards
Photo: MTV News

Talk about a jaw-dropping moment. Justin Bieber, who was not scheduled to appear at the 2011 MTV Movie Awards, dropped in unexpectedly to claim his Golden Popcorn in the Best Jaw Dropping Moment category for his 3-D concert spectacular "Never Say Never."

"It feels great. I'm so blessed," Bieber told MTV News backstage. "I'm so glad to be back here and to have so many great fans. It's a great night."

"Never Say Never" was a career-defining moment for Bieber and he's fully aware of that fact. "It was great. It was my first time performing at Madison Square Garden and just being there and having that experience, I'm glad that I got to just have that experience. It was great."

After opening the envelope to reveal Bieber had bested his fellow nominees (which included did-that-just-happen scenes from "127 Hours," "Black Swan," "Inception" and "Jackass 3D"), "30 Minutes or Less" co-stars Danny McBride, Nick Swardson and Aziz Ansari were about to be in for an even bigger surprise than the upset victory itself.

Ansari -- who dressed up as Jaden Smith from "The Karate Kid," only to discover Will Smith's son wouldn't be attending -- cried after revealing Bieber's name, "He's not here! He's not here!" The "Parks and Recreation" star then joked that the singing sensation wouldn't be able to accept his first MTV Movie Award because, "He's too busy burning a huge pile of cash in a private jet while he's Skyping with Jaden Smith and Selena Gomez!"

But apparently Bieber wasn't too busy, as the 17-year-old (whose girlfriend, Selena Gomez, was in the audience) suddenly appeared from offstage wearing a "Miami Vice"-like outfit that included a blue blazer, white pants and sunglasses, causing the audience to erupt in the kind of screams that seem to follow him everywhere. After greeting the presenters, Bieber, who stood in the swirling stage fog, took to the microphone and told the crowd, "Thank you so much," explaining that he showed up to the MTV Movie Awards because, "I couldn't let down my fans."

Bieber went on to thank "Never Say Never" director Jon Chu, as well as his manager Scooter Braun, his family and, once again, his ever-supportive fans. "I love you!" he yelled before making a peace sign, which he signed off with a kiss.

MTV News has all of the highlights from the 2011 MTV Movie Awards. Relive the best moments, watch red-carpet interviews with your favorite stars and read all about what went on behind the scenes on the big night.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1665183/justin-bieber-movie-awards-win.jhtml

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Dave Grohl, Josh Homme, John Paul Jones Unveil Supergroup

Them Crooked Vultures make their debut with a post-Lollapalooza set.
By James Montgomery


Dave Grohl (file)
Photo: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

Officially, Lollapalooza ended Sunday night in Chicago's Grant Park, with dueling sets from the Killers and Jane's Addiction. Unofficially, it ended very early Monday morning, across town at venerable rock club the Metro, with a surprise show by Them Crooked Vultures.

To the unfamiliar, the Vultures might seem like an odd choice to close out Lolla weekend ... until you realize that they're made up of Foo Fighters frontman/ former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, Queens of the Stone Age mastermind Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin legend John Paul Jones. And their gig at the Metro was their world premiere.

According to some reports, the Vultures actually turned down Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell's request to replace the Beastie Boys as headliners at the festival, opting to debut in front of some 1,100 super-psyched fans at the Metro, rather than 75,000 in Grant Park (tickets for the gig were announced via Foo Fighter/ QOTSA fan clubs). Meaning that, in a lot of ways, this was the most sought-after ticket in town.

Taking the stage just after midnight, the Vultures — Grohl on drums (of course), Homme on guitar and vocals, Jones on bass and keys and frequent QOTSA contributor Alain Johannes on guitar — ripped through 12 songs in 80 minutes, all taken from their upcoming debut, which may or may not be called Never Deserved the Future, and may or may not be hitting stores on October 23 (early "promo" videos touting both those facts were revealed over the weekend to be hoaxes perpetrated by QOTSA fans).

The songs, with appropriately Homme-ian titles like "Scumbag Blues," "Mind Eraser (No Chaser)," "Caligulove" and "Interlude w/Ludes," sounded pretty much how you'd expect, given the band's pedigree. They rocked, hard — Chicago Tribune critic Greg Kot described them as "fresh, invigorating and just plain nasty" — delving off into psychedelic, reverb-filled excursions and exploring proggy territory, "both of the old-school Yes variety, and the more modern Tool flavor," according to the Chicago Sun-Times' Jim DeRogatis.

It's not known if Monday's Metro performance was a one-off event for the Vultures — there have been whispers of a full-blown tour, but a spokesperson for Homme had not responded to MTV News' request for comment at press time. Nor was it clear whether or not they'll have an album out in October.

Early Monday, a Crooked Vultures Twitter account, which had previously posted links to the band's official-looking Web site and the Metro's online ticketing site — posted a link to what appears to be the group's first bit of official merchandise: a Deserve the Future T-shirt. Cost: $30.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1617950/dave-grohl-josh-homme-john-paul-jones-unveil-supergroup.jhtml

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