Bassist keeps expectations low, but says plane crash put things in perspective: 'Life is too short.'
By James Montgomery

Blink-182 in 2003
Photo: Brian Appio

Last week, at the mtvU Woodie Awards, former Blink-182er (and current member of +44) Mark Hoppus spoke about his best friend and bandmate Travis Barker, who is recovering from second-and-third degree burns suffered in a September 19 plane crash that killed four people and seriously injured DJ AM.

And this week, Hoppus kept on talking — er, blogging — only this time it wasn't just about about Barker, but former Blink bandmate Tom DeLonge, too. Seems that, for the first time since Blink went on "indefinite hiatus" in February 2005, all three members have been spending time together ... which, of course, could mean that we're in the early stages of a full-on Blink reunion. Maybe.

"In the midst of everything else that has happened lately, Tom, Travis and I have all spoken together," Hoppus wrote on his official site, HiMyNameIsMark.com. First, through a number of phone calls, and then a couple of weeks ago we all hung out for a few hours. They've all been great, very positive conversations. We're just reconnecting as friends after four years of not talking. It's a good thing. Obviously the first question for a lot of people will be, 'Does this mean a Blink-182 reunion?' The answer is none of us know. We haven't talked about it at all. Right now it's just good for the three of us to see one another, reconnect and let the past be the past. The events of the past two months supersede everything that happened before. Life is too short."

Despite the public silence from Barker's former Blink-mates in the immediate wake of the crash — which lasted just a couple of weeks — this sounds very much like the hatchet being buried. And as if that news wasn't enough to send Blink fans into a tizzy, consider what Hoppus told MTV News last week, when he was asked when fans can expect a new album from his and Barker's post-Blink band, +44: "Hopefully, in the next couple months we'll see [Barker] behind the kit, I pray. No matter what I work on, Travis will be part of, for sure."

Hoppus' post wasn't entirely devoted to stoking the Blink flames. He also wrote at great length about "Little" Chris Baker and Charles "Che" Still, two of Barker's friends and associates who were killed in the crash.

"These past two months have been the hardest times that I can remember, and I hope that we never see anything like this ever again," he wrote. "Even two months later, I still can't believe what happened, and it's too much to talk about. But let me say that I think about Little Chris every single day, and the world is not the same without him. He is one of the best people I've ever known. We traveled the world together, spending countless hours on buses and planes, in hotel lobbies and dressing rooms. ... I'm so sad that he is not here right now. There are just no words."

• Travis Barker And DJ AM Before The Crash

• blink-182
• Travis Barker
• (+44)
• Angels and Airwaves

On 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show,' the pop star said she's 'friends' with the 20-year-old model.
By Jocelyn Vena

Miley Cyrus
Photo: Gabriel Bouys/ AFP/ Getty Images

Miley Cyrus appeared nervous and giggly when Ellen DeGeneres asked about her rumored boyfriend, Justin Gaston, during an appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" that airs Thursday, according to "Access Hollywood."

When asked about the 20-year-old model and aspiring singer, Cyrus immediately began to fidget in her chair and laugh nervously, prompting DeGeneres to point out, "He seems like he's your boyfriend."

"I could see where you could see that," said Cyrus, who turns 16 on Sunday. "We've been friends for a couple months."

Though Cyrus wouldn't flat-out confirm or deny the relationship, she did compliment the "Nashville Star" contestant. "He's a singer, he's really cute, and he's nice, and he's a Christian, and I really like that," she said.

Cyrus also addressed the rumors of her death that surfaced last weekend, when a hacker apparently got into her YouTube account.

"Well, I'm alive," Miley said. "I'm breathing, check my pulse. I'm good."

She told the talk-show host how she heard the news of her own supposed demise. "My mom was at breakfast, actually, with one of her girlfriends, and some one pulled her out and said, 'So, we hear Miley's dead,' and my mom was like, 'Yeah, I'm just having breakfast with my friend over here, just eating,' " Cyrus said. "It's dumb. Everyone was freaking out, but I'm alive."

If anything, Cyrus said she's learning whom she can rely on and whom she can't, as she copes with life in the public eye. "I think you have to be really careful about the people you trust," she said, adding that she hopes her fans don't believe everything they read on the Internet.

"I love having just a bunch of friends ... but there [are] very few, two or three people, that I would go to — actually go to with anything and know that it would never leave the room," she said. "And two of those are my parents, so I have about one left."

• Miley Cyrus

Audio reveals air-traffic controller's instructions for pilots, emergency response team.
By Gil Kaufman

Travis Barker and DJ AM
Photo: Michael Loccisano/ FilmMagic

The Federal Aviation Administration has released excerpts of the tapes of the air-traffic control chatter recorded in the lead-up to the devastating plane crash that killed four and resulted in serious injuries to DJ AM and Travis Barker.

In the tapes, obtained by TMZ, air-traffic controllers can be heard asking for clearance for the private jet to take off on its flight to an airport in Van Nuys, California. Everything seems to be going well at first, then a controller at South Carolina's Columbia Metropolitan Airport can be heard saying, "We've had an emergency -- sir, you're not going to be able to land runway 1-1. We've had an emergency -- fly straight ahead."

Sounding increasingly distressed, the controller, apparently speaking to emergency response personnel, then says, "You need to get out there. The aircraft is -- there is a -- flames -- a fire, out on 3-0-2." The pilot of the Learjet 60 aircraft, which investigators believe suffered a blown tire that may have led to the crash, attempted to abort the takeoff, and controllers reported seeing sparks coming from the plane as it veered off the runway. It ended up more than 100 feet past the end of the runway in a smoldering heap after crossing the 302 highway. At one point, the air-traffic controller can be heard saying, "And I'm not sure you can get there via that way, you may have to go outside the airport to get to 'em. ... It went right off the end of 1-1 and right into -- on 302. You can see the smoke, I assume, heading to your right there."

AM and Barker are recovering from the second- and third-degree burns they suffered in the crash, which took the lives of Barker's close friend and assistant, Chris Baker; his bodyguard, Charles "Che" Still; pilot Sarah Lemmon and co-pilot James Bland. AM recently returned to the stage for the first time, appearing with Jay-Z, and on Sunday, Barker made his first televised appearance since the crash on "Total Finale Live," speaking via satellite from his studio in Los Angeles about the challenges of getting behind the drum kit again.

• Travis Barker
• DJ A.M.

Prosecutors say Hosea Thomas pulled the trigger in 2006 shooting.
By Gil Kaufman

T.I.
Photo: Johnny Nunez/ WireImage

The trial of the man accused of the killing T.I.'s assistant and boyhood friend, Philant Johnson, began in Cincinnati on Tuesday. Hosea Thomas, 34, is charged with murder, felonious assault and several other charges in the incident, which took place on the streets of Cincinnati after an appearance by Tip at a local nightclub on May 3, 2006.

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, Hamilton County prosecutors told a jury on Tuesday that they are sure that Thomas fired the fatal shot that killed Johnson because their star witness, Thomas' older brother, Padron Thomas, was driving the Jeep that the brothers were traveling in as they chased the rapper and his crew that night. The running gun battle resulted in three of T.I.'s crew being injured and the death of Johnson, who was shot in the head in the incident. The assault came after T.I. had performed a concert that night and appeared at an afterparty at a local club later in the evening.

"It's all going to come down to witness testimony," Assistant Prosecutor Heather Gosselin told jurors, according to the paper. Thomas' lawyer, Charles Isaly, agreed with Gosselin's point on the importance of witness testimony, but he warned jurors that all of the witnesses against his client were shady characters and that many of them, including Padron, were rolling over on Hosea in order to get lighter sentences for their crimes.

"Credibility. That's what this case comes down to," Isaly said, according to the Enquirer. Isaly did not say in his opening statement that Thomas didn't fire the shots that killed Johnson. "[Prosecutors] just don't have enough. They just don't have enough evidence," Isaly claimed.

The shooting — which is referenced in several songs on T.I.'s Paper Trail album — remained unsolved for a year, until three people charged with federal gun crimes, among them Padron Thomas, contacted authorities and said they had information on Johnson's murder.

Gosselin said that Hosea Thomas was hit in the head with a bottle while attending a T.I. afterparty at Club Ritz, which started a fight that resulted in patrons pouring out of the club. Soon after, T.I. and his crew fled the scene in two vans and were chased by the green Jeep Cherokee driven by Padron Thomas, 40, who told officials that his brother fired at T.I.'s vans and that at least one of the rapper's crew returned fire, the Enquirer reported.

Cincinnati Police Officer Dom Meece testified that the scene inside one of T.I.'s vans was like "something out of a horror movie," with blood dripping from the ceiling. Gosselin said that after the shooting, Padron Thomas had his Jeep painted black and had a bullet hole repaired.

In exchange for testifying against his brother, Padron has gotten an agreement from prosecutors to drop murder charges against him, allowing him to plead guilty to manslaughter and serve whatever sentence he gets concurrently with his federal sentence on gun charges, which essentially means he will serve no additional time for his part in the shooting.

The trial is expected to last into next week, and T.I. is slated to testify at some point in the proceedings. A year after the incident, T.I. was arrested on federal gun charges, and he told MTV News earlier this year that part of the reason he was trying to buy machines guns and silencers was because of his intense fears about his family's safety after Johnson's murder.

• T.I.

Chinese Democracy's impending arrival has us digging into the MTV News vaults for gems from the Guns N' Roses frontman.
By James Montgomery

Axl Rose at the 1992 VMAs
Photo: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

For something like 15 years now, Axl Rose hasn't existed in the music industry so much as he's haunted it. He's been the creepy old guy with the goatee and the Raiders jersey who lives in the mansion on top of the hill. A spook story. A cornrowed specter.

You never really knew if Axl was real or not, but you definitely believed in him — you could feel his presence every time rock music would get dragged through the mud, or whenever Britney Spears would notch another #1 album on her bejeweled belt. You had a fearful faith in him, a knowledge that he was out there, watching, waiting, working on something big.

That something big was — as it always was — Chinese Democracy, which I'm pretty sure you're aware will finally arrive in stores November 23. To say that it is the decade's most-anticipated album is perhaps a disservice to the phrase "most-anticipated," and not only because it's been in the works for more than a decade now, features more musicians than a Zappa record and has reportedly cost something north of $13 million to make. No, Rose himself — the man, the myth, the mystery — has had more than a bit to do with all the hyperbole surrounding the album, if only because he's remained persona non grata for most of its creation.

There have been few in-depth interviews, in-the-studio pieces and sneak peeks. Rose has been content to simply tinker away on Democracy from his mansion atop the hill, maintaining radio silence throughout. It has not always been this way, though.

There was a time (pardon the pun) when Rose was just like any other super-mega rock star out there. He did interviews, he incited riots, he got arrested. And luckily, all this has happened during MTV News' lifespan. So, when Rose passed on our requests for an interview in support of Chinese Democracy, we dove deep into our archives and dug up some of our best Axl moments.

Some of them are sort of hilarious. Others are testaments to the magnetic power Rose had (and still has). But all of them are part of that myth I was referring to ... the process that turned a kid from Indiana into a genuine Rock God. So with Democracy on our doorsteps, please enjoy this humble tribute to that creepy old guy in the mansion: the one and only W. Axl Rose.

October 24, 1987: Guns N' Roses Trash "Headbangers Ball"

This is GN'R's first-ever appearance on MTV, and they definitely made a lasting impression, especially on "Headbangers" host Asher Benrubi (who, incidentally, looks like a cross between Ron Jeremy and your aunt's pontoon-boat-owning boyfriend). After a perfunctory interview (Axl mostly just scowls and wears a leather fedora), GN'R are given 30 seconds to "redecorate" the studio, at which point all hell breaks loose. Axl displays his superhuman strength by hoisting a casket-shaped riser above his head and tossing it at Benrubi, nearly killing him (OK, so Slash helps). Bonus points for the entire clip being a metaphor for Rose's career post-1993.

September 7, 1988: "Welcome to the Jungle" Live at the Video Music Awards

If you ever wanted to see a band at the absolute peak of its powers, this is it. Axl and company positively destroy the VMAs with a pummeling, brutal performance of "Welcome to the Jungle," signaling to the entire world that they had arrived and making the night's other performers — a list that included Michael Jackson, Aerosmith and the Fat Boys (with Chubby Checker!) — quake in their boots. Also of note: the fact that Axl prowls and growls in a white leather jacket that would be totally wussy if it were being worn by anyone else on the planet, yet another example of why he rules so hard.

August 31, 1990: "I Want to Challenge You to a Fight"

At the 1989 VMAs, GN'R guitarist Izzy Stradlin allegedly made a few passes at Mötley Crüe frontman Vince Neil's wife, which led to Neil allegedly taking a few swings at Stradlin's alleged face (allegedly). As a result, Axl leapt to the defense of his bandmate (something he would cease doing at any point after 1993) and challenged Neil to a fight in Atlantic City. Neil responded by offering to fight Rose outside of Tower Records in Hollywood. Though neither challenge ever went answered, the event still gave us a veritable cornucopia of amazing moments, including: a) Rose issuing his challenge while plaintively posing in a West Hollywood garden; b) Neil's decision to do his interview while sitting in front of a futuristic fish tank; c) Neil's A&M Records hat; d) The following quote, by Rose: "Vince should be careful what golf courses he's mouthing off about Axl on — and who he's playing golf with. When he goes out playing golf and mouths off about Axl, and he happens to be playing golf with people who work with me, the stories come back." I challenge you to find a quote in which Rose uses the word "golf" as many times as he does here. Seriously. I will give you money if you do.

July 2, 1991: "Thanks to the Lame-Ass Security, I'm Going Home"

During a concert stop at the Riverport Amphitheatre in Maryland Heights, Missouri, Rose becomes angered when he spots a fan filming GN'R's performance. After ordering security to have the fan thrown out, Axl takes matters into his own hands and leaps into the crowd, fists flying. That he does this while wearing a leather cap, furry jacket and tiny bicycle shorts is only part of the reason this clip is so amazing. The other is that Rose's actions — plus the hissy fit he throws as he storms off the stage — lead to a full-scale riot, which injured 60 and caused more than $200,000 in damages. The frontman is charged with four misdemeanor counts of assault.

July 12, 1992: "NYC Cops Are Great"

Rose pleads "not guilty" to those four counts of assault. The case eventually goes to trial, but not before Rose is arrested in New York City on an outstanding warrant from a St. Louis prosecutor. As he arrives at the Queens County courthouse — in handcuffs and a pink Versace GN'R T-shirt — MTV's intrepid Kurt Loder is there and not only interviews Rose while he's being led away ("I'm doing great," Rose scoffs. "I'm doing awesome"), but then hops into a limo with him as he's sprung from the slammer three hours later. "I basically spent my time writing autographs for cops and talking to them about rock and roll," Rose says, gently ensconced in his limo. "I met all the really cool cops who were telling me about when they went to Woodstock."

September 9, 1992: "Hi, Axl! Where's Axl?"

The 1992 Video Music Awards were memorable for several reasons, most of which involved host Dana Carvey. On the undercard, we had the now-infamous feud between Rose and Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, which started when Cobain and his wife, Courtney Love, asked Rose if he would like to be the godfather of their child. Rose, not wanting to be saddled with the responsibilities that come with godfatherhood, challenges Cobain to a fight. The Nirvana frontman didn't take him up on his offer (seriously, why does no one ever fight Axl?), but drummer Dave Grohl does mockingly call out Rose's name at the end of 'Vana's set. Oh, and also, this was the VMAs in which Axl proved that he wasn't a homophobe (you know, despite the lyrical content of "One in a Million") by inviting Elton John onstage to perform "November Rain." Somewhere, a teenage Eminem stores the moment in the back of his brain.

August 29, 2002: "Welcome to the — Gasp, Gasp — Jungle!" Live at the VMAs (Again)

A spazzy Jimmy Fallon introduces a winded and weighty Rose ("oversized football jerseys" are clearly the chubby man's "vertical stripes"), who bleats his way through a medley of GN'R hits, flanked by a bunch of dudes who weren't original members of GN'R. Billed as a star-making return for the band, the lackluster performance instead leaves fans wondering if Rose is past his prime (and if he'd had some work done) — questions that are still lingering more than six years later. Guess we'll find out Sunday ...

Questions? Concerns? Hit me up at BTTS@MTVStaff.com.

• Axl Rose's Top MTV Moments

• Guns N' Roses

A source tells Us Weekly that the Good Charlotte guitarist was 'overprotective and controlling' of Paris.
By Shawn Adler

Paris Hilton and Good Charlotte guitarist Benji Madden
Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Paris Hilton and Benji Madden have ended their relationship, according to Us Weekly. The split puts the famed hotel heiress, 27, and Good Charlotte guitarist, 29, back on the market after nine months of dating.

"Even though they are still in love, they felt it would be better to just be friends," an unnamed source close to the "Repo! The Genetic Opera" star told the magazine.

"Benji was overprotective and controlling. He doesn't get along with any of her friends," the source continued, sharing their thoughts on why the couple called it quits. "Friends thought Paris had changed since being with Benji, and she wants to be herself again."

Things moved fast for the couple, who made their relationship public in February. In August, Hilton confirmed in an interview with MTV News that the two had co-written a song for her upcoming album, saying their talents and sensibilities "really mixed well."

"Well, he's such a talented writer. We're in love, so we can really write well together," she said at Comic-Con in San Diego. "We're kind of on the same wavelength, the way we think."

According to Us, Hilton was spotted over the weekend canoodling with ex-boyfriend Stavros Niarchos in Miami. Their interactions reportedly remained platonic.

"Nothing went on between Paris and Stav in Miami," the magazine quoted their source as saying. "She was there for a girls weekend with her [best friends]."

Madden's twin brother, Joel, recently had a baby with his girlfriend and Hilton's friend, Nicole Richie.

• Good Charlotte
• Paris Hilton

'There's limitations to just rapping,' West says of Gary Numan-influenced new album.
By Shaheem Reid, with additional reporting by Tim Kash

Kanye West
Photo: MTV Base

When it comes to straight-up vocal prowess, Kanye West will never be compared to some of the all-time greats, such as Luther Vandross or Stevie Wonder — and he's fine with that. With Kanye, it's more about feeling — he wants you to feel his music, not concentrate on the range of his voice.

So, when Kanye was onstage singing "Love Lockdown" at the MTV Europe Music Awards in front of a worldwide audience of millions, and his voice obviously cracked into a shriek that was about as far from harmonious as Liverpool is from Chicago, Kanye didn't miss a beat. The audience members didn't cringe — they kept singing along and cheering. For the multi-Grammy winner, the singing on his new album 808s & Heartbreak is all about being raw and emotional — and it's still hip-hop, despite what 50 Cent or any other critics say.

"Yeah, like T.J. Swan [who sang on records such as Biz Markie's 'Nobody Beats the Biz'] or like Nas when he first started singing hooks and stuff," Kanye explained a couple of days after the award show. "It's, like, you know, hip-hop — there's limitations to just rapping. I can get a rise out of you by spitting a really good punch line and stuff, but what if I tried to ... what if I tried to teach you your ABCs like this: 'A... B... C... D...' — as soon as you think ABCs, you think of the melody. You were taught with it. I'm trying to deliver a message and melody throughout the entire [album]. I still come from a hip-hop vibe though, yeah."

808s is the culmination of a series of events from Kanye's life, such as the tragic death of his mother, his breakup with fiancée Alexis Phifer and Kanye's struggle with his growing celebrity. At one point in his life, 'Ye wanted to be the most famous star in the world — but if you listen to him now, it sounds like he would love it if he could go to the grocery store unnoticed. 'Ye's balance, or lack thereof — as well as his readiness to start a family — is expressed toward the beginning of the album on "Welcome to Heartbreak."

"My godsister's getting married by the lake," he laments on the last verse. "But I couldn't figure out who I'd wanna take/ Bad enough that I showed up late/ I had to leave before they even cut the cake/ Welcome to heartbreak."

The Louis Vuitton Don does have what appears to be a serious relationship on "Paranoid." Unfortunately, Kanye's lady love "worries about the wrong things" and is pushing him away with her mistrustful thinking.

The suspicions carry on in "Robocop," where Kanye meets a girl that looks good enough to be a beauty queen or movie star, but is crazy enough to be a character right out of a Stephen King novel. "You know how you hear some songs and they just sound big?" asked Young Jeezy, who appears on 808s. "That's one of them. Right away, it just sounds like a big hit."

When discussing who his musical competition is right now, 'Ye doesn't list 50 Cent, Lil Wayne or anyone else you'd expect to be considered his contemporary.

"Pink Floyd, U2, Radiohead, Portishead," he answered. "I mean, I listened to Phil Collins, Boy George, the Police, Gary Numan ... I ended up getting more polished as a designer. I designed the tracks. I'm kind of a minimalist. The more and more skilled I get at interior design and architecture stuff, the things that appeal to me are very minimal but functional spaces. So I wanted my tracks to be minimal but functional. So the function is the 808 — the snare — it gives you the groove but it doesn't confuse your ear.

"The first track ['Say You Will'] is one of my favorite songs I ever did," he added. "I don't even know if people appreciate how good that is yet, but just to have those ominous monk choirs and the snare's little bleep noise — any producer that hears that should be like, 'That's incredible. Listen to that snare, what is that?' "

"Heartless," the album's second single, hearkens back to the days of the RZA with its jittery bounce.

"Listen to it," West said, when asked why he chose the record as the follow-up to "Love Lockdown." "That hook is, like, [really] good. I also thought it was good because, first of all, 'Love Lockdown' — if I had rapped on it [it] would've just been a rap song and it wouldn't have sounded quite as different to people as it sounds for some reason. But 'Heartless' is definitely like ... Any rapper would've loved to rap on 'Heartless,' from a Wu-Tang [member] to a West Coast rapper to a down-South rapper. 'Heartless' is a perfect rap beat, and the hook is like straight Broadway melody. The message is just incredible: 'In the night I hear them talk/ The coldest story ever told/ And far along this road he lost his soul.' It could be an opera."

"Coldest Winter" closes the album out, with a dedication to his mother. West borrows melodies and some lyrics from Tears for Fears' 1983 song "Memories Fade."

"Memories fade but the scars still linger/ Goodbye my friend/ Will I ever love again?" goes the original. In Kanye's version, he says, "Memories fade in the coldest winter/ Goodbye my friend/ Will I ever love again?" It is undoubtedly the most emotional moment on 808s & Heartbreak, as well as the most relatable. Everyone has lost somebody they love; however, not everybody can talk about their losses in public.

"It was just what was in my heart," Kanye explained. "The type of ideas that I was coming up with, the melodies that were in me — what was in me I couldn't stop. I think it's a path; it's a road that's been paved and given by God. There's so many signs and I just have to follow the signs and the arrows of where he wants me to go and just be fearless about it. It's so crazy — hip-hop used to be about being fearless, and now it's, like, all about being afraid. It used to be about standing out, and now it's all about fitting in. Like, you know, I wear my tight jeans and stuff and stand out and people want to talk about me. Now hip-hop is like a big high school or something — so that's why I respect people who just do whatever they want to do."

• MTV News RAW: Kanye West

• Kanye West

Clips from forthcoming 'For the Record' documentary continue to surface online.
By Jocelyn Vena

Britney Spears
Photo: Jason Merritt/ FilmMagic

In a new clip from Britney Spears' forthcoming documentary, "For the Record," that has made its way online, the singer opens up about her two-year marriage to Kevin Federline, and how in retrospect it probably wasn't the best decision she could have made at the time.

"I think I married for all the wrong reasons," she says in the 90-minute documentary, set to air on MTV on November 30, just two days before the release of her new LP, Circus. "Instead of following my heart and, like, doing something that made me really happy. I just did it because ... for just, like, the idea of everything."

In the clip she also talks about what the album means for her, after several tumultuous years in the spotlight. "It's weird because your music is a reflection of what you're going through," she says. "It's such a part of me, the record, 'cause of what I've gone through."

In another clip, Spears talks about how she uses her work as a dancer and singer to deal with the stress of her life and how it helps her deal with her emotions. She said that for her, dancing is like therapy. "If I have a lot of nervous energy, when I start dancing it all goes away and I just feel emotion. It's like a rollercoaster," she says. "People think that when you go through something in life you have to go to therapy. For me, art is therapy, because it's like you're expressing yourself in such a spiritual way.

"Sometimes you don't need to use words to go through what you need to go through," she continues. "Sometimes it's an emotion you need to feel when you dance, that you need to touch. And the only thing that can touch it is when you move a certain way."

In previously released clips, Spears addresses her reasons for making the special now. "There's a lot people don't know about me that I want them to know. ... I've been through a lot in the last two or three years. I've grown up, bigtime," she says.

She also talks about being a public figure and having every moment of her life documented by the media. "I don't think anyone can prepare themselves for what stardom brings," she says, adding, "Do I know my life is weird? It's all I've ever known."

Getting pumped about the Britney Spears documentary? Share your thoughts by uploading a video to YouRHere.MTV.com, or sound off in the comments section below. "For the Record" airs Sunday, November 30, at 10 p.m. ET on MTV.

• Britney Spears Tells Her Side In MTV Documentary

• Britney Spears

'Diddy actually gave me royalties,' says Pain, who wants similar compensation from other artists using the effect.
By Shaheem Reid

T-Pain
Photo: MTV News

At the end of the "Can't Believe It" remix, T-Pain says that Auto-Tune is almost up. What? Why would Pain, whose Thr33 Ringz debuts at #4 on next week's Billboard albums sales chart, extinguish his signature sound now?

"Not for me," Pain clarified, "for everybody else." The singer — who told DJ Skee in a separate interview that artists such as Ron Browz have used the Auto-Tune effect poorly — told MTV News that his biters need to pay up. Hey, if Diddy can collaborate with Pain and pay him for using the Auto-Tune, so can you other guys.

"I gave T-Pain one point on my [upcoming] album for using the Auto-Tune," Diddy revealed on Sunday night during "Total Finale Live."

"Sign the papers," advised Pain, who also worked on his friend Kanye West's 808's & Heartbreak. "Diddy actually gave me royalties on this album just for using Auto-Tune. He signed the contract and everything. If I can do that with Diddy, somebody else better be signing something. It's Diddy. He didn't have to involve me at all. ... I'm writing and producing on his album, and he gave me extra royalties on top of that for using something I just brought back."

Pain said that Diddy's new material is in the lane of his singing-heavy hit "Last Night."

"I gave him eight tracks," Pain said. "Eight songs. I don't how many he's gonna use, but I'll tell you how many I gave him. He's doing a little more singing. He's more like the Euro style. He's keeping it hip-hop but bringing some Euro in it. Very electronica."

Probably the biggest collabo Pain has coming up is more time with Justin Timberlake. JT surprised Pain by sending over vocals for the "Can't Believe It" remix a couple of weeks back.

"He sent it to me, I added what I did to it, and we got a remix now," Pain explained, adding with a gold-toothed grin, "I think that's what he did it for. I think he figured, 'If I do a remix, I can get him on my album.' That's how I got everybody on my album."

"Freeze," with Chris Brown, is the next single from Thr33 Ringz, and while Pain claimed to have beaten C. Breezy a couple of times during in-studio dance battles, he said Ciara — who appears on "Blowing Up" — didn't step into the ring with him.

"She don't dance too much in the studio," the Florida native said, adding that his sessions with CiCi were quick. "We did that song at the same time we did [Ciara's] 'Go Girl,' " Pain said. "She works fast. I work fast. We were working in two separate rooms and met right in the middle. I said, 'I'm done. Here you go.' She said, 'I'm done. Here you go.' "

In December, Pain kicks off the I Am Music Tour with Keyshia Cole, Gym Class Heroes and his pal Lil Wayne.

"It's weird because both of us got that [I Am Music] tattoo without knowing we was gonna get it," Pain said. "He's got it on his forehead; I just got it on my arm. I call it the T-Wayne Tour 'cause it's gonna be a highlight. People been waiting to see that."

• T-Pain Says It's Time 'For Everybody Else' To Stop Using Auto-Tune

• T-Pain
• Diddy
• Keyshia Cole
• Chris Brown
• Lil Wayne

Belle and Pattinson were photographed together at an afterparty last month and were seen hanging out at the 'Twilight' premiere.
By Jocelyn Vena

Robert Pattinson and Camilla Belle at the Hollywood Film Festival Awards on October 27
Photo: Jordan Strauss/ Getty Images

Is Camilla Belle stepping out on Joe Jonas already? And with "Twilight" star Robert Pattinson, no less?

Only a week after word spread that Jonas — who may or may not have cheated on the artist with the nation's best-selling album, Taylor Swift — and Belle were dating, and days after pictures surfaced of the two vacationing in Mexico, rumors are flying that his "Lovebug" co-star has been seeing other guys, like the aforementioned Pattinson.

Belle was spotted on the carpet, all by her lonesome, for "Twilight's" premiere in Los Angeles earlier this week. Love interest Jonas was nowhere in sight, and Belle was seen hanging with Pattinson throughout the night and at the movie's afterparty.

This isn't the first time that Belle and Pattinson were seen together. Back in October, the duo posed for pictures together at a Hollywood Film Festival Awards afterparty, looking quite happy to be seen together. (The Los Angeles Times also reported that Belle is rumored to be dating Pattinson's pal, actor Tom Sturridge, but we're having a hard enough time keeping track as it is.)

Unlike Pattinson and Belle (well, apart from the Mexican vacation photo), Jonas and Belle have not made any public appearances as a couple. "They are not public about it but they've just been hanging out with their friends and Joe's brothers," a source told People last week. "They are very private about it."

Despite the rumblings of a romance with Belle, in a new interview set to air on "Ellen" Friday, Pattinson insists that he's single and very ready to mingle, according to UsMagazine.com.

Pattinson told Ellen DeGeneres, "I am, but no one else seems to get into a relationship with me. It's really strange."

He joking added, "People [like fans] like screaming at me. Actually, they like screaming at me in relationships as well. No one wants to commit."

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