FoxIt's Lady Gaga to the rescue on this Sunday night's episode of The Simpsons, which is also the season finale. In the episode, Gaga arrives in Springfield and ends up helping Lisa, who's become a social outcast.
In an attempt to boost her social standing, Lisa anonymously writes positive things about herself on the school blog, but the plan backfires and she becomes even less popular. Gaga is the one who helps Lisa realize that being yourself is much better than trying to be like everyone else.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, Gaga says she was "really excited and surprised" to be invited to lend her voice to The Simpsons, and notes that she had been "sort of itching to do some TV again" -- bonus points for if you remember Gaga's 2009 guest spot on Gossip Girl. Gaga calls the script for her Simpsons episode "incredible," and adds, "It's so funny. I come to Springfield on a train...I come to make the people of Springfield happy." Once there, she says, "I run into Lisa and I decide that it's my mission to pull Lisa out of her slump and give her hope again."
Gaga says that participating in the long-running show was actually a bit intimidating for her. "They're so wonderfully talented," she tells ET. "I think I was more nervous than I have ever been because I have so much respect for them I just wanted to do a good job."
AmyWinehouse.comProducer Mark Ronson -- who has worked with both Adele and the late Amy Winehouse -- took to Facebook to set the record straight after he was quoted earlier this month as saying that Amy was "freaked out" by Adele's success.
In an expletive-filled rant on his Facebook page on Thursday, Ronson took aim at the published version of an interview he gave the Village Voice earlier this month, writing, "i read the interview for the first time just now, and there are so many wrong quotes in there. i can tell the dude was writing whatever he wanted because he uses words and language that i never EVER f**king use in my daily life."
Ronson went on to clarify what he says he told the Voice reporter when pushed on the subject of Amy. "Amy was itching to get back in the studio, and the recent success of others that she had blazed a trail for had put the fire in her belly. but that is absolutely it," he wrote, "all these other words are a complete affront to me,... [Amy], adele," and anyone who reads it."
At the end of his profanity-laced post, Ronson apologizes for getting "so "f**king angry over something that may seem trivial but some wrongs must be righted." As for talking about Amy, Ronson says he's "learned my lesson and will no longer answer questions about our girl."
SaraBMusic.comAlthough a full album is still in the works, on Tuesday, Sara Bareilles will release an EP called Once Upon Another Time, and Rolling Stone magazine is offering a exclusive stream of the EP's title track.
The singer-songwriter tells Rolling Stone that the largely a cappella song was produced by friend and fellow Sing Off judge Ben Folds. Though Sara says she considers Ben to be a "kindred [spirit] ... [and] musical hero," their collab wasn't her first thought. It wasn't until Sara visited Ben's Nashville studio that she knew she wanted to record there. Then, she says, "It dawned on me, 'Why not just see if Ben would even be interested in producing?'" Happily, Sara says, the idea was exciting to Ben, "So it worked out good."
To Sara, the new songs represent a new direction and a "sonic rawness... that’s a new territory for me... [and that's] about nurturing my bravery and how far can I push myself as a writer." On Friday, Sara tweeted some rawness when she teased fans with the tweet, "Hi lovies!! @rollingstone is streaming the title track from my EP. It's called "B****es eat Breakfast". (no it's not)."
The EP may signal a new direction for the whole album, Sara hints. She tells Rolling Stone the goal of her upcoming album is to step out of her comfort zone and could include collaborations with Ryan Tedder and others. Being produced by someone else and writing with others are also new frontiers for Sara. "I've always been really closed off to the idea of co-writing. Now, for some reason, I’m much more open to it," she says. Why the hesitation to collaborate like other artists? Sara laughs and says, "I’m antiquated."
KellyClarkson.comKelly Clarkson and former Dancing with the Stars contestant and R&B legend Gladys Knight will perform on the show's season finale on Tuesday from 9-11 p.m. ET.
Kelly will deliver a medley of her hit songs "Dark Side" and "Stronger." Gladys' number has not been announced.
Before Kelly heads out on tour this summer with The Fray, look for her to appear on ABC's new music reality series Duets which premieres on May 24.
Photo by Frank Micelotta/PictureGroupKaty Perry and Taylor Swift each have four nominations, and Adele, Lady Antebellum and Bruno Mars each have two nods in the first wave of Teen Choice Awards nominations announced Friday.
Katy and Taylor will square off in the Choice Female Artist category; and Katy, Taylor and Adele each have songs nominated in the Choice Single by a Female Artist Category.
The Teen Choice Awards will air July 22, live on Fox from 8-10 p.m. ET. Starting Friday, fans ages 13-19 can vote once a day in each category for their favorite Teen Choice 2012 nominees at TeenChoiceAwards.com.
Here are the music nominees:
Choice Music: Male Artist Justin Bieber Drake Bruno Mars Pitbull Blake Shelton
Choice Music: Female Artist Adele Jennifer Lopez Katy Perry Rihanna Taylor Swift
Choice Music: Group Selena Gomez & The Scene Gym Class Heroes Lady Antebellum LMFAO The Wanted
Choice Music: R&B/Hip-Hop Artist Beyonce Flo Rida Nicki Minaj Pitbull Kanye West
Choice Music: Rock Group The Black Keys Foo Fighters Foster the People fun. Linkin Park
Choice Music: Rock Song "Lonely Boy," The Black Keys "Paradise," Coldplay "Pumped Up Kicks," Foster The People "We Are Young," fun. Featuring Janelle Monae "Somebody I Used to Know," Gotye featuring Kimbra
Choice Music: Electronic Dance Music (EDM) Artist DeadMau5 David Guetta Calvin Harris Kaskade Skrillex
Choice Music: Single by a Group "We Are Young," fun. Featuring Janelle Monae "Hit the Lights," Selena Gomez & The Scene "A** Back Home," Gym Class Heroes featuring Neon Hitch "Party Rock Anthem," LMFAO featuring Lauren Bennett & GoonRock "Moves Like Jagger," Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera
Choice Music: Single by a Female Artist "Set Fire to the Rain," Adele "Stronger," Kelly Clarkson "Dance Again," Jennifer Lopez featuring Pitbull "Part of Me," Katy Perry "Eyes Open," Taylor Swift
Choice Music: Single by a Male Artist "Boyfriend," Justin Bieber "Take Care," Drake featuring Rihanna "Good Feeling," Flo Rida "It Will Rain," Bruno Mars "Give Me Everything (Tonight)," Pitbull featuring Ne-Yo, AfroJack & Nayer
Choice Music: Male Country Artist Jason Aldean Luke Bryan Hunter Hayes Scotty McCreery Blake Shelton
Choice Music: Female Country Artist Lauren Alaina Miranda Lambert Kellie Pickler Taylor Swift Carrie Underwood
Choice Music: R&B/Hip-Hop Song "Love on Top," Beyonce "Take Care," Drake featuring Rihanna "Wild Ones," Flo Rida featuring Sia "Without You," David Guetta featuring Usher "Starships," Nicki Minaj
Choice Music: Country Song "Tattoos on This Town," Jason Aldean "Crazy Girl," Eli Young Band "Storm Warning," Hunter Hayes "God Gave Me You," Blake Shelton" "Sparks Fly," Taylor Swift
Choice Music: Country Group The Band Perry Eli Young Band Lady Antebellum Rascal Flatts Thompson Square
Facebook.com/DonnaSummerA spokesperson for DonnaSummer's family says reports of a public memorial for the late singer next week in Nashville "are not accurate." "The services being planned will be private to include only family and close friends," family rep Brian Edwards says in a statement provided to ABC News Radio about funeral arrangements for the Queen of Disco.
Music stars, from Mary J. Blige to Dolly Parton, have joined Summer's fans in offering their condolences to the late singer's children and husband, Bruce Sudano. "On behalf of the Sudano Family, the overwhelming outreach from the media, fans and friends alike has been most truly appreciated," the family rep says in a statement. "Thank you for continuing to respect the family's privacy during their time of loss."
Summer passed away Wednesday after a battle with lung cancer. Clearing up rumors about the cause of the singer's death, Edwards further explains that the cancer "was not related to smoking. Ms. Summer was a non-smoker." He adds that, "Obviously, numerous factors can be attributed to the cause of cancer in general, but any details regarding the diagnosis and subsequent treatment of Ms. Summer's case remain between her family and team of doctors."
Donna Summer was in Florida when she died. She was 63.
LaurenDukoff/Columbia RecordsAdele is one of the world's biggest stars, but that doesn't mean she can sell magazines. British Vogue editor Alexandra Shulman revealed that the magazine's cover featuring Adele was "one of the worst sellers" in the magazine's history.
Vogue's British website reported that at a talk Shulman gave Wednesday night in London, Shulman told the audience, "Music stars haven't sold well at all. Adele is the most popular woman in the world, but one of the worst sellers we've ever had." She didn't give a reason as to why the issue didn't connect with buyers.
Adele also appeared on the cover of the March issue of the U.S. version of Vogue. No word on how that particular issue sold.
Gilbert Carrasquillo/FilmMagicCeline Dion spends a lot of time in Las Vegas these days, but she insists that's not the reason that she's selling her mansion in Canada for a whopping $29.5 million.
Canada's QMI Agency reports that Celine and her husband Rene Angelil have put the Montreal-area home up for sale, but Angelil says that they will eventually look for a new place in Canada. Angelil explained that since the birth of their twins, Nelson and Eddy, he and Celine haven't spent a lot of time in the mansion.
"We are mostly in Florida," he said, explaining that their older son, Rene-Charles goes to school there, and added, "And of course there are commitments in Vegas because of Celine."
The couple's four-story mansion is located on a private island off of the north shore of Montreal. The $29.5 million price tag makes it the most expensive home on the Montreal market, and the fifth highest in Canada overall. Tourists often rent boats in order to sail past the island and take pictures of Celine's house, which is protected by fencing.
FoxJessica Sanchez and Phillip Phillips will compete for the American Idol crown on next week's finale. Joshua Ledet was eliminated on Thursday night's results show, and he sang James Brown's "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" for his farewell song. Some 90 million votes were cast to determine who made it to the top two.
The top three opened the show with a group performance of the Beatles' "Got to Get You into My Life." In a segment apparently taped before contestant Hollie Cavanagh was eliminated, the top four went to 20th Century Fox Studios to lend their voices to a song from the upcoming movie Ice Age: Continental Drift. Drake, Jennifer Lopez and Queen Latifah also sang on the track.
Songwriter Carole Bayer Sager and actress/singer Rita Wilson sat by Jimmy Iovine in the audience and joined host Ryan Seacrest in remembering the late disco legend Donna Summer, whose death was announced Thursday.
Lisa Marie Presley took the Idol stage for the first time to sing "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet," and Idol alum Adam Lambert performed "Never Close Our Eyes" from his new album, Trespassing.
Jessica and Phillip will perform on American Idol Tuesday night at 8:00 Eastern on Fox. The Idol winner will be announced on Wednesday night's show.
