'[Lady Gaga's] journey isn't that difficult: to go from the f---ing Upper East Side to a f---ing performing arts school ...,' M.I.A. rants to Time Out.
By James Montgomery

M.I.A.
Photo: Roger Kisby/ Getty Images

Things haven't exactly been going great for M.I.A. as of late — her performance at last weekend's Hard NYC festival was marred by sound issues, disastrous downpours and, according to some, M.I.A.'s less-than-gracious behavior (she reportedly threw a microphone into the audience and spit on photographers) — and now, well, there's even more bad press to throw on the pile.

In a new interview with Time Out London, M.I.A. goes off on targets both new and old, taking potshots at Lady Gaga (whom she's dissed in the past), and, somewhat inexplicably, Oprah Winfrey.

At issue is an apparent slight by Winfrey that occurred at this year's Metropolitan Ball in New York, which had M.I.A. in attack mode.

"Oprah seemed like she was giving me the cold shoulder," she says. "She was with [David Bowie's wife] Iman. Iman was always dancing with me, hugging and kissing me, but Oprah seemed really pissed off with me."

That tirade then quickly segued into her latest dis on Gaga, which called into question her upbringing and just how hard she really had to work to get to where she is today.

"Also, [Winfrey] made this huge speech at the ball praising Lady Gaga about how she is helping Americans to be the best of themselves," M.I.A. said. "There's millions of other Americans who represent that for me. Is [it] about numbers? About how much you're selling? Is it truly about the journey? Because [Lady Gaga's] journey isn't that difficult: to go from the f---ing Upper East Side to a f---ing performing arts school and onto a stage at the museum of f---ing wherever. That journey's about four miles."

The rant — at least what's printed of it — ends there. In an interview with British mag NME earlier this year, M.I.A. accused Gaga of ripping off the work of artists like Madonna and Grace Jones, calling her "a good mimic." As far as we can tell, this is the first time she's sounded off against Winfrey.

Emails to reps for Winfrey and Gaga seeking comment on the story were not responded to by press time.

What do you think of M.I.A.'s accusations against Oprah and Lady Gaga? Tell us in the comments.

• M.I.A.
• Lady Gaga

Bigger Than the Sound wonders: Is Gaga the most everyman pop star around?
By James Montgomery

Lady Gaga
Photo: Gabriel Bouys/ Getty Images

By now, you are probably aware that Lady Gaga is an unstoppable moneymaking machine, an insatiable studio junkie, a high-ranking Polaroid executive, an honorary Hair Wars champion, a burgeoning fashion icon, the next Madonna, more popular than Barack Obama and quite possibly a member of the Illuminati.

But, chances are, you didn't know that she's also a big fan of A&E's "Intervention."

Or maybe you did. After all, she tweeted about it Tuesday, calling the show "informational, heartbreaking and inspiring." And while the idea of Gaga sitting in a hotel room, hair done up in Diet Coke can curlers, cigarette sunglasses still smoldering on the bedside table, watching Allison huff duster (and subsequently walk on sunshine) is rather amazing, it's also important too. Because it's just another step in the latest chapter of her career: her continued transformation from otherworldly pop deity into an actual human being.

And perhaps I am reading entirely too much into one simple tweet about a phenomenally addictive reality show (about addiction), but now — more than at any point in her time in the spotlight — Gaga seems determined to be one of us. She chugs beer at baseball games (albeit while wearing a leather jacket and a bikini), crushes BBQ at Boston dive bars and spends her off-days in New York cooking for her dad, drinking and watching episodes of "Cops" (something she made a point of mentioning onstage at her tour kickoff in Montreal). She spoke openly and frankly about her ex-boyfriend in an interview with Rolling Stone, and her newest song — a piano ballad called "You and I" — seems to be very much about reconciling with him, in perhaps the most un-Gaga setting imaginable: a dark and dirty bar. (It's also worth noting that the songs sounds a whole lot like a Billy Joel B-side, and who's more everyman than the Piano Man?)

At this point, I don't know what she could possibly do for an encore — maybe start Tivo-ing "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" or take on a disastrous adjustable-rate mortgage? — but the fact remains that right now, despite all her trappings, Gaga is probably the most openly human pop superstar on the planet (or at least the most open). Can you imagine any of her contemporaries — the Beyoncés and Britneys and Madonnas of the galaxy — giving the finger to photographers at a Mets game or slaving away in the kitchen? Of course not. Would any of them go to such great lengths to shed the veil of celebrity and seem so downright normal? Not in a million years. Lady Gaga has basically graduated to a whole new level now, one that's either so far above — or so far below — anything anyone else has ever attempted that it seems positively groundbreaking: She is the cursing, drinking, red-meat-devouring deity. She is, in a sense, just like you or I.

But is any of it intentional? I'm not really sure. When I interviewed Gaga last year in San Diego, I asked her if she were "in character" all the time or if there were moments when she was just, you know, normal (i.e. When she went to the grocery store, did she wear those Alexander McQueen armadillo heels?). She responded, quite matter-of-factly, that Lady Gaga wasn't a character; it was who she was, and that, if there was any kind of concept behind her career, it was — as she put it — to "create an atmosphere for my fans, where they don't leave loving me, they leave loving themselves."

So even back then, the template appeared to be in place. Gaga is not untouchable, she is not perfect — she's not supposed to be. And while some might find the notion of their pop royalty slumming it down here with the rest of us rather uncouth, I for one find it rather admirable. It's not careerist or calculated; it's just Gaga being Gaga. And, I suspect, it's just one of the many reasons her "little monsters" love her so.

And, if she wants to continue down her current path, might I suggest "Ochocinco: The Ultimate Catch," currently airing on VH1? It's waaay everyman.

Do you think Gaga is relatable or untouchable? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

• MTV News Extended Play: Lady Gaga

• The Evolution Of: Lady Gaga

• Lady Gaga

'Forbes' Magazine's Top-Earning Musicians Of 2010

• Beyoncé
• U2
• Bruce Springsteen
• AC/DC
• Jay-Z

Lady Gaga debuts on the list at #7, after earning more than Madonna in the past year.
By Gil Kaufman

U2's Bono
Photo: Harry Herd/ Getty Images

It just stands to reason that if you put on the biggest rock tour in history, you're going to make some serious coin. That might explain why more than three decades into their career, U2 easily took the top spot on Forbes magazine's list of the world's top-earning musicians, which also included newcomer Lady Gaga, as well as some of the usual suspects like Madonna, Jay-Z, Beyoncé and Bruce Springsteen.

Like most of the artists on the list, the veteran Irish rockers did it with touring cash, in their case the coin from their gigantic 360 Tour, which netted them 0 million over the past 12 months by selling more than 1.3 million tickets for an average price of apiece in North America. The tour grossed 1 million, and each stop had gross ticket receipts of million, but the band's bottom line was also boosted by healthy merchandise sales, as well as strong radio play for their deep back catalog, which continues to sell well. The outing was temporarily derailed this year due to Bono's back injury, but U2 plan to return to North American shores next summer for a victory lap.

The Forbes tally, which counted earnings between June 2009 and June 2010, had another veteran band at #2: power rockers AC/DC, who stormed back last year with a tour that grossed http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/lady_gaga/rss/highlights_full.jhtml.3 million a night and helped them earn 4 million on worldwide grosses of 6 million.

Making a stand for the ladies, Beyoncé netted million to become the highest-earning female on the list at #3. A healthy dose of her take was courtesy of major endorsement deals with Nintendo and L'Oréal, sales from her House of Dereon fashion line, and the million in gross receipts from her 93-date world tour.

New Jersey rock icon Springsteen also made most of his money on the road, raking in million by selling more than 2 million tickets on his world tour, which grossed 7 million. Heavy radio play and the sales of lots of catalog albums also helped him lock down the #4 slot on the list.

It was another solid year for Britney Spears, who earned the #5 position with the fifth-highest grossing tour of the year, which brought in gross receipts of 0 million. She also rang up big cash for endorsement deals with Elizabeth Arden and Candies, which added to her million in earnings. Jay-Z gave wifey Beyoncé a run for her money, taking the #6 position with million he brought in from his stake in the New Jersey Nets NBA team, 40/40 nightclub chain, the hit Broadway show "Fela!," Blueprint 3 sales and the album's tour, which grossed more than million a night.

Gaga, 24, crashed the list at #7 thanks to strong CD and download sales, her smash worldwide Monster Ball tour and million-dollar endorsement deals with Virgin Mobile, Polaroid, Viva Glam and Monster Cable, which netted her million. She beat out one of her musical and sartorial touchstones, Madonna, who hit the #8 spot with earnings of million thanks to her Sticky and Sweet Tour, the fourth highest-grossing outing of 2009, which raked in million a night for a 8 million gross. The pop legend also made cash from an all-Madonna episode of "Glee" and earned a lump of cash from her lucrative publishing royalties.

Country star Kenny Chesney landed at #9 with million in earnings from a million grossing tour and prominent sponsorships with Corona and MasterCard.

The final spot was a three-way tie between the Black Eyed Peas, Coldplay and Toby Keith, all of whom brought in million. The unstoppable Peas did it with a worldwide tour that brought in 0,000 a night, as well as a raft of endorsement deals with Target, Honda, Bacardi and Apple computers. Coldplay's tour dates for 2008's Viva la Vida grossed more than 5 million as well as millions in merchandise sales. Keith made million in gross concert receipts and earned the rest from a growing chain of restaurants, stakes in several publishing companies and millions a year from publishing royalties. 

• 'Forbes' Magazine's Top-Earning Musicians Of 2010

• U2
• Lady Gaga
• Beyoncé
• AC/DC
• Madonna

Lady Gaga urged fans to ignore the anti-gay demonstration, but many showed up with signs of their own.
By James Dinh

Lady Gaga (file)
Photo: George Pimentel/ Getty Images

On Saturday, Lady Gaga took to her Facebook page to pen a letter requesting that her little monsters ignore a protest the Westboro Baptist Church was planning to hold outside her show in St. Louis, Missouri.

"At the risk of drawing attention to a hateful organization, I would like to make my little monster fans aware of a protest being held outside the Monsterball in St. Louis tonight," Gaga wrote. "Although we have had protesters before, as well as fundamentalists at the show, this group of protesters are hate criminals and preach using lewd and violent language and imagery that I wish I [could] protect you all from. Their message is of hatred and divisiveness, but inside at the Monsterball we preach love and unity."

Local St. Louis news station KSDK reported that fans arriving for the singer's Monster Ball show at the Scottrade Center were met by members of the Kansas-based church, known for their anti-gay protests at events and military funerals.

According to a fan video taken at the event, only about half a dozen Westboro protestors showed up. They were outnumbered by Gaga supporters who, rather than ignore the hate messages, chose to counteract them with their own signs (some with humorous messages like "God Hates Figs"), T-shirts and rainbow flags.

The counter-protest isn't exactly what Gaga, who often talks about gay pride at her shows and during TV appearances, had asked of her fans.

"My request to all little monsters and public authorities is to pay these hate criminals no mind," she wrote before the show. "Do not interact with them, or try to fight. Do not respond to any of their provocation. Don't waste your words, or feelings, no matter what you hear or see you are more fortunate and blessed than they are, and in your heart just pray for them. Although I respect and do not judge anyone for their personal views on any politics or religion, this group in particular to me is violent and dangerous. I wanted to make my fans aware of my views on how to approach, or rather not approach, these kinds of hate activists."

Closing the letter, the singer took a chance to remind fans the importance of not letting others interfere with their own values and appreciate that they don't believe in the group's hateful message. "Be inspired to ignore their ignorant message, and feel gratitude in your heart that you are not burdened or addicted to hate, as they are. X," she concluded.

After the concert, the singer took to her Twitter to share some final words.

"Tonight love and hate met in St. Louis," Gaga wrote. "And love outnumbered the hate, in poetic thousands. Hate left. But love stayed. + Together, we sang."

AOL's Politics Daily reports that Westboro plans to protest her Oklahoma City concert on Tuesday.

• Lady Gaga's Monster Ball Kicks Off In Montreal
• The Evolution Of: Lady Gaga

• Lady Gaga

Chech out the hottest songs of the summer from Billboard's "Songs Of The Summer" list.

Photo: Capitol

• Katy Perry
• Usher
• B.o.B
• Travie McCoy
• Ke$ha

'Baby' has surpassed 'Bad Romance' in views, but the battle continues.
By Gil Kaufman

Justin Bieber
Photo: Mark Von Holden/ WireImage

Lady Gaga has been on an epic, record-setting tear, packing 'em in at concerts, selling millions of records and recently smashing previous marks for downloads, Facebook fans and total online video views.

But a girl can't have it all, right? After a heated battle, Gaga went down in rare defeat on Thursday, when Justin Bieber surpassed her to set a record for the most-watched music video in YouTube history. At press time, Bieber's "Baby" collabo with Ludacris had logged 245,746,720 views, pushing past Gaga's epic "Bad Romance" clip, which was not far behind with 245,596,709.

Now, given Gaga's rabid fanbase of little monsters, there's no doubt this pitched battle will continue and perhaps see a few more lead changes, but for now, the Biebs has emerged victorious.

Bieber, in the midst of doctor-imposed vocal rest while on tour, reacted to the news with delight, tweeting on Thursday, "what is goin on with the 'Baby' video on YouTube is crazy ... I started on YouTube so the support ... well I just need to say thank u."

Showing he was raised right and is a good sport, he followed that tweet with a flip of his bowl cut to his rival, writing, "someone just showed me and I just need to say that @ladygaga is an incredible artist who have great respect 4. And her vid is incredible ... so it doesn't matter who has more views, what matters is that we have incredible fans that support us ... that I'm sure we are both grateful 4."

Then again, winning feels kinda sweet, so he did do a bit of Twitter victory lap. "So thanks ... like I said, I started on YouTube so ... WOW!! Love u and wish u all the best in each and every one of ur lives. Thanks Beliebers!"

And in case the race got close again, his next post was a link to the video.

Trailing way behind on the list of most-watched music videos on YouTube are: Miley Cyrus' "Party in the U.S.A." (138.6 million), Pitbull's "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)" (131.8 million), Miley Cyrus' "7 Things" (125.2 million), Lady Gaga's "Just Dance" (117 million), Shakira's "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)" (101.7 million), Miley Cyrus' "The Climb" (100.1 million), Vanessa Hudgens' "Say OK" (89.1 million) and Timbaland and OneRepublic's "Apologize" (87.4 million).

What's your favorite music video of all time? Write in your comments below.

• Top 10 Most Popular YouTube Music Videos

• YouTube Domination: Top 10 All-Time Artists

• Justin Bieber
• Lady Gaga

Justin Bieber and Ludacris' "Baby" overtakes Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" as the top-viewed YouTube music video.

• Lady Gaga
• Ludacris
• Justin Bieber

Gaga told her audience Wednesday night that she'd spent the day in her bus writing a new hit.
By James Montgomery

Lady Gaga performs in concert (file)
Photo: Getty Images

When Lady Gaga took the stage at Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena on Wednesday night, she managed not to discuss the town's recently departed superstar LeBron James. But she did announce to the sold-out crowd that earlier in the day, she had written a brand-new song that was destined to be a hit.

"I wrote a #1 record in Cleveland," she told her throngs of little monsters, according to The Cleveland Plain Dealer, adding that she had skipped a private tour of the city's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to work on the song in her tour bus recording studio.

Earlier in the day, she took to her Twitter account to proclaim the same thing, writing, "Emerging from studio coma. Voted no visit to RockNRoll Hall of Fame, rather write a hit that puts me in it."

Gaga didn't actually play the song in question, but she did rip through a rousing version of "You and I," the new song she premiered at Elton John's White Tie and Tiara Ball last month and has been performing at Monster Ball stops ever since. In theory, it's all leading up to Gaga's much-anticipated new album, which, according to a recent Rolling Stone interview, is totally finished but won't be released until "early next year."

Gaga also told the magazine that she plans on getting the title of the album tattooed on her body and then releasing the photo at midnight on New Year's Eve.

What kind of songs do you want hear on Lady Gaga's next album? Share your thoughts in the comments.

• Lady Gaga's Homecoming Show At Madison Square Garden
• The Evolution Of: Lady Gaga

• Lady Gaga

'Her presentation is so overwhelming that some may overlook the music,' he tells MTV Radio of over-the-top live show.
By James Montgomery, with reporting by Sasha Hamrogue

Lady Gaga
Photo: George Pimentel/ WireImage

Perry Farrell remembers Lady Gaga's 2007 set at Lollapalooza, a sweaty, Saturday-afternoon affair that saw the then-brunet, yet-to-conquer-the-globe Gaga parade around in little more than a disco-ball bra and thigh-high stockings. He was impressed, but needless to say, he never thought he'd see the day she'd be headlining the fest.

"I remember ... she's got dark-brown hair, she's in a bikini, and she's wearing thigh-highs and she's sweating, because she was on at around 3 o'clock," Farrell told MTV Radio. "Her music was cool, her show was kind of cool, but now, the production of her music, the people she's surrounded herself with, the development of her stage show ... it's something that, when I think about Lollapalooza, in that gorgeous setting of [Chicago's] Grant Park, with the amazing buildings all around us, lit up, I see her and her show as being a centerpiece to the evening."

Yes, from side-stage curiosity to mainstage must-see, Gaga has come a long way in three short years, and Farrell — who's already said that Lollapalooza will spend six figures to accommodate her massive Monster Ball stage — sees it as his obligation to help her continue on that climb. But he's hoping the Lolla crowds won't just focus on her stage show. After all, her music is pretty great too.

"Her presentation is so overwhelming that some may overlook the music ... but the truth is, her music, to me, is right where music should be. It's on the cutting edge, but it's [also] in the crosshairs of where every musician is aiming these days," he said. "She's this hybrid of Yoko Ono, sort of the Plastic Ono Band meets Madonna meets Elton John. She's this beautiful crossing of those things [that] every musician is looking to find. Everyone's looking for that sound, and I think she really hits it."

And though he realizes that not all Lolla fans are necessarily "little monsters," he also hopes they'll be won over by her set. After all, that's sort of what Lollapalooza has been doing since it first started back in 1991: introducing kids to new artists, new scenes and, most importantly, new sounds.

"We're going to help her deliver it, just the way we did in 1991, when people didn't go to rap concerts because they might be considered very dangerous," he said. "[Back then,] a lot of those kids who went to Lollapalooza might not have seen Ice-T, but then, there he was. Same with Ice Cube. And that's one of the things I guess I could say I pride myself in: I'm able to bring music that people are very curious about, and once they meet this music, they'll really dig it."

What are you expecting from Lady Gaga's Lolla set? Let us know in the comments!

• Lady Gaga's Homecoming Show At Madison Square Garden
• The Evolution Of: Lady Gaga

• Lady Gaga
• Perry Farrell

Artists from Hilary Duff to Journey owe a debt to 'Laguna Beach' and its spin-off.
By Kyle Anderson

Lady Gaga on "The Hills"
Photo: MTV

Tuesday night (July 13) represents a huge moment in the history of MTV programming and reality television in general. After six seasons, "The Hills" is coming to a close with a two-hour grand-finale event, beginning at 8 p.m. on MTV. It has been a watershed program, as it first established the sort of hyper-real aesthetic that many reality shows (and a handful of fictional dramas) copied. But "The Hills" and its predecessor, "Laguna Beach," also left their mark in the music world.

Each of the shows had theme songs that helped spark massive career moves for the artists behind them. The theme song to "Laguna Beach" was Hilary Duff's "Come Clean," co-written by Kara DioGuardi and John Shanks. Though it originally appeared on Duff's 2003 album, Metamorphosis, and was released as a single in early 2004, it really picked up steam once it accompanied the premiere of "Laguna Beach" in September of that year. It peaked at #9 on the Billboard Pop Songs chart and earned Duff a shortlist recommendation (though no actual nomination) for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards.

"The Hills" theme song did even better by its artist. When Natasha Bedingfield's "Unwritten" debuted as the tune that introduced the world to "The Hills" in May 2006, it stormed up the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #5. In fact, because of its crossover appeal, "Unwritten" became the most-played song on the radio in the United States in 2006. Not bad for a track that was originally released in 2004 on Bedingfield's debut album of the same name.

"The Hills" also gave the world some early exposure to Lady Gaga. Before Gaga's debut album, The Fame, took over the airwaves, she performed at a fashion show where Conrad and friend Whitney Port styled her. Gaga was even the subject of a minor plot in that episode, as the zipper of her catsuit broke, forcing Conrad to repair it and save the day.

But perhaps the most lasting musical legacy of "The Hills" is actually a moment from "Laguna Beach." The second-season premiere of "Laguna Beach" (which aired in July 2005) featured a scene wherein castmember Stephen Colletti picks Conrad up for a date. The song playing in Stephen's car during the scene? Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'," which had yet to receive its second renaissance thanks to the series finale of "The Sopranos" (which didn't air until two years later). Exposure on "Laguna Beach" (along with its appearance on a "Family Guy" episode the same week) sent the track skyrocketing into the iTunes Top 10, an amazing feat for a song that was nearly 25 years old.

What was your favorite musical moment from "Laguna Beach" and "The Hills"? Let us know in the comments!

Join MTVNews.com on Tuesday, July 13, at 8 p.m. ET for a live stream from the red carpet of Hollywood's Roosevelt Hotel, where the stars will gather for "The Hills Live: A Hollywood Ending." Then tune in for the series finale at 10 p.m. ET on MTV and "The Hills Live: A Hollywood Ending After Show" at 11.

• Saying Goodbye To 'The Hills'

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• Natasha Bedingfield
• Journey
• Hilary Duff

Lady Gaga Performs On The 'Today' Show

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Lady Gaga's Homecoming Show At Madison Square Garden

• Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga's Monster Ball Kicks Off In Montreal

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• Lady Gaga