Lana Del Rey Under Attack for SNL Performance

Last week, Lana Del Rey fired back at critics who said she wasn’t ready for her “Saturday Night Live” gig, telling MTV News, “I’m a good musician … I have been singing for a long time, and I think that ['SNL' creator] Lorne [Michaels] knows that … it’s not a fluke decision.”

Of course, following the show — and a pair of vocally shaky performances in which Del Rey seemed nervous and detached — those same critics fired back, first taking to Twitter to rip her as nothing more than hype. Actress and musician Juliette Lewis was particularly harsh, writing (in a since-deleted tweet), “Wow, watching this ‘singer’ on SNL is like watching a 12-year-old in their bedroom when they’re pretending to sing and perform #signofourtimes.”

Actress Eliza Dushku also chimed in, tweeting, “Who is this wack-a-doodle chick performing on ‘SNL’? Whaaa?”

Also jumping into the fray — albeit not intentionally — was “NBC Nightly News” anchor/ amateur music aficionado Brian Williams, who, in an email meant for Gawker Media founder Nick Denton (which was subsequently posted on Gawker.com), called Del Rey’s performance “one of the worst outings in ‘SNL’ history,” and chided Denton’s websites for not slagging it appropriately.

(A spokesperson for NBC told Gawker that the email “was sent in confidence … and absolutely never intended to be public.”)

To be fair, Del Rey did have her defenders, most notably the host of her “SNL” show, Daniel Radcliffe. Speaking to the media at the annual British Academy of Film and Television Arts nominations, the actor said that the attacks went far beyond mere criticism of Del Rey’s singing and stage presence, and added that he felt the entire thing was blown out of proportion.

“It was unfortunate that people seemed to turn on her so quickly,” Radcliffe said. “I also think people are making it about things other than the performance … if you read what people are saying about her online, it’s all about her past and her family and stuff that’s nobody else’s business. I don’t think [the performance] warranted anywhere near that reaction.”

Del Rey has yet to answer any of her “SNL” critics (unless this tweet counts), and a spokesperson for her label, Interscope, did not respond to MTV News’ request for comment on the matter.

Bruno Mars Has #1 U.K. Spot After 1 Year on Chart

Bruno Mars’ “Doo-Wops & Hooligans” celebrated a year on the U.K. album chart on January 15th by going back to where it started, at No. 1.

Mars’ album debuted at the album chart summit a year ago, falling to No. 2 in its second week, but has never dropped lower than No. 14 in its entire sales year. It now has total U.K. sales of 1.28 million copies, according to the Official Charts Company, but sold a mere 24,000 new units last week to go back to the top.

Adele to Break Singing Silence at the Brit’s

After nearly four months of silence, Adele will break the whisper spell on February 21 at the Brit Awards. The Grammy-nominated singer has been off the live performance radar since surgery to stop bleeding from a polyp on her vocal cords
 in November, but organizers of the show confirmed on Thursday that she will sing again at the event where she is nominated for three awards.

“F—ing happy, thank you for the nods xx,” she Tweeted on Thursday in response to the nominations.

While the Brit Awards confirmation is great news for Adele’s fans, there is still no word on whether she’ll take the stage
 at the February 12 Grammy Awards, where she’s up for six honors. She also Tweeted the message, “Looking forward to the @theGrammys on Feb. 12!” a short after her Brit Awards note, indicating that, at the very least, she’ll be in the room for the show.

A recent report claimed that she is in talks to sing on the show now that she’s begun talking again with her doctor’s permission. Since she doesn’t want to rush back and injure her vocal cord again, the singer is reportedly waiting until early next month to decide if she can sing in public again as early as the Grammys.

Nicki Minaj and Foo Fighters to Perform at Grammys

Rapper Nicki Minaj will make her debut Grammy performance next month, joining Foo Fighters, Bruno Mars and country singer Jason Aldean on the list of artists who will take to the stage on the recording industry’s biggest night.

Grammy organizers said on Thursday that Minaj, who has four Grammy nominations, will perform at the February 12 awards show, as well as country sensation Taylor Swift, and Kelly Clarkson.

Rapper Kanye West, who leads this year’s Grammys with seven nominations, is also yet to be confirmed as a performer at the live awards show in Los Angeles.

Organizers said additional performers and presenters will be announced in the coming weeks.

Melanie Amaro Wins American X Factor

19-year old Melanie Amaro from Sunrise, Florida, was crowned champion of Fox’s “The X Factor” on Thursday (December 22), winning a $5 million recording contract and a spot in a Pepsi commercial that will air during next year’s Super Bowl.

Amaro beat out 30-year-old Columbus, Ohio, contestant Josh Krajcik for the title of “X Factor” winner. Chris Rene, the 28-year-old from Santa Cruz, California, came in third place.

When the results were read, an emotional Amaro exclaimed, “Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!” She was swarmed by members of her family, and “X Factor” host Steve Jones struggled to get a word from her. After performing Beyoncé’;'s “Listen,” Amaro said, “God is good,” and thanked her fans.

“Thank you so much, thank you. I’m just, I’m so happy and I don’t know what to say,” she said. “This is something I’ve wanted for all my life!”

Amaro’s victory was especially sweet considering she was technically eliminated from the competition after Simon Cowell sent her home following one of the early rounds. Deciding he had made a mistake, Cowell paid a personal visit to her home and invited her to rejoin the competition.

In the end, Cowell was pleased with his decision, as well as America’s choice of Amaro as its first “X Factor” winner. “We came here to find a superstar, we found a superstar. Thank you to everyone who supported the show,” Cowell said. He called Krajcik “a worthy runner-up.”

Krajcik, the husky, self-described burrito slinger, congratulated Amaro on her victory. “Melanie deserves it, she has a wonderful voice,” he said. “I’ve had such an incredible experience here. I got to be myself and sing what I wanted to sing. I couldn’t be happier.”

Thursday’s results show followed Wednesday’s performance episode, when the three finalists performed duets with superstar acts: Amaro with R. Kelly, Krajcik with Alanis Morissette and Rene with Avril Lavigne. Following the show, Cowell heavily endorsed Amaro to be the winner.

The top 12 finalists opened the show with a group performance of Lady Gaga’s “The Edge of Glory.” The top three contestants also performed holiday songs, with Amaro doing “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” Rene crooning “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and Krajcik taking on the Eagles’ “Please Come Home for Christmas.”

Katy Perry Named MTV’s First Artist of the Year

Katy Perry’s year of number 1 singles has earned her the honor of becoming MTV’s first ever artist of the year.

After much spirited debate, MTV decided to award Perry the distinction over Adele. Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” was chosen top song of 2011.

MTV also declared Skrillex its electronic dance music artist of the year over David Guetta.

Different parts of MTV would make “best of” lists in the past, but this year the network wanted to establish a franchise that brought all its online and TV arms together and emphasized MTV’s music roots. The network, hopes it becomes an annual thing

Seven panelists made the final choice, and their deliberations were featured in MTV programming this week.

A rep for MTV said, “You just really felt her presence in pop culture throughout the year.”

Madonna Signs Deal with Interscope

The Queen of Pop Madonna has signed a deal with Interscope Records. Madonna will reportedly work with the label on three records for $1 million each.

Madonna will also remain with Live Nation, with whom she signed a deal in 2007. Currently she has a 10-year, “360 deal” worth upwards of $100 million that covers touring and merchandise. Live Nation CEO Irving Azoff hinted back in February that a merger could happen for the star sometime this year. Live Nation always had intended to partner with a record label for the release of her next album.

“Live Nation, prior to the merger, entered into some of these all-rights deals, so there are certain artists, Madonna being one of them, that there is a recorded-music strategy,” Azoff said. “Once she gets the album recorded, we’ll sit down with her and her manager, Guy Oseary, and figure out what’s best for the record. It has to start with the music.”

A source says, “It’s just about keeping relevance so that she can tour. She is still in the demo phase, but the idea is to get the first album out early next year.”

Britney Spears’ Femme Fatale Tour Comes to an End

After taking her tour around the world, Britney Spears wrapped up the Femme Fatale tour on Saturday in Puerto Rico.

Before she took the stage, Spears celebrated her 30th birthday with a party on Friday night. The pop star tweeted all about the party, “Having an amazing time at my end of tour/ belated bday party!” she wrote on Twitter on Saturday. “Thx so much to the Conrad Condado Plaza for giving us a place to celebrate this tour & my 30th bday last night – we all loved the party!”

But the fun hardly ended with the party. For her final performance of the Femme Fatale shows the following day, Spears was joined by some of her family and friends onstage.

“That’s a wrap! The Femme Fatale tour is officially over Gotta give some end of tour shout outs,” she tweeted, before showing some online love to her pals. “To [my assistant] Brett [Miller] and her fierce dance moves! She surprised me on stage tonight during ‘Big Fat Bass.’ To all my dancers – u all are basically family. Thx so much for an unforgettable year! Look at this good looking group. To every single INCREDIBLE person on my crew – none of this would of been possible without you. I’m gonna miss u!”

Britney also thanked her fans. “And last but DEFINITELY not least – to all of the amazing fans who I saw on this journey around the world,” she wrote. “<3 u all.”

For the final bow of the tour, Spears was joined by her sons, Sean Preston and Jayden, her boyfriend Jason Trawick, sister Jamie Lynn and JL’s daughter, Maddie, on stage as she said goodbye to the Femme Fatale tour.

Adele’s “21″ Named Top UK Album of 21st Century

Well-loved songstress Adele made another record on Monday, when the Official Charts Company (OCC) confirmed that her second album “21″ had become the highest selling album in Britain of this century.

The record passed sales of 3.4 million copies, surpassing the late Amy Winehouse’s 2006 LP “Back To Black” which sold 3.3 million.

According to the OCC, the album has never left the British top 10 since its release in January, and on Sunday it rose from 9th to 5th in it’s 45th week on the charts, a jump mostly likely due to her 6 recent Grammy nominations.

Adele’s great success in her native Britain is met in the US, where 21 passed the four-million copy mark in October.

Madonna Confirmed as Super Bowl Halftime Performer

The rumors have been confirmed in a statement from the NFL on Sunday night that confirms that Madonna will play the halftime show at Super Bowl XLVI on February 5th. The superstar will be part of a performance that was “imagined” by Cirque du Soleil and Madonna’s longtime choreographer and creative director Jamie King.

The game is scheduled for the first Sunday in February at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Two days after her Super Bowl gig, Maddona’s English romantic drama, “W.E.,” will hit theaters. The singer is also set to release her 12th studio album in 2012 and a first single could be released around the time of the Super Bowl.

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