Apparently while we’re still polishing off Thanksgiving leftovers, Hollywood’s already gearing up for 2011.  And they just announced the first pot-stirrer of the New Year: who’s nominated for February’s Grammy’s…and who isn’t.

Big Turkey Sandwich with All the Fixings

1. The full list of 2011’s Grammy Award Nominees has been announced.  And guess who’s leading the pack with noms? Uh, Eminem.  Following him with the most are Lady Gaga (duh), Jay-Z, and Bruno Mars.  Because none of us are sick of hearing “Love the Way You Lie” and “Bad Romance” on the radio…

2. Oh no.  Could it be?  A preggers Jessica Simpson? Well, I guess that would explain the expedited wedding plans.

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Just when you thought Maroon 5 couldn’t get any cooler, they turned down the temperature a little more. (Bad analogy? Whatever. It’s Sunday.)  And I’m not talking about their sick new album, Hands All Over, or their sexy music videos. These guys are just great. Don’t let their rock star persona fool you; they’re down-to-earth, chill, funny and, well, normal (despite the fact that they are Grammy-winning musicians). Yes, they too belt out their favorite songs on the radio and have absolutely no idea where life will take them in 10 years.

How do I know this? Because Mickey Madden, bassist for the band, sat down with us and answered the questions that CollegeCandy readers (myself included!) have been dying to know.

Read on – I know you’re curious. Read More »

One of the first CDs I ever remember buying was No Doubt’s Tragic Kingdom.  I remember being mesmerized by the unique style of Gwen Stefani before I even had a sense of style.  Almost instantly, I was crushing on Gwen.

Since Tragic Kingdom, my girl crush on Gwen has only grown.  She’s rocked steady alongside No Doubt since 1986, despite her relationship with band mate Tony Kanal ending, proving that you can remain friends with your exes.  No Doubt continued to pump out hits, until they hit a rough patch with their fourth album, Return of Saturn.  Between this and recording Rock Steady, Gwen appeared on tracks for Moby and Eve – the beginning of her career separate from No Doubt.

With the help of band mate and former flame, Gwen decided to release a solo, dance record.  The result was bananas (b-a-n-a-n-a-s) – Love. Angel. Music. Baby. was a hit, selling over 300,000 copies in it’s first week out.  With the launch of her music career, came the arrival of Gwen’s Harajuku Girls.  While their inability to talk in public is a little odd, these ladies are very talented dancers.

Gwen has won awards for both her work with No Doubt, and her solo career.  She’s won three Grammys; two with No Doubt for Underneath it All and Hey Baby; one for her first collaboration with Eve – Let Me Blow Ya Mind. She’s also won numerous MTV Video Music Awards and Teen Choice Awards – proving this women has talent.

And not just with music.

Drawing from her unique style as inspiration, Gwen has produced two clothing lines.  The first, L.A.M.B., is a high fashion line that can be seen on the runways during New York fashion week.  Her lower-end line, Harajuku Lovers, is  more casual, and often features cartoon pictures of Gwen and her Harajuku girls. I love them both almost as much as the woman herself. Hell, if I can’t actually be Gwen Stefani, at least I can dress like her.

Last night, President Obama addressed the current economic crisis, assuring America that “We will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than before.” That sounds especially promising to the billions of college students across the country, who are faced with escalating tuition costs and skyrocketing student debts, and who are watching as the window of opportunity seems to shrink with news of major layoffs every other day.

However, if you play your cards right, you can find great success after college. Sure, some of us will spend years after college struggling to pay off student loans and going on interview after interview, sometimes for entry-level jobs we are overqualified for but still can’t seem to nab. But some of us are on the brink of making headlines, like these uber-successful post-grad powerhouses have done in recent years.

1. Lin-Manuel Miranda

Lin-Manuel Miranda went to Wesleyan University in Connecticut, a school where tuition runs at over $38 grand a year, plus $10-12,000 for room and board expenses. While attending Wesleyan, Miranda, a native of Inwood, New York City, turned his life experience into a theatrical production that has exploded since his graduation from the University in 2002. Miranda is the composer and lyricist behind the smash hit musical In the Heights, which was produced at Wesleyan, picked up for off-Broadway, and transferred to the Great White Way in 2008. Miranda, an actor-slash-rapper who originated the lead role, Usnavi, in his own show, picked up a Tony award last spring and is currently slated to reprise the role when it hits the silver screen. Read More »

(We’re back with another weekly installment of G.W.W.E. [Guys We Wanna Eff]. It’s official: the winter doldrums have set in, and who better to cozy up in bed with than Harry Connick, Jr.?)

Very few stars these days can legitimately claim to be top-notch actors and musicians, but Harry Connick, Jr. is certainly one of them. A stylish crooner with a killer smile to boot, Harry puts the swagger in suave. His dinner-jacket-and-slacks style makes me want to slip into my best little black dress, some Chanel No. 5, recline on a velvet chaise…and eff his brains out.

Originally a professional jazz pianist, Harry got his big break arranging the soundtrack for everyone’s favorite rom-com, When Harry Met Sally. Seriously, hottie Harry’s eff-me-tender tunes made WHMS my number-one rainy-day chick flick, hands down. His work even won him his first Grammy! To date, he’s released several albums of music, from jazz to Christmas classics. Harry’s the kind of guy who will take you by the hand and sing your sweet little soul to the heavens of effable merriment, a true gent if I do say so myself.

Of course, his acting career has truly taken off over the past few years. His guest-starring stint on Will and Grace had me so glued to the television (Sexy Harry? My fave sitcom? Almost better than a good, long eff.) that I totally bought the series on DVD to relive every effable moment at my convenience.  Meanwhile, he’s broken out onto the big screen, with starring roles in Hope Floats, P.S. I Love You, and his latest release, New In Town, which opens today.

And of course, Harry wouldn’t be a great eff if he didn’t have a heart. He’s been a huge supporter of disaster relief programs in his native New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.  Yes, I know he’s married with children, but I’ve gotta say, if you ever need some (effable) relief of your own, Harry, you know who to call.

(We’re back with another weekly installment of G.W.W.E [Guys We Want to Eff]. Looking for a fella who has smart taste, style, and talent to boot? Check out Mos Def, our main rapper/actor we wanna eff!)

I have to confess that I’m a sucker for talent. I mean, who isn’t? If all these dancing/singing/acting/yadda yadda reality shows are doing so well, then the American public is certainly thirsty for some grade-A pizzazz. But while the hometown hotties on such shows are nice, what’s really effable is someone who’s taken time to hone their skills and grow into the limelight. A self-made man. And who’s a better example of that than Mos Def?

This week, he’s totally tops on my effable charts.

The Brooklyn hip-hop lyricist, born Dante Terrell Smith, first started recording music alongside his brother and sister as part of a group called Urban Thermal Dynamics. He has since broken off as a solo artist, and his 1999 album Black on Both Sides was his breakout achievement. He has also collaborated with such big names as Talib Kweli, Kanye West, and Common. And his slick, sexy, introspective side acquired a lot of recognition for his work on Russell Simmon’s Def Poetry on HBO. Confidence + smooth delivery= ultra-effability.

But that’s not all. He’s a respected actor whose Hollywood resume includes roles on The Chappelle Show, The Italian Job, and the newest Michel Gondry flick, Be Kind Rewind. Mos Def has been nominated for an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and multiple Grammys. Yeah, you could say he knows his way around the entertainment industry. Meow!

Mos Def’s newest film, Cadillac Records, opens today. How am I excited? Let me count the ways: 1) It’s a ’50s period piece (retro movies are always fun), 2) there’s sure to be a great soundtrack (it’s about a recording studio!) and 3) Mos Def plays Chuck Berry, the dynamic early rock-n-roll star. So while my man will be singing “Johnny B. Goode,” I’ll be thinking: Mos Def, be good to me tonight!

Lil Wayne nomination domination.

Santa Claus is scary (but totally hilarious)!

Proposition 8, The Musical.

The perfect anti-flu remedy.

Check out the Bromance trailer. It’s gonna be good.

Is Spencer drugging Heidi!?

Self-mutilation takes on a new form.

Madonna is the new face of Gucci.

Ew, shag sweaters?

A few final exam tips.

Fashion reared its fabulous head last night where you would least expect it. The CMA Awards in Nashville, TN had some of the hottest women and men in the entertainment biz, not to mention some of the best dressed.

Remember years ago, as a hip and trendy youngster, you wouldn’t have been caught dead listening to country music? It made your ears bleed, not to mention it was hick-like. Well, country music has changed its tune and is no longer a place for ugly plaid button up shirts, clunky belt buckles, or square dancing. Country music now produces extremely popular and beautiful people who are sweeping the music scene, the big screen, and the fashion business.

This is a mini recap of some of the popular folks who walked down the red carpet (yes, there was a red carpet) at the CMA awards last night. All the people chosen were chosen because of their terrific fashion sense and for their ability to capitalize on the changing face of country music.

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If someone were to ask me to list my favorite bands, Of A Revolution (O.A.R.) would most definitely be at number one. Which is saying a lot, considering I am a Michigan grad and the boys of O.A.R. got together at Ohio State, a school I have learned to loathe in the deepest part of my core. But I can’t help it; these guys are good. Really good. And no matter what is going on in my life, popping in one of their 6 albums always makes me feel better.

Imagine my excitement, then, when I found out that their newest album, All Sides was coming out July 15th (tomorrow!), I was going to be able to listen to it before it was released, and I was going to be able to interview them! Life doesn’t get much better than this. Below is my dream realized – a jovial chat with Jerry DePizzo, the ridiculously talented man behind the sax for O.A.R.

CC: I have been listening to the new album-I think it’s fantastic. Why did you call it, All Sides?

O.A.R.: Well, we wanted to make it self-explanatory, we always kind of like to – not necessarily wear our emotions on our sleeves – but kind of let everything hang out. It just means you see all sides of the band, what we can do musically and stylistically and different subject matters of which we speak out. It’s an all-encompassing perspective of OAR. Read More »