The 2009 American Music Awards went down last night at Nokia Theatre in LA and while they’re usually a tame show compared to other music awards because they focus more on performances, last night brought plenty of moments to buzz about.

Of course the night couldn’t go on without Michael Jackson being recognized. Jermaine Jackson accepted four awards on Michael’s behalf. The only time Jermaine didn’t bask in the spotlights on stage was for the Artist of the Year Award, which MJ lost to Taylor Swift (ok where was Kanye during this award? Hopefully somewhere shamed that he put Swift on the radar enough to win an award over the King of Pop). Swift was the big winner of the night winning five awards (including AMA Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist over Beyonce and Lady Gaga, get out of here!). Luckily there was no chaos during the country singer’s acceptance speeches because she wasn’t there.

While there was little drama during the evening there were plenty of high energy performances from some of our favorite artists. Janet Jackson kicked off the evening performing a medley of songs including “Miss You Much.” Rihanna (who was dressed in a bondage outfit that looked like Lady Gaga’s long johns and was still tamer than Gaga’s performance outfit) preformed two songs off of her new album “Rated R.” Eminem, Mary J. Blige, Jay-Z (who won Favorite Male Hip-Hop Artist) and Alicia Keys (who must want to get popped by Mashonda for the song “Try Sleeping With a Broken Heart”) all executed solid performances of their latest chart-toppers.

Jennifer Lopez’s performance of her new song “Louboutins” wasn’t so smooth. The singer is nursing a bruise today after falling on her butt when she tried to jump off a human pyramid of half-naked performers. “You miss me?” she asked near the end of the performance. You answer that question.

Whitney Houston took home the AMA International Artist of the Year Award, an honorary award given to to an artist for longevity and international success. The Diva also took to the stage to perform a new hit “Didn’t Know My Own Strength” in a moving performance that brought some of the audience members that were panned, like Reba McEntire to tears. If you blinked you might’ve missed Ray J sitting behind Whitney’s daughter Bobbi Christina. Hmmm, are Ray J and Whitney still special “friends” like the old rumors say? One can only wonder.

All in all it was a well executed show with the usual suspects in the music industry.

What was your favorite moment from the night?

Click here for the full fashion run down!

For months now Rihanna has been paired with rappers, singers, reality stars, and Satan.

Now the good girl gone bad turned whatever you call her new hairstyle is being paired with 90210 star, Tristan Wilds.

The New York Daily News says:

Spies tell us that the singer is dating actor Tristan Wilds. The “90210″ star was an unexpected guest at a party RiRi held over the weekend at her L.A. home, where she was saying goodbye to pals before taking off for a set of London gigs.

“No one knew why Tristan was there initially, because it was not an industry party — it was very intimate,” says a fellow guest. “But everyone quickly realized they weren’t meeting for the first time, because they were openly affectionate for everyone to see.”

Our source adds that 21-year-old Rihanna and the 20-year-old actor, who has also starred in “The Wire” and Jay-Z’s “Roc Boys” music video, were introduced by a music producer who has worked with both of them — Wilds is currently working on an album of his own.

They hit it off the moment they laid eyes on each other, the insider says. “He’s a real gentleman,” says the source. “She likes him a lot, and it shows. From the moment he walked into her party, Rihanna lit up.”

Yeah, yeah, she likes another prepubescent looking dude. Good for her.

What’s this about Tristan working on an album? What does he do? Rap? Sing? Autotune?

Can some stan fill us in?

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When I looked at this image, I wasn’t thinking, “OMG! Her breasts…in barbed wire. The horror!”

I didn’t think anything of it, actually. We saw her breasts this summer and just about every day for the past month. Not to mention she’s been trying for two years now to prove to ya’ll that she’s a bad girl. What’s badder than barbed wire around breasts (other than the movie after the same name, of course)?

Ever since Rihanna leaked the single “Russian Roulette” everything from the songs lyrical content to the video to the single cover has been criticized.

Well, she’s heard some of it and has since responded.

When prompted about some of the recent flack, Rihanna told British radio station Key 103:

“I don’t know why people are so surprised that I’m scantily clad, I’ve always been scantily clad, I’ve always been that way.

I definitely thought the barbed wire was cool, it was a symbol of strength but fearlessness all at once, that’s why we used it.

We took our time and wrapped that barbed wire around me. It took forever because we had to wrap it round the front of me – a certain area – a few times more than the rest of me so that it would cover the necessary.”

She gets two points for owning up to being half naked most of the time.

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Chris Brown had to know it wouldn’t be an easy road back into the public’s good graces, but he thinks people are perceiving him wrong.  The notorious singer sat down with Wendy Williams on her show today to debut his new music video “Crawl” and told the daytime diva: “I think the steps that I’ve taken to show that I’m sorry probably have been perceived wrong,” Chris admitted. “Certain things that I’m doing in different interviews – how my posture is, how I’m acting. At the end of the day I’m definitely remorseful; it’s not something I take lightly – thinking like it’s under the rug.”

Rihanna fans sure aren’t ready to sweep the incident under the rug.  The New York Post posted a video of a Chris Brown appearance at a Foot Action Store yesterday where one bystander had some words for him: “fu—ing beater!” and “I hope someone beats the fu–ing s–t out of you!” Ouch!

Reunited?

50 Cent told Houston radio station 97.9 Vivica Fox will be back in his life. The rapper told that the actress is going to be in his next music video and said the two are still “friends” although he wouldn’t confirm whether or not they’re together  again (he did say for the 50 million time he’s not with Ciara).  Fiddy and Ms. Fox had a short romance back in 2007. Wonder if they’ll be an item again? If he wants to have a “baby by” her though he might want to get on that soon, Viv is 45!

About the Benjamins

‘Lil Kim may be a lot of things but her people want to you to know that trifling is not one of them. Earlier this week TMZ reported that the rapper bailed on six gigs in London after pocketing a $20,000 fee and blamed it all on a nosebleed. Today AllHipHop.com reports that ‘Lil Kim’s people shot back and said she never saw a dime of those Benjamins from the company who claims to have paid her up front. “We do not have a contract with Abstrakt Visions Entertainment and never received any money from them,” a spokesperson for the rapper said.  “Abstrakt Visions Entertainment is in the wrong for falsely promoting Lil Kim in London and will be dealt with accordingly. This matter is in the hands of our legal team.”

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After months of only seeing her in paparazzi photos, Rihanna is officially back on the scene! Yesterday she sat down with MTV’s Alexa Chung, for her second interview since THE incident. She didn’t speak on the assault, although she did mention a song off of her new album called “Stupid in Love.” Last night the singer was amongst several honorees at  Glamour magazine’s Women of the Year Awards in New York. The songbird was recognized as “The Back-On-Top Superstar.”

Model Iman presented the award and said “She has taken her own scars and used them to create a new story of strength and awareness.” Iman also noted that Rihanna would serve as a role model to victims of domestic violence.

Now, a source who was in the house at the awards told me it  was embarrassing and “painful to watch” Rihanna get through her acceptance speech which she read completely from a crumpled piece of paper that she pulled out from her sweeping Stephane Rolland dress. The singer started off dabbing her eyes while announcing she was “PMSing” and then proceeded to tell the audience, which included notables like Maya Angelou (who received a “Lifetime Achievement” honor) and Bill Clinton,”I didn’t even know I had to speak, I didn’t know what kind of event it was, I didn’t know anything until a few hours ago.” Ummm? Did she forget that she was one of the cover girls for Glamour’s Women of the Year issues? Why didn’t her publicist give her the heads up before she took the stage? Yikes! We’ll give Rih-Rih a pass, though. I’m sure her people spent most of their energy prepping for that big 20/20 interview last week.

Rihanna thanked various people from her professional team as well as her mother and grandmother for making her the woman she is today. She  graciously accepted the award saying “It was a real honor to be named Glamour’s Woman of the Year, especially because I think of myself as just becoming a woman. I just turned 21 this year. Just to be mentioned in this group of women is overwhelming.”

Are you glad Rhianna’s making a comeback? Do you think she deserved a “Woman of the Year” award?

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While Chris Brown thinks Rihanna should have kept the story of him beating her while driving on a public street a private matter, his dancers seem to think Rihanna ought to be placed back on a boat to Barbados.

Following her much publicized interview with Diane Sawyer on 20/20, Chris Brown’s friends lashed out at Rih-Rih again via Twitter:

Team Brown says:

Chris’DJ @djbabeydrew

“MAD!!!! I need the real story to come out now!!! This is sum bullcrap!!!! Uncut Bullcrap!”
“Awwww man I am Mad!!!! Truth will come to Light !!! It always does!!!!”
” u should wanna hear from the people that really know the truth!!!”

Chris’ best friend, Moe!:

“have you seen the GMA interview? what are your thoughts on it? >>>SUS”
“he’s career ain’t ova. He made her 2 Wat she is day. Riri just needs away 2. Get her career back up”

Chris’ other best friend, MIJO:

“I’m starting to See How Sus You Are….”

Chris’ friend, Scooter:

“new #TT is…..#hannarihanna”
“like hannamontana is 2 people hannarihanna is her 2nd person that we saw on tv today lying!!!!

Chris’ Friend, Micha @micahfonecheck):

#shame on Rihanna….
“All my followers RT this #shame on Rihanna….”
“How dirty is that 2 wait till he’s about to drop his album 2 come out with this whole victim ish! #shame on Rihanna”

Chris’ dancer,  @Only1Zstarr :

YO THIS RIHANNA INTERVIEW HAVE PISSED ME OFF SHE IS REALLY TRYNA MAKE CHRIS BROWN OUT OF BEING A WOMEN BEATER…. WOW. IF YALL ONLY KNEW!!”
“I WISH DANCER’S CAN SPEAK ABOUT THINGS THAT REALLY GO ON!!!! I CAN NOT BELIEVE THIS.. LET ME JUST SAY CHRIS BROWN WAS PUSHED TO THE EXTREME!”
“HER PEOPLE MADE HER DO THIS INTERVIEW FOR 2 REASON’S….. ALBUM SALES…. AND TO TRY AN KILL CHRIS CAREER!! (WHICH WILL NOT HAPPEN)”
“IN CHRIS INTERVIEW THEY ASK HIM WHAT HAPPEN, HE SAID HE WANT TO KEEP THERE PRIVACY PRIVATE OUT OF RESPECT FOR HER!! (PAUSE)”
“BECAUSE IF HE REALLY SPOKE ON THE REAL OF THE TRUTH!!! I CANT SAY THE REST!

Everyone has a right to their opinion, but let the record show that Rihanna’s career was already leaps and bounds ahead of Chris’ before they linked up.

Check the credits.

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A group called The National Coalition For Men has released a statement that calls on Rihanna to speak out on her alleged violence against Chris Brown.

They feel her lack of admission is a double standard.  The group’s statement reads:

The National Coalition For Men (NCFM) calls on Rihanna to discuss her own reported violence against Brown as well if she wants to shed light on the problem honestly.

According to court records and other sources, Rihanna struck Brown in the face “numerous times” before Brown assaulted her (’http://news.ninemsn.com.au/entertainment/768865/rihanna-hit-chris-brow…’). NCFM purports although that would not justify his more severe assault, her violence should not be ignored, and if she does not ‘woman up’ to it then her message will be the usual one-sided double standards that leave female perpetration covered up.

The saying, ‘There is no excuse for domestic violence,’ applies to both sexes. Female violence in relationships is not rare but is often hypocritically deemed acceptable or humorous, such as in the film, Sideways. It is part of the cycle of domestic violence, which cannot be stopped without addressing the problem honestly. Children are damaged just by witnessing domestic violence, regardless of its severity.

If Rihanna sincerely wants to raise awareness about domestic violence, NCFM calls on her to be forthcoming about her own violence and to address the problem honestly.

Although Chris Brown seems to have escaped Rihanna’s violent acts without a scar on his face — do you agree with the group’s criticism of Rihanna or is it unfair?

A few weeks ago Tiffany Evans raised eyebrows when she rent on a rant about “satanic” practices in the music industry, specifically blasting Rihanna’s new single “Russian Roulette”, a song she thinks is glorifying suicide and the devil. The lyrics start off: “Take a breath, take it deep/Calm yourself, he says to me/If you play, you play for keeps/Take a gun, and count to three/I’m sweating now, moving slow/No time to think, my turn to go”

Now although Rihanna sings the song Ne-Yo is artist who actually wrote it and here’s what he had to say in response to Evan’s comments: “It’s definitely dark, but if you think about it, ‘Thriller’ was dark, but it’s one of the biggest-selling records of all time. Nobody’s really going out to play Russian roulette or thinking about killing themselves or nothing like that. It was just an interesting topic over a crazy beat, and who better to pull that off than somebody like Rihanna?”

Meanwhile the producer of the song Chuck Harmony wasn’t having any of it! He called Evan’s rant “beyond stupid” and “immature” and also added: “There are no satanic messages in the music. Maybe if we did a remake of ‘Promise Ring’ (Tiffany’s hit single), then Rihanna wouldn’t be a devil worshiper. People are so closed minded. The song is not literal. Like most provocative art, its symbolism. Grow up.”

Singer Omarion added his two cents to the subject in an interview with TheBoombox.com and elaborated on the music industry’s “dark side”:

“I don’t personally know Rihanna’s beliefs but I think there’s a very dark and very sinister part of the entertainment business and I think it’s very visible…it really made me think that there is a [time as an artist] where there’s going to be a choice. The [entertainment] world [dictates] that you have to be with three or four women, or do this in order to get that [and] I think it’s really interesting. With God and the industry, it’s really dark. The dark side is having to get in, there’s a certain submission you need to have. Just like a gang [initiation], so to speak. You might have to do something against your moral code. I’m not saying that it’s always this way, but when you’re someone that is young and you’re coming up in the industry and you really don’t have a grip on your morals it can be very dark. The game is just about over saturation.

I don’t know if Rihanna [has fallen victim to those pressures]. I’ve never really heard her speak about it. I hope that she doesn’t believe in that stuff and I don’t think that she does, but I don’t know. It’s not just been a Rihanna thing, [there's has been religious speculation] about a lot of artists.”

Evans, like Omarion, made some good points on the music industry having a pull on an artist’s morals, but honestly I forgot she was even a recording artist before her rant so I wonder if she’s just trying to get some attention by going as far to say artists in the industry are “devil worshipers.” What’s your take on the whole controversy?

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Here’a a recap of the best celebrity costumes:

Beyonce

Jay-Z

Rihanna and Coco

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama

Jordin Sparks and Steph Jones

Teyana Taylor

Lance Gross and Eva Pigford

LaToya Jackson

Aubrey O’Day

Kimora Lee Simmons and Djimon Hounsou

Heidi Klum and Seal

Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon

Tiffany Evans has a voice that commands attention, but maybe some publicist ought to look into silencing her when she not’s on stage.

Evans wrote an impassioned tweet about Rihanna’s new single, “Russian Roulette.”

Basically: That girl ain’t nothing but the devil.

She tweeted:

Russian Roulette= Suicidal Rate gon sky rocket!

You gotta watch what u say. Because there are a lot of weak people in the world. They are susceptible to anything so anything you say or do some people actually do listen. So make sure its nothing bad. Its okay to be deep,but not murder deep.

Man! I really wish I could tell you guys what the industry really is and what stars are apart of destroying this world. The stars who worship satan,and those who have killed to get the respect they have now. You’d be verrrry surprise. Some of your favorite people pretend to worship God but they only do that to save face. Or seem innocent.

Satan was head of music in heaven. He uses influential people…to help influence the world. Think about that. Once u make a certain amount of money. Just know that that’s when they ask u to join. To get in you have accept the beast, worship. Once you join they assist u with ur career.make u huge.only if u agree and obey to destroy Gods word.and his children.

Ppl listen and pay attention. Its a war going on right now between Good and Evil. Evil will rule this world for a min. The people that have this power are the people that RULE the whole world. I’m done I won’t say anymore before I get in trouble.

She sounds like those people who scream about the world ending in two days if you don’t give them spare change at the bus stop.

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