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Thursday, May 2, 2013

Justin Bieber's 'As Long As You Love Me' Video: Growing Up Is Hard To Do

Bieber dives headlong into adulthood — and takes a beating from Michael Madsen — in his brand-new video.
By James Montgomery

When Justin Bieber dropped his <a href="/news/articles/1684446/justin-bieber-boyfriend-video.jhtml">"Boyfriend"</a> video back in May, he made one thing very clear: He's all grown up.Yes, with its cool cars, hot clothes and even hotter women, "Boyfriend" was precisely the kind of video a newly minted 18-year-old would make, had they the means (and the relationship with <a href="http://newsroom.mtv.com/2010/09/24/lil-x-director-x/">Director X</a>). It was a supercharged, supremely budgeted man's fantasy, and, much like manhood itself, there was nothing subtle about it.<object width="460" height="260" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" id="embeddedPlayer" data="http://videoplayer.vevo.com/embed/embedded" style="visibility: visible;"><param name="bgcolor" value="#000000"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><param name="flashvars" value="playerType=embedded&videoId=USUV71201064&playlist=false&enableDomScan=true&siteSection=MTV_mtv.com&playerId=62FF0A5C-0D9E-4AC1-AF04-1D9E97EE3961&autoplay=0&endScreen=play&cc=US&cultureName=en-US&cultureIsRTL=False&sbId=14A00605-7DB5-4492-B67B-CB2093BD89DD"></object>And while the same can be said about his brand-new "As Long as You Love Me" clip — it's about a subtle as a hammer to the head — that's where the similarities between the two videos end. Director Anthony Mandler tones down the excess in favor of a genuine grittiness, and, in the process, makes "Boyfriend" look like child's play. If that clip was a fantasy ride, well, then "ALAYLM" is a reality trip. Adulthood isn't all fun and games, after all.Part tragic love story, part pulpy thriller, the new vid finds Bieber flexing his acting muscles opposite Michael Madsen — that'll put hair on his chest — who plays an overprotective father/probable career criminal with a penchant for gaudy fashion (which is to say, the same kind of role he's been playing for 20 years now). Biebs has only the noblest of intentions for his daughter, but Madsen refuses to give their relationship his approval — a point he drives home when he advises JB to "hit the road."Of course, given that this is a tragedy, Bieber doesn't listen, and, in-between some scenes of the young couple exploring the limits of their love — definitely his most adult to date — we learn that JB plans on rescuing his girlfriend from the grips of her father, via a late-night train station rendezvous. As you might expect, this doesn't sit particularly well with Madsen, who confronts Bieber and dishes out a savage beating (though at least he doesn't <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLTqecGbdCc" target="_blank">cut his ear off</a>) while his daughter looks on in horror.And while you'd think all that violence would be enough to further cement his love interest's desire to flee, sadly, she leaves Bieber standing at the train station, and at clip's end, he is heartbroken ... and alone. For the first time, Bieber doesn't get the girl, and the message seems to be clear: Being a grown-up ain't all it's cracked up to be.In a lot of ways, "As Long as You Love Me" is probably a risk for Bieber; he dares to dirty up his image and isn't afraid to take a beating. Those scenes of violence are are particularly vivid, as are the subsequent performance shots where Bieber belts out the tune with blood dripping from his face. It's a credit to his newfound maturity that he'd trust Mandler's vision and allow the "ALAYLM" video to go to such great lengths. This is in no way a fun clip, but, then again, adulthood isn't supposed to be fun. Bieber seems to have figured that out, and, in doing so, he's only further separated himself from his tween-pop forefathers. They'd never go to the lengths or the depths he does here, mostly because they were probably afraid to grow up. It's clear Bieber isn't.What do you think of Bieber's grown-up video for "As Long as You Love Me"? Leave your comment below!

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Source:
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1690963/justin-bieber-as-long-as-you-love-me-music-video-premiere.jhtml

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Britney Spears Has Tearful Reunion With Former Duet Partner On 'X Factor'

Britney sang 'I Will Still Love You' with Don Philip on her debut album.
By Gil Kaufman

Months before the revamped <a href="/news/articles/1687014/britney-spears-demi-lovato-x-factor-auditions.jhtml">"X Factor"</a>  hits the air, we've already come to expect some serious drama from new judge <a href="http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/spears_britney/artist.jhtml">Britney Spears</a>. But in one of those only-in-reality-TV moments, Spears shed some genuine tears on Sunday during audition rounds in San Francisco when she was confronted with a voice and face from her distant past.<a href="http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20604974,00.html" target="_blank">People</a> magazine reported that Spears got emotional when a male contestant hit the stage at Oracle Arena, telling fellow panelists Simon Cowell, L.A. Reid and fellow newbie Demi Lovato, "I know him ... We did a duet together 10 years ago." A source told the magazine that when the man stepped on the stage, "You could see that Britney recognized him straight away ... She got this huge smile on her face and her eyes lit up. It was so sweet."<div class="player-placeholder right" title="Britney Spears Explains Why She Wanted To Be A Part Of 'X Factor'" id="vid:769620" width="415" height="255"></div>While People did not reveal the man's identity, Spears superfan Jordan Miller of fan site <a href="http://www.breatheheavy.com/2012/06/don-philip-drama-at-the-x-factor/" target="_blank">Breathe Heavy</a> confirmed that the auditioner was none other than Don Philip. The one-time aspiring new pop revolution singer performed a duet with Britney on the treacly ballad "I Will Still Love You," from her 1999 debut album, ...Baby One More Time.A spokesperson for the show declined to comment on the singer's identity when asked for comment.The blast from her past got more emotional when Phillip revealed to the judges and audience, "I'm gay." He continued, "At the time I didn't think I was worth ... I didn't think you thought it was OK that I am gay." Spears was reportedly quick to voice her support for Phillip, saying, "I think it is fine you are gay."The unnamed source told People that when Phillip started crying and said, "he thought he'd never see her again and that he'd had a lot to deal with, Britney was comforting him to calm him." Though she was compassionate and warm with Phillip, the source said that the singer was clearly a bit shaken by the unexpected run-in."She's been through a lot in those 10 years, too, so it must have been a shock for her to see him," the source said. "You could tell she was emotional and she really felt for him especially when he was crying, but she also stayed calm." Even with the drama, Spears reportedly gave a very straightforward critique, though it is unknown if Phillip made the cut.Philip, a Miami, Florida, native who tried to ride the same late-'90s teen pop wave that made superstars out of Spears, Christina Aguilera, 'NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, has spent the time since the duet grinding away at a music career that never reached the heights of his former singing partner. The one-time Jive Records star-in-the-making has sung back-up for Gloria Estefan and toured with Spears early in her career, and like "The Voice" singer <a href="/news/articles/1684782/the-voice-christina-aguilera-tony-lucca.jhtml">Tony Lucca</a>  and Aguilera, maybe he was hoping that a reunion with his former pop pal would provide the boost he's been looking for.Apparently, though, the "Factor" audition didn't go as Philip planned. According to a series of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/donphilip" target="_blank">Facebook</a> posts, Don was disappointed with how things went and wrote, "Tonight i might have sealed my music career fate according to a certain music mogul. I tryed to just be real and instead it totally got turned around on me," he said. "Perhaps this was not the place for me to reveal my very soul and obstacles of my past. Certainly not the place for a reunion ... I promise I only had good intentions in mind."He said his voice "froze" when he began to sing and was never able to recover from what he felt was a "really hardcore interrogation" from what he anonymously described as "two pompous arrogant men."He continued, "I guess I am not as tough skinned as I thought ... Wait it gets worse ... when I looked into the very eyes of my old label mate and saw she too was sad. I knew the whole situation was spinning out of control.. my heart broke."On Monday, Philip posted another note, wondering if Cowell might give him another shot, explaining that he was "so exhausted and could not sleep [the] night before," because he was so scared to face Spears. He also referred to the "heavy burden" he was carrying, seemingly referring to his coming out, and following four hours of interviews he said his voice was just spent.<a href="http://www.mtv.com/photos/?fid=1617615"><img src="http://www.mtv.com/news/photos/s/spotted/banner/spotted.jpg"></a>

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