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'Jersey Shore' star teases his gig with Spears this weekend in Puerto Rico.
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Sway Calloway

Pauly D
Photo: MTV News

Pauly D has a lot of experience playing shows with Britney Spears. He not only opened for her in Las Vegas earlier this year during the taping of her "I Am the Femme Fatale" MTV special, but he later hit the road with Spears for her Femme Fatale tour.

So opening for the princess of pop as she wraps up her world tour this weekend won't be too difficult for the "Jersey Shore" star. He's slated to appear with her on December 10 in Puerto Rico. It's the very last stop on the months-long, sprawling trek around the globe.

Since Pauly last hit the road with pop's ultimate femme fatale, he told MTV News that he has been keeping in touch with his pal. "Yeah [we keep in contact], oh yeah, for sure," he said. "A lot of tweets."

While Pauly played it coy during our chat about the upcoming gig, he did give us just enough hints to let us know that the show is indeed all set for Saturday. "There's rumors; rumors have it that I might be on that tour," he joked. "I'm not sure. I'd love to. I hope so. I like Puerto Rico and it's nice this time of year."

Is there any chance that Britney might make an appearance on Pauly's in-the-works solo reality show while he's out there with her? "She's busy. She's really busy and I'd love to link up with her and get her on this 'cause doing her tour, that was another dream for me, to do an artist's tour. I've been a fan of Britney my whole life, so it's been great for me."

"She was happy for me," he continued. "She was like, 'Oh you're going to be fist pumping on the show.' She gets a kick out of the fist pumping."

If that appearance doesn't pan out, DJ Pauly D needn't worry too much. He just announced his deal with 50 Cent's G-Note Records, a step that should help to take his DJ career to the next level. 50 spoke to MTV News about the deal earlier this week, teasing some big things.

"Pauly's project is not all his performance on the actual records," Fif explained of the "hit record" he hopes to make with the DJ, set for release in 2012. "It's more like what you would get from a DJ Khaled or DJ Drama but also what you would get from David Guetta — so it's a cross between those two worlds, and I think it's exciting."

Fans of Pauly D are also pumped for the latest season of his hit MTV series "Jersey Shore." Just this week, a season 5 trailer dropped and there seems to be enough drama, GTL and smushing to go around for everyone.

"There was a lot of tension in [Italy], because we were away from our friends, away from our family, so all we had was each other — that's it," Pauly said. "So now we literally ran to Jersey, because we missed it so much, and we just shared that bond, because we've been there before, so we enjoyed it with everybody this year. It was really one of my best years, I think."

The fifth season of "Jersey Shore" premieres Thursday, January 5, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on MTV. For continuing "Shore" coverage, be sure to check in with MTV's Remote Control blog.

• Britney Spears
• DJ Pauly D

So everyone's going crazy because Nicki Minaj tweeted that she locked lips with the Queen of Pop, Madonna, on the set of the music video for "Give Me All Your Love," the buzzed about first single from Madonna's forthcoming 12th studio album.

Apparently, kissing Her Madgesty is oh-so good … "OH MY f'ingggg Gahhhh!!!!! MADONNA jus kissed me!!!!! On the lips!!!!!!! It felt sooooo good. Soooo soft!!!! *passes out* aaahhhhh!!!!!!!!!" Nicki tweet-screamed to all of her Brabz and Kenz late last night. She continued her swoon-athon with a series of tweets (which you can check out after the jump!) for over an hour after.

Which got us thinking about what a kiss from Madonna really means. Of course, any time Madge locks lips with another lady, our mind is immediately drawn back to the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards, where the Queen and the Princesses – that's Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera, for those who don't know (and how is life under that rock?) – performed a "Like A Virgin" medley that included one of the most famous lip locks of all time.

In its own weird way, a lot of people read the performance and kiss and Madonna's way of anointing Spears as her pop successor. Sure, she kissed Christina too, but that's not what anyone remembers. They remember that jaw-dropping lip lock with Spears, who was then at the height of her global fame and still a few years removed from the personal drama that nearly consumed her career (blessedly, she got the help she needed and is back and as good as ever today).

Does that mean she sees something special in Nicki too?

Minaj has had a very big year. She had a multi-platinum record with Pink Friday and earned a ubiquitous radio and chart hit with "Super Bass." And everyone loves her – from Taylor Swift to Justin Bieber's number one girl Selena Gomez to Britney Spears herself, who handpicked Nicki for her Femme Fatale tour, everyone is gaga for Nicki. Minaj is also beloved by critics and the hip-hop community.

So maybe getting a publicized smooch from Madonna is her way of showing faith in a young performer. After all, when Spears returned to the big time for her comeback album Circus and appeared in the MTV documentary "Britney: For the Record," Madge was there to lend a hand to the resurgent superstar, proving her support for Spears wasn't fair-weather. Spears went on to release the best album of her career this year with Femme Fatale, which at least one MTV Newser thinks was the best album of the year.

Perhaps puckering up with Nicki means something similar. We can see Madonna taking a liking to the sexy and sassy rapper. Nicki seems exactly like Madonna's kind of girl. Or maybe it was just her way of wishing her a happy birthday!

Check out Nicki's Twitter-based Madonna love-fest below:

By Zachary Swickey

Few bands have ascended the rock and roll ranks as swiftly as The Black Keys have managed to do over the last year. Sure, the band has been around since their '02 debut, but it wasn’t until their Danger Mouse-produced record – 2008’s Attack & Release – that the group finally started getting the attention they deserved. Consequentially, they went from playing bars and clubs to mid-size theatres, and early next year the band will be embarking on their first-ever arena tour (including a date at NYC’s iconic Madison Square Garden) – a rather magnificent feat for any band let alone a small-scale bluesy duo.

If the reviews pouring in on their latest effort, El Camino, are any indication, they won’t have any problems selling tickets. Here’s what the critics have had to say about the Black Keys’ seventh album:

>>> Los Angeles Times: “It feels a little funny to gush so outwardly about a record, like the critical capacities are failing when enthusiasm takes over. Really, the only question is whether, this late in the year, this constitutes the best rock album of 2011 or 2012. It’ll probably be both.” (Four stars out of four).

>>> Entertainment Weekly: “They’ve [the Black Keys] teamed up with longtime producer Danger Mouse to do what they do best: make a small-room racket that sounds massive enough for a bigger-is-better world. El Camino trades the soulful stylings of Brothers for harder-driving, faster-riffing rock & roll. They don’t make vintage folk-rock heavy metal like they used to – if they ever used to. And that’s a very good thing.” (A-).

>>> Rolling Stone: “There’s still a strange jukebox anonymity to the Keys’ approach; their vintage organ and guitar sounds often project larger personae than the band itself. But part of the reason Carney and Auerbach keep finding new ways to shake up that old-school blues-rock rumble is that they’re workaday dudes smart enough to get out of the way of their own songs. Like Clark Kent’s or Peter Parker’s, their 99 percentness only seems to enhance their powers.” (Four out of five stars).

>>> Spin: “The music is rooted in terse melody and two-chord patterns, so its bang-bang gets repeititve in a couple spots. And while Auerbach’s singing is finally more muhfuh then midnight moaner, he still says very little – women are trouble; people will take what’s yours; life ain’t easy. That’s okay though. Sal St. Monica doesn’t like to waste time with words, and El Camino is all action. (8 out of 10).

>>> Paste: “By the time the record ends, there’s a good chance you’ll find yourself immediately wanting to start over again from the beginning. El Camino is yet another ear-pleasing installment in the catalog of a consistently impressive band. It’s an album that leaves you breathless and wanting more, but it becomes more fun with each new spin. (8.3 out of 10).

Katy Perry is making some California Dreams come true. Through ticket sales on her, um, "California Dreams Tour," the pop star raised more $175,000 for over 50 organizations, including The Humane Society of the United States, Children’s Health Fund and Generosity Water.

By selling select tickets through Tickets-for-Charity.com, Perry was able to help raise funds for the organizations nearest and dearest to her. "I’m thrilled to be able to help support the work these organizations are doing to fight and prevent animal cruelty, provide health care to homeless children and bring clean drinking water to communities around the world," she said in a statement. "I can’t thank my amazing fans enough for their generosity in helping these great causes by choosing Tickets-for-Charity.com for their tickets!"

Katy certainly has had a fruitful 2011. Her music broke records, she took home some big-time awards (like VMAs and AMAs), appeared on the big screen in the “Smurfs” flick, went on a hugely successful headlining tour and launched several other endeavors, like her first-ever perfume, Purr, which she’ll follow up with Meow!

She’ll cap off 2011 by hosting “Saturday Night Live” this weekend, where she’ll be joined by former tourmate Robyn. She appeared earlier this year as a musical guest but now will spend the entire night trying to make us chuckle alongside folks like Kenan Thompson, who she shot some funny promos with.

Bad Boy signee MGK says, 'I want to be the hottest,' on MTV News' 2011 list — vote now!
By Rob Markman, with reporting by Sway Calloway

Machine Gun Kelly
Photo: Getty Images/ MTV News

Machine Gun Kelly went from a troubled youth trying to find his way in the streets of Cleveland to one of rap's top prospects in a year's time. Now, not only has the rapid-fire lyricist gone on to sign with Diddy's Bad Boy Records, he's already cutting records with Waka Flocka Flame and his idol, DMX. MGK has created so much of a stir in the rap game that he is now a nominee for MTV News' 2011 Hottest Breakthrough MC.

"To be considered for the hottest breakthrough MC of 2011, it's obviously an honor, but I want to be the hottest. I've never been comfortable with sharing anything: I was a single child," Machine Gun Kelly said on Wednesday's "RapFix Live."

Kells began battle-rapping around 2004 while he was still in high school, and graduated to the studio in 2006 when he dropped his very first mixtape, Stamp of Approval. All the while, he struggled through school, but eventually graduated. Kells went on to work a few odd jobs and become a dad. In 2010, he dropped another tape, 100 Words and Runnin' — but it was with his second tape that year, Lace Up, that folks really began to take notice.

Songs like his hometown ode "Cleveland" and the heartfelt "End of the Road" went on to establish MGK as not only a relatable MC, but a fully capable spitter as well. Kells went on to tour and perform across the country, then in August, he announced on "RapFix Live" he had signed a deal with Diddy's Bad Boy Records.

Now MGK is putting the finishing touches on his debut, set to drop in 2012. One of the album's guests will be Kells' all-time favorite rapper, DMX. For MGK, recording with the dog was surreal. "I felt like he was going to think I was weird because I kept staring at him the whole time, 'cause I'm like, 'Dude, this is my idol,' " MGK said.

Hottest Breakthrough MCs was established by MTV News in 2010 as a fan-driven initiative that spotlights, celebrates and cultivates new talent. MTV News chose a pool of young rappers and urged fans to vote for their favorite. When it was all said and done, Wiz Khalifa emerged as the Hottest Breakthrough of last year. The competition was tough, but the Taylor Gang General beat out runner-up Nicki Minaj, ATL group Travis Porter, Diggy Simmons and J. Cole. This year, you can vote for Machine Gun Kelly (or your favorite up-and-comer) over at RapFix.MTV.com, and be sure to check back for daily updates and poll results.

Each day, we'll spotlight a new Hottest Breakthrough MC before we conclude December 13 when the polls close at 11:59 p.m. ET. The 2011 Hottest Breakthrough MC will be revealed during December 14's "RapFix Live," during which the winner will appear as our in-studio guest. There will also be a special announcement about MTV News' upcoming Hottest MCs in the Game list and debate.

To be considered a Hottest Breakthrough MC, an artist cannot have released a major-label full-length album. Finalists from 2010's Hottest Breakthrough MCs poll will not be eligible for 2011 consideration, so unfortunately, Diggy Simmons and Travis Porter won't be part of this conversation.

Who do you think should be 2011 Hottest Breakthrough MC? Share your picks in the comments!

Stick with MTV News as we profile the 2011 Hottest Breakthrough MCs before announcing the winner December 13 on "RapFix Live" — vote now!

• 2011 Hottest Breakthrough MCs
• 'RapFix Live' With Machine Gun Kelly And Kendrick Lamar

• Machine Gun Kelly