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Karmin's Best Cover Yet

Posted 10/17/12 6:49 pm EST by MTV News in Music

By Cory Midgarden

I love cover songs. I don't know what it is about them, but one of my favorite pastimes — a guilty pleasure if you will — is to log onto YouTube, type in the name of a song I'm digging and watch someone other than the original artist sing their rendition of the tune.

I'm sure this is why I've always been such a big fan of TV singing competitions as well, but that isn't the point. The point of this post is that last April I was introduced to, maybe, one of the most amazing covers I'd ever experienced in my entire life. And that's saying a lot, since I spend much of my free time and weekends doing nothing but looking for these videos (I'm only kind of exaggerating).

Anyway, the introduction came via email from my friend, who is aware of my obsession, with the text "You're going to DIE" in the subject line. I clicked on the link, which maybe had a few hundred views at the time, and there was Karmin. The song they were performing was Chris Brown's "Look at Me Now," and the girl, whose name I thought was Karmin at the time, pretty much killed me when I got to 1:16 in the video.

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My friend was right; they were so good I almost died. But since I didn't, I knew my newfound mission in life was to get them on the MTV show I was working on at the time. "The Seven" was a countdown of the seven things (hence the title) we needed our audience to know about each day. And these two were something people needed to know about — if they hadn't already.

I got in touch with the pair, and within a few days, Amy Heidemann and Nick Noonan were in New York City getting ready to perform for our studio audience. I was so excited! And they were too. They were awesome during sound check and looking as cute as can be, both wearing V-neck tees and jeans... but something was missing.

As I looked at the twosome before they took our Times Square stage, I realized what was off. The woman standing in front of me had a stick-straight 'do, while the one from the video had some extra flair to her hair. I asked Amy if she'd be interested in recreating her look from the video, and she was more than happy to accept. With only a few minutes to spare, we hooked her up with one of our stylists and before our very eyes, her signature "suicide roll" was born.

Karmin then took the stage performing "Look at Me Now," Weezy's "6 Foot 7 Foot," and original track "On Your Side."

Since then, I've worked with Karmin (and Amy's suicide roll) on several occasions (they even gave me a very special birthday shout-out while I worked on VH1's "Big Morning Buzz Live"), watching them grow into the stars they are today. As proud of them as I've been over these past months, it wasn't until last night, when I saw Amy on the cover of Rolling Stone that I really realized how far the two have come.

To be recognized by Rolling Stone magazine as a woman who rocks is an amazing achievement. Karmin has come so far in such a short period of time and if anyone deserves such an accolade, it's them.

Congratulations, Amy and Nick! I look forward to following your careers for years to come.

Tags Karmin, rolling-stones

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From Snooki's Mini Meatball To Fergie's First Photo: This Week In Instagrams

Posted 10/10/12 6:58 pm EST by MTV News in Music, Television

By Cory Midgarden

Who is Olly Murs saving a seat for in this Instagab photo? Well, according to the Murs, his "X Factor" U.K. castmate Zayn Malik has a thing for motorized bikes.

"Zayn was tweeting about Vespas and how much he likes them and I heard him talking about it and I was talking to him about it and so I took the picture and I just tweeted him," Murs told MTV News. "Zayn never replies, so kind of a waste of time."

See Olly Murs' scooter riding Instagram story!

So, even though we do not know much about these next Instagram photos, they grabbed our attention nonetheless and are MTV News' five faves from the week:

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Snooki
If you can't get enough of Snooki's baby boy Lorenzo you're not alone. The little meatball is just coming up on two months, and thanks to Instagram, the "Jersey Shore" star has been able to keep friends and fans, alike, up-to-date on her life as a new mommy.

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Kelly Osbourne
Here's another MTV family that just warms our hearts. Ozzy and Kelly Osbourne "cuddle" up in this Instagram snapshot. While Kelly seems enamored by her dad, the pup in her lap doesn't seem nearly as charmed by the Black Sabbath frontman.

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Snoop Dogg
While Instagram doesn't usually give followers full details behind a pic, a little cross investigation via other social media outlets, i.e., Twitter and Facebook can usually get you a few more tidbits. Take this photo Snoop Dogg posted with Machine Gun Kelly. By just looking at the post you know nothing other than the fact the two posed for this picture. But a Google search here and a Twitter scroll there and viola: A little bit more info on the story.

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Shay Mitchell
Ever wonder how those "Pretty Little Liars" look so fabulous day after day? Shay Mitchell, who plays Emily in the ABC Family series, gave us a sneak peek at her beauty regime. While the face mask in this photo looks pampered, being up at 5:30 AM (as mentioned in her Instagram caption) to have the service sounds far from relaxing.

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Fergie
Fergie Ferg posted her very first Instagram this week! The Black Eyed Peas singer needs a little help deciding what to wear for Halloween this year. It's hard to tell what she's going for thus far but if it comes close to what she wore last year, we're sold!

Who took your favorite Instagram shot of the week? Let us know in the comments below!

Tags fergie, one direction, shay mitchell, Snooki, Snoop-Dogg, zayn malik

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Ryan Beatty Gives 'Hey L.A.' A Big Apple Remix

Posted 10/10/12 6:48 pm EST by MTV News in Music

By Cory Midgarden

After hearing his single "Hey L.A.," it is crystal clear Ryan Beatty is a huge fan of the Golden State, but it was not until the MTV News team spent the day with the YouTube sensation that we learned he is a New York enthusiast as well.

While we were pretty sure our Big Apple tour, where MTV News' Christina Garibaldi took him to Times Square, the Empire State Building and Central Park, had something to do with his newfound love for the city, it turned out our sightseeing adventure was not the only thing that won Beatty over.

See more from Ryan Beatty's journey through New York

"I love Serendipity," he told MTV News. "Their frozen hot chocolates are the best. Anyone that ever comes to New York, go to Serendipity. I can vouch for that. It's amazing."

To celebrate his admiration for NYC, the 17-year-old from Clovis, California, made a few changes to his ever-so-catchy new song especially for us!

What do you think of Ryan Beatty's "Hey L.A." New York remix? Let us know in the comments below!

Tags hey LA, remix, ryan beaty

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Usher's BFF Obama And More: The Week In Instagrams

Posted 10/2/12 4:35 pm EST by MTV News in MTV News

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By Cory Midgarden

What gave Cody Simpson this lizard-like tongue?

"I had, like, five blue Warheads," Simpson told MTV News. "After, like, three, I saw my tongue obviously started getting blue, and I was like, 'I might as well have two more.' "

Check out Cody Simpson's sweet-and-sour story here!

Although we don't know the entire story behind these next five Instagrams, they're the MTV News team's favorite from the week:

Zac Efron
Zac Efron posted this pic from the Philippines. The "Lucky One" star four-wheeled up the side of Mayon Volcano, an active

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