Beyonce, Foo Fighters RSVP for Grammy Awards

Following speculation that they wouldn't attend this year's Grammys out of respect to the WGA strike, both Foo Fighters and Beyoncé issued statements yesterday confirming that they will attend the February 10th event, regardless of the status of the strike. As both musicians are members of the Screen Actor's Guild, a brother union that is standing alongside the writers, many questioned whether they would cross the picket line. "Beyoncé, as well as my other artists Solange and Trinitee 5:7, have been asked to participate and will do so. We have an incredible Beyoncé performance that will be announced soon. We wish the Grammys the best," said Beyoncé's father/manager Matthew Knowles. "There's no question that the Grammys are a highlight of every year for the industry and audiences alike, and we're thrilled that the Foo Fighters will be performing on the show," said the Foos manager Jon Silva. Dave Grohl also defended his participation in the My Grammy Moment contest, saying that it will generate "opportunities to write, compose, play and study music — skills that absolutely need to be passed on to generations to come."

John Legend also confirmed his involvement with the event. The singer will play an acoustic concert aboard a Grammys-branded airplane for fifty to sixty winners of a CBS-backed sweepstakes. Winners will fly from New York to Los Angeles for the ceremony, with Legend providing the in-flight entertainment. Meanwhile, the WGA strike may have taken a step towards resolution yesterday as the studios and the Director's Guild of America came to terms on a new three-year contract, making the dispute with the Writer's Guild the main focus.

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• Timberlake and Others Asked to Skip Grammys
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Song Stories

“Time to Pretend”

MGMT | 2008

Listening to MGMT’s breakthrough song, one might interpret it as being about the excesses of rock stardom, but it’s actually about the duo’s pet praying mantis. Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden told Rolling Stone they got the idea from the insect's jerky movements. The mantis died, but the two bandmates kept the egg sack and allowed the hundreds of eggs to hatch. “We tried to name them all, but they died after a day,” said Goldwasser, with VanWyngarden chiming in, “But the praying mantis dance inspired us.”

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