VMAs Recruit Alicia Keys for Jay-Z Performance, Eminem to Make "Special Appearance"

With three days to go until the Video Music Awards, MTV announced that Eminem will also appear on the show in a "special appearance." Details are sketchy regarding Eminem's role — Janet Jackson will also make a "special appearance" in a tribute to her brother Michael, so the term denotes something more than a standard performance — "but the last time Slim Shady made a "special appearance" on MTV, he was at the butt end of a Bruno gag, literally. Maybe Eminem will exact revenge on some unprepared member of the audience? Maybe he'll debut a track from his upcoming Relapse 2? We'll find out live September 13th when the VMAs invade New York's Radio City Music Hall.

MTV also revealed that Alicia Keys will join Jay-Z when Hova debuts his The Blueprint 3 song "Empire State of Mind" for the VMA audience. A whole cavalcade of presenters were also announced, including Megan Fox, Jimmy Fallon, Jennifer Lopez, Shakira, 50 Cent, Jack Black, Andy Samberg, Kristin Cavallari, Pete Wentz, Gerard Butler, Tracy Morgan, Adam Brody, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Alexa Chung, Gabe Saporta of Cobra Starship and Justin Bieber.

As Rolling Stone previously reported, the VMAs will also include performances by Green Day, Beyoncé, Muse, Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Wale and Pink, trailers for This Is It and New Moon, the Jackson tribute, Russell Brand's controversial hosting plus hints of Britney Spears' possible involvement. We're sure MTV has much more surprises in store, so keep it locked to Rolling Stone all weekend for our full coverage of the event, which conveniently is taking place right next door to our office.

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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