It's been a while since I posted a new installment of this series, but the music industry seemed to have taken a break from doing things that really annoy me. However, they are back at it again. But, really, who is surprised?

As you may have heard, seventies band The Rubinoos have accused Avril Lavigne of ripping off one of their songs entitled "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend." Can you guess what Avril song has the very similar refrain? In case you're not familiar with the Rubinoos song, you can listen here (along with the comparison to "Girlfriend").

Well, that's not all. Now there's suspicion that one of her songs called "I Don't Have To Try" is a rip-off of Canadian band Peaches. The comparison of their song, "I'm the Kinda" and Avril's can be seen/heard here.

Listen for yourself and see just how similar both songs are. This is disgusting. She's stealing these people's music. That's just tacky and uncalled for. As gossip champion Perez Hilton pointed out on his website, Avril is trying to defend stealing the Rubinoos song by saying that she's never heard it. But Hilton pointed out that there's no defending stealing the Peaches song, as InStyle magazine did a feature on some music celeb's lists of "most influential" songs, and that same Peaches song was Avril's #1.

There's no defending that.

At it doesn't end here. Check Perez Hilton's page to read on (scroll down a bit to find the Avril stuff... though there's some other tasty celebrity gossip there too).

I'm too disgusted to talk about it anymore. I was never that big a fan of Avril Lavigne's anyway. I liked maybe one song. "Complicated" annoyed me. Don't get me started on "Skater Boi" or whatever it was. I'm glad that I don't have to be a disenfranchised fan -- because really, no amount of loyalty should be able to stand behind this kind of action (unless of course you're 9 and don't know any better... which most of her fans may be anyway).

Of all the awful things that happen in the world of the celebrities and music and hollywood, this is probably the lowest you can go. Never steal anyone else's artistic hard work. Disgusting.

It's one thing that will make NOT <3 Rock Stars...

50 CENT EXPANDS HIS MERCH EMPIRE TO INCLUDE JIMMY HATS
Just days after announcing a G-UNIT book line, 50 CENT has added condoms to his growing line of gangsta rap tie-ins. What's next for Fiddy? We've got our money on a line of feminine hygiene products with the tagline "Get fresh or die trying."

I didn't know how to word that any other way (the last line especially. Hilarious!). That was in a Rock Daily email from Rolling Stone sometime last week. At first I couldn't figure out what they were talking about. But then I realized, and oh my God. That's hilarious. How ridiculous. How stupid.

How genius. Because you know people are going to buy them. People have to ensure, after all, that their g-units are hip too.

And the fact that Fiddy came up with this idea astonishes me (if he, in fact, was the one who came up with it). This is incredible. I don't even know what to say. Fiddy, I salute you. The fact that he can play on his pseudo-macho bullshit image (then again, he was shot 9 times... and lived) to get people to spend (probably) more money than necessary, amazes me. But at least he's promoting safe sex, right? We don't need any more Fiddy in this world. Incredible idea, really. This... this is why I <3 Rock Stars (and rap ones too, I guess).

Oh, I could not stay away from this.

Following weeks of rumors that Michael Jackson would perform for the first time in nine years at the World Music Awards last week, Wacko Jacko showed up to the show and announced that he would not perform.

Perhaps, though, he realized that might not have been a great move, because toward the end, Jacko jumped on stage with a gospel choir and sang “a few shaky lines from ‘We Are the World’” a Rolling Stone Daily email from last week said.

That, slightly unpredictably, did not turn out so well. The stunt provoked the half-full arena to hiss like a bunch of snakes. Oh, man, I wish I had been there. Way to piss off all your fans, Psycho.

And to perhaps add insult to injury, he collected his two awards (the Diamond Award and Guinness World Record Award for “Thriller”) from Beyonce with the following words [read in high pitched voice]: “I’m greatly humbled by this award. It was my dream that ‘Thriller’ would become the biggest selling album ever. I thank God and you for its success... I love all my fans from the bottom of my creepy little heart.”

Okay, so he didn’t say that exactly, but he did thank all his fans from the bottom of his heart. And then he has sex with a boy on stage.

Okay, that didn’t happen either, but it wouldn’t have surprised me. What a weirdo.

But, seriously, really? Really, Jacko? You’re going to lie to everyone by not performing and then you’re going to thank them. Bahrain can have you. We don’t need your creepiness here anymore.

You piss me off, Jacko, but boy does your weirdness remind me why it is that I <3 rock stars…

Britney and K-Fed. K-Fed and Britney. Who knew that such a perfect love match would crumble for no apparent reason? It was just a matter of time really.

Britney suddenly filed for divorce last week after reportedly finding another woman in his hotel room. It may not have been the immediate cause, but it apparently aggravated the already strained relationship.

But that’s not even the crazy news!

One day after Brit-Brit filed for divorce, her “rapper” husband submitted his own papers requesting child support and custody of the couple’s two children, Sean Preston and Jayden James.

“Kevin is prepared to go the distance in order to do what he feels is necessary to protect and safeguard the children and will not be intimidated or dissuaded from pursuit of those goals,” said K-Fed’s attorney in a statement.

Do you think K-Fed knows what half those words mean? Furthermore, do you really believe that crap? If K-Fed was so concerned with safeguarding his children, where the hell was he when little Sean Preston fell ON HIS HEAD? Or when Mommy Britney took him for a drive?

K-Fed won’t get custody, but can you imagine? Just what the word needs: two little kids with pudding for brains running around shouting “popozao.” Great. That’s what I look forward to.

But what really makes me giggle is the fact that the freeloading rapper wannabe really thinks that it’ll all work out for him in the end. What is he going to do with all those kids anyway? Start up a franchise? Maybe. Stranger things have happened.

And what makes me giggle harder is the fact that he thinks that once he gets that severance package from Britney, he’ll be okay. Hey, Brain-dead, you really think that money is going to last you the rest of your life? Because your career sure won’t.

Way to go K-Fed. You really make me smile in a “God what a stupid asshole” type of way. But it’s a smile nonetheless. Much love yo.

You make me remember why it is that I <3 rock stars.

Life just isn’t working out for Madonna lately. Her recent tour has brought numerous negative comments about the part of the show where she crucifies herself while wearing a crown of thorns. Cities have publicly chastised her and network television refuses to air the now infamous part of her show. But just to add to her public humiliation, there is now drama surrounding her attempted adoption of Malawian boy David Banda.

A couple weeks ago the Malawi government said that the adoption should not be allowed because they don’t let just anyone adopt their babies. There’s a lot more to it than just providing material things (pun intended?). They also have to be assured that the child will be brought up in a nice, moral household. They actually said “moral.” Oh, and something about not letting non-Malawian people adopt their babies. Moral. Hah!

However, the plot thickens for good ol’ Madonna. Now, Yohane Banda, the birth father of little David said he thought the material girl was going to adopt the baby on his behalf (like not permanently). He said that had they told him that she wanted to adopt his son for the sole purpose of making him her son, he would not have allowed it.

“It would have been better for him to continue staying at the orphanage because I see no reason why my child should be given away forever when I can feed him,” Banda told Reuters. However, Madonna and her hubby, Guy Ritchie currently have temporary rights and already have little David in their home in London.

Wow, what a way to be a kidnapper, Madonna. You should stop trying to be like Angelina Jolie, who has apparently made it cool to adopt children from foreign countries. You’ll never be as cool as her. You’re over the hill. You were once cool, but you stopped after you picked up that British accent after what, like a week?

Also, way to go breaking that poor Malawian father’s heart. Way to steal his child. I’m proud of you.

But why am I the only person who notices that? Damn, I wish I was a rock star. Then maybe I could get away with crazy, heartless shit. Damn. I <3 Rock Stars.

According to the daily email from the friendly folks over at Rolling Stone, Wilco's Jeff Tweedy went and slugged a fan Monday at a show in Springfield, Missouri. According to an anonymous source, the victim/fan climbed on stage and tried to give Tweedy a "fat smooch" on the cheek. Logically, Tweedy grabbed the man by the throat and punch/slapped him in the face. "Tweedy freaks out like the retard from "[There's] Something About Mary" who doesn't like having his ears touched," the source said. Tweedy apparently apologized (kind of) and finished the set as quickly as possible.

The show's production manager, Pat Hagin, affirmed that the incident occurred, explaining that when you're on stage and someone tries to become part of the show, it can get pretty scary. Tweedy's response was, obviously, just a reflex. Because when people come up to me, my first impulse is to punch them in the face.

"This [fan] is an idiot," Hagin said. But think of all the "Cool Points" he gets now for being the guy Jeff Tweedy of Wilco smacked on stage. Or maybe they're more "Loser Points."

Either way, it'd pretty damned funny. Man, I <3 Rock Stars...




Edit: Here, I found this video of the incident. I love Jeff Tweedy. Good for him!