Paramore Share The 'Love' At The mtvU Woodie Awards

Paramore stormed South By Southwest to play their first U.S. show "in a long time" on Wednesday night — or, more correctly, Thursday morning, since they took the stage after midnight — and, roughly a dozen hours after wrapping that set, they were backstage at the mtvU Woodie Awards, doing a run of interviews but still very much aglow about their time on the SXSW stage.

Paramore 'Love' Woodie Awards' Support For Lesser-Known Artists

"It was too much fun!" Hayley Williams beamed. "It was packed with our friends; we played with Tegan and Sara, who we've toured with before and known for a long time, and Kitten, who I think are about to be massive and blow everyone's minds. It was nice to share the stage with so many cool artists that we respect."

Oh course, they're also pretty amazed by the sheer energy of the folks who pack Austin's Sixth Street each and every night — "Everyone's out of their minds!" guitarist Taylor York laughed — and the sheer volume of bands that take over SXSW each year. And somewhere, in-between all the partying and show-playing, Paramore are also shooting a video, for next single "Still Into You" ... but yet, they couldn't pass up a chance to attend the Woodies, a show Williams has fond memories of; and not just because she proudly displays Paramore's 2008 Woodie of the Year in her Tennessee home, either.
"I love the Woodies, [bassist] Jeremy [Davis] and I went in 2008, and it was really fun. I just like that it gives a place or a home to music that I feel like some people are missing out on, and it highlights it," she said. "There's music all over the radio, and you hear the same thing every time you turn it on, but under that, there's something going on, all the time, and it's always informing what's happening in the mainstream, whether people know it or not.
"And I love that the Woodie Awards gives a voice to college kids who are constantly finding great bands," she continues. "And it gives a voice to those bands, that otherwise may not have that sixe of a platform to get up and show people what they do."
Don't miss the 2013 mtvU Woodie Awards, Sunday, March 17 at 8/7c on MTV and mtvU, featuring performances from Zedd, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Twenty One Pilots, coming at you from SXSW!

Green Day Cast Out Demons In Triumphant Return To Stage At SXSW

AUSTIN — On Friday night, Green Day took to the SXSW stage at the Moody Theater's Austin City Limits Live for a high-energy showcase.
After a brief opening set from Stickup Kid, Green Day emerged promptly at 9 p.m. to a crowd that included both official SXSW badge-holders and lucky die-hard fans who'd won tickets through a contest on the band's website. After canceling a string of tour dates earlier this year as frontman Billie Joe Armstrong sought treatment in rehab for prescription drug and alcohol abuse, the group had promised to hit the road again later this month, on March 28.
But they got things started a little early in Austin, with a frenetic set that launched with a trio of high-octane hits — "99 Revolutions," "Know Your Enemy," and "Stay the Night" — that sent the packed crowd at the intimate theater into a fit of fist-pumping and clapping along. Armstrong was determined to keep that energy high from note one, too: The breakdowns during "99 Revolutions" were peppered with commands to "Get your f---ing hands up!" and "Go f---ing crazy!"

During "Know Your Enemy," he asked, "Who wants to come up here?" before pulling a young fan onstage with him. After an extended embrace, the two alternated lines during the song's chorus. Armstrong then encouraged the guy to go for a stage-dive, which he did, into the waiting arms of fans.
It was a good look for a band whose populism has always been its biggest draw. Green Day's a band whose songs are fun to sing along to, whose choruses demand hand-clapping and shouting, and who have always excelled at making the listener feel like an honorary member of the band. Those songs belong to everyone and, if you need proof, here's a kid, just like you, singing onstage with the band right now.
Even when the band wasn't in full-on audience participation mode, and Armstrong wasn't demanding that the crowd give him the sort of "Heeeeey-ohhhh" call-and-response chants that you'd hear in a soccer stadium, the intimacy of the venue helped maintain an inclusive feel. After a sustained 40 minutes of shout-along rockers, the more subdued, acoustic rendering of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" became a theater-size sing-along.
"Everything is louder in Texas," Armstrong quipped. Green Day were even joined onstage by an ASL interpreter, who rocked out along with them while offering a rendition of the song for the hearing-impaired.
After years of headlining arenas, Green Day also showed the 2,750-capacity theater it knows how to structure a set. After building through a frantic, 40-minute string of songs from the band's early-2000s catalog, culminating in "Boulevard," the band abruptly switched its focus to its '90s output, leading with Dookie tracks "Burnout" and "Welcome to Paradise," and reaching back as far as "Christy Road" from 1991's Kerplunk and "Disappearing Boy" from the band's 1990 debut, 39/Smooth.
It was a loose, playful set from a tight band. By the 90-minute mark, it was impossible to predict what would happen next. Would they bring out a Michael Jackson impersonator to accompany them on saxophone, or play a medley of "Shout," "Stand by Me" and "Hey Jude" while lying on their backs? (They did both.) They also left few hits untouched though. Early favorites like "Basket Case" and "She" were well-represented, but the band was comfortable mixing those up, along with latest single "X-Kid" from the recent ¡Tré! or mid-period favorites like "American Idiot," "Jesus of Suburbia," and 2000's "Minority." The relentless parade of smashes served as a reminder of both the band's longevity and the depth of its catalog. It's a long road from "Longview" to "X-Kid," and Friday night's SXSW set served as a journey along that path.
Through it all, Armstrong, now clean and sober, was full of an infectious, joyful energy. He led chants, borrowed a cowboy hat from someone in the audience, brought out a T-shirt cannon and even brought another fan onstage to sing the final verse and chorus to the band's breakthrough single "Longview."
Armstrong frequently stepped away from the mic for entire verses, trusting the audience to do the singing for him. The performance was triumphant in a very real sense of the word. Green Day had conquered — their demons, punk rock and South by Southwest — and they were here to celebrate the victory. A packed SXSW crowd in a small Austin theater was thrilled to join in.
Don't miss the 2013 mtvU Woodie Awards, Sunday, March 17 at 8/7c on MTV & mtvU, featuring performances from Zedd, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Twenty One Pilots, coming at you from SXSW!

In the four-year history of MTV's Musical March Madness tournament, no band has dominated quite like Tokio Hotel, the German rockers who have ridden the support of their fanatical "Aliens" to a pair of Final Four appearances, and, last year, the MMM championship.

Of course, their tourney success is even more impressive considering, during that same stretch of time, they've released exactly zero albums (their last, Humanoid came out in 2009). Obviously, that hasn't mattered to their fans ... and with the 2013 Musical March Madness set to tip off on March 18, it looks like history may repeat itself yet again: Because Tokio Hotel are back to defend their crown, and the oddsmakers like their chances.
And just in case you think they've been resting on their laurels, well, TH is here to tell you otherwise: In an exclusive video message to MTV News (and their fans), they let it be known that they've been training hard to repeat as champs — which means bands like Fall Out Boy and Fun. better get ready. Oh, and as if that wasn't enough, this year, Tokio Hotel are raising the stakes.
"We want to defend our title, we're so ready," frontman Bill Kaulitz said. "We've been in our rehearsal room all year long preparing ourselves, because we definitely want to win again."
"And if we win, we will release our record this year," his brother Tom added. "Otherwise never."
So there you have it, Aliens: If Tokio Hotel win Musical March Madness again, you'll be getting a new album in 2013. If they fail ... well, you'll never hear it. Can they become the first band to repeat as tournament champs? That's up to you. After all, fans vote for the winners in all Musical March Madness matchups, and when voting gets underway on Monday, March 18 — when we unveil our bracket of 64 bands — we'll see if their promise pays off. Of course, Tokio Hotel also have a few more tricks up their sleeves to guarantee victory.
"I think the best way to win is to scare the other bands and the other people, and I think the Aliens can do that," Bill said. "I think we should activate our Power Rangers power."
MTV's Musical March Madness Tournament begins Monday, March 18, when we'll unveil the full field of 64 bands that will battle for this year's championship. Winners are determined by fan votes, so if your favorite act made the cut, it'll be up to you to guide them to glory. You can rally the troops on Twitter using the hashtag #MMM — but get ready, it's gonna be a war!
And just in case you think they've been resting on their laurels, well, TH is here to tell you otherwise: In an exclusive video message to MTV News (and their fans), they let it be known that they've been training hard to repeat as champs — which means bands like Fall Out Boy and Fun. better get ready. Oh, and as if that wasn't enough, this year, Tokio Hotel are raising the stakes.
"We want to defend our title, we're so ready," frontman Bill Kaulitz said. "We've been in our rehearsal room all year long preparing ourselves, because we definitely want to win again."
"And if we win, we will release our record this year," his brother Tom added. "Otherwise never."
So there you have it, Aliens: If Tokio Hotel win Musical March Madness again, you'll be getting a new album in 2013. If they fail ... well, you'll never hear it. Can they become the first band to repeat as tournament champs? That's up to you. After all, fans vote for the winners in all Musical March Madness matchups, and when voting gets underway on Monday, March 18 — when we unveil our bracket of 64 bands — we'll see if their promise pays off. Of course, Tokio Hotel also have a few more tricks up their sleeves to guarantee victory.
"I think the best way to win is to scare the other bands and the other people, and I think the Aliens can do that," Bill said. "I think we should activate our Power Rangers power."
MTV's Musical March Madness Tournament begins Monday, March 18, when we'll unveil the full field of 64 bands that will battle for this year's championship. Winners are determined by fan votes, so if your favorite act made the cut, it'll be up to you to guide them to glory. You can rally the troops on Twitter using the hashtag #MMM — but get ready, it's gonna be a war!

Lil Wayne In Critical Condition

Rapper was found unconscious on Friday, according to an online source, but Wayne tweets 'I'm good' despite those claims.

Days after it was reported that Lil Wayne suffered multiple seizures, the rapper was said to be in critical condition in a Los Angeles hospital. On Friday (March 15) the Young Money rap icon was taken to Cedars-Sinai after suffering another set of seizures, according to an online report. As the story was unraveling the closest members of his YMCMB camp were offering conflicting reports.
Wayne was taken to the hospital on Tuesday, released Wednesday but hours later was found unconscious in his room by his bodyguards according to TMZ. The rapper was again rushed to the hospital, but this time his condition appeared to more serious. The website reported that several people in Wayne's camp are currently at his bedside and his mother his now on a plane flying to Los Angeles.
Despite the detailed reports, Wayne's close friend and Young Money president Mack Maine refuted the dire claims via his Twitter account. "Wayne is still alive and well! We watching the Syracuse game...thanks for the prayers and concern..he will update you all soon. #love," he wrote on Friday at 8:19 p.m. ET. "We will be releasing an official statement shortly but don't believe the nonsense about comas and tubes to breathe....that's false!"
Mack Maine took to the social networking site again 30 minutes after his initial tweets this time directing his messages directly at TMZ. "@TMZ it's certain sh--you should not talk about or play with if u don't kno what u talking bout....dont deceive the fans of the people," he wrote. "@TMZ and definitely don't try to kill a man before his time....so from the bottom of my soul and on behalf of my fam.....F---YOU."
Cash Money CEO and Wayne's father figure, Birdman, retweeted Mack's initial tweet reiterating that there is a statement on the way and then sent a message of his own. "My son is in good spirit..feelin much betta...be home soon.YMCMB."
At 9:28 p.m., reassurance appeared to come from Wayne, himself, when a tweet was sent from his account saying, "I'm good everybody. Thx for the prayers and love."
MTV News reached out to the New Orleans rapper's reps who confirmed, "Lil Wayne is recovering."
TMZ had earlier reported that Wayne's condition was critical, going so far as to say that he was being "prepared for his last rites."
MTV News will continue to report on this story as it develops.