Thought it was impossible to love Ed Sheeran more? Wait until you watch his performance at Philly Jam last night. The adorable songwriter stopped for a brief interview before starting his set, and showed off love for Philadelphia by revealing a “Fresh Prince” tattoo. As the closing act for the show, the British performer also put up with a few jokes about celebrating America’s freedom from his home country.

Beginning his set with “Don’t,” it became apparent that The Roots were going to add incredible depth to Sheeran’s acoustic jams. Ed himself added an extra dig to the already scathing break-up song by singing a line from Chris Brown‘s “Loyal” toward the end. Ouch!

From there he performed the moving “Lego House” and then opted to do a cover. “Since we’re here on the 4th of July I thought I’d do a cover of an American tune,” Sheeran said, before breaking into the Anthony Hamilton’s R&B classic “Comin’ From Where I’m From.”

But after playing a song that most of the crowd probably didn’t know, Ed knew it was time for one that everyone knew the words to—that’d be his breakout single “A Team.” He played the song acoustic, with only his guitar for accompaniment, and the crowd felt the weight of the song’s message.

In the middle of the track, Ed asked that everyone hold up a lighter, cell phone or other flashing light becuase he wanted to see “a sea of ...

Nicki Minaj was in top form at Philly Jam last night. Decked out in a gold fringed tank and some high-waisted black pants, she blazed from high-energy hits like “Super Bass” into her brand new heartbreaking ballad “Pills N Potions.” With The Roots as a backing band, Minaj’s new song got the full gospel treatment—especially from her talented backup singers.

But it wouldn’t be a Nicki show without some rap, especially given the straight hip-hop direction her latest releases have been going in. So she performed a medley of her new song with Soulja Boy (who sadly didn’t show up) “Yass B—–” into “Did It On Em” and finished out the trio of songs with “Beez In The Trap.” Since she was using a backing track for this section, watching The Roots bob onstage to Nicki’s live rapping was another highlight of the performance.

When it got to the section of “Beez In The Trap” that shouts out Philly, Nicki stopped the song dead. “It’s New York PHILLY!,” she emphasized to cheers. “This has always been one of my favorite places to be, since before my first album dropped. Everybody knows that. Happy birthday America, today we’re free from everybody that tried to hold us back last year.”

She skillfully tied the concept of personal freedom into the larger celebration of America’s independence, and obviously, it was the moment to break into her Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded the Re-Up track “Freedom” and finally, “Moment ...

We get it, sometimes it’s easier to stay home than head out to a festival on a day like today.

But thanks to technology, you can watch Nicki Minaj, Ed Sheeran, The Roots and more perform at Philly Jam via our Livestream. So grab your hamburger, sit back, and get ready for some first class entertainment.

Nicki has been dropping new songs and information about her forthcoming album The Pink Print right and left, so who knows what she’ll be up to. Ed Sheeran is just off the release of his sophomore album X too, so we can expect a lot of brand new songs from him as well.

Click on the video below via VH1 to begin watching.

Caitlin White

MTV Weekend Editor. Acts like Madonna but listens to Merle.

The siblings of Echosmith have been blazing across America, bringing their own brand of synthy, catchy indie pop to the ears of fans on the Warped Tour.

This teenage family act is on the cusp of hitting the big time—don’t let their youth fool you. Sure, their oldest brother Jamie is barely of drinking age, and the youngest, Graham is 15 so he can’t even drive… but that hasn’t stopped them from getting major label attention.

We recently named them as one of our 2014 MTV Artists to Watch, and you can read their full story here.

Now, the group have begun their second stint on the Warped Tour, and what better time to let them take over MTV’s Instagram account and give us a taste of life on the road?

“Cool Kids,” their biggest single so far, just broke through the Top 40 and Echosmith show no signs of slowing down. Here’s a peek into a typical day for the group.

Like the cool kids they are, the group remains unfazed by their success.

Or maybe they just need a little more coffee before they hit the stage? Touring is exhausting, after all. This photo reveals a little-known fact about Warped Tour—it involves a lot of parking lots.

Work hard, play harder. There’s plenty of time to get a ride in before they hit the stage.

Sure, Warped Tour is tons of fun for fans, but let’s not forget the artists need a little time for goofing off too. What’s the deal ...

America’s birthday is the perfect day to announce a new Jeopardy category: Bruce Springsteen. That’s right, as Rolling Stone points out, one of the USA’s best-known rock and roll artists has officially become interesting enough to warrant his own slot on the infamous trivia show.

On Thursday night’s show, the whole first round was devoted to Springsteen-inspired questions. The categories included several of Bruce’s iconic songs like “Born in the USA,” “Glory Days,” “Cover Me,” “The Ghost of Tom Joad,” along with a category for Bruce himself and one for his longtime collaborators “The E Street Band.”

If you missed the show, check out a brief clip of the categories being unveiled.

Bruce Springsteen – Jeopardy by mendle44

For diehard fans, the questions would’ve been no problem. Because all of us know off the top of our heads which song Bruce intended for The Ramones, right?

Those who were eager to share their E Street Band knowledge were led astray by the category—it simply focused on words starting with the letter “E” instead of facts about the band.

I guess this means “Jeopardy” won’t be included in Bruce’s old complaint about “57 Channels (And Nothin’ On).”

Caitlin White

MTV Weekend Editor. Acts like Madonna but listens to Merle.

This morning, Lea Michele took to Twitter to make a very special announcement: the “Glee” star is pregnant! Recently, Lea was spotted out in public with her new boyfriend Matthew Paetz, but it looks like the pair are taking things to another level.

Michele and Paetz met while filming on the set of her video “On My Way” back in April, and it’s the first time that Lea has been in a relationship since her boyfriend Cory Monteith died from a drug overdose last year.

Michele, 27, wrote that she wanted to share the news with her fans before the media found out, and she hashtagged the tweet with “#BabyBoy.”

Does this mean she already knows the sex of her baby? Or maybe she’s just trying to make a Beyonce reference? Hopefully this isn’t another case of Twitter hacking—Michele’s fellow “Glee” cast member Chris Colfer had his Twitter account hacked yesterday.

If the news is true, we couldn’t be happier for you Lea!

Caitlin White

MTV Weekend Editor. Acts like Madonna but listens to Merle.

You thought you knew Ariana Grande‘s “Problem,” but you had no idea. Until she took the stage at “Total Ariana Live” and stripped the smash dance hit down to a jazzy, breathy, and beautiful version that was as close to vocal nirvana as anyone will ever get.

Arianators are used to the slick, Iggy Azalea-backed, electro-pop version of the No. 1 hit. But in her “Total Ariana Live” version of “Problem,” the 21-year-old, who’ll be performing live at the 2014 VMAs, breathed new life into the song that’s already been taking over the summer, turning the high-energy sax-backed smash into an intimate, touching ballad.

While the original is a carefree kiss-off, this revamp tapped into the pain of a breakup, serving as a reminder that not only can she sing, but she can always surprise.

Caitlin White

MTV Weekend Editor. Acts like Madonna but listens to Merle.

The full force of the Arianator army descended on Times Square today for Ariana’s Grande‘s “TRL” resurrection, aka “Total Ariana Live.” And even fans who didn’t make it into the MTV studio were waiting outside in the rain. Why? Because Ariana had promised to debut her new Zedd-assisted single “Break Free” on the show tonight, and when she did, she lit up the stage, the studio, and the Internet like a Christmas tree. (A dancing Christmas tree. Picture it. Isn’t that the happiest visual ever?)

After playing a hip-hop mix-up game and performing a stripped-down version of her hit single, “Problem,” Ariana finally unleashed “Break Free” into the world. The uplifting, anthemic dance track instantly lifted the audience off their feet, and plenty of fans took to the dance floor to show off their moves.

But even more fans took to Twitter to let the world know how much they loved the new song. (Many of which used the preferred method of expressing enthusiasm on the Internet: ALL CAPS!)

In case you missed it, check out a snippet of “Break Free” below.

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Ariana Grande videos

Can’t wait to see her sing the new track live? Don’t worry, she’ll be performing it live for the first time ever at this year’s VMAs on August 24th, live at the Forum in Los Angeles.

Listen to preview of “Break Free” at ArianaGrande.mtv.com!

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You prayed for it, you tweeted it, you basically manifested it. And now it’s happening: Ariana Grande will return to the VMAs with a live performance of her brand-new single, “Break Free.”

If you watched Ariana’s “Total Ariana Live” “TRL” 2.0 special like the good fan that you are, then you were amongst the first Arianators in the world to hear her new single, “Break Free,” when she debuted the song live on the show. It’s just a taste of what’s to come when she performs the single live for the first time ever at the 2014 VMAs, August 24 at The Forum in Los Angeles.

Ariana’s been teasing the Zedd collaboration on Twitter for almost two weeks, so a full dose of the synthy, upbeat summer anthem has been a long time coming for her fans.

And in case you missed this crucial piece of Ariana news because you were too busy memorizing “Break Free,” Ariana also announced that her sophomore album, My Everything, which was slated for release on August 25th, will actually be available for purchase immediately following the VMAs on August 24th -— a whole day early.

Although Ariana sang a pre-performance medley last year, this will be her first time gracing the VMA mainstage. But given her ability to flawlessly belt out Mariah-worthy whistle tones, it seems unlikely that the VMAs will be a problem for Ariana.

Caitlin White

MTV ...

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I come from a family of four kids, but the coolest thing we’ve ever done together is surprise my parents with an epic Christmas present. That’s not the case for the Sierota family though — the four siblings just cracked the Top 40 with their yearning track “Cool Kids” and they’re not stopping there. Following in the footsteps of the all-sister trio Haim, the siblings of Echosmith are poised to break out in a big way this year.

Ranging in age from 15 to 21, the band is made up of Jamie, 21 on guitar and vocals; Noah, 18, on bass and backup vocals; and the youngest brother, Graham, 15, plays the drums. Sydney, just 17, is the lone sister and does lead vocals for the group. Maybe it’s because they’re mostly still teenagers that the Sierota siblings are able to make nearly perfect pop music. These are songs that feel lightweight and summery, the ideal indie pop jams for when you’re cruising around without a care in the world, or getting ready to go out with your friends.

Since their dad is a songwriter and producer, it makes sense that Sydney, Jamie, Noah and Graham would be drawn to make their own music. Even when they’re addressing topics like in-crowds and popularity on “Cool Kids,” it has enough songwriting finesse to relate to an audience of all ages, which is probably why the song has been gaining traction with radio airplay and recently broke ...