Rolling Stone magazine is reporting that Britney Spears’s latest album Circus has just been certified Platinum, which means that at least one million copies of the album have been sold in just the US alone:

Platinum was the theme of the week as Britney Spears’ Circus, Nickelback’s Dark Horse, Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak and the Twilight soundtrack all crossed the million-selling plateau on their way to charting at three through six, respectively.

Woot! Congrats goes out to our dear Britney on her latest Platinum Album accomplishment. Circus is a great disc, I’m very happy it has finally reached this plateau. Could 2009 turn out to be an even bigger year for Britney? I say, YES! I can’t wait to see what’s to come. Love and congrats again, Brit Brit!

[Source]

Welp … today’s the day … my last day of solo-living bachelorhood. Earlier today, David packed up all of his stuff in NYC and had it loaded onto a truck which is currently in its way here to SoCal. Today is the last day that we will be living apart from one another. Wow. It feels really exciting to type that sentence out :) Remember that cool photo of David and his desk that was published in The New York Post earlier this week? Yeah, it’s already been loaded up and is making its way here:

David will be spending his last night ever in his amazing West Village apartment and then early tomorrow morning he will be flying out here so that we can spend our last night together in my apartment before we move into our new place on Sunday. Man. I’m so freakin’ right now. Exciting times ahead. We are at t-minus 2 days … it won’t be long now.

• While Amy Winehouse is away, the thieves will rob her blind back in London.
• First Lady Michelle Obama plans to decorate the White House with Pottery Barn. May I suggest their amazing Apothecary Table, you know, the one from days of yore that costs one and fifty dollars?
• From the ashes of the demise of LA radio station Indie 103.1 comes a TRULY independent online radio station at HoundsToothRadio.com
• “Leave Jessica Simpson Alone!” — Heidi Klum
• “I wish her nothing but the best and I hope she’s happy — whatever size that comes in.” — Nick Lacey on ex-wife Jessica Simpson
• Anna Faris is gettin’ hitched!
• Sleeveless shirts designed by Toby Keith for Wal-Mart? Duhvs.
• Barbie goes to China.
• Alan Cumming admits that he would like to see President Obama nekkid.
• Jonathan Rhys Meyers, as King Henry VIII, is sittin’ pretty … atop a mound of nekkid dudes.
• “I am the Chiefest of Sinners” — Ted Haggard. “Yeah, no duh” — Me.
• Elisha Cuthbert does Complex magazine.
• Rihanna gets touchy-feeling on stage.
• The Gossip kids <3 Kings of Leon.
• Gwen Stefani takes her boys to the park.
• Wilmer Valderrama is 29, Christian Bale is 35, Jody Watley is 50 and Phil Collins is 58 years old today. Click HERE to see who else is celebrating a birthday today.
• Wal-Mart has a problem with ‘porno’.
• The return of Tricky.
• New talk of the Batman sequel.
• You have to watch THIS trailer for Gay Torino ;) [thanks Brian]

Okay … so remember that shoe throwing incident that happened to ex-president George W. Bush on a surprise visit to Iraq last month? Yeah, well, that incident has been immortalized with a giant monument of the shoe in honor of Iraqi journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi — the man who chucked his shoes at GWB’s head during that infamous press conference. On display at an Iraqi orphanage, artist Laith al-Amari says he created this effigy not as a political statement but as a “source of pride for all Iraqis”. Here are a couple pictures of this shoe monument in Iraq:

A sculpture of an enormous bronze-coloured shoe has been erected in Iraq to honour the journalist who threw his shoes at ex-US President George W Bush. The sofa-sized artwork was formally unveiled in Tikrit, hometown of late Iraqi ruler Saddam Hussein. Artist Laith al-Amari insisted it was not a political work, but a “source of pride for all Iraqis”. Mr Bush managed to dodge the shoes but the man who threw them, Muntadar al-Zaidi, was arrested and awaits trial. As he pulled off his shoes, Mr Zaidi, now 30, shouted: “This is from the widows, the orphans, and those who were killed in Iraq.” He also told Mr Bush, who launched the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and was paying a final visit to Iraq last month: “This is a farewell kiss, you dog”. Mr Zaidi shot to fame as a result of his actions, which signalled extreme contempt in the Arab world, and inspired rallies across the Middle East and beyond. About 400 people gathered on Thursday to see the monument unveiled – a shoe on a white pedestal, about 3m (10ft) high, with a poem praising Mr Zaidi at its base, AFP said. There is also a bush sticking out of the shoe. The sculpture stands in the gardens of an Iraqi foundation that looks after children whose parents died in the violence following the US-led invasion. The foundation’s president, Shaha al-Juburi, said the sculpture was not backed by any political party or organisation. Since his arrest, Mr Zaidi, a TV journalist, has reportedly been beaten in custody, suffering a broken arm, broken ribs and internal bleeding. He has been charged with aggression against a foreign head of state, and faces up to 15 years in jail if convicted. His family denies he has done anything wrong.

HMMM. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this piece of art … but, I can imagine that people of a war-torn country might have lingering feelings of hatred for the head of state of an invading country and peaceably protesting or voicing that displeasure thru artwork seems like a rational option. After the jump, for those of you interested, watch video of the incident that sparked the inspiration for this new art installation …

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Yesterday we saw a few photos of the happily reunited lovebirds Miley Cyrus and Justin Gaston as they stepped out for a bite or frozen yogurt this week. I speculated that it may have been Miley to pay the bill … and that Justin may have to pay in other ways later on. Today, we get to see new pics of Jiley eating together (and more speculation on my part) and of Miley and her step-sister Brandi doing a bit of shopping together in Studio City, CA yesterday:

Oh man, when will Justin Gaston ever learn? Nothing comes free in this world … sooner or later, you have to pay up. Methinks that Jiley have an arrangement that works very well for the both of them. I’m pretty sure that each person is getting something from their relationship. Sure, there may be some “love” involved but I think it goes beyond that. It looks pretty win-win to me. Shoot, I’d leave my wallet at home, too ;)

[Photo credit: Splash News]

Earlier this week, Madonna.com was updated to confirm the rumors that Madonna is reviving her Sticky & Sweet World Tour this Summer (rumors that were sparked by the posting of tour dates on the Live Nation website) but no real information was given at that time. Today, Madonna fans (me included) received an email announcement that explains in full where the Sticky & Sweet World Tour will visit when it starts up again this July. Here is the full text of the just released press release:

MADONNA’S ‘STICKY & SWEET TOUR’ GOES BACK ON THE ROAD SUMMER 2009
Special Guest Paul Oakenfold To Open All Shows.

Madonna’s phenomenally successful ‘Sticky & Sweet Tour’, already the #1 Biggest Grossing Tour in history for a solo artist, will embark on another series of shows beginning July 4th in London. (Schedule follows this release). Stops will include appearances in never before played markets such as Werchter Belgium, Marseille France, Hamburg Germany, Oslo Norway, Helsinki Finland, Tallinn Estonia, Ljubljana Slovenia as well as stops in Romania, Hungary, Serbia and Bulgaria it was confirmed today by Live Nation. Additional appearances by Madonna will include return visits after more than 15 years to Madrid, Gothenburg and Munich. “This is a first for me. I’ve never extended a tour before. I’m excited to be going back on the road, visiting places I’ve never been and returning to places I love” commented Madonna about the new run of dates. Raves around the globe for the tour include the London Times which remarked, “In the premiere league of song-and-dance spectaculars, the queen of pop remains unrivaled and undefeated.” “The choreography, visuals and live talent were world class and mind-blowingly well executed, intelligent and witty,” glowed The Independent (UK). In 2008, the ‘Sticky & Sweet Tour’ was seen by 2,350,285 fans in 58 cities. With record breaking ticket sales everywhere, including 650,000 tickets sold in her series of South American dates, 72,000 tickets at Zurich’s Dübendorf Airfield – the largest audience ever assembled for a show in Switzerland, 75,000 tickets in London and four sell outs in New York’s Madison Square Garden (60,364 tickets). “This new run of dates will further solidify Madonna’s position as one of the top selling touring artists of all time,” said Arthur Fogel, Live Nation’s Chairman of Global Music and CEO of Global Touring/Artist Nation. Special Guest for Sticky & Sweet 2009, Paul Oakenfold has long been one of the most important–if not the most important–name in modern club culture. He has remixed The Rolling Stones, U2, Madonna, Justin Timberlake, Snoop Dog, Muse, New Order, The Cure, Massive Attack and even Elvis Presley, and produced The Happy Mondays. The two-time Grammy nominee is in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the biggest DJ in the world. His new artist album, Pop Killer, is due out later this year. Madonna’s multi-Grammy-nominated CD, Hard Candy, debuted at Number One in over 37 countries.

And there you have it, those of you who have yet to see her Madgesty’s show or just want to see it again have another chance to do so. Earlier this week, I posted the tour dates that accidentally appeared on the Live Nation website — after the jump, check out the official list of tourdates released thus far along with the dates tickets for the shows will go on sale …

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In celebration of this year’s Australia Day down unda, the Australian Post has announced and unveiled a new set of special edition postage stamps that feature Australian legends Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe, Geoffrey Rush and Cate Blanchett. How fabulous! Here is a photo of the Aussie legends as they’ll appear on the first batch of postage stamps and some information about this postal tribute:

Australians will get the chance to lick four of the nation’s most popular entertainers who have been selected to appear on a special series of postage stamps to mark Australia Day. Academy Award winners Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett, Russell Crowe and Geoffrey Rush have been named Australia Post “Australian Legends” in the lead-up to January 26. “These four outstanding Australians have captured the imagination of millions of people in Australia and around the world with their award-winning performances,” Australia Post managing director Graeme John said in a statement. There are eight 55 cent stamps in the series, featuring photos of the stars in and out of character, including Kidman from Moulin Rouge, Blanchett from Elizabeth, Crowe from Gladiator and Rush from Shine. “I am utterly, deeply humbled and chuffed by the fact that I’m a stamp,” Blanchett said in a statement. “I’m going to be licked by millions of Australians and I can’t wait. It is also recognising the value of the arts in Australia. It brings it into general consumption and if I’m part of that, I feel intensely proud.” Kidman was similarly pleased with her selection. “I have a vested interest in Australia,” Kidman said. “I want my children to live here at certain times of their life and see how wonderful it is. It would be lovely for them to lick a stamp, put it on an envelope and say ‘that’s my mum’.” Each of the stars will be presented with 24-carat gold replicas of their stamps.

In the US, you have to be dead (like Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, etc.) or not living (like Mickey Mouse, Superman, etc.) to have your likeness printed on postage stamps but I think it’s very cool that other countries choose to honor people while they are still alive … and can appreciate the tribute. As the article mentioned, there are 8 total stamps to honor these Australian legends — after the jump, check out the other 4 stamps that feature these actors in some of their most famous movie roles …

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