As y’all may recall, Prince launched a new website at www.LOTUSFLOW3R.com a couple of weeks ago after previewing some new music on the now defunct LA radio station Indie 103.1. This new site promised that fans would be able to LISTEN to new tracks by Prince and special guests, WATCH videos and exclusive content and BUY music, concert tickets and more. In the weeks since, the site has been changed a bit but the clandestine promo for Prince‘s new projects has continued. A local LA reporter was invited, personally, to Prince‘s home this past weekend to preview some of his new material LIVE. As a result, this reporter was able to hear firsthand what Prince‘s new tunes sound like as he played them on HIS piano in HIS living room and walked away from the experience with a pretty amazing story to tell … as well as our first look at the album artwork for his new album LOTUSFLOW3R:

So, there I was, trapped in Prince’s bathroom while the sound of his band kicking into “I Want You Back” by The Jackson 5 pumped through the space between the door and the floor. I frantically twisted the lock and turned the knob trying to get out in time to witness the magic but the door wouldn’t budge. I checked my cell phone—no service—no chance for a 911 rescue call. What would I say anyway? “Um, yeah hi, I’m trapped in Prince’s bathroom on the bottom floor of his house and I’m going to miss him sing one of my favorite Jackson 5 songs, so could you bring a crowbar to Beverly Park?” Another minute of twisting the door handle only lead to red fingers and I pictured myself stuck in his bathroom for days surviving on gobs of cherry lip-gloss and two sticks of Juicy Fruit. I pounded my fists on the door and shouted for help but the music was too loud and I realized that no one could hear my screams. This was not a dream, this was really happening. Last Saturday night at 1am I was being held captive by Prince’s bathroom.

The amazing story goes on HERE and is a must read for Prince fans. The report confirms that www.LOTUSFLOW3R.com will be used to distribute music, concert tickets, etc. to fans when it officially goes live in March. I, for one, would die if I were ever allowed to bear witness to Prince‘s genius in his own home. This new endeavor sounds brilliant … I cannot wait to see and hear what else Prince has in store for us.

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Pink readers LyndyLoo and Mark have alerted me to the fact that Morrissey (alongside the lads in his band) has decided to appear nekkid on the innersleeve artwork of his new single I’m Throwing My Arms Around Paris. Wearing only 7″ records (ahem) to cover their willys, Moz and his boys seem pretty proud to show off their stuff:

I gotta admit … I likes what I see. While the dudes in Mozzer‘s band (well, except for the guy directly to Moz‘s left) have pretty nice bodies to show off, I’m most impressed with Morrissey‘s sexy bod. As the elder statesman of mope/shoegaze rock, I think he has much to hold his head up and be proud of. After the jump, check out the uncensored semi-NSFW full size single artwork …

Earlier this month we got to see the official artwork for the Twilight movie DVD that is scheduled for release on March 21 (and can be pre-ordered from Amazon HERE). BUT, this week Borders Bookshop announced that it will sell an exclusive 2-disc version of the DVD that comes bundled with a whole bunch of extra goodies to satisfy even the most rabid Twilighter out there:

About the DVD:

The Borders-Exclusive Edition comes with these exciting additional features:

Special Bonus Disc, Which Includes:
• Exclusive Twilight Cast Interviews with Kristen Stewart (Bella) and Robert Pattinson (Edward)
• Exclusive Twilight Cast Interviews with Cam Gigandet (James)
• Exclusive Twilight Cast Interviews with Edi Gathegi (Laurent) and Rachelle Lefevre (Victoria)
• Exclusive Red-Carpet Interviews from the Twilight Movie Premiere
• Exclusive Never-Before-Seen Red-Carpet Footage! Includes extra interview footage with Kellan Lutz (Emmett), Ashley Greene (Alice), rock band Paramore, and Nikki Reed (Rosalie)
• Exclusive Borders Book Club: Stephenie Meyer talks about the Twilight Saga

• Audio commentary by Catherine Hardwicke, Kristen Stewart, and Robert Pattinson
• Muse music video: “Super Massive Black Hole”
• Paramore music video: “Decode”
• Linkin Park music video: “Leave Out All the Rest”
• Five extended scenes with director introductions
• Five deleted scenes with director introductions
• Seven-part documentary: “The Adventure Begins: The Journey from Page to Screen”
• Comic-Con “fandom” piece
• Comic-Con NY sizzle reel
• Three trailers
• Penelope trailer

Exclusive Photocards
10 exclusive photocards are printed on a gorgeous pearlescent paper to give a dramatic sparkly effect—the perfect way to view your favorite vampires

Oh man, pearlescent paper that SPARKLES you say? Shouldn’t it be more of a DAZZLING effect? Pshaw, whatever. No matter what effect the fancy photocards have, it really sounds like this version of the DVD has a bunch of really great bonus extras. I’m fairly certain that any Twilighter worth their salt will opt for this version over the standard, regular version … tho, the true fan will prolly end up buying both. How many of y’all have already placed your pre-orders?

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Last week we got our first look at the new artwork for Kelly Clarkson‘s new single My Life Would Suck Without You which is the first single off of her then untitled album, due out later on this year. Today we learn that Kelly‘s new album has been titled All I Ever Wanted and we also get our first look at the album artwork:

Pretty swanky … I like the colors, not sure about the pleather jacket but Kelly rulz so I am not complaining. Amazon is taking pre-orders for the disc HERE, which is scheduled for a March 17 release date. I know there are quite a few folks (me, included) who are anxiously awaiting the release of this new album. I’m sure the disc will be great (Kelly is an amazing songwriter) but I wonder if it’ll be more distinctly pop/radio-friendly oriented (considering the hell her record label gave her over her last album). In any event, I’m very excited to hear Kelly‘s new stuff … methinks it will be a pop-heavy album — judging by the artwork for both the single and the album alone — we might be in for a really fun, dancey disc.

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Good news for fans of the movie version of Twilight … Summit Entertainment has revealed the official artwork for the upcoming DVD release of the megahit movie that was just released a couple of months ago … behold:

Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) doesn’t expect much when she moves to the small town of Forks, Washington, until she meets the mysterious and handsome Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson)—a boy who’s hiding a dark secret: he’s a vampire. As their worlds and hearts collide, Edward must battle the bloodlust raging inside him as well as a coterie of undead that would make Bella their prey. Based on the #1 New York Times best-selling sensation by Stephenie Meyer, Twilight adds a dangerous twist to the classic story of star-crossed lovers.

The DVD artwork looks pretty standard, no big surprises … interesting, tho, that the “bad guys” are featured on the DVD artwork even tho they weren’t in the film very much. I might’ve featured the Cullen family instead but, I suppose it doesn’t really matter. As yet, there has been no release date announced for the Twilight DVD but now that we know what the artwork will look like, I suspect a release date is imminent. So Twilighters … do we like?

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Here is the official artwork for Mariah Carey‘s new collection of songs titled The Ballads which features 18 of Mimi‘s greatest slow jam hits — 9 of them are #1 songs!

In celebration of this new collection of ballads, Mariah re-recorded one of her biggest #1 hit songs Hero for inclusion in this collection. Additionally, a new music video has been shot that shows Mariah in the studio as she sings this new version of the song. After the jump, check out the video in full …

Kelly Clarkson is such a tease … homegirl just debuted the official artwork for her new single My Life Would Suck Without You with nary a clip of the track to whet our collective whistle. By the looks of the shiny single cover artwork, it looks like Kelly has succumbed to the pressure laid on her by her record label to put out more pop-friendly music:

While I think it would suck to know that Kelly had to resort to shiny happy music at the behest of her label bosses and against her musical integrity, it does sound like she is really excited about the new as yet untitled album she recently finished recording. According to her official blog, the tunes on her latest effort still need to be mixed and mastered and according to her official My Space profile, the album is already available for preorder HERE. I love Kelly Clarkson … I think her last album was pretty damn good and would’ve done much better had her record label boss Clive Davis not sabotaged it by badmouthing the album before it even came out. I’m anxious to hear what Kelly‘s new tunes sound like … I suspect we’ll be hearing My Life very soon.

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Britney Spears, who released her new album and celebrated her 27th birthday one week ago today and who released her newest music video this past Thursday (after the vid leaked to the Interweb the day before), has unveiled the cover artwork for her new single Circus … check it out:

This photo is hawt, y’all. I love this artwork much better than the artwork for Womanizer. I am dying to hear remixes of Circus … the song is so infectious as it is, I bet the remixes are gonna rule.

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Back in October we got our first look at what was presumed to be the photo that is to be used as the cover artwork for Morrissey‘s new album Years of Refusal. Today we get to see that photo as the official album artwork and get a few deets about the album’s release date along with some tour information information:

According to Moz‘s official website, Years of Refusal is due for release on February 16 with the album’s first single I’m Throwing My Arms Around Paris set for release one week prior. Paris will be released with two new b-sides — Because of My Poor Education and Shame is the Name (which features vocals by Chrissie Hynde). Morrissey has also scheduled a few dates at the Royal Albert Hall in the UK in May with homecoming concerts in his hometown of Manchester on May 22 & 23. But, before he does those UK dates he will be performing a few warm-up shows here in the US — Ticketmaster has already listed a date in Florida and a date in Virginia. As a huge Mozzer fan, I am very excited by all of this news!

I’m dying to hear what the new stuff sounds like … Morrissey rarely disappoints. It really does look like 2009 is going to be a great year for concerts :)

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Britney Spears has launched a new widget today where fans can sign up to be the first to know … a secret:

Yesterday was a pretty exciting day for overzealous Britney Spears fans … her new album, Circus, which isn’t due for release until December 2 leaked it’s way onto the Internets yesterday afternoon/evening (you may recall that some images from the CD booklet also leaked this weekend). Apparently, someone got a hold of a promo copy of the album and started to distribute the songs one at a time thruout the evening:

Unfortunately, I cannot divulge where these tracks were leaked to but I’ve been getting lots of emails from Pink readers who have the tracks so the songs are out there. I think it’s important to remind y’all that we all still have to buy the album when it comes out on December 2. This album may be some of Brit‘s best work ever and she needs to be rewarded with our money ;) As far as I can tell, every single track from the album — including the bonus songs Rock Me In, Phonography and Amnesia — have been leaked. The only songs that have not been leaked (to my knowledge) are Trouble (the US iTunes exclusive bonus track) and Quicksand (the UK iTunes exclusive bonus track). But, again, I urge y’all to save your pennies for December 2 so that we can all buy the album and make Circus debut in the #1 spot on the Billboard album chart. OH — and don’t forget to sign up for the Britney Secret announcement … I know I’m dying to know what it could be.