Paula Abdul wasn’t off base when she revealed to those close to her that she was disappointed with the music video for “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow.”
Despite the fact that fellow “American Idol” judge Randy Jackson pitched in to make the video a touch splashier, Abdul’s mostly recycled dance moves are less than inspiring, and it’s forced MTV to make a decision about airing the video — or not.
“There are currently no plans to play the video,” an MTV spokesperson told OK! magazine. Another music industry insider tells the magazine that not only is MTV not planning to air the video, but no one has even submitted the video to be consideration in the network’s play rotation.
“It makes sense that it wasn’t even submitted,” a source told me. “The only thing worse for a star like Paula to not have her video on TV is to have it actually rejected by MTV. You can’t be rejected if you never formally campaign for it.”
Janet Jackson talks about growing upJanet Jackson’s brother Michael might be going through a rough patch considering his Neverland Ranch is going up for auction, but Janet is celebrating a photo spread in Vibe magazine’s first-ever photo issue.
Inside, Jackson talks about growing up in such a famous household. “I remember being a kid and they’d come over … you’re not thinking about the fact that it’s Marvin Gaye over all the time, or Diane or Smokey,” she told Vibe.
She also dishes on what it takes to be a responsible child in the entertainment business. “One of the major things was my work ethic. … I never had my mother wake me up. I’d get myself up every day. I don’t know if it’s something in the genes, or from watching my brothers, seeing them work hard.”
The rest of the interview is in the April issue, available March 4.
Weekend box office
My winning streak has been alive so long, it’s almost hard to remember that cold first week of January when I missed the mark. That said, it makes me nervous to cast this week’s prediction. “The Other Boleyn Girl,” starring Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson, will attract fans of the novel by Philippa Gregory. Fantasy drama “Penelope” has an irresistible cast of Christina Ricci, James McAvoy, Catherine O’Hara and Reese Witherspoon, but only opens in about 1,200 theaters.
This leads me to my pick: “Semi-Pro,” the latest in the series of Will Ferrell’s confounding-yet-successful sports comedies. The flick is opening in 3,000 theaters this leap day, and seems like the no brainer. The tragedy of getting this wrong isn’t just a blemish on the near-perfect record. The tragedy would be that missing the No. 1 mark this weekend would mean the end of the Will Ferrell era — it would mean that maybe the shtick is getting old. Here’s hoping it’s not.