Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber Meets Crying 3-Year-Old Fan For ‘Jimmy Kimmel’
by on Mar.01, 2010, under Justin Bieber
‘Cody rules,’ Bieber tweets about his encounter with the YouTube celeb.
By Jocelyn Vena
Justin Bieber with fans Cody, Ciera and @chynanny325
Photo: twitter.com/justinbieber
Monday (March 1) is Justin Bieber’s 16th birthday, but before he opened his own presents, he gave a huge gift to one of his youngest, but most enthusiastic, fans.
Last week, 3-year-old Cody became an Internet sensation when her sister posted a video of her crying over the teen heartthrob on YouTube. In a pretaped segment for Monday night’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” Bieber came face to face with the toddler. And in a fortunate turn of events, the encounter didn’t make Cody cry at all.
Bieber posted a photo of their meeting and wrote, “Makin faces with Cody, Ciera, and @chynanny325 !! Awesome family and Cody isn’t crying..haha. Happy to surprise them.”
He later tweeted about how much he loved meeting his little fan. “I met Cody. She is even cuter in person,” he wrote in response to Perez Hilton. And he wrote to Joe Jonas that the meeting occurred last Thursday. “Yep, Cody rules. Actually met her yesterday.”
Cody’s older sister, Cheyenne, also wrote about the meeting on the Twitter account she started in response to Cody’s fame. “Hey guys watch us meet Justin on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ on Monday night…At midnight… He kissed me BTW… ahhh.”
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Justin Bieber Announces Next Single, ‘Never Let You Go’
by on Feb.25, 2010, under Justin Bieber
The pop star tweets, posts acoustic video of next single off upcoming My World 2.0.
By Jocelyn Vena
Justin Bieber
Photo: Getty Images
With about a month until the release of My World 2.0, (due March 23), Justin Bieber took to his Twitter to announce the second single off the album. He plans to follow-up “Baby” with the track “Never Let You Go.” The pop singer, who will celebrate his Sweet 16 on Monday, will release the new song on Tuesday.
“It’s only 5 days until my bday, but now it’s only six days until I release a new song off of My World 2.0 on ITUNES!! Wanna know which song??” he tweeted on Wednesday night. “Next Tuesday after my bday (help ‘Baby’ get to #1 for my bday!! Lol) I will release ‘Never Let You Go’ finally on iTunes from My World 2.0!!!”
Bieber also posted a link to a video of him performing the love song, on which he sings, “It’s like an angel came by, and took me to heaven/ It’s like you took me to heaven girl/ ‘Cause when I stare in your eyes/ It couldn’t be better/ I don’t want you to go.”
“Everyone spread the word,” he told his extremely loyal Twitter followers.
Bieber, who will promote his album by performing on “Saturday Night Live” and the Kids’ Choice Awards, recently released his music video for “Baby.” The video has cameos from Drake and Ludacris and even shows off some of Bieber’s smooth Michael Jackson-inspired dance moves.
“It starts off, I really like this girl, but we didn’t [get] along; we couldn’t be together,” Bieber explained. “Basically, I want her back and [I'm] kind of going through the whole thing. I’m chasing her around, trying to get her, and she’s kind of playing hard to get, but I’m persistent. I keep going.”
Are you excited for Justin’s new song? Tell us in the comments below!
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Justin Bieber And Rihanna To Perform At Kids’ Choice Awards
by on Feb.25, 2010, under Justin Bieber
The pop stars will take the stage at the Nickelodeon awards show March 27.
By Jocelyn Vena
Rihanna and Justin Bieber
Photo: Michael Buckner/ Getty Images
Justin Bieber and Rihanna have been announced as performers for this year’s Kids’ Choice Awards, according to People. The news comes just a week after nominations for Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers and more were revealed.
Nickelodeon is offering an all-access sweepstakes with Bieber to give fans the chance to see the pop star perform at the show. The winner will get a trip for four to Los Angeles, tickets to the show, an invitation to walk the orange carpet, access to Bieber’s pre-show rehearsal and a private meet-and-greet with him. Fans will be able to enter the contest at the Kids’ Choice Awards Web site March 3-10.
Nickelodeon’s 23rd annual Kids’ Choice Awards will go live March 27 on Nickelodeon at 8 p.m. ET. and will be hosted by Kevin James. “In short, I guess you could say hosting the Kids’ Choice Awards completes me,” James said about taking over the gig that went to Dwayne Johnson last year.
Last week, it was announced that the Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus, Taylor Swift and “Twilight” were the leading contenders at the show. Fans can start voting for their favorites on Nick.com starting Thursday. Cyrus, who is up for four awards, will compete with recent awards-show favorites Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift in the Favorite Female Singer category. Swift is also up for Favorite Song for “You Belong With Me.” In the Favorite Male Singer department, Jay-Z fights it out against Sean Kingston, Mario and Ne-Yo.
A rep from Nickelodeon had not returned MTV News’ call for confirmation at press time.
Are you excited to see Justin and Rihanna take the stage? What should they perform? Tell us in the comments!
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Justin Bieber Fans Cause Police To Shut Down Paris In-Store Appearance
by on Feb.24, 2010, under Justin Bieber
‘Paris is crazy!’ Canadian pop star tweets after meet-and-greet.
By Jocelyn Vena
Fans in Paris gather to meet Justin Bieber
Photo: Francois G. Durand/ WireImage
Justin Bieber is apparently huge in France. The 15-year-old pop star on Monday (February 22) that his in-store appearance in Paris that afternoon was cut short after a large crowd of fans swarmed his meet-and-greet. The police were forced to shut down the event at the Citadium store after a large number of fans showed up to meet the singer.
“Paris is crazy!” Bieber wrote following the experience. “Had some interviews this morning with mags and radio. Got to practice my French a little. But then the in-store … There were thousands of kids at the in-store and the police were not expecting it. They reorganized the crowd and we got it going, but after a little while the police stopped it and came in and said it was over and I had to leave.”
Bieber apologized to the fans he missed. “Sorry to any of the kids I didn’t get to meet. I love all of you for your support. To start my trip in Paris like this already, the love and the energy is amazing. Thank you so much.”
This isn’t the first time Bieber fans have caused pandemonium. Last November, an appearance he was scheduled to make at Roosevelt Field Mall in Long Island, New York, was canceled after fans started a stampede. According to reports at the time, someone in the mall falsely screamed that Bieber was inside their store and kids rushed toward his mistaken location. One young girl was reportedly hospitalized and several fights allegedly occurred.
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Lil Wayne Opens Twitter Account, Shouts Out Justin Bieber
by on Feb.22, 2010, under Justin Bieber
MC also shows off his dental work, shouts out Taylor Swift, Bon Jovi in Ustream session.
By Rahman Dukes
Lil Twist and Lil Wayne
Photo: Ustream
Next Tuesday, Lil Wayne is all but certain to begin his one-year jail sentence on weapons charges, after his expected sentencing was delayed by dental surgery. But Wayne is making sure he’s heard before then, by opening a new Twitter account — under the name LilTunechi — and having another marathon Ustream session Sunday night on Young Money artist Lil Twist’s site.
During the stream, Wayne talked briefly about his surgery, revealing his new pearly whites (and golds) and the removal of his lower diamond-studded grills.
“Yeah, I got the bottom grill out for right now” said Wayne. “That’s why I’m not showing y’all too much.”
The MC also said he plans to hit his new Twitter account hard before he goes away. At press time there were just a handful of tweets, but he’d only been at it for 14 hours.
“How do I follow somebody?” Wayne asks Lil Twist in the Ustream video, moments after rejoining Twitter. “Somebody ask me to hit them up.”
“Y’all even seeing Wayne go through the whole Twitter process!” Twist jokes. “He don’t know what he’s doing.”
“I don’t know what I’m doing!” Wayne agrees. “I was born in the ’80s. This sh– wasn’t out then.”
In his first tweet, Wayne wrote: “I’m super new to this twitter sh– but wudup tho !……….follow me biot¢h……….wudup mak……happy bday LO……8 days of freedom..ym.”
Within moments, however, artists like Trey Songz were among the thousands of users who were asking for Weezy to follow them. And, like he toppled the competition in the rap game, Wayne said he’s looking to claim the title as the all-time Twitter king.
“I need more followers. I’m trying to catch Ashton Kutcher. I heard he’s the Mr. Twitter.”
Later in Wayne’s Ustream session, he shouts out “my n—a Justin Bieber,” Bon Jovi and Taylor Swift.
Of course, Wayne has been recording at a frantic pace before his jail term begins, and he talked briefly about a new tracks during the Ustream session — one he said will be on Tha Carter IV.
“Me and Twist did a song last night, ladies, for Tha Carter IV album,” Wayne revealed. “When I tell you it’s crazy — man! Man!”
Wayne then went on to reveal some of the lyrics from the unnamed track.
“She a monster, but I’m a beast, though/ Take her clothes off, with my teeth, though.”
Expect to hear much more from Wayne before next Tuesday!
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Justin Bieber To Appear On ‘Saturday Night Live’
by on Feb.22, 2010, under Justin Bieber
The pop star has been booked to perform on the comedy show’s April 10 episode.
By Jocelyn Vena
Justin Bieber
Photo: Getty Images
The demands of Justin Bieber’s fanbase have been answered by the producers of “Saturday Night Live.” Fans of the Canadian heartthrob launched a Twitter campaign, @BieberOnSNL, to get the teen phenomenon on the show, and it quickly amassed 2,600 followers. It also saw its mission realized; the pop star will be the late-night comedy show’s musical guest on April 10.
Bieber has already stated that he wants to appear in one of the show’s digital shorts, which have featured the likes of Rihanna and Justin Timberlake. He sent out his request via Twitter, saying, “Shoutout to @BieberOnSNL and all the other fans who support me. It’s happening! SNL in APRIL!! Digital Short Music Vid??”
The pop phenomenon didn’t mention which songs he might perform on the show, but he did mention that he already had a special guest in mind for his big debut: “Me and Chuck Norris should do SNL together,” he wrote. “That would be good. Very good.”
Bieber’s “SNL” appearance comes shortly after the March 23 release of My World 2.0, the follow-up to his 2009 album My World.
Bieber recently sang the opening line in the Haiti-benefiting remake of “We Are The World,” and he just released the video for My World 2.0’s first single, “Baby.”
MTV News was on set with Bieber when he shot the clip, which features cameos by Drake and Ludacris. “It starts off, I really like this girl, but we didn’t [get] along; we couldn’t be together,” he said.
“Basically I want her back and [I'm] kind of going through the whole thing. I’m chasing her around, trying to get her, and she’s kind of playing hard to get, but I’m persistent. I keep going.”
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Justin Bieber Is ‘So Sweet,’ Says ‘Big Sister’ Selena Gomez
by on Feb.20, 2010, under Justin Bieber
‘I feel like a big sister now,’ Gomez says of her friendly relationship with the Canadian singer.
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Christina Garibaldi
Selena Gomez
Photo: MTV News
Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez are set to perform at Pop-Con at Nassau Coliseum in New York on Saturday. Although the two are set to perform separate sets, Gomez hasn’t ruled out the possibility of taking the stage together to try out a duet or two.
“I’m excited. We would love to. We’re trying to work it out,” Gomez, who will be performing with her band The Scene, told MTV News. “We don’t know yet. We’re still trying to figure out if we’re going to do something together onstage. [It] might be a surprise, but as far as co-headlining — I don’t know. I’m sure he’s much bigger. [It's] probably his show — I’m just there.”
Other performers at Pop-Con will include Push Play, Mercy Mercedes, Care Bears on Fire, Nat and Alex Wolff of the Naked Brothers Band and Sean Kingston. The convention “aims to be the pop event with the stars the kids want to see.” The day will feature other young actors that tweens and teens love as well as industry insiders there to give aspiring performers advice on how to break into show business.
But Bieber and Gomez have met before — they both played “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” and Gomez confesses that at this point they are such good friends, he almost feels like family.
“I love Justin. When he first started to come over from Canada his manager contacted me and he just said that he would like to meet me and he was just such a good kid,” she explained. “And I feel like a big sister now, ’cause I want to protect him. So I’m always very cautious with him, but he is so talented and he’s so sweet, so that just started us wanting to work together. Now he’s just become one of my good friends.”
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Justin Bieber Bowls With Drake, Ludacris In ‘Baby’ Video
by on Feb.20, 2010, under Justin Bieber
New clip features the 15-year-old showing off his skills to win back a girl.
By Jocelyn Vena
Justin Bieber on the set of his video for “Baby”
Photo: MTV News
There’s probably no better way to win back your first love than by showing off your bowling skills, your celebrity pals and your dance moves. At least that’s what Justin Bieber attempts to do in his just-released “Baby” video, which premiered online on Friday (February 19).
With a cameo by fellow Canadian Drake and Ludacris, who also raps on the track, the video is a sugary-sweet story of the 15-year-old Bieber trying to win back a girl who is clearly reluctant to give him another chance. What did he do wrong? Perhaps we’ll never know, but during the clip we see him doing everything he possibly can to win her back.
MTV News was on set with Bieber earlier this month, and the young superstar explained the story. “It starts off, I really like this girl, but we didn’t [get] along; we couldn’t be together,” he said. “Basically I want her back and [I'm] kind of going through the whole thing. I’m chasing her around, trying to get her, and she’s kind of playing hard to get, but I’m persistent. I keep going.”
Does he bowl a good game? Check. Does he dance for her? Check. Does he goof around with both Drake and Luda? Double check. Ludacris told MTV News that the video is meant to be a 2010 version of Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel,” and the choreography does use a few of Jackson’s less-suggestive moves.
Although most of the video takes place in the bowling alley, there are also scenes of Bieber in other settings, hanging out with Luda, doing the moonwalk, messing with his hair and mugging for the camera. Regardless of his lady’s apparent frustration with him, Bieber eventually wins her over. The video concludes with the pair walking off into the night holding hands.
What do you think of Justin Bieber’s new video? Tell us in the comments below?
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‘We Are The World’ Remake: Was The Lineup Too Contemporary?
by on Feb.18, 2010, under Justin Bieber
Original featured classic voices, update has many less-recognizable stars.
By Gil Kaufman, with additional reporting by Jayson Rodriguez
Celine Dion, Joe Jonas, Kevin Jonas and Justin Bieber perform on We Are The World
Photo: Kevin Mazur/ Wire Image
The organizers of the “We Are the World: 25 for Haiti” pulled off a Herculean feat, rallying and recording the track and video for the earthquake-relief effort in record time. Like the sessions for the 1985 original all-star famine relief tune, producer Quincy Jones and songwriter Lionel Richie were able to get a galaxy of contemporary and classic voices to drop what they were doing to lend their time and vocals to a higher cause.
But whereas the original features vocals from such still-classic megastars as Stevie Wonder, Tina Turner, Kenny Rogers, Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Ray Charles, Jones and Richie said they purposely shuffled the deck on the reboot to focus on contemporary acts. That explains why the track opens with newly minted star Justin Bieber, followed by Jennifer Hudson and Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger, and quickly segues into solos from Sugarland singer Jennifer Nettles, Jamie Foxx, Maroon 5’s Adam Levine, Fergie and Nick Jonas, among many others. While there are major, undeniable stars on the new version — Mary J. Blige, Lil Wayne, Kanye West and Pink among them — some are wondering if the song’s lineup was too contemporary?
“I looked at the video the other day and I will admit I had several ‘Who the hell is that?’ moments,” said Christopher Morris, contributing music writer for Variety magazine of the 8-minute clip for the song shot by Academy Award-winning director Paul Haggis. “Some like Kanye West leap out at you, but it took several go-rounds for me to identify Nicole Scherzinger from the Pussycat Dolls. In terms of legend power, it’s on the shorter side.”
As the new video unfolds, such modern standard-bearers as Celine Dion, Janet Jackson, Toni Braxton and Josh Groban are thrown into a mix that also includes old-schoolers Tony Bennett and Barbra Streisand, alongside the 1985 vocals from Michael Jackson, who co-wrote the song with Richie, and bits from gospel singers BeBe Winans and Mary Mary.
The update’s concentration on contemporary stars, some of whom have voices that are not as instantly recognizable, might have contributed to the song’s relatively low profile at radio (although it did debut at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100).
“Is it likely that an R&B station will put it in regular rotation? Probably not. As a curiosity, yes. But this is not about airplay, which it won’t get a lot of, it’s about creating a viral hit on YouTube and Vevo, and maybe getting some traction at a few top-40 stations,” said Keith Caulfield, Senior Chart Manager/Analyst for Billboard magazine.
At a time when terrestrial radio playlists are more narrowly focused than ever before, such a broad, multi-genre song faces an uphill climb to gain major spins on stations that might cotton to stars like Jennifer Hudson and Wayne, but risk alienating their listeners with the likes of Streisand, Josh Groban, Cyrus and Jonas.
“I don’t know if, given the way things are right now, you could have gotten a similar lineup,” Morris said of the high-wattage, cross-genre original. “Music is much more niche-oriented right now and there aren’t a huge number of artists who’ve cut across every listening demo. Even someone like Taylor Swift doesn’t command an African-American audience. There’s no Michael Jackson in there, except in the old footage, who cuts through every sector of the international listening audience.”
Despite those challenges, the remake’s #2 Billboard debut easily bested the original, which bowed at #21 in March 1985, then rose to #1 three weeks later, eventually earning four-times platinum certification within a month of release (during that era, singles traditionally moved up the charts much more gradually than they do today). The remake entered the Digital Songs chart at #1, selling more than 267,000 copies in less than three days. Even with that firepower, though, it was unable to unseat Ke$ha’s “Tik Tok” from its nine-week run at the top of the single’s charts.
One music journalist at a major music magazine, who requested anonymity, told MTV News that even with a fresh sound courtesy of co-producer RedOne and a vaunted hip-hop section with fresh lyrics from LL Cool J, the new song falls short in a few places. “The general consensus on this remake is that, while it’s for a great cause, it is absolutely horrible on a musical level, except for Jennifer Hudson and Pink,” the writer said. One artist who was rumored to be participating but who ultimately was not involved, Jay-Z, told MTV News he simply thought the original was “untouchable” and was not something that should be re-imagined.
SiriusXM’s Rob “Reef” Tewlow, an executive for the station’s hip-hop channel Shade 45, agreed with Hov’s take. Tewlow also acknowledged the rap portion of the song was commendable. However, Tewlow suggested the rapper’s contributions weren’t an integral part of the number.
“It’s just hard to combine MCs into that song and into that type of thing,” he explained.” It’s like trying to fit a baseball into a golfball or something. Noble intentions, and it’s good that it’s represented in some type of form or fashion, but it’s not a make-or-break thing for the song.”
Though Bieber’s fame is brand new, Caulfield understood why Jones and Richie frontloaded his vocals into the song.
“Everyone is asking the same question about Bieber, but the creative forces are saying, ‘Bieber is the hottest thing with teens, he’s trending huge on Twitter every day, selling tons of digital tracks and he’ll resonate with little girls going gonzo for his songs.’ If you think about it that way, it makes perfect sense when you’re trying to craft something that will get lots of attention from as many people as possible.”
A spokesperson for “We Are the World: 25 for Haiti” could not be reached for comment at press time.
With their concept of tapping the talent of today, Morris also gave Jones and Richie credit for doing the best they could with the artists at their disposal in a media environment that is very different than it was a quarter-century ago. “This is a charity single after all, so you want to try and pull in the masses, so they did what they had to, which is to enlist people who sold a lot of records,” he said. “It’s not a miscalculation on their part, but it’s just a very different landscape. The way music is marketed and consumed has changed, the delivery system is fragmented.”
Getting the kind of mass audience hit as the 1985 song — which has raised more than $60 million to date — today is elusive, Morris said. “It’s impossible to reach the ubiquity the first one did. It’s a replication of an event that was an unprecedented, huge deal at the time and there’s no way that mining something like that again is going to top it.”
Caulfield credited organizers for getting the song and video out quickly and capitalizing on the buzz of the event, but said he couldn’t predict how the song would end up doing commercially. “Is it going to approach the same impact?” he said. “I don’t know. But I think sales now are from the immediacy of it and the fact that you could see the video and then buy it two seconds later.”
Learn more about what you can do to help with earthquake-relief efforts in Haiti, and for more information, see Think MTV. Visit HopeForHaitiNow.org or call (877) 99-HAITI to make a donation now.
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‘We Are The World: 25 For Haiti’ Video Premieres During Olympics Opening Ceremony
by on Feb.13, 2010, under Justin Bieber
Extended version of song and video are available now on iTunes.
By Jem Aswad, with additional reporting by Rich Sancho
Wyclef Jean, Kanye West and Jennifer Hudson perform at the “We Are The World: 25 for Haiti” recording session
Photo: Kevin Mazur/ WireImage
The video of “We Are the World: 25 for Haiti” premiered Friday night (February 12) during the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. The new incarnation of the 1985 song sticks closely to the arrangement of the original, but the cast is much larger and, of course, much more contemporary.
On television, the song was introduced by a message from original “We Are the World” principals Lionel Richie and Quincy Jones, who urged viewers to contribute via World25.org, iTunes or by texting “World” to 50555.
A tightly edited version of the video was aired on Friday night, but the long version is available now on iTunes.
That version is introduced by Jamie Foxx, who sets the scene, talking about the original recording and then the new version, the video of which was directed by “Crash” director Paul Haggis. “Do more than just watch,” Foxx says. “Whatever you have, no matter how big or how small, it all counts.”
The video features footage from the song’s recording session intercut with scenes of rebuilding efforts in Haiti. Justin Bieber opens, singing Lionel Richie’s verse from the original, and is quickly followed by Nicole Scherzinger and Jennifer Hudson singing together, then Sugarland singer Jennifer Nettles, Josh Groban, and then footage of Michael Jackson from the original recording superimposed with sister Janet duetting on the first verse of the chorus. Barbra Streisand, Fergie, a wailing Celine Dion and others follow.
Miley Cyrus, Enrique Iglesias, Foxx, Maroon 5’s Adam Levine, Pink, Mary J. Blige, Akon, T-Pain and others take verses later in the song; a second verse from a recording of Michael Jackson is immediately followed by Usher. Carlos Santana and Orianthi are seen playing guitars; Richie and Jones are often visible, smiling on the sidelines.
The most remarkable moments come from the rappers: an Auto-Tuned Lil Wayne sings Bob Dylan’s verse, Wyclef adds some Haitian flavor, and Will.I.Am and Kanye West both rap verses. “Like Katrina, Africa and Indonesia/ Haiti needs us,” Will.I.Am raps. LL Cool J, Will.I.Am, Swizz Beatz, Snoop Dogg and Busta Rhymes team up for a rapped section; Bizzy Bone, Kid Cudi, Drake and Nipsey Hussle were also at the session.
The music drops out toward the end to let the chorus sing alone.
Along with the studio footage, we see Haitian children dancing amid the destruction. Tellingly, the Haiti footage focuses on rebuilding efforts.
Haggis talked with MTV News about the session earlier this week. “You hear these stories about people checking their egos at the door, and it really is true,” he said. “They came and stood forever and were glorified extras a lot of the time. They just stood in the corner and waved.”
What do you think of “We Are the World: 25 for Haiti”? Does it stand up to the original? Is it better with rappers? Who has the best verse? Let us know in the comments below!
Learn more about what you can do to help with earthquake-relief efforts in Haiti, and for more information, see Think MTV. Visit HopeForHaitiNow.org or call (877) 99-HAITI to make a donation now.
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