Bruno Mars Thrilled By Seven Grammy Nominations - MTV.com

Each year, the Grammy Awards not only serve to recognize the best achievements in music over the past year but also help to elevate certain artists from unknowns to stars and from successes into household names. The latter will probably be true of Bruno Mars once the awards are handed out in February, as the singer and producer was nominated for a total of seven awards during Wednesday night's "Grammy Nominations Concert Live!" show.

Mars scored a handful of nominations as a performer for his vocal stylings on the chart-topping B.o.B track "Nothin' on You" and also picked up several nominations as a member of the Smeezingtons, the writing and production trio that consists of Mars, Philip Lawrence and Ari Levine. The three are responsible for hits like Cee Lo's "F--- You" (which picked up four nominations), and the crew also picked up a nod for Producer of the Year.

The Smeezingtons were rightfully thrilled at the prospect of taking home a load of hardware in February. "We don't know how it feels yet, because we just got the word. We're a little awkward in these situations," Mars admitted to MTV News following the show (in which he also performed live). "But the fact is that we worked so hard this year. In a studio not too far from here, in a little shack, we'd have B.o.B in there writing 'Nothin' on You' with us, or Cee Lo writing 'F--- You' with us. The fact that it's being acknowledged by the Grammys is incredible. It's really making us feel like we did something. We're being acknowledged by the biggest."

As far as which award the group is gunning for, they're open to anything. "I'd like to win Best Dressed," Mars joked. "Maybe Most Humorous. Or Best Kisser!" They also want the world to know that just because their status will become elevated doesn't mean that they're inaccessible.

"The funnest part of our job is that we don't know who we're working with next," Mars told MTV News. "We're fans and students of music, and we just love to work with whoever wants to work, whoever wants to write a song. Rock, hip-hop, R&B — we just want to do music. And we're happy just doing that."

Mars and the Smeezingtons will compete against other heavy hitters like Eminem (10 nominations), Jay-Z (six), Lady Gaga (six) and B.o.B (five) when the Grammys are handed out on Sunday, February 13, 2011.

How many Grammys do you think Bruno Mars will win? Let us know in the comments!

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President Obama Shares His Hopes And Fears After MTV Town Hall - MTV.com

During "A Conversation With President Obama" on Thursday (October 14), the nation's leader addressed a range of concerns, directly from the country's young people. He elaborated on his administration's plans to curb illegal immigration while streamlining the process of entering the country legally. He discussed plans to improve resources for teachers and keep guns out the hands of kids. And while he addressed viewers' apprehensions about the future of the United States during the broadcast — thanks to their #mygreatesthope and #mygreatestfear tweets — he also divulged his personal hopes and fears after the show.

For a politician saddled with responsibilities of unparalleled gravity, President Obama told forum attendees he is concerned about the level of political engagement of America's youth. After personally greeting audience members, Obama took the mic one last time before heading out and urged everyone in the room to vote, maintaining that the efforts of enthusiastic citizens will drive change.

"Regardless of who you vote for, regardless if you found anything I said persuasive, I need you to vote on November 2," he insisted. "One of the things that happened in the last election is that young people got involved in ways that they had never gotten involved in before and that has to sustain itself, that has to maintain itself. Because the only way we're gonna solve these problems is if everyone is seriously engaged."

Then Obama, who won his historic 2008 presidential campaign on the tenets of hope and change, quipped, "Nobody [today] asked me what gave me hope," and explained what still inspires him.

"What gives me hope is all of you," he said. "What makes me afraid is the possibility that because these problems are hard, because it takes time to solve energy or education or build a good infrastructure or deal with immigration, because these are big complicated issues, that people get discouraged when they don't get solved right away."

The president reminded the attendees that change is often realized through long-term commitment to reaching a specific goal.

"This is a process. It's always been that way, and that's how we've overcome challenges in the past," he continued. "I have no doubt that America will remain the best, greatest country on earth as long as all of you are a part of building it. As long as you keep your eye on the prize and recognize that a change doesn't happen just because of one election, it doesn't happen just because you wish it, it happens because of hard work and sustained persistence and involvement."

The leader of the free world added that, ultimately, making a difference is not just in the hands of politicians, but also the work of dedicated citizens.

"I hope that all of you stay inspired," he said. "Don't just look to some elected official for that inspiration. Look to each other, look to yourselves."

What do you think about President Obama's hopes and fears? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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Tyler Clementi Suicide Puts Bullying In Spotlight - MTV.com

Police are still searching for the body of 18-year-old Rutgers University freshman Tyler Clementi, one week after he is believed to have killed himself after his roommate posted online a video of Clementi having a sexual encounter with another man.

Authorities believe that Clementi leapt from the George Washington Bridge in New York after his roommate secretly taped him and then posted the footage on the Internet.

Clementi's roommate Dharan Ravi and Ravi's childhood friend Molly Wei are each facing two counts of invasion of privacy and could spend up to five years in prison if they are convicted of distributing sexual images without consent. Ravi allegedly posted a live feed of Clementi on Skype, according to CBS News, and boasted about it on Twitter.

"Roommate asked for the room till midnight," Ravi, 18, tweeted on September 19. "I went into Molly's room and turned on my webcam. I saw him making out with a dude. Yay." Ravi is also alleged to have tried to broadcast a second encounter a few days later.

Investigators do not know how many people saw the feed or if Clementi had other issues that may have contributed to his despondency, but he clearly was upset by something. Before his disappearance, he wrote on his Facebook page, "Jumping off the gw bridge sorry."

Clementi's death is the latest incident to reveal the dangers of cyberbullying and the consequences of using wired means to taunt. ABC News reported that Clementi complained to his resident advisor and other university officials about Ravi allegedly livestreaming video of Clementi having a sexual encounter with a male classmate earlier this month. A university spokesperson said the information was turned over to local authorities.

His death comes as a rash of bullying-related suicides has made the news. Minnesota Public Radio reports that seven teenagers in the Anoka-Hennepin School District, one of Minnesota's largest school districts, have taken their lives over the past year. Administrators are concerned that bullying, cyber or otherwise, may have played a part in the incidents, at least two of which involved gay students who'd allegedly been harassed or bullied at school as a result of their sexuality.

In Tehachapi, California, 13-year-old Seth Walsh died on Tuesday, several days after trying to hang himself from a tree in his backyard following years of taunting over his sexual orientation. Less than a week earlier, 13-year-old Texas teen Asher Brown shot himself to death after enduring bullying over his small stature, his religion and, possibly, his sexual orientation, according to the Houston Chronicle.

Gay activists and "Savage Love" columnist Dan Savage launched a new YouTube channel called "It Gets Better." The channel gives positive examples of gay adults living their lives after suffering serious bullying in their youths in order to give hope to GLBT teens who may be struggling with abuse from their peers. Gay children are four times more likely than their straight peers to commit suicide and nine out of ten gay kids say they have been the victims of bullies at some point in their lives.

Since launching on September 15, the "It Gets Better" channel has had nearly 500,000 views.

MTV's ongoing "A Thin Line" project also provides stories and resources for anyone who believes they are being cyberbullied or who is looking for ways to stop harassment by digital means.

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