Photo: Young Money

• Drake
• Wale
• Asher Roth

Asher Roth and Tim Kash
Photo: MTV News

In 2008, rock band Tokio Hotel beat out a quartet of pop stars — Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry, Jordin Sparks and Taylor Swift — to nab a Best New Artist win at the MTV Video Music Awards. This year the category pits nine-time nominee Lady Gaga against 3OH!3, Drake, Kid Cudi and Asher Roth and, according to one of them, the contest is already over before the September 13 show has begun.

"I think Gaga's gonna take it," Roth told MTV News. "She's been killing it for however long now, so she can go ahead and have it. I'm not gonna put up a big fight."

Instead of a fight, he's putting forth a new look: Roth has spent the last two weeks sprouting a blondish, '70s-style moustache that would not be out of place in an adult film. By the rapper's reasoning, if he can't match Gaga and Beyoncé with a glitzy fashion choice, he might as well rock some creative facial hair.

"The moustache was European-inspired. It was supposed to last a day, but it's lasted 12!" he said, joking that it actually took six months for the baby-faced artist to grow the meager 'stache. "I'm getting some bad backlash from my inner squad, my cabinet."

Undeterred, Roth went on to suggest he might go all-in with the Euro-motivated fashion decisions and dress up like the namesake of Frenchman Alexandre Dumas' famous 19th-century adventure novel — cape, frilly blouse and all.

"You might see me as the Count of Monte Cristo at the MTV Video Music Awards!" Roth declared.

Watch the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards Preshow this Sunday, September 13, at 8 p.m. ET, followed by the big event, airing live at 9 p.m. New York is celebrating the VMAs all week long, so stay tuned for party coverage, concert reports, behind-the-scenes updates and more.

• The 2009 VMAs Are Taking Over NYC!

• 2009 VMA Nominees

• Asher Roth

Asher Roth performs on Governors Island
Photo: Johnny Nunez/ WireImage

NEW YORK — Governors Island was crawling with people Wednesday evening, as Asher Roth and N.E.R.D. performed at the Water Taxi Beach on the city's former military post.

"We're on an island, so there's no rules," Roth shouted to the crowd at the start of the show. He opened his set with a performance of his album's first track, "Lark on My Go-Kart," and his stage presence seemed improved from past shows. The "College"-loving rapper has matured to a more traditional hip-hop performer. Whereas before he rode out in a go-kart and was surrounded onstage by props and friends dressed as joints, this set featured just him, his DJ (Wreckineyez), his hype man and drummer. While the show did boast a few goofy moments — all four paused for a poorly rehearsed dance routine to "Candy Rain" by Soul for Real — Asher's genuine talent as an MC was on display.

The crowd was largely there for headliners N.E.R.D., but Roth, a VMA Best New Artist and Best Hip-Hop Video nominee, was able to win over a few fans. Before he left, he had plenty of hands raised in the air ... in a "Star Trek" Vulcan salute.

Even more in the audience saluted and screamed as the intro from "Time for Some Action" began, and Pharrell's voice reached them. The crowd erupted once N.E.R.D. finally appeared.

Pharrell and Shay tag-teamed as frontmen, while Chad played keyboard just behind them at the center of the stage. The group fed off the audience's energy as they blitzed through "Kill Joy" and "Backseat Love." Pharrell paused to ask the crowd to stop taking pictures and to enjoy themselves instead. Even photographers in the press pit paused, unsure if he was addressing them as well.

The audience seemed willing to put down their cameras and cell phones, enjoying the rest of the group's set as Pharrell thrashed about the stage.

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards air live this Sunday, September 13, at 9 p.m. ET, but New York is celebrating the VMAs all week long! Stay tuned for party coverage, concert reports, behind-the-scenes updates and more.

• The 2009 VMAs Are Taking Over NYC!

• Asher Roth, N.E.R.D. Warm Up NYC For The 2009 VMAs

• N.E.R.D.
• Asher Roth

Asher Roth
Photo: MTV News

Being that he's a Video Music Award-nominated artiste, Asher Roth takes his craft very seriously. Which is why, when MTV News visited the set of his "She Don't Wanna Man" clip — which premiered Monday (August 24) on MTV — we found him tucked away in a corner, eyes closed, getting deep into character. It's called method acting, in case you were wondering.

Actually, we're kidding. He was lounging backstage with his buddies Boyder and Brain Bangley, joking about hangovers and scoping out the video vixens director Jonathan Lia had assembled for the shoot. We told you he takes his craft seriously.

"This is a real party; it's not one of those fake video parties," Roth laughed. "A lot of the scenes are back and forth, boys versus girls. [It's] a girl-empowerment song. Letting the girls do their thing and have fun and just boogie and not have us be all over them. But we still chase after some booty, you know?"

The video — which features Roth and company traipsing through a packed club, macking on (and spectacularly failing with) assorted females — also boasts a cameo by Keri Hilson (she gives Roth no play either), an old Asher associate who sings the track's hook.

"When we put 'She Don't Wanna Man' together, we pretty much put together your dream-team list of artists that you would love to collaborate with on that song. And Keri was a friend that was in Atlanta with us, and we had met early on, and we were talking about working together," Roth explained. "So when we put together our dream list, she was on the top of it. We sent [the song] over to her, and she absolutely murdered it. So we had to get her for the video too."

And he should know. After all, Roth — who's up for two Moonmen at the VMAs (Best Hip-Hop Video and Best New Artist) — is quickly becoming an old pro when it comes to making videos. And if there's one thing he's learned early on, it's that shooting them should be as fun as possible.

"Keri is an absolute honor to have around. She's a beauty. She's so cool. For those who don't know her, she's legitimately a great human being," he said. "So we're just happy to hang out. We're all buddies, we get along, and we're lucky to be in a situation where we can be ourselves and rock with our friends and shoot videos that get to be on MTV."

• Asher Roth
• Keri Hilson

Flo Rida
Photo: Sohyung Kang/ MTV News

The Best Hip-Hop Video category for this year's MTV Video Music Awards is stacked with heavy-hitters like Jay-Z and an impressive upstart in Asher Roth. But Flo Rida is just looking forward to being in the building September 13.

The rapper was nominated for his clip "Right Round," alongside Jay's "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)", Roth's "I Love College," Kanye West's "Love Lockdown" and Eminem's "We Made You."

"I look forward to going [to the VMAs] and just enjoying myself," Flo said of his nomination. "It means a lot to me. I can recall being in Las Vegas [where he once lived] and watching the music awards [in Miami] and seeing Jay-Z up for an award, and now here I am in the same category. I definitely look up to these guys. And even the newcomers you can learn from."

The clip was directed by Malcolm Jones (Lil Mama, Ray J) and features Flo Rida being digitally imported to clubs across the world. The throwback track was inspired by a sample from Dead or Alive's "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)."

Earlier this year, Flo told MTV News how his sisters listened to pop music from the 1980s and the Dead or Alive song caught his ear. When he went to work on his sophomore album, the song was at the forefront of the project's foundation. Now it's his second blockbuster digital download following the breakout hit "Low," featuring T-Pain.

"I just wanted to show the growth, show people I'm very well in tune with the '80s music," he explained of the track and his album, R.O.O.T.S. "Growing up in my household with seven women, I'd hear all types of music."

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards will take place September 13 at 9 p.m. ET. Nominees, celebrity presenters and additional performers will be announced in the coming weeks. To be the first to find out the inside scoop, follow the Inside MTV Twitter account at Twitter.com/InsideMTV.

• The 2009 VMA Nominations Are In!

• 2009 VMA Nominees

• Flo Rida
• Jay-Z
• Kanye West
• Eminem
• Asher Roth

Asher Roth
Photo: MTV News

Asher Roth holds himself and his work to quite a high set of standards, but he isn't the sort of guy to put pressure on himself or take anything too seriously. Case in point: Though he's nominated for two MTV Video Music Awards, he isn't too worried about the ceremony itself.

"I don't expect to win," Roth told MTV News on the set of the video for his next single, "She Don't Wanna Man." "I think Lady Gaga is going to take Best New Artist, and I'm in the company of some giants for Best Hip-Hop [Video], so I'm not too worried about it."

Though he isn't giving himself much of a shot in taking home a Moonman, he's not going to let that get in the way of his enjoyment of the show, which airs live from Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, September 13.

"It's going to be 100 percent fun," he said. "I'm probably going to show up in some basketball shorts!"

Roth is also relieved that the show is back in New York City. "The great thing about New York is that you can do anything you want," he said, exaggerating just a little. "Obviously, some of the best food in the world is there. I like to keep it mellow — just get some drinks and some good food and I'm good."

Roth's video for "She Don't Wanna Man," which co-stars song guest Keri Hilson, should be premiering soon. In the meantime, he's currently in Europe to perform in some festivals before returning to the U.S. to join the Blink-182 tour — and of course to compete for the coveted Moonman.

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards will take place September 13 at 9 p.m. ET. Additional celebrity presenters and performers will be announced in the coming weeks. To be the first to find out the inside scoop, follow the Inside MTV Twitter account at Twitter.com/InsideMTV.

• The 2009 VMA Nominations Are In!

• 2009 VMA Nominees
• 2009 VMA Performers And Presenters Announced

• Asher Roth

Soulja Boy Tell'Em in his "Turn My Swag On" music video
Photo: Interscope

With the voting for the VMA nominees underway, fans are talking about Kanye or Eminem, Slim Shady or Asher Roth, Jay-Z or T.I. The possibilities go on and on.

When it comes to debates about who is the hottest, I may know a thing or two about that. Fellow MTV News Hip-Hop Brain Trustee Rahman Dukes and I sat down this week to discuss the nominations in a couple of categories for this year's Video Music Awards: Best Male Video and Best Hip-Hop Video.

The latter includes Asher Roth's "I Love College," Eminem's "We Made You," Jay-Z's "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)," Kanye West's "Love Lockdown" and Flo Rida's "Right Round." Best Male features mostly hip-hop dudes: Eminem, Jay-Z, and Kanye West for their aforementioned clips as well as T.I.'s "Live Your Life" and Ne-Yo's "Miss Independent."

While I won't spoil the video and tell you guys who we each chose, I can mention a couple of videos that we'd add to the nominees if we could.

Since Lil Wayne's "Got Money" was from last year, I'll cast my vote for Soulja's Boy "Turn My Swag On." Young'n had his game on with that video! It was lo-fi but high energy, and a very entertaining video. A young black brother (singing significantly off-key, however) getting that cream; coming from nothing to something in a major way. When he was 9 years old, Soulja swore he was gonna die for that gold.

Rahman is partial to Rick Ross' "Magnificent" video. How could you not crack a smile at seeing Ross in an ascot at the horse races? And he even brought Special Ed back for the video!

Check out the video and let us know what you think!

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards will take place September 13 at 9 p.m. ET. Nominees, celebrity presenters and additional performers will be announced in the coming weeks. To be the first to find out the inside scoop, follow the Inside MTV Twitter account at Twitter.com/InsideMTV.

• The 2009 VMA Nominations Are In!

• Soulja Boy Tell'em
• T.I.
• Jay-Z
• Asher Roth
• Eminem

Asher Roth
Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images

While Asher Roth's two VMA nominations may not be a surprise to many people, they definitely caught the artist himself off guard.

"That was a nice little thing to wake up to this morning," said the rapper, speaking from his dressing room before a show in Baltimore, of the nods for Best New Artist and Best Hip-Hop Video that his "I Love College" clip received. "I've got a 20 percent chance [in each category], so I'll take that. Obviously everybody wants to win, but for the most part the nod is all you really need. It says, 'We appreciate your work.' "

According to Roth, the video for "I Love College" — which illuminates all of the frat-house revelry the MC talks about in the song — wasn't intended to be an award nominee. "Shooting the video was almost an accident," Roth explained. "We just turned the camera lights on and did what we do. It wasn't like, 'Let's try to win a VMA with this one!' But I think that's the beauty of it — you stay true to form and you get a nod of appreciation."

In the Best New Artist category, Roth is going up against his tourmate Kid Cudi, and Best Hip-Hop Video sees him squaring off against titans like Jay-Z and Eminem. "I'm in a category with some heavy hitters," he said. "It's kind of cool. To be with those guys, I must be doing something right."

(It's also worth noting that VMA nominees Roth, Cudi and Drake were touted as 2009 "MCs to Watch" by MTV News back in January.)

The VMAs will begin what should be an interesting September for Roth, who heads out to Bakersfield, California, to join the Blink-182 tour the day after the show. But first he'll enjoy being a part of the show in New York on September 13. "You always peep the VMAs — I'm always by a TV to catch that show," he said.

But who is he most looking forward to meeting? "Everybody's out that night, so it's more like who do I try to ignore?"

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards will take place September 13 at 9 p.m. ET. Nominees, celebrity presenters and additional performers will be announced in the coming weeks. To be the first to find out the inside scoop, follow the Inside MTV Twitter account at Twitter.com/InsideMTV.

• The 2009 VMA Nominations Are In!

• 2009 VMA Nominees

• Asher Roth

Kid Cudi, Asher Roth and Tim Kash
Photo: MTV News

Within the last six months, the success of their debut singles, "I Love College" and "Day 'N' Nite," has made Asher Roth and Kid Cudi both household names — or, at least, dorm-room staples. But when it came time to co-headline their first summer tour, they needed the help of a superstar to name it.

Cudi said that he and Kanye West were trying to think up a name, and after a tossing around a few ideas, West came up with the Great Hangover Tour.

"I was like, 'OK, let's run with it, because it's Kanye,' " Cudi told MTV News. "He's responsible for naming a lot of tours, and we needed the perfect name. We didn't want to make it too obvious. We didn't want to call it the Marijuana Tour, or the Stoner Tour, something wack like that."

"The Hangover" was coincidently coming out at the same time, and they wanted the tour to play off the same theme. What's not coincidental, however, is the fact that Cudi and Roth teamed up to tour at similar stages of their career. The two met during the photo shoot for XXL magazine's Freshman 10 and kept in touch since. The timing was right for them to hit the road together.

"Me and Asher were at a point in our careers where we're definitely right there, and when you're a new artist, and you have the opportunity to do your own tour, you definitely want to rock with somebody that you have a rapport with," Cudi said. "He had his record out. I had my record out. We both had the same momentum, and it was like let's bring them together and make a movement."

Roth said that movement was the right word. "It's the movement, and it's really surrounded by good people and good music. When Cudi and I linked up, we were on that same tip of making sure that people understand that there's definitely a paradigm shift coming on here. There's a youth movement coming up."

Roth said the Great Hangover would show people that there's a new breed of MC, not interested in solely making money and being flashy. "It's more about: 'I'm just trying to chill and make some good music.' "

• A 'Day' With Kid Cudi
• Asher Roth's Rise To The Top

• Kid Cudi
• Asher Roth

Asher Roth
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

As he and Kid Cudi get ready to embark on their Great Hangover Tour, Asher Roth said their goal is to throw a party with good music and good people.

"We really just wanted people to have a good time," Roth told MTV News. By calling the tour "Great Hangover," Roth explained, they're pointing out that "if you [leave] the party, and you're not hungover the next morning, you didn't do it right."

The "I Love College" rapper has all but put the fun-loving side of college behind him, and he said that Kid Cudi shares that same free spirit. While Roth caught flak last month for a Twitter post some read to be offensive, and Cudi took to his blog to declare his retirement back in March, Asher said they wanted to put those distractions aside.

"We wanted to direct a tour that was mainly about music and mainly about having fun," Roth said. "And that's why Cudi and I decided to headline the Great Hangover."

Roth also felt that the tour would give them a chance to connect with fans. Artists can make their money off of their iTunes sales, he said, but touring gives them the chance to see and feel their fans' energy and vice-versa.

Asher also warned that fans shouldn't expect any over-the-top sets like Kanye West's Glow in the Dark tour, but they should expect to clap their hand and sing along.

Joining them on tour will be Pac Div, 88-Keys and fellow MC to Watch B.o.B, a.k.a. Bobby Ray. Asher was excited about what each act would bring to the table.

"With all of these guys, we have performers," Roth said. "It's not just rappers up there rapping. All of us want to be up there, and we are having a good time with it. I think the energy of the people we're going to attract is going to be good."

• Asher Roth
• Kid Cudi

Woodie Awards 2009: Afterparty

• 88-Keys
• Asher Roth
• Janelle Monae

Woodie Awards 2009: Red Carpet

• Death Cab For Cutie
• Asher Roth
• 3Oh!3
• Hellogoodbye
• Passion Pit

Woodie Awards 2009 Nominees

• 3Oh!3
• Alicia Keys
• Amanda Blank
• Animal Collective
• Anjulie

Woodie Awards 2009 Performers And Presenters

• 3Oh!3
• Asher Roth
• Cam'ron
• Clipse
• The Dead Weather

Woodie Awards 2008 Performers

• Q-Tip
• Chromeo
• Vampire Weekend
• Asher Roth
• Santigold

Asher Roth, N.E.R.D. Warm Up NYC For The 2009 VMAs

• Asher Roth
• N.E.R.D.
• Pharrell Williams
• The Neptunes

Which Of These Artists Is The Hottest MC In The Game?

• Wale
• Jay-Z
• Asher Roth
• Kid Cudi
• Cam'ron

2009 VMA Nominees

• Yeah Yeah Yeahs
• Green Day
• Kings Of Leon
• Paramore
• Fall Out Boy

Asher Roth's "Asleep In The Bread Aisle" Listening Party

• Asher Roth

Asher Roth Brings The Rap To MTV's 1515

• Asher Roth