TRL Takes a Final Glittering Bow

Diamond jewelry made a sparkling appearance at the finale of MTV’s TRL last night– from Hilary Duff’s gorgeous white and black diamond fan earrings to Nelly’s icey dog tags.

For those of you who have been able to successfully ignore the MTV phenomenon over the past ten years, TRL is short for “Total Request Live”, an American Bandstand-type show that helped artists promote their latest offerings and gave screaming fans a chance to burst their vocal chords.

Host Carson Daly (the MTV generation’s Dick Clark) welcomed back a dazzling list of performers, including a gorgeous Beyonce, a blinged out 50 Cent, Kid Rock, Christina Aguilera and my favorite boy band graduate, the cute-as-a-button, Justin Timberlake.

Another highlight was Blink 182’s Travis Barker, who appeared via satellite from Los Angeles in his first televised interview since surviving his Sept. 19 plane crash.

"Every day gets better. I feel better every day," he told fans. "I'm already playing my drums again and am back in the studio. I'm thankful to be able to play."

Former host and Nick Lachey main squeeze, Vanessa Manillo, appeared in glittering diamond star drop earrings but unfortunately wore a dress that Paris Hilton made famous on the David Letterman show a few weeks back. Ouch. New stylist, anyone?

But perhaps the night’s most talked about performance was a surprisingly tight showing by the only boy band still standing, The Backstreet Boys. Also surprising was how I found myself singing every word to their hit, “I Want It That Way”, while watching last night.

OK. Maybe it’s not that surprising…

While youngsters like singer, Taylor Swift, remember coming of age to this television classic, many musicians experienced career-changing experiences on the show.

Perhaps a resurfaced Eminem said it best when he phoned in and said, “I feel like they’re tearing down my home.”

Or as *NSYNC would say, “tearing up my heart”…

Good bye TRL! You will (admittedly) be missed…

Diamonds Rock the VMAs. And a Phoenix Rises From the Ashes

We all waited with bated breath. Will she stumble over her words? Will she attempt to dance? Or (gasp!) sing? Will she no longer have the Miller Lite paunch and the chin acne? Much like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Miss Britney Spears did herself proud at the VMAs on Sunday night. And a nation breathed a sigh of relief.

Stunning in a pair of diamond drop earrings, Brit Brit took home three coveted Moon Men and made nary a misstep as she introduced the show and gave quick, heartfelt acceptance speeches.

Before the show, the red carpet revealed more diamond divas as Pink dolled up in Neil Lane diamond and platinum bangle bracelets, black diamond flower earrings and a diamond Right Hand Ring.

Diamond wrist-wear was the bling of choice for Lauren Conrad. Paris Hilton and model, Bar Rafeli, worked the statement necklace trend and the big earring brigade included Spice Girl, Mel B, Cristina Aguilera, and reality star, Brooke Hogan.

While the fashion impressed, the show itself got mixed reviews. Host, Russel Brand, created controversy over his spat with the Jonas Brothers and their virginal promise rings. What is he going to do? The trio practically threatened to give MTV a Disney make over with their sweet little three-part harmonies and floppy hair cuts. Sorry, America. I ain’t buyin’ it.

Or maybe Russel and I just miss the days when you might see Nirvana’s bassist clubbing himself in the face with his own guitar, or that guy from Rage Against the Machine climbing the set fixtures. I'm just saying...