Last night, Much Music announced the nominees for the 2012 Much Music Video Awards, shining a light on Vancouver angst-pop band Marianas Trench, who logged 7 nominations. Both Hedley and Drake trailed the Trench with 5 nominations, while the Bieber-affiliated Carly Rae Jepsen and douche-rockers Down With Webster nabbed 4 nominations each. Justin Bieber scored a pair of nominations for his “Boyfriend” video, and Toronto Polaris-core rockers Fucked Up even earned a nomination for MuchLOUD Rock Video Of The Year.

Just when I thought there was nothing else Biebs could do to make me fall in love with him, he releases the song “Turn to You” as a dedication to his mother. It doesn’t end there – proceeds from sales of the song on iTunes will go to The Salvation Army’s Bethesda Centre, which is where his mom turned when she became pregnant with JB.

TMZ is reporting that Britney Spears is close to approving a deal with Simon Cowell that would have her judging the X Factor next season, to the tune of $15 million. Clearly, judging a television singing competition is just as fruitful as releasing your own celebrity fragrance. This got us to thinking — what could Britney spend her $15 million X Factor salary on?

You’re a Pop Hunter now, and it’s time to start acting like one. Our patented RADIO SURVIVAL GUIDE will feature three songs that are brand new to pop radio, and tell you whether or not they’re worth your time. Welcome to the jungle.

The 24 year-old Virginia-born songwriter and producer Benny Blanco is actually the protege and main collaborator of Dr. Luke, who we’ve featured before in our producer Friday Mixtape series. The pair have worked together extensively over the past few years (Blanco is listed as co-producer and songwriter on many of Dr. Luke’s biggest hits), but Benny Blanco is really starting to carve out his own niche in the pop production spectrum.

So, you’re going through a break-up. It’s likely that you are too caught up in trying to mend your heart and are oblivious to the fact that there are three stages of a breakup. You should also beg your ears and your pride for forgiveness because you’ve likely subjected yourself to some questionable pop music. Carrie Underwood, Adele, Taylor Swift — these are all musical staples of a rough split. Let’s break down the stages of a breakup and try and understand why we listen to the songs we do when our hearts are broken.