Christmas at the home of Bret Michaels is lively and loud and sounds pretty freaking awesome if you ask me. He shared his Christmas card exclusively with US Weekly and tells the magazine:

"My family wakes up at the crack of dawn," he told Us. "We grab guitars and jam!"

Can you imagine? Not being a morning person he would probably be wearing guitar strings instead of hair extensions if I had to wake up to that loudness. 

Bret's fellow rockers on Christmas morning will include his beautiful fiancee Kristi Lynne Gibson and daughters Raine 11 and Jorja 6.

Do you like his Christmas card? it would have been nice if he didn't bother with the shirt.

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Hilary Duff took to Twitter and wished her fans Happy Holidays, or her baby bump kind of did. She had her sister Haylie Duff pain a Christmas present with the words Happy Holidays on her tummy for us to see.

Firstly her sister is uber talented! I mean that is just fabulous, and second Hilary's figure is so gorgeous. But after I got over all that, my eyeballs couldn't stay off of that big mofo ring! But you know what? She seems like a genuinely sweet, lovely girl and kudos to her for having a boulder like that. She is going to make an excellent mother! Some things in life are pretty predictable.

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For the first time in seven years the music industry has seen a surge in album sales that included both digital purchases and track sales (up 20% and 9% respectively). You have powerhouses like Adele, Rihanna, Beyonce, Katy Perry, Lady GaGa, Taylor Swift, Nicki Minaj, Jennifer Lopez and our girl Britney Spears.

These women put out top albums that dominated the radio play of stations as well as touring and television performances (think award shows for sure).

Adele's very first album 21,sold 5 million copies. Katy Perry's Teenage Dream album has seen 5 singles top the charts which ties Michael Jackson's record. Total downloads for Katy: 15 million downloads. I'm not sure how much an artist earns but I'm thinking she's pretty filthy rich at this point.

Her BFF Rihanna put out two albums in the year, racking up 1.9 million in sales and then of course there are her very creative concert performances that seemed to make headlines of their own.

Jim Donio, president of the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (they are responsible for tracking the market) says:

"These girls have become brands on a global scale," says Donio. "They're all dominant in their own way and bring with them an interesting cross-section of fans."

Not to mention music that is worth listening to! To think that the music industry has been in a 'slump' since 2004 and because of these incredibly talented women the industry is starting to turn it around! This is just the beginning. Imagine what 2012 brings us?

That's not to say men didn't contribute to the surge in the industry. Of course they did without question, but in an industry that hasn't really seen female domination of this size, I'd say this is the beginning of some very big things for women in music.

According to iTunes the top selling albums and songs:

ITUNES' TOP SELLERS

ALBUMS

1. 21: Adele
2. Sigh No More: Mumford & Sons
3. Tha Carter IV: Lil Wayne
4. Watch the Throne: Kanye West/Jay-Z
5. Mylo Xyloto: Coldplay
6. Born This Way: Lady Gaga
7. Loud: Rihanna
8. Take Care: Drake
9. Teenage Dream: Katy Perry
10. Doo-Wops & Hooligans: Bruno Mars

SONGS

1. "Rolling in the Deep": Adele
2. "Party Rock Anthem": LMFAO
3. "Firework": Katy Perry
4. "Grenade": Bruno Mars
5. "Forget You": Cee Lo Green
6. "Give Me Everything": Pitbull feat. Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer
7. "E.T.": Katy Perry feat. Kanye West
8. "Moves Like Jagger": Maroon 5 feat. Christina Aguilera
9. "Pumped Up Kicks" Foster the People
10. "Super Bass" Nicki Minaj

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She may be The Duchess of Cambridge but this week, she's also Queen of the Red Carpet.  Wearing a stunning strapless, fish-tailed, black velvet Alexander McQueen, the same designer of her wedding gown, Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge joined her dashing husband Prince William at the A Night of Heroes awards ceremony, which honored the extraordinary service men and women of the British military, at the Imperial War Museum in London, UK on December 19.  Kate accessorized her gown with a diamond and ruby star-burst necklace and matching earrings, with Prada pumps and clutch.  However, her most precious accessory of the evening was her beloved Prince William who also donned his finest black-tie attire.  The delicately ruffled sweetheart neckline is very flattering on Kate, and I especially love seeing her wear her hair down which frames her beautiful face.  Diana would have been proud.  Kate, keep that flame burning!

From dirty Harry does Vegas to handsome Harry honors Heroes.  Cutting a dashing figure in his finest black-tie apparel and looking every part the prince, Harry was also in the house at the A Night of Heroes awards ceremony in London, UK on December 19.  Don't you think he looks like a young James Bond making his way through Monte Carlo Casino?  (Think about it, Harry.)  Just a few weeks earlier, the 27-year-old thrill-seeking royal rented a Harley-Davidson Softail Classic (top right) in November on his day off from his eight-week helicopter training course in Imperial Valley, Arizona and decided to ride to Las Vegas (with his security team in the distance).  Back home in London, Harry owns a Ducati 848.  But this isn't all about motorbikes.  This is about a young – girls take note, available – Prince who looks as good cruising the Nevada desert on a Harley in blue jeans as he does wearing a tux.  And for that reason, Harry earns not one, but two spots in this week's fashionista line-up.  And Harry dear if you're reading this, please take no offense to any metaphors.  (After all … what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.)  Just sayin'. 

Also attending the A Night of Heroes awards ceremony in London, UK on December 19 were British singer-songwriter, dancer, model and television personality, Alesha Dixon, 33 and British actress, Catherine Tyldesley, 28.  Alesha leaves them breathless in this stunning strapless, mermaid style blush gown with just a slight train.  The artistry of the gown is captured in a rich texture of organza sculpted into a three-dimensional rose-like floral and abstract design arrangement scattered throughout the dress.  Completing her look, Alesha wears her hair in soft waves swept over to the side to create an overall glam look, not to mention, a glimpse of her jeweled drop-style earrings.  Catherine also makes a breathtaking impact as she opted for a chic and sophisticated look in an alluring one-shoulder midnight blue gown and looked every bit a Grecian goddess with her hair swept up into a refined chignon showing off her sun-kissed shoulders and drop-style earrings.  Two very captivating looks on one very unforgettable evening. 

They don`t call her the Queen for nothing.  Queen Latifah, 41, ruled the VH1 Divas Celebrates Soul event at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City this past week, and heated up the December night when she wore a slim custom royal blue crepe George Chakra Fall 2011 gown with a one-shoulder, crystal embellished neckline, which probably had every paparazzi on their knees crying, "We are not worthy!"  For all you Queen Latifah fans, the Queen will be starring in the upcoming musical film, Joyful Noise, which is scheduled to hit theatres on January 13, 2012.  The film is about two strong-minded women who are forced to cooperate when budget cuts threaten to shut down a small town choir, and my guess is that Queen Latifah is one of those two strong-minded women.  By the way, did you know that Queen Latifah works out with a trainer and kick boxes?  That`s right … don`t mess with royalty.

This almost wraps up my first year of fashion commentating here at ineedmyfix.com.  I thank you all for your viewership and comments.  It`s been, at the very least, a pleasure and I look forward to next year. 

Next week, I will be presenting my top picks for 2011 and I can assure you it won`t be easy.  Until then, I wish all of you the happiest of the holiday season.  Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Kwanzaa. 

Thank you and peace and love to all of you!

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Woo Hoo! Deadline is reporting that AMC has renewed its newest series, Hell On Wheels, for a second season. Not only does that mean that 5 out of the network’s 6 original scripted series to date have now gone beyond their first season, but it means that the network and the producers have faith in its ability to attract an audience and that it still has growth potential.  Hell On Wheels, debuted in November with a solid 4.4 million viewers, making it AMC’s second-highest-rated series premiere (The Walking Dead is still #1) Ratings have fallen off a bit since, but Hell On Wheels consistently delivers more than 2 million Sunday night viewers, including the latest, episode 7 which had 2.3 million.

“Hell on Wheels tells the epic story of post-Civil War America, focusing on a Confederate soldier (Anson Mount) who sets out to exact revenge on the Union soldiers who have killed his wife. His journey takes him west to ‘Hell on Wheels,’ a dangerous, raucous, lawless melting pot of a town that travels with and services the construction of the first transcontinental railroad, an engineering feat unprecedented for its time. The series examines the railroad's institutionalized greed and corruption, the immigrant experience, and the plight of the newly emancipated African-Americans during reconstruction. Over time, Hell on Wheels chronicles this potent turning point in our nation's history, and how uncivilized the business of civilization can be.”

Now that that’s out of the way, can we talk about Mr. Cullen Bohannon? First, how fantastic is that name? Second, I may not have been familiar with Mr. Mount’s previous work, but I’m a fan now. We like the strong, silent, dangerous and damaged types and Cullen Bohannon is all of those things. Anson Mount has swallowed Cullen’s pain so that it lives deep down inside and is only visible through his eyes.

The other major players are all exceptional as well. Colm Meaney is just the right mix of greed, charm and menace. Dominique McElligott is a delicate-looking English Rose with a sharp mind and a determination to live life on her own terms, with more guts than a lot of the men she encounters. Christopher Heyerdahl is malice and bigotry personified, a villain worthy of any traditional western. Common plays ex-slave Elam with intelligence and dignity that hides a tightly coiled rage. The rest of the cast includes Tom Noonan, Ben Esler, Wes Studi and Phil Burke. I am really enjoying this show, can you tell? I’m so glad I gave it a shot.

Taking a week off for Christmas, Episode 8 is slated for Jan. 1. No word yet as to when production will start on Season 2.

There’s a great new tv spot for Joe Carnahan’s The Grey with Liam Neeson. It’s called “Fear” and it’s pretty terrifying. From the arctic chill I get just from watching it to the long fangs on the snarling Alaskan Timber Wolves (the ‘Grey’ of the title), I’d say it achieves the desired effect.

Joe Carnahan (The A-Team – also with Neeson, Narc, Smokin' Aces) knows how to do action and I have no doubt that there will be plenty of that in The Grey. The thing starts with a plane crash and things just get worse from there..

Official synopsis: A group of oil-rig roughnecks are left stranded on the sub-arctic tundra after their plane experiences a complete mechanical failure and crashes into the remote Alaskan wilderness. The survivors, battling mortal injuries, biting cold and ravenous hunger, are relentlessly hunted and pursued by a vicious pack of rogue wolves.

While I'm personally enjoying Neeson's recent incarnation as a middle-aged action hero, I’d much rather see him in something like this than the upcoming Battleship! (He's already signed on for Taken 2.) The Grey also stars James Badge Dale, Dallas Roberts, Dermot Mulroney, Frank Grillo and Nonso Anonzie. It opens in theaters January 27 in the US and Canada.

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video source JoBlo