Karen (Katharine McPhee) may not have snagged the lead role in Marilyn: The Musical – yet — but that doesn’t mean she’s staying out of the spotlight. In this clip from the March 12 episode of NBC’s Smash, Karen takes center-stage at a bar mitzvah, where she belts out a solid rendition of Florence + The Machine‘s “Shake It Out” for a crowd of pre-teen whippersnappers.

I went to my fair share of bar mitzvahs back in the day, and I’ve got to say, they all could have used a little Karen Cartwright to sing away the pre-pubescent awkwardness.

(Plus, click here for our exclusive scoop on Julia’s affair — and Fran’s revenge!)

Check out Karen’s performance of “Shake It Out” below, and be sure to watch the new episode in its entirety March 12 at 10 p.m. on NBC! You know I’ll be there.

— Andy Swift

Follow Andy on Twitter for more Smash scoop 

NYLON‘s Music Issue Launch Party in NYC on Jun. 21 drew quite an a-list crowd, including the mag’s latest cover girl Florence Welch, lead singer of popular band Florence and the Machine! The star opted for a frock from Anna Sui’s Fall 2011 collection when she showed up at Mr. H to fete her glam cover. I’m used to Florence’s personal sense of style, so I wouldn’t expect to see her in anything else. The dress itself is intricate and chic — but her overall look left much to be desired!

In this instance I think the star seriously over-accessorized! The ankle strap pumps she chose were cute, as was the Chanel Mademoiselle bag. In fact, it’s the same bag her BFF Blake Lively endorses! However, the combination was a bit much — I think she should have carried a smaller handbag. None of these accessories bothered me as much as the hat — it was a major miss, and it took attention away from her beautiful dress!

This definitely wasn’t my favorite look on the songstress, but what do you think?

Spencer Cain

It was a British dream at Soho House on Sept. 14 as the swank Mulberry presentation brought out the design house’s muse Alexa Chung, Kelly Osbourne, Gemma Arterton, and special performer and guest Florence Welch from Florence + the Machine! Not to be outdone, super stylish Americans were also on hand in the form of Alexis Bledel and Dree Hemingway as well as Australian Twi-throb Xavier Samuel with girlfriend Shermine Shahrivar.

Uptown at Pier 92, the Diesel Black Gold show drew Xavier’s Twilight costar Julia Jones, Paz de la Huerta, and Fashion Week’s most ubiquitous guest, Misshapes DJ Leigh Lezark. Back at the tents, Claire Danes and Sarah Jessica Parker both made their second and third appearances respectively of the season at pal Narcisco Rodriguez‘s show!

The bright and early 10 am call time at Michael Kors on Sept. 15 didn’t deter the likes of Rashida Jones, Serena Williams, and New York’s own Donald Trump with wife Melania from catching the designer’s colorful spring collection. The somewhat later call time for Nanette Lepore however managed to bring out Broadway babe Kristin Chenoweth and Jamie-Lynn Sigler.

Who was your fave celeb?

-Chris Spargo

Getty Images

I was in the audience at MTV’s 2010 Video Music Awards, and I think everyone will agree with me when I say the show needed a showdown between Kanye West and Taylor Swift to spice it up!

Are you as disappointed as I am in this year’s VMA‘s, HollywoodLifers? I kept on waiting for that one moment that would define it, make it exciting and unexpected – but nothing ever happened!

I’ve been predicting a big showdown between Kanye West and Taylor Swift for weeks. Sure, it would have been totally staged, but even that would have been better than Kanye’s closer – the debut of his new single, “Runaway.” He admitted to be a douchebag (his words, not mine) and an asshole (also his words) and suggested that we should toast him, because he isn’t going to change. No big surprise there.

What SHOULD have happened is that Taylor should have come onstage at the Nokia Theatre and raised a glass of sparkling cider (hey, she’s only 20 – not legal!) to Mr. West and been the bigger person in a tongue in cheek way, or crash the stage during HIS performance. Instead, Tay debuted a new song of her own and told the 33-year-old hip-hop star that she forgave him for dissing her win at the 2009 VMA’s. She said he lost [his] mind trying to get it back” and acknowledged that “32 is still growing up now” (he was 32 last year) before putting the incident in the past with “time turns flames to embers” and “minds change like the weather – I hope you remember today is never late to be brand new.”

So, there was our big letdown – er….SHOWDOWN.

What else failed to impress at the Gucci Guilty sponsored event? Lady Gaga‘s three wins were totally expected – but you may not have heard her swear on the small screen…her “f***ing awesome” after winning her first award of the night for Best Female Video was bleeped out on TV. Ditto to Justin Bieber‘s Best New Artist win — but let me tell you, when little 16-year-old Biebs came running out in his Varsity jacket to perform “Baby”, the entire audience snickered. The pint-sized singing sensation soon changed the audience’s mind though — everyone around me started singing!

The Jersey Shore cast hanging out in a hottub on stage? Not a shocker — and I’m sick of seeing The Situation‘s abs.

In case you think I’m just hating to hate, there WERE a few cool moments at this year’s ceremony. Eminem and Rihanna opening the show with “I’m Not Afraid” and “Love the Way You Lie” was pretty epic. Too bad Em had to hop on a plane to NYC right after his performance, which prevented him from actually accepting his Best Hip-Hop Video Moonman.

I have to give props to two of my favorite news artists, Robyn and Florence + the Machine, for some killer performances. I also must congratulate my favorite funny girl, Chelsea Handler. The late night host was pretty damn awesome, although she wasn’t given nearly enough time to make us laugh. A sample of her fabulous one-liners: “‘The Situation’ is just another name for teenage pregnancy’, ‘Joe Manganiello, I want to sit on your face’ and ‘Beyonce and Lady Gaga are leotarded.’”

However, if I were giving out awards for the night, I would actually give a big ol’ Moonman to Lindsay Lohan for (shockingly) having a sense of humor. In her opening skit with Chelsea, the recently jailed and rehabbed 24-year-old made fun of her SCRAM bracelet and the hot mess that has been her year. “Pull it together! You’re a mess! Do you think anyone wants to work with a drunk? Take it from me – they don’t!” she told Chelsea, 35, who responded, “OK, OK. You’ve turned your life around – maybe I can, too!”

If only this year’s VMA’s had had more of THOSE surprising moments (as well as a much-needed performance from Katy Perry!) I would have been the happiest gal in the world.

Email me! | Follow Hollywoodlife.com on | Become a fan