Taylor Swift Rebuilds Seaside Wall at Rhode Island Home, Locals Angered by Repairs

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Listen, Rhode Islanders, Imma let you finish, butTaylor Swift is one of the best neighbors of all time.

There's been some misguided anger towards the 24-year-old country-pop singer for rebuilding a sea wall outside of her beachfront Westerly, R.I., home. One opinion column claimed the construction was being done on a "public" beach without "one single permit from the town," but Laura Dwyer, a spokeswoman for the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council, told The Westerly Sun Swift's "riprap revetment repair" is A-OK--and yes, proper permits were obtained. 

"It all started during [Hurricane] Sandy," Dwyer told the paper. "The wall sustained damage during Sandy." She confirmed that on Nov. 6 permits were issued to Swift for repairs on the stone wall (replacing unsafe rocks and resettling existing rocks), adding that the construction being done is "a permitted activity." 

And locals needn't worry, because Swift's sea wall won't be preventing them from accessing their beloved East Beach. "There must be access at all times [during construction]," Dwyer said. "We made sure of that."

Westerly's director of planning, code enforcement and grant administration, Amy Grzybowski, confirmed that town officials are aware of Swift's construction. 

Let's hope Swift's Northern neighbors come around. Swift's Southern neighbors have nothing but love for the Nashville-based beauty. In fact, she was just named 2013 Tennessean of the Year.

Rhode Island, just remember, it's never too late to be brand new!

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Taylor Swift and Justin Timberlake Earn Top Honors at 2013 American Music Awards—See All the Winners!

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That's a wrap on the 2013 American Music Awards!

It seems as though Justin Timberlake and Taylor Swift stole the show with their multiple awards throughout the evening.

Timberlake brought sexy back with his latest album, The 20/20 Experience—The Complete Experience, which earned the top honor for Favorite Soul/R&B Album.

He also nabbed the awards for Artist of the Year, Favorite Pop/Rock and Soul/R&B Artist! Wowza—talk about a trifecta!

Miss Swift also has several new AMA trophies to add to her mantle.

The singer walked away with the statue for Favorite Country Female Artist and Favorite Country Album.

Other stars took to the stage as well, including Rihanna, One Direction and Ariana Grande.  

Here's the complete list of winners for the 2013 American Music Awards:

Artist of the Year: Taylor Swift

Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist: Justin Timberlake

Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist: Taylor Swift

Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group: One Direction

Favorite Pop/Rock Album:  One Direction, Take Me Home

Favorite Country Female Artist: Taylor Swift

Favorite Country Male Artist: Luke Bryan

Favorite Country Band/Duo/Group: Lady Antebellum

Favorite Country Album: Taylor Swift, Red

Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, The Heist

Favorite Adult Contemporary Music Artist: Maroon 5

Favorite Electronic Dance Music Artist: Avicii

Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist: Justin Timberlake

Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist: Rihanna

Favorite Soul/R&B Album: Justin Timberlake, The 20/20 Experience—The Complete Experience

Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist: Imagine Dragons

Favorite Latin Artist: Marc Anthony

New Artist of the Year: Ariana Grande

Single of the Year: "Cruise," Florida George Line Feat. Nelly

Icon Award: Rihanna 

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2013 American Music Awards: The Best, Worst and Jaw Dropping Moments!

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This year's American Music Awards was packed with moments that made us swoon, made us cheer, and made us stare at the screen in confusion.

From Rihanna's Icon Award win to Lady Gaga and R.Kelly's performance and Miley Cyrus's puzzling animated kitten, there were many memorable moments to be had.

Check out our picks for the best, worst and jaw dropping scenes from the 2013 American Music Awards!ut.

The Best:

Rihanna's Touching Moment With Her Mom: We're still a little puzzled over why Bill Maher introduced the "Stay" crooner to the stage for her soulful rendition of "Diamonds," but there was a super sweet moment to be had after Rihanna stunned in a black gown during her performance of the song. When the singer stepped on stage to pick up the AMAs first-ever Icon Award, her mom came out carrying the trophy.

"I'm so proud of you," her mom, Monica Braithwaite, said. "I know your journey hasn't been an easy one, but tonight I admire and applaud you for being so strong and so positive and so humble and so focused. It's amazing how you manage to take good from all your experiences." 

Justin Timberlake's Boredom: The "TKO" crooner looked super bored in the audience in the midst of Pitbull's nostalgic show opener. "It's a Miracle I'm here tonight," Pitbull said. The camera soon cut to Timberlake looking aloof and clapping slowly in the audience. He miraculously came to life though when he won Favorite Pop/Rock male, telling Taylor Swift she looked "lovely tonight" as he accepted the award from her. He went on to completely own the show winning Favorite male R&B/Soul Artist, Favorite male Pop/Rock artist and Favorite R&B/Soul Album for The 20/20 Experience. 

ABC/Matt Brown

Jennifer Lopez's Celia Cruz Tribute: Dressed up in a colorful flamenco-style dress to pay tribute to the late salsa icon, J.Lo hit the stage with a gaggle of dancers for a performance that caused the audience to leap to their feet. 

One Direction's First Big Win: Taylor and her ex-Harry Styles went head to head for favorite pop/rock album, with the boy band taking home the award in the end. The nod was particularly special to the group considering it was their first time at the AMAs and their first win.

Pitbull's Twerking Contest: We don't know if Pitbull was having a twerking contest orwhat, but when he brought four ladies clad in black onesies on the stage to do a few dance moves, (the Doo Doo Brown, etc.) a very awkward moment ensued.The Worst:

Lady Gaga and R. Kelly (President Robert)'s Performance: In what looked like a "Trapped in the Closet" reboot, R. Kelly sang his way through "Do What You Want" as President Robert, while Mother Monster crooned the duet dressed as what appeared to be Marilyn Monroe. Never one to put on a tame performance, the pop star ended up getting straddled by R. Kelly before the show was done.

The Talking Cat in Miley Cyrus' performance background: What does a talking (and crying) kitten have to do with a wrecking ball? We're not sure. That aside, the singer hit the stage rocking a very high cut-out leotard with kittens all over it and performed in front of a backdrop that had a huge anime kitten in it. ABC did its best to cut around her barely-there onesie. The Jaw Dropper: 

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Kendall Jenner and Harry Styles Go on a Dinner Date—See the Pic!

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Just friends or something more?

That's what everyone seemed to be asking after Kendall Jenner was spotted stepping out for a dinner date with none other than Harry Styles in West Hollywood, Calif., on Wednesday, Nov. 20.

The 18-year-old E! star and the 19-year-old One Direction dude were photographed in the singer's black Range Rover after leaving Craig's restaurant at about 12:15 in the morning.

However, a source tells E! News, "They aren't 'dating.' They are just friends. That was like the first real time they hung out. We will see what happens."

Meanwhile, a rep for Styles says, "There is no comment on this."

Jenner recently addressed speculation that she was dating rapper Young Jinsu.

"Enough with the rumors! I'm single, people," she tweeted last month. Her mother, Kris Jenner, also set the record straight on the romance rumors, telling E! News, "It's not her boyfriend. She doesn't have a boyfriend."

Styles, of course, famously dated Taylor Swift and was also linked to supermodel Cara Delevingne.

As for Jenner and Styles, time will tell, of course, if they are an item or not.

Stay tuned!

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Taylor Swift Wears Union Jack Minidress, Shows Off Long Legs but Leaves Lingerie to the Pros at Victoria's Secret Fashion Show

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Taylor Swift , reporting for duty.

The pop-country superstar left the lingerie to the professionals, but she showed up at the 2013 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show showing off her own assets in a tight, floral-beaded minidress by Zuhair Murad.

She went on to perform in a teeny Union Jack dress with a flowing train in honor of one of the night's many themes, British Invasion, and also goof around on the runway with the models in a similarly short silver frock.

Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images

Swift sang "I Knew You Were Trouble" as fake snow fell from the rafters at the Lexington Avenue Armory, where the famed Victoria's Secret Angels paraded down the runway for the 18th time in various states of dressed-up undress.

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The featured models this year included Karlie Kloss, Doutzen Kroes, Alessandra Ambrosio, Adriana Lima, joan smalls, Lily Aldridge, Candice Swanepoel and Cara Delevigne. (Former Angel Miranda Kerr tweeted her well-wishes the other day from Japan.)

Let's just say, the feathers were flying and the tulle was trailing and, every once in a while, a prop showed up like sexy footballer Delevingne's soccer ball. Nicholas Kirkwood and Sophia Webster provided the ubiquitous stiletto footwear.

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Swanepoel was the Angel chosen to rock the "Crown Jewels," aka the $10 million bra studded with diamonds, rubies and sapphires.

In addition to British Invasion, the themes of this year's ensembles included Snow Angels, Shipwrecked (as evidenced by some tattered wings), Parisian Nights, Pink Network and Birds of Paradise.

The lucky gents of Fall Out Boy also performed at the show, which airs as a one-hour special Dec. 10 on CBS.

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

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