Chelsea Handler To Host 2010 MTV Video Music Awards

Chelsea Handler takes the stage in Miami Beach on March 26, 2010Getty PremiumAccess Hollywood

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Comic and "Chelsea Lately" host Chelsea Handler will host the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards, following in the footsteps of funnyman Russell Brand (who hosted event for the past two years), Access Hollywood has confirmed.
"This has been a huge year for hip-hop and rap, and it is well-known that I have the closest ties with these communities - musically and sexually," said Chelsea Handler in statement released to Access. "I am to rap and hippity-hop, what Warren Buffet is to finance, minus the sex."
VIEW THE PHOTOS: 2010 MTV Movie Awards
On Wednesday's "Chelsea Lately," where she first announced her new gig, she joked, "Everyone knows that when you think of rap music and hip-hop you think of 'Chelsea Lately.' And that's why I will be hosting... Let the ass-kissing begin!"
As previously announced, Lady Gaga, Eminem, Drake, Usher and Katy Perry are up for a slew of awards this year, while Kanye West, B.o.B, Florence and the Machine and Justin Bieber are slated to perform.
VIEW THE PHOTOS: MTV Movie Awards Red Carpet 2009
The 2010 MTV Video Music Awards will air live from Los Angeles on September 12 at 9 PM.