2017 Music News
Music News
2017 News
Bruno Mars was the big winner at this years American Music Awards, hosted by Tracee Ellis Ross. He took home 7 awards, including "Artist of the Year". "Collaboration of the Year" went to Despacito, Niall Horan won "New Artist of the Year", and Diana Ross was honored with the AMA for Lifetime Achievement.
Malcolm Young, founding member and guitarists of AC/DC, passed away at the age of 64. Young had been fighting an ongoing battle with dementia for the last three years, which forced him to leave the band in 2014. The musician also suffered from a bout of lung cancer in 2008 that was treated successfully, as well as an unspecified heart condition which later necessitated a pacemaker.
(In Memoriam: January 6th, 1953 – November 18th, 2017)
Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman will be ending the full touring iteration of the punk institution in 2018. However, Warped Tour will return 2019 for its 25th anniversary.
Stone Temple Pilots have announced their new lead singer two years after frontman Scott Weiland passed away. Their new singer is Jeff Gutt, a Detroit native and former "The X-Factor" contestant.
Taylor Swift's new album "Reputation" became the first album to sell over 1 million copies in its first week in nearly 2 years, since Adele's 25 in 2015.
Chuck Mosley, former frontman of Faith No More, passed away at the age of 57. Drug paraphernalia was discovered at the scene, with police suspecting a heroin overdose as the cause of death
(In Memoriam: December 26, 1959 – November 9, 2017)
Sean "Diddy" Combs announced he's changing his name again, to "Love". He said: “I know it’s risky because it could come off as corny to some people. So my new name is Love, aka Brother Love. I will not be answering to Puffy, Diddy, Puff Daddy, or any of my other monikers... I’m just not who I am before. I’m something different.”
Beyonce will play Nala in the remake of "The Lion King", along with Donald Glover as Simba. It is set to be released July 19, 2019.
New Orleans icon Fats Domino, one of the original pioneers of rock and roll music, passed away at the age of 89.
(In Memoriam: February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017)
Offset proposed to Cardi B onstage at Power 99's Powerhouse concert in Philadelphia.
It was officially announced that Justin Timberlake will perform at this years Super Bowl LII in February.
Ed Sheeran canceled several of his upcoming tour dates after breaking both arms in a bicycle accident. Sheeran has fractures in his right wrist and left elbow "that will leave me unable to perform live concerts for the immediate future".
At this years BET Hip-Hop Awards, Kendrick Lamar took home four awards, including album of the year for "DAMN" and Best Hip-Hop Video for Humble. Cardi B's Bodak Yellow won the award for single of the year, as well as best new hip-hop artist. DJ Khaled was also a multiple winner for Best Collabo,DJ of the Year, and MVP of the Year.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced the nominees for its Class of 2018. The nominees include Radiohead and Rage Against the Machine, who just became eligible for nomination this year. Other first-timers are Kate Bush, Nina Simone, Eurythmics, Judas Priest, Dire Straits and Moody Blues. J. Geils Band are returning for their fifth year of nomination, and L.L. Cool J is back for his fourth. The Rock Hall inductees will be announced in December of this year.
Iconic rock singer-songwriter Tom Petty passed away at the age of 66 from a heart attack.
(In Memoriam: October 20, 1950 – October 2, 2017 )
The Weeknd has announced a collaboration with Marvel Comics. "The Weeknd and Marvel presents : STARBOY", a new comic book coming soon.
Marilyn Manson has cancelled a number of tour dates following an injury on stage at New York’s Manhattan Center Hammerstein Ballroom. A large stage prop fell on the performer. Manson will not be able to perform any dates from October 2-14 and “hopes to return to the stage soon"
It was announced that Luke Bryan will be a judge on the reboot of American Idol. Katy Perry was previously announced. The rebooted show will air in March on ABC.
Neil Young was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall Of Fame. The ceremony took place at Toronto’s Massey Hall .
Grant Hart, drummer and co-songwriter for Husker Du passed away at the age of 56 from liver cancer.
(In Memoriam: March 18, 1961 – September 13, 2017)
Selena Gomez revealed that she received a kidney transplant from actress Francia Raisa. The transplant was needed from complications related to Lupus, first diagnosed in October 2015.
Lady Gaga canceled a performance after being hospitalized for pain. She later announced she suffers from fibromyalgia, a medical condition characterized by chronic pain. The cause of FM is unknown.
Ezra Koening of Vampire Weekend created an anime, called "Neo Yokio", that will air on Netflix on September 22nd. He is also hard at work on a new album for Vampire Weekend, that is almost completed.
Puddle of Mudd frontman Wes Scantlin was arrested for attempting to bring a BB gun onto a flight to Texas.
The Antlers unofficially announced their break up via Twitter, responding to a fan.
Walter Becker, guitarist, vocalist, and co-founder of Steely Dan, passed away at the age of 67.
(In Memoriam: February 20, 1950 – September 3, 2017)
Kendrick Lamar won 'Video of the Year' for HUMBLE at the 2017 MTV VMAs. Other winners included Ed Sheeran for 'Artist of the Year' and Khalid for 'Best New Artist'.
Chvrches will appear in the new Archie Comics series. They'll be making their debut at the end of 'The Archies #2'. In later issues, they'll be acting as mentors to The Archies band.
Drake ended his record streak for most consecutive weeks on the Billboard Top 100. For the first time since Best I Ever Had debuted on the chart in 2009, until the latest Hot 100 (dated Aug. 26) when Passionfruit and Signs fell off. The streak was over 8 years, 431 weeks total. The next artist to even come close was Lil Wayne who spent 326 weeks straight on the Top 100.
Taylor Swift won her case against former KYGO radio DJ Robert Mueller, who was fired in 2013 after Swift accused him of groping her prior to concert in Denver. Swift sued for a symbolic $1, intended as “an example to other women who may resist publicly reliving similar outrageous and humiliating acts.”
In memory of Chris Cornell, a statue will be built in Seattle. The location has not yet been determined.
Country legend Glen Campbell passed away from complications from Alzheimer’s disease at the age of 81.
(In Memoriam: March 20, 1976 – July 20, 2017 )
Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber's Despacito became the most viewed video on YouTube with over 3 billion views. It takes the top spot from See You Again, which just beat out Gangnam Style back in July.
Aaron Carter came out as bisexual in a post to his fans on Twitter.
2017 nominees for the Mercury Prize were announced. The Mercury Prize is awarded to the best British album of the year. Nominees include: Alt-J, Blossoms, Ed Sheeran, Glass Animals, J Hus, Sampha, Stormzy and The xx
Chester Bennington, frontman of Linkin Park, passed away at the age of 41. His death occurred on what would have been Chris Cornell's 53rd birthday. Cornell, who was a close friend of Bennington, had also died of suicide by hanging two months prior. He was also the godfather of Cornell's son Christopher.
(In Memoriam: March 20, 1976 – July 20, 2017 )
MTV announced the nominees for the 2017 Video Music Awards. Kendrick Lamar leads the pack with eight awards for his acclaimed album DAMN, while Katy Perry and the The Weeknd are tied for five nominations each. Bruno Mars, Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran, Ariana Grande, The Weeknd and Lorde are nominated for Artist of the Year. The VMAs will air on Sunday, August 27th.
Ed Sheeran made a guest appearance in the first episode of the seventh season of Game of Thrones. In it, he sings the song Hands of Gold.
Billboard released their list of highest paid musicians for last year. Beyonce took the top place, earning over $62 million. Guns N Roses was second on the list with $42 million. Bruce Springsteen, Drake and Adele rounded out the top 5.
DMX was arrested on federal tax fraud charges. He owes the IRS at least $1.7 million for allegedly concealing his income for years. If convicted, he faces 44 years in federal prison.
Daddy Yankee became the first Latin artist to become the number one most streamed artist on Spotify. He has over 44 million listens, topping the previous record held by Ed Sheeran.
Gavin Russom of LCD Soundsystem came out as being transgender at the age of 43.
Michelle Branch and Patrick Carney of The Black Keys announced they are engaged. He proposed on Michelle's 34th birthday. They met when he co-produced her latest album "Hopeless Romantic".
Hayley Williams of Paramore and New Found Glory guitarist Chad Gilbert announced they are separating. They previously started dating in 2008, and just got married last year.
Chance the Rapper became the youngest recipient to win the BET Humanitarian Award. Other winners at the 2017 BET awards included Beyonce for Best Female R&B/Pop Artist and Viewers' Choice Award and Video of the Year for Sorry. Bruno Mars won Best Male R&B/Pop Artist, Kendrick Lamar for Best Male Hip-Hop Artist, Remy Ma for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist, and New Edition won the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Prodigy, of the legendary New York rap group Mobb Deep, passed away at the age of 42, after having been hospitalized a few days earlier for complications related to his sickle-cell anemia.
(In Memoriam: November 2, 1974 – June 20, 2017)
Beyonce has given birth to twins, a boy and a girl. Also Jay-Z became the first rapper inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the occasion was marked by an introduction speech from Barack Obama.
XXXtentacion was attacked on stage during a performance in San Diego. The attacker rushed the stage and knocked him out. A few more joined in before security got involved. Local rapper Rob Stone was the reported assailant.
Drake won his lawsuit over sampling with "fair use" argument. His song Pound Cake/Paris Morton Music 2 off the 2013 album "Nothing Was the Same", sampled a 1982 spoken-word recording of “Jimmy Smith Rap”. The judge ruled that Drake’s use “transforms Jimmy Smith’s brazen dismissal of all non-jazz music into a statement that ‘real music,’ with no qualifiers, is ‘the only thing that’s gonna last.'” Thus the purpose is “sharply different” from the original artist's. This case was notable because winning a “fair use” defense is rare in songs.
Gregg Allman, Southern rock pioneer and founder of the The Allman Brothers Band, passed away at the age of 69.
(In Memoriam: December 8, 1947 – May 27, 2017)
Grunge icon Chris Cornell, frontman for bands Soundgarden and Audioslave, passed away at the age of 52. He was found dead in his room at the MGM Grand in Detroit after performing at a show with Soundgarden at the Fox Theatre. His death was determined to be a suicide by hanging.
(In Memoriam: July 20, 1964 – May 17, 2017)
Drake was the big winner at the 2017 Billboard Music Awards, including Top Artist and Top Male Artist. He took home 13 awards, breaking the record for artist with the most wins in a single year, beating Adele's record of 12. Other winners included Zayn, who won Top New Artist. Top Female Artist went to Beyonce and Top Duo/Group went to Twenty One Pilots
Katy Perry announced she will be a judge on the rebooted American Idol. Now titled just 'Idol', it is expected to premiere on ABC during the 2017-18 season.
Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber's Despacito became the first Spanish language #1 single on Billboard since the Macarena more than 20 years ago.
Keith Mitchell, original drummer for Mazzy Star, passed away from undisclosed causes on May 14th, 2017.
Former Black Flag bassist Cel Revuelta passed away from a stage 4 glioblastoma, a type of brain cancer. He was their bassist for their final tour of 1986, replacing Kira Roessler. He also joined up for a string of 2003 reunion shows, alongside original Black Flag guitarist Greg Ginn
Loretta Lynn suffered a stroke and was hospitalized, according to a post on her Facebook page. She was admitted to a Nashville hospital, after the incident occurred at her Hurricane Mills, Tennessee home. She is expected to make a full recovery.
Ja Rule apologized for the Fyre Festival debacle. It was suppose to be a luxury music festival in the Exuma Islands of the Bahamas, but devolved into chaos for the would be concert-goers as the "physical infrastructure was not in place on time". A $100 million lawsuit was later filed against the festival co-founders.
Miley Cyrus has an uncredited voice role in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. (The cameo is post credits).
J. Geils (born John Warren Geils Jr.), of The J. Geils Band, passed away at the age of 71. They had 17 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, but were best known for the song Centerfold.
(In Memoriam: February 20, 1946 - April 11, 2017)
The 2017 Billboard Music Awards nominations have been announced. Drake and The Chainsmokers have the most nominations with 22 each. Twenty One Pilots have 17 nominations, Rihanna has 14, The Weeknd has 13, and Beyoncé has 8. The BMA's will air May 21st on ABC.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra founder Paul O’Neill passed away at the age of 61.
(In Memoriam: February 23, 1956 – April 5, 2017)
In an interview with People, Barry Manilow, now 73, revealed he is gay. However, it was already reported in 2015 that he had wed his manager and longtime partner Garry Kief, who he has been with for 39 years.
The Library of Congress picked 25 titles to be included in the National Recording Registry for the year. The enshrined titles included Judy Garland's Over the Rainbow, Barbra Streisand's People, N.W.A's Straight Outta Compton, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars by David Bowie, Remain in Light by Talking Heads, the original cast album of Broadway’s The Wiz, and songs by Wilson Pickett,, Don McLean, Marty Robbins, Melba Moore, Judy Collins, and Sister Sledge.
Snoop Dogg will induct 2Pac into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 7th. Other inductees include. Pearl Jam, Joan Baez, Journey and Yes.
A movie musical inspired by Pharrell Williams' childhood in Virginia Beach is in the works. The project, titled 'Atlantis' is being described as a 'Romeo and Juliet' style story.
Chuck Berry passed away at the age of 90. The legendary singer, songwriter and guitar great was widely credited as one of the founding fathers of of Rock 'n Roll.
(In Memoriam: October 18th, 1926 – March 18th, 2017)
Ed Sheeran will make a guest appearance in the upcoming seventh season of Game of Thrones. According to showrunner David Benioff, his appearance was designed mostly as a favor to Maisie Williams (aka Arya Stark) who's a big fan of Sheeran. Future became the first artist to release number one albums in consecutive weeks since 1968, with HNDRXX and his self-titled album. The last time it happened was when Simon & Garfunkel released "Bookends" followed by the soundtrack to "The Graduate".
The 1997 GMC Suburban that the Notorious B.I.G. was shot is being auctioned for $1.5 million. The previous week it was announced the BMW Tupac was shot is being auctioned for the same price.
City of Stars from La La Land won the Oscar for "Best Original Song" at the 89th Academy Awards. (Which also kept Lin-Manuel Miranda from completing an EGOT for the also nominated How Far I'll Go from Moana)
Beyoncé announced she will not be headlining this year's Coachella Festival. Her doctor recommended she stay home due to her pregnancy.
Jay-Z was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame this year, becoming the first rapper to be inducted. Clyde Stubblefield, James Brown's one-time drummer and one of Hip-Hop's most sampled drummers, passed away at the age of 73. Brown's 1970 single for Funky Drummer was sampled over 1,000 times, including Public Enemy's Fight the Power, N.W.A's F*ck tha Police, LL Cool J's Mama Said Knock You Out, Run-D.M.C.'s Run's House, and Beastie Boys' Shadrach
(In Memoriam: April 18, 1943 – February 18, 2017)
Adele was this year's big winner at the The 2017 Grammy Awards. She took home "Album of the Year" and "Best Pop Vocal Album" for 25, while Hello won "Record of the Year", "Song of the Year", and "Best Pop Solo Performance". Other winners included:
• Chance The Rapper for "Best New Artist", "Best Rap Album", and "Best Rap Performance" No Problem
• Stressed Out by Twenty One Pilots for "Best Pop Duo/Group Performance"
• Don't Let Me Down by The Chainsmokers (feat. Daya) for "Best Dance Recording"
• Lemonade by Beyoncé for "Best Urban Contemporary Album"
• Humble and Kind by Tim McGraw for Best Country Song
And David Bowie won "Best Rock Song", "Best Rock Performance", and "Best Alternative Music Album" posthumously for Blackstar
Mary Tyler Moore (of the iconic Mary Tyler Moore Show) passed away at the age of 80 from cardiopulmonary arrest complicated by pneumonia after having been placed on a respirator the previous week.
(In Memoriam: December 29, 1936 – January 25, 2017)
Beyoncé is being sued for $20 million dollars by the estate of the late Messy Mya (Anthony Barre) for allegedly using two of her lines at the beginning of Formation without permission.
The Game was sentenced to 3 years probation for punching an off-duty cop during a pickup basketball game. The charges were finally settled from the June 2015 incident.
Metallica, John Legend, Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban will perform at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards this February 12th. The nominees for Album of the Year are:
Adele for 25, Beyoncé for Lemonade, Drake for Views, Justin Bieber for Purpose, and Sturgill Simpson for A Sailor’s Guide to Earth. And for Song of the Year:
Formation by Beyoncé, Hello by Adele, I Took a Pill In Ibiza by Mike Posner , 7 Years by Lukas Graham , and Love Yourself by Justin Bieber
Bonnaroo announced its lineup. The headliners are U2 (as part of their Joshua Tree 30th anniversary tour), the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Weeknd and Chance the Rapper. The music festival will take place June 8th-11th in Manchester, TN.
City of Stars from La La Land won the 2017 Golden Globe for Best Original Song. The other nominees were:
• Can't Stop The Feeling by Justin Timberlake from Trolls
• Gold by Iggy Pop and Danger Mouse from the movie Gold.
• Faith by Stevie Wonder and Ariana Grande from Sing
and How Far I'll Go by Auli'i Cravalho from Moana
U2 announced in celebration of the 30th anniversary of their 1987 album The Joshua Tree, they will launch an international tour from May to August where they play the album in it's entirety.
Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar and Radiohead will headline Coachella this year. Coachella 2017 takes place the weekends of April 14th and April 21st.
Trey Songz was arrested after refusing to leave the stage at the Big Show in Detroit. After he went over his set time, security tried to get him off the stage. He starting dismantling and throwing stage equipment, hitting one police officer in the head in the process. Police arrested him for malicious destruction of property and for resisting and obstructing arrest.
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