16 April

Pick a Day

16 APRIL

In Music History

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2018 Kendrick Lamar's album DAMN. wins the Pulitzer Prize for music, making him the first rapper to win the award, which traditionally goes to classical composers or jazz musicians.

2010 Shakira appears on Wizards of Waverly Place in the episode "Dude Looks Like Shakira."

2010 At the Showbox in Seattle, Washington, Soundgarden play their first show in 13 years.

2008 Barbra Streisand donates $5 million to the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles for a women's heart education and research program.

2003 Luther Vandross suffers a stroke that leaves him confined to a wheelchair. The singer, whose album Dance With My Father is released in June and goes to #1 in America, dies two years later.

2003 Jerry Lee Lewis files for divorce from his sixth wife, Kerrie McCarver, who was once the president of his fan club.

1999 Skip Spence of Jefferson Airplane and Moby Grape dies of lung cancer two days before his 53rd birthday.

1996 Judy Collins marries her second husband, designer Louis Nelson.

1995 Gabrielle gives birth to her son Jordan. Eight months later, Jordan's father murders his stepfather and is sentenced to life in prison.

1995 Bob Seger has his second child: a daughter named Samantha Char.

1994 Pearl Jam pay tribute to Kurt Cobain, who was found dead a week earlier, on Saturday Night Live with a performance of "Daughter" that ends with lead singer Eddie Vedder opening up his jacket to reveal a "K" on his T-shirt.

1994 Harry Connick, Jr. marries Victoria's Secret model Jill Goodacre in New Orleans.

1993 Billy Burnette leaves Fleetwood Mac to pursue a country music career.

1993 Chance the Rapper is born Chancelor Bennett in Chicago. He upsets the industry apple cart by making a huge impact while remaining independent, earning most of his revenue early on through live shows and sponsorships.

1992 Nirvana appear on the cover of Rolling Stone with Kurt Cobain wearing a T-shirt that reads, "Corporate Magazines Still Suck."

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Tribute Concert Celebrates Nelson Mandela's Release

1990

The Nelson Mandela: An International Tribute for a Free South Africa concert is held in Wembley Stadium, London, to celebrate the release of Mandela, who had been imprisoned since 1962. Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Lou Reed, Tracy Chapman, Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt all perform.

Nelson Mandela, an anti-apartheid activist and leader of the African National Congress, was given a life sentence in prison on charges of sabotage against the South African government. Before his conviction, he said: "During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." After serving 27 years in prison, the future president of South Africa (1994-1999) is greeted with a six-minute standing ovation from 72,000 rock fans at Wembley Stadium. He urges the crowd to continue to support the fight against apartheid and help institute a nonracial democracy in his country. Musical guests echo Mandela's cry for freedom. In addition to a star-studded solo lineup that includes everyone from Neil Young to Lou Reed to Natalie Cole, Peter Gabriel and Tracy Chapman - who respectively sing "Biko" and "Talkin' Bout A Revolution" - celebrate with a duet of "Don't Give Up." Meanwhile, Simple Minds sing "Mandela Day," a tune they penned for Mandela's 70th birthday celebration two months earlier. Rappers Neneh Cherry, Stetsasonic, and the Jungle Brothers are also on hand to remind the crowd of South Africa's plight, chanting "Free South Africa."

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