Music History Events: Releases
September 21, 2004 Green Day release American Idiot, their first album in four years. Overtly political in places, it takes on President George W. Bush, especially on the title track. With a more refined sound, the album outsells even their punk rock touchstone Dookie, released 10 years earlier.
August 31, 2004 Green Day release the title track of their new album American Idiot as a single three weeks before the album is issued. Both the song and the album are wildly successful and highly acclaimed, with each nominated for multiple Grammy Awards (winning for Best Rock Album). American Idiot later becomes a successful stage musical.
August 30, 2004 Björk releases Medúlla, an album made up almost entirely of human voices.
June 8, 2004 Bolstered by the hit singles "Helena" and "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)," My Chemical Romance goes mainstream with their second album, Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge.More
March 23, 2004 Usher releases his fourth album, Confessions, which goes on to sell over 10 million copies in America. The lead single, "Yeah!," is already three weeks into a 12-week run at #1.
November 14, 2003 Jay-Z releases The Black Album, with the classics "99 Problems" and "Dirt off Your Shoulder."
September 23, 2003 OutKast's double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below is released. It's really two solo albums, with Andre 3000 doing The Love Below and Big Boi doing Speakerboxxx.
June 24, 2003 Beyoncé releases her first solo album, Dangerously in Love. The standout track is "Crazy In Love," which features her boyfriend Jay-Z.
June 10, 2003 The Luther Vandross album Dance With My Father is released two months after the singer suffered a debilitating stroke. The album goes to #1 in America and the title track wins the Grammy Award for Song of the Year, but Vandross dies on July 1, 2005.
March 4, 2003 Evanescence release their first album, Fallen, featuring the hits "Bring Me To Life" and "Going Under."
October 10, 2002 Jay-Z releases "'03 Bonnie And Clyde," featuring Beyoncé in her first solo appearance since the breakup of Destiny's Child. It's the first hint the couple are dating, as Jay declares them "the new Bobby and Whitney" on the track.
April 23, 2002 Nine months after the album was rejected by Reprise Records, Wilco release Yankee Hotel Foxtrot on Nonesuch Records. It earns nearly universal acclaim from critics and goes Gold, earning the group a legion of new fans.
April 23, 2002 Kenny Chesney releases his sixth studio album, No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems. Featuring five Top 10 country singles, including the hit title track, it's his first album to top both the Country and Billboard 200 charts.More
February 26, 2002 Norah Jones releases her debut album Come Away With Me, a jazz-inflected set that wins the Album of the Year Grammy and sells over 10 million copies in America.More
November 13, 2001 With the help of Gloria Estefan, Colombian-born songstress Shakira releases her first English-language album, Laundry Service. It features the Top 10 hit "Whenever, Wherever."More
September 4, 2001 System Of A Down release Toxicity, a classic of the Armenian folk-metal genre that sells over 3 million copies.More
July 30, 2001 The Strokes revive garage rock with the release of their debut album, Is This It. It drops in Australia first before making its way to England and America.More
June 12, 2001 After launching their mainstream career with Enema Of The State, pop-punk hitmakers blink-182 return with a masturbatory pun: Take Off Your Pants And Jacket. The band's resentment over being expected to write catchy radio singles ironically results in two catchy hits, leading to the album's milestone chart debut.More
February 26, 2001 Daft Punk's second album, Discovery, marks a change in their musical direction from house to electronic disco. Taking a leaf from fellow European electronic artists Kraftwerk, they choose to hide their faces - performing and appearing in music videos wearing stylized robotic helmets.
February 8, 2001 Katy Perry, 16, releases her self-titled debut gospel album under her real name, Katy Hudson.More
January 3, 2001 The Dave Matthews Band become the first major artist to release a song on Napster when "I Did It" debuts on the controversial file-sharing platform.More
November 21, 2000 Backstreet Boys release their fourth album, Black & Blue. Catering to the screaming teenage girl demographic, they promote it with an appearance on MTV's Total Request Live. The album is one of biggest debuts in history, with initial shipments of about 6 million.More
May 23, 2000 A Perfect Circle release their debut album, Mer de Noms. In addition to Maynard James Keenan of Tool, the group features guitarist Billy Howerdel and drummer Josh Freese, who had been working on the Chinese Democracy album for Guns N' Roses. Mer de Noms racks up worldwide sales of well over 2 million; Chinese Democracy doesn't appear until 2008.
May 16, 2000 Britney Spears' second album, Oops!… I Did It Again, is released. It sells 1.3 million copies in its first week, setting a new record for best-selling debut by a female artist.More
May 1, 2000 Destiny's Child release their third album, Survivor, which is all about sisterhood and empowerment. It's their first release with the lineup of Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams.
March 21, 2000 With the release of their third album, No Strings Attached, 'N Sync smashes the Backstreet Boys' record for first-week sales with 2.4 million copies sold - almost double the amount BSB garnered with their 1999 album, Millennium. 'N Sync's record holds for 15 years until Adele pushes more than 3 million units of 25.More
November 9, 1999 Fiona Apple releases her second album. The title is 90 words long, so it is usually listed as When The Pawn....More
October 25, 1999 As bluegrass music starts to take off in America, Dolly Parton releases The Grass Is Blue. The album gives her career a boost and wins the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album.More
October 7, 1999 Garth Brooks releases an album as "Chris Gaines," a character he created that was intended for a movie. The ruse turns off many fans, and the album is Brooks' first since 1995 that fails to debut at #1, charting behind Creed's Human Clay.
September 19, 1999 The Dixie Chicks become the first country group to top the Billboard albums chart when Fly debuts at #1. More
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