November 19, 1990 The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences strips the 1989 Best New Artist Grammy from Milli Vanilli because Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan didn't actually sing on their debut album, "Girl You Know It's True." It is the first time a Grammy has ever been revoked.More
November 6, 1990 Madonna releases "Justify My Love," which stirs controversy when MTV bans the saucy video. The brouhaha piques interest in the song, which becomes her ninth #1 hit in the US.More
November 3, 1990 After being featured prominently in the smash hit film Ghost, The Righteous Brothers' version of "Unchained Melody" returns to the top of the UK charts after 25 years.
October 8, 1990 The Go-Go's pose for the first "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur" poster for PETA.More
September 10, 1990 Starring a young rapper named Will Smith, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air debuts on NBC. Smith hones his acting skills during his six seasons on the show, which features guest appearances by his musical partner, DJ Jazzy Jeff.More
September 3, 1990 George Michael releases his second solo album, Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1. Looking to avoid the pitfalls that overwhelmed him after his debut Faith, Michael refuses to tour in support of the album and won't appear in the music videos.More
August 24, 1990 Sinéad O'Connor refuses to perform at the Garden State Arts Center in New Jersey until they agree not to play the US national anthem before the show.More
August 21, 1990 Jane's Addiction release the alternative rock touchstone Ritual de lo Habitual, which frontman Perry Farrell describes as filled with "sex and violence and joy and happiness."More
August 20, 1990 Prince releases his album Graffiti Bridge, which contains the tracks "Thieves In The Temple" and "New Power Generation."More
July 21, 1990 With a bevy of special guests, Roger Waters performs The Wall at the former site of the Berlin Wall, which came down eight months earlier.More
June 26, 1990 Nelson release their debut album After the Rain, which sells over 2 million copies thanks to the #1 single "(Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection." Nelson is the duo of Gunnar and Matthew, the twin sons of Rick Nelson.More
June 10, 1990 Members of the rap group 2 Live Crew are arrested on charges of public obscenity after performing songs from their album As Nasty As They Wanna Be in a Hollywood, Florida, nightclub. A few days earlier, a federal court ruled the album obscene, and therefore performing it is against the law. It gets even more ridiculous when a cover band performs the songs for the purpose of getting arrested, which they do. Eventually, the ruling is overturned and charges against the rappers (and cover band) are dropped.
June 9, 1990 MC Hammer's Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em becomes just the second rap album to reach #1 in America (Licensed to Ill by Beastie Boys was the first).More
June 3, 1990 The Big Day free festival takes place in Glasgow, Scotland, with Wet Wet Wet, Deacon Blue, Hothouse Flowers, Sheena Easton, Texas, Hue and Cry, John Martyn, Eddi Reader, The Average White Band and others. Channel 4 TV runs a six-hour live broadcast from the event.
May 30, 1990 Australian rockers Midnight Oil make headlines when they stage a protest concert outside of the Exxon building in New York City in response to the Exxon Valdez oil spill that devastated Prince William Sound in Alaska the year before. Vocalist Peter Garrett says: "We can't treat the world like a garbage dump, and there's more to life than profit and loss."More
May 16, 1990 Muppets creator Jim Henson dies of streptococcal toxic shock syndrome at 53. Henson made music a key component of The Muppet Show, which featured a gnarly house band (The Electric Mayhem) and welcomed many superstars eager to interact with his creatures. Elton John, Julie Andrews, John Denver and Loretta Lynn all appeared on the show.
May 4, 1990 David Bowie's ex-wife Angela goes on The Joan Rivers Show and says that she once walked in on Bowie and Mick Jagger naked in bed. Angela signed a gag order when she divorced Bowie that kept her from talking for 10 years, and was taking advantage of the opportunity.
April 21, 1990 The International Ska Festival & Earth Day Celebration goes down at the Greek Theatre in San Francisco, with performances by The International Beat, The Uptones, and Bad Manners. With 10,000 attending, it's an early indicator that ska is finding an audience in America.
April 16, 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.More
April 10, 1990 Public Enemy release their highly anticipated third album, Fear Of A Black Planet, with the incendiary lead single "Fight The Power." The album becomes the first in hip-hop history to sell a million copies its first week of release.
April 7, 1990 Bonnie Raitt emerges from a career slump with her first #1 album, Nick Of Time, unseating Paula Abdul's Forever Your Girl.More
March 27, 1990 Digital Underground, a rap collective that later includes Tupac Shakur, release their debut album, Sex Packets. It's a concept album about a drug that simulates the experience of having sex.More
March 20, 1990 Near Scranton and heading for a show in Syracuse, Miami Sound Machine's tour bus is hit by a tractor trailer on a snowy highway. Gloria Estefan suffers a serious spinal injury requiring four hours of surgery.More
March 19, 1990 Andrew Wood, lead singer of Mother Love Bone, dies of a heroin overdose at age 24. Members of the band go on to form Pearl Jam.More
February 21, 1990 Paul McCartney is honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 32nd annual Grammy Awards, perhaps to make up for the paltry four awards they gave to The Beatles while they were still active. Bonnie Raitt is the big winner with four awards, including Album of the Year for Nick Of Time.
February 9, 1990 Midnight Oil release the album Blue Sky Mining. The lead single, "Blue Sky Mine," is inspired by the Wittenoom industrial disaster in the band's native Australia. The song is a Top 10 hit on the ARIA singles chart and tops the rock charts in the US.More
February 3, 1990 Sean Kingston is born Kisean Anderson in Miami. His pop-reggae sound gets the attention of producer J.R. Rotem, who signs him to his label and issues his first single, "Beautiful Girls," in 2007. The song goes to #1 and leads to a run of hits that lasts through 2013, but in 2025 Kingston is convicted of wire fraud after exploiting his celebrity to steal luxury goods.
December 13, 1989 Taylor Swift is born in Reading, Pennsylvania. She is raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, and moves to Nashville at age 14, where she discovers her knack for turning heartache into hit singles.More
November 26, 1989 MTV's acoustic showcase Unplugged premieres with an episode featuring Squeeze. Jules Shear hosts the first season.More
October 17, 1989 Billy Joel releases the album Storm Front, with his enduring hit "We Didn't Start The Fire."More
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