March 6, 2016 Diplo and his electronic dancehall project Major Lazer land a historic Havana gig, becoming the first US musical act to perform in Cuba in the new era of diplomatic relations between the island and the US, precipitating a visit from President Obama later in the month.More
February 13, 2016 All four members of the promising English group Viola Beach are killed, along with their manager, when their car crashes on a bridge near Stockholm. Coldplay pay tribute by covering their song "Boys That Sing" at the Glastonbury Festival.
February 7, 2016 Coldplay and football (the American kind) come together when the band headlines the halftime show of Super Bowl 50 between the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers. It is an odd pairing, but after a set that includes "Viva La Vida" and "Paradise," Bruno Mars appears, followed by halftime show savior Beyoncé, who blasts out her new song, "Formation."
January 31, 2016 Fox airs a live version of Grease, the hit Broadway musical-turned-movie, starring Julianne Hough.More
January 20, 2016 Mamma Mia, here we go again! The Swedish pop quartet ABBA reunite for the first time in eight years to celebrate Mamma Mia! The Party, a restaurant inspired by the long-running musical.More
January 10, 2016 David Bowie dies at age 69 after an 18-month battle with liver cancer.More
December 31, 2015 Natalie Cole dies of heart failure at age 65. The singer (daughter of Nat King Cole) battled health problems for much of her life; drug use led to hepatitis C, and in 2009 she had a kidney transplant.More
December 10, 2015 The TV movie Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colors airs on NBC.More
December 7, 2015 Less than a month after their concert was invaded by terrorists and many of their fans murdered, Eagles of Death Metal make an emotional return to the Bataclan Theatre in Paris, where they lay flowers in memory of the 90 dead. They also join U2 on stage at the AccorsHotel Arena to perform Patti Smith's "People Have the Power." "Don't Let It Go Away" is performed by the Missing People Choir in a carol service at St Martin-in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square in the evening.
December 6, 2015 Carole King is celebrated at the Kennedy Center Honors, where 73-year-old Aretha Franklin brings the audience to its feet with her rendition of "You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman," one of many classic songs written by King.More
December 3, 2015 Scott Weiland dies at age 48 when he suffers cardiac arrest on his tour bus in Bloomington, Minnesota, where his band The Wildabouts are scheduled to perform.More
November 28, 2015 After defeating heavyweight boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko in a unanimous decision, Tyson Fury gets a turn on the mic and sings the Aerosmith hit "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" to his wife, who has joined him in the ring.
November 27, 2015 Pope Francis becomes the first pope to release a pop album. Titled Wake Up!, it's a collection of songs built around recordings of his speeches and prayers from various locations around the world between 2013 and 2015.More
November 7, 2015 Presidential candidate Donald Trump hosts Saturday Night Live, with musical guest Sia. He asks for a photo with the reclusive Australian songstress, but she declines, explaining that she doesn't want her gay and Mexican fans to think she supports him.
November 3, 2015 Months after 1000 singers and musicians in Cesena, Italy perform "Learn to Fly" in an effort to entice Foo Fighters to play there, the group complies, performing a concert in the city.
October 27, 2015 Twitter discontinues Vine, the short-form video hosting service that launched the music careers of Shawn Mendes and "Lost Boy" singer Ruth B.More
September 22, 2015 The "Happy Birthday" copyright is ruled invalid, putting the song into the public domain.More
July 29, 2015 The Eagles play their last concert with Glenn Frey. The show takes place in Bossier City, Louisiana, the final date of their History of the Eagles tour. The set features 27 songs and two encores, closing with "Desperado." Founding member Frey dies six months later. The band continues on with his son, Deacon, in his stead.
July 26, 2015 Bobbi Kristina Brown, daughter of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown, dies at age 22. She is found unconscious in her bathtub, and the cause of death is eventually revealed as "immersion associated with drug intoxication."
July 26, 2015 In a field just outside of Cesena, Italy, 1000 musicians and singers play Foo Fighters "Learn to Fly" simultaneously with the dream of attracting the band to play a show in their city for the first time in nearly 20 years.More
July 26, 2015 The first Black Lives Matter conference at Cleveland State University turns into a protest with activists chanting the chorus of Kendrick Lamar's "Alright" in defiance of police harassment.More
June 22, 2015 On the reality dating show The Bachelorette, Jared and Kaitlyn visit Christchurch Cathedral in Dublin, where they are serenaded by Noel Hogan and Dolores O'Riordan of The Cranberries, who perform "Linger." The couple dance and make out as O'Riordan sings: Were you lying all the time? Was it just a game to you?More
May 23, 2015 Australia makes its inaugural entry in the Eurovision Song Contest, which is held in Vienna, Austria. The country is represented by singer and songwriter Guy Sebastian. Their invitation to compete follows a successful guest appearance from Jessica Mauboy in 2014. Sebastian finishes fifth, with the win going to Sweden's Måns Zelmerlöw.
May 5, 2015 After years working in Nashville as a songwriter and as a member of the bands The SteelDrivers and The Jompson Brothers, Chris Stapleton, 37, releases his debut album, Traveller, with a rootsy sound that harkens back to the days of Hank Williams. It wins the Grammy for Best Country Album and both the ACM and CMA awards for Album Of The Year.
April 16, 2015 The actress Suzanne Somers inadvertently outs Barry Manilow when she appears on Watch What Happens Live and talks about serving as best man at his wedding the previous year when Barry married his longtime manager, Garry Kief. Manilow comes out publicly two years later.
April 5, 2015 Two days after Furious 7 is released in theaters, the "See You Again" video, featuring footage from the film, debuts on Facebook and Twitter. The next day, it is posted on YouTube, where it eventually breaks the record for most views, previously held by "Gangnam Style."More
March 20, 2015 The series finale of Glee, titled "Dreams Come True," airs on FOX. During its six-year run, the influential musical drama made old music new again with a stream of hit covers... and broke records from Elvis Presley and The Beatles along the way.More
February 16, 2015 Red Hot Chili Peppers bass player Flea breaks his arm in five places in a gnarly snowboarding accident.More
January 29, 2015 Rod McKuen, songwriter, poet, and composer, dies during a bout of pneumonia at age 81. Frank Sinatra's 1969 A Man Alone album was a compilation of McKuen's songs, including "Love's Been Good To Me."
January 26, 2015 Nick Jonas lands a recurring role on Scream Queens, a horror anthology series from Glee creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuck. The cast also includes Ariana Grande as a recurring guest star.
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