October 11, 1998 The first Smoke Out Festival sparks up in San Bernardino, California. Organized by Cypress Hill, about 40,000 fans converge in the celebration of music and marijuana. The festival returns every year through 2003, then returns in 2009.
September 22, 1998 "Iris" hitmakers The Goo Goo Dolls release their smash album Dizzy Up The Girl, a 4-million seller that includes the ubiquitous City Of Angels ballad as well as the Top 20 singles "Slide," "Black Balloon" and "Broadway."More
September 21, 1998 The Fireman, Paul McCartney's trance music duo with producer Martin Glover, release their second album, Rushes. Says Glover: "Linda [Paul's wife] was very ill, and by the time we'd finished it she was dying, and for me it became very much a requiem for her."
September 15, 1998 Marilyn Manson release their third album, Mechanical Animals. Target, Walmart and some other retailers refuse to stock it because of the cover, which depicts the group's frontman in naked female form.More
September 15, 1998 Coolio is arrested in Lawndale, California, and cited for driving on the wrong side of the road with an expired license. He is also charged with carrying a concealed weapon and possession of marijuana. His trouble with the law doesn't hurt his TV career, as he makes frequent appearances on shows like Fear Factor and Hollywood Squares.
September 14, 1998 MTV debuts Total Request Live, a countdown of the Top 10 fan-requested music videos, hosted by Carson Daly. By the end of its 10-year run, the show is a cultural phenomenon.More
August 25, 1998 Fugees member Lauryn Hill releases her solo album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. It becomes the first hip-hop album to win the Grammy for Album of the Year.More
August 14, 1998 The "A Day in the Garden" festival (which lasts three days) kicks off in Bethel, New York, where the original Woodstock took place 29 years earlier. A mix of rock legends (Pete Townshend, Stevie Nicks) and new bands (Third Eye Blind, The Goo Goo Dolls) play the event.More
May 23, 1998 Steve Lacy is born in Compton, California. The neo-soul singer begins his music career as a guitarist in the alternative R&B band the Internet before going solo with his debut EP, Steve Lacy's Demo, in 2017.More
May 16, 1998 The Dave Matthews Band go to #1 on the albums chart for the first time when Before These Crowded Streets debuts at the top spot, ending the Titanic soundtrack's 16-week berth at the top. Remarkably, their next six albums also debut at #1, a testament to their very loyal fans.
May 16, 1998 Five years after it was first released (in Danish), "Torn" goes to #1 on the US Airplay chart with a version by the Australian actress Natalie Imbruglia.More
April 28, 1998 The Dave Matthews Band release their fourth album (third on a major label), Before These Crowded Streets. Fans get a glimpse of the band's darker side with the moody lead single, "Don't Drink The Water." It debuts at #1 to sink the Titanic soundtrack.More
April 17, 1998 Linda McCartney, Paul McCartney's wife and Wings bandmate, dies at age 56 after a three-year battle with breast cancer.More
April 14, 1998 The very first VH1 Divas special debuts on the music channel as a benefit concert for VH1's Save The Music Foundation. Headliners are Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Gloria Estefan, and Shania Twain, with a guest appearance by Carole King.More
April 7, 1998 George Michael is arrested for disorderly conduct at a park restroom in Beverly Hills, California, after an undercover officer observes him performing a "lewd act." He comes out as gay soon after.More
February 28, 1998 Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On," from the movie Titanic, goes to #1 in the US. The film has been #1 at the box office since December 21, 1997, and the soundtrack has been #1 since January 24, 1998.More
January 5, 1998 In the Ally McBeal episode "Cro-Magnon," a thirty-something Ally is reminded of her ticking biological clock when she hallucinates a baby dancing to the tune of Blue Swede's "Hooked On A Feeling." By the end of the episode, Ally relents and grooves along with the tot.More
November 30, 1997 The X-Files episode "The Post-Modern Prometheus" includes a Cher storyline and culminates in the main characters attending her concert. Cher couldn't appear in the episode (a lookalike was used), but three of her songs are featured: "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore)," "Walking in Memphis" and "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves."
November 14, 1997 Five weeks before the movie Titanic is released, Celine Dion issues her album Let's Talk About Love, featuring the theme song, "My Heart Will Go On." As the movie commandeers the popular culture, Dion's album rides in its wake, going on to sell over 30 million copies worldwide.More
November 4, 1997 Shania Twain's third album, Come On Over, is released.More
September 21, 1997 Radiohead's video for "Karma Police" debuts on the MTV show 120 Minutes.More
September 19, 1997 The pitch-correction software Auto-Tune hits the market and soon becomes ubiquitous in recording studios, especially after Cher hits #1 with her Auto-Tuned "Believe."More
September 6, 1997 Elton John sings a new version of "Candle In The Wind" at Princess Diana's funeral. This rendition, which replaces "Goodbye Norma Jean" with "Goodbye England's Rose," becomes the best-selling single of all time in the UK.More
September 4, 1997 Accepting the award for Best New Artist, 19-year-old Fiona Apple rages against the machine, saying: "This world is bulls--t. And you shouldn't model your life about what you think we think is cool, what we're wearing, and what we're saying."More
August 28, 1997 In Leeds on the U2 Popmart tour, Bono responds to George Harrison's comment, "Bono and his band are so egocentric," by holding up a middle finger and saying, "This one's for you George!"
August 16, 1997 A tribute concert is held in Memphis, Tennessee, remembering Elvis Presley on the 20th anniversary of his death. Daughter Lisa Marie unveils the music video "Don't Cry Daddy," a virtual duet with her father that features his original vocals from the 1969 tune along with her own.
August 12, 1997 Backstreet Boys issue their self-titled debut album in America, where it goes on to sell over 14 million copies. The album was released to international markets a year earlier.
August 12, 1997 MTV debuts the Fleetwood Mac reunion concert The Dance, marking the first time the five had been on stage together since 1982.
August 11, 1997 Backstreet Boys release their second album, Backstreet's Back, in international markets. It tops the charts in several countries, including Canada, Spain and Germany. In America, some of the songs appear on their next album, Millennium, in 1999.
June 24, 1997 Hours after shipping 100,000 copies of the Insane Clown Posse album The Great Milenko, the group's label, Hollywood Records (a Disney subsidiary), recalls the shipments over concerns about the "inappropriate" lyrics.More
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