13
Featured Events
2011The B-52s play their first ever show in Idaho, finally performing their song "Private Idaho" in the state that inspired it.
2000Almost Famous is released in theaters across the US. The film is a semi-autobiographical account of writer and director Cameron Crowe's time spent interviewing rock bands for Rolling Stone in the '70s, when he was just a teenager. The film centers around a fictional band called Stillwater, and rather than being based on one band in particular, Stillwater feels like every '70s arena band rolled into one.More
1997Elton John's rewritten version of "Candle In The Wind" that he played at Princess Diana's funeral a week earlier is released as a single. It sells a record 600,000 copies the first day in Britain alone, where it becomes the best selling single of all time. Worldwide, it sells over 30 million copies, second only to "White Christmas."More
1996Tupac Shakur, age 25, dies six days after being shot while riding in a car driven by his label boss, Suge Knight. No arrests are made in the case.
1982After co-producing her previous release, Never For Ever, British singer-songwriter Kate Bush returns as sole producer with The Dreaming.More
1969At the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival festival, host Kim Fowley starts a rock tradition when he asks the crowd to hold up lighters for Eric Clapton and John Lennon.More
13
In Music History
2019Eddie Money dies of esophageal cancer at 70.
2018Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin get married at a New York City courthouse. They keep it a secret for months, and don't have a ceremony until September 30, 2019.
2015REO Speedwagon guitarist Gary Richrath, who wrote their hits "Ridin' the Storm Out" and "Take It On The Run," dies at age 65.
2013Hozier releases "Take Me to Church," the lead single from his self-titled debut album.
2013After winning a landmark lawsuit, The Village People lead singer Victor Willis regains the copyright to 33 songs he co-wrote for the band. Willis is the first songwriter to go public with his case, which deals with a 1978 law that reverts copyrights to songs back to their original owners 35 years after. Like many songwriters, Willis had signed away the rights to his songs.
2011After an eight-year absence, Anthrax release their 10th studio album, Worship Music. Joey Belladonna, who hasn't been with the band since 1992, returns to handle lead vocals.
2010John Mayer shuts down his Twitter account with 3.7 million followers. Once an avid Tweeter, Mayer has shied away from social media after oversharing in a Playboy interview. He does eventually return to Twitter, but in moderation. "It does rewire your brain," he says.
2009Katy Perry and Russell Brand meet at the MTV Video Music Awards, which Brand is hosting. The pair begin dating soon after.
2008Come Dancing, a musical devoted to the music of The Kinks, opens in London.
2005Jimi Hendrix's boyhood home in Seattle is saved from destruction after his estate and the city agree to renovate the building and turn it into a community center.
2003Dave Clark Five lead singer Mike Smith suffers a tragic fall from a ladder at his home in Spain, leaving him without any movement in three limbs. He would remain a near-quadriplegic until his death in 2008 from pneumonia, a complication of the original injury.
1994The Notorious B.I.G. releases his debut solo album, Ready to Die. It's the first album issued on Sean Combs' Bad Boy label.
1993Max Weinberg, drummer with Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, begins his new job as bandleader for NBC-TV's new show Late Night With Conan O'Brien.
1993Niall Horan of One Direction is born in Mullingar, Westmeath, Ireland.
1990Eddie Vedder does some surfing, writes some lyrics, and adds his vocals to three instrumental tracks recorded by the guys he would later join in Pearl Jam. The songs become "Alive," "Once" and "Footsteps."
Taylor Swift Wins MTV Video Music Award, Kanye West Loses It
2009When Taylor Swift wins for Best Female Video at the MTV Video Music Awards, Kanye West comes on stage and commandeers the microphone, explaining that Beyoncé deserved the award for her "Single Ladies" video. When Beyoncé does win for Video of the Year later that night, she brings Taylor on stage to finish her speech.
"Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you and I'ma let you finish, but Beyoncé [Knowles] had one of the best videos of all time," Kanye West says as he grabs the mic during Swift's very first VMA win (for the Roman White-directed clip "You Belong With Me"). The cameras cut to a stunned Beyoncé, but what they don't show is the rapper's reaction as the audience boos him throughout his tirade: He throws them the finger. Swift shakes it off in time to give a live performance, and the night ends well for both her and Beyoncé. (West's outrage turns out to be premature as Beyoncé lands Video of the Year. Green Day is another big winner, taking three trophies, including Best Rock Video for "21 Guns.") But the repercussions for West extend long past awards night. Social media explodes in support of Swift, with fans and stars alike leaping to her defense. Katy Perry tweets, "F--- u Kanye. It's like you stepped on a kitten." Even President Barack Obama calls West "a jackass." West apologizes on his blog, on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and in a phone call to Swift. But the hits just keep on coming. His tour with Lady Gaga is cancelled, his 808s & Heartbreak album is snubbed at the upcoming Grammy Awards (where Taylor Swift wins Album of the Year for Fearless), and he's continually hounded by the paparazzi over the VMAs incident. His pal Mos Def encourages him to leave the country and when he finally does return, he secludes himself in Hawaii while he works on a new album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Looking back on the controversy, he's not as remorseful, calling himself a "soldier of culture" who will always stand up for art.
No comments:
Post a Comment