Music – 105.7 WDNY

Kate Bush shares annual Christmas message

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Kate Bush has posted her annual Christmas message to her website.

In the piece, the “Running Up That Hill” artist shares that she went to see an exhibit of paintings by the French Impressionist Claude Monet, and draws a comparison between Monet’s paintings of smog-covered London and the current increasing use of artificial intelligence in the world today.

“Is that us? Standing in awe at the dawn of AI, the symbol of modernity, as smog was for Monet at that time in the newly industrial London?” Bush writes. “Do we only see the twinkling light of the new invention, which so often catches the eye of our imagination… and what are those vague, dark sardonic shapes we can see in the background, behind the theatrical gauze?

“It’s hard to make them out, but could they be our human pods, like those from the Matrix, being readied for us by eager, playful digits?” she continues. “Or maybe they are freshly painted bridges – robust, and lovingly built to carry us all into a much longed-for new age of healthy thinking?”

Bush concludes, “All will be revealed when the smog begins to clear. Merry Christmas everyone. I hope it’s a really joyful one for you all.”

The Year in Music 2024: Billy Joel: ‘Movin’ Out’ of MSG and movin’ back onto the charts

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

2024 was a milestone year for Billy Joel, in more ways than one.

It started in February, when he released “Turn the Lights Back On,” his first pop single since 2007’s “All My Life.” The ballad was cowritten by Billy, Freddy Wexler, Arthur Bacon and Wayne Hector, and was reminiscent of his classic sound. The video, which used AI to morph him from his ’70s, ’80s and ’90s selves into his present-day self, upped the nostalgia factor, too.

“Turn the Lights Back On,” which Billy performed at the Grammy Awards days after its release, returned Billy to the Billboard Hot 100 and Adult Contemporary charts — as an artist, not just a writer — for the first time since 1998.

Billy was back on CBS in April for a special documenting the 100th show of his Madison Square Garden residency. Billy Joel: The 100th – Live at Madison Square Garden aired April 14, but it was delayed due to coverage of the Masters Tournament, then cut short for local news programming. CBS mollified angry fans by reairing the show, which won three Emmys, on April 19.

On May 9, Billy celebrated his 75th birthday onstage at Madison Square Garden. On July 25, he officially ended his 10-year residency with his 150th career show at the Garden, where he was joined by Guns N’ Roses singer Axl Rose and by his young daughters, Remy and Della.

According to Billboard, the residency grossed a total of $267 million. Only Céline Dion‘s two residency shows in Las Vegas have earned more.

Billy also performed stadium shows across the country in 2024, but added a new twist: He coheadlined with, variously, Stevie Nicks, Sting and Rod Stewart. He’ll continue performing with all three of them into 2025.

George Michael’s family donates royalties from ‘Last Christmas’ to 20 charities ‘close to George’s heart’

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

If you’re looking to stream holiday songs, keep in mind that if you choose WHAM!‘s “Last Christmas,” you’ll be helping people in need.

In a Christmas message to fans, George Michael‘s sister, father and former manager write that they have “donated a substantial amount from George’s Last Christmas record royalties to some 20 organizations raising money for causes close to George’s heart.”

The donations will be made through the newly established George Michael Fund, which continues the singer’s history of philanthropy.

George, who died on Christmas Day 2016, wrote “Last Christmas” and played all the instruments on it. He initially donated the royalties from the song to the Band Aid Trust, after participating in the recording of the charity record “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” You can learn more about that by watching the new Netflix documentary Last Christmas Unwrapped.

In George’s native U.K., “Last Christmas” just became the first song ever to spend two consecutive years as the country’s Christmas #1. In the U.S., it’s #3 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Drake announces Drizzmas Giveaway, ‘THE BIGGEST STREAMING GIVEAWAY EVER’

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Drake is “saving Santa the trip” as he’s taking over Christmas. In a post shared to Instagram, he announced he’s hosting the Drizzmas Giveaway on Kick, a subsidiary of Stake, with whom he has a partnership.

With $250,000 cash, luxury cars, rent money, a dream vacation, tour tickets and more up for grabs, Drake says this will be “THE BIGGEST STREAMING GIVEAWAY EVER.”

Those interested in participating must be 21 and email their story to drake@stake.com, telling him why they believe they “deserve whichever of these things you think you need most.” The stream kicks off Thursday at 8 p.m. ET on Drake’s Kick channel.

“People often ask me what was the best day of my life … my answer is the same every time: the two days I shot [the video for] ‘God’s Plan,'” Drake recalls on a video announcing his giveaway.

“The joy that I experienced on those days, making other people happy, changing their week or their month or their year was an irreplaceable feeling. And that’s why Stake, along with me and Adin Ross, are doing the biggest streaming giveaway of all time,” he continues. “I truly can’t wait to enjoy this moment together. Happy holidays to you all.”

Ava Max’s Christmas traditions include this special treat: ‘I have to learn the recipe’

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Ava Max has a new Christmas song this year called “1 Wish,” and every year, her mom fulfills her Christmas culinary wish by making her — and everyone else — a special treat.

Like Dua Lipa, Ava is Albanian, and she says every Christmas her mom makes a traditional treat: baklava.

“We give it out to all our closest friends and family,” says Ava. “And every year they always text us right before: ‘Hey, is your mom doing baklava this year?’ I’m like, ‘Of course she is!'”

While baklava isn’t easy to make, Ava notes, “I have to learn the recipe because we got to keep that tradition going!”

In addition to a favorite holiday treat, Ava also has a favorite holiday movie, which is kind of an unusual choice. Most people will say Christmas Vacation or A Christmas Story or Elf, but for her, it’s the 2004 comedy Christmas with the Kranks.

“I watch it every year and it’s not on purpose. Somehow when I’m with my family, they always put it on — either me, my niece, or my mom, and it ends up to be every single year we’re watching Christmas with the Kranks,” she laughs. “Now, it’s a thing. We watch other ones, but that one for sure.”

And Ava’s holiday soundtrack always includes Christina Aguilera and Mariah Carey’s Christmas albums. “Those two for sure, but there is a lot more!” she says.

Chappell Roan apologizes — at knifepoint — for offending ‘Glee’ fans

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

In September, Chappell Roan told one of her audiences that she had finally gotten around to watching Glee and had made it to season two. Well, apparently, she had some thoughts on season three — one particular episode, to be specific — and has now apologized for those thoughts … sort of.

On the Instagram account Kisha Kisha, which is jointly run by Chappell and her bestie Ramisha Sattar, Chappell posted a video of herself watching the show’s season three holiday episode “Extraordinary Merry Christmas.” While the cast members sing “My Favorite Things” in the background, Chappell says, “This is the worst episode of Glee I’ve ever seen. I’m turning it off. I hate it.”

Soon afterwards, she posted another video of herself sitting in front of a Christmas tree. “This is my apology video for the Gleeks that I offended,” she says. Then, she eyes the lower part of the screen, where someone holding a knife that’s pointing towards her.

“I am so sorry. I love every episode of Glee, and I love Kurt and Blaine,” she continues, and then cracks up.

Perhaps we should mention that on the original video, the caption reads, “The context here is that I am high,” and that in between the two videos, they posted a photo of Kurt and Blaine from the show, with the words, “Guys we are high” written across it.

Beyoncé sends ‘big joy and love’ ahead of Netflix NFL halftime show, pokes fun at concerns about buffering

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Beyoncé has shared a message ahead of her NFL halftime show performance on Wednesday.

Alongside a video of her on a football field playing “Texas Hold ‘Em” on a banjo, she writes, “I’m sending you big joy and love on this Cowboy Christmas Eve. I’ll see y’all tomorrow, in my city HTX.” But the clip doesn’t end without a glitch, as it pauses to buffer — Bey’s way of poking fun at concerns Netflix will have buffering issues during the live stream.

Bey’s mother, Tina Knowles, previously told Variety she had “no worries” about technical problems, noting, “God is going to be in control and everything is going to go smooth. No glitches. It’s going to be great. We got some prayer going on. We got some connections.”

Business Insider has since reported Netflix said they learned and fixed all streaming issues that occurred in the past, including in November’s boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson.

Beyoncé’s Christmas performance will take place during halftime of the the Baltimore Ravens-Houston Texans game at Houston’s NRG Stadium. It will air live on Netflix, featuring the debut performances of some Cowboy Carter songs as well as a few special guests.

Those who can’t tune in the U.S. will have three hours after the live stream to watch the performance on Netflix before it expires. Those outside the country have 24 hours after the end of the livestream to rewatch the halftime show on the streaming platform.

In addition, the NFL Network will re-air the Ravens-Texans game on Wednesday at 11:30 p.m. ET and Thursday at 5 a.m. ET. A replay will also be available via NFL+ Premium in the U.S. and DAZN across the globe.

The Ravens-Texans game starts at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Will Brad Delson return to Linkin Park’s live lineup? ‘I can’t definitely say’

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

In addition to new vocalist Emily Armstrong, the reformed Linkin Park has two other fresh faces: drummer Colin Brittain and touring guitarist Alex Feder, who joined the band’s live lineup after Brad Delson announced he would not be joining LP on the road.

Delson still remains part of Linkin Park, though, and played on their comeback album, From Zero. Speaking with Guitar World, Delson elaborates on his decision to step away from the live stage.

“For everyone, it wasn’t like, ‘Let’s go back to what we were doing,'” Delson says of LP ending their seven-year hiatus following the 2017 death of frontman Chester Bennington. “It was like, ‘Let’s take what we’ve learned in the time off to approach our roles with greater self-awareness and insight.’ I really thrive in the studio. I love making new things. That’s what energizes me personality-wise.”

“That’s why I decided to focus my energy on that area and have Alex as my world-traveler doppelganger,” he continues. “I think he brings a lot to the show.”

Delson adds that he’s contributed to the feel of Linkin Park’s live show, even if he’s not playing in it.

“I’m really proud of the show,” Delson says. “Even though I’m not onstage, I put a lot of my creative love into the show. I’ve always been obsessed with the setlist, the concept of the show, and how it flows. I worked really hard on the current show; that’s no different than the past.”

After playing a number of one-off shows in 2024, Linkin Park will launch a full world tour in support of From Zero in 2025. As for whether Delson may return to the live lineup, he says, “You never know.”

“I don’t have a crystal ball,” he adds. “I can’t definitely say.”

Miley Cyrus is ready to ‘start all over again’ next year

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Miley Cyrus had a pretty great year. She won the first two Grammys of her career for her hit “Flowers,” was named the youngest-ever Disney Legend and received multiple award nominations — including a Golden Globe nod — for “Beautiful That Way,” a song she co-wrote for the movie The Last Showgirl. But Miley is ready for a fresh start in 2025.

On Instagram, she wrote, “HAPPY HOLIDAYS & NEW YEAR! It’s bittersweet saying goodbye to a year that has been so good to me, but I am looking forward to starting over again. This is one of my favorite parts of not just the creative process but the way life has chosen to teach me.”

“In everything I do I like to go ALL the way. Give it ALL I’ve got. ALL for it to come to an end, move on and start anew,” she continued. “At times it can be a heartbreaking process but I’ve always known the pieces to come back together and create something beautiful.”

She concluded “Thank you to everyone who has been [a part] of making this year so special. Sincerely, Miley.”

The star has already revealed that she’s got a “visual album” planned for 2025. She says it was inspired by Pink Floyd — The Wall, the trippy, 1982 part live-action, part-animated film based on the classic album of the same name.

On This Day, Dec. 24, 1988: Poison landed their only #1 song with ‘Every Rose Has Its Thorn’

December 24, 2024 by WDNY Radio

On This Day, Dec. 24, 1988 …

Glam rockers Poison landed their first and only #1 song with the power ballad “Every Rose Has Its Thorn.”

The song, from the band’s sophomore album, Open Up and Say … Ah!, spent three weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 and was #3 on the Billboard year-end charts that year.

The band’s frontman, Bret Michaels, shared in an interview for VH1’s Behind the Music that the song was inspired by a cheating girlfriend. He said he wrote it after he called her while at the laundromat and heard a male voice in the background.

+ More