(L-R) Neil Giraldo and Pat Benatar attend the 37th Annual Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony at Microsoft Theater on November 05, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo are set to appear on this year’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame-themed episode of American Idol, airing April 13 live on ABC.
The pair, who were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022, will perform on the show and serve as mentors to Idol’s top 11 finalists, who will perform songs from previous Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees.
The episode will also feature the live announcement of the 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame class.
This year’s Rock Hall nominees include Phil Collins, Billy Idol, The Black Crowes, Oasis, Wu-Tang Clan, New Edition, INXS, Iron Maiden, Melissa Etheridge, Jeff Buckley, Pink, Shakira, Luther Vandross, Lauryn Hill, Mariah Carey, Joy Division/New Order and Sade.
Because you loved her, Céline Dion’s upcoming Paris residency just got bigger.
Due to “unprecedented demand,” she’s added six dates to her upcoming comeback in the City of Lights this fall: Sept. 18 and 25, and Oct. 2, 9, 16 and 17. The artist presale, open to preregistered fans, runs from Tuesday through Thursday at 5:59 a.m. ET. If you aren’t selected for that, you’ll be added to the waiting list. Alternately, you can try the Visa presale that starts April 8 at 4 a.m. ET.
CELINE DION PARIS 2026 will feature the Canadian icon performing over five weeks at Paris La Défense Arena starting Sept. 12. It’s being designed by Willo Perron, who’s done everything from Rihanna’s Super Bowl performance to Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter tour.
Céline last performed a full concert on March 8, 2020; she was forced to cancel her Courage World Tour due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A planned 2021 residency in Las Vegas never materialized due to her stiff-person syndrome diagnosis, a rare condition that causes debilitating muscle spasms.
Céline choosing Paris as the city for her engagement is fitting: Her first public performance after revealing her diagnosis took place at the Eiffel Tower during the 2024 Olympics.
Jon Bon Jovi on ‘Good Morning America’/(ABC/Heidi Gutman)
Jon Bon Jovi is giving fans a peek inside rehearsals for Bon Jovi’s upcoming Forever Tour.
The “Livin’ on a Prayer” rocker shared a short video from inside rehearsals on social media, captioning the post, “We cannot wait to see you all this summer .. Get your tix !!”
“Hey everybody, JBJ coming to you almost live from rehearsal,” Jon says in the clip, as he gives fans a look at the rehearsal space. “Me and the boys getting ready to be back on the big stage.”
“See you on the big stage soon,” he adds.
As he pans the room you can see keyboardist David Bryan and guitarist Phil X in the background.
The Bon Jovi Forever Tour kicks off with a nine-show stand at New York’s Madison Garden, running July 7-26. It then heads to Edinburgh, Scotland, and Dublin, Ireland, before wrapping with three shows at London’s Wembley Stadium, starting Sept. 4.
The tour is the band’s first trek since Jon Bon Jovi underwent vocal cord surgery in 2022.
(L-R) Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee of Rush attend the 2026 JUNO Awards at TD Coliseum on March 29, 2026 in Hamilton, Ontario. (Photo by Jeremy Chan/Getty Images)
Rush’s Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson plan to pay tribute to their late drummer, Neil Peart, during their upcoming Fifty Something tour, and in an interview with the Brazilian TV show Fantástico, they share some insight into how they plan to do that.
“Well, we’ve been talking about certain songs that we feel really, really give us the vision of Neil,” Lee says, noting, “twice a night we will pick a song to play sort of for him and we’ll present a visual tribute behind us, to Neil, whether it be to his lyrics or just to his playing or whatever.”
He adds they’ll “take a moment, you know, play these songs with him in mind, so the whole audience and us can remember him.”
Lifeson calls the tribute “a celebration of who he was as a person and a drummer, not so sad anymore.”
Drummer Anika Nilles will be sitting in at the drum kit in place of Peart, who died in 2020, and Lee and Lifeson say they considered whether or not to call themselves Rush on this tour without Peart.
“Of course there was a lot of discussion,” says Lee. “(At) one point we were coming up with all these ways of not calling it Rush. And then it seemed ridiculous because when you’re learning 40 Rush songs, what the hell are you supposed to call this thing you’re doing?” He jokes, “Yeah, let’s say we’ll go out, we’ll play 40 Rush songs, we’ll call it Iron Butterfly.”
He adds using the name Rush “was just the natural thing to do.”
Rush is set to kick off their Fifty Something tour on June 7 in Los Angeles with North American dates running through Dec. 17. The tour will also hit Europe and South America.
Stevie Nicks performs at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, November, 2023 (Disney/Michael J. LeBrecht II)
Stevie Nicks fans were surprised on Monday to find this nugget — “Nicks’ latest album, titled The Ghost Record, is scheduled to be released on May 26, 2026″ — buried at the end of a People magazine article called “Where Are the Members of Fleetwood Mac Now?” The only problem is it’s not true.
ABC Audio has confirmed the two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer is not releasing an album on that day. In fact, there is no firm information about when a new Stevie album will be released. What’s more, May 26 — Stevie’s birthday — is a Tuesday; albums are typically released on Friday.
As for where the nonexistent album title came from, a year ago Stevie was inducted into the Pollstar Live! Hall of Fame in LA. During her acceptance speech, she said, “I’m actually making a record right now. I call it the ‘ghost record’ because it doesn’t really — it just kind of happened in the last couple of weeks.”
She added that she’d written seven songs that were “autobiographical, real stories where I’m not pulling any punches for probably the first time in my life.”
People subsequently removed the line from the article, but not before it was widely reported.
When Stevie does release a new album, it will be her first solo release since 2011’s In Your Dreams. She did release a single, “The Lighthouse,” in September 2024.
Meanwhile, the iconic singer has three shows lined up for April: April 18 in Thackerville, Oklahoma; April 22 in Austin, Texas; and April 25 at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
Jaafar Jackson as Michael Jackson in the upcoming film ‘Michael.’ (Lionsgate)
Jaafar Jackson stars in the upcoming biopic Michael as Michael Jackson alongside Colman Domingo as his father, Joseph Jackson. Reflecting on their first meeting, Jaafar described what it was like to connect on set.
“I remember seeing Colman for the first time when I was at the Sony stages,” he told Miles Teller in a chat for InterviewMagazine. “[H]e came and visited while I was on stage rehearsing. He was just standing on the side of the stage looking at me, but I didn’t know.”
Afterward, “He walked up to me and we just hugged,” Jaafar recalled. “I really felt that love and protection from Colman throughout the entire shoot.”
“It was crazy for me to see him bring Joseph [Jackson] to life. He was so locked in, and we weren’t even rolling,” he added, noting that memories of his grandfather came to mind during filming.
He also described it as “very emotional” watching Nia Long portray his grandmother Katherine Jackson, and displaying “that love and that passion and those little subtleties that really make her who she is.”
Jaafar revealed it took him a year to tell his family about landing the role. While his mother was blown away, his father, Michael’s brother Jermaine Jackson, has yet to watch the film.
As for his own thoughts on his performance, Jaafar admitted he questioned some scenes but ultimately felt proud and continues to “find new things to appreciate.”
With the film coming out April 24, he said he’s most excited for audiences to see a more human side of Michael.
“A lot of people are familiar with the iconic moments, but there’s a whole emotional layer that hasn’t ever really been seen,” Jaafar said. “I feel like people will understand him a lot more.”
Drummer Clem Burke of Blondie performs onstage at 2023 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 21, 2023 in Indio, California. (Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images for Coachella)
Blondie is remembering their late drummer Clem Burke on the one-year anniversary of his death at age 70.
“It is difficult to believe a year has passed… there is a hole in our hearts. Yet his energy lives on—vibrant, resonating in ways we can’t fully understand,” the band wrote on social media alongside a picture of Burke. “You are deeply missed, @clem.burke.”
Blondie announced Burke’s death on April 7, 2025, revealing that he passed away “following a private battle with cancer.”
“Clem was not just a drummer; he was the heartbeat of Blondie. His talent, energy, and passion for music were unmatched, and his contributions to our sound and success are immeasurable,” read the announcement from Blondie’s Debbie Harry and Chris Stein. “Beyond his musicianship, Clem was a source of inspiration both on and off the stage. His vibrant spirit, infectious enthusiasm and rock solid work ethic touched everyone who had the privilege of knowing him.”
Burke, born Clement Anthony Bozewski, joined Blondie in 1975, shortly after they formed in New York City. He appeared on all of their records, the last one being 2017’s Pollinator. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with Blondie in 2006.
Blondie is expected to release a new album, High Noon, in 2026. Stein has said that Burke played on the album.
(l-r) Kenan Thompson, host Jack Black, Andrew Dismukes, Tommy Brennan, and James Austin Johnson during the “Husbands” sketch on Saturday, April 4, 2026 — (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC)
Kansas’ iconic hit “Carry On Wayward Son” was featured on Saturday Night Live this weekend, and the band has reacted to the sketch.
In the segment, “Husbands,” a group of female friends are hanging out in a kitchen when they note it’s the first time all their husbands are joining them for the get together. As they wonder if the husbands are okay hanging out without them, the camera cuts to all the men in the den struggling to start a conversation.
Things eventually change when host Jack Black begins singing “Carry On Wayward Son,” and the men chime in and sing along. The husbands, which include Kenan Thompson, Andrew Dismukes, Tommy Brennan and James Austin Johnson, get so into it that in the end, they rip off their clothes to reveal they’re wearing rock and roll jumpsuits underneath.
Well, it seems the real Kansas was a bit jealous of their looks. The group shared the video on Facebook, commenting, “Where do we get those jumpsuits Jack Black and Kenan Thompson?”
“Carry On Wayward Son” appeared on Kansas’ 1976 album, Leftoverture, and peaked at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. It went on to become a signature tune for the band.
Kansas is set to play Cleveland on Thursday. A complete list of shows can be found at KansasBand.com.
Matt Nathanson performs during ‘The Music of Billy Joel’ at Carnegie Hall on March 12, 2026 in New York City. (Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)
At the Billy Joel charity tribute concert at New York City’s Carnegie Hall in March, many fans felt that one of the standout performers on the bill was Matt Nathanson, best known for his 2008 hit “Come On Get Higher.” It turns out Matt was so inspired by performing Billy’s songs at the event that he’s recorded an EP of the Piano Man’s songs.
Called Songs in the (M)Attic — a twist on the title of Billy’s 1981 live album, Songs in Attic — the six-track EP, which arrives April 17, features cover art identical to Billy’s 1982 album, The Nylon Curtain.
On Instagram, Matt calls Billy “one of the greatest songwriters of our (and any) time,” adding that he’s “so proud” of the EP and “so fired up and inspired by it.”
The track list includes the two songs Matt performed at Carnegie Hall — “I Go to Extremes” and “Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway)” — as well as “Pressure,” “The Longest Time,” “Uptown Girl” and “Only the Good Die Young.” “Uptown Girl” and “Only the Good Die Young” are both available on digital platforms now.
Leading up to the announcement of the EP, Matt documented his fall into what he calls the “Joel Hole,” doing deep dives on Billy’s songs to highlight the brilliance of his writing.
The EP is also available to preorder on vinyl. Meanwhile, Matt will spend the summer opening for Train, whose lead singer, Pat Monahan, also performed at the Carnegie Hall tribute.
Despite Billy’s popularity, not many people have recorded cover versions of his songs. A few of the notable artists who have include Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Barry White and Beyoncé.
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band ‘Live From Asbury Park 2024’ (Legacy Recordings)
Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band are set to release their historic 2024 Sea.Hear.Now festival performance in Asbury Park, New Jersey, on CD.
Live From Asbury Park 2024 is already being released as a five-LP set on Record Store Day, April 18, but it will now also be released as a three-CD set on May 29.
Recorded during Springsteen and the band’s September 2024 Jersey Shore homecoming, the release features more than three hours of music. It includes performances of classic Springsteen tunes like “Born to Run,” “Thunder Road,” “Dancing in the Dark,” “Hungry Heart” and “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out.”
There are also performances of early Springsteen tracks like “Blinded by the Light,” “Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?,” “The E Street Shuffle” and “Meeting Across the River.”
Springsteen and The E Street Band are currently on their Land of Hope and Dreams American tour. The trek hits Inglewood, California, on Tuesday and Thursday. A complete list of dates can be found at BruceSpringsteen.net.
