Earlier this month U2 was the recipient of the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors, and fans will finally get to see the celebration Wednesday, when the ceremony airs on CBS at 8 p.m.
At the event, the band is saluted by actors Sean Penn and Sacha Baron Cohen, who stays in character as Kazakhstan journalist Borat. The night also features several performances, with Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder performing two U2 tracks, “Elevation” and “One,” and Hozier, Brandi Carlile, Sheryl Crow and others performing “Walk On.”
And U2 isn’t the only act being honored. The special also features tributes to Gladys Knight, George Clooney, Amy Grant and conductor Tania León, with performances from The Highwoman, BeBe & CeCe Winans and Michael W Smith, Garth Brooks, Mickey Guyton and more.
Bob Marley’s grandson Joseph “Jo Mersa” Marley passed away Tuesday at the age of 31. A rep confirmed his death to Rolling Stone, although no official cause of death was given.
Earlier reports by journalist Abka Fitz-Henley claimed that Joe Mersa was found unresponsive in his vehicle, with TMZ reporting his death was asthma-related.
Joe Mersa was the son Stephen Marley, one of Bob’s 11 children, and leaves behind a wife and a daughter. He was a singer in his own right, releasing the EP Comfortable in 2014 and another EP, Eternal, in 2021. He also appeared on his father’s 2016 song “Revelation Party,” which appeared on the album Revelation Part 2: The Fruit of Life.
Another set of musicians were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, but before it actually happened there was at least one unexpected issue.
After the initial list of nominees was announced, Dolly Parton, who was included on the list, threw things for a loop when in February she requested her name be removed from the ballot. But the Hall refused, noting her music “impacted a generation of young fans and influenced countless artists that followed.” She eventually agreed to stay on the ballot, and it’s a good thing she did.
When this year’s class was finally announced, not only did Dolly make it, but so did Lionel Richie, Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Carly Simon, Judas Priest and Eminem. In addition, duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were chosen to receive the Musical Excellence Award, while Harry Belafonte receivedthe Early Influence Award. The late R&B singer Sylvia Robinson was chosen for the Ahmet Ertegun Award.
The induction ceremony was held in November in Los Angeles. Here are some of the evening’s many highlights:
–Duran Duran performed “Hungry Like the Wolf,” “Girls on Film” and “Ordinary World.” Fans were hoping to see the band reunite with original guitarist Andy Taylor, but instead singer Simon Le Bon read a letter Taylor wrote explaining he couldn’t be there because he’s been battling stage 4 metastatic prostate cancer.
—Sheryl Crow paid tribute to Benatar and Giraldo, who then treated the crowd to “All Fired Up,” “Love Is a Battlefield” and “Heartbreaker.”
–Eurythmics reunited at the ceremony for their first performance since 2019, performing “Would I Lie to You,” “Sweet Dreams” and “Missionary Man.”
—Carly Simon missed the ceremony, as she was grieving the loss of her two sisters. She was celebrated by Sara Bareilles, who performed “Nobody Does it Better,” and Olivia Rodrigo, who performed “You’re So Vain.” Alanis Morissette was supposed to take part in the Carly tribute but dropped out at the last minute, hinting it had to do with “anti-woman sentiment.”
—Judas Priest reunited with former bandmates K.K. Downing and Les Binks for a performance that included “Breaking the Law” and “Living After Midnight.” During speeches they were joined by guitarist Glenn Tipton, who retired from touring full time in 2018 due to Parkinson’s disease.
—Eminem, who was inducted by Dr. Dre, performed a medley of hits, including “My Name Is,” “Sing for the Moment” with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and “Stan,” with Ed Sheeran singing the chorus and playing guitar.
–Richie treated the crowd to “Hello” and brought out a special guest, Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl,for “Easy,” ending his set with his classic “All Night Long.”
—Pink helped induct Dolly, then joined Dolly and Crow for a performance of “Jolene,” which also included this year’s fellow inductees Benatar, Annie Lennox, Le Bon and Judas Priest’s Rob Halford.
–Finally, the night ended with a classic HOF jam, with Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp paying tribute to the late Jerry Lee Lewis with a medley of his hits.
Kevin Mazur/MTV VMAs 2021/Getty Images for MTV/ ViacomCBS
David Lee Roth is covering Van Halen again. The rocker just shared a new live version of the band’s hit “Everybody Wants Some,” taken from his 2022 Hollywood recording session with his solo band.
The session took place back in May, where Roth and his band recorded 14 songs. He’s already released several of them over the past year, including “You Really Got Me,” “Dance the Night Away,” Panama” and “Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love.”
“Everybody Wants Some” was the second single off Van Halen’s 1980 album Women and Children First. The new version features Al Estrada on guitar, Ryan Wheeler on bass and Francis Valentino on drums.
Whitney Houston‘s mentor Clive Davis says before the singer’s shocking death in 2012, she was trying very hard to get clean.
The superstar singer was found unconscious in a bathtub in a Beverly Hills hotel on February 11 and didn’t respond to CPR. She was 48. The coroner’s report ruled her death accidental, and attributed it to drowning as well as “effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use.” Benadryl, Xanax and cannabis were also found in her system.
But Davis tells the New York Post, “I was with her 48 hours before her death…she was showing me what she had done in rehab. How she had given up smoking, how she had cleared her throat of nicotine. And she was wanting to start going into the studio.”
“I never would have thought, 48 hours before her death, that she would pass, that there would be that horrendous, premature end to her life,” Davis continues, adding, “She was making a valiant attempt during that period to give up drugs and rehabilitate herself.”
Davis is a producer on the new biopic Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, and is portrayed in the film by Stanley Tucci. He tells the Post that the film “answers all the questions that the public wants to know about Whitney, whether it’s her sexuality, whether it’s how she reacted to any innuendo that she was not singing Black enough, or whether it was the impact of drugs, or whether it was recording with me.”
Clive adds that fans should see the movie in a theater “with a good sound system because it really, meaningfully showcases all the great songs and, of course, that voice.”
Back in April, Pink Floyd released the brand-new song “Hey Hey Rise Up” to help the people of Ukraine, and apparently it was a huge success.
The band just announced that their tune has now raised more than £450,000 that’s $540,000 U.S. — “to help alleviate the suffering of the Ukrainian people.” David Gilmour and Nick Mason added money to bring the amount to £500,000, or around $601,000 U.S.
“Hey Hey Rise Up” was recorded on March 30th, and featured Andriy Khlyvnyuk [AHN-dree KLIV-nik] of the Ukrainian band Boombox. The money raised will be split amongst five different charities: Hospitallers, The Kharkiv And Przemyśl Project, Vostok SOS, Kyiv Volunteer and Livyj Bereh.
In their announcement, Pink Floyd also encouraged their fans to do more, noting, “Let’s see what else we can do this winter… It would be great if you feel able to contribute to any of these charities directly.”
Are Cher and boyfriend Alexander “AE” Edwards taking the next step in their relationship? Well, it certainly looked that way, with the 76-year-old singer sparking speculation of an engagement after she posted a picture on Twitter of what looked like a huge diamond engagement ring.
Cher posted the photo with the caption “THERE R NO WORDS, ALEXANDER, A.E,” and later clarified that she shared it because she thought the 36-year-old A.E.’s “nails are so cool.”
Adding to the speculation, on Monday she tweeted about how she wishes her late mother, Georgia Holt, who died earlier this month, could be there to see the ring. “Woke up Min ago, & 1st thing …B4 I Opened my eyes, I Thought…I Need 2 Run To Moms & Show Her my ring…” she shared. ”Before I realized it..I Had Little Tear,” before adding it was actually, “a few tears.”
But it looks as though Cher won’t be walking down the aisle any time soon. “They are not engaged,” a source tells E! News, adding the ring is “just a beautiful gift.”
Cher and A.E. first went public with their relationship back in November, when they were spotted out together in West Hollywood. The singer was previously married to Sonny Bono from 1964 to 1975, and Gregg Allman from 1975 to 1979.
It always hurts when our favorite musicians pass away, and 2022 was no exception, with several beloved artists leaving us this year.
It was a year that started with a great loss: on January 20 Meat Loaf, born Marvin Lee Aday, died at the age of 74. Although no cause of death was ever announced, he had been plagued with health issues in recent years. He also reportedly had COVID before his death, although it was never confirmed he died from it.
After battling breast cancer for decades, Olivia Newton-John lost her fight and passed away August 8 at the age of 73. The singer-actress had been in remission for more than 20 years when her cancer returned in 2017.
Just two days after TMZ erroneously reported his death, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Jerry Lee Lewis passed away October 28 at his home in Mississippi. He was 87.
And on November 30 music fans were left shocked when Fleetwood Mac co-lead vocalist, songwriter and keyboardist Christine McVie died at the age of 79. Her family shared that she died “peacefully at [the] hospital” after “a short illness.” While paying tribute to her bandmate and friend, Stevie Nicks revealed that she hadn’t known McVie was ill until a few days before her death.
Here’s a list of the many music figures who died in 2022, in chronological order:
Rosa Lee Hawkins, an original member of the New Orleans R&B vocal trio The Dixie Cups, best known for their song “Chapel of Love,” died January 11. She was 76.
Ronnie Spector, former lead singer of the Ronnettes, passed away January 12 at the age of 78 after a short battle with cancer.
Blood, Sweat & Tears co-founder Dick Halligan died January 18 from natural causes in Rome, Italy. He was 78.
Don Wilson, the last surviving member of the instrumental surf rock quartet The Ventures, died January 22 of natural causes at the age of 88.
Sly Johnson, best known for his 1967 classic “Different Strokes,” died February 6 at the age of 85.
Procol Harum’s founder and lead singer, Gary Booker, died February 19 after a battle with cancer. He was 76.
Guitarist Joe Messina, an original member of the Motown session musicians known as The Funk Brothers, died April 4 in Northville, Michigan, at age 93.
1960s teen idol Bobby Rydell, best known for hits like “We Got Love” and “Wild One,” passed away April 5 from complications from pneumonia. He was 79.
Re Styles, former vocalist for The Tubes, died April 17 at the age of 72.
Earth, Wind & Fire saxophonist Andrew Woolfolk died April 24 after a long illness. He was 71.
Oscar-winning composer Vangelis, best known for his Chariots of Fire score, died May 17 at the age of 79. He passed away at a French hospital, where he was being treated for an undisclosed illness.
Yes drummer and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Alan White passed away May 26 after a short illness. He was 72.
Alec John Such, the original bassist for the rock band Bon Jovi, died June 4 of natural causes at the age of 70.
Seals and Crofts’ Jim Seals passed away June 6 after suffering a “chronic ongoing illness.” He was 80.
William “Poogie” Hart, the lead singer of legendary Philadelphia soul group The Delfonics, died July 14 at age 77.
Sam Gooden, an original member of the soul group The Impressions, died of a heart attack on August 4 at the age of 87.
Olivia Newton-John lost her decadeslong battle with breast cancer on August 8. She passed away at her home in California at the age of 73.
Motown great Lamont Dozier, one-third of the songwriting team Holland-Dozier-Holland, passed away August 8 at the age of 81.
Jerry Allison, best known for being the drummer with Buddy Holly‘s band The Crickets, died from cancer on August 22, nine days before his 83rd birthday.
Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Jerry Lee Lewis, aka The Killer, passed away October 28 at his home in Mississippi. He was 87.
Singer and actress Irene Cara, who starred in and sung the title song of the movie Fame, and topped the charts with the Flashdance tune “Flashdance… What a Feeling,” died November 25 at the age of 63.
Fleetwood Mac’s co-lead vocalist, songwriter and keyboardist Christine McVie died November 30 after a short illness. She was 79.
The Rascals drummer Dino Danelli passed away December 15 at the age of 78.
Rick Anderson, bassist and co-founding member of the band The Tubes, passed away December 16 at the age of 75.
Just 16 months after Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts passed away, his wife, Shirley Watts, died December 16 at the age of 84.
Terry Hall, lead singer of the influential British band The Specials, died December 18 at the age of 63. In addition to his work with that band, he also co-wrote The Go-Go’s debut single, “Our Lips Are Sealed,” with his then-girlfriend, Jane Wiedlin.
Thom Bell, one of the members of “The Mighty Three” architects of the Philadelphia soul sound, which also included Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, passed away December 22 at the age of 79.
Def Leppard has shared a special holiday message to fans, posting a video to social media with each member sharing holiday wishes to their followers.
“Wanted to say one thing before the year comes to an end,” Joe Elliott shares. “Thank you for your support throughout the year, waiting for us through COVID. We had a fantastic tour this summer.” He adds, “Thank you for your support over the last 45 years. So to everybody, happy holidays and we’ll see you in 2023.”
Vivian Campbell added, “Thank you all for supporting the band in 2022, coming to the shows. We had an absolutely wonderful summer. So happy holidays, however you celebrate it. Have a great time.”
And the band is promising more to come next year, with Rick Savage noting, “As we approach the end of 2022 just want to say thank you to everybody that came out who saw us on the last tour, there’s many more to come.”
Rick Allen passed along a similar sentiment, sharing that “there’s loads more” shows to come, “so we’re looking forward to seeing people out there.”
The Beatles have lost one of their United Kingdom chart records. Up until now the legendary rockers held the record for the most U.K. Christmas number ones on the Official Singles chart with four, but that has now been surpassed by British duo LadBaby.
LadBaby, the husband and wife parody act of Mark and Roxanne Hoyle, earned their fifth Christmas number one this week with “Food Aid,” a reimagining of the 1985 Band Aid Christmas classic, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” The Band Aid tune was also a Christmas number one.
In hearing the news of their new number one, LadBaby offered up “a massive apology to The Beatles, and to all The Beatles’ fans.”
LadBaby previously landed Christmas number ones with 2018’s “We Built This City,” 2019’s “I Love Sausage Rolls,” 2020’s “Don’t Stop Me Eatin’” and 2021’s “Sausage Rolls For Everyone,” a collaboration with Ed Sheeran and Elton John. Proceeds from their latest number one will go to two food banks, The Trussell Trust and the Band Aid Trust.
The Beatles had their four Christmas number ones with 1963’s “I Want Hold Your Hand,” 1964’s “I Feel Fine,” 1965’s “Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out” and 1967’s “Hello, Goodbye.”
