Music – Page 107 – 105.7 WDNY

Lil Jon says he discusses son’s death in upcoming memoir ”cause I’m not alone’

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Lil Jon will release his memoir, I Only Shout So You Can Hear Me, on Oct. 20. The book includes “just everything about my life, how I got my start, all the ups and downs of the music industry,” he says in an interview with TMZ.

It also includes his reflections on losing his son Nathan “DJ Slade” Smith, which he added following his son’s death in February.

“My son’s passing happened when we were done, so we went back in and included me talking about my experiences with that and how I was processing and dealing with all of that,” he says.

Jon tells TMZ of including his son’s death in his book, “I look at it like me telling my story and what I’m going through could help someone else to get through it. ‘Cause I’m not alone.”

“One thing that…helped me to get through it too is so many people reaching out and sending me prayers and love,” he says, giving credit to people who “experienced … a similar loss, giving me the opportunity to speak with them if I needed to.”

He adds, “I just felt like I needed to be able to express everything that I was going through so somebody else that’s out there that’s going through it can see that they can get through it as well.”

Smith died in February from accidental drowning. He was 27 years old.

Backstreet Boys’ Howie Dorough is ‘reimagining’ his songs for new Spanish-language project

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Backstreet Boys’ Howie Dorough just released his first Spanish-language single, “Coqui,” and it’s part of a larger project that’s coming in the future.

According to a press release, Howie’s upcoming release will feature new, original music, as well as “reimagined” Spanish versions of select songs from throughout his career. He was inspired to do this by the fans who’ve told him that they learned English by listening to the Backstreet Boys.

Howie, whose mother is from Puerto Rico, says in a statement, “Growing up, Puerto Rican music, traditions, and family were always a huge part of my life. As I’ve gotten older and become a father myself, I’ve felt an even stronger desire to connect with that heritage and share it with my children. This project has allowed me to reconnect with that side of myself in a really meaningful way.”

“Coqui” is named after Puerto Rico’s famous tree frog, and Howie shot the video in San Juan.

Howie, who didn’t grow up speaking Spanish fluently, has been working hard to improve his skills with the language. As for why he’s chosen this moment to put out a Spanish project, he told Billboard, “Latin music is so big right now, and people are willing to hear music that’s not in their own language.”

“I don’t have major expectations,” he notes, “this is a passion for me, it’s more of a journey. It’s a story that hopefully people will get to know, of a kid who once wanted to embrace his culture, his roots, and because of society and insecurities over the years, I’ve held myself back, but now is the time.”

Night Ranger releases remastered ‘(You Can Still) Rock in America’

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Night Ranger is revisiting one of their classic hits.

The “Sister Christian” rockers have released a remastered version of their 1983 single “(You Can Still) Rock in America,” which originally appeared on their sophomore album, Midnight Madness.

The new remastered version of the song is one of several remixed and remastered hits featured on their upcoming compilation album, Best Of, dropping Aug. 28. Also included on the record are “Sister Christian,” “When You Close Your Eyes” and “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me,” along with bonus tracks, including a live performance of the holiday classic “Feliz Navidad.”

Best Of will be released on CD and vinyl, with a double-LP version available in black, gold and orange splatter. All are available for preorder now.

Night Ranger is currently on a U.S. tour and is set to play Reno, Nevada, on Friday. A complete list of tour dates can be found at NightRanger.com.

Hear The 1975’s Matty Healy sing on new Tiny Habits song

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

The 1975 frontman Matty Healy is featured on a new song from the band Tiny Habits.

The track is called “Anything He Was” and includes vocals from Healy. Tiny Habits describe it as a song about “a specific loneliness brought on by someone else’s discontent.”

“Anything He Was” will appear on the upcoming Tiny Habits album, Keepers, due out Aug. 28.

Healy previously linked up with Tiny Habits to perform a cover of the James Taylor song “Carolina in My Mind.”

As for Healy’s main gig, The 1975 has been relatively quiet since wrapping their Still… At Their Very Best tour in 2024, though they did return to the live stage to headline Glastonbury in 2025.

It ain’t no lie, Sleep Theory’s covered ‘Bye Bye Bye’

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Sleep Theory is doing this tonight, and by “this,” we mean cover *NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye.”

The “Stuck in My Head” rockers have long included a rendition of the boy band classic in their live set, and have now recorded an official studio version.

The track adds heavy guitar riffs while keeping the sugary vocal harmonies and would certainly be a fitting soundtrack to Deadpool brutally murdering countless members of the Time Variance Authority.

You can watch the video for Sleep Theory’s “Bye Bye Bye” cover streaming now on YouTube.

The cover follows Sleep Theory’s 2025 debut album, Afterglow. The record’s current single, “Words Are Worthless,” hit #1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart and is currently climbing the Alternative Airplay chart.

Sleep Theory will launch a U.S. tour in July.

Lizzo, Frankie Grande gush over Ariana Grande’s current tour: ‘greatest singer of all time’

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

It’s not surprising that Frankie Grande would feel compelled to post about how much he loves his sister Ariana Grande’s current tour. But someone with no skin in the game — Lizzo — took to Instagram to gush over Ari’s recent show in Inglewood, California..

Posting video of the moment Ariana is lifted up in the air while singing “supernatural,” Lizzo wrote, “I have too much too say. Ari— thank you. This is a woman who gives her alllllllllll and NO SHADE, she don’t have to. Thee vocalist thee Loubotin platform custommmmmm…. I cried, I laughed, I sang TF along.”

“You coulda healed far far away from us… somewhere over the rainbow. But you chose to heal with us. On stage. Every night. So thank you. We love you. Brava,” she concluded.

As for Frankie, he said in his lengthy post, “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it forever: I believe my sister is the greatest singer of all time. There is simply no substitute for hearing those songs performed live. Her artistry, her musicianship, her storytelling, and a discography that is truly unmatched all came together in what I genuinely believe is the highest expression of her craft.”

“Yes, I’m her brother,” he noted. “But I also know I’m one of millions who recognize that we’re witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime artist at the absolute peak of her powers.”

As for the Eternal Sunshine tour production, Frankie said, “It was cinematic, theatrical, intimate, spectacular, and vocally flawless all at once. Somehow it felt like a Broadway show, a film, and a concert existing in the same magical space.”

The tour is set to continue through Sept. 1, wrapping up with 10 shows at London’s O2 Arena.

Charli XCX explains ‘the dancefloor is dead’ line, reveals which artist she ‘totally rides for’

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

When Charli XCX released “Rock Music,” the first song from her upcoming album. Music, Fashion, Film, many fans interpreted the lyric “I think the dance floor is dead” as a blanket statement about the entire genre. Even Madonna responded, writing, “If your dance floor feels dead/Maybe you’re playing the wrong music.” But in her new Rolling Stone cover story, she insists that’s not what she meant.

“That lyric is very much about my relationship with Brat, and my personal experience with that album,” she says. “My husband runs a dance-music label. There’s been such a wealth of incredible dance/electronic-adjacent records that have been coming out recently. … Dance music is in an incredible place.”

While Charli insists her new project is not a rock album, as has been rumored, she says it’s also not like Brat.

“I knew when I was making it that I was never going to make that record again,” she says. “It’s not creatively rewarding for me to make the same thing twice.”

But she rejects the notion of genre as “a very old school notion, adding, “It’s just me [and my collaborators], doing our thing.”

Also in the interview, Charli praises some fellow artists who, like her, took several years to find their audience.

“There’s been a lot of artists who have been doing things for a long time, who are having their moment now,” she tells the magazine. “Like Zara [Larsson]. I’m so f****** happy for her. And someone who I totally ride for is RAYE.”

Charli and RAYE have been friends for 10 years and have collaborated several times.

“There was a time in our lives when we were together a lot,” Charli says. “And her journey, becoming an independent artist and doing her thing, is really cool.”

On This Day, June 18, 2011: E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons dies at 69

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

On This Day, June 18, 2011…

E Street Band and Bruce Springsteen saxophonist Clarence Clemons died in a Florida hospital six days after suffering a stroke at his home. He was 69.

Clemons, also known as The Big Man, was a member of the E Street Band from 1974 until his passing. He met Springsteen in 1971 in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Their meeting was immortalized on the track “The E Street Shuffle,” from Springsteen’s sophomore album, 1973’s The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle, and on the 1975 Born To Run classic “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out.”

Clemons was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band in 2014.

In addition to his work with Springsteen, Clemons released several solo albums and had a hit with the 1985 track “You’re A Friend of Mine,” a collaboration with Jackson Browne.

Springsteen chose Clarence’s nephew Jake Clemons to be the new E Street Band saxophonist in 2012. He has performed with them ever since.

Megan Moroney’s playing doctor and she’s here with your ‘Medicine’

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

“Beautiful Things” is Megan Moroney’s latest hit to float down from Cloud 9 and ascend to the top five of the country radio charts.

But if you look at the other end of the ranking, there’s another track from her latest album that’s just beginning its climb.

“Medicine” comes with a bit of a warning: If you’re a man who’s ever treated a woman badly, Dr. Moroney will see you now.

“‘Medicine’ is a song I wrote with some of my favorite people about giving a guy a taste of their own medicine,” Megan explains. “I just find it hilarious that anytime I’ve ever treated a guy like 10 percent of how they’ve mistreated me, they freak out. And so this song is just kind of giving them a taste of their medicine.”

“And it’s a fun honky-tonk song, and I hope that I will see all of y’all line dancing to this one very soon,” she adds.

Megan swings by Summerfest in Milwaukee on Thursday, before a Friday stop in Grand Rapids. On Saturday, she plays Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.

Songs by Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan make list of 25 most American songs of all time

June 18, 2026 by WDNY Radio

As America approaches its 250th anniversary, Esquire is taking a deep dive into songs that most reflect our nation.

The mag has just come out with a list of the 25 most American songs of all time, with tracks by Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and more making the list.

According to Esquire, the list doesn’t aim to choose the greatest American songs; instead it is “a collection of songs that are distinctly American, addressing protest and leisure, joy and pain, wisdom and silliness, nostalgia and experimentation.”

Despite the title, Springsteen is not on the list for his iconic protest song “Born in the U.S.A.” In fact, songs with America or U.S.A. in the title or chorus were excluded from the list. Instead, The Boss’ 1980 track “The River” is recognized, with the mag calling it his “most perfectly American composition” because it describes the “compromises required of the working class.”

Dylan is represented with 1965’s “Highway 61 Revisited,” although the mag notes his “entire 60-plus-year career has been an exploration of American music.” Petty’s recognized for 1989’s “Free Fallin'” because it “depicts suburban isolation and longing.”

Other songs making the list include: KISS’ “Rock and Roll All Nite,” the Ramones’ “Blitzkrieg Bop,” Jimmy Buffett’s “Margaritaville,” The Beach Boys’ “Surfin’ Safari,” Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” and Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land.”

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