John Mellencamp, Jackson Browne to be honored at American Music Honors

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

John Mellencamp, Jackson Browne, Dion Dimucci and Mavis Staples will be honored at the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music’s second annual American Music Honors.

The awards are handed out to artists “who have demonstrated artistic excellence, creative integrity, and a longstanding commitment to the value of music in our national consciousness.”

“The Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music is proud to honor these musically, culturally, and politically important artists,” Robert Santelli, founding executive director of the Springsteen Archives, shares. “All four artists—John Mellencamp, Jackson Browne, Mavis Staples, and Dion—have contributed mightily to the American music canon and have demonstrated how the power of song can act as an agent for positive change in our country.”

The event will take place April 24 at the Pollak Theatre at Monmouth University in West Long Branch, New Jersey, the home of the Bruce Springsteen Archives.

Steven Van Zandt and his band Disciples of Soul will act as house band for the night, with Springsteen, his manager Jon Landau and Darlene Love serving as presenters.

The American Music Honors launched in 2023, with Van Zandt and Love both honored, along with Sam & Dave‘s Sam Moore and Steve Earle.

The event is open to the public, with tickets going on sale March 26.

Taylor Swift named the Global Recording Artist of the Year for 2023

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

To the surprise of no one, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, which represents artists worldwide, has crowned Taylor Swift the Global Recording Artist of the Year for 2023.

The honor recognizes that Taylor was the biggest artist in the world in 2023, based on her sales across streaming, downloads and physical music formats. Taylor has won this honor more times than any other artist in the past 11 years in which the IFPI has given it out: She also won in 2014, 2019 and 2022.

Lewis Morrison, director of charts and certifications for the IFPI, says in a statement that Taylor “continues to redefine the limits of global success.” He adds, “Taylor is a singular talent and her commitment to her craft and her fans is truly phenomenal.”

The rest of the top Global Artists of the Year for 2023 are Drake, The Weeknd, Morgan Wallen, Post Malone, Ed Sheeran, SZA and K-Pop acts SEVENTEEN, Stray Kids, NewJeans and TOMORROW X TOGETHER.

In other Taylor news, Page Six says it’s confirmed that Taylor’s boyfriend, Travis Kelce, has boarded a private jet en route to Australia to see Taylor perform in Sydney.

Linkin Park confirms release of “Friendly Fire” song

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Linkin Park has confirmed the release of “Friendly Fire,” a previously unheard track originally recorded during the One More Light sessions.

The song, which LP first teased on Monday, February 19, will debut on Friday, February 23. You can listen to a 45-second preview, featuring lead vocals by the late Chester Bennington, via Linkin Park’s Soundcloud.

One More Light, Linkin Park’s last album, was released in 2017, and found the band experimenting with more pop and electronic-influenced sounds. While the change in direction polarized fans, One More Light debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200.

Bennington passed away in July 2017, just two months after One More Light dropped. The status of Linkin Park has remained in question ever since, though the group has released archival material alongside 20th anniversary reissues of their first two albums, Hybrid Theory and Meteora. Among that unearthed music is the song “Lost,” which hit #1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock and Alternative Airplay charts following its debut in 2023.

Dylan Scott to drop deluxe ‘Livin’ My Best Life (Still)’

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Dylan Scott has announced his deluxe album, Livin’ My Best Life (Still).

Due out March 29, the expansive 26-track record will feature six new songs, including “What He’ll Never Have,” which Dylan has been teasing on socials. Per a press release, Tyler Hubbard, Brian Kelley, Morgan Wallen and Thomas Rhett have writer credits on the deluxe project.

Livin’ My Best Life arrived in August 2022 and spawned the #1 hits “New Truck” and “Can’t Have Mine.”

Livin’ My Best Life (Still) is available for presave now.

Here’s the full track list for Livin’ My Best Life (Still):

“This Town’s Been Too Good to Us”
“What He’ll Never Have”
“Boys Back Home”
“Me and My Kind”
“I’ll Be a Bartender”
“What I’d Want Mine to Say”
“Heartbeat of America”
“Getting Out Alive”
“New Truck”
“Amen to That”
“Can’t Have Mine”
“In Our Blood”
“Static”
“Lay Down With You”
“Boy I Was Back Then”
“Livin’ My Best Life”
“Killin’ Some Time”
“Ain’t Much Left of Me”
“Leave Her Alone”
“Tough”
“Hell Out Of Me”
“Nobody”
“Good Times Go By Too Fast”
“Nothing to Do Town”
“Good Times Go by Too Fast (VAVO REMIX)”
“This Town’s Been Too Good to Us (VAVO REMIX)”

On This Day – February 21, 1990: Bonnie Raitt wins four Grammys, including Album of the Year

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

On This Day, February 21, 1990 …

At the 32nd annual Grammy Awards, Bonnie Raitt took home four awards, including Album of the Year for Nick of Time.

She also won for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female and Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female for the album’s title track, as well as Best Traditional Blues Recording for her Johnny Lee Hooker collaboration “I’m in the Mood.”

Raitt won her most recent Grammys in 2023, taking home three trophies: the coveted Song of the Year award for “Just Like That,” which also won Best American Roots Song, and for Best Americana Performance for “Made Up Mind.”

In total, Raitt has won 13 Grammy Awards from 30 nominations. She was also honored with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.

Foreigner’s Mick Jones reveals he has Parkinson’s disease

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Foreigner has been on their Farewell tour since 2023, and while guitarist Mick Jones is the only original member still associated with the band, he hasn’t been part of the tour. He’s now revealed that Parkinson’s disease is what’s been keeping him from performing.

“Fans will have become very aware that for some time now, I have not been performing onstage with the band,” Jones shared in a statement. “Several years ago, I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. I want everyone to know that I am doing alright. However, I’ve always liked to be at my best when performing onstage, and sadly, at present, I find that a bit difficult.”

Jones notes that while he hasn’t been performing, he’s still very much a part of Foreigner, working behind the scenes with the group.

“Parkinson’s is a daily struggle; several of my friends are also dealing with the disease,” he continues. “The important thing is to persevere with the loving support of my family, and remind myself of the wonderful career I’ve had in music.”

He went on to thank Foreigner fans for their support, noting “it always means so very much to me, especially so at this point in my life.”

Foreigner released their self-titled debut album in 1977 and went on to sell over 80 million records worldwide. They have nine top 10 hits, one #1 album, 4, and one #1 single, “I Want To Know What Love Is.”

Earlier this month Foreigner was nominated for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Inductees will be announced in late April, with the ceremony set to take place this fall in Cleveland.

Olivia Rodrigo thanks fans for “all the love” as she turns 21

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Olivia Rodrigo turned the big 2-1 on February 20, and while she celebrated the day before, the celebrations continued for the singer on the actual day.

On Instagram, Olivia posted a photo of herself posing next to a five-tier cake: one heart-shaped layer had “Spill ur guts” — the name of her tour — written on it. Olivia’s currently in rehearsals for her tour kickoff February 23 in Palm Desert, California.

She also included a video of a balloon drop surprising her as she posed with the cake, and a throwback photo of herself as a little girl with a huge pink birthday crown made of construction paper.

“21!!! so grateful for all of the incredible things I’ve been able to experience so far and so excited for all the good times ahead,” she captioned the post. “thx 4 all the love.”

Olivia also dropped a limited-edition line of “Spicy Pisces” merchandise in honor of her milestone.

Among Olivia’s celeb pals sending her good wishes in the comments were Camila Cabello, Avril Lavigne, Addison Rae and Rachel Zegler.

Machine Gun Kelly gets new blackout tattoo: “For spiritual purposes only”

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Machine Gun Kelly has overhauled his tattoo oeuvre in a big way.

In an Instagram post, the “Bloody Valentine” rocker has shared a shirtless photo showing blackout ink covering his chest, shoulders and arms, covering up any previous tattoos in those areas. MGK writes in the caption, “For spiritual purposes only.”

The tattoo’s artist, Roxx, tells TMZ that she worked on Kelly over 13 six-hour sessions and still has a little bit more to do before the piece is officially complete. On her own Instagram, Roxx writes, “Made some art with @machinegunkelly. Never met a tougher one.”

Meanwhile, a new Machine Gun Kelly song titled “dont let me go” is set to premiere Wednesday, February 21, at 1 p.m. ET.

Dolly Parton teases new Experience at Dollywood: “People are going to really love that”

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Planning a trip to Dollywood? Then, be sure to check out The Dolly Parton Experience.

Launching this spring, fans will be treated to three distinct experiences: Songteller, an exhibit chronicling Dolly’s expansive and iconic career; Behind The Seams, a curated display of Dolly’s style and fashion; and Precious Memories, a showcase of the music legend’s faith and love for family.

Updating the space of the former Chasing Rainbows Museum has been a long time coming for Dolly and her Dollywood team.

“We outgrew that place, that little area where we had the Chasing Rainbows Museum for years,” Dolly tells ABC Audio. “We took all that out and then spent the last year and a half, two years, building a new experience called The Dolly Parton Experience.”

Teasing the new experience, Dolly says the space will offer “a lot of up-to-date stuff, a lot of technology [and] a lot of wonderful things.”

“Fans can [interact] with a lot of the things that are in there. So I think people are going to really love that. I’m excited about that whole Dolly experience for the fans, and I’m curious to see how it all turns out,” she adds.

For more information on The Dolly Parton Experience, head to dollywood.com.

Em Beihold on new headlining tour, surprising connection with Noah Kahan

February 21, 2024 by WDNY Radio

Em Beihold‘s first headlining tour kicked off February 20, but a few days before that, she told ABC Audio how headlining will be a big change from her previous tours opening for artists like Lewis Capaldi.

“I feel like it’s always been sort of, ‘OK, I have 30 minutes to fit all my songs and a little bit of talking,’ but this time … I’ve actually talked to my band about like, ‘How do we loosen this up?'” she said.

“I want to be silly. We’re going to be talking more … it’s going to be more fun,” she predicted. She also promises special guests and new songs. “When you play the set so many times, just adding some new energy is very special,” she noted.

Em, whose hit “Numb Little Bug” and her new track “Maybe Life Is Good” both mention mental health issues, is also making that a component of the tour: One dollar from each ticket will go to Active Minds, an organization that brings attention to mental health, especially on college campuses.

There’s no word yet on who Em’s special guests will be, but she’d be thrilled if a certain artist who attended her first live performance several years ago made an appearance: Noah Kahan.

“I was freaking out. This was also before everything was going crazy for him,” Em said. “He came to my show at The Hotel Cafe and then we wrote together the next day.”

“He’s just such a special, incredible person and so inspiring to me,” she said of Noah. “I’m honored to be anywhere near his orbit.”

So, is she sending him tickets?

“Uh, I’m assuming he’s busy … but I should,” she laughed.

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