Music

If you’ve enjoyed Alter Bridge‘s brand of hard rock over the band’s last seven records, it’s probably safe to say you’ll be a fan of their newly released eighth album. 

In putting together their latest studio effort, frontman Myles Kennedy tells ABC Audio, “We’re not trying to come up with some brand-new approach to what the genre is.”

“I think we’re really leaning into what we love about it and what has proved to be kind of timeless and avoiding any sort of trends,” Kennedy says. “[We’re] really just doing what we do and what we grew up listening to and what we love about heavy music.”

The new album is self-titled, and while Kennedy jokes that decision was based in laziness, he does acknowledge that the music reflects the self-actualization he and his bandmates have gone through over Alter Bridge’s 20-year career.

“That’s the one thing after all these years I feel like we definitely have achieved is we’ve kind of found our little niche,” Kennedy laughs. “There’s just a certain way we approach things. I think any band or any artist, that’s what you hope for after two decades, is you kind of establish what your sound is, what your identity is.”

He adds, “I feel like [the album is] just really leaning into what we’re about and kind of just being unapologetic about it.”

Lyrically, one of the themes of Alter Bridge is avoiding or removing yourself from toxic situations, which is reflected in the single “Silent Divide.” 

“The idea of taking the high road, attempting to, seemed kind of paramount to explore with some of these lyrics,” Kennedy says. 

Alter Bridge the album is out now. You can catch Alter Bridge touring the U.S. starting in April.

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Pixies fans, here comes your band, four decades later.

The “Where Is My Mind?” rockers have announced a retrospective series marking the 40th anniversary of their founding in 1986.

The series will focus on different tracks from throughout the Pixies catalog, beginning with the song “Here Comes Your Man,” a single off the 1989 album Doolittle.

As Pixies point out in a Facebook post, “Here Comes Your Man” has been featured in movies and TV shows including (500) Days of Summer and The Simpsons, as well as the recently premiered series finale of Stranger Things.

The most recent Pixies album is 2024’s The Night the Zombies Came.

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It may be a new year, but DJ Cassidy’s mission remains the same. As he’s done for years through his DJ sets and Pass the Mic Live! shows, he aims to unite people through music while giving flowers to the artists he loves.

“In 2026, I just want to continue using music and my craft to bring people together — uniting people from all walks of life, from all over the world, across generations — through the spirit of celebration,” Cassidy said in an interview with ABC’s On the Red Carpet. “[I want to] continue passing the mic to my heroes and bring as many smiles to as many people as possible in this crazy world.”

Cassidy is set to do just that with a special show taking place on Valentine’s Day. The one-night-only event will see him pass the mic to Ashanti, Busta Rhymes, En Vogue, Fabolous, Ja Rule, Lil’ Kim, Mya and other surprise guests at the Kia Forum, marking the first time he’s brought his popular series to California. Tickets are still available.

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After dropping a solo EP on Thanksgiving titled hi, my name is Alex, Backstreet Boy AJ McLean is releasing his full-length project, My Name Is Alexander James, on Friday. The release coincides with his birthday, which he sees as a positive sign from the universe.

“This album’s taken me four years to make … and I’m beyond proud of this entire project,” he told ABC Audio. “And the way that everything timing-wise and date-wise is all happening, it was meant to be this way. Like, the fact that my birthday lands on a Friday, I’m like, ‘This is meant to me. This is awesome!'”

The album’s title was inspired by what AJ, who is now sober, learned while enrolled in an intensive outpatient support program aimed at helping him get to the root of his addiction.

“I basically discovered that I suffered from very low self-esteem my whole life. And being in the entertainment world, you can kind of mask that pretty well. And it worked until it didn’t,” he explained. “But I was never able to shut off the AJ persona, on and off stage, which got me into a lot of s***, unfortunately.”

“I’m lucky and grateful I came out the other end and I’m still standing,” he added.

AJ’s EP featured six songs. The album adds another eight, including “Can’t Love You Anymore,” which was co-written with Teddy Swims. AJ says his two daughters gave lots of feedback on the new songs.

“They’re fans of all of daddy’s stuff. And it just fills me up with so much joy [that] every time I picked them up to go to school, [they’d say], ‘Dad, do you have a brand new song? Can you send me some new stuff?'” he said. “And so they’re my, like, strongly opinionated focus group!”

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Angela Bassett will be celebrated for her years of dedication to her craft. She is set to receive the Excellence in the Arts Award at the 2026 American Black Film Festival Honors in recognition of her “body of work and distinguished career achievements,” according to a press release.

“Angela Bassett is the embodiment of excellence,” NICE CROWD CEO and President Jeff Friday said in a statement. “Her body of work is both extraordinary and enduring, defined by performances that are fearless, powerful, and deeply human. She has set a standard for artistic integrity and cultural impact that continues to inspire generations, and we are honored to celebrate her remarkable career with the Excellence in the Arts Award.”

Angela will join Entertainment Icon Award recipient Dwayne Johnson; Jennifer Hudson, who will receive the Renaissance Award; Salli Richardson-Whitfield, who is being honored with the Evolution Award; and Horizon Award recipient Damson Idris. 

Hosted by KevOnStage, the ABFF Honors will take place Feb. 16 in Beverly Hills. This year’s ceremony will also pay tribute to the creative team behind Ryan Coogler’s Sinners. 

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Goldfinger has announced a new album called NINE LIVES.

The aptly titled ninth studio effort from the “Superman” punks arrives Jan. 23. It’s the follow-up to 2020’s Never Look Back.

NINE LIVES includes the previously released track “FREAKING OUT A BIT,” which features blink-182‘s Mark Hoppus. Other artists featured on the record include Spencer Charnas of Ice Nine Kills, El Hefe of NOFX, Jim Lindberg of Pennywise and iann dior.

Here’s the NINE LIVES track list:

“CHASING AMY”
“FREAKING OUT A BIT” feat. Mark Hoppus
“LAST ONE STANDING” feat. Jim Lindberg 
“DERELICT” feat. Spencer Charnas 
“LIE IN BED”
“LOSER” feat. FIDLAR
“UNTOUCHABLE” feat. iann dior
“JOHN LENNON”
“DYNAMITE”
“KILLSWITCH”
“THE PUNISHER” feat. El Hefe
“COLLEGE”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Teddy Swims has been booked to perform at a pre-Super Bowl event.

He’ll be part of the lineup at EA SPORTS™ Presents Madden Bowl in Partnership with Visa. It will take place Feb. 6 at San Francisco’s Chase Center, two days before the big game at the Bay Area’s Levi’s Stadium. He’ll be sharing the bill with country superstar Luke Combs and a few other artists.

Teddy says in a statement to Billboard, “The last year has been surreal for me, and bringing that energy to Chase Center for Madden Bowl is a dream! Football, the Super Bowl and Madden are such a big part of how people come together, and music is always right there with it.”

Fans can watch the preshow, dubbed the Madden Bowl Blue Carpet, starting at 10 p.m. ET on EA SPORTS social channels. Twitch streamer Sketch will also host a livestream from the carpet, featuring athletes playing Madden NFL 26 against each other.

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Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi is the subject of a new docuseries from Gibson TV.

Volume 1 of Tony Iommi: The Godfather of Heavy Metal is now streaming on YouTube. The series is described as “a deep dive into the life, legacy, and groundbreaking sound of Black Sabbath’s legendary guitarist.” It features new interviews with Iommi, as well as contributions from rockers like Queen’s Brian May, Judas Priest’s Rob Halford, Guns N’ Roses’ Slash, Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello, Yungblud, Zakk Wylde and more.

“I’m very grateful to Gibson for this new documentary series and for honoring my role in the story of heavy metal,” says Iommi. “Hearing the kind words from so many incredible artists is really humbling.Thank you all for telling the story with such heart—and to the fans who’ve kept it alive. Long may it continue!”

The first episode covers Iommi’s early life growing up in Birmingham, England, including an industrial accident that almost ended his career. It also delves into the origins of Black Sabbath, including Iommi meeting bandmates Ozzy Osbourne, Bill Ward and Geezer Butler.

(Video includes uncensored profanity.)

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