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.
Mariah Carey is still processing her latest Billboard milestone. Thanks to her hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You” scoring another week at #1, she is now the first and only artist to lead the chart for 90 weeks.
Mariah celebrated the new milestone on Instagram, writing, “I can’t even handle this news.. I’m jumping up and down in the snow..!”
She added that as she’s celebrating in her element, her dog Cha Cha is “swimming around” while her other pet, Mutley,is “howling like a kid running around in circles feeling our energy.”
Billboard confirmed “All I Want for Christmas Is You” scored its 11th week at #1 on the Hot 100, which cemented her 90th week overall on top of the chart. In addition, she became the second artist behind Boyz II Men to have had three separate singles dominate the chart for 11 or more weeks.
Mariah also enjoyed a fun new milestone when it comes to streaming. She beat a record set by Adele for the most single-day streams on Spotify — on Christmas Eve, no less.
The Independent reports British listeners blasted “All I Want for Christmas” 21.273 million times over a 24-hour span, which broke the record previously set by Adele’s “Easy on Me.” That song was streamed 19.747 million times in a single day back in 2021.
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.
If you’re looking for the Kurt Cobain of the 21st century, Courtney Love would refer you to one Lana Del Rey.
In an interview on Marc Maron‘s WTF podcast, the Hole frontwoman and widow of the late Nirvana frontman declares, “Lana and Kurt are the only true musical geniuses I’ve ever known.”
As for what makes Cobain and Del Rey geniuses, Love explains that “they can Spielberg anything,” which she says is demonstrated by how Kurt interpreted Meat Puppets for Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged performance and how Lana “feminizes” Allen Ginsberg‘s “Howl” with her spoken word rendition of the famed poem.
“She’s got the integrity that Kurt had,” Love adds of Del Rey.
“By the way, [R.E.M.‘s Micheal] Stipe, [U2‘s] Bono — yes, these are people that I know and love,” she continues. “[Green Day‘s] Billie Joe [Armstrong], sure. But Lana? She’s got a magic thing.”
Jason Aldean traded in his cowboy hat for a long white Santa beard this holiday season. He and his wife, Brittany, stopped by their local gas station to pump some free gas for unsuspecting drivers.
Dressed as Santa and Mrs. Claus, Jason and Brittany hung out by the pumps looking to spread a little holiday cheer. They had just one request before filling up people’s gas tanks: “Shake that a** for free gas,” read a sign the county star couple held up.
Brittany shared video of the holiday giveaway on her social media, including clips of the responses they got from the folks who walked away from the pumps with a free tank.
“I just got back from college so this definitely helps,” one person told the couple. “I just started working again so I haven’t gotten a paycheck yet.”
“Giving gas, that’s awesome stuff,” another said.
After one driver’s gas tank only needed a top-off, Brittany presented him with a $100 bill to go towards his next trip to the pump. “I drive from here to Nashville almost every day for work,” he explained, stressing how much the holiday cash would help him cover his travel expenses.
For their own holiday celebrations, Jason and Brittany took their two young kids, Memphis and Navy, on a ski vacation earlier this month. Brittany documented the occasion on her social media.
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.
2022 will go down as the year that put Lainey Wilson on the map.
The Country Music Association named her Female Vocalist of the Year the very first time she was nominated and crowned her New Artist of the Year, as well. Earlier, the Academy of Country Music agreed, bestowing both New Female Artist and Song of the Year honors for “Things a Man Oughta Know.”
“It’s been a ride, I’ll tell you that,” the Louisiana native reflects. “Everything that we put on our list of things that we wanted to accomplish, we have done that plus more — even when it comes to getting a tour bus.”
“We finally got a tour bus in June,” she continues. “And oh my gosh, it’s just so many wonderful blessings. I’m really having to learn how to dream a little bigger, you know, like, all the things that felt so far away are really not.”
Lainey also branched out into acting, taking a role in season 5 of Yellowstone, the series that first shined a spotlight on her music. And her small-screen dreams don’t end there.
“I wanna be on SNL, I want to do things like that,” she tells ABC Audio. “No matter what, songwriting’s always gonna be my number one, because that’s what got me here to begin with. But yeah, I want to do that.”
“You know, I’m going out on my first headlining tour next year and planning on selling that thing out. We’re gonna do it,” she predicts.
Lainey kicks off her Country with a Flare Tour on January 4 in Spokane, Washington.
While touring picked up again in 2021 after the COVID-19 pandemic completely shut down the concert industry in 2020, it returned in full force in 2022. The much-anticipated reunion tours of My Chemical Romance, Rage Against the Machine and Mötley Crüe, which were originally scheduled for 2020, finally took place this year.
The launch of the MCR tour was accompanied by a new song from the “Helena” rockers, marking their first fresh material in eight years. Meanwhile, the Crüe outing, which was co-headlined by Def Leppard, and also featured Poison and Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, was the highest-grossing tour of the band’s career.
2022 also saw Red Hot Chili Peppers finally hit the road with guitarist John Frusciante, who’d rejoined the band at the end of 2019. The “Californication” outfit played stadiums across the globe in support of not one but two new albums, Unlimited Love and Return of the Dream Canteen, which marked their first records with Frusciante since 2006’s Stadium Arcadium.
Another band that released new music in 2022 with a beloved returning member was Blink-182, who reunited with Tom DeLonge for the single “Edging,” their first new material together since 2011. A Blink-182 world tour is planned for 2023.
Though not quite a reunion, Pantera got back together at the end of 2022 for their first tour since 2001. Longtime members Phil Anselmo and Rex Brown reformed the “Walk” metallers with Black Label Society‘s Zakk Wylde and Anthrax‘s Charlie Benante in place of the late Abbott brothers, “Dimebag” Darrell and Vinnie Paul, respectively.
Pantera will be opening for another metal giant next year: Metallica, who returned in 2022 with their first new song in six years. The track “Lux Æterna” is the lead single off the new ‘Tallica album, 72 Seasons, due out in April 2023.
Paramore also ended a long wait for new music with “This Is Why,” the lead single and title track from the much-anticipated follow-up to 2017’s After Laughter. The upcoming record arrives in February 2023.
Dove Cameron is one of the performers on the LA party portion of ABC’s Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve withRyan Seacrest, airing December 31 at 8 p.m. ET — and she says it’s “inconceivable” to her that she would get to perform on a show that’s so “iconic.”
“It blows my mind,” Dove told ABC Audio during rehearsals for the show. “It’s, like, when you grow up watching something so iconic, I think it’s one of the mainstays of, ‘One day when I’m…an adult…I’m gonna do that!’ But it’s not really anything you wholeheartedly believe is going to be a part of your life in any real way…so…it’s kind of inconceivable!”
While Dove indeed grew up watching New Year’s Rockin’ Eve, she wasn’t able to do it at her own house.
“I grew up in the woods without cable, so…I would watch New Year’s Rockin’ Eve at friends’ houses and, like, my aunts’ and uncles’ [houses],” she laughed. “But it wasn’t something that we had in our home because we literally had rabbit ears and, like, one local news channel.”
Dove’s performance on the show will be one last highlight in a year that was full of them: She was named Best New Artist at the VMAs and the AMAs, and scored a big hit with “Boyfriend.” But she’s got plenty of New Year’s resolutions for 2023.
“I mean, number one on my mind is finally getting my debut album out there ’cause it’s been a long saga,” she explained. “I’m very excited about that. And also, personally speaking, just finding time for consistent therapy once a week…[it’s a] huge, huge thing for me because I think in my line of work, it’s really difficult to do.” (
In January 2022, Elton John resumed his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour for the first time since the pandemic, and continued to add dates and special shows along the way. While he raked in the bucks on the road, he also gave fans a glimpse of what his post-touring career might look like by releasing yet another hit single and entering the metaverse. Here’s a look at his year:
–In January, Elton had to postpone two shows after testing positive for COVID-19. He made a full recovery.
–In March, Elton missed his annual Academy Awards Viewing Party charity benefit for the first time in 30 years because he had a show in Lincoln, Nebraska. A satellite hookup from the show to the party was provided.
–Also in March, Elton announced 11 new North American stadium shows, including his 2,000th U.S. concert: a November 20 show at L.A.’s Dodger Stadium, the site of his historic 1975 shows. That was soon expanded to three Dodger Stadium shows, with the November 20 one marking his final North American gig.
–In May, it was announced that the Dodger stadium shows would be recorded for a Disney+ documentary called Goodbye Yellow Brick Road: The Final Elton John Performances And the Years That Made His Legend.
—In June, Elton helped celebrate Queen Elizabeth II‘s Platinum Jubilee with a special performance of “Your Song,” which was projected onto the facade of Buckingham Palace. In September, he mourned her death, writing on Instagram, “I will miss her dearly.”
–In July and August, Elton’s latest musical, a stage version of The Devil Wears Prada, played a limited run in Chicago. In a rare misstep for Elton, it received poor reviews. Elton later said, “It’ll be ready in another year.”
–In July, word came of an Elton John/Britney Spears collaboration, marking her return to music following the end of her conservatorship. In August, it was made official: Elton and Britney were teaming up for a remix of his classic song “Tiny Dancer” called “Hold Me Closer.” When the song arrived on August 26, it was revealed to be a mashup of “Tiny Dancer,” plus Elton’s songs “The One” and “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart.”
–In September, “Hold Me Closer” debuted in the top 10, giving Britney her 14th top-10 hit, her first since 2012. It was Elton’s 35th U.S. top-10 hit. It also debuted on top of Billboard‘s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart, only the third song ever to do so.
–On September 23, ahead of Elton’s show in Washington, D.C., he was invited to the White House by President Joe Biden and presented with the National Humanities Medal. Elton said he was “flabbergasted” by the honor.
–In October, Elton’s other new musical,Tammy Faye, debuted in London. This one got great reviews, and though it closed in December, it’s likely it will reappear at some point.
–Elton’s November 20 Dodger Stadium show was livestreamed by Disney+ and featured guest appearances by Kiki Dee, Dua Lipa and Brandi Carlile. Just a few days later, Elton traveled to New York City and performed “Your Song” in the middle of Fifth Avenue to help unveil Saks Fifth Avenue’s holiday windows.
–By November, Elton’s tour had grossed just under $750 million, ranking it as the second-highest-grossing tour of all time, behind his pal Ed Sheeran‘s Divide tour.
–Also in November, Elton entered the metaverse via a collaboration with the popular online game platform Roblox. Titled Beyond the Yellow Brick Road, the virtual experience let fans enjoy an interactive world inspired by Elton’s life and legacy.
–In December, Elton announced that his final United Kingdom show would be a headlining performance at the 2023 Glastonbury Festival.
