Music – Page 31 – 105.7 WDNY

‘Daughter From Hell’? Gracie Abrams admits she was ‘brutal’ as a child

July 17, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Gracie Abrams’ new album Daughter From Hell is out now, and she says the title is an exaggeration, but not by much.

“Brutal” is how she described her behavior as a kid to Jimmy Fallon while appearing on The Tonight Show Thursday. “That song was the last one that I wrote for the album, and it is like a, y’know, decades overdue apology to my mom, basically,” she told Jimmy. As a “defiant” child, she said her early years were a “turbulent” time for her parents.

So what did Gracie’s mother think when she heard the song?

“She cried! She cried!” Gracie exclaimed, throwing up her arms in triumph. “So I win!”

Also in the interview, Gracie confirmed that she’s making her acting debut in an upcoming movie, saying, “It’s happening. Yes, I leave very, very shortly.” She didn’t give any more details about the project, which is reportedly an A24 movie directed by the same woman who directed the Nicole Kidman film Babygirl.

Gracie also talked about her upcoming Look at My Life arena tour, which starts Dec. 2 in Denver, Colorado. “We get the luxury of starting square one, like, wildest dreams kind of stage and design,” she said of the tour preparations.

She also shouted out her opening acts, who include, Bella Kay, Charlotte Lawrence, Japanese House, Jensen McRae, Holly Humberstone, Grace Ives and more.

“This is like my playlist. This is like the fantasy for me of being, ‘There’s no way they would’ and for some reason they said yes,” she told Jimmy. “I’m just so selfishly excited for anyone coming to the tour. I’m really excited that they get to see those artists.”

John Mellencamp forced to cancel Michigan concert due to poor air quality

July 17, 2026 by WDNY Radio

John Mellencamp was forced to cancel his show in Clarkston, Michigan, Thursday night due to the poor air quality caused by wildfires in Canada.

“Following guidance from public health authorities, unfortunately we will not be able to perform our July 16 show in Clarkston, MI at Pine Knob Music Theatre due to poor air quality,” read a post on Mellencamp’s social media. “We were looking forward to seeing you tonight!”

Fans who bought tickets through Ticketmaster will automatically be refunded their money.

Mellencamp launched his Dancing Words Tour – The Greatest Hits on July 10 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, treating the crowd to all of his biggest hits, including some songs he hasn’t played in decades.

His next show is scheduled for Saturday in Noblesville, Indiana, with dates running until Aug. 12 in Mountain View, California. A complete list of dates an be found at Mellencamp.com.

Before Greylan James served ‘Water at a Wedding,’ Kenny Chesney gave him some advice

July 17, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Greylan James currently has his biggest hit so far on the radio, as “Water at a Wedding” slips into country’s top 25. The Knoxville native’s held this vision most of his life, ever since his grandfather gave him a guitar at the age of 5.

Intent on following his country music dreams, young Greylan played local gigs while begrudgingly getting by in school. Worlds collided, however, the day he got a bad report card in sixth grade and came face-to-face with a superstar.

“That night I was playing a show, a little bluegrass show in East Tennessee, and it just so happens Peyton Manning and Kenny Chesney showed up to that show,” he recalls. “And I got to meet Kenny for like a blip. I was with my dad and we got to walk up and take a picture with him.”

“And my dad asked Kenny, he’s like, ‘Hey, if you could give any advice to my son, like what would it be? And by the way, he just got his first C today, and he thinks he’s gonna be a country music singer and school doesn’t matter,'” he continues. “And Kenny was like, ‘Well, school does matter, but learn how to write songs.’ And so, I didn’t go to college, didn’t stay in school, but I learned how to write the songs part.”

The story has a happy ending, with Greylan co-writing both “Happy Does,” Kenny’s #2 hit from 2021, and the title track of his 2024 album, Born.

Greylan scored his first #1 as a writer in 2023 with Jordan Davis’ “Next Thing You Know” and went on to pick up an ACM song of the year trophy for his efforts.

Halfway through 2026, female artists are tops, says new report

July 17, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Luminate, which provides sales and streaming data to Billboard and other publications, is out with its midyear music report for 2026, and so far, women are winning.

Ella Langley and Olivia Dean lead Luminate’s list of the top 10 songs in the U.S. so far this year, based on streaming numbers. Ella is #1 with “Choosin’ Texas,” which has racked up nearly 571 million streams; Olivia is #2 with “Man I Need,” with just over 340 million streams. Ella is also #4 on the chart with “Be Her,” while Olivia reappears at #10 with “So Easy (To Fall in Love).”

The top 10 also includes “Golden” by the voices of HUNTR/X, “Stateside” by PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson, and “The Fate of Ophelia” by Taylor Swift. As for the men, only Alex Warren, Bad Bunny and Bruno Mars managed to claw their way into the top 10, with “Ordinary,” “DtMF” and “I Just Might,” respectively.

Men fare better when it comes to the top 10 albums of 2026 so far, with Morgan Wallen’s I’m The Problem holding the #1 position, and his previous album One Thing at a Time at #10. Other top-10 albums came from Noah Kahan, BTS and Bad Bunny, but Ella and Olivia are both in there too, as is Taylor.

And when it comes to songs that are tops on U.S. radio this year, Bruno leads the charge with “I Just Might,” but Olivia is the only artist with two songs in the top 10: “Man I Need” and “So Easy (To Fall in Love).” “The Fate of Ophelia,” “Ordinary” “Choosin’ Texas” and “Golden” are also up there, and so is “back to friends” by sombr.

Limp Bizkit keeps the fun times ‘Rollin” with festival headlining sets

July 17, 2026 by WDNY Radio

The Limp Bizkit resurgence continues as the band headlines a trio of U.S. summer festivals starting Friday at the Wisconsin Rock Fest.

As for what’s continuing to drive fans to see the Bizkit live, especially since their viral performance at the 2021 Lollapalooza, guitarist Wes Borland feels that his wife sums it up best.

“She always goes, ‘You guys just f*** with people and you’re having fun and people can tell that you’re having fun,'” Borland tells ABC Audio.

That carefree attitude, though, follows years of a different vibe in the Bizkit camp.

“I think we’ve been through so much tragedy that we just stopped taking it so seriously, I guess,” Borland says. “You have enough bad shows or things go south enough times where it doesn’t really bother you anymore. Like, if the guitar rig goes out, I just go, ‘OK. This has happened before.'”

While they may not be taking themselves so seriously, the passion among the Limp Bizkit members is still there.

“I ended up spending the first third of the year in my shop just working on new stage costumes,” Borland says.

Plus, performing live means Limp Bizkit gets to play “Break Stuff” again, which Borland calls “the world’s most dangerous song.”

“It’s always fun to whip it out and see people’s reaction to it, ’cause they lose their minds,” Borland says.

Following Rock Fest, Limp Bizkit will headline the Summer of ’99 and Beyond Festival Saturday and Inkcarceration Sunday. Later in the year, they’ll headline Louder than Life in September and Aftershock in October.

Snow Patrol premieres video for Kylie Minogue collaboration, ‘These Alarms’

July 17, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Snow Patrol has premiered the video for “These Alarms,” the band’s collaborative single with Australian pop star Kylie Minogue.

The clip features footage of Snow Patrol’s performance of the track alongside Minogue during their recent show at London’s Crystal Palace Park. You can watch it on YouTube.

The Crystal Palace Park show also included a rendition of the Snow Patrol hit “Chasing Cars” with Minogue.

The original “Chasing Cars” appears on Snow Patrol’s 2006 album, Eyes Open. A deluxe 20th anniversary reissue of Eyes Open will be released July 24.

Mýa channels ’80s vibes in ‘Give It to You’ music video, talks collaborating with DJ D-Nice

July 17, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Mýa is taking fans back with the new music video for “Give It to You” featuring D-Nice.

The visual finds Mýa enjoying a beach day with her friends, admiring the scenery and showing off some choreography.

“A little Beat Street, Vanity 6, & Lisa Lisa Cult Jam inspo, with a little campy, fun in the California sun,” the video’s description reads.

“Give It to You” appears on Mýa’s 10th studio album, Retrospect, which was released in May. Though DJ D-Nice is credited as a feature, Mýa told ABC Audio he serves as “more of the host” of the project.

She said her manager, L. Londell McMillan, suggested bringing in D-Nice “because he comes from this era” and “his sets sound” like her album.

“He’s a reputable, well-known, legendary O.G. DJ in this game that also kept us alive in this pandemic through — what? — good times in music and specific eras that we could find our joy in,” Mýa said. “I also thought that was a very wonderful element to include because it was very cohesive with the whole intention of this album.”

Reflecting on Retrospect, Mýa says she hopes listeners embrace authenticity and aging, and that she brings them joy.

“It gets greater later,” she says. “My vocals [are] on point, the harmonies [are] on point, the ad-libs, I’m just, I’ve grown of course vocally.”

She adds that she hopes the album evokes special memories, whether it’s a first love or discovering confidence on the dance floor.

Mýa describes the project as “mainly and intentionally a joyful album” that bridges old-school and new-school sounds. She notes it also pays tribute to Prince, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.

The “Give It to You” video, directed by Josh Sikkema and co-directed by Derek Brown, is available on YouTube.

Lenny Kaye seeks ‘artistic closure’ with the release of debut solo album, ‘Goin’ Local’

July 17, 2026 by WDNY Radio

After over 50 years in the music business, Lenny Kaye, best known for being the longest-serving member of the Patti Smith Group, is out with his debut solo album, Goin’ Local.

So, why did it take so long for the 79-year-old Kaye to make a solo album?

He tells ABC Audio he’s had many of these songs for years, noting, “I wrote them, many of them, just for my own personal artistic satisfaction.”

He says one of the reasons he wanted to release them now is because he needed “artistic closure,” adding “a lot of the songs are kind of personal.”

“I write them because I need to in a certain way,” he explains. “That to me is one of the ways in which you can understand yourself, a relationship, a sense of who you are.”

Kaye has already released several tracks from the album, including the title track, “The Things You Leave Behind” and “Solstice,” co-written by Smith.

Kaye says it “feels great” to finally share these personal songs with the public.

“I mean, it’s also kind of a culmination of the many personas I’ve had within making music over the many years,” he says. “I love being a new artist.”

And Kaye says he hopes fans who listen to the album get a feel for who he really is.

“I hope that they understand that I’m a person who feels deeply, who tries to be honest with himself,” he says. “And I just hope that they realize that it’s an honest representation of who I am at this moment in time.”

Goin’ Local is out now. Kaye is currently on tour and is set to play in Sacramento on Friday.

Waka-waka of the State: Blink-182 announces collaboration with PAC-MAN

July 16, 2026 by WDNY Radio

PAC-MAN knows a thing or two about “All the Small Things,” having spent his life collecting tiny dots in a maze. Perhaps that’s why the influential arcade game is teaming up with blink-182.

Blink-182 x PAC-MAN will make its debut at the San Diego Comic-Con, taking place July 23-26. The collaboration will include exclusive merch, such as a limited-edition vinyl record and a blink-themed version of the PAC-MAN shirt Mark Hoppus wore during the band’s comeback show at Coachella 2023.

Comic-Con will also feature a dedicated blink-182 x PAC-MAN booth that includes a “stylized animated depiction of the band along with co-branded arcade cabinets and a claw machine with PAC-MAN plush and other blink-182 items as prizes.”

In addition to uniting with PAC-MAN, blink-182 has been celebrating the 25th anniversary of their 2001 album, Take Off Your Pants and Jacket. A deluxe reissue was released in June.

Peter Buck on an R.E.M. reunion: ‘It’s just not going to happen’

July 16, 2026 by WDNY Radio

R.E.M. called it quits in 2011, and while some fans may be holding out hope for a full band reunion, guitarist Peter Buck tells Mojo they really shouldn’t.

“When we decided it was the end, I felt fine with it. That was the story – it had a beginning and an end,” he says. “I was happy with the whole arc, and we were all young enough to go off and do other things, and we all have been.”

“And unlike every other band in the world other than The Smiths, we’re not going to be doing the famous album reunion tour or any of that crap,” he adds. “It’s just not going to happen.”

Buck says he has no desire to “do a tour so we can make more money or be famous.”

“I just don’t want to be the legacy act at Glastonbury playing our 40-year-old hits,” he says. “It’s great that we did all that stuff when we did it, and I’m really proud of the performances. I don’t want to cheapen it by going out there just for ego and money. I don’t need the money, and my ego? Well, I’ve had enough applause to last 10 lifetimes.”

R.E.M. announced their split in September 2011. All four members — Buck, Michael Stipe, Mike Mills and Bill Berry — reunited to perform at the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2024. They also reunited in February 2025 for a performance of “Pretty Persuasion” at Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy’s show in Athens, Georgia.

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