In 2021, two of music’s biggest superstars — Ed Sheeran and Adele — released their eagerly awaited new albums to an adoring public.

–In February, Ed celebrated his 30th birthday. In June, he released a new single, “Bad Habits,” and in August, he announced that his new album would be called = [Equals] and that it’d be released on October 29. 

–In September, Ed celebrated the 10th anniversary of the release of his debut album, + (Plus), with a special concert at London’s O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, and announced a massive 2022 European stadium tour kicking off in April.

–On October 24, after a massive worldwide promotional blitz, Ed and his daughter Lyra both came down with COVID-19, just days before the release of = [Equals]. However, he managed to make it out of quarantine to perform on Saturday Night Live November 6.

— = [Equals], Ed’s first new solo album since 2017’s world-beating ÷ [Divide], debuted at number one in the U.S. and has so far spun off three hits: “Bad Habits,” “Shivers” and “Overpass Graffiti.“

–While = [Equals] sold a respectable 118,000 equivalent album units in its first week in the U.S., in the U.K., it had the biggest opening week of 2021, and the biggest overall since ÷ [Divide] in 2017.  Both of those records were broken the following week by ABBA‘s comeback album, Voyage.

–“Bad Habits” peaked at number two in the U.S. but topped the charts for 11 weeks in the U.K.  In November, it received a Grammy nomination for Song of the Year.

–And in December, Ed and his pal Elton John teamed up for an instantly successful holiday single, “Merry Christmas.” 

But any dreams that Ed had of truly dominating the charts in 2021 were squashed by Adele.

–In October, after years of speculation, Adele announced a new single, “Easy On Me.” That was followed by the news that her her first album in six years, titled 30, would arrive November 19.

–“Easy On Me” arrived October 15. In five hours, it entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 68, and then rose to the number-one spot a few days later, becoming Adele’s first number one since 2015’s “Hello.”

–After a promotional push that included a sit-down with Oprah Winfrey on CBS, 30 entered the chart at number one, earning 839,000 equivalent album units in its first week, giving Adele the biggest debut week of any album in 2021. 

–By December 6, 30 had earned one million in traditional album sales — meaning CDs, vinyl, cassettes and digital album downloads — making it the first album in more than a year to do so.

–On November 30, Adele announced a Las Vegas residency, Weekends with Adele, which will see her playing two shows at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas every weekend from January 21, 2022 through Saturday, April 16.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

After touring was sidelined due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, live music made its return in 2021, but not without complications.

Tour announcements started to pick up in the spring and summer as the vaccine rollout continued in the U.S., a welcome change of pace from the past year of show cancellations and postponements. One of the first biggest concerts back was Foo Fighters headlining New York City’s Madison Square Garden in June, marking the famed arena’s first full-capacity show since the pandemic began in March 2020.

Big tours that had been planned for 2020 finally happened in 2021, including the Hella Mega tour featuring Green Day, Fall Out Boy and Weezer, and The Rolling Stones‘ No Filter tour, which was the highest-grossing tour of the year.

Other artists who returned to the live stage included Guns N’ Roses, Metallica, Slipknot, Twenty One Pilots, Dave Matthews Band, Machine Gun Kelly, KISS, The Black Crowes, Tame Impala, Evanescence, Megadeth, St. Vincent and Shinedown. Additionally, festivals including Lollapalooza came back after going virtual in 2020.

COVID-19 safety measures including proof of vaccination or a negative test were often required for attendees. While many artists promoted and endorsed these policies, they were a source of contention for others. Eric Clapton claimed he wouldn’t play any venue with a vaccine requirement, while 3 Doors Down canceled two shows at venues with COVID “regulations.”

Beyond arguments over safety protocols, COVID-19 still took its toll on tours. The rise of the Delta variant forced some artists to reconsider their plans, whether that meant moving shows to outdoor venues or postponing dates.

Tours were also affected when artists themselves caught COVID-19, including System of a Down‘s Serj Tankian, KISS’ Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, and three members of Korn. Fall Out Boy missed three shows on the Hella Mega tour due to a touring party member testing positive; Evanescence postponed the last five dates on their co-headlining tour with Halestorm for the same reason.

Even with many bands returning to the road, some of the biggest tours originally planned for 2020 forewent 2021 entirely in favor of 2022. Among the tours set to finally happen next year include My Chemical Romance, Rage Against the Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Mötley Crüe.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

New music from Ciara is on the way! Speaking with ABC Audio, the R&B singer teases, “All I gotta say is I’ve been cooking up some stuff and I can’t wait to share it with the world.”

It’s been almost three years since fans were blessed with Ciara’s last studio album, Beauty Marks, which featured the hit track “Level Up.” In the time since, she says she’s just been “enjoying life” with her “babies,” seven-year-old Future, four-year-old Sienna, and one-year-old Win. 

“I think it’s so important to pause and do that,” Ciara shares, adding, “It’s been really amazing building out businesses this past year but my heart is always with the creativity as well.” 

“I can’t wait to share with the fans what I’ve been working on and its about that time. So sometime soon should be the mark,” she promises. 

Although Ciara didn’t share an exact release date for her new tunes, the “Goodies” singer, who is co-hosting Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rocking’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest for the fifth time, shared that viewers can expect “a little something-something” from her during the show. 

“It’s gonna be a lot of energy,” she says of the annual event. “There’s gonna be that good nostalgic feeling that’s gonna happen at points mixed with some also cool energy, new energy.”

Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rocking Eve airs live December 31 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

After the in-person ceremony was replaced by a virtual special in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction gala returned this year in full force with a star-studded event held October 30 at Cleveland’s Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

The honorees in the Performers category this year were Foo Fighters, Todd Rundgren, The Go-Go’s, Tina Turner, Carole King and JAY-Z. The other inductees included Musical Excellence Award recipients LL Cool J, late Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Randy Rhoads and the late Billy Preston; and Early Influence Award honorees Kraftwerk, late blues great Charley Patton and late soul/jazz poet Gil Scott-Heron; and music executive and entrepreneur Clarence Avant, who received the Ahmet Ertegun Award.

Here are some of the evening’s many highlights:

—Paul McCartney inducted Foo Fighters, and compared frontman Dave Grohl‘s post-Nirvana career to his own time in Wings, noting, “We had a great time with our groups, but eventually tragedy happened and my group broke up. Same happened with Dave. His group broke up under tragic circumstances. So the question is, what do you do now?”

Macca continued, “In my case, I said, ‘Well, I’ll make an album where I play all the instruments myself.’ So I did that. Dave’s group broke up…what’s he do? He makes an album where he plays all the instruments himself. Do you think this guy’s stalking me?”

The Foos performed “Everlong,” “Best of You” and “My Hero” before taking the podium. Grohl delivered a short acceptance during which he thanked his band and crew family, and his actual family. Drummer Taylor Hawkins campaigned in his speech for the eventual induction of Soundgarden and George Michael.

The night concluded with McCartney and Foo Fighters jamming on the Beatles classic “Get Back.”

–Rundgren, who’d said for many years that if inducted, he wouldn’t attend, pointedly booked a concert in Cincinnati on the night of the ceremony. He was virtually inducted by Patti Smith, who has known Todd since their twenties. A tribute video included commentary from  Daryl Hall and The Bangles‘ Susanna Hoffs.

—Drew Barrymore inducted The Go-Go’s and paid homage to the cover of the all-female group’s debut album, Beauty and the Beat, by wrapping her hair in a bath towel and applying face cream, emulating the album’s cover image. “Beauty and the Beat blew the doors of my life off,” she told the crowd.

While the group accepting their honor, bassist Kathy Valentine said now that The Go-Go’s had been inducted, they’d be “advocating for the inclusion of more women.” The band then rocked the crowd with “Vacation,” “Our Lips Are Sealed” and “We Got the Beat.”

–Turner and King became the second and third women to become two-time Rock Hall inductees, following Stevie Nicks in 2019. Tina was first inducted in 1991 as one half of Ike & Tina Turner. Welcoming her as a solo performer was actress Angela Bassett, star of the Turner biopic What’s Love Got to Do with It. Tina didn’t attend the event, instead sending a pre-recorded thank-you video.

King, who’d been inducted as a songwriter in 1990, was ushered into the Rock Hall this time by Taylor Swift.

—Ringo Starr appeared via pre-taped video to induct Preston, who famously played and recorded with The Beatles during the making of Let It Be.

–JAY-Z was inducted by Dave Chappelle; Rhoads by Rage Against the Machine‘s Tom Morello; Kraftwerk by Pharrell Williams; LL Cool J by Dr. Dre; Scott-Heron by Common; Patton by Gary Clark Jr.; and Avant by Lionel Richie.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

2021 was a big year for Britney Spears. She finally won her freedom from the 13-year conservatorship that had controlled nearly every aspect of her life. Here’s how Britney’s year unfolded:

— The fight for Britney’s freedom really ramped up in February, following the release of the New York Times’ unauthorized documentary, Framing Britney Spears, which shined a light on how the singer was unfairly treated by the media, as well as by her own family. Britney wasn’t exactly a fan of the doc, but it prompted an outpouring of support and even a long overdue apology from her ex, Justin Timberlake.

— In June, Britney spoke out for the first time publicly about her conservatorship, delivering explosive comments during a court hearing in which she asked for her father, Jamie Spears, to be removed as her conservator. She detailed a long list of grievances against her family, as well as some disturbing claims about the abuse she said she’d endured, telling the judge she believes everyone involved in the conservatorship “should be in jail.”

— Jamie Spears was suspended as the conservator of Britney’s estate in September, shortly before the New York Times dropped a follow-up documentary, Controlling Britney Spears, which included allegations that Jamie bugged Britney’s room and would secretly monitor her emails, phone calls and private conversations.

— Also in September, Britney got engaged to longtime boyfriend Sam Asghari.

— The conservatorship itself was finally terminated in November, “in its entirety, effective immediately.” Judge Brenda Penny delivered the ruling in an LA courtroom as #FreeBritney supporters cheered outside.

— After the court decision, Britney delivered a message to fans, telling them, “I honestly think you guys saved my life in a way. One hundred percent.” She’s since become more outspoken on social media, giving fans glimpses of her truth and hinting she may one day reveal the full story of what she went through.

— On December 2, Britney celebrated her 40th birthday as a free woman.

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Britney Spears (@britneyspears)

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

2021 found Jason Aldean celebrating his 26th chart-topping hit, with his multi-week #1 duet with Carrie Underwood, “If I Didn’t Love You.”

The Georgia native’s the first to admit he’s come a long way since he put out his first single, “Hicktown,” more than fifteen years ago. 

“Man, it’s been so wild,” Jason tells ABC Audio. “Honestly, you know, I remember coming out in 2005 and the first single came out and just not knowing, like, I didn’t know if I was gonna be around for one record, two records, five records, I didn’t know.”

“You know, it’s just like, man, [I] just kind of took it one day at a time,” he continues. “And you know, it just all of a sudden, everything kind of took off for us. And you know, you turn around and you’re this many years into it and that many number ones.”

“If I Didn’t Love You” is the lead single from Jason’s Macon album — and he warns he’s not even close to being done.

“It’s been crazy. When I really sit down and think about it, and how things have gone and how everything had to kind of line up the right way for me to have the career I’ve had, it’s been pretty amazing,” he says. “And you know, it’s been a wild ride at times, but it’s been a lot of fun.”

“And I don’t know,” he adds, “I hope it doesn’t end any time soon, because I feel like I’ve got a lot left in the tank.”  

The second half of Jason’s double Macon album — titled Georgia — is set to arrive April 22, taking its name from his hometown.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

After the in-person ceremony was replaced by a virtual special in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction gala returned this year in full force with a star-studded event held October 30 at Cleveland’s Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

The honorees in the Performers category this year were The Go-Go’s, Tina Turner, Carole King, Todd Rundgren, Foo Fighters and JAY-Z. The other inductees included Musical Excellence Award recipients LL Cool J, late Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Randy Rhoads and the late Billy Preston; and Early Influence Award honorees Kraftwerk, late blues great Charley Patton and late soul/jazz poet Gil Scott-Heron; and music executive and entrepreneur Clarence Avant, who received the Ahmet Ertegun Award.

Here are some of the evening’s many highlights:

—Drew Barrymore inducted The Go-Go’s, who became the first all-female band who played their own instruments to be welcomed into the Hall. The actress paid homage to the cover of the group’s debut album, Beauty and the Beat, by wrapping her hair in a bath towel and applying face cream, emulating the album’s cover image. “Beauty and the Beat blew the doors of my life off,” she told the crowd.

While the group accepting their honor, bassist Kathy Valentine said now that The Go-Go’s had been inducted, they’d be “advocating for the inclusion of more women.” The band then rocked the crowd with “Vacation,” “Our Lips Are Sealed” and “We Got the Beat.”

–Turner and King became the second and third women to become two-time Rock Hall inductees, following Stevie Nicks in 2019. Tina was first inducted in 1991 as one half of Ike & Tina Turner. Welcoming her as a solo performer was actress Angela Bassett, star of the Turner biopic What’s Love Got to Do with It. Tina didn’t attend the event, instead sending a pre-recorded thank-you video.

Performers paying tribute to Turner included country stars Mickey Guyton and Keith Urban, Oscar-winning R&B artist H.E.R. and pop superstar Christina Aguilera.

King, who’d been inducted as a songwriter in 1990, was ushered into the Rock Hall this time by Taylor Swift. Swift also performed in honor of King, as did Jennifer Hudson and King herself, who led the crowd in a singalong of “You’ve Got a Friend.”

During her acceptance speech, Carole acknowledged that even though she’s been told “that today’s female singers and songwriters stand on my shoulders,” we shouldn’t forget that “they also stand on the shoulders of the first woman to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame…Miss Aretha Franklin!”

–Rundgren, who’d said for many years that if inducted, he wouldn’t attend, pointedly booked a concert in Cincinnati on the night of the ceremony. He was virtually inducted by Patti Smith. A tribute video included commentary from  Daryl Hall and The Bangles‘ Susanna Hoffs.

—Paul McCartney inducted Foo Fighters, and compared frontman Dave Grohl‘s post-Nirvana career to his own time in Wings, noting, “We had a great time with our groups, but eventually tragedy happened and my group broke up. Same happened with Dave. His group broke up under tragic circumstances. So the question is, what do you do now?”

Macca continued, “In my case, I said, ‘Well, I’ll make an album where I play all the instruments myself.’ So I did that. Dave’s group broke up…what’s he do? He makes an album where he plays all the instruments himself. Do you think this guy’s stalking me?”

The night concluded with McCartney and Foo Fighters jamming on the Beatles classic “Get Back.”

—Ringo Starr appeared via pre-recorded video to induct Preston, who famously played and recorded with The Beatles during the making of Let It Be.

–JAY-Z was inducted by Dave Chappelle; Rhoads by Rage Against the Machine‘s Tom Morello; Kraftwerk by Pharrell Williams; LL Cool J by Dr. Dre; Scott-Heron by Common; Patton by Gary Clark Jr.; and Avant by Lionel Richie.

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.