Audacy reaches agreement to acquire WAMO format
One of Pittsburgh’s biggest radio conglomerates just got bigger. And more diverse. Audacy, Inc., owners of KDKA news radio, 93.7 The Fan, Y108, and 100.7 Star, announced Tuesday it has acquired WAMO Pittsburgh’s intellectual property and format from Martz Communications Group. WAMO is considered the only urban, hip-hop station in...
Machine Gun Kelly coming to Pittsburgh in August
Musician and actor Colson Baker, known professionally as Machine Gun Kelly (MGK), will play PPG Paints Arena on Aug, 2 in Pittsburgh as part of a North America and European tour. Produced by Live Nation, the tour features special guests Avril Lavigne and Travis Barker among others. It’s the first...
Ye no longer performing at Grammys
NEW YORK — Ye will not be performing at the Grammys this year. A report published in The Blast said that the musician was told Friday that his act had been pulled from the show, which is set to take place on April 3. A representative for Ye, who changed...
Johnnie Taylor among newest Blues Hall of Fame members
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Five people, an album, five singles and a book have been chosen to join this year’s Blues Hall of Fame class. The Memphis, Tennessee-based Blues Foundation said the 12 newest honorees of the Blues Hall of Fame will be celebrated at an event on May 4. Singers...
Quantum Theatre, Chatham Baroque celebrate 3 decades with ‘Idaspe’
Sharing the same anniversary year is reason to celebrate together. Pittsburgh’s Quantum Theatre and Chatham Baroque — both established in 1990 — are collaborating for “Idaspe” by Riccardo Broschi at the Byham Theater, Downtown from Oct. 7-15. The opera is directed by London composer and writer Claire van Kampen. “The...
Herman’s Hermits, Buckinghams bringing something good to The PalaceVideo
Peter Noone has been into something good since he was 15 in 1963, when he became the face and voice of the British Invasion band Herman’s Hermits. For Carl Giammarese, the same thing happened in 1965, when he joined the pop group The Buckinghams at age 18. A lot has...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: March 18-20
March Madness arrives in Pittsburgh weekend. Here are some ways to spend it between games. Penguin Palooza The National Aviary on the North Side is hosting Penguin Palooza from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Learn what makes penguins unique through interactive activities and special talks and trivia....
Mural of Pittsburgh rapper Frzy in Braddock is more than an image
When Pittsburgh rapper Harvey “Frzy” Daniels saw the mural of his likeness, he was in tears. “I was posting a video on Instagram, and I got to feeling emotional,” said Frzy, an East Liberty native and Emmy award-winning artist known for his record 31 consecutive hours for the longest freestyle...
Chicago blues, rock ‘n’ roll landmark easily overlooked
CHICAGO — As we make our way up the narrow, windowless, wooden stairway, we hear the jangly opening beats of The Rolling Stones’ “2120 South Michigan Avenue” playing from a portable speaker behind us. Our tour guide encourages us to “rub a little mojo” from the banister as we make...
Singer Traci Braxton of ‘Braxton Family Values’ dies at 50
NEW YORK — Singer Traci Braxton, who was featured with her family in the reality television series “Braxton Family Values,” died at age 50 on Saturday. Her sister, Toni, and family said that Braxton died “this morning as the snow was falling.” According to reports, Traci Braxton had been fighting...
New Shadyside dance club hopes to revive cutting edge music scene
There was a time when Pittsburgh’s Shadyside neighborhood featured some of the hippest dance clubs in town. From the 1960s to the 1990s there was the Razzberry Rhino, Lou’s Bar and The Encore to name a few, hosting live musical acts like DC Fitzgerald, Harold Betters and Frank Capelli. In...
Alan Jackson set to play Pittsburgh in October
Country music Hall of Famer Alan Jackson will perform at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh on Oct. 8 as part of his “Last Call: One More For The Road Tour.” It’s Jackson’s first time on the road since revealing last fall that he’s living with CMT (Charcot-Marie-Tooth) disorder, a chronic...
O’Hara couple opens their mirrored home for an ‘Airbnb Experience’
Music, movies and mirrors are part of an “Airbnb Experience” at an easily recognizable O’Hara home. Mirrors placed on the outside of the house reflect the light and faces of any visitors who walk on the grounds. There’s a place for reflection inside, too. Filled with state-of-the-art sound systems, the...
Manchester Orchestra coming to McKees Rocks’ Roxian TheatreVideo
Indie rock band Manchester Orchestra has the longevity and the success to be a staple of both the late-night talk show and festival circuits. With their 2021 album, “The Million Masks of God,” the four-member, Atlanta-based outfit also shows its lyrical and thematic depth. Touring behind “Masks,” Manchester Orchestra comes...
Dewey Bunnell excited to bring rock group America to Greensburg on 50th anniversary tourVideo
We can be thankful to England for a lot of things, especially for America. No, not the country. After all, we fought for that. I’m talking about America the folk-rock group, the band that produced hit songs like “Ventura Highway,” “I Need You,” “Tin Man” and of course “A Horse...
Portrait of Patsy: Singer brings country legend’s spirit to Hampton
Music was the order of most days at the Rhodes house in South Greensburg. “Dad would play guitar and sing. My mother would harmonize while she was doing dishes,” Cathi Rhodes said. “I thought everyone grew up this way. I’d go to some of my friends’ houses, and I’d say...
Faces of the Valley: Saxophonist Don Aliquo still hitting high notes as jazz performer at 93Video
Don Aliquo doesn’t skip a beat when asked to share his formula for a music career that began with sing-alongs around the piano as a toddler and shows little sign of slowing down at age 93. “What’s my secret? Those 11 steps outside this door and this,” he says with...
Dolly Parton, James Patterson — in words and music
LA VERGNE, Tennessee — Sometimes even Dolly Parton has a hard time keeping up with the legend of Dolly Parton. “I often go into my museum in Dollywood, you know, because I’m in the mood to be there or we’re in there doing something or putting something new in. And...
RAIN relives Beatles’ ‘Let It Be’ era at Greensburg’s Palace Theatre
“Rain” is the name of a lesser-known Beatles’ song, the B-side to the 1966 hit single, “Paperback Writer.” RAIN — with all capital letters — is the name of a popular tribute act paying homage to the Fab Four. Currently touring to celebrate the 1969 “Abbey Road” album and The...
Celtic Thunder celebrates St. Patrick’s Day with Greensburg showVideo
Everybody’s Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, or so the saying goes. Celtic Thunder will help a Greensburg audience celebrate its Irish roots — real or imagined — with a concert at 8 p.m. March 16 in The Palace Theatre. The group will present a brand-new revue show revisiting their most...
Tyler, the Creator show at Petersen canceled
A concert by rapper Tyler, the Creator scheduled for March 12 at the Petersen Events Center in Oakland has been canceled, the artist tweeted Thursday. Tyler tweeted a screenshot of a text that read the show at Petersen was canceled because the 12,500-seat venue “is physically unable to accommodate the...
Soprano Anna Netrebko withdraws from Met Opera over her support of Putin
NEW YORK — Soprano Anna Netrebko withdrew from her future engagements at the Metropolitan Opera rather than repudiate her support for Russian President Vladimir Putin, costing the company one of its top singers and best box-office draws. “It is a great artistic loss for the Met and for opera,” Met...
Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder makes solo outing a group project
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Technically, Eddie Vedder’s new album and tour are a solo project. But the longtime Pearl Jam frontman was anything but alone on the almost-accidental venture. “The Earthling” was all about collaboration and camaraderie. “It’s my picture on the cover of the record but really there should be...
John Mayer postpones PPG Paints concert
John Mayer fans will have wait a few more months to see him in concert in Pittsburgh. The John Mayer SOB ROCK Tour 2022 performance scheduled for Friday night at PPG Paints Arena has been rescheduled for May 5. Mayer shared on social media Thursday that he and other band...
Metallica coming to Pittsburgh this summer for PNC Park show
Days after one of the biggest tours of the summer hits Pittsburgh, another even louder show will set up on the outfield of the PNC Park. Metallica announced Thursday a show for the North Shore stadium on Aug. 14 with opening acts Greta Van Fleet and Ice Nine Kills. The...