Juneteenth celebration will expand to Market Square, feature voting-rights forum
War is coming to Pittsburgh this summer. But it’s not the kind with tanks and guns — it’s the kind with guitars and drums. Legendary funk-soul band War will headline the 2022 Western Pennsylvania Juneteenth Homecoming Celebration, announced this week for June 17-19. And while last year’s Juneteenth celebration at...
Natrona Heights native Jimmer Podrasky releases 1st Rave-Ups album in 3 decadesVideo
Having left the Alle-Kiski Valley behind in the early 1980s, Natrona Heights, Harrison, native Jimmer Podrasky doesn’t miss the weather headed Pittsburgh’s way this weekend. “It’s been 40 years since I’ve driven in that kind of weather, and it still haunts me,” said Podrasky, 64, now a Los Angeles resident....
Dolly Parton to host Academy of Country Music Awards
Country music icon Dolly Parton will be hosting this year’s Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas, bringing her star power to the show’s new streaming home on Prime Video. Parton, along with soon to be announced co-hosts, will emcee the new format for the awards show, which will...
Dolly Parton, Duran Duran, Lionel Richie among Rock Hall nominees
NEW YORK — Dolly Parton, Eminem, Lionel Richie, Duran Duran and A Tribe Called Quest are among this year’s first-time nominees for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The Cleveland-based institution announced 17 artists and groups being considered for Rock Hall induction, including Rage Against the Machine,...
On hold with Excela? A Pittsburgh man wrote that songVideo
Most telephone callers waiting on hold with the Excela health system are likely preoccupied with something other than the music they hear. Even so, they may find themselves lightly tapping their feet to the plaintive acoustic guitar and plucky overtones of “Excela Theme,” a song written specifically for the Westmoreland-based...
Why more musicians haven’t joined Neil Young’s Spotify boycott over Joe Rogan
For those following certain parts of Twitter during the last week, it would have been easy to come away with the impression that Spotify was facing a mass exodus of artists protesting covid-19 vaccine misinformation on Joe Rogan’s immensely popular podcast. When Neil Young pulled his music from the Swedish...
Rihanna is pregnant, debuts bump on stroll with A$ap Rocky
NEW YORK — Rihanna and A$ap Rocky took an epic stroll over the weekend in snowy New York to reveal she’s pregnant with her first child. Despite the frigid temperatures, the 33-year-old “Diamonds” singer and fashion mogul showed off her bump in a long open pink coat and jeans as...
Joe Rogan vows to ‘balance things out’ after Spotify misinformation controversy
Popular Spotify podcaster Joe Rogan on Sunday night responded to allegations of misinformation on his audio program, pledging to do a better job of balancing different perspectives and putting more time into researching topics. “I’m going to do my best, but my point of doing this is always just to...
Greensburg band to provide Groundhog Day music in Gobbler’s Knob
Greensburg’s Derek Woods Band will provide the musical backdrop for this year’s Groundhog Day festivities Feb. 2 at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney. And if the past is any indication, Woods and his band members had better start layering their clothes now. “The sets we played were limited to about 10...
Jerry Weber, founder of Jerry’s Records in Pittsburgh, dies
Jerry Weber, the beloved Pittsburgh purveyor of vinyl, has died. Weber owned Jerry’s Records on Murray Avenue in Squirrel Hill — a haven for vinylheads and a kingdom of records. “We are devastated to hear of Jerry’s passing,” the record store wrote Saturday on Facebook. “Our beloved founder and Pittsburgh’s...
Free JazzLive gigs returning to Pittsburgh Cultural District
Jazz is on its way back to the Backstage Bar at Theatre Square in Pittsburgh’s Cultural District, with the return of BNY Mellon Presents JazzLive. A winter installment of the year-round series kicks off with a performance from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday by Roger Humphries + RH Factor. It will run...
Spotify says it will grant Neil Young’s request to remove music
NEW YORK — Neil Young’s music will be removed from Spotify at his request, following the veteran rock star’s protest over the streaming service airing a popular podcast that featured a figure criticized for spreading covid misinformation. Spotify, in a statement on Wednesday, said that it regretted Young’s decision, “but...
Elton John cancels shows after testing positive for covidVideo
Elton John canceled two upcoming shows in Dallas after testing positive for covid-19. The “I’m Still Standing” singer expressed regret for not being able to perform on Tuesday or Wednesday, but assured fans he followed the science and expects to be on the road to resume his “Farewell Yellow Brick...
Neil Young gives Spotify an ultimatum: Me or Joe RoganVideo
Veteran rocker Neil Young has threatened to remove his music from Spotify unless the streaming giant cuts ties with divisive podcast host Joe Rogan. In an open letter to his management team and record label that has since been deleted from his website, Young criticized Spotify for disseminating “false information”...
Donnie Iris returning to Greensburg for 79th birthday shows
In February 2018, Donnie Iris played three 75th birthday shows at The Palace Theatre. Two years later, he was back for two more birthday shows. On the cusp of turning 79, he’s returning to Greensburg for concerts Feb. 5 and 19. Pittsburgh’s “King of Cool,” who was born Feb. 28,...
Famed Replacements, Guns N’ Roses bassist Tommy Stinson coming to Tarentum
A small venue in a small town like Tarentum is not necessarily the place where you would expect to find a musician of Tommy Stinson’s stature making a tour stop. But on Tuesday night, the former Replacements and Guns N’ Roses bassist will play an intimate, acoustic show at Dry...
Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra’s Valentine concert has French connections
Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra’s upcoming concert could have been titled “The French Connection,” for the Gallic links among the featured composers, but because it will be performed near Valentine’s Day, it’s called “In the Key of Love.” The concert is set for 7:30 p.m. Feb. 12 at The Palace Theatre in...
ABBA’s Ulvaeus seeks source of group’s magic with Apple radio show
LOS ANGELES — ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus is launching a radio show on Apple Music, with hopes of figuring out why his songs like “Mamma Mia” and “Dancing Queen” have stayed stuck in the heads of so much of the world for so many decades. The guitarist, singer and co-songwriter from...
‘Stop Right There!’: Ellen Foley recalls epic duet with Meat Loaf
“Stop Right There!” Three words of warning — and three words that Ellen Foley credits with launching her career in music. It was Foley who belted out the words to Meat Loaf about halfway through their eight-and-a-half minute duet “Paradise By the Dashboard Light,” the epic seduction song on his...
Ben Folds announces 2022 Pittsburgh tour stop
Singer/songwriter Ben Folds hasn’t performed in Pittsburgh since the start of the pandemic. But if the title of his current tour is any indication, Folds is very excited about being back in the ‘Burgh. Folds is bringing his “In Actual Person Live for Real Tour” to Heinz Hall on June...
Meat Loaf, ‘Bat Out of Hell’ rock superstar, dies at 74
NEW YORK — Meat Loaf, the heavyweight rock superstar loved by millions for his “Bat Out of Hell” album and for such theatrical, dark-hearted anthems as “Paradise By the Dashboard Light,” “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” and “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That),” has died....
Pitt jazz week focuses on local music legend Erroll Garner
The 51st annual Pitt Jazz Seminar and Concert will focus on a local jazz legend, the late Erroll Garner. Running Monday through Jan. 29, the event will feature performances by Pitt jazz students and faculty, a symposium on musicians’ rights, a virtual tour of the Erroll Garner Archive housed at...
‘Pretty Woman’ musical headed for Pittsburgh’s Benedum Center
Broadway regular and Tony Award nominee Adam Pascal will tread the boards of the Benedum Center in “Pretty Woman: The Musical,” coming Feb. 1-6 as part of the PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh Series. The national touring cast also features rising Broadway star Olivia Valli, playing the role of Vivian Ward...
Pittsburgh Opera presents dark, fairy tale-based ‘Rose Elf’
Pittsburgh Opera is traveling to the land of make-believe for its next production. “The Rose Elf,” based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, “The Elf of the Rose,” opens Friday at the Bitz Opera Factory, the opera’s headquarters at 2425 Liberty Ave. While it is currently sold out, the...
Storm forces Evanescence to cancel Pittsburgh show
A Pittsburgh tour stop by the rock band Evanescence is among the cultural casualties of the major winter storm in Western Pennsylvania. The group’s concert, scheduled for Monday night at 7 p.m. at the Petersen Events Center on the University of Pittsburgh campus, has been canceled. Evanescence performed Sunday in...
