Music

Christmas is just around the corner, which means it's time to crank up the holiday tunes, pour a tall glass of ... er, eggnog, and get in the spirit of the season.There's perhaps no other time of the year when music plays such a special role -- and, of course, plenty of country stars are there for us every year, both with Christmas classics that we go back to time and again and new songs that will one day become holiday traditions.Which of the following songs is your favorite country...

On Dec. 22, pop lost one of its true influencers when Thom Bell died at the age of 79. As a producer, songwriter, and/or arranger, Bell was at the forefront of the Philadelphia Sound, the gorgeous R&B that dominated much of the pre-disco Seventies. Along with his peers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, Bell injected a level of elegance and sophistication into R&B and pop as heard on records he made with the Spinners (“I’ll Be Around,” “Could It Be I’m Falling in Love,” “Mighty Love,” “One of a Kind...

Chris Stapleton is no secret anymore. With numerous CMA, ACM and Grammys trophies to his name and an appeal that spans country, Americana and rock, Stapleton has made a name for himself as one of the most talented country songwriters and performers of his generation.But did you know that Stapleton has a long career in songwriting, even beyond the three albums he's released? Of course, there were his SteelDrivers days, during which Stapleton wrote and recorded as the frontman for the Americana band, but even more than that, Stapleton has written...

A Los Angeles jury convicted rapper Tory Lanez of shooting music superstar Megan Thee Stallion in both feet during an alcohol-fueled curbside confrontation in the predawn hours of July 12, 2020. The jurors unanimously decided the “Luv” singer assaulted Megan with a semi-automatic firearm, causing great bodily injury, discharged the weapon with gross negligence and concealed the unregistered weapon found in his SUV. Sentencing is set for Jan. 27. Pandemonium erupted in the courtroom shortly before Lanez was led away in handcuffs. “This wicked system,” his father Sonstar Peterson screamed...

When Amy Grant and Vince Gill got married in March of 2011, they both had children from prior relationships -- Grant had three young children, while Gill had one daughter -- and the couple completed their family with the birth of their daughter Corrina in 2001. Juggling the needs of a blended family can be complex, especially at the holiday season, but Grant says that some of her sweetest Christmas memories are of the step-siblings' evolution into a family unit."What I've loved, over the last 18 years of Christmases, has been to...

Beck Comes to Town The duo was joined by Greg Kurstin and Inara George for another memorable night of Hanukkah Sessions Beck took to the stage for the fifth night of Hanukkah Sessions, roaring through a rendition of “E-Pro” with Dave Grohl, Greg Kurstin, and the bird and the bee bandmate Inara George. The Hanukkah Sessions, which was launched by Grohl and Kurstin  back in 2020, continues to celebrate the holiday by sharing covers of songs by Jewish artists. This year’s performance was recorded in front of a live audience on Dec. 5 at the legendary...

As Shania Twain enters into a new chapter in her career, which will include the release of her new album Queen of Me and a major tour, she's looking back on the heartbreak and betrayal she's endured in the past. In a new cover story with People, Twain revisited her divorce from her former producer and husband of 14 years, Robert "Mutt" Lange.Twain and Lange split in 2008 when it was revealed he was having an affair with her good friend, Marie-Anne Thiébaud. The singer calls the moment a "very low period...

The pioneer of Philly Soul wrote songs for the Stylistics, the Delfonics, and produced a track for Elton John Producer Thom Bell, who co-created “The Sound of Philadelphia” alongside Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff as the Mighty Three, has died at age 79. His cause of death was not immediately made known. “Tommy and I have been best friends for over 60 years,” said Gamble in a press statement. “When we first met, we decided to start writing songs together and form a singing duo ‘Kenny and Tommy’ and then...

Lori McKenna is a double threat: She's as talented a singer as she is a songwriter -- and that's dang talented.McKenna's penned huge hits for Little Big Town, Tim McGraw, Hunter Hayes and more, but she's also cultivated a formidable solo career, with 11 studio albums to her name. She's won Grammy Awards for the songs she's given away, but she's also been nominated for her own recording work as well.In order to honor McKenna the artist and McKenna the songwriter, The Boot's list of the Top 10 Songs By Lori...

A Timeless Cover Violet Grohl joined her father and keyboardist Greg Kurstin for the fourth night of Hanukkah Sessions Dave Grohl was joined by his daughter Violet for the fourth night of Hanukkah Sessions, along with collaborator and keyboardist Greg Kurstin. Sitting on a stool in front of a live audience at the Largo in Los Angeles, Violet sang Janis Ian’s iconic song, “At Seventeen.” The 1975 hit is described in the video caption as “one of the all-time classic coming-of-age anthems.” In September, Violet took to the stage at both Taylor...

Christmas came early 37 years ago for the Judds. It was on this day (Dec. 22) in 1984 that the mother-daughter duo, made up of Naomi and Wynonna Judd, landed at the top of the charts with their hit single "Why Not Me.""Why Not Me," written by Harlan Howard, Sonny Throckmorton and Brent Maher, was the debut single from and title track of the Judds' first full-length studio album. The song -- which questions, "Why not me on a rainy day? / Why not me to love your cares away? / Why not...

Miley's Party Rae Sremmurd, Fletcher, Liily, and a cadre of Saturday Night Live stars will also appear on the show, co-hosted by Dolly Parton Miley Cyrus has announced the full lineup for her New Year’s Eve blowout, with Latto and Sia among the performers set to join the party. Joining Latto and Sia as musical guests on Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party are Rae Sremmurd, the rock outfit Liily, and singer-songwriter Fletcher. The show will also feature Saturday Night Live stars Chloe Fineman and Sarah Sherman, as well as the...

The holiday season has arrived, which means it's the perfect time to revisit some of our favorite country artist's best Christmas tunes. Since the launch of his career in the early 1990s, Alan Jackson has supplied some of the genre's most recognizable and beloved hits. He's sent 35 singles all the way to the top of the Billboard charts and built a dedicated audience through his warm, captivating vocals and neo-traditionalist style that mixes classic country with modern sensibilities.Along with this stream of hits and sixteen studio albums, Jackson has...

Rioting Rapper Antione Brodnax, known as Bugzie the Don, was spotted in photos inside the Capitol building on Jan. 6 A rapper who posed at the Capitol riots for an album cover will spend five months behind bars. On Monday, a federal judge sentenced Antione Brodnax, who performs as Bugzie the Don, to five months in prison after he entered the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and used a photo of himself posing in front of the Capitol building as the cover for his LP, The Capital, according to...