Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on September 12th, 2026

Appearing on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, '80s teen idol Rick Springfield revealed that he once killed a Viet Cong soldier as a teenager while staying at a Navy encampment near Da Nang in 1968. Springfield, who released his first US album in 1974 and became a household name in 1981 with his Working Class Dog album, said the base came under attack and he ended up helping fire mortars from a defensive position. At the time, Springfield said he was too young to fully understand the gravity of what was happening around him. The next day, he was told that one of the mortars that he had fired had killed a Viet Cong fighter. Decades later, the memory is still difficult for him to process. "I think it's still there," Springfield told host Joe Rogan, explaining that he struggles with the knowledge that he was involved in the death of another person, even though it happened during wartime and he had little understanding of what he was doing at the time. "It's hard for me to face that I was responsible for the end of a life." Springfield's signature hit "Jessie's Girl" topped the pop chart in Sept. of 1981, the same year he first played the role of Dr. Noah Drake on General Hospital. He acted on the long-running soap opera through 2014. The full podcast with Springfield and Rogan can be viewed on YouTube. - Billboard, 9/10/26...... In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Bruce Springsteen said he has no regrets about the political message behind his recent "Land of Hope and Dreams Tour." "I'm old now and I do what I want to do," he said. "This was the show I wanted to make, the story I wanted to tell." The 20-date tour, which which kicked off Mar. 31 in Minneapolis and wrapped May 30 in Philadelphia, followed the Jersey rocker's January release of "Streets in Minneapolis," which was a protest song written in response to the death of Rene Good and Alex Pretti during confrontation with federal immigration authorities. He opened the shows with Edwin Starr's 1970 protest song "War" and closed them with Bob Dylan's "Chimes of Freedom," also giving a speech criticizing Pres. Donald Trump's administration. When asked about the possibility of losing fans who support the president, Springsteen essentially shrugged, saying he has spent his career making the records and shows he wants to make, then finding the audience for them. "I'm sure there were people, and I've read things where people were vehement about the content of the show," he said. "And that's just the way the chips fall." Springsteen is planning at least one more political-adjacent appearance before the midterms, joining Tom Morellos for a show in Washington, D.C. in October. He's also bringing the Land of Hope and Dreams tour to online screens. The first seven songs from the Philadelphia performance are already streaming on YouTube as "Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour (Philadelphia Freedom Cut)," with the remaining concert set to come in additional installments. - Billboard, 9/10/26...... Dionne Warwick will be honored at the 2026 Angel Ball, the signature fundraiser of Gabrielle's Angel Foundation for Cancer Research, set for Oct. 19 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City. The black-tie event is held annually in memory of songwriter Denise Rich's daughter, Gabrielle Rich Aouad, who died at the age of 27 from acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). Five-time Grammy winner Warwick, 85, has charted 12 top 10 songs on the hit parade and received several major career accolades in recent years -- a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2019, the Kennedy Center Honors in 2023 and the award for musical excellence from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (2024). Also being honored that night is actress Lynda Carter (star of TV's Wonder Woman), and two-time Grammy-winning reggae star Shaggy will perform. - Billboard, 9/10/26...... AC/DC was has been forced to cancel a show at Toronto's Rogers Stadium set for Sept. 16 after the venue suffered major damage in a recent storm. The band had been slated to play one of the last shows on their two-year, 90-date "Power Up" tour in Toronto, but according to a press release, the venue "was unfortunately unable to find an alternative venue that could accommodate everyone" despite "every effort being made to find potential solutions for the show to move forward in Toronto." The remaining three gigs left on the tour include a Sept. 12 at Parc Jean-Drapeau in Montreal, a Sept. 25 stop at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. and the final show at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on Sept. 29. - Billlboard, 9/10/26...... Speaking on Virgin Radio's Chris Evans Breakfast Show, Queen drummer Roger Taylor hinted that his band is considering an ABBA Voyage-inspired show. Taylor said he and Queen guitarist Brian May "talk because we live near each other" and admitted there's "a possibility of doing something," noting how rapidly live-show technology has evolved. When Evans suggested the idea was like "going on tour with Freddie [Mercury]," Taylor pushed back, stressing that Freddie could never be replaced -- though he acknowledged that avatar-style performances are "sort of" in the same realm. It marks a shift in tone from Taylor's earlier stance. He previously said that while he "had a good time" and "enjoyed" Swedish group ABBA's hologram show, but he wasn't convinced by the projections, though he believes technology has advanced significantly since its 2022 debut. "I didn't find the actual projections that convincing," he said at the time. "I do think technology now has come so much further since the ABBA show started, I think a lot more can be done." May, meanwhile, is "very taken" with the idea of a Queen hologram show -- but he wouldn't want a hologram version of Queen while the surviving members are still performing. But once the band is "gone," he's open to a full digital production. - Music-News.com, 9/11/26...... Stevie Wonder is gearing up for a six-date U.S. tour to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his seminal album, Songs in the Key of Life, which was first released in Sept. 1976. According to an Instagram post announcing the gigs, the Motown legend will celebrate the LP on an 18-date outing slated to kick off on Oct. 13 at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham, U.K. The tour will then hit Paris (10/15), Copenhagen (10/18), Oslo (10/20), Stockholm (10/22), Hannover (10/24), Cologne (10/26), Amsterdam (10/28), Dublin (11/1), London (11/3), Manchester (11/8) and Glasgow (11/11) before heading back to the U.S. for a run of winter shows at Madison Square Garden in New York beginning Nov. 19, followed by gigs in Chicago (11/21), Washington, D.C. (11/23) and two shows at Detroit's Fox Theatre (12/8 & 9) before winding down with a show at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles on Dec. 19. Songs in the Key of Life, Wonder's 18th studio LP, was released on Sept. 28, 1976 and as a double-album with a four-track bonus EP and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart. It spun off two Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 singles in "I Wish" and "Sir Duke" and won Album of the Year at the 1977 Grammy Awards. In addition to those two singles, the album features such classics as the opening track, "Love's in Need of Love Today," "Isn't She Lovely" and "Pastime Paradise," with the latter the source for Coolio's 1995 hit "Gangsta's Paradise." According to a press release, Wonder, 76, will perform the entire album on the tour. "At a time when the world continues to search for connection, healing and joy, the messages at the heart of Songs in the Key of Life feel as urgent and necessary today as they did in 1976," read the release. "Songs like 'As,' 'Love's in Need of Love Today,' 'Sir Duke' and 'Isn't She Lovely' remain woven into the emotional fabric of generations around the world, reminding audiences not only where they've been, but who they are." - Billboard, 9/10/26...... Journey is extending their "Final Frontier Tour" with 40 additional North American dates this fall. Newly announced dates include five Canadian cities this fall, including a Nov. 4 stop at Toronto's Scotiabank Arena. The veteran classic rockers will also play Edmonton at Rogers Place on Sept. 24; Calgary at Scotiabank Saddledome on Sept. 26; Saskatoon at SaskTel Centre on Sept. 27; and Winnipeg at Canada Life Centre Sept. 29. The newly announced leg begins Sept. 12 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles and concludes with a hometown finale show on Nov. 28 at Chase Center in San Francisco. Led by founder and lead guitarist Neal Schon, the group will bring a career-spanning show featuring songs including "Don't Stop Believin'," "Any Way You Want It," "Faithfully" and "Lights." The current lineup also features Jonathan Cain (keyboards, guitar, backing vocals), Arnel Pineda (lead vocals), Deen Castronovo (drums, vocals), Jason Derlatka (keyboards, vocals) and Todd Jensen (bass, vocals). Since forming in 1973, Journey has earned 19 top 40 singles, 25 gold and platinum albums, and sold more than 100 million records worldwide. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017. - Canoe.com, 9/11/26...... In an interview on his SiriusXM channel on Sept. 9, Billy Joel opened up about how a diagnosis of Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus last year revealed the unexpected damage his concerts were causing to his brain. Joel, 77, described going to see a doctor after suffering from balance problems that made it feel like he was "on a boat." After giving him the diagnosis, his neurologists recommended implanting a shunt in his brain to reliever some of the pressure. "So I agreed to do the shunt," Joel said, noting that he initially said he'd "pass" on the suggestion of the surgery that entailed drilling a hole through his skull to implant the shunt, in order to stop the progressive condition from getting worse. "But then I read up on it and I realized it can help improve your balance and can help your memory. You know, I don't want to lose my marbles," Joel said. "It's hard to tell what's age and what's a condition, so I agreed to do the shunt and I had a surgery, and they implanted a shunt in my brain and it actually improved things." And while he said his memory, balance and ability to function all improved after the procedure, the bad news was that his doctors also advised him to stop performing live because they said the physical effects of playing loud rock shows might cause further damage. "I realized, and the doctors told me this, because of my job, which is playing rock 'n' roll music very loud, that it was giving me something like a concussion every time I did a show," the singer said. "It was causing damage to my brain nerves and I could be losing more brain cells the more shows I did and I realized that means I shouldn't be doing this right now." And so, Joel canceled his planned 2025 tour dates after playing his last full show on Feb. 22, 2025 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. Near the end of his set, he did a microphone spin and then fell down during "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me," which led to the diagnosis. The singer revealed the condition to fans three months later after canceling the rest of his planned gigs. Since the diagnosis and surgery, Joel has only performed in public once, on Jan. 2, when he hopped on stage with a Billy Joel tribute band called Turnstiles at a show in Wellington. Fla., where he performed "We Didn't Start the Fire" and "Big Shot" with the group. His full SiriusXM broadcast can be streamed on YouTube. Meanwhile, the Piano Man is mourning the death of his early bandmate Jon Small, who recently died of cancer at age 79. He and Small played together in the Hassles, a Long Island band that released two albums in the late 1960s. The pair later formed Attila, a hard-rock duo built around drums and organ, releasing a self-titled album in 1970. The Hassles were inducted into the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame in 2025. Their partnership ended abruptly after Joel fell in love with Small's wife, Elizabeth Weber, while Joel was living with the couple. The episode -- long part of Joel's lore -- is revisited in the recent documentary And So It Goes, where both men reflected on the fallout with striking candor. - Billboard, 9/10/26...... KISS have reportedly recorded a "special" new song written by frontman Paul Stanley. While the veteran rockers retired from the stage after a final concert at New York's Madison Square Garden in 2023, guitarist Tommy Thayer says fans can expect new music from the band even though they will no longer be performing live. "We did record a great new song that Paul wrote. That's probably about as much as I can tell you right now," Thayer told Guitar World magazine. "KISS has always believed in making things an event. So whatever new music comes, it has to feel special and have a reason for existing," he added. "You don't make another KISS record just because you're supposed to make another KISS record." Thayer's comments come just months after Gene Simmons suggested new music might be coming after he revealed the band had been recording in the studio together. However, Simmons has previously suggested any new songs they create may feature in their avatar-based KISS show, which is slated to launch in Las Vegas in 2028. - Music-News.com,...... Elton John played a 24-song set during the fourth day of "Rock in Rio" music festival at Rio 2016 Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Sept. 7. When John decided to move his performance up by 65 minutes, many assumed it was weather-related. After all, thunderstorms had battered the City of Rock for the previous three days and a grim weather forecast had been announced, and a man nearing 80 could hardly be blamed for wanting to avoid a late-night downpour. But the real reason was different. Sir Elton wanted to take the stage early enough to deliver a full concert: 24 songs over two hours and 15 minutes, considerably longer than a typical festival set. Even the rain seemed to cooperate, letting up in time for the audience to hear him sing. John explained that he decided to come to Brazil even after wrapping his "Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour" in July 2023 because the country had been left off the itinerary. "I felt a little mean about that," he said. "I accepted Rock in Rio's invitation to thank you once again for all the love you've shown me throughout my career." And the setlist was, in fact, almost an expanded version of the "Farewell Yellow Brick Road" show: 20 of the night's 24 songs were also part of the sold-out, 23-song set he used during the final stretch of the tour. - Billboard, 9/8/26...... Graham Nash has ruled out any Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young reunions between himself and surviving bandmates Stephen Stills and Neil Young. Asked if there may be a reunion with some combination of the singers during an interview with The Arts Fuse, Graham replied: "David [Crosby] was the heartbeat of the band and since he has passed away I don't think the rest of us will ever collaborate again. Also, Stephen has retired and Neil won't play any CSN songs so if you want to hear them you have to come see me!" Questioned about what he's most proud of, and what he regrets, Graham said: "I am most proud of the ability I have to speak to and perform for my fellow human beings. I've tried my best to make them shake their ass and think at the same time. My only regret was being on tour both when my father passed and when my mother died. In neither case was I able to see them before they had gone." Graham has tackled some contentious topics through his songs during his career, including war, immigration and nuclear power, and says he has no plans to stop doing that. "I'm a human being, a member of the human race, and I have to talk about what's going on with me right now," he said. - Music-News.com, 9/8/26...... Tom Jones says he was fired from the British version of The Voice over ITV's "financial difficulty with insurance," and that the network later described the change as an effort to refresh the coaching lineup. Jones made clear that he would have preferred to remain in his coaching role, writing in an Instagram post, "I love the show and really appreciate the audience." He said ITV offered him a smaller position that would involve appearing on the program without being part of the competition from its outset, an arrangement he said he was not enthusiastic about. "There's never a good time to fire an 86-year-old who's still pretty good at his job," the Welsh crooner concluded. An ITV spokesperson said, "While he will no longer be a full-time coach on series 15, we continue to talk to Sir Tom Jones and his team about his involvement in the next series." Jones has been a fixture of The Voice UK since its 2012 debut, aside from sitting out one season, and he's coached three winners during his tenure. He is currently appearing on the show's 14th season alongside will.i.am, Kelly Rowland and McFly's Tom Fletcher and Danny Jones. - Billboard, 9/8/26...... Cliff Richard has announced his 48th studio album, Only Number Ones, will drop on Nov. 27. The LP will see the music legend putting his unique stamp on classic and contemporary number ones spanning eight decades, including "Spirit In the Sky," "Oh Pretty Woman," "Return To Sender," "Sign of the Times," and a new version of "White Christmas." "I suggested to Warner Music that I record an album of songs that made it to No.1. Thank heavens they agreed!!," Sir Cliff says. "I listened to dozens of songs and chose 12 of my favourites. This record is my tribute to fabulous artists who had recorded wonderful tracks that achieved the number one position." Only Number Ones, which was produced by Sam Hollander and Josh Edmondson and recorded in February this year, will also be released as a deluxe edition. Richard, 85, is the third best-selling artist in UK singles chart history behind The Beatles and Elvis Presley, is giving fans the chance to celebrate his 86th birthday with him at afternoon tea on Oct. 15 -- the day after his actual birthday -- at the InterContinental Hotel in Park Lane, London. - Music-News.com, 9/8/26...... In her new memoir, I Once Knew a Guy Named Charlie, Jaclyn Smith revealed that she and her fellow Charlie's Angels costars Farrah Fawcett and Kate Jackson received multiple offers -- including one to pose nude in Hustler for an astonishing amount of money -- after the show's popularity exploded. After the series debuted on Sept. 22, 1976, it took off -- fast, Smith recalls. "Overnight we were on the cover of every magazine, every tabloid. We were offered six-figure endorsement deals. Hustler magazine offered us a million dollars each to pose nude (we declined)." Smith, who played Kelly Garrett, at least wanted more money than she was paid on the series about a detective agency run by the mysterious Charlie. She wrote elsewhere in the book that she was the lowest-paid angel in the first season compared to costars Fawcett (Jill Munroe) and Jackson (Sabrina Duncan). Smith wrote that her paycheck was $3,000 per episode compared to Fawcett's $5,000 and Jackson's $10,000. (By the fifth and final season, she earned $100,000.) Smith summed up the enduring appeal of the story during a PaleyFest event in April at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. "It was three women chasing danger instead of being rescued from it," she said. "Independent, not defined by the man in their life, and it gave women permission to step out of the mold." - Entertainment Weekly, 9/10/26...... A 50 Years of Punk documentary is set to premiere in UK cinemas on Sept. 18. Directed by Mark Sloper who has helmed films on Sid Vicious and other punk artists, the 78-minute film marks five decades since the explosion of the punk movement on London's King's Road. The film features archival footage alongside exclusive interviews with key figures who shaped the era, including Glen Matlock, Vivienne Westwood, Hugh Cornwell, Dave Vanian, Rat Scabies and Gaye Advert. Ahead of the nationwide cinema release, a special preview screening followed by a live Q&A session with director Mark Sloper will take place at the Showroom Cinema in Sheffield on Sept. 16, at 8:00 PM. - Music-News.com, 9/8/26.

In a new interview with the UK paper The Guardian, Art Garfunkel hinted that he is considering "leaving America" due to global warming and Pres. Donald Trump. "I don't like America's position at all," the legendary pop singer said. "I'm not aboard, and I'm thinking of leaving the country, frankly. It's real that the planet is getting warmer, that the water's rising, that so many people are starving," he added. Garfunkel continued: "When Donald Trump took over Venezuela, are those the new rules? Just take over a country and run it? It's shocking, and you think: how on earth are we gonna change the presidency?" His comments come eight months after US forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicols Maduro in Caracas and brought him to the United States to face federal charges. But despite his pessimism he added: "Trump won't last forever. So we've got to hope." Garfunkel, 84, is gearing up for his 2026 "What a Wonderful World Tour" and is scheduled to play London's Royal Albert Hall in October. - New Musical Express, 9/6/26...... KISS has scored its highest-charted title on Billboard's Top Album Sales chart in more than a decade, as its new live album KISS Destroys Anaheim '76 debuts at No. 8 on the list dated Sept. 5. KISS Destroys Anaheim '76 commemorates the 50th anniversary of the group's Aug. 20, 1976 show at the Anaheim Stadium, where the band played to its largest audience at the time: 42,000. As part of KISS' "The Spirit of '76 Tour" (also known as the "Destroyer Tour"), the recording was newly mixed for its first official public release across an array of physical and digital formats. The album boasts recordings of KISS favorites like "Detroit Rock City," "Strutter," "Shout It Out Loud" and "Rock and Roll All Nite." The set has also debuted on an array of other Billboard charts: Indie Store Album Sales (No. 8), Vinyl Albums (No. 16), Top Hard Rock Albums (No. 12), Top Rock & Alternative Albums (No. 48) and the overall Billboard 200 (No. 173). On the latter, the set marks KISS' 37th chart entry. The archival project brings the band to its highest rank on the Top Album Sales tally since 2012, with the group's final studio album, Monster, debuted and peaked at No. 3 in Oct. 2012. - Billboard, 9/3/26...... Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi has recalled his final conversation with Ozzy Osbourne, which took place the night before the Heavy Metal icon died. Appearing on the Loudwire Nights podcast, the guitarist reflected on the grief he'd experienced for his former bandmate. "He was really happy with it, that we could do it, you know," Iommi said of the historic 2025 "Back to the Beginning" charity concert. Iommi then went on to discuss his last chat with Osbourne. "In fact, I spoke to him the night before he passed," he remembered. "He said to me, 'I really feel tired and really worn out'. I said, 'Well, you're bound to really, it's been a lot of stress and pressure and stuff like that'. And the next thing, the next day, [he's] gone." The guitarist opened up about how he still struggles to believe that Osbourne is no longer around, saying: "It still feels like he's there." He admitted that he found some elements of the gig hard, because of the frontman's ill health. "It was difficult because seeing Ozzy sitting in a throne is not the way I see him," Iommi explained. "Always [when] we've been on stage, he's been running around, and he'd run up to Geezer [Butler] and pull a face jokingly and come over to me and pull a face or the drummer or whatever. We always had a little laugh on stage and enjoy when he'd run about." Iommi continued: "But at 'Back To The Beginning', of course, he's in a throne, and I couldn't see him, which felt very unusual. I stood back by Bill [Ward]. But it was a great moment, and I'm really glad we could get the opportunity to do it, because I mean, God, we didn't know he was going to go that quick. "But he did. There's memories that will remain there, from rehearsals to the whole thing I am glad that we could do that gig." - NME, 9/4/26...... London's Wembley Park has unveiled a 30 ft. anamorphic mural of Freddie Mercury across its Spanish Steps to celebrate what would have been the Queen frontman's 80th birthday on Sept. 5. Titled "I'm Mr. Mercury," the hand-sprayed vinyl artwork was created by British street artist Frank Styles. Applied across all 58 Spanish Steps -- which connect Wembley Stadium and OVO Arena Wembley -- the installation features a monochromatic portrait of Mercury set against graphic elements inspired by his life and passions. Designed as an anamorphic image, the complete portrait aligns when viewed from a marked yellow circle opposite the steps. Moving away from the specific viewpoint causes the artwork to resolve into abstract shapes and lines. The surrounding design includes koi carp, reflecting Mercury's love of Japanese culture and his London home's garden, alongside winged female figures referencing his Virgo star sign and the Queen crest he designed. Quotes and selected lyrics also trace up the steps toward Wembley Stadium. Commenting on the artwork, Queen's manager Jim Beach said: "Freddie was known to millions around the world as the frontman of Queen but off stage, he was a quiet and humble man, happy at home surrounded by the things he loved most. 'I'm Mr. Mercury' perfectly captures the beautiful complexity of Freddie." Artist Styles added: "As a trained graphic designer himself, Freddie was very aware and precise about the visual feel and so I have endeavoured to follow his ethos in the conscious creation of this mural." "I'm Mr. Mercury" is free to view and will remain on display through to Dec. 2026. - Music-News.com, 9/5/26...... Roger Daltrey has confirmed that Zak Starkey has rehearsed with The Who, ahead of a possible reunion tour just over a year after his departure from the group after the two had an "acrimonious" fallout after a gig in 2025. Speaking to LifeMinute.com, Daltrey said of the drummer: "He's not Keith Moon, but he's come very close." When asked directly if a reunion with Starkey was possible, Daltrey replied: "I don't know. We did a rehearsal recently, and Zak was the drummer. We love Zak, but sometimes the road doesn't like Zak. Sometimes it gets on top of him, and it becomes difficult." He continued: "He was drumming at the rehearsal, and we did the rehearsal to see if we can possibly do shows next year. Still hit the notes, still get the drive. Who music demands an incredible amount of drive, and without that, it would be Herman's Hermits without the Herman." The flare up between Starkey, Daltrey and Townshend started during a 2025 performance of "The Song Is Over" when Daltrey stopped and complained that he could not hear the key over the drums, and the band were subsequently reported to have fired Starkey following an "acrimonious" fallout. Starkey said he was "surprised and saddened" by the decision, maintaining that he did not believe there had been a problem with his performance. Days later, Townshend announced that Starkey was "not being asked to step down." However, in May The Who confirmed that the drummer had left the band again, stating that "the time has come for a change". Starkey disputed the suggestion that he had chosen to leave, claiming he had been asked to "lie" and say he had quit to pursue other projects. "I love The Who and would never have quit," he wrote at the time. In August, Starkey appeared to be playing with The Who again, with both he and Daltrey confirming that they had rehearsed together. - NME, 9/3/26...... Van Halen drummer Alex Van Halen has been appointed a Knight in the Order of the Netherlands Lion in recognition of his contribution to the country of his birth and his remarkable career and influence on musicians around the globe. Van Halen was appointed Knight in the Order of the Netherlands Lion (Ridder in de Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw) on Sept. 1 in Nijmegen, the Dutch city where he and his brother Eddie spent a good chunk of their childhood. It's one of the country's highest civilian orders, given only to those who "make extraordinary contributions" to society. Van Halen, 73, was on hand for the ceremony at the Berchmanianum, the academy building of Radboud University, where mayor Hubert Bruls presented the royal honor and spoke of Van Halen's role in writing a "remarkable chapter in the history of rock music." Speaking on the sidelines, Van Halen remarked: "My cousin organized most of this. I'm very grateful. I think institutions like this are important in people's lives because it adds a dignity and a gravity to what we do. Whether it's actually deserved or not, that's another question. But we can live up to it. That's the whole thing, is you got to have something to live up to." Alex also signed Nijmegen's Book of the City, a tome reserved for distinguished visitors, inking his name in its pages alongside Bruce Springsteen and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands. "Alex still feels a connection with Nijmegen," reads a statement from the city, "and Nijmegen in turn honors the band." Alex's band Van Halen was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. They scored five No. 1 albums on the Billboard chart and more than 20 hits on the Hot 100 songs chart, including the 1984 smash single "Jump," which logged five weeks at No. 1. - Billboard, 9/3/26...... Stevie Nicks' Fleetwood Mac classic "Landslide" will appear on the soundtrack of the upcoming movie Practical Magic 2. The news comes two days after Nicks and Olivia Rodrigo sang the song together at the latter's inaugural Daisy Chain Fields charity festival in Irvine, Calif. After Daisy Chain Fields, leading lady Sandra Bullock -- who stars opposite Nicole Kidman in the original Practical Magic and upcoming sequel -- reshared a video of Nicks and Rodrigo performing together and wrote, "Angel voices that are part of an upcoming film." It led to initial speculation that the two singer/songwriters were planning to team up on a collaborative song for the fantasy romance, rather than contribute separately. Nicks was one of three special guests who joined Rodrigo onstage at Daisy Chain Fields, alongside Sara McLachlan and Alanis Morissette. Practical Magic 2 hits theaters Sept. 10. - Billboard, 9/2/26...... Sean Ono Lennon and his longtime girlfriend Charlotte Kemp Muhl announced the birth of their first child, a boy, on Sept. 1. The news came in an Instagram post from the couple in which they proudly cradled their bundle of joy between them with the caption, "@charlottekempmuhl and I have created a Human Bean! His name is Aurelius. Thank You!" Ono Lennon is wearing a black shirt, black sailor's cap and black eyeglasses, as Muhl stands beside him a flowing white top, with Aurelius splitting the difference as he sleeps in Ono Lennon's arms in a black and white striped onesie. The newborn is the first grandchild of Yoko Ono and late Beatles member John Lennon, who was murdered by shooter Mark David Chapman outside The Dakota apartment building in New York on Dec, 8, 1980 when Ono Lennon was just five years old. Ono Lennon, 50, shared several other snaps, including on in which he stares intently into the lens while snuggling with Aurelius, as well as one of his partner of nearly 20 years, 39-year-old Muhl. She is an American-born model and Ono Lennon's bandmate in their band The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger. The couple got well-wishes from a number of musicians and actors, including drummer Zak Starkey, son Ringo Starr who wrote "Amazing," as well as actresses Liv Tyler and Ione Skye, Bijou Phillips and former Lennon/Ono publicist Elliot Mintz, who wrote, "there are some moments in life that are perfect. this is one of them." Earlier in 2026, Ono Lennon released the third studio album with his longtime collaborator, Primus' Les Claypool, The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy. - Billboard, 9/2/26...... David Byrne has written a song for a "scathing" new Elon Musk documentary, and the lyrics are reportedly only comprised of the billionaire's quotes. The new feature-length documentary is made by Alex Gibney, whose previous projects include Going Clear: Scientology And The Prison Of Belief, The Inventor: Out For Blood In Silicon Valley, and the Oscar-winning Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room. Described as a "definitive and unvarnished examination" of the billionaire tycoon, Musk is set to open in cinemas on Oct. 16, and has already been criticized by Musk -- who described the 235-minute film as a "hit piece." Now, it has come to light that David Byrne has made a song especially for the documentary, and it will be comprised entirely of Elon Musk quotes. The former Talking Heads frontman wrote the song alongside composer Daniel Pemberton (Project Hail Mary), and it is titled "Let Me Sell You A Dream." "I asked for good quotes from the Martian and found more of them online," Byrne told Variety. "I'm sure he loves dropping these wild statements, and those became the lyrics. All his own words. No editorialising. Straight from the man's mouth to mine." - NME, 9/3/26...... Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters has signed on as executive producer for the forthcoming documentary Freedom Theatre. Directed by Rishi Pelham, the film follows resistance fighter turned artist Ahmed Tobasi as he fights to keep a theatre open in the middle of the Jenin refugee camp in Palestine. Variety reports that the film took five years to shoot, and is intended for a tour of film festivals, heading to Venice this month to look for potential distribution partners. Pelham told the outlet: "I didn't intentionally set out to make this film. I kept returning to Jenin, to the theatre, to the camp, and over time the story insisted on being told. What drew me in was the tension between two worlds: the black-box rehearsal room, sealed and controllable, and the camp outside, alive, volatile, and impossible to contain. Slowly, these spaces began to bleed into one another." Roger Waters has been a longtime supporter of Palestine. In 2024, he urged followers on social media not to vote for Kamala Harris or Donald Trump in the US election due to their respective stances on the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. More recently, last July, he voiced his support for Palestine Action after the organisation was proscribed as a terrorist group under the Terrorism Act 2000. - NME, 9/2/26...... Gary Glitter has pleaded not guilty to eight charges of historical sexual offences in the UK against a girl aged between eight and 11. The disgraced singer and convicted child sex offender, whose real name is Paul Gadd, entered his pleas at Southwark Crown Court on Sept. 2. Appearing via video link from prison, the 82-year-old denied four charges of indecent assault of a girl under 13, two counts of sexual intercourse with a girl under 13 and two counts of indecency with a child under 13. Gadd replied that he was "absolutely not guilty" to two of the charges before repeating "not guilty" to the remaining six. All eight counts relate to the same complainant and the alleged incidents occurred between March 1978 and December 1981. Gadd has been accused of giving the girl chocolate and inviting her to his home in West London, where the offences are said to have taken place. Judge Tony Baumgartner remanded Gadd in custody and adjourned proceedings ahead of a three-week trial set to start in November 2027. Gadd rose to fame as Gary Glitter during the 1970s, releasing hits including "Rock And Roll (Parts One And Two)" and "I'm The Leader Of The Gang (I Am)." He is currently serving a 16-year prison sentence after being convicted in 2015 of sexual offences against three schoolgirls. - NME, 9/2/26...... Gloria Steinem, the celebrated author and activist who became the most visible symbol of the U.S. women's movement and remained a fierce and eloquent advocate for equality for six decades, died on Sept. 2 at her home in New York City, according to a post on her social media page. She was 92 and had recently completed a memoir, to be released this fall. "Gloria's greatest gift was her ability to listen to others, to make others feel seen and heard," the post said. "Her words, actions, and example gave people permission to be their truest selves." Ms. Steinem began her career as a journalist, notably reporting in 1963 on degrading conditions in Hugh Hefner's Playboy empire -- an undercover assignment she later came to regret. She credits a meeting six years later, where women spoke out in favor of abortion rights, with changing her career path. "That speak-out was the beginning of activism for me," Ms. Steinem, who had undergone a secret illegal abortion herself at age 22, told the AP in an email in 2022, reflecting on the reversal of Roe v. Wade. "Either our control over our own bodies is equal, regardless of sex or race, or we're not living in a democracy." Born on Mar. 25, 1934 in Toledo, Oh., Ms. Steinem was in her 30s when she joined the editorial board of New York magazine, and her writing became more political. In 1969, she went to cover an abortion rights hearing. She had never told anyone about her illegal abortion at 22, in London. That was the moment, she has said, that triggered her career as a women's rights activist. Ms. Steinem founded the National Women's Political Caucus in 1971 along with Betty Friedan, Shirley Chisholm and Bella Abzug. Time hardly slowed Ms. Steinem down; through her 80s, she was traveling the globe and speaking out on issues of importance to her. These included everything from genital mutilation to Korean reconciliation, but it was equality for women that took precedence. "Being a feminist means that you see the world as whole instead of half," she once said. "It shouldn't need a name, and one day it won't." As the years went on, Ms. Steinem's visibility endured. A few days after her 85th birthday, she was leading a women's "talking circle" at an off-Broadway play celebrating her life, where one by one, women in the audience -- many fighting tears -- rose to thank her and tell their own stories of discrimination. In 2020, her life was the subject of a feature film, The Glorias. On Jan. 21, 2017, when hundreds of thousands of women gathered in Washington in their pink "pussy hats" for the historic Women's March, it surprised nobody that the keynote speaker, and the most rousing, was Ms. Steinem. "We are linked," she told the crowd. "And this is a day that will change us forever because we are together." Ms. Steinem was remembered on social media by the likes of Madonna, Carole King, Bette Midler, Jennifer Lopez, Diane Warren and Miss Piggy. "Thank U for fighting for us Gloria. Fight in Power Forever," Diane Warren posted on Instagram. Carole King also reflected on the generations who will continue Steinem's work, sharing a photo of the activist in her younger years. "As we elders, our daughters, and our granddaughters continue the fight for power, equality, and respect, we hold you in our hearts with love and gratitude," the singer/songwriter wrote. "Rest in peace and power." Bette Midler paid tribute to Steinem's role in reshaping what women believed was possible, writing that she and the women who worked alongside her "lit the way for every woman with a dream." "We owe her so much," Midler added. "Thank you, Gloria, and bravo." - AP, 9/3/26.