Billy Idol at the 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction (Disney/Eric McCandless)
Billy Idol will launch a new leg of the It’s A Nice Day To…Tour Again! tour in August. He’s getting fans excited for the trek with a funny new promo video, titled “Everybody’s About To Get Their S*** Rocked.”
“Rock icon Billy announces the next leg of his tour with the signature wit, swagger, and attitude that have defined his career for more than four decades,” reads the video’s description. “Along the way, he dishes out a mix of real history, rock 'n' roll wisdom, and a few tongue-in-cheek 'facts' as he spotlights the cities on his upcoming tour—proving that no one announces tour dates quite like Billy Idol.”
After sharing some not-so-well-known facts about the cities he'll hit on the tour, Idol notes, "While all these cities are so different and unique in their own way, there's one thing that unifies them together. They're all about to get their s*** rocked when I come through.”
Billy Idol launched the It’s A Nice Day To…Tour Again! tour in 2025. The latest leg, featuring special guests Devo and Susanna Hoffs, kicks off Aug. 7 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and runs through Sept. 27 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. A complete list of dates can be found at BillyIdol.net.
Metallica on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' (ABC/Randy Holmes)
Take a look to the sky just before you start Gears of War: E-Day, it's the last time you will.
The upcoming video game, the latest installment in the long-running Gears of War franchise, will include a weapon skin inspired by Metallica's 1984 album, Ride the Lightning.
The Ride the Lightning song "For Whom the Bell Tolls" also soundtracks a new Gears of War: E-Day trailer previewing its multiplayer modes, which you can watch on YouTube.
Gears of War: E-Day will be released Oct. 6 for Xbox Series X/S and Windows. You can preorder the game for early access to its open beta starting Aug. 6.
Metallica, meanwhile, will go from Sera to Sin City when they launch their much-anticipated residency at the Las Vegas Sphere in October.
Alice in Chains' 'Unplugged' album artwork. (Columbia Records)
Alice in Chains is reissuing the band's 1996 Unplugged live album on vinyl in honor of its 30th anniversary.
The LP is available to preorder now via Alice's webstore. It marks the first time the album has been available on vinyl in the U.S.
Alice in Chains recorded Unplugged as part of the MTV Unplugged series. The set includes stripped-down performances of songs including "Rooster," "Down in a Hole," "Would?" and "Angry Chair."
Alice went on hiatus for months following the Unplugged performance, and vocalist Layne Staley died in 2002. The band reformed in 2006 with new singer William DuVall.
Graham Nash performs onstage during the FIREAID Benefit Concert for California Fire Relief at The Kia Forum on January 30, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images for FIREAID)
Graham Nash has always stood up for causes he believes in, and in the latest case it has forced him to cancel an upcoming concert.
“We are disappointed to let you know that the July 31st Graham Nash show at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Henrico, VA has been canceled in solidarity with the workers on strike at the Botanical Garden,” reads a post on Nash's Instagram account. “We truly appreciate the loyalty of our audience and will work on a Richmond-area return to the stage in 2027.”
Ticket holders will receive refunds for purchased tickets.
According to the Henrico Citizen, unionized workers at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden filed an Unfair Labor Practice charge back in April as they attempted to negotiate higher wages. They put on a one-day "unfair labor practice" strike on Wednesday, the workers' eighth this year.
Nash is currently on a summer tour that includes some co-headlining dates with Emmylou Harris. His next scheduled show is Saturday in Wilmington, North Carolina. A complete list of dates can be found at GrahamNash.com.
Former U.S. President Barack Obama stands on stage with daughter Sasha Obama during the dedication ceremony for the opening of the Barack Obama Presidential Center in John Lewis Plaza on June 18, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
President Barack Obama is letting folks know what music he’s been into this summer.
Obama just released his 2026 summer playlist, which features such classic tracks as The Police’s “Message in a Bottle,” David Bowie’s “Modern Love,” The Beatles’ “Revolution” and Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold.”
He also included “Song of Good Hope,” by Irish singer Glen Hansard, who died Wednesday in a motorcycle accident in Dublin.
“Here are some of the songs I've been listening to this summer,” Obama writes on social media. “It starts with a song Michelle and I love by Glen Hansard, a great musician who passed tragically this week. Our hearts go out to his family.”
Other songs on the list include: “Can’t Hide Love” by Earth, Wind & Fire; “Anyone Who Had a Heart” by Luther Vandross; “Ain’t Nobody” by Chaka Khan; “Let’s Get it On” by Marvin Gaye; “Hold On I’m Coming” by Sam & Dave; “The Book” by Sheryl Crow; and “(I Know) I’m Losing You” by The Temptations.
Tony Iommi was hoping his upcoming solo album, From the Dark, would feature a mini Black Sabbath reunion.
The guitarist tells Rolling Stone that he originally wanted Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler to play on the record.
"I wanted [Butler] to play on this album, but he couldn't do it," Iommi says. "He's doing his own album, I think. Or at the time, something happened there, so he couldn't come to England. I wanted to get it done and finally get it out, really."
Instead, Iommi recruited musician Becky Baldwin to play bass on From the Dark.
"Becky lives in Birmingham, and she's a really good player," Iommi says. "And she's certainly a fan of Geezer, and she plays in Geezer's style. And that's what I wanted. She's really good."
From the Dark does feature a guest spot from Queen's Brian May, who plays the solo on a song called "Death Wake."
"He’s a very, very close friend," Iommi says of May.
From the Dark is due out Oct. 23. Lead single "World Alone" is out now.
As for Sabbath, Iommi and Butler performed alongside fellow original band members Ozzy Osbourne and Bill Ward for the final time at the 2025 Back to the Beginning concert. Ozzy died just over two weeks later.
The Grateful Dead has shared another preview of their upcoming live box set celebrating the summer of 1985.
The band has released a performance of "The Other One," recorded during their June 30, 1985, concert at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. It is available now via digital outlets.
"Dating back to 1967, 'The Other One' was the most consistently played psychedelic-era song in the Grateful Dead's repertoire, played straight through 1967-1995,” Dead legacy manager and audio archivist David Lemiuex writes in the video description. “This is the song that welcomes everyone, to this day, to get on the bus.”
The Merriweather Post Pavilion show is one of seven previously unreleased full concerts that make up the 20-CD box set Summer Magic 1985, dropping Sept. 18. The set celebrates the band’s 20th anniversary tour and includes their three 20th anniversary shows at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California, June 14-16.
Summer Magic 1985 is limited to just 10,000 numbered copies and is available for preorder now on Dead.net.
In addition to the box set, the Merriweather Post Pavilion show will be released as a standalone three-CD or four-CD set. It is also available for preorder now.
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Billy Corgan performs onstage during the 2026 Songwriters Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony at The New York Marriott Marquis on June 11, 2026 in New York City. (Theo Wargo/Getty Images for for Songwriters Hall Of Fame)
Here's the story of a lovely Smashing Pumpkins show, which featured two surprise guests, including a member of The Brady Bunch.
Barry Williams, who played the eldest Brady son Greg Brady in the classic '70s sitcom, joined Billy Corgan and company onstage during their pre-Lollapalooza concert in Chicago on Wednesday. They rocked a rendition of the very Brady classic "It's a Sunshine Day" with Williams on lead vocals.
The collaboration comes after Williams guested on an episode of Corgan's podcast, The Magnificent Others. And that's the way they became the Smashing Bunch-kins.
As for the concert's other guest, that would be former Pumpkins bassist Melissa Auf der Maur, who reunited with the band to play "The Everlasting Gaze," a track off their 2000 album, Machina/The Machines of God.
Auf der Maur played in the Pumpkins from 1999 to 2000 following the departure of original bassist D'arcy Wretzky. She previously reunited with Corgan during his 2025 Machines of God tour.
The Smashing Pumpkins will perform a headlining set at Lollapalooza on Friday night, marking the first time they've played the festival since it moved permanently to the band's hometown of Chicago in 2005. You can watch their performance via the Lollapalooza livestream on Hulu and Disney+.
Disney is the parent company of Hulu and ABC News.
Paul McCartney's 'The Boys of Dungeon Lane' (MPL/Capitol Records)
Paul McCartney’s latest album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, has been nominated for the 2026 Mercury Prize, which recognizes the best albums from a British or Irish artist.
“What a brilliant and exciting surprise to be part of such an incredible list @mercuryprize,” McCartney writes on Instagram. “To have ‘The Boys of Dungeon Lane’ recognised alongside so many brilliant artists and albums is a huge honour for me.”
“Thank you to everyone who continues to support and enjoy the album,” he adds. “We have been having so much fun along the way. From making it with @thisiswatt to getting it out there for people to hear. I must say the reaction has been really special. So this news has just totally blown me away.”
The Boys of Dungeon Lane is one of 12 records shortlisted for the 2026 Mercury Prize. Also nominated is Florence + The Machine’s Everybody Scream and the charity compilation HELP(2), as well as albums by RAYE, Olivia Dean, Suede and more.
The 2026 Mercury Prize will be presented Oct. 22 at a ceremony held at Utilita Arena in Newcastle, U.K. The winner receives a trophy and a cash prize of about $33,000.
Billy Corgan attends the Songwriters Hall of Fame 55th Annual Induction and Awards Gala at Marriott Marquis Hotel on June 11, 2026 in New York City. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
It took a couple decades, but The Smashing Pumpkins are finally headlining Lollapalooza in their hometown of Chicago.
While the "1979" outfit previously performed at Lolla back in 1994 when it was a touring festival, they have never played it since it permanently moved to Chicago in 2005. Not only that, but the Pumpkins have never performed at the festival's site, Grant Park, either.
"We were banned by the mayor of Chicago at the time, Richie Daley, who basically banned us from playing the park, ever," frontman Billy Corgan tells ABC Audio.
That will finally change when the Pumpkins take the stage at Grant Park during Lolla 2026 as a Friday night headliner.
"For us, it's very meaningful," Corgan says of the set. "We've had a lot of ups and downs and it's gonna be really a beautiful night in our incredible, crazy, up-and-down history."
Lollapalooza 2026 takes place Thursday through Sunday. You can watch the Pumpkins' set and many others streaming live via Hulu and Disney+.
Disney is the parent company of Hulu and ABC News.
Roger Taylor, Freddie Mercury, Brian May and John Deacon of Queen (Photo by Richard E. Aaron/Redferns)
Queen has had another video reach 1 billion views on YouTube.
The latest is the performance video for the track “Don’t Stop Me Now,” from their 1978 album Jazz. The song, written by frontman Freddie Mercury, also appeared on the band’s 1981 Greatest Hits compilation.
The clip is Queen’s second video to join the Billion Views Club. The first was 1975's “Bohemian Rhapsody,” which went on to reach 2 billion views back in December 2025, making it the oldest song to ever reach such a milestone.
In other Queen news … The new Freddy Mercury book A Life in Lyrics: The Official Creative Legacy of Freddy Mercury is now available for preorder. The book is described as “the definitive creative record of one of the greatest songwriters of all time.”
A Life in Lyrics features material from Mercury's notebooks, some of which has never been published before. It will be released Sept. 1, four days ahead of what would have been the late Queen frontman's 80th birthday.
Ozzy Osbourne performs during the Sunset Strip Music Festival at Sunset Boulevard on September 12, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Angela Weiss/Getty Images)
Ozzy Osbourne will be haunting Universal Studios this spooky season.
The theme park has announced an attraction inspired by the late Prince of Darkness as part of the 2026 edition of its annual Halloween Horror Nights program.
"It's not just Ozzy's heavy metal hits that will haunt you," a description reads. "Bow at the throne of the Prince of Darkness in this haunted house inspired by the twisted mind of one of rock 'n' roll's greatest legends."
"[Ozzy's] music throughout every room is at the heart of it all," Sharon Osbourne tells EW of the attraction. "Fans will also see scenes inspired by Ozzy's journey, from his early days as a little boy growing up in Birmingham, England, riding the train to and from London, to the iconic imagery and characters from across his career."
Halloween Horror Nights will be open Aug. 28 to Nov. 1 at Universal's Orlando location and Sept. 3 to Nov. 1 at Universal Studios Hollywood in Los Angeles.
Bono and Bruce Springsteen are among the artists paying tribute to Oscar-winning Irish singer Glen Hansard, who died Wednesday in a motorcycle accident in Dublin. He was 56.
Bono would often take part in Hansard’s Christmas Eve Busk in Dublin, which raised money for the homeless community. He shared his thoughts on Instagram Wednesday, alongside a video of him performing “Invisible” with Hansard.
“Sometimes I would wonder if Glen Hansard really existed,” Bono wrote. “Seriously, he was such an angelic presence… not otherworldly…in fact, very present this presence… A smiling rascal if you needed him to be… this most musical and mischievous archangel of Ballymun… no airs, plenty of graces.”
Bono ended his lengthy post with, "[A]nd I’m telling myself this morning that if he never existed, then he can never cease to exist. For me, he will always be everywhere I see a coin spinning into an open guitar case. May you rest in the peace you gave to so many.”
“Here on E Street, we are heartbroken over the death of Glen Hansard,” Springsteen wrote in his tribute on Instagram. “We met in Ireland many years ago and he was always nothing but a great musician, a good friend and a generous and gracious man. Always positive, smiling and ready to sing. God bless him and his loved ones.”
The day before his death, Hansard’s social media posted a video of him performing “Drive All Night” with Springsteen in Ireland.
“This week in 2013 Glen had the honor of joining Bruce @springsteen & the E Street Band on stage in Kilkenny for 'Drive All Night', which Glen released his own version of later that year,” the post read. “Were you there?”
Hansard’s version, which featured backing vocals by Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder and saxophone from The E Street Band’s Jake Clemons, appeared on Hansard's 2013 EP, also titled Drive All Night.
Bon Jovi performs onstage at the Forever Tour Kick Off - New York at Madison Square Garden on July 07, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Bon Jovi)
Bon Jovi wrapped their nine-show Forever Tour stint at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Sunday, and frontman Jon Bon Jovi is reflecting on what he calls the “imperfectly perfect” experience.
The shows were the band’s first since 2022 and the first since Jon underwent vocal cord surgery that same year.
“First, I can not thank you all enough for your friendship, your kindness and your support,” Jon writes on Instagram. “We all shared in a very special experience, something unique to this moment but that’s been building for a decade.”
“Second, I woke up thinking these two words, IMPERFECTLY PERFECT. 9 nights, it was beautiful. It was real, it was human,” he continues. “I looked at each of my bandmates and at as many of you as I could see and I felt that resonance. That connection that can’t be described or felt unless it was experienced in person – to be written about or viewed. I know what happened. If you were there, so do you. It was special.”
“I’ll sleep tonight knowing that a decade of our journey, the highs and the lows, led me to these 9 nights,” he adds. “My reward is that I know I get to shine a light on so many people. All human in their existence, all just looking to find something in common, some connection… I know what it is. It’s light, it’s love. Imperfectly perfect… And I have figured out that somehow I’m lucky enough to still work here.”
Jon ends the post, “I couldn’t be more grateful.”
Bon Jovi next brings their Forever Tour to Edinburgh, Scotland, on Aug. 28. After a show in Dublin on Aug. 30, the tour wraps with three nights at London’s Wembley Stadium Sept. 4-9.
Peter Gabriel performs at Madison Square Garden on September 18, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images)
Peter Gabriel has released yet another track from his upcoming album, o/i.
The latest is the song “One by One,” which Gabriel says is part of a side project he's talked about in the past, a show “with the brain as the central core.”
The song features a character called Mozo, which Gabriel says he introduced several years ago. He notes, "I thought, well, let’s give him another blast here. He’s been brought back from the dead."
As he did with his 2023 album i/o, Gabriel is releasing a new song from o/i with each full moon of the year. The entire album will be released by the end of 2026, along with Dark-Side and Bright-Side mixes handled by Tchad Blake and Mark "Spike" Stent, respectively.
Noah Kahan is the latest musician to express his displeasure over the White House's use of his music in a social media post.
The administration posted video and photos on Instagram and TikTok documenting President Donald Trump's visit to an auto plant in Michigan to promote U.S.-made cars. The posts were set to Noah's song "American Cars," from his current album, The Great Divide.
Noah commented on the Instagram post — on which the music seems to have been disabled — "Would never approve of my music being used in support of you or this administration." His comment had received close to 33,000 likes at press time. The music is still part of the TikTok post.
The co-writer of "American Cars," Noah Levine, wrote in an Instagram comment that has since been deleted but was captured by fans, "You fat f*** this song isn’t for you.”
As in other instances of musicians complaining about their music being used in this way, the White House has doubled down: Kaelan Dorr, deputy assistant to the president, reposted a story about Noah Kahan's comment and wrote, "Symptoms of [Trump Derangement Syndrome] apparently include having a northern attitude."
Other musicians who've spoken out over the use of their music by the Trump administration without permission in social media videos and on the campaign trail include Foo Fighters, Guns N' Roses, Jack White, Katy Perry, Ariana Grande, Neil Young, Olivia Rodrigo, Rihanna, Adele, Beyoncé and the late Ozzy Osbourne.
Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi has announced a new solo album called From the Dark.
The record is due out Oct. 23 and marks Iommi's first solo effort in over 20 years. It was recorded with vocalist Jorn Lande, bassist Becky Baldwin and drummer Karl Brazil.
"It's an album we've really enjoyed making," Iommi says in a statement. "We're not trying to prove anything - it's a great album, it rocks!"
The first single, called "World Alone," is out now alongside a video, which you can watch streaming on YouTube.
Since last putting out a solo album in 2005, Iommi and Black Sabbath put out a final record, 2013's 13, and wrapped up a farewell tour in 2017. The original Sabbath lineup — Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward — reunited for one final show at the 2025 Back to the Beginning concert. Ozzy passed away just over two weeks later.
After teasing fans with news that was “coming soon,” The Beatles have announced a special expanded edition reissue of their 1965 album, Rubber Soul.
The reissue, newly mixed by producer Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell, will include new stereo and Dolby Atmos mixes of the album, along with the original mono mix and the original Capitol U.S. album version of the record.
The expanded edition will also include a variety of bonus material, including previously unreleased session recordings and home demos. And as a preview of that bonus material, The Beatles have released an early take of “Michelle” to digital outlets.
Released Dec. 3, 1965, Rubber Soul, The Beatles’ sixth studio album, featured such iconic tracks as “Drive My Car,” “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown),” “Nowhere Man,” “Michelle” and “In My Life." The critically acclaimed album, which has made several lists of the best albums of all time, hit #1 in the U.S., U.K. and more, and has been certified six-times Platinum by the RIAA.
The reissue of Rubber Soul will be released on Oct. 2 in a variety of formats, including a special edition super deluxe five-LP or four-CD box set that comes with 68 tracks. The LP version comes with a 7-inch of “Day Tripper” and “We Can Work It Out” in stereo. There will also be a four-CD set, a two-LP or two-CD edition and a Blu-ray edition.
Glen Hansard performs with The Frames at the Sydney Opera House on March 25, 2013 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images)
Irish singer Glen Hansard, Oscar winner for the song “Falling Slowly” from the movie Once, has died, the singer’s management confirms to ABC Audio. He was 56.
"With broken hearts we announce the passing of Glen Hansard in the early hours of this morning,” reads a statement from ATC Management. “We are still dealing with the shock of it all, so we kindly ask that the privacy of Glen’s family, colleagues and friends is respected at this difficult time.”
According to The Irish Times, Hansard was killed in a motorcycle crash in Dublin.
Hansard, who quit school in his teens to busk on the streets of Dublin, was the founder of the Irish rock band The Frames, who released their debut album, Another Love Song, in 1991. That same year, Hansard had a role in the Alan Parker-directed film, The Commitments, playing guitaristOutspan Foster.
The Frames would go on to release seven studio albums, including 2004’s Burn the Maps, which would hit #1 in Ireland, and 2006’s The Cost, which hit #2.
In 2007, Hansard starred opposite singer Czech singer Markéta Irglová in the John Carney-directed film Once, about two struggling musicians in Dublin. The pair wrote many of the songs on the soundtrack, including the ballad “Falling Slowly,” which would go on to win an Academy Award for best original song.
Hansard and Irglová, who briefly dated, formed the band The Swell Season, releasing their self-titled debut album in 2006. Their follow-up, Strict Joy, peaked at#15 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart. They released their last album, Forward, in July 2025.
In 2011, Once was turned into a musical, featuring the music of Hansard and Irglová. It opened on Broadway in 2012, and won eight Tony Awards, including best musical. It also earned Hansard a Grammy for best musical theater album.
Hansard launched a solo career in 2012, with the release of Rhythm and Repose, which hit #21 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart. He released his most recent solo album, All That Was East Is West of Me Now, in October 2023. A natural storyteller, Hansard was known for his magnetic live performances, and released the live album, Don’t Settle (Vol. 2 Transmissions West), in June.
Hansard was also the organizer behind what became known as the Christmas Eve Busk, impromptu Christmas Eve performances on Grafton Street in Dublin to raise money for the homeless community. Started in 2010, over the years he would be joined by several of his fellow Irish musicians, including U2 frontman Bono.
In 2021, when Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder released his third solo album, Earthlings, Hansard became a member of Vedder’s backing band, dubbed The Earthlings. The pair became good friends when Vedder reached out to Hansard after a concertgoer committed suicide at a Swell Season show in Saratoga, California, in August 2020. Hansard would go on to open for Vedder several times on his solo tours, and opened for Pearl Jam on tour, as well.
In October 2022, Hansard became a first-time father, when he and his partner, poet Maire Saaritsa, welcomed a son.
Portrait of British pop group The Beatles (L-R) Paul McCartney, George Harrison (1943 - 2001), Ringo Starr and John Lennon (1940 - 1980) at the BBC Television Studios in London before the start of their world tour, June 17, 1966. (Photo by Central Press/Getty Images)
The Beatles appear to be teasing fans with news to come.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band’s website now has a countdown clock that appears to end on Wednesday, along with the tag line, “Good things come to those who Wait.”
The post also includes a video that features a tree and an apple rolling through a field of weeds.
The bottom of the post urges fans to sign up to the official Beatles mailing list, noting, “Exciting news is coming soon.”
So far there have been no other hints as to what the band may be ready to reveal.
The last time The Beatles teased fans about upcoming news was back in August 2025, which turned out to be reissues of their Anthology project. That included the rerelease of the Anthology documentary series, with a new episode; a reissue of the Anthology music collection, with a new fourth album; and a rerelease of the Anthology book.
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