Dolly Parton speaks out after Beyoncé covers ‘Jolene’
After Beyoncé shared her newest album with the world, “Cowboy Carter,” audiences learned that she covered country music icon Dolly Parton’s hit song “Jolene.” And now Parton herself is sharing her thoughts on the cover. “Wow, I just heard Jolene. Beyoncé is giving that girl some trouble and she deserves...
Girlschool’s Kim McAuliffe still going strong after 45+ years of rockingVideo
Girlschool, touted as the longest-running all-female rock band, toured plenty of times with their British compatriots Motörhead over the course of almost 40 years. Guitarist Kim McAuliffe can clearly remember one of their early encounters. After early trepidation about meeting them — “we’d only seen a photograph of them, and...
Country star Sam Hunt bringing Locked Up tour to Star Lake this summerVideo
Country music star Sam Hunt is bringing his Locked Up tour to the Pittsburgh area later this summer. Hunt’s tour, named after his soon-to-be released EP, will visit the Pavilion at Star Lake on July 20. He’ll be joined by Russell Dickerson and George Birge. His new EP, “Locked Up,”...
The Black Keys to play PPG Paints Arena in OctoberVideo
The Black Keys will bring their International Players Tour to Pittsburgh for an October show at PPG Paints Arena. The duo of guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney are set to play the venue Oct. 10 as part of their 31-date North American venture to promote their new album,...
Westmoreland community band members will help dedicate World War I memorial in D.C.
Westmoreland County’s five community bands regularly take an annual summer trip together, assembling a group that performs somewhere at their destination. This year, however, it will be delayed a month, so the bands can help dedicate the centerpiece of the World War I memorial in Washington, D.C. Members of the...
Community bands converge on Murrysville for free annual festival
A classic John Philip Sousa march. Variations on the “Scarborough Fair” theme. Music inspired by the “Lord of the Rings” books. Musicians from all over the Pittsburgh area will perform music from all over the map at the 18th annual Three Rivers Community Band Festival, set for April 6 in...
Kane Brown fires up the crowd — and the stage — in Pittsburgh
Kane Brown loves the audience, and they love him right back. The crowd-pleasing pop country singer came to PPG Paints Arena on Friday night as part of his In The Air Tour. Brown started out as a social media sensation and has gone on to win CMT and AMA awards...
Kanye West, Ty Dolla $ign cancel ‘Vultures’ listening party in PittsburghVideo
Rappers Kanye West and Ty Dolla $ign were slated to bring the “Vultures 1 and 2 Listening Experience” to Pittsburgh. But it wound up being scrapped not long after the social media posts went out. After a Friday announcement of the “hi-fidelity audio experience” set for April 9 at PPG...
Andrea Bocelli, Chappell Roan, Tim McGraw highlight April’s top Pittsburgh concerts
The Pittsburgh concert scene is heating up in April, with at least 10 sold-out shows already. The calendar includes one of the biggest current stars in classical music, a rising pop music star and one of country’s biggest names. Here’s a look at the most notable concerts slated for the...
Colter Harper hosting book launch for ‘Jazz in the Hill’
Colter Harper’s book “Jazz in the Hill” explores the musical genre through the lens of conversation and community as a catalyst for change. Harper provides a direct look at the dialogue between musicians and listeners, as well as the connection between the community and its people. At a book release...
Fall Out Boy deliver arena-sized emo spectacle in Pittsburgh show
Two of the three covers Fall Out Boy chose for their show in Pittsburgh could not have been more appropriate. Late in their set Wednesday night at PPG Paints Arena, the emo titans channeled the stadium rock energy of Queen with “Don’t Stop Me Now” and then Blur’s “Song 2,”...
Late singer-songwriter Bob Corbin’s daughter Jess Corbin releases CD
Instead of following in her father’s footsteps in the country music genre, Jess Corbin wanted to create her own musical path. “I had always thought, ‘That is what my dad did,’” said Corbin, whose dad Bob co-founded the Corbin/Hanner band. “But I decided to give it a try.” That attempt...
Thrash metal veterans Artillery blasting through area on 40th anniversary tourVideo
Artillery, a Danish thrash band that formed in 1982, remains underrated and underappreciated when it comes to other bands from that era. With riff after blazing riff, Artillery’s early sound fit right in alongside thrash pioneers like Metallica and Megadeth. Artillery released three unrelenting albums — “Fear of Tomorrow” in...
‘Indian Idol’ puts vocal talents on display at Sri Venkateswara Temple in Penn Hills
Much like America’s televised version, Pittsburgh had its own “Indian Idol” on March 9, with singers displaying their talents at Sri Venkateswara Temple in Penn Hills. The competition’s winner was Tarun Sharma, a vocalist and composer from Squirrel Hill. The event raised $4,000 to a local and international charity, and...
Musicians perform in Marshall to benefit Highmark Caring Place
One of the more distinctive musical instruments in the Pittsburgh area gets plenty of mileage. Jeff Schiller’s 6-foot-tall upright bass, customized with a unique multicolored design, gets regular workouts when he performs with any of his half-dozen regular bands. “I had my bass custom painted to show the family tree...
Pittsburgh music scene: Reviews of Avenged Sevenfold, KK’s Priest, JP Saxe; Merce Lemon’s new single; Indigo Girls docVideo
A quick look at a few recent shows in Pittsburgh, plus a local singer is ready to release a new single and an acclaimed documentary will screen here in April. Avenged Sevenfold at PPG Paints Arena It’s been 10 years since veteran heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold played Pittsburgh. And...
Bruce Springsteen becomes first international songwriter made a fellow of Britain’s Ivors Academy
LONDON — Bruce Springsteen is the first international songwriter to be named a fellow of The Ivors Academy, the U.K’s professional association of music creators. The American icon was announced as the next recipient of the 80-year old Academy’s highest honor Tuesday, in recognition of the impact his career has...
Barenaked Ladies set to play Rivers Casino this fall
Barenaked Ladies will bring their In Flight Tour 2024 to the Rivers Casino on the North Shore on Sept. 27. They will be appearing with special guest Toad the Wet Sprocket. The Barenaked Ladies’ best-known hits are “If I Had $1,000,000,” “One Week,” “Pinch Me” and “The Big Bang Theory...
Bayside singer Anthony Raneri on the punk band’s new album, unusual release cycle and songwriting stylesVideo
Bayside, a veteran punk rock band out of New York, changed things up with their latest album, “There Are Worse Things Than Being Alive.” The new album, scheduled for an April 5 release date, will combine 2022’s “The Red EP” and 2023’s “The Blue EP” with an additional five more...
Solar eclipses show up across the entertainment spectrum
From the birth of a carnivorous houseplant to a time traveler using the knowledge of modern science to his advantage, the phenomenon of the solar eclipse has played a role across the pop culture spectrum from cinema to song and beyond. Here are a few examples. ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’...
Acclaimed Italian pianist Maurizio Pollini dies at age 82
ROME — Maurizio Pollini, a Grammy-winning Italian pianist who performed frequently at La Scala opera house in Milan, has died. He was 82. Pollini died on Saturday, La Scala said in a statement. The announcement didn’t specify a cause of death, but Pollini had been forced to cancel a concert...
Indie pop/rock band Daisy the Great discusses their formation, going viral and sequel songsVideo
With one semester left at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, Kelley Dugan and Mina Walker started writing a musical about a fake band for fun. That musical — with pop stars being struck by lightning, masked singers and much more — will never see the light of day, but...
Washington, D.C.’s Origami Angel headlining Pittsburgh collective’s 17th birthday celebrationVideo
Origami Angel, a two-piece emo band out of Washington, D.C., is a strong supporter of local music scenes. They’ll be in Pittsburgh on Sunday to headline the 17th birthday bash for Don’t Let the Scene Go Down on Me, a music collective that’s been booking shows since 2007 and in...
Ben Folds, Los Lonely Boys among Three Rivers Arts Festival’s featured concerts
This year’s free featured concert lineup for the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival was announced Thursday. The festival, running May 31-June 9 in Pittsburgh’s Cultural District, will feature singer-songwriter Ben Folds, seminal hip-hop groups the Sugarhill Gang and the Furious Five, among others. The main stage is moving to...
Community bands converge on Murrysville for free annual festival
A classic John Philip Sousa march. Variations on the “Scarborough Fair” theme. Music inspired by the “Lord of the Rings” books. Musicians from all over the Pittsburgh area will perform music from all over the map at the 18th annual Three Rivers Community Band Festival, set for April 6 in...
