Music

By The Mercury News

Music news and reviews from The Mercury News entertainment staff and columnists.

The San Francisco Symphony’s next music director is …
The Mercury News - Georgia Rowe
CLICK HERE if you are having trouble viewing these photos on a mobile device Breaking news: This story will be updated throughout the day. Esa-Pekka …
College a cappella group cuts ‘Little Mermaid’ from repertoire amid concerns over consent
The Mercury News - Washington Post
By Lindsey Bever | The Washington Post A Princeton University a cappella choir started to hum. A soloist then emerged from the all-male ensemble …
More heartbreak for Mylie Cyrus after losing home in Woolsey Fire
The Mercury News - Martha Ross
Just a month after losing her Malibu home in the devastating Woolsey Fire, Mylie Cyrus learned she has been a victim of thieves who broke into her …
Justin Timberlake postpones Oakland concert due to injury
The Mercury News - Jim Harrington
CLICK HERE if you are having trouble viewing these photos on a mobile device. Local fans will just have to wait a bit longer to see Justin …
Vallejo police ‘aware’ of Messy Marv gun brandishing video
The Mercury News - Nate Gartrell
VALLEJO — Police here say they’re investigating a San Francisco rapper after a video surfaced online showing him and a friend driving into a …
San Jose: Country music star visits patients at Valley Medical Center
The Mercury News - Sal Pizarro
Country music star Chris Janson recently stopped at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center to play tunes for kids who were hospitalized there. Janson, who …
Amid #MeToo, radio station nixes ‘Baby, It’s Cold Outside’
The Mercury News - Associated Press
CLEVELAND — A Cleveland radio station says it has stopped playing “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” after listeners said the song heard on countless holiday …
Madonna vs. Lady Gaga: Feud reignites as Gaga gets serious Oscar buzz for ‘A Star is Born’
The Mercury News - Martha Ross
The long-running feud between Madonna and Lady Gaga is heating up again, with it easy to imagine that Madonna is a tad annoyed that the younger pop …
Kanye West apologizes for using phone during Broadway show
The Mercury News - Martha Ross
Kanye West actually apologized for something. The rapper, attending the opening night of the new Broadway musical “The Cher Show,” was called out on …
Photos: Demi Lovato lists mansion for rent for $40K a month
The Mercury News - Pueng Vongs
Pop star Demi Lovato has taken her Hollywood Hills mansion off the market and is instead listing it for rent for $39,500 a month. Click if viewing …
Casting Crowns cancel West Coast Christmas tour due to health matter
The Mercury News - Jim Harrington
The Casting Crowns, the platinum-selling Christian music band known for such hits as “Voice of Truth,” has canceled its West Coast Christmas tour due …
Cher, Reba, Lin-Manuel light up Kennedy Center Honors
The Mercury News - The Washington Post
By Emily Heil and Helena Andrews Dyer | The Washington Post WASHINGTON — The red carpet before Sunday night’s Kennedy Center Honors is the first peek …
One Love Malibu recap: Katy Perry, Gwen Stefani and more play concert benefit for Woolsey Fire
The Mercury News - Peter Larsen
Shawn Dugan pointed across the Calabasas valley in which the King Gillette Ranch sits to a black and barren hillside where until a few weeks ago a …
After rescue, Gaza’s only grand piano makes public comeback
The Mercury News - The Associated Press
By Fares Akram | Associated Press GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — The only grand piano in the Gaza Strip was played in public for the first time in a decade …
Placido Domingo feted at Met Opera for his 50th anniversary
The Mercury News - The Associated Press
By Ronald Blum | Associated Press NEW YORK — Placido Domingo’s eyes watered and his voice quavered. After portraying dozens of characters over a …
Band digs up Nashville’s forgotten past with songs, videos
The Mercury News - Jeff Martin, Associated Press
By Jeff Martin | Associated Press From a public hanging on Nashville’s Music Row to the days when a young and still unknown guitar player named Jimi …
‘The Voice’: Which finalist owned the night?
The Mercury News - Chuck Barney
OK, so it’s not March Madness, but NBC’s “The Voice” has its own version of The Final Four and it went down tonight as the remaining contestants — …
Bay Area top concerts of week (12/22-28): Todd Rundgren, Myles Parrish, more
The Mercury News - Jim Harrington
The music scene slows down a bit during this time of year, yet there are still some solid shows going on. Here are three of our top picks for the …
Music
Kiss bassist Gene Simmons facing lawsuit alleging sexual battery during Southern California interview
The Mercury News - Joe Nelson
A radio and television broadcaster on Friday, Dec. 15, sued musician and Rock & Brews restaurant co-founder Gene Simmons, alleging Simmons made …
Country Joe McDonald serves up psychedelic farewell
The Mercury News - Andrew Gilbert
Longtime Berkeley resident Joe McDonald has been revisiting his epochal music of the mid-1960s in recent years, and now he’s ready to move on. But …
Spend Christmas Eve with the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir Ensemble
The Mercury News - Jim Harrington
Looking for a new Christmas Eve tradition? We recommend heading over to the San Francisco nightclub Slim’s, which has been hosting the tremendous …
‘A Christmas Story Live!’: Did you love it — or hate it?
The Mercury News - Chuck Barney
Break out the leg lamp and guzzle some Ovaltine. Tonight Fox is treating (or mistreating) us to “A Christmas Story Live” with a cast that includes …
Review: Jay Z embraces his uncomfortable moment in Oakland
The Mercury News - Jim Harrington
Jay Z meant business. “I didn’t come to (expletive) around with y’all tonight,” the hip-hop star told the packed house of some 17,000 fans at Oracle …
Iconic vocalist Keely Smith dies from apparent heart failure at 89
The Mercury News - Jim Harrington
Keely Smith, the iconic jazz and pop vocalist who achieved success as both a solo artist and with her musical partnership with first husband Louis …
Music and art: Combining singing, painting to center herself
The Mercury News - Paul Freeman
Whether it’s with watercolors, singing voice or jazz guitar, Julie Cohn expresses herself in ways that enchant others. Painting and music, Cohn said …
‘Chameleon’ bluesman Alvon Johnson sets a string of Bay Area dates
The Mercury News - Andrew Gilbert
B.B. King loved to talk about Frank Sinatra. The iconic blues guitarist could speak eloquently about his art form, but he took tremendous pleasure in …
Top 12 music gifts for the holidays: From the Ramones to REO Speedwagon to R.E.M.
The Mercury News - Jim Harrington
If there’s one thing that music fans like to get for the holidays it’s, well, music. And of course, boxed sets, greatest hits collections, reissues …
Got weekend plans? We have some cool ideas (Dec. 14 edition)
The Mercury News - Randy McMullen
So, what are you doing this weekend? If you’re weighing options, we’re here to help with ideas for fun and even exhilarating stuff to do in the Bay …
Adorable Suri Cruise almost stole the show from Taylor Swift
The Mercury News - Martha Ross
Tom Cruise may not be a huge presence in the life of his daughter Suri Cruise. But the adorable 11-year-old certainly has inherited her father’s …