Willie Nelson Duets With Keith Richards, Billy Strings and Sheryl Crow on Night 2 of Hollywood Bowl Birthday Salute

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Singer-songwriter Margo Price has never been a conventional country artist and she is one of the very few to make outspoken statements in favor of stronger gun-control laws in the U.S. She and her husband prominently attended memorial ceremonies for the victims of Nashville’s Covenant School shooting this spring and today she posted a deeply moving essay in Rolling Stone titled “Sit Beside Me in the Darkness.” It is marks her first piece of writing since her 2022 memoir, “Maybe We’ll Make It,” in which she addresses many hard life subjects, including the death of her infant son due to congenital heart disease. It’s a long and detailed essay that covers the meeting she and fellow singers Amy Grant, Sheryl Crow, Ruby Amanfu, Allison Russell and Will Hoge had with Gov. Bill Lee and the unexpected empathy she felt for him, the faith she has in Gen Z, and the change she believes women can create when working together. 

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic A film rendering of the two-night 90th birthday tribute to Willie Nelson at the Hollywood Bowl in April will be coming to movie theaters sooner rather than later. “Long Story Short: Willie Nelson 90” will appear on the big screen across the U.S. for three nights, with an initial showing on June 11 followed by repeat screenings on June 13-14. The running time is being described as “two hours plus,” which means editors have a big job on their hands cutting down the more than six hours of music that transpired April 29-30 at the Bowl, with very little overlap of material between the two nights. A lot of artists who appeared at one or both shows will necessarily not make the cut.

Willie Nelson is opening up about his extraordinary bond with his wife, Annie D’Angelo, in the latest issue of People.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic The FOMO of having missed Joni Mitchell’s appearance at the Newport Folk Festival last summer no longer needs to be so strong. Most of that comeback set, which as augmented by an all-star cast, is being released as a live album in July, “At Newport,” produced by Mitchell and Brandi Carlile. The album will be released by Rhino on July 28, four days after the one-year anniversary of the surprise show at the Rhode Island Festival. The guest stars who shared lead vocals and instrumentals with Carlile during the “Joni Jam” will all be represented — including Carlile, Marcus Mumford, Dawes’ Taylor Goldsmith, Lucius, Celisse and Wynonna Judd. Other players included Phil and Tim Hanseroth, Allison Russell and Blake Mills.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Dolly Parton has revealed all the pertinent details about her long-promised “rock album,” titled “Rockstar,” including a 30-song track list, Nov. 17 release date and literally dozens of celebrity guests — including Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr joining her for a cover of the Beatles’ “Let It Be.” The vast majority of the 30 tracks on the fall release will include at least one feature from a big-name artist, and in some cases two. Brandi Carlile and Pink will be joining Parton on the Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” while Emmylou Harris and Sheryl Crow will be her guests on a song most popularized by Linda Ronstadt, “You’re No Good.” The force of metal will be strong on the song “Bygones,” where Judas Priest’s Rob Halford and Motley Crue members Nikki Sixx and John 5 will join her crew. Lizzo and Sasha Flute will put some wind into her sails on Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” even as Steven Tyler and Warren Haynes put their heads together with the Jackson 5 cover “I Want You Back.” And the aforementioned “Let It Be” won’t just include the two surviving Beatles; it’ll also feature turns from Peter Frampton and Mick Fleetwood.

Kate Bush and Rage Against The Machine have each made statements about their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductions. Earlier today (May 3), the two acts have been confirmed for the coveted placement alongside George Michael, Sheryl Crow, Missy Elliott, and more.

Rage Against The Machine and Kate Bush have responded to the news that they are both part of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame’s Class of 2023.The list of this year’s inductees was revealed earlier today, with George Michael, Sheryl Crow, rap innovator Missy Elliott, The Spinners, and country legend Willie Nelson also set to join the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.Kate Bush had previously been nominated three times, in 2018, 2021 and 2022. Rage Against The Machine, meanwhile, were on their fifth nomination, having been nominated more times than any of this year’s other shortlisted artists.“It is a surprising trajectory for us to be welcomed into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,” Rage Against the Machine said in a statement.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic It makes her happy, in case you were wondering — this Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honor that was announced Thursday for Sheryl Crow, making her part of the class of 2023 that is set for induction this November in New York. The singer-songwriter says she is pleased to be going in alongside her old pal Willie Nelson, with whom she just sang for his 90th birthday party at the Hollywood Bowl, along with fellow female powerhouses of contemporary music like Kate Bush (who she grew up on) and Missy Elliott (whose production skills she particularly admires). Never mind those who rode into the hall before her: A scan of the plaques on the walls in Cleveland may read like a discography of people Crow has already sung with over the last three decades.

Kate Bush, who re-emerged in the public eye after ’80s song “Running Up That Hill” appeared on Stranger Things, and Willie Nelson, who just turned 90 last weekend, are now in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

The 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced this year’s inductees for 2023.

Kate Bush and George Michael are among the artists who will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame ceremony in 2023.The full lists of inductees have been announced today (May 3) and along with a list of seven performers being inducted, the recipients of the Musical Influence Award and the Musical Excellence Award have also been unveiled.All artists are eligible to enter the hall 25 years after their first single, and this year’s instalment sees Kate Bush finally enter the prestigious hall — following three previous nominations in 2018, 2021 and 2022.While she has not released new music in over a decade, the singer-songwriter recently enjoyed a spike in popularity when her 1985 single, ‘Running Up That Hill’, went viral after appearing in Netflix series Stranger Things.It is not yet clear whether she will attend the New York ceremony. If she does, however, it will mark her first public appearance in nearly 10 years.Other inductees for 2023 include Sheryl Crow, Tom Morello’s band Rage Against The Machine, rap innovator Missy Eliott, The Spinners, and country legend Willie Nelson, who recently celebrated his 90th birthday.The final performer to be included in the class of 2023 is George Michael, who was deemed successful for the final cut after winning a fan vote, which was tallied alongside official ballots.

Kate Bush, Missy Elliott, George Michael, and Rage Against the Machine will all be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, it has been confirmed. The Class of 2023 group also includes Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow, and the Spinners. The 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on Friday, November 3, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Nominees who felt more like usual suspects — including Soundgarden, the White Stripes, Iron Maiden, Warren Zevon and the new-wave mash-up of Joy Division/New Order — were all passed over this year.Instead, it is indeed a new order with three women leading the list — Kate Bush, Sheryl Crow and Missy Elliott — who couldn’t be more different, ranging from alt-rock to hip-hop. And rounding out the 2023 inductees are George Michael, a gay pop superstar; Willie Nelson, a country music icon; and the Spinners, a black R&B vocal group.Michael’s induction, coming seven years after the “Faith” singer died at 53, is the latest posthumous honor coming after Whitney Houston, the Notorious B.I.G., Nina Simone and Tupac Shakur in recent years.It’s certainly great to see Nelson — who just turned 90 last Saturday — get his flowers while he can still smell them.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Willie Nelson just got an only slightly late 90th birthday present: an impending induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The country music legend was one of seven music figures announced Wednesday morning as having been voted into the hall, along with Kate Bush, Rage Against the Machine, Missy Elliott, Sheryl Crow, George Michael and the Spinners. There are six more inductees beyond that list, with the distinction of being selected by a select Hall of Fame committee to join the seven performers who were voted in via general balloting. These are singer Chaka Khan, instrumentalist-producer Al Kooper and lyricist Bernie Taupin, all in the “musical excellence” category; pioneering rock guitarist Link Wray and hip-hop originator DJ Kool Herc in the “musical influence” division; and “Soul Train” TV host Don Cornelius as the recipient of the annual Ahmet Ertegun Award.

Emily Longeretta Brooks & Dunn, Chris Stapleton and Diplo closed out the 2023 Stagecoach Festival — and made the 106-degree heat well worth it. Early Sunday evening, Brooks & Dunn took the Mane Stage, returning to the desert for the first time in 13 years. Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn played a 14-song, hour-long set, which included their biggest hits — “Brand New Man,” “Boot Scootin’ Boogie,” “Neon Moon,” “My Maria” and “Red Dirt Road,” to name a few. Early on, the pair hit a bit of a technical glitch while performing “You’re Gonna Miss Me When I’m Gone,” with the music cutting out. The pros didn’t pause, continuing on until it was figured it out behind the scenes.

“Are there any more real cowboys?” Neil Young sang Saturday night at the Hollywood Bowl on a rare evening when he was neither the headliner nor, at age 77, even close to the oldest artist on the bill.

Willie Nelson celebrated his 90th birthday this weekend with two special gigs in Los Angeles – watch performances by Neil Young, Snoop Dogg and Beck below.Nelson’s big birthday landed on Saturday (April 29), and a host of the legendary singer’s friends and collaborators came together at the Hollywood Bowl on that evening, and the subsequent night, for the celebration, dubbed Long Story Short.Also playing alongside Nelson were a huge variety of artists including Sturgill Simpson, The Chicks, Leon Bridges, Kacey Musgraves, Sheryl Crow, Tom Jones, Orville Peck, Nelson’s son Lukas and more.During the festivities, Snoop joined Nelson for ‘Roll Me Up’, while Beck performed ‘Hands On The Wheel’.Young, meanwhile, joined Stephen Stills for his performance, which came soon after the pair – famous for working together in Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young – performed together for the first time in four years the previous weekend as part of Stills’ ‘Light Up The Blues’ event that he puts on every year in aid of Autism Speaks.Watch a host of the performances from the special evening below.Young’s first performance in four years came in February, where he performed ‘Heart Of Gold’ and ‘Comes A Time’ at a march and rally in support of the United For Old Growth campaign, which is looking to stop the Canadian government from allowing logging companies from destroying old-growth forests.Last summer, the singer indicated he’s not yet ready to play concerts, saying he doesn’t think it is safe amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. His latest comments echoed ones made in December of 2021, when he said he wouldn’t be returning to touring until COVID-19 was “beat” and the pandemic was over.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic “Thanks for coming to my dad’s birthday party,” said Micah Nelson, a few songs into an all-star tribute to Willie Nelson at the Hollywood Bowl, attended by a sold-out house happy that Willie had found a way to schedule the 90th anniversary of his birth on a Saturday night. With roughly seven decades of songwriting and recording to commemorate, though, the party is stretching over two nights, bundled together and sold as a single ticket, where by the end of Sunday night everyone will have heard about 50 artists perform a total of about 75 songs. Ironically, one of the first numbers performed Saturday evening was young Texas country artist Charley Crockett doing a cut that Nelson had a hit with as a budding songwriter in the late ’50s: “The Party’s Over.” That title proved as un-prescient for Nelson’s career 65 years ago as it proved unprophetic for the scope of the Bowl celebration this weekend. But a little irony is always welcome in Willie’s world.

Texas troubadour Willie Nelson had a birthday party that will be remembered. "Long Story Short: Willie Nelson 90" kicked off on Saturday night, which was Nelson's birthday.The two-night event at the Hollywood Bowl host performances from all music genres, including Snoop Dogg and Chris Stapleton.

Editor’s Note: Decorated live event TV director-producer Don Mischer, a fifteen-time Emmy Award winner, has worked frequently with country legend Willie Nelson, who turns 90 today. The following is a chapter from Mischer’s forthcoming book,10 Seconds To Air: A Life in the Director’s Chair, written by him and Sara Lukinson.