2024: Producer Quincy Jones dies at 91. Jones produced Michael Jackson's Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad, oversaw the charity single “We Are the World,” scored The Color Purple and founded Vibe magazine.
2023: Brenda Lee's “Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree” finally gets an official music video. Country stars Trisha Yearwood and Tanya Tucker appeared in the clip. Weeks later the 1958 recording reached number one on the Hot 100 for the first time, 65 years after its release.
2017: Sam Smith releases The Thrill of It All. Led by the single “Too Good at Goodbyes,” Smith's second album debuted at number one in both the U.S. and the U.K.
2016: Pop and jazz singer Kay Starr dies. Starr was one of the biggest female vocalists of the 1950s, topping the charts with “Wheel of Fortune” and “Rock and Roll Waltz.”
2009: Carrie Underwood releases her third album, Play On. The former American Idol winner's set featured “Cowboy Casanova,” which became another number one country hit for her.
2001: Mary J. Blige's “Family Affair” hits number one. The Dr. Dre produced track was the first Hot 100 chart topper of her career and held the top spot for six weeks.
1998: Britney Spears releases her debut single, “…Baby One More Time.” Spears was just 16. The song climbed to number one in America about three months later and launched one of the biggest pop careers of the era.
1990: Vanilla Ice's “Ice Ice Baby” becomes the first rap single to top the Hot 100. The track was built on the bass line from “Under Pressure” by Queen and David Bowie.
1984: Billy Ocean's “Caribbean Queen” hits number one. The song was Ocean's first American chart topper and went on to win him a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance.
1979: The Eagles' The Long Run reaches number one. The album held the top spot for nine weeks and included “Heartache Tonight” and “I Can't Tell You Why.” It was the band's last studio album for nearly three decades.
1977: Elton John announces his retirement from performing. He made the surprise announcement on stage at Wembley Stadium in London, but the break did not last and he was back on tour within a couple of years.
1973: Michael Jackson shows off “The Robot” on Soul Train. He did the dance while the Jackson 5 performed “Dancing Machine,” and it quickly became a nationwide craze.
1962: The Crystals' “He's a Rebel” hits number one. The Phil Spector production, written by Gene Pitney, actually featured Darlene Love on lead vocals rather than the Crystals themselves. It stayed on top for two weeks.
1956: Elvis Presley's “Love Me Tender” takes over the number one spot. It replaced his own “Don't Be Cruel” and “Hound Dog,” making Elvis the first artist to knock himself out of number one. The song was the title track of his first movie.
1951: Tony Bennett's “Cold, Cold Heart” hits number one. Bennett's pop version of the Hank Williams country song became one of his first big hits and helped bring Williams' songwriting to a wider audience.
Born on This Day
2005: Lara Raj, American singer (KATSEYE) Turns 21. Member of the global pop girl group KATSEYE.
2002: Stephen Sanchez, American singer Turns 24. Known for the retro styled hit “Until I Found You.”
1994: Ella Mai, British R&B singer Turns 32. Best known for the Grammy winning hit “Boo'd Up.”
1989: Nav, Canadian rapper Turns 37. Known for hits including “Turks” with Gunna and Travis Scott.
1988: Gabe Simon, American songwriter and producer Turns 38. Produced Noah Kahan's breakthrough album Stick Season and fronts the band Kopecky.
1978: Tim McIlrath, American singer (Rise Against) Turns 48. Frontman of the Chicago punk band Rise Against.
1976: Jake Shimabukuro, American ukulele player Turns 50. The Hawaiian virtuoso became famous for his ukulele version of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.”
1973: Mick Thomson, American guitarist (Slipknot) Turns 53. Longtime guitarist for the heavy metal band Slipknot.
1973: Sticky Fingaz, American rapper (Onyx) Turns 53. Member of the hip hop group Onyx, known for the 1993 hit “Slam.”
1969: Robert Miles, Swiss Italian DJ and producer Best known for the 1990s dance hit “Children.” He died in 2017.
1967: Steven Wilson, English singer and producer (Porcupine Tree) Turns 59. Founder of the progressive rock band Porcupine Tree.
1954: Adam Ant, English singer (Adam and the Ants) Turns 72. New wave star of “Stand and Deliver” and the solo hit “Goody Two Shoes.”
1948: Lulu, Scottish singer Turns 78. Took “To Sir with Love” to number one in America in 1967 and later sang the theme to The Man with the Golden Gun.
1945: Nick Simper, English bassist (Deep Purple) Turns 81. The original bass player of Deep Purple, heard on their first hit, “Hush.”
1933: John Barry, English composer Scored a long run of James Bond films and won Oscars for Born Free, Out of Africa and Dances with Wolves. He died in 2011.
1930: Mable John, American blues singer The first female singer signed to Berry Gordy's Tamla label, she later sang with Ray Charles' Raelettes. She died in 2022.
1801: Vincenzo Bellini, Italian composer Wrote the operas Norma and La sonnambula.
