Gregg Allman, frontman and founding member of the Allman Brothers Band, died at his home in Richmond Hill, Georgia, after a battle with liver cancer. He was 69.
Allman Brothers Band was founded in 1969 with Gregg and his brother Duane, as well as Berry Oakley, Butch Trucks and Jaimoe. They released their self-titled debut that year.
They went on to be considered one of the pioneering Southern rock bands and were particularly known for their touring career, which included long shows filled with extended jams.
Gregg, who was married seven times, including a four-year marriage to Cher, was responsible for penning many of the band’s most popular songs, including “Whipping Post,” “Melissa” and “Midnight Rider.”
L-R: Liam Stewart, Renee Stewart, Kimberly Stewart, Ruby Stewart, Sean Stewart, Rod Stewart; Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Rod Stewart received a heartwarming surprise at the 2025 American Music Awards when five of his eight children appeared onstage to help present him with a Lifetime Achievement Award.
On Monday night, the British rock legend was honored ahead of his upcoming tour. His children — Kimberly, Ruby, Renee, Sean and Liam — joined forces for the surprise tribute, with Ruby revealing their affectionate nickname for him.
“Tonight we are here as the biggest and most loving fans of our father, Sir Rod Stewart, or as we all know him, Papa Stew,” she shared.
Clearly moved, Rod embraced his children on stage and expressed his shock during his acceptance speech.
“I am absolutely flabbergasted. I didn’t know they were here — my children,” he told the audience. Renee and Liam are Rod’s children with his second wife, Rachel Hunter. Kimberly and Sean are Rod’s children from his first marriage to Alana Stewart, while he shares Ruby with his ex-girlfriend Kelly Emberg.
Reflecting on his decades-long career, Rod said, “When I started singing in the early ’60s, well before all of you lot were here, the reason I got into it [was] because I had this burning ambition to sing. It’s all I wanted to do. I didn’t want to be rich or famous, and here I am a few years later, picking up this wonderful award.”
Dressed in a white tuxedo jacket and pinstripe trousers, Rod took the stage to perform his 1988 hit “Forever Young,” marking his first American Music Awards performance since 2004.
As previously reported, Janet Jackson was also recognized at the event, receiving the prestigious Icon Award, while Billie Eilish did a clean sweep, winning all seven categories she was nominated in.
After postponing all his concerts in March due to surgery, Billy Joel shocked fans on Friday when he canceled all those shows outright and announced he’s been diagnosed with normal pressure hydrocephalus. But the good news is that a full recovery is likely.
Billy’s condition is an abnormal buildup of cerebrospinal fluid deep within the brain, according to the U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. It can lead to problems with walking, bladder control, and thinking and reasoning.
Dr. Leah Croll, a neurologist at Maimonides Health, tells ABC News that the condition is “treatable and reversible,” depending on the cause and the patient’s situation. It can either be treated permanently by surgically inserting a tube in the brain for fluid drainage, or managed with medication and physical therapy.
Croll adds, “For Billy Joel, there would not necessarily be any reason to expect something other than a full recovery. We can’t be certain … there’s so many factors that go into a recovery, but in general, people do very well with this.”
The statement on Billy’s Instagram page noted that his condition had been made worse by concert performances, leading to “problems with hearing, vision, and balance.” It went on to say, “Billy is undergoing specific physical therapy and has been advised to refrain from performing during this recovery period.”
Croll explains why performing right now is a bad idea.
“Doing taxing physical activity is going to put stress on the brain, and it’s going to make those symptoms come out more,” she says. “Because the brain can’t compensate as well as it normally does when it’s devoting so much energy to a performance.”
Billy’s canceled shows included headlining stadium dates with Sting, Stevie Nicks and Rod Stewart.
Former Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers drummer Stan Lynch‘s new band, The Speaker Wars,is set to drop their self-titled debut album on Friday, and Lynch tells ABC Audio the project started when he was set up on a “blind date” in Nashville with singer/songwriter John Christopher Davis.
“It starts innocently enough, like most projects for me, everything in my life is pretty much friend- and joy-related,” he says. He notes that when he met Davis, “I just kind of fell for the guy.”
Lynch says their musical connection was there from the very beginning and it was Davis’ idea to make a record together.
“We walked in the room and he just had a lot of energy,” Lynch says. He explains that during the COVID-19 pandemic he kept thinking, “What am I going to do with my life?” And Davis suggested meeting up to make a record, although he didn’t realize he’d be playing drums on it.
Lynch, who has had a long career as a music producer, says, “I thought I was making his record. And then he kept saying, you know, get behind the kit. He is the burr in the saddle that made this happen, which is great.”
And while Lynch knows there’s no guarantee a record will be a hit, he tries to not get too worried about it.
“I’m always skeptical because I’ve gotten older. … The more I know, the more I know what can go wrong,” he says. “Either it will be a tremendous success or it won’t be. But it will always feel like a success to me if I’m having fun.”
The 2025 American Music Awards, hosted by Jennifer Lopez, took place Monday night in Las Vegas. Billie Eilish was the top winner, taking home seven awards. Here’s the complete list of winners:
Artist of the year: Billie Eilish
New artist of the year: Gracie Abrams
Album of the year: Billie Eilish, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT
Song of the year: Billie Eilish, “Birds of a Feather”
Favorite touring artist: Billie Eilish
Favorite music video: Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars, “Die With a Smile”
Favorite male pop artist: Bruno Mars
Favorite female pop artist: Billie Eilish
Favorite pop album: Billie Eilish, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT
Favorite pop song: Billie Eilish, “Birds of a Feather”
Favorite male country artist: Post Malone
Favorite female country artist: Beyoncé
Favorite country duo or group: Dan + Shay
Favorite country album: Beyoncé, COWBOY CARTER
Favorite country song: Post Malone feat. Morgan Wallen, “I Had Some Help”
Billy Joel, Alexa Ray Joel and Christie Brinkley in 2011; Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic
Billy Joel‘s ex-wife Christie Brinkley is showing support for the Piano Man following news of his recent brain diagnosis.
The supermodel, who shares daughter Alexa Ray with the legendary singer, posted a video on Instagram Saturday, one day after Joel revealed he had been diagnosed with normal pressure hydrocephalus.
In the clip, Brinkley’s daughter, Sailor Brinkley Cook — whom she shares with ex-husband Peter Cook — is seen singing Billy’s hit “You May Be Right” backstage as Billy looks on. She and her mom are also seen enjoying one of his concerts.
“Dear Billy, The whole Brinkley gang is sending you lots of love and good wishes for a full and speedy recovery,” Christie writes in the caption. “I was looking for some cute photos of you and Alexa to send you, when I came across this clip from a recent concert. It made me laugh ..but it also reminded me of all the joy you create, and all the sensational sing a longs you’ve lead.”
“You turn an arena of strangers into a living room full of friends as we all sway in unison,” she continued. “I’m sure I’m speaking for everyone in that room when I say please take good care of yourself, we all want you back in that white hot spotlight, you’re OUR piano man.’
Brinkley concluded, “We’re always in the mood for your melodies And we all hope you’re feeling alright! We Love You, the kids, me and a whole bunch of full arenas!”
Joel and Brinkley were married from 1985 to 1994.
On Friday, Billy shared that he was canceling his upcoming concerts due to his diagnosis. The condition causes an “abnormal buildup of cerebrospinal fluid deep within the brain,” according to the U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
Lenny Kravitz has released a collection of new remixes of his song “Let It Ride.”
The set includes eight different takes on the track, which originally appeared on Kravitz’s latest album, 2024’s Blue Electric Ride. You can listen to it now via digital outlets.
Kravitz previously put out a group of “Let It Ride” remixes in April alongside the premiere of the song’s video, which the “Fly Away” rocker directed himself.
Kravitz will resume touring in support of Blue Electric Ride in June at the Roots Picnic festival in Philadelphia.
Elton John‘s album Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy was first released on May 23, 1975 — 50 years ago Friday.
In honor of the milestone, Elton has shared an Instagram post reflecting on the significance of the record, which was the first-ever album to debut at #1 on the Billboard 200. It also spawned the hit “Someone Saved My Life Tonight.”
“An autobiographical album telling the story of how [lyricist] Bernie [Taupin] and I met and strived for success in the late 60s [sic],” Elton writes. “It made history as the first album ever to debut at No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 chart and stayed there for seven weeks.”
He adds, “It’s one of the albums I’m proudest of.”
Elton revisited Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy in 2006 with the sequel album The Captain & the Kid.
Green Day has premiered the video for “One Eyed Bastard,” a track off the band’s latest album, Saviors.
The clip features Billie Joe Armstrong and company providing the soundtrack to a group of kids who kidnap a man and bury him neck-deep in dirt.
The “One Eyed Bastard” video is available on YouTube.
Saviors, which also includes the singles “The American Dream Is Killing Me” and “Dilemma,” was released in 2024. A deluxe version, featuring seven bonus tracks, dropped Friday.
After touring stadiums in support of Saviors in 2024, Green Day has been mostly playing festivals in 2025, including headlining Coachella in April. Their upcoming live schedule includes the BottleRock, Riot Fest and Ohana festivals.
This bird you cannot change, but this bird now has a video.
UMe has premiered the first-ever official video for Lynyrd Skynyrd‘s classic epic, “Free Bird.” The clip arrives over 50 years after the original song was released in 1973 on the album (Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd).
The video begins with an older man walking through his house when he’s startled by a bird tapping at a window. That makes him notice an old photo album filled with pictures of his younger days of riding his motorcycle and falling in love with his future wife.
When he reaches the end of the album, he discovers the keys to his old chopper and decides to fix it up. He then takes a trip to a fireworks store and lights up a huge display reminiscent of one he experienced with his wife.
“Although there are many interpretations to the song’s meaning, this interpretation of the epic song is a nostalgic narrative of eternal love and the timeless spirit of ‘Free Bird’ with its own relatable and uplifting American tale of true love,” a press release says.
