Music industry titan Clive Davis was remembered Monday at Central Synagogue in Midtown Manhattan, one week after his death at 94. Bruce Springsteen, Barry Manilow, Alicia Keys, Dionne Warwick, Jennifer Hudson, and Kenny G all attended. Kenny G opened with a clarinet solo, while Hudson sang “Hallelujah” and “I Will Always Love You.” Manilow delivered one of the service’s most emotional lines: “A few months ago, surgeons removed a piece of my lung. Last week, I lost a piece of my heart.” Springsteen closed the eulogies, joking Davis was “the most humble man in the music business” before crediting him as the person who signed him to Columbia Records in 1972. Davis’ casket exited to Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody,” followed by Springsteen’s “Born to Run.” Story URL
BTS has broken a seven-year Billboard Boxscore record previously held by The Rolling Stones. The K-pop group grossed $127.8 million and sold 641,000 tickets across 12 North American shows in May, surpassing the Stones’ $95 million monthly record from August 2019 by 35%. The figures mark BTS’ fourth month atop Billboard’s Top Tours chart. Their Las Vegas Allegiant Stadium run was the tour’s peak, generating $49.5 million from four shows. Since launching the Arirang World Tour in April, BTS has grossed $204 million and sold 1.1 million tickets. The group’s career Boxscore earnings have now surpassed $503 million. Metallica ranked second with $72.6 million, while Bad Bunny, Bruce Springsteen, and No Doubt rounded out the top five. Story URL
Bob Dylan lost another guitarist after Bob Britt abruptly quit the band. Britt, who joined Dylan in 2019, posted “Sayonara Bobby” on Facebook alongside a flight image departing Austin, where Dylan’s next show is scheduled. He later clarified: “I was not fired but left of my own accord for reasons I would prefer to keep private.” His departure follows guitarist Doug Lancio’s recent exit, with legendary jazz musician Julian Lage serving as replacement. However, Lage has a separate commitment on June 29, leaving Dylan’s lineup uncertain. Only bassist Tony Garnier and drummer Anton Fig remain confirmed. Dylan has not performed with fewer than two guitarists since Bucky Baxter joined in 1992. Story URL
Metallica’s All Within My Hands Foundation has awarded its largest-ever grant of $3.3 million, expanding the Metallica Scholars Initiative to 93 schools across the U.S. Now in its eighth year, the program supports career and technical education in fields including nursing, automotive repair, firefighting, pipefitting, and agriculture. The initiative is also going international for the first time, with a $250,000 grant establishing the program in the United Kingdom. Frontman James Hetfield said, “This thing started as a dream. Now our program is changing lives.” More than 13,000 community college students have already been supported, with roughly 5,000 more expected this year. Dr. DeRionne P. Pollard of the American Association of Community Colleges called the expansion “a powerful testament to what’s possible when visionary philanthropy and community colleges come together.” Story URL
GWAR have launched a fundraiser to help founding member Chuck Varga, known as Sexecutioner, as he battles cancer. Varga’s wife, Bambi, has left her job to care for him full-time. Funds raised will assist with cancer treatments, hospice care, specialized medical equipment, nursing support, and rent at their Brooklyn, New York apartment. Fans can purchase a shirt featuring Varga’s artwork or even bid on Sexecutioner’s original stage prop axe. Band member Bob Gorman said, “Chuck Varga’s contributions to the GWAR and Slave Pit collective are enormous.” Varga appeared on classic tracks including “Sexecutioner” from 1990’s Scumdogs of the Universe and “Rag Na Rok” from 1995’s Ragnarök. Donations, shirt purchases, and axe bids can be made through GWAR’s official website. Story URL
Pete Townshend believes his late bandmate Keith Moon once bought dinner for a homeless nine-year-old Kurt Cobain in Seattle. Death Cab For Cutie’s Ben Gibbard shared the story, recalling a backstage conversation with Townshend at Ireland’s 2006 Oxegen festival. Townshend claimed Moon brought homeless children living under a Seattle viaduct into the Edgewater Inn for a meal, insisting one was Cobain. However, the story is almost certainly false. Still, Gibbard noted he was “too nervous to correct him.” Cobain’s own claims of living under a bridge were later debunked by Nirvana biographer Michael Azerrad as myth-making. With Moon’s final Seattle shows occurring in 1976, Cobain would have been nine — but Aberdeen, his hometown, sits 175 kilometres away. Story URL