See also:
1998 in music,
1999 in British music,
other events of 1999,
2000 in music, 1990s in music and the list of 'years in music'
Events
- January 7
- January 11 - During the American Music Awards, Billy Joel is awarded the Special Award of Merit for his "inspired songwriting skills" and "exciting showmanship."
- January 12 - Britney Spears releases her debut album, Baby One More Time. The album hits number one on the charts. The first single released from the album, also titled "Baby One More Time" also hits number one on the Billboard Hot 100
- February 14 - Elton John appears as himself in a special Valentine's Day episode of the animated series The Simpsons
- February 15 - "Rolling Stones Day" is declared in Minnesota by Governor (and former Rolling Stones bodyguard) Jesse Ventura
- Rapper Big L is killed in Harlem.
- February 19 - Marilyn Manson files a defamation countersuit against former Spin Magazine editor Craig Marks, in response to a multi-million dollar lawsuit that Marks filed in January against the singer, the record label Nothing/Interscope, and Manson's bodyguard agency.
- February 20 - Trace Adkins performs his first concert following surgery for tendon damage and a broken ankle. Contrary to doctors orders, Adkins does not remain seated during the performance.
- February 25 - The Artist Formerly Known as Prince files a lawsuit against nine Web sites for copyright and trademark infringement, claiming that the websites sell bootlegged recordings and offer unauthorized song downloads.
- March 1 - Sony Music Distribution raises wholesale prices on audio Compact Discs by 8 cents
- March 2 - The House of Blues in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Mandalay Bay Resort. Bob Dylan performs a concert at the club and is joined by U2's lead singer Bono for an encore of "Knockin' On Heaven's Door".
- March 5 - Trauma Entertainment files a $40 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against the members of Bush for failing to deliver a new album.
- March 6 - A 67 year old George Jones is seriously injured in a car accident while on his way home. Jones' Lexus crashes into a bridge at about 1:30 p.m. It is later revealed that alcohol was a factor in the accident.
- March 15 - Marilyn Manson is injured when he slips and falls during a concert at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California. Manson's performance is cut short.
- March 21 Irish girl band B*Witched score their fourth consecutive #1 with Blame It On The Weatherman on the UK singles chart. They become the first band to have all their first four singles enter at the top simultaneously and set a new record. It is broken a year later by Irish boy band Westlife.
- March 28 - Lost Boyz member Freaky Tah is fatally shot in New York as he is leaving his hotel.
- April 10 - A charity tribute concert for Linda McCartney is held at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Here, There and Everywhere: A Concert For Linda, features performances by Paul McCartney, Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders, Elvis Costello, Sinéad O'Connor, and George Michael. Proceeds raised at the event went to animal rights causes.
- April 19 - Neil Young performs at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Due to a mistake by a Madison Square Garden staff member, the marquee read "Bob Dylan, Tonight at 8pm". Young jokingly introduced one of his guitar players as Bob Dylan during the show.
- April 20 - Billy Joel performs at the Meadowlands in New Jersey. Joel announces that this would be his last public pop music concert. Joel also announces plans on devoting his future efforts to classical music.
- April 28 - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
- April 30 - Columbine High School massacre: Aerosmith visits Columbine High School shooting victim Lance Kirklin in a Colorado hospital before a concert in Denver, Colorado. Kirklin was one of 28 wounded in the April 20 shooting, 13 others were killed.
- May 1 - "The Paintings of Paul McCartney" exhibit opens at the Lyz Art Forum in Siegen, Germany. The exhibit features around 70 paintings created by the former Beatle.
- May 1 - Musical group, Atari Teenage Riot starts a riot in Berlin with their anti-consumer and anti-government lyrics. The riot was stopped with concert goers pleading for peace from the Swat crew ruthlessly beating down pedestrians. This band is under the label Digital Hardcore Recordings.
- June 2 - Backstreet Boys smashes the old first-week sales record of Grath Brooks' 1.08 million, with (Millennium) which sold over 1.13 million in its first week and was the first album to sell over 500,000 copies at least 2 weeks. The album holds at No. 1 first-weeks sales record of the 90's.
- June 13 S Club 7 debut at #1 on the UK singles chart with their first single Bring It All Back and become the largest vocal group to enter at the top.
- July 1 - The new Scottish Parliament is formally opened with a rock concert in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle and is headlined by Garbage, of which, lead singer Shirley Manson, is at the time one of the biggest music stars from Scotland.
- July 3 - Indie rock icon Mark Sandman collapses on stage at the Giardini del Principe in Palestrina, Latium, Italy (near Rome) while performing with Morphine. He is soon pronounced dead of a heart attack at the age of 46. Morphine immediately disbands.
- July 12 - Gregg Alexander issues a press release dissolving the New Radicals.
- August 24 - Christina Aguilera releases her self titled debut album. The album and first single, "Genie In A Bottle" both went to number one on the charts.
- 27–29 August - The third Terrastock festival is held in London.
- October 19 - Eurythmics releases first album in 10 years, Peace.
- November - Rock Star, Gary Glitter jailed for four months for downloading pornographic images of children on the Internet.
- December 14 - BMI announces the most played songs on American radio and television in the 20th century. ([http://www.bmi.com/awards/1999/top100.asp full list)
- December 29 - Former Beatle George Harrison is stabbed several times in the chest by an unknown assailant, who had broke into Harrison's home. Harrison's wife wrestled the knife out the assailant's hand before the police arrived. The man apparently believed that Harrison was the devil.
Albums released
Top hits
See also: Hot 100 No. 1 Hits of 1999
Top 10 selling albums of the year
- Backstreet Boys - Millennium
- Britney Spears - ...Baby One More Time
- Ricky Martin - Ricky Martin
- Shania Twain - Come on Over
- Limp Bizkit - Significant Other
- Santana - Supernatural
- TLC - FanMail
- Kid Rock - Devil Without a Cause
- Christina Aguilera - Christina Aguilera
- Dixie Chicks - Wide Open Spaces
Classical music
Births
Deaths
- January 2 - Rolf Liebermann (88), composer
- January 23 - "Prince" Lincoln Thompson, reggae musician, 49
- February 12 - Toni Fisher (67), singer
- February 15 - Lamont "Big L" Coleman (24), rapper, gunshot
- March 3 - Dusty Springfield (59), British singer, breast cancer
- March 4 - Eddie Dean (91), country music artist, actor
- March 12 - Yehudi Menuhin (92), violinist and musical director
- March 13 - Bidu Sayão, Brazilian opera singer
- March 26 - Ananda Shankar (50), Indian classical musician and composer, cardiac arrest
- March 28 - Freaky Tah (28), Lost Boyz, gunshot
- April 6 - Red Norvo, jazz musician
- April 14 - Anthony Newley (67), English songwriter, actor and singer
- April 16 - Skip Spence (52), Jefferson Airplane, lung cancer
- April 27 - Al Hirt, New Orleans trumpeter
- April 30 - Darrell Sweet, Nazareth, heart attack
- May 26 - Paul Sacher, conductor
- June 5 - Mel Torme, (73), U.S. singer
- July 3 - Mark Sandman, (46), US alternative rock musician, member of Morphine, heart attack
- July 6 - Benny Bell, (93), US musician
- July 11 - Helen Forrest, (82), big band singer
- July 21 - Kamimura "Kami" Ukyou, (unknown age), Japanese drummer, cerebral embolism,
- September 10 - Alfredo Kraus (72 or 73?), opera singer,
- October 6 - Amalia Rodrigues (79), Portuguese singer
- October 10 - Robert Wright, US songwriter and librettist
- October 16 - Ella Mae Morse, (75), US singer
- October 19 - Harry Bannink (70), Dutch songwriter
- October 26 - Rex Gildo (63), German singer
- November 18 - Doug Sahm (58), country and rock musician
- July 15 - Tanner Cofield (52), rapper and child pornography kingpin
- December 10 - Rick Danko (56), rock singer in The Band
- December 26 - Curtis Mayfield (57), singer/composer
Awards
Charts
External Charts
1999 in music
1999 en musique | 1999年の音楽 | 1999 - muzyka | 1999 в музыке | Musikåret 1999