6/1 Godsmack’s “Truth” is #1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart. The track, from the band’s eighth album, “Lighting Up The Sky,” is their 13th song to top the survey.
6/1 Guns N’ Roses guitarist, Slash, debuts at # 1 on Billboard‘s Blues Albums chart with “Orgy Of The Damned.” It’s also #2 on the Top Rock Albums chart.
6/3 Disturbed’s frontman David Draiman receives the joint Jerusalem Post and World Zionist Organization award for outstanding contributions in the fight against antisemitism. Draiman notes that he lost many of his colleagues and friends over his defense of the Jewish people.
6/3 During a Rolling Stones concert in Orlando, frontman Mick Jagger acknowledges celebrities in the audience. “And (Florida governor) Ron DeSantis is up there in the suite,” Jagger concludes. “He’s having a date night with Mickey Mouse. I’m so glad they finally made up.” It’s a reference to DeSantis’ battle with Disney over the governor’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” education bill. Desantis probably wasn’t in attendance.
6/5 The Struts headline an edition of the Soho Sessions concert series supporting Everytown for Gun Safety – who combat and prevent gun violence across the country.
6/7 Bon Jovi’s sixteenth studio album, “Forever,” featuring the lead track “Legendary” and “Living Proof,” arrives. “The new record, it exudes joy,” enthuses Jon Bon Jovi. ” This is turn-up-the-volume, feel-good Bon Jovi.”
6/9 Peter Frampton receives the annual Les Paul Spirit Award (in partnership with Gibson Gives). The award is presented each year to a musician “who exemplifies the spirit of the late, great Les Paul through innovation, engineering, technology and/or music.” “Frampton Comes Alive!,” released in ’76, featured a talk box to create an unprecedented sound.
6/13 R.E.M.’s founding members give their first public performance since ’07 to mark their induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. The quartet delivers an acoustic version of “Losing My Religion” at the Marriott Marquee Hotel, New York, NY.
6/13 Metallica becomes the first band to take center stage across all Fortnite experiences, with Metallica-themed gameplay coming to Fortnite Festival, Battle Royale, LEGO Fortnite and Rocket Racing.
6/14 Black Country Communion releases its fifth studio album “V,“ featuring the single “Stay Free.’ “The camaraderie is immediately evident,” notes album producer Kevin Shirley. “Once they start playing, everyone is deadly serious, and the music sounds like this band, and nothing else sounds like it.”
6/14 The Black Keys reportedly sign a management deal with Red Light Management. The move comes after the band parted ways with Full Stop Management after the cancellation of the Black Keys arena tour amid reports of low-ticket sales.
6/14 Edu Cominato is named the temporary replacement for Mr. Big drummer Nick D’Virgilio on the final European leg of the band’s “The BIG Finish” tour. D’Virgilio’s absence is due to commitments with his band Big Big Train.
6/14 The Melissa Etheridge docu-series “I’m Not Broken” premieres at the Beacon Theater in New York as part of the Tribeca Film Festival.
6/15 Five Finger Death Punch land their fifteenth #1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart with “This Is The Way,” a mash-up of DMX’s ’09 song “The Way It’s Gonna Be” and Five Finger Death Punch’s “Judgement Day.”
6/15 A restructured Pantera plays its first U.K. show in more than two decades at the Download Festival in Donington Park. Classic-lineup members Philip Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass) are joined by Zakk Wylde (guitar) and Charlie Benante (drums). The latter pair replace the deceased brothers Vincent “Vinnie Paul” Abbott (drums) and “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott (guitar). The original version of Pantera disbanded in ’03.
6/15 Solo artist and former Van Halen frontman Sammy Hagar is honored in his former hometown of Fontana, CA with the official grand opening of the 300-seat Stage Red Theater, named after the “Red Rocker.”
6/16 “Stereophonic,” a play that features original songs from Arcade Fire’s Will Butler, earns the coveted “Outstanding Play” honor at the Tony Awards. The play, written by David Adimi, follows a Fleetwood Mac-like band as they record their breakthrough album.
6/17 Lacuna Coil parts ways with guitarist Diego Cavallotti, who joined the band in ’16, initially as a fill-in guitarist following the departure of Marco “Maus” Biazzi.
6/20 Queen’s legendary catalog has been acquired by Sony Music for £1 billion (around $1.27 billion). Sony has also acquired name and likeness rights, but Broadway rights and “other brand monetization” are not part of the deal – including revenue for live performances by founding members Brian May and Roger Taylor, who still tour with singer Adam Lambert.
6/21 “Fire,” Kittie’s seventh studio album, but first in 13 years – since the release of “I’ve Failed You” (’11), lands. The set features “Eyes Wide Open,” which dropped last February. “Fire” also includes “Vultures” and “We Are Shadows.”
6/21 Rosa Laricchiuta makes her debut with Vixen at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA. She was recruited following the recent departure of singer Lorraine Lewis.
6/22 “Stevie Van Zandt: Disciple,” a documentary about the E Street Band guitarist and ‘The Sopranos” actor, comes to HBO.
6/24 Crazy Town frontman Shifty Shellshock (Brian Binzer) dies at his home in L.A. at the age of 49. The cause of death is determined to be an accidental drug overdose.
Crazy Town is best known for their ’99 ballad single “Butterfly,” which went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
6/25 Lamb Of God guitarist Mark Morton releases his memoir, “Desolation: A Heavy Metal Memoir” (co-written with Ben Opiari). The book covers his musical career and journey from addiction to recovery.
6/25 Metallica’s official X account is hacked. A flurry of Tweets promotes a token with the ticker METAL, “a dynamic new token on the Solana blockchain” that would revolutionize event experiences and online shopping.
South by Southwest, held annually in Austin, announce that it has cut ties with the U.S. Army and other weapons manufacturers. “After careful consideration, we are revising our sponsorship model,” SXSW festival organizers say in a statement. “As a result, the US Army, and companies who engage in weapons manufacturing, will not be sponsors of SXSW 2025.”
6/28 The Warning, the sister-trio from Monterrey, Mexico, release their fourth full-length album, “Keep Me Fed” with the tracks “Burnout,” “Hell You Call A Dream” and “Automatic Sun.” “By impacting everything we did, the album kept us fed both creatively and personally,” shares drummer Paulina “Pau” Villarreal.
6/28 Anvil’s 20th studio album “One And Only” drops. “This particular time, I went about it from a different perspective,” states frontman Steve “Lips” Kudlow. “I knew exactly how many riffs go in the verse, how many choruses, where they go. The songs were totally written before I went in and showed the other guys.” The set holds the single “Feed Your Fantasy.”
6/28 The Eagles co-founder, Don Henley (pictured center), files a civil lawsuit in New York seeking the return of his handwritten notes and lyrics for the classic “Hotel California” album from three collectibles experts accused of scheming to sell the allegedly stolen documents.
6/28 Elton John joins President Joe Biden at the opening of the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center in New York, the first LGBTQIA+ center in the National Park Service’s network. “This is one of the biggest honors of my life to be here today, having watched what took place 55 years ago,” said John, who gave a surprise performance that included “I’m Still Standing” and “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me.” 2024
