1991 in music



This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1991.

Specific locations

 * 1991 in British music
 * 1991 in Norwegian music
 * 1991 in South Korean music

Specific genres

 * 1991 in country music
 * 1991 in heavy metal music
 * 1991 in hip hop music
 * 1991 in Latin music
 * 1991 in jazz

Summary
Although the year 1991 is the year that grunge music made its popular breakthrough, heavy metal was still the dominant form of rock music for the year. Therefore, Nirvana's Nevermind, led by the surprise hit single "Smells Like Teen Spirit", was not the most popular U.S. album of the year. The most popular album was Metallica's self-titled "black album". Nirvana's success was eventually followed by other grunge bands like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, and Stone Temple Pilots, as grunge climbed the U.S. charts for the next few years. Its success eventually ended the reign of the glam metal and other hard rock groups that enjoyed massive success in the 1980s like Mötley Crüe, Poison, Warrant, Cinderella, and Ratt, whose sales were still going strong by 1991. Also during the year, the rock band Guns N' Roses's popularity flourished with the release of their albums Use Your Illusion I & Use Your Illusion II, both selling over 15 million copies total. Def Leppard's next album Adrenalize, released in March 1992, would go on to reach multi-platinum status and prove to be the last major commercial success for 1980s hair metal. A Tribe Called Quest's Low End Theory is released this year; it would go on to be considered one of the best hip hop albums of the 1990s. A Tribe Called Quest, along with De La Soul, Dream Warriors, Gang Starr and the Poor Righteous Teachers, help define what comes to be known as alternative rap with important releases this year.

On November 24, Queen front man Freddie Mercury died at home in London due to AIDS complications. Rumors had been circulating that Mercury had AIDS and he confirmed it to the press a day before his death, but the death comes as a shock to millions of fans and the music industry. The remaining members of Queen form the Mercury Phoenix Trust and the following year, a tribute concert is staged in Wembley Stadium. A sell-out crowd in attendance witness the three surviving members reuniting to play along with performances by the likes of David Bowie, Elton John, Guns N' Roses, Def Leppard, Metallica, Annie Lennox, and George Michael.

Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (released as a double A-side with "These Are the Days of Our Lives") goes to number one for the second time in the U.K., which is one of the few times a single has gone to number one in the same version more than once (another example is Chubby Checkers' "The Twist," which was No. 1 in 1960 & 1962). It is also the only time a single has gone to number one more than once on the UK Christmas charts. It has now spent a total of 14 weeks on top of the UK charts.

During the year, Billboard started using Nielsen SoundScan for its sales source for the music charts. Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales data for Nielsen on 1 March 1991. The 25 May issue of Billboard published Billboard 200 and Country Album charts based on SoundScan "piece count data," and the first Hot 100 chart to debut with the system was released on 30 November 1991. Previously, Billboard tracked sales by calling stores across the U.S. and asking about sales – a method that was inherently error-prone and open to outright fraud. Indeed, while transitioning from the calling to tracking methods, the airplay and sales charts (already monitored by Nielsen) and the Hot 100 (then still using the calling system) often did not match (for instance Paula Abdul's "Promise of a New Day" and Roxette's "Fading Like a Flower" reached much higher Hot 100 peaks than their actual sales and airplay would have allowed them to). Although most record company executives conceded that the new method was far more accurate than the old, the chart's volatility and its geographical balance initially caused deep concern, before the change and the market shifts it brought about were accepted across the industry. Tower Records, the country's second-largest retail chain, was originally not included in the sample because its stores are equipped with different technology to measure sales. At first, some industry executives complained that the new system – which relied on high-tech sales measurement rather than store employee estimates – was based on an inadequate sample, one that favored established and mainstream acts over newcomers.

1991 is also the year CCM, or contemporary Christian music, reaches a new peak. Amy Grant, who had already crossed back and forth between CCM and Contemporary Pop in the mid-80s, achieves her first solo No. 1 hit on the pop charts with the hit single "Baby Baby," becoming the first single by a CCM artist to reach No. 1 (despite the fact the song was a pop song and was void of any Christian references). Another single, "That's What Love Is For," would also top the charts, this time in the Adult Contemporary field. Meanwhile, Grant's album Heart In Motion reaches No. 11 on the pop chart and No. 1 on the Christian chart despite its non-religious objective, and quickly becomes a best-seller. Another CCM crossover artist in 1991 is Michael W. Smith, who achieves a Top Ten pop hit with his single "Place In This World." The subsequent album, Go West Young Man, is also a hit. Jon Gibson's hit "Jesus Loves Ya" still holds the record as the longest playing hit single in Christian music history. The track spent eleven weeks at No. 1 and became the top selling CCM single of 1991. Only three artists received more airplay on Christian radio stations in that year other than Gibson; Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith and BeBe & CeCe Winans.

The massive success of Garth Brooks in this year sets the stage for the mid-1990s influx of pop-oriented country musicians. In addition, several soon-to-be pivotal bands form or release debuts, including Dave Matthews Band, Live, Phish, Spin Doctors and stoner metal (Kyuss, Sleep, The Obsessed). Massive Attack's Blue Lines, while unique at the time, pioneers the sound that would eventually become known as trip hop. Entombed's Clandestine and Dismember's Like an Ever Flowing Stream are early releases from the Scandinavian metal scene. On the other side of the Atlantic, New York death metal band Suffocation release their debut full-length Effigy of the Forgotten, often considered one of the most influential extreme metal albums ever recorded. Trance music rises to prominence in the underground dance scene of Frankfurt, Germany, pioneered by such producers as Dance 2 Trance and Resistance D. U2 release their seventh album Achtung Baby, considered by many of their fans to be their best album. Metallica also release their most commercially successful self-titled album, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers break through to the mainstream with their critically and commercially acclaimed Blood Sugar Sex Magik. R.E.M. release their massive commercial breakthrough album Out of Time. 1991 also brought us the revolutionary Sailing the Seas of Cheese, the first release of a Primus album on a major label. When it came to music, 1991 was one of the most successful years of the 1990s.

January–March

 * 8 January – Def Leppard guitarist Steve Clark dies of respiratory failure from a lethal mixture of alcohol and prescription drugs. He was 30 years old.
 * 15 January – A new all-star rendition of the John Lennon song "Give Peace a Chance" is released, featuring Yoko Ono, Lenny Kravitz, Peter Gabriel, Alannah Myles, Tom Petty, Bonnie Raitt and many more, billed as "The Peace Choir". The single has been rushed to market in response to the imminent Gulf War.
 * 16 January – The sixth annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony is held in New York. The event goes forward despite a tense atmosphere due to the President's announcement of the Gulf War the same evening. The inductees are Ike & Tina Turner, Jimmy Reed, John Lee Hooker, LaVern Baker, The Byrds, The Impressions, Wilson Pickett and Howlin' Wolf.
 * 18 January – Three people are crushed to death during an AC/DC concert in Salt Lake City, Utah, when audience members rush the stage.
 * 18–27 January – The massive nine-day festival Rock in Rio II is held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The headliners are a-ha, Prince, INXS, Guns N' Roses, New Kids on the Block, George Michael and Happy Mondays.
 * 19 January – Janet Jackson with seventh single from Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814, "Love Will Never Do (Without You)", making her the only artist to have seven singles from the same album chart in the top five.
 * 27 January – Whitney Houston sings "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the Super Bowl. The recording is then released and becomes a hit single.
 * 31 January – DJ Magazine is founded.
 * 5 February – Queen release their final album while Freddie Mercury is still alive, entitled Innuendo. This album includes hit singles such as "The Show Must Go On", "Headlong", "These Are The Days Of Our Lives" and "Innuendo".
 * 20 February – The 33rd Annual Grammy Awards are presented in New York, hosted by Garry Shandling. Quincy Jones' Back on the Block wins Album of the Year, Phil Collins' "Another Day in Paradise" wins Record of the Year and Bette Midler's version of "From a Distance" wins Song of the Year. Mariah Carey wins Best New Artist.
 * 27 February – James Brown is granted an early parole and released from jail, following his arrest after a high-speed car chase through two states in 1989. Pop Will Eat Itself documented the affair with their song, "Not Now James, We're Busy".
 * 28 February – Hollywood's Record Plant Studios recording studio closes down. Among the albums recorded at the Record Plant were The Eagles' Hotel California, Fleetwood Mac's Rumours and Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life.
 * 1 March – Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales data for Nielsen.
 * 11 March – Janet Jackson signs a US$30 million contract with Virgin Records, making her the highest paid female recording artist ever.
 * 12 March – R.E.M. release their seventh studio album, Out of Time. The album would serve as the band's breakthrough, catapulting the Georgia alternative rock band from cult status to a massive international act.
 * 16 March – Seven members of country music singer Reba McEntire's band and her road manager are killed when their private plane crashes in California, near the U.S.-Mexico border. McEntire travels on a separate plane. The disaster inspires the title song of her next album, For My Broken Heart.
 * 20 March
 * Michael Jackson signs a contract with Sony for 1 billion dollars.
 * Eric Clapton's four-year-old son, Conor, dies after falling 49 stories from a New York City apartment window, which would inspire Clapton to write the hit single "Tears in Heaven".
 * 24 March – The Black Crowes are dropped as the opening act of ZZ Top's tour for repeatedly insulting the tour's sponsor, Miller Beer.
 * 27 March – New Kids on the Block star Donnie Wahlberg is arrested in Louisville, Kentucky for allegedly setting his hotel room on fire.
 * 28 March – George Harrison, Phil Collins and others attend funeral services for Eric Clapton's late son, Conor.

April–June

 * 17 April – Nirvana performs "Smells Like Teen Spirit" live for the first time at the OK Hotel in Seattle, Washington.
 * 28 April – Bonnie Raitt marries actor Michael O'Keefe in New York.
 * 4 May – The Eurovision Song Contest 1991 is held in Rome, Italy and, after a highly controversial voting segment, Sweden's Fångad av en stormvind by Carola is declared the winner.
 * 7 May – In Macon, Georgia, a judge dismisses a wrongful death lawsuit against Ozzy Osbourne. The suit was filed by a local couple that believed their son was inspired to attempt suicide by Osbourne's music.
 * 10 May – Truth or Dare, a documentary chronicling singer Madonna's 1990 Blond Ambition Tour, is released to theatres.
 * 24 May – Guns N' Roses kick off their 26-month world Use Your Illusion Tour in Alpine Valley in East Troy.
 * 25 May – The Billboard 200 album chart starts incorporating electronically monitored sales data provided by Nielsen SoundScan, thus beginning what chart aficionados tag as the "SoundScan era".
 * 28 May – The Smashing Pumpkins releases their debut album Gish, establishing the band as one of the most important of the alternative scene.
 * 7 June – ABC revives the late-night rock performance series In Concert.
 * 21 June – The Mérida State Symphony Orchestra is founded in Venezuela.
 * 28 June – Paul McCartney's classical composition, the Liverpool Oratorio, receives its première at the Liverpool Anglican Cathedral.

July–September

 * 2 July
 * Launch of the Australian Festival of Chamber Music.
 * Hollywood Bowl Orchestra gives its first public performance.
 * During the Use Your Illusion Tour, Axl Rose assaults a member of the audience watching the show on camera, after security fails to respond to the singer's orders to confiscate the camera. After the attack, Rose angrily says, "Thanks to the lame-ass security, I'm goin' home!" and storms off the stage.
 * 13 July – Pianist Keith Jarrett records his Vienna Concert at the Vienna Staatsoper.
 * 18 July – Perry Farrell launches the first Lollapalooza tour as a farewell for his just-dissolved band, Jane's Addiction. Other acts appearing on the tour include Siouxsie and the Banshees, Nine Inch Nails, Rollins Band, Fishbone and Rage Against the Machine.
 * 12 August – Metallica releases their most successful album, Metallica (also called "The Black Album"). Something of a departure from the thrash metal sound they helped pioneer, it becomes one of the best-selling albums of all time
 * 13 August – Jermaine Jackson's "Word To The Badd!!" reaches #78 on the Billboard Hot 100
 * 15 August – Paul Simon's Concert in the Park takes place in Central Park. The free concert is broadcast live on HBO.
 * 20 August – The six-day International Pop Underground Convention opens in Olympia, Washington.
 * 27 August
 * Pearl Jam release their debut album, Ten. While initially slow to sell, it becomes No. 2 on the Billboard charts within a year and has since become certified thirteen times Platinum in the United States.
 * Dr. Dre pleads no contest to charges that he beat up a woman at a West Hollywood nightclub. Dr. Dre is sentenced to 24 months probation.
 * 10 September – Nirvana released their hit song "Smells Like Teen Spirit" that trailblazed grunge rock.
 * 17 September – Rock band Guns N' Roses release their first full-length follow up to their debut album Appetite for Destruction in the form of the double album Use Your Illusion I & Use Your Illusion II. Both go on to sell a combined excess of 1.3 million on their first week of sale in the US alone.
 * 23 September
 * Primal Scream releases Screamadelica, the album would go on to win the first Mercury Prize in 1992.
 * The TV Series Baywatch begins the second season with a new theme song performed and co-written by former Survivor member Jimi Jamison, "I'm Always Here".
 * Bryan Adams releases his sixth album Waking up the Neighbours produced by Mutt Lange, achieving diamond status in his native Canada for the second time.
 * 24 September – Seattle-based band Nirvana release their second album Nevermind, that in the beginning of 1992 replaces Michael Jackson's album Dangerous at number one on the Billboard charts. Nevermind would then make the Grunge movement explode and become one of the most famous rock albums of all time. It is considered the emblem of the Generation X. Blood Sugar Sex Magik, the Red Hot Chili Peppers album, was also released on this date, as well as the hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest also released their second album, The Low End Theory, on this day.

October–December

 * 8 October - Soundgarden releases their breakout album Badmotorfinger.
 * 3 November – A free tribute concert is held at Golden Gate Park in memory of concert promoter Bill Graham, killed in a helicopter crash three weeks earlier at the age of 60. Performers include Santana, Grateful Dead, Journey and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
 * 7 November
 * Bryan Adams's 16-week stay at the top of the UK Singles Chart with "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)" is finally ended by U2 single "The Fly", having already set a new record for the longest consecutive stay at the top of the UK Singles Chart.
 * Izzy Stradlin quits Guns N' Roses.
 * Frank Zappa's children, Dweezil and Moon, announce to an audience in New York that their father is unable to attend the tribute concert to his music because he is seriously ill with prostate cancer.
 * 14 November – The new Michael Jackson music video "Black or White" premieres simultaneously in 27 countries to an audience of 500 million people. Controversy is immediately generated by the video's last four minutes in which Jackson smashes windows, vandalizes a car and causes a building to explode, as well as suggestively grabs his crotch repeatedly while dancing.
 * 19 November
 * U2 releases album Achtung Baby.
 * Luis Miguel releases Romance which revitalized the popularity of boleros in the 1990s.
 * 24 November – Freddie Mercury, lead singer of Queen, dies from AIDS-related complications at the age of 45 one day after making the disease public. The same day, Eric Carr, formerly of KISS, also dies from complications of heart cancer.
 * 26 November – Michael Jackson releases his worldwide hit album Dangerous. It comes four years after Bad and goes on to sell more than 32 million copies worldwide.
 * 30 November – Following in the steps of the Billboard 200, the Billboard Hot 100 also begins a new era by incorporating and merging electronically measured sales and airplay data from SoundScan and BDS respectively.
 * 1 December
 * A Carnegie Hall Christmas Concert, featuring Kathleen Battle and Frederica von Stade, a jazz band led by Wynton Marsalis, and orchestra and chorus conducted by André Previn, is recorded for television.
 * George Harrison plays Yokohama, Japan. The brief Japanese tour with Eric Clapton marks his first set of formal concert performances since 1974.
 * 4 December – The Judds give their final concert performance as a duo.
 * 31 December – The twentieth annual New Year's Rockin' Eve special airs on ABC, with appearances by Boyz II Men, Simply Red, Vanessa L. Williams, Another Bad Creation, Restless Heart, Michael Bivins and Barry Manilow.

Also in 1991

 * Aerosmith signs a new deal with Sony Music worth an estimated $30 million.
 * The Rolling Stones sign a new contract with Virgin Records.
 * Country music legend Kenny Rogers starts his restaurant chain, Kenny Rogers Roasters.
 * Tupac Shakur's solo career begins with his first album, 2Pacalypse Now. Six-year-old Qa'id Walker-Teal is shot dead by a stray bullet during a confrontation between Tupac's entourage and a rival group.
 * Mangue Bit is originated in Recife, Brazil, circa 1991.

Bands formed

 * See Musical groups established in 1991

Bands disbanded

 * The Osborn Sisters

Bands reformed

 * The Knack
 * Procol Harum

Release date unknown

 * 85–86 – Dag Nasty
 * 30 Something – Carter USM
 * Addicted to Jesus - Carman
 * Alice in Wonderland No. 1 - Randy Greif
 * Alice in Wonderland No. 2 - Randy Greif
 * Alice in Wonderland No. 3 - Randy Greif
 * All True Man – Alexander O'Neal
 * Amen – Salif Keita
 * Angst – Lacrimosa
 * Architect of Fear – Raven
 * Artistic Vice - Daniel Johnston
 * Baby Animals – Baby Animals (debut)
 * BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert – Hawkwind
 * The Beast Inside – Inspiral Carpets
 * Believing in Better – Lennie Gallant
 * The Best of Spandau Ballet – Spandau Ballet
 * The Big Wheel – Runrig
 * Bluesiana II - Dr. John
 * Boomerang - Mad at the World
 * Border Drive-In Theatre – The Raindogs
 * Boys Will Be Boyz – Newsboys
 * By Heart – Brenda K. Starr
 * Cadillac Rag - John Hartford
 * Caporal Grille - Zangalewa
 * Chagall Guevara – Chagall Guevara
 * Civil Rites – REZ
 * Clown Heaven and Hell (EP) – Me Mom and Morgentaler
 * Coming Down – Daniel Ash
 * The Commitments – Various Artists (soundtrack)
 * Daisychain Reaction - Poster Children
 * Daniela Mercury – Daniela Mercury
 * Day By Day - E. T. Mensah
 * A Different Kind of Weather – The Dream Academy
 * Don't Fear the Reaper (EP) – Clint Ruin and Lydia Lunch
 * Distant Plastic Trees – The Magnetic Fields
 * Du ciment sous les plaines – Noir Désir
 * Early On (1964–1966) – David Bowie
 * Eggnog (EP) – Melvins
 * Electric Barnyard – The Kentucky Headhunters
 * Ella Returns to Berlin – Ella Fitzgerald
 * Fire and Love – Guardian
 * The First of Too Many – Senseless Things
 * Fis Fis Tziganes - Okay Temiz
 * Freaks - X Marks the Pedwalk
 * Ghosts - Techno Animal
 * Girly Sound – Liz Phair
 * Girlsville - Thee Headcoatees
 * Go Figure – Spirit of the West
 * Good Woman - Gladys Knight
 * Hangover (Бодун) - Auktyon
 * Hammerbox – Hammerbox
 * Hartford & Hartford - John Hartford & Jamie Hartford
 * Havana 3am – Havana 3am
 * Harmony Ranch – Riders in the Sky
 * Hung Far Low – The Honeymoon Killers
 * I Scream Sunday – One Bad Pig
 * I'm on Your Side – Jennifer Holliday
 * Industrial – Pitchshifter
 * Information Libre – Sham 69
 * Inside Out – Idle Cure
 * Island – HÖH and Current 93
 * It's... Madness Too – Madness


 * Jahmekya – Ziggy Marley
 * Jah Won't Pay the Bills – Sublime
 * Kinetic Faith - Bride
 * Krov za krov – Aria
 * Life 'n Perspectives of a Genuine Crossover - Urban Dance Squad
 * Life's Too Short – Marshall Crenshaw
 * Love's Secret Domain – Coil
 * Lunar Womb – The Obsessed
 * Magia – Shakira
 * Magnetic Dance - Okay Temiz
 * Milestone - The Temptations
 * Mr. Lucky – John Lee Hooker
 * The Nymphs – The Nymphs
 * On the Way Down from the Moon Palace – Lisa Germano
 * The Only Solution: Another Revolution – The Fatima Mansions
 * Open Doors, Closed Windows – Disco Inferno
 * Ophelia's Shadow – Toyah
 * Orbital – Orbital
 * Out for the Count – Show of Hands
 * Out of the Grey – Out of the Grey
 * Page of Life – Jon and Vangelis
 * Palace Springs – Hawkwind
 * Pop Pop – Rickie Lee Jones
 * The Promise – T'Pau
 * Qui sème le vent récolte le tempo – MC Solaar
 * Ransom - Ransom
 * Revolution Girl Style Now! – Bikini Kill
 * Rise of the Common Woodpile - Caroliner Rainbow Open Wound Chorale
 * Rock, Stock, and Barrel - Angelica
 * The Sadness of Things - Steven Stapleton & David Tibet
 * San Antorium – Lowlife
 * Sexplosion! – My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult
 * Shakill's Warrior - David Murray
 * Silver Lining – Nils Lofgren
 * Soul Show: Live at Delta 88 – Joan Osborne (live)
 * Soul Survivor – Ken Tamplin
 * Spirit Electricity (EP) – Bad Brains
 * Stars Crash Down – Hue and Cry
 * Stranger in This Town – Richie Sambora
 * Struck by Lightning – Graham Parker
 * Suit suit...hehehe – Slank
 * Surprise – Crystal Waters
 * Ten Stories - Rick Elias
 * Themes and Dreams – The Shadows (compilation)
 * Tossing Seeds – Superchunk
 * Total Castration - Zeni Geva
 * Unsane – Unsane
 * Unseen Power – Petra
 * Unseen Worlds - Laurie Spiegel
 * Voices – Kenny Thomas
 * Volume One – Sleep
 * War Master – Bolt Thrower
 * Welcome to Love - Pharoah Sanders
 * Watershed – Grant McLennan
 * Wonder Wheel – Speed the Plough
 * World on a String – Red Allen

Biggest hit singles
The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the charts of 1991.

Other Chart hit singles
• "Anasthasia" - T99

• "Baby Baby" – Amy Grant (#1 US, #2 CAN, NZ, UK)

• "Bacardi Feeling (Summer Dreamin')" – Kate Yanai (#1 AUT, GER, #2 SWI)

• "Baila Me" – Gipsy Kings (#5 NLD, #7 BE, #10 AUT)

• "Beauty and the Beast" – Celine Dion & Peabo Bryson (#2 CAN, #8 NZ, #9 US)

• "Buenos Amigos" – Alvaro Torres & Selena (#1 US Latin)

• "The Big L." – Roxette (#9 IRL, #10 SWE)

• "Black or White" – Michael Jackson

• "Bohemian Rhapsody" – Queen (#1 UK, IRL, NLD, #5 AUS)

• "Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter" – Iron Maiden (#1 UK, FIN, #5 IRL)

• "Calling Elvis" – Dire Straits (#1 POL, #2 BE, NOR, SWI)

• "Can't Stop This Thing We Started" – Bryan Adams (#1 CAN, #2 NLD, US)

• "Can't Let Go" – Mariah Carey (#2 US, #3 CAN)

• "Caribbean Blue" – Enya (#8 IRL)

• "Change" – Lisa Stansfield (#2 IT, #6 SP, #7 NLD)

• "Chorus" – Erasure (#1 ARG, SING, #3 UK)

• "Colour of Love" – Snap! (#3 IT, #4 AUT, SWI, #6 SWE)

• "Coming Out of the Dark" – Gloria Estefan (#1 US, CAN, SP, #4 JAP)

• "Crazy" – Seal (#1 BE, NLD, SWE, SWI)

• "Cream" – Prince (#1 US, #2 AUS, #3 NOR, SWI)

• "Crucified" – Army of Lovers (#1 BE, #2 NLD, #3 AUT)

• "Cry for Help" – Rick Astley (#4 CAN, #7 UK, US)

• "Danca tago-mago" – Kaoma (#3 FR, #6 BE, POR)

• "Darlin'" – Roch Voisine (#2 FR, #5 BE)

• "Deep, Deep Trouble" – The Simpsons (#1 IRL, #7 UK, #10 NZ)

• "Déjeuner en paix" – Stephan Eicher (#2 FR, #8 BE)

• "Désenchantée" – Mylène Farmer (#1 FR, #9 CAN)

• "Dis-moi bébé" – Benny B feat. DJ Daddy K (#4 FR, BE)

• "Dizzy" – Vic Reeves & The Wonder Stuff (#1 UK)

• "Do the Bartman" – The Simpsons (#1 AUS, IRL, NZ, NOR, UK)

• "Do You Remember?" – Phil Collins (#4 US)

• "Do Anything" – Natural Selection (#2 US)

• "Don't Cry" – Guns N' Roses (#1 FIN, IRL, #2 NZ, NOR)

• "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" – George Michael & Elton John (#1 CAN, FR, IT, NLD, NOR, SWI, UK, US)

• "E vado via" - Félix Gray & Didier Barbelivien (#5 FR)

• "Emotions" – Mariah Carey (#1 CAN, US, #3 NZ)

• "Enter Sandman" – Metallica (#1 FIN, #2 NOR, #4 POL, #5 UK)

• "Esperança do natal" – Chico & Roberta (#3 FR)

• "Every Heartbeat" – Amy Grant (#2 US, #7 CAN)

• "Everybody's Free (To Feel Good)" – Rozalla (#2 BE, CAN, NLD, SP, #3 SWI, #6 GER, SWE, UK)

• "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" – Bryan Adams

• "Fångad av en stormvind" – Carola Häggkvist

• "Fading Like a Flower (Every Time You Leave)" – Roxette

• "Finally" – CeCe Peniston (#2 UK, #5 US, IRL, #6 NLD)

• "The First Time" – Surface

• "The Fly" – U2 (#1 AUS, IRL, NZ, NOR, SP, UK)

• "From a Distance" – Bette Midler (#6 UK, #8 AUS)

• "Future Love Paradise" – Seal (#6 NLD, #7 SWI, #8 IRL, #9 NOR)

• "Get Here" – Oleta Adams (#5 UK, US)

• "Get Ready for This" – 2 Unlimited (#2 AUS, SP, UK, #3 IRL)

• "Gett Off" – Prince (#4 UK, #8 AUS)

• "G.L.A.D" – Kim Appleby

• "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)" – C+C Music Factory (#3 US)

• "Good Vibrations" – Marky Mark & the Funky Bunch (#1 US, #1 SWI, #2 NOR)

• "The Grease Megamix" – John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John (#1 AUS, SP, #3 NLD, UK)

• "Give it Away" – Red Hot Chili Peppers (#9 UK)

• "Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)" – Crystal Waters (#1 NLD, IT, SP, SWI)

• "Here We Go (Let's Rock & Roll)" – C+C Music Factory (#3 US, #4 SP, #9 NZ)

• "Highwire" – The Rolling Stones

• "Hold You Tight" – Tara Kemp (#3 US)

• "Hole Hearted" – Extreme

• "How to Dance" – Bingoboys & Princessa

• "I Adore Mi Amor" – Color Me Badd (#1 US, #8 CAN, NZ)

• "I Believe" - EMF

• "I Don't Wanna Cry" – Mariah Carey (#1 US, #2 CAN)

• "I Like the Way (The Kissing Game)" – Hi-Five (#1 US)

• "I Love Your Smile" – Shanice (#1 NLD, #2 CAN, US, UK)

• "I Touch Myself" – Divinyls (#1 AUS, #4 US, #8 IRL)

• "I Wanna Sex You Up" – Color Me Badd (#1 NZ, UK, #2 US)

• "I Wonder Why" – Curtis Stigers (#5 UK, #9 US)

• "Il faut laisser le temps au temps" - Félix Gray & Didier Barbelivien (#1 FR)

• "Innuendo" – Queen (#1 UK, #3 SWI, #4 NLD, IRL, IT)

• "It Ain't Over 'til It's Over" – Lenny Kravitz (#2 CAN, US)

• "It's Grim Up North" - The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu

• "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" – Boyz II Men (#2 US)

• "I've Been Thinking About You" – Londonbeat (#1 AUS, AUT, BE, CAN, FIN, GER, IT, NLD, SP, SWE, SWI, US)

• "J'ai des doutes" – Sara Mandiano (#10 FR)

• "J'ai peur" - François Feldman and Joniece Jamison (#7 FR)

• "Joyride" – Roxette

• "Just A Groove" – Nomad (#6 NLD, #10 BE, SWI)

• "Just the Way It Is, Baby" – The Rembrandts (#6 GER, #9 AUT, FR)

• "Kiss Them for Me" – T'Pau (#1 UK, #2 US)

• "La Berceuse du petit diable" – Roch Voisine (#3 FR, #6 BE)

• "La Zoubida" - Lagaf' (#1 FR)

• "Last Train to Trancentral" – The KLF

• "Le Dormeur" – Pleasure Game (#5 BE, #9 FR)

• "Learning to Fly" – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (#1 FIN, #2 UK, NLD, #4 GER, NOR)

• "Let There Be Love" – Simple Minds (#4 NLD, #5 IRL, #6 UK)

• "Let's Talk About Sex" – Salt-n-Pepa (#1 AUS, AUT, BE, NLD, SWI)

• "Losing My Religion" – R.E.M.

• "Love and Understanding" – Cher (#6 AUT, #7 IRL, #9 BE, NLD)

• "Love Is a Wonderful Thing" – Michael Bolton (#2 CAN, #4 US)

• "Love of a Lifetime" – FireHouse

• "Love... Thy Will Be Done" – Martika (#1 AUS, #4 NZ, #7 CAN)

• "Love to Hate You" – Erasure (#4 FIN, SWE, UK, #5 IRL, #6 AUT)

• "Mea Culpa (Part II)" – Enigma (#4 FR, #7 GER, IT, SP)

• "Mega Mix" – Snap! (#5 NLD, SWI, #7 NZ, #10 SP)

• "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)" / "I Want You" – Robert Palmer

• "Mistadobalina" – Del tha Funkee Homosapien

• "More Than Words" – Extreme (#1 BE, CAN, NLD, NZ, US)

• "The Motown Song" – Rod Stewart (#1 CAN, #10 US)

• "Motownphilly" – Boyz II Men (#3 US)

• "Move Any Mountain" – The Shamen (#4 UK, SWI, #5 FIN, #8 BE)

• "Move That Body" – Technotronic (#3 IRL, #10 SWI)

• "Mysterious Ways" – U2 (#1 IRL, #3 AUS, NZ)

• "No Son of Mine" – Genesis (#1 CAN, #3 GER, #4 NOR)

• "Now That We Found Love" – Heavy D & the Boyz (#2 NL, SWE, UK, #4 GER, SWI)

• "Obsession" – Army of Lovers (#2 SWE, #5 FIN, SWI, #7 GER)

• "The One and Only" – Chesney Hawkes (#1 UK, AUT, #2 SWE)

• "One More Try" – Timmy T (#1 US, #2 NLD, #5 SWE)

• "O.P.P." – Naughty by Nature (#4 CAN, #6 SWI, US)

• "Pandora's Box" – Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (#7 AUT, SWE, UK)

• "Piece of My Heart" – Tara Kemp (#7 US)

• "Place in This World" – Michael W. Smith (#6 US)

• "Place des grands hommes" - Patrick Bruel (#4 FR)

• "Poupée psychédélique" - Thierry Hazard (#2 FR)

• "Promise Me" – Beverley Craven (#2 BE, #3 UK, #6 FR)

• "The Promise of a New Day" – Paula Abdul (#1 US, CAN)

• "Qu'est-ce qu'on fait maintenant ?" - Benny B feat. DJ Daddy K (#2 FR, BE)

• "Qui a le droit... (live)" – Patrick Bruel (#1 FR)

• "Radio Song" – R.E.M. (#5 IRL)

• "Regrets" - Mylène Farmer and Jean-Louis Murat (#2 BE, #3 FR)

• "Ride Like the Wind" – East Side Beat (#3 UK, #4 BE, IRL, #6 NLD)

• "Right Here, Right Now" – Jesus Jones (#2 US)

• "Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)" – De La Soul (#1 FIN, SWI, #2 NLD)

• "Rescue Me" – Madonna (#3 UK, IRL, #9 US)

• "Rhythm of My Heart" – Rod Stewart (#1 CAN, IRL, #2 AUT)

• "Rocket Man" – Kate Bush

• "Romantic" – Karyn White (#1 US)

• "Romantic World" - Dana Dawson (#4 FR)

• "Rush" – Big Audio Dynamite II (#1 AUS, NZ)

• "Rush Rush" – Paula Abdul (#1 CAN, US, #2 AUS)

• "Saga Africa" – Yannick Noah (#2 FR)

• "Sailing on the Seven Seas" – OMD (#3 UK, #9 GER)

• "Saltwater" – Julian Lennon (#6 UK)

• "Secret Love" – Bee Gees (#2 AUT, GER, #5 BE, UK)

• "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" – P.M. Dawn (#1 NZ, US)

• "Senza una donna" – Zucchero & Paul Young (#1 BE, IT, NOR, SWE)

• "Send Me An Angel" – Scorpions (#3 POL, #4 NLD, SWE, #5 GER)

• "Shiny Happy People" – R.E.M. (#2 IRL, #5 CAN, #6 UK)

• "Shocked" – Kylie Minogue (#1 SLO, #2 IRL, #6 SA, UK)

• "The Shoop Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss)" – Cher (#1 AUT, IRL, NOR, UK)

• "Should I Stay or Should I Go" – The Clash (#1 UK, #2 IRL, NZ, #3 BE, NLD, NOR, POL)

• "The Show Must Go On" – Queen (#2 FR, #3 POL, #7 GER, NLD)

• "Silent Lucidity" – Queensrÿche

• "Sit Down" – James (#2 UK)

• "Smells Like Teen Spirit" – Nirvana (#1 BE, FR, NZ, SP, #2 GER, NOR)

• "So Sad" – Gregorian (#1 POR, #9 FR)

• "Someday" – Mariah Carey (#1 CAN, US)

• "Something Got Me Started" – Simply Red (#5 AUT, NLD, IT, #6 SWI)

• "Spending My Time" – Roxette (#9 GER, IT)

• "Stars" – Simply Red (#8 UK)

• "Strike It Up" – Black Box (#4 NLD, #8 IRL, US)

• "Summertime" – DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (#4 US, #5 NZ)

• "Sunshine on a Rainy Day" - Zoë

• "That's What Love Is For" – Amy Grant (#7 US)

• "There Will Never Be Another Tonight" – Bryan Adams (#2 CAN)

• "There's No Other Way" – Blur (#8 UK)

• "These Are the Days of Our Lives" – Queen

• "Things That Make You Go Hmmm..." – C+C Music Factory (#2 NZ, #4 UK, US)

• "Too Blind to See It" - Kym Sims

• "Too Legit to Quit" – MC Hammer (#4 NZ, #5 US, #6 UK)

• "Touch Me (All Night Long)" – Cathy Dennis (#2 US, #5 UK, #9 CAN)

• "Tout c'qui nous sépare" - Jil Caplan (#6 FR)

• "Twist and Shout" – Deacon Blue (#10 UK)

• "Unbelievable" – EMF (#1 US, #3 SWI, UK)

• "Under the Bridge" – Red Hot Chili Peppers (#1 AUS, BE, NLD, #2 NZ)

• "Unfinished Sympathy" – Massive Attack (#1 NLD, #9 SWI)

• "Unforgettable" – Natalie Cole & Nat King Cole (#2 AUS, #7 NZ, #10 IRL)

• "The Unforgiven" – Metallica (#2 GR, #9 POL)

• "Walking in Memphis" – Marc Cohn (#7 IRL)

• "We Should Be Together" – Cliff Richard (#9 IRL, #10 UK)

• "What Do I Have to Do" – Kylie Minogue

• "What Time Is Love?" – The KLF (#5 UK, #6 GER)

• "What Comes Naturally" – Sheena Easton (#3 AUS)

• "When a Man Loves a Woman" – Michael Bolton

• "When Something Is Wrong with My Baby" – John Farnham + Jimmy Barnes (#3 AUS, #6 NZ)

• "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" – Diana Ross (#1 IRL, #2 UK)

• "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" – Celine Dion (#4 NOR, US, #6 CAN)

• "Where the Streets Have No Name (I Can't Take My Eyes off You)" – Pet Shop Boys (#2 FIN, IRL, SP, #3 SWI, #4 UK)

• "Wildside" – Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch

• "Wind of Change" – Scorpions

• "You" – Ten Sharp (#1 FR, NOR, SWE)

• "You Could Be Mine" – Guns N' Roses (#1 FIN, IRL, NZ, SP)

• "You're in Love" – Wilson Phillips

Other Notable singles
• "Alive And Living Now" - The Golden Palominos

• "D.C." - Died Pretty

• "Hieronymous" b/w "Lucy's Eyes" - The Clouds

• "I Think I Love You" - Voice of the Beehive

• "Squirrel" b/w "It's Time" - Levitation

Top best albums of the year
All albums have been named albums of the year for their hits in the charts. '
 * 1) Nirvana – Nevermind
 * 2) Pearl Jam – Ten
 * 3) My Bloody Valentine – Loveless
 * 4) U2 – Achtung Baby
 * 5) Red Hot Chili Peppers – Blood Sugar Sex Magik
 * 6) Metallica – Metallica
 * 7) Primal Scream – Screamadelica
 * 8) Slint – Spiderland
 * 9) A Tribe Called Quest – The Low End Theory
 * 10) Massive Attack – Blue Lines
 * 11) Talk Talk – Laughing Stock

Published popular music

 * "Dreamland" w. Alan Bergman & Marilyn Bergman m. Dave Grusin
 * "Look Around" w. Betty Comden & Adolph Green m. Cy Coleman from the musical The Will Rogers Follies
 * "Moja domovina"

Classical music

 * John Corigliano – Symphony No. 1
 * George Crumb – Easter Dawning for carillon
 * Mario Davidovsky – Simple Dances for flute, two percussion, piano, and cello
 * Joël-François Durand – un feu distinct for flute, clarinet, piano, violin and cello
 * Lorenzo Ferrero
 * Concerto for Piano and Orchestra
 * Parodia, for chamber ensemble
 * Zaubermarsch, for small orchestra
 * Sofia Gubaidulina
 * Gerade und ungerade (Чет и нечет) for seven percussionists, including cymbalom
 * Silenzio for bayan, violin, and cello
 * Angelo Gilardino
 * Musica per l'Angelo della Melancholia, for guitar
 * Variazioni sulla Fortuna, for guitar
 * Karel Goeyvaerts
 * Opbouw (Construction), for orchestra
 * De Zang van Aquarius, version for symphony orchestra
 * Jan Klusák – Stesk po Mozartovi
 * Ulrich Leyendecker – Symphony No. 3
 * Witold Lutosławski – Chantefleurs et Chantefables
 * Pehr Henrik Nordgren
 * Going On for double bass and percussion, Op. 77
 * Odotus (Awaiting) for male choir, Op. 78
 * Cronaca for string orchestra, Op. 79
 * Streams for chamber orchestra, Op. 80
 * Kaija Saariaho – ...à la Fumée
 * John Serry Sr. –
 * A Savior Is Born, for organ and voice
 * Dreams Trilogy, for piano
 * La Culebra, for solo flute
 * Karlheinz Stockhausen –
 * Elufa, for flute and basset horn, with electronic music ad lib., 9. ex Nr. 64
 * Freia, for flute ex 9$1/2$ Nr. 64
 * Joan Tower – Concerto for Orchestra
 * Takashi Yoshimatsu
 * Sagittarius Ecologue for bassoon and harp
 * Symphony No. 2 "at Terra" for orchestra
 * Fuzzy Bird Sonata for saxophone and piano
 * 3 White Landscapes for flute, bassoon, and harp
 * Wind Color Vector for Guitar

Opera

 * John Adams – The Death of Klinghoffer, first performance on 19 March at the Théatre Royal de la Monnaie, Brussels, Belgium
 * Harrison Birtwistle – Gawain, first performance on 30 May at the Royal Opera House, London
 * Daniel Catán – Rappaccini’s Daughter (La hija de Rappaccini)
 * John Corigliano – The Ghosts of Versailles
 * Meredith Monk – Atlas

Musical theater

 * Miss Saigon (Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil) – Broadway production opened at the Broadway Theatre on 11 April and ran for 4097 performances
 * The Secret Garden – Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on 25 April and ran for 706 performances
 * Song of Singapore – off-Broadway production opened at the Irving Plaza on 7 May and ran for 459 performances
 * Will Rogers Follies – Broadway production opened at the Palace Theatre on 1 May and ran for 983 performances

Musical films

 * Beauty and the Beast (animated feature)
 * The Commitments
 * The Five Heartbeats
 * For the Boys
 * Kilukkam
 * Stepping Out
 * Stones at the Max
 * El Acompañamiento
 * Thalapathi

Births

 * 8 January
 * Asuka Hinoi Japanese singer
 * Shin Ji-min, South Korean singer and rapper
 * 9 January – 3lau, American DJ and producer
 * 12 January – Pixie Lott, British singer, songwriter and actress
 * 13 January – Goo Hara, Member of Kara, Korean singer (d. 2019)
 * 14 January – Cat Torres, Australian singer-songwriter, musician, contestant on The Voice Australia
 * 23 January – Torres, American independent singer, songwriter, musician and artist
 * 28 January – C. J. Harris, American singer (D.2023)
 * 1 February – Martha Heredia, Dominican singer
 * 7 February – Gabbie Hanna, American rapper, singer, musician, comedienne and author
 * 8 February
 * Nam Woo-hyun, South Korean singer, dancer, and actor
 * Sierra Deaton, former member of Alex & Sierra, singer, songwriter and dancer.
 * 10 February
 * Ceng De Ping, Taiwanese singer
 * Emma Roberts, American actress and singer
 * 11 February – Never Shout Never (Christofer Ingle), American musician
 * 12 February – Casey Abrams, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
 * 14 February – Karol G, Colombian singer-songwriter
 * 15 February - Maruv, Ukrainian singer-songwriter, record producer
 * 17 February – Ed Sheeran, British singer-songwriter and businessmen (worked with Taylor Swift, Anne-Marie, Nina Nesbitt, Camila Cabello, Tori Kelly, Kasey Chambers, Stormzy, Cardi B and Maisie Peters)
 * 11 February – Allday, Australian musician, rapper, singer-songwriter (The Veronicas, Troye Sivan)
 * 21 February – William Bowery, British musician, producer and songwriter on Folklore and Evermore and Midnights by Taylor Swift
 * 24 February – Tyler Bryant, American rock musician (Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown, Dead Cool Dropouts, Lisa Origliasso, The Veronicas)
 * 26 February
 * CL, South Korean singer/songwriter/rapper
 * Lee Chang-sub, South Korean singer
 * 4 March – Sarah Bonito, British-Japanese singer and lead vocalist of Kero Kero Bonito
 * 6 March – Tyler, the Creator, American rapper and record producer
 * 8 March – Devon Werkheiser, American actor and musician
 * 10 March – Kenshi Yonezu, Japanese musician, singer-songwriter and record producer
 * 11 March
 * Chingiz Mustafayev, Azerbaijani singer-songwriter and guitarist
 * Qian Lin, Chinese singer
 * 13 March – Luan Santana, Brazilian singer-songwriter
 * 16 March – Wolfgang Van Halen, American bassist
 * 25 March
 * Liang Bo, Chinese singer-songwriter
 * Kevin Garrett, American musician, worked with Alessia Cara
 * March 26 – Ari Lennox, American R&B singer
 * March 27 - London on da Track, American record producer, rapper, and songwriter (Summer Walker)
 * 28 March
 * Amy Bruckner, American actress and singer
 * Hoya, South Korean singer and actor
 * 29 March – Irene, South Korean singer and actress (Red Velvet)
 * 30 March
 * Joey Cook, American singer
 * NF, American rapper
 * 2 April – Quavo, American rapper and frontman of hip-hop trio Migos
 * 3 April – Hayley Kiyoko, American singer, songwriter, advocate and dancer
 * 4 April
 * Jesse Jo Stark, American singer-songwriter
 * Lucas Lucco, Brazilian singer-songwriter
 * Jamie Lynn Spears, American television personality, comedienne, actress and singer
 * 7 April – Anne-Marie, British singer songwriter, dancer, activist, and musician
 * 8 April – Andrea Ross, American singer and actress
 * 10 April – Amanda Michalka (AJ), American singer-songwriter, musician and actress
 * 15 April – Daiki Arioka, Japanese singer (Hey! Say! JUMP)
 * 18 April
 * Joey Gaydos, American actor and guitarist
 * Edgar Barrera, Mexican-American songwriter, producer, and musician based in Miami, Florida.
 * 23 April – Caleb Johnson, American singer
 * 27 April – Eric Fukusaki, Peruvian singer based in Japan
 * 30 April – Lindsay Pearce, American singer and actress
 * 10 May – Ray Dalton, American singer-songwriter
 * 12 May – Jennifer Damiano, American actress and singer
 * 15 May – Jed Elliott, British bassist (The Struts)
 * 16 May = Joey Graceffa, American YouTuber, vlogger, actor, author, producer and musician.
 * 17 May
 * Daniel Curtis Lee, American actor and rapper
 * DJ Akademiks, Jamaican Hip Hop blogger
 * Adil Omar, Pakistani rapper and producer
 * 18 May – Spellling, American singer
 * 19 May – Jordan Pruitt, American singer
 * 20 May – Bastian Baker, Swiss singer, songwriter, and performer
 * 22 May
 * Brooke Simpson, American singer-songwriter
 * Suho, South Korean singer (Exo)
 * 23 May – Lena Meyer-Landrut, German singer-songwriter and dancer
 * 24 May – Erika Umeda, Japanese singer
 * 25 May – Guy Lawrence of EDM House garage band, Disclosure
 * 26 May
 * Amber Bondin, Maltese singer
 * Channel Tres, American singer, songwriter, rapper and record producer
 * 27 May – Channii, Dutch singer-songwriter
 * 29 May
 * Kristen Alderson, American actress and singer
 * Matoma, Norwegian DJ and record producer
 * 31 May – Azealia Banks, American rapper, singer and songwriter
 * 6 June - Ashley Park, American actress, singer, and dancer
 * 7 June – Fetty Wap American rapper
 * 12 June – Jessie Reyez, Colombian-Canadian singer-songwriter
 * 14 June – Jesy Nelson, English singer-songwriter, dancer and former member of Little Mix, now solo.
 * 16 June
 * Lim Young-woong, South Korean trot singer
 * Joe McElderry, British singer
 * 17 June – Shura, British singer-songwriter, musician and producer
 * 20 June – Hannah Diamond, British singer-songwriter and visual artist
 * 23 June – Katie Armiger, American singer
 * 24 June – Max Ehrich, American singer, actor and dancer
 * 27 June – Rayvon Owen, American singer
 * 28 June – Seohyun, member of South Korean pop girl group Girls' Generation
 * 29 June – Caleidra, British singer-songwriter
 * 30 June – MC Davo, Mexican rapper, singer and composer
 * 1 July – Sanah Moidutty, Indian singer songwriter
 * 2 July – Burna Boy, Nigerian musician
 * 5 July – Sam Fischer, Australian songwriter, singer, producer and musician (Demi Lovato)
 * 7 July – Alesso, Swedish producer and DJ
 * 9 July
 * Mitchel Musso, American actor and musician
 * Clara Hagman, Former Ace of Base member and singer
 * Adrianne Lenker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
 * 10 July
 * María Chacón, Mexican actress and singer
 * Angel Haze, American rapper and singer-songwriter
 * 12 July – Dexter Roberts, American singer
 * 15 July – Yuki Kashiwagi, Japanese idol singing group member
 * 16 July – Emma Louise, Australian indie-pop singer-songwriter
 * 17 July – Mann, American rapper
 * 18 July – Karina Pasian, American Russian multi lingual classical musician and singer
 * 21 July – Lucy Spraggan, British musician
 * 26 July – Nathan Hartono, Singaporean singer and actor
 * 29 July – Miki Ishikawa, American actress and singer
 * 30 July
 * David Carreira, Portuguese singer, model and actor
 * Diana Vickers, British singer
 * 31 July – Abhay Jodhpurkar, Indian singer
 * 1 August - Kelsy Karter, New Zealand singer-songwriter
 * 9 August
 * Candela Vetrano, Argentine actress, singer and model
 * Heize, South Korean singer, rapper, and songwriter
 * 11 August – Milica Pavlović, Swiss-born Serbian singer
 * 13 August – Dave Days, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
 * 21 August
 * Tess Gaerthé, Dutch singer and actress
 * Jesse Rutherford, American singer and musician
 * 26 August – Alok, Brazilian DJ and record producer
 * 30 August – Guru Randhawa, Indian singer, songwriter and music composer
 * 3 September
 * Moneybagg Yo, American rapper
 * Terence Lam, Hong Kong singer-songwriter
 * Samantha Marie Ware, is an American theatre and TV actress and singer. (also known by her singer stage name Sameya)
 * 8 September
 * Nicole Dollanganger, Canadian singer, songwriter, activist and artist (Lana Del Rey, Grimes)
 * Alex Kinsey, former member of Alex & Sierra, singer-songwriter and instrumentalist.
 * 9 September – Hunter Hayes, American country singer
 * 11 September – Kygo, Norwegian producer and DJ
 * 12 September – Imri Ziv, Israeli singer-songwriter
 * 15 September – Alex Florea, Romanian singer
 * 16 September – Noname, American singer-songwriter, rapper, musician & poet
 * 22 September – Chelsea Tavares, American actress and singer
 * 23 September – Key, South Korean singer and actor
 * 26 September – Ant Clemons, American singer, rapper, songwriter
 * 27 September – Rachel Cheung, Hong Kong classical pianist
 * 1 October – Via Vallen, Indonesian dangdut singer
 * 4 October
 * Nicolai Kielstrup, Danish singer
 * Leigh-Anne Pinnock, English singer-songwriter, dancer, activist, philanthropist, and member of Little Mix
 * 5 October – Betty Who, Australian singer-songwriter
 * 7 October – Lay Zhang, Chinese singer-songwriter, record producer, director and dancer (EXO)
 * 6 October - Roshon Fegan, American actor, singer and rapper
 * 10 October
 * Gabriella Cilmi, Australian-Italian blues and pop singer-songwriter
 * Lali Espósito, Argentine actress, singer, dancer, model, and songwriter
 * 11 October – Joey Walker, Australian musician, singer and producer (King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard)
 * 17 October – Brenda Asnicar, Argentine actress and singer
 * 18 October – Tyler Posey, American musician and actor
 * 19 October – Colton Dixon, American singer
 * 22 October – Arianna Afsar, American musician
 * 29 October – Parris Goebel, New Zealand-born choreographer, dancer, singer, director and actress
 * 31 October – Jordan-Claire Green, American actress and musician
 * 5 November – Flume, Australian record producer, musician and DJ
 * 8 November – Riker Lynch, American actor, singer and bassist
 * 10 November – Elina Nechayeva, Estonian soprano
 * 11 November – Emma Blackery British singer-songwriter, musician, comedienne, entertainer and YouTuber (sometime: beauty blogger, Gaming blogger)
 * 13 November – Matt Bennett, American actor and singer (Victorious, Ariana Grande)
 * 14 November – Gallant, American musician
 * 18 November – Tommy Cash, Estonian rapper
 * 22 November – Saki Shimizu, Japanese singer
 * 23 November – Harley "Kicks" Alexander-Sule of Rizzle Kicks, and sometimes working under the name:  Jimi Charles Moody
 * 25 November – Kevin Woo, American-South Korean singer and dancer (U-KISS and Xing)
 * 28 November – Hannah Diamond, English singer-songwriter, photographer, musician, producer and visual artist. (Charli XCX, A G Cook)
 * 2 December
 * Charlie Puth, American singer, musician, songwriter and record producer
 * Ainsley Melham, Australian singer, dancer and actor
 * 7 December
 * Remi Matsuo, Japanese singer-songwriter and artist (Glim Spanky)
 * Dori Sakurada, Japanese actor and singer
 * 9 December – PnB Rock, American hip hop recording artist (d. 2022)
 * 11 December – Anna Bergendahl Swedish Irish singer
 * 12 December – Jasmine Murray, American singer
 * 13 December
 * Jay Greenberg, American composer
 * Dermot Kennedy – Irish singer-songwriter and musician
 * 14 December
 * Offset, American rapper and member of hip-hop trio Migos
 * Stefflon Don, British-Jamaican rapper, singer and songwriter
 * 15 December – Alana Haim, Alana Mychal Haim, American guitarist, singer, keyboardist, musician and actress (member of band Haim)
 * 19 December
 * Tom Walker, Scottish singer-songwriter (Zara Larsson, Dodie)
 * Jack River, Australian singer-songwriter, musician and producer
 * 19 December
 * Declan Galbraith, British singer
 * Keiynan Lonsdale, Australian actor, dancer and singer-songwriter
 * 22 December – DaBaby, American rapper
 * 23 December – YoungstaCPT, South African rapper
 * 24 December – Louis Tomlinson, English singer, songwriter and television personality. (British singer in the band One Direction)
 * 27 December – Chloe Bridges, American actress, singer and pianist
 * 30 December – Tyler Carter, American singer, rapper and songwriter (Issues, Woe Is Me)
 * Unknown – DallasK, American music producer and songwriter

Deaths

 * 1 January – Buck Ram, American singer and songwriter (The Platters), 83
 * 6 January – Ahmed Adnan Saygun, Turkish composer and musicologist, 83
 * 8 January – Steve Clark, guitarist of Def Leppard, 30 (overdose of codeine)
 * 14 January – Chitragupta, film composer, 73
 * 20 January – Stan Szelest, keyboard player (The Band), 47
 * 6 February – Danny Thomas, singer and actor, 79
 * 9 February – James Cleveland, gospel singer, 59
 * 13 February – Flaviano Labò, operatic tenor, 64
 * 17 February – Gitta Alpár, operatic soprano, 88
 * 20 February – Isabelle Delorme, pianist, composer and music teacher, 90
 * 21 February – Margot Fonteyn, ballerina, 71
 * 26 February – Slim Gaillard, jazz musician, 75
 * 2 March – Serge Gainsbourg, singer and songwriter, 62 (heart attack)
 * 6 March – Sir Joseph Lockwood, record company executive, 86
 * 13 March – Jimmy McPartland, 83, jazz musician
 * 14 March
 * Jerome Doc Pomus, songwriter, 65
 * Howard Ashman, lyricist, 40 (AIDS-related)
 * 15 March – Bud Freeman, jazz musician, 84
 * 18 March – Dezider Kardoš, Slovak composer, 76
 * 21 March – Leo Fender, inventor of the electric guitar, 81
 * 25 March – Eileen Joyce, pianist, 83
 * 1 April – Martha Graham, 96, American dancer and choreographer
 * 4 April – Louis Guglielmi, 75, French composer
 * 7 April
 * Henry Glover, American songwriter, producer and trumpet player, 69
 * Ruth Page, American dancer and choreographer, 92
 * 8 April – Per Yngve Ohlin, aka 'Dead', vocalist of Mayhem, 22 (suicide)
 * 13 April – Wilhelm Lanzky-Otto, horn virtuoso, 82
 * 17 April – Jack Yellen, 98, American lyricist
 * 18 April – Barry Rogers, 55, American jazz and salsa trombonist
 * 20 April – Steve Marriott, singer, songwriter and guitarist (Small Faces and Humble Pie), 44 (killed in house fire)
 * 21 April – Willi Boskovsky, conductor, 81
 * 23 April – Johnny Thunders, rock guitarist and singer, 38 (drug-related)
 * 26 April
 * Leo Arnaud, composer, 86
 * Carmine Coppola, flautist and composer, 80
 * 28 April – Ken Curtis, American singer and actor, 74
 * 29 April – Gonzaguinha, Brazilian singer and composer, 45 (car accident)
 * 3 May – Mohammed Abdel Wahab, Egyptian singer and composer (b. 1907)
 * 8 May
 * Jean Langlais, composer, 84
 * Rudolf Serkin, pianist, 88
 * 9 May? – Yanka Dyagileva, poet and singer, 24 (drowned)
 * 19 May – Odia Coates, singer, 49 (breast cancer)
 * 23 May – Wilhelm Kempff, pianist and composer, 95
 * 24 May
 * Dirk Schoufs, a member of Belgian Band Vaya Con Dios (AIDS-related)
 * Gene Clark, singer-songwriter (The Byrds), 46 (heart attack)
 * 27 May – Leopold Nowak, musicologist, 86
 * 1 June – David Ruffin, singer (The Temptations), 50 (overdose of cocaine)
 * 4 June – MC Trouble, rapper, 20 (epileptic seizure)
 * 6 June – Stan Getz, US saxophonist, 64
 * 9 June – Claudio Arrau, pianist, 88
 * 14 June – Joy Finzi, founder of the Finzi Trust, 84
 * 6 July – Herminio Giménez, composer, 86
 * 11 July – Honorata de la Rama, singer, 89
 * 15 July – Bert Convy, American game show host, actor and singer, 57 (brain tumor)
 * 28 August – Vince Taylor, rock and roll singer, 52 (cancer)
 * 4 September
 * Charlie Barnet, American bandleader, 77
 * Dottie West, American country singer, 58 (car accident)
 * 8 September – Alex North, composer, 80
 * 17 September
 * Zino Francescatti, violinist, 89
 * Rob Tyner, lead singer of MC5, 46 (heart attack)
 * 20 September – Tom Anderson, Shetland fiddler
 * 25 September – Sydney MacEwan, singer of traditional Scottish and Irish songs, 82
 * 28 September
 * Miles Davis, jazz trumpeter and composer, 65 (stroke)
 * Eugène Bozza, composer, 86
 * 6 October – Igor Talkov, Russian singer/songwriter, 34 (murdered)
 * 9 October – Roy Black, 48, singer and actor (heart failure)
 * 16 October – Ole Beich, guitarist and bassist, 36 (drowned)
 * 17 October – Tennessee Ernie Ford, country musician, 72
 * 25 October – Bill Graham, rock concert promoter, 60 (helicopter crash)
 * 27 October – Sir Andrzej Panufnik, Polish composer, 75
 * 31 October
 * Joseph Papp, Broadway producer, 70
 * Garvin Bushell, multi-instrumentalist
 * 2 November – Mort Shuman, songwriter, 54 (complications following a liver operation)
 * 3 November – Chris Bender, R&B singer, 19 (murdered)
 * 8 November – Frances Faye, singer, 79
 * 11 November – Morton Stevens, film composer, 62
 * 15 November – Jacques Morali, disco composer, 44 (AIDS)
 * 24 November
 * Freddie Mercury, singer, 45 (AIDS)
 * Eric Carr, drummer, 41 (cancer)
 * 10 December – Headman Shabalala, member of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, 46 (shot)
 * 13 December – Stuart Challender, conductor, 44 (AIDS-related)
 * 22 December – Édouard Woolley, tenor, actor, composer and music educator

Awards

 * Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees: Felice and Boudleaux Bryant
 * Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees: LaVern Baker, The Byrds, John Lee Hooker, The Impressions, Wilson Pickett, Jimmy Reed and Ike and Tina Turner
 * 1991 Country Music Association Awards
 * 1991 Grammy Awards
 * 1991 MTV Video Music Awards
 * Eurovision Song Contest 1991
 * Kumar Sanu – Filmfare Best Male Playback Award
 * 33rd Japan Record Awards