2012 in American music

The following is a list of notable events and releases that happened in 2012 in music in the United States.

January

 * 7 – Katy Perry's single "The One That Got Away" reaches #1 on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart, making her album, Teenage Dream, the first album in history to have seven songs from the same album reach #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart. It is also only the third album in history to have six singles from the same album reach the top five on the Billboard Hot 100.
 * 20 – Etta James dies of leukemia at age 73.

February

 * 4 – Adele's single "Set Fire to the Rain" reaches #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making her album, 21, the first album in history to have three #1 songs from the same album by a British female artist.
 * 5 – During Super Bowl XLVI Kelly Clarkson performed the National Anthem, and Madonna, LMFAO, Nicki Minaj, M.I.A., and Cee Lo Green performed during the halftime show. The twelve-minute performance becomes the most watched television event of all time, gathering a record 118 million viewers, six more than the game itself. Subsequently, "Give Me All Your Luvin'" becomes Madonna's 38th top ten hit and her 41st #1 hit on the dance charts.
 * 11 – Pop icon Whitney Houston is found dead at the age of 48 in her Los Angeles hotel room hours before a pre-Grammy party hosted by Clive Davis. Further investigations reveal cocaine in her system, but the cause of death is ruled as heart disease and drowning. Sales of her albums spike, and "I Will Always Love You" re-enters the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100.
 * 12 – The 54th Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Adele won six awards for her album 21, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Record of the Year (the latter two for "Rolling in the Deep"). Bon Iver wins Best New Artist. Kanye West and the Foo Fighters swept in their respective categories, with Kanye winning 4 Grammys and the Foo Fighters taking 5.
 * 28 – Terrorizer released their first studio album in six years, Hordes of Zombies.
 * 28 – Corrosion of Conformity released their first studio album in seven years, Corrosion of Conformity.
 * 29 – Davy Jones of the band The Monkees dies in Florida after suffering a severe heart attack at the age of 66.

March

 * 3 – Adele becomes the first female artist to have three singles in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 at the same time, and the first female artist to have two albums in the top five of the Billboard 200 and two singles in the top five of the Billboard Hot 100 simultaneously.
 * Katy Perry's single "Part of Me" debuts at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming only the 20th song in history to debut atop the chart. It is her seventh consecutive top five single on the chart.
 * 26 – Madonna released her twelfth studio album MDNA, which becomes her eighth #1 album on the Billboard 200, debuting with 359,000 copies sold in the second week.
 * 26 – Joan Osborne released her first studio album in four years, Bring It on Home.

April

 * 1 – The Academy of Country Music Awards took place in Las Vegas. This was the last year Reba McEntire hosted until 2018.
 * 4 – Justin Bieber's single, "Boyfriend", has the second-highest first week sales of a new single, debuting at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, later on surpassed by Taylor Swift's "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" with 623,000 sales making Bieber the third highest first week sale.
 * 10 – Counting Crows released their first album in four years, Underwater Sunshine (or What We Did on Our Summer Vacation).
 * 26 – Chiodos' original lead singer, Craig Owens, rejoins the band after being let go in September 2009, replacing Brandon Bolmer, who departed Chiodos in March. Drummer Derrick Frost also rejoins the band, replacing Tanner Wayne, who left with Bolmer in March.
 * 28 – Gotye became the first Belgian-Australian solo artist to hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Somebody That I Used To Know".
 * 29 – Kevin Richardson rejoined the Backstreet Boys permanently, after roughly six years of departure.

May

 * 1 – Pennywise releases All or Nothing, their first album to feature Ignite singer Zoli Téglás on lead vocals, following the August 2009 departure of original lead singer Jim Lindberg.
 * 4 – Rapper Adam "MCA" Yauch of the Beastie Boys dies of cancer at the age of 47.
 * 8 – Jermaine Paul wins the second season of The Voice. Juliet Simms is named runner-up. Tony Lucca and Chris Mann finishing third and fourth place respectively.
 * 15 – Garbage released their first studio album in seven years, Not Your Kind of People.
 * Tenacious D released her first studio album in six years, Rize of the Fenix.
 * 17 – Donna Summer, known as "The Queen of Disco", dies of cancer at age 63.
 * 20 – The Billboard Music Awards took place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
 * 23 – Phillip Phillips is crowned winner of the eleventh season of American Idol while Jessica Sanchez is named runner-up.
 * 29 – Doc Watson dies after complications from abdominal surgery at age 89.

June

 * 5 – Alan Jackson releases Thirty Miles West, his first studio album to be released on his own label, Alan's Country Records, after leaving his longtime label, Arista Nashville.
 * 15 - Justin Bieber goes for a more adult sound and grown up look when he released his third studio album Believe

August

 * 1 – No Use for a Name frontman Tony Sly dies at the age of 41 of a drug overdose.
 * 2 – Blink-182 celebrate their 20th anniversary as a band with a worldwide tour simply called 20th Anniversary Tour.
 * 4 – Ministry reunited at the Wacken Open Air festival in Germany.
 * 9 – The Monkees announce that Michael Nesmith rejoined the band for a twelve city tour of the U.S..
 * 12 – Katy Perry's "Wide Awake" peaks at No. 2, becoming her ninth and final Top 10 single from the Teenage Dream era.
 * 28 – TobyMac debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with his sixth full-length studio album Eye on It. The album was the first Christian release since 1997 to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200.

September

 * 4 – Matchbox Twenty released their first studio album in ten years, North.
 * 6 – The MTV Video Music Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
 * 11 – DMX released his first studio album in six years, Undisputed.
 * 21 – Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day has a meltdown at the iHeartRadio Festival when the tour promoters cut their performance short to extend time for Usher's performance. During their performance of Basket Case, he decides to stop the song and goes on a profanity-filled rant, even going as to say that he's "not Justin Bieber". Billie then smashes his guitar alongside Mike Dirnt, flips off the officials and throws the microphone. He enters rehab the next day.
 * 25 – No Doubt released their first studio album in eleven years, Push and Shove.

October

 * 16 – Death Cab for Cutie frontman Ben Gibbard released his solo debut, Former Lives.
 * 22 – Taylor Swift released her anticipated album, Red. The album sold 1,208,000 copies in its first week in the U.S, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, the second highest debut for a female artist.
 * 30 – The Coup released their first studio album in six years, Sorry to Bother You.

November

 * 1 – The CMA Awards took place at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood hosted for the fifth year in a row.

December

 * 18 – Cassadee Pope wins the third season of The Voice. Terry McDermott is named runner-up. Nicholas David finishing third place.
 * 19 - Lostprophets frontman Ian Watkins was charged with multiple sexual offences against minors, infants and animals. In December 2013, he was sentenced to 29 years of imprisonment plus six years of extended supervision on licence.

Bands formed

 * 3rdeyegirl
 * Body/Head
 * The Chainsmokers
 * Chelsea Light Moving
 * The Collective
 * Dan + Shay
 * Device
 * Emblem3
 * Fifth Harmony
 * Flying Colors
 * The Griswolds
 * Haim
 * Honeyblood
 * Magic!
 * Milky Chance
 * MisterWives
 * On An On
 * Perfect Pussy
 * Preoccupations
 * PVRIS
 * Rixton
 * Slaves
 * Union J
 * Them Are Us Too
 * The Vamps
 * The Winery Dogs
 * X Ambassadors

Bands reformed

 * 98 Degrees
 * The Afghan Whigs
 * At the Drive-In
 * The Beach Boys (classic lineup)
 * Black Tambourine (single performance)
 * Cannibal Ox
 * Coal Chamber
 * Desaparecidos
 * Die Kreuzen
 * Firehose (tour only)
 * Garbage
 * Grandaddy
 * Jonas Brothers
 * Matchbox Twenty
 * The Monkees
 * I Mother Earth
 * Nasum
 * No Doubt
 * The Obsessed
 * Phantom Planet (five shows only)
 * The Procussions
 * Refused
 * The Replacements
 * SikTh
 * Treble Charger
 * Van Halen

Bands on hiatus

 * Staind


 * The Black Eyed Peas
 * Gorillaz
 * Every Avenue
 * Foo Fighters
 * Incubus
 * Oceano
 * Rage Against the Machine
 * Scissor Sisters
 * She Wants Revenge
 * Thrice
 * Thursday
 * LMFAO
 * Ludo

Bands disbanded

 * Beastie Boys
 * Behind Crimson Eyes
 * The Books
 * Buffalo Springfield
 * The Carrier
 * Creed
 * Das Racist
 * David Crowder Band
 * Defiance
 * Diddy-Dirty Money
 * D.R.U.G.S.
 * The Dubliners
 * Girls
 * Handsome Furs
 * Hole
 * INXS
 * It Dies Today
 * Jack's Mannequin
 * Jet
 * Made Out of Babies
 * MC5
 * Meg & Dia
 * Pretty Ricky
 * Revis
 * Rock Bottom Remainders
 * Selena Gomez & the Scene
 * Sherwood
 * Sons and Daughters
 * A Static Lullaby
 * This Time Next Year
 * Vains of Jenna
 * Ween
 * Women
 * WU LYF

Albums released in 2012
List of 2012 albums

Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 Songs

 * "Call Me Maybe" – Carly Rae Jepsen (9 weeks)
 * "Diamonds" – Rihanna (3 weeks)
 * "Locked Out of Heaven" – Bruno Mars (2 weeks in 2012, 4 weeks in 2013)
 * "One More Night" – Maroon 5 (9 weeks)
 * "Part of Me" - Katy Perry (1 week)
 * "Set Fire to the Rain" – Adele (2 weeks)
 * "Sexy and I Know It" – LMFAO (2 weeks)
 * "Somebody That I Used to Know" – Gotye feat. Kimbra (8 weeks)
 * "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" – Kelly Clarkson (3 weeks)
 * "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" – Taylor Swift (3 weeks)
 * "We Are Young" – fun. feat. Janelle Monáe (6 weeks)
 * "We Found Love" – Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris (2 weeks in 2012, 8 weeks in 2011)
 * "Whistle" – Flo Rida (2 weeks)

Billboard Hot 100 Top 20 Hits
All songs that reached the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart during the year, complete with peak chart placement.

• "5 O'Clock" – T-Pain feat. Wiz Khalifa and Lily Allen (#13 in 2012, #10 in 2011)

• "50 Ways to Say Goodbye" – Train (#20)

• "Adorn" – Miguel (#17)

• "As Long as You Love Me" – Justin Bieber feat. Big Sean (#6)

• "Ass Back Home" – Gym Class Heroes feat. Neon Hitch (#12)

• "Back in Time" – Pitbull (#11)

• "Beauty and a Beat" – Justin Bieber feat. Nicki Minaj (#7)

• "Begin Again" – Taylor Swift (#7)

• "Blow Me (One Last Kiss)" – Pink (#5)

• "Blown Away" – Carrie Underwood (#20)

• "Both of Us" – B.o.B feat. Taylor Swift (#18)

• "Boyfriend" – Justin Bieber (#2)

• "Brokenhearted" – Karmin (#16)

• "Call Me Maybe" – Carly Rae Jepsen (#1)

• "Catch My Breath" – Kelly Clarkson (#19)

• "Climax" – Usher (#17)

• "Clique" – Kanye West, Jay-Z and Big Sean (#12)

• "Cruise" – Florida Georgia Line (#16)

• "Dance (A$)" – Big Sean feat. Nicki Minaj (#10)

• "Dance Again" – Jennifer Lopez feat. Pitbull (#17)

• "Diamonds" – Rihanna (#1)

• "Die in Your Arms" – Justin Bieber (#17)

• "Die Young" – Kesha (#2)

• "Domino" – Jessie J (#6)

• "Don't Wake Me Up" – Chris Brown (#10)

• "Don't You Worry Child" – Swedish House Mafia feat. John Martin (#12)

• "Drive By" – Train (#10)

• "Drunk on You" – Luke Bryan (#16)

• "Everybody Talks" – Neon Trees (#6)

• "Eyes Open" – Taylor Swift (#19)

• "Feel So Close" – Calvin Harris (#12)

• "Gangnam Style" – PSY (#2)

• "Girl on Fire" – Alicia Keys feat. Nicki Minaj (#11)

• "Give Me All Your Luvin'" – Madonna feat. Nicki Minaj and M.I.A. (#10)

• "Give Your Heart a Break" – Demi Lovato (#16)

• "Glad You Came" – The Wanted (#3)

• "Good Feeling" – Flo Rida (#3)

• "Good Girl" – Carrie Underwood (#18)

• "Good Time" – Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen (#8)

• "Headlines" – Drake (#15 in 2012, #13 in 2011)

• "Ho Hey" – The Lumineers (#3)

• "Home" – Phillip Phillips (#7)

• "I Cry" – Flo Rida (#6)

• "I Knew You Were Trouble" – Taylor Swift (#3)

• "I Will Always Love You" – Whitney Houston (#3 in 2012, #1 in 1992)

• "I Won't Give Up" – Jason Mraz (#8)

• "International Love" – Pitbull feat. Chris Brown (#13)

• "It Will Rain" – Bruno Mars (#3)

• "It's Time" – Imagine Dragons (#19)

• "Let Me Love You (Until You Learn to Love Yourself)" – Ne-Yo (#6)

• "Let's Go" – Calvin Harris feat. Ne-Yo (#17)

• "Lights" – Ellie Goulding (#2)

• "Live While We're Young" – One Direction (#3)

• "Locked Out of Heaven" – Bruno Mars (#1)

• "Mercy" – Kanye West feat. Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz (#13)

• "Mistletoe" – Justin Bieber (#19 in 2012, #11 in 2011)

• "Moves like Jagger" – Maroon 5 feat. Christina Aguilera (#11 in 2012, #1 in 2011)

• "Mr. Know It All" – Kelly Clarkson (#20 in 2012, #10 in 2011)

• "Niggas in Paris" – Jay-Z and Kanye West (#5)

• "Not Over You" – Gavin DeGraw (#18)

• "One More Night" – Maroon 5 (#1)

• "Paradise" – Coldplay (#20 in 2012, #15 in 2011)

• "Part of Me" – Katy Perry (#1)

• "Party Rock Anthem" – LMFAO feat. Lauren Bennett and GoonRock (#6 in 2012, #1 in 2011)

• "Payphone" – Maroon 5 feat. Wiz Khalifa (#2)

• "Pound the Alarm" – Nicki Minaj (#15)

• "Pumped Up Kicks" – Foster the People (#19 in 2012, #3 in 2011)

• "Rack City" – Tyga (#7)

• "Red" – Taylor Swift (#6)

• "Red Solo Cup" – Toby Keith (#15)

• "Rolling in the Deep" – Adele (#5 in 2012, #1 in 2011)

• "Ronan" – Taylor Swift (#16)

• "Rumour Has It" – Adele (#16)

• "Scream" – Usher (#9)

• "Scream & Shout" – will.i.am feat. Britney Spears (#12)

• "Set Fire to the Rain" – Adele (#1)

• "Sexy and I Know It" – LMFAO (#1)

• "Skyfall" – Adele (#8)

• "So Good" – B.o.B (#11)

• "Some Nights" – fun. (#3)

• "Somebody That I Used to Know" – Gotye feat. Kimbra (#1)

• "Someone like You – Adele (#7 in 2012, #1 in 2011)

• "Springsteen" – Eric Church (#19)

• "Starships" – Nicki Minaj (#5)

• "State of Grace" – Taylor Swift (#13)

• "Stereo Hearts" – Gym Class Heroes feat. Adam Levine (#10 in 2012, #4 in 2011)

• "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" – Kelly Clarkson (#1)

• "Swimming Pools (Drank)" – Kendrick Lamar (#17)

• "Take a Little Ride" – Jason Aldean (#12)

• "Take Care" – Drake feat. Rihanna (#7)

• "The A Team" – Ed Sheeran (#17)

• "The Motto" – Drake feat. Lil Wayne (#14)

• "The One That Got Away" – Katy Perry (#3)

• "Thrift Shop" – Macklemore and Ryan Lewis feat. Wanz (#13)

• "Titanium" – David Guetta feat. Sia (#7)

• "Too Close" – Alex Clare (#7)

• "Try" – Pink (#14)

• "Turn Me On" – David Guetta feat. Nicki Minaj (#4)

• "Turn Up the Music" – Chris Brown (#10)

• "Want U Back" – Cher Lloyd (#12)

• "Wanted" – Hunter Hayes (#16)

• "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" – Taylor Swift (#1)

• "We Are Young" – fun. feat. Janelle Monáe (#1)

• "We Found Love" – Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris (#1)

• "What Makes You Beautiful" – One Direction (#4)

• "Where Have You Been" – Rihanna (#5)

• "Whistle" – Flo Rida (#1)

• "Wide Awake" – Katy Perry (#2)

• "Wild Ones" – Flo Rida feat. Sia (#5)

• "Without You" – David Guetta feat. Usher (#14 in 2012, #4 in 2011)

• "Work Hard, Play Hard" – Wiz Khalifa (#17)

• "Work Out" – J. Cole (#13)

• "Young, Wild & Free" – Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa feat. Bruno Mars (#7)

Deaths
• January 1 – Fred Milano, 72, singer (The Belmonts)

• January 2 – Larry Reinhardt, 63, rock guitarist (Iron Butterfly)

• January 17 – Johnny Otis, 90, singer

• January 20

• *Etta James, 73, singer

• *John Levy, 99, bassist and manager

• January 21 - Gerre Hancock, 77, organist and composer

• January 25 - Mark Reale, 56, guitarist and songwriter (Riot)

• January 26 – Clare Fischer, 83, composer, arranger, keyboardist

• January 29 - Kell Osborne, 72, singer

• February 1 – David Peaston, 54, gospel singer

• February 5 – Al De Lory, 82, keyboard player, producer, and conductor

• February 7 – Robert Maxwell, 90, harpist and songwriter

• February 8 – Jimmy Sabater, 75, singer and timbales player

• February 11 - Whitney Houston, 48, singer

• February 12 – Zina Bethune, 66, actress, dancer, and choreographer

• February 13 – Russell Arms, 92, actor and singer

• February 22

• *Mike Melvoin, 74, pianist and composer (The Wrecking Crew)

• *Billy Strange, 81, singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (The Wrecking Crew)

• February 29 - Davy Jones, 66, British singer, percussionist (The Monkees)

• March 6 - Robert B. Sherman, 86, American songwriter (The Sherman Brothers)

• March 24 - Marion Marlowe, 83, singer and actress

• March 28 - Earl Scruggs, 88, bluegrass musician (Flatt and Scruggs)

• April 19

• *Greg Ham, 58, Australian songwriter, multi-instrumentalist (Men at Work)

• *Levon Helm, 71, American singer, drummer (The Band)

• May 4 - Adam "MCA" Yauch, 47, rapper, bassist (Beastie Boys)

• May 5 - Joe Russell, 72, singer (The Persuasions)

• May 8 - Everett Lilly, 87, singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Lilly Brothers)

• May 12 - Snooky Young, 92, American trumpet player (The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra and Count Basie Orchestra)

• May 13 - Donald "Duck" Dunn, 70, bassist (Booker T. & the M.G.'s)

• May 15 - Joe Sell, 33, guitarist (Lucky Boys Confusion)

• May 16 - Chuck Brown, 75, guitarist and singer

• May 17 - Donna Summer, 63, singer

• May 29 - Doc Watson, 89, singer

• June 4 - Herb Reed, 83, vocalist and founder of The Platters

• June 7 - Bob Welch, 66, guitarist (Fleetwood Mac)

• June 10 - Jimmy Elledge, 69, country musician

• June 21 - Richard Adler, 90, composer and producer

• June 27 - Don Grady, 68, drummer (The Yellow Balloon), musician and actor

• July 1 - Ossie Hibbert, 61, Jamaican-American keyboard player and producer (The Aggrovators and The Revolutionaries)

• July 3 - Andy Griffith, 86, actor, singer

• July 7 - Dennis Flemion, 75, drummer (The Frogs)

• July 13 - Ginny Tyler, 86, voice actress and singer

• July 16 - Kitty Wells, 92, country music singer

• July 17 - Ms. Melodie, 43, rapper

• July 24 - Larry Hoppen, 61, singer and guitarist (Orleans)

• July 27 - Tony Martin, 98, singer and actor

• July 31

• * Bobby Edwards, 86, country music singer

• * Tony Sly, 41, singer (No Use for a Name)

• August 1 - Douglas Townsend, 90, composer and musicologist

• August 2

• *Jimmy Jones, 75, singer-songwriter

• *Marguerite Piazza, 92, soprano

• August 6 - Marvin Hamlisch, 68, composer and conductor

• August 18 - Scott McKenzie, 73, singer ("San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)")

• September 1 - Hal David, 91, lyricist ("Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head")

• September 5 - Joe South, 72, singer-songwriter ("Down in the Boondocks", "Games People Play", "Hush", "Rose Garden")

• September 25 - Andy Williams, 84, singer ("Moon River", "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year")

• September 27 - R. B. Greaves, 68, singer

• October 1 - Sahara Davenport, 27, drag queen singer

• October 7 - Wiley Reed, 68, American-Australian singer-songwriter and pianist

• October 21 - Tim Johnson, 52, country music songwriter

• October 24 - Bill Dees, 73, musician and songwriter ("Oh, Pretty Woman", "It's Over")

• October 26 - Natina Reed, 31, singer/rapper (Blaque) and actress (Bring It On)

• October 27 - Terry Callier, 67, singer-songwriter

• November 1

• * Jan Crutchfield, 74, singer and songwriter

• * Mitch Lucker, 28, singer, lead vocalist of Suicide Silence

• November 12

• *Anthony di Bonaventura, 83, pianist and academic

• *Bob French, 74, drummer and radio host

• November 17 - Billy Scott, 70, R&B singer

• November 25 - Earl Carroll, 75, American singer (The Cadillacs, The Coasters)

• November 27 - Mickey Baker, 87, guitarist (Mickey & Sylvia)

• December 1 - Dee Harvey, 47, R&B singer

• December 5 - Dave Brubeck, 91, pianist

• December 9 - Jenni Rivera, 43, singer

• December 12 - Eddie "Guitar" Burns, 84, singer-songwriter and guitarist

• December 19 - Inez Andrews, 83, gospel singer and songwriter

• December 20 - Jimmy McCracklin, 91, singer, songwriter and pianist

• December 21 - Lee Dorman, 70, bassist (Iron Butterfly, Captain Beyond)

• December 22 - Marva Whitney, 68, singer

• December 24

• *Ray Collins, 76, singer (The Mothers of Invention)

• *Capital STEEZ, 19, hip-hop artist

• December 26 - Fontella Bass, 72, singer ("Rescue Me")