Events in Music History in May 2022

Music History

May 7 Berklee College of Music bestows honorary doctorates to Beatles drummer Ringo Starr; bassist Chuck Rainey; composer James Newton Howard; and R&B singer Lalah Hathaway

Beatles Drummer, Singer, and Actor Ringo Starr

May 9 Navajo-American composer Raven Chacon receives Pulitzer Prize in Music for his work "Voiceless Mass" [1]
May 14 Kalush Orchestra from Ukraine singing "Stefania" win the Eurovision Song Contest in Turin, Italy

Billboard Music Awards

May 15 29th Billboard Music Awards: Olivia Rodrigo wins 7; Drake wins 5; Taylor Swift and BTS also win

Singer-Songwriter and Actress Olivia Rodrigo

May 15 British rock band "The Who" returns to Cincinnati, Ohio for the first time since tragic December 1979 stampede that killed 11 concert goers [1]

Music Concert

May 24 American rock band Aerosmith cancels planned Las Vegas concerts in June and July as singer Steven Tyler returns to drug rehab

Music Concert

May 26 Premiere of "Abba Voyage", a virtual concert with computer generated images of the Swedish pop band and live musicians at the specially built 3,000 seat Abba Arena in London, England; all four members, as well as the king and queen of Sweden attend

May 27 Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels' opera "Omar" premieres at the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina (2023 Pulitzer Prize for Music winner)
May 27 Ringo Starr's fifteenth All-Starr Band debuts in concert; members include: Steve Lukather, Edgar Winter, Colin Hay, Hamish Stuart, Gregg Bissonette, and Warren Ham