Today in Music History

Pitbull had his famous catchphrase “grito” registered as a trademark, making it one of the few sounds protected by a trademark and probably the first such sound registered by a recording artist.

English musician and songwriter Brian Locking died at the age of 81. He was the bassist for The Wildcats in 1956 and was a member of The Shadows from 1962 to 1963. With The Shadows, he performed with Cliff Richard in the film Summer Holiday and also worked as a session musician with artists including Gene Vincent, Eddie Cochran, Joe Brown, Conway Twitty, and Brenda Lee.

British drummer and percussionist Everett Morton died at the age of 71. As the drummer of the early ska group The Beat, he played on numerous hits including “Mirror in the Bathroom,” “Too Nice to Talk To,” “Can't Get Used to Losing You,” and “Hands Off...She's Mine.”

Taylor Swift, whose wealth was estimated at $1.6 billion, became the world's richest female musician according to Forbes, overtaking Rihanna. The Eras Tour contributed significantly to her wealth and became the first tour in history to gross more than $1 billion.

Dolly Parton posted a video telling fans that she was “not dying,” one day after her sister asked the public for prayers and raised concerns about the singer's health. Parton said that people had recently been getting the impression that she was sicker than she actually was and that she was working hard.

According to the chart compiled by the British music licensing organization PPL, Queen was the most-played rock band in the UK in the 21st century. David Bowie was second, followed by U2, Oasis, Fleetwood Mac, Stereophonics, The Rolling Stones, The Police, The Killers, and Kings of Leon.