Events in 2022
- Sam Gooden, founding member of the soul group The Impressions, died in Chattanooga, Tennessee, at the age of 87 from a heart attack.
- Judith Durham, singer of The Seekers, died at the age of 79 from complications related to lung disease at Alfred Hospital in Melbourne.
- Bad Bunny launched his first stadium tour, the World's Hottest Tour, in Orlando.
- Beyoncé reached No. 1 on the UK chart with her seventh studio album, “Renaissance,” which was also her first solo studio album since 2016's “Lemonade” and the first installment of a planned trilogy. The album debuted at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200, becoming her seventh consecutive album to top the chart.
- American singer, songwriter and producer Lamont Herbert Dozier died at the age of 81 at his home near Scottsdale, Arizona. As a member of the Holland–Dozier–Holland songwriting and production team, he contributed to 14 U.S. No. 1 hits, including hits by The Supremes, The Four Tops and The Isley Brothers.
- British-Australian singer and actress Olivia Newton-John died at the age of 73 from breast cancer. During her career, she won four Grammy Awards, had 15 Billboard Top 10 hits and sold more than 100 million records worldwide. She was also known for her role as Sandy in the film “Grease”.
- American guitarist and studio musician Bill Pitman died at the age of 102 from complications following a fall. He also played ukulele on the Oscar-winning song “Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head” and as a studio musician contributed to recordings by The Byrds, The Beach Boys, Frank Sinatra, The Ronettes, Deep Purple, Nancy Sinatra and others.
- Scottish singer, songwriter and actor Darius Danesh was found unresponsive in his apartment in Rochester, Minnesota, and was later pronounced dead. He became known after appearing on the first series of the UK show Popstars in 2001. In 2002 he had the UK No. 1 single “Colourblind” and later played Billy Flynn in the London musical Chicago and Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls.
- David Bowie was named the most influential British artist of the previous 50 years in a Sky Arts poll, thanks to his ability to transcend music, film and fashion. Other musicians in the ranking included Spice Girls, Elton John, Stormzy and Boy George.
- The auction house Gotta Have Rock & Roll offered for sale the BTR2 recording console used at EMI Abbey Road Studios to record The Beatles, Pink Floyd and other artists.
- The album Renaissance reached No. 1 on the US chart, making Beyoncé the first solo female artist whose first seven albums reached the top of the chart.
- Beyoncé was at number one on the UK chart with her seventh studio album Renaissance, the first part of her planned trilogy. The album was supported by the Renaissance World Tour in 2023, which became the highest-grossing tour in history by a Black artist, and a concert film was also made. Renaissance became her seventh consecutive album to debut at number one in the US chart.
- Police in Ohio conducted a search of the home of singer Afroman, author of the song “Because I Got High”, looking for evidence related to kidnapping and drug trafficking. Afroman was not charged, and he later used security camera footage in the music video for his song “Lemon Pound Cake”, which also focused on the moment when a police officer discovered a cake in the kitchen.
- Jerry Allison, drummer of the American rock'n'roll group The Crickets and a member of Buddy Holly's backing band, died of cancer at the age of 82. Together with Buddy Holly, he co-wrote the songs “That'll Be the Day” and “Peggy Sue”, which he recorded with him. His only solo appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 was the song “Real Wild Child”, released in 1958 under the name Ivan. After Holly's death in 1959, Allison retained control of the name The Crickets and later performed and recorded with bassist Joe B. Mauldin and guitarist Sonny Curtis.
- American blues singer Mable John died at the age of 91. She was the first female singer signed by Berry Gordy to Motown's Tamla label. In 1960 she released her first single, “Who Wouldn't Love a Man Like That?”. After leaving Motown she spent several years as a Raelette, backing Ray Charles.
- After Jason Aldean's wife Brittany posted a makeup video on Instagram with a caption saying she wanted to thank her parents for not changing her gender during her “tomboy” phase, Maren Morris responded to her post on Twitter. The dispute increased tensions between more conservatively and progressively oriented members of the country music community.
- Metallica's classic song “Enter Sandman” topped the list of songs with the most frequently misheard lyrics, while Mick Jagger was named the singer people found hardest to understand. A survey of 1,000 Americans by WordFinder also found that 65% of people preferred the incorrect version after discovering they had been singing their favorite song lyric incorrectly for years.
- A tribute concert for Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins was held at Wembley Stadium in London. Among those taking part were Paul McCartney, Kesha, Nile Rodgers, Queen and AC/DC.
- A tribute concert for Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins was held at Wembley in London. Among those who performed were Paul McCartney, Queen, AC/DC and Liam Gallagher; Dave Grohl performed Foo Fighters’ first concert since Hawkins’ death in March of the same year.
- The documentary series The Beatles: Get Back won five Emmy Awards at a ceremony in Los Angeles. Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, director Peter Jackson and producers Yoko Ono, Olivia Harrison, Clare Olssen and Jonathan Clyde received the award for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series. Peter Jackson also won for directing, while the production was recognized for picture editing, sound editing and sound mixing.
- American country singer and songwriter Loretta Lynn died at the age of 90 at her home on her ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee. She wrote more than 160 songs and released 60 albums, won three Grammys, and in 1972 became the first woman to win the Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year award. Her autobiography Coal Miner's Daughter was adapted into a film, and the 1980 movie won Sissy Spacek the Academy Award for Best Actress.
- A letter signed by John Lennon on the day of his assassination was offered at auction by Gotta Have Rock and Roll. It was addressed to his accountant Barry Nichols and named three voting representatives for an Apple Corps meeting scheduled nine days later. The document sold for $63,750.
- Adidas announced that it would review its partnership with Kanye West after he made several antisemitic statements and appeared at a Paris fashion show wearing a White Lives Matter shirt. Balenciaga, Vogue, Creative Artists Agency, and MRC also responded to his behavior by ending their relationships with him. Adidas's Yeezy sneaker sales exceeded $1.3 billion.
- Slipknot reached No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart with their seventh studio album The End, So Far. The album reached No. 2 in the US and was dedicated to co-founder and former drummer Joey Jordison, who died in July 2021.
- RAYE releases her breakthrough single “Escapism.,” about trying to escape reality as quickly as possible. It later appears on her debut album, My 21st Century Blues.