2025 in American music

The following is a list of events and releases that have happened or are expected to happen in 2025 in music in the United States.

• 10 – Tremonti released their first studio album in four years, The End Will Show Us How.^[1]
• 17 – Balloonerism, the second posthumous Mac Miller album in five years, was released.^[2]
• 20 – Coco Jones performed the national anthem and Travis Scott performed the halftime show at the College Football Playoff National Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
• 25 – Bowling for Soup co-founder and lead guitarist Chris Burney announced his retirement from the band after playing with them for over 30 years.
• 28 – Singer Chase Lawrence announced the breakup of his band, Coin, following allegations of misconduct against drummer Ryan Winnen and guitarist Joe Memmel.
• 31 – All That Remains released their first studio album in almost seven years, Antifragile. It is also the band's first album to not feature original guitarist Oli Herbert following Herbert's death in 2018.
  • Grayscale released their first studio album in four years, The Hart.
  • Moe released their first studio album in five years, Circle of Giants.
  • Pentagram released their first studio album in ten years, Lightning in a Bottle.

• 2 – The 67th Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Beyoncé won Album of the Year for Cowboy Carter, Kendrick Lamar won Record of the Year and Song of the Year for "Not Like Us" and Chappell Roan won Best New Artist.
• 5 – Record producer and Murder Inc. Records co-founder Irv Gotti died from a stroke at the age of 54.
• 7 – Dream Theater released their first studio album in nearly four years, Parasomnia. It is also the band's first album with original drummer Mike Portnoy since 2009.
  • Tyga released his first studio album in nearly six years, NSFW.
• 9 – Jon Batiste performed the national anthem and Kendrick Lamar and SZA performed the halftime show during Super Bowl LIX at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.^[3]
• 14 – Amber Pacific released their first studio album in nearly eleven years, All In.
• 18 – A Day to Remember released their first studio album in nearly four years, Big Ole Album Vol. 1.^[4] It is also the band's first album to not feature founding bassist Joshua Woodard following Woodard's departure in 2021.
• 21 – Killswitch Engage released their first studio album in six years, This Consequence.
  • Nardo Wick released his first studio album in nearly four years, Wick.
  • Mike Posner released his first solo album in nearly five years, The Beginning.
• 24 – Legendary R&B singer Roberta Flack died from cardiac arrest stemming from complications of ALS at the age of 88.
• 28 – New York Dolls lead singer David Johansen, the band's last surviving original member, died from cancer at the age of 75.
  • Shinedown bassist Eric Bass released his debut solo album, I Had a Name.

• 1 – R&B and soul singer Angie Stone died in a car crash in Montgomery, Alabama at the age of 63.
• 7 – Bob Mould released his first studio album in five years, Here We Go Crazy.
  • Lady Gaga released her first solo album in nearly five years, Mayhem.^[5]
  • Whitechapel released their first studio album in four years, Hymns in Dissonance.
  • Mastodon co-founder and lead guitarist Brent Hinds announced his departure from the band after 25 years. He was later killed in a traffic collision on August 20.
• 14 – Clipping released their first studio album in five years, Dead Channel Sky.
  • Warbringer released their first studio album in five years, Wrath and Ruin.
  • Playboi Carti released his first studio album in nearly five years, Music.
• 17 – The 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards took place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
• 21 – Japanese Breakfast released their first studio album in almost four years, For Melancholy Brunettes (and Sad Women).
  • Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco released their collaborative studio album, I Said I Love You First. It is Gomez's first album in five years and Blanco's first in seven years.
  • My Morning Jacket released their first studio album in four years, Is.
• 28 – Will Smith released his first studio album in twenty years, Based on a True Story.
  • Lucy Dacus released her first solo album in nearly four years, Forever Is a Feeling.
  • Deafheaven released their first studio album in four years, Lonely People with Power.
  • Alison Krauss & Union Station released their first studio album in fourteen years, Arcadia. It is Krauss' first album in four years.

• 2 – Duckwrth released his first studio album in five years, All American FuckBoy.
• 4 – Grace VanderWaal released her first studio album in nearly eight years, Childstar.
• 6 – Blondie drummer Clem Burke died from cancer at the age of 70.
• 11 – Spin Doctors released their first studio album in twelve years, Face Full of Cake.
  • OK Go released their first studio album in nearly eleven years, And the Adjacent Possible.^[6]
  • Bon Iver released their first studio album in six years, Sable, Fable.
  • Sleigh Bells released their first studio album in four years, Bunky Becky Birthday Boy.
  • Bootsy Collins released his first studio album in five years, Album of the Year #1 Funkateer.
• 12 – Wu-Tang Clan and Mathematics released their collaborative studio album, Black Samson, the Bastard Swordsman. It is the Wu-Tang Clan's first studio album in ten years, their first to be publicly available in eleven years and their first group project in seven years.
• 18 – Tunde Adebimpe released his debut solo album, Thee Black Boltz, which is also his first album in nearly eleven years following the release of Seeds by his band, TV on the Radio, in November 2014.
  • Keri Hilson released her first studio album in fifteen years, We Need to Talk: Love. It is the first installment of a planned three-part album. The second part, We Need to Talk: Drama, was released in September.
  • Superheaven released their self-titled album, their first in ten years.^[7]

• 1 – Singer Jill Sobule died in a house fire in Woodbury, Minnesota at the age of 66.
• 2 – Car Seat Headrest released their first studio album in five years, The Scholars.^[8]
  • Eric Church released his first studio album in four years, Evangeline vs. the Machine.
  • Maddie & Tae released their first studio album in five years, Love & Light.
  • Suzanne Vega released her first studio album in nine years, Flying with Angels.
• 7 – 3 Doors Down frontman Brad Arnold announced that he was diagnosed with Stage IV clear cell renal carcinoma, which had metastasized to his lung. With his diagnosis, 3 Doors Down cancelled their 2025 shows including their summer tour.^[9]
• 8 – The 60th Academy of Country Music Awards took place at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas.
• 9 – Counting Crows released their first studio album in eleven years, Butter Miracle, The Complete Sweets!.
  • Blake Shelton released his first studio album in four years, For Recreational Use Only.
  • Tetrarch released their first studio album in four years, The Ugly Side of Me.
• 16 – Xzibit released his first studio album in thirteen years, Kingmaker.
  • Tune-Yards released their first studio album in four years, Better Dreaming.
  • Pelican released their first studio album in six years, Flickering Resonance.
  • Foo Fighters part ways with their drummer of two years, Josh Freese, with no explanation.^[10] Freese had been hired as the replacement for longtime drummer Taylor Hawkins, who died in 2022.
• 18 – Jamal Roberts won the twenty-third season of American Idol. John Foster was named runner-up and Breanna Nix placed third.
• 20 – Adam David won the twenty-seventh season of The Voice. Jaelen Johnston was named runner-up. Renzo, Lucia Flores-Wiseman, and Jadyn Cree finished in third, fourth, and fifth place respectively.
• 23 – Billy Joel cancelled his upcoming concert tours after being diagnosed with normal pressure hydrocephalus which leads to problems with his hearing, vision and balance.^[11]
  • Joe Jonas released his first solo album in nearly fourteen years, Music for People Who Believe in Love.
  • Hinder released their first studio album in eight years, Back to Life.
• 26 – The American Music Awards took place at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas in Winchester, Nevada.
• 30 – Taylor Swift bought back the masters of her first six albums from Shamrock Holdings.^[12]
  • Ben Kweller released his first studio album in four years, Cover the Mirrors.
  • Garbage released their first studio album in four years, Let All That We Imagine Be the Light.^[13]
  • The National vocalist Matt Berninger released his first solo album in five years, Get Sunk.
  • Anderson East released his first studio album in four years, Worthy.

• 6 – Black Moth Super Rainbow released their first studio album in seven years, Soft New Magic Dream.
  • The Doobie Brothers released their first studio album in four years, Walk This Road.
  • Lil Wayne released his first solo album in five years, Tha Carter VI.
  • Rascal Flatts released their first studio album in eight years, Life Is a Highway: Refueled Duets.^[14]
  • Turnstile released their first studio album in four years, Never Enough. It is also their first album with guitarist Meg Mills, who replaced guitarist and co-founder Brady Ebert after his departure from the band in 2022.
• 9 – Sly and the Family Stone frontman Sly Stone died at the age of 82.
• 11 – The Beach Boys co-founder and singer Brian Wilson died at the age of 82.^[15]
• 13 – Slick Rick released his first studio album in twenty-six years, Victory.
• 20 – Haim released their first studio album in five years, I Quit.
  • Memphis Bleek released his first studio album in twenty years, Apt 3D.
  • Badflower released their first studio album in four years, No Place Like Home.
  • James McMurtry released his first studio album in four years, The Black Dog and the Wandering Boy.
• 25 – Charles Kelley released his first solo album in nine years, Songs for a New Moon.
• 27 – Public Enemy released their first studio album in five years, Black Sky Over the Projects: Apartment 2025.
  • Fishbone released their first studio album in nineteen years, Stockholm Syndrome.
  • Deadguy released their first studio album in thirty years, Near-Death Travel Services.

• 2 – Sean Combs was found guilty on two counts of transportation for the purpose of prostitution. He was found not guilty of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking.^[16]
• 7 – After being in the band for 27 years, drummer Matt Cameron announced his departure from Pearl Jam.
• 11 – Clipse released their first studio album in fifteen years, Let God Sort Em Out.
  • Born of Osiris released their first studio album in four years, Through Shadows.
  • Hell released their first studio album in eight years, Submersus.
• 16 – Connie Francis, the first female artist to score a number 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, died at the age of 87.^[17]
• 18 – Raekwon released his first studio album in eight years, The Emperor's New Clothes.
  • Cam released her first studio album in nearly five years, All Things Light.
  • Lord Huron released their first studio album in four years, The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1.
  • Styx released their first studio album in four years, Circling from Above.
  • Trisha Yearwood released her first studio album in six years, The Mirror.^[18]
• 22 – Jazz trumpeter Chuck Mangione died in his sleep at the age of 84.
• 25 – Alice Cooper released their reunion album, The Revenge of Alice Cooper. It is the first studio album released by the full band in fifty-two years, though its eponymous lead vocalist has been prolific with solo material in the interim period, and is dedicated to former lead guitarist Glen Buxton, who died from viral pneumonia in 1997.

• 1–3 – The 34th and final Oregon Jamboree country music festival was held in Sweet Home, Oregon.^[19][20]
• 6 – Latin jazz and salsa musician Eddie Palmieri died at the age of 88.
• 8 – Good Charlotte released their first studio album in seven years, Motel Du Cap.
  • Ashley Monroe released her first studio album in four years, Tennessee Lightning.
  • Attack Attack! released their first studio album in thirteen years, Attack Attack! II.
• 12 – Insane Clown Posse released their first studio album in four years, The Naught.
• 15 – Rise Against released their first studio album in four years, Ricochet.
  • Chance the Rapper released his first studio album in six years, Star Line.
  • Maroon 5 released their first studio album in four years, Love Is Like.
  • Chevelle released their first studio album in four years, Bright as Blasphemy.
  • Marissa Nadler released her first studio album in four years, New Radiations.
• 22 – Deftones released their first studio album in nearly five years, Private Music.
  • Ciara released her first studio album in six years, CiCi.
  • Hunx and His Punx released their first studio album in twelve years, Walk Out on This World.
  • Teyana Taylor released her first studio album in five years, Escape Room.
  • The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die released their first studio album in four years, Dreams of Being Dust.
• 25 – The Summer Set released their first studio album in four years, Meet Me at the Record Store.
• 28 – Hayley Williams of Paramore released her first solo album in four years, Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party. The following week, on September 5, she announced that Paramore would be taking a break.^[21]
• 29 – Vicious Rumors released their first studio album in five years, The Devil's Asylum.

• 5 – Dark Angel released their first studio album in thirty-four years, Extinction Level Event.^[22]
  • David Byrne released his first studio album in seven years, Who Is the Sky?.
  • Rob Thomas released his first solo album in four years and his first of all-original material in six years, All Night Days.
  • La Dispute released their first studio album in six years, No One Was Driving the Car.
  • Blessthefall released their first studio album in seven years, Gallows.
  • Ivy released their first studio album in fourteen years, Traces of You. The album was dedicated to founding member Adam Schlesinger, who died in 2020 due to complications from COVID-19.
  • Modern Life Is War released their first studio album in twelve years, Life on the Moon.
• 7 – The MTV Video Music Awards took place at the UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.
• 12 – Between the Buried and Me released their first studio album in four years, The Blue Nowhere.
  • Cafuné released their sophomore studio album, and also their first in four years, Bite Reality.^[23]
  • John Carter Cash released his first studio album in seven years, Pineapple John.
  • Starset released their first studio album in four years, Silos.
  • Teenage Bottlerocket released their first studio album in four years, Ready to Roll.
• 18 – Longtime music video director and choreographer Diane Martel died from breast cancer at the age of 63.
• 19 – Cardi B released her first studio album in seven years, Am I the Drama?.^[24]
  • 38 Special released their first studio album in twenty-one years, Milestone.
  • Motion City Soundtrack released their first studio album in ten years, The Same Old Wasted Wonderful World.
• 26 – Mariah Carey released her first studio album in nearly seven years, Here for It All.
  • Neko Case released her first solo studio album in seven years, Neon Grey Midnight Green.
  • Lady A released their first studio album in four years, On This Winter's Night: Volume 2.^[25]
  • The Starting Line released their first studio album in eighteen years, Eternal Youth.^[26]

• 3 – AFI released their first studio album in four years, Silver Bleeds the Black Sun....
  • Thrice released their first studio album in four years, Horizons/West.
  • The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus released their first studio album in seven years, X's for Eyes.^[27]
• 10 – Mobb Deep released their first studio album in eleven years, Infinite. It is their only album following Prodigy's death in 2017.^[28]
  • Yellowcard released their first studio album in nine years, Better Days.
  • Testament released their first studio album in five years, Para Bellum.
  • John 5 released his first studio album in four years, Ghost.
  • Jay Som released her first studio album in six years, Belong.
  • Bernie Leadon released his first solo studio album in twenty-one years, Too Late to Be Cool.
  • Black Eyes released their first studio album in twenty-one years, Hostile Design.
• 14 – Neo soul singer D'Angelo died from pancreatic cancer at the age of 51.^[29]
• 16 – Kiss co-founder and original lead guitarist Ace Frehley died at the age of 74 following complications from a fall he suffered in his studio.^[30]
• 17 – Biohazard released their first studio album in thirteen years, Divided We Fall.^[31]
  • Tombs released their first studio album in five years, Feral Darkness.
  • Ty Dolla Sign released his first solo album in five years, Tycoon.
• 18 – Limp Bizkit bassist Sam Rivers died at the age of 48.
• 23 – Miguel released his first studio album in eight years, Caos.
• 24 – The Lemonheads released their first studio album in six years, and also their first album of original material in nineteen years, Love Chant.^[32]
  • Brandi Carlile released her first solo studio album in four years, Returning to Myself.
  • Tortoise released their first studio album in nine years, Touch.
• 31 – Armani White released his first studio album in six years, There's a Ghost in My House.
  • Lydia Luce released her first studio album in four years, Mammoth.
  • Saintseneca released their first studio album in seven years, Highwallow & Supermoon Songs.

• 7 – Mavis Staples released her first studio album in six years, Sad and Beautiful World.
  • Agnostic Front released their first studio album in six years, Echoes in Eternity.
  • Jessica Fortino, under her project Tiny Vipers, released her first studio album in eight years, Tormentor.
• 14 – Summer Walker released her first studio album in four years, Finally Over It.^[33]
  • Cheap Trick released their first studio album in four years, All Washed Up.
  • Wale released his first studio album in four years, Everything Is a Lot.
  • The Neighbourhood released their first studio album in five years, Ultrasound.
• 21 – De La Soul released their first studio album in nine years, Cabin in the Sky. It is the group's first album since founding member Trugoy the Dove's death in 2023, though it featured his contributions from prior recordings.
  • Spock's Beard released their first studio album in seven years, The Archaeoptimist.

• 5 – Zac Brown Band released their first studio album in four years, Love & Fear.^[34]
  • Seeming released their first studio album in five years, The World.
• 8 – The Mavericks frontman Raul Malo died from colon cancer at the age of 60.
• 12 – Jim Peterik and his band World Stage released an album of duets, River of Music – The Power of Duets, Vol. 1.
• 19 – Peter Criss released his self-titled album, his first in eighteen years.

• The Click Five
• Fifth Harmony
• Fountains of Wayne
• Myka Relocate
• The Neighbourhood
• Rilo Kiley
• Spineshank

• Paramore
• Tennis

• Coin
• Jane's Addiction
• REO Speedwagon^[35]
• Stray from the Path

• "4x4" – Travis Scott (1 week)
• "All I Want for Christmas Is You" – Mariah Carey (2 weeks in 2019, 2 weeks in 2020, 2 weeks in 2021, 5 weeks in 2022, 3 weeks in 2023, 3 weeks in 2024, 4 weeks in 2025)
• "Die with a Smile" – Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars (5 weeks)
• "Golden" – Huntrix: Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami (8 weeks)
• "Luther" – Kendrick Lamar and SZA (13 weeks)
• "Manchild" – Sabrina Carpenter (1 week)
• "Not Like Us" – Kendrick Lamar (2 weeks in 2024, 1 week in 2025)
• "Ordinary" – Alex Warren (10 weeks)
• "The Fate of Ophelia" – Taylor Swift (8 weeks)
• "What I Want" – Morgan Wallen feat. Tate McRae (1 week)

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

• January 10 – Sam Moore, 89, soul & R&B singer and songwriter (Sam & Dave)
• January 15 – Melba Montgomery, 86, country singer-songwriter
• January 20 – Bob Kuban, 84, R&B drummer
• January 22 – Barry Goldberg, 83, blues & rock keyboardist
• January 27 – Aaron Rossi, 44, industrial metal drummer (Ministry)
• February 1 – Sal Maida, 76, rock bassist
• February 2 – Paul Plishka, 83, opera singer
• February 5 – Irv Gotti, 54, hip-hop & R&B record producer (Murder Inc. Records)
• February 12 – Tommy Hunt, 91, soul singer
  • Betsy Arakawa, 65, classical pianist
• February 20 – Jerry Butler, 85, soul singer songwriter
• February 24 – Roberta Flack, 88, R&B & soul singer and pianist
• February 28 – David Johansen, 75, proto-punk & rock singer/songwriter (New York Dolls)
• March 1 – Angie Stone, 63, R&B & soul singer, songwriter and record producer
• March 3 – Jeffrey Runnings, 61, post-punk singer, songwriter and bassist (For Against)
  • Beau Dozier, 45, R&B & hip-hop songwriter and record producer
• March 4 – Roy Ayers, 84, post-bop & acid jazz vibraphonist and composer
• March 6 – Troy Seals, 86, country singer and songwriter
• March 7 – D'Wayne Wiggins, 64, R&B & soul singer, songwriter and guitarist (Tony! Toni! Toné!)
• March 11 – Bob Rivers, 68, radio personality
• March 13 – Mark Holder, 52, blues rock guitarist (Black Diamond Heavies)
• March 16 – Jesse Colin Young, 83, folk rock singer-songwriter (The Youngbloods)
• April 6 – Clem Burke, 70, punk rock & rock drummer (Blondie, The Empty Hearts)
• May 1 – Jill Sobule, 66, folk-pop & rock singer, songwriter and guitarist
• May 15 – Charles Strouse, 96, composer and lyricist
• May 22 – Daniel Williams, 39, metalcore drummer (The Devil Wears Prada)
• June 9 – Sly Stone, 82, funk & psychedelic soul singer, songwriter and record producer (Sly and the Family Stone)
• June 11 – Brian Wilson, 82, rock & pop singer, songwriter, musician (The Beach Boys)
• June 26 – Walter Scott, 81, R&B singer (The Whispers)
• July 16 – Connie Francis, 87, pop singer, actress
• July 18 – Helen Cornelius, 83, country singer
• July 22 – Chuck Mangione, 84, jazz trumpeter
• July 26 – Tom Lehrer, 97, singer-songwriter and satirist
• August 1 – Jeannie Seely, 85, country singer
• August 6 – Eddie Palmieri, 88, latin jazz & salsa bandleader and composer
• August 20 – Brent Hinds, 51, heavy metal guitarist and singer (Mastodon)
• September 18 – Brett James, 57, country songwriter, producer
  • Diane Martel, 63, music video director, choreographer
• September 21 – Ron Carroll, 57, club DJ, singer and songwriter
• September 26 – Jim McNeely, 76, jazz pianist and composer
• October 10 – Thommy Price, 68, rock drummer (Scandal, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts)
• October 14 – D'Angelo, 51, neo soul & R&B singer and musician
• October 16 – Ace Frehley, 74, hard rock guitarist and singer (Kiss, Frehley's Comet)
• October 18 – Sam Rivers, 48, nu metal & rock bassist (Limp Bizkit)
• October 19 – Dave Burgess, 90, rock singer and guitarist (The Champs)
• October 24 – Benita Valente, 91, opera singer
• October 26 – Jack DeJohnette, 83, jazz drummer, pianist and composer
• October 30 – Scott Sorry, 47, rock singer, songwriter and bassist (Sorry and the Sinatras)
• November 1 – Young Bleed, 51, rapper
• November 3 – Victor Conte, 75, R&B & funk bassist (Tower of Power)
• November 6 – Steve Whitaker, 62, Christian metal drummer (Barren Cross)
• November 11 – Cleto Escobedo III, 59, jazz saxophonist and bandleader
• November 14 – Todd Snider, 59, singer-songwriter
• November 15 – Hilly Michaels, 77, new wave singer and songwriter
• November 19 – Walt Aldridge, 70, country singer and songwriter (The Shooters)
• November 21 – Jellybean Johnson, 69, funk drummer (The Time)
• November 23 – Phil Upchurch, 84, jazz & blues guitarist
• November 26 – Judy Cheeks, 71, soul & R&B singer
• November 29 – Leslie Fish, 81, folk singer
• December 2 – Billy Nichols, 85, soul guitarist and songwriter
• December 3 – Steve Cropper, 84, R&B & soul songwriter and record producer
• December 5 – Camryn Magness, 26, pop singer
• December 6 – Rory MacLeod, 70, blues and swing bassist (Roomful of Blues)
• December 8 – Raul Malo, 60, country rock singer, songwriter and guitarist (The Mavericks)
• December 12 – Manny Guerra, 85, Tejano singer, songwriter and producer
• December 14 – Carl Carlton, 73, R&B, soul & funk singer-songwriter
• December 15 – Joe Ely, 78, alternative country singer and songwriter
• December 24 – Howie Klein, 77, record label executive (Reprise Records)
• December 26 – Don Bryant, 83, R&B singer and songwriter