2018 in music

Specific locations

• African
• American
• Asian
• *Chinese
• *Japanese
• *Philippine
• *South Korean
• Canadian
• European
• *British
• *Scandinavian
• **Danish
• **Finnish
• **Icelandic
• **Norwegian
• **Swedish
• Latin

  Specific genres

• Classical
• Country
• Heavy metal
• Hip hop
• Electronic
• Jazz
• Latin
• New Wave
• Opera
• Pop
• Punk
• Rock
• R&B
• World music

  Albums released

Awards

Bands formed

• AKB48 Team SH
• AKB48 Team TP
• boygenius
• D-Crunch
• I-dle
• GWSN
• Honey Popcorn
• Iz*One
• Kids See Ghosts
• King & Prince
• Loona
• LSD
• MNL48
• Nature
• NeonPunch
• NEX7
• Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets
• Nine Percent
• Noir
• NTB
• Oceanhoarse
• Oh!GG
• Pattern-Seeking Animals
• Pristin V
• Rocket Girls 101
• Target
• The Driver Era
• UNB
• Uni.T
• WJMK

  Bands reformed

• ABBA
• B2K
• BBMak
• The Distillers
• Hootie & The Blowfish
• Late of the Pier
• The Kinks
• Mötley Crüe
• Pussycat Dolls
• The Raconteurs
• Soft Cell
• Spice Girls
• Swedish House Mafia
• Utopia
• Westlife

  Bands on hiatus

• Brand New
• The Color Morale
• Dark Sermon
• Devin Townsend Project
• Fifth Harmony
• fun.
• Heart
• Hedley
• Katatonia
• Karnataka
• Moose Blood
• One Direction
• PWR BTTM
• Slipknot
• Sorority Noise

  Bands disbanded

• 7 Seconds
• Alcazar
• at17
• At the Drive-In
• Balance and Composure
• Bestie
• The Charm the Fury
• D12
• Dirge Within
• The Fall
• GMS
• LFO
• Mastersystem
• Minus the Bear
• The Orwells
• Owl John
• The Pizza Underground
• Royal Headache
• Runrig
• Rush
• Say Anything
• Seventeen
• Slaughterhouse
• Sleeping Giant
• Soundgarden
• Splashh
• The Strypes
• The Thermals
• Ultimate Painting
• Vattnet
• Vallenfyre
• Wild Beasts
• Young and in the Way

  Deaths

January

• 1
• * Jon Paul Steuer, American punk singer and actor
• * Betty Willis, American R&B singer
• 2 – Rick Hall, American record producer
• 3 – Josiah Boyd, American heavy metal bassist
• 4 – Ray Thomas, British progressive rock flautist
• 5 – Mikio Fujioka, Japanese heavy metal guitarist
• 7
• * France Gall, French pop singer
• * Buster Stiggs, British-born New Zealand punk drummer
• 9
• * Denise LaSalle, American blues and R&B singer-songwriter
• * Paul Antingnani, American heavy metal drummer
• 10 – "Fast" Eddie Clarke, British heavy metal guitarist
• 12 – Pierre Pincemaille, French classical organist
• 13 – Tzimis Panousis, Greek comedy singer
• 15
• * Edwin Hawkins, American gospel singer, songwriter and pianist
• * Dolores O'Riordan, Irish alternative rock singer-songwriter
• 16
• * Dave Holland, English heavy metal drummer
• * Madalena Iglésias, Portuguese classic pop singer
• 18 – Steve Nisbett, Nevisian-born British reggae drummer
• 19 – Fredo Santana, American rapper
• 20
• * Terry Evans, American blues singer and guitarist
• * Mario Guccio, Belgian rock singer
• * Jim Rodford, British rock bassist
• 22 – Preston Shannon, American blues singer and guitarist
• 23
• * Hugh Masekela, South African jazz trumpeter
• * Lari White, American country music singer
• 24 – Mark E. Smith, British post-punk singer-songwriter
• 25
• * Tommy Banks, Canadian jazz pianist
• * Steve Foster, Australian folk singer
• 26
• * Buzz Clifford, American pop singer
• * Floyd Miles, American blues singer and guitarist
• * Igor Zhukov, Russian classical pianist
• 27 – Grant Fell, New Zealand industrial rock bassist
• 28 – Neil Harris, British punk guitarist
• 28
• * Eddie Shaw, American blues saxophonist
• * Coco Schumann, German jazz guitarist
• 31
• * Del Delker, American gospel singer
• * Leah LaBelle, Canadian-born American R&B singer

  February

• 1 – Mowzey Radio, Ugandan pop singer
• 2 – Dennis Edwards, American R&B singer
• 3 – Leon "Ndugu" Chancler, American jazz and rock drummer
• 5 – Zeno Roth, German rock guitarist
• 6 – John Perry Barlow, American rock songwriter
• 7 – Pat Torpey, American hard rock drummer
• 8
• * Algia Mae Hinton, American blues singer
• * Lovebug Starski, American rapper
• * Ebony Reigns, Ghanaian dancehall singer
• 9
• * Jóhann Jóhannsson, Icelandic film composer
• * Craig MacGregor, American rock bassist
• 11
• * Vic Damone, American pop singer
• * Tom Rapp, American psychedelic rock singer
• 12 – Daryle Singletary, American country singer
• 13
• * Scott Boyer, American rock singer and guitarist
• * Billy Johnson, American emo and noise rock drummer
• * Klaasje van der Wal, Dutch hard rock bassist
• 14 – Nuray Hafiftaş, Turkish folk singer
• 16 – Barbara Alston, American R&B singer
• 19
• * Norm Rogers, American alternative country drummer
• * Stormin MC, British grime rapper
• 22 – Errol Buddle, Australian jazz bassoonist and saxophonist
• 23 – Eddy Amoo, British soul singer

  March

• 1 – Bill Burkette, American pop singer
• 2
• * Jesus Lopez Cobos, Spanish classic music conductor
• * Brandon Jenkins, American Red Dirt country singer-songwriter
• * Van McLain, American rock guitarist and singer
• 3
• * Patrick Doyle, British indie rock drummer
• * Kenneth Gärdestad, Swedish pop songwriter
• 7 – Jerzy Milian, Polish jazz vibraphonist
• 9 – Pyarelal Wadali, Indian Sufi folk singer
• 11 – Ken Dodd, British comedian and pop singer
• 12
• * Nokie Edwards, American surf rock guitarist
• * Craig Mack, American rapper
• 13
• * Claudia Fontaine, British pop and ska singer
• * Charlie Quintana, American punk rock drummer
• 14 – Steve Mandell, American bluegrass guitarist and banjoist
• 16
• * Laurence Cleary, Irish new wave guitarist
• * Buell Neidlinger, American jazz bassist and cellist
• 18 – Killjoy, American death metal singer
• 20 – Peter "Mars" Cowling, British blues rock bassist
• 24 – Lys Assia, Swiss pop singer
• 25 – Seo Min-woo, South Korean pop singer
• 26 – Kenny O'Dell, American country singer-songwriter
• 28 – Caleb Scofield, American alternative rock and sludge metal bassist and singer
• 30
• * Alias, American rapper and producer
• * Sabahudin Kurt, Bosnian folk singer
• 31 – Frode Viken, Norwegian rock guitarist

  April

• 1 – Audrey Morris, American jazz singer
• 3 – Lill-Babs, Swedish pop singer
• 4 – Don Cherry, American pop singer
• 5 – Cecil Taylor, American jazz pianist
• 6 – Jacques Higelin, French chanson singer
• 8 – Nathan Davis, American jazz multi-instrumentalist
• 10 – Yvonne Staples, American soul singer
• 11 – Timmy Matley, Irish pop singer
• 14 – Milan Škampa, Czech classical violist
• 16 – Dona Ivone Lara, Brazilian samba singer
• 17
• * Randy Scruggs, American country guitarist and songwriter
• * Big Tom, Irish country singer
• 19 – Reginald McArthur, American R&B singer
• 20
• * Avicii, Swedish EDM DJ and producer
• * Brian Henry Hooper, Australian alternative rock guitarist
• 23 – Bob Dorough, American jazz singer and pianist
• 24 – Paul Gray, Australian new wave singer, songwriter and keyboardist
• 26 – Charles Neville, American R&B saxophonist
• 29 – Ted Devoux, American rapper
• 30
• * Tim Calvert, American heavy metal guitarist
• * Rose Laurens, French pop singer-songwriter

  May

• 1
• * John "Jabo" Starks, American funk and R&B drummer
• * Wanda Wiłkomirska, Polish classical violinist
• 2 – Tony Cucchiara, Italian folk singer
• 4
• * Steve Coy, British new wave drummer
• * Tony Kinman, American cowpunk singer and bassist
• * Abi Ofarim, Israeli pop singer
• 5 – Dick Williams, American pop singer
• 7 – Gayle Shepherd, American pop singer
• 9
• * Ben Graves, American horror punk drummer
• * Carl Perkins, New Zealand reggae singer
• 10 – Scott Hutchison, British indie singer, songwriter and guitarist
• 11 – Matt Marks, American contemporary classical multi-instrumentalist
• 13 – Glenn Branca, American avant-garde composer and guitarist
• 16 – Hideki Saijo, Japanese pop singer
• 17 – Jon Sholle, American jazz, roots music and blues multi-instrumentalist
• 19
• * Reggie Lucas, American multi-genre guitarist, producer and songwriter
• * Patricia Morison, American showtunes singer and actress
• 25 – Piet Kee, Dutch classical organist
• 27 – Andy MacQueen, Australian punk guitarist
• 28
• * Evio Di Marzo, Venezuelan tropical singer and guitarist
• * Stewart Lupton, American indie rock singer
• * Josh Martin, American grindcore guitarist
• 29 – Jürgen Marcus, German schlager singer
• 31 – Demba Nabé, German dancehall rapper

  June

• 1
• * Andrew Massey, British classical conductor
• * Sinan Sakić, Serbian turbo-folk singer
• 2 – Wayne Secrest, American bassist
• 3 – Clarence Fountain, American gospel singer
• 4 – Jalal Mansur Nuriddin, American spoken word poet
• 5
• * Teddy Johnson, British pop singer
• * Jimmy Gonzalez, American Tejano singer
• * Ralph Santolla, American metal guitarist
• 7 – Al Capps, American arranger, composer and record producer
• 8 – Danny Kirwan, British rock and blues guitarist
• 9 – John McElrath, 77, American rock singer and keyboardist
• 10
• * Neal E. Boyd, American operatic pop singer
• * Ras Kimono, Nigerian reggae singer
• 11 – Wayne Dockery, American jazz bassist
• 12 – Jon Hiseman, British jazz fusion and blues drummer
• 13 – D. J. Fontana, American rock and roll drummer
• 15
• * Delia Bell, American bluegrass singer
• * Nick Knox, American psychobilly drummer
• * Matt Murphy, American blues guitarist
• 16 – Rebecca Parris, American jazz singer
• 18
• * Jimmy Wopo, American rapper
• * XXXTentacion, American rapper
• 19
• * Bansi Quinteros, Spanish psychedelic trance keyboardist
• * Lowrell Simon, American singer
• 22
• * Geoffrey Oryema, Ugandan afro-pop singer and guitarist
• * Vinnie Paul, American metal drummer
• 24 – George Cameron, American baroque pop drummer
• 26
• * Fedor Frešo, Slovak rock bassist
• * Ed Simons, American classical music conductor
• 27 – Steve Soto, American punk rock bassist
• 29 – Eugene Pitt, American doo wop singer
• 30 – Dean Webb, American bluegrass mandolinist

  July

• 2
• * Henry Butler, American jazz pianist
• * Alan Longmuir, Scottish pop bassist
• * Bill Watrous, American jazz trombonist
• 3 – Richard Swift, American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist
• 4 – Carmen Campagne, Canadian folk singer
• 6
• * Vlatko Ilievski, Macedonian rock singer and guitarist
• * Vince Martin, American folk singer
• 7
• * Brett Hoffmann, American death metal singer
• * Garry Lowe, Jamaican-born Canadian reggae and blues rock musician
• 8 – Tab Hunter, American actor and pop singer
• 9 – Stefan Demert, Swedish pop singer
• 10 – Ye Lwin, Burmese rock guitarist
• 13 – K. Rani, Indian playback singer
• 15 – Theryl DeClouet, American jazz-funk and R&B singer
• 18 – Raivo Rätte, Estonian alternative rock bassist
• 25 – Patrick Williams, American composer, arranger and conductor
• 27 – Mark Shelton, American heavy metal guitarist
• 28 – Olga Jackowska, Polish rock singer
• 29
• * Sam Mehran, British dance-punk singer and guitarist
• * Tomasz Stańko, Polish jazz trumpeter and composer
• 31 – Irvin Jarrett, Jamaican reggae percussionist

  August

• 1
• * Celeste Rodrigues, Portuguese fado singer
• * Umbayee, Indian ghazal singer
• 2 – Neil Argo, American film and television composer
• 3
• * Brad Daymond, Canadian house DJ
• * Tommy Peoples, Irish folk fiddler
• 4 – Lorrie Collins, American rockabilly singer and guitarist
• 5
• * Majid Al-Majid, Saudi folk singer
• * Ellen Joyce Loo, Canadian-born Hong Kong folktronica singer and guitarist
• 8 – Linda Mkhize, South African rapper
• 9 – Arthur Davies, Welsh opera singer
• 10 – Jason "J-Sin" Luttrell, American nu-metal vocalist
• 14
• * Jill Janus, American heavy metal singer
• * Valentina Levko, Russian opera singer
• * Randy Rampage, Canadian thrash metal and punk singer and bassist
• 16 – Aretha Franklin, American R&B and soul singer
• 17
• * Claudio Lolli, Italian pop singer
• * Danny Pearson, American R&B singer
• 20 – Eddie Willis, American soul and R&B guitarist
• 21 – Spencer P. Jones, Australian punk singer and guitarist
• 22
• * Ed King, American rock guitarist
• * Lazy Lester, American blues singer and guitarist
• 24 – DJ Ready Red, American hip hop DJ
• 25 – Kyle Pavone, American metalcore singer
• 26 – Inge Borkh, German opera singer
• 29
• * Tony Camillo, American record producer and arranger
• * Ellie Mannette, Trinidadian steelpan drummer
• 30 – Joseph Kobzon, Russian pop singer

  September

• 1 – Randy Weston, American jazz pianist
• 2 – Conway Savage, Australian alternative rock keyboardist
• 4 – Don Gardner, American R&B singer-songwriter
• 5 – Nasty Savage, American thrash metal bassist
• 7
• * Don McGuire, American pop singer
• * Mac Miller, American rapper
• 8 – Chelsi Smith, American pop singer
• 10 – Johnny Strike, American punk singer and guitarist
• 12 – Rachid Taha, Algerian rock singer
• 14 – Max Bennett, American jazz and pop bassist
• 16
• * Maartin Allcock, British folk multi-instrumentalist
• * Big Jay McNeely, American R&B saxophonist
• 18 – Wesley Tinglin, Jamaican reggae singer
• 22 – Chas Hodges, British folk singer and keyboardist
• 27 – Marty Balin, American psychedelic rock singer and guitarist
• 29
• * Otis Rush, American blues singer and guitarist
• * Michael Weiley, Australian ska guitarist
• 30 – Kim Larsen, Danish rock singer and guitarist

  October

• 1
• * Charles Aznavour, French pop singer
• * Jerry González, American Latin jazz trumpeter
• 3 – John Von Ohlen, American jazz drummer
• 3 - Hugo Raspoet, Belgian folk singer
• 4 – Hamiet Bluiett, American jazz saxophonist
• 5 – Bernadette Carroll, American pop singer
• 6 – Montserrat Caballé, Spanish opera singer
• 7 - John Wicks, British power pop singer and guitarist
• 8 – Tim Chandler, American Christian alternative rock bassist
• 10 – Jane Walker, New Zealand new wave keyboardist
• 12 – Andy Goessling, American progressive bluegrass multi-instrumentalist
• 14 – Saleem Abdul Majid, Malaysian rock singer
• 16 – Du Yuwei, Chinese pop singer
• 17
• * Valters Frīdenbergs, Latvian pop singer
• * Oli Herbert, American metalcore guitarist
• 18
• *Ayub Bachchu, Bangladeshi rock singer and guitarist
• * Sergey Bondarenko, Ukrainian pop rock singer
• *Randolph Hokanson, American classical pianist
• 23 – Mighty Shadow, Trinidadian calypsonian
• 24
• * Hip Hop Pantsula, South African rapper
• * Wah Wah Watson, American R&B and funk guitarist
• * Tony Joe White, American swamp rock singer, songwriter and guitarist
• 25 – Sonny Fortune, American jazz saxophonist
• 26 – Baba Oje, American rapper and musician
• 27
• * Freddie Hart, American country and gospel singer
• * Teddy Scott, American R&B singer
• * Todd Youth, American punk rock guitarist
• 28 – Babs Beverley, British pop singer
• 29
• * Jimmy Farrar, American southern rock singer
• * Young Greatness, American rapper
• 30
• * Hardy Fox, American avant garde multi-instrumentalist and composer
• * Beverly McClellan, American blues and folk singer
• 31 – Kenny Marks, American contemporary Christian singer

  November

• 1
• * Thomas Diaz, American emo singer and musician
• * Dave Rowland, American country singer
• 2
• *Josh Fauver, American indie rock bassist
• * Roy Hargrove, American jazz trumpeter
• * Glenn Schwartz, American rock and blues guitarist
• 3
• * Mark Fosson, American primitive guitarist
• * Maria Guinot, Portuguese pop singer
• 6 – Hugh McDowell, British progressive rock cellist
• 7
• * Scott Herrick, American pop singer
• * Francis Lai, French film composer
• 13 – Lucho Gatica, Chilean bolero singer
• 15
• * Roy Clark, American country singer
• * Ivan Smirnov, Russian jazz fusion guitarist
• 16
• * Al James, British rock guitarist
• * Norris Weir, Jamaican ska singer
• 17 – Cyril Pahinui, American Hawaiian music guitarist
• 20
• * Roy Bailey, British folk singer, songwriter and guitarist
• * Trevor McNaughton, Jamaican reggae singer
• 21 – Devin Lima, American pop singer
• 22 – Imrat Khan, Indian classical sitarist
• 27 – Johnny Maddox, American ragtime pianist
• 28
• * Gary Haisman, British hip house singer
• * Roger Neumann, American jazz saxophonist
• 29 – Erik Lindmark, American technical death metal singer and guitarist

  December

• 1
• * Calvin Newborn, American jazz guitarist
• * Jody Williams, American blues guitarist
• 2 – Perry Robinson, American jazz clarinetist
• 6
• * Ace Cannon, American pop saxophonist
• * Pete Shelley, British punk singer, songwriter and guitarist
• 7
• * The Mascara Snake, American avant-garde clarinetist
• * Lucas Starr, American metalcore and Christian rock bassist
• 9 – Yigal Bashan, Israeli pop singer
• 10 – Fred Wieland, Australian rock guitarist
• 11 – Angelo Conti, Italian punk singer
• 13 – Nancy Wilson, American jazz singer
• 14
• *Vida Chenoweth, American classical marimbist and ethnomusicologist
• *Joe Osborne, American rock bassist
• 15
• *Arthur Maia, Brazilian jazz and samba bassist and composer
• *Jerry Chesnut, American country singer and songwriter
• 21 – Dipali Barthakur, Indian folk singer
• 22
• * Indonesian musicians, members of the pop rock band Seventeen
• ** Windu Andi Darmawan, drummer
• ** Muhammad Awal Purbani, bassist
• ** Herman Sikumbang, guitarist
• * Jimmy Work, American country singer-songwriter
• 23 – Honey Lantree, British pop drummer and singer
• 24
• * Jerry Riopelle, American pop singer-songwriter and keyboardist
• * Jaime Torres, Argentine folk charango player
• * James Calvin Wilsey, American rock guitarist
• 25 – Guto Barros, Brazilian rock guitarist
• 26 – Theodore Antoniou, Greek classical music composer and conductor
• 27 – Miúcha, Brazilian bossa nova singer
• 28
• * Christine McGuire, American pop singer
• * Ray Sawyer, 81, American rock singer and percussionist
• 29 – Aldo Parisot, Brazilian-born American classical music cellist
• 30 – Mike Taylor, Canadian indie pop keyboardist
• 31 – Dean Ford, Scottish pop and rock singer-songwriter