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40 Random Bits of Trivia About Artists and Their Musical Masterpieces

This list is hotter than Billboard!

40 Random Bits of Trivia About Artists and Their Musical Masterpieces

November 08, 2024

Since the music industry loves lists so much, we decided to give it another one.

Seriously though, how many charts do you need? Songs and albums get Top 10s, 20s, 40s and basically every other number up to 200. Even Rolling Stone does a 500 every once in a while. That’s why we do what we do here. These hit facts deserve the same amount of attention as hit songs, so today we have a “Top 40” for you.

Check these out while we pressure Billboard for some much needed fact charts.

40

Nirvana

In The Pines (famously recorded by Nirvana for their 1994 unplugged album with the title Where Did You Sleep Last Night) is so old, its roots are unclear. The murder ballad is believed to originate from an Appalachian folk song from the early 1900s, but was likely brought overseas from as far back as Elizabethan England. Musician Dock Walsh was the first person to record the song in 1926. CRACKED.COM — Source: Pop Culture That's Older Than It Seems

39

UB40

UB40 swiped Red Red Wine from Neil Diamond I Diamond's 1967 somber ballad was reggaefied long before the '80s, though - - courtesy of Jamaican singer Tony Tribe. — Source: uDiscoverMusic
Listen to the original (and to Tony Tribe’s version)

38

Celine Dion

CRACKED.COM Celine Dion's 1998 Christmas album features the heartfelt ballad The Magic of Christmas Day (God Bless Us Everyone). The song was written by Twisted Sister frontman and hair metal icon Dee Snider. — Source

37

The Drifters

save the last dance for me A ATLANTIC THE DRIFTERS Doc Pomus wrote this saccharine pop ballad... ...after watching his bride dance with everyone else at theirwedding. CRACKED COM Doc had polio. — 23 Eyebrow-Arching Facts About Famous Songs

36

Shaggy

CRACKED.COM Shaggy's hit song It Wasn't Me was inspired by a skit Eddie Murphy did in Raw about men being unfaithful and denying it. — Source

35

Taylor Swift

During the shooting of the music video of Taylor Swift's Shake It Off, heavy-metal music was played around the perimeter of the studio so no-one could hear the unreleased song. CO 99 AND WW CRACKED.COM — Source

34

The Dead Milkmen

THE DEAD MILKMEN wrote a song called Instant Club Hit (You'll Dance to Anything), which denounced dance music from Europe. The song slammed acts wit

33

Mandy Moore

CANDY MANDY MOORE Mandy Moore was quick to dismiss her early catalog, saying, Ugh, those were awful--just awful! If I had the money, I would give a refund to everyone who bought my first two albums. CRACKED — Source

32

Blur

Dave Rowntree is a lawyer BLUR CRACKED.COM Не started up an animation company and even became a pilot, before embarking on his most exciting journey: being a paralegal: I've done some amazing things with Blur, but that, for me, was more interesting. Не was inspired to complete law school and become a criminal lawyer. — Source

31

Outkast

Andre 3000 OUT KAST wrote OutKast's Ms. Jackson as an apology of sorts to the mother of his former partner MS. JACKSON Erykah Badu. Badu wasn't entirely thrilled with the track at first, but when asked how her mother felt about it she said She bought her a 'Ms. Jackson' license plate, she had the mug, she had the ink pen, she had the headband, she had everything... loved it. CRACKED.COM — Source

30

Dr. Dre

CRACKED BEATS BY DRE HEADPHONES USED TO BE IN ALMOST EVERY MUSIC VIDEO. In 2008 alone, they were featured in music videos by Lady Gaga, Ludacris, Pussycat Dolls, The Game, Snoop Dogg, Solange, Busta Rhymes & Linkin Park. The company was sold to Apple for $3 billion. — Complex / Time

29

Max Martin

Max Martin wrote all the pop songs you love from the era The Swedish songwriter wrote the career-defining singles of the biggest pop stars of the time: ...Baby One More Time, I Want It That Way, and It's Gonna Be Me. CRACKED.COM — Source

28

Steven Tyler

CRACKED COM The iconic drum beats at the end of Livin' On The Edge by Aerosmith... were played on a bass drum that Steven Tyler stole from his high school after senior prom. — Source

27

Nicki Minaj

STARSHIPS NICKI MINAJ Nicki Minaj said she regrets a lot of her discography, including, I wish I never recorded 'Anaconda.' I like the video but ugh. My first ever solo song on Billboard was 'Your Love.' To this day I like the video but I hate the song. I could go on and on. I hate 'Starships,' I mean ew, 'Starships?' I'm like, 'Why did I do that?' I really think that every time I hear it. CRACKED — Source

26

Classic Rock & Country

People are listening to way more classic rock and country music. Streams of the Top 200 U.S. songs fell 28% between the weeks ending on March 16 and A — Source: The Guardian

25

Kenny Rogers

Country music legend Kenny Rogers was the lead singer for a psychedelic hippie band called The First Edition. CRACKED.COM — Source: 6 Mind-Blowing Early Music Careers of Famous Musicians

24

Akon

The country of Sri Lanka prohibited Akon from ever going there. The problem? Akon's music video, which shows a wild pool party taking place in front of a Buddha statue. CRACKED.COM — Source

23

Snoop Dogg

Snoop Dogg once tried to rent the entire country of Liechtenstein for a music video shoot. A property manager, Karl Schwaerzler, said that Snoop indeed wanted to rent all 61 square miles of Liechtenstein for a video shoot, despite the govern- ment saying there is no for rent sign on the country. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — NY Post

22

Hank Williams Jr.

Hank Williams Jr. had the most predictable political opinion ever. CRACKED.COM The country music singer and longtime face of Monday Night Football wen

21

NOFX

CRACKED.COM In 2017, punk band NOFX made an ill-advised joke about the mass shooting in Las Vegas. НА At least they were country fans and not punk rock fans, they said. They were immediately dropped as headliners from the Punk In Drublic Craft Beer and Music Festival, named after one of their own albums. — Source

20

Pat Smear

Pat Smear is punk rock royalty. CRACKED.COM Smear was a founding member of the legendary Los Angeles punk band Germs, which also featured Go Go's frontwoman Belinda Carlisle. — Stereo Gum / The Guardian

19

Chumbawamba

UN-PUNK PUNK MOMENTS CHUMBAWAMBA WENT FROM ANARCHO-PUNK TO TUBTHUMPING Formerly Skin Disease and Scab Aid, the band formed in 1982, and were actually at the forefront of the anarcho-punk movement. Their unexpectedly catchy song Tubthumping was hijacked by drunk sports fans and became a huge jock jam. CRACKED — ChumbawambaBEBO/YouTube
Bandcamp Daily

18

The Dollyrots

GRAGKEDCOM If like you PARAMORE but want bit a mone punk in pop op-punk, sink your teeth into They're catchy and THE DOLYROTS!! fun, but kept that cla

17

Green Day

CRACKEDGO Pop-punk paragons EKEENHY chose their name as tribute to their favorite plant, hoping to become the Cheech and Chong of punk rock.

16

Dee Dee Ramone

UN-PUNK PUNK MOMENTS DEE DEE KING Standing Spotlight DEE DEE RAMONE QUIT THE RAMONES FOR A RAP CAREER On Rolling Stone's list of Worst Decisions in Music History, he released the rap album Standing in the Spotlight as Dee Dee King. A commercial and critical bomb, he returned to punk music, but never re-joined the Ramones. CRACKED — Bruce Alan Bennett/Shutterstock,
Sire, Warner Bros.
Rolling Stone Australia

15

Method Man

Celebrity Endorsements Method Man recorded a full rap for Sour Patch Kids. In 2013, the Wu-Tang member released World Gone Sour (The Lost Kids) a full rap video to promote the sour-sweet gummy candy. The most offensive part isn't that this happened, but that it's not a bad song. CRACKED.COM — Source: Method Man/YouTube

14

Salt-N-Pepa

SALT-N-PEPA & QUEEN LATIFAH CRACKED.COM Salt-N-Pepa's 1987 debut album Hot, Cool & Vicious became the first rap album by female act to go gold and platinum. In 1995, Salt-N-Pepa won a Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Group, and Queen Latifah won a Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance, both becoming the first female hip hop acts to win Grammy Awards. — Source: dailyrapfacts/salt-n-pepa
dailyrapfacts/queen-latifah

13

Tupac Shakur

He was only there for 2 years, but possessed a magnetism that defied logic. He got into jazz, ballet, and poetry, and frequently rap battled. Ironic

12

Schooly D

SCHOOLLY D Marshall CRACKED.COM In 1985, Philly rapper Scoolly D's, P.S.K. What Does It Mean? is credited as the first gangsta rap song. The drums and hardcore lyrics inspired Ice T's, 6 In The Mornin, which became the defining gangsta rap record and paved the way for N.W.A and 90s gangsta rap that incorporated gang culture. — Source: billboard.com

11

Peter Dinklage

Peter Dinklage had a rap/rock band. Dinklage was a member of a kinda douchey college band called Whizzy in the '90s. He sang and played cornet on SONG

10

Motorhead

MOTORHEAD oO MEANS SPEED FREAKA o Motorhead's founder, Lemmy, said that his aim was for the group to be the dirtiest rock 'n' roll band in the world.

9

Alice Cooper

CRACKED ALICE COOPER AND GROUCHO MARX The shock rocker and the legendary comedian were buddies and would hang out together, watching classic films and going to Alice Cooper's horror-comedy shows. — Review Journal / Cleveland

8

The Doors

GRACKED THE DOORS' SELF-TITLED ALBUM The Doors' self-titled first album was finished in a flash - only six days in the studio at Sunset Sound Recorders in LA. It's one of the fastest pieces of rock music ever made. — This is Dig

7

Rock ‘n’ Roll as Euphemism

Trixie Smith released a song in 1914 called My Man Rocks Me With One Steady Roll, using rock 'n' roll as a euphemism for sex. It had probably been used earlier, but that's the first time it showed up in a popular song. CRACKED — UNIKYLUCKK/Shutterstock
Wiktionary

6

Frank Zappa

1M WHEN MTV ASKED FRANK ZAPPA ABOUT WHETHER THE '80S ROCK N' ROLL MUSIC IS MORE FORMULA THAN IT WAS BACK IN THE DAYS... ZAPPA REPLIED, IMEAN YOU HERE

5

Bruce Springsteen

CRACKED Bruce Springsteen roasts Bob Dylan - Rock & Roll HoF While inducting Dylan into the Rock & Roll HoF, Springsteen said he first heard Dylan's Like A Rolling Stone in the car with his mother: She liked the music. She sat there for a minute, looked at me and said, 'That guy can't sing. 1988 — Youtube / Billboard

4

Stevie Nicks

Stevie Nicks is the only woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. Once for being a member of Fleetwood Mac, once for her solo career. — Source: The New York Times

3

Metallica

Metallica gladly welcomed a new member of a different species, the Macrostylis metallicola, into their rock 'n' roll family. ETALICOLK MAICROSTYLIS ET

2

Johnny Rotten

UN-PUNK PUNK MOMENTS JOHN JOHNNY ROTTEN LYDON APPEARS IN A BUTTER COMMERCIAL After refusing to accept a Rock & Roll HoF induction in 2006 (defiantly saying, We're not your monkeys), Lydon was reportedly paid $8 million to appear in a Country Life butter ad in 2008. CRACKED — Bart Sherkow/Shutterstock,
Saputo Dairy UK
Open Culture

1

The Ramones

Johnny Ramone might have invented punk rock as we know it, but he wasn't into the rock 'n' roll lifestyle in the least. After concerts, when the rest

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