As part of the 2012 hennemusic Rock News Awards – recognizing the biggest rock news stories and artists of the year - hennemusic is counting down the Top 10 Rock News Artists of the year.
Finalists for the 3rd annual hennemusic Rock News Awards are chosen by readers: winners are determined by the combined total page views of the top 50 hennemusic rock news stories of the past twelve months.
The 2012 hennemusic Rock News Awards winners will be announced on Friday, December 21 at hennemusic.com.
Rock News Artist Of The Year - TOP 10
#06 - JIMMY FALLON
#07 – MOTLEY CRUE
#08 - AEROSMITH
#09 – SLASH
#10 – QUEEN
Rock News Artist of The Year - #5 – LED ZEPPELIN
It was quite a year for Led Zeppelin and their fans.
The iconic rockers began and ended 2012 talking about their 2007 reunion in London, which finally saw its release as “Celebration Day.”
In late February, it was announced that funds raised by Zeppelin’s 02 Arena show were donated to Oxford University.
The £26 million ($41.6 million US) donation, made by Mica Ertegun, widow of Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, is understood to be one of the largest in Oxford’s 900-year history.
It will be used to set up the Mica and Ahmet Ertegun Graduate Scholarship Programme in the Humanities, which will see students worldwide compete for an award to study subjects including literature, history, music, art history, Asian studies, Middle Eastern studies and archaeology.
Jimmy Page released “Lucifer Rising And Other Sound Tracks” in March. The project documented music the guitarist created for the 1972 film, “Lucifer Rising,” by director Kenneth Anger.
In May, Robert Plant debuted his new band, the Sensational Space Shifters, at the Gloucester Guildhall in Gloucester, England.
The singer also issued the “Robert Plant & The Band Of Joy: Live From The Artists Den" DVD in July.
In early September, rumors surfaced that Zeppelin’s 2007 reunion would be released in the fall, which created a huge buzz amongst media and fans alike.
And then the countdown began - literally: Zeppelin began a countdown clock online before officially revealing their plans for “Celebration Day.”
Prior to its November release, the band reunited for press conferences and premieres in London and New York, with events also held in Berlin and Tokyo.
The press events raised the inevitable question of future reunion shows, which the group tried its best to avoid answering in any way possible. Along the way, details were revealed that Plant is the lone hold-out preventing more concerts, with the singer content to continue to find his muse in American roots music these days.
“Celebration Day” was launched with a worldwide theatrical release on 1,500 screens in over 40 territories on October 17; more screenings were scheduled due to fan demand.
Upon its November release, the album landed at #9 on the Billboard 200 chart with opening week U.S. sales of 101,000 copies.
Plant, Page and John Paul Jones received the Kennedy Center Honors in early December. The annual award is given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture.
Zeppelin were on hand along with fellow 2012 recipients David Letterman, bluesman Buddy Guy, actor and director Dustin Hoffman, and ballerina Natalia Makarova.
As for 2013, Plant has a series of solo dates booked for Australia and New Zealand. It’s also been confirmed that the singer has recorded two albums – one with Band Of Joy guitarist Buddy Miller and one with the Sensational Space Shifters – that may or may not see the light of day at some point.
Page continues to express his desire to be out playing live, with recent comments suggesting that he hopes to have something together late next year.
Led Zeppelin 