As part of the 2019 hennemusic Rock News Awards, the daily news site is counting down the Top 10 Rock News Artists of the year.
Finalists for the 10th annual hennemusic Rock News Awards are chosen by readers: the Rock News Story Of The Year is determined by page views, while the Rock News Artist Of The Year is based on the combined total page views of the top 50 hennemusic rock news stories of the past twelve months.
The 2019 hennemusic Rock News Awards winners will be announced on Thursday, December 19.
2019 Rock News Artist Of The Year – Top 10
10 – QUEEN
09 – RUSH
08 – DEF LEPPARD
07 – STEVE PERRY
06 – AEROSMITH
05 – FLEETWOOD MAC
04 – SAMMY HAGAR
03 – JOURNEY
Rock News Artist of The Year No. 2 – VAN HALEN
While Van Halen have been inactive since the end of a 2015 North American tour, frontman David Lee Roth closed out 2018 with hints that the band would reunite with its original lineup this year for a stadium tour, even name-dropping Yankee Stadium and a few possible opening acts for the series before stopping short of confirming anything.
The members of Roth’s original solo band did reunite – albeit with singer Jeff Scott Soto – for a rare performance at NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) convention in Anaheim, CA on January 26, four years after an aborted 2015 attempt to play a Hollywood club show with Roth.
In February, Sammy Hagar confirmed that bassist Michael Anthony had been contacted by Van Halen management about a reunion tour as rumors about the situation continued to surface.
Roth appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience for a marathon three-hour discussion about a variety of topics, before making a rare appearance at the Ultra Music Festival in Miami, FL on March 30 when he joined DJ and headliner Armin van Buuren for a new remix of the 1984 Van Halen classic, “Jump” that would see its official release in May.
As Van Halen fans awaited news about the possible reunion tour, Roth relaunched his dormant video series, “The Roth Show”, as a new podcast in April; that same month, a short documentary detailing the results of a 1984 MTV Lost Weekend with Van Halen contest premiered at New York’s Tribeca Film Festival.
Roth made headlines when he streamed video of a surprise fan encounter during a Las Vegas bachelor party while he was in town to perform with van Buuren at the Electric Daisy Carnival music festival; the rocker also revealed that he was in talks to host his own residency in the city, which he eventually confirmed will take place at the House Of Blues at Mandalay Bay Resort And Casino with a three-show run in January 2020 and a six-night series in March.
Roth shocked fans in September when he announced “Van Halen is over” while stating that he had been hearing the rumors that were making the rounds about Eddie Van Halen battling some serious health issues: “Van Halen isn't gonna be coming back in the fashion that you know. And that being said, Eddie's got his own story to tell…not mine to tell it."
On the heels of Roth’s news, Toto guitarist Steve Lukather confirmed that health issues are responsible for keeping Eddie off the road four years after the band’s last performance, while a TMZ report revealed that the guitar icon has been flying to Germany in recent years to receive radiation treatments for throat cancer.
Eddie went unrecognized by a music fan during an encounter at the October 21 Tool concert at the Staple Center in Los Angeles and, in November, news broke that Eddie had been hospitalized and released after experiencing some complications from medication for his throat cancer.
Eddie has not made any official statements regarding his health or the status of Van Halen to date.
In November, Van Halen released a new box set entitled “The Japanese Singles 1978-1984”; the package collects all 13 7” vinyl singles issued in Japan during the band’s original era, from the group’s 1978 self-titled debut to their sixth album, “1984.”
KISS have just added Roth to their 2020 farewell US tour dates; the singer will deliver a mix of solo hits and Van Halen classics when The End Of The Road dates resume in Manchester, NH on February 1, with the spring run wrapping up in March before the pairing return for a fall US leg that will begin in late August.
See also:
Search Van Halen at hennemusic
2019 hennemusic Rock News Awards announced
AC/DC and Pink Floyd win 2018 hennemusic Rock News Awards
The Eagles sweep the 2017 hennemusic Rock News Awards
AC/DC sweep the 2016 hennemusic Rock News Awards
Van Halen and KISS top the 2015 hennemusic Rock News Awards
Van Halen sweep 2014 hennemusic Rock News Awards
Van Halen and Pearl Jam top the 2013 hennemusic Rock News Awards
Van Halen dominate the 2012 hennemusic Rock News Awards
Van Halen win two hennemusic Rock News Awards
Guns N’ Roses named hennemusic’s Rock News Artist of The Year
Jimmy Page’s 2011 plans named hennemusic’s Rock News Story Of The Year
