It’s June 22nd and these are some of the things that happened on this day in pop music history:
- In 1970, Steven Jay Page was born in Toronto. In 1988, he joined Barenaked Ladies and rocketed to fame in Canada and, eventually, around the world with songs like “One Week,” “Brian Wilson,” and “If I Had $1,000,000.” Page left BNL in 2009 and embarked on a solo career.
- In 1985, Canada’s Bryan Adams earned his first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Heaven.” Recorded two years earlier, it was featured on the soundtrack to the 1984 film A Night in Heaven and then included on his 1984 album Reckless. “Heaven” topped the chart for two weeks.
- In 1992, three members of MC Hammer’s crew were shot and wounded while on a tour stop in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The rapper claimed it was a drive-by shooting but witnesses said the three men were shot by someone on the crew.
- In 2007, Canadian singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan welcomed her second child, daughter Taja Summer Sood, with then-husband Ashwin Sood.
- In 2013, “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke ft. T.I. and Pharrell Williams started a 12-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was accused of promoting date rape and was also the subject of a plagiarism lawsuit by the estate of Marvin Gaye.
- In 2009, R&B singer Chris Brown pleaded guilty to assaulting then-girlfriend Rihanna earlier in the year. He received five years of probation and ordered to complete community service and attend domestic violence counselling.
And that’s what popped on this day.