1991 in music

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1991.

• 1991 in British music
• 1991 in Norwegian music
• 1991 in South Korean music

• 1991 in country music
• 1991 in heavy metal music
• 1991 in hip hop music
• 1991 in Latin music
• 1991 in jazz

Although the year 1991 is the year that grunge music made its popular breakthrough, heavy metal was still the dominant form of rock music for the year.^[1] Therefore, Nirvana's Nevermind, led by the surprise hit single "Smells Like Teen Spirit", was not the most popular U.S. album of the year. The most popular album was Metallica's self-titled "black album". Nirvana's success was eventually followed by other grunge bands like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, and Stone Temple Pilots, as grunge climbed the U.S. charts for the next few years. Its success eventually ended the reign of the glam metal and other hard rock groups that enjoyed massive success in the 1980s like Mötley Crüe, Poison, Warrant, Cinderella, and Ratt, whose sales were still going strong by 1991. Also during the year, the rock band Guns N' Roses's popularity flourished with the release of their albums Use Your Illusion I & Use Your Illusion II, both selling over 15 million copies total. Def Leppard's next album Adrenalize, released in March 1992, would go on to reach multi-platinum status and prove to be the last major commercial success for 1980s hair metal. A Tribe Called Quest's Low End Theory is released this year; it would go on to be considered one of the best hip hop albums of the 1990s. A Tribe Called Quest, along with De La Soul, Dream Warriors, Gang Starr and the Poor Righteous Teachers, help define what comes to be known as alternative rap with important releases this year.

On November 24, the death of Freddie Mercury, who had confirmed to the press that he had AIDS only a day before his death,^[2] came as a shock to millions of fans and the music industry. The remaining members of Queen formed the Mercury Phoenix Trust and the following year, a tribute concert would be staged in Wembley Stadium, in front of a sell-out crowd. Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (released as a double A-side with "These Are the Days of Our Lives") went to number one for the second time in the U.K.. It is also the only time a single has gone to number one more than once on the UK Christmas charts.

During the year, Billboard started using Nielsen SoundScan for its sales source for the music charts. Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales data for Nielsen on 1 March 1991. The 25 May issue of Billboard published Billboard 200 and Country Album charts based on SoundScan "piece count data," and the first Hot 100 chart to debut with the system was released on 30 November 1991. Previously, Billboard tracked sales by calling stores across the U.S. and asking about sales – a method that was inherently error-prone and open to outright fraud. Indeed, while transitioning from the calling to tracking methods, the airplay and sales charts (already monitored by Nielsen) and the Hot 100 (then still using the calling system) often did not match (for instance Paula Abdul's "Promise of a New Day" and Roxette's "Fading Like a Flower" reached much higher Hot 100 peaks than their actual sales and airplay would have allowed them to). Although most record company executives conceded that the new method was far more accurate than the old, the chart's volatility and its geographical balance initially caused deep concern, before the change and the market shifts it brought about were accepted across the industry. Tower Records, the country's second-largest retail chain, was originally not included in the sample because its stores are equipped with different technology to measure sales. At first, some industry executives complained that the new system – which relied on high-tech sales measurement rather than store employee estimates – was based on an inadequate sample, one that favored established and mainstream acts over newcomers.

1991 was also the year CCM, or contemporary Christian music, reached a new peak. Amy Grant, who had already crossed back and forth between CCM and Contemporary Pop in the mid-80s, achieved her first solo No. 1 hit on the pop charts with the hit single "Baby Baby," becoming the first single by a CCM artist to reach No. 1 (despite the fact the song was a pop song and was void of any Christian references). Another single, "That's What Love Is For," would also top the charts, this time in the Adult Contemporary field. Meanwhile, Grant's album Heart In Motion reaches No. 11 on the pop chart and No. 1 on the Christian chart despite its non-religious objective, and quickly becomes a best-seller. Another CCM crossover artist in 1991 is Michael W. Smith, who achieves a Top Ten pop hit with his single "Place In This World." The subsequent album, Go West Young Man, is also a hit. Jon Gibson's hit "Jesus Loves Ya" still holds the record as the longest playing hit single in Christian music history. The track spent eleven weeks at No. 1 and became the top selling CCM single of 1991.^[3] Only three artists received more airplay on Christian radio stations in that year other than Gibson; Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith and BeBe & CeCe Winans.

The massive success of Garth Brooks in this year set the stage for the mid-1990s influx of pop-oriented country musicians. Several soon-to-be pivotal bands formed or released debut recordings, including Dave Matthews Band, Live, Phish, Spin Doctors and stoner metal (Kyuss, Sleep, The Obsessed). Massive Attack's Blue Lines, pioneered the sound that would eventually become known as trip hop. Entombed's Clandestine and Dismember's Like an Ever Flowing Stream were early releases from the Scandinavian metal scene. In the US, New York death metal band Suffocation released their debut full-length Effigy of the Forgotten, often considered one of the most influential of extreme metal albums. Trance music rose to prominence in the underground dance scene of Frankfurt, Germany, pioneered by such producers as Dance 2 Trance and Resistance D. U2 released their seventh album Achtung Baby, considered by many of their fans to be their best. Metallica's self-titled album was their most commercially successful, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers broke through to the mainstream with Blood Sugar Sex Magik. R.E.M. released their massive commercial breakthrough album Out of Time.

• 8 January – Def Leppard guitarist Steve Clark dies of respiratory failure from a lethal mixture of alcohol and prescription drugs. He was 30 years old.
• 15 January – A new all-star rendition of the John Lennon song "Give Peace a Chance" is released, featuring Yoko Ono, Lenny Kravitz, Peter Gabriel, Alannah Myles, Tom Petty, Bonnie Raitt and many more, billed as "The Peace Choir". The single has been rushed to market in response to the imminent Gulf War.
• 16 January – The sixth annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony is held in New York. The event goes forward despite a tense atmosphere caused by the US President's announcement of the Gulf War the same evening. The inductees are Ike & Tina Turner, Jimmy Reed, John Lee Hooker, LaVern Baker, The Byrds, The Impressions, Wilson Pickett and Howlin' Wolf.
• 18 January – Three people are crushed to death during an AC/DC concert in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, when audience members rush the stage.
• 18–27 January – The massive nine-day festival Rock in Rio II is held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The headliners are a-ha, Prince, INXS, Guns N' Roses, New Kids on the Block, George Michael and Happy Mondays.
• 19 January – Janet Jackson with seventh single from Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814, "Love Will Never Do (Without You)", becomes the only artist to have seven singles from the same album chart in the top five.
• 27 January – Whitney Houston sings "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the Super Bowl. The recording is then released and becomes a hit single.
• 31 January – DJ Magazine is launched under its new name.^[4]
• 5 February – Queen release their final album of Freddie Mercury's lifetime, entitled Innuendo. This album includes hit singles such as "The Show Must Go On", "Headlong", "These Are The Days Of Our Lives" and "Innuendo".
• 20 February – The 33rd Annual Grammy Awards are presented in New York, hosted by Garry Shandling. Quincy Jones' Back on the Block wins Album of the Year, Phil Collins' "Another Day in Paradise" wins Record of the Year and Bette Midler's version of "From a Distance" wins Song of the Year. Mariah Carey wins Best New Artist.
• 27 February – James Brown is granted an early parole and released from jail, following his arrest after a high-speed car chase through two states in 1989. Pop Will Eat Itself documented the affair with their song, "Not Now James, We're Busy".
• 28 February – Hollywood's Record Plant Studios recording studio closes down. Among the albums recorded at the Record Plant were The Eagles' Hotel California, Fleetwood Mac's Rumours and Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life.
• 1 March – Nielsen SoundScan begins tracking sales data for Nielsen.
• 11 March – Janet Jackson signs a US$30 million contract with Virgin Records, making her the highest paid female recording artist ever.
• 12 March – R.E.M. release their seventh studio album, Out of Time. The album would serve as the band's breakthrough, catapulting the Georgia alternative rock band from cult status to a massive international act.
• 16 March – Seven members of country music singer Reba McEntire's band and her road manager are killed when their private plane crashes in California, near the U.S.-Mexico border. McEntire travels on a separate plane. The disaster inspires the title song of her next album, For My Broken Heart.
• 20 March
  • Michael Jackson signs a contract with Sony for 1 billion dollars.^[5]
  • Eric Clapton's four-year-old son, Conor, dies after falling 49 stories from a New York City apartment window; the event later inspires Clapton to write the hit single "Tears in Heaven".
• 24 March – The Black Crowes are dropped as the opening act of ZZ Top's tour for repeatedly insulting the tour's sponsor, Miller Beer.
• 27 March – New Kids on the Block star Donnie Wahlberg is arrested in Louisville, Kentucky for allegedly setting his hotel room on fire.
• 28 March – George Harrison, Phil Collins and others attend funeral services for Eric Clapton's late son, Conor.

• 17 April – Nirvana performs "Smells Like Teen Spirit" live for the first time at the OK Hotel in Seattle, Washington.
• 28 April – Bonnie Raitt marries actor Michael O'Keefe in New York.
• 4 May – The Eurovision Song Contest 1991 is held in Rome, Italy, and, after a highly controversial voting segment, Sweden's Fångad av en stormvind by Carola is declared the winner.
• 7 May – In Macon, Georgia, a judge dismisses a wrongful death lawsuit against Ozzy Osbourne. The suit was filed by a local couple that believed their son was inspired to attempt suicide by Osbourne's music.
• 10 May – Truth or Dare, a documentary chronicling singer Madonna's 1990 Blond Ambition Tour, is released to theatres.
• 24 May – Guns N' Roses kick off their 26-month world Use Your Illusion Tour in Alpine Valley in East Troy.
• 25 May – The Billboard 200 album chart starts incorporating electronically monitored sales data provided by Nielsen SoundScan, thus beginning what chart aficionados tag as the "SoundScan era".
• 28 May – The Smashing Pumpkins release their debut album Gish, establishing the band as one of the most important of the alternative scene.
• 7 June – ABC revives the late-night rock performance series In Concert.
• 21 June – The Mérida State Symphony Orchestra is founded in Venezuela.
• 28 June – Paul McCartney's classical composition, the Liverpool Oratorio, receives its première at the Liverpool Anglican Cathedral.

• 2 July
  • Launch of the Australian Festival of Chamber Music.
  • Hollywood Bowl Orchestra gives its first public performance.
  • During the Use Your Illusion Tour, Axl Rose assaults a member of the audience watching the show on camera, after security fails to respond to the singer's orders to confiscate the camera. After the attack, Rose angrily says, "Thanks to the lame-ass security, I'm goin' home!" and storms off the stage.^[6]
• 13 July – Pianist Keith Jarrett records his Vienna Concert at the Vienna Staatsoper.
• 18 July – Perry Farrell launches the first Lollapalooza tour as a farewell for his just-dissolved band, Jane's Addiction. Other acts appearing on the tour include Siouxsie and the Banshees, Nine Inch Nails, Rollins Band, Fishbone and Rage Against the Machine.
• 12 August – Metallica release their most successful album, Metallica (also called "The Black Album"). Something of a departure from the thrash metal sound they helped pioneer, it becomes one of the best-selling albums of all time^[7]
• 15 August – Paul Simon's Concert in the Park takes place in Central Park. The free concert is broadcast live on HBO.
• 20 August – The six-day International Pop Underground Convention opens in Olympia, Washington.
• 27 August
  • Pearl Jam release their debut album, Ten. While initially slow to sell, it becomes No. 2 on the Billboard charts within a year and has since become certified thirteen times Platinum in the United States.^[8]
  • Dr. Dre pleads no contest to charges that he beat up a woman at a West Hollywood nightclub. Dr. Dre is sentenced to 24 months probation.
• 10 September – Nirvana releases the single for "Smells Like Teen Spirit," a song that would achieve unprecedented success the following year and become a trailblazer for grunge and alternative rock as a whole.
• 17 September – Rock band Guns N' Roses release their first full-length follow up to their debut album Appetite for Destruction in the form of the double album Use Your Illusion I & Use Your Illusion II. Both go on to sell a combined excess of 1.3 million on their first week of sale in the US alone.
• 23 September
  • Primal Scream releases Screamadelica, which would go on to win the first Mercury Prize in 1992.
  • The TV Series Baywatch begins its second season with a new theme song performed and co-written by former Survivor member Jimi Jamison, "I'm Always Here".
  • Bryan Adams releases his sixth album Waking Up the Neighbours produced by Mutt Lange, achieving diamond status in his native Canada for the second time.
• 24 September – Retrospectively considered by critics^{[9][10][11][12]} to be a seminal date in music history, as it saw the release of several key albums:
  • Nevermind, the sophomore album from Seattle-based band Nirvana, which would go on to popularize the grunge movement nationwide and be considered both a defining album of Generation X and one of the greatest albums in the history of popular music.
  • The Low End Theory, the sophomore album from hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, which came to also be regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, as well as a defining album for alternative hip hop.
  • Blood Sugar Sex Magik, the fifth album from funk rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers, which, alongside Nevermind, also helped to popularize alternative rock.
  • Trompe le Monde, the fourth album from influential alternative rock band the Pixies, their last before their breakup two years later. It would be the band's final full-length LP for 22 years.

• 8 October – Soundgarden releases their breakout album Badmotorfinger.
• 3 November – A free tribute concert is held at Golden Gate Park in memory of concert promoter Bill Graham, killed in a helicopter crash three weeks earlier at the age of 60. Performers include Santana, Grateful Dead, Journey and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
• 7 November
  • Bryan Adams's 16-week stay at the top of the UK Singles Chart with "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)" is finally ended by U2 single "The Fly", having already set a new record for the longest consecutive stay at the top of the UK Singles Chart.
  • Izzy Stradlin quits Guns N' Roses.
  • Frank Zappa's children, Dweezil and Moon, announce to an audience in New York that their father is unable to attend the tribute concert to his music because he is seriously ill with prostate cancer.
• 14 November – The new Michael Jackson music video "Black or White" premieres simultaneously in 27 countries to an audience of 500 million people. Controversy is immediately generated by the video's last four minutes in which Jackson smashes windows, vandalizes a car and causes a building to explode, as well as suggestively grabs his crotch repeatedly while dancing.
• 19 November
  • U2 releases album Achtung Baby.
  • Luis Miguel releases Romance which revitalized the popularity of boleros in the 1990s.^[13]
• 24 November – Freddie Mercury, lead singer of Queen, dies from AIDS-related complications at the age of 45 one day after making the disease public. The same day, Eric Carr, formerly of KISS, also dies from complications of heart cancer.
• 26 November – Michael Jackson releases his worldwide hit album Dangerous. It comes four years after Bad and goes on to sell more than 32 million copies worldwide.
• 30 November – Following in the steps of the Billboard 200, the Billboard Hot 100 also begins a new era by incorporating and merging electronically measured sales and airplay data from SoundScan and BDS respectively.
• 1 December
  • A Carnegie Hall Christmas Concert, featuring Kathleen Battle and Frederica von Stade, a jazz band led by Wynton Marsalis, and orchestra and chorus conducted by André Previn, is recorded for television.
  • George Harrison plays Yokohama, Japan. The brief Japanese tour with Eric Clapton marks his first set of formal concert performances since 1974.
• 4 December – The Judds give their final concert performance as a duo.
• December 17 - Judge Kevin Thomas Duffy rules, in singer-songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan's lawsuit against rapper Biz Markie, that all future samples must be cleared.
• 31 December – The twentieth annual New Year's Rockin' Eve special airs on ABC, with appearances by Boyz II Men, Simply Red, Vanessa L. Williams, Another Bad Creation, Restless Heart, Michael Bivins and Barry Manilow.

• Aerosmith signs a new deal with Sony Music worth an estimated $30 million.
• The Rolling Stones sign a new contract with Virgin Records.
• Country music legend Kenny Rogers starts his restaurant chain, Kenny Rogers Roasters.
• Tupac Shakur's solo career begins with his first album, 2Pacalypse Now. Six-year-old Qa'id Walker-Teal is shot dead by a stray bullet during a confrontation between Tupac's entourage and a rival group.
• Mangue Bit is originated in Recife, Brazil, circa 1991.

• See Musical groups established in 1991

• The Osborn Sisters

• The Knack
• Procol Harum

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the charts of 1991.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart Entries
1	Bryan Adams	(Everything I Do) I Do it For You	1991		UK 1 - Jun 1991 (25 weeks), US Billboard 1 - Jun 1991 (22 weeks), US BB 1 of 1991, US CashBox 1 of 1991, ARC 1 of 1991 (peak 1 17 weeks), US Radio 1 of 1991 (peak 1 12 weeks), Holland 1 - Jul 1991 (21 weeks), Sweden 1 - Aug 1991 (15 weeks), Finland 1 for 1 week - Aug 1991, Austria 1 - Aug 1991 (8 months), Brazil 1 of 1991, Switzerland 1 - Jul 1991 (34 weeks), Norway 1 - Jul 1991 (21 weeks), Poland 1 - Jul 1991 (44 weeks), Belgium 1 - Jul 1991 (20 weeks), Germany 1 - Jan 1992 (7 months), ODK Germany 1 - Jul 1991 (34 weeks) (5 weeks at number 1) (23 weeks in top 10), Eire 1 for 11 weeks - Jul 1991, Canada RPM 1 for 9 weeks - Aug 1991, Canada 1 of 1991, New Zealand 1 for 8 weeks - Aug 1991, Australia 1 for 11 weeks - Jul 1991, Europe 1 for 18 weeks - Jul 1991, Germany 1 for 5 weeks - Oct 1991, Spain 1 for 1 week - Oct 1991, Top Song of 1991 of the Billboard 50th list, US 3 X Platinum (certified by RIAA in Sep 1991), UK 2 x Platinum (certified by BPI in Sep 1991), Japan (Tokyo) 2 - Jul 1991 (30 weeks), Oscar in 1991 (film 'Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves') (Nominated), Grammy in 1991 (Nominated), Golden Globe in 1991 (film 'Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves') (Nominated), Germany Platinum (certified by BMieV in 1991), Switzerland 3 of 1991, Australia 3 of 1991, POP 3 of 1991, Europe 5 of the 1990s (1991), TOTP 6, UK sales 7 of the 1990s (1,520 k in 1991), Japan (Osaku) 9 of 1991 (peak 1 21 weeks), Italy 9 of 1991, Germany 9 of the 1990s (peak 1 25 weeks), UKMIX 10, Billboard 50th song 16, 55th Billboard 100 18 (1991), Billboard100 19, Scrobulate 30 of ballad, France (InfoDisc) 46 of the 1990s (peak 1, 30 weeks, 508k sales estimated, 1991), nuTsie 55 of 1990s, Virgin 60, DMDB 78 (1991), Poland 96 of all time, Holland free40 99 of 1991, OzNet 121, Belgium 150 of all time, RYM 73 of 1991, Global 7 (10 M sold) - 1991, Party 70 of 2007
2	Michael Jackson	Black or White	1991		UK 1 - Nov 1991 (21 weeks), US Billboard 1 - Nov 1991 (19 weeks), Japan (Tokyo) 1 - Nov 1991 (20 weeks), Finland 1 for 1 week - Nov 1991, Switzerland 1 - Nov 1991 (30 weeks), Norway 1 - Nov 1991 (17 weeks), Poland 1 - Nov 1991 (20 weeks), Belgium 1 - Nov 1991 (14 weeks), Italy 1 for 8 weeks - Nov 1991, Eire 1 for 1 week - Nov 1991, Canada RPM 1 for 2 weeks - Dec 1991, New Zealand 1 for 5 weeks - Nov 1991, Australia 1 for 5 weeks - Nov 1991, Europe 1 for 10 weeks - Nov 1991, Spain 1 for 1 week - Jan 1992, ARC 2 of 1991 (peak 1 13 weeks), Austria 2 - Nov 1991 (5 months), Germany 2 - Jan 1992 (5 months), ODK Germany 2 - Nov 1991 (34 weeks) (13 weeks in top 10), US Platinum (certified by RIAA in Jan 1992), Holland 3 - Nov 1991 (10 weeks), Italy 3 of 1991, Germany Gold (certified by BMieV in 1992), Sweden 11 - Jul 2009 (5 weeks), US BB 14 of 1992, Japan (Osaku) 14 of 1992 (peak 1 21 weeks), Switzerland 14 of 1992, Brazil 16 of 1992, POP 19 of 1991, Australia 24 of 1992, US CashBox 29 of 1992, US Radio 36 of 1991 (peak 1 8 weeks), Canada 37 of 1992, nuTsie 60 of 1990s, Germany 115 of the 1990s (peak 2 15 weeks), UK Silver (certified by BPI in Dec 1991), RYM 96 of 1991
3	R.E.M.	Losing My Religion	1991		Holland 1 - Mar 1991 (13 weeks), Poland 1 - Apr 1991 (24 weeks), Belgium 1 - Apr 1991 (11 weeks), Europe 1 of the 1990s (1991), Grammy Hall of Fame in 2017 (1991), MTV Video of the year 1991, nuTsie 2 of 1990s, Grammy in 1991 (Nominated), US Billboard 4 - Apr 1991 (21 weeks), Norway 4 - Jun 1991 (11 weeks), US Gold (certified by RIAA in Sep 1991), US (Sup) Gold (certified by RIAA in Oct 2009), Sweden 5 - Mar 1991 (9 weeks), Holland free40 7 of 1991, Austria 7 - Aug 1991 (4 months), Switzerland 11 - Oct 1991 (9 weeks), Belgium 12 of all time, UK 19 - Mar 1991 (9 weeks), Japan (Osaku) 24 of 1991 (peak 8 20 weeks), Canada 28 of 1991, ARC 29 of 1991 (peak 3 14 weeks), Brazil 30 of 1991, Virgin 30, US BB 33 of 1991, US CashBox 39 of 1991, 39 in 2FM list, US Radio 44 of 1991 (peak 4 9 weeks), Poland 44 of all time, Acclaimed 44 (1991), Japan (Tokyo) 46 - Mar 1991 (9 weeks), POP 61 of 1991, Vinyl Surrender 66 (1991), Scrobulate 69 of rock, Italy 70 of 1991, OzNet 90, WXPN 106, RIAA 143, Rolling Stone 169, RYM 5 of 1991, WFUV 86, one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 500
4	Roxette	Joyride	1991		US Billboard 1 - Mar 1991 (19 weeks), Japan (Tokyo) 1 - Mar 1991 (18 weeks), Holland 1 - Mar 1991 (13 weeks), Sweden 1 - Mar 1991 (12 weeks), Austria 1 - Mar 1991 (5 months), Switzerland 1 - Mar 1991 (25 weeks), Norway 1 - Mar 1991 (16 weeks), Belgium 1 - Mar 1991 (13 weeks), Germany 1 - Mar 1991 (5 months), ODK Germany 1 - Mar 1991 (32 weeks) (8 weeks at number 1) (15 weeks in top 10), Canada RPM 1 for 3 weeks - May 1991, Australia 1 for 3 weeks - Apr 1991, Europe 1 for 10 weeks - Mar 1991, Germany 1 for 8 weeks - Apr 1991, Spain 1 for 1 week - May 1991, Switzerland 2 of 1991, Poland 3 - Apr 1991 (12 weeks), UK 4 - Mar 1991 (10 weeks), Germany Gold (certified by BMieV in 1991), Canada 6 of 1991, France 7 - Apr 1991 (2 weeks), Australia 13 of 1991, Japan (Osaku) 14 of 1991 (peak 1 19 weeks), US BB 23 of 1991, Italy 24 of 1991, Germany 24 of the 1990s (peak 1 20 weeks), US CashBox 33 of 1991, US Radio 37 of 1991 (peak 2 9 weeks), POP 37 of 1991, ARC 42 of 1991 (peak 1 13 weeks), Brazil 50 of 1991
5	Enigma	Sadeness (Part I)	1990		UK 1 - Dec 1990 (12 weeks), Holland 1 - Nov 1990 (13 weeks), France 1 - Dec 1990 (2 weeks), Austria 1 - Nov 1990 (5 months), Switzerland 1 - Nov 1990 (21 weeks), Norway 1 - Dec 1990 (14 weeks), Belgium 1 - Dec 1990 (12 weeks), Italy 1 for 5 weeks - Feb 1991, Germany 1 - Jan 1991 (5 months), ODK Germany 1 - Oct 1990 (27 weeks) (11 weeks at number 1) (16 weeks in top 10), Eire 1 for 1 week - Jan 1991, Europe 1 for 9 weeks - Jan 1991, Germany 1 for 11 weeks - Nov 1990, Spain 1 for 1 week - Feb 1991, Sweden 2 - Dec 1990 (5 weeks), Poland 2 - Dec 1990 (14 weeks), Germany Platinum (certified by BMieV in 1991), Japan (Tokyo) 4 - Mar 1991 (15 weeks), US Gold (certified by RIAA in Apr 1991), US Billboard 5 - Feb 1991 (18 weeks), Switzerland 6 of 1991, Italy 7 of 1991, Brazil 13 of 1991, Germany 21 of the 1990s (peak 1 18 weeks), POP 43 of 1991, US BB 63 of 1991, Canada 68 of 1991, US Radio 73 of 1991 (peak 7 7 weeks), France (InfoDisc) 88 of the 1990s (peak 1, 26 weeks, 385k sales estimated, 1990), Japan (Osaku) 92 of 1991 (peak 13 18 weeks), OzNet 226, UK Silver (certified by BPI in Jan 1991), RYM 47 of 1990

All albums have been named albums of the year for their hits in the charts.^[16] '

1. Nirvana – Nevermind
2. Pearl Jam – Ten
3. My Bloody Valentine – Loveless
4. U2 – Achtung Baby
5. Red Hot Chili Peppers – Blood Sugar Sex Magik
6. Metallica – Metallica
7. Primal Scream – Screamadelica
8. Slint – Spiderland
9. A Tribe Called Quest – The Low End Theory
10. Massive Attack – Blue Lines
11. Talk Talk – Laughing Stock

• "Dreamland" w. Alan Bergman & Marilyn Bergman m. Dave Grusin
• "Look Around" w. Betty Comden & Adolph Green m. Cy Coleman from the musical The Will Rogers Follies
• "Moja domovina"

• John Corigliano – Symphony No. 1
• George Crumb – Easter Dawning for carillon
• Mario Davidovsky – Simple Dances for flute, two percussion, piano, and cello
• Joël-François Durand – un feu distinct for flute, clarinet, piano, violin and cello
• Lorenzo Ferrero
  • Concerto for Piano and Orchestra
  • Parodia, for chamber ensemble
  • Zaubermarsch, for small orchestra
• Sofia Gubaidulina
  • Gerade und ungerade (Чет и нечет) for seven percussionists, including cymbalom
  • Silenzio for bayan, violin, and cello
• Angelo Gilardino
  • Musica per l'Angelo della Melancholia, for guitar
  • Variazioni sulla Fortuna, for guitar
• Karel Goeyvaerts
  • Opbouw (Construction), for orchestra
  • De Zang van Aquarius, version for symphony orchestra
• Jan Klusák – Stesk po Mozartovi
• Ulrich Leyendecker – Symphony No. 3
• Witold Lutosławski – Chantefleurs et Chantefables
• Pehr Henrik Nordgren
  • Going On for double bass and percussion, Op. 77
  • Odotus (Awaiting) for male choir, Op. 78
  • Cronaca for string orchestra, Op. 79
  • Streams for chamber orchestra, Op. 80
• Kaija Saariaho – ...à la Fumée
• John Serry Sr. –
  • A Savior Is Born, for organ and voice
  • Dreams Trilogy, for piano
  • La Culebra, for solo flute
• Karlheinz Stockhausen –
  • Elufa, for flute and basset horn, with electronic music ad lib., 9. ex Nr. 64
  • Freia, for flute ex 91⁄2 Nr. 64
• Joan Tower – Concerto for Orchestra
• Takashi Yoshimatsu
  • Sagittarius Ecologue for bassoon and harp
  • Symphony No. 2 "at Terra" for orchestra
  • Fuzzy Bird Sonata for saxophone and piano
  • 3 White Landscapes for flute, bassoon, and harp
  • Wind Color Vector for Guitar

• John Adams – The Death of Klinghoffer, first performance on 19 March at the Théatre Royal de la Monnaie, Brussels, Belgium
• Harrison Birtwistle – Gawain, first performance on 30 May at the Royal Opera House, London
• Daniel Catán – Rappaccini's Daughter (La hija de Rappaccini)
• John Corigliano – The Ghosts of Versailles
• Meredith Monk – Atlas

• Miss Saigon (Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil) – Broadway production opened at the Broadway Theatre on 11 April and ran for 4097 performances
• The Secret Garden – Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on 25 April and ran for 706 performances
• Song of Singapore – off-Broadway production opened at the Irving Plaza on 7 May and ran for 459 performances
• Will Rogers Follies – Broadway production opened at the Palace Theatre on 1 May and ran for 983 performances

• Beauty and the Beast (animated feature)
• The Commitments
• The Five Heartbeats
• For the Boys
• Kilukkam
• Stepping Out
• Stones at the Max
• El Acompañamiento
• Thalapathi

• 8 January
  • Asuka Hinoi Japanese singer
  • Shin Ji-min, South Korean singer and rapper
• 9 January – 3lau, American DJ and producer
• 12 January – Pixie Lott, British singer, songwriter and actress^[17]
• 13 January – Goo Hara, Member of Kara, Korean singer (d. 2019)
• 14 January – Cat Torres, Australian singer-songwriter, musician, contestant on The Voice Australia
• 23 January – Torres, American independent singer, songwriter, musician and artist
• 28 January – C. J. Harris, American singer (D.2023)
• 1 February – Martha Heredia, Dominican singer
• 7 February – Gabbie Hanna, American rapper, singer, musician, comedienne and author
• 8 February
  • Nam Woo-hyun, South Korean singer, dancer, and actor
  • Sierra Deaton, former member of Alex & Sierra, singer, songwriter and dancer.
• 10 February
  • Ceng De Ping, Taiwanese singer
  • Emma Roberts, American actress and singer
• 11 February – Never Shout Never (Christofer Ingle), American musician
• 12 February – Casey Abrams, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 14 February – Karol G, Colombian singer-songwriter
• 15 February – Maruv, Ukrainian singer-songwriter, record producer
• 17 February – Ed Sheeran, British singer-songwriter and businessmen (worked with Taylor Swift, Anne-Marie, Nina Nesbitt, Camila Cabello, Tori Kelly, Kasey Chambers, Stormzy, Cardi B and Maisie Peters)
• 11 February – Allday, Australian musician, rapper, singer-songwriter (The Veronicas, Troye Sivan)
• 21 February
  • Solar, South Korean singer, songwriter and actress (Mamamoo)
  • William Bowery, British musician, producer and songwriter on Folklore and Evermore and Midnights by Taylor Swift
• 24 February – Tyler Bryant, American rock musician (Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown, Dead Cool Dropouts, Lisa Origliasso, The Veronicas)
• 26 February
  • CL, South Korean singer/songwriter/rapper
  • Lee Chang-sub, South Korean singer
• 4 March – Sarah Bonito, British-Japanese singer and lead vocalist of Kero Kero Bonito
• 6 March – Tyler, the Creator, American rapper and record producer
• 8 March – Devon Werkheiser, American actor and musician
• 10 March – Kenshi Yonezu, Japanese musician, singer-songwriter and record producer
• 11 March
  • Chingiz Mustafayev, Azerbaijani singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • Qian Lin, Chinese singer
• 13 March – Luan Santana, Brazilian singer-songwriter
• 16 March – Wolfgang Van Halen, American bassist
• 25 March
  • Liang Bo, Chinese singer-songwriter
  • Kevin Garrett, American musician, worked with Alessia Cara
• March 26 – Ari Lennox, American R&B singer
• March 27 – London on da Track, American record producer, rapper, and songwriter (Summer Walker)
• 28 March
  • Amy Bruckner, American actress and singer
  • Hoya, South Korean singer and actor^[18]
• 29 March – Irene, South Korean singer and actress (Red Velvet)
• 30 March
  • Joey Cook, American singer
  • NF, American rapper
• 2 April – Quavo, American rapper and frontman of hip-hop trio Migos
• 3 April – Hayley Kiyoko, American singer, songwriter, advocate and dancer
• 4 April
  • Jesse Jo Stark, American singer-songwriter
  • Lucas Lucco, Brazilian singer-songwriter
  • Jamie Lynn Spears, American television personality, comedienne, actress and singer
• 7 April – Anne-Marie, British singer songwriter, dancer, activist, and musician
• 8 April – Andrea Ross, American singer and actress
• 10 April – Amanda Michalka (AJ), American singer-songwriter, musician and actress
• 15 April – Daiki Arioka, Japanese singer (Hey! Say! JUMP)
• 18 April
  • Joey Gaydos, American actor and guitarist
  • Edgar Barrera, Mexican-American songwriter, producer, and musician based in Miami, Florida.
• 23 April – Caleb Johnson, American singer
• 27 April – Eric Fukusaki, Peruvian singer based in Japan
• 30 April – Lindsay Pearce, American singer and actress
• 10 May – Ray Dalton, American singer-songwriter
• 12 May – Jennifer Damiano, American actress and singer
• 15 May – Jed Elliott, British bassist (The Struts)
• 16 May = Joey Graceffa, American YouTuber, vlogger, actor, author, producer and musician.
• 17 May
  • Daniel Curtis Lee, American actor and rapper
  • DJ Akademiks, Jamaican Hip Hop blogger
  • Adil Omar, Pakistani rapper and producer
• 18 May – Spellling, American singer
• 19 May – Jordan Pruitt, American singer
• 20 May – Bastian Baker, Swiss singer, songwriter, and performer
• 22 May
  • Brooke Simpson, American singer-songwriter
  • Suho, South Korean singer (Exo)
• 23 May – Lena Meyer-Landrut, German singer-songwriter and dancer
• 24 May – Erika Umeda, Japanese singer
• 25 May – Guy Lawrence of EDM House garage band, Disclosure
• 26 May
  • Amber Bondin, Maltese singer
  • Channel Tres, American singer, songwriter, rapper and record producer
• 27 May – Channii, Dutch singer-songwriter
• 29 May
  • Kristen Alderson, American actress and singer
  • Matoma, Norwegian DJ and record producer
• 31 May – Azealia Banks, American rapper, singer and songwriter
• 6 June – Ashley Park, American actress, singer, and dancer
• 7 June – Fetty Wap American rapper
• 12 June – Jessie Reyez, Colombian-Canadian singer-songwriter
• 14 June – Jesy Nelson, English singer-songwriter, dancer and former member of Little Mix, now solo.
• 16 June
  • Lim Young-woong, South Korean trot singer
  • Joe McElderry, British singer
• 17 June – Shura, British singer-songwriter, musician and producer
• 20 June – Hannah Diamond, British singer-songwriter and visual artist
• 23 June – Katie Armiger, American singer
• 24 June – Max Ehrich, American singer, actor and dancer
• 27 June – Rayvon Owen, American singer
• 28 June – Seohyun, member of South Korean pop girl group Girls' Generation
• 29 June – Caleidra, British singer-songwriter
• 30 June – MC Davo, Mexican rapper, singer and composer^[19]
• 1 July
  • Sanah Moidutty, Indian singer songwriter
  • Burna Boy, Nigerian singer, songwriter and record producer.
• 2 July – Burna Boy, Nigerian musician
• 3 July – Peggy Gou, South Korean DJ, singer, songwriter and record producer
• 5 July – Sam Fischer, Australian songwriter, singer, producer and musician (Demi Lovato)
• 7 July – Alesso, Swedish producer and DJ
• 9 July
  • Mitchel Musso, American actor and musician
  • Clara Hagman, Former Ace of Base member and singer
  • Adrianne Lenker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 10 July
  • María Chacón, Mexican actress and singer
  • Angel Haze, American rapper and singer-songwriter
• 12 July – Dexter Roberts, American singer
• 15 July – Yuki Kashiwagi, Japanese idol singing group member
• 16 July – Emma Louise, Australian indie-pop singer-songwriter
• 17 July – Mann, American rapper
• 18 July – Karina Pasian, American Russian multi lingual classical musician and singer
• 21 July – Lucy Spraggan, British musician
• 26 July – Nathan Hartono, Singaporean singer and actor
• 29 July – Miki Ishikawa, American actress and singer
• 30 July
  • David Carreira, Portuguese singer, model and actor
  • Diana Vickers, British singer
• 31 July – Abhay Jodhpurkar, Indian singer
• 1 August – Kelsy Karter, New Zealand singer-songwriter
• 9 August
  • Candela Vetrano, Argentine actress, singer and model
  • Heize, South Korean singer, rapper, and songwriter
• 11 August – Milica Pavlović, Swiss-born Serbian singer
• 13 August – Dave Days, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 21 August
  • Tess Gaerthé, Dutch singer and actress
  • Jesse Rutherford, American singer and musician
• 26 August – Alok, Brazilian DJ and record producer
• 30 August – Guru Randhawa, Indian singer, songwriter and music composer
• 3 September
  • Moneybagg Yo, American rapper
  • Terence Lam, Hong Kong singer-songwriter
  • Samantha Marie Ware, is an American theatre and TV actress and singer. (also known by her singer stage name Sameya)
• 8 September
  • Nicole Dollanganger, Canadian singer, songwriter, activist and artist (Lana Del Rey, Grimes)
  • Alex Kinsey, former member of Alex & Sierra, singer-songwriter and instrumentalist.
• 9 September – Hunter Hayes, American country singer
• 11 September – Kygo, Norwegian producer and DJ
• 12 September – Imri Ziv, Israeli singer-songwriter
• 15 September – Alex Florea, Romanian singer
• 16 September – Noname, American singer-songwriter, rapper, musician & poet
• 22 September – Chelsea Tavares, American actress and singer
• 23 September – Key, South Korean singer and actor
• 26 September – Ant Clemons, American singer, rapper, songwriter
• 27 September – Rachel Cheung, Hong Kong classical pianist
• 1 October – Via Vallen, Indonesian dangdut singer
• 4 October
  • Nicolai Kielstrup, Danish singer
  • Leigh-Anne Pinnock, English singer-songwriter, dancer, activist, philanthropist, and member of Little Mix
• 5 October – Betty Who, Australian singer-songwriter
• 7 October – Lay Zhang, Chinese singer-songwriter, record producer, director and dancer (EXO)
• 6 October – Roshon Fegan, American actor, singer and rapper
• 10 October
  • Gabriella Cilmi, Australian-Italian blues and pop singer-songwriter
  • Lali Espósito, Argentine actress, singer, dancer, model, and songwriter
• 11 October – Joey Walker, Australian musician, singer and producer (King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard)
• 17 October – Brenda Asnicar, Argentine actress and singer
• 18 October – Tyler Posey, American musician and actor
• 19 October – Colton Dixon, American singer
• 22 October – Arianna Afsar, American musician
• 29 October – Parris Goebel, New Zealand-born choreographer, dancer, singer, director and actress
• 31 October – Jordan-Claire Green, American actress and musician
• 5 November – Flume, Australian record producer, musician and DJ
• 8 November – Riker Lynch, American actor, singer and bassist
• 10 November – Elina Nechayeva, Estonian soprano
• 11 November – Emma Blackery British singer-songwriter, musician, comedienne, entertainer and YouTuber (sometime: beauty blogger, Gaming blogger)
• 13 November – Matt Bennett, American actor and singer (Victorious, Ariana Grande)
• 14 November – Gallant, American musician
• 18 November – Tommy Cash, Estonian rapper
• 22 November – Saki Shimizu, Japanese singer
• 23 November – Harley "Kicks" Alexander-Sule of Rizzle Kicks, and sometimes working under the name: Jimi Charles Moody
• 25 November – Kevin Woo, American-South Korean singer and dancer (U-KISS and Xing)
• 28 November – Hannah Diamond, English singer-songwriter, photographer, musician, producer and visual artist. (Charli XCX, A G Cook)
• 2 December
  • Charlie Puth, American singer, musician, songwriter and record producer
  • Ainsley Melham, Australian singer, dancer and actor
• 7 December
  • Remi Matsuo, Japanese singer-songwriter and artist (Glim Spanky)
  • Dori Sakurada, Japanese actor and singer^[20]
• 9 December
  • PnB Rock, American hip hop recording artist (d. 2022)
  • Choi Min-ho, South Korean singer (Shinee)
• 11 December – Anna Bergendahl Swedish Irish singer
• 12 December – Jasmine Murray, American singer
• 13 December
  • Jay Greenberg, American composer
  • Dermot Kennedy – Irish singer-songwriter and musician
• 14 December
  • Offset, American rapper and member of hip-hop trio Migos
  • Stefflon Don, British-Jamaican rapper, singer and songwriter
• 15 December – Alana Haim, Alana Mychal Haim, American guitarist, singer, keyboardist, musician and actress (member of band Haim)
• 19 December
  • Tom Walker, Scottish singer-songwriter (Zara Larsson, Dodie)
  • Jack River, Australian singer-songwriter, musician and producer
• 19 December
  • Declan Galbraith, British singer
  • Keiynan Lonsdale, Australian actor, dancer and singer-songwriter
• 22 December – DaBaby, American rapper
• 23 December – YoungstaCPT, South African rapper
• 24 December – Louis Tomlinson, English singer, songwriter and television personality. (British singer in the band One Direction)
• 27 December – Chloe Bridges, American actress, singer and pianist
• 30 December – Tyler Carter, American singer, rapper and songwriter (Issues, Woe Is Me)
• Unknown – DallasK, American music producer and songwriter
• Unknown – Sylvaine, Norwegian musician

• 1 January – Buck Ram, American singer and songwriter (The Platters), 83
• 6 January – Ahmed Adnan Saygun, Turkish composer and musicologist, 83
• 8 January – Steve Clark, guitarist of Def Leppard, 30 (overdose of codeine)
• 14 January – Chitragupta, film composer, 73
• 20 January – Stan Szelest, keyboard player (The Band), 47
• 6 February – Danny Thomas, singer and actor, 79
• 9 February – James Cleveland, gospel singer, 59
• 13 February – Flaviano Labò, operatic tenor, 64
• 17 February – Gitta Alpár, operatic soprano, 88
• 20 February – Isabelle Delorme, pianist, composer and music teacher, 90
• 21 February – Margot Fonteyn, ballerina, 71
• 26 February – Slim Gaillard, jazz musician, 75
• 2 March – Serge Gainsbourg, singer and songwriter, 62 (heart attack)
• 6 March – Sir Joseph Lockwood, record company executive, 86
• 13 March – Jimmy McPartland, 83, jazz musician
• 14 March
  • Jerome Doc Pomus, songwriter, 65
  • Howard Ashman, lyricist, 40 (AIDS-related)
• 15 March – Bud Freeman, jazz musician, 84
• 18 March – Dezider Kardoš, Slovak composer, 76
• 21 March – Leo Fender, inventor of the electric guitar, 81
• 25 March – Eileen Joyce, pianist, 83
• 1 April – Martha Graham, 96, American dancer and choreographer
• 4 April – Louis Guglielmi, 75, French composer
• 7 April
  • Henry Glover, American songwriter, producer and trumpet player, 69
  • Ruth Page, American dancer and choreographer, 92
• 8 April – Per Yngve Ohlin, aka 'Dead', vocalist of Mayhem, 22 (suicide)
• 13 April – Wilhelm Lanzky-Otto, horn virtuoso, 82
• 17 April – Jack Yellen, 98, American lyricist
• 18 April – Barry Rogers, 55, American jazz and salsa trombonist
• 20 April – Steve Marriott, singer, songwriter and guitarist (Small Faces and Humble Pie), 44 (killed in house fire)
• 21 April – Willi Boskovsky, conductor, 81
• 23 April – Johnny Thunders, rock guitarist and singer, 38 (drug-related)
• 26 April
  • Leo Arnaud, composer, 86
  • Carmine Coppola, flautist and composer, 80
• 28 April – Ken Curtis, American singer and actor, 74
• 29 April – Gonzaguinha, Brazilian singer and composer, 45 (car accident)
• 3 May – Mohammed Abdel Wahab, Egyptian singer and composer (b. 1907)
• 8 May
  • Jean Langlais, composer, 84
  • Rudolf Serkin, pianist, 88
• 9 May? – Yanka Dyagileva, poet and singer, 24 (drowned)
• 19 May – Odia Coates, singer, 49 (breast cancer)
• 23 May – Wilhelm Kempff, pianist and composer, 95
• 24 May
  • Dirk Schoufs, a member of Belgian Band Vaya Con Dios (AIDS-related)
  • Gene Clark, singer-songwriter (The Byrds), 46 (heart attack)
• 27 May – Leopold Nowak, musicologist, 86
• 1 June – David Ruffin, singer (The Temptations), 50 (overdose of cocaine)
• 4 June – MC Trouble, rapper, 20 (epileptic seizure)
• 6 June – Stan Getz, US saxophonist, 64
• 9 June – Claudio Arrau, pianist, 88
• 14 June – Joy Finzi, founder of the Finzi Trust, 84
• 6 July – Herminio Giménez, composer, 86
• 11 July – Honorata de la Rama, singer, 89
• 15 July – Bert Convy, American game show host, actor and singer, 57 (brain tumor)
• 28 August – Vince Taylor, rock and roll singer, 52 (cancer)
• 4 September
  • Charlie Barnet, American bandleader, 77
  • Dottie West, American country singer, 58 (car accident)
• 8 September – Alex North, composer, 80
• 17 September
  • Zino Francescatti, violinist, 89
  • Rob Tyner, lead singer of MC5, 46 (heart attack)
• 20 September – Tom Anderson, Shetland fiddler
• 25 September – Sydney MacEwan, singer of traditional Scottish and Irish songs, 82
• 28 September
  • Miles Davis, jazz trumpeter and composer, 65 (stroke)
  • Eugène Bozza, composer, 86
• 6 October – Igor Talkov, Russian singer/songwriter, 34 (murdered)
• 9 October – Roy Black, 48, singer and actor (heart failure)
• 16 October – Ole Beich, guitarist and bassist, 36 (drowned)
• 17 October – Tennessee Ernie Ford, country musician, 72
• 25 October – Bill Graham, rock concert promoter, 60 (helicopter crash)
• 27 October – Sir Andrzej Panufnik, Polish composer, 75
• 31 October
  • Joseph Papp, Broadway producer, 70
  • Garvin Bushell, multi-instrumentalist
• 2 November – Mort Shuman, songwriter, 54 (complications following a liver operation)
• 3 November – Chris Bender, R&B singer, 19 (murdered)
• 8 November – Frances Faye, singer, 79
• 11 November – Morton Stevens, film composer, 62
• 15 November – Jacques Morali, disco composer, 44 (AIDS)
• 24 November
  • Freddie Mercury, singer, 45 (AIDS)^[21]
  • Eric Carr, drummer, 41 (cancer)
• 10 December – Headman Shabalala, member of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, 46 (shot)
• 13 December – Stuart Challender, conductor, 44 (AIDS-related)
• 20 December
  • Lal Chand Yamla Jatt, Indian folk singer, 77^[22]
  • Waldemar Kazanecki, Polish pianist, conductor and composer, 62^[23]
• 22 December – Édouard Woolley, tenor, actor, composer and music educator

• Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees: Felice and Boudleaux Bryant
• Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees: LaVern Baker, The Byrds, John Lee Hooker, The Impressions, Wilson Pickett, Jimmy Reed and Ike and Tina Turner
• 1991 Country Music Association Awards
• 1991 Grammy Awards
• 1991 MTV Video Music Awards
• Eurovision Song Contest 1991
• Kumar Sanu – Filmfare Best Male Playback Award
• 33rd Japan Record Awards

• List of Billboard Hot 100 number ones of 1991
• 1991 in British music#Charts
• List of Oricon number-one singles of 1991

• 1991 in music (UK)
• Record labels established in 1991

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Music in 1991.