The following is a list of notable events and releases that happened in 2011 in music in the United States.
Events January 24 – Original Adema vocalist Mark Chavez leaves the band for the second time. 29 – Britney Spears's Hold It Against Me debuts at #1 on US Billboard Hot 100, making Spears the second artist to have more than one single to debut at no. 1, behind Mariah Carey. She also being the third female artist, behind Cher, Madonna and Janet Jackson to top the Hot 100 in three decades, as well as the seventh artist overall.
February 11 – Lady Gaga released "Born This Way" the first single off her new album of the same name. It became the fastest iTunes single at the time. It later went on to remain number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 6 consecutive weeks, as well as the 1,000th number-one single in chart's history. 13 – The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards were held at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Lady Antebellum win five awards, including both Record of the Year and Song of the Year for "Need You Now". Arcade Fire's The Suburbs wins Album of the Year, while Esperanza Spalding wins Best New Artist making her the first jazz singer to win this award. 14 – Justin Bieber released his second remix album Never Say Never: The Remixes, three days after the release of his first movie Justin Bieber: Never Say Never.
March 11 – Kyuss began their reunion tour in Europe under the moniker Kyuss Lives. 15 – Former rapper Nate Dogg dies at age 41 from strokes.
April 3 – LCD Soundsystem played their final show at New York City's Madison Square Garden. The 46th Academy of Country Music Awards took place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. 20 – TV on the Radio bassist Gerard Smith dies of lung cancer at the age of 36, just nine days after the band released their fourth album, Nine Types of Light.
May 12 – Katy Perry, with her fourth single from Teenage Dream, "E.T.", becomes the only artist in history to spend 52 consecutive weeks in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. 23 – Lady Gaga released her sophomore studio album, Born This Way. It sold 524,000 copies on its first day, and one million copies on its first week, making Gaga the first person to do that. 25 – Scotty McCreery is crowned winner of the tenth season of American Idol. Lauren Alaina is named runner-up.
June 18 – Clarence Clemons, Bruce Springsteen's longtime saxophonist for the E Street Band dies at the age of 69. 28 – Taking Back Sunday released their self-titled fifth album, which was the band's first album to feature their original lineup since their 2002 debut, Tell All Your Friends. Limp Bizkit released their first studio album in eight years, Gold Cobra. It was the first album with the band's original lineup since 2000's Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water. 29 – Javier Colon won the inaugural season of The Voice. Dia Frampton was named runner-up. Vicci Martinez and Beverly McClellan was declared third and fourth place.
July 17 – Cheap Trick is unharmed after a stage collapses during a performance at the Cisco Bluesfest in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. 19 – Cold released their first studio album in six years, Superfiction.
August 8 – JAY Z and Kanye West release their highly anticipated collaboration album, Watch the Throne. 15 – Blink-182 started their 20th Anniversary Tour. The tour visited Canada in 2011, the United States and Europe in 2012 and Australia in 2013. 27 – "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" by Katy Perry becomes the fifth single from the album Teenage Dream to reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, tying Michael Jackson's record for the most singles from one album to do so. She is the second artist and only woman in history to achieve this. 29 – Red Hot Chili Peppers released their first studio album in five years, I'm with You. It was also their first album with guitarist Josh Klinghoffer.
September 2 – It was announced that drummer Mike Pedicone was kicked out of My Chemical Romance due to Pedicone stealing from the band. No charges were pressed. 17 – With Katy Perry's fifth single from Teenage Dream, "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)", she completed 69 consecutive weeks inside the top ten, more than any artist in history. 21 – Rock and Roll Hall of Famers R.E.M. disband after 31 years together. They played their last show in 2008. 24 – "I Wanna Go" by Britney Spears became Spears's 21st top-forty single, the third-highest female total since her first week on the chart on November 21, 1998, and only behind Taylor Swift with 27 and Rihanna with 22. It also broke the record for longest duration between the first and last # 1 on the pop chart. 27 – Blink-182 released their sixth studio album Neighborhoods. This is the first album they recorded together since their indefinite hiatus in 2005. It debuted at number 2 on the Billboard 200. This was their last album with Tom DeLonge until he returned to the band in 2022.
October 8 – Tony Bennett's Duets II debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, becoming the oldest male with a No. 1 solo album, at age 85.
November 1 – Justin Bieber released his first Christmas album Under the Mistletoe and it became an instant success becoming Bieber's third consecutive number-one album and third platinum-selling album in the United States following Never Say Never: The Remixes earlier in the year 9 – The 2011 Country Music Association Awards took place at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. 7 – David Lynch released his first studio album in ten years, Crazy Clown Time. It is the first album credited solo to Lynch; he had previously released to collaborative albums. 21 – Pentatonix wins Season 3 of NBC's The Sing-Off, beginning their rise in popularity.
December 6 – Korn's tenth studio album, The Path of Totality, debuts at number 10 on the Billboard 200 with 55,000 copies sold in its first week. This album marks the beginning of a new direction for nu metal, with artists like Skrillex and many more contributing to the album with dubstep and more electronic sounds.
Bands formed
Adrenaline Mob Against the Current Art of Anarchy Banks & Steelz Big Talk Charly Bliss Chris Robinson Brotherhood Crosses Deap Vally DIIV Downtown Boys Empress Of Foxing A Great Big World Houndmouth The Internet The Interrupters McCafferty The Milk Carton Kids Modern Baseball The Moth & The Flame MS MR The Neighbourhood Ninja Sex Party Nothing Pentatonix Pistol Annies Poliça The Record Company Rozwell Kid Speedy Ortiz SuperHeavy Tremonti Waxahatchee Young Buffalo Your Favorite Martian
Bands reformed Bad Meets Evil Ben Folds Five Blink-182 Evanescence Gym Class Heroes Dispatch Grant Lee Buffalo Live O-Town System of a Down Five Iron Frenzy
Bands on hiatus Atreyu The Black Eyed Peas Disturbed Good Charlotte Idiot Pilot Iglu & Hartly Innerpartysystem Jonas Brothers Nevermore Sonic Youth The Spill Canvas Story of the Year Thrice Thursday Velvet Revolver Tally Hall
Bands disbanded
The Academy Is... Anal Cunt Bad City Big Star The Bravery Buckner & Garcia Course of Nature The Depreciation Guild Double Dagger Draco and the Malfoys The Famine The Graduate Haste the Day LCD Soundsystem Monty Are I Nick Jonas & the Administration One Day as a Lion Pontytail P.S. Eliot pureNRG R.E.M. Rilo Kiley The Takeover UK Thelonious Monster Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players The Von Bondies The White Stripes
Albums released
January Date Album Artist11Fuckin' A Anal CuntOutside Tapes 'n TapesRehab: The Overdose LecraeShowroom of Compassion CakeThank You, Happy BirthdayCage the Elephant17Decoder DecoderLive on Ten Legs (live) Pearl Jam18Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes Social DistortionHi-Five Soup! The AquabatsThe King Is Dead The DecemberistsTear the Fences Down Eulogies21Amanda Palmer Goes Down Under Amanda PalmerWhat If... Mr. Big25Gotta Get Up Now Roger Miret and the DisastersMine Is Yours Cold War KidsThere Are RulesThe Get Up Kids
February Date Album Artist1Until We Have Faces Red8California Fade Anna WaronkerSever the Wicked Hand CrowbarTao of the Dead ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead15Angels & Devils Sarah DarlingIdentity on FireA Skylit DriveJustice Rev TheoryThe People's Key Bright EyesRunner Runner Runner RunnerTo Hell with God Deicide22Beast DevilDriverD.R.U.G.S. Destroy Rebuild Until God ShowsThe End of the World Party I See StarsKilling TimeBaysideRugged Road The Aggrolites
March Date Album Artist1Alexander Alex EbertForever the Sickest Kids Forever the Sickest KidsGoing Out in Style Dropkick Murphys8CivilianWye OakKUMD Album Review: Wye Oak - CivilianCollapse into Now R.E.M.Downtown Battle Mountain II Dance Gavin DanceDreaming in Black and White TRUSTcompanyLasers Lupe FiascoMy Devil In Your Eyes The Color MoralePedals Rival SchoolsSkins Buffalo TomStronger Sara Evans15Dancing Backward in High Heels New York DollsEndgame Rise AgainstFirst World Manifesto Screeching WeaselGive the Drummer Some Travis BarkerMegalithic Symphony AwolnationOh Land Oh Land22Angles The StrokesAwesome as Fuck (live) Green DayF.A.M.E.Chris BrownI Remember MeJennifer HudsonLive on I-5 (live) SoundgardenMy Life, My Way Agnostic FrontVices & Virtues Panic! at the DiscoUnder Your Skin SalivaWhen You're Through Thinking, Say Yes Yellowcard29All Eternals Deck The Mountain GoatsDisguises AidenDoggumentary Snoop DoggFemme Fatale Britney SpearsRolling Papers Wiz KhalifaSwan Unwritten Law
April Date Album Artist5American Tragedy Hollywood Undead Apocalypse Bill CallahanBlood Pressures The KillsCocoon Meg & DiaRazorback Killers Vicious RumorsWhat if We Were Real Mandisa11Nine Types of Light TV on the Radio12C'mon LowThe Family Sign AtmosphereLollipop Meat PuppetsMurder the Mountains Red FangNo Devolución ThursdaySo Beautiful or So What Paul SimonWasting Light Foo Fighters19WhokillTune-Yards26All at Once The Airborne Toxic EventFishing for Woos Bowling for SoupSpeak-Ahh Eastern Conference ChampionsTake Care, Take Care, Take Care Explosions in the SkyAtavist OtepThe Hollow Memphis May Fire
May Date Album Artist3And the Tears Washed Me, Wave After Cowardly Wave DreamendAre You Gonna Eat That? Hail Mary MallonChuckles & Mr. Squeezy DredgHelplessness Blues Fleet Foxes Hot Sauce Committee, Pt. 2 Beastie BoysIn Your Dreams Stevie NicksLove? Jennifer Lopez Move Like This The CarsMusiqinthemagiq Musiq Soulchild This Is Gonna Hurt Sixx:A.M.10Goblin Tyler the CreatorI Am Very Far Okkervil RiverLet's Cheers to This Sleeping With SirensLife Fantastic Man ManSeparationBalance and ComposureAlbum review: Balance & Composure - SeparationSimple Math Manchester OrchestraWorst Thing I've Been Cursed WithSparks the RescueSparks the Rescue release track listingRock & Roll SubmarineUrge OverkillVolcanic Sunlight Saul Williams17Destroyed MobyLaugh Now, Laugh Later Face to FaceMona MonaRome Danger MouseRunning from a Gamble Company of ThievesToo Cool to Care New Boyz23Born This Way Lady GagaTorches Foster the People24Back Burner For the Fallen DreamsD White DenimEclipse Journey Valleyheart She Wants Revenge31Circuital My Morning JacketCodes and Keys Death Cab for CutieMacabre Eternal AutopsyPanic of GirlsBlondiePanic of Girls merchandise and fan packSpeed of Darkness Flogging MollyUkulele Songs Eddie Vedder
June Date Album Artist7All 6's and 7's Tech N9ne The Color Spectrum The Dear HunterCults CultsDirty Work All Time LowGloss Drop BattlesIllud Divinum Insanus Morbid Angel14All Things Bright and Beautiful Owl CityFind MeChristina GrimmieHell: The Sequel Bad Meets EvilSet The World on Fire Black Veil BridesTime Together Michael Franks21Alpocalypse "Weird Al" YankovicBon Iver, Bon Iver Bon IverThe Light of the Sun Jill ScottGood & Evil Tally HallPlanet Pit PitbullWe All Bleed Crossfade284 BeyoncéFinally Famous Big SeanGold Cobra Limp BizkitI'm American Billy Ray CyrusTaking Back Sunday Taking Back SundayThis Loud Morning David CookThe Verge There for TomorrowWhen the Sun Goes Down Selena Gomez & the Scene
July