Music Trivia

25 general questions and answers about musicians and the music industry


Q1: Who won the first season of American Idol?

A: Kelly Clarkson


2.    Q2: International music sensation ABBA originated from which country?

A: Sweden


Q3: What musician is often referred to as the fifth Beatle?

A: Billy Preston


Q4: What musician is reputed to have bitten the head off a dove?

A: Ozzy Osbourne


Q5: Who is the most successful English solo artist in the U.S.?

A: Elton John


Q6: What was the very first music video played on MTV?

A: “Video Killed The Radio Star” by The Buggles


Q7: In 2000, which group tied Michael Jackson’s 1984 record of winning eight Grammys in a single year?

A: Santana


Q8: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is located in which state?

A: Ohio


Q9: Legendary Rock Band AC/DC hails from what country?

A: Australia


Q10: Which popular singer is affectionately referred to as “the Boss”?

A: Bruce Springsteen


Q11: What is the name of the British-American supergroup, composed of Jim James, Elvis Costello, Marcus Mumford, Taylor Goldsmith, and Rhiannon Giddens, that only performs song lyrics penned by Bob Dylan in 1967?

A: The New Basement Tapes


Q12: In what year did Jimi Hendrix play “the Star-Spangled Banner” at Woodstock?

A: 1969


Q13: In 2011, what grammy-award-winning musician died of alcohol poisoning at the age of 27?

A: Amy Winehouse


Q14: What date did the Altamont Speedway concert, with headliners including the Rolling Stones, Santana, and Jefferson Airplane, take place?

A: December 6th, 1969.


Q15: Justin Timberlake was the former lead singer of which famous boy band?

A: NSYNC


Q16: As of the first 35 years of the existence of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1983 – 2018), who is the only artist to have been inducted on three separate occasions?

A: Eric Clapton, as a solo artist, as a member of the Yardbirds, and as a member of Cream


Q17: What is the Beatles first number one hit?

A: “From Me to You”


Q18: Which famous musician is godmother to Elton John’s sons?

A: Lady Gaga


Q:19 Who was the first Western music artist(s) to be allowed to perform a concert in China?

A: Wham!


Q20: Who is the first artist known for utilizing the infamous Auto-Tune vocal distortion technique?

A: Cher


Q21: What famous musician was shot by his own father in April of 1984?

A: Marvin Gaye


Q22: Which one of Prince’s songs reached highest on the music charts?

A: “When Doves Cry”


Q23: Jim Morrison was the lead singer of what prominent rock band in the 1960’s?

A: The Doors


Q24: In the Sound of Music, what song, sung by Baron Von Trapp and Maria, was Christopher Plummer’s voice dubbed in the official version?

A: “Edelweiss”


Q25: Which artist(s) did US President George W. Bush once call “the biggest threat to American youth since polio”?

A: Eminem