This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1986.

• 1986 in British music
• 1986 in Norwegian music

• 1986 in country music
• 1986 in heavy metal music
• 1986 in hip hop music
• 1986 in jazz

• January 30 – The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, holds its first induction ceremony with many rock pioneers attending.^[1]
• February 25
  • The 28th Annual Grammy Awards are presented in Los Angeles, hosted by Kenny Rogers. Phil Collins' No Jacket Required wins Album of the Year, while USA for Africa's "We Are the World" wins both Record of the Year and Song of the Year. Sade win Best New Artist.
  • Also, Whitney Houston wins her first GRAMMY award which she won the Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female.
• March 8 - For almost a year, Houston's debut album top the charts and remained for 7 weeks and another on May 17.
• May 3 – The 31st Eurovision Song Contest, held in Bergen, Norway, is won by Belgium with the song "J'aime la vie", performed by Sandra Kim. At 13 years old, Kim is the youngest-ever Eurovision winner.
• May 28 – The Monkees held a press conference at the Hard Rock Cafe in New York City to announce officially that they will embark on a 100-plus city tour. The tour became one of the biggest grossing tours of the year.^[2]
• June 10 – Bob Geldof is awarded an honorary UK knighthood in recognition of his work in organizing Live Aid and other concerts that raised millions of dollars for the starving people of Africa.^[3]
• June 15
  • The final show of the A Conspiracy of Hope benefit concert - organized by Amnesty International - took place at the Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The show was headlined by U2, Sting, and Bryan Adams, and also features Peter Gabriel, Lou Reed, Joan Baez, and The Neville Brothers.
  • Also, The Police would perform one last time on stage during the show before disbanding that same year.
• June 30 – Madonna releases her "True Blue" album, which tops the charts in over 28 countries & becomes the best selling album of 1986.^[4]
• August 9 – Queen performed the band's final concert of the Magic Tour at Knebworth Park, which would be the last performance of the band with singer Freddie Mercury and bassist John Deacon. Later Mercury would be diagnosed with AIDS in 1987, passing away in 1991, and Deacon would retire from the band in 1997.
• September 27 – A tour bus carrying the heavy metal band Metallica crashes in Sweden, killing their influential bassist, Cliff Burton.^[5]
• October – Popular music magazine Q is launched in the United Kingdom.
• November 17–18 – Billy Eckstine makes his final recordings, later released on his album Billy Eckstine Sings with Benny Carter.^[6]
• December 12 – The Smiths play Brixton Academy, the last gig before their dissolution.^[7]
• Approximate date – Axé (music) originates in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.

• See Musical groups established in 1986

• See Musical groups disestablished in 1986

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the charts of 1986.

More information #, Artist ...

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart entries
1	Falco	"Rock Me Amadeus"	1985		UK 1 – Mar 1986, US BB 1 – Feb 1986, Canada 1 – Dec 1985, Sweden 1 – Aug 1985, Sweden (alt) 1 – Sep 1985, Austria 1 – May 1985, Germany 1 – Jun 1985, Republic of Ireland 1 – Apr 1986, New Zealand 1 for 5 weeks Mar 1986, France 2 – Nov 1985, Switzerland 2 – Jun 1985, Netherlands 3 – May 1986, South Africa 3 of 1986, Norway 6 – Apr 1986, Italy 18 of 1985, US CashBox 19 of 1986, Poland 24 – Jun 1985, POP 29 of 1986, US BB 30 of 1986, Germany 50 of the 1980s, RYM 63 of 1985, Scrobulate 65 of 80s, KROQ 74 of 1986
2	Madonna	"Papa Don't Preach"	1986		UK 1 – Jun 1986, US BB 1 – Jul 1986, Sweden 1 – Aug 1986, Norway 1 – Jul 1986, Italy 1 of 1986, Republic of Ireland 1 – Jun 1986, Australia 1 for 6 weeks Mar 1987, Netherlands 2 – Jun 1986, Switzerland 2 – Jul 1986, Poland 2 – Aug 1986, Germany 2 – Jul 1986, Austria 4 – Aug 1986, Australia 9 of 1986, US CashBox 18 of 1986, US BB 19 of 1986, POP 35 of 1986, 37 in 2FM list, RYM 43 of 1986, Germany 215 of the 1980s, Acclaimed 761
3	Berlin	"Take My Breath Away"	1986		UK 1 – Oct 1986, US BB 1 – Jul 1986, Netherlands 1 – Sep 1986, Sweden 1 – Sep 1986, Republic of Ireland 1 – Oct 1986, Oscar in 1986, Switzerland 2 – Oct 1986, Germany 3 – Sep 1986, Austria 4 – Nov 1986, Norway 4 – Oct 1986, Poland 4 – Nov 1986, Australia 6 of 1986, POP 7 of 1986, US BB 13 of 1992, RYM 16 of 1986, US CashBox 21 of 1986, Italy 37 of 1986, TOTP 37, Scrobulate 80 of 80s, OzNet 251, Germany 310 of the 1980s
4	Pet Shop Boys	"West End Girls"	1985		UK 1 – Nov 1985, US BB 1 – Mar 1986, Norway 1 – Jan 1986, New Zealand 1 for 4 weeks Feb 1986, US CashBox 2 of 1986, Switzerland 2 – Jan 1986, Netherlands 3 – Jan 1986, Sweden 3 – Jan 1986, Germany 3 – Jan 1986, Austria 5 – Feb 1986, France 7 – Oct 1985, KROQ 11 of 1984, Poland 14 – Jan 1986, RYM 15 of 1985, US BB 16 of 1986, South Africa 18 of 1986, Scrobulate 32 of 80s, POP 43 of 1986, Germany 232 of the 1980s, WXPN 478, OzNet 694, Acclaimed 890

Close

• "All I Ask of You" w.m. Andrew Lloyd Webber
• "Crush On You"     w.m. Jerry Knight & Aaron Zigman
• "I Used To Be An Animal, But I'm Alright Now" w.m. Eric Burdon
• "The Lady in Red"     w.m. Chris de Burgh
• "True Colors" Cyndi Lauper
• Montego Bay Amazulu – a minor hit in the U.S. in September.

• Malcolm Arnold – Symphony No. 9
• Pascal Bentoiu – Symphony No. 7 ("Volume"), Op.29
• Elliott Carter – String Quartet No.4
• George Crumb – An Idyll for the Misbegotten (Images III) for amplified flute and percussion (three players).
• George Crumb – Federico's Little Songs for Children for soprano, flute/piccolo/alto flute/bass flute, and harp
• Mario Davidovsky – Salvos for flute, clarinet, harp, percussion, violin and cello
• Jacob Druckman – Reflections on the Nature of Water, for solo marimba
• Ludovico Einaudi – Movimento
• Peter Eötvös – Chinese Opera
• Morton Feldman
  • For Christian Wolff, for flute and piano/celesta
  • For Stefan Wolpe, for choir and 2 vibraphones
• Lorenzo Ferrero
  • La fuga di Foscolo
  • Anemia (film score)
  • Passacaglia, for flute, clarinet, and string quartet
  • Intermezzo "Portella della Ginestra"
  • Ninna-nanna
• Karel Goeyvaerts –
  • De Heilige Stad (The Holy City), for chamber orchestra
  • De Zeven Segels (The Seven Seals), for string quartet
• Martun Israelyan
  • Violin Concerto
  • Sonata No. 2 for cello and piano
• Wojciech Kilar – Orawa, a symphonic poem for a string orchestra
• György Kurtág – Three Ancient Inscriptions, for voice and piano
• Alvin Lucier – Hommage to James Tenney, for double bass and pure wave oscillator
• Witold Lutoslawski – Chain 3 for orchestra
• Per Nørgård
  • Viola Concerto No. 1 Remembering Child
  • Najader (The Naiads)
• Krzysztof Penderecki – The Song of Cherubin
• Paul Schoenfield – Café Music for Piano Trio

• Harrison Birtwistle's opera The Mask of Orpheus is premiered in London, UK on May 21
• Rudolf Brucci – Gilgamesh
• Lorenzo Ferrero's opera Salvatore Giuliano is premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma on January 25
• Lee Hoiby – The Tempest
• Gian-Carlo Menotti – Goya
• Michael Nyman – The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat

• La Cage aux Folles – London production
• Charlie Girl – London revival
• Chess – London production
• Me and My Girl – Broadway revival
• The Phantom Of The Opera – London production
• Time (musical) – London production
• Sweet Charity – Broadway revival

• Absolute Beginners
• HMS Pinafore
• Labyrinth
• Long Da Lishkara
• Little Shop of Horrors
• Naam
• Otello

• Barnum

• Inaugural Festival International de Louisiane

• January 1
  • Lee Sung-min, South Korean singer and actor
  • Karol Conká, Brazilian rapper and songwriter
• January 2 – Trombone Shorty, American trumpet and trombone player
• January 3 – Lloyd Polite, American singer (N-Toon)
• January 5 – Teppei Koike, Japanese singer and actor
• January 6 – Alex Turner, English singer and guitarist (Arctic Monkeys)
• January 7 – Megan Washington, Australian musician and singer-songwriter
• January 9 - Wengie, a Chinese Australian YouTuber, vlogger, pop singer, and voice actress.
• January 11 – Mithoon, Indian film score composer and singer
• January 17 – Chloe Rose Lattanzi, American singer and actress
• January 20
  • Olga Buzova, Russian singer
  • Victoria Asher, American keyboard player
  • Kevin Parker, Australian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer (Tame Impala)
• January 22 – Ella Edmondson, British musician
• January 24
  • Raviv Ullman, Israeli-American actor and musician
  • Katie Waissel, English singer-songwriter
• January 26
  • Hero, Korean singer (TVXQ)
  • Matt Heafy, singer and guitarist (Trivium)
• January 28 – Michael Paynter, Australian singer-songwriter and musician (the Veronicas, Delta Goodrem)
• February 2 – Blaine Larsen, American country singer
• February 5 – Kevin Gates, American rapper, singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur
• February 6 – U-Know, Korean singer (TVXQ)
• February 8 – Anderson .Paak, American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and drummer
• February 14 – Tiffany Thornton, American actress
• February 15 – Amber Riley, American actress, stage performer, singer and author
• February 19 – Maria Mena, Norwegian singer
• February 21 – Charlotte Church, Welsh singer-songwriter, activist and actress
• February 23 – Skylar Grey, American singer-songwriter
• February 25 – Danny Saucedo, Swedish singer
• February 26
  • Crystal Kay, Japanese singer-songwriter, radio host and actress
  • Juliet Simms, American singer-songwriter and model (front woman of Automatic Loveletter)
  • Oscar Holter, a Swedish record producer and songwriter based in the United States (Taylor Swift, Charli XCX, Hailee Steinfeld, The Weeknd)
• February 27 – Ashthon Jones, American singer
• March 3 – Stacie Orrico, American singer-songwriter and occasional actress
• March 4 – Saif Nabeel, Iraq singer
• March 6
  • Ginny Blackmore, New Zealand singer-songwriter
  • Maya Postepski, Canadian musician and producer
• March 9
  • Brittany Snow, American actress, producer and singer
  • Young Fyre, American record producer (Britney Spears, Tech N9ne, Jaden Smith)
• March 12 – Danny Jones, British musician, singer and guitarist (McFLY)
• March 13 – Rose Elinor Dougall, English singer-songwriter and musician (Mark Ronson, The Pipettes)
• March 14 – Este Haim, American multi-instrumentalist and singer (member of sisterhood and Los Angeles pop rock band Haim)
• March 15
  • Adrianne Leon, American actress and singer
  • Natalie Prass, American singer-songwriter
• March 17 – Andrew Goldstein, American singer-songwriter and record producer
• March 18 – Lykke Li, Swedish singer-songwriter and model
• March 20
  • Dean Geyer, South African–Australian singer-songwriter and actor
  • Oscar Görres, Swedish songwriter, record producer and musician
  • Ruby Rose, Australian model, DJ, recording artist, actress, television presenter, MTV VJ
• March 22 – Amy Studt, English singer-songwriter and musician
• March 26
  • Jonny Craig, Canadian singer-songwriter
• March 28 – Lady Gaga, American singer-songwriter, activist, pianist and actor
• April 1 – Kid Ink, American rapper, singer-songwriter and record producer
• April 2
  • Mykki Blanco, American rapper, performance artist, poet and activist
  • Lee DeWyze, American singer-songwriter
• April 4 – Eunhyuk, Korean singer (Super Junior)
• April 8
  • Bridget Kelly, American singer-songwriter
  • Erika Sawajiri, Japanese actress and singer
• April 9 - Leighton Meester, An American actress, singer and model
• April 16 – Penny, American R&B singer (Git Fresh)
• April 23
  • Laura Mvula, British singer
  • Cirkut, Canadian musician, songwriter and producer (Ava Max)
• April 24 - Kellin Quinn, American singer-songwriter and musician (He is the lead vocalist and keyboardist of the Post-Hardcore band Sleeping with Sirens. Duet with Maggie Lindemann )
• April 28 – Jenna Ushkowitz, South Korean-born American actress, singer and podcast host
• April 29 - Qveen Herby, American rapper, singer, songwriter and entrepreneur.
• April 30 – Dianna Agron, American actress, singer and dancer
• May 5 – Bart Baker, American parody artist
• May 8 - Tommy English (producer), American songwriter and producer
• May 12 – Emily VanCamp, Canadian French actress, dancer and martial artist
• May 13 – Alexander Rybak, Norwegian singer
• May 14
  • Alyosha, Ukrainian singer
  • Joseph Attieh, Lebanese singer
  • Amy Shark, Australian indie singer-songwriter and producer
• May 16
  • Andy Morin, Audio engineer for Death Grips
  • Charlie Fink, British songwriter, producer and filmmaker
• May 17 – Hannah Lux Davis, American music video director
• May 21
  • Myra, American singer
  • Da'Vine Joy Randolph, American actress and singer
• May 30
  • Claudia Beni, Croatian pop singer
  • Jade Novah, American singer-songwirter
• May 31
  • Sopho Khalvashi, Georgian musician
  • Waka Flocka Flame, American rapper
• June 5 – Gin Wigmore, New Zealand singer-songwriter
• June 6 - Leslie Carter, American pop singer (Sister of Aaron Carter and Nick Carter) (D. 2012)
• June 9
  • Kary Ng, Hong Kong singer, former member of Cookies
  • Luis Felber, British-Peruvian musician
• June 10
  • Tinchy Stryder, English rapper and producer
  • Keith Harkin, Northern Irish singer, former member of Celtic Thunder
• June 13
  • DJ Snake, French DJ and record producer
  • Måns Zelmerlöw, Swedish singer-songwriter
• June 17 – Lingua Ignota, born Kristin Hayter, American classically trained neoclassical industrial multi-instrumentalist and activist against abuse
• June 24 – Solange Knowles, American singer-songwriter, activist, model and actress (Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams)
• June 25 – Aya Matsuura, Japanese singer
• June 27 – Drake Bell, American actor/singer/musician
• June 28 – Kellie Pickler, American Idol singer
• June 29 – Austin Drage, British actor and singer
• July 1 – Agnez Mo, Indonesian diva singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress.
• July 2 – Lindsay Lohan, American actress, musician, singer-songwriter, documentary-maker, businesswoman and model (Samantha Ronson, Hilary Duff, Aliana Lohan)
• July 5 – Adam Young, American singer-songwriter and producer (Owl City, Sky Sailing)
• July 16 – Misako Uno, Japanese singer (Attack All Around)
• July 17 – Jason Aalon Butler, American musician (Letlive, Fever 333, Pressure Cracks), married to Gin Wigmore
• July 21 – Rebecca Ferguson, British singer-songwriter
• July 28 – Alexandra Richards, American DJ
• August 1 – Marissa Paternoster, American artist, singer and guitarist (Screaming Females)
• August 19 – Christina Perri, American singer/songwriter, musician and artist
• August 23
  • Neil Cicierega, American singer/songwriter, musician (Lemon Demon)
  • Sky Blu, American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, DJ and dancer
• August 26
  • Big K.R.I.T., American rapper and record producer
  • Cassie, American singer, dancer
  • Laza Morgan, singer
• August 27 – Mario, American R&B singer and songwriter
• August 28 – Florence Welch, English musician, singer-songwriter, music producer, author, poet and performer (Florence and the Machine)
• August 29 – Lea Michele, American singer, actress
• September 3 – OMI, Jamaican singer
• September 6
  • Anna von Hausswolff, Swedish singer, songwriter, musician, composer, and pipe organist
  • Illy, Australian rapper
• September 8 – Leah LaBelle, Canadian-born American singer
• September 10 – Ashley Monroe, American country music singer-songwriter (Pistol Annies)
• September 12 – Emmy Rossum, American actress and singer
• September 12 – Kobasolo, Japanese singer
• September 15
  • George Watsky, American hip hop artist, author and poet (Anna Akana)
  • Heidi Montag, American reality television personality, model, singer and actress
• September 17 – SOPHIE, Scottish music producer, songwriter, and DJ
• September 19 – Ilya Salmanzadeh, Swedish music producer
• September 21 – Lindsey Stirling, American violinist, dancer, YouTuber, record producer and performance artist
• September 22 - Casisdead, a UK rap and grime MC, songwriter, record producer, music video director and entrepreneur from Tottenham, London.
• September 27 – Alison Wonderland, Australian electronic dance music DJ, producer and singer
• October 1 – Jurnee Smollett-Bell, American actress and singer
• October 6 – Meg Myers, American singer-songwriter
• October 12 – Boi-1da, Canadian record producer and songwriter
• October 24 – Drake, Canadian rapper
• October 25 – Didi Benami, American singer
• October 28 – Aki Toyosaki, Japanese actress and singer (K-On!)
• October 29 – Nataly Dawn, American musician
• November 2 – Ryan Hurd, American singer and songwriter
• November 3
  • Jermaine Jones, American singer
  • Jasmine Trias, Filipino-American singer-entertainer
• November 4 - Alexz Johnson, Canadian musician, actress, and philanthropist
• November 5 – BoA, South Korean singer, dancer, songwriter and producer
• November 7 – Toro y Moi, American singer-songwriter, record producer and graphic designer
• November 8 – Nikola Rachelle, British recording artist and songwriter
• November 11 – Jon Batiste, American jazz musician
• November 14 - Yuna (singer), Malaysian singer-songwriter.
• November 15 – Jerry Roush, American singer-songwriter (Of Mice & Men, Sky Eats Airplane, Glass Cloud)
• November 20 – Oliver Sykes, English heavy metal vocalist, British/Brazilian singer and songwriter (Bring Me the Horizon)
• November 21 – Colleen Ballinger, American comedian, actress, singer and YouTube personality
• November 25 – Katie Cassidy, American actress, singer, voice actress
• November 27 - Christina Novelli, English DJ, Singer and songwriter
• December 8 – Kate Voegele, American singer-songwriter and actress
• December 10 – Natti Natasha, Dominican singer
• December 11 – Shuta Sueyoshi, Japanese singer
• December 15 – Xiah, Korean singer (TVXQ)
• December 20 – Anoop Desai, American singer-songwriter
• December 26 – Marina Satti, Greek singer, songwriter, and music producer
• December 30
  • Ellie Goulding, English singer-songwriter
  • Caity Lotz, American singer, dancer, actor, martial artist
• Unknown: Samantha McClymont, Australian singer-songwriter (Brooke McClymont)

• January 4 – Phil Lynott, bassist/singer and co-founder of Thin Lizzy, 36 (heart failure & pneumonia)
• January 6 – Joe Farrell, jazz saxophonist, 48 (bone cancer)
• January 8 – Pierre Fournier, cellist, 79
• February 2 – Francisco Mignone, composer, 88
• February 14 – Edmund Rubbra, composer, 84
• February 15 – Galliano Masini, operatic tenor, 90
• March 4
  • Richard Manuel (The Band), 42 (suicide)
  • Howard Greenfield, songwriter, 49 (AIDS)
• March 11 – Sonny Terry, blues musician, 74
• March 21 – Raymond Burke, jazz clarinetist, 81
• March 22 – Mark Dinning, US singer, 52 (heart attack)
• March 30 – James Cagney, US actor, singer and dancer, 86
• March 31 – O'Kelly Isley of the Isley Brothers, 48 (heart attack)
• April 1 – Donald Grobe, operatic tenor, 56
• April 3 – Peter Pears, opera singer and partner of Benjamin Britten, 75
• April 6 – Boris Gutnikov, violinist, 54
• April 8 – Yukiko Okada, singer, 18 (suicide)
• April 13 – Dorothy Ashby, jazz harpist and composer, 53 (cancer)
• April 19
  • Dag Wirén, composer, 80
  • Estelle Yancey, blues singer, 90
• June 3 – Anna Neagle, actress, singer and dancer, 81
• June 13 – Benny Goodman, bandleader, 77
• June 14 – Alan Jay Lerner, lyricist, 67
• June 16 – Maurice Duruflé, composer, 84
• June 17 – Kate Smith, singer, 79
• June 29 – Dusolina Giannini, operatic soprano, 83
• July 3 – Rudy Vallee, American singer, 84
• July 18 – Don Wilkerson, American saxophonist
• July 23 – Kazimierz Sikorski, Polish composer, 91
• July 31 – Teddy Wilson, American jazz pianist, 73
• September 27 – Cliff Burton (Metallica), 24 (tour bus accident)
• September 28 – Robert Helpmann, dancer and choreographer, 77
• October 16 – Arthur Grumiaux, violinist, 65
• October 22 – Thorgeir Stubø, Norwegian jazz guitarist, 42
• October 29 – Abel Meeropol ('Lewis Allan'), American lyricist, 83
• November 1 – Sippie Wallace, blues singer, 88
• November 3 – Eddie Davis, saxophonist, 64
• November 6 – Elisabeth Grümmer, operatic soprano, 75
• November 7 – Tracy Pew, bass guitarist, 28 (brain hemorrhage)
• November 13 – Rudolf Schock, operatic tenor, 71
• November 18 – Lajos Bárdos, composer and conductor, 87
• November 22 – Scatman Crothers, singer, dancer and musician, 76
• December 1 – Horace Heidt, pianist and bandleader, 85
• December 10 – Kate Wolf, folk singer and songwriter, 44 (leukemia)
• December 30 – Charles Magnante, accordionist, composer, arranger, author, and educator, 81

• Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opened; the following artists were the first inductees: Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Fats Domino, The Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and record producer Sam Phillips.
• Grammy Awards of 1986
• 1986 Country Music Association Awards
• Eurovision Song Contest 1986
• 28th Japan Record Awards

• Record labels established in 1986