CLEVELAND, Ohio –Northeast Ohio music has already had a strong 2014.
The Black Keys topped the Billboard 200 chart with its new album, "Turn Blue," in May, while Mushroomhead's latest, "The Righteous & The Butterfly," earned the Cleveland metal-act its first top-20 appearance on the chart.
The Cleveland-area's 2014 musical odyssey isn't likely to end there, as a number of acts from Northeast Ohio have big plans this year:
The Black Keys
The Black Keys have become one of rock's biggest acts. The Akron-duo released its eighth album, "Turn Blue," in May and scored its first No. 1 showing on the Billboard chart, beating out the latest posthumous album from Michael Jackson. The Black Keys will play a few major festivals in Europe this summer before returning to the States for a fall tour that stops at The Q on Sept. 6.
Chimaira
Cleveland metal band Chimaira has become one of the faces of new wave metal. The band will take part in "The Artery Metal Tour" this summer, which hits Agora in August, and then head overseas for a headlining stint.
Chrissie Hynde
Akron native Chrissie Hynde may be 62 years old, but she's still going strong. The Pretenders frontwoman will release her new solo album, "Stockholm," on June 10.
Jessica Lea Mayfield
Kent native Jessica Lea Mayfield released her album "Make My Head Sing" in April. The record received positive reviews both in the U.S. and in Europe. Her current U.S. tour is set to run through the end of June.
Cloud Nothings
Indie/noise rock band Cloud Nothings, which originated in Cleveland, released its critically acclaimed third album, "Here and Nowhere Else," in April. Frontman Dylan Baldi currently calls France his home, but still makes it to Cleveland every few months. The band will spend most of the summer touring both overseas and in the United States, including a stop at Bonnaroo in June.
Macy Gray
It's been 15 years since Canton-native Macy Gray had her big breakthrough, but the R&B singer still releases music and performs regularly. She's scheduled to play a few festivals in 2014, including Milwaukee's PrideFest.
Kid Cudi
Rapper Kid Cudi surprised fans with the impromptu release of his latest album, "Satellite Flight: The Journey to Mother Moon," in February. The album sold 87,000 digital copies in its first week. Cudi's film career also got a boost when he starred alongside Aaron Paul in "Need for Speed," which was released earlier this year.
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
The members of legendary Cleveland hip-hop act Bone Thugs-N-Harmony haven't exactly been on the same page as of late. Layzie Bone announced he was leaving the group in 2013; the same year Bone Thugs released an album that didn't feature all of the original members. Both Layzie Bone and Krayzie Bone have announced they will each released solo albums in 2014.
Machine Gun Kelly
Former Shaker Heights High School Student Richard Baker, aka Machine Gun Kelly, is on tour for most of the summer. However, he's also made time to do a little acting. MGK is set to star in "SLC Punk 2: Punk's Dead," the sequel to 1998 cult-classic "SLC Punk!"
Marilyn Manson
2014 will feature a focus on acting for industrial metal icon Marilyn Manson. The Canton-native recently landed a recurring role on the next and final season of "Sons of Anarchy," which is set to premiere in September.
Mushroomhead
Cleveland industrial metal act Mushroomhead reached a career highpoint in 2014. The band's eighth studio album, "The Righteous and The Butterfly," debuted at No. 20 on the Billboard 200 chart, the band's highest charting spot yet. Mushroomhead is set to tour for must of the summer, with a stop at Agora Ballroom on July 31.
Joshua Radin
Cleveland native Joshua Radin released his most recent album, "Wax Wings," in 2013 and has been touring on it ever since. Radin has a few tour dates scheduled in the Midwest this summer before he heads to Europe.
Trent Reznor
Nine Inch Nails released its latest album, "Hesitation Marks," last fall and Trent Reznor is set to score the upcoming film adaptation of "Gone Girl," starring Ben Affleck. However, lately Reznor has been in the news because of the acquisition of headphones company Beats Electronics by Apple. Reznor's role at Apple remains unclear, but the musician recently took to Twitter to proclaim that he is still the CCO of Beats Music and is looking forward to his future with Apple.
...but YES I am still CCO of Beats Music and looking forward to what lies ahead with Apple.
— Trent Reznor (@trent_reznor) June 2, 2014
Kate Voegele
Bay Village native Kate Voegele may not be in the spotlight as much as she was in her "One Tree Hill" days. Voegele hasn't released an album since 2011, but has reportedly been working on a new record that could drop at any point. She's scheduled to open a few shows on rising singer-songwriter Andy Grammer's summer tour.
Bobby Womack
Cleveland native and R&B legend Bobby Womack certainly isn't slowing down at age 70. Womack will release his new album "The Best Is Yet To Come" in 2014 and will hit the stage at several festivals, including this year's Bonnaroo.
