The B-52's "Whammy!" (40th Anniversary) 2026-07-17 Growing up in the town

Growing up in the town of Aledo

Celebrating 20 years of the iconic pop punk album

Let's get the statistics out of the way

with elements of surf-rock

The album won the Grammy for Best Rock Album in 2009

The B-52's "Whammy!" (40th Anniversary) 2026-07-17 Growing up in the town40th Anniversary Edition The B 52's were formed (1976) like R. E. M. in Athens, Georgia by vocalist Cindy Wilson, her elder brother guitarist Ricky Wilson (who died from AIDS in 1985), keyboardist and vocalist Kate Pierson and drummer percussionist Keith Strickland. Whammy!, their fourth album, moves the B 52's more into the electronic sound that started with their previous album 'Mesopotamia', though now goes further with the use of a drum machine.