The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has today announced its nominees to be voted for in order to enter the institution this year. This year, the Hall has announced 17 nominees, each of them representing different branches of the musical tree, from metal to hip-hop.
This year’s nominees include rap group the Wu-Tang Clan, R&B acts Sade, Lauryn Hill, New Edition and Luther Vandross, popstars P!NK, Phil Collins, Mariah Carey and Shakira, ‘90s British indie band Oasis, deceased singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley. New wave features more prominently than in recent years through the nominations of solo artist Billy Idol, INXS and the joint pairing of Joy Division/New Order. Blues rock makes an appearance with solo artist Melissa Etheridge alongside The Black Crowes, whose sleazy, rootsy throwback to the ‘70s won them vast success in the final decade of the last century. The only hard rock or metal act to be nominated this year is the East End’s own Iron Maiden, whose non-induction has been at the centre of criticism of the Hall in the last decade.
The Hall of Fame is a controversial and divisive body which has faced criticism for various actions in recent years. Some dismiss it as a meaningless club, while others feel it undervalues rock music and has been too concerned with diversifying its musical composition. Just this month KISS bassist Gene Simmons, inducted for his part in the New York hard rock juggernaut in 2014, caused fresh debate for his claim that hip-hop “did not belong” in the Hall. Today’s announcement will no doubt do the same, particularly given the number of huge artists who have been nominated but never inducted.
Another reason for criticism of the Hall has been the process by which members are inducted. Nominees are cherry-picked and presented for a public vote, which factors into the vote carried out by 1,200 professionals, members and music historians. The only criteria for an artist to be considered by the Nominating Committee is that they have been making music for at least twenty-five years.
One of the most hotly discussed bands this year will be Maiden. Under the twenty-five year rule, the band has been eligible since 2005, and still not inducted. They have been nominated by the Committee twice, in 2021 and 2023. The controversy around Simmons’ comments this month also link into Maiden, seeing as he claimed that “the fact that, for instance, Iron Maiden is not in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame when they can sell out stadiums, and Grandmaster Flash is”. In fairness, Maiden has always remained distant from the Hall. Singer Bruce Dickinson once claimed that “I’m really happy we’re not there and I would never want to be there… if we’re ever inducted, I will refuse — they won’t bloody be having my corpse in there.” This ties into the broader critique that the Hall has a blind spot when it comes to metal, an accusation that dates back to Black Sabbath’s induction in 2006.
Other nominees would be significant for non-genre related reasons. Phil Collins would be the 29th artist to be in the Hall for more than one act through his work with ‘70s prog rockers Genesis and ‘80s pop solo work. The last artist to do this was Ozzy Osbourne in 2024.
The Chair of the Hall, John Sykes, said “this diverse list of talented nominees recognizes the ever-evolving faces and sounds of Rock & Roll and its continued impact on youth culture”. Voting is now running and can be accessed here.
