There are 14 nominees put forward as possible inductees to the institution this year, and eight of those are first-time nominees. Those are Bad Company, the Black Crowes, Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, Billy Idol, Maná, OutKast, and Phish (via Billboard). Also nominated as potential members of the Class of 2025 include Mariah Carey, Joy Division/New Order, Cyndi Lauper, Oasis, Soundgarden, and The White Stripes.
Next, an international panel of more than 1,200 artists, historians, and music industry professionals will vote on which of the nominees should be inducted, plus a fan vote that is also taken into consideration. The inductees will be announced in April ahead of the ceremony in the fall. In a statement accompanying the nominee announcement (via ABC News), John Sykes, the chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation said, “These remarkable nominees have each created their own musical style and attitude impacting generations of music lovers and contributing to the ever evolving sounds and continued growth of Rock & Roll.”
A Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nomination isn’t exactly a Grammy, and the Black Crowes’ Chris Robinson has been pretty dismissive of the whole thing in the past (In 2017 he told Howard Stern that “the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to me is like going to the mall or something”), but the years seem to have softened his stance. “We’re just very excited. I don’t think we ever really would have thought about it, so for it to be in front of us, it’s incredible. We’re thrilled,” Robinson told Billboard. “All sarcasm aside, it’s amazing to be thought of. It’s amazing to be included. We love music, and we understand the real magical, alchemic process in it, and that we’ve managed to still be here this many years later and still be making records and in a lot of ways having a level of recognition and success that we haven’t felt before. Just to be mentioned (alongside) some of the names of the greatest artists, it’s fantastic.”
