Jay-Z, Foo Fighters, Tina Turner Inducted Into Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame
Jay-Z and the Foo Fighters are first-ballot Hall Of Famers. Today, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame announced its 2021 class of inductees, and that list includes those two artists, both of whom are eligible for induction for the first time. (Artists become eligible for the Hall Of Fame 25 years after they release their first records.) Jay and the Foos join an inductee class that also includes Tina Turner, Carole King, the Go-Go’s, and Todd Rundgren.
This year, the Hall Of Fame will also induct a few acts who have been nominated multiple times but never made it in. Kraftwerk, who have been nominated six times, are getting what’s known as the Early Influence Award, which is also going to the late soul poet Gil Scott-Heron and the ancestral blues legend Charley Patton. Meanwhile, LL Cool J, another six-time nominee, is getting the Musical Influence Award, which is also going to Ozzy Osborne axe-shredder Randy Rhoads and the soul/funk/rock keyboardist Billy Preston. Clarence Avant, founder of Sussex Records, is getting the Ahmet Ertegun Award, which goes to behind-the-scenes figures.
This year, three different people will become Hall Of Famers for the second time. Dave Grohl, already in the Hall Of Fame with Nirvana, is now also getting in for the Foo Fighters. Ike And Tina Turner were already in the Hall Of Fame, but now Tina Turner will also enter as a solo artist. And Carole King was already a Hall Of Famer as a songwriter, thanks to all the work she did with ex-husband Gerry Goffin. She’ll now join as a solo artist, as well.
As always, a number of inductees aren’t making it in. This year, Rage Against The Machine, Devo, Kate Bush, Mary J. Blige, Iron Maiden, Chaka Khan, Fela Kuti, the New York Dolls, and Dionne Warwick were all nominated, but none of them are making it into the Hall. LL Cool J was nominated for the main Hall for what will presumably be the last time, and he didn’t make it in. Instead, he’s getting the Nile Rodgers treatment. That Musical Influence Award will have to do.
This class of inductees is overseen by iHeartMedia exec John Sykes, who has taken over for Jann Wenner as the chairman of the Hall Of Fame. Talking to Rolling Stone, Sykes says, “This is our most diverse class in the history of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. It really represents the Hall’s ongoing commitment to honor the artists that have created not only rock and roll, but the sound of youth culture.”
After going virtual last year, the Hall Of Fame will have an in-person induction ceremony in Cleveland this year. In fact, the ceremony is moving to a bigger venue: The 20,000-seat Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The ceremony will happen 10/30, and it’ll air on HBO and HBO Max at an as-yet-unannounced date.