Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Nominees 2026

inxs, iron maiden, and jd/no are in the "definitely yes, why aren't they in already?" category. some artists i love on here, but seem like weird fits for the rock hall for one reason or another. and some noms that i'm just baffled by.

you need to add an option for "demolish R&RHoF, ban all mention of it forever" next time.

...and deny JD/NO another victory?

Voted this morning. You used to be able to vote for up to seven acts, now you have to vote for seven. Hence Pink.

Mariah Carey
INXS
Iron Maiden
Joy Division/New Order
Pink
Sade
Wu-Tang Clan

love sade to death, but she didn't really rock or roll. i guess that ship sailed a long time ago

They're just not going nominate any indie bands or Rock artists who debuted/had their biggest success in this century, are they?

The obvious band to have nominated this year in their first year of eligibility is the Strokes. There was a time in the 2000s when the Strokes and the White Stripes were at a similar level and had a similar reputation as bands that had brought back scrappy, stripped-down rock music. The difference is that Jack White went on to become ubiquitous within the mainstream of the music industry in a way that none of the Strokes guys ever did.

A band that was eligible last year but has not yet been nominated is Linkin Park, which I think you could make a case for.

If you don’t have Iron Maiden yet, then under no circumstances should you be nominating the Strokes.

By the goofy standards of this organization I'm not sure any in this slate stands out as particularly unworthy. Maybe New Edition? They all did better as solo/group spin-offs, imo. Maybe Melissa Etheridge? Though she seems custom made for this kind of industry thing.

A band that was eligible last year but has not yet been nominated is Linkin Park, which I think you could make a case for.

Linkin Park absolutely deserve it. They're a generational band - hugely important to and influential on people much younger than you or me.

XPS

In the Variety article they say that Pink is the only newly eligible nom this year, with her first album coming out in 2000. The Strokes first EP and album were both 2001 releases, so <maybe> they'll get a nod next year.

What I was really thinking of are artists like QoTSA, MUSE, Wilco, Modest Mouse, Blink-182, Deftones etc...who have been eligible but left out of the discussion.

I feel like Blink and Wilco from that list have the best shot

I don't think Pink needs to be in at all

in the old Wenner regime, Etheridge woult be a slam dunk, will be interesting to see how things have changed.

They should just let everyone in and make induction an opt-out.

I'm just going to make my annual Blue Oyster Cult not being is the biggest bullshit post.

yea and where tf is thin lizzy

I don't think Pink needs to be in at all

An understandable opinion, but I'll vote for her a thousand times before voting for fucking Oasis or the fucking Black Crowes.

WU-TANG is my vote, that's rock and roll to me

yea and where tf is thin lizzy

― harper valley paul thomas anderson (voodoo chili), Wednesday, February 25, 2026 10:31 AM (forty-seven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

damn yeah that's a terrible omission too

I don't think Pink needs to be in at all

An understandable opinion, but I'll vote for her a thousand times before voting for fucking Oasis or the fucking Black Crowes.

― placeholder username till I think of a better one (unperson), Wednesday, February 25, 2026 10:32 AM (forty-seven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

i was not advocating for those, i just feel like pink feels very minor imo i dunno

It’s so fucking funny that they’d rather open this thing up to like Luther Vandross and Pink and Sade before hugely influential arena-level rock bands like Korn and Tool and System of a Down, presumably because they’re “uncool” or for mooks or whatever.

JUSTICE FOR 311

I mean also they’ve run out of tentpole pan-generational rock bands so there’s no actual rock bands left that could get that “We gotta subscribe to HBO Max” push.

Pink is a test run for next year when they have to convince Beyoncé to show up and perform because the only way to make their dumb award show profitable is to turn this into the MTV Video Vanguard award where the entire thing is predicated on who is the most famous person you can get to attend.

Also it’s incredibly funny that the Rock Hall is pinning its continued existence on abandoning rock music but Metallica playing the sphere completely mogged this announcement in the news

They're just not going nominate any indie bands or Rock artists who debuted/had their biggest success in this century, are they?

they're not exactly rushing to nominate indie bands from last century either.

^My bad. Shoulda dropped a comma in there.

ah, yes, that makes sense. and rings v v true.

Voted Luther (not only) because I was just listening to him earlier today.

aren't oasis nominated every year?

i sometimes feel like pink is the biggest worldwide star of the last quarter century who i seldom if ever see much critical interest in, positive or otherwise. maybe it's different now but in the 2010s i remember noticing, seemingly alone about the biggest women in pop, she never got reviewed by pitchfork (not that that necessarily means anything) despite the constant chain of big albums.

alone among*

The Black Crowes are the only band on here I still listen to regularly. Their first few albums have always been amazing. INXS close runner-up.

Mariah, Phil, Maiden, and Wu Tang, I care about to the extent that it'd be nice if they were honored by something, but I don't care if it's the rock hall.

There are a few Pink songs I really like, but seriously, what the fuck are you doing here?

BOC/Thin Lizzy continued absences noted.

why are Joy Division & New Order listed as one band? I don't think they've ever done that before

They did it before with Small Faces/Faces.

My votes:

Maiden
Luther
Wu
Joy D/New Order
Sade
Mariah
Shakira (I was torn between that and Melissa E while Pink was also in there, but the first six were my locks so with one spot left I had to make a call)

Pink’s prime was a bit before Pitchfork began paying attention to pop artists. She’s hit or miss, a bit like a 00s Dua Lipa.

If it was the ROCK MUSIC Hall of fame, then all the complaints from Eddie Trunk, Gene Simmons and others unhappy that Tom Scholz isn't in would have greater merit. For those guys do not care about the black roots of the idiom, that guitars in fact were not as prominent in the original 50s rock and roll flowering as horns or pianos, that Young Thug in the 2010s-2020s has a more pronounced connection to fats Domino than Yes ever did… so Pink, who is a great great artist, as good as Thin Lizzy and Iron Maiden, belongs in a rock and roll hall of fame.

"Rock music" emerged as a concern in 1966, with Revolver, Blonde and Blonde, and the likes of Jann Wenner and Paul Nelson, pseuds whose insecurities re: the teen music about fucking they liked, dictated how they could reconcile that teen music with middle class respectability and boooshwah notions of art.

it's pretty simple: does it say "fuck you!" or "I want to fuck you"/"let's fuck!" then it's rock and roll. Rock music, on the other hand, is the G/B/D shit that the trunk/Simmons and Wenner/Nelson/little Steven factions, and for that matter the Cosloy/Albini wing, all lament, due to it having been in decline, purely in terms of mass culture for 2 decades.

why are Joy Division & New Order listed as one band? I don't think they've ever done that before

That's how they were listed too when they were nominated a few years ago.
It sounds right to me.

No, Pink is not as good as Thin Lizzy or Iron Maiden.

Pink has made some of the worst music I've ever heard

Pink has made some music I've heard

I think that Joy Division changing its personnel and then d/b/a as New Order had a not particularly great change in their musical modus operandi; whereas Fleetwood Mac and Genesis did change their personnel as well as the nature of their music, but not the bandnames. So by that metric, I think it's OK to do J.D. and N.O. as one nominee.

Phil Collins is nominated because his manager is on the committee, is shameless in pushing his clients as such, and he apparently shows little interest in any nominee with whom he has no association: others on the committee regard this guy's presence as a big big mistake…

or "I want to fuck you"/"let's fuck!" then it's rock and roll.

Is Mel Tormé in there?

My seven preferences: Jeff Buckley, Lauryn Hill, Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order, Oasis, Sade, Wu-Tang Clan

But honestly, Joy Division/New Order and Wu-Tang are the only ones that I'd vote for without any reservations.

Love Sade but yeah there has to be some other HoF to induct her, with all the other smooth operators

Didn't Sade's label run a whole marketing campaign at one point with the slogan "Sade Is A Band"? Well, in any case, Sade is a band (with the same lineup since 1983!), and a very good one.

I just checked with Wikipedia to confirm, but I was under the impression that Sade was the name of the band AND the professional name Helen Adu went by, which understandably causes confusion.

Sade was the name of the band AND the professional name Helen Adu went by

didn't pj harvey work the same way, at least for a while?

Wu-Tang, but almost went New Order/Joy Divison

XP Yes, as did Alice Cooper.

still impossible to go past new order but lol rrhof is still the silliest thing

They're just not going nominate any indie bands or Rock artists who debuted/had their biggest success in this century, are they?

white stripes were inducted last year! i don't really expect much else any time soon, the strokes will probably be nominated next year but not actually happen

it's surprising oasis aren't in there yet, they seem like they should have been rrhof catnip? idk their biases get weirder and weirder as time goes on and the classic rock they like dries up

i sometimes feel like pink is the biggest worldwide star of the last quarter century who i seldom if ever see much critical interest in, positive or otherwise. maybe it's different now but in the 2010s i remember noticing, seemingly alone about the biggest women in pop, she never got reviewed by pitchfork (not that that necessarily means anything) despite the constant chain of big albums.

idk she didn't release that much in the 10s and her commercial peak was really the late 00s. she's never been the absolute biggest star anywhere except australia (to a degree that is truly absurd), never made any sort of pivot to even trying to court critical attention, and had been around for long enough that she wasn't some exciting new presence so it's not really surprising she's been pretty critically ignored i guess

Do they still do the jam session thing? Would be hilarious to see who jumps in to sing "Run To The Hills" or "The Number Of The Beast."

Would love it if Sade completely suaved either of those up.

Also Wu doing something with "In The Air Tonight" could be kinda nuts.

Would love it if Sade completely suaved either of those up.

Speaking of this, the acknowledgement that Sade is a band (and all four members are being inducted) is nice too.

Yeah that's exactly how it should be.

(xxxxxp) motorhead one hundred thousand million percent yes and also, as with the dead, every single musician who ever was part of motorhead should go in with them

Meantime for next year I'm guessing Mariah gets nominated again and gets in. Beyond that, dunno, but I rather hope the Black Crowes don't get nominated again (and having wished that the monkey's paw will foist Weezer on me instead).

This just reminds me that Andy Anderson didn’t get inducted with The Cure and that really pisses me off

yes but will Hooky and Barney kiss and make up

hook has said he's "wonderfully please" to be inducted and will show up but i'd still be pretty shocked if they play together

Gram Parsons and Oasis getting in the same year feels very on brand

Not sure I understand that "Early Influence" category. I assumed it was for pre-rock artists like Leadbelly or Hank Williams, but now they're giving it to hip hop artists who debuted a decade or so after "Rapper's Delight"?

It's become a consolation prize for acts beloved of specialists who could never make it on the "fame" criterion.

this is actually a pretty damn good list of inductees, though Billy Idol is pretty borderline. Oasis makes sense. I wonder if it means Blur will get a nomination next year.

Blur probably made less of an impact in America than Everclear. I could see Gorillaz getting in first.

Being in Cleveland, Phil should get Bone Thugs to join:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJF4M1GCy0E

Not sure I understand that "Early Influence" category. I assumed it was for pre-rock artists like Leadbelly or Hank Williams, but now they're giving it to hip hop artists who debuted a decade or so after "Rapper's Delight"?

I think people kind of saw this coming, but in its original form, the category was objectively finite. It's not like the number of important early influences was ever going to grow, in order to keep the category alive, you either had to induct lesser and lesser blues, country, folk and early jazz figures (which would excessively dilute the category) or re-define it to include sub-genres of rock rather than rock n' roll as a whole.

but primarily the committee doesn't get the results it wants when they nominate anything other than the most basic bitch shit: it is very odd to me that Black Crowes didn't cruise right in, as the bizzer voters that make up the overwhelmingly biggest part of the electorate like that kind of thing the most, and don't like Maiden and have never heard of Fela. So if Tom Morello or Questlove wants to push through Priest/Maiden or Fela/Celia Cruz, they have to use the dopey early influences/"musical excellence" back doors.

I think that Wyman guy is a prissy rockist hack, but he's right when he says that the committee should just say "we are the committee, we have this privilege, we are putting in a few acts into the hall without putting them before the voters, it's just show business, it's not a fucking representative democracy, suck my dick if you don't like it."

I really have no idea who is the Lorne Michaels figure ensuring these guys still act like that. Jann is out, Ahmet/Seymour/Krasnow are all dead. Like someone has to be Martin Prince-ing the "rules' that only allow Nile Rodgers to get into their goofy HBO show if he's given the weird Black Person Consolation Prize

the bizzer voters that make up the overwhelmingly biggest part of the electorate like that kind of thing the most, and don't like Maiden and have never heard of Fela

Iron Maiden sells out arenas around the world every other year. There was a hit Broadway musical about Fela. The music industry is aware of these scrappy underdog acts, believe me.

In 2023 they adjusted "Early Influence" into just "Musical Influence", which I guess can open the timeline up a little, even though an argument could be made that later-era pioneers like Kraftwerk, Gram Parsons, or Queen Latifa are "early" in their genres.

Wendy Carlos needs to be in that category (if she would accept such an honor)

xxpost Yeah and Maiden got in on the vote so I'm not sure why they're being used as an example there?

true, but for years there was absolutely no chance in hell a band like maiden would get past the voters. zero chance. judas priest never got past the voters. with maiden and joy div new ord -- another nominee that voters would normally ignore -- getting in this year, i'm really curious what changed this time around

I used maiden as an example because I was sloppy and didn't think through what I was saying

honestly most sports hall of fames have a similar mechanism, usually called a "veteran's committee" to induct old players that were overlooked by the vote, I would suspect it's modeled on that

also MC Lyte is as if not more deserving than Latifah and I'm more surprised she got in

Hasil Adkins, your time will come.

(And then makes the mistake of reading Hasil's Wikipedia entry...Jesus.)

In the fine tradition of Bowie, Sabbath and the Sex Pistols:

https://metalinjection.net/news/iron-maiden-will-not-attend-the-rock-roll-hall-of-fame-ceremony

(In this case most in line with Bowie's decision; he was also on tour at the time.)

But this also means Blaze Bailey can do the most amazing dick move ever.

That was my thought - I wonder if he can get off work that day?

On a more serious note if they wanted an official band rep there, hey, Nicko would be perfect.

jesus christ I just realized Eric B and Rakim are not in the hall of fame that's fucking absurd

(In this case most in line with Bowie's decision; he was also on tour at the time.)

I remember Peter Gabriel skipping Genesis's induction for the same reason (and so did Todd Rundgren and Chubby Checker - they had gigs or tours booked), but Gabriel showed up for his solo induction years later.

Eric B. & Rakim were nominated. I definitely voted for them in the fan vote, but it really was fucking absurd that they were passed over for others that I shall not name.

(actually nominated TWICE: 2012 and 2024)

to his credit I have no doubt Eminem would say it's bullshit he was in before them, he's nothing if not reverent to the 80s legends

With Maiden not able to attend, they may get Sade to perform "The Trooper"

Quick note that Maura Johnston and I appeared today on a Patreon-only episode of the Eurowhat talking about this year's nominees and winners and much more about the HOF:

https://www.patreon.com/eurowhat

This'll appear in the free main feed later this year, but personally I think they're worth the support!

How did they decide when to induct two artists together like Joy Division/New Order and Small Faces/Faces? I suppose I understand Small Faces and Faces but, outside of membership, Division and New order makes less sense from a cultural or musical perspective. If membership is the key, wouldn’t Nirvana and Foo Fighters qualify?

I forget the publication that posts the anonymous voter interviews. Did that happen this year? It’s like my favorite annual hate read.

s/did/do

new order is understood by pretty much everyone as a direct continuation of joy division after curtis' death?

Except that their music is quite different

Not true for the first couple years— early New Order is very much the direction JD would have gone. Then comes the famous “spiked drink in New York club”

Movement is very much a 50/50 JD/NO sort of sound, but one could theorize that Ian's health difficulties might have meant them spending less time touring in the US and not being exposed to the dance music they heard in the clubs over here... could have been a very different mid-80s New Order

also is it really New Order without Barney's lyrics, which he never would have written if Ian had been around?

Ny mag's vulture vertical publishes the voter interviews… they also have published BIll Wyman's dumb updated-every-year ranking of the inductees…

Fleetwood Mac had a greater change in the nature of their recorded output and personnel, and I would suggest that Genesis had an equivalent change of style and personnel— two guys left in '75 and '78, compared to JD/NO's one person dying and another joining in short order in '80. The only difference is that the people involved didn't change the name.

It's 75% the same fuckin guys, who cares

THANK YOU

I suppose I understand Small Faces and Faces

Despite the similarity in band name, there's a big change from Ogden's Nut Gone Flake to First Step. Movement is trying a lot harder to sound like Joy Division.