Next year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees have been revealed, with the roster including legends Bon Jovi and Dire Straits.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame itself is a museum in Ohio, but it is more widely recognised as the prestigious annual awards ceremony, where iconic artists from history get a chance to be voted in and immortalised as some of rock’s most important figures.

The ceremonies were always held at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York, but now sometimes occur in Cleveland (where the museum resides) or Los Angeles. Over the years, the likes of Iggy Pop, Eric Clapton, Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly have been inducted.

Individuals are mostly inducted under the ‘performers’ category, although artists are sometimes placed under the ‘early influences’ bracket if their work is particularly historic (before the 1960s). If an artist is recognised as a session musician or not as the focal point of their group, they can be inducted for ‘musical excellence’ instead.

Notable individuals who do not perform and yet hold a significant impact on music are also inducted, but under the category ‘non-performers’ – examples include producers, DJS and journalists. The final category is for ‘lifetime achievement’, and is only awarded to individuals who have dedicated their lives to expanding rock and roll as a movement.

Since the first ceremony in 1986, the organisation behind it has seen its fair share of controversy, from German synth heroes Kraftwerk being nominated for 2017’s ceremony, to the remaining members of the Sex Pistols straight up refusing to appear at the awards in 2006, with frontman John Lydon sending a note to be read on the night which stated his disgust towards the process and the museum itself.

19 nominees were up for the 2018 ceremony, from Detroit city proto-punks MC5 and LL Cool J, to UK experimentalists Radiohead and Kate Bush. From those, 6 acts will be inducted. Those are:

Performers:

  • Bon Jovi
  • The Cars
  • Dire Straits
  • The Moody Blues
  • Nina Simone

Early Influence:

  • Sister Rosetta Sharpe

The 33rd instance of the famous ceremony will take place on Saturday 14th April 2018, in Cleveland, Ohio.

Written By: Connor Winyard

George Millington