Nominees for RRHoF’s Class of 2026 Announced Last Week

It’s now been a week since the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced their nominee list for induction in the Class of 2026. One could argue for months on end about the definition of “rock & roll,” let alone how it’s spelled (rock & roll, rock and roll, rock ‘n’ roll or rock ‘n roll?), but the Hall is using a broad definition to include all popular music released since that fateful day in 1954 when Bill Haley & His Comets hit number one with their classic song of teen rebellion “Rock Around the Clock.” Since rock & roll is a Frankenstein monster that consists of disparate musical influences such as country, pop, jazz, gospel, country, blue grass, blues, R&B, folk and big band, to list the most obvious, we should expect the genre’s definition to include such genre mutations as funk, Americana, punk, new wave, hip hop, dance, disco, Nu Metal, heavy metal, death metal, Goth rock, post-punk and all the rest out there and yet to come. That is why Fats Domino, Miles Davis, Dolly Parton, Mahalia Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Ozzy Osbourne, N.W.A, Donna Summer, The Rolling Stones, ABBA, Kiss, Steely Dan, Whitney Houston, The Clash. Chicago, The Cure, Prince and all the rest of the current inductees can share in the history of this broad category of music termed rock & roll. Diversity is the name of the game when it comes to rock & roll, and the Hall reflects that status.

Last week, many of us got word that the Nominating Committee for the Hall had released their “much debated” list of artists who are eligible for induction into the Hall’s Class of 2026. The list is crazy and diverse. For those who believe rock & roll essentially begins and ends with classic rock or metal, those people have much about which to bitch. While those of us with more diverse tastes are relishing this list. This year’s list is full of 17 artists, all of whom deserve enshrinement. And I personally would be happy to see all of them inducted right now if we could just work on the major log jam of artists who should be inducted faster. Personally, I wish Hall President and former MTV executive John Sykes would read my posts on his organization because we are in the midst of losing many of these stars who should have been inducted twenty to thirty years ago.

This year’s list includes the following artists. If you follow my posts, you should be familiar with many of these artists. Just so you know, I did predict seven of these artists back in December 2025, so I pretty good. I will give you may list which has 16 artists, followed by the actual list which 17 artists.

My Predictions The Hall’s Nominee List

1. Boston 1. The Black Crowes
2. Mariah Carey 2. Jeff Buckley
3. Phil Collins 3. Marish Carey
4. Devo 4. Phil Collins
5. Billy Idol 5. Melissa Etheridge
6. INXS 6. Lauryn Hill
7. Iron Maiden 7. Billy Idol
8. Joy Division/New Order 8. INXS
9. Alicia Keys 9. Iron Maiden
10. Alanis Morissette 10. Joy Division/New Order
11. Motorhead 11. New Edition
12. Pixies 12. Oasis
13. Smashing Pumpkins 13. P!NK
14. The Smiths 14. Sade
15. Styx 15. Shakira
16. Wu-Tang Clan 16. Luther Vandross
    • 17. Wu-Tang Clan

I am not going to touch all of the diversity issues covered by the set of nominees. There’s enough gender, sexuality, ethnic and musical diversity to please even the most strident diversity referees out there. Personally, all I care about is whether the artists on the list are deserving of induction, and ALL of these artists clear the bar.

If you go to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame website, you know you can vote for your favorite artists. If you have cast your ballot, then you know that you may choose seven artists, leading me to believe that the Class of 2026 will have AT LEAST seven inductees. Since the introduction of the fan ballot online many moons ago, we could choose five artists. Most of the time, the classes consisted of five to seven inductees (way too small of my liking). Could the Hall be prepping us for an increase in the number of inductees? I don’t know, but anything is possible with this inconsistent and arbitrary organization.

For full disclosure, I have voted for these seven artists up for the Class of 2026: Mariah Carey, Phil Collins, Billy Idol, Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order, P!NK and Luther Vandross. I honestly believe this represents the strongest class possible with the most star power. Can you image this show kicking off with the incomparable Iron Maiden, followed by Billy Idol, then a Luther Vandross tribute (the man sang backup for everyone including David Bowie and Chic), Joy Division/New Order, a Phil Collins tribute (since Phil’s in poor health), the majestic Mariah Carey (who has had the most number one songs of anyone in history which is at 19), and close with the dynamic P!NK. And we could switch Maiden and Idol if you want to get all the women off their seats at the onset. It would truly be one helluva show! And the ratings would be bigger than normal.

However, that’s not how the Hall totally rolls. I have been having trouble getting a finger on this Class. The so-called big media experts are all over the place. Surprisingly, my Hall Watcher colleagues are also all over the place. One man who has be conspicuously quiet is the great Hall expert for Cleveland.com and most of the media in northeast Ohio Troy Smith. The man is plugged into the Hall in a manner which makes me very jealous. So far, I have seen nothing from him on this topic. Hopefully, all is well with him because no one is able to read the Hall’s tea-leaves like Troy.

So, with how the politics within the voting body goes, the artist with the most fan votes most likely will be inducted. The outliers in this logic was the first year in which the Dave Matthews Band was nominated and Phish last year. Currently, Phil Collins is leading the way, but this voting seems to be very fluid and dependent upon the artists’ fan clubs being motivated to vote.

Let’s begin with whom I don’t think will be inducted THIS year. Those artists are The Black Crowes (arguably the LAST classic rock band) and New Edition (which was a developing ground for three solo careers and one trio career). I believe that Phil Collins and Lauryn Hill are the only true shoo-ins. That leaves 13 artists elbowing each other for the other five slots. If the Hall ignores Iron Maiden AND metal fans everywhere again and pulls a cheap move as they did with Judas Priest (inducting them via Musical Excellence instead of the Performer designation). If that happens, except Eddie Trunk to blow a gasket, and to be honest, I will supremely pissed. The Hall mistreats metal fans, and a snub like this might just make metal fans walk away from the Hall en mass.

Now, I like Melissa Etheridge and totally recognize her contribution to changing the public’s perception of female rockers. Plus, she has been waving her rainbow flag for so long that we forget the bigotry she faced in the early Nineties. However, outside her first three albums, she really has been a non-factor commercially speaking. But, she has some big names in her corner, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she gets a slot.

Next, Jeff Buckley is the Kate Bush nominee, a niche performer who died after one excellent album that has historically been a slow burner over the past 30+ years after its release. However, he did sing the definitive version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” His music is interesting and moving, but I really don’t see him being inducted this year.

My main man Billy Idol just might get inducted this year. His music was my go-to DJ music. He was a rocker, and a punk for that matter, who transcended metal and punk trappings with an Eighties dance beat. His window was small but lasting. Plus, he released a solid album and had a successful tour last year.

Seriously, how can the most successful singles artists of the rock and roll era be left out of the Hall of Fame? Well, when your name is Mariah Carey, few take your success seriously. While Rolling Stone named her the fifth greatest singer of all time, the general public write her off as just a pop star. But no pop star has been able to combine a torch sound with hip hop beats to create a sound that unique to her. She is able to walk a tightrope between pop, R&B, dance and hip hop for her credibility. If she would just release that supposedly shelved alternative rock album she created in the mid Nineties to prove her rock chops, she just might become shoo-in. I think she should be regardless.

In the summer of 1983, I saw an up and coming band called INXS open for a white-hot Men at Work in a made for MTV concert. INXS blew Men at Work off the stage that night. Within five years, INXS blew up to become international pop stars merging a Stonesy rock sound with some Eighties funk. Their window of success was much like Billy Idol’s. However, there seems to be lots of momentum for this band.

By now, everyone should know how I feel about Joy Division and New Order, two bands whose histories overlap as New Order rose out of the ashes of Joy Division’s crash upon the death of lead singer Ian Curtis. New Order made some of the most enduring dance/new wave hybrid numbers in the Eighties and Nineties. Their collective influence spans the globe and time.

As one of my older son’s favorite bands of the Nineties, Oasis only made a mediocre dent here in the States while they reached a God-like status back in the UK. The Hall needs to quit looking simply at states side success, because that view limits the Hall’s population. Right now, Oasis, Blur, The Jam, The Style Council, Paul Weller, Cliff Richard, The Smiths and the Stone Roses are all awaiting a very deserved induction due to this bias.

When naming the greatest female vocalists of the 21st century, I rarely hear anyone say P!NK. This woman is underestimated and underappreciated. Yet, all she does is create great music that walks the line between pop, rock and dance, all the while filling football stadiums around the world with what I hear just may be one of the greatest live acts in history. So, don’t be surprised if she gets inducted on her first ballot of her first year of eligibility. I was so stupid to choose Alicia Keys over P!NK.

Two years ago, Sade made a surprise appearance with their first nomination for the Rock Hall. Now, they are back to bring their smooth jazz R&B sound to the Hall with the namesake of the band Sade Abdou providing the vocal and visual centerpiece to the band. This band is beloved all over the world.

Another first time nominee, Shakira made her name by nominating the Latin charts around the turn of the century. Then, she shook her hips and sang her way into the hearts of the English-speaking world with some big turns in the early-Aughts. Shakira may seem like a darkhorse for induction, but maybe we shouldn’t overlook her.

Throughout the Seventies, Luther Vandross was part of coterie of session musicians and vocalists who were constantly working with rock, R&B and disco artists in New York City. Most famously, Vandross helped David Bowie develop his rock/R&B classic Young Americans by providing backing vocals during the sessions and on tour. Then, Vandross pivoted and became a crucial ingredient in the backing vocal mix in most the big hits by Chic. After becoming renown for his early-Eighties production work with Aretha Franklin and others, Luther parlayed that into his own contract and became the love voice of R&B in the Eighties.

Finally, NYC’s Wu-Tang Clan was a huge posse of rappers, producers and various knuckleheads who created a classic sound as the Clan and as individuals. They turned the hip hop world on its head back in 1992 with the release of their debut album. This made the band an essential part of hip hop and rock & roll history.

So, there is my quick overview of this year’s nominees. I believe that Mariah Carey, Phil Collins, Billy Idol, Iron Maiden, P!NK, Luther Vandross and Wu-Tang Clan will make up the Class of 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees. Just don’t be surprised if any of these great artists are inducted. But, when it’s all said and done, Phil Collins, Mariah Carey, Iron Maiden AND Billy Idol better be inducted. In my mind, they are the most important in this year’s list of nominees.

I guess we will find out in April whether I’m right or not.