Paul Stanley was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with KISS in 2014. As a Rock Hall inductee, Stanley can vote on all future classes. As far as 2021 goes, he’s definitely identified two of the choices on his ballot.
In an interview with USA Today, Stanley said of this year’s inductees, “Foo Fighters are a great, great band. (Iron) Maiden belongs in there. If it wasn’t for Maiden, there wouldn’t be an abundance of bands who sound Maiden-like. Isn’t that what gets you in the Hall of Fame?”
For the past number of years, the Rock Hall has definitely been doing some course-correcting and inducting some long-overdue acts. KISS, for example, was first eligible for induction in 1999 but was finally inducted 15 years later. (Note: Musicians become eligible for the Rock Hall 25 years after their first official release.) This oversight is something that isn’t lost on Stanley.
“The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has had such a stigma attached to it, and rightfully so,” said Stanley. “It’s been so much of an old men’s club where they pick their favorites in a backroom. And most of them, quite honestly, past the first handful – you ask most people in America who (these artists) are and they’re clueless. So to see it becoming more of a reflection of popularity and influence, that’s a great thing.”
The 2021 Rock Hall induction class will be announced in May. As previously reported, the Rock Hall is planning on an in-person induction ceremony with fans taking place on October 30 at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse arena in Cleveland. Tickets are expected to go on sale in July.
As with previous years, the public will have the opportunity to voice their choice via the Fan Vote at RockHall.com. The Fan Vote runs through April 30. Fans are allowed to vote once per day during the Fan Vote period. Visitors of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland will also have the opportunity to vote in person. The “Fans’ Ballot” will be comprised of the top five artists from the fan vote. That ballot will be counted among the other ballots filled out by various artists, historians, and music industry professionals.