The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s lack of heavy metal representation has been one of its biggest criticisms in recent years. It’s a topic Rock Hall President and CEO Greg Harris addressed in a new interview and he gave an interesting answer.
When asked about Dee Snider’s recent comments about how the Rock Hall has looked down on metal and doesn’t respect the genre, Harris said, “It’s an interesting one because we do. We celebrate all forms of Rock & Roll. They were nominated; we nominated [Iron] Maiden [this year], Judas Priest have been nominated, we put Def Leppard in… Those that are nominated, over 80% of them eventually do get inducted. So it’s really a question of, let’s keep nominating them, let’s get ‘em on the ballot, and let’s get it out to the voting body. This ballot had sixteen artists on it… they just can’t all go in.”
This year’s Rock Hall class features six artists being inducted in the Performer Category: Foo Fighters, The Go-Go’s, JAY-Z, Carole King, Todd Rundgren and Tina Turner. Additional honors are also being included in this year’s Rock Hall class, with one of the most notable recognitions going to Randy Rhoads who’s receiving the Musical Excellence Award.
As previously reported, the Rock Hall is planning on an in-person induction ceremony with fans taking place on Saturday, October 30 at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse arena in Cleveland. Tickets are expected to go on sale in July. The 2021 Induction Ceremony will air on HBO and stream on HBO Max at a later date.
