IANA Blog- April 2026

 Blog

Happy April,

For those that didn’t know, this year’s inductees for the Rock of Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2026 was announced, so I figured I would do this month’s blog on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a museum and hall of fame located in Cleveland, Ohio and the Rock Hall honors the history of rock music and the many legendary rock artists, producers, and other personnel who helped make rock music and other music what it is today. Of course, this isn’t the first time I blog about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I also blogged about former member Jann Wenner and his controversial book he wrote.

Let me just say that growing up, I didn’t really pay that much attention to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, although I was a huge fan of music and many artists I grew up listening to were already inducted, such as Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Earth, Wind & Fire, Bob Marley, Prince and Michael Jackson. It wasn’t until 2007, when I found out that legendary hip hop artists Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were getting inducted, being the first hip hop act to be inducted in the Rock Hall. As a Hip Hop fan, I never thought they would actually induct hip hop artists/rappers into the Hall, just off the name “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,” but then I noticed that they had multiple artists inducted like the ones I mentioned and different music genres being represented, and then I was like, “they deserve to be in, just like everyone else,” especially considering they were “rock stars” to Black America and helped make Hip Hop the way it is. Next thing you know, I see legendary Hip Hop artists Run-D.M.C get inducted in 2009, then Hip Hop group Beastie Boys get inducted in 2012, legendary Political Hip Hop group Public Enemy get inducted in 2013, Gangsta Rap group N.W.A get inducted in 2016, then two of the greatest rappers ever, Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G get inducted in 2017 and 2020. So, I’d just get interested in who gets inducted every year.

Here is the list of inductees for this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2026:

Performers:

• Phil Collins

• Billy Idol

• Iron Maiden

• Joy Division/New Order

• Oasis

• Sade

• Luther Vandross

• Wu-Tang Clan

Early Influence:

• Celia Cruz

• Fela Kuti

• Queen Latifah

• MC Lyte

• Gram Parsons

Ahmet Ertegun Award:

• Ed Sullivan 

Musical Excellence:

• Linda Creed

• Arif Mardin 

• Jimmy Miller

• Rick Rubin

Maybe it’s me, but I feel like this class is definitely stacked. Under the performer wing, we have legendary soft rock artist Phil Collins, who had multiple hits in the 1980s including “In the Air Tonight,” and was already inducted as a member of the band Genesis, rock singer Billy Idol who embarked on a solo career after performing for the band Generation X and was part of the MTV-driven Second British Invasion in America, legendary heavy metal band Iron Maiden who are considered pioneers of the British Heavy Metal movement in the 1970s, English post-punk rock band Joy Division, which was led by singer Ian Curtis, English rock band New Order which consisted of members of Joy Division and was reformed after the suicide of Curtis, English rock and Britpop band Oasis, which is one of the more successful bands of the Britpop era, legendary R&B and Soul band Sade, led by one of my favorite singers of all time, British Nigerian singer Sade Adu, R&B and Soul singer, the late Luther Vandross, one of the many singers I listened a lot to as a kid and one of my favorite hip hop groups of all time, Wu-Tang Clan.

Inducted under the Early/Musical Influence wing is legendary Afro-Cuban singer and the “Queen of Salsa”, Celia Cruz, who became the first Spanish language artist inducted, legendary female hip hop artists Queen Latifah and MC Lyte who helped pave the way for female MCs in a male dominated genre, rock musician Gram Parsons who is considered the founder of the Country Rock genre and legendary Afrobeat artist Fela Kuti, who I covered on different IANA blogs. Fela became the first African artist to be inducted.

Legendary television show host Ed Sullivan of The Ed Sullivan Show will be inducted with the Ahmet Ertegun Award. His variety TV show ran from 1948 to 1971, and had legendary musical guests from The Supremes, to The Doors and famous performances from Elvis Presley and The Beatles. Inducted with the Musical Excellence Award is songwriter Linda Creed, music producer Arif Mardin, record producer Jimmy Miller and record producer and the founder of Def Jam Recordings, Rick Rubin. Rubin helped popularize Hip Hop by helping produce for pioneers such as Run-D.M.C, Public Enemy, LL Cool J, The Beastie Boys and Jay-Z. Rubin has also worked with different artists in different genres, from heavy metal to pop.

Many of the inductees this year are overdue, in my opinion, so I was happy to see some of the artists in. The ones I was really excited for were Sade, Luther Vandross, Wu-Tang Clan, MC Lyte, Queen Latifah and of course, Fela Kuti. I ain’t gonna lie, I didn’t think many would make the induction this year, but I’m happy I was proven wrong.

As mentioned, Sade is one of my favorite R&B acts and Sade Adu is one of my favorite singers. They are considered the influencers of the neo soul genre and were part of the new wave of British R&B acts coming out during the 1980s. Growing up listening to “Smooth Operator,” “The Sweetest Taboo,” and “No Ordinary Love” was a vibe. When I found out that Sade was Nigerian when I was younger, I was happy but shouldn’t have been shocked as her full name is Helen Folasade Adu, so I shouldn’t have been surprised.

Happy to see Luther Vandross in as he is one of my favorite singers of all time. Just like with hearing Sade, I heard a lot of Luther’s music growing up, from “Never Too Much” to “Here and Now,” to “Take You Out,” so it was great seeing his name pop up.

I was definitely excited to see Wu-Tang Clan inducted, because as I said, they are one of my favorite hip hop groups of all time, and in my opinion, the greatest hip hop group of all time. For my top five, it would be A Tribe Called Quest at five, N.W.A at four, Public Enemy at three, Run-D.M.C at two and Wu-Tang at number one. I’ll say it like this for why they are number one. Now, in my opinion, both Run-DMC and PE were probably more important to the rise of hip hop and both N.W.A and ATCQ were more influential in terms of their subgenres, with N.W.A popularizing Gangsta Rap and ATCQ popularizing Alternative Hip Hop and Jazz Rap, but why I have Wu-Tang at number one is the fact that the members of Wu-Tang never broke up, they stayed together and were longer than the other groups. Wu-Tang was also just as important and just as influential as well. They were important, because with the rise of West Coast hip hop in the 90s, their debut album Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) helped bring in an East Coast/New York hip hop renaissance, influencing other New York hip hop artists like Nas, Mobb Deep and The Notorious B.I.G. They were definitely just as influential as well, with their explicit, humorous and free-associative lyrics being the template for rap records and blending hip hop with martial arts and kung fu films, they helped reinvent hip hop in their own unique way. Also, when is the last time you have seen a hip hop group with nine to ten members actually all rapping? They showed what a hip hop supergroup/collective looks like. The RZA, The GZA, Method Man, Raekwon The Chef, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, Cappadonna and the late great Ol’ Dirty Bastard. They all deserve it.

Sticking with hip hop, I was definitely excited to see Queen Latifah and MC Lyte inducted under the Musical Influence category, especially since they are my favorite female rappers. Although he wasn’t the first female rapper or first female hip hop act, MC Lyte is still one of the pioneers for female rappers, even the first female rapper to release a  full solo album. And then, there’s Queen Latifah, who also was a pioneer for female rappers, being one of the most recognized female rappers during the golden era of hip hop, making a mark in the male dominated genre, rejecting Eurocentric beauty standards (especially as a plus sized woman) and embracing Afrocentrism within her work. Queen was also known for being one of hip hop’s well known feminists with songs like “Ladies First” and “U.N.I.T.Y.” which confronted the disrespect of women in society, especially in Hip Hop culture. Queen is also one of my mom’s favorite artists.

Out of all the inductees this year, the most I was really excited for was Fela Kuti. I have written on Fela multiple times on different blogs. It also makes sense for Fela to be inducted under the musical influence, as he paved the way for a lot of these African artists. Like I said, there’s no Afrobeats without Afrobeat. Fela created the genre by mixing West African music with funk and jazz, and used music as a weapon, speaking on colonialism, corruption, and other social issues that plague Nigeria and Africa, putting his career on the line multiple times against the powers that be. Fela, as mentioned, is the first African artist to be inducted, and he and Sade are the first Nigerian artists to be inducted. Hopefully, his induction will lead to more African artists getting recognized, like Miriam Makeba.

I’m definitely excited to see the speeches later on this year, and the performances too. I’ll admit, if there’s one thing I’m not looking forward to are the rants and the whining from the so-called experts and these rock “purists” who will be crying about certain things when it comes to the Rock Hall. They will whine about wanting to change the name of the “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” to “Music Hall of Fame,” or they’ll whine about how it needs to be rock musicians only getting inducted, not anyone else, they especially have been very vocal about rappers and hip hop artists getting into the Hall, using stupid excuses like “You wouldn’t put Lynyrd Skynyrd into the Rap Hall of Fame?” I feel that they love disrespecting hip hop music as a whole, which is nothing new. The one who loves to complain about this every year is rock star Gene Simmons of the legendary rock band KISS. Every year, he criticizes rappers and hip hop artists for getting inducted, and he looks like he doesn’t want to understand.

All of this is my opinion, but to all these crybabies who whine about these complaints every year, why did you wait til rappers got in to start whining about the name change, especially when they have been inducting non-rock musicians every year, since the first class. Here’s the first class, back in 1986:

Performers

• Chuck Berry

• James Brown

• Ray Charles

• Sam Cooke

• Fats Domino

• The Everly Brothers

• Buddy Holly

• Jerry Lee Lewis

• Little Richard

• Elvis Presley

Early Influences

• Robert Johnson

• Jimmie Rodgers

• Jimmy Yancey

Ahmet Ertegun Award

• Alan Freed

• Sam Phillips

Lifetime Achievement Award

• John Hammond

As you can see, the majority of the inductees were rock and roll artists, but you can also see that they have James Brown (Funk and Soul), Ray Charles (R&B and Soul), and Sam Cooke (Soul) and they weren't known for being rock musicians, but I guarantee you that they are also in because their music influenced multiple musicians, especially rock stars. Also, all modern music evolved from blues music, the origin of all popular music, from rhythm and blues, to jazz, to country music, to rock and roll, funk, soul, even hip hop. Once again, bringing up what Chuck D said when he and Public Enemy were inducted into the Hall and people were criticizing their induction, “We all come from the damn blues.” Why do you think all those legendary blues musicians are in? Many rock stars were influenced by them and they set the standard for rock and modern day music. 

Also, when you listen to hip hop, you’ll hear every different genre in that hip hop beat, including disco, funk, soul, reggae, and rock. Hip hop and Rock music will forever be interconnected, especially through a rebellious culture influencing each other for decades. We can’t forget about the connection it has with different artists. Run-DMC worked together with legendary rock band Aerosmith, Public Enemy teaming up with thrash metal band Anthrax, or political rock band Rage Against the Machine, who mixed hip hop with funk rock, punk rock and heavy metal.

I also wouldn't be surprised if the complaints feel racially biased. They’ll talk about a certain band or musician more deserving than someone else (and their choice is White and they’ll criticize the inductee who is Black), which is ironic since the majority of music, especially Rock music was created by Black people. 

Going back to Gene Simmons, it’s ironic that someone who along with the rest of the KISS who stole their aesthetic from legendary R&B artist Patti LaBelle and LaBelle want to whine about Black artists and hip hop artists getting in the Rock Hall. As far as I’m concerned, Simmons along with the rest of these crybabies come off as ignorant, bitter and annoying, in my opinion. Even the Rock Hall chairman John Sykes says that he won’t change the name, because people don’t understand the meaning of Rock and Roll.

If you want to go there, before Rock and Roll was a genre, it was a re-branding decision. Before Rock and Roll, there were also “race records”, which was an industry term for “music for Black people,” and “music for White people.” Producer Jerry Wexler renamed that chart, because “race records” would not sit well, and renamed music as “rhythm and blues.” Legendary DJ Alan Freed played rhythm and blues music on the radio and noticed how White kids were heavily listening to this Black music, and called it “Rock and Roll”. I feel like these critics definitely don’t do their history.

I better not hear or see these crybabies again whining about Fela Kuti getting inducted, as he is just as a Rock Star as any of their favorites. He had that Rock Star mentality as well…plays multiple instruments, wears flamboyant outfits, rebels against the system and sleeps with multiple women…sounds like a Rock Star to me. If anything, Fela was Nigeria’s biggest Rock Star…he was Africa’s biggest Rock Star.

Don’t get me wrong, the Rock Hall is not exempt from criticism, it deserves its criticisms, as I mentioned, there were many artists that were overdue, and from last classes, there were some questionable choices. I’m still annoyed that when hip hop artist LL Cool J was finally inducted, he wasn’t inducted as a performer. Same with heavy metal band Judas Priest as they were both inducted under the Musical Excellence wing. There are so many artists that should’ve been inducted by now, so I can understand why some critics are complaining about why certain artists aren’t in, but like I said, they all sound like they just whine, complain and cry, especially with non-traditional Rock artists going in. If anything, if there’s any type of artists that need more recognition for the Hall, it’s Reggae artists, in my opinion.

With that being said, any complaint that I see for this year’s class won’t matter, as it won’t stop these artists from getting inducted. But that’s just me…there’s definitely artists that I don’t think should make the Hall either…Drake…😒. Unfortunately, I have a feeling those that I’m not a fan of will get in eventually, so I can’t complain either.

Congratulations to this year’s inductees, especially Sade, Luther Vandross, Wu-Tang Clan, Queen Latifah, MC Lyte and Fela Kuti. Like I mentioned, I can’t wait to see their speeches and performances later on this year.

Hey IANA, how do you feel about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Who would you like to see inducted in the Rock Hall? Speaking of which, IANA Convention is coming up, and we’re gonna be in Detroit, the home of Motown. Plenty of music, plenty of culture, this August. Get ready and stay tuned.