Chicago, N.W.A., Deep Purple, Cheap Trick, Chaka Khan, The Smiths, The Cars, The JB’s, The Spinners, Steve Miller, Nine Inch Nails, Chic and Janet Jackson are all up for the Class Of 2016 at The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.
“It’s a wide range,” says Joel Peresman, CEO and president of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation. “I always find that’s how it comes together, but it’s representative of different people’s definitions of rock.” With less-familiar artists such as James Brown’s funk group The J.B.’s in the mix, “it’s not necessarily how many records you’ve sold, it’s about what your influence in the arts is.”
The nominees represent “the splintering of genres that increasingly began to characterize popular music since the ’90s — and the variety of nominees that I think we’ll see from now into the future,” says Rolling Stone contributing editor Anthony DeCurtis. The inclusion of Los Lobos, in particular, “acknowledges not just decades of great work, but the important Latino influence in the history of rock ‘n’ roll.”
Inductees will be determined by more than 800 artists, historians and music-industry professionals. Artists are eligible for consideration 25 years after releasing their first single or album (1990, for the newest crop of nominees).
The public can participate in the process by casting votes through select media outlets, including usatoday.com, and at rockhall.com. Voting ends Dec. 9 and the top five artists will make up a fans’ ballot, which counts as a single vote.
The 2016 inductees will be announced in December and the induction ceremony will be held in New York in April.
