The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is approaching the 40th anniversary of its first induction ceremony in 1986. In all that time, induction has been an esteemed honor. It’s also been a perennial argument starter all throughout the internet.
The 2025 class includes seven main performer inductees, and five selections in the three side categories. Cyndi Lauper, Soundgarden, and the White Stripes had been nominated before this year. Bad Company, Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, and Outkast were new to the ballot. In the side categories, Warren Zevon has had one prior nomination, and Salt-N-Pepa had never been on a ballot before but were considered a longtime snub. Also inducted were producers Lenny Waronker and Thom Bell, and session musicians Carol Kaye and Nicky Hopkins.
I have five major takeaways from this class, ranging from its make-up to what it means for future years of the Hall ballot.
1. No alarms, and no surprises (well, maybe the lack of Mariah Carey)
There isn’t much in the way of surprises in the main inductees category. Five of the seven inductees – Lauper, Cocker, Outkast, Bad Company, and Checker – were considered to be locks or close to it. Soundgarden and The White Stripes were moderate surprises, in that many Hall watcher blogs thought Billy Idol had a better chance than either of them.
Soundgarden’s induction is a win for both alternative and hard rock. A common way to think of the ballot is that nominees are in specific lanes – a representative of American alternative rock or 1990s hip hop. For Soundgarden, there were 90s alternative acts like Oasis on the ballot, but there was no real metal nominee aside from them. Perhaps their induction is good news for The Smashing Pumpkins or Iron Maiden.
The White Stripes are the first inductee whose career primarily took place in the 21st century. Radiohead, Outkast, Nine Inch Nails, Eminem, and Missy Elliott all released significant, popular records in the 2000s, but they all also have major 90s albums too. The White Stripes’ most acclaimed albums were all issued in the 2000s. Their induction may be a signal that the Hall is finally moving into the new millennium at last, and everyone from The Strokes to Pink to Beyoncé could benefit from that.
2. A good year for Musical Excellence…
At long last, the great bass guitarist Carol Kaye is finally in the Hall. A key figure in the group of session players commonly known as the Wrecking Crew (although she hates that name), Kaye has played on countless hit records from the 1960s and 70s. Kaye’s bass lines are famous: “Good Vibrations”, “River Deep, Mountain High”,“These Boots Are Made for Walkin’”, among others. Kaye should’ve been in back in the early 2000s, when this category was specifically devoted to session musicians. She’s waited until 2025 to get her due, which is truly baffling. Kaye is 90, and she’ll hopefully be on hand to accept her award in person.
Also in the Hall through this category is Nicky Hopkins, a keyboardist and pianist best known for his work with the Rolling Stones. Among his best known tracks with the Stones are the piano on “Loving Cup”, “She’s a Rainbow”, “Sympathy for the Devil”. The Stones also used Ian Stewart, who co-founded the group, and Billy Preston to play keyboards live and on record, and both of them are in the Hall now. In addition to the Stones, Hopkins also performed with The Kinks on several records like their seminal The Village Green Preservation Society, The Who on Who’s Next, and John Lennon’s Imagine. Hopkins is a worthy addition to the Hall. Hopkins is a reminder that the Hall isn’t done inducting great session musicians. There’s a lot of work to be done in that regard.
Lastly, Thom Bell was an architect of the Philly soul sound of the 1970s. He produced and wrote classic songs like “I’ll Be Around” by The Spinners and “Betcha By Golly Wow” by The Stylistics. Bell should’ve gotten in when the Spinners did in 2022. Overall, 2025 was a great year for the excellence category. The category has had a bit of return to its roots by focusing on session musicians and producers.
3. …And a confusing one for Musical Excellence
The influence category features the biggest surprises of the class. The two artists inducted this way this year are worthy but should’ve probably gone in through the ballot. Warren Zevon is a great songwriter who I thought was heading for an induction on his first appearance in 2023. While Zevon is certainly an influential and beloved musician, it’s interesting he’s going in through the influences category instead of excellence like Jimmy Buffett did last year.
Salt-N-Pepa meanwhile, have never been on a ballot before even though they are a longtime snub from the underserved world of 1980s hip hop. I think they fit the influences tag well, though, since they were the first female rappers to score a hit single (“Push It”), continued into the ’90s, and were influential on later women in hip hop. I included Salt-N-Pepa in a previous article about women who should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It’s great to see them get their due after all these years.
It’s weird how the Hall keeps inducting worthy artists that should be in the main class through these side categories. The Hall should have some kind of veterans committee category. Zevon would fit better in a better defined category such as that idea.
4. ’80s hip hop returns to the Hall
Salt N Pepa’s induction in the influence category means that the category may wide open in the future for other hip hop acts from the 1980s that the hall seems to have skipped over along the way. The Hall has inducted hip hop acts since 2007, almost 20 years ago now. That’s nearly half of the existence of the institution. Hip hop has origins with funk and James Brown. The Hall considers hip hop to be part of that lineage. The argument as to whether hip hop belongs in the Hall has been settled.
Despite the Hall’s acceptance of hip hop, there’s some big names missing in the institution. There’s very little representation from the late 70s and ‘80s hip hop in the Hall. Many of those artists could easily slot in the influences category. Chief among these is Eric. B & Rakim, the pioneering duo behind the classics Paid in Full and Follow the Leader. They’ve been nominated twice in 2012 and 2024 and should be in.
Other acts that could get in through this influence induction treatment include Kurtis Blow, Whodini, Kool Moe Dee, KRS-One, UTFO, Roxanne Shante, and The Funky Four + 1. If the Rock Hall wants to honor hip hop, these legends shouldn’t be on the outside looking in. We should be seeing more of them in that category the next few years.
5. What are the future chances for the artists that missed out on induction?
If you read my previous article on the Rock Hall nominees, you’ll know I was skeptical about Phish’s chances. While they may have some decent name recognition, they are also a band that a lot of people can’t name one song by. I figure they will be back on the ballot again eventually, just like the Dave Matthews Band. While Phish don’t have many recognizable songs, they continue to be a huge live draw with a devoted following. Those aspects have to help them eventually.
Billy Idol is more of a surprise. Perhaps Idol’s reputation for being a mainstream, safe version of punk rock that was more hard rock than anything else hurt his chances. Perhaps he just didn’t have the catalog or influences to stand out. Either way, he’ll likely be back.
What does Mariah Carey need to do to get into the Hall? It’s not because she’s a pop singer: Madonna and Whitney Houston both got in on their first ballots after all. Unlike Celine Dion, there’s plenty of R&B and other rock-adjacent influences in Carey’s musical style. I wonder if she seems too “recent” to voters. Or if there’s something else about her and her music that a majority of them don’t like.
Maná were a nice idea, but they likely didn’t have the name recognition to the mostly American and British voting pool to actually get in. They’d probably have a better chance of getting in through a dedicated international category, as I’ve suggested before. Joy Division and New Order are a great two for the price of one package. But maybe they need one more appearance before voters who are on the fence about them finally take the plunge on them to reward their influence on alternative music.
The Black Crowes were an unlikely inductee that didn’t seem to have much traction. I wonder if they are a one-and-done ballot appearance. Oasis, the other band led by feuding brothers on the ballot, are likely to be back next year or the year after. Their long awaited reunion tour starts this year, and if the Gallaghers are on their best behavior during it and the band doesn’t fall apart, maybe they can get another nod. Noel and Liam seem to have mixed feelings on getting in the Hall, so who’s to say they even show.
In closing…
This year’s class is a good mix of styles, and the ceremony will for sure be something to watch in the fall. The inductions of Warren Zevon and the White Stripes mean that both David Letterman and Conan O’Brien will likely be at the show to induct them. It would be nice to see Salt-N-Pepa back with DJ Spinderella after they reunited last year. Bad Company are sure to put on a good show with Paul Rodgers likely to sing at the ceremony. And few in the history of the Hall has ever seemed to want their honor more than Chubby Checker, so he’ll for sure be grateful for the spotlight.
The 2025 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on Nov. 8 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. Disney+ will live stream the event. ABC will broadcast a truncated version at a later date.
Image courtesy of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame press room.
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