(New York) Mary J. Blige, Cher, Foreigner, A Tribe Called Quest, Kool and The Gang and Ozzy Osbourne have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a cohort that also includes folk-rockers Dave Matthews Band and the singer-guitarist Peter Frampton.
Alexis Korner, John Mayall and Big Mama Thornton won the Musical Influence Award, while the late Jimmy Buffett, MC5, Dionne Warwick and Norman Whitfield will receive the Musical Excellence Award. Suzanne de Passe, a pioneering music director, won the Ahmet Ertegun Prize.
“Rock and roll is an ever-evolving amalgam of sounds that impacts culture and moves generations,” John Sykes, president of the American Rock Hall of Fame Foundation, said in a statement. This diverse group of inductees broke down musical barriers and influenced countless artists who followed in their footsteps. »
The induction ceremony will take place October 19 at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio. It will air live on Disney+ with broadcast on ABC at a later date. The ceremony will also be available on Hulu the following day.
Artists selected this year but not made the cut include Mariah Carey, Lenny Kravitz, the late Sinéad O’Connor, soul-pop singer Sade, Britpoppers Oasis, hip-hop duo Eric B. and Rakim and alternative rockers Jane’s Addiction.
There has been a strong push to bring the band Foreigner – with their hits “Urgent” and “Hot Blooded” – into the pantheon, with Mark Ronson, Jack Black, Slash, Dave Grohl and Paul McCartney all publicly supporting the move. . Ronson’s stepfather is Mick Jones, a founding member of Foreigner, as well as a songwriter and lead guitarist.
Osbourne enters as a solo artist, having previously been inducted into the hall of fame with metal masters Black Sabbath.
Four of the eight candidates – Cher, Foreigner, Frampton and Kool and the Gang – were on the ballot for the first time.
Cher – the only artist to have a number one song in each of the last six decades – and Blige, with eight multiplatinum albums and nine Grammy Awards, will help increase the number of women in the Hall of Fame, which critics say be too weak.
Artists must have released their first commercial recording at least 25 years before they can be inducted.
The selected ones were voted on by more than 1000 artists, historians and music industry professionals. Music fans voted online or in person at the museum, with the top five artists chosen by the public constituting a “fan ballot” that was counted along with the other professional ballots.
Last year, Missy Elliott, Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow, Chaka Khan, “Soul Train” creator Don Cornelius, Kate Bush and the late George Michael were among the artists who were inducted into the hall of fame.