Mary J. Blige, Cher, Foreigner, a Tribe Called Quest, Kool & the Gang and Ozzy Osbourne have been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, a class that also includes folk-rockers Dave Matthews Band and 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. Pioneering music director Suzanne de Passe won the Ahmet Ertegun Prize.
Rock n roll is an ever-evolving amalgam of sounds that impacts culture and moves generations, John Sykes, president of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, said in a statement. This diverse group of inductees have each broken musical barriers and influenced countless artists who have followed in their footsteps.
The induction ceremony will take place October 19 at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio. It will stream live on Disney+ with an ABC broadcast at a later date and available on Hulu the following day.
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Among the musical acts nominated this year but who did not make the cut are Mariah Carey, Lenny Kravitz, the late Sinad O'Connor, soul-pop singer Sade, Britpoppers Oasis, hip-hop duo Eric B. & Rakim and alternative rockers Janes Addiction.
There was a big push to bring Foreigner with the hits Urgent and “Hot Blooded” into the room, with Mark Ronson, Jack Black, Slash, Dave Grohl and Paul McCartney all publicly supporting the move. Ronson's stepfather is Mick Jones, founding member, songwriter and lead guitarist of Foreigner.
Osbourne, who had many parents in the 1980s clutching their pearls with his devilish imagery and sludgy music, is launching as a solo artist, having already been inducted into the hall with metal masters Black Sabbath.
Four of the eight candidates Cher, Foreigner, Frampton and Kool & the Gang were on the ballot for the first time.
Cher is the only artist to have a No. 1 song in each of the last six decades and Blige, with eight multi-platinum albums and nine Grammy Awards, will help increase the number of women in the room, which critics say too weak.
Artists must have released their first commercial recording at least 25 years before being eligible for induction.
The nominees were voted on by more than 1,000 artists, historians and music industry professionals. Fans voted online or in person at the museum, with the top five artists chosen by the public making up 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 entered the room.
