The nominees for the 2020 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF) were revealed on Tuesday morning, and the list features 16 different artists.
This year, the RRHOF has introduced several first-time nominees, including late pop icon Whitney Houston, Juicy rapper Notorious B.I.G. and British heavy-metal pioneers Motörhead.
Along with those legendary artists, Pat Benatar, Dave Matthews Band, The Doobie Brothers, Soundgarden, T. Rex and Irish rock outfit Thin Lizzy also made the list.
To be eligible for this year’s ballot, each artist is required to have had an album or single released in or prior to 1994. Nominees to the RRHOF also have to have been active for at least 25 years to be considered.
Returning once more to the RRHOF ballot this year are Todd Rundgren, Judas Priest, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails, Rufus featuring Chaka Khan, MC5 and Kraftwerk (the German synth-pop band has been nominated six times now).
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The RRHOF voting body consists of more than 1,000 officials, including journalists, musicians and historians. However, fans can make a difference, too. Music lovers are able to vote through the RRHOF’s website once a day for up to five artists.
Fans in Cleveland, Ohio, can also visit the RRHOF museum to cast a vote. The polls open on Tuesday, Oct. 15, and voting is permitted until Jan. 10, 2020.
The top five fan-picked artists will be thrown in with the judges’ ballots, and the inductees will be decided based on those numbers.
The annual celebration often spurs cries of outrage on the internet, with some questioning the whereabouts or “snubbing” of unrecognized artists and rock subgenres. Some believe the nominees should be voted in by rock fans rather than the RRHOF officials.
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Each year, the number of RRHOF inductees usually ranges from five to seven.
Here is the official list of 2020 RRHOF nominees:
- Pat Benatar
- Dave Matthews Band
- The Doobie Brothers
- Motörhead
- The Notorious B.I.G.
- Soundgarden
- T. Rex
- Thin Lizzy
- Whitney Houston
- Depeche Mode
- Judas Priest
- Kraftwerk
- MC5
- Nine Inch Nails
- Rufus featuring Chaka Khan
- Todd Rundgren
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If you’d like to see any of these particular artists be inducted into the RRHOF, you can cast your vote on its official website.
The 35th annual RRHOF induction ceremony is set to take place on Saturday, May 2, 2020, at the Public Auditorium in Cleveland.
The official 2020 inductees will be announced in January.
— With files from the Associated Press
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