One Of These Is Not Like The Others…

Joan Baez, Pearl Jam, Nile Rodgers, YES, Electric Light Orchestra, 2Pac, and Journey.

Can you guess who?

This past weekend, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY, the 32nd Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony was held. Every year, this ceremony is the celebration of artists who have impacted their respective genres, influenced music as we know it, or just transcend music itself. Every year, like years before, a committee comes together and nominates a group of artists to be included into the Rock Hall, to add their signatures to that Hall in Cleveland, where many legends have left theirs. The Class of 2017 was no exception, in terms of their songwriting abilities, influence, and just overall impact on the world of music.

However, like previous years, many people had taken issue with one artist in particular: Tupac Shakur. The main complaint being that he is, rather obviously, not Rock and Roll, but Rap.

This is not at all a new complaint to the Hall. Years past have included other rap artists like Run-DMC, N.W.A., Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Public Enemy, and the Beastie Boys. Rap is argued to not have a place in the Rock Hall, mainly because of what it is; not rock. But then that means many of the artists who are currently in the hall do not belong.

I’m talking the forefathers, the precursors to Rock. I’m talking the Blues and Jazz kings and queens. I’m talking those people who laid the foundation. Rock is merely just an offshoot of that, just Rap is too. Not to mention, Pop music, with the likes of Madonna, Michael Jackson, and ABBA, has also made its presence in the Hall.

I am biased, however. Not in the sense that I hate rap or whatever, but I feel that there is one genre that the hall consistently overlooks, despite their massive influence on so many bands out there today. Of course, I am talking about the Metal Gods! This means Motörhead, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and Dio. But at the end of the day, it probably comes down to marketability. It comes to what will bring the most headlines, and unfortunately, that means these names might have to wait longer than I would wish.