The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame 2022 nominees have been announced! They are:

Beck

Best known for his unexpected hit “Loser,” a generation-defining anthem of self-deprecation, Beck is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, artist and record producer who released 14 studio albums within the span of 26 years, blending and bending genres in a mixture of lo-fi alternative rock, folk, funk, electronica, psychedelia, hip-hop, country, soul and art pop.

Pat Benatar

With 15 Billboard top 40 singles and multiple platinum certifications, singer-songwriter and enduring 80s icon Pat Benatar was one of the most popular female artists in her heyday and is known for arena rock smash hits and power ballads.

Kate Bush

The first woman to achieve a number one on the chart with a self-written song in the United Kingdom at the age of 19 was Kate Bush. Her experimental and massively influential music both inspired her contemporaries and paved the way for many acts to come, such as Tori Amos. She is renowned for her extraordinarily high and eccentric vocals, creativity and theatrical qualities.

Devo

A quirky, satirical band hailing from Akron, Devo epitomized the new wave scene. They combined punk rock and synthpop and delivered social criticisms by way of seemingly silly, catchy tunes. Their performances often incorporated outlandish imagery like hazmat suits and energy domes reminiscent of the robotic persona of Kraftwerk which later influenced musical projects like Daft Punk.

Duran Duran

Innovators always at the forefront of cutting-edge technology and style and one of the biggest bands of the 1980s, new wave giants Duran Duran emerged from the United Kingdom’s New Romantic movement, which married futuristic music with historical fashions and moody atmospheres with danceable disco beats, to pioneer cinematic music videos and the art of the remix. Named after the villain in the sci-fi cult movie, “Barbarella,” Duran Duran have always embodied retrofuturism, as evidenced by the title of their most recent album, 2021’s “Future Past.” Originally an art-school endeavor turned international pop sensation, Duran Duran have continuously remained relevant by reinventing themselves, both setting and adapting smoothly to trends.

Eminem

This rags-to-riches rapper emblematic of “The American Dream” is not only the best-selling music artist of the 2000s but one of the best-selling music artists of all time, having received numerous awards including 15 Grammys and selling around 220 million records. He was one of the first white rappers to achieve mainstream success and was the first musician to have 10 consecutive number one albums on the Billboard 200.

Eurythmics

Best known for the timeless hit “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” Eurythmics are a staple synth-heavy group of the 1980s. The face of the duo, frontwoman Annie Lennox, attracted attention with a soaring, operatic voice, androgynous appearance and feminist lyrical themes, blurring the lines between both genre and gender stereotypes, her vision carried on today by artists like La Roux.

Judas Priest

Influencing Iron Maiden, Metallica, Slipknot and many more musicians both inside and outside of the heavy metal genre, Judas Priest have a long-standing legacy. Lead singer Rob Halford has a six-octave vocal range and helped make the heavy metal/hard rock subculture more inclusive and diverse when he came out as gay.

Fela Kuti

The multi-instrumentalist, composer, bandleader and activist Fela Kuti served as a voice of revolution with political lyrical messages intended to galvanize his audience. He is credited as the creator of the Afrobeat genre, a hodgepodge of American soul, funk, jazz and traditional West African music.

MC5

Prophetic both musically and lyrically, the Motor City 5 became the soundtrack to protests and cultural change in the late 60s, blending garage rock, R&B and psychedelia to form an edgy, raw sound palette that influenced much of American punk rock music and even heavy metal.

New York Dolls

Despite never achieving major commercial success, the acclaimed proto-punk outfit New York Dolls, equal parts glam and grit, with campy attire and a vulgar attitude, had a profound impact on many bands including but not limited to the Ramones, early Japan, KISS and Guns N’ Roses, earning them a spot in the annals of rock history.

Dolly Parton

A charismatic and prolific singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Dolly Parton has six decades of material under her belt, having recorded more than 50 studio albums and written some 3,000 songs. She is a symbol of female empowerment, having fought her way to the top in a male-dominated industry. Known primarily for her country music, she is also a philanthropist, actress, author and businesswoman.

Rage Against the Machine

Known for anti-establishment anthems packed with unadulterated anger and aggression that fuse hip-hop, funk, metal and punk rock to produce intense, colossal soundscapes, Rage Against the Machine is one of the most outspoken bands that exist, consistently fighting for causes both on and off the stage such as corporate corruption, police brutality and censorship.

Lionel Richie

After departing from the funk band the Commodores, of which he was co-lead singer and penning some of the most beloved love songs of his day, Lionel Richie’s expert narration abilities catapulted him into superstardom as a solo artist in the late 1970s through the 1980s, placing him alongside other mega musical figures of the era such as Madonna and Michael Jackson.

Carly Simon

Known for her distinctive melodies and confessional lyrics, folk/soft rock singer Carly Simon spearheaded a generation of singer-songwriters and is cited as a musical heroine by the likes of Taylor Swift. She was the first artist to win a Grammy Award, an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for a song written and performed entirely by a single artist.

A Tribe Called Quest

At the center of Native Tongues, an Afrocentric musical movement in New York, A Tribe Called Quest were and remain one of the most inventive, eclectic rap groups, having created their own unique brand of jazz-informed progressive/alternative hip-hop and addressing social issues with philosophical lyrics. Pharrell Williams and Kanye West are among those inspired by the band.

Dionne Warwick

Active from 1955 to the present and regarded as one of the most important voices of the 60s, Dionne Warwick is known for her soulful voice and is one of the most charted vocalists of all time, with 80 singles making the Hot 100.

If it wasn’t already made obvious by my struggle to restrain an outpouring of admiration for them, Duran Duran is my first choice for nomination. Having loved them for virtually my entire lifetime, I have very strong feelings about them, and I still believe them to be criminally underrated by music critics over the years, who have often refused to take them seriously due to their attainment of pinup status akin to the Beatles. Unfortunately, the induction choices are often more of a popularity contest than anything else, dependent on the subjective tastes of the institution board members rather than the objective impacts or even the followings that certain bands (or solo artists) have had. In my personal opinion, many of the current nominees are long overdue to get in, and there are many more acts that I think should be nominated.