After a week and a half, I'm finally getting around to posting my reactions to the ballot for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame's Class Of 2021. Between the live reactions of the podcasts of our associates and the reactions already posted by fellow bloggers, I feel like most of what I could say and want to say would be superfluous, so I'll just briefly say how thrilled I am at how diverse this ballot is, both in terms of race and gender. It's not perfectly balanced, as has already been noted, but given the overwhelming disappointment the past few years' ballots have been in this regard, it's an improvement, a start. It's getting away from the classic rock staples, and moving forward and outward. And if you're foolish like me and read the comments to the Hall Of Fame's social media posts, you know that there are a lot of people upset about that. While there are still many classic rock acts for whom an argument can be made, it's well past time for the Hall to tell that crowd, "Okay there. It's not all about you, you know." The perennial comments continue to surface about how anything deviating from the most persistent connotation of "rock" is simply not rock at all, but the Hall is strengthening their stance that rock and roll draws from multiple influences, infuses them into its DNA, and exudes them in their inclusion with new, imaginative, and wonderful art that not everyone will always understand.
Which brings me to a point I feel I need to address, one that I can at least partially answer to with my experience. Not even a week in, we already saw a lot of half-heartedness toward the ballot because people simply aren't huge fans of the artists nominated. There is a lot of complaining going on because there just aren't enough nominees that initially thrill people's souls or brains. My response is: welcome to my world, there's the riverbed, go cry me one. It's about inducting artists that deserve it and not necessarily ones that are in your Spotify playlist for when you stop working for the day and want to get blazed. Go back to my entries about the 2012 nominees where I ranked the Red Hot Chili Peppers last in my personal tastes, but still listed them as being the most deserving of the nominees. I didn't enjoy listening to them, but it was right for them to be nominated and subsequently inducted. That is what is more important. Second, take their nominations as a chance to learn more about the artists. I've discovered how many of the grunge songs I like are by Nirvana, and that I'm not much into other grunge acts. And even then, there may be more that I do like. I've discovered I like certain artists--just not the big hits that I knew, as well as artists whose hits excited me about their nomination--but not the deeper tracks in their catalog. Challenge the notion that you already know all you need to about these artists. And even after you've done all that, if you still can't muster the energy to be positive about this ballot, then remember that there are other people besides you. These acts have fans who are ecstatic about their nominations. Try being happy for other people instead of gloomy for your own sake. There are a lot of musical journeys in this world apart from yours, and those of others have as much validity as yours. Share in their joy now, as they've shared in yours in the past.
And now to the acts who have been nominated.
Mary J. Blige: Of all the acts on this ballot, this is the one I know the least about. While Blige was at the height of her career, my dial was set to the Oldies station, and I also did a shift at the college radio station. The only song by her that I know that I know of is her duet with U2 to cover "One." So, this will be the greatest opportunity for me to finally join the world in the '90s. I'm looking forward to it, and plan to go into this with an open mind and open ears. But her nomination in the context of my musical experience is exactly the kind of thing Joe and Kristen talk about with the category of Does My Mom Know Who They Are?: not only do I recognize the name, I know she's a singer. She's such a strong name that even those who willingly dwelt under rocks know the name and what she does.
Kate Bush: A return to the ballot for this reclusive lady from England. Hers is an artistry that transcends generations. Admittedly, her music isn't always the best soundtrack for blue-collar work, but that's okay. I'm glad to see her back because in a simple pass-fail litmus test that I tend to use, she clears the bar easily. A pleasant surprise that she's back.
Devo: Another surprise return nominee. Didn't predict them, but looking forward to getting weird(er) while jamming on them.
Foo Fighters: The first of either 7.5 or 8 that I predicted, depending on whose metric you use. Among the blogging and podcasting members of the hobbyist community, this is probably the least exciting nominee for two reasons: one, literally everyone knew this was coming; two, much like Green Day for 2015, there's a sense of inevitability that is perhaps not fully warranted. Nonetheless, in keeping with what I said, I will make the effort to be happy for their fans and take the opportunity to learn more about them. I would say I know them the second-least, because they're the only artist of credit on "Learn To Fly," and "Weird Al" Yankovic wrote "With My Own Eyes" as a pastiche of the Foo Fighters' general oeuvre.
Go-Go's: My second correct prediction, and one I admittedly felt unsure about. I thought I might have been giving John Sykes and the Hall too much credit by picking them, but I'm as thrilled at their nomination as I am disappointed with myself for being so cynical. In the confines of an established storyline, their nomination is in the same queue as Rush, the Moody Blues, and Bon Jovi: the continued razing of the wall that was Jann S. Wenner's blacklist, and this one is probably the biggest blow to that wall yet, as it wasn't just personal distaste that got their name on that list, but a professional coming to loggerheads. As for their music, "We Got The Beat" was their introduction for me when I heard it on--ready for this?--a children's music station, back in the early '90s. Get 'em while they're young, and they will know rock. And then to find out that Jane Wiedlin was both the singing telegram girl in "Clue" and Joan Of Arc in "Bill And Ted's Excellent Adventure"... it just makes my excitement even greater.
Iron Maiden: Speaking of "Bill And Ted's Excellent Adventure"... Iron Maiden? Excellent! Hadn't predicted them. I thought Thin Lizzy would be the metal pick this time. Iron Maiden was already on the Previously Considered list, so their selection is not too surprising, but given the struggle metal has been having, I thought the Hall's priorities were well-known in this subgenre.
Jay-Z: The only things surprising about this nomination are that he's not the nominee whose music I know the least about, and that he's not the only rap nominee on the ballot. Another nominee that literally everybody had, including me. That's three.
Chaka Khan: Depending upon whose metric you use, this is either a correct prediction, or the half point, as I had predicted Rufus to be nominated as a band. I'm both happy and leery to see her nominated. I have been adamant and on record about wanting her to be a dual inductee, but I feel that given how the Hall operates, the only way to make it happen is to get the lesser known group effort in first, then use that as a springboard for the solo career. I worry that Rufus will be subsumed in an induction of Chaka as a solo artist. Then again, they included Jerry Butler as a member of the Impressions so they wouldn't have to bother with his enormous solo career at a later time. The Hall Of Fame sure loves their imaginary finiteness and false dichotomies, doesn't it?
Carole King: Yes, I'm counting this one in my column. While she didn't get bolded in my predictions post, when I learned that there were sixteen names, and I'd only named fifteen, I added her the night before the announcement on the Future Rock Legends forum on the 2021 Predictions thread. It counts. Fifth name to my credit. And what a name. Even though I refused to include her in my re-ranking of Past Nominees, I promised I would if she got nominated again for this category, and if she somehow doesn't get in this time, she will be included in the next edition, whenever I have the motivation to do that again. So, probably in 2025. Stoked to see her nominated. If she gets in this time, she'll be the first woman, and the first person RIGHTFULLY inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in two different categories.
Fela Kuti: I first encountered Fela Kuti's music in a class about the history of the music of West Africa when I studied at Michigan State University. The professor selected "Colonial Mentality" by Fela, and his son Femi's "Black Man Know Yourself" as demonstrations of Afrobeat. Despite having also been on the Previously Considered list, his nomination is still a bit of a shock. It has brought me both joy and sorrow: joy to see the groundswell of support in the fan vote from people in Africa, and sorrow at the persistent closed-mindedness to the diaspora that is rock and roll music from people (presumably) here in the States. This nomination more than any on this ballot, in my opinion, demonstrates how important representation is, and the importance of validating other people's musical experiences. I applaud this nomination and the ongoing efforts by the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Foundation to make sure people know that rock and roll music is defined as more than just the mating call of the male White middle-class English speaker.
LL Cool J: Given the difficulty that rap has in getting enshrined at all, having two rappers on the ballot is a risky move, and practically suicide if one is a shoo-in. Suffice to say, did not see this one coming, but at least I get to spend time jamming to his music while getting to call it "research." Good luck LL.
New York Dolls: The artist I'm delving into as I type this. As much of a shock as it is, it's also refreshing when they bring a previous one-and-done nominee back. And now with a phone that I can stream on, I'm getting to know their music better. Ain't technology grand?
Rage Against The Machine: Back for their third nomination, it also shows the Hall has no conflicts when it comes their own interests, just in case the history of the Non-Performer category wasn't enough of a smoking gun. Some have called it ironic that they're being nominated again, now that Trump is out of office. But I assure you, Biden is as much part of the machine, and this band would be more than happy to rage against the new administration, if they were reuniting. With the Foo Fighters nominated, it's almost bizarre to see these guys back, even though the only sphere they both occupy is generational.
Todd Rundgren: Our last three nominees, alphabetically speaking, are also numbers six, seven, and eight for my scorecard. As for Todd, it was just a sense of there being an artist on their third consecutive nomination that inexplicably missed out twice before, much like the Cars. I don't know if third time will be a charm for him, and he sure doesn't care. Still, it'd be nice if he'd be happy for his fans, as his nomination validates what his music does for them.
Tina Turner: The "hell yeah" nomination on this ballot for me, or at least as much as Carole King. Predicting her was also a hope against hope that the Hall was paying attention to the world, if not us in the watching community. It's dangerous to call anybody a lock, but the nomination alone feels pretty huge. Gonna keep hoping that we get two more women inducted a second time this year.
Dionne Warwick: This is almost like another Bill Withers situation for me: part of the reason I predicted her nomination was because I fed off the certainty of others in the community that this was her year. I'm not sure if her current reign as Queen Of Twitter had anything to do with it, or if it was the induction of Whitney Houston last year that caused the reach back to her cousin, maybe both. Either way, her being the sole representative of the music of the '60s is going to be worth watching as we wait to see how John Sykes' vision unfolds and plays out.
Indeed, the plan John Sykes has for the Hall will be interesting to watch overall. But what is more interesting is how this ballot will resonate with the voting bloc. The NomComm has put diversity on the ballot in the past, but they've also included enough White male guitar bands for the voting bloc to comfortably nest in their anonymity and their legion to give us relative homogeneity in the actual classes. That's nigh impossible this time, so if we get a class resembling that of 2016 or 2018, it will be a flagrant signal to Sykes where he has to do more weeding and planting to get the diverse garden he claims to want. And that leaves us where we are now: watching, waiting, and commenting. Happy Rock Hall Season to all, and to all, vote in the fan poll everyday.
