The 2017 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Nominees Show a Changing Institution

Matt Miller
Updated

From Esquire

In April, Steve Miller stood on stage while accepting his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and blasted the institution for not being inclusive to women (to-date, less than 14 percent of inductees are women). In their own speech, NWA (who didn't even perform), were forced to defend hip-hop as a worthy genre to be included within the institution's ranks. "You're goddamn right we're rock and roll," MC Ren said. "Rock and roll is not an instrument. Rock and roll isn't even a style of music. Rock and roll is a spirit that's been going since the blues, jazz, bebop, soul, R&B, heavy metal, punk rock and, yes, hip-hop. What connects us all is that spirit."

Had it not been for Kendrick Lamar's powerful speech inducting NWA, the entire ceremony would have seemed completely out of touch with music from the last three decades. Hopefully, it seemed, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame would realize that it's quickly becoming an institution that's falling behind, losing its relevancy.

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Thankfully, the 2017 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees are here and they show promise, with Tupac Shakur, Chaka Khan, Pearl Jam, Bad Brains, Janet Jackson, and more. This marks the first year that Tupac and Pearl Jam are eligible to be included. Other first-time nominees include Bad Brains, Depeche Mode, Electric Light Orchestra, Jane's Addiction, Joan Baez, Journey, and Steppenwolf. While it's much the same as last batches-old white dudes with guitars-the HoF has an opportunity to pick from a more diverse group of worthy nominees, including Tupac, Jackson, Baez, Chic, and Khan (this is Chic's 11th nomination).

Last year's nominees included N.W.A, Deep Purple, Cheap Trick, Chicago, and Steve Miller. The 2017 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees will be announced in December after voting ends on December 5.

See the full list of nominees below:

Bad Brains

Chaka Khan

Chic

Depeche Mode

Electric Light Orchestra

J. Geils Band

Jane's Addiction

Janet Jackson

Joan Baez

Joe Tex

Journey

Kraftwerk

MC5

Pearl Jam

Steppenwolf

The Cars

The Zombies

Tupac Shakur

Yes

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