You’d be forgiven if Brooklyn rapper Jay-Z wasn’t the person that immediately came to mind at the very mention of rock music – that is with the exception of one particular crossover – but now, Hov is on track to be inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Joining the Class of 2021 inductees in the performer category alongside The Foo Fighters, Tina Turner, Carol King, Todd Rundgren, and The Go-Gos, the hip-hop icon turned business mogul will follow in the footsteps of The Notorious B.I.G., Tupac, N.W.A, and Public Enemy.
“This diverse class of talented inductees reflects the Rock Hall’s ongoing commitment to honour artists whose music created the sound of youth culture,” says John Sykes, Chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation.
“It will make for an unforgettable live celebration of music in October at this year’s Induction Ceremony in Cleveland.”
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To be eligible for the achievement in question, artists must have released their first record 25 years prior to induction. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the legendary album Reasonable Doubt, a record he cut immediately after founding the label Roc-A-Fella Records at the tender age of 25.
The ballots were cast by an international voting body of more than 1,200 artists, including current living inductees, historians, and members of the music industry. They were asked to take into consideration factors such as an artist’s musical influence on other artists, length and depth of their body of work, innovation, as well as “superiority in style and technique.”
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Having sold 50 million albums and 75 million singles, won 23 Grammy Awards (the most by any rapper), gone down in history as the first rapper ever to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and set a Billboard 200 record with 14 number one albums to date… it’s safe to say that Mr Carter fits the bill just fine.
As for some of the other inductees, this won’t be their first encounter with the Hall of Fame. Dave Grohl was previously welcomed into the fold circa 2014 with the surviving members of Nirvana; Carole King was honoured in 1990 along with ex-husband and writing partner Gerry Goffin; Tina Turner was also inducted with her then-husband Ike in 1991.
Catch Jay-Z at the 36th Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony scheduled to take place on October 31st of 2021 (which will be hosted at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio).
