The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation announces its inductees for 2007: Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five (Kid Creole, Cowboy, Grandmaster Flash, Melle Mel, Mr. Ness, Raheim); R.E.M. (Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe); The Ronettes (Estelle Bennett, Ronnie Spector, Nedra Talley); Patti Smith; and Van Halen (Michael Anthony, Sammy Hagar, Alex Van Halen, Eddie Van Halen, David Lee Roth). The inductees were chosen by the foundation’s 600 voters. Artists are eligible for inclusion in the Hall of Fame 25 years after their first recording is released.
The five inductees will be honored at a ceremony on March 12, 2007 at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. Presenters and performers will be announced in February.
“We couldn’t be more proud to honor this unique, diverse group of rockers, rappers, singers and poets. This is what rock ‘n’ roll is all about,” says Foundation President and C.E.O., Joel Peresman.
The induction ceremony will also honor Ahmet Ertegun, legendary founder of Atlantic Records. Ertegun—a crucial figure in the careers of artists ranging such as Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin—was instrumental in founding the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and was its chairman. The museum’s main exhibit hall in Cleveland, Ohio is named for Ertegun.
For more information, visit www.rockhall.com.
