Several first-time nominees and long-championed bands will join the prestigious honor
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has announced the Class of 2025 will include Bad Company, Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, Cyndi Lauper, Outkast, Soundgarden, and The White Stripes in the Performer category. Salt-n-Pepa and Warren Zevon will be awarded the Musical Influence Award with Thom Bell, Nicky Hopkins, and Carole Kaye honored with the Musical Excellence Award. Producer and Dreamworks/Warner Brothers Records executive Lenny Waronker will receive Ahmet Ertegun Award.
The Inductees were announced live on ABC this evening (Sun, Apr 27th) by Ryan Seacrest during the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame episode of American Idol, where the Top 14 finalists took on songs from legendary Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductees as America voted live for the Top 12. The episode will be available tomorrow on Hulu.
“Each of these inductees created their own sound and attitude that had a profound impact on culture and helped to change the course of Rock & Roll forever,” states Rock Hall Chairman John Sykes. “Their music gave a voice to generations and influenced countless artists that followed in their footsteps.”
“Thank you to all of our fans and voting members of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame committee,” Bad Company shares. “Congratulations to all our fellow inductees. We stand alongside some amazing artists, past and present. What an absolute honor.”
To be eligible for induction, an individual artist or band must have released its first commercial recording at least 25 years prior to the year of nomination. Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, Bad Company, and Outkast are first-time nominees, whereas Cyndi Lauper, Soundgarden, and The White Stripes have all been nominated before.
Notably, Phish, who won the fan vote with 329,281 votes, was not selected for induction this year.
The 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony is scheduled to take place on Saturday, November 8th at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The event will be streamed live on Disney+.
Ticket on-sale information will be announced at a later date. Select Rock & Roll Hall of Fame donors and members receive exclusive Induction ticket opportunities.
Presenting the #RockHall2025 Inductees…
Bad Company ⭐ Thom Bell ⭐ Chubby Checker ⭐ Joe Cocker ⭐ Nicky Hopkins ⭐ Carol Kaye ⭐ Cyndi Lauper ⭐ Outkast ⭐ Salt-N-Pepa ⭐ Soundgarden ⭐ Lenny Waronker ⭐ The White Stripes ⭐ Warren Zevon pic.twitter.com/rcLtTrgg0Y— Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (@rockhall) April 28, 2025
