nina simone, sister rosetta tharpe, rage against the machine nominated for 2018 rock and roll hall of fame class

The nominees for the 2018 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class are out and among the list of musical greats are the first nominations for Nina Simone (eligible since 1983), Sister Rosetta Tharpe (eligible since 1963), and Rage Against The Machine (eligible since 2017).

Every year’s nominee pool serves up a grip of prolific musicians that inexplicably haven’t joined the official Hall of Fame yet, but it’s kinda unfathomable that the godmother of Rock-n-Roll herself and the transcendent Nina have been eligible for so long without a prior nomination. Just…sayin’.

To be eligible for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a band or an artist must have released their first single or album at least 25 years ago. Making this the first year Rage Against The Machine has been eligible. They, along with Simone and Tharpe, join 16 other nominees, including likely inductees Radiohead (eligible since 2017), LL Cool J (eligible since ), and Kate Bush (eligible since 2003). There are also nominations for Judas Priest, Bon Jovi, the Zombies, Depeche Mode, MC5, Dire Straits, Eurythmics, J. Geils Band, the Cars, the Meters, the Moody Blues, and Rufus featuring Chaka Khan (random).

Five nominees will make the final class, announced in December, four of which are decided by a group of music historians and “industry folk” and one is determined by a fan vote.

“I’m rooting for everybody black.”