Which five of the 16 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees announced Tuesday will be inducted? Though those names won’t be revealed until January, currently Pat Benatar, The Doobie Brothers and Soundgarden top the leaderboard reflecting the fan votes.
The leaderboard, which just went live on the hall of fame’s website at 2 p.m. ET., is updated every few minutes. As of around 1:30 p.m. ET, nearly 1 million votes had been cast.
Among those, Benatar received 102,072; The Doobie Brothers had 91,948; Soundgarden clocked in at 89,712; Depeche Mode got 81,532 and Judas Priest tallied 74,651.
Benatar, The Doobie Brothers, and Soundgarden are first-time nominees up for induction. So are Whitney Houston, Notorious B.I.G. (also known as Biggie Smalls), Dave Matthews Band, Motörhead, T. Rex and Thin Lizzy. Returning hopefuls include Depeche Mode, Judas Priest, Kraftwerk, MC5, Nine Inch Nails, Rufus featuring Chaka Khan and Todd Rundgren.
Fan voting began with Tuesday’s nominees announcement. Fans can cast their vote at the museum in Cleveland and on its website. In a new twist this year, supporters can also vote on Google by searching “Rock Hall Fan Vote” or any nominee name plus “vote” through Jan. 10. They can vote for up to five nominees, once a day. The top five choices will comprise a “fans’ ballot” that will be counted with the other ballots sent to approximately 1,000 artists, historians and members of the music industry, who will consider an act’s career work, influence on other artists, innovation and skill.
Rock Hall 2020: Whitney Houston, Notorious B.I.G., Dave Matthews Band get first nominations
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2019: Stevie Nicks, Janet Jackson and more highlights
According to numbers provided by the Rock Hall, first day votes have increased nearly 75% compared to last year.
For president and CEO Greg Harris the number of votes also tell a story of how fans have been touched by art from the nominees.
“For the fan vote in particular, it’s incredibly exciting because we think about the numbers – they’re a tally of numbers – but it’s also a reflection of fans and the impact that these bands have had on their lives,” he told USA TODAY.
“For each vote cast, there’s probably a concert memory, there could’ve been a wedding dance, there could’ve been a high school experience tied to all of them, even those that are not in the top five, those fans have those memories and those connections and this music has been so central to our lives. It’s a great way to voice that connection to the world,” he added.
The 2020 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on May 2 at Cleveland’s Public Auditorium.
The Rock Hall finally got it right – thanks to its legendary 2019 class
Contributing: Bill Keveney
