Sade, Luther Vandross and Wu-Tang Clan were all announced as inductees for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026 earlier this week.
Announced on Monday night, the artists will join Oasis, Phil Collins, Joy Division/New Order, Iron Maiden, and Billy Idol as part of this year’s group of selected nominees. Out of all the artists in this year’s class, Wu-Tang Clan and Vandross are the only two artists who were voted into the hall and received a place in the first year that they were nominated.
Founded in 1983, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame celebrates artists who have had a substantial impact on the music industry, shaping it through their originality and overall influence.
In order for an artist to be eligible for a nomination, they must have had a minimum of 25 years since their first commercial recording was released. A total of 1,200 people in the music industry comprise the voting body that decides who will eventually be inducted after securing a nomination.
The inductions will be celebrated with a ceremony scheduled to be held on November 14.
“In all humility, this announcement filled me with joy, proudness, profound achievement and awe,” said Wu-Tang Clan member RZA in an instagram post. “I’m grateful to all my brothers and those who helped us on the path. Thank you Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. This is a true triumph. Wutang Forever.”
Meanwhile, in the “Early Influence Award” category, Queen Latifah, Celia Cruz, MC Lyte and Gram Parsons all secured a spot in the Rock Hall for this year.
Nigerian musician Fela Kuti will also be inducted into this year’s group under the “Early Influence Award” category. With his induction, Kuti made history, becoming the first African solo artist to achieve this.
Born in 1938 in Abeokuta, Kuti took both piano and percussion lessons in his youth, eventually traveling to England to study classical music at Trinity College London.
When he returned to Nigeria in the mid-1960s, he reformed Koola Lobitos, a group featuring London-based musicians. Together, the musicians created Afrobeats, a genre that is characterized as a mixture of Fuji music, jazz and funk. Kuti himself coined the name for the genre.
As he witnessed first-hand the work of Malcom X and the Black Panthers throughout his 1969 U.S. tour, Kuti’s music became increasingly political. Through albums such as “Zombie,” he used music to criticize the Nigerian government, particularly the military.
In 1979, Kuti formed a new political party and ran an unsuccessful presidential campaign in the country. Following a jail sentence given to him on account of smuggling, he retired from music. In 1997, Kuti passed away at the age of 58 years old due to complications from AIDS.
