Black Crowes, Mana, Chubby Checker, Phish, Outkast among 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees
From left, Chris Cornell, Matt Cameron, Kim Thayil and Ben Shepherd of Soundgarden arrive at the premiere of "The Avengers" at the El Capitan Theatre on April 11, 2012, in Los Angeles. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images North America/TNS)
SAN DIEGO – Is the the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ready to make “out with the old and in with the new” its new credo?
Not quite, since 83-year-old “Let’s Twist” singer Chubby Checker was on Tuesday nominated for induction for the first time, along with the late Joe Cocker and the long-dormant English band Bad Company, whose senior surviving members range in age from 75 to 80. But five of the 14 other 2025 nominees announced Wednesday as 2025 nominees – the Black Crowes, Outkast, Mana, Billy Idol and jam-band favorites Phish – have never appeared on the ballot before.
They represent a newer musical generation for the hall, which deems artists eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first commercial recording. The criteria for being nominated and inducted includes musical excellence, impact, longevity and innovation.
Repeat nominees this year include Mariah Carey, Oasis, the White Stripes, Joy Division/New Order, Cyndi Lauper and Seattle’s Soundgarden.
Matt Cameron, Soundgarden’s drummer, was inducted into the hall in 2017 as a member of Pearl Jam, the band he joined after Soundgarden broke up.
If Soundgarden is inducted, Cameron will become the first drummer to be inducted into the Rock Hall as a member of two bands. Ringo Starr has been inducted twice, one as a member of the Beatles and later as a solo artist.
Inductees will be announced in late April, after the more than 1,200 ballots have been cast and tallied. Votes are cast by music industry professionals, including previous nominees, historians and a group of veteran music critics that includes this writer.
Also set to be announced in April are honorees in three special nominee categories that are not voted on – musical excellence, musical influence and the Ahmet Ertegun Non-Performer Award. The musical excellence and influence awards are often presented to artists who have been nominated multiple times but never earned enough votes to gain induction.
The 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held in the fall in Los Angeles at a yet-to-be-announced venue.