Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees announced; 4 artists of color among them

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation on Wednesday announced 14 performer nominees for its 2025 induction, and four artists of color were among them.

The artists of color include pop icon and R&B singer Mariah Carey, hip-hop duo Outkast, Rock and Roll singer and dancer Chubby Checker, and and Mexican pop rock band Maná.

“These remarkable nominees have each created their own musical style and attitude, impacting generations of music lovers and contributing to the ever-evolving sounds and continued growth of rock & roll,” said John Sykes, chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation.

An artist or band can become eligible for a Hall of Fame nomination 25 years after releasing their first commercial recording, according to the foundation.

When selecting nominees, The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame considers an artist or musical group’s impact on music culture, influence on other musicians that have followed, the scope and longevity of their career and their body of work, a statement from the foundation said.

Carey has won five Grammy Awards and has 19 number-one hits on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. She is best known for her hit songs, “We Belong Together,” “Fantasy,” and “Touch My Body.”

Outkast, composed of Atlanta natives and rappers André 3000 and Big Boi, has won six Grammy Awards. The rap duo is known for their hit songs, “Ms. Jackson,” “Hey Ya!,” and “So Fresh So Clean.”

Checker, now 83, born Ernest Evans, gained fame during the 1960s with his hit song, “The Twist.” In 2004, he protested outside the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s induction ceremony in Midtown Manhattan over the lack of radio airplay of “The Twist” and concern that the foundation snubbed him for nomination to the Hall of Fame, Today.com reported.

“I’m not doing it to get into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at all,” Checker said during an interview with The Associated Press in 2004. “I don’t get the airplay that one in my position deserves. ’Twist and Shout’ (The Beetles) gets more airplay than ‘The Twist,’ and that’s not right.”

Maná, formed in Guadalajara, Mexico, over 40 years ago, has become the first Spanish-language rock band to receive a nomination for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Billboard.com reported.

The remaining 10 nominees include British rock bands Bad Company, Joy Division (which was renamed New Order in 1980), and Oasis; American rock bands The Black Crowes, Phish, and Soundgarden; English blues-rock singer Joe Cocker; British punk singer Billy Idol; pop singer icon Cyndi Lauper; and rock duo The White Stripes.

Bad Company, The Black Crowes, Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, Billy Idol, Maná, Outkast, and Phish have been nominated for the first time, according to the foundation.

An international panel of over 1,200 artists, historians and music industry professionals will cast votes to select this year’s inductees.

The performer inductees will be publicized in late April, along with inductees entering the Hall of Fame under three special committee categories – Musical Influence, Musical Excellence, and the Ahmet Ertegun Non-Performer Award, according to the foundation.

The induction ceremony will take place in Los Angeles in the Fall. However, the exact dates and ticket sale information have not yet been released, Billboard.com reported.

Mosaic staff writer Vashti Harris can be reached at vharris@njadvancemedia.com.

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