The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inducted its Class of 2023 on Friday, celebrating the diverse careers of Kate Bush, Don Cornelius, Sheryl Crow, DJ Kool Herc, Missy Elliott, Chaka Khan, Al Kooper, George Michael, Willie Nelson and Rage Against the machine, the weirdos, Bernie Taupin and Link Wray. The show was full of powerful performances and speeches, but since it lasted a whopping four and a half hours, it also had to include some filler.
Below are the highs, lows and headaches of the marathon evening.
LOW: George Michael’s fans have no faith in Adam Levine
The posthumous and long overdue introduction of Michael, winner of this year’s fan vote, was supposed to be the most emotional moment of the evening – and so it began with an eloquent introductory speech from Michael’s former Wham! Bandmate Andrew Ridgeley, who called Michael “the dearest friend I’ve ever had.” But then it was time for Michael’s all-star musical tribute. A true gay male pop artist that Michael paved the way for, such as Sam Smith or Adam Lambert, would have been a logical choice for this segment, along with Michael’s former “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” duet partner Sir Elton John — who was already in the building to introduce his longtime collaborator Taupin and appeared twice on Friday. Instead, the Hall surprisingly recruited Miguel, Carrie Underwood… and Adam Levine, not Lambert. (And none of them covered Freedom ’90 either!)
Underwood, who called Michael one of her “All-time heroes and vocal inspirations, did a great job with the ballad “One More Try,” and Miguel did well with the support of E Street Band saxophonist Jake Clemons on “Careless Whisper.” But Levine’s bizarrely trench coat-clad “Faith” was so limp that even Limp Bizkit would have been a better option. Michael’s fans were quick to express their outrage at the failed booking.
Simply an icon of that time.
So they give us…Adam Levine? Who wouldn’t have the decency to put on a shirt?????
— Karla 🟧 (@karlasrobinson) November 4, 2023
HIGH: Bernie Taupin says Friday night is fine to fight Jann Wenner
Just weeks before the Class of 2023 ceremony, Rock Hall co-founder Jann Wenner shockingly told the New York Times that his recent compilation of Rolling Stone interviews, The Masters, featured only white male musicians because of his I had not noticed anything in previous female or black interviews. The subjects were “articulate” enough to warrant inclusion. His comments sparked backlash and he was subsequently quickly removed from the Hall’s board. Wenner’s sacking, not to mention him guarding the room as a gatekeeper during his 25 years as chairman, was the elephant in the Barclays room on Friday, but only Taupin – whose wife Heather viewed Wenner’s comments as a “slap in the face” to the new hires had referred to – dared to mention the scandal. During his Musical Excellence Award acceptance speech, the legendary lyricist demonstrated what he can do by quipping, “I’m honored to be in the Class of 2023 alongside a group of such articulate women and outstanding articulate Black artists.” other music masters who are here tonight.”
HIGH: Big Boi loves Kate Bush a lot
As Big Boi approached the podium to introduce Bush, he joked, “I know what some of you are thinking: What does Kate Bush have to do with hip-hop?” But the “obsessed” Outkast rapper has been one of them for years Bush’s most ardent and vocal fans, so he was the perfect person to honor the art-rock goddess. “I can’t believe I’m up here like the White House press secretary for Kate Bush,” he chuckled. “I fell in love with Kate Bush in middle school. My Uncle Russell, my favorite uncle, brought them to my attention and I listened to “Running Up That Hill” on my bike. I was the kid from Stranger Things! …Kate is a songwriter, producer and performer second to none. If that’s not hip-hop, I don’t know what is.” Amusingly, Big Boi ended his speech by once again teasing their collaboration – which he excitedly pitched to Yahoo Entertainment in 2020 – and blurted out, “Hey, Kate , the song is finished.” I sent you three versions. Choose one!”
LOW: Kate Bush gets strangely short shrift
While Bush’s induction into the Hall was long overdue (this was her fourth nomination), it was always unlikely that the famously reclusive artist – who toured only once in 1979 and then did not perform any further full live shows until 2014 – would actually do so annual ceremony would occur, even remotely. (She accepted her award in a statement on her website, saying she was “completely overwhelmed” by “this wonderful award.”) The fact that Bush only performed one song at the ceremony – the popular “Stranger Things.” “Running Up That Hill,” performed by St. Vincent of course, was disappointing. St. Vincent did a spectacular job with this 1985 hit, as seen below… but Bush has many other brilliant compositions and countless other admirers. Were Maxwell, Tori Amos, Peter Gabriel, Sarah McLachlan, David Gilmour, Lauren Mayberry, Florence Welch or Caroline Polachek unavailable?
HIGH: Jimmy Page is ready to “Rumble” for Link Wray.
While Bush wasn’t in attendance, the big surprise of the evening came from Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page. Page’s induction speech for his “hero,” the late rockabilly guitar legend and 2023 Musical Influence Award winner Wray, was pre-recorded… but when his recorded speech ended and the video screen came up, Page was there in all his live and amplified glory See Barclays He takes center stage and deftly plays the iconic riff from Wray’s signature instrumental “Rumble”. The moment left the audience dazed and confused in the best way possible.
HIGH: Sheryl Crow and Peter Frampton come to life
Page wasn’t the only guitar god in the building on Friday. Frampton joined Crow on “Every Day Is a Winding Road” (along with special guests Stevie Nicks and Olivia Rodrigo), and in her acceptance speech, Crow gushed fondly about that “pivotal moment,” recalling, “In 1976, you guys, when I When I was 14, my best friend Jo Beth’s mother drove me and six other little girls to the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, Tennessee to see Peter Frampton. That was my first experience at a rock and roll show. The six of us were at the top of the nosebleed section and managed to crawl to the floor. I smelled grass for the first time. I got to sing along to “Do You Feel Like I Do” with tens of thousands of strangers. And who doesn’t dream of it becoming their life after experiencing it?”
LOW: Chaka Khan’s performance isn’t exactly a good thing
Soul-funk queen Chaka Khan had previously been nominated a total of seven times, solo and with her former band Rufus, so this should have been her well-deserved big moment. But Khan’s segment was a chaotic mess, plagued by technical problems. Common appeared to arrive late or wasn’t miked properly when he played the Melle Mel rap on “I Feel for You”; SHE had to do most of the heavy lifting on Sweet Thing; and when Sia performed to “I’m Every Woman,” her vision was so comically obstructed by one of her signature Cousin It wigs that she couldn’t navigate the stage or find her microphone. Luckily, Khan made it through the fire, so to speak, and still put on a lively performance.
HIGH: The new edition gives the Spinners a new touch
In honor of Philly singing group The Spinners, New Edition, who looked great in their crushed velvet suits as they absolutely nailed their choreography, they delivered one of the most dynamic performances of the night. Their groovy medley culminated in a ’70s “Rubberband Man” disco party, which segued sensationally into the evening’s tribute to Don Cornelius, Soul Train creator/host/producer and Ahmet Ertegun Award winner.
HIGH: DJ Kool Herc just can’t keep his cool
Introduced by LL Cool J as “one of the great founders of hip-hop,” Kool Herc, who DJed the historic party in the Bronx on August 11, 1973 that became known “as the birthplace” of the genre, received the Musical Influence Award. Supported by his sister Cindy Campbell on the podium, the 68-year-old was overcome with emotion and shouted: “I had tears in my eyes!” He gathered himself to thank his parents and his idols James Brown and Harry Belafonte, but then stopped graciously acknowledges Campbell, who threw this historic 1973 party to raise money for back-to-school clothing, for which he charged an entry fee of 25 cents for women and 50 cents for men – lots of talking. Herc shed new tears later that night when another history-making woman in hip-hop, Elliott, took the stage.
HIGH & LOW: Tom Morello rages on alone
Only one Rage Against the Machine member, Tom Morello, showed up on Friday, which was a disappointment especially since it meant there would be no RATM appearance. “I am deeply grateful for the musical chemistry I was able to share with Brad Wilk, Tim Commerford and Zach de la Rocha. Like most bands, we have different views on a lot of things…including Rock Hall induction!” Morello joked. But the guitarist and activist – introduced by Ice-T, who named RATM’s “F*** you, I won’t do what you tell me” as his favorite lyric of all time – made the most of his time on stage and urged fans on Continue the fight that Rage started three decades ago. “The task we have set ourselves is not yet complete. Now you are the ones who have to testify,” Morello explained. “If you have a boss, join a union. If you are a student, start with the underground newspaper. If you are an anarchist, throw a brick. If you are a soldier or a police officer, follow your conscience, not your orders. If you’re disappointed that you didn’t see Rage Against the Machine, then form your own band and let’s hear what you have to say.”
HIGH: Dave Matthews gives Willie Nelson gas
Matthews also got surprisingly political when he introduced 90-year-old rural outlaw Willie Nelson. “Willie likes to smoke weed, and according to several or at least a few good sources, Willie once smoked in the White House,” Matthews began. “And in his autobiography he said it happened to someone who worked there. But Jimmy Carter, the president at the time, said it was about Jimmy’s son. But I like to think that if Jimmy Carter had been elected to a second term, this weed would have been legal in the mid-80s. And perhaps if he had had a second term, we wouldn’t have exported all of our manufacturing jobs. And perhaps not all of the farmer subsidies and tax breaks given to small family farms and small farmers in this country would have been stolen by corporations and factory farms. But unfortunately it is like that. Farm foreclosures skyrocketed, as did farmer suicides. And then Willie Nelson heard the voices of despair. And he called John Mellencamp and Neil Young and they did the first Farm Aid.” Matthews then joined Nelson – the oldest living inductee to accept the Hall honor in person – for the longest musical number of the night, which also included Crow , Brittany Howard and Chris Stapleton. Nelson, for his part, didn’t get political in his own speech, but he used his time at the podium to urge the room to introduce fellow highwaymen Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson next.
HIGH: The In Memoriam segment gets it right
The Grammys’ televised In Memoriam segment usually annoyingly ignores artists who weren’t big names in the US, but the Rock Hall’s tribute paid tribute to indie artists like Andy Rourke of the Smiths, Terry Hall of the Specials, Tom Television’s Verlaine, Screaming Trees’ Van Conner, Pulp’s Steve Mackey, Luscious Jackson’s Vivian Trimble, Primal Scream’s Martin Duffy, Modest Mouse’s Jeremiah Green and power pop singer-songwriter Dwight Twilley. (If only the Hall would show the same respect when considering its actual nominees and candidates…)
HIGH: Missy Elliott does her gorgeous freak
The Hall ceremony typically features a group final, but no all-star medley could match the one-woman star power of Friday’s final performer — and the Hall’s first female hip-hop inductee — Missy “Msidemeanor” Elliott surpass. Closing the show with a grand and powerful production, Elliott stepped out of a spaceship in a sequined tracksuit and was flanked by neon robot dancers to perform a breathless medley of “Get Ur Freak On,” “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly).” Work It,” “Pass That Dutch,” and “Lose Control.” As she did a victory lap through the crowd and raced past the front row, Jimmy Page looked thrilled, even overwhelmed. As Elliott’s enthusiastic inducer, Queen Latifah, put it: “If that ain’t rock ‘n’ roll, I don’t know what is.”
For the first time in its 38-year history, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ceremony was broadcast live and streamed on Disney+ this year (and now available on-demand). An edited, three-hour version of the ceremony will air Jan. 1 on ABC. Then tune in to find out if Levine’s lackluster performance, Taupin’s snarky remarks, or Morello and Matthews’ political statements come into play.
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