Copyright Billboard
The Los Angeles Dodgers weren’t the only winners in town this week. Returning to City of Angels for the first time since 2022, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ushered in a new class of inductees during its 40th annual induction ceremony Saturday night (Nov. 8). “Welcome to the second-best thing to happen to Los Angeles in the past week,” said John Sykes, chairman of the R&R Hall of Fame, welcoming the audience at the Peacock Theater in downtown Los Angeles. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is officially middle aged and to celebrate the 40th induction ceremony, a 10-minute sizzle reel spanning the four decades played prior to the official start of the proceedings, which, thanks to a more streamlined process when honoring the musical excellence and non-performer categories, came in at a relatively brisk four-and-a-half hours. Beamed live on Disney +, the Rock Hall honored Bad Company, Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, Cyndi Lauper, Outkast, Soundgarden and The White Stripes in the performer category, Salt-N-Pepa and Warren Zevon for musical influence; Thom Bell, Nicky Hopkins and Carol Kaye for musical excellence, and longtime Warner Records executive Lenny Waronker with the Ahmet Ertegun Award (named after the Atlantic Records co-founder). A primetime trimmed- down special will air on ABC on Jan. 1, 2026. Many of the 2025 honorees were not in attendance: Of course, Zevon, Cocker, Hopkins and Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell were inducted posthumously, and legendary Wrecking Crew bassist Kaye declined in advance to attend. Though the White Stripes’ Jack White referenced her and even dedicated part of his speech to her, his former bandmate, Meg White, did not attend. At 84, Checker was still doing what he does best and passed up his induction to keep a regularly scheduled paying gig, though he delivered his acceptance speech from the show before going into a shortened version of his biggest hit, “The Twist.” After initially hoping to attend and even reunite with his band Bad Company, lead singer Paul Rodgers pulled out for health reasons. But there was still a dazzling amount of star power in the room from the honorees who were present and the nearly 40 artists who helped induct them. Below are nine highlights from the evening.
