One of the most genre-spanning Rock Hall classes in years was announced on April 13 — and it immediately sparked debate about who made it in, who didn’t, and what the institution is trying to say.
The Announcement
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame revealed its Class of 2026 on the evening of April 13 through a now-familiar format: live on American Idol, with Ryan Seacrest and Rock Hall inductee Lionel Richie delivering the names to a national television audience. This marked the third consecutive year the Hall has used the show as its announcement platform.
Eight acts were named in the Performer category: Phil Collins, Billy Idol, Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order, Oasis, Sade, Luther Vandross, and Wu-Tang Clan. The induction ceremony is set for November 14 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, with a recorded broadcast to air on ABC and Disney+ in December.
Who Made It In — And How
The Class of 2026 reflects a voting bloc that leaned heavily on legacy acts whose cultural weight had long outlasted their eligibility window. Phil Collins, Luther Vandross, and Wu-Tang Clan are all entering on their first nominations. Collins becomes a two-time inductee, having previously been inducted as a member of Genesis in 2010. Billy Idol and Sade earned induction on their second nominations, while Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order, and Oasis all get in on their third try.
Each selection carries its own weight. Iron Maiden brings heavy metal’s most globally enduring band into the Hall after decades of eligibility. Joy Division and New Order enter as a joint act — recognizing the direct lineage between the two groups, which shared three of their core members before Ian Curtis’s death in 1980 transformed one into the other. Wu-Tang Clan’s induction continues the Rock Hall’s visible effort to expand its definition of rock, with at least one hip-hop act inducted each year since 2020.
Sade’s inclusion signals something different: a recognition that the Hall’s definition of influence is widening beyond genre categories. Phil Collins, already enshrined with Genesis, now holds one of the rarer distinctions — a double induction.
Beyond the Performer category, Queen Latifah, Celia Cruz, Fela Kuti, MC Lyte, and Gram Parsons receive the Early Influence Award; producers Rick Rubin, Arif Mardin, Jimmy Miller, and songwriter Linda Creed are honored with the Musical Excellence Award; and Ed Sullivan receives the Ahmet Ertegun Award posthumously.
Liam Gallagher’s Predictably Unpredictable Reaction
No Rock Hall announcement in 2026 would be complete without word from Liam Gallagher — and he delivered. Having previously described the institution as “full of wankers” and actively discouraged fans from voting for Oasis, Gallagher took a different tone on X/Twitter on April 14. He thanked voters, called the honor “a real honour,” and confirmed both he and Noel would attend the ceremony — writing that they were “soooooo proud and humble.” He also credited “reverse psychology vibes in the area” for the result, a reference to his years of public opposition.
The Gallagher brothers’ reunion tour in 2025 appears to have softened the institutional antagonism somewhat — though Liam’s particular brand of sincerity and sarcasm, delivered simultaneously, remains intact.
The Snubs Generating Noise
Among the nominated acts who did not make the Class of 2026 are New Edition, P!nk, INXS, The Black Crowes, Jeff Buckley, Shakira, Lauryn Hill, Melissa Etheridge, and Mariah Carey. The exclusions have generated considerable reaction online, with INXS and New Edition drawing the loudest complaints.
New Edition’s situation carries a particular irony. The group won the 2026 fan vote with 1,022,683 votes — and still was not inducted. The fan vote is factored into the final tally but does not determine the outcome, which rests with a voting body of over 1,200 artists, historians, and industry professionals. That gap between fan preference and institutional decision-making is a recurring source of tension around the Hall’s credibility with general audiences.
Mariah Carey, now on her third nomination without induction, has become a symbol for critics who argue the Hall continues to undervalue certain categories of commercial and cultural influence. She joins a small group of artists who have received at least three nominations and remain outside the Hall as performers.
What the Class Signals About the Hall in 2026
The absence of primarily 1960s or 1970s acts — and the notable distance from mainstream 21st century pop — suggests the Hall’s voting body is currently moving through a specific era: the 1980s and 1990s, from post-punk and metal to hip-hop and soul. Artists like P!nk and Shakira were likely nominated ahead of schedule, and the Hall’s eventual turn toward predominantly pop, predominantly 21st century inductees appears to still be several years away.
What the Class of 2026 does accomplish is breadth. From Wu-Tang Clan’s Staten Island mythology to Sade’s jazz-inflected precision, from Iron Maiden’s arena-metal theatrics to Joy Division’s bleak post-punk — this is a class that resists a single narrative. Whether that reflects genuine institutional evolution or a careful balancing act across genre communities is a question the Hall’s critics will continue to press.
The ceremony at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on November 14 will offer its own answers — starting with whether every inductee actually shows up.
