NWA Among 2016 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees

The 2016 inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame have been named, and the roster skews heavily toward classic rock, with Cheap Trick, Deep Purple, Chicago and Steve Miller among the acts chosen by the nominating committee.

The Los Angeles rap act was among the inductees announced for the 2016 class at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

N.W.A. was rewarded by rock hall voters in a year that a movie about their career, “Straight Outta Compton”, was a big box office hit.

The influential disco-era band Chic is becoming the Susan Lucci of music, failing to win induction in its 10th year as a nominee.

N.W.A. – which stands for Niggaz Wit Attitudes – set the stage for the genre of gangsta rap and raised the political profile of hip-hop, now a frequent means of protest around the world. Though not a rock act per se, her influence on contemporary music arguably supersedes that of Steve Miller or Deep Purple-and both her brother Michael Jackson and fellow ’80s icon Madonna have been inducted. Tickets will go on sale to the public in February, and the event will be broadcast on HBO later in the spring.

Artists become eligible for the Hall of Fame 25 years after the release of their first album or single. “So it’s very exciting and I’m looking very much forward to it. It’s very cool to have it happen”.

The induction of the latter four bands is a victory for classic rock fans, who have generated the most complaints about the Rock Hall’s exclusion of popular but not always critically acclaimed performers.

Still, Chicago, Deep Purple, Cheap Trick, and Steve Miller have been around for some time, and they were all voted in. They have also been one of the artists for which the Hall has been most criticized for not inducting.

The individual members being inducted are DJ Yella, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube and MC Ren.

James said the music has “been part of all my workout routines since I’ve grown up, and N.W.A. and Tupac and Biggie and Jay and all those guys, Eric B. and Rakim”. “We got some of the most creative, talented people in N.W.A that’s ever been compiled in one group. I think he is, too, so we should know the material”. To be eligible for the member pre-sale, you must be an active Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member by December 31, 2015.