Madonna Inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

It’s official: Madonna is a Living Legend!

Along with John Mellencamp, The Ventures, Leonard Cohen and The Dave Clark Five, The Material Girl was inducted into this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

A panel of 600 industry figures selected the five acts to be inducted at the annual ceremony, to be held March 10 in New York. To be eligible, artists must have issued a first single or album at least 25 years before nomination.

“The 2008 inductees are trailblazers — all unique and influential in their genres,” Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation President and CEO Joel Peresman said in a statement. “From poetry to pop, these five acts demonstrate the rich diversity of rock and roll itself.”

Of course, like most things having to do with Madonna, her nomination to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is controversial.

“Madonna in the ROCK ‘N’ ROLL Hall of Fame? That’s like inducting Dorothy Hamill into the Hockey Hall of Fame.”

“What a crock!! Inducting Madonna in the ROCK n ROLL Hall of Fame is like inducting Celine Dion in the Rap Hall of Fame or Michael Jackson in the Opera Hall of Fame. Not a single one of her songs can remotely be classified as Rock n Roll. Including a poser like Madonna in the Rock n Roll Hall while excluding true legendary rock artists like Deep Purple and Alice Cooper is a travesty.”

“Madonna is not rock and roll. It’s as simple as that. Apparently the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame doesn’t have a lot to do with Rock and Roll. Madonna is bubblegum at best. There are so many other bands that deserve to be inducted.”

The fact that Madonna was chosen on her first year of eligibility, while artists like Kiss, Rush, and Iggy Pop still wait in the wings for their turn has many rock fans up in arms.

Madonna also has her supporters. Brian Klein, the Kalamazoo, MI fan who helped build Madonna Fest, a global fan convention, makes a point in her favor.

“Madonna put in her time: She started as a nobody with a garage band, played the club scene in New York, got noticed, and evolved into the queen of pop icon,” he says. And her antiestablishment credentials are impeccable, Klein points out: “She’s the only person I know of who walked off David Letterman after telling him off.”

And what is Rock and Roll these days anyway? Who else wants to chime in with their opinion on Madonna’s induction?

One Response to “Madonna Inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”

1. Alice Itty Says:
   April 8th, 2008 at 5:29 pm

   Carla,
   Thanks for the Madonna post! I’ve been a fan of hers since I was a pre-teen and even though she’s not “Rock” she does have that spirit. She definitely deserves to be inducted!

   –Alice

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