The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 2022 inductees announced: Dolly Parton, Pat Benatar, Duran Duran and more
It's no longer up for debate: Dolly Parton's officially being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
In early February, the Cleveland, Ohio-based institution announced the country superstar was on this year's ballot. A little more than a month later, Parton announced she wanted to "respectfully bow out" because she didn't "feel that [she had] earned that right."
It only took a matter of days for the institution to say it declined to remove her from the running, adding that rock is "not defined by any one genre, rather a sound that moves youth culture" and they were "proud to have nominated her."
Just last week, Parton acquiesced, telling NPR she would "accept gracefully” should she be voted in.
Now, she'll do just that, alongside eighties greats like Pat Benatar, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Lionel Richie, Carly Simon and rapper Eminem.
"It was an interesting evolution," Greg Harris, president and CEO of Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, told ABC Audio. "I think early on she just wasn't aware that Jimmie Rodgers and Bill Monroe and Hank Williams and Bob Wills are in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and that we look at artists from multiple genres that have all contributed to music."
When the induction takes place Nov. 5 at L.A.'s Microsoft Theater, plan on a spectacle worthy of the beloved legend.
"It's a long list of artists that would love to pay tribute to Dolly Parton, and they cut across all genres -- perhaps it's more than one artist paying tribute," Harris said. "Think of some of the other amazing tributes for, say, Linda Ronstadt, when we had Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, Sheryl Crow, Stevie Nicks and Carrie Underwood."
According to the Rock Hall, those honored with induction have created music with "originality, impact and influence [that] has changed the course of rock 'n roll." So how do these '80s pop stars fit in?
Harris said Pat Benatar "really set a path for lots of female artists to come after her because she was in control, uncompromising" and has an "unbelievable vocal range." He said he feels Katy Perry and Miley Cyrus, among others, show her influence.
As for Duran Duran, Harris cites their "infectious melodies" and "complex musical arrangements" as well as their mixture of guitar and synths, naming The Killers as just one band that followed in their footsteps.
And speaking of guitars and synths, Harris said the Eurythmics took those and made it "really funky," adding that Annie Lennox's "unbelievable voice" really brought "sixties soul into the eighties."
Regarding soul, Harris said, "Lionel Richie is hitting just as hard as Marvin Gaye, in a different era," noting that acts ranging from Babyface to country superstar Tim McGraw have cited Lionel as an influence.
As for Carly Simon, Harris named Taylor Swift and Alanis Morissette as two women who've been impacted by "the honesty of her music and her delivery."
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction will be held at LA's Microsoft Theater and will air later on HBO and stream on HBO Max.
