Music has some new royalty after the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced its new class of inductees Wednesday, including four first-time nominees like Whitney Houston and Notorious B.I.G.
John Goehrke, the Hall of Fame’s Director of Fan Engagement, told Cheddar this class of inductees “celebrates the diversity of Rock and Roll.” In addition to Houston and Biggie, the Doobie Brothers, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails and T. Rex join the prestigious club.
“I think it's a very diverse class of inductees, which, to us, is awesome because rock and roll has never been one thing. It’s always been more about the spirit and an attitude than about the music sounds, the way an artist looks,” said Goehrke.
Artists become eligible for admission 25 years after the release of their first records. Ballots are sent to more than 1,000 artists, scholars, current living Inductees, and members of the music industry. An artist’s influence on other artists, the length of their career, and their musical impact are all factors taken into consideration when voting for a new class of inductees.
This year, the Hall of Fame also received more than 8.2 million votes from the official Fan Vote, an increase from the 3.3 million votes it got in 2018. Despite the outpouring (especially for Dave Matthews Band fans), the top five Fan Vote-getters comprise a single “fans’ ballot” which get counted along with the thousand others.
There were 16 nominees this year, and for those fans whose idols didn’t land on top, Goehrke noted there is no expiration date. “If you feel a little disappointed today, that’s okay. Hopefully, next year, or the year after, will be your year,” Goehrke said.
This year’s induction ceremony will be held on Saturday, May 2 in Cleveland. For those not lucky enough to get a ticket, it will also be available to watch on HBO.
It has now been two days since Major League Baseball moved to cancel opening day games for the upcoming season. The announcement from MLB commissioner Rob Manfred came during the league's ongoing work stoppage, just the ninth in MLB history. Owners voted unanimously on December 2, 2021 to enact a lockout after the collective bargaining agreement between the league and players expired. On March 1, 2022, following over a week of daily negotiations between the two sides, and three months of on and off negotiations, the league officially canceled the first two series of the regular season. Gabe Lacques, MLB reporter and baseball editor for USA Today Sports, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Music-focused NFT platform Pianity raising $6.5 million in a seed funding round. Pianity has developed a marketplace that allows musicians to sell their tracks as limited edition NFTs. Since its launch last year, the company says it has already sold 11,000 NFTs and artists have earned over $1.1 million from NFT sales. Kevin Primicerio, co-founder and CEO of Pianity, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Russia seizes a major Ukraine nuclear power plant, students protest Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill, and it's official: nobody really expects Pop-Tarts to have real strawberries. Here is all the news you Need2Know for Friday, March 4, 2022.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has reported that an estimated one million people have fled from Ukraine since Russia invaded. Christopher Boian, senior communications officer at UNHCR, joined Cheddar News to report on the current refugee crisis and what the world might expect if conditions continue to worsen. "We have planning figures that forecast as many as four million people could be forced to flee Ukraine," he said. "But that very much depends on how the conflict underway in that country at the moment unfolds in the days and possibly weeks ahead."
Christian Blauvelt, executive managing editor at IndieWire, joins Cheddar News to discuss the growing number of studios pulling content from Russia over Ukraine invasion.
Caroline Hickman, lecturer at University of Bath and psychosocial researcher on climate change, joins Cheddar News to discuss climate change's impact on mental health.
Alexandre Mongeon, the CEO and co-founder of Vision Marine Technologies, joins Cheddar Innovates to discuss the latest innovations in the e-boating industry, and how fully electric motors and boats will play a role in the fight against the climate crisis.
A Ukraine city falls, if you have an Iconic Fitbit, you'll want to hear this, and leave Girl Scouts alone! Here is all the news you Need2Know for Thursday, March 3, 2022.
