“While I’m extremely flattered and grateful to have been nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, I don’t think I’ve earned that right. I don’t want the votes split because of me, so I decided to respectfully retire“. Word of Dolly Parton, undisputed queen of country music, who with these words announced on her social pages her official withdrawal from the nominations for the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame, one of the highest awards for an artist’s career. On the crest of the wave since 1967, Dolly Parton wrote 3,000 songs (including the unforgettableI will always love you, made immortal by the voice of Whitney Houston), won a Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and Hollywood Walk of Fame. The singer-songwriter, who released her 47th studio album a few months ago A Holly Dolly Christmasis one of the few artists of the restricted ‘Egot’ club, formed by those who have received nominations for all four of the most important awards dedicated to entertainment: Oscar, Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award. In reality Parton wouldn’t be the only country artist to be inducted into both the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame and the Country Hall of Fame: Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Chet Atkins, Hank Williams, Brenda Lee and the Everly Brothers had also done it in the past. Thus, 16 candidates remain in the running to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 2022, the winners of which will be announced in early May, including (as always) names that have nothing to do with rock: Eminem, Rage Against the Machine, Lionel Richie, Duran Duran, A Tribe Called Quest, Pat Benatar, Kate Bush, Devo, Dionne Warwick, Carly Simon, Judas Priest, Fela Kuti, MC5, New York Dolls and Beck.
Recall that, to be admitted to the Hall of Fame, individual artists or groups, in addition to having played a role of significant influence in the history of rock and roll, must have recorded their first album for at least 25 years. The Hall of Fame is made up of four categories: Performers, Non-Performers, Early Influences and Sidemen. The most voted by a jury of artists, record industry operators and fans, will join the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2022. “This year’s vote recognizes a diverse group of incredible artists, each of whom had a profound impact on the sound of youth culture, ”said John Sykes, president of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Foundation. Every year the controversies arise over the questionable ways in which the appointments are made, controlled by a few elements of the Foundation: this means that the appointments are influenced more by subjective tastes than by an objective vision of the influence on the history of rock and roll. Another criticism of the Hall of Fame is that of admitting too many artists, allowing the entry even of characters of secondary importance, at the expense of excellent and, frankly, inexplicable exclusions, such as that of the Iron Maiden.
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