Rock Purists Won’t Like the Hall of Fame Fan Vote’s Early Results

The first week of Rock & Roll Hall of Fame fan voting has yielded some eye-opening results.

On Feb. 25, 17 artists from a wide variety of genres and eras were nominated for possible induction. Phil Collins in the clear leader after seven days and over two million fan ballots submitted, with over 230,000 votes as of Wednesday, March 4th at 9AM EST.

But anybody that is unhappy with the way the Rock Hall has reached out beyond the rock genre to nominate hip-hop, pop and R&B artists in recent years might not like where the popular vote goes from there.

R&B superstars New Edition are in second place, with over 190,000 votes. “Get This Party Started” pop singer Pink is in third with just under 173,000 votes, and soul legend Luther Vandross is in fourth with just over 169,000 votes.

Billy Idol has so far gathered about 152,000 votes – good for fifth place – with Sade, INXS, Mariah Carey, Wu-Tang Clan and Lauryn Hill rounding out the top 10.

Iron Maiden – whose frontman Bruce Dickinson has already quite clearly told the Rock Hall exactly where they can stick their nomination – stands in 11th place with over 111,000 votes.

(Perhaps voting for them feels like buying a Morrissey concert ticket by this point – you’re almost certainly headed for disappointment.)

The rock world’s two other major candidates – Oasis and the Black Crowes – are currently in 13th and 14th place, just ahead of “Hips Don’t Lie” singer Shakira.

Read More: The 10 Worst Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Snubs

Of course, doing well in this vote doesn’t guarantee you’ll make it into the Rock Hall by any means. Last year Phish finished first and Billy Idol third in the fan vote, and neither was inducted.

According to Future Rock Legends, this year’s fan vote will conclude on April 3. You can vote once a day at RockHall.com. The 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees are set to be announced at some unspecified point later that month.