GALLERY: A Salute to the Women Performers in the Rock Hall

Today (March 8) is International Women’s Day and what better way to celebrate than by honoring the influential women that have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as performers and early influences...

...Oh, and to serve up the reminder that women accounting for just under eight percent of Rock Hall inductees is simply inexcusable. (For a further breakdown of this, check out Evelyn McDonnell's exceptional piece "The Manhandling of Rock ‘N’ Roll History.")

John Sykes, the Rock Hall's new chairman after Rolling Stone/Rock Hall founder Jann Wenner stepped down as of January 1, 2020, said in countless interviews how the Rock Hall needs to evolve and diversify. It seems as though he's keeping his word, as evident by the nominees of the 2021 class. Among the 16 acts nominated, seven are women: Mary J. Blige, Kate Bush, The Go-Go’s, Chaka Khan, Carole King, Tina Turner and Dionne Warwick. Of those acts, The Go-Go's, Carole King and Tina Turner were part of the 2021 Rock Hall induction class. Of the 17 nominees for 2022, six are women: Pat Benatar, Kate Bush, Eurythmics (Annie Lennox), Dolly Parton, Carly Simon and Dionne Warwick. (The 2022 inductees will be announced in May.)

Hopefully, fans will see even more women make the cut in future classes. Until then, however, scroll through the gallery below containing the remarkable women who have defied the odds to be recognized by the Rock Hall.