Willie Nelson just got an only slightly late 90th birthday present: an impending induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, reports a renowned American media publication. The country music legend was one of seven artistes announced on Wednesday morning as having been voted into the Hall, along with Kate Bush, Rage Against the Machine, Missy Elliott, Sheryl Crow, George Michael and the Spinners, 'Variety' adds.
There are six more inductees beyond that list, with the distinction of being selected by a Hall of Fame committee to join the seven performers who were voted in via general balloting.
These are singer Chaka Khan, instrumentalist-producer Al Kooper and lyricist Bernie Taupin, all in the 'musical excellence' category; pioneering rock guitarist Link Wray and hip-hop originator DJ Kool Herc in the 'musical influence' division; and 'Soul Train' TV host Don Cornelius as the recipient of the annual Ahmet Ertegun Award.
These 13 honorees will be celebrated in an induction ceremony and concert on November 3 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York City.
For anyone keeping score of the artistes who don't make it in, the seven nominees on the general ballot who missed the cut with voters this go-round (surely the Hall would prefer no one call them 'snubs') are A Tribe Called Quest, Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order, Cyndi Lauper, Soundgarden, the White Stripes, and Warren Zevon.