The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation recently revealed their 2025 list of inductees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which includes music entrants across four separate categories who will be celebrated when ceremonies are held live on Disney+ on November 8th. Those classifications are in the genre of Performers, the Musical Influence Award, the Music Excellence Award, and the Ahmet Ertegun Award. The first three are for artistic creators, while the Ertegun Award gives a nod to a music executive whose contributions have been deemed exemplary.

So, who made the cut this year for the hallowed ageways of the Hall? And, perhaps even more interestingly, who got left out of the conversation? There are certainly plenty of names to talk about from both the honored and the overlooked sides of the fence (as there seems to be every year) that will keep music fans talking until it's time for the 2026 class to be announced. Here are the 2025 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees who made the cut in 2025.

Checker, Cocker, And Zevon Lead List Of Longest-Eligible 2025 Inductees

Rockers, Rappers, And Singers Lead The Way

Topping the Hall of Fame Performers category are first-time nominees Chubby Checker (known for the dance craze "The Twist"), growling wailer Joe Cocker, rock supergroup Bad Company, as well as the iconic hip-hop duo Outkast. Garage rockers the White Stripes and "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" performer Cyndi Lauper made it in on their second nomination, while hard rock grungers Soundgarden were inducted on their third go-around. Artists are eligible for the Hall 25 years after their first commercial recording, with Checker the longest available since 1984, followed by Cocker in 1994.

The late singer-songwriter Warren Zevon has also been eligible since 1994, and on his second nomination for the Hall, has been inducted under the Musical Influence Award along with female hip-hop group Salt-N-Pepa. For the Music Excellence Award, some of the great behind-the-scenes standouts have been acknowledged, with hyper-prolific bassist Carol Kaye, renowned session pianist Nicky Hopkins, and pioneering Philadelphia songwriter and producer Thom Bell all being honored.

On the executive side, with the Ahmet Ertegun Award, the 2025 winner is Warner Bros. and DreamWorks label exec and producer Lenny Waronker. Not only was Waronker at the rudder, producing the debuts of artists like Rickie Lee Jones, Ry Cooder, and Randy Newman, he also helped launch the careers of talents like Nelly Furtado, Rufus Wainwright, and Elliott Smith after co-founding DreamWorks Records in 1996.

Now, while this covers all the names and bands that finally got a (perhaps overdue) Hall of Fame nod in 2025, there were also a few high-profile candidates that were rejected this year. This includes, most surprisingly, the band that led all fan voting by a sizable margin throughout the entire process.

Fan Vote Leaders Phish & Billy Idol Top The Biggest Snubs

Other Bands & A Major Female Singer-Songwriter Were Left Out As Well

Vermont's jam band extraordinaires Phish had shown a sizable lead in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame fan voting for the 2025 class, and wound up with over 329,000 votes. The next closest to Phish was Bad Company with just under 281,000 ballots (though Bad Company was ultimately inducted this year). Billy Idol (who finished third in fan voting) was also left out.

These snubs are apparently because the top five fan-voted choices are only given a single additional ballot in final tallies among those included by artists, writers, and other industry professionals, not the actual numbers they receive from the fan votes. Bands like the Black Crowes, Oasis, and Mana were also excluded, as well as noted female pop crooner Mariah Carey. Fans only have the opportunity to vote in the Performers category, while the others are chosen by associated Rock and Roll Hall of Fame committees. Excluded acts will presumably have a chance for nomination again in 2026.