Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Pays Tribute to Women

Fergie scored one of the biggest gigs of the year, headlining today's Super Bowl with the Black Eyed Peas as one of the world's top female rockers -- a decades-old roster of artists being celebrated in a large exhibit this spring at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Some fans will surely react with cynicism about the insitution's move to honor influential women with a big group tribute when, year after year, only a minority of music luminaries invited into the actual Hall of Fame are females. Out of the five newest inductees,
announced late last year, all but one (Darlene Love) are men.
Still, the museum's "Women Who Rock: Vision, Passion, Power" is expected to be impressive, showcasing more than 60 stars including Billie Holiday, Janis Joplin, Patti Smith,
Lady Gaga and
Taylor Swift, to name a few.
The massive interactive exhibit will guide visitors through decades of female trailblazers in various genres, starting wtih turn-of-the-century blues singers, and ending in the modern age. The exhibit's launch kicks off with a concert starring Wanda Jackson, Cyndi Lauper and more.
And next week, on Feb. 14, the Cleveland museum opens the first of several related exhibits, "Girls on Film: 40 Years of Women in Rock" featuring iconic female singers who toured the Midwest, including Grace Slick, Joan Jett and Tina Turner.
A museum exec, Lauren Onkey, acknowledged in the
L.A. Times how challenging it is to represent "what or who women were, or are...it changes all the time...it's a big story to grapple with, and it's not just one story." The main exhibit opens May 13 and runs through February 2012.
As for Fergie, she's hardly resting in her quest to keep women at the forefront of music stardom: She wants to discover
the next great female singer.
Read more from Spinner here >>>
http://xml.channel.aol.com/xmlpublisher/fetch.v2.xml?option=expand_relative_urls&dataUrlNodes=uiConfig,feedConfig,entry&id=691977&pid=691976&uts=1273167996
http://www.popeater.com/mm_track/popeater/music/?s_channel=us.musicpop&s_account=aolpopeater,aolsvc&omni=1&ke=1
http://cdn.channel.aol.com/cs_feed_v1_6/csfeedwrapper.swf
PopScene: Week's Hottest Pics
Gabourey Sidibe attends The American Cancer Society's Choose You luncheon on May 5th in New York City.
Amy Sussman, Getty Images
Amy Sussman, Getty Images
PopScene: Weeks Hottest Pics
Add a comment
Taylor Swift is on the same list as Patti Smith? That is so wrong. Hope to see Pj Harvey, Kate Bush, Bjork and Tori Amos on that list.
Reply
I guess Taylor Swift really IS a trailblazer. She's definitely paved the way for young women who can barely hum a tune on key to make huge bucks in the wonderful world of show biz. As for Fergie, calling her 'one of the world's top female rockers' must be another sign of the apocalypse.
Madonna - 1 Rush - 0
This place is a caricature of itself.
This mean they are finally going to recognize The Runaways?
Reply
Rock and Roll Hall of fame is CRAZZY for not inducting the Moody Blues and the Greatest entertainer of All time IAN Anderson of Jethro Tull.....
Reply
Absolutely spot on
Right on Rick. The Moody Blues arrived during my college days and they are still rockin' on tour over 40 years later. Saw them in 2010 in NJ
Ian Anderson is a treasure
The Rock and Roll hall of fame is still CRAZZY for not inducting the MOODY Blues and Jethro Tull... Ian Anderson is "Rocks Greatest entertainer of all time"... If you any doubts about this you should go to you tube and watch any of His videos...
Reply
Ann & Nancy Wilson?? They are women who rocked and still have it. Way overdue for them to be inducted!!!!
Reply
YES!! HEART, anyone? The driving force behind HEART -- for more than 30 years -- Ann and Nancy Wilson!
I agree. Heart should have been inducted years ago.
Styx. Pat Benatar.
Reply
Male or female, no artist, duo or group should be honored unless they've continued in entertainment for, at least, 25 years after their first top ten hit. I said top ten because that would eliminate Creedence Clearwater Revival who never had a #1 as a group.
Reply
I have loads of respect for the Black Eyed Peas, but they are NOT a rock and roll band and should be not even be close to the Cleveland venue. not even let in the building. period!
Reply
But madonna in the HOF? It clearly states Rock N ROLL, not trash or bubble gum.
WOW, now I will be able to sleep better at nights. Women....shhhh
Reply
fergie and lady gaga arent close to being rock stars
Reply
what about Joan Jett ? "Ilove Rock & Roll "!!!!!!
Reply
Put Rush in The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame and stop with all this other nonsense.
Reply
I know this won't sound like it, but I am never the first one to jump on the "race card" bandwagon, but I find it interesting that of the 24 female performers who have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, two-thirds of them are Black. White female performers are disproportionately absent. While the Black female performers have earned their spots in the R&R Hall of fame, I really have to ask, where are Joan Jett, Pat Benatar, The Go-Gos, Melissa Etheridge, Heart, Stevie Nicks, Annie Lenox, Linda Ronstadt, Joan Baez, Patty Smyth, Cheryl Crow, Carole King, Gloria Estefan and many, many others?
Reply