The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will induct Pearl Jam, Tupac Shakur, Journey, Yes, Electric Light Orchestra, Joan Baez and Nile Rodgers in the class of 2017.
The induction ceremony will be held at Brooklyn's Barclays Center on April 7, next year and will also see veteran musician Rodgers be handed the Award for Musical Excellence, reported Rolling Stone.
In order to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, 25 years must have passed since an artist has released their first album or single. For rock band Pearl Jam and rapper Tupac Shakur, 2017 marks the first year of eligibility, and they are also the first artistes to join the institution who started their careers in the Nineties.
For Rodgers, the Musical Excellence Award comes after his band Chic were nominated 11 times for the class.
"It's sort of bittersweet. I'm quite flattered that they believed that I was worthy, but my band Chic didn't win. They plucked me out of the band and said, 'You're better than Chic.' That's wacky to me... I am flattered and I think it's cool, but I feel like somebody put me in the lifeboat and told my family they can't get in," Rodgers said.
The news came as a surprise to folk singer Baez, who said, "I never considered myself to be a rock and roll artist. But as part of the folk music boom which contributed to and influenced the rock revolution of the Sixties, I am proud that some of the songs I sang made their way into the rock lexicon."
Progressive rock giants Yes are entering on their third ballot, 26 years after first becoming eligible.
"It's a bit like waiting for a train," says the band's guitarist Steve Howe.
"Maybe it's on time and you just noticed waiting. I don't regret the wait. I just feel this must be the right time," he added.
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