Whitney Houston and Notorious B.I.G. inducted into Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

(Defender News Service) — Whitney Houston and The Notorious BIG will posthumously be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame after being announced among the artists to make the cut this year.

The Times points out how rigorous the nomination process is, explaining that this year’s honorees, “were voted in by a group of more than 1,000 artists, industry professionals and historians, as well as a fan vote that counts as one ballot.”

In order to be eligible for admittance to the Rock Hall, artists and bands must have released their first commercial recording at least 25 years ago. Nine of this year’s nominees were first-timers on the ballot. Many of them are acts that came of age in the 1990s, while others are considered legacy artists who have yet to be included on the Rock Hall’s roster.

Both Houston and BIG were first-time nominees, but broke through ahead of artists on the long-list who have not made it through in the past, including Rufus featuring Chaka Khan.

This article originally published in the January 20, 2019 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.