Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Important Questions

In watching the HBO Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Benefit and seeing how freaking incredible the music of the past was, I am left with an important question: Who from our generation can carry on this legacy?

Who from our generation is making music good enough that it is prolific enough to transcend time to be worthy enough for the greatest honor in music?

I was betting on the Beastie Boys, but as per Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s induction rules, they’ve already been nominated and denied (can they be nominated again? I think they’re for sure legendary enough - they altered hip hop and rock).

Bands I would expect to see nominated:

-Red Hot Chili Peppers (nominated for 2010 induction)

-Pearl Jam

-Nirvana

-Jay Z

-John Mayer (in guitar circles, homeboy’s respected. I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest).

Will bands that the blogs and music industry insiders can’t get enough of have the type of career that warrants induction? I’m thinking bands like Dirty Projectors, Animal Collective, etc that sit atop every Best Record of the Year, Best Album of the Decade list that I’ve been seeing. Will the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame carry the same cache 25 years from now as it does now? The Hall of Fame is constantly changing to accommodate more genres of music, but the blogosphere and independent labels really have altered the face of the industry.

As per the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s eligibility rules, a musician is eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first record/single. This means that musicians who released music THIS YEAR will be eligible for induction 25 years from now, and in turn, eligible to play in the hypothetical 50th Anniversary show. Who do you think — from this decade — has a career that is worthy of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction?