This year’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony is slated to take place in Cleveland next month, but when it does, at least one honoree will be noticeably absent: in a new interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, Todd Rundgren confirmed that he will not be attending the ceremony.
The “Hello It’s Me” singer has been outspoken about his feelings regarding the Hall of Fame in the past, and when the induction takes place, he’ll be four hours away in Cincinnati, playing a show.
“It’s been up and down and in and out with them,” he explained. “My relationship with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, quite obviously, it’s not copacetic. I have offered to do something live for them from my venue. I will stop my show and acknowledge the award and mostly acknowledge my fans, because it’s for them.”
“They’re the ones who wanted it,” he continued. “And now they’ve got it. So it’s a celebration for them, not so much for me. I’ve been totally willing to do that. But for me to do something extraordinary for the Hall of Fame would just be hypocritical. You know, I’m too much on the record about my feelings.”
Back in May, after his induction was announced, Rundgren told Billboard, “It’s no secret I don’t care about it.” His issues with the Hall reportedly stem from the fan ballot. When he was nominated in 2019, his fans voted for him enough to raise him to No. 3 out of the nominees, but he still didn’t make the cut, prompting him to call the process a “scam.”
“They essentially hosed my fans,” Rundgren said. “That made me angry, and I had to tell [the fans] that it was pointless casting votes, ’cause it really doesn’t count for anything.”
But beyond the fan voting issue, he doesn’t appear to be a fan of the institution in general. “True halls of fame, to me, are for retirees and dead people, because your legacy has been established,” he said. “I’m too busy working to worry about my legacy — and plan to continue working until whenever.”
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