Who’s who of rock ‘n’ roll — from young stars to legends — celebrate Hall of Fame inductees

Cyndi Lauper turned around True colors into a defiant call for courage, as the music of Outkast, Soundgarden and the White Stripes turned the house on Saturday night in Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inauguration ceremony.

Midway through the song, Lauper shouted the phrase “don't be afraid!”, raised her fist in the air, and held it there as the music stopped for a long, dramatic stretch.

Rae then joined her to sing. Time after time and Avril Lavigne for Girls just want to have fun. When Lauper called on the ladies to sing along with her, Salt-N-Pepa, who had donned her old tri-color jackets earlier in the evening to rock the crowd Click this for their acquaintance, he went out to dance and joined her.

Chappell Roan, who inducted Lauper wearing a huge, embellished showgirl-style headpiece, said Lauper “redefined what a pop star could look, sound and sing.”

Lauper looked to Roan during her speech as she said, “I know I stand on the shoulders of the women in the industry who came before me. And my shoulders are broad enough for the women who came after me to stand on mine.”

Lauper returned for the star-studded jam and sang a verse on a cover of inductee Joe Cocker's song. With a little help from my friends along with the Black Crowes' Chris Robinson, Teddy Swims and Bryan Adams. Cocker was one of several posthumous nominees, paying tribute to late Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell.

The power of women in music was loudly proclaimed earlier in the evening at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles during a performance by Salt-N-Pepa.

“This is for every woman who has picked up a microphone when she was told she couldn't,” Cheryl “Salt” James said in a rousing speech as she, Sandra “Pepa” Denton and DJ Spinderell entered the venue.

James picked them up fight for the return of their master recordings from Universal Music Group. “The industry still doesn't want to play fair, Salt-N-Pepa has never been afraid to fight,” James said.

They took the stage to perform their hits. They opened with Shopthen slid in Let's talk about sex before En Vogue joined them for a joint hit What a man.

James apologized to fans who “got in trouble for cutting our hair like we did,” and the line came later when Roan said Lauper showed you can “have any hair color you want.”

Outkast rocks the house, but not quite together

Outkast didn't perform together for the first time since 2016 as some had hoped, but the duo stood together on stage, surrounded by a team of friends and associates, giving acceptance speeches after doing rock-paper-scissors to decide who would perform first.

Andre 3000 gave a long, rambling funny speech: “I’m freestyling you all!” — which ended in tears as he recounted their beginnings in a basement “dungeon” in Atlanta in the early 1990s.

He choked out the words: “Great things begin in small rooms.”

Andre skipped the show, but Big Boi, dressed in shorts and a fur coat, began a quick tour of the discography of the Atlanta duo, which included Tyler, the Creator, J.I.D. and Killer Mike.

Janelle Monáe joined them to fight her way through. Hey Yaand Doja Cat delivered a sly and soulful interpretation Ms Jackson.

In his inauguration speech, Donald Glover praised them as “two visionaries who turned their differences into a dynasty.”

Soundgarden gets emotional

Emotions were very high during Soundgarden's night performance, starting with the opening speech from Jim Carrey, actor and Soundgarden superfan, who seemed to struggle to hold back tears while talking about Chris Cornell, who died by suicide in 2017.

“When you look into his eyes, it feels like eternity is looking back,” Kerry said. “For all time, his voice will continue to illuminate the airwaves like a Tesla coil.”

Each of Cornell's bandmates, all major godfathers of the Seattle grunge scene, paid their own tearful tributes.

One of Cornell's daughters, Lillian, spoke for him, and the other, Toni, quietly sang his song. Fell on dark days.

“I’m very, very glad that he was able to play music with his friends,” Lillian Cornell said.

Taylor Momsen, who starred alongside Carrie in the film as a child How the Grinch Stole Christmasand Brandi Carlile showed off some serious vocal power in their versions of Cornell's mighty howl, backed by his bandmates on Rusty cage And Black hole sun.

Bassist Hiro Yamamoto was one of the few who took politics off the stage.

“Thank you to my parents, whose history is that of American citizens who were captured and placed in prisoner of war camps simply for being Japanese during World War II,” Yamamoto said to the loudest applause of the evening. “Well, it had a big impact on my life, and it really reverberates today. Let's not add another story like that to our history.”

No reunion for the White Stripes

The White Stripes reunion some fans were hoping for didn't happen. In any case, their introduction was one of the highlights of the evening. Twenty One Pilots brought the house down with a stadium-shaking version of the duo's anthem. Seven Nations Armyand Olivia Rodrigo and Feist presented an acoustic version We'll be friends.

Fellow Detroit rock legend Iggy Pop began his acceptance speech by leading the crowd in chorus Seven Nations Armythen he remembered his thoughts about meeting them.

“Dear children, they will go anywhere,” Pop said. “And they did it.”

Drummer Meg White, who has led an almost entirely private life since the band split in 2011, did not appear at the ceremony, but Jack White said Meg, his ex-wife, helped him write the speech, which he delivered while wearing the band's signature red and white suit.

Jack White highlighted several great duets from different cultures and said that such one-on-one collaboration is “the most beautiful thing an artist and musician can have.”

He nearly cried several times as he told a story similar to Adam and Eve, about “a boy and a girl” who created magic together, “knowing that they were sharing and making the other person feel something.”

A rousing tribute to absent conscripts

Stevie Wonder led a powerful and powerful tribute to the late Sly Stone to open the show, which streamed live on Disney+. An edited version will air on ABC on January 1.

On Saturday night, Wonder was joined by Questlove, Leon Thomas, Maxwell, Beck, Flea of ​​the Red Hot Chili Peppers for a rousing performance of hits from Sly and Family Stone. Dance to the music, Everyday people And Thank you. Jennifer Hudson joined them for a cry. Higher.

Stone, inducted into the hall in 1993, died in June. Brian Wilson, who died two days later received his tribute from Elton John, who took the stage at the end of the show to sing a Beach Boys song. Only God Knows.

Fleetwood Mac's Mick Fleetwood inducted Bad companycalling the British group, founded by Paul Rodgers and Mick Ralphs in 1973, “classic rock legends.”

Rodgers had to miss the ceremony due to health problems, and Ralphs died earlier this year, so drummer Simon Kirke was the only member on stage. He was joined by a special supergroup, including Robinson and Heart guitarist Nancy Wilson, who found success. Feel like making love And Can't get enough.

The late singer-songwriter Warren Zevon was nominated by David Letterman, a friend and superfan who made Zevon a regular on his late-night NBC show, including an appearance while Zevon was dying of cancer in 2002.

“Warren Zevon is in my Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,” Letterman said. “His own wing, actually.”

Other inductees receiving video tributes at the theater were Chubby Checker, session bassist Carol Kaye, session pianist Nicky Hopkins and producer and executive Lenny Waronker.