George Michael Tops Fan Vote for 2023 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction

George Michael came out on top of the fan voting when balloting wrapped up on Friday (April 28) for the list of 2023 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees. While the fan vote is not a guarantee that Michael will be enshrined in Cleveland, the late Wham! and solo star’s decisive victory in the fan portion of the vote — which closed on Friday (April 28) — saw him getting more than one million votes (1,040,072), which put him comfortably in front of second placer Cyndi Lauper (928,113), as well as Warren Zevon (634,130) Iron Maiden (449,682) and Soundgarden (427,040).

All but one of the previous five fan vote winners have ended up being enshrined, with the exception of the Dave Matthews Band, who did not get in despite rolling up more than 100,000 votes in 2020. Fans will find out on Wednesday (May 3) if the “Careless Whisper” star will make the cut for induction this year when this year’s list of nominees will be announced.

Others waiting to hear if they will join the Rock Hall this year include five-time nominees Rage Against the Machine, four-time nominee Kate Bush, as well as second timers Soundgarden, Maiden, A Tribe Called Quest and The Spinners; this year’s first-timers include Missy Elliott and The White Stripes. Other nominees this year include Sheryl Crow, Joy Division/New Order and Willie Nelson.

To be eligible for the RRHOF, an artist’s first commercial release must have come out at least 25 years prior to the nomination year. This year’s induction ceremony will take place in the fall. The top five artists selected through fan voting will be tallied along with the ballots from the Rock Hall’s international voting body to determine the Class of 2023.