CLEVELAND — Despite dominating the fan vote, the 2020 class of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees does not include Dave Matthews Band or Pat Benatar.
It marks the first time the top vote recipient was not included in the class of inductees since the Rock Hall first introduced the fan ballot several years ago.
Only one of the top five vote getters (The Doobie Brothers) is among the 2020 inductees.
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Here’s a breakdown of how the fans voted in correlation with the actual outcome of inductees according to the Rock Hall's leader board (bold text indicates 2020 inductee):
#1: Dave Matthews Band: 1,005,657 votes
#2: Pat Benatar: 882,207 votes
#3: The Doobie Brothers (selected for 2020 induction): 784,729 votes
#4: Soundgarden: 722,931 votes
#5: Judas Priest: 675,434 votes
#6: Whitney Houston (selected for 2020 induction): 593,374 votes
#7: Depeche Mode (selected for 2020 induction): 563,612 votes
#8: Thin Lizzy: 556,476 votes
#9: Motörhead: 512,918 votes
#10: Todd Rundgren: 440,898 votes
#11: Nine Inch Nails (selected for 2020 induction): 380,869 votes
#12: T. Rex (selected for 2020 induction): 365,290 votes
#13: The Notorious B.I.G. (selected for 2020 induction): 275,892 votes
#14: Rufus featuring Chaka Khan: 166,596 votes
#15: Kraftwerk: 163,667 votes
#16: MC5: 160,685 votes
Mandy Smith, the Director of Education at the Rock Hall, said she wasn't surprised by the induction outcome because so many performers were first-time nominees.
"Clearly, Dave Matthews Band fans came out and really supported the band," Smith told 3News moments after the inductees were revealed. "That just shows you how the fan vote doesn’t always match up with what the rest of the voters are doing.”
She also reminded fans that these performers always have another shot.
“I love Pat Benatar, and I think that all of the nominees still have their day," Smith said. "This isn’t the only year that they’re going to be eligible. I’m hopeful that a lot of these bands will get in some time in the future, too. It is a little cheesy to say, but it is an honor just to be nominated. I remember The Zombies, it took them a while to actually get in. They had several nominations, and they were actually so proud of being a nominee before an inductee that they used to have their announcer announce them as ‘Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees, The Zombies.’ So it was great when they got in, too, because it kind of showed that you can be nominated a lot of times and get in.”
The fan ballot, which launched when the 16 nominees were announced last October, closed on Jan. 10. Rock Hall officials say more than 8.2 million votes were tallied in the fan vote, which is more than double last year’s ballot of 3.3 million votes.
The 2020 induction ceremony is back in Cleveland at Public Hall on Saturday, May 2. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Feb. 27 at 10 a.m. Rock Hall members get first dibs at tickets with a pre-sale on Feb. 25.
Special guests and performances will be revealed at a later date.