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 British progressive rock band Yes, American rockers Pearl
Jam, metal band Steppenwolf, English electronic band Depeche
Mode, and funk singer Chaka Khan, were also included on the
nominees list, which will be voted on by fans and music industry
experts.
Artists must have released their first recording at least 25
years ago to be eligible for nomination. The names of the 2017
inductees will be announced in December once voting is complete.
Shakur was killed at age 25 in an unsolved 1996 drive-by
shooting in Las Vegas that has only boosted his fame. The
Harlem-born rapper, who sang about social inequity and black
struggles, is regarded as one of the most influential voices in
hip hop music, spurring the release of documentaries, movies and
a Broadway musical.
Shakur's nomination reflects the growing acceptance of rap as a
force in mainstream music and follows the Hall of Fame induction
in 2016 of California rappers N.W.A. as only the fifth hip hop
act ever to be voted in.
Baez, 75, became a voice of protest in the tumultuous 1960s,
becoming one of the first singers to promote the songs of Bob
Dylan and singing at the 1969 Woodstock festival. Her
performances of the traditional song "We Shall Overcome" in the
early 1960s became the anthem of the civil rights movement.
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Jackson, 50, the youngest child of the famed Jackson singing family,
is one of the best-known pop singers in the world but is still
waiting to be inducted after first becoming eligible for the Hall of
Fame in 2007.
Other artists nominated include Bad Brains, Chic, Electric Light
Orchestra, J. Geils Band, Jane's Addiction, Joe Tex, Journey,
Kraftwerk, MC5, The Cars, and The Zombies.
The inductees are chosen by fans and by an international body of
some 800 artists, historians and members of the music industry who
are asked to consider musical influence, innovation, and length and
depth of career.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant)
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