The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame announced the 2022 class of inductees earlier this year, among them UK metal gods Judas Priest, who will receive the "Musical Excellence" award at the event.
Many have been questioning whether or not former Judas Priest guitarist, K.K. Downing, would be on hand for the ceremony, and bassist Ian Hill confirmed at the time that he will indeed be present.
Asked by Louder how much discussion has there been about who exactly in Priest is being inducted, Hill reveals: "The rule as I understand it, is whoever has been with the band for 20 years. Richie [Faulkner] is sadly not being inducted, but really deserves to be as he’s been the driving force in the band for nearly 12 years now. Dave Holland [drummer 1979-1989] was in the band for a long time and obviously Ken [guitarist KK Dowling] will be there. Les Binks was with us all those years, as was Scott [Travis, drums] so he’ll be part of the induction too.”
Asked if the band has spoke directly to Downing since the nomination, to clear the air, Ian says: "He’s spoken to management and said he will definitely be there. It should be good.”
Read more at Louder.
Now, in an interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, Downing has confirmed he will perform with Judas Priest at the event.
Downing: "I think we've probably got eight or nine minutes. I'm not even going to be able to break a sweat. The main thing is to represent the attitude and hopefully the legend of what Judas Priest is and has become, and what it means to everybody who's been on that very long journey through the decades with the band. Hopefully, it will just kind of remind people and bring back some cherished memories of the heavy metal parking lots all around the world."
Read the complete report here.
In the video below, Judas Priest frontman, Rob Halford, reacts to the announcement of the band's upcoming induction, stating, "Wow, thank you so much. This is such a beautiful moment, not only for Priest, but for heavy metal here in the USA and around the world. This is just the power and the reach that the Hall Of Fame has, so it's time to celebrate!"
Artists selected for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, Class Of 2022 include:
Performer Category:
Pat Benatar
Duran Duran
Eminem
Eurythmics
Dolly Parton
Lionel Richie
Carly Simon
Early Influence Award:
Harry Belafonte
Elizabeth Cotten
Musical Excellence Award:
Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis
Judas Priest
Ahmet Ertegun Award:
Allen Grubman
Jimmy Iovine
Sylvia Robinson
Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame states: "Congratulations to our newest Inductees, and to all the fans who helped them get here. We're excited to celebrate with you on Saturday, November 5th in Los Angeles."
