Billy Idol on its first Rock & Roll Hall of Fame -Nomination

“Yes, I have to admit that maybe I was a little more ambivalent when I was younger.”
Photo: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

It is A nice day For a career-exciting honor. Billy Idol has made the shortlist for this year’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction class, where he joins a varied group of artists ranging from jam-band Stoners to an evasive chantereuse. The punk rocker, who has been justified since 2007, but only now received a nomination, rose to the top of Vultures’s power traiting for inductors after a burning performance at the ceremony in 2024, where he was among the artists who helped give Ozzy Osbourne He deserved the Sonic 21- Pistol Honor. This year, Idol hopes that luck will be on his side so he can experience a similar round of fierce fanfare. “There are so many people who should be in the rock hall, but of course I am a little beaten out of me,” he told us. “We’ll see what happens. You never know. “

I was really happy to see your name on the list. Congratulations! Punk is alive and blooms!
Thanks. It was really amazing. Pretty wonderful. I can’t believe the fate of this. Steve Stevens (Idol’s long-time guitarist and co-songwriter) is nominated with me-because of our special relationship, if I come in, they will induce him too. It really made my day.

It’s great at Steve. Who got to tell you the news?
My manager. I was really beaten down. I was just at the ceremony that was part of Ozzy’s induction and it was a lovely evening with (Ozzy’s Grammy-winning producer) Andrew Watt and everyone in the band. The best thing about this is: You get to speak in person to your fans and have a chance to thank them. There are so many people who have been behind me that fans do not know about, and I also get a chance to thank them.

You recently said That getting into the rock hall would be “incredible.” Have you always felt this heat against the organization? Would 30-year-old Billy Idol feel like you do now?
I may have been a little more ambivalent when I was younger. The big thing is that many people I really like or have been influenced by – John Lennon, David Bowie, Link Wray – are in there. When I realized the extent of who is in there that I love, the idea that I could end up with them is an incredible honor. I could never have imagined this when I was 30 years old. I didn’t expect it. Swearing to God.

I think he appeared for Ozzy at last year’s ceremony tilted the scale to your advantage. It didn’t hurt that you blew “no more tears” out of the water.
Ozzy called me a rock-and-roll icon and I was like, Whoa! It’s exciting to come from him. One of the first appearances I saw was black sabbath. It was a month before their first album came out and I was 12 or 13. Ozzy’s tassels touched me in front of the stage. So it was amazing to get honor him and inducing him with that performance. I enjoyed the great time and sang “not more tears.”

What did you come out of attending this ceremony?
My eyes were opened. It’s a bigger deal than I thought. Being part of someone else’s induction, you really feel the warmth of the room. All the other artists were very excited and had fun.

Rock Halls President described all the nominees as having “created their own sounds that have influenced generations and influenced countless others who have followed in their footsteps.” When you hear something similar, along with summarizing your influence in the industry, how does it make you feel?
It’s hard to take the fact that I’ve been going for 50 years. When we started in punk with Generation X, we did it clean of love. It could have been for six months, maybe a year or maybe two years. That’s not why I did. It was clean of love. And if it has led to this, it is damn it worth it.

Punk has been an underrepresented genre in the rock hall. If my calculations are correct, the last punk action was introduced correctly, Green Day in 2015, and MC5 was the shoe horn through a side category last year. Then two actions for a decade. This is surprising you?
Yes. MC5 is, in my opinion, one of the best bands ever. There are so many people who could be in the rock hall and I hope they will come in one day. Punk was so influential. It helped move Rock and Roll into a new era and it kept important. It is strange that so many American punk-rock groups have not been considered, but hopefully, if anything, my nomination can open the door to many more people from that era to be introduced.

Idol throws spock fingers at the ceremony from Rock Hall in 1993. From left: Photo: Filmmagic, Inc.Photo: Filmmagic, Inc.

Idol throws spock fingers at the ceremony from Rock Hall in 1993. From the top: Photo: Filmmagic, Inc.Photo: Filmmagic, Inc.