Bon Jovi to be 2018 Rock Hall inductees

2018 Rock Hall inductees (L-R):
Richie Sambora, Alec John Such,
Jon Bon Jovi, Tico Torres,
David Bryan.

They're in! (Well, they will be very soon.)

First of all, Bon Jovi fans made sure the band won the fan ballot. The top five in the fan vote were:

1. Bon Jovi - 1.16M votes
2. Moody Blues - 947K
3. Dire Straits - 613K
4. The Cars - 552K
5. Judas Priest - 538K

Each of the top five gets one additional vote in the official induction vote. But ever since the fan vote was introduced, whoever finished on top has been inducted into the Rock Hall, while others in the top five have been known to miss out. So this was the first step. 

Still, there are certain committee members who have worked to keep Bon Jovi and other bands they don't take seriously out of the Rock Hall, so that was another hurdle to overcome. But today, it was announced that Bon Jovi will be one of next year's inductees. The Class of 2018 is as follows:

• Bon Jovi
• The Cars
• Dire Straits
• Moody Blues
• Nina Simone
• Sister Rosetta Tharpe

The induction ceremony will take place in Cleveland, Ohio on April 14, 2018. As previously mentioned, it will be the original lineup of Jon Bon Jovi, David Bryan, Tico Torres, Richie Sambora, and Alec John Such who are officially inducted. In an interview with the Asbury Park Press, Jon indicated that Richie and Alec would be part of the ceremony:

“I haven’t had the opportunity to hear from either of them (Sambora and Such) but without a doubt, they both will be invited and asked to not only come and share it, but to perform,” Bon Jovi said. 

The article also revealed that the two upcoming songs are called "When We Were Us" and "Walls", and that a tour announcement is imminent (though it feels like we've been hearing that for months!).

Read the full article at this link.

UPDATE: Rolling Stone posted an interview with Tico and David. Among other things, they talk about how the original and current lineups fit into the band's legacy:

Bands often play with former members at the induction ceremony. Are you down to play with Richie Sambora and Alec John Such that night?

Tico Torres: Absolutely.
David Bryan: Yeah. Why not?
Tico Torres: They are a huge part of us. We'd love it if they played with us.

Do you keep in touch with Alec?

Tico Torres: Honestly, he's a mystery sometimes. The hard part is finding him.
David Bryan: Alec is definitely a moving target.

He played with you guys in 2001. The fans are always very curious about him. He's the mystery man of Bon Jovi to so many people.

Tico Torres: He's always been the mystery man of Bon Jovi, even then he was like 007.

Do you think he'll show up?

Tico Torres: I think so.
David Bryan: I would hope so. The idea is that it's a celebration of what we were and what we are, so that was definitely what we were and we are what we are now. I think its a celebration of both those things. You'll see the current lineup and then see the original. It should be a fun night.

Many people will argue that Hugh McDonald should be inducted since he's been there for so long.

Tico Torres: He's a big part of the band. They should acknowledge that.

Read the full interview at this link.

Jon was also interviewed on Sirius XM, and you can listen to the highlights via Soundcloud on Bon Jovi's website.

UPDATE 20/12/17: Looks like Hugh might be inducted after all!