Rock & Roll Hall of Fame fan voting has one week left and mediocrity might repeat

If the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s fan vote truly determined who got inducted, they’d probably need to stop letting fans vote altogether. Luckily, the Hall of Fame likely anticipated some strange results when they introduced fan voting, like the possibility of New Edition getting in years down the line, perhaps as far off as 2026.

The R&B boyband is currently winning by a large margin – almost 100,000 votes – with one week remaining in the voting period, which ends on April 3rd. If they win, they’ll join Phish, the 2025 winner, in prompting musicians, experts, and industry leaders to question fans’ choices.

Phish winning the fan vote last year didn’t lead to their induction, and surprisingly, they weren’t even considered this year. This makes sense, considering while they’ve consistently toured successfully, their albums haven’t achieved widespread commercial success, and they haven’t had a major impact on newer bands.

New Edition leads the 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame fan vote with one week left

While record sales are important, they aren’t the only factor to consider. Phish hasn’t made a significant impact in other areas, which is why they don’t deserve to be inducted. New Edition, however, hasn’t had massive record sales, but still deserves consideration.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame should focus on rock music, and New Edition doesn’t fit that description. It’s unclear why they were even considered for nomination, as they weren’t particularly influential or known for a long period of time. It seems like a fan on the nomination committee may have pushed for them.

2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame fan vote as of March 26:

1. New Edition – 789,347
2. Phil Collins – 697,803
3. P!NK – 642,512
4. Luther Vandross – 566,431
5. INXS – 492,453
6. Sade – 482,270
7. Billy Idol – 461,142
8. Wu-Tang Clan – 459,997
9. Shakira – 450,825
10. Mariah Carey – 396,859
11. Lauryn Hill – 366,893
12. Iron Maiden – 309,535
13. Melissa Etheridge – 297,175
14. The Black Crowes – 213,657
15. Oasis – 207,699
16. Joy Division/New Order – 181,053
17. Jeff Buckley – 135,078

Several artists following New Edition deserve consideration for induction. Phil Collins is an obvious choice. Iron Maiden should be inducted as well, although the Hall of Fame historically hasn’t favored heavy metal. Despite this, Iron Maiden has toured extensively, sold millions of albums, and clearly influenced many significant metal bands.

We’ll combine all the fan votes with up to 1,200 ballots from music industry professionals – including musicians, record executives, and historians. We expect these professional votes to offer a more considered perspective than the fan vote.

2026-03-26 18:30

New Edition leads the 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame fan vote with one week left

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