Missy Elliott Nominated for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott

Her hometown Portsmouth, Virginia, named a street after her last year but now hip-hop trailblazer Missy Elliott is in the running for a slightly bigger honor.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame revealed its 2023 nominees on Wednesday, and the rapper was selected to compete for one of music's most prestigious accolades in her first year of eligibility for induction.

In its bio for the musician, the Rock Hall credited Elliott, who sometimes utilizes the sobriquet "Misdemeanor," with crafting the Virginia Beach sound that took over radio's airwaves in the late 1990s and 2000s.

She established herself as an in-demand songwriter and producer and founded her own record label, all before breaking out as a platinum-selling solo star. Elliott forged new paths for women in the music industry and society at large through her behind-the-scenes mastery and unapologetic ownership of her body, her sexual desires, and her Blackness in her music.

Elliot was joined in representing hip-hop and R&B on the list of nominees by eclectic, genre-defying hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest and 1970s soul supergroup, The Spinners, in their second and fourth appearances respectively after previously falling to make the cut.

The Spinners

A Tribe Called Quest

An individual artist or band must have released its first commercial recording at least 25 years prior to the year of nomination to be eligible.

Other first-time nominees on the list were country music legend Willie Nelson, pop princess Cyndi Lauper, rock singer-songwriter Cheryl Crow and Detroit rock duo The White Stripes, English rockers Joy Division/New Order, dance-pop icon George Michael and singer-songwriter Warren Zevon.

“This remarkable list of Nominees reflects the diverse artists and music that the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honors and celebrates,” said John Sykes, Chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation. “These artists have created their own sounds that have impacted generations and influenced countless others that have followed in their footsteps.”

The inductees will be announced in May, with the induction ceremony set to take place later this fall.

Find the complete list of 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees pictured below:

Barrett Strong, Motown's First Star, Dies at 81

Courtesy Photo Motown Museum 

Barrett Strong, the man behind Motown Records' first hit and a gifted singer and songwriter who helped create some of the legendary label's classics has died. 

The Motown Museum announced his death, at the age of 81, on social media Sunday.

"It is with great sadness that we share the passing of legendary @ClassicMotown singer and songwriter Barrett Strong," the Museum wrote on its official Twitter account. 

Born in West Point, Mississippi on Feb. 5, 1941, and raised in Detroit, Strong was the voice behind Motown's first hit, "Money (That’s What I Want)."

Recorded when he was just 18, Strong played piano and provided the vocals for the Berry Gordy and Janie Bradford penned song, in 1959.

Within a year the record had become the label that would come to be nicknamed Hitsville's first smash, selling over a million copies and peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot R&B chart (No. 23 on the Billboard 100).

It is with great sadness that we share the passing of legendary @ClassicMotown singer and songwriter Barrett Strong.

The voice behind @motown's first hit, the iconic “Money (That’s What I Want),” was born in West Point, Mississippi on February 5, 1941 and was raised in Detroit. pic.twitter.com/RvINyjJgcc

— Motown Museum (@Motown_Museum) January 30, 2023

Gordy, who founded Motown, offered high praise for his departed colleague in a statement, even though the men had butted heads over the years after Strong claimed he co-wrote the song along with Grody and Bradford.

"Barrett was not only a great singer and piano player, but he, along with his writing partner Norman Whitfield, created an incredible body of work," he said. 

Ultimately, Barrett was denied a writing credit but that did not damage his relationship with Motown.

Along with Whitfield, he was the driving force behind some of its signature hits, such as "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," "War" and "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone."

He was voted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, which cited him as "a pivotal figure in Motown's formative years," in 2004.

 

Smokey Robinson Drops New Single From Upcoming Album 'Gasms'

Smokey Robinson's new album “Gasms” will be released on April 28.

On Friday, Motown legend Smokey Robinson teased his first new album release since 2017's "Christmas Everyday" — which included three original songs by the artist mixed in with seven seasonal standards.

"My New Music is OUT NOW!!!" wrote Robinson on his official Instagram account. "The New Single
“If We Don’t Have Each Other” is available on all platforms… and my New album ‘GASMS’ will be available April 28, 2023."

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A post shared by Smokey Robinson (@smokeyrobinson)

The founder and front man of one of the seminal R&B labels' first vocal supergroups — the Miracles — Robinson has also enjoyed a lengthy solo career. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

“Gasms” features nine new songs produced and written by Robinson. It is his most ambitious musical undertaking since the release of “Smokey & Friends” in 2014.

The album of duets featured an all-star lineup of his contemporaries, including Elton John, Steven Tyler, Sheryl Crow and Mary J. Blige. It peaked at No. 1 on Billboard's Top R&B Albums chart and No. 12 on the Billboard 200, making it the second most successful effort of his solo career.

Earlier this year it was announced that Robinson will be honored alongside Motown founder and fellow musician Berry Gordy as the 2023 “Persons Of The Year” at the Recording Academy’s annual MusiCares event on Feb. 3 in Los Angeles.