EXODUS and SLAYER guitarist Gary Holt has again made his feelings about the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame very clear, delivering a blunt and unfiltered critique of the institution in a recent interview.
Speaking on The Mistress Carrie Podcast, Holt was asked whether it is important for bands like IRON MAIDEN to be inducted into the Rock Hall in order to give heavy metal the recognition it deserves.
“I personally couldn’t give a s**t, ’cause the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is f**king lame,” Holt responded (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). “The obvious ones get in, and if you had, like, three Motown hits, you’re pretty much guaranteed of getting in. IRON MAIDEN‘s still selling out stadiums, and isn’t in. THIN LIZZY had hits. They pioneered twin guitar rock harmonies, and they had just legendary albums. They sold a lot of albums. They probably will never get in. [Female rapper] Missy Elliott is in. F**king [rap band] N.W.A.’s in, and they wrote vile anti-police rhetoric. And I think they had, like, what? Two records? How do they f**king get in? And THIN LIZZY‘s not in there. JUDAS PRIEST got in through a back door. MOTÖRHEAD should be in there. It’s a popularity contest. They had to grudgingly let KISS in, who should have been a first-ballot member.”
Holt continued by explaining that he has no interest in visiting the institution’s museum in Cleveland.
“I’ve never gone to the [Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame museum in Cleveland]. I have no desire to go,” he revealed. “It’s f**king stupid… I mean, I’m sure there’s some great memorabilia to look at in the place, but I just f**king — I don’t care. It’s kind of like the person who goes to Hollywood and walks around looking for certain stars on the [Hollywood] Walk Of Fame. I couldn’t give a f**k.”
Holt’s SLAYER bandmate Kerry King has also previously weighed in on the subject. In a past interview with Billboard Brasil, King addressed SLAYER’s absence from the Hall and its nomination process.
“Pfft. Why don’t we see them there yet? [Laughs] I don’t know. We’ve never even been on the nomination list, so I don’t know what they’re waiting for,” Kerry said. “How many more decades do we have to play? Forty years isn’t enough, I guess. I don’t know. We’ll see.”
“I went to [the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame museum in Cleveland, Ohio] thinking I’d be there for, like, a half hour, and I didn’t go there until like 10, 15 years ago. It took me a while. And I’m, like, ‘Eh, I’ll go check it out for maybe like a half hour.’ I was in there for four hours, and there’s a lot of cool stuff in there.”
Revisiting the topic of SLAYER‘s potential induction into the Rock Hall, Kerry remarked: “Is it something that’s gonna make my career complete? Absolutely not. If my parents were alive, I would be stoked if we got in there so I can say, ‘Hey, mom, I’m in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.’ That would be cool.
“To me, if it happens, it happens, ’cause, obviously, the voting process and the election process is a little faulty. So we’ll see. And me here badmouthing it probably isn’t helping my situation. [Laughs]
“If we ever got nominated and the fans elected us to be in, it would be honorable, for sure, just to say these kids from Los Angeles got together and ripped the world a new f**king a**hole,” he added.
For years, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame has faced criticism from rock and metal artists for overlooking influential heavy acts, even as some mainstream and genre-diverse artists were inducted earlier. While bands like GUNS N’ ROSES were welcomed in their first year of eligibility, legendary names such as IRON MAIDEN and MOTÖRHEAD had long remained outside the institution.
What has long been a point of contention has now been resolved in part. IRON MAIDEN were recently confirmed as part of the 2026 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction class, joining a diverse lineup that includes Phil Collins, Billy Idol, JOY DIVISION / NEW ORDER, OASIS, SADE, Luther Vandross, and WU-TANG CLAN in the Performer category. Additional honors will go to Celia Cruz, Fela Kuti, Queen Latifah, MC Lyte, and Gram Parsons (Early Influence Award), along with Linda Creed, Arif Mardin, Jimmy Miller, and Rick Rubin (Musical Excellence Award). The Ahmet Ertegun Award will be presented to Ed Sullivan.
IRON MAIDEN’s relationship with the Rock Hall has historically been a complicated one, with members previously expressing skepticism toward the institution. Singer Bruce Dickinson once famously criticized it, calling it “an utter and complete load of bollocks run by a bunch of sanctimonious bloody Americans who wouldn’t know rock and roll if it hit them in the face.”
Similarly, MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris told Rolling Stone he isn’t concerned about the band’s omission. “I don’t mind that we’re not in things like that. I don’t think about things like that. It’s very nice if people give you awards or accolades, but we didn’t get into the business for that sort of thing. I’m certainly not going to lose sleep if we don’t get any sort of award, not just that one, any award. I don’t think we deserve to have this or that necessarily. With what we do, whatever comes of it is great. Whatever doesn’t come of it is great, too.”
Despite their long-awaited induction, IRON MAIDEN have confirmed they will not attend the 2026 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame ceremony, scheduled for November 14 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The decision is due to their touring schedule, with performances set in Melbourne on November 13 and Sydney on November 15.
MAIDEN manager Rod Smallwood explained the decision in an e-mail to Billboard: “As the most observant have already noticed, the band will be on tour in Australia around the November date of the induction ceremony for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in Los Angeles. In accepting, IRON MAIDEN made it very clear to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame that the fans always come first and that the shows will, of course, go on.
“As the most observant have already noticed, the band will be on tour in Australia around the November date of the induction ceremony for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in Los Angeles. In accepting, IRON MAIDEN made it very clear to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame that the fans always come first and that the shows will, of course, go on.
“We would like to assure all our fans in Australasia that the Australian and New Zealand dates will remain unaffected,” Smallwood added, “and we look forward to bringing the ‘Run For Your Lives’ tour to them on the penultimate stop of our 50th-anniversary celebrations.”
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