Pat Benatar is as cool as ever. Although thrilled about her 2022 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame — she's a seasoned pro — and has never judged her talent or art with the prizes its brought her.
In addition to Benatar, the 2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees are Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Dolly Parton, Lionel Richie, Carly Simon, and Eminem. This year's Musical Excellence Award will go to Judas Priest along with producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.
Early Influence Awards will go to Harry Belafonte and Elizabeth Cotten, with Ahmet Ertegun Awards going to recording engineer, producer, and executive Jimmy Iovine, R&B singer and Sugar Hill Records founder Sylvia Robinson, and attorney, Allen Grubman.
We caught up with Pat Benatar, who has been eligible for induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2004, and she shed light on how it feels to finally be given the nod: ["I think the most fun for us is seeing how happy everybody is because they waited so long (to induct me). So, it's great to see the first DJ that ever played the song in Portland, Oregon — y'know, he's happy today, too (laughs), so, it's kinda great. I don't know — I'm sure you hear this all the time, I mean, it's not really something that you're thinking about all the time. . . I think it's Linda Ronstadt (that) had a quote that said, 'If you're doing this to win prizes, you're in trouble (laughs).' So, y'know, you're not thinkin' about this kinda stuff when you're makin' records and writin' songs and everything. But listen, it's really fun and it's great for it to finally happen. The work is being acknowledged today but the work has been there for 43 years, so it's the same work (laughs), y'know, so (laughs) — it didn't change anything in that respect. Y'know, it's fun for everybody, so, I like it."] SOUNDCUE (:44 OC: . . . I like it)
The 2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held on November 5th at L.A.'s Microsoft Theater and air at a later date on HBO and stream on HBO Max.
Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo next perform on May 22nd in Pompano Beach, Florida at Pompano Beach Amphitheater
