When you think of great R&B/Pop artists Brandy does not always come to mind but there was a time when she was a teenage and was a major hitmaker.  She broke out into film and television and did reasonably well in those mediums and her musical success did stretch into her 20’s, however her career never took that critical turn that would have been necessary to see her enter the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  This of course does not take away from her being at one time one of the most successful artists and that should never be discounted.

Should induction be based on pure musical talent alone, Ben Harper would be considered by many as a shoe in for induction when eligible.  Harper seems comfortable performing music in any style and his concerts are journeys that reflect his abundant skills.  With songwriting ability on par with his musicianship, Harper became a beloved on college radio and the Jam band circuit, but not a whole lot of other places.  Since that never really happened, an induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame seems unlikely but his respect level from those aware of his music is very high.

Had Aaliyah not perished in a plane crash in 2001, what would her relevance be today?  In the time she was alive, she had hit albums and was in hit movies and by all accounts was on a track to be among the top entertainers in the world.  The music she did do has been labeled as a link between R&B and Electronica and depending on how much credit she gets for that (or how much is given to her producers) she could receive a posthumous induction.  This should be very interesting.

Just when it thought that At the Drive-in was poised for a breakthrough they broke up.  The Texas based band reined as an important act of the Post-Hardcore scene.  Their music was well crafted and among the most cerebral and cryptic of its time.  They developed a sizeable cult following but as we have seen from the Hall and discussed on this site, cult bands, regardless of how good they might be very rarely receive consideration for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but perhaps considering some of the members would form the highly acclaimed, Mars Volta, maybe there is a shot.