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Metallica, Run-DMC Among Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductees

Cleveland's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame held its annual induction ceremony on Saturday night. For the first time ever, the event was open to the public, bringing 5,000 music fans out alongside $1,200 VIP attendees. This year's inductees included Metallica, Run-DMC, Jeff Beck, Bobby Womack, and Little Anthony and the Imperials.

"My mind was blown," Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers said during his award speech, referring to the first time he heard Metallica on the radio. "It wasn't punk rock. It wasn't heavy metal. It just stood by itself. I didn't know what it was, but I knew it was a mighty thing."

"Dream big and dare to fail, because this is living proof that it is possible to make a dream come true," frontman James Hetfield said as he accepted the band's nod and tacked on a list of bands that deserve to join Metallica in the Hall of Fame—"Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy, Rush, Kiss, Ted Nugent, Iron Maiden, Motorhead. We'd like to invite them through the door."

As always, the night was full of one-time performances including a show-closing jam between Metallica, Beck, Jimmy Page, Joe Perry of Aerosmith and Flea. Page appeared to induct Beck earlier in the evening, saying, "Jeff's style is totally unorthodox to the way anyone was taught. He keeps getting better and better and better."

Eminem presented Run-DMC's induction looking like he stepped off one of the trio's LP sleeves in a black leather jacket and fedora. "They broke away from the pack by being the pack," the rapper said. "They were the baddest of the bad and the coolest of the cool. Run-DMC changed my life... if you grew up with hip hop like I did, they were the Beatles."

For more information on this year's inductees, head over to the induction's official page here.

—The ARTISTdirect Staff
04.06.09