Chaka Khan and Missy Elliott — owned the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Friday night.After longtime Rolling Stone editor Jann Wenner was ousted from the hall’s board of directors in September — immediately after telling the New York Times that women and people of color weren’t “articulate” enough to be included in his “The Masters” book of artist interviews — it was a sure sign that times have finally changed at an institution ruled by white men since its inception in 1983.Forty years after Wenner helped found the organization — he also served as chairman from 2006 until 2019 — it was a sweet thing when Khan rocked Brooklyn’s Barclays Center with the night’s first real highlight.
Watching the 70-year-old Queen of Funk roar from “I Feel for You” to “I’m Every Woman” — with assists from Common, H.E.R. and Sia — it was hard to imagine how she had not been inducted a long time ago, after seven previous nominations in the Performer Category (four with Rufus, three as a solo artist).
Her Musical Excellence Award — presented by R&B star Jazmine Sullivan — finally gave Khan some overdue flowers 50 years after she made her debut.Elliott, on the other hand, got inducted on her first nomination, becoming the first female hip-hop artist to be enshrined in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Read more on nypost.com