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The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is designating the legendary Troubadour as a Landmark in music history, with a ceremony to make it official set to take place Wednesday afternoon at the West Hollywood nightclub, among the first
of several days of events in L.A. leading up to Saturday night’s annual Hall of Fame induction concert.
It’s part of an increased focus on emphasizing the SoCal-ness of this year’s show. In fact, Rock Hall chairman John Sykes is promising the induction ceremonies will now take place in L.A. “at least every other year”… as opposed to constantly rotating with New York and Cleveland, and very much unlike the decades in which the show almost never came to California.
The Troubadour’s Landmark dedication will take place Wednesday at 3 p.m., a few hours before the venue hosts a sold out tribute show in honor of the late Gram Parsons, who will become a Hall of Fame inductee Saturday.
“Los Angeles has played an important role in shaping popular music since the ’60s, and the Troubadour is one of the places where that history really came to life,” Sykes tells Variety. “Elton John is just one of the artists who got their first break here. When you look at the other landmarks the Hall has recognized, whether it’s the Ryman Auditorium, the Bottom Line, the Surf Ballroom or King Records, each has played a vital role in the evolution of music. The Troubadour has that same kind of significance, shining a light on the role independent clubs continue to play in live music. They’re places where artists can take chances, find their audience and develop their sound before the rest of the world catches on.”
Sykes continues, “The first decision I made when taking over the role as chairman of the Hall of Fame was to make a dedicated commitment to our presence in Los Angeles,” he says. “Since the inaugural Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in 1986, Los Angeles had hosted just two ceremonies prior to 2020. Since then, we have brought the ceremony to LA three additional times, bringing the total to five. With Los Angeles now established as a regular part of the rotation alongside New York and Cleveland, we can expect to be here at least every other year, if not more frequently.”
He adds, “With our increased presence in the West, we see an opportunity to make the ceremony the cornerstone of a week-long celebration, There’s an incredible music history here, an incredible creative community, and so many stories worth celebrating. The Gram Parsons tribute at the Troubadour is a great example of that. It’s a chance to recognize an artist in a setting that has a real connection to his story, and to bring together artists from different generations to celebrate his influence.”
The first event put on by the Hall of Fame this week will come Tuesday night, when the Morrison Gallery (also located in West Hollywood, inside the Sunset Marquis hotel) will host the opening of an exhibition titled “Snapshot: The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame In Focus,” featuring seen and previously unseen photographs of inductees, including the incoming class of 2026.
Wednesday the action moves just slightly southwest, with the dedication event at the Troubadour in the afternoon and the Gram Parsons salute at the venerable club in the evening. That show, co-presented by the Parsons Estate, which sold out instantaneously, will feature Emmylou Harris, Elvis Costello, the Black Crowes, Jesse Welles, Margo Price, Grace Potter and many other Parsons acolytes.
On Friday, the Grammy Museum will host a conversation with Peter Hook of Joy Division and New Order, the overlapping bands who will be jointly inducted into the Hall Saturday night. The conversation with Hook at the 200-seat Clive Davis Theater will be moderated by the Rock Hall’s VP of education, Jason Hanley. And then Saturday is the induction ceremony at the Peacock Theater, for which some tickets are still on sale.
Of the Parsons show specifically, Sykes says, “I think it’s a special celebration of the music history of Los Angeles. Gram Parsons was an incredibly influential artist who helped change the direction of American music. He brought country, rock, soul and other influences together, especially in this town, in a way that hadn’t really been done before, and you can hear his influence in generations of artists who followed him. The Troubadour is the perfect venue to celebrate Parson’s influence. You have artists like Emmylou Harris, who shared such an important musical partnership with Gram, alongside Elvis Costello, the Black Crowes, Margo Price and a new generation of artists who continue to carry that influence forward.”
The class of 2026, including those who were voted in and those selected for special honors by the board, includes Phil Collins, Billy Idol, Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order, Oasis, Sade, Luther Vandross and Wu-Tang Clan in the Performer category; Celia Cruz, Fela Kuti, Queen Latifah, MC Lyte and Parsons for Early Influence; Linda Creed, Arif Mardin, Jimmy Miller and Rick Rubin for Musical Excellence; and Ed Sullivan for the Ahmet Ertegun Award.
This year’s induction ceremony is not being livestreamed, as it has been in other recent years, so it will remain a you-had-to-be-there experience until a special airs on ABC in just under a month, on Dec. 8.
There will, however, be a red carpet livestream, beginning Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT, co-hosted by Allison Hagendorf and Maria Ferrer, streaming live on the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s official YouTube channel.
The special being filmed at the induction ceremony, besides premiering on Disney Dec. 8, will be available the following day on Disney+ and Hulu.
