Upstate New York music legend Lou Gramm, the original lead singer of Foreigner, will finally be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year.
Foreigner was announced as one of the 2024 Rock Hall inductees during “American Idol” Sunday night, along with Mary J. Blige, Jimmy Buffett, Cher, Dave Matthews Band, Peter Frampton, Kool & The Gang, Alexis Korner, John Mayall, MC5, Ozzy Osbourne, Syracuse University alumna Suzanne De Passe, Big Mama Thornton, A Tribe Called Quest, Dionne Warwick and Norman Whitfield.
“Rock ‘n’ roll is an ever-evolving amalgam of sounds that impacts culture and moves generations,” John Sykes, chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, said in a statement. “This diverse group of inductees each broke down musical barriers and influenced countless artists that followed in their footsteps.”
It was the first time Foreigner had been nominated for induction, despite being eligible since 2002. One of the best-selling rock bands of all time with more than 80 million records sold worldwide, Foreigner hits include “Hot Blooded,” “Cold As Ice,” “Feels Like the First Time,” and “I Want to Know What Love Is.”
“I was not feeling good that our peers were in years ago and we were completely neglected,” Gramm told Billboard last month. “I personally had given up that we would ever be considered. I didn’t even think about it anymore, to be honest with you.”
Gramm will be honored with former bandmates Dennis Elliott, Ed Gagliardi, Al Greenwood, Mick Jones, Ian McDonald, and Rick Wills. Jones, 79, is the only active member but his battle with Parkinson’s disease has stopped him touring with Foreigner, which is currently on a farewell tour.
The 2024 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held Oct. 19 at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio. It will stream live on Disney+ with an airing on ABC at a later date and be available on Hulu the next day.
Gramm and Jones were previously inducted in the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2013.
Gramm, 73, was born Louis Grammatico in Rochester and currently lives in Webster, N.Y. He graduated from Gates-Chili High School in 1968 and attended Monroe Community College before pursuing a music career. He was the frontman for Rochester-based rock band Black Sheep in 1974 before becoming the original voice of Foreigner.
Lou Gramm performs at the Paradise Artists Party during day 3 of the IEBA 2016 Conference on October 11, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Jason Davis/Getty Images for IEBA)Getty Images for IEBA
Gramm officially left Foreigner in 1990 but said he would perform “a song or two” with the classic rock band at the induction ceremony. He announced last month that he would retire from performing at the end of this year.
“This is gonna be it,” Gramm recently told Seven Mountains Media radio host Lee Richey. “I’ve been putting it off and putting it off. And I still enjoy performing, but when you’ve been doing it for as long as I have, the travel is the worst. It really takes its toll. And that’s a sign that you’re getting old.”
ATCQ, Blige, Cher, DMB, Foreigner, Frampton, Kool & The Gang and Osbourne are being inducted as performers in the Rock Hall’s 2024 class. Osbourne was previously inducted as a member of Black Sabbath. Cher is the only artist to have a No. 1 song in each of the past six decades.
Korner, Mayall and Thornton earned the Musical Influence Award, while Buffett, MC5, Warwick and Whitfield will get the Musical Excellence Award, according to the Associated Press. De Passe, a pioneering music executive who graduated from SU in 1968 and discovered the Jackson Five for Berry Gordy, won the Ahmet Ertegun Award.
Artists who were nominated this year but didn’t make the cut included Mariah Carey, Eric B. & Rakim, Jane’s Addiction, Lenny Kravitz, Oasis, Sinéad O’Connor, and Sade.
Some big names came forward to support inducting Foreigner this year, including superstar producer Mark Ronson, the son-in-law of Mick Jones. Paul McCartney, Dave Grohl, Slash, Jack Black and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith all publicly encouraged others to vote for Foreigner.
Artists must have released their first commercial recording at least 25 years before they’re eligible for induction.
Nominees were voted on by more than 1,000 artists, historians and music industry professionals. Fans voted online or in person at the museum, with the top five artists picked by the public making up a “fans’ ballot” that was tallied with the other professional ballots.
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