When it was first announced that Judas Priest would receive the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s ‘Musical Excellence Award,’ we reported that they hadn’t actually been inducted, because, well, because there were performers being inducted, and then Priest getting this other award. But later, as Priest and other press outlets ran graphics ensuring that they were inducted, we found ourselves confused, and eventually ran a poll trying to determine the answer (in which, it should be noted, our readers said they think this is a consolation prize). But now, in a new interview, frontman Rob Halford has revealed that he’s pissed that Judas Priest are only getting this specific award.
Speaking to AZCentral, Halford revealed that he was frustrated to discover they were being inducted via an award, and not in the same way that other formal inductees were:
“Well, yeah, I was pissed. I was a bit pissed. At the end of the day, does it matter? Some days, I go, ‘No, it doesn’t matter. We’re in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Be grateful. Shut the hell up.’ And then there are other days where I’m like, ‘God damn, why did they give us the Musical Excellence Award?’ Because it sounds very, you know, grandiose. ‘The Musical Excellence Award, reserved for blah, blah, blah.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, but I want to be with that bunch of musicians over there that have got the performance or whatever it is that they’ve got.’ I don’t know why they gave us the Musical Excellence Award. I have no clue.”
Man, it really seems like no one’s quite sure whether or not Judas Priest are really being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In any event, Priest are touring this fall with Queensryche, so catch them at one of the dates listed below:
October 13 in Wallingford, CT @ Toyota Oakdale
October 15th in Albany, NY @ MVP Arena
October 16 in Boston, MA @ MGM Music Hall Fenway
October 18 in Uniondale, NY at Nassau Veterans
October 19 in Wilkes-Barre, PA @ Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza
October 21 in Kalamazoo, MI at Wings Event Center
October 22 in Detroit, MI at Masonic Temple Theatre
October 24 in Cincinnati, OH @ The Andrew J Brady Music Center
October 25 in Waukegan, IL @ Genesee Theatre
October 27 in Green Bay, WI @ Resch Center Theater
October 29 in Moline, IL @ TaxSlayer Center Moline
October 30 in Mankato, MN @ Mayo Clinic Event Center
November 1 in Sioux City, IA @ Tyson Events Center
November 2 in Rapid City, SD @ The Monument
November 7 in Ontario, CA @ Toyota Center
November 8 in Tucson, AZ @ TCC Arena
November 10 in Loveland, CO @ Budweiser Events Center
November 12 in Park City (Wichita), KS @Hartman Arena
November 13 in St. Charles, MO @ The Family Arena
November 15 in Corbin, KY @ The Corbin Arena
November 17 in Southaven, MS @ Landers Center
November 18 in Baton Rouge, LA @ Raising Canes River Center
November 20 in Oklahoma City, OK @ Paycom Center
November 22 & 23 in San Antonio, TX @ Tech Port Center & Arena
November 25 in Dallas, TX @ The Factory in Deep Ellum
November 26 in Corpus Christi, TX @ Concrete Street
November 28 in Edinburg, TX @ Burt Ogden Arena
November 29 in Houston, TX @ 713 Music Hall