BLAZE BAYLEY On His Upcoming ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME Induction With IRON MAIDEN: 'For A Lot Of My Fans, It's Important'

In a new interview with Rev. Tom Brice of Sportzwire Radio, former IRON MAIDEN singer Blaze Bayley spoke about being on the list of members of the legendary British heavy metal band who will be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame's Class Of 2026. Blaze, who sang for IRON MAIDEN for five years and appeared on two of the group's studio albums — 1995's "The X Factor" and 1998's "Virtual XI" — will be inducted into the Hall Of Fame alongside the band's current lineup of singer Bruce Dickinson, bassist Steve Harris and guitarists Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gers, as well as ex-singer Paul Di'Anno, ex-guitarist Dennis Stratton and former drummers Nicko McBrain and Clive Burr.

Asked how he feels about being inducted into the Rock Hall, Blaze said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): " Well, I don't think any of us get into heavy metal and follow it as a profession to get awards, but it's nice to be recognized… And the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame — LED ZEPPELIN, I mean, giant of giants, almost so big that they can't be considered as part of normal music. And to be part of that and all the other wonderful artists, to be considered there with the work that I've done and the songs that I've written and the music that we've done, it's just incredible, really."

He continued: "What's interesting, whereas I might go, 'Well, I'm not in it for awards,' for a lot of my fans, it's important for them. For a lot of my fans, it's important. They think, 'Yes, he should be recognized.' And so that's really, really cool, that my fans enjoy the fact that their favorite singer has been recognized by the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame."

The two MAIDEN albums Blaze appeared on sold considerably less than the band's prior releases and were their lowest-charting titles in the group's home country since 1981's "Killers".

While MAIDEN has been eligible to join the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame since 2004, the band had only been nominated twice before — in 2021 and 2023.

Even though artists are eligible for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 25 years after the release of their first album or single, iconic hard rock and metal bands like MOTÖRHEAD have yet to be recognized by the institution, which inducted GUNS N' ROSES in that group's first year of eligibility.

The only metal or metal-adjacent acts to have made it into the Rock Hall so far have been BLACK SABBATH, LED ZEPPELIN, METALLICA, AC/DC, JUDAS PRIEST, KISS, VAN HALEN, RUSH, GUNS N' ROSES, Ozzy Osbourne and DEEP PURPLE.

IRON MAIDEN finished in the fourth place in the fan vote for the 2023 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction class.

Eligible for induction since 1999, KISS didn't get its first nomination until 2009, and was finally inducted in 2014.

DEEP PURPLE was eligible for the Rock Hall since 1993 but didn't get inducted until 2016.