IRON MAIDEN and THE BLACK CROWES are among the 2026 nominees for induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame revealed the list of the following 17 “Performer” nominees Wednesday (February 25):

THE BLACK CROWES
Jeff Buckley
Mariah Carey
Phil Collins
Melissa Etheridge
Lauryn Hill
Billy Idol
INXS
IRON MAIDEN
JOY DIVISION/NEW ORDER
NEW EDITION
OASIS
Pink
Sade
Shakira
Luther Vandross
WU-TANG CLAN

The 10 nominees appearing on the ballot for the first time are Jeff Buckley, Phil Collins, Melissa Etheridge, Lauryn Hill, INXS, NEW EDITION, Pink, Shakira, Luther Vandross and WU-TANG CLAN.

“This diverse list of talented nominees recognizes the ever-evolving faces and sounds of rock and roll and its continued impact on youth culture,” John Sykes, chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Foundation, said in a statement.

The official inductees will be announced in April, along with the “Musical Influence” and “Musical Excellence” awards, as well as the “Ahmet Ertegun Award” reserved for a prolific music industry veteran.

Artists must have released their first commercial recording at least 25 years before they’re eligible for induction.

Nominees will be voted on by more than 1,200 artists, historians and music industry professionals.

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.

The Hall Of Fame previously said the IRON MAIDEN members that would get inducted include the current lineup of singer Bruce Dickinson, bassist Steve Harris and guitarists Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gers, along with former guitarist Dennis Stratton, ex-singer Paul Di’Anno and former drummers Nicko McBrain and Clive Burr.

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 MAIDEN and MOTÖRHEAD have yet to be recognized by the institution, which inducted GUNS N’ ROSES in that group’s first year of eligibility.

IRON MAIDEN was on the ballot for the second time in 2023, but the institution’s voters snubbed them once again.

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.

Seven years ago, Harris said that he didn’t care that his band had yet to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame despite the fact that it had been eligible since 2004.

“I don’t mind that we’re not in things like that,” he told Rolling Stone in an interview. “I don’t think about things like that. It’s very nice if people give you awards or accolades, but we didn’t get into the business for that sort of thing. I’m certainly not going to lose sleep if we don’t get any sort of award, not just that one, any award. I don’t think we deserve to have this or that necessarily. With what we do, whatever comes of it is great. Whatever doesn’t come of it is great, too.”

Dickinson made headlines in 2018 when he referred to the Rock Hall as “an utter and complete load of bollocks” during a spoken-word gig in Australia, insisting that the Cleveland-based institution is “run by a bunch of sanctimonious bloody Americans who wouldn’t know rock and roll if it hit them in the face.”

Bruce later told The Jerusalem Post that he was “so annoyed with that coverage because they took my statement out of context to make it seem like I was upset that we weren’t in the Hall Of Fame.

“I’m really happy we’re not there and I would never want to be there,” he continued. “If we’re ever inducted, I will refuse — they won’t bloody be having my corpse in there.

“Rock and roll music does not belong in a mausoleum in Cleveland,” Bruce added. “It’s a living, breathing thing, and if you put it in a museum, then it’s dead. It’s worse than horrible, it’s vulgar.”

Harris previously told “Rock Talk With Mitch Lafon” that he wasn’t concerned about whether IRON MAIDEN would eventually be inducted into the Rock Hall. “I don’t really think about it, to be honest. I think awards are things that are nice to have when you get them, but it’s not something you’re really striving for — it’s not what it’s about it,” he said. “It’s never been about that. It’s aways been about just trying to make good music and go out and play good live shows, and that’s it, really. Hopefully people will appreciate it. It’s probably nice when people give you awards — don’t get me wrong; I think it’s great — but it’s not something that you would lose sleep over if you didn’t get any.

“It’s the way that I am,” Harris added. “I don’t know. Maybe the rest of the guys might think differently to me, but that’s the way I think. It’s not that I don’t care about awards. It’s just… And it’s not that they’re not meaningful when you do get ’em — it’s nice. But I certainly don’t worry about it or anything like that. I think other people are the ones that make a bigger deal out of it than us, about whether we got one or not.”

Trafalgar Releasing has announces the official title, key artwork, and North American theatrical plans for the upcoming IRON MAIDEN feature documentary, now titled “Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition”.

Documenting one of the most iconic journeys in music history, the film is set to hit theaters for a limited time only beginning May 7, 2026, with tickets going on sale March 18.

Directed by Malcolm Venville (“Churchill At War”) and produced by Dominic Freeman (“Spirits In The Forest – A Depeche Mode Film”), the feature‑length documentary charts IRON MAIDEN‘s remarkable five‑decade journey.

Alongside the band, the documentary features on‑camera reflections from prominent admirers, including Javier Bardem, Lars Ulrich and Chuck D, each speaking to IRON MAIDEN‘s influence on music, culture and generations of fans worldwide.

The newly released key art by Albert “Akirant” Quirantes offers the first visual look at the documentary.

Formed in East London in 1975, IRON MAIDEN have grown into one of the world’s most influential and enduring rock bands. Across 50 years they have released 17 studio albums, sold over 100 million records, and performed almost 2,500 concerts across 64 countries.

The documentary arrives as the band continues its two-year “Run For Your Lives” world tour, which included a triumphant homecoming performance at London Stadium a short distance from where it all began five decades ago.

A recently announced, one-of-a-kind, celebration named EddFest in historic Knebworth Park, England, on July 11 forms part of over 50 shows worldwide in 2026.

Fans will also encounter Maidenville, where you will find the greatest Eddie’s Dive Bar yet, a second stage for music and entertainment, the Unfair Funfair featuring rides and Eddie-themed Funfair Games, plus Eddie’s Emporium and much more to explore throughout the site.

Friday night campers will be able to gain early access to the site and experiences, including first access to the Infinite Dreams Museum Experience. There will also be a whole evening of entertainment planned on the Maidenville stage featuring a mix of special acts with a connection to MAIDEN. This is all topped off with the previously announced main stage on the Saturday, featuring an exceptional supporting lineup, ahead of IRON MAIDEN‘s show-stopping “Run For Your Lives” performance.

MAIDEN manager Rod Smallwood explains: “After the monumental shows in the U.K. last year, we knew that if we were going to play the U.K. in 2026, it had to be very different. So we chose Knebworth Park as it gives us the space required — which is just not available in stadiums — to put together something groundbreaking for our fans by creating a ‘MAIDEN world’ for them. We are excited to now reveal the details of this one-off event to celebrate the band’s 50-year career, which we are now calling Eddfest, because, as everyone knows, Eddie is the true star of the show! We also know MAIDEN fans are basically a huge gang and we want to give them a weekend to remember at Knebworth.

“For the last couple of tours we have been arranging the Eddie Dive Bars for our fans, both pre- and post-show. Some of these took over the entire centres of towns with thousands of fans gathered there enjoying the fun, the music and each other’s company. So Eddfest is going to expand on that concept in a huge variety of ways, to create a truly unmissable ‘MAIDEN world’ over the whole weekend!

“There will be a whole host of great music, great beer (of course!), lots of exciting and varied fun things to do, great souvenirs and merch, some unique and fantastic photo opportunities to create unbeatable MAIDEN memories, and of course, the true camaraderie that comes from being a MAIDEN fan.”

Kilimanjaro promoters Stuart Galbraith and Alan Day, the creators of Sonisphere, add: “MAIDEN have a different view on how they want to do things for their fans than most bands. We previously worked with them at Sonisphere and when they explained what they wanted to do for this show we were hooked. It will be a unique event. A celebration of the Eddie-verse, if you will: a curated Friday afternoon, night and all day Saturday, finishing with the last U.K. show MAIDEN will play until at least 2028!

“Creating something like that, which will include a once-in-a-lifetime Infinite Dreams museum experience, featuring a wide range of rarely-seen memorabilia from throughout their history, a MAIDEN-themed fun fair, the biggest Eddie’s Dive Bar ever with some extra special additions and surprises, plus the ability to camp, glamp or park a motorhome on site for the Friday and Saturday night show in a specially created ‘village’ space with MAIDEN alumni, friends and our perfect partners Planet Rock — well, it was a chance not to be missed!”

The Eddfest festival starts from 2 p.m. on Friday with camping included for both nights. Various parts of the Maidenville site will be open to weekend campers throughout Friday afternoon and into the early hours of Saturday morning, including the Infinite Dreams Museum Experience.

Friday Night at Eddfest is all about fun before the big day. The campsite comes alive with direct access to the heart of Maidenville and the entertainment is a blend of bands and artists with connections to MAIDEN — some obscure, some as clear as daylight but they all have something in common and deserve to be a part of the opening night celebration.

Friday night on the Maidenville second stage will feature full sets from STRAY, MAIDEN UNITED, AIRFORCE and TONY MOORE’S AWAKE, plus HAIR METAL GLAMAGEDDON. Saturday sees the opening of the Main Arena, which includes Eddie’s Extended Emporium, the Trooper VIP area and a range of interactive experiences. These will act as hors d’oeuvres for the curated Main Stage festival live bill, starting with back, better than ever British rockers THE ALMIGHTY. Australia’s festival-ready AIRBOURNE follow, before the thrilling Mongolian metal of THE HU rings out across Knebworth’s hallowed park. As we move into the evening THE DARKNESS will take to the stage for a barnstorming set before IRON MAIDEN deliver an historic performance — the ultimate communal experience between the band and their fans set in the heart of this one-off “MAIDEN world”.

Eddfest is going to be a truly exceptional weekend for each and every MAIDEN fan in attendance — an unforgettable chance to be part of a fully themed Festival experience, celebrating IRON MAIDEN‘s spectacular fifty year career — and the last chance to see them in the U.K. until at least 2028.

Tickets available via ironmaiden.knebworth.com, myticket.co.uk, ticketmaster.co.uk and, of course, ironmaiden.com

Camping tickets are separate to the event tickets and available to purchase in parallel

For further details, to purchase tickets and to stay updated on all things to do with IRON MAIDEN at Knebworth, including FAQs and timings, make sure you check out the dedicated site: ironmaiden.knebworth.com