Eminem, Dolly Parton, Lionel Richie among Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees | CBC News

Lionel Richie rose. Pat Benatar yelled. Duran Duran stumbled but remained crafty. Eminem was Eminem.

The four acts found very different ways to celebrate on Saturday night, but all can now forever say they are Rock & Roll Hall of Famers. So did Carly Simon, Eurythmics, Harry Belafonte, Judas Priest and Dolly Parton, who enthusiastically embraced the honor after temporarily turning it down.

The first act to be introduced at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles after a memorable speech by a bald Robert Downey Jr., Duran Duran took the stage and kicked off their 1981 breakthrough hit girl in the movie.

The screaming crowd was there for that, but the music wasn’t. The band was almost inaudible except for singer Simon Le Bon, whose singing was essentially a cappella.

‘Cool, sophisticated fun’

It was a fun, if awkward, start to a mostly smooth and often triumphant show.

“The wonderful spontaneous world of rock ‘n’ roll!” exclaimed Le Bon, 64, as the band stopped for a repeat.

They laid back at full volume and played a set that was included Hungry like a wolf and normal worldquickly back to what Downey called their essential quality: “CSF—cool, sophisticated fun.”

Lionel Richie brought both chill and warmth into the room hours later, opening his set with a sparse rendition of his ballad Hi that seemed to make him almost collapse under the weight of the moment.

“His songs are the soundtrack of my life, your life, everyone’s life,” Lenny Kravitz said as he introduced Richie.

“Rock’n’Roll is not a color”

To HiRichie stormed into his 1977 hit with the Commodores, Easy. The mood shifted from mellow to triumphant when Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl made a surprise appearance to play a guitar solo and swap vocals with Richie. That led to a sing-along, celebratory rendition of the 1983s All night that got the biggest reaction of the evening.

In his acceptance speech, Richie lashed out at those who accused him of straying too far from his black roots throughout his career.

“Rock ‘n’ roll isn’t a color,” he said. “It’s a feeling. It’s a mood. And if we let that vibe come through, this space will grow and grow and grow.”

Eurythmics next took the stage with a soulful, danceable take on the 1986s missionary man.

“Well, I was born an original sinner, I was born of original sin,” sang singer Annie Lennox, getting the audience clapping and standing four hours into the show. What followed was a rousing performance of their most famous hit, Nice dreams.

Moments later, her musical partner Dave Stewart called Lennox “one of the greatest artists, singers and songwriters of all time.”

“Thanks Dave for this great adventure,” said a tearful Lennox.

Eminem the runaway

As throughout his career, Eminem was the breakaway. He was the only hip-hop artist among those in the know, the only one whose heyday came after the 1980s, and he brought an edge to the evening absent outside of Judas Priest’s heavy metal stylings.

He also took the guest star game to another level. After opening briefly with 1999 My name ishe got Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler to sing the chorus keep on dreaming for 2003 sing for the moment, which samples the Aerosmith classic. He then brought in Ed Sheeran to sing his part at the 2017 Eminem Jam Flow as rain fell on the stage.

“I probably shouldn’t be here tonight for a number of reasons,” said Eminem, who wore a black hoodie as he accepted the honor. “One I know is that I’m a rapper and this is the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.”

He is only the 10th hip-hop artist among well over 300 members of the Hall of Fame.

He was developed by his producer and mentor Dr. Dre, whom he credited with saving his life.

But the 1980s hitmakers made the night.

‘We are young!’ 69-year-old sings

“Pat would always reach into the deepest part of herself and roar out of the speakers,” Sheryl Crowe said in her speech introducing Benatar.

Benatar, who was recorded alongside her longtime musical partner and husband Neil Giraldo, took the stage with him and showed that power moments later.

“We are young!” The 69-year-old sang, her long gray hair blowing as she floated through a 1983 version Love is a battlefield.

Among the inductees who were absent from the ceremony were Duran Duran guitarist Andy Taylor, who has been battling advanced prostate cancer for four years, Belafonte, 95, and Carly Simon, who is joined by sisters Joanna Simon and Lucy Simon, both also singers , have lost to cancer on consecutive days in the past month.

Carly Simon was nominated for the first time this year, more than 25 years after becoming eligible. Olivia Rodrigo, 60 years younger than Simon and by far the youngest performer of the night, then took the stage to sing Simon’s signature song, you are so vain.

Dressed in a black suit with a huge mop of hair, Janet Jackson redesigned the cover of her landmark album controlas she introduced the two men who made this and many other records with her, writer-producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.

Parton says she needs to retroactively earn an indoor spot

When the nominees were announced in May, Parton “respectfully” declined, saying it didn’t seem appropriate for her to take a place as a country-to-the-core artist. She was convinced of the opposite and ended up headlining on Saturday night.

“I’m a rock star now!” she exclaimed as she accepted the honor. “This is a very, very, very special night.”

Parton said she had to earn her spot retroactively.

She disappeared and emerged moments later in black leather with an electric guitar and broke into a song she had written just for the occasion.

“I’ve rocked, rocked, rocked, rocked since the day I was born,” she sang, “and I’ll rock until the day I’m gone.”

She ended the night with an all-star jam from her fellow contestants to her country classic jolene. Le Bon, Benatar and even Judas Priest singer Rob Halford recorded a verse.

“We have a star-studded stage up here,” Parton said. “I feel like a hillbilly in the city.”