A year ago, Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor declared that he “couldn’t give less of a shit” about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame after NIN were snubbed from the nominations.
This time around, however, the legendary industrial rock act have been nominated. And, in a new interview with Forbes, Reznor spoke about how his opinion on the Hall of Fame changed after experiencing the ceremony firsthand earlier this year when, back at the 2019 ceremony in March, Reznor inducted goth rock icons The Cure.
“I get asked to do the Cure, induct them, and I love the Cure. And I wanted them to be inducted properly. I thought I could do a good job, went there,” said Reznor.
“I go out and do my thing and I’m not sure if the Cure is gonna resonate with the audience, the audience I see sitting on the floor there is mostly old industry people. Then I walk out to do the induction, it’s loud applause for them and it seems real. They come up and I can see that Robert Smith is happy and the other guys in the band are all kind of freaked out.
“It felt validating. I wanted to see them respected someplace I feel they deserve. It ended up being a pretty cool experience and I thought, ‘Alright, it doesn’t feel as bullshit as I kind of snarkily dismissed it as.’
“I don’t have any problem admitting I’ve changed my opinion about something.”
In the interview, Reznor admits that as cool as it would be to receive an induction, it’s “hard for [him] to make an argument” for NIN getting in before some of the other nominees that have been influential to his music, such as Todd Rundgren, Depeche Mode and Kraftwerk.
When asked who he’d want to induct him if NIN do get into the Hall of Fame next year, Reznor admits he hasn’t thought far ahead, but says “I sure wish it could’ve been David Bowie.”
The next Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction will take place in May 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. Other nominees include The Notorious B.I.G., Soundgarden, Whitney Houston and Judas Priest.
Watch Reznor’s induction speech for The Cure at this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony below.
