On January 23, 1986, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inaugurated the first members. They were in the performers category: Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, The Everly Brothers, Fats Domino, Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and James Brown. Two DJs were introduced in the non-performing category: Alan Freed and Sam Phillips. In the category of life work was introduced by John Hammond, and in the category of so-called. early influences were introduced by Jimmie Rodgers, Jimmy Yancey and Robert Johnson.
In all, 16 people were inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in its first year. The ceremony for their membership was held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York. To date, the number of inductees into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has increased to more than 700. It is important to note that there is a requirement that more than 25 years must elapse from the publication of the first piece of music for a person to be inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
