Soundgarden received their long-awaited induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during Saturday’s ceremony, with a remarkable tribute that celebrated the band’s enduring impact on rock music.
As per Rolling Stone, the Seattle grunge pioneers were honoured with performances from surviving band members and an impressive lineup of fellow musicians from their hometown scene.
Jim Carrey served as the evening’s presenter, revealing his deep connection to the band stemming from a 1996 Saturday Night Live episode he hosted with Soundgarden as musical guests. “When the Seattle music scene exploded, it resurrected rock & roll for me,” Carrey told the assembled crowd. The comedian disclosed that he had insisted on having Soundgarden perform on SNL and was later gifted Chris Cornell’s Fender Telecaster, which he described as his most prized possession.
The ceremony featured particularly poignant moments from Cornell’s daughters. Lily Cornell took the stage to speak about her father’s passion for making music with his friends, stating, “I am just really, really happy that he got to make music with his friends. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about.”
The evening’s musical tribute showcased what drummer Matt Cameron had promised would be a “Seattle-centric” performance. Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready, Alice in Chains’ Jerry Cantrell, Brandi Carlile, and Taylor Momsen from The Pretty Reckless joined the surviving Soundgarden members for renditions of “Rusty Cage” and “Black Hole Sun”.
Each band member delivered individual speeches during the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony. Original bassist Hiro Yamamoto, who departed the group in 1989, paid tribute to Cornell while addressing aspiring musicians: “Chris Cornell, we are so missing you tonight on this stage. To everyone else out there — especially all you brown kids — let’s rock!”
The tribute concluded with an acoustic performance of “Fell on Black Days” by Cornell’s daughter Toni and Heart’s Nancy Wilson. Toni drew inspiration from her father’s intimate Songbook tour performances from the early 2010s, explaining backstage, “I was always really touched by just him and his voice, his guitar, and eventually with a cellist.”
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Cameron reflected on Cornell’s artistic evolution in pre-ceremony interviews, noting, “He was always seeking that next phase of his writing career, performing career. Maybe down the line he will get recognised as a solo artist or [for] Temple of the Dog or something like that because his contribution to music has been absolutely massive.”
