After being eligible for more than two decades, Pat Benatar was finally inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Benatar, along with his co-collaborator and husband Neil Giraldo, is among the new inductees of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the Performer Category.
In a phone call interview with Billboard, Benatara elaborated on her current amazement with the recently announced induction.
"This day is so intense. Your phone blows up, Facebook, all your social media blows up. I had to turn my phone on silent 'cause' I couldn't hear one more dinging of the text," Pat explained.
Pat Benatar, Neil Giraldo Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Overdue?
The Rock duo completes the diverse roster of Class of 2022 inductees, including country music icon Dolly Parton, Rap legend Eminem, Soul hitmaker Lionel Richie, and new wave band Duran Duran. Aside from them, Rock singer-songwriter Carly Simon and British Pop Duo Eurythmics.
Per Billboard, Benatar and Giraldo's Rock Hall induction has long been considered as one of the Rock Hall's "greatest slights."
The 69-year-old singer and his husband and chief creative partner have been eligible since 2000. To become eligible for the Rock Hall, the act/musician must have released their first commercial record at least 25 years before the year of nomination.
Pat released her first single in 1974, "Day Gig" b/w Last Saturday." She was first nominated last 2020 and was only nominated again until this year when she was finally inducted.
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Although Pat Benatar was nominated solely, Rock Hall also included his longtime collaborator and husband, Neil Giraldo. Per Benatar, his husband's inclusion in the induction is a "huge deal."
"It was really important. I've lobbied for the past 25 years to get him the credit he's due. I'm sure we would've both had success separately but together is what actually made it happen and turned it into what it became. There were many, many years when it was tossed around about going in (to the Rock Hall) or not going in. I was just kind of adamant about going in together, and it was pretty much a "no," and so, "I guess I'm not going in, then," and that was it. That's how it was for a very long time, so I'm very, very pleased it's going the way it is right now," she revealed.
Benatar paved the way for women in rock because of her successes in music - she currently helms multiplatinum albums, fifteen Top 40 hits, and four GRAMMY awards.
Giraldo and Benatar will finally accept their honor into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Nov. 5, 2022, at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles.
READ ALSO: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees 2022: Dolly Parton, Eminem, Lionel Richie, MORE!
