No r’n’r hall of fame ceremony for Iron Maiden

Among the bands and artists who will be celebrated and inducted into this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame are Iron Maiden, along with Billy Idol, Joy Division/New Order, Wu-Tang Clan and Oasis. But the historic heavy metal band will not be present at the induction ceremony, scheduled for November 14th in Los Angeles.

However, this is not a controversial absence or internal problems within the band – cases which have widely occurred in the history of the ceremony. Bruce Dickinson himself has expressed controversy towards the Hall of Fame in the past. It is, more simply, a logistical question: in the same period Iron Maiden will be engaged in the Australian part of the “Run for Your Lives Tour”, which passes through Italy in June. The ceremony in fact falls between the concert on November 13th in Melbourne and the one on November 15th in Sydney, making participation impossible.

The band’s longtime manager, Ron Smallwood, told Billboardi that the group had made it clear since accepting entry into the Hall of Fame that the concerts would not be changed:

“As eagle-eyed observers may have already noticed, the band will be touring Australia around the time of the November date of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Los Angeles. In accepting, Iron Maiden made it very clear to the R&R HoF that the fans always come first and that the shows will of course go ahead.
We want to reassure all our fans in Australasia that the Australian and New Zealand dates will remain unchanged and we look forward to bringing the ‘Run for Your Lives Tour’ to them on the penultimate leg of our 50th anniversary celebrations.”

On June 17, 2026, Iron Maiden will be the first heavy metal band to take the San Siro stage for their only Italian date of the tour celebrating 50 years of their career, with Trivium as the opening act. “In this new leg we will play at metal festivals and in some stadiums. Among these, San Siro, home of Milan and Inter, where we will be – I was told – the first metal band ever to go on that stage. It’s always nice to explore new avenues, even after all these years”, said Rod Smallwood. “We’ve been thinking about doing some more shows in Europe before heading off to other parts of the world later in the year. Of course Simon Dawson will be back with us behind the drums, and both he and the entire band would like to thank the fans for the wonderful welcome they gave him on the first leg,” echoes Steve Harris, founder and bassist.