Last night’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Cleveland, Ohio, kicked off with a star-studded tribute to Sly Stone, who died earlier this year at the age of 82. Stevie Wonder, Questlove, Jennifer Hudson, Maxwell, Beck, Flea, and Leon Thomas—who was recently nominated for Best New Artist at the 2026 Grammy Awards—took the stage to perform a medley of Sly and the Family Stone songs. Wonder and Beck traded off lead vocal duties on “Dance to the Music,” “Maxwell” took over for “Everyday People,” and, following a jam on “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin),” Hudson came out to lead the group through “Higher.” Watch it go down below.
This year’s Rock Hall inductees are OutKast, Cyndi Lauper, Soundgarden, the White Stripes, Bad Company, Chubby Checker, and Joe Cocker, with Warren Zevon and Salt-N-Pepa receiving the Musical Influence Award.
Revisit Ben Greenman’s Afterword essay “Sly Stone’s Funky Revolution.”
