Iron Maiden was recently announced as a 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, but the band will not attend the ceremony in November.
According to a new statement from their manager, Rod Smallwood, the reasoning is logistical and for the benefit of their fans.
“As most observant people have already noted, the band will be on tour in Australia around the November date of the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Los Angeles,” he said. Billboard in an email. “By 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.”
However, Smallwood’s statement does not explicitly rule out that someone from the Iron Maiden camp will appear.
Iron Maiden will perform concerts in Australia on November 13 and 15, directly booking the Rock Hall ceremony in a way that would make attending the event almost impossible.
The main point of Smallwood’s statement is that those with tickets to the aforementioned Iron Maiden concerts don’t have to worry about shows being canceled.
“We would like to reassure all our fans in Australasia that the Australia and New Zealand dates remain unaffected,” Smallwood further wrote, adding: “and we look forward to Run for your life tour to them during the penultimate stop of our 50th anniversary.”
This echoes a statement the band posted on their social media earlier this week when the inductees were first announced.
“We would like to thank the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for including us (and former members who were all part of our story) in the 2026 roll call of inductees,” it read. “Iron Maiden has always been about our relationship with our fans above all else, including awards and industry accolades. That said, though, it’s always nice to be recognized and honored for achievements within the music industry!”
In addition to Iron Maiden, the following artists will be inducted: Phil Collins, Billy Idol, Joy Division/New Order, Oasis, Sade, Luther Vandross and Wu-Tang Clan.
