There's now one less mystery surrounding Guns N' Roses' entrance into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Green Day will deliver their induction speech. While Slash, Duff McKagan, Steven Adler, Matt Sorum and Dizzy Reed have all indicated they'll be present at the April 14th ceremony in Cleveland, Axl Rose and Izzy Stradlin have yet to publicly confirm their attendance. If Rose doesn't show, it's unlikely that the group will perform – and it's unclear whether or not Green Day will play in their place.
Green Day join an all-star group of speakers slated for the ceremony. Chris Rock is going to induct the Red Hot Chili Peppers alongside Bette Midler for Laura Nyro, Chuck D for the Beastie Boys, ZZ Top for Freddie King, Carole King for Don Kirshner, John Mellencamp for Donovan and Steve Van Zandt for Small Faces/Faces. Robbie Robertson will also be there to induct Cosimo Matassa, Tom Dowd and Glyn Johns, and Smokey Robinson will induct the Blue Caps, the Comets, the Crickets, the Famous Flames, the Midnighters and the Miracles.
The possibility of a Guns N' Roses reunion at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has intrigued fans of the group for many years. They haven't performed with drummer Adler since 1990, and Rose hasn't played with Slash since 1993. Rose currently tours with a new lineup of Guns N' Roses, though in recent years original members McKagan and Stradlin have sat in with the band on rare occasions.
"Everyone has been asking me what's going to happen [at the Hall of Fame]," Slash told Rolling Stone earlier this week. "And they know as much as I do. I feel you're totally obligated to be present and I would love to fucking play, but it's just something that's not gonna happen for whatever reason." Relations between Rose and Slash remain, to put it mildly, strained. "He hates my guts," says Slash. "It's over a lot of different stuff; I don't even know. There's just no communication between us. I talk to Duff and Steven, but when it comes to old Guns N' Roses, there really isn't anybody that makes decisions."
Rollingstone
