INXS received their first-ever nomination for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Wednesday, and founding member Andrew Farriss says he and his bandmates are thrilled by the recognition.
“I think everybody in the band is thrilled and excited to be nominated, and obviously we’re very much honored to have something like that,” Farriss tells Billboard. “It’s something, I guess, that goes into the history books, whatever they are.”
“I never started writing songs and playing music to be in a hall of fame; that’s not why I started doing it — but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate it,” he adds.
“I probably wouldn’t be the first person to say I’m just amazed to be able to be in a situation like this; it comes as a surprise, believe it or not,” he notes. “You’re not entitled to anything; you’re kind of lucky, whatever comes your way. I’m grateful.”
Farris says he believes the band’s frontman Michael Hutchence, who died in 1997 at 37, would be honored with the nod.
“One thing he said very early on in our career is, ‘One day I’d like to think whatever we did mattered.’ That’s something he said,” says Farriss. “I think this shows that it did. That’s pretty cool.”
The Aussie band, best known for songs like “Need You Tonight,” “What You Need” and “Never Tear Us Apart,” first became eligible for a nomination 21 years ago.
This year’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame class will be announced in April. The 2026 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction is set to take place this fall, although an exact date has yet to be announced.