Phil Collins was one of the few honored artists to show up in person for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 2026 induction ceremony last night (November 14), and he seemed as happy as ever to be there. Collins is one of the rare two-time inductees at the Rock Hall thanks to Genesis’ recognition in 2010. For the occasion, he was introduced by fellow drum obsessive Travis Barker of Blink-182 and was serenaded to by Cynthia Erivo. Watch footage from the event below.
During his acceptance speech, Collins nodded to his status as the 29th individual to earn two inductions into the storied Rock Hall with humility, having welled up offstage during Barker’s essay. Collins also addressed his health as he took the stage using two crutches (“I’m really not as bad as it looks”), thanked his longtime manager and friends in music in music like Robert Plant and Eric Clapton (“[You] saw something that was worth nurturing”), and credited his path to fame as being sheer luck following his interest in drums as a kid (“Everything else has been a really happy accident”). Much to the crowd’s enthusiasm, Collins also revealed that the rumors of him retiring from touring or live performances isn’t true. “You haven’t heard the last of me,” he said to cheers. “I can promise you that.”
It’s a no-brainer why Collins was inducted twice, especially considering he’s one of three artists to sell 100 million albums as both a member of a group and as a solo artist. He launched his solo career with 1981’s Face Value, featuring the all-timer single “In the Air Tonight,” and the rest was history: Hello, I Must Be Going!, No Jacket Required, …But Seriously, and beyond.
This year, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony was not live streamed. Instead, fans can tune in to watch a broadcast of the event on ABC and Disney+ on December 8. This year’s other inductees were Oasis, Iron Maiden, Wu-Tang Clan, Joy Division/New Order, Sade, Billy Idol, and Luther Vandross. The Early Influence Award was handed out to Fela Kuti, Queen Latifah, MC Lyte, and Gram Parsons this year. Meanwhile, the Musical Excellence Awards went to Linda Creed and Rick Rubin, among others, while the late Ed Sullivan honored with the 2026 Ahmet Ertegun Award for non-artists.
