I asked Sampson of Digital Dream Door how he would rate "Weird Al" Yankovic's worthiness/chances of being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and this was his response:
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Yankovic would get a 0, which isn't even on the list of qualifications. Novelty artists are cute, not important. If there was to be a novelty artist getting in it'd be Buchanan and Goodman for introducing a form of sampling to rock ("break-in records"), but even them I'd give a 1 at best. Weird Al is not an Unlikely Candidate because those are for artists who actually have a CHANCE at getting in, oftentimes with less than deserving credentials, or borderline credentials. He has no credentials, other than a handful of hits which are simply (clever?) re-workings of other bigger hits, and more importantly he has no CHANCE, so adding him there would defeat the entire purpose of the 50 Unlikely Candidates.
As for why the Unlikely Candidates and Outside Genre Possiblities aren't rated... think about it. I write about them specifically because they might get in DESPITE not having the credentials. To give any of them scores would run counter to the entire object of those two pages.
Now to be fair, on the 50 Unlikely Candidates there are SOME artists listed who I could put in the 150 Candidates with a "5" (the lowest I'll go for naming someone as a candidate). The Shangri-Las for instance would deserve a five and I considered moving them to the 150 this past week if I needed another spot to bring it to that number, then I'd have named someone less deserving to take their place on the 50 Unlikely Candidates who the Hall might consider. But remember that the point is to predict which candidates with lesser credentials actually might get nominated and elected and they have a better chance than some of the other fives on the 150 list. Therefore it makes sense to include them in a way that tells people this, rather than lump them in with all of the rest of the fives in the Top 150, if that makes sense.
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DIGITAL DREAM DOOR'S OLD ROCK HALL QUALIFICATIONS SCALE
1 - Non-existant
2 - Mostly Insignificant
3 - Recognizable, But Minor Credentials
4 - Modest Accomplishments
5 - Worth Examining, But Will Often Fall Short
6 - Strong Case To Be Made
7 - Solid Choice
8 - Unquestioned Credentials
9 - Dominant Artist
10 - The Immortals
THE NEW SCALE
10 - The Immortals
9 - Deserves To Be A First Ballot Lock
8 - Should Be Guaranteed An Induction
7 - An Eventual Induction Is Likely
6 - Should Be Nominated At Some Point
5 - Worthy Of At Least A Debate For A Nomination
4 - Not Insignificant, But Shouldn't Be Nominated
3 - No Business Being Debated By Committee
2 - No Business Being Even Mentioned
1 - No Business Visiting The Hall Of Fame Without a Ticket