The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame probably never crossed their minds when Jack White and Meg White stepped into a Cass Corridor bar 28 years ago to play their first gig in front of a handful of people.
On Sunday night, the Detroit duo joined the prestigious ranks of the Hall alongside artists such as Bad Company, Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, Cyndi Lauper, Outkast, and Soundgarden. When the White Stripes are officially inducted at the Los Angeles ceremony on November 8, they will become the 22nd Detroit artists to be welcomed into the Hall of Fame’s elite performer category. That legacy began in 1987 with the legendary Aretha Franklin.
In the years following their 1997 debut at the Detroit venue Gold Dollar, the White Stripes became the flag-bearers of a raw, minimalist movement known as the garage rock revival. They helped lead a new wave of bands like the Strokes and the Black Keys. Their sound, rooted in blues, drew from the deep well of their hometown’s musical influences—anchored by Meg White’s strict drumming and Jack White’s explosive guitar riffs and howling, characteristically intense vocals. Influences ranged from blues legends like Son House, Blind Willie McTell, and Robert Johnson to rock bands like the Gories, the Stooges, and the Velvet Underground. And let us not forget the great Bob Dylan—Meg once named him one of her favorite musicians, and Jack not only performed live with him but once declared, “I have three fathers—my biological father, God, and Bob Dylan.”
The White Stripes were notable for consisting of just two musicians, which limited the number of instruments they could use live. But Jack never saw that as a problem. In fact, he said the band always centered itself around the number three: “It was always vocals, guitar, and drums, or vocals, piano, and drums.” The White Stripes released six studio albums in total, earning numerous accolades along the way, including six Grammy Awards from eleven nominations. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame previously included White Blood Cells in its “200 Definitive Albums” list, while Rolling Stone ranked both White Blood Cells and Elephant among its “500 Greatest Albums of All Time.” In 2015, the magazine also named the White Stripes the sixth greatest duo of all time.
It remains unclear whether Jack and Meg—once a married couple who secretly divorced in 2000 and told the press they were siblings—will reunite for a performance at the 2025 induction ceremony. The band officially broke up in 2011, and their last public performance together was in 2009 on the final episode of NBC’s Late Show with Conan O’Brien. While Jack is currently touring with his latest solo album, Meg has virtually disappeared from public life since the split, famously avoiding interviews and public appearances. “I highly doubt there will ever be a White Stripes reunion,” Jack told Rolling Stone in 2018. Still, in a year when even Oasis has hinted at a reunion tour, maybe we should not give up all hope just yet.