Future Rock Hall predicts the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees will be:

• John Mellencamp: Even before Mellencamp himself leaked his own induction last week, he was the runaway leader in the Future Rock Hall poll, landing on 81% of the ballots.
• Madonna: The biggest superstar on the 2008 ballot was likely an easy choice for Rock Hall voters. Madonna will become one of the elite "first ballot Hall of Famers" if she's enshrined in this her first eligible year. Future Rock Hall voters placed her on 75% of their ballots.
• Beastie Boys: In recent years, the Nominating Committee has demonstrated an eagerness to include hip hop in the Rock Hall. There are few rappers who can match the Beastie Boys musical diversity and sustained popularity. Future Rock Hall voters didn't show any hesitancy in enshrining them before some of the other pioneers of hip hop, earning 68% of the votes.
• Leonard Cohen: One of the surprise 2008 nominees, Leonard Cohen will likely be inducted after receiving his first nomination since becoming eligible 15 years ago. Cohen's appearance on the ballot was undoubtedly championed by influential Nominating Committee member Anthony DeCurtis, who as a "Cohen devotee," was commissioned last year to write liner notes for reissues of Cohen's first three albums. In the Future Rock Hall poll, Cohen finished sixth, with 53% of the vote.
• Donna Summer: Even though she has been eligible since 1999, this is Donna Summer's first appearance on the Rock Hall ballot and it will likely be her last. If the official results mirror those of Future Rock Hall, she should be one of the top five vote getters. She was voted in on 60% of the ballots.

Over 2200 Future Rock Hall voters cast their ballots in the 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame poll. The top five vote getters are John Mellencamp, Madonna, the Beastie Boys, the Dave Clark Five, and Donna Summer. [Last year, FRH voters accurately predicted four out of the five inductees.] The poll results are just one of the factors that go into Future Rock Hall's induction forecast, but there is agreement on four out of five (will the fifth spot go to Leonard Cohen or the DC5?).

Even though Future Rock Hall is predicting the other four nominees won't make the cut in 2008, it isn't difficult to make a case for their induction: The Dave Clark Five were at the center of the 2007 voting controversy, suggesting they were just a few votes short of induction; The Ventures may appeal to older voters who want to recognize the 60's instrumental rock kings; Chic have been on the ballot four times now, the most of any of the 2008 nominees; and Afrika Bambaataa is an historic figure in the birth of hip hop.

The official results will be announced by the Rock Hall on December 13th. Keep checking Future Rock Hall for all of the latest 2008 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame news.