On their website, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame succinctly explains the process of how artists in the performer category are chosen:

Each year, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation's Nominating Committee selects the group of artists nominated in the Performer Category. Ballots are then sent to more than 1,000 historians, members of the music industry and artists—including every living Rock Hall Inductee—and the top performers (typically five to seven each year) receiving the most votes become that year's induction class.

The Rock Hall has never released a full list of all of their voters, but it is well known that it changes from year-to-year as new artists are inducted and when music industry voters cycle in and out.

In the last couple of years, it's been revealed that there is a policy that voters can be removed from the list if they don't return their ballots two years in a row. Based on the rule above, it seemed logical that this policy would only apply to the discretionary voter selections made by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation and its president Joel Peresman, not the inductees.

However, on a member-exclusive episode of the Who Cares About the Rock Hall? podcast, DJ Yella (2016 inductee with N.W.A) revealed that he hasn't received a ballot in years. At the end of the episode, host Joe Kwaczala shared that an inside source believed that the policy about losing your ballot after not returning it two years in a row was likely the reason Yella couldn't vote.

A few thoughts on this revelation:

1. This is f**king insane!
2. It's one thing to take away a vote from an absentee critic or industry person, but doing it to a Hall of Famer is indefensible.
3. How long has this been going on? The Rock Hall has unequivocally stated that "every living Rock Hall inductee" receives a ballot for as long as we can remember.
4. Apparently Hall of Famers lose voting privileges for life if they miss two ballots in a row. Again, this is insane!
5. Does anyone think the Rock Hall applies this "rule" to all Hall of Famers, or just ones they don't care as much about? There is zero chance they would do this to Hall of Fame favorites like Bruce Springsteen or Paul McCartney.
6. What is the possible justification for doing this? Is it too much hassle to keep inductees' addresses current? Are you trying to save on postage? Are there some inductees' opinions you don't value? Seriously, someone try to justify this policy.
7. On the other hand, there are countless legitimate reasons an inductee may not return their ballot. Maybe they moved. Maybe they've been on tour. Maybe they don't like the nominees. None of those reasons should mean they lose their voting rights.
8. And yes, for inductees, these are voting RIGHTS. The Rock Hall is unique among peer institutions exactly because inductees vote who else gets in! Whoever instituted this policy has zero understanding of what gives an induction its significance.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame should publicly address this policy shift and clearly state how many inductees have lost their voting rights through this year. Moving forward, they need to reverse course and send ballots to ALL of their Hall of Famers, without exception. (And then get rid of the person that came up with this "policy" in the first place.)