Latina rocker Linda Ronstadt named Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominee

NBCLatinoBy Nina Terrero, NBCLatino

Rocker Linda Ronstadt has been nominated for inclusion into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, making her the sole Latin musician among those nominated for one of rock music’s highest distinctions.

Ronstadt is one of several high-profile nominees that include chart-toppers KISS, LL Cool J and Nirvana.

Additional nominees on the list of 16 potential honorees include The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Deep Purple, Chic, Peter Gabriel, Hall and Oates, The Meters, N.W.A., The Replacements, Link Wray, Cat Stevens, YES and The Zombies.

Ronstadt, 67, is an eleven-time Grammy Award winner whose autobiography, “Simple Dreams: A Musical Memoir” was released in September.

The Tucson, Arizona native first began singing at just 14 years old as part of a trio with her sister Suzy and brother Peter. And while Ronstadt would eventually sell out concerts from coast to coast, she began developing her vocal style at local charreadas, a type of Mexican rodeo, near her childhood home in Arizona. And the practice paid off as by the mid-1970s, Ronstadt had become one of the most popular rock singers of the decade.

A February 1997 Time Magazine cover featured the then-30-year-old rocker.

A February 1997 Time Magazine cover featured the then-30-year-old rocker.

While Ronstadt – who recorded more than 30 albums, all in English – was a hit among mainstream audiences, she did release a Spanish-language album in 1987 titled “Canciones De Mi Padre.” That album – comprised of traditional Mexican songs of her youth – remains one of the best-selling non-English albums of all time.

”When I was growing up, my father used to play the records of Lola Beltran, the great Mexican singer, who has always been the greatest influence on my singing,” Ronstadt told the NY Timesin 1998. “Although this project is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, it’s also been the most rewarding. Like most other performers I’ve always suffered from stage fright. But singing with a mariachi band, for the first time in my life I’m not intimidated, because I’m singing like myself. I feel completely happy and at home.”

Ronstadt – who reached superstardom years before rockers like Carlos Santana and Juanes popularized the concept of rock en español – wrote about her Mexican heritage extensively in “Simple Dreams.”

“I deeply miss those times when the border was a permeable line and the two cultures mixed in a natural and agreeable fashion,” Ronstadt wrote in ‘Simple Dreams.” “Lately, the border seems more like the Berlin Wall, and functions mainly to separate families and interfere wild wildlife migration.”

Ronstadt – whose grandfather, she wrote, was from Sonora, Mexico – suffers from Parkinson’s. Now, she “can’t sing at all,” she told the NY Times in September.

Fans of Ronstadt’s can vote for here for her online as open voting for the final inductees will continue until Dec. 10 on www.rockhall.com/vote or www.rollingstone.com to cast their votes.

The 29th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony take place in New York in April 2014. Venue and ticket information has yet to be announced, but the ceremony will be broadcast on HBO in May 2014.

This article was originally published in NBCLatino.

Nina Terrero, Entertainment Editor: Passionate about social issues, health, education, discovering untold stories among U.S. Latinos and exploring Latino culture through food, literature, theatre and the arts, she holds a B.A. in Government from Cornell University. She is also a graduate of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Arts & Science, where she received an M.A. in Political Science. Of Puerto Rican and Dominican heritage, Nina worked at ABC News as a digital reporter before joining the team at NBC Latino. Feel free to ask her about the latest films, urban political policy or her most recent forays in cooking and eating around New York City.

[Photo by jdlasica]

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