Kool & the Gang’s Robert “Kool” Bell talks Rock Hall induction performance

Kool & the Gang will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Saturday in Cleveland by Public Enemy‘s Chuck D., and they’ll perform with The Roots. But as Robert “Kool” Bell, the sole living founding member of the group, told ABC Audio, they’ve only been given seven minutes to perform, so they’re going to cram in as many hits as they can.

“You know, for seven minutes — come on,” Bell laughs. “Our shows are 90 minutes! So I felt that [we should do] ‘Hollywood Swinging,’ OK, ‘Jungle Boogie,’ that’s a very popular song for us. And then we had to do ‘Ladies’ Night,’ ‘Get Down On It‘ and ‘Celebration.'”

The performance will see them reuniting with James “J.T.” Taylor, their former lead singer who was up front for all their biggest ’80s hits — from “Ladies Night” and “Celebration” to “Cherish,” “Joanna” and “Fresh.” Bell says, “It should be exciting. You know, it’s a part of the history. … We got the ’70s and we have the ’80s.”

While Kool & the Gang, who are among the most sampled groups in history, sounded very different in the ’70s than they did in the ’80s, the group, which started in 1964, has managed to retain their fans throughout the decades. Bell says he knows why. 

“One thing my mother used to say: ‘Make sure that your song has a nice melody, and a nice hook to it.’ And that is something that we have done,” he says. “You know, it’s a blessing that the fan base is there, for so many years. And that’s not an easy thing to do. I mean, we’re talking about over 60 years.” 

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will stream live on Disney+ starting at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday.

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