2025 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominee Chubby Checker discusses nomination, upcoming Niagara Falls shows

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Music and dance legend Chubby Checker, who popularized the twist, is among 14 nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year, alongside other icons including Cyndi Lauper, Billy Idol and Joe Cocker. Additionally, Checker will be playing three shows at Fallsview Casino in Niagara Falls, ON the first week of March.

“It’s very interesting,” Checker said of his Rock Hall nomination. “To be nominated for what we’ve done in the music industry, it’s quite interesting, because that song, ‘The Twist’… it’s not just the song that did it — it’s what the song did to the industry: it changed the dance floor.”

Checker remarked how the dance floor hasn’t experienced a larger change since the song’s rise in popularity.

“The girl’s looking at the guy, the guy’s looking at the girl, and they’re doing something — they’re exploring their sexuality while being fully dressed and looking at each other,” he said. “And this is something that shocked the world, actually. And it happened on ‘American Bandstand.'”

He noted how his subsequent releases to “The Twist,” such as “The Pony,” “The Fly” and “The Shake” aided his success and kept people “dancing apart to the beat” across the country. He added that some people may not even realize how his influence on dance has affected their lives.

“If you’re in the music industry or if you danced on the dance floor and it was after 1959, Chubby’s there. It’s quite exciting,” he said. “The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has recognized that and it’s great if it happens — if it works, that’s fine. If it doesn’t, the greatest rock shows at the Rock Hall — Chubby will be onstage [in the form of his influence].”

Checker’s shows at Fallsview’s Avalon Theatre are slated for 3 p.m. on March 5, as well as 3 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on March 6.

“I’m always excited to come back [to Niagara Falls], it’s always great there,” Checker said. “It’s a good time.”

Checker, who puts on an energetic show, typically dancing with the crowd both onstage and in the seats, said the fans are what keeps him going at 83 years old.

“It’s all about them, actually. It’s not about me, it’s about them. Because without them, I wouldn’t be very much at all,” he said. “When I come for a show, I like to have them all be part of it.”

He said that he’s danced with people from ages 6 to their 80s, and all ages in between, and said that his favorite crowd is the crowd that he’s with.

“When we come to the Fallsview, it’s the most important show I’ll ever do,” he said. “When someone asks ‘What’s your most important show?’ It’s the one that I’m doing.”

He added that he can’t wait to get to Niagara Falls, and said the shows are on his mind as they approach, as he aims to put on a good show.

“I never wanted to do anything else except be in front of an audience,” he said. “I was 4 years old and my mother took me to the fair in Georgetown, South Carolina and I was watching Ernest Tubb sing on the stage — I was 4 years old, Adam, and that’s all I ever thought of, all I ever wanted to do.

“Then, all of a sudden, I’m 17 years old, I’m 18 years old, I’m on ‘American Bandstand’ and I’m singing one of the biggest songs there would ever be in the history of the world. I didn’t know that was going to happen, but every time I perform, the dream I had at 4 years old comes alive. I just have such a good time up there… Every time I play, my dream is renewed.”

Checker said if he could speak with his 4-year-old self he would say one thing: “You stupid guy, you did it.”

Tickets to Checker’s shows can be purchased at this link. To view the full list of this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Nominees, click here.

Adam Duke is a digital contributor who joined WIVB in 2021. See more of his work here.

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