Cleveland became the epicenter of rock 'n' roll 30 years ago today.

Why it matters: The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame opened on Sept. 2, 1995, giving Northeast Ohio one of its top tourist attractions and helping usher Cleveland out of its "Mistake on the Lake" phase as a national punchline.

• The museum has since generated an economic impact of more than $2 billion for the region, according to the Rock Hall.

Flashback: Cleveland was chosen as the future home of the museum in May 1986, just a few months after the Rock Hall held its inaugural induction ceremony in New York City.

• Local DJ Alan Freed coined the term "rock 'n' roll" in the early 1950s. The genre's first major concert, the Moondog Coronation Ball, was held at Cleveland Arena in 1952.

The intrigue: In campaigning for the Rock Hall, more than 600,000 residents signed petitions.

• Cleveland also won a USA Today poll, where residents from competing cities, which included Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco and others, phoned in.

What they're saying: "Everyone was fighting for it," local music historian Deanna Adams tells Axios.

• "Cleveland was such a national joke for a long time. People were tired of it."

Yes, but: Due to fundraising and bureaucracy, it took nine years to open.

• The final price tag was over $90 million, including more than $60 million in public funds.

State of play: The Rock Hall was dedicated on Sept. 1, 1995, with an outdoor ribbon-cutting ceremony in front of more than 10,000 people.

• Big names like Little Richard, Yoko Ono, Rolling Stone's Jann Wenner and architect I.M. Pei, who designed the museum, were all in attendance.

"There was a parade with a giant Madonna doll and papier-mache boulders to represent the Rolling Stones," Adams recalls.

• "There were even Elvis impersonators flying over the museum in parachutes."

What came next: The museum opened its doors to the public that weekend with exhibits featuring the Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper" costumes, Chuck Berry's sheet music, Roger Waters' "The Wall" stage set and more.

• However, the centerpiece of the weekend would be the greatest concert in Cleveland history.

There's a reason the show that launched the Rock Hall claimed the top spot on our list of the greatest concerts in Cleveland history.

Why it matters: The Concert for the Hall of Fame was the final show held at Cleveland Municipal Stadium and featured a who's who of rock legends.

State of play: Set for Sept. 2, 1995, the concert featured everyone from Bruce Springsteen and James Brown to Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard.

• The event drew around 65,000 fans, ran from 7:30pm to 2am, and aired live on HBO. You can still view most of the performances on YouTube.

What happened: Chuck Berry kicked off the festivities with a performance of "Johnny B. Goode" alongside Springsteen and the E Street Band.

• Other highlights included Bon Jovi covering the Beatles, Aretha Franklin duetting with Al Green, Johnny Cash performing with John Mellencamp, and Bob Dylan making a surprise appearance.

Other highlights

🎙️ Stephanie Haney, who spent the past six years with WKYC, has been tapped as the new host for Ideastream's flagship morning news program, "Sound of Ideas.' Her first show is today. (Cleveland Scene)

🚨 A Cleveland police officer and Portage County sheriff's deputy have been charged for attacking a truck driver they accused of being an undocumented immigrant. (Cleveland.com)

🚓 The Cuyahoga County sheriff's deputy who participated in high-speed chases that killed two bystanders in recent montsh admitted to lying during his application process, his personnel file shows. (The Marshall Project)

🍦 The new Ben & Jerry's ice cream shop in Playhouse Square opened its doors to the public Friday. (Crain's Cleveland Business🔒)

Cleveland wasn't the only city vying for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.

The intrigue: The New York-based Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation eventually narrowed it down to a final five:

Cleveland

The city's pledge of $65 million in public funds set the bar for the other competing cities.

Chicago

The legendary blues city wanted the Rock Hall, but couldn't free up public funds at the time.

Philadelphia

Philly, the original home of "American Bandstand," proposed a prime spot on its waterfront as a potential location.

San Francisco

San Francisco, the epicenter of 1960s counterculture, used Jefferson Starship's "We Built This City" as a theme to dredge up support.

New York

New York was eventually ruled out over worries the museum might get lost among the city's other attractions, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The bottom line: The Rock Hall Foundation said it chose Cleveland because of our rock 'n' roll history and enthusiasm.

• Of course, the $65 million pledge probably helped.

The Rock Hall has produced some eye-popping exhibits during its 30 years.

• Here are our most memorable:

☮️ "I Want to Take You Higher: The Psychedelic Era - 1965 to 1969"

The exhibit opened in May 1997 and was the first temporary exhibit added since the museum's opening.

• The showcase featured more than 500 artifacts from 1960s counterculture.

🕺🏻 Elvis Presley

The Elvis display has been a mainstay at the Rock Hall since 1998.

• It originally featured more than 100 artifacts — the largest Elvis collection ever showcased outside of Graceland.

👓 "Lennon: His Life and Work"

The exhibit celebrated what would have been John Lennon's 60th birthday in October 2000.

The Stones and more