What Makes A Band Legendary?

Was Nirvana really a "legendary" rock band?
— Ryan (@Ham0nRy) July 23, 2015
Ryan Hamner got me thinking: What makes a band legendary beyond just “knowing” they are legendary. I believe it to be a mix of talent, influence, popularity, moment definement, and are themselves a story that transcends music.
Example of metrics would be:
- “Was this band ever the BIGGEST band in the world?”
- “Did they define a moment in time?
- “Did something happen to them (a death, a huge story, etc) that makes them stand out in memory?
- “Did they start or popularize a movement?”
- “Did they have staying power?”
Here is my (incomplete) list of legendary bands.
1st Tier:
- The Beatles
- Rolling Stones
- The Who
- Led Zeppelin
- Black Sabbath
- Pink Floyd
- Queen
- Ramones
- Michael Jackson
- Madonna
- U2
- Nirvana
2nd Tier:
- Metallica
- The Doors
- Jimi Hendrix
- Pearl Jam
- Soundgarden
- Van Halen
- Guns ‘n’ Roses
- Fleetwood Mac
- Grateful Dead
- N.W.A.
- Dr. Dre
- Snoop Dogg
- Eminem
I’m sure there are more, so let me know in the comments who you would add.
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