When Red Hot Chili Peppers get inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on April 14 they will be joined by many former members, some of whom were only in the band for a relatively short time. Drummer Chad Smith told Billboard that longtime guitarist John Frusciante declined an invitation.

"He didn't feel comfortable coming, which we totally respect," Smith says. "We asked him... He said, 'I'm just not really comfortable with that, but good luck and thanks for inviting me.' It was all good. He's the kind of guy, I think, that once he's finished with something he's just on to the next phase of his life. The Chili Peppers are not really on his radar right now."

But, Smith adds, that won't dampen the celebration in Cleveland. "I'm very pleased about it," he says. "Music's not a competition. Yeah, you like to win Grammys and stuff, but (the Rock Hall) is different. It's not like the flavor of the month or the flavor of the year; it's for a long career we've been fortunate enough to have. I'm very humbled, because the people who are in there...it's not a joke. It's very cool. So we're looking forward to it. It'll be a fun thing. There's no pressure, like, 'Are we gonna win?,' none of that s***. We can just go and have a good time and celebrate with our friends and our families and our fans."

Smith also told Billboard that the rest of the band, minus frontman Anthony Kiedis whose recuperation from surgery delayed the start of the Chili Peppers' next tour, wrote and rehearsed new material during some recent downtime. They hope for a shorter gap between their most recent album I'm With You and whatever comes next.

Red Hot Chili Peppers start their U.S tour at the Tampa Bay Times Forum on March 29. Listen this week to Real Sex With The Morning X at 8:10a and Fisher at 5:40p to win tickets!