NEW YORK – Lady Gaga, Shakira, Pink, Boy George, Jack White, Sia, Vince Gill, Ne-Yo, Blondie’s Debbie Harry and Chris Stein, along with many other influential artists, are among the nominees for the 2027 Songwriters Hall of Fame. The wide-ranging ballot spans pop, hip-hop, Latin, funk and rock.
The nominees also include America’s Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell; Grandmaster Melle Mel; ZZ Top members Frank Beard, Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill; and the members of War: Thomas Sylvester Allen, Harold Ray Brown, Morris “B.B.” Dickerson, Jerry Goldstein, LeRoy L. Jordan, Lee Oskar Levitin, Charles William Miller and Howard E. Scott.
And that is only part of an unusually deep field.
A deep bench of songwriting talent
The Songwriters Hall of Fame inducts both performing artists and songwriters who work behind the scenes. Among this year’s non-performing songwriter nominees are Boy Meets Girl, the songwriting partnership of George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam. The pair wrote some of Whitney Houston’s biggest hits, including “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” and “How Will I Know.”
The ballot also features Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein and Richard Gottehrer, the team behind FGG Productions, an American songwriting and record production company of the 1960s. Also known as Feldman, Goldstein & Gottehrer, the trio wrote The Angels’ “My Boyfriend’s Back” and The Strangeloves’ “I Want Candy.” In a curious twist, FGG was also The Strangeloves — the producers simply performed as a fictional band of brothers from Australia.
Maurice Starr is nominated as well, recognized for writing New Edition’s “Candy Girl” and New Kids on the Block’s “Step By Step.” So is Stock Aitken Waterman — Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman — the production and songwriting team behind Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” and Kylie Minogue’s “I Should Be So Lucky.”
Other non-performing songwriter nominees include Dan Wilson, who wrote Semisonic’s “Closing Time” and Adele’s “Someone Like You,” and Toni Wine, known for Phil Collins’ “A Groovy Kind of Love” and Tony Orlando’s “Candida.”
R&B and pop audiences will recognize the work of Kandi Burruss, whose credits include TLC’s “No Scrubs,” Destiny’s Child’s “Bills, Bills, Bills” and NSYNC’s “It Makes Me Ill.” Also nominated are Mikkel S. Eriksen and Tor Erik Hermansen, the Norwegian songwriting and production duo known as Stargate, whose credits include Beyoncé’s “Irreplaceable” and Rihanna’s “Diamonds.”
will.i.am is another nominee, with songwriting credits on the Black Eyed Peas’ “Where Is the Love” and “I Gotta Feeling,” as well as Usher’s “OMG” and John Legend’s “Ordinary People.” It may seem unusual to find artists such as will.i.am, Burruss and Wilson in the non-performing songwriter category because they are performers, too. Their nominations, however, reflect work created for a broad range of artists beyond their own recordings.
Country music is represented by Tom Douglas, whose credits include Miranda Lambert’s “The House That Built Me” and Tim McGraw’s “Grown Men Don’t Cry.”
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Voting opens for the 2027 Songwriters Hall of Fame
Eligible voting members have until midnight Eastern Standard Time on Dec. 14 to submit ballots. Each member may select up to three nominees in the songwriter category and up to three in the performing-songwriter category.
Several songwriters are returning to the ballot this year, including Starr, Douglas, Gill and Boy George, as well as members of Blondie and America.
Pink was nominated in 2026 but was not selected for induction. The same is true of Andreas Carlsson, the Swedish pop producer associated with the legendary Cheiron Studios. His credits include the Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way,” NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye” and Katy Perry’s “Waking Up In Vegas.” Disco songwriter Pete Bellotte is also back on the ballot; he is known for his collaborations with Donna Summer on “Hot Stuff,” “I Feel Love” and “Love To Love You Baby.”
Bob McDill, who wrote country standards including Don Williams’ “Amanda” and Dan Seals’ “Everything That Glitters (Is Not Gold),” is a returning nominee as well. He has appeared on the ballot six times over 15 years.
New inductees will join a storied institution
Founded in 1969, the Songwriters Hall of Fame honors the creators behind popular music. Songwriters become eligible for induction 20 years after the commercial release of their first qualifying song, provided they have built a notable catalog.
The hall’s existing members include Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Brian Wilson, James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Carole King, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Lionel Richie, Bill Withers, Neil Diamond, Phil Collins, R.E.M., Steely Dan, Dean Pitchford, Hillary Lindsey and Timbaland.
The 2026 class included Taylor Swift, Kiss members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, Alanis Morissette and Kenny Loggins. Non-performing inductees included Terry Britten and Graham Lyle, who wrote Tina Turner’s “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” and Walter Afanasieff, who helped Mariah Carey create the holiday hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”
The Songwriters Hall of Fame will announce its 2027 inductees in early 2027.
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