Taylor Swift, LL Cool J, David Byrne & More Are 2026 Songwriters Hall of Fame Nominees: Full List

Taylor Swift may beryllium headed for a Songwriters Hall of Fame record. Swift, who received the Hal David Starlight Awards from the SHOF successful 2010, is nominated for afloat rank successful the organization. She would beryllium the archetypal idiosyncratic to postgraduate from the Starlight Award (which dates to 2004) to afloat rank status.

A songwriter with a notable catalog of songs qualifies for induction 20 years aft the archetypal commercialized merchandise of a song. Swift’s archetypal single, “Tim McGraw,” was released successful June 2006. The SHOF gala is typically held successful June, truthful she conscionable makes it.

The database of nominees besides includes 3 radical who person won Grammys for opus of the twelvemonth – Terry Britten and Graham Lyle (“What’s Love Got to Do With It”) and Kenny Loggins (“What a Fool Believes,” a cowrite with Michael McDonald).

The database includes respective songwriters who person often collaborated with radical who are already successful the Hall: Walter Afanasieff (best known for his collaboration with 2022 inductee Mariah Carey); Andreas Carlsson (who cowrote Backstreet Boys’ megahit “I Want It That Way” with 2017 inductee Max Martin); Tom Snow (who has often collaborated with 2024 inductee Dean Pitchford); and Richard Carpenter (who cowrote galore Carpenters hits with 2011 inductee John Bettis).

Several of the nominees person been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: LL Cool J (who received a 2021 grant for philharmonic excellence from the Rock Hall); David Byrne (whose set Talking Heads was inducted into the Rock Hall successful 2002); Charlotte Caffey, Kathy Valentine and Jane M. Wiedlin (of Go-Go’s, who were inducted into the Rock Hall successful 2021) and Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley (of KISS, who were inducted into the Rock Hall successful 2014).

Other members of salient groups, not already mentioned, connected this year’s ballot see Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings (The Guess Who); Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell (America); and Harry Wayne Casey (KC and the Sunshine Band).

News of Simmons and Stanley’s inclusion comes days aft the death of Ace Frehley, KISS’ archetypal pb guitarist and founding member. Frehley, 74, died Oct. 16 successful New Jersey.

The 2025 people consisted of George Clinton; Ashley Gorley; Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins; Mike Love; Tony Macaulay; Tom Johnston, Michael McDonald and Patrick Simmons of The Doobie Brothers and the precocious Bert Berns.

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