Lady Gaga, Shakira, Pink, Sia and Jack White are on the ballot for the Songwriters Hall of Fame's class of 2027, and so are the people behind "Never Gonna Give You Up," "I Want It That Way" and "No Scrubs." The Hall released its list of nominees on Thursday: 13 entries in the songwriter category and 13 in the performing songwriter category.
Eligible voting members of the Hall have until midnight Eastern on Dec. 14, 2026, to send in ballots. Each member can pick up to three nominees in each category. A songwriter becomes eligible 20 years after the first commercial release of one of their songs.
The Hall has not announced the 2027 class or gala date. Last year it named the 2026 inductees on Jan. 21, a group that included Taylor Swift and Kenny Loggins, and held the induction gala on June 11 at the Marriott Marquis in New York. That event was not open to the public.
The writers behind the hits
The Hall lists five songs for each nominee as a sample of their catalog. These are some of the titles listed for the songwriter nominees.
- Stock Aitken Waterman: "Never Gonna Give You Up," "I Should Be So Lucky," "Together Forever"
- Andreas Carlsson: "I Want It That Way," "Bye Bye Bye"
- Kandi Burruss: "No Scrubs," "Bills, Bills, Bills"
- Stargate (Mikkel Eriksen and Tor Hermansen): "Irreplaceable," "Diamonds," "Firework," "So Sick"
- Boy Meets Girl (George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam): "How Will I Know," "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
- Pete Bellotte: "I Feel Love," "Hot Stuff"
Dan Wilson's list includes "Closing Time" and "Someone Like You," and will.i.am's "Where Is the Love" and "I Gotta Feeling." Tom Douglas wrote "The House That Built Me" and "Grown Men Don't Cry," and Bob McDill "Amanda" and "Gone Country." Maurice Starr's list has "Candy Girl" and "Step by Step," Toni Wine's has "A Groovy Kind of Love" and "Candida," and Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein and Richard Gottehrer are nominated for "My Boyfriend's Back" and "I Want Candy."
Some songs show up twice. "Irreplaceable," "So Sick" and "Take a Bow" are on both Stargate's list and Ne-Yo's, and "Diamonds" is on Stargate's and Sia's, so voters could honor the same hit through two different nominees. Jerry Goldstein is also on the ballot twice, as a songwriter with Feldman and Gottehrer and as a member of WAR. Bob Feldman is marked as deceased.
The performers on the ballot
The performing songwriter list mixes current pop stars with older acts. Lady Gaga's sample includes "Shallow" and "Die With a Smile." Shakira's has "Hips Don't Lie" and "Whenever, Wherever," Pink's "So What" and "Raise Your Glass," and Sia's "Chandelier" and "Titanium." Jack White's sample includes "Seven Nation Army" and "Fell in Love With a Girl."
The older acts include Blondie's Debbie Harry and Chris Stein ("Heart of Glass," "Call Me"), Boy George ("Karma Chameleon"), America's Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell ("A Horse With No Name"), Vince Gill ("Go Rest High on That Mountain") and Grandmaster Melle Mel ("The Message," "White Lines"). WAR is nominated for "Low Rider" and "Why Can't We Be Friends," and ZZ Top for "Sharp Dressed Man" and "La Grange." ZZ Top's Dusty Hill and Frank Beard have died, as have three of WAR's nominated members, according to the Hall.
