Eminem, George Clinton, Janet Jackson, the Doobie Brothers, N.W.A. and Alanis Morissette are among the nominees for the 2025 class at the an eclectic group of rap, rock, hip-hop and pop pioneers.
Joining them on the ballot are Bryan Adams, with radio staples like 鈥淪ummer of 鈥�69鈥� and 鈥淗ave You Ever Really Loved a Woman?,鈥� and Mike Love of the Beach Boys, hoping to get in 25 years after band founder Brian Wilson. David Gates, co-lead singer of the pop-music group Bread, is also looking for entry.
The Hall annually inducts performers and non-performers alike, and the latter category this year includes Walter Afanasieff, who helped with her smash 鈥淎ll I Want for Christmas Is You;鈥� Mike Chapman, who co-wrote Pat Benatar鈥檚 鈥淟ove Is a Battlefield;鈥� and Narada Michael Walden, the architect of Whitney Houston鈥檚 鈥淗ow Will I Know鈥� and Aretha Franklin鈥檚 鈥淔reeway of Love.鈥�
Eligible voting members have until Dec. 22 to turn in ballots with their choices of three nominees from the songwriter category and three from the performing-songwriter category. The Associated Press got an early copy of the list.
Several performers are getting another shot at entry, including Clinton, whose Parliament-Funkadelic collective was hugely influential with hits like 鈥淎tomic Dog鈥� and 鈥淕ive Up the Funk,鈥� and The Doobie Brothers 鈥� Tom Johnston, Patrick Simmons and 鈥� with such classics as 鈥淟isten to the Music鈥� and 鈥淟ong Train Runnin.鈥欌�� Steve Winwood, whose hits include 鈥淗igher Love鈥� and 鈥淩oll With It,鈥� has also been on the ballot before.
Hip-hop this year is represented by Eminem 鈥� whose hits include 鈥淟ose Yourself鈥� and 鈥淪tan鈥� 鈥� and N.W.A. members Dr. Dre, Eazy E, Ice Cube, MC Ren and DJ Yella. Already in the Hall are hip-hop stars like Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg and Missy Elliot. Tommy James, with hits including 鈥滿ony Mony,鈥� 鈥滳rimson and Clover鈥� and 鈥滻 Think We鈥檙e Alone Now,鈥� has also earned a nod.
If Jackson, whose 1989 album 鈥淩hythm Nation鈥� was a landmark, gets into the Hall, it will be more than two decades after her late brother Michael. The Canadian songwriter Morissette, whose influential 鈥淛agged Little Pill鈥� has won Grammys, Tonys, Junos and MTV awards would also add to the Hall鈥檚 rocking women. (Glen Ballard, who helped produce and write the album, is already in.)
As would Crow, the 鈥淎ll I Wanna Do鈥� and 鈥淓veryday Is a Winding Road鈥� singer-songwriter, is having a critical resurgence after being inducted into the . Boy George lifts the flag for 鈥�80s New Wave with the Culture Club hits 鈥淜arma Chameleon鈥� and 鈥淒o You Really Want to Hurt Me.鈥�
Other nominees for the non-performing category include Franne Golde, who co-wrote Selena鈥檚 鈥滵reaming of You;鈥� Tom Douglas, who wrote country hits for Tim McGraw, Lady Antebellum and Miranda Lambert; Ashley Gorley, fresh off his co-writing smash 鈥淚 Had Some Help鈥� by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen; and Roger Nichols, who co-wrote The Carpenters鈥� 鈥砏e鈥檝e Only Just Begun.鈥�
They join Rodney 鈥淒arkchild鈥� Jerkins, who contributed to the hit 鈥砊he Boy Is Mine鈥� by Brandy and Monica; Sonny Curtis, former member of the Crickets who wrote and performed the theme song for 鈥淭he Mary Tyler Moore Show,鈥� 鈥滾ove is All Around,鈥� and British composer Tony Macaulay, who wrote 鈥淏uild Me Up Buttercup.鈥�
The Hall also put forward three songwriting teams: Steve Barri and P.F. Sloan, who wrote 鈥淪ecret Agent Man;鈥� and Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter, who penned the Four Tops hit 鈥淎in鈥檛 No Woman (Like the One I鈥檝e Got);鈥� and Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham, who wrote the Percy Sledge tune 鈥淥ut of Left Field.鈥�
The Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 1969 to honor those creating the popular music. A songwriter with a notable catalog of songs qualifies for induction 20 years after the first commercial release of a song.
Some already in the hall include Carole King, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora, Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Brian Wilson, James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Lionel Richie, Bill Withers, Neil Diamond and Phil Collins. Last year saw R.E.M., Steely Dan, Dean Pitchford, Hillary Lindsey and inducted.
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Mark Kennedy, The Associated Press
