Cyndi Lauper, Toby Keith, Linda Perry, the late Jerry Garcia, Robert Hunter, Bobby Braddock, and the late Willie Dixon will be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 18th. “Our 2015 lineup of inductees represents the rich diversity of American musical styles- rock, country, blues, and pop, that have captivated the world over the past six decades,” Linda Moran, President and CEO of the Songwriters Hall, said in a statement. Moran added, “Each one of these brilliant music creators have written instantly recognizable classics, songs that are both of their time and timeless.” The Songwriter’s Hall Induction and Awards Dinner will take place in New York at the Marriott Marquis.
Cyndi Lauper is a pop recording artist and songwriter who has sold over fifty million records worldwide. As a songwriter, Lauper’s biggest hits include “She Bop” and “Time After Time.” Lauper said it was an honor to be recognized as a songwriter because usually artists with big voices, especially female artists, are expected to sing songs written by other people. Linda Perry was a member of the 4 Non Blondes, and she was also the main songwriter for the group. Perry’s biggest contribution to music is arguably her songwriting ability. Perry’s has penned huge pop hits including Pink‘s “Get the Party Started,” Christina Aguilera‘s “Beautiful,” Alicia Keys‘ “Superwoman,” Celine Dion‘s “My Love,” and countless other songs.
Country music’s singer-songwriter Toby Keith has written a number of hits for himself and other musicians. Some of Keith’s most recognized penned songs include “Who’s Your Daddy,” “Beer for My Horses,” “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” and “As Good as I Once Was.” Bobby Braddock has written for Number 1 songs in the country music genre including Tammy Wynette‘s “D-I-V-O-R-C-E,” Billy Currington‘s “People Are Crazy,” and George Jones‘ “He Stopped Loving Her Today.” The late Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter will be inducted in the Hall as a songwriting duo. Garcia and Hunter’s co-writing contributions on Grateful Dead‘s records include “Dark Star,” “Uncle John’s Band,” and “China Cat Sunflower.” Hunter has also penned songs for Bob Dylan. The late blues legend Willie Dixon is most-known for writing “Hoochie Coochie,” “Little Red Rooster,” “Back Door Man,” and “Spoonful.” Other songwriters who were considered for this year’s Songwriters Hall of Fame include Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Tom Petty, Vince Gill, and Elvis Costello.