The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) will hold its Induction & Awards Gala in New York City in 2025. Global icon Janet Jackson and legendary Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins are nominees for induction into the 2025 class.
Jackson is a performing nominee, while Jerkins is a non-performing nominee.
To be eligible for the Songwriters Hall of Fame, which honors composers and lyricists for their impact on music, a songwriter must have a discography dating back 20 years from their first significant commercial song release.
In 1986, Jackson had a major breakthrough as a songwriter with “What Have You Done for Me Lately” from her epic Control album. Co-written with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, the track reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking her first top 10 hit on this popular singles chart.
On the Billboard Hot 100, Jackson has since achieved 26 more top 10s, including 10 No. 1 hits. Notably, seven of these chart-toppers, from “When I Think of You” to “All for You,” credited Jackson as a songwriter.
Jackson also earned three Grammy nominations in the category for Best R&B Song, a songwriter (s) award. In 1994, she was awarded for “That’s The Way Love Goes,” also the lead single from her janet. album.
In that same year, Jackson’s song “Again” was nominated for Best Original Song at the Oscars. The hit single, from janet., topped the Hot 100 for two weeks.
Jerkins, a prolific songwriter with 170 million records sold, found early success co-writing and producing five tracks on Mary J. Blige‘s third album, Share My World, including the hit “I Can Love You” featuring Lil Kim. The song reached No. 2 on the R&B charts. He has continued to collaborate with Blige, contributing to her latest album, Gratitude.
Quickly after, Jerkins produced major R&B hits like Brandy and Monica’s “The Boy Is Mine,” Destiny’s Child’s “Say My Name,” Whitney Houston’s “It’s Not Right But It’s Okay,” and Toni Braxton’s “He Wasn’t Man Enough for Me,” all of which won Grammys, with Jerkins earning two of them for the first two songs.
Jerkins’ songwriting career extended beyond R&B, collaborating with artists such as Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Justin Bieber, Britney Spears, Black Eyed Peas, Burna Boy, and Jon Batiste.
Returning to the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Jerkins and Jackson aren’t the only ones on the ballot. Other 2025 nominees include George Clinton, Eminem, Walter Afanasieff, Sheryl Crow, N.W.A. and more.
Eligible voters have until midnight EST on Dec. 22 to select at least three nominees in both the non-performing and performing songwriter categories, according to SHOF.
The 2024 inductees included Timbaland, R.E.M., Hillary Lindsey, Dean Pitchford, and Steely Dan. Alt-R&B superstar SZA was honored with the Hal David Starlight Award, while iconic songwriter Diane Warren was presented with the Johnny Mercer Award.
Details about inductees and tickets to the 2025 Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction will be shared at a later date.
2025 Songwriters Hall of Fame Nominees
Non-Performing Songwriter Category:
Ashley Gorley
Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham
Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter
Franne Golde
Mike Chapman
Narada Michael Walden
Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins
Roger Nichols
Sonny Curtis
Steve Barri and P.F. Sloan
Tom Douglas
Tony Macaulay
Walter Afanasieff
Performing Songwriter Category:
Alanis Morissette
Bryan Adams
David Gates
George Alan O’Dowd p/k/a Boy George & Culture Club
George Clinton
Janet Jackson
Marshall Mathers p/k/a Eminem
Michael McDonald, Patrick Simmons and Tom Johnston p/k/a Doobie Brothers
Mike Love
Sheryl Crow
Steve Winwood
Tommy James
Dr. Dre, Easy E, Ice Cube, MC Ren and DJ Yella p/k/a N.W.A.
For more information about the Songwriters Hall of Fame, visit songhall.org.
