NASHVILLE SONGWRITERS HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCES 2026 CLASS OF SONGWRITING LEGENDS

Nashville, TN August 11, 2026 – The songwriting giants behind the hits “Cruel Summer,” “She’s No Lady,” “Hey! Baby!,” “Two Piña Coladas,” and “In Color” will soon become the newest members of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame (NaSHOF). 

Taylor Swift, Lyle Lovett, Bruce Channel, Shawn Camp, and Lee Thomas Miller – the Hall’s Class of 2026 – will join the celebrated body this fall, according to an announcement made today by Mark Ford, the organization’s executive director.  Hall of Fame members, family, friends, and media attended the event inside Belmont University’s R. Milton and Denice Johnson Center. 

“This is always one of the most anticipated days on our calendar – the annual reveal of our incoming class,” said Ford.  “We’re excited to once again add new names to a legendary list that began more than a half century ago.” Ford introduced each member of the new class:  Camp and Miller, elected in the contemporary songwriter category; Swift in the contemporary songwriter/artist category; Channel as the veteran songwriter, and Lovett as the veteran songwriter/artist. 

The five electees will join the 254 previously inducted members of the elite organization when they are formally inducted during the invitation-only 56th Anniversary Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala later this year. Arkansas native Shawn Camp’s songwriter credits include “A Beautiful Time” (Willie Nelson), “How Long Gone” (Brooks & Dunn), and “Two Piña Coladas” (Garth Brooks).  Kentucky native Lee Thomas Miller’s resume is known for “In Color” (Jamey Johnson), “The Impossible” (Joe Nichols), and “You’re Gonna Miss This” (Trace Adkins).  Pennsylvania-born, Nashville-raised Taylor Swift recorded all her own compositions, including “Cruel Summer,” “I Knew It, I Knew You,” and “White Horse.”  Texas native Bruce Channel’s hits include “Hey! Baby!” (Bruce Channel), “Stand Up” (Mel McDaniel), and “As Long As I’m Rockin’ With You” (John Conlee).  Texas native Lyle Lovett popularized many of his self-penned hits, including “She’s No Lady,” “Cowboy Man,” and “You Can’t Resist It.”

[Biographical information on each inductee follows.] 

 About the NaSHOF Gala: The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala is one of the music industry’s premier annual events.  A fundraiser benefiting the nonprofit Nashville Songwriters Foundation, the star-studded evening honors each inductee through humorous, heartfelt tributes and unplugged performances by surprise guest artists.  In recent years artists such as John Anderson, Clint Black, Garth Brooks, Luke Bryan, Jimmy Buffett, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, The Del McCoury Band, Brooks & Dunn, Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Emmylou Harris, Jason Isbell, Alan Jackson, Toby Keith, Little Big Town, Tim McGraw, Olivia Newton-John, Thomas Rhett, John Rich, Blake Shelton, Marty Stuart, Taylor Swift, The Isaacs, The Oak Ridge Boys, Josh Turner, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and Trisha Yearwood have participated in the event.  

About the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame: Induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame is one of the nation’s most highly prized songwriting honors.  Since 1970, the Hall has enshrined 254 of the greatest writers from all genres of music ever to put words to music in Music City, including such luminaries as Bill Anderson, Bobby Braddock, Garth Brooks, Felice & Boudleaux Bryant, Johnny Cash, Don & Phil Everly, Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Tom T. Hall, Harlan Howard, Alan Jackson, Kris Kristofferson, Loretta Lynn, Bob McDill, Bill Monroe, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, Paul Overstreet, Dolly Parton, Dottie Rambo, Jimmie Rodgers, Fred Rose, Don Schlitz, Ray Stevens, Cindy Walker and Hank Williams.  Operated by the non-profit Nashville Songwriters Foundation, the Hall of Fame is dedicated to honoring Nashville’s rich legacy of songwriting excellence through preservation, celebration, and education.  More information is available at http://www.nashvillesongwritersfoundation.com/. 

Inductee Biographical Information: 

SHAWN CAMP    [electee – contemporary songwriter category]

Arkansas native Shawn Camp grew up on a farm outside of Perryville.  He picked up a guitar at age five and by age 20 had moved to Nashville, where he found work in the late ’80s as a fiddle player for The Osborne Brothers, Jerry Reed, Shelby Lynne, Alan Jackson, and Trisha Yearwood.  After charting with a pair of self-penned singles in 1993 as a Warner Bros. artist, Shawn earned his first #1 hits as a songwriter in 1998 with “Two Piña Coladas” by Garth Brooks and “How Long Gone” by Brooks & Dunn.  Other Country hits soon followed, including “Would You Go With Me” by Josh Turner, “Nobody But Me” by Blake Shelton, and “River Of Love” by George Strait.  In addition to writing “A Beautiful Time,” the title track of Willie Nelson’s 2023 Grammy-winning album, Shawn has penned numerous Bluegrass hits, including “Travelin’ Teardrop Blues” and “My Love Will Not Change” by The Del McCoury Band, “Don’t Be Calling Me (At 4AM)” by Billy Strings, and “Sis Draper,” which was a #1 hit for Ricky Skaggs in 2005 and #1 again in 2026 for Shawn himself. He is a 2025 inductee into the Arkansas Country Music Hall of Fame.  

LEE THOMAS MILLER   [electee – contemporary songwriter category]

Kentucky native Lee Thomas Miller was raised on a tobacco farm in Nicholasville.  Though his parents didn’t play music, his uncle did, and by age 11, Lee had absorbed that love of music – learning to play guitar, piano, and violin.  Graduating from Eastern Kentucky University in 1990 with a degree in Music Theory and Composition, Lee moved to Nashville in June 1991.  Five years later, he signed with Hamstein Music, and after early cuts from Ken Mellons and Mindy McCready, it was Joe Nichols who provided Lee with his first chart-topping success – 2002’s Grammy-nominated “The Impossible.”  Following the singles “I Just Wanna Be Mad” by Terri Clark and “The World” by Brad Paisley (one of more than 20 Paisley cuts),  Lee enjoyed a banner year in 2009 as “You’re Gonna Miss This” by Trace Adkins earned the ACM Single of the Year and “In Color” by Jamey Johnson earned the ACM Song of the Year.  Though both were Grammy nominated, “You’re Gonna Miss This” was also 2009 ASCAP Country Song of the Year and 2008 NSAI Song of the Year while “In Color” was the 2009 CMA Song of the Year.  Other hits from Lee’s resume include “Nothin’ To Die For” and “Southern Girl” by Tim McGraw, “Whiskey And You” by Chris Stapleton, “It Ain't My Fault” by Brothers Osborne, and “It Matters To Her” by Scotty McCreery. 

BRUCE CHANNEL  [electee – veteran songwriter category]

Texas native Bruce Channel was born in Jacksonville but spent much of his youth in nearby Grapevine.  As a teenager in the late 1950s, he began singing for local dances.  In 1959 he co-wrote his future smash “Hey! Baby!,” which he re-recorded for a Fort Worth indie label.  When the label sold the master to Mercury Records, its reissue on the label’s Smash Records imprint made the song a million-selling hit (#1 Pop / #2 R&B) in 1962.  Also recorded by José Feliciano, Ringo Starr, and Conway Twitty, the song later became a Country hit for Anne Murray, a U.K. hit for DJ Ötzi, and was featured prominently in the 1987 film Dirty Dancing.  Since moving to Nashville in 1978, Bruce’s credits as a songwriter include “Stand Up” by Mel McDaniel (also a Gospel hit for The Kingsmen), as well as the #1 songs “Party Time” by T.G. Sheppard, “Don’t Worry ’Bout Me Baby” by Janie Fricke and “As Long As I’m Rockin’ With You” by John Conlee.  His collaborations with Kieran Kane yielded Kane’s artist singles “You’re The Best,” “It’s You,” and “Gonna Have A Party” (notably covered by Alabama).  Additionally, “Rockin’ Little Christmas” has been cut by co-writer Deborah Allen and also Brooks & Dunn.  In 2011, Bruce was inducted into the Texas Heritage Songwriters Hall of Fame. 

TAYLOR SWIFT   [electee – contemporary songwriter/artist category]

Born in Pennsylvania, Taylor Swift began writing songs and playing guitar as a pre-teen.  Relocating with her family to Hendersonville, TN, in 2004, she signed with Sony/ATV Tree Music Publishing, making her – at age 14 – the youngest writer in that company's history.  She soon signed with Big Machine Records, which in 2006 released her self-titled debut album that included “Teardrops On My Guitar” (2008 BMI Country Song of the Year).  Her follow-up project, Fearless, became the most-awarded Country album of all time and featured the singles “White Horse” (2010 Grammy for Best Country Song), “Love Story” (2009 BMI Country Song of the Year; 2010 BMI Pop Song of the Year), and “You Belong With Me” (2010 BMI Country Song of the Year).  More hits followed on Taylor’s path to superstardom, including “Mean” (2012 Grammy for Best Country Song), “Blank Space,” “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (The Short Film)” (2023 Grammy for Best Music Video), “Anti-Hero,” and “Cruel Summer.”  In 2017, her solo-written “Better Man” by Little Big Town, was Grammy-nominated and earned the CMA Song of the Year.  Writing or co-writing every song across her 12 studio projects, Taylor is the only artist in Grammy Award history to win Album of the Year four times (2010, 2016, 2021, 2024).  Other honors include BMI Country Songwriter of the Year (2010), BMI Pop Songwriter of the Year (2015, 2016, 2019, 2024, 2025, 2026), NSAI Songwriter/Artist of the Year (2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015), and NSAI Songwriter/Artist Of The Decade 2010-2020. In 2026, she became theyoungest female inductee into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (NY), and now becomes NaSHOF’s youngest inductee ever. 

LYLE LOVETT   [electee – veteran songwriter/artist category]

Houston-born Lyle Lovett was raised in nearby Klein, TX, a small town named for his great-grandfather.  Lyle earned degrees in journalism and German from Texas A&M University, then spent the next few years playing clubs and establishing himself in the area’s Folk scene.  Traveling abroad in Luxembourg, he met the players who would become the nucleus of his Large Band.  In 1984, he and the band recorded a demo, and by 1986, he was signed to MCA Records.  Lyle’s witty lyrics and eclectic musical style soon earned critical acclaim, as well as the Top 20 singles “Cowboy Man,” “Give Back My Heart,” “Why I Don’t Know,” “God Will,” and the Grammy-nominated “She’s No Lady.”  Other songs from his pen include the Rock hit “You’ve Been So Good Up To Now,” the Bluegrass hit “L.A. County” (by New Vintage), and the Alternative hits “Private Conversation,” “You Can’t Resist It” and “My Baby Don’t Tolerate.”  He was honored as the inaugural recipient of the AMA’s Trailblazer Award in 2007.  In 2011, he was named Texas State Musician.  In 2012, he was inducted into the Texas Heritage Songwriters Hall of Fame.  In 2019, he was inducted into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame.

Photo Credit for Taylor Swift Image: TAS  Rights Management

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