Disco queen Donna Summer receives songwriting honor from Hall of Fame
- - Disco queen Donna Summer receives songwriting honor from Hall of Fame
Bryan West, USA TODAY NETWORKDecember 17, 2025 at 4:07 AM
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Donna Summer worked hard for the music, writing songs that defined a generation, and this week the Songwriters Hall of Fame honored her lasting legacy.
The unmistakable voice of the disco era was posthumously inducted during an intimate ceremony held Dec. 15 in The Butterfly Room at Cecconi's in West Hollywood.
Academy Award-winning songwriter Paul Williams led the induction, celebrating Summer's extraordinary songwriting contributions and enduring influence.
"Donna Summer is not only one of the defining voices and performers of the 20th century; she is one of the great songwriters of all time who changed the course of music," Williams said. "She wrote timeless and transcendent songs that continue to captivate our souls and imaginations, inspiring the world to dance and, above all, feel love."
Left to right: Mary Jo Mennella, Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) board member; Brooklyn Sudano, daughter of Donna Summer and Bruce Sudano; Bruce Sudano; Amanda Sudano Ramirez, daughter; Paul Williams, SHOF inductee; and Donna Caseine, SHOF board member on Dec. 15, 2025.
Donna Summer remembered: 10 flawless songs that outlasted the disco era
The ceremony was attended by Summer's husband, Bruce Sudano, daughters Brooklyn Sudano and Amanda Sudano Ramirez, close friends and family, and members of the Songwriters Hall of Fame's West Coast events committee.
In a message shared with the organization, Sudano said the honor carried deep personal meaning.
"With all the accolades that she received over her career, being respected as a songwriter was always the thing that she felt was overlooked," he said. "So for her to be accepted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, I know that she's very happy ... somewhere."
An honor 13 years after passing
Summer died in 2012 at age 63 following a 10-month battle with lung cancer.
While her voice became synonymous with disco's golden era, she was also the architect behind many of its most indelible anthems. She wrote or co-wrote a catalog of global hits including "Love to Love You Baby," "I Feel Love," "Bad Girls," "Dim All the Lights," "On the Radio," "She Works Hard for the Money," "Heaven Knows," "Spring Affair" and "This Time I Know It's for Real."
Summer's groundbreaking fusion of R&B, soul, pop, funk, rock and electronic music propelled underground dance sounds from European clubs to the top of radio charts worldwide. With an estimated 150 million records sold worldwide, Summer earned five Grammy Awards and became the first artist to win Best Dance Recording. She was also the first female artist to receive Grammys across four distinct genres: R&B, dance, rock and gospel. Over nearly four decades, she charted 33 Top 10 hits on Billboard's dance charts and scored four No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 in a single 12-month period.
Donna Summer’s family and Songwriters Hall of Fame committee members gather at her posthumous induction ceremony in West Hollywood on Dec. 15, 2025.Songwriting's next era
Summer's induction lands as the Songwriters Hall of Fame balances honoring legends with recognizing hitmakers still very much in their moment.
That conversation is especially visible this year with the nominations including Taylor Swift, LL Cool J, Sarah McLachlan, David Byrne, Pink, Kenny Loggins and members of KISS.
At 35, Swift is the youngest songwriter ever nominated, qualifying just over the 20-year eligibility threshold set by the organization. Her debut single, "Tim McGraw," was released in 2006, when she was just 15.
Three songwriters from each category — performing and non-performing — will be inducted at a ceremony in New York City in June.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Disco queen Donna Summer receives songwriting honor from Hall of Fame
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
