{"id":187956,"date":"2025-12-17T08:53:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T08:53:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/187956\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T08:53:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T08:53:11","slug":"donna-summer-posthumously-inducted-into-songwriters-hall-of-fame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/187956\/","title":{"rendered":"Donna Summer Posthumously Inducted Into Songwriters Hall of Fame"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tDonna Summer<\/a> is the latest songwriter to be inducted posthumously into the Songwriters Hall of Fame<\/a>. The unquestioned Queen of Disco, whose talent easily transcended that genre, was honored during an intimate ceremony held on Monday (Dec. 15) in The Butterfly Room at Cecconi\u2019s in West Hollywood, Calif.<\/p>\n

\n\tSummer\u2019s widower, Bruce Sudano<\/a>, attended, as did their daughters Brooklyn Sudano and Amanda Sudano Ramirez; Summer\u2019s close friends and immediate family; and members of the SHOF West Coast Events Committee. The event was cohosted by Mary Jo Mennella, a SHOF board member and chairman of SHOF\u2019s West Coast committee, and SHOF board member Donna Caseine.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a statement, Bruce Sudano said, \u201cIt\u2019s important to me because I know how important it was for Donna. The backstory is, with all the accolades that she received over her career, being respected as a songwriter was always the thing that she felt was overlooked. So, for her to be accepted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame I know that she\u2019s very happy \u2026 somewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tPaul Williams<\/a>, a 2001 SHOF inductee, led the induction, which celebrated Summer\u2019s songwriting contributions and enduring musical legacy.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cDonna 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,\u201d Williams said in a statement. \u201cShe wrote timeless and transcendent songs that continue to captivate our souls and imaginations, inspiring the world to dance and, above all, feel love.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Bruce<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tBruce Sudano (center) with his daughters, Brooklyn Sudano (left) and Amanda Sudano Ramirez (right), and Paul Williams.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of Songwriters Hall of Fame<\/p>\n

\n\tThis is the fifth posthumous induction into the SHOF in less than two years, following Cindy Walker in May 2024, Prince in July 2024, Bert Berns in September 2025 and Hugo & Luigi on Dec. 9.<\/p>\n

\n\tSummer wrote or cowrote nine of her 14 top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100<\/a>. She was the sole writer on \u201cDim All the Lights\u201d and cowrote eight others: \u201cLove to Love You Baby,\u201d \u201cI Feel Love,\u201d \u201cHeaven Knows,\u201d \u201cBad Girls,\u201d \u201cOn the Radio,\u201d \u201cThe Wanderer,\u201d \u201cShe Works Hard for the Money\u201d and \u201cThis Time I Know It\u2019s for Real.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSummer died in May 2012 at age 63, so didn\u2019t live to get her flowers, but they have arrived posthumously. She was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2013 and received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2024.<\/p>\n

\n\tSummer rocketed to global superstardom in 1975 when her groundbreaking fusion of R&B, soul, pop, funk, rock, disco and avant-garde electronica catapulted underground dance music from the clubs of Europe to the top of global sales and radio charts. \u201cLove to Love You Baby,\u201d a steamy song she cowrote with her legendary producers Giorgio Moroder<\/a> and Pete Bellotte, soared to No. 2 on the Hot 100 in February 1976, paving the way for a string of hits throughout the \u201970s and \u201980s.<\/p>\n

\n\tA five-time Grammy winner, Summer was the first female artist to receive Grammy Awards<\/a> in four distinct genres: R&B (\u201cLast Dance\u201d), rock (\u201cHot Stuff\u201d), inspirational (\u201cHe\u2019s a Rebel\u201d and \u201cForgive Me\u201d) and dance (Carry On,\u201d a collab with Moroder). She was the inaugural winner in two of those categories \u2014 best rock vocal performance, female and best dance recording.<\/p>\n

\n\tSummer holds the record for the most consecutive double albums to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200<\/a> (three in a row) and was the first female artist to score four No.1 singles in a 12-month period: three solo and one duet with Barbra Streisand<\/a>, the disco smash \u201cNo More Tears (Enough Is Enough).\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBillboard didn\u2019t yet have its Pop Star of the Year franchise in place in 1979, but there\u2019s little doubt that Summer would have won it that year. She virtually owned that year, with three No. 1 hits on the Hot 100 (\u201cHot Stuff,\u201d \u201cBad Girls\u201d and \u201cNo More Tears (Enough Is Enough)\u201d); a No. 1 album for six weeks on the Billboard 200 (Bad Girls); her first Grammy win (\u201cLast Dance\u201d); and a performance on the Oscar telecast of the best original song winner (also \u201cLast Dance\u201d).<\/p>\n

\n\tJimmy Webb<\/a>, who wrote Summer\u2019s first No. 1 Hot 100 hit, a remake of Richard Harris<\/a>\u2019 1968 opus \u201cMacArthur Park,\u201d was inducted into the SHOF in 1986. But her collaborators on the eight top 10 hits that she cowrote have yet to receive the honor. They include Moroder and Bellotte on multiple hits; Michael Omartian on \u201cShe Works Hard for the Money\u201d and Stock-Aitken-Waterman on \u201cThis Time I Know It\u2019s for Real.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile the annual SHOF gala in June rarely includes posthumous inductions, the organization has taken to hosting special posthumous inductions at unique venues and events. SHOF chairman Linda Moran likes to keep the mood at the main ceremony celebratory; these separate posthumous induction events help achieve that goal.<\/p>\n

\n\tAnother of the queens of disco, Gloria Gaynor<\/a>, received the Kennedy Center Honors earlier this month. That ceremony will air on CBS on Dec. 23.<\/p>\n


\"Billboard
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