Overview
- The New York Times list, released Tuesday, names 30 living American songwriters in an unranked roster after input from more than 250 industry insiders and six critics.
- The lineup spans eras and styles, with hip-hop figures like Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Outkast, Missy Elliott, and Young Thug alongside Taylor Swift, Dolly Parton, Bob Dylan, and Paul Simon.
- Each entry includes notes from peers, with Pusha-T on Jay-Z, FKA twigs on Missy Elliott, Mike WiLL Made-It on Young Thug, Killer Mike on Outkast, Tainy on Bad Bunny, Stevie Nicks on Taylor Swift, Erykah Badu on Stevie Wonder, and George Clinton on Kendrick Lamar.
- The write-ups highlight craft and evolution, pointing to Jay-Z’s Reasonable Doubt and 4:44, Young Thug’s improvisational approach to building songs, and Kendrick Lamar’s genre mixing on To Pimp a Butterfly.
- Social posts surged after the list spread on X, with many users citing omissions such as Drake, Eminem, and J. Cole and debating what qualities define great songwriting today.