Sunday night’s SONA Warrior Awards ceremony in Los Angeles wasn’t only a celebration of songwriters and those who champion them, but also a call to action to better support what Chappell Roan called the “backbone of the music industry.”
Michelle Lewis, SONA’s CEO, opened the event, held at the Skirball Cultural Center, by celebrating new initiatives supporting songwriters, while also calling out the scary times with the rise of artificial intelligence. “In writing, we have a phrase: show, don’t tell. So we’re going to show the best of human creativity, empathy, and purpose,” Lewis said onstage. “We must value and safeguard it — along with the people who create it. We’re going to let the songs ring out loud.”
After Lewis’s remarks, cohosts Bonnie McKee and Shane Stevens opened the show with a heartfelt duet of “Pink Pony Club” in honor of Chappell Roan, one of the night’s award recipients. Though Roan wasn’t in attendance, her spirit was felt throughout the evening.
Justin Tranter presented Roan, who sent in a video message accepting her award. She was celebrated for voicing the needs of songwriters, including better pay and access to affordable healthcare, during her Best New Artist Grammy speech earlier this year.
“Songwriters are the backbone of the music industry,” Roan said in her video message accepting the trophy. “They deserve respect, fair pay, and access to affordable healthcare. There is a lot of change needed within the music industry and the whole world… Change does not come from accepting the status quo that exists right now, change comes from [challenging] it. We must be the blueprint for change. There are people in this room right now who have the power to do it.”
Ross Golan, host of the podcast And the Writer Is…, also made an impassioned call for songwriters to fight for their rights to publishing splits and not allow artists, managers, and others who didn’t put pen to paper to take hard-fought credits and royalties. “The industry has learned to venerate copyrights in their income streams, but forgotten those who compose them, because we’ve forgotten what our value is,” said Golan. “Songwriters, do not be afraid, because with each other and with our ethical collaborators, we can right this ship. Let’s leave this community better than we found it, and protect your copyright at all costs.”
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One of the night’s standing ovations came when Paul Anka performed a personalized rendition of “My Way” for Primary Wave CEO Larry Mestel, who, while accepting his award, took aim at Spotify — one of the event’s sponsors — for what he described as a lack of support for songwriters. “There is no Spotify without songwriters. Shame on Spotify,” he said. “Fuck Spotify and other DSPs for thinking it’s okay to pay songwriters less than they deserve.”
Earlier in the night, Janelle Monáe thanked Girls Make Beats founder Tiffany Miranda for “changing the face of music,” sharing the story of one of Miranda’s students’ rise, before revealing the story was actually about herself. “What Tiffany and her team have built is nothing short of revolutionary,” Monáe said. “Through education, mentorship, and access, they’re helping girls not only find their will, but own their power.”
Elsewhere in the night, Morgan Wade performed “Wilder Days” for honoree Dina LaPolt, before welcoming Linda Perry onstage for a surprise rendition of “What’s Up?” for the music attorney. “You do so much advocating for songwriters. I don’t do jack shit, and I’m really inspired,” Perry said onstage. “I don’t go anywhere. I hate going out… and only for you would I do this. I just want you to know you’re amazing.”
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After Perry, Rep. Jasmine Crockett took the stage and described LaPolt as someone always “on the side of justice.” During her speech, the music attorney spoke passionately about changing laws around the use of lyrics as proof in the courtroom, declaring, “Art is expression, not a confession,” and later, about artist rights amid AI’s rise and her push for the NO FAKES Act, which aims to protect artists’ voices and likenesses from unauthorized AI use. “With AI, nobody has the right to take your voice or likeness and profit from it without you,” LaPolt said. “We do not have a federal right of publicity. So this would be what we need.”
To end the night, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were celebrated with their Warrior Award after being introduced by Rep. Maxwell Frost, who highlighted the songwriting pair’s deep discography. Frost spoke at length about the CREATE Art Act, aimed at establishing the first federal grant program to support artists directly. “I was proud to join SONA in celebrating artists and advocating for songwriters. As a musician, this fight is personal because we need to make sure our country truly values its artists,” Frost told Rolling Stone. “No artist should have to go broke chasing their dreams.”
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Jam and Lewis were joined by Aloe Blacc for a medley performance, closing out a night of celebration and advocacy for the most under-appreciated part of the music industry: songwriters.
