Gaga's SHOF submissions?

[Biagio2103 6,511]

The Songwriters Hall of Fame announced their 2026 nominees a few days ago, and among common names we see Taylor Swift and P!nk. 

For songwriters to be inducted, they need to submit a bid with five songs they've written, chosen by themselves. For instance, Taylor Swift went with "All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor's Version)", "Blank Space", "Anti-Hero", "Love Story", and "The Last Great American Dynasty", whilst P!nk went with "Glitter in the Air", "Just Like A Pill", "Raise Your Glass", "So What" and "What About Us". Swifties theorized the reasons why Taylor went for those five songs, the most common being the fact that all of those songs (except for "All Too Well") are part of albums that won Album of the Year at the Grammys, while "All Too Well" is deemed to be Swift's best song ever written, where she showcases her poetic and narrative songwriting. On the other hand, P!nk's fans have said that she chose her five entries because they talk about social issues and how those who are oppressed are overseen but yet manage to lift themselves up. In both cases, they chose songs that would represent their whole discography, as well as their evolution (15 years between P!nk's earliest and latest entry, and 14 between Taylor's).

Other examples of inductees include Mariah Carey, who went with "Vision of Love," "One Sweet Day," "My All," "Hero," and, of course, "All I Want for Christmas Is You", and, Elton John went with "Tiny Dancer," "Rocket Man," "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me," "I'm Still Standing," and "Your Song". For songwriters to be eligible, they need to wait 20 years from the release of their first commercial song. Gaga won't be eligible until 2028, as her first commercial release was "Just Dance" in April 2008. I'm curious to know which five songs do you think Gaga will choose for her submission? I personally think she'll go with this five:

* "Bad Romance" (from The Fame Monster, 2009): her signature hit, a song that combines her classic gibberish and craziness while maintaining a dark and deep meaning. The structure of the song was something rarely seen in pop music back then. The song also include references to films by Alfred Hitch****, and fashion, which shows how she's able to subtly incorporate references and pop culture into her music. A song that would otherwise be seen as disastrous, was turned into an instant hit due to its perfect combination of elements. 

* "Born This Way" (from Born This Way, 2011): Gaga has been a strong defender of the LGBTQ+ community since day one, as well as those who are overseen by society. She showcases love, resilience and power, and turns it into an anthem. Its message goes beyond just sexual orientation and includes racial topics, disabilities, and insecurities. What makes it so powerful is how straight-forward it is, Gaga does not held back when using terms such as "gay", or "transgender". She knew there were high expectations for the song and radios will have to play it whether they liked it or not, so she used the power of her songwriting to send a message to the world. In her own words, she was "creating an anthem that everyone thought it was too controversial until it became undeniable". Best part? She wrote this song in 10 minutes.

* "Always Remember Us This Way" (from A Star Is Born, 2018): if Gaga has shown something throughout her career, it's her ability to adapt. This song was not written by Gaga, but instead by Ally, her character in the movie A Star Is Born. This ballad differs from her previous ones since it was written from Ally's perspective, and that includes her strong feelings. It's lacking the darker tone Gaga had put into her ballads up to that point in her career, and is instead fueled with passionate verses that describe love at its finest. This is how Ally sees Jackson in the movie. It's her ability to get so much into the character that she's able to write a song the way someone else would, so much that it does not feel like a typical Gaga song.  

* "911" (from Chromatica, 2020): Gaga has always been very open about her mental health, and this song disclosures her use of antipsychotics and how she relies on them to keep herself sane. The song goes back and forth with lines that refer to her own insecurities, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, depression, exhaustion, and at times it may feel chaotic, which is exactly the way her mind works without this medication. Very few songwriters allow themselves to be this vulnerable when writing, and admitting that they have their flaws.

* "Vanish Into You" (from Mayhem, 2025): the message behind this song is so powerful that it's hard to describe, it's a love song that implies something deeper than emotions. Gaga showcases her profound love towards her partner, with a connection that cannot be put into words and would only be completed when they merged. There's so much nostalgia you wouldn't know if she's talking to the living or the death, the only thing you know is how in love she is. Behind Gaga, there is also a Lady, and this song is able to show her more human side, that she feels deep emotion like a regular person, and embraces it. By the time she applies for the SHOF, Mayhem will more likely be her most recent album (and hopefully her first AOTY win at the Grammys), so she would definitely choose a song from the album, and "Vanish Into You" is the best representation lyric-wise.

(Before anyone asks, she did receive the inaugural Contemporary Icon Award in 2015, which is meant to "celebrate a songwriter-artist who has attained an iconic status in pop culture", the only other person to receive this award was Justin Timberlake in 2019, but that doesn't make her part of the Songwriters Hall of Fame; Taylor herself receive the Hal David Starlight Award in 2010, but still had to apply to be an inductee).

[James Gibson 3,550]

This is an amazing topic and i will def give my time to think of possibilities but I loved how you balanced her signature dance pop style, her commitment to social issues and ability to do sweeping ballads. Her versatility of styles is what became her trandmark and that's what should be highlighted when valuing her work as a songwriter.

And even tho 911 and Vanish Into You are AMAZING submissions among my faves of her ever I'd see her going for some of her bigger hits that also translate the elements you highlighted in those songs (for example TEOG instead of VIY). ARUTW also is an universal song from the perspective of a character that I could perhaps see her picking Shallow not only for being a smash hit but it's written as a dialogue which gives extra depth to the structure.

[Bronco 13,848]

I still think P!nk should have included Barbies from Beautiful Trauma as one of her 5. 

As for Gaga: 
Always Remember Us This Way (Arguably her best ballad)
Bad Romance (Need I say more)
Happy Mistake (Great vocals, one of her best examples of song writing)
Judas (Probably the best example of her using iconography and metaphor to tell a relatively mundane human story)
Perfect Celebrity (Really strong satirical take on celebrity status)

[Biagio2103 6,511]

6 minutes ago, James Gibson said:

This is an amazing topic and i will def give my time to think of possibilities but I loved how you balanced her signature dance pop style, her commitment to social issues and ability to do sweeping ballads. Her versatility of styles is what became her trandmark and that's what should be highlighted when valuing her work as a songwriter.

And even tho 911 and Vanish Into You are AMAZING submissions among my faves of her ever I'd see her going for some of her bigger hits that also translate the elements you highlighted in those songs (for example TEOG instead of VIY). ARUTW also is an universal song from the perspective of a character that I could perhaps see her picking Shallow not only for being a smash hit but it's written as a dialogue which gives extra depth to the structure.

Thank you! Looking forward to reading everyone's choices on this. I noticed that every artist chose songs from different albums, so if Gaga had to pick one from BTW, it's definitely the title track, but she could easily pick her five submissions out of that album alone (Hair, TEOG, Y&I, MTN and BTW, her magnum opus indeed).

Realistically I do think she'd go with "Shallow", but I feel ARUTW is a better song lyric-wise, and would've been a bigger hit if the movie was built around it like it did with "Shallow". What makes "Shallow" so interesting is that the song was meant to be for the credits, and it's supposed to refer to Jackson's death by drowning (as it was originally intended before they changed it to the hanging), but instead it was used as a metaphor of how "shallow" Jackson felt.

[Alxjcgn 954]

If I could think of 5 songs:

1. Born This Way- Covers necessary topics in an empowering way, and bringing her own experience of "my momma told me when I was young" to a universal message 

2. Dope or Gypsy- Dope just really highlights a blunt issue and is so raw/honest, and Gypsy being a song that remains personal and applicable to her yet it can be interpreted so universally and related to

3. I'll Never Love Again- Just a beautiful song and if you take it out of the context of the movie- it is incredibly strong and relatable. I personally like to sometimes relate this song to someone who has lost a loved one that was serving in the military (thinking of the experience of one of my family members) 

4. Million Reasons- Her various ways of performing the song and how it is portrayed in her current tour, it can be a song for the self or a plea for understanding from a loved one whether that be a romantic partner, family member, or friend. 

5. 1000 Doves- Another universally relatable song while remaining personal. The lyrics are so poetic and really highlight the pain she was in during that album

[Alxjcgn 954]

4 minutes ago, Bronco said:

I still think P!nk should have included Barbies from Beautiful Trauma as one of her 5. 

As for Gaga: 
Always Remember Us This Way (Arguably her best ballad)
Bad Romance (Need I say more)
Happy Mistake (Great vocals, one of her best examples of song writing)
Judas (Probably the best example of her using iconography and metaphor to tell a relatively mundane human story)
Perfect Celebrity (Really strong satirical take on celebrity status)

OMG Happy Mistake was one I forgot about when thinking about songs! But yes- a song that punches hard. She also could do Til It Happens To You

[Anderson123 39,380]

My picks would be:

1. Bad Romance
2. Shallow
3. Speechless
4. Born This Way
5. Abracadabra

Other possible picks: Happy Mistake, Always Remember Us This Way, Million Reasons, Blade of Grass, Marry The Night or The Edge of Glory.

Edited 3 hours ago by Anderson123

[Guillaume Hamon 6,578]

Poker face

Bad romance

Born this way

Shallow

Die with a smile

[weed 75,026]

Bad Romance

Hair

Sinner's Prayer

Shallow

LoveDrug

[jacs vs looser 4,628]

1. You and I

I think she'll submit because she's claimed to consider it the best song she's ever written.  

2 & 3. Bad Romance and ARUTW

They are a safe, logical bet.

4. Poker Face

I think she will/should include a song from The Fame (Would love it to be I like it rough but I know it won't be)

Not sure about the 5th one, I know the logical choice from the outside would be Born This Way because of its message, but when it first came out critics complained about its lyrics a lot (Called them oversimplified, etc) so IDK of sending it for a songwriters award would be wise.