Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, and More Named Among Greatest American Songwriters

The New York Times published a list of the 30 greatest living American songwriters, a list that included Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Outkast, Missy Elliott, and Young Thug.

The unranked list was put together with the input of over 250 music insiders and six critics from the Times. It also includes Nile Rodgers, Paul Simon, Taylor Swift, Dolly Parton, Babyface, Fiona Apple, Mariah Carey, Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan, Lana Del Rey, The-Dream, Bad Bunny, Bruce Springsteen, and Smokey Robinson.

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There’s also commentary from other artists praising the songwriters included, with Pusha-T highlighting Hov’s talents, Erykah Badu on Stevie Wonder, Stevie Nicks on Taylor Swift, FKA Twigs on Missy Elliott, Mike WiLL Made-It on Thugger, Killer Mike on Outkast, Tainy on Bad Bunny, and George Clinton on K Dot.

“We considered all sorts of remarkable songwriters — including lots of weird geniuses and under-loved influences,” a Times article breaking down the thought process behind the list explained. “But we were drawn back toward the beating-heart story of American song, to people whose music has reverberated through private worlds and across the public square, echoing through headphones, radios, grocery-store aisles, TikTok videos and school-gym ceremonies, blasting out of karaoke machines, club speakers and the windows of passing cars.”

There’s little doubt about the impact the varied songwriters included on the list have had on popular American music, whether it be Outkast helping put Atlanta’s rap scene on the map or Bad Bunny transcending language barriers. Many of the artists included are also incredibly prolific, with vast discographies spanning decades, and in some cases, even genres.

Complex recently broke down Jay-Z’s prolific output, for instance, ranking the top 100 songs from his career. Several modern superstars included on the list have managed to make a sizeable impact in a short amount of time, too, including Bad Bunny and Taylor Swift, two of the youngest names featured.