After years in which Taylor Swift’s devoted fan base treated every new song she released as a cipher to be decoded, it is now official: the American singer will be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. At 36, she will also become the youngest woman to receive the honor.
To be eligible for nomination to the Songwriters Hall of Fame, a musician must have been active for at least 20 years, with the count beginning only after at least one song has been commercially released. Swift’s debut album, titled Taylor Swift, was released in October 2006. That means she became eligible for nomination in the first possible year and will receive the honor just months before the 20th anniversary of her earliest songs.
While the release of her debut album made Swift eligible, none of its songs were selected for induction. The five songs chosen are “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version)” from Red, “Blank Space” from 1989, “Anti-Hero” from Midnights, the Shakespearean-inspired “Love Story” from Fearless, and “The Last Great American Dynasty” from Folklore.
Swift will not be honored alone. At a ceremony to be held in New York on June 11, just two days before her wedding to partner Travis Kelce, she will receive the honor alongside Walter Afanasieff (“All I Want for Christmas Is You”), Terry Britten and Graham Lyle (“Devil Woman”), Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, the founders of KISS, Kenny Loggins (“Footloose”), Alanis Morissette (“Thank U”) and Christopher “Tricky” Stewart (“Single Ladies”). The ceremony will be closed to the public, and additional honorees in other categories are expected to be announced soon.