We’ve all heard the old adage: “It all begins with the song.” At SONA (Songwriters of North America), that isn’t just a saying; it’s a mission statement. The organization, now 10 years old, exists to protect and advance songwriters’ rights. At the fifth annual SONA Awards, presented on Sunday (Oct. 12) at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, organizers and award recipients named names, both of those who they believe are helping the cause — and hurting it.

In his fiery acceptance speech, honoree Larry Mestel, Primary Wave founder/CEO, took Spotify to task. “There is no Spotify without songwriters. … Shame on Spotify for trying to screw songwriters; for paying them less than they’re worth.”

People and organizations who got positive shout-outs over the course of the evening included Chappell Roan (also an honoree), who used her Grammy best new artist acceptance speech in February to advocate for a living wage and health insurance for new artists; Amazon Music, which is providing free One Medical subscriptions and cash grants to cover medical costs for SONA members (“It’s not health insurance yet, but it’s a huge step forward” said Michelle Lewis, SONA & SONA Foundation CEO/founder); and Tyler Johnson and Kid Harpoon, who produced Miley Cyrus’ Grammy-winning, Billboard Hot 100-topping “Flowers” without insisting that they be added as songwriters.

Four sitting members of Congress helped present awards: Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas), Angie Craig (D-Minn.), Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.)

The other honorees were Dina LaPolt, founder/CEO of Primary Wave Music; Girls Make Beats, which is seeking to empower the next generation of female music producers, DJs and audio engineers (the award was accepted by founder Tiffany Miranda on behalf of the team); and Grammy-winning producer/songwriters Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.

In her opening remarks, SONA’s Lewis called this “the most songwriterly night of the year” — an apt description. The event hit all the right notes — fiery passion, witty remarks, strong performances — though it could have been tightened and better-paced. Desmond Child led a show-capping singalong of Bon Jovi’s classic “Livin’ on a Prayer” (which he co-wrote with Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora) when just about everyone was set to leave after a long night. He deserved an audience that was fully attentive and appreciative.

Songwriters Bonnie McKee and Shane Stevens co-hosted the event and performed Roan’s “Pink Pony Club.” Songwriter Brett James was also remembered one month after he died in a plane crash at age 57.

Here are the seven best moments from the fifth annual SONA Warrior Awards

Linda Perry Performs a Pop Classic

In tribute to honoree Dina LaPolt, Linda Perry performed 4 Non Blondes’ 1993 classic “What’s Up?”, which showed the staying power of a great song. Perry made clear that she wouldn’t do this for just anyone. “I would rather stay home with my dogs. Only for you would I do this,” she said to LaPolt.

Also to honor LaPolt, Morgan Wade performed her 2021 country hit “Wilder Days,” which she co-wrote with Sadler Vaden.

An Awards Mix-Up That Somehow Made Perfect Sense

When the awards were presented to Jam & Lewis, songwriting partners for 50 years, there was a slight mix-up. “Appropriately, I have Terry’s award and he has mine,” Jam said.

Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men sang several of the pair’s hits, including the Force MDs‘ “Tender Love,” New Edition’s “Can You Stand the Rain” and Boyz II Men’s own “On Bended Knee,” which Jam said was added to the group’s album II when Jam decided “you need a begging song.”

Jam also recalled the moment he first became intrigued by the idea of songwriting, in 1967, when Motown released The Supremes Sing Holland-Dozier-Holland, an album of all-HDH songs, including “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” and “Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone.” The album reached No. 6 on the Billboard 200 and turned a young boy into a future Rock & Roll Hall of Famer.

Paul Anka Sings a Classic and Gets Off a Zinger

In tribute to honoree Mestel, Paul Anka sang special lyrics to “My Way,” the French song for which he wrote English lyrics in 1968 and which became one of Frank Sinatra’s signature hits.

A fit and youthful-appearing Anka was brash and funny at the event. “You’re looking at a guy who’s 84, who has been around for six decades. I take care of myself, as you can see. I’ve been on Jenny Craig more than Mr. Craig.”

Justin Tranter Presents to Chappell Roan

Justin Tranter (a 2023 Warrior Award recipient) was characteristically funny in presenting to Chappell Roan: “I am honored to present my friend, co-writer and fellow homosexual with this award,” they said. Tranter co-wrote Roan’s 2024 smash “Good Luck, Babe!” with Roan and Dan Nigro.

Roan, accepting by video, said, “Songwriters are the backbone of the music world. Change comes from demanding it.”

Janelle Monáe Makes It Personal

In presenting to honoree Girls Make Beats, which helps girls and young women, especially from underrepresented communities, make music, Janelle Monáe told a story of a tearful student who felt she was being left behind — who was then assured by Girls Make Beats founder Tiffany Miranda that this was a safe space. “That student is me,” Monáe, now a 10-time Grammy nominee, said.

Don’t Give It Away

Ross Golan, a 2024 Warrior Award honoree and a SONA board member, told the assembled songwriters that they should be wary of song splits. He reminded them that only the composer and lyricist are songwriters. Producers or musicians on the session have no right to take a share of the publishing.

“We are our own worst enemies,” he said. “A copyright is for music and lyrics. If you didn’t write the song, you’re not a writer. Never agree to splits without talking to your co-writers. Protect your copyrights at all costs.”

47 Is the New 27

When she accepted her award, Dina LaPolt noted that she didn’t achieve real recognition until she was 47, when she made a power list for the first time. Later in the program, Toby Lightman was named the winner of the 2025 Emerging Songwriter award. She noted that she, too, is 47 and receiving her first award. (The other nominees for the emerging songwriter award were Ali Stone, Alna, bülow and Sophie Hintze.)

LaPolt, author of the 2025 book Street Smart: Succeeding in a Man’s World, noted that women are thriving at the bottom and middle levels of the music business, “but at the top, we’re almost entirely absent. This is not a diversity issue. It’s an equity issue,” she said.

Carlos Santana is publicly addressing false claims circulating online that suggest he criticized Bad Bunny’s selection as the 2026 Super Bowl halftime headliner. Viral online posts claimed Santana opposed the Puerto Rican superstar’s performance, with some asserting that he petitioned to replace him. Santana firmly denied the rumors and voiced his support for Bad Bunny.

“I congratulate and celebrate Bad Bunny‘s success and his position right now with the world and with the Super Bowl,” said Santana in a statement shared with Billboard. “I feel total oneness with what he’s doing because we are here to utilize art to complement and bring the world closer to harmony and oneness.”

The rumors falsely claimed that the legendary guitarist criticized Bad Bunny for wearing a dress during past performances — an accusation Santana called baseless. His manager, Michael Vrionis, attributed the misinformation to AI-generated trolling. “AI has accelerated the spread of misinformation, making it harder for the truth to break through the noise,” said Vrionis in a statement. “Don’t rely on random or unverified posts — even well-meaning outlets can get misled.”

The Mexican superstar continued, saying that the world was going through “a time of fear, division, separation, superiority and inferiority,” which he says only fuels misinformation online. “Fear is the flavor right now. Fear is what motivates ignorant people to put words in my mouth — saying that I didn’t want Bad Bunny to be represented at the Super Bowl,” he said. “I never said that, nor would I ever. Just to be clear, my heart is in total harmony with Bad Bunny, and I celebrate his success, his triumph and his phenomenal achievement. Anything other than that is coming from people’s ignorance.”

Bad Bunny was announced as the halftime show headliner on September 28. The decision sparked backlash from conservative figures, including President Donald Trump, over cultural and language-related grievances. Additionally, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem recently confirmed an ICE presence at the event, adding to the controversy.

Despite the criticism, Bad Bunny has remained unshaken, hilariously firing back at the criticism during his SNL monologue by encouraging fans to embrace his Spanish-language music. “If you didn’t understand what I just said, you have four months to learn,” he declared on the show after speaking about the importance of representing his culture in Spanish.

Read Santana’s full statement below:

I congratulate and celebrate Bad Bunny’s success and his position right now with the world and with the Super Bowl. I feel total oneness with what he’s doing because we are here to utilize art to complement and bring the world closer to harmony and oneness.

However, we’re living in a time of fear, division, separation, superiority and inferiority. Fear is the flavor right now. Fear is what motivates ignorant people to put words in my mouth – saying that I didn’t want Bad Bunny to be represented at the Super Bowl. I never said that, nor would I ever.

Just to be clear, my heart is in total harmony with Bad Bunny, and I celebrate his success, his triumph and his phenomenal achievement. Anything other than that is coming from people’s ignorance.

We’re living in a time when hostile forces love to create conflict, separation and division, because the hostile forces don’t like unity, harmony, oneness and joy. They want people to be miserable and to spend too much time in their minds. I spend a lot of time in my heart, and in my heart I celebrate Bad Bunny. I can’t stop playing his song “Monaco” — there’s something really magical about it.

Angels gravitate to light. Anybody who believes I could say the fabricated comments about Bad Bunny are not in harmony with themselves. The people who make up such things – I invite them to do something more creative with their energy. If you’re going to create a dialogue, create a dialogue for America of unity, harmony and oneness. Lord knows we need it right now.

In conclusion, let me say this: Santana is all about bringing unity, harmony, oneness, hope, courage, enthusiasm, light, spirit and soul. Peace in your heart, peace in your mind, peace in your family. We are one — peace on Earth!

Chappell Roan put on a stunning performance at her final U.S. “Visions of Damsels & Other Dangerous Things” tour stop at Brookside at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., on Saturday night (Oct. 11) — and below you can check out a few choice images from the action-packed show.

Taking the roughly 40,000-strong crowd on a sonic journey through all of her hits — from Midwest Princess crowd-pleasers like “Red Wine Supernova” and “Pink Pony Club” to standalone singles like “Good Luck, Babe!” and “The Subway” — Roan was in peak form, delivering standout vocals and a fierce rock star energy (perhaps most notably on her fabulous cover of Heart‘s “Barracuda”). In the process, she made it clear why she’s become one of the biggest, brightest stars in the pop firmament.

Visually, the show featured eye-catching underwater castle-themed stage design with costumes and props to match. Roan entered the stage dressed like the queen of some deep-sea kingdom, wearing a bedazzled greenish-gold gown with a porous, seaweed-like skirt, jagged headdress and knee-high boots, not to mention a sparkly trident (think of a gaudier Mera from Aquaman). Most of these elements, save the boots and a two-piece bikini, were shed over the course of the evening — all the better to give Roan the freedom of movement she needed to kick, strut and hair-twirl her way through the 90-minute set.

Scroll through all the Christopher Polk-shot photos from the concert below, and check out our recap of all of the best moments from Saturday night’s show here.

Showgirls supporting showgirls. Following the record-breaking No. 1 debut of Taylor Swift‘s The Life of a Showgirl on the Billboard 200 — which it achieved by selling more than 4 million copies in its first week, marking the biggest sales week in history — Sabrina Carpenter took to Instagram Stories to congratulate her former Eras tourmate.

Swift first reacted to the news of her mammoth achievement shortly after it was announced on Monday (Oct. 13), writing on Instagram, “I have 4 million thank you’s I want to send to the fans, and 4 million reasons to feel even more proud of this album than I already was.”

Carpenter then reshared the 14-time Grammy winner’s post and wrote emphatically, “Of. All. Time.” alongside a series of heart emojis.

The “Espresso” singer didn’t need to type out “Greatest” for followers to know that she was calling the latter the “GOAT” — Swift’s numbers speak for themselves. Debuting with 4.002 million equivalent album units, Showgirl blows past Adele’s previous record with 25 for biggest-ever opening week in the modern era.

Showgirl also marks Swift’s 15th album to top the Billboard 200, allowing her to overtake Jay-Z and Drake for the record for most No. 1 albums on the chart as a soloist. In that regard, she is bested only by the Beatles, who had 19 LPs reach the ranking’s summit.

“I’ll never forget how excited I was in 2006 when my first album sold 40,000 copies in its first week,” Swift wrote in her Instagram post about the feat in addition to sharing a photo of herself kissing her new Billboard 200 plaque. “I was 16 and couldn’t even fathom that that many people would care enough about my music to invest their time and energy into it.”

“Thank you for going out to celebrate this project in the movie theaters, investing in vinyl, streaming, watching the video, buying CDs, reading the poems I wrote inside the packaging, and immersing yourselves in The Life of a Showgirl,” she added. “I’ll cherish this feeling forever. Just wow. Thank you for the lovely bouquet.”

Carpenter in particular has a lot of reason to celebrate the success of Showgirl. The Girl Meets World alum was the only guest artist on the album, duetting with Swift on the project’s title track. Swift also wove references to her global Eras Tour into many of the songs on the LP, and Carpenter was one of the superstar’s supporting acts during the Latin America, Asia and Australia legs of the trek.

In October 2024, Carpenter would make a surprise cameo at one of Swift’s Eras shows in New Orleans to perform “Espresso.” The end of “The Life of a Showgirl” features audio recording of the two ladies saying goodnight to the crowd.

“One of the things I’ll always remember from this weekend was getting to surprise the crowd with a performance by the pop princess of our dreams,” Swift wrote of Carpenter on Instagram after the NOLA show. “One of the reasons I respect her so much is that she does things like this, goes out of her way to give fans a surprise moment they didn’t expect.”