Tom Morello, Annie Lennox, Desmond Child Honored at 2026 SONA Awards

The Songwriters of North America honored Tom Morello, Annie Lennox, Desmond Child, the songwriters behind KPop Demon Hunters and Kobalt Music CEO Laurent Hubert at the organization’s annual awards show at Los Angeles’ Skirball Cultural Center on Thursday, in a night that celebrated the industry’s under-appreciated hitmakers while rallying the business on music’s most pressing issues from censorship to copyright law and the rise of AI.

Morello, introduced by Shepard Fairey — the artist behind the famed Obama “Hope” poster — was given SONA‘s first-ever Freedom of Expression Warrior Award in recognition of the guitarist and Rage Against the Machine‘s championing of First Amendment rights. In an impassioned speech that started with Morello thanking the service workers working the event Thursday, Morello spoke out on how all the major social movements in modern history have been bolstered by a “great soundtrack.”

“Joe Hill’s union anthems put wind in the sails of those fighting for an eight-hour work day. ‘We Shall Overcome’ steeled the resolve of freedom fighters during the civil rights movement. Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Star-Spangled Banner’ channeled the moral cacophony of the Vietnam War through a Marshall Stack. And one or two Rage Against The Machine songs were heard pumping in the streets of Brazil after Lula defeated that fascist prick the other day,” Morello said, referring to defeated former Brazil president Jair Bolsonaro.

“In this proud tradition, I’ve always endeavored to create songs to fan the flames of discontent,” Morello said. “Harmonizing and hell-raising, rhythm and rebellion, poetry and politics. When protest music is done right, you can hear a new world emerging in the songs.”

Morello concluded his speech by saying he will “never put down my First Amendment rights.” “Shut up and just play guitar? Sorry, but fuck you, I won’t do what you tell me. It’s time to change the world, brothers and sisters, or a bare minimum, to stir up a shitload of trouble.”

Hubert, SONA’s executive of the year, used his speech to weigh in on AI, warning to the crowd of songwriters and music publishers that “AI is here, and it won’t wait for us to get comfortable with it.” Still, he added, “authenticity will always prevail.”

Four of the KPop Demon Hunters songwriters — Melanie Fontana, Lindgren, Danny Chung and Daniel Rojas — showed up to accept SONA’s Global Impact Award, while Chris Redding was given SONA’s Emerging Songwriter award.

Child, the prolific writer behind generation-defining hits like KISS’ “I Was Made For Loving You,” Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer” and Ricky Martin’s “Livin’ La Vida Loca,” received this year’s Warrior Award, introduced by KISS’ Paul Stanley and fellow hitmaker Andreas Carlsson.

“Anyone can write a song, but that doesn’t make you a songwriter, you are the epitome of a songwriter.” Stanley told Child onstage.

In his speech, Child called on the industry to continue to fight to protect songwriters’ works, saying that “copyrights are human rights.”

“Let us keep creating music that informs and inspires,” Child said. “In a world that grows menacingly dark every day, let us warriors for truth be instruments of light and indestructible love.”

The final award recipient of the evening was Lennox, introduced by fellow Scottish singer Shirley Manson for the Artist Songwriter Award. She harkened back to hearing influential British acts like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and the Kinks and American acts like the Beach Boys and Carole King on the radio, shaping her love for music at a young age.

She finished the night with a performance of the Eurythmics’ classic “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” joined on stage by co-hosts Bonnie McKee and Shane Stevens.

Lennox also touched on AI in her speech, finishing on an optimistic note that real human creativity should not be outsourced and cannot be replaced.

“We’re the real deal, creative human beings,” Lennox said. “With real lives that we’ve lived, real lived experiences. There is a difference, and that difference must be protected. Not only for writers like us, but for the future of all humanity. Every generation that comes after us, it’s down to us to make that difference.”