Billy Steinberg, the Grammy-winning songwriter who co-wrote such pop classics as Madonna’s “Like A Virgin,” Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors” and the Bangles’ “Eternal Flame” that were some of the biggest, most indelible hits of the 1980s, had died, his attorney confirmed to Billboard. He was 74. No cause of death was given.
In addition to those three songs, Steinberg — who specialized in big, power ballads with impactful, vulnerable lyrics — had two other songs reach No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100: Whitney Houston’s “So Emotional” and Heart’s Alone,” all co-written with his longtime writing partner, Tom Kelly.
The lyricist also penned such hits as the Pretenders’ “I’ll Stand by You,” the Bangles’ “In Your Room” and the Divinyls’ “I Touch Myself.” Taylor Dayne, Tina Turner, Pat Benatar, Bette Midler, Cheap Trip, Belinda Carlisle and many other artists also recorded his songs.
A 2011 inductee into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Fresno, California, native grew up in Palm Springs, California. After attending Bard College in New York’s Hudson Valley, he pursued a career as an artist with his band Billy Thermal. While they may not have flourished, Steinberg’s career took off after the group’s guitarist played “How Do I Make You,” penned by Steinberg, for Linda Rondstadt, who recorded it for her Mad Love album in 1980. The song reached No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Steinberg and Kelly, in addition to recording as the duo I-10 for Epic Records, were one of the top songwriting teams of the ‘80s and ‘90s, often writing signature songs for artists, including “Like A Virgin,” which remained at No. 1 for six weeks, the most of any of Madonna’s hits. Billboard ranked the song as Madonna’s biggest hit of her career in 2024.
After Kelly retired as a songwriter, Steinberg continued to write, often with Rick Nowels, including penning Dion’s “Falling Into You.” More recently, in the 2010s, Steinberg’s songs were cut by Nichole Scherzinger, Miranda Cosgrove and Demi Lovato, who took “Give Your Heart A Break,” (co-written with Josh Alexander) to No. 16 on the Hot 100 in 2012.
Steinberg took home a Grammy at the 39th annual Grammy Awards for album of the year for Dion’s Falling Into You, for which he co-wrote the title track.
At the Grammy Museum’s 2023 “The Power of Song: A Songwriters Hall of Fame Exhibit,” Steinberg was represented by a demo for “True Colors” recorded on a TDK SA 60 cassette and a note from Lauper that read, “Billy — Thanks for sending me and writing such a beautiful song. (heart) Cyndi.”
He is survived by his beloved wife, Trina; his sons, Ezra and Max; his sisters, Barbara and Mary; and his stepchildren, Raul and Carolina.
