LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 01: Laura Veltz attends the 68th GRAMMY Awards on February 01, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
Los Angeles, CA – February 1st, 2026 – At the 2026 GRAMMY Awards, songwriter Laura Veltz stood on the red carpet as a nominee for Songwriter of the Year, a category she herself described as “overdue.” It marked her second nomination since the category’s introduction and her fifth GRAMMY nomination overall, a milestone that reflects not just longevity, but range.
Veltz’s work over the past year spans an unusually wide spectrum of genres. Her GRAMMY submission included songs written with pop, country, hip-hop, and Christian artists, including Jessie Murph, BigXthaPlug, Maren Morris, Lauren Spencer Smith, and Blessing Offor. “I wrote an entire album with Jessie Murph, and I adore that child,” Veltz said. “I wrote a ton with BigXthaPlug… and I did work with country artist Maren Morris and Lauren Spencer Smith, who’s a pop artist from Canada. I did a Christian song with Blessing Offor… and there’s more. It’s been such a wild year.”
For Veltz, the genre-hopping isn’t a strategic pivot so much as a creative breakthrough. “It’s the first time I’ve ever been able to do that,” she said. “It really popped off this year. I’ve been able to jump around and exercise different songwriting muscles.” What ties the songs together isn’t a sound, but a philosophy. “My skill is making artists feel really safe,” Veltz explained. “I don’t care what story we’re telling. If they have a story to tell, I’m going to help them figure out how to put their feelings into words.”
That emphasis on safety and trust reflects her understanding of how difficult being an artist can be. “Being an artist is really hard, and it’s a lot of pressure,” she said. “I always say that the writing room should be the safest place.” A Nashville-based songwriter and mother of three, Veltz emphasized that she shows up to sessions without pretense. “I don’t go into these writing rooms as anyone other than myself. I’m a 45-year-old mom of three, I live in Nashville, and I’m chilling.”
When we asked her what it meant to be recognized at the GRAMMYS for her own voice, after years of writing deeply personal songs for others, Veltz described the nomination as a moment of clarity rather than validation. “This award allows me to realize that I’m helping pull out the most uncomfortable parts of living and helping put those things into words — no matter what subjects we’ve covered.”
But Veltz also used the moment to quietly call attention to the realities facing songwriters. Recognition, she suggested, isn’t just symbolic. “The fact that the GRAMMYS are allowing us to be seen this way, it might actually affect our pay structure,” she said. “So let’s hope that this rises all ships.”
In an industry where songwriters are often overlooked despite creating the emotional core of popular music, Veltz’s recognition at the GRAMMYS felt quietly significant — a sign that the people behind the songs may finally be starting to be seen.
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