Legendary songwriter Billy Steinberg died on Monday (February 16).
Steinberg co-wrote Madonna's Like a Virgin and Cyndi Lauper's True Colors.
Steinberg had been suffering from cancer.
Legendary songwriter Billy Steinberg passed away on Monday (February 16) at age 75. Steinberg died in Los Angeles' Brentwood, his attorney Laurie Soriano informed PEOPLE.
"Billy was an American treasure, such a lovely pure soul who was able to give us the most poetic lyrics that moved millions of people all over the world," said Soriano.
Billy Steinberg dies
Billy Steinberg, a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, was suffering from cancer. He, along with his writing partner Tom Kelly, was behind some of the iconic pop songs of the ‘80s and ‘90s, including Madonna’s chartbuster Like a Virgin and Cyndi Lauper’s True Colors.
He also co-wrote Whitney Houston’s So Emotional and The Bangles’ Eternal Flame.
Together, they wrote other hits, including Alone by Heart, I Touch Myself by the Divinyls, I’ll Stand by You by the Pretenders, How Do I Make You by Linda Ronstadt and I Drove All Night by Roy Orbison and Lauper.
Steinberg and Kelly's five singles hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 during the 1980s.
After Kelly's retirement in the mid-1990s, Steinberg, with his other writing partners, gave hits like Falling Into You by Celine Dion, Give Your Heart a Break by Demi Lovato and Too Little Too Late by JoJo, among others.
The legend also wrote songs for Tina Turner, Pat Benatar, Bette Midler, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Dayne, Nicole Scherzinger, Katharine McFee, Ashley Tisdale and other artists.
Steinberg clinched a Grammy in 1997 for Dion’s Falling Into You, which was named album of the year. He, alongside Kelly, was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2011.
Cyndi Lauper pays tribute to Billy Steinberg
Lauper shared a throwback picture of her with Steinberg on Instagram, remembering the songwriter as a friend and offered condolences to his family.
"I’m so sorry to hear that my friend Billy Steinberg has passed away," she wrote. "He was such a nice guy and very supportive. My thoughts are with his family, loved ones, and Tom during this sad time."
Steinberg is survived by his wife Trina and his sons Ezra and Max.
