‘Like a Virgin’ songwriter Billy Steinberg dies at 75

Grammy-winning American songwriter, Billy Steinberg, who co-wrote Madonna’s hit song, Like a Virgin, is dead. 

He passed on on Monday, February 16, 2026, at the age of 75. 

According to the Los Angeles Times, his lawyer, Laurie Soriano, said he di£d after a battle with cancer. 

His family also mourned him in a statement, saying, “Billy Steinberg’s life was a testament to the enduring power of a well-written song — and to the idea that honesty, when set to music, can outlive us all.” 

Steinberg, who grew up in Palm Springs, California, built his career writing pop classics in the 1980s and 1990s for global stars, including Whitney Houston, Cyndi Lauper and Celine Dion. 

He co-wrote five songs that reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, including Like a Virgin, which he wrote with Tom Kelly.

Steinberg won a Grammy in 1997, linked to Celine Dion’s Falling Into You, and he entered the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2011. 

Steinberg leaves behind his wife, Trina, two sons, and two stepchildren.