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John Legend & Common Lead Oscar Nominees For Best Original Song

Just a short time ago, this year’s Academy Award nominations were announced, heralding the great work actors, directors, editors and plenty of others did in the past year.

The Best Original Song category was particularly interesting this year, as it differed greatly from the same grouping at the Golden Globes. The two typically share at least a few nominees, but this year, only one managed to snag spots on both lists—John Legend and Common’s “Glory”, from the film Selma. There were quite a few big names left off the nominees roster, which makes the final list that much more shocking, and exciting.

It’s important to remember that in this category, only the songwriters and producers are actually nominated, no matter what name is on the track. Sometimes the big name that was chosen to record a track doesn’t get a chance at the trophy, which happened this year.

Directors Alfonso Cuarón and J.J. Abrams announced the five lucky nominees for the category this morning from a live stream. The nominees are:

John Legend – “Glory (ft. Common)” from Selma
This is an obvious choice for several reasons, not the least of them being that it already took home the Golden Globe, one of the most reliable ways to ensure at least a nom from this body. On top of that, the song is the most culturally relevant of them all, speaking to everyone who is even aware of what is going on in our country. The entire affair sounds rather inspiring, and fits the film to a T, and is the sort of thing Academy members love to vote for.

Tegan and Sara and The Lonely Island – “Everything Is Awesome” from The Lego Movie
It may seem a bit surprising to see a track from such a “silly” movie included on a list of Oscar nominees, but if it works for the movie and is original, why not nominate it? Only songwriter Shawn Patterson was nominated for this piece of work, which is strange because there are several other writers listed officially for the song.

Glen Campbell - “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” from Glen Campbell…I’ll Be Me
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You” is expected to be Glen Campbell’s last single release while still alive, so it’s sweet to see such a legend finally land a nomination for such a prestigious award. Glen Campbell…I’ll Be Me is a documentary about the country singer’s long and storied career, as well as his current fight with Alzheimer’s. Campbell actually wrote and performed the song, so he is in fact nominated.

Adam Levine – “Lost Stars” from Begin Again
This is an example of when a singer will see their song nominated, but it isn’t their name on the ballot. Levine, the lead singer of pop group Maroon 5, performed “Lost Stars” in the film, which he also co-starred in, and helped it sell a few more copies than it normally would have. Should it win, the award goes to Gregg Alexander and Danielle Brisebois for writing and composing.

Rita Ora – “Grateful” from Beyond The Lights
Again, another song performed by a famous face and the nomination going to those who actually created the work, not just brought it to life. This is one of the bigger surprises on the list, as Beyond was not a particularly memorable film, and it didn’t perform terribly well at the box office. What helped clinch this nomination was the songwriter behind it: Diane Warren. This is Warren’s seventh Oscar nomination, though she’s never taken home the trophy. Before“Grateful”, she was nominated for big tracks from movies like Pearl Harbor,Armageddon, and Con Air.

forbes.com

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