Hollywood was taken over by the 2023 Academy Awards on Sunday night (March 12), which featured performances by Lady Gaga, Rihanna, and other A-list artists for the contenders’ best original song performances. The Oscar-nominated song “Lift Me Up,” one of the two songs she contributed to the soundtrack for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, made its live debut during the Super Bowl Halftime Show while the performer was wearing a custom-made Maison Margiela Artisanal outfit created especially for her by John Galliano.
Mother Monster, on the other hand, decided to go the other way and perform “Hold My Hand” from Top Gun: Maverick in a basic black tee, torn pants, and a makeup-free face. She remarked, “It’s really personal to me, and I believe that we all need one another.”The camera swooped in for the most intimate of close-ups on her face as she became lost in the song. “To navigate this world, we require a lot of love. We all need heroes from time to time, and we may find them everywhere, even in the most ordinary locations. But even if you feel damaged within, you can discover that you can be your own hero.
Other performances during the ceremony included Sofia Carson performing “Applause” from the anthology movie Tell It Like a Woman with 14-time nominee Diane Warren accompanying her, and the eventual best original song winner “Naatu Naatu” from RRR became the biggest song-and-dance performance of the evening under the direction of Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava.
Also, David Byrne collaborated with Son Lux and best supporting actress nominee Stephanie Hsu on a surreal, intellectual rendition of “This Is a Life” from fan favorite Everything Everywhere All at Once, complete with enormous hot dog fingers.
Lenny Kravitz provided the soundtrack for this year’s In Memoriam segment with his 2004 hit “Calling All Angels,” in addition to the performances of the nominees for best original song.
