Pop music wows at the Oscars

Leonardo DiCaprio showed up at the Academy Awards for the first time in many years but he still did not get his Oscar. Maybe, he will get one when he is 50 or 60 years old like Paul Newman did or he might wind up like Peter O’Toole who ended up with eight nominations and still no statuette. The Academy made up for it with an Oscar for the Lifetime Achievement Award.  Good thing, too, because the 80-something actor died shortly after.

Save for the Best Picture trophy which went to 12 Years a Slave and Best Director to Alfonso Cuaron for Gravity, most of the winners at the recent Academy Awards were pretty much what were expected. The big surprise of the evening though was when the Best Original Song Award went to Let It Go from the movie Frozen, instead of to Ordinary Love, the theme from the Nelson Mandela biopic Long Walk To Freedom. 

The tune composed and performed by U2 had already won the Golden Globe and was expected to also win the Oscar. The talk all around was how one can beat something about a man as great as Mandela. But the Academy members clearly went with the feelings of everybody around them who have fallen in love with the inspiring Let It Go and voted for the song. Also nominated this year were Happy by Pharrell Williams from Despicable Me 2; and The Moon Song from Her by Karen O and Spike Jonze.

The Academy Award for Let It Go marks a major milestone for the New York-born Filipino composer Robert Lopez who wrote the song with his wife Kristen Anderson Lopez. The Yale-educated Lopez is now a member of this very exclusive group of artists who have won an Emmy for television (Wonder Pets for Nickelodeon), a Grammy (Best Musical Theater Album for The Book of Mormon), a Tony (Best Musical for Avenue Q) and now an Oscar for Let It Go.

Let It Go’s victory also served as the crowning touch for one of the most musical Academy Award shows ever. I do not know if it was intentional on the part of the producers but music really played a big role in making this year’s Oscars truly enjoyable. The orchestra played great movie music almost continuously in the background. We heard them all. Themes from Star Wars, Lawrence of Arabia, Vertigo, Indiana Jones and many others. 

All of the artists behind the Best Original Song nominees were also present to perform their entries live. U2 did Ordinary Love. Hot artist and producer Pharrell came with a new interesting hat to sing his big hit single Happy. Karen O brought a sweet, quiet moment to the event with her rendition of The Moon Song. And in a performance that showed Let It Go to be truly deserving of the Oscar, there was Idina Menzel, the voice of Frozen’s snow-bound Elsa. 

 And those were not all. Bette Midler was also on hand for her first-ever Oscar appearance. The Divine Miss M beautifully performed Wind Beneath My Wings, her big hit from the movie Beaches as a tribute to members of the movie industry who passed away last year in the In Memoriam portion. And then there was Pink. 

2014 marks the 75th year of the release of the movie The Wizard of Oz and the Oscars paid tribute to the much-loved MGM classic. For starters, they invited the children of the film’s star Judy Garland â€” Liza Minnelli, Lorna Luft and Joey Luft. Then, they asked Whoopi Goldberg, who came in ruby red high-heels and tights to introduce the segment. Then, as footage from The Wizard of Oz played on the screen, Pink sang.

You must know Pink. She is one of today’s biggest pop-rock artists. She is known for songs like Just Give Me A Reason, Raise Your Glass, Try and F**kin’ Perfect and eye-popping acrobatic performances. But she was a different, very sedate Pink at the Academy Awards. Clad in a ruby-red gown, she was in incredible voice as she sang Over The Rainbow from The Wizard of Oz soundtrack. The number was the event’s showstopper. And I can’t wait to hear her do more standards. I hope this happens soon.