Before the telecast even kicked off last night, there was already a lot of talk surrounding the Oscars Best Original Song performances. Originally rumored to only feature performances by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper singing “Shallow,” as well as Kendrick Lamar and SZA performing “All the Stars,” the actual telecast featured the former, but not the latter, complemented by several other performances that range from “meh” to “good.”
The 2019 Oscars kicked off with a huge performance by Queen (with Adam Lambert providing vocals). Much like “Bohemian Rhapsody” itself, the performance from the band featured many of the band’s greatest hits and was the Academy’s answer to the typical “host performs a song and dance” intro.
READ MORE: The Best & Worst Of The 2019 Oscars
The rest of the telecast featured performances from Jennifer Hudson, Bette Midler, Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, and the aforementioned “A Star is Born” duo. Even though Hudson, Midler, Welch, and Rawlings gave it their all to varying degrees of success, the showstopping performance (and maybe the moment of the night) belonged to Gaga and Cooper.
In a truly memorable duet, the stars of the Oscar-nominated “A Star is Born” came on stage from their seats in the front row to sing a more reserved version of their massive hit song “Shallow” (which would go on to win the Best Original Song category). It was expertly performed and incredibly emotional, much like the actual moment in the film.
READ MORE: Lady Gaga Wins Her First Oscar For Best Original Song [Oscars 2019]
All in all, even though Lamar and SZA had to pull out of performing due to scheduling conflicts, the musical performances at this year’s Oscars were competent, to say the least. And for in the case of Gaga and Cooper, there might actually be an all-time great moment to show for it.
Click here for more from our Oscars 2019 coverage.
You can watch the performances below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrSit1tVaUI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwbCfVEB5EM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJiToQqeGr0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvTvZi9wr2A
