During an amazing segment looking at all the songs that have been nominated for Best Song for The Academy Awards, Hamilton director Lin-Manuel Miranda introduced a surprise performance by Eminem who performed his Academy Award-winning song, “Lose Yourself.”
The audience was sprinkled with people who actually knew the song, but they emerged from their typical Oscar dismal with the affirmational head-nod and bop that the song evokes. The song while originally released in 2002, did not pop until 2004 when it was featured in The Rap God’s hit film, 8 Mile.
Eminem, real name Marshall Mathers, also won two GRAMMYs for the song, “Best Rap Song” and “Best Rap Solo Performance” that same year. Rolling Stone has included “Lose Yourself” in the “500 Greatest Songs of All Time,” entering it as one of the three Hip-Hop songs to make the honor. Rolling Stone also listed it as one of the “Top 50 Hip-Hop Songs of All Time.”
The Diamond song also was the first rap song to win an Oscar. For his performance at the 2020 Oscars, while many did not get it, he received a standing ovation.
