Rihanna, the award-winning icon, will take the stage at the upcoming Academy Awards ceremony on March 12th. Fresh off of her memorable halftime performance at the Super Bowl earlier this month, the 35-year-old artist will perform “Lift Me Up,” the theme song from the upcoming Marvel film “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that Rihanna co-wrote the song with Tems, director Ryan Coogler, and composer Ludwig Göransson. “Lift Me Up” is nominated for Best Original Song, marking Rihanna’s first Academy Award nomination.
Other nominees in the Best Original Song category include “Applause” from “Tell It Like a Woman” by Diane Warren, “Hold My Hand” from “Top Gun: Maverick” by Lady Gaga and BloodPop, “Naatu Naatu” from “RRR” by M.M. Keeravaani and Chandrabose, and “This Is a Life” from “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” which was written by Ryan Lott, David Byrne, and Mitski.
The Oscars will be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and broadcast on ABC at 8 p.m. Eastern Time from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Rihanna’s halftime performance at the Super Bowl was a major hit, as the musician showed off her baby bump and sang a medley of her most popular songs. The performance received some criticism on social media, however, as a few viewers alleged that Rihanna was lip-syncing during her set.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences acknowledged that Rihanna is a nine-time Grammy Award winner with eight multi-platinum albums and 14 number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The Academy promised to announce additional performers for the Oscars in the coming weeks.
