Beyoncé is Officially an Oscar-Nominated Musician

Considering Beyoncé’s expansive career, 28 Grammys, and her iconic discography, it may come as a surprise that it took until today for the singer to finally become an Oscar nominee. While Beyoncé has written a handful of songs for movie soundtracks in the past, it was her latest tune for King Richard that finally landed her the recognition.

Beyoncé wrote “Be Alive,” which plays during the end credits of the Will Smith-led film with songwriter Dixson. The song tells the story of the Williams sisters, and their entire family, sticking together to reach their goals in the world of tennis and beyond. “The path was never paved with gold/We worked and built this on our own,” Beyoncé sings against a steady, mellow beat.

The nomination comes two years after the singer was shortlisted for a nomination for her song, “Spirit” for the Lion King remake. She also co-wrote “Listen” for the 2006 film Dreamgirls, which got her a Golden Globe nomination and a Critics’ Choice Award win, but no recognition from the Academy.

For Beyoncé to take home the Oscar on March 27th, she’s going to have to beat out some pretty stiff competition in the original song category. Two years after its original debut, Billie Eilish’s Bond theme song, “No Time to Die,” is also nominated this year, since the accompanying movie got pushed back to a 2021 release. Beyoncé is also going up against Lin-Manual Miranda and his song, “Dos Oruguitas” from Encanto, a big contender considering the movie’s album has been at the top of the Billboard chart for four weeks. Either way, the nomination at least means we will hopefully get to see Beyoncé on the Oscar red carpet next month, a nice consolation prize for us if she doesn’t end of taking home the award.