Sufjan Stevens, Mary J. Blige, Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood Nominated for Oscars

It's Stevens' first-ever Oscar nomination

By Abdiel Vallejo-Lopez  |  January 23, 2018 | 12:27pm
Photo by Andrea Morrison
Music News Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens, Mary J. Blige, Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood Nominated for Oscars

Sufjan Stevens’ “Mystery of Love,” a song from the critically acclaimed movie Call Me By Your Name (Sony Pictures Classics), has been nominated for the Oscar for Best Original Song. “Mystery of Love” is one of two original songs composed by Stevens for the Luca Guadagnino-directed feature. The singer-songwriter will be going up against notable artists like Mary J. Blige, nominated for “Mighty River” from Mudbound, and Andra Day, nominated for “Stand Up for Something” from Marshall, featuring Chicago rapper Common. It seems as if this year will be one for the books as far as musicians and Oscar nominees go. Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood was also nominated for an Oscar in the category of Best Original Score for his work on the motion picture Phantom Thread, a recording which featured a 60-piece orchestra.

This is the first time Stevens has been nominated for an Oscar. His preoccupation with larger, emotionally driven musical concepts made him the perfect choice to record the film’s original songs. This past year, Stevens has been hard at work releasing new content, including a one-off tribute to Tonya Harding, the live recording of his masterwork Carrie & Lowell, titled Carrie & Lowell Live, a demos and outtakes collection titled The Greatest Gift and a cosmos-themed album titled Planetarium, featuring Nico Muhly, Bryce Dessner and James McAlister. “Mystery of Love” was also nominated for Best Song at the 2018 Critics’ Choice Awards.

Based on the Andre Aciman novel of the same name, Call Me By Your Name tells the coming-of-age story of Elio, a seventeen-year-old Italian young man who begins a relationship with Oliver, his father’s research assistant. The movie tackles themes of emerging sexuality, breaking taboos and defining one’s personal life path. Along with Best Original Song, the film is also nominated for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay, along with a nomination for Timothée Chalamet for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

The 90th Oscars, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, will be held on Sunday, March 4 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Calif. It will air live on ABC starting at 6:30 p.m. EST. See all the 2018 Oscar nominees here, listen to “Mystery of Love” below and keep following Paste’s continuous coverage of the 2018 Academy Awards.

 
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