After Dominating the Golden Globes, Barbie and Oppenheimer Stand as Grammy Winners
Great cinema made the year 2023 brighter. We witnessed the release of box office-breaking movies from Barbie to Oppenheimer, which then swept the awards season early this year, including the recent Grammys. The two movies by Greta Gerwig and Christopher Nolan respectively came from two very different worlds and divided the fandom by releasing on the very same day. From merchandise marketing to brands hopping on the trend, it was Barbie and Oppenheimer everywhere. At the Golden Globes, Oppenheimer won 5 awards out of 8 nominations whereas Barbie took home 2 wins out of 9 nominations.
Barbie and Oppenheimer’s Latest Win
Barbie and Oppenheimer could not help but leave their mark on the music industry as well. Apart from a stellar cast, exceptional cinematography and a memorable story, the two juggernauts also featured a beautiful soundtrack that earned them a coveted Grammy win. Barbie’s impactful soundtrack amassed 11 nominations in Grammys, marking a turning point for the awards ceremony that has faced backlash for spotlighting male artists.
The category of best song written for visual media has four nominations from the Barbie soundtrack itself. The movie stands at a box office collection of $1.4 billion worldwide with a wider fanbase of the songs in the movie as well. Barbie has been a cultural phenomenon and its music album is no different. Artists like Mark Ronson, Dua Lipa, Nicki Minaj, Sam Smith and Billie Eilish worked on the Barbie soundtrack that eventually got the Grammy spotlight.
Eilish and her brother Finneas’s What Was I Made For? from the Barbie soundtrack won the Best Song for Visual Media. The song touched the hearts of millions of listeners who related to the pain and enigmatic emotions The pop singer received six Grammy nominations for her work. The duo won a Grammy and an Oscar for No Time to Die which was released during the pandemic.
On the other hand, the massive biographical flick Oppenheimer saw Ludwig Göransson’s nomination for Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media. Moreover, the composer and songwriter is also in the running for Oscar’s Best Original Score category. He would have won the Best Instrumental Theme category for Oppenheimer too, had it not been for John Williams who took the Grammy home for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
Other Grammy Wins and Nominations
Artist SZA is the most nominated artist this year, showing her massive demand and talent in the industry. She sweeps the awards with 15 nominations and 1 win in the 2024 Grammys. Moreover, this also shows the turn of the tide with women leading the nominations. The top nine most nominated artists have only one male and eight females, representing a welcome change in the industry that should give women artists more focus.
Miley Cyrus marked her first and second Grammy win this year with her record-breaking single Flowers, an anthem that got every woman dancing to its tune. Her album Endless Summer Vacation is her first project to receive an Album Of The Year nomination despite Cyrus releasing seven albums since the beginning of her career. Taylor Swift, on the other hand, took home her 4th Grammy in the Album of the Year category for Midnights.
