In the 90 years that the Oscars have had a best original song category, just one songwriter has been nominated in that category eight years running. The late lyricist Sammy Cahn was nominated every year from 1954 through 1961, winning three times during that streak, for “Three Coins in the Fountain,” “All the Way” and “High Hopes,” all recorded by Frank Sinatra.
Diane Warren has a chance to tie Cahn’s record on Jan. 17, 2025, when the nominations for the 97th annual Academy Award are announced. Warren is pinning her hopes on the song “The Journey” from Tyler Perry’s upcoming World War II drama, The Six Triple Eight. Netflix is set to release the film later this year.
This would be Warren’s 16th career nomination in the category, a total reached by only three songwriters in history. Cahn leads with 26 nods, followed by Johnny Mercer with 18 and Paul Francis Webster with 16. If she is nominated, Warren would pull ahead of Alan & Marilyn Bergman, who had 15 nominations in this category, making Warren the woman with the most nods in this category. (Unlike all of these other songwriters, Warren has yet to win in the category.)
In an interesting plot twist, “The Journey” was recorded for the film’s soundtrack by H.E.R., who beat Warren for the Oscar in early 2021. “Fight for You” from Judas and the Black Messiah, which H.E.R. cowrote with Dernst Emile II (D’Mile) and Tiara Thomas, beat “Io Sì (Seen)” from The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti a Se), which Warren co-wrote with Laura Pausini. Warren’s song had earlier won the Golden Globe.
The Six Triple Eight showcases the contributions of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, an all-Black and all-woman battalion, in World War II. Perry wrote, directed and co-produced the film, which is based on historian Kevin M. Hymel’s article “WAC Corporal Lena Derriecott and the 6888th Central Postal Battalion,” which was published in the February 2019 issue of WWII History magazine.
The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion contributed to the war effort by sorting through a huge backlog of undelivered mail and delivering it to American soldiers. “The Journey” is described as “a tribute to those who face seemingly insurmountable barriers yet persevere and ultimately triumph” — a familiar theme in Warren’s film songs.
H.E.R. recorded and released “The Journey” in 2023. It was featured in various in-game ESPN production elements throughout the channel’s NBA Playoffs coverage, starting April 15, 2023. Three months later, on July 12, she sang it live on the 2023 EPSY Awards.
So how can the song be eligible for best original song for a yet-to-be-released 2024 film and potentially compete for awards to be presented in 2025? Because Warren wrote the song for the film.
It was announced in December 2022 that Tyler Perry would be writing and directing the film at Netflix. In January 2023, the cast, including Kerry Washington, Sam Waterston, Susan Sarandon and Oprah Winfrey, was announced, with Washington also joining as an executive producer. Filming began on Jan. 17, 2023, in Atlanta.
Variety’s Clayton Thomas reports that there is precedent for songs with similar trajectories being nominated by the music branch, such as “In the Deep” from Crash (2005) and the Oscar-winning “Falling Slowly” from Once (2007).
In 2023, Warren became the first songwriter to receive an Honorary Oscar. The award was inscribed: “To Diane Warren, for her genius, generosity and passionate commitment to the power of song in film.”
In addition, she has won a Primetime Emmy, a Grammy and two Golden Globes – all for film songs. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001 and received that organization’s top honor, the Johnny Mercer Award, in June.
Bess Kargman’s Diane Warren: Relentless documentary about Warren’s life premiered at SXSW in March.
Sammy Cahn’s Consecutive Oscar Nods
Here’s Cahn’s eight-year streak of best original song nominees. He wrote the lyrics to all of these songs. The composer is shown and the songs that won are flagged.
1954: “Three Coins in the Fountain” from Three Coins in the Fountain [Music by Jule Styne] [winner]
1955: (2 nods) “I’ll Never Stop Loving You” from Love Me or Leave Me [Music by Nicholas Brodszky] and “(Love Is) The Tender Trap” from The Tender Trap [Music by James Van Heusen]
1956: “Written on the Wind” from Written on the Wind [Music by Victor Young]
1957: “All the Way” from The Joker Is Wild [Music by James Van Heusen] [winner]
1958: “To Love and Be Loved” from Some Came Running [Music by James Van Heusen]
1959 (2 nods) “The Best of Everything” from The Best of Everything [Music by Alfred Newman] and “High Hopes” from A Hole in the Head [Music by James Van Heusen] [winner]
1960: “The Second Time Around” from High Time [Music by James Van Heusen]
1961: “Pocketful of Miracles” from Pocketful of Miracles [Music by James Van Heusen]
Diane Warren’s Consecutive Oscar Nods
And here’s Warren’s seven-year streak of best original song nominees. She wrote both music and lyrics by herself, except as shown.
2017: “Stand Up for Something” from Marshall [Music by Diane Warren; Lyric by Lonnie R. Lynn and Diane Warren]
2018: “I’ll Fight” from RBG
2019: “I’m Standing With You” from Breakthrough
2020: “Io Sì (Seen)” from The Life Ahead (La Vita Davanti a Se) [Music by Diane Warren; Lyric by Diane Warren and Laura Pausini]
2021: “Somehow You Do” from Four Good Days
2022: “Applause” from Tell It like a Woman
2023: “The Fire Inside” from Flamin’ Hot
