Rihanna has earned her first Oscar nomination for the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever original song “Lift Me Up.” The song has been nominated for Best Original Song. It was writted by Nigerian singer Tems, Oscar winner Ludwig Göransson, and ‘Wakanda Forever’ director Ryan Coogler — who are all nominated for the award alongside Rihanna.
Tems revealed in a statement, “After speaking with Ryan and hearing his direction for the film and the song, I wanted to write something that portrays a warm embrace from all the people that I’ve lost in my life. I tried to imagine what it would feel like if I could sing to them now and express how much I miss them… Rihanna has been an inspiration to me so hearing her convey this song is a great honor.”
The song serves as a tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman who played King T’Challa in the original “Black Panther.”
Boseman died in 2020 at the age of 43 after a four-year battle with colon cancer.