From Lady Gaga to Dolly Parton: your guide to all the songs nominated for Best Original Song at this year's Golden Globes

4 January 2019, 12:05 | Updated: 4 January 2019, 12:13

Golden Globes
Golden Globes. Picture: Getty

By Elizabeth Davis

Five songs are up for the coveted 'Best Original Song' gong at this month's Golden Globes. Here's a run-down of each of the nominees and what makes them stand out.

  1. A Star is Born: ‘Shallow’

    Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper - Shallow (A Star Is Born)

    Lady Gaga

    A Star is Born starring Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper looks set to sweep the board at this year’s Oscars, and that’s surely partly thanks to its storming soundtrack.

    The show-stopper song of the film is ‘Shallow’, which was written by Lady Gaga with Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt. It features prominently in the film and is a country power ballad sung from the point of view of Gaga’s character in the film, Ally.

    Read more: can Bradley Cooper really sing in A Star is Born?

    It’s been a massive hit in the charts around the world – and we’ve done a musical analysis of it here to find out exactly why.

  2. Black Panther: ‘All the Stars’

    Kendrick Lamar, SZA - All The Stars

    Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd, SZA

    Marvel’s blockbuster Black Panther tells the story of T’Challa (the Black Panther) who is crowned king of the secret super-advanced African country Wakanda. The cast was led by black actors including Chadwick Boseman and Lupita Nyong’o. Although the soundtrack for the film was written by Ludwig Göransson, Black Panther also featured songs curated, produced and written by Kendrick Lamar.

    ‘All the Stars’ features in the film (during the end credits) and was released as a single from the soundtrack album for the film.

  3. Dumplin: ‘Girl in the Movies’

    Dolly Parton - Girl in the Movies (from the Dumplin' Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

    Dolly Parton

    Dumplin is a feel-good, coming-of-age film and one of Netflix’s most successful of the year. It stars Danielle Macdonald as Willowdean, who is nicknamed Dumplin by her impeccably turned-out mother, played by Jennifer Aniston.

    Dolly Parton’s iconic music plays a pivotal role in the film, and the country music legend wrote a brand-new song for the film. ‘Girl in the Movies’ tells of a girl who yearns after a different life from the one she’s born into. And it’s just as relevant for Dolly’s own incredible life story as Willowdean’s.

  4. A Private War : ‘Requiem for a Private War’

    Annie Lennox - Requiem For A Private War

    Annie Lennox

    Annie Lennox produced her first song in eight years for A Private War, a biopic telling the story of the life of journalist Marie Colvin. Marie was a foreign correspondent for The Sunday Times from 1985 until her death, during a siege in Syria in 2012.

    Lennox said: “Writing ‘Requiem for a Private War’ for the film A Private War has not only given me an opportunity to honor Marie Colvin, but also aims to amplify the ‘truth to power’ message she fought all her life to convey to the world, regarding the atrocious consequences of warfare and its effects upon innocent civilian populations.”

  5. Boy Erased: ‘Revelation’

    BOY ERASED - "Revelation" by Troye Sivan & Jónsi - In Select Theaters November 2nd

    Boy Erased tells a heart-rending story of a teenage boy sent to undergo conversion therapy. When pop star Troye Sivan was given a small role in the film he said: “I read the script and knew that I wanted to be a part of the movie in any way that I possibly could.”

    Sivan’s song ‘Revelation’ comes at a key moment in the film for the main character, Jared Eamons, played by Lucas Hedges.

    Sivan said: “It’s a moment of firsts for Jared – the first time that he gets to experience any real, tender, sweet emotion with another boy. And I remember reading the script and feeling so relieved and happy for him… The song is about that moment where he starts to ponder if this is actually okay, and if maybe that’s the way things are supposed to be.”