Reba McEntire is no stranger to the stage or the screen, but even she got nervous before her Sunday night performance of “Somehow You Do” at the 2022 Academy Awards.
McEntire told Audacy she was “proud” and “very intimidated” to represent country music at the Oscars. Rehearsals, she explained, were a bit scant.
“We had the track just in a rehearsal room with my three gorgeous, great-sounding back-up singers,” she said. “We ran it twice, and they were like, ‘OK, we’ll see you at the Oscars.’ I was like, ‘Oh wow, that’s it.’”
When she took the stage alongside her all-star band of Travis Barker (drums), Kevin Jonas (guitar), Sheila E (percussion), and Robert Randolph (steel guitar), she was rock solid. Her voice soared through the emotional lyrics of “Somehow You Do,” which was nominated for Best Original Song.
The ballad was written by Diane Warren and featured in the movie “Four Good Days,” which stars Glenn Close and Mila Kunis in a storyline about a mother desperate to help her daughter get sober.
The performance ended with a moment of silence for Kunis’ native Ukraine.
While McEntire performed the song, the nomination belonged to Warren. The nod for “Somehow You Do” was Warren’s 13th time in the category, which she still hasn’t won.
In addition to “Somehow You Do,” other nominees included Billie Eilish’s “No Time to Die” from James Bond “No Time To Die” and Beyoncé’s “Be Alive,” from “King Richard.”
Eilish’s “No Time to Die” won the category.