DETROIT – Eminem brought back a classic for a surprise performance on the 2020 Oscars stage.
Finishing off a tribute to music in film, Eminem took the stage to perform “Lose Yourself,” one of the more memorable songs from the film “8 Mile.”
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The song, from the 2002 film, was Eminem’s first Billboard 100 No. 1 single. It stayed on top of the charts for 12 weeks. It was also the winner for the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Watch clips of the performance below:
EMINEM AT THE #OSCARS 🤯pic.twitter.com/enMWCOsWif
— Complex Music (@ComplexMusic) February 10, 2020
Eminem brought the crowd to their feet. #Oscars 🙇🏻👁 pic.twitter.com/qG3Y9QwSd3
— OJ (@ojziy) February 10, 2020
Eminem performing Lose Yourself has me shook pic.twitter.com/XLPbcvi4K8
— Allison the Disney Diva (elizabeth) (@Daviesallison1A) February 10, 2020
Eminem also tweeted a clip from winning the Oscar back in 2002:
Look, if you had another shot, another opportunity... Thanks for having me @TheAcademy. Sorry it took me 18 years to get here. pic.twitter.com/CmSw2hmcZo
— Marshall Mathers (@Eminem) February 10, 2020
It was one of the most exhilarating moments of the evening. Grammy-winner Billie Eilish, set to perform on the show later, dropped her jaw. Several other audience members were shown rapping along or bobbing to the beat in their seats, including actresses Zazie Beetz and Kelly Marie Tran and musician-actress Janelle Monae, who opened the show.
Director Martin Scorsese wasn’t one of them. He appeared to briefly close his eyes when the cameras found him in the crowd.
Backstage producer Lynette Howell Taylor was especially excited, save for a momentary panic that he didn’t have his mic. Afterwards she squealed “We did it! We (expletive) did it.”
The rapper got a standing ovation when he finished.