Son Lux, Stephanie Hsu and David Byrne performed best song nominee “This Is a Life,” from the acclaimed Everyone Everywhere All at Once, at the 2023 Oscars in Los Angeles on Sunday night (March 12).
Dressed in all white — along with a throng of similarly costumed backing dancers — the performers delivered a deliberately choreographed version of the soundtrack song, in front of a backing band and video clips of the film’s Raccacoonie character. It ended with Hsu and Byrne at center stage, Byrne showing off his elongated fingers — a la the hot dog fingers displayed in one of the film’s many alternate universes.
Acclaimed indie rock singer-songwriter Mitski co-performed the original “This Is a Life” with Talking Heads frontman Byrne, but was not present for the performance. Hsu, who pulled double acting duty in Everyone Everywhere All at Once as daughter Joy Wong and villain Jobu Tapaki, filled in for Mitski for the brief “Life” rendition.
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David Byrne is a prior Oscar winner, having co-composed the score for 1988 best picture winner The Last Emperor along with Ryuichi Sakamoto and Cong Su. Hsu was nominated for best supporting actress at this year’s awards, but lost to Jamie Lee Curtis for her performance in the same movie. Everyone Everywhere All at Once is the most-nominated movie on the evening, with 11 total nods, including for best picture.
“This Is a Life” faces stiff competition in the best original song category from the starry likes of Lady Gaga (for Top Gun: Maverick) and Rihanna (for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), as well as frequent nominee Dianne Warren.