"Oscar Winning Tears" is a song by the British singer-songwriter Raye from her debut studio album, My 21st Century Blues (2022). She wrote it alongside its producer, Mike Sabath. It became available as the album's second track on 3 February 2023, when it was released independently through Human Re Sources, and was issued as its seventh single on 8 November 2024. Musically, "Oscar Winning Tears" is a theatrical jazz song led by strings, piano, and drums. Its lyrics see the narrator ending an emotionally abusive and toxic relationship while confronting an ex.
Upon its release as a single, the song peaked at numbers 52 in the United Kingdom and 58 in Ireland, and reached airplay charts in the United States. Raye included "Oscar Winning Tears" on the set list of the My 21st Century Blues Tour (2023–2024). She also performed it at several other occasions, including the 2024 MTV Europe Music Awards and the 67th Annual Grammy Awards; at the latter ceremony, it was included in a medley of nominees for the Best New Artist category. A live rendition of the song was included on her live album My 21st Century Symphony (Live at the Royal Albert Hall) (2023).
Background and release
Raye started writing songs for her debut album years before its release, including "Oscar Winning Tears"; she believed that these songs "have stood the test of time".[1] In 2021, the singer stated that the record label she was signed at the time, Polydor Records, refused to release her album several times.[2] She later parted ways from the label and became an independent artist.[3] In 2022, she signed a contract with the distribution company Human Re Sources.[4]
Following a string of singles, Raye announced her debut album, My 21st Century Blues, and later revealed its track listing, in which "Oscar Winning Tears" appears as the second song.[5][6] The album was independently released on 3 February 2023, through Human Re Sources.[7] "Oscar Winning Tears" was issued as the album's seventh single on 8 November 2024 to digital platforms.[8] The song peaked at number 52 in the United Kingdom and 58 in Ireland.[9][10] It also reached numbers 26 and 35 on the US Rhythmic and Pop Airplay charts, respectively.[11][12]
Composition
Raye provided lead vocals and wrote "Oscar Winning Tears" with its producer, Mike Sabath. The latter also served as the engineer of the song and played drums, synthesizers, piano, bass, guitar, and was the string arranger. Other musicians were Jacob Braun on cello and Paul Cartwright on violin. Franky Fox, Jonathan Castelli, and Josh Deguzman were the mixing engineers, while Jenna Felsenthal was the vocal recording engineer. The mastering engineer was Dale Becker, and the assistant engineers were Nick Noneman, Katie Harvey, Noah McCorkle, Adam Krevlin, and Michael Harris.[8]
With a duration of three minutes and three seconds,[8] "Oscar Winning Tears" is placed in the album after its introduction,[13] which presents Raye to a jazz club.[14] It is a jazz song,[15] built over a theatrical and cinematic production with strings, piano, and drums.[13][7][16] Raye's vocal performance includes belting, which was praised by critics.[14][17] The lyrical content of the song see the narrator ending an emotionally abusive and toxic relationship.[13][7] It was written after Raye saw a man spiking her drink, and she felt that the song served as medicine for her.[15] Raye confronts an ex who played the victim when she decided to leave: "You was convincing though, very believable / The role that you played".[16] She sings that the ex "convinced [her] with bullshit", which The Guardian'sAlexis Petridis believed could be a reference to her experience in the music industry.[18]
Live performances
Raye added "Oscar Winning Tears" to the set list of the My 21st Century Blues Tour, which ran from February 2023 to February 2024.[19][20] In September 2023, "Oscar Winning Tears" was performed as part of a standalone concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London, where Raye was accompanied by the Heritage Orchestra.[21] In a positive review, the NME critic Hannah Mylrea compared her vocals to those from Amy Winehouse and other jazz singers.[22] The performance was included on Raye's live album My 21st Century Symphony (Live at the Royal Albert Hall) (2023).[23] Raye performed "Oscar Winning Tears" at the 2024 MTV Europe Music Awards on 10 November 2024, alongside "Escapism" and "Body Dysmorphia" with a choir and an orchestra. It was met with a positive reception from the public.[24] She also sang it as part of her appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show.[25]
On 2 February 2025, Raye performed the song at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards, where she was nominated in three categories including Best New Artist; she contributed to a series of performances from nominees of that category.[26] Raye wore a black dress and was accompanied with an orchestra and a backing choir.[27] Cerys Davies from Los Angeles Times believed that Raye hit "each of the high notes with ease",[27] while Heran Mamo from Billboard praised her vocals as "jaw-dropping" and wrote that it received a standing ovation.[28] The staff of Clash named it one of the best performances of the ceremony and said that it was "all technical excellence and shattering emotional impact".[29]American Songwriter's Thom Donovan described it as a standout at the ceremony and believed that, although Raye did not win the category, it "felt like one of those moments when someone becomes a legend".[15]
Personnel
The credits shown below are adapted from Apple Music.[8]
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