Elton John and Brandi Carlile on Oscar -Nominated Song ‘Never Too Late’

“For me it never gets old.”

Elton John may have armful awards and acclaims – he even secured Egot status by winning an Emmy in January 2024 – but he insists that he is never beaten when it comes to the Oscar awards. The living legend who already owns two best original sang Oscars, snagged another nomination in the category for his work with Brandi Carlile, Bernie Taupin and Andrew Watt on “Never too late.”

“It’s always an extreme honor to be nominated in the last five songs,” John told The Hollywood reporter Under one THR gifts Questions and answers driven by Vision Media while sitting with his partner and close friend Carlile. “And I am so excited about (co-authors) Brandi and for Andrew Watt-de has never been on the Oscars-fordi it is a wonderful occasion.”

The track comes from the Disney+ documentary with the same name directed by RJ Cutler and David Møbler, who examines the living playful life of all angles, from humble beginning to a meteoric increase to the highest heights of the music industry in the midst of heartbreaking low and dependence on becoming a icon. Throughout it all, John looks back at his life and 50-year-old career as he prepares for a last bow with his last North American concert ever at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Watching the song among the Oscar-nominated songs has left Carlile “stunned and almost speechless”, but the 11th time Grammy Award winner found words to share why the creative experience and a newfounded bond with John means so much. As the story goes, Carlile caught an early cut of the documentary and was so moved by it that she put pen into paper.

“Elton has been my ever since I was 11,” she said during the conversation. “Seeing all these archive recordings for a girl who didn’t have an empty bedroom wall that wasn’t covered with an Elton John poster was pretty incredible for me to see. It landed on me in a really beautiful way. Getting to enjoy this course from turmoil, a lot of success, but a lot of turmoil, a lot of loneliness for his last day’s Serenity, which Elton now has as a man and a father. I went away really inspired and I would chronologically document it musically. It’s the first lyrics I’ve ever written to Elton. “

Apart from being “an Elton John Super -Fan” who resonates most from his journey was the reminder of what a trailblazer he is. “As a gay person married to a woman with children, so the way Elton and David have paved the way for all of us,” Carlile explained. “Not many people know this, but actually the first gay couple I have ever seen in my life on TV were Elton John and David Furnish. I remember I felt so hopeful about it as a young person, and just that there is any way I am involved in documenting that now as an adult is so surreal. ”

Carlile also loved to witness John in moments of self -reflection, a rarity for a man who has long kept gazing the future rather than the past. “He’s so forward. He really doesn’t like to take compliments or listen to people talking nicely about him, ”she said with a smile and later offered one of his own. “It can hardly be overestimated how masterful it is to watch him write a song. It happens like lightning. It’s so fast and it’s incredible. “

But John is happy to toast them. When asked what it was like to receive the lyrics from Carlile, John said her words so perfectly reflected all that is happening in the movie. He was then inspired to dig in, write some lyrics and come up with the tune. “I was excited and I found it very easy to write the tune because it was such a great lyric and we also had a lot of help from Andrew and Bernie. Putting their thoughts throughout this thing has been a true collaboration. ”

John revealed that the documentary originally should the title Goodbye yellow brick road (After the trip with the same name), but once they received Carliles song, they matched the song and the DOC titles. “She changed everything,” John said. “I felt really happy after I (recorded it), this song spices exactly what the movie is about.”

And of course, what his life is also about. “I don’t often look at myself and I don’t reflect, but this was a good moment to reflect on what happened,” said John, whose collaboration with Carlile also produced a new album, Who believe in angelsDue to release April 4th. “To get to a point of incredible happiness, look back and say, ‘I did.’ In the lyrics it says, ‘You are an Iron Man, baby.’ I have been through so many things in my life and I have picked me up again and I have arrived again.

This edition of THR gifts is sponsored by Disney.