Diane Warren loses Oscar for 17th time: Here’s how her nomination for ‘Dear Me’ ended in another Best Original Song loss

Songwriter Diane Warren’s long wait for a competitive Oscar continues after the veteran hitmaker lost the Best Original Song award at the 2026 Academy Awards, extending a record she would likely rather not hold. Warren was nominated for the 17th time for the song “Dear Me,” featured in the documentary Diane Warren: Relentless and performed by Kesha. Despite being one of the most prolific and respected songwriters in Hollywood, Warren has yet to win a competitive Academy Award.




At the 98th Academy Awards, Warren’s nominated track “Dear Me” lost the Best Original Song award to “Golden,” from the animated film KPop Demon Hunters. The winning song was written by Yuhan, EJAE, ZHUN, Mark Sonnenblick, NHD and 24. With the result, Warren extended her record as the most-nominated individual in Oscar history without a competitive win in the category.

The nomination was for the documentary Diane Warren: Relentless, which focuses on the songwriter’s decades-long career in the music industry. The song “Dear Me” was performed by Kesha in the film. Despite the high-profile nomination, the track was not performed live at the ceremony after the Academy decided that only two of the nominated songs would be performed at the event this year.




Although Warren has never won a competitive Oscar, she has received recognition from the Academy before. In 2022, she was presented with an honorary Academy Award acknowledging her contributions to film music and songwriting. The honorary statuette recognised her decades of work creating songs for numerous films and artists.

Even with the honorary recognition, Warren’s nominations continue to highlight the unusual nature of her Oscars record. The songwriter has been nominated 17 times in the Best Original Song category across multiple decades, making her one of the most frequently recognised composers in the category.




Before Warren set the record, the distinction for most nominations without a win was linked to sound mixer Greg P. Russell, who had received 17 nominations. However, one of Russell’s nominations — for the 2016 film 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi — was later rescinded by the Academy after it emerged that he had contacted voters during the nomination period. As a result, he officially has 16 nominations. With the 2026 ceremony concluded, Warren’s record now stands at 17 nominations without a competitive win, extending one of the most unusual streaks in Oscars history.