Lisa's big Hollywood push and other singers at the Oscars

The Academy Awards chose to do something different this year.

- BABY A. GIL

Now, on its 97th outing, the annual event chose to do away with having the Best Song Nominees perform during the show. I do not know if this was something unprecedented, but it has certainly not been done in recent times.

That was not a bad practice at all, especially when you consider the fact that there might be star-driven hit songs among the nominees that could add up to great musical numbers. Think "Shallow" by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper from "A Star is Born," or "Let It Go" by Idina Menzel from "Frozen," or even "Evergreen" by Barbra Streisand from an earlier "A Star is Born."

While this year's choices do include "Never Too Late," a song by the eternal hitmaker Elton John from his documentary film of the same title, the others were not exactly in the "Shallow" or "Frozen" territories. "El Mal" from "Emilia Perez"; "The Journey" from "The Six Triple Eight"; "Like a Bird" from "Sing Sing"; and "Mi Camino," also from "Emilia Perez." It was "El Mal" which won the Oscar.