Billie Eilish is the new Christopher Cross again. The singer, along with her brother and collaborator Finneas, won the Best Original Song Oscar on Sunday for the penning the title track to “No Time to Die,” and with that, Eilish has once again duplicated Cross’ unique resume: They are the only people who have achieved Grammy single-night sweep of the general four categories and to have won the Best Original Song Oscar.
Cross ruled the early ’80s, winning the Big Four Grammy categories — Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist — in 1981 for his eponymous debut album and his signature tune “Sailing.” Later that year, he earned another Billboard No. 1 with “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)”, the title track from “Arthur.” Cross won the Best Original Song Oscar in March 1982, shared with co-writers Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager and Peter Allen.
Eilish joined Cross in the Grammy history books in January 2020 when she swept the Big Four in the same night for her her studio debut “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” (at 18, she became the youngest Album of the Year winner), and her hit “Bad Guy,” which won Record of the Year and Song of the Year. She was the youngest Best New Artist champ since then-14-year-old LeAnn Rimes, who prevailed in 1997.
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Eilish does have one leg up on Cross though: a corresponding Grammy win for her Oscar-winning song. Even though the film “No Time to Die” was delayed for more than a year until September 2021, the song was released in February 2020 (timed to the movie’s original April 2020 release), making it eligible for the Grammys in March 2021, where it nabbed Best Song Written for Visual Media. Yes, “No Time to Die” won a Grammy six months before the movie from which it hails hit theaters. The Best Song Written for Visual Media category wasn’t created until 1988, so Cross never had the opportunity to win it for “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)”.
Even before the film’s delay, “No Time to Die” was long earmarked as an Oscar frontrunner, a status it never relinquished this season. It also lucked out that “Encanto’s” unexpected smash “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” was not submitted by Disney.” “No Time to Die” beat “Dos Oruguitas” from “Encanto,” denying Lin-Manuel Miranda the EGOT, Beyonce‘s “Be Alive” from “King Richard,” Van Morrison‘s “Down to Joy” from “Belfast,” and “Somehow You Do,” written by 13-time nominee Diane Warren, from “Four Good Days.”
“No Time to Die” is also now thee third straight Bond theme to claim the Oscar. Adele‘s “Skyfall” from the 2012 film of the same name was the first Bond track ever to triumph and Sam Smith‘s “Writing’s on the Wall” from 2015’s “Spectre” was a surprising win. And before you ask, Adele has also claimed the Big Four Grammy categories in her career — but she didn’t do it in the same night like Cross and Eilish.
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