Watch: Here’s the host-less Oscars opening musical number
Queen put on a killer performance to kick-start the Academy Awards.
On Sunday night, the first host-less Oscars ceremony in 30 years opened with a rousing performance from iconic rock band Queen.
With founding members Brian May and Roger Taylor on guitar and drums, respectively, and singer Adam Lambert, who has performed with the band since 2011, providing vocals, the band played shortened versions of “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions.” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the Queen biopic told through the life of irrepressible frontman Freddie Mercury (Rami Malek), is nominated for five Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Malek.
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👞👞 👏@QueenWillRock + @adamlambert ROCKED this #Oscars opening! https://t.co/2g1QattacB— ABC (@ABCNetwork) February 25, 2019
The last time the Oscars went without a host, in 1989, the opening of the show was widely regarded as an interminable disaster, punctuated by an unsettling duet between Rob Lowe and Snow White.
This time, the Academy played it safe with a crowd-pleasing performance.
Lambert, whose career exploded after a second-place finish on the eighth season of “American Idol,” teased the performance on the red carpet beforehand with “E! Live from the Red Carpet” host and “Idol” host Ryan Seacrest.
“I am so honored to be here,” Lambert told Seacrest. “It’s surreal. I’ve lived in Los Angeles for 17 years, and to open the Oscars? I never would have dreamed this was possible.”
