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Two voices. One legendary song. A night the world will never forget – At the 97th Academy Awards, Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo took the stage and delivered one of the most breathtaking performances in Oscar history. With raw power and unshakable grace, they brought Defying Gravity to life in a way that left the audience spellbound. As Cynthia’s commanding vocals soared through the theater, Ariana stood by her side, eyes glistening with pride, sealing the moment with a tender kiss on Cynthia’s hand—just like Glinda and Elphaba, united in destiny. The energy, the emotion, the sheer talent—this was more than a performance, it was a statement. They may have lost their nominations, but they won the world, proving once again why they are destined for greatness.

Erivo and Grande earned a standing ovation for their powerful and emotional performance

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande defied gravity with their Oscars 2025 performance.

The stars of Wicked brought their powerhouse voices together to sing a trio of songs from various Wizard of Oz projects, including one tune from their hit 2024 film.

Grande kicked off the show in a sparkly red dress with matching heels — which channeled Dorothy’s iconic red ruby slippers from the original 1939 film — as she sang Judy Garland’s “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”

WATCH THE PERFORMANCE BELOW 👇

Erivo followed up with the ballad “Home,” from the 1975 Broadway musical The Wiz. She wore a strapless white gown with purple flowers — which appeared to take inspiration from Diana Ross’ Dorothy in the 1978 film version. Her dress notably also included a nod to her character Wicked character Elphaba as it transitioned to green at the bottom.

Ariana Grande performs onstage during the 97th Annual Oscars at Dolby Theatre on March 02, 2025 in Hollywood, California.
Ariana Grande performs onstage during the 97th Annual Oscars at Dolby Theatre on March 02, 2025 in Hollywood, California.Kevin Winter/Getty
A Look Back at Cynthia Erivo’s Wickedly Tough Training in Order to Soar and Sing for the Blockbuster Film

The pair held hands as they concluded their performance with a duet of “Defying Gravity” from their film Wicked, which is nominated for 10 Oscars. As the song continued, Grande stopped singing and moved slightly off to the side while Erivo took center stage to belt out the impossibly high closing notes of the song.

Those gathered at Hollywood’s Dolby Theater gave the duo a standing ovation. The camera also panned to show Wicked director Jon M. Chu and costar Michelle Yeoh — who wiped away tears — as they applauded the pair.

The Wicked costars’ performance is one of several musical moments throughout the night. Other performers scheduled to take the stage include Doja Cat, Lisa of BLACKPINK and Raye.

Cynthia Erivo performs onstage during the 97th Annual Oscars at Dolby Theatre on March 02, 2025 in Hollywood, California
Cynthia Erivo performs onstage during the 97th Annual Oscars at Dolby Theatre on March 02, 2025 in Hollywood, California.Kevin Winter/GettyThe Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences previously confirmed that Grande and Erivo would take the stage for a “spellbinding” performance at the Academy Awards in a social media post shared on their official page on Feb. 24.

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