Hours before The Slap Heard Round the World, one of the stranger parts of the 94th Academy Awards early on was the song choice during introductions for presenters. None of them seemed to make any sense, especially since they seemed completely unrelated to the stars and winners. The one that really rose some eyebrows came when Toto’s “Africa” played while Judas and the Black Messiah star Daniel Kaluuya and musician H.E.R. walked on stage to present the Best Supporting Actress Oscar.
The “Africa” moment was just a preview of several other strange song choices. For some reason, Madonna’s “La Isla Bonita” played while Stephanie Beatriz came out to introduce Sebastian Yatra’s performance of “Dos Oruguitas” from Encanto. The Bee Gees’ “Inside Out” played when Halle Bailey, Lily James and Naomi Scott came out to present the Best Animated Feature Oscar.
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“It is a choice to bring out Daniel Kaluuya to the tune of Toto’s ‘Africa,’ just like it is a choice to bring out Stephanie Beatriz to Madonna’s ‘La Isla Bonita,’” one fan wrote about the song choice. “Why did they play ‘Africa’ by Toto when Daniel Kaluuya and H.E.R. walked out lmao,” another commented. “I hope to god that Daniel Kaluuya and HER chose to walk out to Africa by Toto otherwise that is the cringiest thing in the world,” another wondered. “‘Africa’ by Toto…feels racial,” another suggested. “And the Oscar for ‘Absolute Worst Time to Play ‘Africa’ by Toto’ goes to… THE OSCARS,” one fan wrote. “They just had Daniel Kaluuya walk out to Africa by Toto if you’re wondering how these Oscars are going,” someone else wrote.
Last year, Kaluuya won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor thanks to his performance in Judas and the Black Messiah. He played Black Panther leader Fred Hampton in the movie, which was also nominated Best Picture. H.E.R., Dernst Emile II, and Tiara Thomas also won Best Original Song for “Fight For You.”
Kaluuya and H.E.R. presented the Best Supporting Actress Oscar to Ariana DeBose, who played Anita in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story. DeBose’s win was historic, as she is the first openly queer woman of color and the first Afro-Latina actress to win. Later in the show, CODA star Troy Kotsur won Best Supporting Actor.
