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THE OSCAR-GRAMMY CLUB: 32 MUSICIANS WHO ARE HALF-WAY TO EGOT

Written by Jessica Letkemann / February 27, 2017

Only 17 people have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and a Tony, the holy quad-fecta known as an EGOT (and its only 17 if you count the people with honorary awards). On Sunday at the 2017 Academy Awards, Justin Timberlake might add an Oscar for Best Original Song to his collection of Grammys and Emmys, unless the unstoppable Lin-Manuel Miranda nabs the award, which would launch him into the EGOT fam.

But did you know that with both Grammys and Oscars in their trophy cases, these iconic musicians are already half-way (or closer!) to the EGOT? Scroll all the way down to meet the almost-EGOTs — folks who are only missing one award.

Adele

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Skyfall,” the title song from the 2012 James Bond film
Grammy wins: 15 including Best New Artist in 2009, Song of the Year in 2012 for “Rolling in the Deep” and Album of the Year for both 21 and 25.

The Beatles

Oscar win: Best Original Song Score for Let It Be in 1971
Grammy wins: 8 Grammys, including Best New Artist in 1965 and Album of the Year for 1967’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. The Fab Four also have a bunch of Grammys Hall of Fame and other special Grammys.

David Byrne

Oscar win: Best Original Score for 1987’s The Last Emperor
Grammy win: Best Album of Original Instrumental Background Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television for the score to The Last Emperor. Surprisingly, Byrne never won a Grammy as a member of Talking Heads.

Phil Collins

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “You’ll Be in My Heart” from 1999’s Tarzan
Grammy wins: 8 including Best Soundtrack album for Tarzan, and Best Concept Music Video in 1988 for “Land of Confusion” as member of Genesis.

Common

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Glory” from the 2014 movie Selma (with John Legend)
Grammy wins: 3 Grammys, including Best R&B Song for “Love of My Life” (with Erykah Badu).

Christopher Cross

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)” from the 1981 film Arthur
Grammy wins: 5 Grammys, including Best New Artist, Album of the Year (for 1979’s Christopher Cross), and Song of the Year for “Sailing.” 

Bob Dylan

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Things Have Changed” from 2000’s Wonder Boys
Grammy wins: 11 Grammys, including Album of the Year in 1973 for The Concert for Bangladesh and again in 1998 for Time Out of Mind, plus a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1992.

Eminem

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Lose Yourself” from 2002’s 8 Mile
Grammy wins: 15, including 6 awards for Best Rap Album (!)

Melissa Etheridge

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “I Need to Wake Up” from 2006’s An Inconvenient Truth
Grammy wins: 2 - Best Female Rock Vocal Performance in 1993 (“Ain’t It Heavy”) and 1995 (“Come To My Window”)

Jamie Foxx

Oscar win: Best Actor for 2004’s Ray
Grammy win: Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group for “Blame It” in 2010

Isaac Hayes

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Theme From ‘Shaft’” in 1972
Grammy wins: 3 Grammys, including two for “Theme From ‘Shaft,’” plus a 1999 Grammy Hall of Fame Award also for “Shaft”

Jennifer Hudson

Oscar win: Best Supporting Actress for Dreamgirls in 2007
Grammy wins: 2 - Best R&B Album for her self-titled release in 2009 and Best Musical Theater Album for The Color Purple in 2017

John Legend

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Glory” from the 2014 movie Selma (with Common)
Grammy wins: 10 Grammys, including Best New Artist in 2006 and Best R&B album for 2010’s Wake Up with The Roots.

Annie Lennox

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Into the West” from 2003’s The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Grammy wins:4 including Best Music Film for Diva in 1993 and Best Song Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special for “Into the West,” and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group in 1987 for “Missionary Man” as a member of Eurythmics.

Johnny Mandel

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “The Shadow of Your Smile” from 1965’s The Sandpiper
Grammy wins: 5 including Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special for The Sandpiper  

Giorgio Moroder

Oscar wins: 3 including Best Original Song in 1984 (for “Flashdance… What a Feeling”) and in 1987 (“Take My Breath Away” from Top Gun)
Grammy wins: 4 including Album of the year in 2014 for his work on Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories 

Prince

Oscar win: Best Original Song Score for 1984’s Purple Rain.
Grammy wins: 7, including Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television for Purple Rain and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for 2004’s “Musicology;” plus a Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2008 for 1999.

A. R. Rahman

Oscar wins: 2 - Best Original Score for 2008’s Slumdog Millionaire and Best Original Song for that film’s tune “Jai Ho”
Grammy wins: 2 - Best Song Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special for “Jai Ho” and Best Compilation Soundtrack for Slumdog Millionaire

Trent Reznor

Oscar win: Best Original Score for 2010’s The Social Network
Grammy Wins: 1 Grammy under his own name for the Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo score in 2013; 2 Grammys for Nine Inch Nails (Best Metal Performance in 1993 for “Wish” and in 1996 for the live version of “Happiness in Slavery” performed at Woodstock ’94)

Lionel Richie

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Say You, Say Me” from 1985’s White Nights
Grammy wins: 4 - including Album of the Year for Can’t Slow Down in 1985 and Song of the Year for “We Are The World” in 1986. Richie also won the Grammys’ special Person of the Year honor in 2015.

Carly Simon

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Let the River Run” from 1988’s Working Girl
Grammy wins: 2 - Best New Artist in 1972 and Best Song Written for a Motion Picture or Television for “Let the River Run,” plus a Grammy Hall of Fame Award for “You’re So Vain”

Frank Sinatra

Oscar win: Best Supporting Actor for 1954's From Here to Eternity plus two special honors: an honorary award for 1945’s The House I Live In and a Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1971
Grammy wins: 9 Grammys (including back-to-back Album of the Year trophies for September of My Years in 1966 and A Man and His Music in 1967), plus a raft of Grammy Hall of Fame awards

Sam Smith 

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Writing’s on the Wall” from the 2015 James Bond film, Spectre
Grammy wins: 4 Grammys -  Best New Artist, Best Pop Vocal Album (for In The Lonely Hour) and Song of the Year and Record of the Year (for “Stay With Me”)

Bruce Springsteen

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Streets of Philadelphia” from 1993’s Philadelphia
Grammys wins: 20 - including Best Rock song for “The Rising” in 2002 and Song of the Year for “Streets of Philadelphia”

Barbra Streisand

Oscar wins: 2 Oscars - Best Actress for Funny Girl in 1969 and Best Original Song for “Evergreen” from 1976’s A Star Is Born. Amazingly, Streisand’s win for “Evergreen” made her the first woman to win an Oscar for writing music. 
Grammy wins: 8, including Album of the Year in 1964 for The Barbra Streisand Album and Song of the Year for “Evergreen.” She also has several Grammy Hall of Fame and other special Grammy honors. 

Stevie Wonder

Oscar win: Best Original Song for “I Just Called to Say I Love You” from 1984’s The Woman In Red
Grammy wins: 25 Grammys including Album of the Year for 1973’s Innervisions, 1974’s Fulfillingness’ First Finale, and 1976’s Songs In The Key of Life 

Almost EGOT

The music legends below only need one more award to nab the EGOT. 

Julie Andrews

Only needs: Tony
Oscar win: Best Actress for Mary Poppins in 1965
Grammy wins: 2 including Best Album for Children for Mary Poppins, plus four Grammy Hall of Fame Awards and a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Emmy wins: 2 including Outstanding Variety Program in 1973 for “The Julie Andrews Hour” 

Cher

Only Needs: Tony
Oscar win: Best Actress for 1987’s Moonstruck
Grammy win: Best Dance Recording for “Believe” in 2000, plus a Grammy Hall of Fame Award
Emmy win: Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special for “Cher: The Farewell Tour” in 2003

Elton John

Only Needs: Emmy
Oscar win: Best Original Song for “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” from 1994’s The Lion King
Grammy wins: 5 including Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for “Candle in the Wind ’97” plus 3 Grammy Hall of Fame Awards. 
Tony win: Best Original Score for Aida in 2000

Cyndi Lauper 

Only Needs: Oscar
Grammy wins: 2 - Best Musical Theater Album for Kinky Boots in 2014 and Best New Artist in 1985
Tony win: Best Original Score for Kinky Boots
Emmy win: Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her spot on NBC’s “Mad About You” in 1995

Lin-Manuel Miranda

Only Needs: Oscar
Grammy wins: 2 - Best Musical Theater Album for In The Heights (2009) and Hamilton (2016)
Tony wins: 3 - Best Original Score for both In The Heights and Hamilton, plus Best Book of a Musical for Hamilton 
Emmy win: Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics for his song “Bigger” from the 2013 Tony Awards broadcast

Randy Newman

Only Needs: Tony
Oscar wins: 2 - Best Original Song for “If I Didn’t Have You” from 2001’s Monsters, Inc., and also for “We Belong Together” from 2010’s Toy Story 3
Grammy wins: 6 - including Best Score Soundtrack for Toy Story 3 in 2011
Emmy wins: 3 including Outstanding Main Title Theme Music for the series "Monk" in 2004

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